John Tebbutt, an Australian sheep farmer and amateur astronomer in Windsor, New South Wales, discovered "the Great Comet of 1861" approaching Earth.  One of only eleven comets designated "Great" during the nineteenth century, it was disinctive for its angle of approach which had the Earth actually passing through a portion of its tail.  The comet became visible to the naked eye in the northern hemisphere on June 30, 1861 and remained so until mid-August, passing within 13 million miles.  (By John Osborne)

A royal proclamation declared Britain's neutrality in the conflict between the Union and the Confederacy and warned all British subjects not to become involved. Britons were prohibited from enlisting "for sea or land service" and barred from providing arms, munitions, or war materiel to either side.  Union diplomats were dismayed since the declaration gave the South equal status as a belligerent in an internationally recognized conflict. (By John Osborne)

Answering a question in Parliament, the British foreign secretary, Lord John Russell stated that the British government had decedied Southern Confederacy "must be treated as a belligerent" and that the United Kingdom will therefore honor the Union blockade on Southern ports.  A week later, a royal proclamation re-asserted that fact, declared Britain's neutrality, and barred all British subjects from involving themselves in any way in the conflict.  (By John Osborne)