A chronology of events in the life of Cardinal John Henry Newman
| Year | Age | Event |
|---|---|---|
| 1801 | Cardinal Newman born February 21 Literary Context 1801 – Tennyson b. Historical Context 1801 – Suppression of Irish Parliament; Act of Union between Great Britain and Ireland 1803 – Napoleonic Wars begin | |
| 1808 | 7 | Goes to Ealing School Literary Context 1814 – Wordsworth:The Excursion; Bryon: The Corsair; Scott: Waverley 1815 – Coleridge: Kubla Khan published Historial Context 1815 – Battle of Waterloo; Corn Law; Congress of Vienna restores Papal States |
| 1816 | 15 | Converted to Evangelical Christianity |
| 1817 | 16 | Becomes an undergraduate at Trinity College, Oxford Literary Context 1818 – Byron: Don Juan |
| 1820 | 19 | Achieves a B.A. Degree Literary Context 1820 – Scott: Ivanhoe; Keats: Ode to a Nightingale 1821 – Keats d.: James Mill: Elements of Political Economy Historical Context 1820 – Accession of George IV; Cato St conspiracy |
| 1822 | 21 | Elected to the Oriel fellowship Literary Context 1822 – Shelley d. |
| 1825 | 24 | Becomes vice-principal of Alban Hall; takes Holy Orders |
| 1826 | 25 | Becomes tutor at Oriel Literary Context 1827 – Keble: The Christian Year; William Blake d. |
| 1828 | 27 | Meets Hurrell Froude; becomes Vicar of St Mary’s Historical Context 1829 – Catholic Emancipation |
| 1830 | 29 | Newman and Froude deprived of Oriel tutorships Literary Context 1830 – Hazlitt d.; Cobbett: Rural Rides Historical Context 1830 – July Revolution; Accession of William IV |
| 1832 | 31 | Tour of Southern Europe Literary Context 1833 – Walter Scott d. Historical Context 1832 – Reform Act |
| 1833 | 32 | Returns to England; Arians of the Fourth Century; Tracts for the Times begins Literary Context 1833 – Carlyle: Sartor Resartus Historical Context 1833 – Keble Assize sermon; Factory Act |
| 1834 | 33 | Parochial and Plain sermons (1834-42) Historical Context 1834 – New Poor Law; Parliament burns down |
| 1837 | 36 | Prophetical Office of the Church Literary Context 1837 – Hurrell Froude: Literary Remains Historical Context 1837 – Accession of Queen Victoria |
| 1838 | 37 | Appointed editor of The British Critic; Lectures on Justification Literary Context 1839 – Darwin: Voyage of the Beagle Historical Context 1838 – Rise of Chartism 1839 – Bedchamber plot; Birmingham riots; Penny postage Act |
| 1841 | 40 | Tract xc; condemned by University authorities Historical Context 1841 – Robert Peel becomes Prime Minister |
| 1842 | 41 | Newman withdraws to Littlemore Historical Context 1842 – Chartist riots; Lord Ashley’s Act protecting women and children in mines |
| 1843 | 42 | Retracts anti-Roman statements; resigns from St Mary’s; Oxford University Sermons Literary Context 1843 – Carlyle: Past and Present; J.S. Mill: System of Logic 1844 – Disraeli: Coningsby |
| 1845 | 44 | Received into the Catholic Church; Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine Historical Context 1845 – Maynooth grant |
| 1846 | 45 | Leaves Oxford Literary Context 1846 – Edward Lear: Book of Nonsense Historical Context 1846 – Repeal of Corn Laws, Election of Pius IX |
| 1847 | 46 | Created D.D. and Ordained Priest, in Rome Literary Context 1847 – Charlotte Bronte: Jane Eyre, Thackeray: Vanity Fair; Emily Bronte: Wuthering Heights |
| 1848 | 47 | Founds Birmingham Oratory; Loss and Gain Literary Context 1848 – Dickens: Dombey and Son; Kingsley: Yeast; Mrs Gaskell: Mary Barton Historical Context 1848 – Gorham judgement; European revolutions |
