Events
January–March
*
January 8
Events Pre-1600
* 307 – Emperor Huai of Jin, Sima Chi becomes emperor of the Jin dynasty (266–420), Jin dynasty in succession to his brother, Emperor Hui of Jin, Sima Zhong, despite a challenge from his other brother, Sima Ying.
* 871 ...
–
Frederick, the eldest son of King
George II of Great Britain is made
Prince of Wales at the age of 21, a few months after he comes to Britain for the first time after growing up in
Hanover
Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...
. For 23 years, Frederick is heir apparent to the British throne, but dies of a lung injury in
1751.
*
January 19
Events Pre-1600
* 379 – Emperor Gratian elevates Flavius Theodosius at Sirmium to '' Augustus'', and gives him authority over all the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire.
* 649 – Conquest of Kucha: The forces of Kucha surren ...
– At the age of 14,
Joseph (José),
Prince of Brazil, son of King
John V of Portugal, is married to the 10-year-old Princess
Mariana Victoria of Spain, eldest daughter of King
Philip V of Spain. In 1750, the couple become King Joseph I and Queen Consort Mariana Victoria of Spain.
*
February 14
It is observed in most countries as Valentine's Day.
Events Pre-1600
* 748 – Abbasid Revolution#Persian phase, Abbasid Revolution: The Kaysanites Shia#History, Hashimi rebels under Abu Muslim Khorasani take Merv, capital of the Umayyad ...
– King
Philip V of Spain issues a royal ''
cedula'', directing an effort to offer incentives to families from the
Canary Islands for settlements in New Spain north of the
Rio Grande
The Rio Grande ( or ) in the United States or the RÃo Bravo (del Norte) in Mexico (), also known as Tó Ba'áadi in Navajo language, Navajo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the Southwestern United States a ...
in the modern-day U.S. state of
Texas (→
Canarian Americans).
*
February 24 (February 13 O.S.) – In the city of
Resht in
Persia, Russian and Afghani leaders sign a peace treaty, with General Vasily Levashev for Russia and Muhammad Saidal Khan for Afghanistan.
*
February 25 –
James Oglethorpe, a member of the British House of Commons, begins service as the
Chairman of the Gaols Committee to investigate the conditions of Britain's jails and prisons after the death in
Fleet Prison of his friend, Robert Castell. The Oglethorpe Committee's report propels Oglethorpe to fame and leads to the beginning of British penal reforms.
*
March 5 –
Abdallah of Morocco becomes the new
Sultan of Morocco upon the death of his half-brother,
Abu'l Abbas Ahmad. Sultan Abdallah reigns for five years before being deposed for the first time, then returns to the throne five more times between 1736 and 1757.
*
March 19 –
John of Nepomuk (Jan Nepomucký) of
Bohemia is canonized by
Pope Benedict XIII more than 300 years after being tortured and drowned in 1393 by order of King Wenceslaus IV; John becomes patron saint of Roman Catholics in the
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...
.
*
March 23 –
Johann Sebastian Bach's ''
First Köthen Funeral music'' premieres at
St. Jakob, Köthen, in honor of the funeral of his former employer
Leopold, Prince of Anhalt-Köthen. The next morning, Bach's funeral cantata
''Klagt, Kinder, klagt es aller Welt'', BWV 244a premieres at St. Jakob, marking the same occasion.
April–June
*
April 3 –
Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin (April 17, 1790) was an American polymath: a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher and Political philosophy, political philosopher.#britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the m ...
, aged 23, writes the essay "A Modest Enquiry Into the Nature and Necessity of Paper Currency" and later applies the economic principles to backing of paper money used in the United States.
*
April 15 –
Johann Sebastian Bach's ''
St Matthew Passion'', BWV 244b is performed again, at
St. Thomas Church, Leipzig.
*
April 26 – For the first time in its history, the
British House of Commons is adjourned for lack of a
quorum. On January 5,
1640, it had first fixed the number of members necessary — 40 — for parliamentary business to be transacted.
*
May 8 – A fire breaks out inside the fully walled town of
Haiger within the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...
(in the modern-day state of Hesse in Germany) and destroys all the buildings.
*
May 12 – Six English pirates, including
Mary Critchett, seize control of the sloop ''John and Elizabeth'' while being transported to America to complete their criminal sentences. They overpower their captors but are later captured in
Chesapeake Bay by HMS ''Shoreham'' and hanged in August.
*
May 17 –
Caroline, Queen Consort becomes the first person to rule Great Britain as regent under the
Regency Acts, beginning service as the acting monarch when her husband
King George II departs Britain for Germany, where he is the
Elector of Hanover. Caroline rules until George's return in October.
*
June 1
Events Pre-1600
* 1252 – Alfonso X is proclaimed king of Castile and León.
* 1298 – Residents of Riga and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania defeat the Livonian Order in the Battle of Turaida.
