Editing 1856

{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2011}}
{{Year dab|1856}}
{{Year nav|1856}}
[[File:Edouard Dubufe Congrès de Paris.jpg|thumb|250px|[[March 30]]: ''[[The Congress of Paris]]'' by [[Édouard Dubufe]]. The [[Treaty of Paris (1856)|Treaty of Paris]] is signed, ending the [[Crimean War]].]]
[[File:Southern Chivalry.jpg|thumb|250px|[[May 22]]: [[Caning of Charles Sumner|Senator Charles Sumner is seriously injured by Congressman Preston Brooks on the floor of the U.S. Senate]]]]
{{C19 year in topic}}
{{Year article header|1856}}
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== Events ==

=== January–March ===
* [[January 8]] &ndash; [[Borax]] deposits are discovered in large quantities by [[John Veatch]] in [[California]].<ref>[https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/fve02 Veatch, John Allen, Texas State Historical Association]</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Linsley |first1=Judith |last2=Rienstrad |first2=Ellen |last3=Stiles |first3=Jo |title=Giant Under the Hill, A History of the Spindletop Oil Discovery at Beaumont, Texas in 1901 |date=2002 |publisher=Texas State Historical Association |location=Austin |isbn=9780876112366 |pages=9–11}}</ref>
* [[January 23]] &ndash; The American [[sidewheel steamer]] [[SS Pacific (1849)|SS ''Pacific'']] leaves [[Liverpool]] (England) for a transatlantic voyage on which she will be lost with all 186 on board.<ref name=":Shipping Gazette">{{Cite news|agency=London Shipping Gazette|author=<!--not stated-->|date=1861-08-07|title=Reminisecence of the Lost Steamship Pacific.; INTERESTING STATEMENT.|quote=Our readers may have observed recently, amongst our maritime extracts, the copy of the contents of a slip of paper, found in a bottle some weeks ago, on the western coast of Uls, in the Hebrides, and forwarded to us by our agent at Sternoway. The paper in question, apparently the leaf of a pocketbook, used in the hurry of the moment, was covered on both sides with pencil marks, from which the following was with difficulty deciphered: ''On board the Pacific, from L'pool to N. York. Ship going down. (Great) confusion on board. Icebergs around us on every side. I know I cannot escape. I write the cause of our loss, that friends may not live in suspense. The finder of this will please get it published, WM. GRAHAM.'' If we are right in our conjecture, the ship here named is the Pacific, one of the Collins line of steamers, which vessel left Liverpool on Jan. 23, 1856, three days before the Persia, and has not since been heard of; and this slip of paper, three inches by two, is probably the only record of the fate of that missing ship. |language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1861/08/07/archives/reminisecence-of-the-lost-steamship-pacific-interesting-statement.html|access-date=2020-10-30|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
* [[January 24]] &ndash; U.S. President [[Franklin Pierce]] declares the new [[Free-Stater (Kansas)|Free-State]] [[Topeka Constitution|Topeka government]] in "[[Bleeding Kansas]]" to be in rebellion.
* [[January 26]] &ndash; First [[Battle of Seattle (1856)|Battle of Seattle]]:  Marines from the {{USS|Decatur|1839|6}} suppress an indigenous uprising, in response to Governor Stevens' declaration of a "war of extermination" on Native communities.
* [[January 29]]
** The 223-mile [[North Carolina Railroad]] is completed from [[Goldsboro, North Carolina|Goldsboro]] through [[Raleigh, North Carolina|Raleigh]] and [[Salisbury, North Carolina|Salisbury]] to [[Charlotte, North Carolina|Charlotte]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.historync.org/railroads.htm|title=Railroads — prior to the Civil War|work=North Carolina Business History|year=2006|access-date=2011-08-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726152211/http://historync.org/railroads.htm|archive-date=July 26, 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref>
** [[Queen Victoria]] institutes the [[Victoria Cross]] as a British military decoration.
* [[February]]
** The [[Tintic War]] breaks out in [[Utah]].
** The [[National Dress Reform Association]] is founded in the United States to promote "rational" dress for women.
* [[February 1]] &ndash; [[Auburn University]] is first chartered, as the East Alabama Male College.
* [[February 2]] &ndash; [[Dallas, Texas]], is incorporated as a city.
* [[February 7]] &ndash; The [[Nawab of Oudh]], [[Wajid Ali Shah]], is exiled to [[Metiabruz]] and the state is annexed by the British [[East India Company]].
* [[February 12]] &ndash; American [[clipper]] ships ''[[Driver (clipper)|Driver]]'' and ''Ocean Queen'' leave [[Liverpool]] and London respectively; both will be lost without trace in the Atlantic, perhaps due to ice, killing 374 and 123 respectively.<ref>{{cite news|title=Missing Ships – The Gales of the Past Winter - A Melancholy Catalogue|work=The [[New York Herald]]|page=12|date=3 June 1856|access-date=2019-06-18|url=http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83030313/1856-06-03/ed-1/seq-12/|via=[[Library of Congress]]}}</ref>
* [[February 18]] &ndash; The American [[Know Nothing]] Party convenes in [[Philadelphia]] to nominate their first [[President of the United States|Presidential]] candidate, former President [[Millard Fillmore]].
* [[March]]
** The [[Great Trigonometrical Survey]] of India officially gives 'Peak XV' (later to be named [[Mount Everest]]) the height of {{convert|29002|ft|m|abbr=on}}. 'Peak IX' ([[Kangchenjunga]]), previously thought to be the world's highest, is confirmed as {{convert|28156|ft|m|abbr=on}}.
** [[Mauveine]], the first synthetic [[organic chemistry|organic]] [[dye]], is discovered by [[William Henry Perkin]], while attempting to synthesize [[quinine]]. This eventually leads to the birth of the [[chemical industry]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Garfield|first=Simon|author-link=Simon Garfield|title=Mauve: How One Man Invented a Colour that Changed the World|location=London|publisher=Faber|isbn=0-571-20197-0|year=2000}}</ref>
* [[March]] &ndash; [[Nepalese–Tibetan War]]: The signing of the [[Treaty of Thapathali]] concludes the war.
* [[March 5]] &ndash; Fire destroys the [[Covent Garden Theatre]] in London.
* [[March 6]] &ndash; [[Maryland Agricultural College]] (modern-day [[University of Maryland, College Park]]) is chartered.
* [[March 20]] &ndash; [[Filibuster War]]: [[Battle of Santa Rosa]]: &ndash; [[Costa Rica]]n troops rout [[William Walker (filibuster)|Walker]]'s soldiers.
* [[March 24]] &ndash; [[Taiping Rebellion]]: Suspecting treachery on the part of East King [[Yang Xiuqing]], [[Shi Dakai]] garrisons [[Anhui]] and begins his march back to the Heavenly Capital, having defeated a strong Xiang Army detachment.
* [[March 31]] &ndash; The [[Treaty of Paris (1856)|Treaty of Paris]] is signed, ending the [[Crimean War]].
[[File:Covent Garden Theatre 1827-28.jpg|thumb|220px|right| [[March 5]]: [[Covent Garden Theatre]] fire.]]

