Towards the end of the Victorian period the Horseless carriage (motor car) started appearing on roads.
The very first petrol driven "horseless carriage" appeared in 1865 however, these first cars were rarely seen until the 1880s and 1890s. Only the very wealthy could afford to buy them.
In 1896 the UK's first speeding fine was handed to a Mr Walter Arnold of East Peckham, Kent, who was fined one shilling for speeding at eight miles an hour in a two mile an hour zone in Paddock Wood, in his Karl Benz powered car. Mr Arnold was caught by a policeman who had given chase on his bicycle!
Monday, 26 October 2009
Events during the victorian times
1.Victoria's coronation.2. Victoria married Albert.3. Prince Albert died.4. Victoria became Empress of India.5. Victoria's Golden Jubilee (50 years)6. Victoria's Diamond Jubilee (60 years)7. Victoria died.
Some Technological & Industrial Events 1. 1851 The Great Exhibition was held at Crystal Palace.2. 1858 Brunel's Great Eastern was launched.3. 1860 The first english horse-drawn trams appeared.4. 1869 The Suez Canal was opened.5. 1874 The Factory Act introduced a maximum 10 hour working day and raised the minimum age of child workers.6. 1876 School attendance was made compulsory.7. 1878 Electric street lighting began in London.8. 1879 Swan and Edison independently produced the light bulb.9. 1887 The Coal Minesregulation act passed, boys under 13 were not allowed underground.10. 1888 Dunlop developed the pneumatic tyre & the Kodak box camera appeared.
Important People 1. 1852 Livingstone set off to explore Zambesi.2. 1866 Dr. Barnardo opened his home for waifs.3. 1871 Stanley found Livingstone.4. 1876 Bell's telephone, Edison's phonograph and Bissell's carpet sweeper were invented.Important Wars & Battles 1. 1854 Britain entered the Crimean War. The battles of Alma, Balaclava and Inkerman & the siege of Sebastopol take place.2. 1856 The Crimean War ended with the Treaty of Paris.3. 1857 The Indian Mutiny broke out.4. 1861 The American Civil War began.
Some Technological & Industrial Events 1. 1851 The Great Exhibition was held at Crystal Palace.2. 1858 Brunel's Great Eastern was launched.3. 1860 The first english horse-drawn trams appeared.4. 1869 The Suez Canal was opened.5. 1874 The Factory Act introduced a maximum 10 hour working day and raised the minimum age of child workers.6. 1876 School attendance was made compulsory.7. 1878 Electric street lighting began in London.8. 1879 Swan and Edison independently produced the light bulb.9. 1887 The Coal Minesregulation act passed, boys under 13 were not allowed underground.10. 1888 Dunlop developed the pneumatic tyre & the Kodak box camera appeared.
Important People 1. 1852 Livingstone set off to explore Zambesi.2. 1866 Dr. Barnardo opened his home for waifs.3. 1871 Stanley found Livingstone.4. 1876 Bell's telephone, Edison's phonograph and Bissell's carpet sweeper were invented.Important Wars & Battles 1. 1854 Britain entered the Crimean War. The battles of Alma, Balaclava and Inkerman & the siege of Sebastopol take place.2. 1856 The Crimean War ended with the Treaty of Paris.3. 1857 The Indian Mutiny broke out.4. 1861 The American Civil War began.
Victorian houses
Many people in Victorian times lived in homes without any of the modern comforts we take for granted today. People had to manage without central heating or hot water from the tap – instead they had open fires and heated water on a big cooker called a range.
Most Victorian houses had a fireplace in every room.
This photograph above shows a small iron cast range.
Without vacuum cleaners or washing-machines, looking after the home was very hard work.
Poor Homes
Poor people in Victorian times lived in horrible cramped conditions in run-down houses, often with the whole family in one room.
Many people during the Victorian years moved into the cities and towns to find work in the factories. People crowded into already crowded houses. Rooms were rented to whole families or perhaps several families.
Most poor houses only had one or two rooms downstairs and one or two upstairs. Families would crowd into these rooms, with several in each room and some living in the cellars.
Tin Bath
Poorer families, if they owned a bath at all, put it in front of the kitchen rang. This was the warmest place in the house and very close to hot water. The whole family would wash themselves one after the other, topping up with more water but, probably not emptying the bath until everyone had finished.
