1861

1861 (MDCCCLXI) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar and a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar, the 1861st year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 861st year of the 2nd millennium, the 61st year of the 19th century, and the 2nd year of the 1860s decade. As of the start of 1861, the Gregorian calendar was 12 days ahead of the Julian calendar, which remained in localized use until 1923.

Quick facts

1861 in various calendars
Gregorian calendar	1861 MDCCCLXI
Ab urbe condita	2614
Armenian calendar	1310 ԹՎ ՌՅԺ
Assyrian calendar	6611
Baháʼí calendar	17–18
Balinese saka calendar	1782–1783
Bengali calendar	1267–1268
Berber calendar	2811
British Regnal year	24 Vict. 1 – 25 Vict. 1
Buddhist calendar	2405
Burmese calendar	1223
Byzantine calendar	7369–7370
Chinese calendar	庚申年 (Metal Monkey) 4558 or 4351 — to — 辛酉年 (Metal Rooster) 4559 or 4352
Coptic calendar	1577–1578
Discordian calendar	3027
Ethiopian calendar	1853–1854
Hebrew calendar	5621–5622
Hindu calendars
- Vikram Samvat	1917–1918
- Shaka Samvat	1782–1783
- Kali Yuga	4961–4962
Holocene calendar	11861
Igbo calendar	861–862
Iranian calendar	1239–1240
Islamic calendar	1277–1278
Japanese calendar	Man'en 2 / Bunkyū 1 (文久元年)
Javanese calendar	1789–1790
Julian calendar	Gregorian minus 12 days
Korean calendar	4194
Minguo calendar	51 before ROC 民前51年
Nanakshahi calendar	393
Thai solar calendar	2403–2404
Tibetan calendar	ལྕགས་ཕོ་སྤྲེ་ལོ་ (male Iron-Monkey) 1987 or 1606 or 834 — to — ལྕགས་མོ་བྱ་ལོ་ (female Iron-Bird) 1988 or 1607 or 835

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This year saw significant progress in the Unification of Italy, the outbreak of the American Civil War, and the emancipation reform abolishing serfdom in the Russian Empire.

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Events

Summarize

Perspective

January

January 1
- Benito Juárez captures Mexico City.
- The first steam-powered carousel is recorded, in Bolton, England.^[1]
January 2 – Friedrich Wilhelm IV of Prussia dies, and is succeeded by Wilhelm I.^[2]

American Civil War:

- January 3 – Delaware votes not to secede from the Union.
- January 9 – Mississippi becomes the second state to secede from the Union.
- January 10 – Florida secedes from the Union.
- January 11 – Alabama secedes from the Union.
- January 12 – Major Robert Anderson sends dispatches to Washington.
- January 19 – Georgia secedes from the Union.
- January 21 – Jefferson Davis resigns from the United States Senate.
- January 26 – Louisiana secedes from the Union.

January 29 – Kansas is admitted as the 34th U.S. state, being admitted as a free state.^[3]
January 31 – Kukis raid the Chhagalnaiya plains in eastern Bengal, murdering and kidnapping hundreds of people, particularly women.^[4]

February

American Civil War:

- February 1 – Texas secedes from the Union.
- February 4 – In Montgomery, Alabama, the Provisional Confederate States Congress is formed by representatives from the first seven break-away states.
- February 8 – The Confederate States of America are formed, comprising the first seven break-away States.
- February 9 – Jefferson Davis is elected Provisional President of the Confederate States of America, by the Weed Convention at Montgomery, Alabama.
February 11
- American Civil War: The U.S. House unanimously passes a resolution, guaranteeing non-interference with slavery in any state.
- About 850 convicts at Chatham Dockyard in England take over their prison in a riot.^[5]
February 13 – Unification of Italy: The Siege of Gaeta, stronghold of the Neapolitan King Francis II, is ended by Piedmontese forces. Francis goes into exile.
February 18 – American Civil War: In Montgomery, Alabama, Jefferson Davis is inaugurated as the provisional president of the Confederate States of America.
February 20 – In Britain, storms damage the Crystal Palace and cause the collapse of the steeple of Chichester Cathedral.^[6]
February 21 – Mariehamn, the capital of Åland, is founded.^[7]
February 23 – President-elect Abraham Lincoln arrives secretly in Washington, D.C. in light of suspicions of a conspiracy in Baltimore to kill him.
February 24 – Battle of Ky Hoa: the French and the Spanish defeat the Vietnamese.^[8]
February 27 – Russian troops fire upon a crowd in Warsaw protesting Russian rule over Poland, killing 5 protesters.
February 28 – Colorado is organized as a United States territory.
March 2
- Nevada is organized as a United States territory.
- American Civil War: Texas is admitted to the Confederate States of America.

