1861: Definition and Links by Encyclopedian.com

Centuries: 18th century - 19th century - 20th century

Decades: 1810s 1820s 1830s 1840s 1850s - 1860s - 1870s 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s

Years: 1856 1857 1858 1859 1860 - 1861 - 1862 1863 1864 1865 1866

Events

January 1 - Benito Juarez captures Mexico City
January 3 - American Civil War: Delaware votes not to secede from the United States
January 9 - Mississippi becomes the second state to secede from the Union, preceding the American Civil War.
January 10 - Florida secedes from the United States
January 11 - Alabama secedes from the United States
January 14 - Mehmed VI, future Ottoman sultan.
January 18 - Georgia joins the Confederacy
January 21 - American Civil War: Jefferson Davis resigns from the United States Senate
January 26 - American Civil War: Louisiana secedes from the Union.
January 29 - Kansas is admitted as the 34th U.S. state.
February 1 - American Civil War: Texas secedes from the United States.
February 4 - American Civil War: In Montgomery, Alabama the Confederate States of America is formed by delegates from six break-away United States.
February 8 - American Civil War: The Confederate States of America are formed.
February 9 - American Civil War: Jefferson Davis is elected the Provisional President of the Confederate States of America by the Confederate convention at Montgomery, Alabama.
February 11 - American Civil War: US House unanimously passes resolution guaranteeing noninterference with slavery in any state.
February 18 - In Montgomery, Alabama Jefferson Davis is inaugurated as the first and only President of the Confederate States of America.
February 18 - Victor Emmanuel of Savoy becomes King of Italy
February 19 - Serfdom is abolished in Russia.
February 23 - President-elect Abraham Lincoln arrives secretly in Washington, DC after an assassination attempt in Baltimore, Maryland.
February 27 - A crowd in Warsaw protesting Russian rule over Poland is fired upon by Russian troops killing five protesters.
February 28 - Colorado is organized as a United Sates territory[?].
March 2 - Nevada is organized as a United States territory[?].
March 4 - The "Stars and Bars" is adopted as the flag of the Confederate States of America.
March 11 - The Constitution of the Confederate States of America is adopted.
March 17 - Proclamation of the kingdom of Italy.
March 19 - Maori War[?] ends in New Zealand
April 12 - United States Civil War begins at Fort Sumter, South Carolina
April 27 - President Abraham Lincoln suspends the writ of habeas corpus in the United States.
April 27 - American Civil War: West Virginia secedes from Virginia.
May 6 - American Civil War: Arkansas secedes from the Union.
May 7 - American Civil War: Tennessee secedes from the Union.
May 8 - American Civil War: Richmond, Virginia is named the capital of the Confederate States of America.
May 13 - American Civil War: Victoria of the United Kingdom issues a "proclamation of neutrality" which recognizes the breakaway states as having belligerent rights.
May 20 - American Civil War: Kentucky proclaims its neutrality which will last until September 3 when Confederate forces enter the state.

Abraham Lincoln succeeds James Buchanan as President of the United States of America
Kansas becomes 34th state in the United States
Victor Emmanuel becomes first king of Italy
Change of emperor of the Ottoman Empire from Abd-ul-Mejid (1839-1861) to Abd-ul-Aziz (1861-1876)
Sir William Crookes discovers Thallium (see Discovery of the chemical elements)

Arts, Sciences, Literature and Philosophy

1861 in literature:

Births

January 14 - Sultan Mehmed VI of the Ottoman Empire (+ 1926)
February 12 - Lou Andreas-Salome[?], author (+ 1937)
February 26 - King Ferdinand of Bulgaria (+ 1948)
February 27 - Rudolf Steiner, anthroposoph (+ 1925)
April 15 - Bliss Carman, poet
May 6 - Rabindranath Tagore
October 30 - Antoine Bourdelle, sculptor
November 6 - James Naismith, inventor of basketball
December 8 - Georges Méliès , French film director, allegedly the first.
December 16 - Antonio de La Gandara, painter

Deaths

January 17 - Lola Montez (adventurer)
June 25 - Abd-ul-Mejid, Ottoman sultan
December 14 - Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, Prince Consort, husband of Queen Victoria