=== April–June ===
* [[April]] &ndash; The [[History of the Cape Colony from 1806 to 1870#Xhosa cattle-killing movement and famine (1854-1858)|Xhosa cattle-killing movement and famine]] begins in [[Cape Colony]].
* [[April 7]] &ndash; [[Nelson College]] is founded in [[Nelson, New Zealand]].
* [[April 10]] &ndash; [[Theta Chi]] international college fraternity is founded at Norwich University in Vermont.
* [[April 16]] &ndash; The [[Paris Declaration Respecting Maritime Law]] abolishes [[privateer]]ing, and regulates the relationship between neutral and belligerent shipping on the high seas.
* [[April 17]] &ndash; The [[Chicago History Museum|Chicago Historical Society Museum]] is established at 1601 N. [[Clark Street, Chicago]].
* [[April 21]] &ndash; Building workers agitate for the [[Eight-hour day#Australia|eight-hour day]] in [[Melbourne]], Australia.
* [[April 29]] &ndash; The iron-hulled [[paddle steamer]] {{RMS|Persia}} concludes a 9-day 16 hour westbound [[transatlantic crossing]], at an average 13.11 knots (24.28&nbsp;km/h), regaining the [[Blue Riband]] for the [[Cunard Line]].
* [[May 1]] &ndash; The province of [[Isabela (province)|Isabela]] is created in the [[Philippines]], in honor of Queen [[Isabella II of Spain]].
* [[May 3]] &ndash; [[Queen Victoria]] of the United Kingdom gives [[Norfolk Island]] to the population of the colony at [[History of the Pitcairn Islands|Pitcairn Island]], most being descendants of the [[Mutiny on the Bounty|Mutiny on the ''Bounty'']]. They first settle on Norfolk Island on [[June 8]]. [[Women's suffrage]], as practiced on Pitcairn, is extended to Norfolk Island.
* [[May 14]] &ndash; The [[San Francisco Committee of Vigilance]] is founded in the United States. It lynches two [[gangster]]s, arrests most [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]] officials, and disbands itself on [[August 18]].
* [[May 20]] &ndash; [[David Livingstone]] arrives at [[Quelimane]] on the Indian Ocean, having completed a 2-year transcontinental journey across Africa from [[Luanda]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Central Africa, explored|url=http://unimaps.com/cafrica-explored/print.html|work=Unimaps.com|year=2005|access-date=2011-08-26}}</ref>
* [[May 21]] &ndash; [[Sacking of Lawrence]]: [[Lawrence, Kansas]], is captured and burned by pro-[[Slavery in the United States|slavery]] forces.
* [[May 22]] &ndash; [[Caning of Charles Sumner]]: [[United States House of Representatives|United States Congressman]] [[Preston Brooks]] of [[South Carolina]] beats [[United States Senate|Senator]] [[Charles Sumner]] with a cane in the hall of the [[United States Senate]] for a speech Sumner had made attacking pro-[[slavery]] Southerners, especially elderly South Carolina Senator [[Andrew Butler]], a relative of Brooks. Sumner is unable to return to duty for three years while he recovers; Brooks becomes a hero across the South.
* [[May 24]] &ndash; [[Pottawatomie massacre]]: A group of followers of radical [[Abolitionism in the United States|abolitionist]] [[John Brown (abolitionist)|John Brown]] kill 5 homesteaders in [[Franklin County, Kansas]].
* [[June 2]] &ndash; [[Battle of Black Jack]]: Antislavery forces, led by [[John Brown (abolitionist)|John Brown]], defeat proslavery forces in [[Bleeding Kansas]].
* [[June 9]] &ndash; 500 [[Mormon handcart pioneers]] leave [[Iowa City]] and head west for [[Salt Lake City, Utah]], carrying all their possessions in two-wheeled handcarts.
* [[June 13]] &ndash; [[Taiping Rebellion]]: [[Shi Dakai]] arrives at [[Nanjing]].
* [[June 20]] &ndash; [[General Mills]] is founded in [[Minneapolis, Minnesota]], United States, as the Minneapolis Milling Company.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.millcitymuseum.org/timeline|title=Mill City Timeline|website=millcitymuseum.org|access-date=2014-09-13}}</ref>

