Events

January–March

February 2 Events Pre-1600 * 506 – Alaric II, eighth king of the Visigoths, promulgates the Breviary of Alaric (''Breviarium Alaricianum'' or ''Lex Romana Visigothorum''), a collection of " Roman law". * 880 – Battle of Lüneburg Heath: ...

– Pope Clement XIII dies, the night before preparing an order to dissolve the

Jesuits The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

.Denis De Lucca, ''Jesuits and Fortifications: The Contribution of the Jesuits to Military Architecture in the Baroque Age'' (BRILL, 2012) pp315-316 *

February 17 Events Pre-1600 * 1370 – Northern Crusades: Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Teutonic Knights meet in the Battle of Rudau. * 1411 – Following the successful campaigns during the Ottoman Interregnum, Musa Çelebi, one of the sons ...

– The British House of Commons votes not to allow MP

John Wilkes John Wilkes (17 October 1725 – 26 December 1797) was an English Radicalism (historical), radical journalist and politician, as well as a magistrate, essayist and soldier. He was first elected a Member of Parliament in 1757. In the Middlese ...

to take his seat after he wins a by-election, on the grounds that he was an outlaw when standing. *

March 4 Events Pre-1600 * AD 51 – Nero, later to become Roman emperor, is given the title '' princeps iuventutis'' (head of the youth). * 306 – Martyrdom of Saint Adrian of Nicomedia. * 581 – Yang Jian declares himself Emperor ...

–

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

departs Italy, after the last of his three tours there. *

March 16 Events Pre-1600 * 1190 – Massacre of Jews at Clifford's Tower, York. * 1244 – Over 200 Cathars who refuse to recant are burnt to death after the Fall of Montségur. * 1355 – Amidst the Red Turban Rebellions, Han Lin'er, ...

– Louis Antoine de Bougainville returns to

Saint-Malo Saint-Malo (, , ; Gallo language, Gallo: ; ) is a historic French port in Ille-et-Vilaine, Brittany (administrative region), Brittany. The Fortification, walled city on the English Channel coast had a long history of piracy, earning much wealth ...

, following a three-year

circumnavigation Circumnavigation is the complete navigation around an entire island, continent, or astronomical object, astronomical body (e.g. a planet or natural satellite, moon). This article focuses on the circumnavigation of Earth. The first circumnaviga ...

of the world with the ships '' La Boudeuse'' and '' Étoile'', with the loss of only seven out of 330 men; among the members of the expedition is Jeanne Baré, the first woman known to have circumnavigated the globe. She returns to France some time after Bougainville and his ships.

April–June

April 13 Events Pre-1600 * 1111 – Henry V, King of Germany, is crowned Holy Roman Emperor. * 1204 – Constantinople falls to the Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade, temporarily ending the Byzantine Empire. * 1455 – Thirteen Years' War: ...

–

James Cook Captain (Royal Navy), Captain James Cook (7 November 1728 – 14 February 1779) was a British Royal Navy officer, explorer, and cartographer famous for his three voyages of exploration to the Pacific and Southern Oceans, conducted between 176 ...

arrives in

Tahiti Tahiti (; Tahitian language, Tahitian , ; ) is the largest island of the Windward Islands (Society Islands), Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France. It is located in the central part of t ...

, on the ship HM Bark ''Endeavour'', preparing for the 1769 Transit of Venus observed from Tahiti on June 3. After the voyage, the data is found to be inaccurate in determining the distance between the Sun and Earth. * April 29 – Scottish inventor

James Watt James Watt (; 30 January 1736 (19 January 1736 OS) – 25 August 1819) was a Scottish inventor, mechanical engineer, and chemist who improved on Thomas Newcomen's 1712 Newcomen steam engine with his Watt steam engine in 1776, which was f ...

is granted a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an sufficiency of disclosure, enabling discl ...

for "A method of lessening the consumption of steam in

steam engine A steam engine is a heat engine that performs Work (physics), mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a Cylinder (locomotive), cyl ...

s" – the separate condenser, a key improvement (first devised by Watt in 1765) and the basis for the

Watt steam engine The Watt steam engine design was an invention of James Watt that became synonymous with steam engines during the Industrial Revolution, and it was many years before significantly new designs began to replace the basic Watt design. The Newcomen ...

which stimulates the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution, sometimes divided into the First Industrial Revolution and Second Industrial Revolution, was a transitional period of the global economy toward more widespread, efficient and stable manufacturing processes, succee ...

