This article is about the particular significance of the year 1861 to

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

and its people.

Incumbents

Lord Lieutenant of Anglesey This is a list of people who served as Lord Lieutenant of Anglesey. Since 1761, all Lord Lieutenants have also been Custos Rotulorum of Anglesey. The office was abolished on 31 March 1974. Lord Lieutenants of Anglesey to 1974 *''see Lord Lieute ...

– Henry Paget, 2nd Marquess of Anglesey *

Lord Lieutenant of Brecknockshire This is a list of people who served as Lord Lieutenant of Brecknockshire. After 1723, all Lord Lieutenants were also Custos Rotulorum of Brecknockshire. The office was abolished on 31 March 1974 and replaced with the Lord Lieutenant of Powys, with ...

–

John Lloyd Vaughan Watkins John Lloyd Vaughan Watkins (1802 – 28 September 1865) was a Welsh Liberal Party (UK), Liberal politician who sat in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons in three periods between 1832 and 1865. Watkins was the son of Re ...

Lord Lieutenant of Caernarvonshire This is a list of people who served as Lord Lieutenant of Caernarvonshire. Since 1778, all Lord Lieutenants have also been Custos Rotulorum of Caernarvonshire. The post was abolished on 31 March 1974 and replaced with that of Lord Lieutenant of Gw ...

–

Sir Richard Williams-Bulkeley, 10th Baronet Sir Richard Bulkeley Williams-Bulkeley, 10th Baronet (23 September 1801 – 28 August 1875) was an English Whig (British political party), Whig and Liberal Party (UK), Liberal Party politician who sat in the House of Commons of the United King ...

* Lord Lieutenant of Cardiganshire –

Edward Pryse Colonel Edward Lewis Pryse (27 June 1817 – 29 May 1888) was a British Liberal politician. Pryse entered the military in 1836, before becoming captain of the Carabiniers (6th Dragoon Guards), and retiring in 1846. From 1857 to 1888, he was ...

* Lord Lieutenant of Carmarthenshire – John Campbell, 2nd Earl Cawdor (from 26 April) *

Lord Lieutenant of Denbighshire This is an incomplete list of people who served as Lord Lieutenant of Denbighshire in Wales. After 1733, all Lord Lieutenants were also Custos Rotulorum of Denbighshire. The office was abolished on 31 March 1974, being replaced by the Lord Lieut ...

– Robert Myddelton Biddulph *

Lord Lieutenant of Flintshire This is a list of people who have served as Lord Lieutenant of Flintshire. Since 1802, all Lord Lieutenants have also been Custos Rotulorum of Flintshire. The office was abolished on 31 March 1974, and was replaced by the Lord Lieutenant of Clwyd ...

–

Sir Stephen Glynne, 9th Baronet Sir Stephen Richard Glynne, 9th Baronet (22 September 1807 – 17 June 1874) was a Welsh landowner and Conservative Party politician. He is principally remembered as an assiduous antiquary and student of British church architecture. He was a ...

Lord Lieutenant of Glamorgan This is a list of people who served as Lord Lieutenant of Glamorgan. After 1729, all Lords Lieutenant were also Custos Rotulorum of Glamorgan. The post was abolished on 31 March 1974. Lord Lieutenants of Glamorgan to 1974 *Henry Herbert, 2nd Ear ...

–

Christopher Rice Mansel Talbot Christopher Rice Mansel Talbot FRS (10 May 1803 – 17 January 1890) was a Welsh landowner, industrialist and Liberal politician. He developed his estate at Margam near Swansea as an extensive ironworks, served by railways and a port, which was ...

Lord Lieutenant of Merionethshire This is a list of people who served as Lord Lieutenant of Merionethshire. After 1762, all Lord Lieutenants were also Custos Rotulorum of Merionethshire. The office was abolished on 31 March 1974, and the area is now covered by the Lord Lieutenant ...

–

Robert Davies Pryce The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

* Lord Lieutenant of Monmouthshire – Capel Hanbury Leigh (until 28 September); Benjamin Hall, 1st Baron Llanover (from 9 November) * Lord Lieutenant of Montgomeryshire – Thomas Hanbury-Tracy, 2nd Baron Sudeley * Lord Lieutenant of Pembrokeshire – Sir John Owen, 1st Baronet (until 6 February); William Edwardes, 3rd Baron Kensington (from 28 April) * Lord Lieutenant of Radnorshire – John Walsh, 1st Baron Ormathwaite * Bishop of Bangor –

James Colquhoun Campbell James Colquhoun Campbell (1813 – 9 November 1895) was a Scottish-born Welsh Anglican bishop. Born at Stonefield, Argyllshire, he was the son of James Campbell and his wife Wilhelmina, the daughter of Sir James Colquhoun, 2nd Baronet. Campbel ...

