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'{{Short description|United Kingdom-related events during the year of 1846}} {{Use dmy dates|date=July 2020}} {{Use British English|date=January 2013}} {{Year in United Kingdom|1846|label1= Constituent countries of the United Kingdom|data1 = [[1846 in England|England]] {{!}} [[1846 in Ireland|Ireland]] {{!}} [[1846 in Scotland|Scotland]] {{!}} [[1846 in Wales|Wales]]|label2=Sport|data2=[[1846 English cricket season]]}} Events from the year '''[[1846]] in the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|United Kingdom]]'''. This year is noted for the repeal of the [[Corn Laws]]. ==Incumbents== * [[Monarch of the United Kingdom|Monarch]] – [[Queen Victoria|Victoria]] * [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]] – [[Robert Peel]] ([[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]]) (until 29 June), [[John Russell, 1st Earl Russell|Lord John Russell]] ([[Whigs (British political party)|Whig]]) (starting 30 June) * [[Foreign Secretary]] – [[George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen]] (until 6 July) [[Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston]] (starting 6 July) * [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|Parliament]] – [[List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1841|14th]] ==Events== * 5 January – the [[United States House of Representatives]] votes to stop sharing the [[Oregon Territory]] with the United Kingdom. * 10 February – [[First Anglo-Sikh War]]: British victory at the [[Battle of Sobraon]].<ref name=CBH>{{cite book|last=Palmer|first=Alan|author2=Veronica|year=1992|title=The Chronology of British History|publisher=Century Ltd|location=London|pages=268–269|isbn=0-7126-5616-2}}</ref> * 9 March – the conclusion of the First Anglo-Sikh War with the signing of the [[Treaty of Lahore]].<ref name="Pocket On This Day">{{cite book|title=Penguin Pocket On This Day|publisher=Penguin Reference Library|isbn=0-14-102715-0|year=2006}}</ref> [[Kashmir]] is ceded to the [[British East India Company]] and the [[Koh-i-Noor]] diamond is surrendered to [[Queen Victoria]]. * 13 March – [[Ballinglass Incident]]: eviction of 300 tenants at the village of Ballinglass in [[Ireland]] during the [[Great Famine (Ireland)|Great Famine]]. * 14 March – first property purchased for [[Feargus O'Connor]]'s [[Chartism|Chartist]]-backed English [[National Land Company]] to provide smallholdings and suffrage for working men, at [[Heronsgate]] (O'Connorville) in Hertfordshire. * 3 April – last [[London]]-based [[mail coach]] runs, to [[Norwich]].<ref>{{cite book|first=Richard|last=Blake|title=The Book of Postal Dates, 1635–1985|location=Caterham|publisher=Marden|page=11}}</ref> * 20 April – [[Jonathan Balls]] commits suicide in the Norfolk village of [[Happisburgh]], aged around 76. Subsequent investigations suggest that he murdered at least 22 people, almost all family members, by [[arsenic poisoning]] over 20 years, making him one of Britain's most prolific [[serial killer]]s.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/98056699/jonathan-balls/|title=The Murders by Poison in Norfolk|work=[[The Examiner (1808–1886)|The Examiner]]|date=13 June 1846|via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> * 15 May – under the leadership of [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]] [[Robert Peel]], the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]] votes to repeal the [[Corn Laws]] by passing an Importation Bill, replacing the old [[Colonialism|colonial]] mercantile trade system with [[free trade]].