. * May 9 –

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 ...

conquers

Corsica Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...

. *

May 14 Events Pre-1600 * 1027 – Robert II of France Robert II ( 972 – 20 July 1031), called the Pious () or the Wise (), was List of French monarchs, King of the Franks from 996 to 1031, the second from the Capetian dynasty. Crowned Juni ...

– Charles III of Spain sends Spanish missionaries, who found California missions in

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

, Santa Barbara,

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

and Monterey, and begin the settlement of

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. * May 19 – Cardinal Giovanni Vincenzo Antonio Ganganelli is elected as the 249th pope, succeeding the late Clement XIII and choosing to take the regnal name of

Pope Clement XIV Pope Clement XIV (; ; 31 October 1705 – 22 September 1774), born Giovanni Vincenzo Antonio Ganganelli, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 May 1769 to his death in September 1774. At the time of his elec ...

. * June 3 – A transit of Venus is followed five hours later by a total

solar eclipse A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby obscuring the view of the Sun from a small part of Earth, totally or partially. Such an alignment occurs approximately every six months, during the eclipse season i ...

, the shortest such interval in historical times. The transit is viewed by King George III of Great Britain, at the

Kew Observatory The King's Observatory (called for many years the Kew Observatory) is a Grade I listed building in Richmond, London. Now a private dwelling, it formerly housed an astronomical observatory, astronomical and Terrestrial magnetism, terrestrial mag ...

. * June 7 – Frontiersman

Daniel Boone Daniel Boone (, 1734September 26, 1820) was an American pioneer and frontiersman whose exploits made him one of the first folk heroes of the United States. He became famous for his exploration and settlement of Kentucky, which was then beyo ...

first begins to explore modern-day

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

July–September

* July 3 –

Richard Arkwright Sir Richard Arkwright (23 December 1732 – 3 August 1792) was an English inventor and a leading entrepreneur during the early Industrial Revolution. He is credited as the driving force behind the development of the spinning frame, known as ...

patents a spinning frame in England, able to spin threads mechanically. * July 16 – Father Junípero Serra founds Mission San Diego de Alcalá, the first of the 21 California missions. * July 20 – Recently appointed as the Governor of Spanish Louisiana, Irish-born soldier of fortune Alejandro O'Reilly sails into the French fort of La Balize with 21 Spanish ships, along with 2,056 soldiers, cannons and ammunition, and informs

French Louisiana The term French Louisiana ( ; ) refers to two distinct regions: * First, to Louisiana (New France), historic French Louisiana, comprising the massive, middle section of North America claimed by Early Modern France, France during the 17th and 18th ...

Governor Charles Philippe Aubry of his royal commission to take Louisiana on behalf of the King of Spain. * August 3 – The party of Gaspar de Portolà becomes the first

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

group to set foot in the area now known as

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

. * August 18 – Brescia Explosion: The city of

Brescia Brescia (, ; ; or ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the region of Lombardy, in Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Lake Garda, Garda and Lake Iseo, Iseo. With a population of 199,949, it is the se ...

, Italy is devastated when the Church of San Nazaro is struck by lightning. The resulting fire ignites 200,000 lb (90,000 kg) of

gunpowder Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, charcoal (which is mostly carbon), and potassium nitrate, potassium ni ...

being stored there, causing a massive explosion, which destroys 1/6 of the city and kills 3,000 people. *

September September is the ninth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 30 days. September in the Northern Hemisphere and March in the Southern Hemisphere are seasonally equivalent. In the Northern hemisphere, the b ...