| 1850 | 49 | Difficulties of Anglicans 1851 50 Present Position of Catholics; Rector of Catholic University of Ireland Literary Context 1850 – Dickens: David Copperfield; Tennyson: In Memoriam 1851 – Ruskin: Stones of Venice Historical Context 1850 – Restoration of Catholic Hierarchy in England causes anti-Catholic sentiment 1851 – Ecclesiastical titles Act forbidding Catholic use of names of existing dioceses |
| 1852 | 51 | First Part of Idea of a University Newman spends some weeks recuperating at Abbotsford, Robert Hope-Scott’s home in the Scottish Borders |
| 1853 | 52 | Unjustly found guilty of libelling Giacinto Achilli Literary Context 1853 – Matthew Arnold: The Scholar Gipsy 1854 – Dickens: Hard Times 1855 – Trollope: The Warden Historical Context 1853 – Crimean War begins (ends ’56) 1855 – Daily Telegraph founded |
| 1856 | 55 | Calista |
| 1857 | 56 | Invited by Wiseman to undertake new Bible translation Literary Context 1857 – George Eliot: Scenes of clerical life Historical Context 1857 – Indian Mutiny |
| 1858 | 57 | Translation project fails for lack of support. Final return from Ireland Historical Context 1858 – India transferred to Crown; Jews admitted to Parliament |
| 1859 | 58 | ‘Consulting the faithful on matters of doctrine’; accusations of unorthodoxy Literary Context 1859 – Darwin: Origin of species; J.S.Mill: On Liberty 1860 – Wilkie Collins: Woman in White; Dickens: Great Expectations; Ruskin: Unto this last Essays and Reviews 1863 – Kingsley: Water Babies Historical Context 1860 – Unification of Italy; loss of most Papal States; discovery of the source of the Nile |
| 1864 | 63 | Apologia pro Vita Sua Literary Context 1864 – Tolstoi: War and Peace; Trollope: Small House at Allington Historical Context 1864 – Pius IX: Syllabus of Errors |
| 1865 | 64 | Dreams of Gerontius Literary Context 1864 – Tolstoi: War and Peace; Trollope: Small House at Allington 1865 – Lewis Carroll: Alice in Wonderland; Rudyard Kipling b.; W.B. Yeats b. 1866 – Kingsley: Hereward the Wake; Dostoyevsky: Crime and Punishment 1867 – Marx: Das Kapital, Vol 1 1869 – Matthew Arnold: Culture and Anarchy; J.S. Mill: On the Subjection of Women Historical Context 1864 – Pius IX: Syllabus of Errors 1865 – Assassination of Abraham Lincoln 1866 – Treaty of Vienna; invention of Dynamite 1867 – Marx: Das Kapital, Vol 1 1869 – Foundation of Girton College, Cambridge; Abolition of debtors prisons |
| 1870 | 69 | Essay in aid of a Grammar of Assent Literary Context 1870 – Death of Charles Dickens; Disraeli: Lothair 1874 – G.K. Chesteron b. Historical Context 1870 – Vatican Council, Pius IX ‘Prisoner of the Vatican’, Franco-Prussian War |
| 1872 | 71 | Summer 1872: Newman at Abbotsford, his influence leading to many conversions and the construction of new churches |
| 1875 | 74 | Letter to the Duke of Norfolk Literary Context 1875 – Kingsley d. Historical Context 1875 – Purchase of Suez Canal |
| 1877 | 76 | Age 76 – Elected to honorary fellowship of Trinity College, Oxford Literary Context 1877 – Henry James: The American 1878 – Thomas Hardy: The Return of the Native Historical Context 1878 – Election of Leo XIII |
| 1879 | 78 | Age 78 – Receives Cardinal’s Hat from Pope Leo XIII Literary Context 1879 – Ibsen: A Doll’s House 1880 – George Eliot d.; Lytton Strachey b. 1881 – Thomas Carlyle d. Historical Context 1879 – Trotsky and Stalin b.; British Zulu War |
| 1890 | 89 | Dies in Birmingham, August 11 Literary Context 1890 – Oscar Wilde: The Picture of Dorian Gray Historical Context 1890 – Charles De Gaulle b.; First Electric power station; Forth Bridge opened |