These houses had no running water or toilets. Each house would share an outside water pump. The water from the pump was frequently polluted.
water pump
Some streets would have one or two outside toilets for the whole street to share!
Houses were built close together with narrow streets between them and open sewers running down the middle of the streets. Rubbish was tipped into the streets. It was no surprise that few children made it to adulthood.
Rich Homes
Homes for the middle classes and the upper classes were much better. They were better built and were larger. The houses had most of the new gadgets installed, such as flushing toilets, gas lighting, and inside bathrooms.
Wealthy Victorians decorated their homes in the latest styles. There would be heavy curtains, flowery wallpaper, carpets and rugs, ornaments, well made furniture, paintings and plants. The rooms were heated by open coal fires and lighting was provided by candles and oil or gas lamps. Later in the Victorian period, electricity became more widespread and so electric lights were used.
Rich Victorian had water pumps in their kitchens and their rubbish was taken away down into underground sewers.
Most rich people had servants and they would live in the same house. They slept on the top floor of the house or in the attic. The servant rooms were often cold in the winter and stuffy in the summer.
Girls as young as twelve worked as maids . They were clothed, fed, and given a roof over their heads in return for a wage – a maid would earn about £7 a year.
LightingCandles continued to be an important source of lighting. Paraffin lamps were introduced in the 1860s, and gas lighting became increasingly common as the century went on.
Most Victorian houses had a fireplace in every room.
This photograph above shows a small iron cast range.
Without vacuum cleaners or washing-machines, looking after the home was very hard work.
Poor Homes
Poor people in Victorian times lived in horrible cramped conditions in run-down houses, often with the whole family in one room.
Many people during the Victorian years moved into the cities and towns to find work in the factories. People crowded into already crowded houses. Rooms were rented to whole families or perhaps several families.
Most poor houses only had one or two rooms downstairs and one or two upstairs. Families would crowd into these rooms, with several in each room and some living in the cellars.
Tin Bath
Poorer families, if they owned a bath at all, put it in front of the kitchen rang. This was the warmest place in the house and very close to hot water. The whole family would wash themselves one after the other, topping up with more water but, probably not emptying the bath until everyone had finished.
These houses had no running water or toilets. Each house would share an outside water pump. The water from the pump was frequently polluted.
water pump
Some streets would have one or two outside toilets for the whole street to share!
Houses were built close together with narrow streets between them and open sewers running down the middle of the streets. Rubbish was tipped into the streets. It was no surprise that few children made it to adulthood.
Rich Homes
Homes for the middle classes and the upper classes were much better. They were better built and were larger. The houses had most of the new gadgets installed, such as flushing toilets, gas lighting, and inside bathrooms.
Wealthy Victorians decorated their homes in the latest styles. There would be heavy curtains, flowery wallpaper, carpets and rugs, ornaments, well made furniture, paintings and plants. The rooms were heated by open coal fires and lighting was provided by candles and oil or gas lamps. Later in the Victorian period, electricity became more widespread and so electric lights were used.
Rich Victorian had water pumps in their kitchens and their rubbish was taken away down into underground sewers.
Most rich people had servants and they would live in the same house. They slept on the top floor of the house or in the attic. The servant rooms were often cold in the winter and stuffy in the summer.
Girls as young as twelve worked as maids . They were clothed, fed, and given a roof over their heads in return for a wage – a maid would earn about £7 a year.
LightingCandles continued to be an important source of lighting. Paraffin lamps were introduced in the 1860s, and gas lighting became increasingly common as the century went on.
victorian schools
All children go to schoolMany children in early Victorian England never went to school at all and more than half of them grew up unable even to read or write. Although some did go to Sunday schools which were run by churches. Children from rich families were luckier than poor children. Nannies looked after them, and they had toys and books. A governess would teach the children at home. Then, when the boys were old enough, they were sent away to a public school such as Eton or Rugby. The daughters were kept at home and taught singing, piano playing and sewing. Slowly, things changed for poorer children too. By the end of the Victorian age all children under 12 had to go to school. Now everybody could learn how to read and write, and how to count properly.
Schools There were several kinds of school for poorer children. The youngest might go to a "Dame" school,run by a local woman in a room of her house. The older ones went to a day school. Other schools were organised by churches and charities. Among these were the "ragged" schools which were for orphans and very poor children.