=== July–September ===
* [[July 9]] &ndash; [[Colony of Natal|Natal]] becomes a British [[Crown colony]].<ref name=CBH>{{cite book|last=Palmer|first=Alan|last2=Palmer |first2=Veronica|year=1992|title=The Chronology of British History|publisher=Century Ltd|location=London|pages=276–277|isbn=0-7126-5616-2}}</ref>
* [[July 14]]&ndash;[[July 15|15]] &ndash; In Spain, General [[Leopoldo O'Donnell]] takes control of the government, bringing an end to the ''[[bienio progresista]]''.
* [[July 17]] &ndash; The [[Great Train Wreck of 1856|Great Train Wreck]] (the worst railroad calamity in the world to date) occurs near [[Philadelphia]], [[Pennsylvania]], United States.
* [[July 31]] &ndash; [[Christchurch]], New Zealand, is chartered as a city.
* [[August]] &ndash; [[Neanderthal 1|Pre-human remains]] are found in the [[Neanderthal|Neanderthal Valley]] in [[Kingdom of Prussia|Prussia]].
* [[August 10]] &ndash; The [[1856 Last Island hurricane|Last Island hurricane]] destroys [[Last Island, Louisiana]], leaving 400 dead. The whole island is broken up into several smaller islands by the storm.
* [[August 30]] &ndash; [[Battle of Osawatomie]]: Proslavery forces defeat antislavery forces in [[Bleeding Kansas]].
* [[September 1]] &ndash; [[Seton Hall University]] is founded  in [[South Orange, New Jersey]], by Roman Catholic Bishop of Newark [[James Roosevelt Bayley]], a cousin of future U.S. President [[Theodore Roosevelt]] and nephew of [[Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton]].
* [[September 2]] &ndash; [[Taiping Rebellion]]: [[Wei Changhui]] and [[Qin Rigang]] assassinate [[Yang Xiuqing]].
* [[September 7]] &ndash; The [[Saimaa Canal]] was inaugurated.<ref>{{cite magazine| title= Saiman kanawa walmistunut | magazine= Sanomia Turusta | date= September 2, 1856 | number= 36 | page= 5 | language= fi}}</ref>

