c.1140–54 – The castle is maintained at Reading by
King Stephen.[4]
1163 – Robert de Montford is victorious in a
trial by combat against
Henry of Essex held on
Fry's Island before
King Henry II, whose court is in residence at Reading Abbey, where the loser spends the remainder of his life as a monk.[4]
1164 – Abbey church is consecrated by
Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury.
1542 – Reading is granted a
royal charter of incorporation permitting the
burgesses to elect the mayor.[1] Greyfriars becomes the guildhall.
1548 –
King Edward VI grants the lordship of Reading to his uncle,
Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset and Lord Protector who in 1550 is overthrown for misdemeanors including misappropriating Abbey property.
1643 – 13–26/27 April: During the
Siege of Reading, the Royalist garrison is forced to surrender to
Parliamentarian forces.[13] The Abbey church is severely damaged.
9 December:
Glorious Revolution: During the
Second Battle of Reading, Dutch soldiers of
William of Orange, with the support of townspeople, defeat an Irish garrison of
James II led by
Patrick Sarsfield in a skirmish in and around
Broad Street. This is the last battle fought on
English soil and the only substantial military action of the Revolution, and his force's success is influential in William's decision to proceed directly to London and claim the throne and in James's decision to flee the country.[14]
Barrett, Exall and Andrews set up the agricultural implement manufactory known from 1864 as the Reading Iron Works.
1837 – December: The first foundation stone is laid for a church designed by
Augustus Pugin,
St James's (Roman Catholic), on the site of
Reading Abbey; it opens on 5 August 1840.[10]
1850 – The Board of Health is established[4] and Reading Union Water Company begins construction of a water supply system.
1852 – The Reading Union Water Company completes construction of the underground
Bath Road Reservoir fed from a pumping station on the
Kennet at
Southcote Lock and filtered on site.
1853 – The Theatre Royal is established in the former Mechanics' Institution on London Street.[21]
1872 – Huntley, Boorne & Stevens absorbs the biscuit tin manufacturing business established in 1832 by Joseph Huntley.[28] In 1918 it is bought by
Huntley & Palmers.
1895 – 20 November:
Oscar Wilde is transferred to
Reading Gaol where he is held until 18 May 1897.
1896
4 April:
Amelia Dyer is arrested and subsequently
hanged for the murder of a baby placed in her care. This is only one of between seven and twenty probably killed by her since moving to the Reading area the previous year.
The new water pumping station for the town at
Fobney Lock begins operation.
1897 – The
Reading Museum opens on the site of Reading School house; it houses an 1885–1886 replica of the
Bayeux Tapestry purchased by Arthur Hill for the town in 1895.
1898 – June:
Reading R.F.C. are founded as Berkshire Wanderers; they play their first match in September.[1]
20th century
1901
The British manufacture of the
Pulsometer pump moves from London to Reading.[32]
17 March: The
University of Reading is chartered, making it the only institution to be newly granted full university status in the U.K. in the interwar period.[34]
25–27 June: The first
Reading Festival "of jazz and progressive music" takes place.
Friars Walk Shopping Centre opens,[4] and
Broad Street Mall opens as the Butts Centre.
1974
1 April: Reorganisation under
Local Government Act 1972 takes effect, and The County Borough of Reading becomes an administrative district of
Berkshire.
3 April–26 June: The Family, an early U.K. example of a
fly on the wall documentary series featuring the Wilkins of Reading, airs nationally on
BBC1 television.
1976
8 March: The first local radio station,
Radio 210, begins broadcasting.[4]
December: Jackson's outfitters closes; the premises are refurbished for residential use in the following decade.
2014 – 17 July: The substantially rebuilt
Reading railway station is officially reopened, upgraded in anticipation of electrification work and the opening of the Elizabeth line.[43]
2015 – 30 September:
Christchurch Bridge opens as a pedestrian and cycle crossing over the River Thames.
2017 – The digital station RG2 Radio is established to primarily to serve the local
Afro-Caribbean community.[44]
4 December: Research at University of Reading shows that trust in food authorities, such as government and food regulators, has fallen due to COVID-19.
6 December: According to the 2022/23 People & Planet University League, the University of Reading has been ranked as the fourth greenest university in the UK.
^Childs, W. M. (2003) [1905].
"The Battle of Broad Street". In Ford, David Nash (ed.). The Story of the Town of Reading. Nash Ford Publishing. Retrieved 21 January 2017. {{
cite book}}: |website= ignored (
help)