|
Date |
Event(s) |
1 | 1907 | - 1907—1907:
New Zealand becomes a Dominion
- 1907—1907:
Imperial College, London, is established
- 1907—1907:
First airship flies over London
- 1907—1907:
Lumiere develops a process for colour photography
- 1907—1907:
SA - Asiatic Registration Act passed in Transvaal, Indians oppose it.
- Jul 1907—Jul 1907:
Leo Hendrik Baekeland patents Bakelite, the first plastic invented that held its
shape after being heated
- 1 Aug 1907—1 Aug 1907:
Baden-Powell leads the first Scout camp on Brownsea Island
- 9 Nov 1907—9 Nov 1907:
The Cullinan Diamond presented to Edward VII on his birthday
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2 | 1908 | - 1908—1908:
Coal Mines Regulation Act in Britain limits men to an eight hour day
- 1908—1908:
Separate courts for juveniles established in Britain
- 1908—1908:
Lord Baden-Powell starts the Boy Scout movement
- 1908—1908:
SA - Second Asiatic Registration Act passed in Transvaal, beginning of passive resistance campaigns.
- 1 Jul 1908—1 Jul 1908:
SOS became effective as an international signal of distress
- 12 Aug 1908—12 Aug 1908:
First 'Model T' Ford made
|
3 | 1909 | - 1909—1909:
Beveridge Report prompts creation of labour Exchanges
- 1909—1909:
Peary reaches the north pole
- 1909—1909:
First commercial manufacture of Bakelite - start of the plastic age
- 1909—1909:
SA - S.S. Waratah lost between Durban and Cape Town.
- 1 Jan 1909—1 Jan 1909:
Old Age Pensions Act came into force
- 16 Jan 1909—16 Jan 1909:
Ernest Shackleton's expedition finds the magnetic South Pole
- 15 Mar 1909—15 Mar 1909:
Selfridges department store opens in London
- 25 Jul 1909—25 Jul 1909:
Bleriot flies across the Channel (36 minutes, Calais to Dover)
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4 | 1910 | - 1910—1910:
Railway strike and coal strikes in Britain
- 1910—1910:
Constitutional crisis in Britain
- 1910—1910:
Dr Crippen caught by radio telegraphy; hanged 23 Nov at Pentonville
- 1910—1910:
Madame Curie isolates radium
- 1910—1910:
Halley's comet reappears
- 1910—1910:
Tango becomes popular in North America and Europe
- 1910—1910:
SA - Laying of foundation stone of Union Buildings in Pretoria.
- 1910—1910:
SA - Union of South Africa established
- 6 May 1910—6 May 1910:
Edward VII dies - George V becomes King
- 31 May 1910—1910:
SA - Union of South Africa established by joining the British colonies and the Boer republics
|
5 | 1911 | - 1911—1911:
Parliament Act in Britain reduces the power of the House of Lords
- 1911—1911:
British MPs receive a salary
- 1911—1911:
First British Official Secrets Act
- 1911—1911:
Rutherford: theory of atomic structures
- 1911—1911:
Strikes by seamen, dock and transport workers (1911-1912)
- 2 Apr 1911—2 Apr 1911:
Census: Population - England and Wales: 36 Million; Scotland: 4.6 Million; N Ireland: 1.25 Million
- 17 May 1911—1911:
SA - Census of population taken.
