The Development of International Telecommunications in the Victorian Era

Introduction

In an age when we take for granted near instant global telecommunication from our living room it is difficult to appreciate the tremendous achievement of the first transatlantic telegraph cable. The laying of a fragile copper wire on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean was regarded in the middle of the nineteenth century with the same sense of wonder that we reserve for men setting foot on the moon. The ability to send a telegram between London and New York in 1866 and receive a reply within an hour must indeed have seemed a wonder. A letter and its reply sent in the conventional manner, by steamship, would have taken three weeks. And this astonishing feat was accomplished a mere thirty years after the first electric telegraph was demonstrated. The speed of scientific and technological advances during the early years of Queen Victoria’s reign was quite staggering. The success of the Atlantic telegraph cable led to the laying of other more ambitious submarine cables, many of which were used to link London with the British Empire.

This pack tells the fascinating story of the laying of the first transatlantic telegraph cable – an enterprise which epitomised the spirit of the Victorian age. Each section contains background information, a selection of activities for pupils and a wealth of archive material. There is also a reading list, ideas for places to visit, a glossary and details of how the pack can be used to support the teaching of the National Curriculum.

Links with the National Curriculum

The table shows which subject areas of the National Curriculum are addressed in this pack.

PART 1: Whispering Wires

PART 2: Talking Across Seas

PART 3: The Great Eastern