School room The school could be quite a grim building. The rooms were warmed by a single stove or open fire. The walls of a Victorian schoolroom were quite bare, except perhaps for an embroidered text. Curtains were used to divide the schoolhouse into classrooms. The shouts of several classes competed as they were taught side by side. There was little fresh air because the windows were built high in the walls, to stop pupils looking outside and being distracted from their work. Many schools were built in the Victorian era, between 1837 and 1901. In the country you would see barns being converted into schoolrooms. Increasing numbers of children began to attend, and they became more and more crowded. But because school managers didn’t like to spend money on repairs, buildings were allowed to rot and broken equipment was not replaced.
Teachers Children were often scared of their teachers because they were very strict. Children as young as thirteen helped the teacher to control the class. These “pupil teachers” scribbled notes for their lessons in books .They received certificates which helped them qualify as teachers when they were older. In schools before 1850 you might see a single teacher instructing a class of over 100 children with help of pupils called “monitors”. The head teacher quickly taught these monitors, some of them as young as nine, who then tried to teach their schoolmates. Salaries were low, and there were more women teaching than men. The pale, lined faces of older teachers told a story. Some taught only because they were too ill to do other jobs. The poor conditions in schools simply made their health even worse. Sometimes, teachers were attacked by angry parents. They shouted that their children should be at work earning money, not wasting time at school. Teachers in rough areas had to learn to box!
Pupils After 1870, all children from five to thirteen had to attend school by law. In winter in the countryside, many children faced a teeth chattering walk to school of several miles. A large number didn’t turn up. Lessons lasted from 9am to 5pm, with a two hour lunch break. Because classes were so large, pupils all had to do the same thing at the same time. The teacher barked a command, and the children all opened their books. At the second command they began copying sentences from the blackboard. When pupils found their work boring, teachers found their pupils difficult to control.
Lessons Victorian lessons concentrated on the “three Rs”-Reading, wRiting and aRithmetic. Children learnt by reciting things like parrots, until they were word perfect. It was not an exciting form of learning! Science was taught by “object lesson”. Snails, models of trees, sunflowers , stuffed dogs, crystals, wheat or pictures of elephants and camels were placed on each pupil’s desk as the subject for the lesson. The object lesson was supposed to make children observe, then talk about what they had seen. Unfortunately, many teachers found it easier to chalk up lists describing the object, for the class to copy. Geography meant yet more copying and reciting - listing the countries on a globe, or chanting the names of railway stations between London and Holyhead. If you look at a timetable from late in the 1800s and you will see a greater number of subjects, including needlework, cookery and woodwork. But the teacher still taught them by chalking and talking.
Slates and copybooks Children learned to write on slates, they scratched letters on them with sharpened pieces of slate. Paper was expensive, but slates could be used again and again. Children were supposed to bring sponges to clean them. Most just spat on the slates, and rubbed them clean with their sleeves. Older children learned to use pen and ink by writing in “copybooks”. Each morning the ink monitor filled up little, clay ink wells and handed them round from a tray. Pens were fitted with scratchy, leaking nibs, and children were punished for spilling ink which “blotted their copybooks”. Teaches also gave dictation, reading out strange poems which the children had to spell out correctly.
Reader Slates showing pictures and names of different objects hang from the walls of the infants class. The children chant the name of each object in turn. When they can use these words in sentences they will move on to a “reader”. This would p probably be the Bible. For reading lessons, the pupils lined up with their toes touching a semi-circle chalked on the floor. They took it in turns to read aloud from the bible. The words didn’t sound like everyday words, children stumbled over the long sentences. Quicker readers fidgeted as they waited for their turn to read. School inspectors slowly realised that the bibles language was too difficult. Bibles were gradually replaced by books of moral stories, with titles like Harriet and the Matches. A reader had to last for a whole year. If the class read it too quickly, they had to go back to the beginning and read it all over again!
Abacus The pupils used an abacus to help them with their maths. Calculations were made using imperial weights and measures instead of our simpler metric system. Children had to pass inspections in maths, reading and writing before they could move up to the next class or “standard”. Teachers were also tested by the dreaded inspector, to make sure that they deserved government funds.
Cane Teachers handed out regular canings. Look inside the “punishment book” that every school kept, and you will see many reasons for these beatings: rude conduct, leaving the playground without permission, sulkiness, answering back, missing Sunday prayers, throwing ink pellets and being late. Boys were caned across their bottoms, and girls across their hands or bare legs. Some teachers broke canes with their fury, and kept birch rods in jars of water to make them more supple. Victims had to chose which cane they wished to be beaten with!