– Massive droughts in

Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...

lead to the

Bengal famine of 1770 The Great Bengal famine of 1770 struck Bengal and Bihar between 1769 and 1770 and affected some 30 million people, which was about ⅓ of the current population of the area. It occurred during a period of dual governance in Bengal. This existed ...

, in which ten million people, a third of the population, will die, the worst natural disaster in human history (in terms of lives lost). * September 6– 9 – David Garrick holds a '' Shakespeare Jubilee'' festival at

Stratford-upon-Avon Stratford-upon-Avon ( ), commonly known as Stratford, is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon (district), Stratford-on-Avon district, in the county of Warwickshire, in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands region of Engl ...

in England. * September 10 – Russo-Turkish War (1768–74): Russian forces take the Ottoman fortress of Chocim in

Bukovina Bukovina or ; ; ; ; , ; see also other languages. is a historical region at the crossroads of Central and Eastern Europe. It is located on the northern slopes of the central Eastern Carpathians and the adjoining plains, today divided betwe ...

October–December

* October 1 –

names White Island, off the coast of New Zealand. * October 7 – James Cook lands in New Zealand, at Poverty Bay. * October 9 – In the first encounter between the

Māori people Māori () are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, indigenous Polynesians, Polynesian people of mainland New Zealand. Māori originated with settlers from East Polynesia, who arrived in New Zealand in several waves of Māori migration canoes, c ...

and Europeans (at the future site of

Gisborne, New Zealand Gisborne is a List of cities in New Zealand, city in northeastern New Zealand and the largest settlement in the Gisborne District (or Gisborne Region). It has a population of Gisborne District Council has its headquarters in the central city. ...

), one Maori is shot and killed after he steals a sword from one of the officers of the Cook expedition. Several more Māori are killed in fighting the next day. * October 23 – Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot demonstrates a steam-powered artillery tractor (''see drawing'') in

. * November 1 – A party of the expedition of Spanish explorer Gaspar de Portola becomes the first Europeans to reach

San Francisco Bay San Francisco Bay (Chochenyo language, Chochenyo: 'ommu) is a large tidal estuary in the United States, U.S. state of California, and gives its name to the San Francisco Bay Area. It is dominated by the cities of San Francisco, California, San ...

. Sergeant Jose Francisco de Ortega and his group accidentally discover the area while searching for Drakes Bay in

Alta California Alta California (, ), also known as Nueva California () among other names, was a province of New Spain formally established in 1804. Along with the Baja California peninsula, it had previously comprised the province of , but was made a separat ...

. * November 12 –The Gorkhali Army conquer the last standing Malla Kingdom of Bhaktapur marking the end of The Malla dynasty in Nepal. * November 21 – Ireland's House of Commons rejects a spending bill passed by Great Britain's parliament, by a 94–71 margin. * December 13 –

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College ( ) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, Dartmouth is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the America ...

is established in

Hanover, New Hampshire Hanover is a New England town, town located along the Connecticut River in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 11,870. The town is home to the Ivy League university ...

, as John Wentworth, the Royal Governor, conveys a charter from King George III of Great Britain. * December 22 – The Sino-Burmese War (1765–69) is ended by a truce.

Date unknown

* The Authorized King James Version of the

Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...

is published in England in the Oxford standard text, edited by Benjamin Blayney. * First recorded use of 'literally' as a metaphorical intensifier.

Births

January 1 January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in the Gregorian Calendar; 364 days remain until the end of the year (365 in leap years). This day is also known as New Year's Day since the day marks the beginning of the year. __TOC__ Events ...

** Marie Lachapelle, French

obstetrician Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a surgi ...

(d. 1821) ** Jane Marcet, British science writer (d. 1858) *

January 2 Events Pre-1600 * 69 – The Roman legions in Germania Superior refuse to swear loyalty to Galba. They rebel and proclaim Vitellius as emperor. * 366 – The Alemanni cross the frozen Rhine in large numbers, invading the Roman Emp ...

