# Richard Trevithick demonstrates steam locomotive power (1804)

URL: https://english-history.com/timeline/1804-richard-trevithick-demonstrates-steam-locomotive-power
Categories: main-event

A high-pressure steam locomotive hauled a train in south Wales. Within the broader Georgian Britain period, parliamentary government, industrialization, imperial expansion, war with France and political reform turned Britain into a global commercial and military power. This event is placed at 1804 in the chronology so it can be read alongside the political, military, social and cultural changes around it. The experiment foreshadowed the railway revolution that would transform nineteenth-century Britain.

## Why it matters
The experiment foreshadowed the railway revolution that would transform nineteenth-century Britain.

Ruler at the time: [George III](https://english-history.com/rulers/george-iii)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia topic lookup — Richard Trevithick demonstrates steam locomotive power](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Search?search=Richard+Trevithick+demonstrates+steam+locomotive+power&go=Go)
- [Encyclopaedia Britannica topic lookup — Richard Trevithick demonstrates steam locomotive power](https://www.britannica.com/search?query=Richard+Trevithick+demonstrates+steam+locomotive+power)
- [Wikipedia — Timeline of British history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_British_history_%281800%E2%80%931899%29)
- [The National Archives — empire and industry resources](https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/)