* Bishop of Llandaff – Alfred Ollivant *

Bishop of St Asaph The Bishop of St Asaph heads the Church in Wales diocese of St Asaph. The diocese covers the counties of Conwy and Flintshire, Wrexham county borough, the eastern part of Merioneth in Gwynedd and part of northern Powys. The Episcopal seat is loca ...

–

Thomas Vowler Short Thomas Vowler Short (16 September 1790 – 13 April 1872) was an English academic and clergyman, successively Bishop of Sodor and Man and Bishop of St Asaph. Life He was the eldest son of William Short, Archdeacon of Cornwall, with Eliza ...

* Bishop of St Davids – Connop Thirlwall

Events

30 May Events Pre-1600 * 70 – Siege of Jerusalem: Titus and his Roman legions breach the Second Wall of Jerusalem. Jewish defenders retreat to the First Wall. The Romans build a circumvallation, cutting down all trees within fifteen kilometres ...

- In a by-election caused by the death of the sitting MP, Richard Grosvenor becomes MP for Flintshire, holding it on behalf of the Liberals. *

10 June Events Pre-1600 * 671 – Emperor Tenji of Japan introduces a water clock (water clock, clepsydra) called ''Rokoku''. The instrument, which measures time and indicates hours, is placed in the capital of Ōtsu, Shiga, Ōtsu. *1190 – Th ...

- The

Oswestry and Newtown Railway The Oswestry and Newtown Railway was a British railway company that built a line between Oswestry in Shropshire and Newtown Montgomeryshire, now Powys. The line opened in stages in 1860 and 1861. It was conceived to open up the area to rail tran ...

is completed throughout by opening of the section between

Abermule Abermule ( cy, Aber-miwl) is a village lying on the River Severn 6 km (4 miles) northeast of Newtown in Powys, mid Wales. The A483 Swansea to Chester trunk road, the Cambrian Line railway, connecting Aberystwyth to Shrewsbury, and the M ...

and Newtown, giving through rail communication from England to

Llanidloes Llanidloes () is a town and community on the A470 and B4518 roads in Powys, within the historic county boundaries of Montgomeryshire ( cy, Sir Drefaldwyn), Wales. The population in 2011 was 2,929, of whom 15% could speak Welsh. It is the third ...

. *July - ''Baner ac Amserau Cymru'' begins twice-weekly publication. *''date unknown'' **

Japanese knotweed ''Reynoutria japonica'', synonyms ''Fallopia japonica'' and ''Polygonum cuspidatum'', is a species of herbaceous perennial plant in the knotweed and buckwheat family Polygonaceae. Common names include Japanese knotweed and Asian knotweed. It is ...

is recorded at

Maesteg Maesteg is a town and community in Bridgend County Borough, Wales. Maesteg lies at the northernmost end of the Llynfi Valley, close to the border with Neath Port Talbot. In 2011, Maesteg had a population of 20,612. The English translation of Mae ...

- the first record of it growing wild in the UK. **Excavation of

Long Hole Cave Long Hole, also spelled Longhole, is a limestone cave on the south coast of the Gower Peninsula between Paviland and Port Eynon. It is relatively small, measuring about deep after several excavations. It was first excavated in 1861 by Colonel E ...

in Glamorgan reveals prehistoric

flint Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Flint was widely used historically to make stone tools and start fir ...

artefacts. ** Pryce Pryce-Jones starts his mail order company in

Newtown, Montgomeryshire Newtown ( cy, Y Drenewydd) is a town in Powys, Wales. It lies on the River Severn in the community of Newtown and Llanllwchaiarn, within the historic boundaries of Montgomeryshire. It was designated a new town in 1967 and saw population grow ...

. ** John Dillwyn-Llewelyn marries Caroline, daughter of

Sir Michael Hicks Beach, 8th Baronet Sir Michael Hicks Hicks-Beach, 8th Baronet DL (25 October 1809 – 22 November 1854) was a British Conservative Party MP and High Sheriff. He was appointed High Sheriff of Gloucestershire for 1840 and then returned as Member of Parliament (MP) ...