* 1495 – A monk, John Cor, rec ...
–
Diederik Durven becomes the new
Governor-General of the
Dutch East Indies (modern-day Indonesia) upon the death of
Mattheus de Haan
Mattheus de Haan (1663–1729) was Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies from 1725 to 1729.His portrait can be seen a
He was born in Dordrecht in 1663. On 26 October 1671 he left for the Indies, where his father had been appointed as Underbuy ...
.
*
June 8 – The
Botanic Gardens of Pamplemousses, one of the most popular tourist attractions on the island republic of
Mauritius, are started by Pierre Barmond, who sets aside thousands of acres for the purpose of preservation of the islands flora. The gardens come to occupy 97 square miles or 251 square kilometers.
July–September
*
July 25 – Seven of the original eight
Lords Proprietor of the
Province of Carolina sell their shares back to the British crown. The 1710 division of the Province is made permanent and the area is reorganized into the Royal Colonies of
North Carolina
North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
and
South Carolina.
*
July 27 – A fire that breaks out on this day in
Constantinople destroys 12,000 houses and kills 7,000 inhabitants.
*
July 30 –
Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...
is founded.
*
August 1 – The
Comet of 1729, possibly the largest
comet
A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that warms and begins to release gases when passing close to the Sun, a process called outgassing. This produces an extended, gravitationally unbound atmosphere or Coma (cometary), coma surrounding ...
based on the
absolute magnitude, on record, is discovered by Fr.
Nicolas Sarrabat, a professor of mathematics at
Marseille.
*
September 29 – The
Battle of Damghan begins as the Persian Safavid Army, commanded by General
Nader Khan Afshar confronts a larger force of rebel Afghan troops commanded by the Emir
Ashraf Hotak.
October–December
*
October 5 – After seven days of battle, the Persians under Nader Khan Afshar make a daring attack through the center of the Emir Ashraf's battalions, killing 12,000 of the Afghans and forcing the remainder to flee, bringing an end to the Battle of Damghan.
*
November 9 – The
Treaty of Seville is signed between
Great Britain
Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...
,
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
,
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
and the
Dutch Republic
The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to in historiography as the Dutch Republic, was a confederation that existed from 1579 until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the present-day Netherlands ...
.
*
November 29
**The
Natchez revolt, the worst Native American massacre to take place on
Mississippi soil, occurs when
kill 138 Frenchmen, 35 French women, and 56 children at
Fort Rosalie (near modern-day
Natchez, Mississippi).
** The first (wooden)
Putney Bridge is completed, as the only fixed crossing of the
River Thames between
London Bridge and
Kingston, England.
*
December 2 –
George Frideric Handel's famous opera ''
Lotario'' is given its first performance, premiering at the King's Theatre in London.
*
December 12 – Under the pretense of a peace offering, the
Yazoo and
Koroa
The Koroa were one of the groups of Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands who lived in the Mississippi Valley before French colonization. The Koroa lived in the Yazoo River basin in present-day northwest Mississippi.
Language
The Kor ...
warriors enter the French settlement at
Fort St. Pierre (near modern-day
Vicksburg, Mississippi) and kill most of the inhabitants.
Date unknown
* The third oldest settlement in
Mississippi,
Port Gibson, is founded by French settlers.
*
Jonathan Swift (anonymously) publishes his satire ''
A Modest Proposal''.
Births
*
January 12
**
Lazzaro Spallanzani, Italian biologist (d.
1799)
**
Edmund Burke
Edmund Burke (; 12 January ew Style, NS1729 – 9 July 1797) was an Anglo-Irish Politician, statesman, journalist, writer, literary critic, philosopher, and parliamentary orator who is regarded as the founder of the Social philosophy, soc ...
, Irish statesman and philosopher (d.
1797)

*
January 22 –
Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, German author and philosopher (d.
1781
Events
January–March
* January – William Pitt the Younger, later Prime Minister of Great Britain, enters Parliament of Great Britain, Parliament, aged 21.
* January 1 – Industrial Revolution: The Iron Bridge opens ...
)

*
February 26 –
Anders Chydenius, Finnish economist, liberal politician and Lutheran priest (d.
1803)
*
May 2 –
Catherine the Great, born Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst, empress regnant of Russia (d.
1796)
*
July 4 –
George Leonard, American lawyer, jurist and politician (d.
1819)
*
August 10 –
William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe, British general (d.
1814)
*
September 6 –
Moses Mendelssohn, German-Jewish philosopher (d.
1786)
*
September 15 –
Mikiel'Ang Grima,
Maltese surgeon (d.
1798)
*
October 6 –
Sarah Crosby, English
Methodist
Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...
preacher, the first female (d. 1804)
*
November 17 –
Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain, Queen consort of Sardinia (d.
1785)
*
November 21 –
Josiah Bartlett, second signer of the
United States Declaration of Independence (d.