– Nannette Streicher, German piano maker, composer, music educator and writer (d. 1833) *

January 10 Events Pre-1600 *49 BC – Julius Caesar crosses the Rubicon, signalling the start of civil war. * 9 – The Western Han dynasty ends when Wang Mang claims that the divine Mandate of Heaven called for the end of the dynasty and th ...

– Michel Ney, French marshal (d. 1815) *

February 23 Events Pre-1600 * 303 – Roman emperor Diocletian orders the destruction of the Christian church in Nicomedia, beginning eight years of Diocletianic Persecution. * 532 – Byzantine emperor Justinian I lays the foundation stone o ...

– Princess Pauline of Anhalt-Bernburg; German regent and social reformer (d.

1820 Events January–March *January 1 – A constitutionalist military insurrection at Cádiz leads to the summoning of the Spanish Parliament to meet on March 7, becoming the nominal beginning of the "Trienio Liberal" in History of Spain (1 ...

) *

March 1 Events Pre-1600 * 509 BC – Publius Valerius Publicola celebrates the first triumph of the Roman Republic after his victory over the deposed king Lucius Tarquinius Superbus at the Battle of Silva Arsia. * 293 – Emperor Diocleti ...

– François Séverin Marceau-Desgraviers, French general (d. 1796) *

March 2 Events Pre-1600 * 537 – Siege of Rome: The Ostrogoth army under king Vitiges begins the siege of the capital. Belisarius conducts a delaying action outside the Flaminian Gate; he and a detachment of his '' bucellarii'' are almost ...

–

DeWitt Clinton DeWitt Clinton (March 2, 1769February 11, 1828) was an American politician and Naturalism (philosophy), naturalist. He served as a United States Senate, United States senator, as the mayor of New York City, and as the sixth governor of New York. ...

, American politician and naturalist, 6th

Governor of New York The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor ...

(d.

1828 Events January–March * January 4 – Jean Baptiste Gay, vicomte de Martignac succeeds the Jean-Baptiste de Villèle, Comte de Villèle, as Prime Minister of France. * January 8 – The Democratic Party of the United States is organiz ...

) *

–

Muhammad Ali of Egypt Muhammad Ali (4 March 1769 – 2 August 1849) was the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman Albanians, Albanian viceroy and governor who became the ''de facto'' ruler of History of Egypt under the Muhammad Ali dynasty, Egypt from 1805 to 1848, widely consi ...

, Egyptian ruler (d. 1849) *

March 8 Events Pre-1600 * 1010 – Ferdowsi completes his epic poem '' Shahnameh''. * 1126 – Following the death of his mother, queen Urraca of León, Alfonso VII is proclaimed king of León. * 1262 – Battle of Hausbergen between ...

– Samuel Richards, American ironmaster (d. 1842) *

March 10 Events Pre-1600 * 241 BC – First Punic War: Battle of the Aegates: The Romans sink the Carthaginian fleet bringing the First Punic War to an end. * 298 – Roman Emperor Maximian concludes his campaign in North Africa and makes ...

– Joseph Williamson, English philanthropist, builder of the Williamson Tunnels (d.

1840 Events January–March * January 3 – One of the predecessor papers of the ''Herald Sun'' of Melbourne, Australia, ''The Port Phillip Herald'', is founded. * January 10 – Uniform Penny Post is introduced in the United Kingdom. * Janu ...

) *

March 23 Events Pre-1600 * 1400 – The Trần dynasty of Vietnam is deposed, after one hundred and seventy-five years of rule, by Hồ Quý Ly, a court official. * 1540 – Waltham Abbey is surrendered to King Henry VIII of England; the las ...

– William Smith, English geologist, cartographer (d. 1839) *

March 29 Events Pre-1600 * 1430 – The Ottoman Empire under Murad II captures Thessalonica from the Republic of Venice. * 1461 – Battle of Towton: Edward of York defeats Queen Margaret to become King Edward IV of England, bringing a ...