. **

Griffith John Griffith John ( zh, t=楊格非, p=Yáng Géfēi; 14 December 1831 – 25 July 1912) was a Welsh Christian missionary and translator in China. A member of the Congregational church, he was a pioneer evangelist with the London Missionary Society ...

becomes the first Christian missionary to penetrate into central China.

Arts and literature

Awards

*20–22 August - The first

National Eisteddfod of Wales The National Eisteddfod of Wales (Welsh language, Welsh: ') is the largest of several eisteddfodau that are held annually, mostly in Wales. Its eight days of competitions and performances are considered the largest music and poetry festival in Eur ...

is held at

Aberdare Aberdare ( ; cy, Aberdâr) is a town in the Cynon Valley area of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales, at the confluence of the Rivers Dare (Dâr) and Cynon. Aberdare has a population of 39,550 (mid-2017 estimate). Aberdare is south-west of Merthyr Tyd ...

. The chair is won by

Lewis William Lewis Lewis may refer to: Names * Lewis (given name), including a list of people with the given name * Lewis (surname), including a list of people with the surname Music * Lewis (musician), Canadian singer * "Lewis (Mistreated)", a song by Radiohead ...

New books

*''Autobiography and Correspondence of Mrs. Delaney'', ed. Augusta Hall, Lady Llanover * Griffith Jones (Glan Menai) - ''Hywel Wyn'' * John Jones (Vulcan) - ''Athrawiaeth yr Iawn'' *

David Owen (Brutus) David Owen (December 1795 - 16 January 1866) known by the pseudonym Brutus, was a Welsh satirical writer, editor and preacher. He was born in Llanpumsaint, Carmarthenshire where he was brought up as a Congregationalist. Thereafter he spent perio ...

- ''Cofiant y Diweddar Barch. Thomas Williams'' *

Thomas Rees Thomas Rees may refer to: Religious figures * Thomas Rees (Congregational minister) (1815–1885), Welsh Congregationalist minister * (1869–1926), Welsh theologian and editor, principal of Bala-Bangor Independent College, see 1926 in Wales * Th ...

- ''History of Protestant Nonconformity in Wales: From Its Rise to the Present Time'' *

William Rees (Gwilym Hiraethog) William Rees (8 November 1802 – 8 November 1883), usually known in Wales by his bardic name of Gwilym Hiraethog, was a Welsh poet and author, one of the major figures of Welsh literature during the 19th century. Gwilym Hiraethog took ...

- ''Emmanuel'' * Jane Williams (Ysgafell) - ''The Literary Women of England'' *

Robert Williams (Trebor Mai) Robert Williams (25 May 1830 - 5 August 1877), usually referred to by his bardic name Trebor Mai, was a Welsh language poet, born at Ty'n-yr-ardd near Llanrhychwyn, near Llanrwst, in the old county of Caernarfonshire, the son of a tailor. He ...

- ''Fy Noswyl''

Music

* Hugh Jerman - ''Deus Misereatur''

Sport

Cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

18 July Events Pre-1600 *477 BC – Battle of the Cremera as part of the Roman–Etruscan Wars. Veii ambushes and defeats the Roman army. *387 BC – Roman-Gaulish Wars: Battle of the Allia: A Roman army is defeated by raiding Gauls, leading ...

- South Wales Cricket Club defeat MCC at Lord's.

Births

1 January January 1 or 1 January is the first day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. There are 364 days remaining until the end of the year (365 in leap years). This day is also known as New Year's Day since the day marks the beginning of the year. ...

John Owen Jones (Ap Ffarmwr) John Owen Jones (1 January 1861 – 2 March 1899), commonly known by his pen name of Ap Ffarmwr ("farmer's son"), was a Welsh campaigning journalist. Early education Jones was born at Ty'n y Morfa, Trefdraeth, Anglesey. Following his father's de ...

, journalist (died 1899) *

2 January Events Pre-1600 * 69 – The Roman legions in Germania Superior refuse to swear loyalty to Galba. They rebel and proclaim Vitellius as emperor. * 366 – The Alemanni cross the frozen Rhine in large numbers, invading the Roman Empir ...

(in

Oswestry Oswestry ( ; ) is a market town, civil parish and historic railway town in Shropshire, England, close to the Welsh border. It is at the junction of the A5, A483 and A495 roads. The town was the administrative headquarters of the Borough of ...