- 22 Jun 1911—22 Jun 1911:
Coronation of George V
- 14 Dec 1911—14 Dec 1911:
National Insurance introduced in Britain
|
6 | 1912 | - 1912—1912:
Irish Home Rule crisis grows in Britain
- 1912—1912:
Britain nationalises the telephone system
- 1912—1912:
Discovery of the 'Piltdown Man' - hoax, exposed in 1953
- 1912—1912:
The Titanic sinks
- 18 Jan 1912—18 Jan 1912:
Captain Scott's last expedition - he and his team reach the south pole on Jan
18th; all die on the way back, their bodies found in November
- 14 Apr 1912—14 Apr 1912:
The 'unsinkable' Titanic sinks on maiden voyage - loss of 1,513 lives
- 13 May 1912—13 May 1912:
Royal Flying Corps (later the RAF) founded in Britain
|
7 | 1913 | - 1913—1913:
Third Irish Home Rule Bill rejected by House of Lords - threat of civil war in Ireland -
formation of Ulster Volunteers to oppose Home Rule
- 1913—1913:
Suffragette demonstrations in London - Mrs Pankhurst imprisoned
- 1913—1913:
Trade Union Act in Britain establishes the right to use Union funds for political
purposes
- 1913—1913:
Invention of stainless steel by Harry Brearley of Sheffield
- 1913—1913:
Geiger invents his counter to measure radioactivity
- 1913—1913:
SA - Miners' strikes and riots on Witwatersrand. Indian riots in Natal. March of Natal Indians into Transvaal. Natives Land Act restricts black ownership of land.
- 4 Jun 1913—4 Jun 1913:
Emily Davison, a suffragette, runs out in front of the king's horse, Anmer, at the
Epsom Derby and dies
|
8 | 1914 | - 1914—1914:
Irish Home Rule Act provides for a separate Parliament in Ireland; the position of Ulster
to be decided after the War
- 1914—1914:
Chaplin and De Mille make their first films
- 28 Jun 1914—28 Jun 1914:
Archduke Ferdinand assassinated in Sarajevo
- 4 Aug 1914—4 Aug 1914:
Britain declares war on Germany, citing Belgian neutrality as reason
- 5 Aug 1914—5 Aug 1914:
British cableship Telconia cut through all five of Germany's undersea telegraph
links to the outside world
- 15 Aug 1914—15 Aug 1914:
Panama Canal opened, the Canal cement boat 'Ancon' making the first official
transit (plans for a grand opening were cancelled due to the start of WW1)
- Oct 1914—Oct 1914:
Battle of Ypres - beginning of trench warfare on western front
- 27 Nov 1914—27 Nov 1914:
First policewoman goes on duty in Britain
- 16 Dec 1914—16 Dec 1914:
German battleships bombard Hartlepool and Scarborough
|
9 | 1915 | - 1915—1915:
Junkers construct first fighter aeroplane
- 1915—1915:
First automatic telephone exchange in Britain
- 1915—1915:
SA - Afrikaans becomes the second official language, after English. South West Africa and South Africa linked by railway line.
- 19 Jan 1915—19 Jan 1915:
First Zeppelin air raid on England, over East Anglia - four killed
- Feb 1915—Feb 1915:
Submarine blockade of Britain starts
- Apr 1915—Apr 1915:
Second Battle of Ypres - poison gas used for first time
- 25 Apr 1915—25 Apr 1915:
Gallipoli campaign starts (declared ANZAC Day in 1916)
- 7 May 1915—7 May 1915:
RMS Lusitania sunk by German submarine off coast of Ireland - 1,198 died
- 16 May 1915—16 May 1915:
First meeting of a British WI (Women's Institute) took place in Llanfairpwll
(aka Llanfair PG), Anglesey
|
10 | 1916 | - 1916—1916:
Compulsory military service introduced in Britain
- Feb 1916—Feb 1916:
Battle of Verdun - appalling losses on both sides, stalemate continues
- 24 Apr 1916—24 Apr 1916:
Easter Rising in Ireland - after the leaders are executed, public opinion backs
independence
- 21 May 1916—21 May 1916:
First use of Daylight Saving Time in UK
- 31 May 1916—31 May 1916:
Battle of Jutland - only major naval battle between the British and
German fleets
- 5 Jun 1916—5 Jun 1916:
Sinking of HMS Hampshire and death of Kitchener
- 3 Aug 1916—3 Aug 1916:
Sir Roger Casement hanged at Pentonville Prison for treason
- 15 Sep 1916—15 Sep 1916:
First use of tanks in battle, but of limited effect (Battle of the Somme 1 July to 18 Nov: over 1 million casualties)
- 7 Dec 1916—7 Dec 1916:
Lloyd-George becomes British Prime Minister of the coalition government
|
11 | 1917 | - 1917—1917:
Battle of Cambrai - first use of massed tanks, but effect more psychological than actual
- 1917—1917:
Ministry of Labour is established in Britain
- Feb 1917—Feb 1917:
February revolution in Russia; Tsar Nicholas abdicates
- 16 Apr 1917—16 Apr 1917:
Lenin returns to Russia after exile
- 17 Apr 1917—17 Apr 1917:
USA declares war on Germany
- 26 May 1917—26 May 1917:
George V changes surname from Saxe-Coburg-Gotha to Windsor (Royal
proclamation on 17 July)
- Jul 1917—Jul 1917:
Battle of Passchendaele - little gained by either side (Jul-Nov)
- 7 Nov 1917—7 Nov 1917:
'October' Revolution in Russia - Bolsheviks overthrow provisional government;
Lenin becomes Chief Commissar
- 6 Dec 1917—6 Dec 1917:
Halifax (Nova Scotia) Explosion, one of the world's largest artificial non-nuclear
explosions to date: a ship loaded with wartime explosives blew up after a collision,
obliterating buildings and structures within two square kilometres of the explosion
- 9 Dec 1917—9 Dec 1917:
British forces capture Jerusalem
|
12 | 1918 | - 1918—1918:
Vote for women over 30, men over 21 (except peers, lunatics and felons)
- 1918—1918:
War of Independence in Ireland
- 1918—1918:
SA - Influenza epidemic with pneumonia.
- 18 Jan 1918—18 Jan 1918:
Bentley Motors founded
- 8 Mar 1918—8 Mar 1918:
Start of world-wide 'flu pandemic
- Jul 1918—Jul 1918:
Second Battle of the Marne: last major German offensive in WW1 (Jul-Aug)
- 1 Oct 1918—1 Oct 1918:
Arab forces under Lawrence of Arabia capture Damascus
- 11 Nov 1918—11 Nov 1918:
Armistice signed
- Dec 1918—Dec 1918:
First woman elected to House of Commons, Countess Markiewicz as a Sinn Fein
member refused to take her seat
|
13 | 1919 | - 1919—1919:
Britain adopts a 48-hour working week
- 1919—1919:
Sir Ernest Rutherford publishes account of splitting the atom
- 15 Jun 1919—15 Jun 1919:
Alcock and Brown complete first nonstop flight across the Atlantic
- 28 Jun 1919—28 Jun 1919:
Treaty of Versailles signed
|
14 | 1920 | - 1920—1920:
Regular cross-channel air service starts
- 1920—1920:
Marconi opens a radio broadcasting station in Britain
- 1920—1920:
Thompson patents his machine gun (Tommy gun)
- Feb 1920—Feb 1920:
First roadside petrol filling station in UK - opened by the Automobile Association
at Aldermaston on the Bath Road
|
15 | 1921 | - 1921—1921:
Railway Act in Britain amalgamates companies - only four remained
- 1921—1921:
Insulin discovery announced
- 1921—1921:
First birth control clinic
- 1921—1921:
SA - Diamond mines closed down in Kimberley, economic depression.
- 19 Jun 1921—19 Jun 1921:
Census: Population - England and Wales: 37.9 Million; Scotland: 4.9 Million; N Ireland: 1.25 Million
- 6 Dec 1921—6 Dec 1921:
Anglo-Irish Treaty signed in London, leading to the formation of the Irish Free
State and Northern Ireland
|
16 | 1922 | - 1922—1922:
Law of Property Act - the manorial system effectively ended
- 1 Jun 1922—1 Jun 1922:
Royal Ulster Constabulary founded
- Oct 1922—Oct 1922:
BBC established as a monopoly, and begins transmissions in November (2LO in
London on 14 Nov; 5IT in Birmingham and 2ZY in Manchester on 15 Nov)
- 4 Oct 1922—1922:
SA - Inauguration of Witwatersrand University.
|
17 | 1923 | - 1923—1923:
Roads in Great Britain classified with A and B numbers
- 1923—1923:
Hubble shows there are galaxies beyond the Milky Way
- 1923—1923:
First American broadcasts heard in Britain
- 1923—1923:
SA - Platinum discovered in Waterberg district of Transvaal.