– Jean-de-Dieu Soult, French marshal (d. 1851) *

April 3 Events Pre-1600 * 686 – Maya king Yuknoom Yich'aak K'ahk' assumes the crown of Calakmul. * 1043 – Edward the Confessor is crowned King of England. * 1077 – The Patriarchate of Friûl, the first Friulian state, is created. ...

– Christian Günther von Bernstorff, Danish and Prussian statesman and diplomat (d. 1835) *

April 9 Events Pre-1600 * 193 – The distinguished soldier Septimius Severus is proclaimed emperor by the army in Illyricum. * 475 – Byzantine Emperor Basiliscus issues a circular letter (''Enkyklikon'') to the bishops of his empire, ...

– Jakob Heinrich Laspeyres, German lepidopterist (d.

1809 Events January–March * January 5 – The Treaty of the Dardanelles, between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the Ottoman Empire, is concluded. * January 10 – Peninsular War – French Marshal Jean ...

) *

April 10 Events Pre-1600 * 428 – Nestorius becomes the Patriarch of Constantinople. * 837 – Halley's Comet makes its closest approach to Earth at a distance equal to 0.0342 AU (5.1 million kilometres/3.2 million miles). * 140 ...

– Jean Lannes, French marshal (d.

) *

–

Thomas Lawrence Sir Thomas Lawrence (13 April 1769 – 7 January 1830) was an English people, English portrait painter and the fourth president of the Royal Academy. A child prodigy, he was born in Bristol and began drawing in Devizes, where his father was a ...

, English painter (d. 1830) *

April 14 Events Pre-1600 * 43 BC – Legions loyal to the Roman Senate, commanded by Gaius Pansa, defeat the forces of Mark Antony in the Battle of Forum Gallorum. * 69 – Vitellius, commanding Rhine-based armies, defeats Roman emperor ...

– Barthélemy Catherine Joubert, French general (d. 1799) * April 25 –

Marc Isambard Brunel Sir Marc Isambard Brunel (, ; 25 April 1769 – 12 December 1849) was a French-American engineer active in the United States and Britain, most famous for the civil engineering work he did in the latter. He is known for having overseen the pr ...

, French-British engineer (d. 1849) * May 1 –

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington Field marshal (United Kingdom), Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington (; 1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was a British Army officer and statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures in Britain during t ...

, British general,

Prime Minister of the United Kingdom The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister Advice (constitutional law), advises the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, sovereign on the exercise of much of the Royal prerogative ...

(d. 1852) *

May 6 Events Pre-1600 * 1527 – Spanish and German troops sack Rome; many scholars consider this the end of the Renaissance. * 1536 – The Siege of Cuzco commences, in which Incan forces attempt to retake the city of Cuzco from the Sp ...

– Ferdinand III, Grand Duke of Tuscany (d.

1824 Events January–March * January 1 – John Stuart Mill begins publication of The Westminster Review. The first article is by William Johnson Fox * January 8 – After much controversy, Michael Faraday is finally elected as a member of th ...

) * June 5 – Marianne Kirchgessner, German musician (d. 1808) *

June 18 Events Pre-1600 * 618 – Li Yuan becomes Emperor Gaozu of Tang, initiating three centuries of Tang dynasty rule over China. * 656 – Ali becomes Caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate. * 860 – Siege of Constantinople (860), Byzantine� ...

–

Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh Robert Stewart, 2nd Marquess of Londonderry, (18 June 1769 – 12 August 1822), usually known as Lord Castlereagh, derived from the courtesy title Viscount Castlereagh ( ) by which he was styled from 1796 to 1821, was an Kingdom of Ireland, Ir ...

, British statesman, diplomat, and soldier (suicide

1822 Events January–March * January 1 – The Greek Constitution of 1822 is adopted by the First National Assembly at Epidaurus. * January 3 – The famous French explorer, Aimé Bonpland, is imprisoned in Paraguay on charges of espionage. ...