<ref name="Icons">{{cite web|url=http://www.icons.org.uk/theicons/icons-timeline/1840-1860|title=Icons, a portrait of England 1840–1860|access-date=2007-09-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070817165102/http://www.icons.org.uk/theicons/icons-timeline/1840-1860|archive-date=17 August 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref> On 25 June the [[Duke of Wellington]] persuades the [[House of Lords]] to pass the Act, which will take full effect from February 1849. * 15 June – [[Oregon Treaty|Treaty of Washington]] establishes the 49th Parallel as the border between [[Oregon]] and British [[Canada]].<ref name=CBH/> * 22 June – the [[North British Railway]] is opened to public traffic between [[Edinburgh]] and [[Berwick-upon-Tweed]], the first line to cross the border between [[Scotland]] and England. [[Waverley Station]] is opened.<ref>{{cite book|last=Thomas|first=John|author-link=John Thomas (author)|title=The North British Railway|volume=1|year=1969|publisher=David & Charles|location=Newton Abbot|isbn=0-7153-4697-0}}</ref> * 26 June – the [[Great Northern Railway (Great Britain)|Great Northern Railway]] is authorised by [[Act of Parliament]] with powers to construct a direct line from London to [[York]] (with a loop via [[Boston, Lincolnshire|Boston]]), {{convert|233.5|mi|km|abbr=on}} with a capital of £5,600,000, the largest single railway scheme ever approved by [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|Parliament]].<ref>{{Marshall-GuinnessRail}}</ref>{{Page needed|date=October 2016}} * 29 June – Peel resigns, and is succeeded as Prime Minister by [[John Russell, 1st Earl Russell|Lord John Russell]] ([[Whigs (British political party)|Whig]]). The Conservatives split into [[Peelite]] and [[Young England]] factions, the latter led by Disraeli. * 9 July – a flood at [[East Wheal Rose]] [[Lead (metal)|lead]] mine in [[Cornwall]] kills 39.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cornwallinfocus.co.uk/history/eastrose.php |title=Perranzabuloe Mining District – East Wheal Rose |publisher=Cornwall in Focus |access-date=2010-10-14 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090818065308/http://www.cornwallinfocus.co.uk/history/eastrose.php |archive-date=18 August 2009 }}</ref> * 16 July – the [[London and North Western Railway]] is formed in England by amalgamation of the [[London and Birmingham Railway]], [[Grand Junction Railway]] and [[Manchester and Birmingham Railway]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Reed |first=M. C. |title=The London & North Western Railway: a history|year=1996|publisher=The Atlantic|location=Penryn|isbn=0-906899-66-4}}</ref> * 30 July – opening of [[Royal Albert Dock, Liverpool|Albert Dock, Liverpool]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Jones|first=Ron|title=The Albert Dock, Liverpool|publisher=RJ Associates Ltd|year=2004|isbn=0-9511703-4-1}}</ref> * 1 August – [[Fatal Accidents Act 1846]] ("Lord Campbell's Act") provides for a [[wrongful death claim]] in civil law. * 8 August – the planet [[Neptune]] is first observed but not recognised by [[James Challis]], director of the [[Cambridge Observatory]].<ref>{{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Adams, John Couch}}</ref> * 15 August – inauguration of [[Scott Monument]] in [[Edinburgh]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aboutbritain.com/ScottMonument.htm|title=Scott Monument|work=AboutBritain|access-date=2010-11-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101031080348/http://www.aboutbritain.com/ScottMonument.htm|archive-date=31 October 2010|url-status=live}}</ref> * 18 August – [[Parliament of the United Kingdom]] passes the following [[Acts of Parliament in the United Kingdom|Act]]s ** [[Religious Opinions Relief Act]], removing most remaining disabilities affecting the ability of [[Jews]], [[Dissenters]] and [[Roman Catholic]]s to participate in public life. ** [[Deodands Act 1846|Deodands Act]], abolishing the ancient [[legal remedy]] of [[deodand]], with effect from 1 September. ** [[Regulating the Gauge of Railways Act 1846|Gauge Act]], ruling that new railways in Great Britain should be built to [[standard gauge]] (5&nbsp;ft 3&nbsp;inches in [[Ireland]]) unless otherwise authorised.