) -

William Henry Griffith Thomas William Henry Griffith Thomas (2 January 1861 – 2 June 1924) was an Anglican clergy, cleric and scholar from the England, English-Wales, Welsh border country. He has been quoted by theologian Alister McGrath in the science-versus-religion deb ...

, clergyman and academic (died 1924) *

28 February Events Pre-1600 *202 BC – Liu Bang is enthroned as the Emperor of China, beginning four centuries of rule by the Han dynasty. * 870 – The Fourth Council of Constantinople closes. *1525 – Aztec king Cuauhtémoc is executed on ...

Jessie Penn-Lewis Jessie Penn-Lewis (28 February 1861 – 15 August 1927, née Jones) was a Welsh evangelical speaker, who wrote several Christian evangelical works. Her religious work took her to Russia, Scandinavia, Canada, the United States and India. Early l ...

, evangelist (died

1927 Events January * January 1 – The British Broadcasting ''Company'' becomes the British Broadcasting ''Corporation'', when its Royal Charter of incorporation takes effect. John Reith becomes the first Director-General. * January 7 * ...

) *

22 March Events Pre-1600 *AD 106, 106 – Start of the Bostran era, the calendar of the province of Arabia Petraea. * 235 – Roman emperor Severus Alexander is murdered, marking the start of the Crisis of the Third Century. * 871 – Æth ...

- Dick Kedzlie, Wales international rugby player (died 1920) *

7 April Events Pre-1600 * 451 – Attila the Hun captures Metz in France, killing most of its inhabitants and burning the town. * 529 – First ''Corpus Juris Civilis'', a fundamental work in jurisprudence, is issued by Eastern Roman Emp ...

- Clara Novello Davies, singer (died

1943 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 – WWII: The Soviet Union announces that 22 German divisions have been encircled at Stalingrad, with 175,000 killed and 137,650 captured. * January 4 – ...

) *

5 May Events Pre-1600 * 553 – The Second Council of Constantinople begins. *1215 – Rebel barons renounce their allegiance to King John of England — part of a chain of events leading to the signing of the Magna Carta. *1260 – Kub ...

John Edward Lloyd Sir John Edward Lloyd (5 May 1861 – 20 June 1947) was a Welsh historian, He was the author of the first serious history of the country's formative years, ''A History of Wales from the Earliest Times to the Edwardian Conquest'' (1911). Ano ...

, historian (died 1947) *

31 July Events Pre-1600 * 30 BC – Battle of Alexandria: Mark Antony achieves a minor victory over Octavian's forces, but most of his army subsequently deserts, leading to his suicide. * 781 – The oldest recorded eruption of Mount Fuji (Tr ...

Garneddwen Garneddwen (also known as Garnedd-Wen; en, white cairn) is a hamlet in the south of the county of Gwynedd, Wales. It lies in the historic county of Merionethshire/ Sir Feirionnydd, in the valley of the Afon Dulas. It consists primarily of a s ...

- Alfred W. Hughes, surgeon and founder of the Welsh Hospital in South Africa *

27 August Events Pre-1600 * 410 – The sacking of Rome by the Visigoths ends after three days. * 1172 – Henry the Young King and Margaret of France are crowned junior king and queen of England. *1232 – Shikken Hojo Yasutoki of the Ka ...

Reginald Brooks-King Reginald Brooks-King (27 August 1861 – 19 September 1938) was a Welsh archer. He was born in Dixton, Monmouth, Wales, to James Pearce King and Katherine Bagnall. He won the silver medal in the men's double York round at the 1908 Summer Olympi ...

, archer (died 1936) *

10 September Events Pre-1600 * 506 – The bishops of Visigothic Gaul meet in the Council of Agde. *1419 – John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy is assassinated by adherents of the Dauphin, the future Charles VII of France. *1509 – An eart ...

- Sir John Lynn-Thomas, surgeon (died

1939 This year also marks the start of the Second World War, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 ** Third Reich *** Jews are forbidden to ...

) *

19 September Events Pre-1600 * 85 – Nerva, suspected of complicity of the death of Domitian, is declared emperor by Senate. The Senate then annuls laws passed by Domitian and orders his statues to be destroyed. * 634 – Siege of Damascus: Th ...