) *

July 28 Events Pre-1600 *1364 – Troops of the Republic of Pisa and the Republic of Florence clash in the Battle of Cascina. *1540 – Henry VIII of England marries his fifth wife, Catherine Howard. *1571 – La Laguna encomienda, known t ...

– Hudson Lowe, Irish-born soldier and future jailer of Napoleon on Saint Helena (d. 1831) * August 15 –

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

, French Emperor (d. 1821) *

August 23 Events Pre-1600 * 30 BC – After the successful invasion of Egypt, Octavian executes Marcus Antonius Antyllus, the eldest son of Mark Antony, and Caesarion, the last king of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt and only child of Julius Ca ...

–

Georges Cuvier Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric, baron Cuvier (23 August 1769 – 13 May 1832), known as Georges Cuvier (; ), was a French natural history, naturalist and zoology, zoologist, sometimes referred to as the "founding father of paleontology". Cuv ...

, French naturalist and zoologist; known as the ''Father of Paleontology'' (d. 1832) *

August 31 Events Pre-1600 * 1056 – After a sudden illness a few days previously, Byzantine Empress Theodora dies childless, thus ending the Macedonian dynasty. * 1057 – Abdication of Byzantine Emperor Michael VI Bringas after just one ye ...

– David Hosack American physician and botanist, a Hamilton family doctor (d. 1835) * September 14 **

Alexander von Humboldt Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander von Humboldt (14 September 1769 – 6 May 1859) was a German polymath, geographer, natural history, naturalist, List of explorers, explorer, and proponent of Romanticism, Romantic philosophy and Romanticism ...

, German explorer, scientist (d. 1859) ** Karl Salomo Zachariae von Lingenthal, German jurist (d.

1843 Events January–March * January 3 – The '' Illustrated Treatise on the Maritime Kingdoms'' (海國圖志, ''Hǎiguó Túzhì'') compiled by Wei Yuan and others, the first significant Chinese work on the West, is published in China. * J ...

) * October 6 – Isaac Brock, British general, administrator (d. 1812) * December 13 – James Scarlett Abinger, English judge (d. 1844) * December 23 –

Martin Archer Shee Sir Martin Archer Shee (23 December 1769 – 13 August 1850) was an Irish portrait painter. He also served as the president of the Royal Academy. Early life He was born in Dublin, of an old Irish Roman Catholic family, the son of Martin Shee ...

, Irish painter (d. 1850) * December 26 – Ernst Moritz Arndt, German writer, poet (d.

1860 Events January * January 2 – The astronomer Urbain Le Verrier announces the discovery of a hypothetical planet Vulcan (hypothetical planet), Vulcan at a meeting of the French Academy of Sciences in Paris, France. * January 10 &ndas ...

) * ''date unknown'' ** James Dadford, English canal engineer ** John Bellingham, assassin of British Prime Minister Spencer Perceval (d. 1812) **

Howqua Wu Bingjian (; 17694 September 1843), trading as "Houqua" and better known in the West as "Howqua" or "Howqua II", was a hong merchant in the Thirteen Factories, head of the '' E-wo hong'' and leader of the Canton Cohong. He was once the rich ...

, Chinese merchant (d.

) * ''probable'' ** John Henry Colclough, Irish revolutionary (d. 1798)

Deaths

January 5 Events Pre-1600 * 1477 – Battle of Nancy: Charles the Bold is defeated and killed in a conflict with René II, Duke of Lorraine; Burgundy subsequently becomes part of France. 1601–1900 * 1675 – Battle of Colmar: The French ...

– Charles Sackville, 2nd Duke of Dorset, English cricketer (b. 1711) *

– Pope Clement XIII (b. 1693) *

March 6 Events Pre-1600 * 12 BCE – The Roman emperor Augustus is named Pontifex Maximus, incorporating the position into that of the emperor. * 845 – The 42 Martyrs of Amorium are killed after refusing to convert to Islam. * 1204 &ndas ...