=== October–December ===
* [[October 8]] &ndash; The [[Second Opium War]] between several Western powers and China begins with the ''Arrow'' Incident on the [[Pearl River (China)|Pearl River]].
* [[October 12]] &ndash; [[1856 Heraklion earthquake]]: A powerful earthquake rocks the Mediterranean, killing hundreds on the island of Crete and many more in the Middle East.
* [[October 13]] &ndash; American mercenary [[William Walker (filibuster)|William Walker]] effectively takes control of [[Nicaragua]].
* [[November 1]] &ndash; [[Anglo-Persian War]]: War is declared between Great Britain and [[Persia]].
* [[November 4]] &ndash; [[1856 United States presidential election]]: [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrat]] [[James Buchanan]] defeats former President [[Millard Fillmore]], representing a coalition of [[Know Nothing]]s and [[Whig Party (United States)|Whigs]], and [[John C. Frémont]] of the fledgling [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]], to become the 15th [[President of the United States]].
* [[November 11]] &ndash; [[Taiping Rebellion]]: [[Shi Dakai]] arrives at the Heavenly Capital once more with 100,000 men, and demands that [[Wei Changhui]] and Qin Rigang be executed. Shi subsequently becomes head of the government.
* [[November 17]] &ndash; [[American Old West]]: On the [[Sonoita River]] in modern-day southern [[Arizona]], the [[United States Army]] establishes [[Fort Buchanan, Arizona|Fort Buchanan]], in order to help control new land acquired in the [[Gadsden Purchase]].
* [[November 21]] &ndash; [[Niagara University]] is founded in [[Niagara Falls, New York]].
* [[November 27]] &ndash; The [[Luxembourg Coup of 1856|Coup of 1856]] leads to [[Luxembourg]]'s unilateral adoption of a new, reactionary [[Constitution of Luxembourg|constitution]], as [[King-Grand Duke]] [[William III of the Netherlands|William III]] signs the new constitution without the [[Chamber of Deputies (Luxembourg)|Chamber of Deputies]]' consent.
* [[December 1]] &ndash; Under the [[County and Borough Police Act 1856|County and Borough Police Act]], in any county or area of [[England and Wales]] where a police force has not already been established, the [[Justice of the Peace|Justices of the Peace]] must from this date take steps to create one according to nationally defined standards.<ref>{{cite book|first=Stephen|last=Friar|title=The Sutton Companion to Local History|edition=rev.|location=Stroud|publisher=Sutton Publishing|year=2001|isbn=0-7509-2723-2|page=243}}</ref>
* [[December 2]] &ndash; The [[National Portrait Gallery, London]], is established.<ref>{{cite web|title=Gallery history|url=http://www.npg.org.uk/about/history.php|publisher=National Portrait Gallery|access-date=2011-08-26|archive-date=September 20, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160920220655/http://www.npg.org.uk/about/history.php|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* [[December 9]] &ndash; [[Bushehr]] surrenders to the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|British]].

=== Date unknown ===
* [[Gregor Mendel]] starts his research on [[genetics]].
* [[Kate Warne]], the first female [[private detective]], begins to work for the [[Pinkerton Detective Agency]].
* Legal protection of widow remarriage is extended in India.
* [[St. Paul's School, Belgaum]], is founded by the [[Jesuits]] in [[Belgaum]], India.
* The [[British Guiana 1c magenta]] [[postage stamp]] is issued in [[British Guiana]] in limited numbers; the one surviving specimen will become regarded as the world's rarest stamp.<ref>{{cite book|last=Carlton|first=R. Scott|title =The International Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Philatelics|publisher=Krause|year=1997|location=Iola, WI|isbn=0-87341-448-9|page=36}}</ref>
* Global [[financial services]] business [[Credit Suisse]] is founded as La Schweizerische Kreditanstalt.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.credit-suisse.com/about-us/en/our-company.html | website = credit-suisse.com | access-date = 28 April 2021 |title = Credit Suisse. Our company.}}</ref>
* [[Charles III of Monaco]] grants a concession to Napoléon Langlois and Albert Aubert to establish a German-style [[casino]] at [[Monte Carlo]].<ref>{{cite web|title=History of Casino Monte Carlo|work=History of Monte Carlo|url=http://www.crapsdicecontrol.com/monte_carlo.htm|access-date=2021-05-27|publisher=Progress Publishing|year=2006}}</ref>