March

March 3 (February 19 O.S.) – Emancipation reform of 1861: Alexander II abolishes serfdom in the Russian Empire.

March 4
- Abraham Lincoln is sworn in as the 16th president of the United States.^[9]
- American Civil War: The "Stars and Bars" is adopted as the flag of the Confederate States of America.
March 10 – El Hadj Umar Tall seizes the city of Ségou, destroying the Bamana Empire of Mali.
March 11 – American Civil War: The Constitution of the Confederate States of America is adopted.
March 13 – Tsushima incident: The Russian corvette Posadnik arrives at Tsushima Island in the Korea Strait, Japan, provoking a reaction from the Japanese Shogunate.
March 17 – Unification of Italy: The Kingdom of Italy is proclaimed by the new Parliament, with Victor Emmanuel II of Piedmont-Sardinia becoming its king.
March 19 – The First Taranaki War ends in New Zealand.
March 20
- Unification of Italy: The surrender of Civitella del Tronto ends the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.
- An earthquake completely destroys Mendoza, Argentina.
March 21 – Alexander Stephens, Vice President of the Confederacy, gives the infamous Cornerstone Speech in Savannah, Georgia, in which he declares that slavery is the natural condition of blacks, and the foundation of the Confederacy.
March 28 – Confederate Arizona: A convention in modern-day Tucson ratifies the ordinance of secession of the southern part of New Mexico Territory.
March 30 – Discovery of the chemical elements: British chemist William Crookes announces his discovery of thallium.

April

April 7 – A population census is taken in the United Kingdom. The population is more than double that of 1801 and those living in urban areas are in a majority.

American Civil War:

- April 12 – The American Civil War begins with the bombardment of Fort Sumter, South Carolina.
- April 13 – Fort Sumter surrenders to Southern forces.
  April 12–13: Fort Sumter
- April 15 – President Abraham Lincoln issues a Proclamation calling for 75,000 men to confront in the South, "combinations too powerful to be suppressed in the ordinary way".
- April 17 – The state of Virginia secedes from the Union.
- April 20 – Robert E. Lee resigns his commission in the United States Army, in order to command the forces of the state of Virginia.
April 24 (N.S.) – Bezdna unrest: Bezdna in Russia is the scene of a peasant uprising; the military open fire and about 90 are killed.^[10]
April 25 – American Civil War: The Union Army arrives in Washington, D.C.
April 26 – Giovanni Schiaparelli discovers the asteroid 69 Hesperia.
April 27 – American Civil War: President Abraham Lincoln suspends the writ of habeas corpus in the United States.

May

American Civil War:

- May 6 – Arkansas secedes from the Union.
- May 7 – Tennessee secedes from the Union.
- May 8 – Richmond, Virginia, is named the capital of the Confederate States of America.
May 13
- North Star affair: The British merchant ship North Star leaves Hong Kong for Nagasaki, Japan. Chinese pirates board the vessel, kill an officer, and escape with a large quantity of gold.^[11]
- American Civil War: Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom issues a "proclamation of neutrality", which recognizes the breakaway states as having belligerent rights.
- Comet C/1861 J1 (the "Great Comet of 1861") is discovered from Australia.
  May 13: Great Comet
May 14 – The Canellas meteorite, an 859 gram chondrite type meteorite, strikes Earth near Barcelona, Spain.
May 17 – A 7-day working men's package holiday to Paris, organised by Thomas Cook, sets out from London Bridge station.^[12]
May 20 – American Civil War:
- Kentucky proclaims its neutrality, which lasts until September 3, when Confederate forces enter the state.
- North Carolina secedes from the Union.
May 21 – Russian sailors clash with a group of Japanese samurai and farmers at Tsushima Island.^[13]
May 23 – American Civil War: The state of Virginia's ordinance of secession from the United States is ratified in a referendum.
May 29 – The Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce is established.

June

June 9 – Règlement Organique: With the approval of European powers, the Mount Lebanon Mutasarrifate is established as a semi-autonomous sub-division separate from the Sidon Eyalet. An Ottoman Armenian, Davud Pasha, is appointed Mutasarrıf by the Ottoman Sultan.
June 15 – Benito Juárez is formally elected President of Mexico; he temporarily stops the payments of foreign debt.
June 22 – Tooley Street fire breaks out and takes the life of James Braidwood, first superintendent of the London Fire Brigade.
June 25 – Abdülmecid I, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire (1839–1861) dies and is succeeded by Abdülaziz (1861–1876).
June 25: Abdülaziz
June 30 – Lambing Flat riots: White miners attack Chinese in the Australian goldfields.^[14]

July

July 1
- The first issue of the Vatican's newspaper L'Osservatore Romano is published.
- Taiping Rebellion: Battle of Shanghai – French and Imperial Chinese troops defeat Taiping forces.
- In Cologne, the Wallraf–Richartz Museum of art opens.
July 2 – Ivan Kasatkin lands on Hakodate, and introduces the Eastern Orthodox Church into Japan.
American Civil War:
- July 12 – The Confederate States sign a Treaty with Choctaws and Chickasaws in Indian Territory.
- July 13 – The Battle of Corrick's Ford takes place in western Virginia.
- July 21 – First Battle of Bull Run – At Manassas Junction, Virginia, the first major battle of the war ends in a Confederate victory.
- July 25 – The Crittenden–Johnson Resolution is passed by the U.S. Congress, stating that the war is being fought to preserve the Union, and not to end slavery.
- July 26 – George B. McClellan assumes command of the Army of the Potomac, following the disastrous Union defeat at the First Battle of Bull Run.

August

August 1 – The first public weather forecast: measured and predicted correctly by Admiral Robert FitzRoy in Britain.
August 5
American Civil War:
- In order to help pay for the war effort, the United States government issues the first income tax as part of the Revenue Act of 1861 (3% of all incomes over US$800; rescinded in 1872).
- The U.S. Army abolishes flogging.
- August 10 – The first major battle west of the Mississippi River, the Battle of Wilson's Creek, is fought, with a Confederate victory.
August 15 – First description of Archaeopteryx, based on a feather found in Bavaria;^[15] in September the first complete identified skeleton is found near Langenaltheim in Germany.^[16]
August 19 – Weisshorn, the fifth highest summit in the Alps, is first ascended.
August 20–22 – The first modern Welsh National Eisteddfod takes place in Aberdare.^[17]
August 27 – Martin Doyle is the last person executed in Britain for attempted murder.

September

American Civil War:
- September 3 – Confederate General Leonidas Polk invades neutral Kentucky, prompting the state legislature to ask for Union assistance.
- September 6 – Forces under Union General Ulysses S. Grant bloodlessly capture Paducah, Kentucky, which gives the Union control of the mouth of the Tennessee River.
September 17 – Argentine Civil War: Battle of Pavón: Victory of Buenos Aires over the Argentine Confederation, and the re-unification of Argentina.