Dunce's Cap Punishment did not end with caning. Students had to stand on a stool at the back of the class, wearing an arm band with DUNCE written on it. The teacher then took a tall, cone-shaped hat decorated with a large “D”, and placed it on the boys head. Today we know that some children learn more slowly than others. Victorian teachers believed that all children could learn at the same speed, and if some fell behind then they should be punished for not trying hard enough.
Drill When its time for PE or “drill”, a pupil teacher starts playing an out-of-tune piano . The children jog, stretch and lift weights in time to the awful music. It is like a Victorian aerobics class! Even when the teacher rings a heavy , brass bell to announce the end of school, the pupils march out to the playground in perfect time
Playtime Outside the classroom is a small yard crowded with shrieking schoolmates. Games of blind mans buff, snakes and ladders, hide-and-seek and hopscotch are in full swing. Some boys would beg a pigs bladder from the butcher, which they would blow up to use as a football. Others drilled hob nails through cotton reels to make spinning tops.
Schools There were several kinds of school for poorer children. The youngest might go to a "Dame" school,run by a local woman in a room of her house. The older ones went to a day school. Other schools were organised by churches and charities. Among these were the "ragged" schools which were for orphans and very poor children.
School room The school could be quite a grim building. The rooms were warmed by a single stove or open fire. The walls of a Victorian schoolroom were quite bare, except perhaps for an embroidered text. Curtains were used to divide the schoolhouse into classrooms. The shouts of several classes competed as they were taught side by side. There was little fresh air because the windows were built high in the walls, to stop pupils looking outside and being distracted from their work. Many schools were built in the Victorian era, between 1837 and 1901. In the country you would see barns being converted into schoolrooms. Increasing numbers of children began to attend, and they became more and more crowded. But because school managers didn’t like to spend money on repairs, buildings were allowed to rot and broken equipment was not replaced.
Teachers Children were often scared of their teachers because they were very strict. Children as young as thirteen helped the teacher to control the class. These “pupil teachers” scribbled notes for their lessons in books .They received certificates which helped them qualify as teachers when they were older. In schools before 1850 you might see a single teacher instructing a class of over 100 children with help of pupils called “monitors”. The head teacher quickly taught these monitors, some of them as young as nine, who then tried to teach their schoolmates. Salaries were low, and there were more women teaching than men. The pale, lined faces of older teachers told a story. Some taught only because they were too ill to do other jobs. The poor conditions in schools simply made their health even worse. Sometimes, teachers were attacked by angry parents. They shouted that their children should be at work earning money, not wasting time at school. Teachers in rough areas had to learn to box!
Pupils After 1870, all children from five to thirteen had to attend school by law. In winter in the countryside, many children faced a teeth chattering walk to school of several miles. A large number didn’t turn up. Lessons lasted from 9am to 5pm, with a two hour lunch break. Because classes were so large, pupils all had to do the same thing at the same time. The teacher barked a command, and the children all opened their books. At the second command they began copying sentences from the blackboard. When pupils found their work boring, teachers found their pupils difficult to control.
Lessons Victorian lessons concentrated on the “three Rs”-Reading, wRiting and aRithmetic. Children learnt by reciting things like parrots, until they were word perfect. It was not an exciting form of learning! Science was taught by “object lesson”. Snails, models of trees, sunflowers , stuffed dogs, crystals, wheat or pictures of elephants and camels were placed on each pupil’s desk as the subject for the lesson. The object lesson was supposed to make children observe, then talk about what they had seen. Unfortunately, many teachers found it easier to chalk up lists describing the object, for the class to copy. Geography meant yet more copying and reciting - listing the countries on a globe, or chanting the names of railway stations between London and Holyhead. If you look at a timetable from late in the 1800s and you will see a greater number of subjects, including needlework, cookery and woodwork. But the teacher still taught them by chalking and talking.
Slates and copybooks Children learned to write on slates, they scratched letters on them with sharpened pieces of slate. Paper was expensive, but slates could be used again and again. Children were supposed to bring sponges to clean them. Most just spat on the slates, and rubbed them clean with their sleeves. Older children learned to use pen and ink by writing in “copybooks”. Each morning the ink monitor filled up little, clay ink wells and handed them round from a tray. Pens were fitted with scratchy, leaking nibs, and children were punished for spilling ink which “blotted their copybooks”. Teaches also gave dictation, reading out strange poems which the children had to spell out correctly.