== Births ==

=== January–March ===
[[File:Philippe Pétain (en civil, autour de 1930).jpg|thumb|110px|right|[[Henri Philippe Pétain]]]]
[[File:ELIZABETH MARNEY CONNER.jpg|thumb|110px|[[Elizabeth Marney Conner]]]]
* [[January 6]] &ndash; [[Martin von Feuerstein]], German painter (d. [[1931]])
* [[January 9]] &ndash; [[Lizette Woodworth Reese]], American poet and teacher (d. [[1935]])
* [[January 11]] &ndash; [[Christian Sinding]], Norwegian composer (d. [[1941]])
* [[January 12]] &ndash; [[John Singer Sargent]], American artist (d. [[1925]])
* [[January 27]] &ndash; [[Telémaco Susini]], Argentinian physician (d. [[1936]])<ref>{{cite web |last1=Saller |first1=Lucas |title=Telémaco Susini |url=https://muba.uba.ar/telemaco-susini/ |website=muba.uba.ar |publisher=MUBA |access-date=13 December 2023 |language=es}}</ref>
* [[January 31]] &ndash; [[Hermann von François]], German general (d. [[1933]])
* [[February 2]] &ndash; [[Frederick William Vanderbilt]], American railway magnate (d. [[1938]])
* [[February 4]] &ndash; [[Otani Kikuzo]], Japanese general (d. [[1923]])
* [[February 5]] &ndash; [[Frank Podmore]], British psychical researcher (d. [[1910]])
* [[February 9]] &ndash; [[Hara Takashi]], Japanese politician, 10th [[Prime Minister of Japan]] (d. [[1921]])
* [[February 12]] &ndash; [[Eduard von Böhm-Ermolli]], Austrian general, German field marshal (d. [[1941]])
* [[February 14]] &ndash; [[Frank Harris]], Irish author, editor (d. [[1931]])
* [[February 15]] &ndash; [[Emil Kraepelin]], German psychiatrist (d. [[1926]])
* [[February 17]] &ndash; [[Arnold von Winckler]], German general (d. [[1945]])
* [[February 21]]
**[[Paul Puhallo von Brlog]], Croatian Austro-Hungarian general (d. [[1926]])
**[[Maurycy Gottlieb]], Ukrainian painter (d. [[1879]])
* [[February 26]] &ndash; [[Elizabeth Marney Conner]], American elocutionist (unknown year of death)
* [[March 2]] &ndash; [[Louis Dartige du Fournet]], French admiral (d. [[1940]])
* [[March 4]]
** [[Julius Drewe]], English businessman, retailer and entrepreneur (d. [[1931]])
** [[Alfred William Rich]], English watercolour painter, author (d. [[1921]])
* [[March 8]]
** [[Bramwell Booth]], English Salvation Army general (d. [[1929]])
** [[Tom Roberts]], Australian artist (d. [[1931]])
* [[March 9]] 
** [[Eddie Foy Sr.]], American vaudevillian (d. [[1928]])
** [[Jules-Albert de Dion]], French automobile pioneer (d. [[1946]])
* [[March 16]] &ndash; [[Napoléon, Prince Imperial]] of France (k. [[1879]])<ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=Gilman |editor1-first=Daniel Coit |editor2-last=Peck |editor2-first=Harry Thurston |editor3-last=Colby |editor3-first=Frank Moore |title=The New International Encyclopaedia |date=1906 |publisher=Dodd, Mead & Co. |location=New York |page=246 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RTorAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA245 |access-date=10 October 2021 |chapter=NAPOLEON, Eugène Louis Jean Joseph}}</ref>
* [[March 20]]
** Sir [[John Lavery]], Irish artist (d. [[1941]])
** [[Frederick Winslow Taylor]], American inventor and efficiency expert (d. [[1915]])
* [[March 26]] &ndash; [[William Massey]], Irish-born 19th Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. [[1925]])

