World Events in 1905
Russian Revolution of 1905
On Bloody Sunday (22 January), tsarist troops fired on peaceful protesters in St Petersburg, killing hundreds. The massacre triggered a year of strikes, mutinies, and uprisings across the Russian Empire. Tsar Nicholas II was eventually forced to issue the October Manifesto, promising civil liberties and an elected parliament.
Battle of Tsushima
The Japanese navy annihilated the Russian Baltic Fleet in the Tsushima Strait on 27-28 May, one of the most decisive naval battles in history. Russia lost 21 ships and over 4,000 men, effectively ending the Russo-Japanese War.
Treaty of Portsmouth
President Theodore Roosevelt brokered the peace treaty between Russia and Japan at Portsmouth, New Hampshire. For his mediation, Roosevelt won the Nobel Peace Prize the following year. Japan emerged as a major world power.
Sinn Féin founded in Ireland
Arthur Griffith founded Sinn Féin in Dublin as a political movement advocating Irish self-governance and economic self-sufficiency. The party would later play a central role in the Irish War of Independence.
Norway gains independence from Sweden
Norway peacefully dissolved its union with Sweden following a national referendum in which 99.95% voted in favour of separation. Prince Carl of Denmark became King Haakon VII of the newly independent nation.
First Moroccan Crisis
Kaiser Wilhelm II visited Tangier and gave a speech supporting Moroccan independence, directly challenging French influence in the region. The crisis heightened tensions between Germany and France and pushed Britain closer to France.
Music in 1905
"In the Shade of the Old Apple Tree"
Various (Harry Williams & Egbert Van Alstyne)
A sentimental ballad that was one of the biggest sheet music sellers of 1905. It remained a popular standard for decades in both Britain and America.
"In My Merry Oldsmobile"
Billy Murray (recorded)
A novelty song celebrating the automobile craze, written by Gus Edwards and Vincent Bryan. It was one of the first popular songs about cars and reflected America's growing love affair with the motor car.
#1 Film of 1905
Rescued by Rover
Box Office: N/A
Directed by Cecil Hepworth, this 7-minute British film about a dog rescuing a kidnapped baby was a massive hit and a landmark in narrative filmmaking. It was so popular that the negative wore out and had to be reshot twice.
Born in 1905
Greta Garbo
Swedish-American actress, one of the greatest stars of classic Hollywood
Henry Fonda
American actor, star of 12 Angry Men and The Grapes of Wrath
Howard Hughes
American aviator, filmmaker, and eccentric billionaire
Christian Dior
French fashion designer who revolutionised post-war fashion
Dag Hammarskjöld
Swedish Secretary-General of the United Nations
Lost in 1905
Jules Verne
French science fiction pioneer, author of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
Age 77
Henry Irving
First actor to be knighted, legendary Shakespearean performer
Age 67
Joseph Lister
Pioneer of antiseptic surgery
Age 77
Meyer Amschel Rothschild (1st Baron Rothschild)
First Jewish member of the House of Lords
Age 64
Technology in 1905
Einstein published his theories of special relativity and the photoelectric effect. The first neon signs appeared in Paris. Nickelodeon cinemas proliferated across America. The first motor buses appeared on London streets alongside horse-drawn omnibuses.
- ● Einstein publishes special relativity, photoelectric effect, and Brownian motion papers
- ● First regular motor bus service in London
- ● First nickelodeon cinema opens in Pittsburgh
- ● Albert Einstein derives E=mc²
Cost of Living in 1905
| Item | UK | US |
|---|---|---|
| Average house price | £165 | $3,050 |
| Average salary | £59 | $480 |
| Pint of milk | 1½d | 3¢ |
| Loaf of bread | 2½d | 5¢ |
| Dozen eggs | 9d | 16¢ |
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The Zeitgeist of 1905
Edwardian society maintained its glittering surface, but radical ideas were fermenting underneath. Suffragettes were becoming more militant in Britain. In America, muckraking journalism exposed the horrors of the meatpacking industry. Nickelodeons were spreading rapidly, bringing moving pictures to the masses for the first time. Ragtime was everywhere.
In the News in 1905
The Russian Revolution of 1905 saw Bloody Sunday, mutiny on the Battleship Potemkin, and Tsar Nicholas II forced to grant a constitution. Japan's decisive victory at Tsushima stunned Europe. Albert Einstein published four papers that would transform physics.