Reader Slates showing pictures and names of different objects hang from the walls of the infants class. The children chant the name of each object in turn. When they can use these words in sentences they will move on to a “reader”. This would p probably be the Bible. For reading lessons, the pupils lined up with their toes touching a semi-circle chalked on the floor. They took it in turns to read aloud from the bible. The words didn’t sound like everyday words, children stumbled over the long sentences. Quicker readers fidgeted as they waited for their turn to read. School inspectors slowly realised that the bibles language was too difficult. Bibles were gradually replaced by books of moral stories, with titles like Harriet and the Matches. A reader had to last for a whole year. If the class read it too quickly, they had to go back to the beginning and read it all over again!
Abacus The pupils used an abacus to help them with their maths. Calculations were made using imperial weights and measures instead of our simpler metric system. Children had to pass inspections in maths, reading and writing before they could move up to the next class or “standard”. Teachers were also tested by the dreaded inspector, to make sure that they deserved government funds.
Cane Teachers handed out regular canings. Look inside the “punishment book” that every school kept, and you will see many reasons for these beatings: rude conduct, leaving the playground without permission, sulkiness, answering back, missing Sunday prayers, throwing ink pellets and being late. Boys were caned across their bottoms, and girls across their hands or bare legs. Some teachers broke canes with their fury, and kept birch rods in jars of water to make them more supple. Victims had to chose which cane they wished to be beaten with!
Dunce's Cap Punishment did not end with caning. Students had to stand on a stool at the back of the class, wearing an arm band with DUNCE written on it. The teacher then took a tall, cone-shaped hat decorated with a large “D”, and placed it on the boys head. Today we know that some children learn more slowly than others. Victorian teachers believed that all children could learn at the same speed, and if some fell behind then they should be punished for not trying hard enough.
Drill When its time for PE or “drill”, a pupil teacher starts playing an out-of-tune piano . The children jog, stretch and lift weights in time to the awful music. It is like a Victorian aerobics class! Even when the teacher rings a heavy , brass bell to announce the end of school, the pupils march out to the playground in perfect time
Playtime Outside the classroom is a small yard crowded with shrieking schoolmates. Games of blind mans buff, snakes and ladders, hide-and-seek and hopscotch are in full swing. Some boys would beg a pigs bladder from the butcher, which they would blow up to use as a football. Others drilled hob nails through cotton reels to make spinning tops.
famous victorians
Victoria was born in 1819 in Kensington Palace in London. Her name was Alexandrina Victoria. When Princess Victoria was 18 years old her uncle King William died and she became queen. She was crowned at Westminster Abbey in 1838. Victoria married her handsome cousin Albert a young prince from Germany. (She had proposed to him). Albert didn't speak English very well and lots of people didn't like him.
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson (1836-1917) The first woman to qualify as a doctor in Britain. She founded a hospital for poor women and children in London.
Mrs. Isabella Beeton 1836-1865 An english writer whose "Book of Household Management" was a bestseller for many years.
Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922) Inventor of the telephone.
William Booth (1829-1912) A Methodist minister who founded The Salvation Army in 1878 to preach and give help, shelter and food to poor people.
Isambard Kingdom Brunel 1806-1859 Brunel was an engineer who specialised in railway traction,tunnels, steam ships and bridges. He designed the Clifton Suspension Bridge and was engineer to the Greta Western Railway. He built the SS Great eastern the largest 19th century ship.
Lewis Carroll(1832-1898) Real name Charles L. Dodgson, he was the author of Alice in Wonderland (1865).
Charles Dickens 1812-1870 Great novelist of the victorian age. His novels were outstandingly popular in his time and are still popular now. His books include stories about thieves, convicts and schoolboys. He wrote about ordinary people and how they lived, about terrible prisons, bad schools and the workhouse. His famous characters include Oliver Twist, Scrooge and David Copperfield.
Charles Darwin 1809-1882 An english naturalist who was famous for his famous theory of "natural selection". As a young scientist he set sail on the voyage of the Beagle in 1831 and came back with observations on the varieties of fossils and living animals which made him question the Bible's story of creation. His findings were published in "The Origin of Species" in 1859. This theory caused a real stir and was sold out straight away.