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/docSummary.php?docID=60 |title=Railway Archive |access-date=7 July 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070820043850/http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/docSummary.php?docID=60 |archive-date=20 August 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> * 22 August – [[Peel Park, Salford]], and Queen's Park and [[Philips Park, Clayton|Philips Park]] in Manchester open as two of the world's first free [[public park]]s.<ref name=TH>{{cite web|title=Timeline History of Manchester|work=Welcome to Manchester|publisher=visitoruk.com|url=http://www.visitoruk.com/Manchester/timeline.html|access-date=2016-11-04}}</ref> * 26 August ** The Public Baths and Wash Houses Act (''An Act to encourage the Establishment of public Baths and Wash-houses'') is passed by Parliament permitting local authorities to establish [[baths and wash houses in Britain]].<ref>{{cite book|first2=Simon|last2=Inglis|author-link2=Simon Inglis|first1=Ian|last1=Gordon|title=Great Lengths: the historic indoor swimming pools of Britain|location=Swindon|publisher=[[English Heritage]]|year=2009|isbn=978-190562-452-2|pages=33–34}}</ref> ** [[Felix Mendelssohn]]'s oratorio ''[[Elijah (oratorio)|Elijah]]'' first performed at the [[Birmingham Triennial Music Festival|Birmingham Festival]].<ref name="Pocket On This Day"/> * 28 August ** The [[New Zealand Constitution Act 1846]] (''An Act to make further Provision for the Government of the New Zealand Islands'') is passed by [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|Parliament]] with the intention of granting self-government to the British [[Colony of New Zealand|colony]]. Governor [[George Grey]] suspends implementation of the majority of the Act and it is superseded by the [[New Zealand Constitution Act 1852]].<ref>{{cite book|first=Paul|last=Moon|title=New Zealand Birth Certificates – 50 of New Zealand's Founding Documents|author-link=Paul Moon|year=2010|publisher=AUT Media |isbn=9780958299718}}</ref> ** [[Railway Mania]] reaches its zenith, with 272 railway construction Acts being passed in this year.<ref name=CBH/><ref>{{cite book|last=Lewin|first=Henry Grote|title=The Railway Mania and its aftermath, 1845-1852|year=1936|publisher=Railway Gazette|location=London}}</ref> * 3 September – [[Electric Telegraph Company]] founded. * 10 October – [[William Lassell]] discovers [[Triton (moon)|Triton]], one of the moons of [[Neptune]]. * 21 December – surgeon [[Robert Liston]] carries out the first operation under anaesthesia in Britain.<ref name="Pocket On This Day"/> ===Undated=== * [[Great Famine (Ireland)]] – the first deaths from hunger take place early in the year.<ref>{{cite book|first=Thomas|last=Keneally|author-link=Thomas Keneally|year=1999|title=The Great Shame|location=London|publisher=Vintage|page=110}}</ref> ''[[Phytophthora infestans]]'' almost totally destroys the summer potato crop and the Famine worsens considerably.<ref name=Ross>{{cite book|first=David|last=Ross|year=2002|title=Ireland: History of a Nation|url=https://archive.org/details/irelandhistoryof0000ross|url-access=registration}}</ref> By December a third of a million destitute people are employed on public works.<ref name=Ross/> * Start of [[Highland Potato Famine]] in [[Scotland]]. * African American abolitionist [[Frederick Douglass]] continues his speaking tour of the UK throughout the year. * [[Agapemone]], a [[Christianity|Christian]] [[sect]] and community, is founded by Rev. Henry Prince at [[Spaxton]], [[Somerset]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.quantockonline.co.uk/quantocks/villages/spaxton/spaxton1.html|title=Spaxton|access-date=2011-08-06|work=Quantock Online|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720080331/http://www.quantockonline.co.uk/quantocks/villages/spaxton/spaxton1.html|archive-date=20 July 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref> ==Publications== * The [[Brontë family|Brontë sisters]]' collection ''[[Poems by Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell]]'', their first published work (c. 22 May).