1866

1866 was a year marked by significant political, technological, and scientific developments across Europe and the Americas. It featured major military conflict in Central Europe, advances in global communications, and foundational work in genetics.

From June to August, the Austro-Prussian War shaped the political map of Germany. Prussia defeated Austria at Königgrätz on 3 July, and the subsequent Peace of Prague dissolved the German Confederation and removed Austrian influence from German affairs.

With the dissolution of the German Confederation, Prussia emerged as the dominant German power and laid groundwork for the North German Confederation, formed in 1867 as a step toward national unification under Prussian leadership.

In the United States, Congress passed landmark civil rights legislation extending citizenship and equal protection to all people born in the country, challenging the post–Civil War Black Codes and setting the stage for the Fourteenth Amendment.

Technological communication advanced as the successful transatlantic telegraph cable restored and expanded cross-Atlantic messaging between Europe and North America, enabling faster international communication.

In the sciences, Gregor Mendel's experiments on plant hybridization were published in 1866, outlining the basic laws of inheritance and laying the groundwork for modern genetics.

Britain faced constitutional debates that helped shape the reforms of the era, culminating in the Reform Act of 1867, which extended the electoral franchise and had lasting political consequences.