=== April–June ===
* [[April 4]] &ndash; [[Washington Irving Chambers]], American naval officer (d. [[1934]])
* [[April 5]] &ndash; [[Booker T. Washington]], American educator (d. [[1915]])
* [[April 6]] &ndash; [[Maurice Sarrail]], French general (d. [[1929]])
* [[April 12]] &ndash; [[Martin Conway, 1st Baron Conway of Allington|Martin Conway]], British art critic, mountaineer (d. [[1937]])
* [[April 14]] &ndash; [[Albert W. Grant]], American admiral (d. [[1930]])
* [[April 18]] &ndash; [[Hammerton Killick]], Haitian admiral (d. [[1902]])
* [[April 23]] &ndash; [[Granville Woods]], African-American inventor (d. [[1910]])
* [[April 24]] &ndash; [[Philippe Pétain]], French soldier, statesman (d. [[1951]])
* [[April 26]] &ndash; Sir [[Joseph Ward]], 17th [[Prime Minister of New Zealand]] (d. [[1930]])
* [[April 27]] &ndash; [[Tongzhi Emperor]] of China (d. [[1875]])
* [[May 6]]
** [[Sigmund Freud]], Austrian neurologist (d. [[1939]])
** [[Robert Peary]], American Arctic explorer (d. [[1920]])
* [[May 8]] &ndash; [[Pedro Lascuráin]], 34th [[President of Mexico]] (d. [[1952]])
* [[May 15]] &ndash; [[L. Frank Baum]], American author, poet, playwright, actor and independent filmmaker (''The Wizard of Oz'') (d. [[1919]])
* [[May 18]] &ndash; [[Guglielmo Pecori Giraldi]], Italian nobleman, general and politician (d. [[1941]])
* [[May 21]] &ndash; [[José Batlle y Ordóñez]], Twice President of Uruguay (d. [[1929]])
* [[May 25]]
** [[Ján Bahýľ]], Slovak engineer, inventor (d. [[1916]]) 
** [[Louis Franchet d'Espèrey]], French general (d. [[1942]])
* [[June 14]] &ndash; [[Andrey Markov]], Russian mathematician (d. [[1922]])
* [[June 22]] &ndash; [[H. Rider Haggard]], English novelist (d. [[1925]])
* [[June 29]] &ndash; [[Maria Cederschiöld]], Swedish journalist   (d. [[1935]])

=== July–September ===
[[File:Tesla circa 1890.jpeg|110px|thumb|[[Nikola Tesla]]]]
[[File:Alfred Deakin crop.jpg|110px|thumbnail|[[Alfred Deakin]]]]
[[File:Kate Douglas Wiggin 01.jpg|thumb|110px|[[Kate Douglas Wiggin]]]]
[[File:George McClellan (Chatham).jpg|thumb|110px|[[George McClellan (New York politician)|George McClellan]]]]
[[File:Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg(cropped).jpg|thumb|110px|[[Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg]]]]
[[File:J.J Thomson.jpg|110px|thumb|[[J. J. Thomson]]]]
[[File:President Woodrow Wilson portrait December 2 1912.jpg|thumb|110px|right|[[Woodrow Wilson]]]]
* [[July 7]] &ndash; [[Georg von der Marwitz]], German general (d. [[1929]])
* [[July 10]] &ndash; [[Nikola Tesla]], Serbian-American inventor (d. [[1943]])
* [[July 11]] &ndash; [[Georgiana Drew]], American stage actress, married [[Maurice Barrymore]] in 1876 (d. [[1893]])
* [[July 23]] &ndash; [[Bal Gangadhar Tilak]], Indian political activist (d. [[1920]])
* [[July 24]] &ndash; [[Franklin Ware Mann]], American inventor (d. [[1916]])
* [[July 26]] &ndash; [[George Bernard Shaw]], Irish writer, [[Nobel Prize in Literature|Nobel Prize]] laureate (d. [[1950]])
*[[July 27]] &ndash; [[Nathan Francis Mossell]], physician, 1st African American graduate of the [[Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania|University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine]] and founder of the [[Frederick Douglass]] Memorial Hospital and Training School (d. [[1946]])
* [[July 30]] &ndash; [[Harriet Bates]], American author (d. [[1886]])
* [[August 3]] &ndash; [[Alfred Deakin]], 2nd [[Prime Minister of Australia]] (d. [[1919]])
* [[August 10]] &ndash; [[William Willett]], British promoter of Daylight Saving Time (d. [[1915]])
* [[August 12]] &ndash; [[Diamond Jim Brady]], American businessman and philanthropist (d. [[1917]])
* [[August 15]]
** [[Ivan Franko]], [[Ukrainians|Ukrainian]] poet, critic, journalist and political activist (d. [[1916]])
** [[Keir Hardie]], British labour leader (d. [[1915]])
* [[September 1]] &ndash; [[Sergei Winogradsky]], Russian scientist (d. [[1953]])
* [[September 3]] &ndash; [[Louis Sullivan]], American architect (d. [[1924]])
* [[September 18]] &ndash; [[Wilhelm von Gloeden]], German photographer (d. [[1931]])
* [[September 19]] &ndash; [[Miguel R. Dávila]], Honduranian general, 21st [[President of Honduras]] (d. [[1927]])
* [[September 28]] &ndash; [[Kate Douglas Wiggin]], American author of ''[[Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm]]'' (d. [[1923]])