– Andrew Lauder, Burgess of the Royal Burgh of Lauder (1 August 1737) (b. 1702) *

March 28 Events Pre-1600 * AD 37 – Roman emperor Caligula accepts the titles of the Principate, bestowed on him by the Senate. * 193 – After assassinating the Roman Emperor Pertinax, his Praetorian Guards auction off the throne to Did ...

– Johann Friedrich Endersch, German cartographer (b. 1705) *

April 5 Events Pre-1600 * 823 – Lothair I is crowned King of Italy by Pope Paschal I. * 919 – The Fatimid invasion of Egypt (919–921), second Fatimid invasion of Medieval Egypt, Egypt begins, when the Fatimid heir-apparent, Al-Qa'im (Fa ...

– Marc-Antoine Laugier, French Jesuit priest, architectural theorist (b. 1713) *

– Anna Canalis di Cumiana, morganatic spouse of Victor Amadeus II of Savoy (b. 1680) * April 20 – Chief Pontiac, Ottawa chief (murdered) (b. c. 1719) *

April 21 Events Pre-1600 * 753 BC – Romulus founds Rome ( traditional date). * 43 BC – Battle of Mutina: Mark Antony is again defeated in battle by Aulus Hirtius, who is killed. Antony fails to capture Mutina and Decimus Brutus is mur ...

– John Gilbert Cooper, British poet and writer (b. 1722) *

– Iyoas I, Emperor of Ethiopia. *

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 ...

– Edward Holyoke, American President of Harvard University (b. 1689) * June 28 – Elisabeth Stierncrona, Swedish noble (b. 1714) *

August 1 Events Pre-1600 * 30 BC – Octavian (later known as Augustus) enters Alexandria, Egypt, bringing it under the control of the Roman Republic. *AD 69 – Batavian rebellion: The Batavians in Germania Inferior (Netherlands) revolt u ...

– Jean-Baptiste Chappe d'Auteroche, French astronomer (b. 1722) * August 2 – Daniel Finch, 8th Earl of Winchilsea, English politician (b. 1689) * August 29 – Edmond Hoyle, English game expert (b. 1672) * September 22 – Antonio Genovesi, Italian philosopher (b.

1712 In the Swedish calendar it began as a leap year starting on Monday and remained so until Thursday, February 29. By adding a second leap day, Friday, February 30, Sweden reverted to the Julian calendar and the rest of the year (from Saturday, M ...

) * September 23 – Michel Ferdinand d'Albert d'Ailly, French astronomer (b. 1714) * September 27 – Anna Karolina Orzelska, Polish adventurer (b. 1707) * November 3 – Diane Adélaïde de Mailly, third of the five famous French ''de Nesle'' sisters (b. 1713) * November 16 – Henry Paget, 2nd Earl of Uxbridge (b. 1719) * November 23 – Constantine Mavrocordatos, Prince of Wallachia and Prince of Moldavia (b. 1711) *

November 27 Events Pre-1600 * AD 25 – Luoyang is declared capital of the Eastern Han dynasty by Emperor Guangwu of Han. * 176 – Emperor Marcus Aurelius grants his son Commodus the rank of " Imperator" and makes him Supreme Commander of th ...

– Kamo no Mabuchi, Japanese poet, philologist (b. 1697) * December 8 – Joseph Friedrich Ernst, Prince of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (b. 1702) * December 13 – Christian Fürchtegott Gellert, German poet (b. 1715) *

December 30 Events Pre-1600 * 534 – The second and final edition of the Code of Justinian comes into effect in the Byzantine Empire. * 999 – Battle of Glenmama: The combined forces of Munster and Meath under king Brian Boru inflict a cr ...

– Nicholas Taaffe, 6th Viscount Taaffe, Austrian soldier (b. 1685) * ''date unknown'' ** King Suremphaa of

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

** Birgitte Sofie Gabel, Danish noble (b. 1746)