October

October 9 – American Civil War: Battle of Santa Rosa Island – Confederate forces are defeated in their effort to take the island.
October 17 – Australian frontier wars: Cullin-la-ringo massacre – 19 white settlers are murdered by indigenous Australians, following which more than 300 of the latter are killed in retaliation.^[18]
October 21 – American Civil War: Battle of Ball's Bluff – Union forces under Colonel Edward Baker are defeated by Confederate troops, in the second major battle of the war. Baker, a close friend of Abraham Lincoln, is also killed in the fighting.
October 24
- HMS Warrior, the world's first ocean-going (all) iron-hulled armored battleship, is completed and commissioned into the British Royal Navy.
- Western Union completes the first transcontinental telegraph line across the United States.
October 25 – The Toronto Stock Exchange is established in Canada.
October 26 – The Pony Express American transcontinental mail service announces its closure.
American Civil War:
- October 28 – The Missouri legislature takes up a bill for Missouri's secession from the Union.
- October 30 – The bill for Missouri's secession from the Union is passed.
October 31
- The Spanish, French and British governments sign a tripartite agreement to intervene in Mexico, in the hope of recovering unpaid debts.^[19]
- The Missouri secession bill is signed by Governor Jackson.
- American Civil War: Citing failing health, 75-year-old Union General Winfield Scott resigns as Commander of the United States Army.

November

November 1 – U.S. President Abraham Lincoln appoints George B. McClellan as commander of the Union Army, replacing Winfield Scott.
November 2 – American Civil War: Western Department Union General John C. Frémont is relieved of command and replaced by David Hunter.
November 4 – The University of Washington is founded in Seattle.
November 5 – The first Melbourne Cup horse race is held in Melbourne, Australia.

American Civil War:
- November 6 – Jefferson Davis is elected president of the Confederate States of America.
- November 7 – Battle of Belmont – In Belmont, Missouri, Union forces led by General Ulysses S. Grant (in his first combat leadership role) overrun a Confederate camp, but are forced to retreat when Confederate reinforcements arrive.
- November 8 – Trent Affair – The USS San Jacinto stops the United Kingdom mail ship Trent, and arrests two Confederate envoys, James Mason and John Slidell, sparking a diplomatic crisis between the U.K. and U.S.
November 10 – Death of French explorer Henri Mouhot, following which his servant Phrai begins shipping his diaries and specimens back to the west; they include accounts of Mouhot's discovery of Angkor Wat.
American Civil War:
- November 19 – Battle of Round Mountain in Indian Territory (modern-day Oklahoma).
- November 21 – Confederate President Jefferson Davis appoints Judah P. Benjamin Secretary of War.
November 25
- At a battle in the Sundarbans of Bengal, the house of Rahimullah of Baraikhali is attacked and he and 33 others are killed.^[20]
- A tenement collapses in the Old Town, Edinburgh (Scotland), killing 35 people, while 15 others survive.
November 28 – Acting on the ordinance passed by the Jackson government, the Confederate Congress admits Missouri as the 12th Confederate state.

December

December 1 – American Civil War: Trent Affair – The British government dispatches its response, partly drafted by Albert, Prince Consort (a fortnight before his death).^[21]
December 10
- American Civil War: A rebel government representing Kentucky is accepted into the Confederate States of America, although Kentucky officially remains part of the United States.
- In southern French Indochina, resistance forces led by Nguyễn Trung Trực ambush, board and sink the French lorcha (boat) L'Esperance on the Nhat Tao canal.
December 21 – Medal of Honor: Public Resolution 82, containing a provision for a Navy Medal of Valor, is signed into law by U.S. President Abraham Lincoln.

Undated

The British Empire establishes bases in Lagos to stop the slave trade.
The Perpetual Truce of Peace and Friendship is signed between Bahrain and the United Kingdom.
The first industrial meat packing plant in Uruguay is established, at Fray Bentos.
The Royal Seminary becomes the first public institution of higher academic learning open to women in Sweden.
The first permanent color photograph is captured by Thomas Sutton using the three-color method proposed by James Clerk Maxwell.
Statistically, this year is considered the end of the whale oil industry and (in replacement) the beginning of the petroleum oil industry.^[22]