- 1 Jan 1923—1 Jan 1923:
The majority of the railway companies in Great Britain grouped into four main
companies, the Big Four: LNER, GWR, SR, LMSR - lasted until nationalisation in 1948
- 16 Feb 1923—16 Feb 1923:
Howard Carter unsealed the burial chamber of Tutankhamun
- 28 Apr 1923—28 Apr 1923:
First Wembley cup final (West Ham 0, Bolton 2) - 'I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles ' popular song of the time became the West Ham anthem
- 28 Sep 1923—28 Sep 1923:
First publication of Radio Times
|
18 | 1924 | - 4 Jan 1924—4 Jan 1924:
First Labour government in Britain, headed by Ramsay MacDonald
- 5 Feb 1924—5 Feb 1924:
Hourly Greenwich Time Signals from the Royal Greenwich Observatory were
first broadcast by the BBC
- 31 Mar 1924—31 Mar 1924:
British Imperial Airways begins operations (formed by merger of four British
airline companies - became BOAC in 1940)
- 17 Jun 1924—1924:
SA - General elections in South Africa.
|
19 | 1925 | - 1925—1925:
Britain returns to gold standard
- 1925—1925:
SA - South Africa reverts to gold standard. Afrikaans constituted an official language.
- 18 Jul 1925—18 Jul 1925:
Adolf Hitler publishes Mein Kampf
|
20 | 1926 | - 1926—1926:
First public demonstration of television (TV) by John Logie Baird
- 1926—1926:
Adoption of children is legalised in Britain
- 1926—1926:
Kodak produces 16mm movie film
- 1926—1926:
Walt Disney arrives in Hollywood
- 21 Apr 1926—21 Apr 1926:
Princess Elizabeth born
- 3 May 1926—3 May 1926:
General Strike begins. Lasts until May 12 (mine workers for 6 months more)
- 31 Oct 1926—31 Oct 1926:
Death of Harry Houdini
|
21 | 1927 | - 1927—1927:
Release of the first 'talkie' film (The Jazz Singer)
- 7 Jan 1927—7 Jan 1927:
First transatlantic telephone call - New York City to London
- 22 Jan 1927—22 Jan 1927:
First football broadcast by BBC (Arsenal v Sheffield United at Highbury)
- 1 May 1927—1 May 1927:
First cooked meals on a scheduled flight introduced by Imperial Airways from
London to Paris
- 20 May 1927—20 May 1927:
Lindbergh makes solo flight across the Atlantic, in 33? hours
- 31 May 1927—31 May 1927:
Last Ford Model T rolls off assembly line
- 24 Jul 1927—24 Jul 1927:
The Menin Gate war memorial unveiled at Ypres
|
22 | 1928 | - 1928—1928:
Women over 21 get vote in Britain - same qualification for both sexes
- 26 Apr 1928—26 Apr 1928:
Madame Tussauds opens in London
- 15 Sep 1928—15 Sep 1928:
Sir Alexander Fleming accidentally discovers penicillin (results published 1929)
|
23 | 1929 | - 1929—1929:
Abolition of Poor Law system in Britain
- 1929—1929:
Minimum age for a marriage in Britain (which had been 14 for a boy and 12 for a girl)
now 16 for both sexes, with parental consent (or a licence) needed for anyone under 21
- 1929—1929:
BBC begins experimental TV transmissions
|
24 | 1930 | - 1930—1930:
First Nazis elected to the German Reichstag
- 1930—1930:
Youth Hostel Association (YHA) founded in Britain
- 1930—1930:
SA - White women receive the vote.