<ref>{{cite book|editor=Cox, Michael|title=The Concise Oxford Chronology of English Literature|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2004|isbn=0-19-860634-6|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/conciseoxfordchr00coxm}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|chapter=''Poems'' by Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell, 1846|title=The Oxford Companion to the Brontës|first1=Christine|last1=Alexander|first2=Margaret|last2=Smith|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2006|isbn=9780198662181|url=https://archive.org/details/oxfordcompaniont0000unse_x4t6|access-date=2013-07-23|url-access=registration}}</ref> * [[Charles Dickens]]' novel ''[[Dombey and Son]]'' (serialisation begins 1 October) and novella ''[[The Battle of Life]]'' (c. December). * [[Edward Lear]]'s ''A Book of Nonsense'' (10 February).<ref name=CBH/> * ''[[The String of Pearls]]: a Romance'', probably written by [[James Malcolm Rymer]] and [[Thomas Peckett Prest]], begins serialisation, the first literary appearance of [[Sweeney Todd]] (21 November). ==Births== * 9 February – [[Whitaker Wright]], fraudulent financier (died 1904) (suicide) * 18 February – [[Wilson Barrett]], actor (died 1904) * 6 March – [[Henry Radcliffe Crocker]], dermatologist (died 1909) * 17 March – [[Kate Greenaway]], children's book illustrator and writer (died 1901) * 3 May – [[Sir Edmund Elton, 8th Baronet]], inventor, studio potter (died 1920) * 25 May – [[Princess Helena of the United Kingdom]] (died 1923) * 27 June – [[Charles Stewart Parnell]], Irish political leader (died 1891) * 2 August – [[Lucy Clifford]] (née Lane), novelist, dramatist and screenwriter (died 1929) * 16 September – [[Anna Kingsford]], physician, advocate of women's rights, anti-vivisection and vegetarianism (died 1888) * 13 November – [[Herbert Standing]], actor (died 1923) * Undated ** [[Pugsey Hurley]], burglar, river pirate and underworld figure in New York City ** [[Jeanne Schmahl]], feminist in France (died 1915) ==Deaths== * 30 January – [[Joseph Constantine Carpue]], surgeon (born 1764) * 9 February – [[Henry Gally Knight]], writer and traveler (born 1786) * 10 March – [[Harriette Wilson]], courtesan and memoirist (born 1786) * 16 April – [[Domenico Dragonetti]], double-bass virtuoso (born 1763 in Venice) * 12 May – Sir [[Robert Otway]], admiral (born 1770) * 22 June – [[Benjamin Haydon]], painter and writer (born 1786; suicide) * 6 July – [[Nicholas Conyngham Tindal|Sir Nicholas Conyngham Tindal]], lawyer and politician (born 1776) * 12 July – [[Charlotte Elizabeth Tonna]], novelist (born 1790) * 6 August – [[John Bostock (physician)|John Bostock]], physician and geologist (born 1773; cholera) * 5 September – [[Charles Metcalfe, 1st Baron Metcalfe]], colonial administrator (born 1785) * 23 September – [[John Ainsworth Horrocks]], English-born explorer of South Australia (born 1818; accidentally shot) * 26 September – [[Thomas Clarkson]], abolitionist (born 1760)<ref>{{cite web |title=BBC - History - Thomas Clarkson |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/clarkson_thomas.shtml |website=www.bbc.co.uk |access-date=17 March 2022}}</ref> * 12 December – [[Eliza Flower]], musician and composer (born 1803; consumption) ==See also== * [[1846 in Scotland]] * [[1846 in Wales]] ==References== {{reflist}} {{UK year nav}} {{Year in Europe|1846}} [[Category:1846 in the United Kingdom| ]] [[Category:Years of the 19th century in the United Kingdom]] [[Category:1846 by country]] [[Category:1846 in Europe]] [[Category:1840s in the United Kingdom]]'