Historical eventAugust 51816

Sir John Barrow, 1st Baronet

Sir John Barrow, secretary at the Admiralty, rejected a proposal to use Francis Ronalds's electrical telegraph, deeming it "wholly unnecessary".

Everything on August 5Original source

In context

When
Monday, August 5 1816210 years ago
Category
Historical eventA dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
Era
19th century · 1810s
Recorded from
Wikipedia “On this day” feed

Russia, Greece and some other countries used the Julian calendar into the early 20th century, so local records may show a date up to 13 days earlier.

At a glance

Dates: From 1816.

What happened

Sir John Barrow, 1st Baronet was an English geographer, linguist, writer and civil servant. He partook in the Macartney Embassy to China, then worked and studied in South Africa, and served as the Second Secretary to the Admiralty from 1804 until 1845. Barrow wrote the memoir The Eventful History of the Mutiny and Piratical Seizure of HMS Bounty (1831), which is considered the classic account of the Mutiny on the Bounty.

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Also in 1816

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  • August 14Tristan da CunhaThe United Kingdom formally annexed the Tristan da Cunha archipelago, administering the islands from the Cape Colony in South Africa.
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  • February 20The Barber of SevilleThe Barber of Seville, an opera buffa composed by Gioachino Rossini, premiered at the Teatro Argentina in Rome to jeers from the audience.

Everything we record for 1816 →

Sources

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“Sir John Barrow, 1st Baronet”, What's On This Date, https://whatsonthisdate.com/app/event/sir-john-barrow-1st-baronet-1816-august-5, accessed October 29, 2026.

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Questions about this entry

When did Sir John Barrow, 1st Baronet happen?

August 5 1816 — 210 years ago, on a Monday.

Where does this text come from?

Wikipedia “On this day” feed. Summaries are short adaptations that link back to the source, not reprints.

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