1795)
*
November 12 –
Louis Antoine de Bougainville, French navigator and military commander (d.
1811)
*
November 22 –
Helena Dorothea von Schönberg, German industrialist (d.
1799)
*
November 24 –
Alexander Suvorov, Russian general (d.
1800)
* ''date unknown''
**
David Barclay of Youngsbury, English merchant, businessman and banker (d.
1809)
**
Samuel Barrington, British admiral (d.
1800)
**
Mary Woffington, Irish socialite (d.
1811)
Deaths
*
January 11 –
Thomas of Cori, Italian Friar Minor and preacher (b.
1655)
*
January 19
Events Pre-1600
* 379 – Emperor Gratian elevates Flavius Theodosius at Sirmium to '' Augustus'', and gives him authority over all the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire.
* 649 – Conquest of Kucha: The forces of Kucha surren ...
**
William Congreve, English playwright (b.
1670)
**
Lorenzo Cozza, Italian Catholic cardinal (b.
1654)
*
January 30
Events Pre-1600
* 1018 – Poland and the Holy Roman Empire conclude the Peace of Bautzen.
* 1287 – King Wareru founds the Hanthawaddy Kingdom, and proclaims independence from the Pagan Kingdom.
1601–1900
* 1607 – An es ...
–
Lothar Franz von Schönborn, Archbishop of Mainz (b.
1655)
*
January 31
Events Pre-1600
* 314 – Pope Sylvester I is consecrated, as successor to the late Pope Miltiades.
* 1208 – The Battle of Lena takes place between King Sverker II of Sweden and his rival, Prince Eric, whose victory puts him on th ...
–
Jacob Roggeveen, Dutch explorer (b.
1659)
*
February 11
Events Pre-1600
* 660 BC – Traditional date for the foundation of Japan by Emperor Jimmu.
* 55 – The death under mysterious circumstances of Tiberius Claudius Caesar Britannicus, heir to the Roman Empire, on the eve of his comin ...
–
Solomon Stoddard, pastor of the Congregationalist Church in Northampton, Massachusetts (b.
1643)
*
February 17 –
John Ernest IV, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (b.
1658)
*
March 2 –
Francesco Bianchini, Italian philosopher, scientist (b.
1662)
*
March 6 –
Sir William Lowther, 1st Baronet, of Swillington, British politician (b.
1663)
*
March 15 –
Elisabeth Eleonore of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Duchess consort of Saxe-Meiningen (b.
1658)
*
March 18 –
Michael Bernhard Valentini, German naturalist (b.
1657)
*
March 21
**
John Law, Scottish-born economist (b.
1671)
**
Elżbieta Sieniawska, politically influential Polish magnate (b.
1669)
*
March 26 –
Simon de la Loubère, French diplomat (b.
1642)
*
April 12 –
Louis-Guillaume Pécour, French dancer and choreographer (b.
1653)
*
May 4 –
Louis-Antoine, Cardinal de Noailles, French bishop (b.
1651)

*
May 17 –
Samuel Clarke, English philosopher (b.
1675)
*
June 4 –
Sir John Delaval, 3rd Baronet, English politician (b.
1654)
*
June 12 –
John Williams, American clergy (b.
1664)
*
June 27 –
Élisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre, French harpsichordist and composer (b.
1665)
*
July 16 –
Johann David Heinichen, German composer (b.
1683)
*
July 30 –
Thomas Tufton, 6th Earl of Thanet, British politician (b.
1644)
*
August 5 –
Thomas Newcomen, English inventor (b.
1663)
*
August 31 –
John Blackadder, Scottish soldier (b.
1664)
*
September 1 – Richard Steele, Irish writer and politician (b. 1672)
* September 3 – Jean Hardouin, French scholar (b. 1646)
* September 7 – William Burnet (colonial administrator), William Burnet, British Governor of New York and New Jersey (b. 1688)
* October 9 – Richard Blackmore, English physician and writer (b.
1654)
* October 16 – Johann Heinrich Ernesti, German philosopher, theologian (b. 1652)
* October 30 – William Conolly, Irish politician (b.
1662)
* November 8 – Joshua Oldfield, English Presbyterian divine (b. 1656)
* November 11 – John Benedict, Connecticut politician and deacon (b. 1649)
* December – Doamna Marica Brâncoveanu, princess consort of Wallachia (b. 1661)
* December 1 – Giacomo F. Maraldi, French-Italian astronomer (b.
1665)
* December 13 – Anthony Collins (philosopher), Anthony Collins, English philosopher (b. 1676)
* December 22 – Michel Baron, French actor (b.
1653)
* December 26 – Honoré Tournély, French theologian (b.
1658)
* December 27 – Olimpia Giustiniani, Italian noblewoman (b. 1641)
* ''date unknown'' – Anastasia Markovych, Ukrainian Hetmana
References
Further reading
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:1729
1729,