Benjamin Disreali (1804-1881) Prime Minister. An author as well as a politician Disraeli wore fancy clothes and loved to make fun of Gladstone.
Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930) He created the character Sherlock Holmes.
Thomas Edison (1847-1931) Edison was the inventor of over a thousand ideas which transformed life in the late 19 th century. He invented his own phonograph, and developed with Swan the electirc carbon filament lamp, which eventually became the modern light bulb.
Mary Ann Evans (1819-1880) She wrote a number of books under the pen name "George Eliot". Her well known books include Silas Marner and Middlemarch.
William Gladstone (1809-1898) A liberal politician who was Prime Minister four times. He was a very religious man who turned down a career in the church to become a politician. He had a strong sense of right and wrong and believed people should be judged on their merits, not on their wealth.
W.G. Grace (1848-1915) An all-round cricketer who broke many cricketing records and made the game widely popular.
Thomas Hardy (1840-1928) An English novelist and poet, born in Dorset. He wrote many stories based in the fictitious county of Wessex. These included Tess of the Durbervilles and The Mayor of Casterbridge.
Mary Kingsley (1862-1900) At the age of 30 she made two adventurous trips to West Africa where she collected information about African tribal customs.
Joseph Lister (1827-1912) A scottish surgeon who realised the importance of keeping wounds and equipment clean and germ free during operations.
David Livingstone (1813-1873) A missionary who made three long explorations of East Africa. He wrote the story of his amazing three year journey across the African continent from the Atlantic to the Indian Ocean. He wasthe first European to see the Victoria Falls.
Florence Nightingale (1820-1910) "The lady with the lamp". The founder of modern nursing. In 1854 she took charge of nursing soldiers wounded in the Crimean War. She organised the cleaning of the filthy rat infested military hospital and organised proper nursing. The death rate fell dramatically.
Charles Stewart Parnell (1846-1891) An Irish political leader who became an MP in 1875 and argued passionately for Irish independence.
Robert Peel (1788-1850) Twice Prime Minister and responsible for the repeal of the Corn Laws.
Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894) A scottish author who wrote Treasure Island and Kidnapped which are two of the most popular children's stories ever written.
Alfred Lord Tennyson (1809-1892) The most famous Victorian poet who wrote many poems about major events such as The Charge of the Light Brigade during the Crimean War.
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson (1836-1917) The first woman to qualify as a doctor in Britain. She founded a hospital for poor women and children in London.
Mrs. Isabella Beeton 1836-1865 An english writer whose "Book of Household Management" was a bestseller for many years.
Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922) Inventor of the telephone.
William Booth (1829-1912) A Methodist minister who founded The Salvation Army in 1878 to preach and give help, shelter and food to poor people.
Isambard Kingdom Brunel 1806-1859 Brunel was an engineer who specialised in railway traction,tunnels, steam ships and bridges. He designed the Clifton Suspension Bridge and was engineer to the Greta Western Railway. He built the SS Great eastern the largest 19th century ship.
Lewis Carroll(1832-1898) Real name Charles L. Dodgson, he was the author of Alice in Wonderland (1865).
Charles Dickens 1812-1870 Great novelist of the victorian age. His novels were outstandingly popular in his time and are still popular now. His books include stories about thieves, convicts and schoolboys. He wrote about ordinary people and how they lived, about terrible prisons, bad schools and the workhouse. His famous characters include Oliver Twist, Scrooge and David Copperfield.
Charles Darwin 1809-1882 An english naturalist who was famous for his famous theory of "natural selection". As a young scientist he set sail on the voyage of the Beagle in 1831 and came back with observations on the varieties of fossils and living animals which made him question the Bible's story of creation. His findings were published in "The Origin of Species" in 1859. This theory caused a real stir and was sold out straight away.
Benjamin Disreali (1804-1881) Prime Minister. An author as well as a politician Disraeli wore fancy clothes and loved to make fun of Gladstone.
Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930) He created the character Sherlock Holmes.
Thomas Edison (1847-1931) Edison was the inventor of over a thousand ideas which transformed life in the late 19 th century. He invented his own phonograph, and developed with Swan the electirc carbon filament lamp, which eventually became the modern light bulb.
Mary Ann Evans (1819-1880) She wrote a number of books under the pen name "George Eliot". Her well known books include Silas Marner and Middlemarch.