- 30 Jan 1930—30 Jan 1930:
Hitler becomes chancellor of Germany
- 31 Jan 1930—31 Jan 1930:
3M begins marketing Scotch Tape
- 6 Mar 1930—6 Mar 1930:
Clarence Birdseye first marketed frozen peas
- 5 Oct 1930—5 Oct 1930:
R101 airship disaster - British abandons airship construction
|
25 | 1931 | - 1931—1931:
Statute of Westminster: British Dominions become independent sovereign states
- 1931—1931:
Collapse of the German banking system; 3,000 banks there close
- 14 Apr 1931—14 Apr 1931:
Highway Code first issued
- 26 Apr 1931—26 Apr 1931:
Census: Population - England and Wales; 40 Million; Scotland: 4.8 Million; N Ireland: 1.24 Million (Unfortunately, the census was destroyed by fire in WW2)
- 21 Oct 1931—21 Oct 1931:
National Government formed to deal with economic crisis - Britain comes off
gold standard
|
26 | 1932 | - 1932—1932:
Great Hunger March of unemployed to London
- 1932—1932:
Moseley founds British Union of Fascists
- 1932—1932:
Cockroft and Walton accelerate particles to disintegrate an atomic nucleus
- 1932—1932:
Sir Thomas Beecham established the London Philharmonic Orchestra
- 1932—1932:
SA - Airmail service between South Africa and Britain started in January. Wireless telephone communication established with Britain in February.
- 21 May 1932—21 May 1932:
Amelia Earhart first solo nonstop flight across Atlantic by a female pilot
- 3 Oct 1932—3 Oct 1932:
Iraq gains independence from Britain
- 3 Oct 1932—3 Oct 1932:
'The Times' introduces 'Times New Roman' typeface
|
27 | 1933 | - 1933—1933:
ICI scientists discover polythene
- 1933—1933:
Only 6 pennies minted in Britain this year
- 1933—1933:
SA - South Africa House opened in London. Afrikaans Bible issued.
- 12 Nov 1933—12 Nov 1933:
First known photos of the 'Loch Ness Monster' taken
|
28 | 1934 | - 1934—1934:
Hitler becomes Fuehrer of Germany
- 1934—1934:
SA - Union Airways acquired by government on 01 August 1936. South African Broadcasting Corporation established.
- 18 Jul 1934—18 Jul 1934:
King George V opens Mersey Tunnel
- 26 Sep 1934—26 Sep 1934:
RMS Queen Mary launched
- 30 Nov 1934—30 Nov 1934:
First time a steam locomotive travels at 100 mph ('Flying Scotsman')
|
29 | 1935 | - 1935—1935:
London adopts a 'Green Belt' scheme
- 1935—1935:
Land speed record of 301.13 mph by Malcolm Campbell
- 28 Feb 1935—28 Feb 1935:
Nylon first produced by Gerard J. Berchet of Wallace Carothers' research group
at DuPont (there is no evidence to the widely-supposed story that the name derives from
New York-London)
- 12 Mar 1935—12 Mar 1935:
Hore-Belisha introduces pedestrian crossings and speed limits for built-up areas
in Britain
- 1 Jun 1935—1 Jun 1935:
Voluntary driving tests introduced in UK
- 30 Jul 1935—30 Jul 1935:
Penguin paperbacks launched
|
30 | 1936 | - 1936—1936:
Jet engine first tested
- 20 Jan 1936—20 Jan 1936:
George V dies
- 5 May 1936—5 May 1936:
First flight of a Spitfire
- 24 Jul 1936—24 Jul 1936:
'Speaking clock' service starts in UK
- 2 Nov 1936—2 Nov 1936:
British Broadcasting Corporation initiates the BBC Television Service, world's
first public TV transmission
- 30 Nov 1936—30 Nov 1936:
Crystal Palace destroyed by fire
- 5 Dec 1936—5 Dec 1936:
Edward VIII abdicates (announced Dec 10) - popular carol that Christmas:
'Hark the Herald Angels sing Mrs Simpson's got our King'
|
31 | 1937 | - 1937—1937:
'999' emergency telephone call facility starts in London
- 1937—1937:
Billy Butlin opens his first holiday camp
- 12 Apr 1937—12 Apr 1937:
Frank Whittle ground-tests the first jet engine designed to power an aircraft
- 12 May 1937—12 May 1937:
Coronation of King George VI
- 28 May 1937—28 May 1937:
Neville Chamberlain becomes Prime Minister - policy of appeasement towards
Hitler
- 3 Jun 1937—3 Jun 1937:
Duke of Windsor marries Wallis Simpson
- 4 Dec 1937—4 Dec 1937:
'The Dandy' first published
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