=== October–December ===
* [[October 15]] &ndash; [[Robert Nivelle]], French general (d. [[1924]])
* [[October 21]] &ndash; [[Francisco Plancarte y Navarrete]], Mexican archaeologist and Archbishop of [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Monterrey]] (d. June 2, [[1920]])<ref>{{cite web|url=http://museodezamora.wixsite.com/museozam/single-post/2017/09/08/FRANCISCO-PLANCARTE-Y-NAVARRETE-PIONERO-DE-LA-ARQUEOLOG%C3%8DA-NACIONAL|title=Francisco Plancarte y Navarrete, Pionero de la Arqueología Nacional|date=September 8, 2017|publisher=Consejo Ciudadano de la Cronica de Zamora|access-date=February 10, 2019|language=es|trans-title=Francisco Plancarte y Navarrete, Pioneer of National Archaeology}}</ref>
* [[October 23]] &ndash; [[William Thomas Turner]], British ship's captain with [[Cunard Steamship Company]] (d. [[1933]])
* [[October 30]] &ndash; [[Charles Leroux]], American balloonist, parachutist (d. [[1889]])
* [[November 9]] &ndash; [[Andrei Eberhardt]], Russian admiral (d. [[1919]])
* [[November 13]] &ndash; [[Louis Brandeis]], [[Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States]] (d. [[1941]])
* [[November 14]] &ndash; [[J. M. Robertson]], British [[Liberal Party (UK)|Liberal Party]] politician, writer and journalist, [[Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade]] (d. [[1933]])
* [[November 17]] &ndash; [[Demetrio Castillo Duany]], Cuban revolutionary, soldier and politician (d. [[1922]])
* [[November 21]] &ndash; [[William Emerson Ritter]], American biologist (d. [[1944]])
* [[November 22]] 
**[[Heber J. Grant]], 7th president of [[The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] (d. [[1945]])
**[[Melbourne MacDowell]], American stage and film actor (d. [[1941]])
* [[November 24]] &ndash; [[Bat Masterson]], American lawman (d. [[1921]])
* [[November 28]] &ndash; [[Mary Catherine Crowley]], American author (d. [[1920]])
* [[November 29]] &ndash; [[Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg]], [[Chancellor of Germany (German Reich)|Chancellor of Germany]] (d. [[1921]])
* [[December 2]] &ndash; [[Robert Kajanus]], Finnish conductor, composer (d. [[1933]])
* [[December 6]] &ndash; [[Hans Molisch]], Czech-Austrian botanist (d. [[1937]])
* [[December 10]] &ndash; [[Dewa Shigetō]], Japanese admiral (d. [[1930]])
* [[December 11]] &ndash; [[Georgi Plekhanov]], Russian revolutionary, Marxist theoretician (d. [[1918]])
* [[December 13]] &ndash; [[Svetozar Boroević]], Austrian field marshal (d. [[1920]])
* [[December 18]]
** [[Graciano López Jaena]], Filipino journalist, writer and patriot (d. [[1896]])
** [[J. J. Thomson]], English physicist, [[Nobel Prize in Physics|Nobel Prize]] laureate (d. [[1940]])
* [[December 22]] &ndash; [[Frank B. Kellogg]], [[United States Secretary of State]], recipient of the [[Nobel Peace Prize]] (d. [[1937]])
* [[December 23]] &ndash; [[James Buchanan Duke]], American tobacco and electric power industrialist (d. [[1925]])
* [[December 25]] &ndash; [[Hans von Bartels]], German painter (d. [[1913]])
* [[December 28]] &ndash; [[Woodrow Wilson]], 28th [[President of the United States]], recipient of the [[Nobel Peace Prize]] (d. [[1924]])

=== Date unknown ===
* [[Zübeyde Hanım]], mother of [[Mustafa Kemal Atatürk]] (d. [[1923]])
* [[Juan Nepomuceno Rencoret]],  Chilean doctor (d. ?)