William Gladstone (1809-1898) A liberal politician who was Prime Minister four times. He was a very religious man who turned down a career in the church to become a politician. He had a strong sense of right and wrong and believed people should be judged on their merits, not on their wealth.
W.G. Grace (1848-1915) An all-round cricketer who broke many cricketing records and made the game widely popular.
Thomas Hardy (1840-1928) An English novelist and poet, born in Dorset. He wrote many stories based in the fictitious county of Wessex. These included Tess of the Durbervilles and The Mayor of Casterbridge.
Mary Kingsley (1862-1900) At the age of 30 she made two adventurous trips to West Africa where she collected information about African tribal customs.
Joseph Lister (1827-1912) A scottish surgeon who realised the importance of keeping wounds and equipment clean and germ free during operations.
David Livingstone (1813-1873) A missionary who made three long explorations of East Africa. He wrote the story of his amazing three year journey across the African continent from the Atlantic to the Indian Ocean. He wasthe first European to see the Victoria Falls.
Florence Nightingale (1820-1910) "The lady with the lamp". The founder of modern nursing. In 1854 she took charge of nursing soldiers wounded in the Crimean War. She organised the cleaning of the filthy rat infested military hospital and organised proper nursing. The death rate fell dramatically.
Charles Stewart Parnell (1846-1891) An Irish political leader who became an MP in 1875 and argued passionately for Irish independence.
Robert Peel (1788-1850) Twice Prime Minister and responsible for the repeal of the Corn Laws.
Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894) A scottish author who wrote Treasure Island and Kidnapped which are two of the most popular children's stories ever written.
Alfred Lord Tennyson (1809-1892) The most famous Victorian poet who wrote many poems about major events such as The Charge of the Light Brigade during the Crimean War.
Victorian Inventions
Electric Telegraph developed by William Cooke and Charles Wheastone. Swinging needles transmit message in code in 1858.
Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone in 1876.
The first cars appeared during the Victorian times, but only rich people could afford them. Early car drivers were required to have a special attendant walking in front of the car, holding a red flag as a warning.
The German engineer Karl Benz built the first motorcar in 1885. It was a three-wheeled vehicle powered by a one-cylinder gasoline engine. The speed limit for cars was four miles per hour.
Guglielmo Marconi, from Italy, is credited with the discovery of radio in 1895. We can't really say he "invented" radio. Nobody ever does invent anything from scratch as each "invention" is the consequence of many previous discoveries and researches (in this case especially those done by James Clerk Maxwell, Sir Oliver Lodge, and Heinrich Hertz.
Bicycles became very popular in the 1870s.Invention of the penny-farthing bicycle. by British engineer, James Starley. The huge front wheel was almost six feet from top to bottom. and the seat was above the wheel. It had no brakes! This design was used until about 1880 when a bicycle with equal-sized wheels was developed.
Thomas Twyford built the first one-piece toilet. Twyford's model was also the first constructed of china, much easier to clean than the previous wood or metal models.
Sir Rowland Hill, a retired teacher, introduced a pre-paid penny post for letters in Britain in 1840. Up to this time the person receiving the letter had to pay for it. With the invention of the stamp, the person sending the letter had to pay.
The Penny Black stamp, created by David Charles of Dundee, is the world's first adhesive postage stamp, and is perhaps the most famous stamp ever issued. It was a one penny stamp with Queen Victoria's profile against a black background and was produced in 1840. It was used for letters weighing less than half an ounce. For heavier letters the Twopenny Blue was used, which was similar, except that its background was blue.
After the invention of the electric light bulb by Thomas Edison (USA) and Joseph Swan (UK) in 1879, electric light started to replace the dim, yellow gas light, oil lamps and candlelight. Some towns were lit by electricity too, making them more welcoming at night.
Steam was used to power factory machinery, ships and trains. Great iron steamships were built made crossing the ocean faster than ever before. Many people left Britain, sailing away to start a new life in Canada or Australia.
By the 1880s steam power was also being used to turn dynamos in power stations in order to make electricity.
The 1840s was a time of railway madness. Trains were cheaper and faster than canal boats or horse drawn carriages. The first steam trains had appeared before Victoria's reign. But in the 1840s and early 1850s private companies built 8,000 miles (13,000 kilometres) of railways all over Britain.
The very first electric train was invented by a German in 1879. Electric trains were quieter than and not as dirty as steam trains but it was many years before they were used for passengers.
Click here to go to our Victorian Invention Timeline
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