- Evan Roberts, Wales international rugby player (died 1927) *

26 October Events Pre-1600 *1185 – The Uprising of Asen and Peter begins on the feast day of St. Demetrius of Thessaloniki and ends with the creation of the Second Bulgarian Empire. * 1341 – The Byzantine civil war of 1341–1347 formally beg ...

- Richard Griffith (Carneddog), writer (died 1947) *

28 December Events Pre-1600 * 418 – A papal conclave begins, resulting in the election of Pope Boniface I. * 457 – Majorian is acclaimed as Western Roman Empire, Western Roman emperor. * 484 – Alaric II succeeds his father Euric and beco ...

David Gwynn David 'Dai' Gwynn (28 December 1861 – 8 March 1910) was a Welsh international rugby union wing who played club rugby for Swansea, and county rugby for Lancashire. Gwynn played for Wales on six occasions and was the brother of William Gwynn ...

, Wales international rugby player (died 1897) *''date unknown'' ** William Stadden, rugby player (died 1906) **

John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (15 November 2022)Classic Connection review ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who wa ...

, politician (died

1922 Events January * January 7 – Dáil Éireann (Irish Republic), Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64–57 votes. * January 10 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éirean ...

)

Deaths

6 February Events Pre-1600 *1579 – The Archdiocese of Manila is made a diocese by a papal bull with Domingo de Salazar being its first bishop. 1601–1900 *1685 – James II of England and VII of Scotland is proclaimed King upon the death of h ...

- Sir John Owen, 1st Baronet, 84 *

20 April Events Pre-1600 *1303 – The Sapienza University of Rome is instituted by a bull of Pope Boniface VIII. 1601–1900 * 1653 – Oliver Cromwell dissolves England's Rump Parliament. * 1657 – English Admiral Robert Blake destroys ...

- David Pugh, merchant, landowner and politician, *

8 May Events Pre-1600 * 453 BC – Spring and Autumn period: The house of Zhao defeats the house of Zhi, ending the Battle of Jinyang, a military conflict between the elite families of the State of Jin. * 413 – Emperor Honorius signs ...

Thomas Lloyd-Mostyn Thomas Edward Mostyn Lloyd-Mostyn (23 January 1830 – 8 May 1861), was a British Liberal Party (UK) Member of Parliament (MP). Lloyd-Mostyn was the eldest son and heir apparent of Edward Lloyd-Mostyn, 2nd Baron Mostyn. He was educated at Ch ...

, politician, 31 *

17 May Events Pre-1600 *1395 – Battle of Rovine: The Wallachians defeat an invading Ottoman army. * 1521 – Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, is executed for treason. * 1527 – Pánfilo de Narváez departs Spain to explore Flo ...

Ellis Owen Ellis Ellis Owen Ellis (1813-1861) also known as Ellis Bryn-coch, was a Welsh portrait painter, cartoonist and illustrator. His subject-matter was wholly Welsh and encompassed satires and cartoons printed in Welsh language periodicals as well as book i ...

, artist, 48? *

2 August Events Pre-1600 *338 BC – A Macedonian army led by Philip II defeated the combined forces of Athens and Thebes in the Battle of Chaeronea, securing Macedonian hegemony in Greece and the Aegean. * 216 BC – The Carthaginian ar ...

- Sidney Herbert, 1st Baron Herbert of Lea, statesman, 50 *

5 September Events Pre-1600 * 917 – Liu Yan declares himself emperor, establishing the Southern Han state in southern China, at his capital of Panyu. *1367 – Swa Saw Ke becomes king of Ava *1590 – Alexander Farnese's army forces Henr ...

- William Addams Williams, lawyer, landowner and politician, 74 *

26 September Events Pre-1600 *46 BC – Julius Caesar dedicates a temple to Venus Genetrix, fulfilling a vow he made at the Battle of Pharsalus. * 715 – Ragenfrid defeats Theudoald at the Battle of Compiègne. * 1087 – William II is crow ...

- Morris Davies (Meurig Ebrill), poet, 71 *

25 October Events Pre-1600 * 285 (or 286) – Execution of Saints Crispin and Crispinian during the reign of Diocletian, now the patron saints of leather workers, curriers, and shoemakers. * 473 – Emperor Leo I acclaims his grandson Leo II ...

- Sir James Graham, 2nd Baronet, former MP for Pembroke, 69

References

{{Year in Europe, 1861

Wales 1861 in Europe 1860s in Wales