== Deaths ==

=== January–June ===
[[File:Heinrich Heine.PNG|thumb|110px|right|[[Heinrich Heine]]]]
* [[January 4]] &ndash; [[Charles Brudenell-Bruce, 1st Marquess of Ailesbury]], British politician (b. [[1773]])
* [[January 14]] &ndash; [[Janko Drašković]], Croatian politician, reformer (b. [[1770]])
* [[January 16]] &ndash; [[Thaddeus William Harris]], American naturalist (b. [[1795]])
* [[January 31]] &ndash; [[Khedrup Gyatso, 11th Dalai Lama]] (b. [[1838]])
* [[February 4]] &ndash; [[Anna Gottlieb]], Austrian operatic soprano (b. [[1774]])
* [[February 17]] &ndash; [[Heinrich Heine]], German writer (b. [[1797]])
* [[May 3]] 
** [[Adolphe Charles Adam]], French composer (b. [[1803]])
** [[Louis-Étienne Saint-Denis]], Arab-French memoir writer and servant to Napoleon I (b. 1788)
* [[June 23]] &ndash; [[Ivan Kireyevsky]], Russian literary critic, philosopher (b. [[1806]])
* [[June 26]] &ndash; [[Max Stirner]], German philosopher (b. [[1806]])

=== July–December ===
[[File:Avogadro Amedeo.jpg|thumb|110px|right|[[Amedeo Avogadro]]]]
[[File:Schumann-photo1850.jpg|thumb|110px|right|[[Robert Schumann]]]]
* [[July 9]] &ndash; [[Amedeo Avogadro]], Italian chemist (b. [[1776]])
* [[July 11]] &ndash; [[Norberto Ramírez]], Central American politician
* [[July 14]] &ndash; [[Edward Vernon Utterson]], English lawyer, literary antiquary, collector and editor (b. [[1775]]/[[1776]])
* [[July 20]] &ndash; [[Anna Nielsen (1803–1856)|Anna Nielsen]], Danish mezzo-soprano (b. [[1803]])
* [[July 29]]
** [[Karel Havlíček Borovský]], Czech politician, writer (b. [[1821]])
** [[Robert Schumann]], German composer, pianist (b. [[1810]])
* [[August 6]] &ndash; [[Robert Lucas de Pearsall]], English composer; setting of "In dulce jubilo" (b. [[1795]])
* [[August 14]] &ndash; [[William Buckland]], English geologist, palaeontologist (b. [[1784]])
* [[August 19]] &ndash; [[Anna Maria Rüttimann-Meyer von Schauensee]], politically active Swiss salonist (b. [[1772]]) 
* [[August 29]] &ndash; [[Mary Anne Schimmelpenninck]], British Christian writer (b. [[1778]])
* [[August 30]] &ndash; [[Gilbert Abbott à Beckett]], English writer (b. [[1811]])
* [[September 3]] &ndash; [[Honório Hermeto Carneiro Leão, Marquis of Paraná]], Brazilian politician (b. [[1801]])
* [[October 19]]
** [[Josceline Percy (Royal Navy officer)|Josceline Percy]], British admiral (b. [[1784]])
** [[William Sprague III]], American politician from Rhode Island (b. [[1799]])
** [[Said bin Sultan, Sultan of Muscat and Oman]] (b. [[1797]])
* [[October 21]] &ndash; [[Francisco Plancarte y Navarrete]], Mexican archaeologist and Archbishop of [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Monterrey]] (d. June 2, [[1920]])<ref>{{cite web|url=http://museodezamora.wixsite.com/museozam/single-post/2017/09/08/FRANCISCO-PLANCARTE-Y-NAVARRETE-PIONERO-DE-LA-ARQUEOLOG%C3%8DA-NACIONAL|title=Francisco Plancarte y Navarrete, Pionero de la Arqueología Nacional|date=September 8, 2017|publisher=Consejo Ciudadano de la Cronica de Zamora|access-date=February 10, 2019|language=es|trans-title=Francisco Plancarte y Navarrete, Pioneer of National Archaeology}}</ref>
* [[November 23]] &ndash; [[Manuela Sáenz]], Colombian national heroine  (b. [[1797]])
* [[December 20]] &ndash; [[Francesco Bentivegna]], Italian revolutionary (b. [[1820]])

=== Date unknown ===
* [[Enriqueta Favez]], Swiss physician, surgeon (b. [[1791]])
* [[Juana Ramírez]], "La Avanzadora", Venezuelan heroine (b. [[1790]])
{{-}}
== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Commonscatinline}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:1856}}
[[Category:1856| ]]
[[Category:Leap years in the Gregorian calendar]]