A McGonagall Calendar

McGongall’s fascination with dates is legendary, but how are they spread through the year? The list below shows those days of the year when ’twas on this day that something happened in a McGonagall poem. As you’ll see, on some days you have a choice of events to “remember for a very long time”.

Only those events where a date is explicitly given in the poem are listed (with the notable exception of the Tay Bridge Disaster, which couldn’t be left out). Note that the dates shown are those given in the poem, even if they’re (occasionally) wrong!

January

1st
The Ashantee War, The Fall of Coomassie (1874)
4th
An All Night Sea Fight (1795)
5th
The Battle of Corunna (1809)
8th
The Wreck of the “Indian Chief” (1881)
11th
The Wreck Of The Steamer “London”, While on her way to Australia (1866)
17th
The Death of the Rev. Dr. Wilson (1888)
22nd
The Death of the Queen (1901)

February

5th
The Funeral of the Late Prince Henry of Battenberg (1896)
9th
Lines in Praise of the University of St. Andrews Liberal Association Annual Dinner (1894)
20th
The Battle of Gujrat (1849)
28th
The Relief of Ladysmith (1900)

March

1st
The Burning of the Ship “Kent” (1825)
2nd
The Kessack Ferry-Boat Fatality (1894)
16th
The Funeral of the German Emperor (1888)
21st
The Battle of Alexandria, or the Reconquest of Egypt (1801)
22nd
The Rebel Surprise Near Tamai (1885)
31st
Lines in Memoriam Regarding the Entertainment I Gave on the 31st March, 1893, in Reform Street Hall, Dundee (1893)

April

1st
The Wreck of the Whaler “Oscar” (1813)
5th
The Siege of Seringapatam (1799)
8th
The Battle of Atbara (1898)
10th
The Battle of Toulouse (1814)
12th
The Death of Prince Leopold (1884)
16th
The Battle of Culloden (1746)

May

10th
Lines in Praise of the Arbroath Oddfellows (1893)
12th
The Newport Railway (1879)
13th
The Battle of Langside (1558)
18th
The Death of Fred Marsden, the American Playwright (1888)
The Relief of Mafeking (1900)
19th
The Burial of Mr Gladstone (1898)
21st
The Execution of James Graham, Marquis of Montrose (1650)
25th
The New North Bridge Ceremonials (1896)
27th
The Wreck of the “Abercrombie Robinson” (1842)

June

5th
Lord Roberts’ Triumphal Entry into Pretoria (1900)
8th
The Disastrous Fire at Scarborough (1898)
18th
The Battle of Waterloo (1815)
20th
The Edinburgh Lifeboat Procession (A Fragment) (1896)
21st
The Albion Battleship Calamity (1898)
22nd
Farewell Address at the Argyle Hall, Tuesday, June 22, 1880 (1880)
The Loss of the Victoria (1893)
The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Celebrations (1897)

July

6th
The Horse Parade, or Demonstration in respect of the Royal Wedding (1893)
8th
The Hero of Kalapore (1857)
14th
An Excursion Steamer Sunk in the Tay (1888)
24th
The Death of Captain Webb (1883)
27th
The Last Berkshire Eleven, The Heroes of Maiwand (1880)

August

9th
The Coronation of King Edward the VII (1902)
10th
The Burning of the Steamer “City of Montreal” (1886)
18th
The Battle of the Nile (1798)
22nd
The Queen at the International Exhibition, Glasgow (1888)
25th
The Royal Review (1881)
26th
The Battle of Cressy (1346)

September

2nd
The Dundee Flower Show (1886)
The Battle of Omdurman (1898)
5th
Burning of the Exeter Theatre (1887)
Lines in Praise of the Lyric Club Banquet (1894)
6th
A Requisition To The Queen (1877)
9th
The Battle of Flodden Field (1513)
13th
The Battle of Tel-el-Kebir (1882)
20th
The Great Franchise Demonstration (1884)
24th
The Life-Boat Demonstration (1892)
28th
The Great Yellow River Inundation In China (1887)
The Inauguration Of The Talla Water Scheme (1895)
30th
The Burning of the People’s Variety Theatre, Aberdeen (1896)

October

5th
The Inauguration of the University College, Dundee (1883)
14th
The Miraculous Escape of Robert Allan, the Fireman (1888)
The Wreck of the Steamer “Mohegan” (1898)
16th
The Heatherblend Club Banquet (1894)
29th
Royal Visit of the Princess Louise and the Marquis of Lorne (1892)

November

5th
The Battle of Inkermann (1854)
10th
The Battle of Sheriffmuir (1715)
12th
The Black Watch Memorial (1887)
17th
The Terrific Cyclone of 1893 (1893)
19th
Saving a Train [Version 1] (1869)
The Funeral of the Late Ex-Provost Rough, Dundee (1888)
20th
The Storming of the Dargai Heights (1897)
23rd
The Foundering of the Steamer “Spree”, While on her way to New York (1892)
26th
Wreck of the Schooner “Samuel Crawford” (1886)

December

1st
The Death of Lord and Lady Dalhousie (1887)
5th
The Military Review by Lord Wolseley (1896)
15th
The Tragic Death of the Rev. A. H. Mackonochie (1887)
25th
Calamity in London (1897)
28th
The Tay Bridge Disaster (1879)

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