
The 18th century lasted from 1 January
1701 (represented by the
Roman numerals
Roman numerals are a numeral system that originated in ancient Rome and remained the usual way of writing numbers throughout Europe well into the Late Middle Ages. Numbers are written with combinations of letters from the Latin alphabet, eac ...
MDCCI) to 31 December
1800
As of March 1 ( O.S. February 18), when the Julian calendar acknowledged a leap day and the Gregorian calendar did not, the Julian calendar fell one day further behind, bringing the difference to 12 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 16), ...
(MDCCC). During the 18th century, elements of
Enlightenment thinking culminated in the
Atlantic Revolutions
The Age of Revolution is a period from the late-18th to the mid-19th centuries during which a number of significant revolutionary movements occurred in most of Europe and the Americas. The period is noted for the change from Absolutism (Europea ...
. Revolutions began to challenge the legitimacy of monarchical and aristocratic power structures. 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 ...
began mid-century, leading to radical changes in
human society and the
environment. The
European colonization of the Americas
During the Age of Discovery, a large scale colonization of the Americas, involving a number of European countries, took place primarily between the late 15th century and the early 19th century. The Norse explored and colonized areas of Europe a ...
and other parts of the world intensified and associated mass migrations of people grew in size as part of the
Age of Sail
The Age of Sail is a period in European history that lasted at the latest from the mid-16th (or mid-15th) to the mid-19th centuries, in which the dominance of sailing ships in global trade and warfare culminated, particularly marked by the int ...
. During the century,
slave trading expanded across the shores of the
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...
, while declining in
Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
and
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
.
Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
historians have occasionally defined the 18th century otherwise for the purposes of their work. For example, the "short" 18th century may be defined as 1715–1789, denoting the period of time between the death of
Louis XIV of France
LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...
and the start of the
French Revolution, with an emphasis on directly interconnected events. To historians who expand the century to include larger historical movements, the "long" 18th century
may run from the
Glorious Revolution
The Glorious Revolution, also known as the Revolution of 1688, was the deposition of James II and VII, James II and VII in November 1688. He was replaced by his daughter Mary II, Mary II and her Dutch husband, William III of Orange ...
of 1688 to the
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (then in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium), marking the end of the Napoleonic Wars. The French Imperial Army (1804–1815), Frenc ...
in 1815 or even later. France was the sole world
superpower
Superpower describes a sovereign state or supranational union that holds a dominant position characterized by the ability to Sphere of influence, exert influence and Power projection, project power on a global scale. This is done through the comb ...
from 1659, after it defeated
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 ...
, until 1815, when it was defeated by
Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales
* The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...
and its coalitions following the
Napoleonic Wars
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Napoleonic Wars
, partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars
, image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg
, caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...
.
In
Europe
Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
, philosophers ushered in the Age of Enlightenment. This period coincided with the French Revolution of 1789, and was later compromised by the excesses of the
Reign of Terror
The Reign of Terror (French: ''La Terreur'', literally "The Terror") was a period of the French Revolution when, following the creation of the French First Republic, First Republic, a series of massacres and Capital punishment in France, nu ...
. At first, many monarchies of Europe embraced Enlightenment ideals, but in the wake of the French Revolution they feared loss of power and formed broad coalitions to oppose the
French Republic
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 ...
in the
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars () were a series of sweeping military conflicts resulting from the French Revolution that lasted from 1792 until 1802. They pitted French First Republic, France against Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain, Habsb ...
. Various conflicts throughout the century, including the
War of the Spanish Succession
The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict fought between 1701 and 1714. The immediate cause was the death of the childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700, which led to a struggle for control of the Spanish E ...
and the
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...
, saw
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 ...
triumph over its rivals to become the preeminent power in Europe. However, Britain's attempts to exert its authority over the
Thirteen Colonies
The Thirteen Colonies were the British colonies on the Atlantic coast of North America which broke away from the British Crown in the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), and joined to form the United States of America.
The Thirteen C ...
became a catalyst for the
American Revolution
The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...
. The 18th century also marked the end of the
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, also referred to as Poland–Lithuania or the First Polish Republic (), was a federation, federative real union between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ...
as an independent state. Its semi-democratic government system was not robust enough to prevent
partition by the neighboring states of
Austria
Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
,
Prussia
Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...
, and Russia.
In
West Asia
West Asia (also called Western Asia or Southwest Asia) is the westernmost region of Asia. As defined by most academics, UN bodies and other institutions, the subregion consists of Anatolia, the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Mesopotamia, the Armenian ...
,
Nader Shah
Nader Shah Afshar (; 6 August 1698 or 22 October 1688 – 20 June 1747) was the founder of the Afsharid dynasty of Iran and one of the most powerful rulers in Iranian history, ruling as shah of Iran (Persia) from 1736 to 1747, when he was a ...
led
Persia
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...
in successful
military campaigns. The
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
experienced a period of peace, taking no part in European wars from 1740 to 1768. As a result, the empire was not exposed to Europe's military improvements during the Seven Years' War. The Ottoman military consequently lagged behind and suffered several defeats against Russia in the second half of the century.
In
South Asia
South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia that is defined in both geographical and Ethnicity, ethnic-Culture, cultural terms. South Asia, with a population of 2.04 billion, contains a quarter (25%) of the world's populatio ...
, the death of Mughal emperor
Aurangzeb
Alamgir I (Muhi al-Din Muhammad; 3 November 1618 – 3 March 1707), commonly known by the title Aurangzeb, also called Aurangzeb the Conqueror, was the sixth Mughal emperors, Mughal emperor, reigning from 1658 until his death in 1707, becomi ...
was followed by the expansion of the
Maratha Confederacy
The Maratha Empire, also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, was an early modern polity in the Indian subcontinent. It comprised the realms of the Peshwa and four major independent Maratha states under the nominal leadership of the former.
...
and an increasing level of European influence and control in the region. In 1739, Persian emperor Nader Shah invaded and plundered Delhi, the capital of the
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire was an Early modern period, early modern empire in South Asia. At its peak, the empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus River Basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north, to ...
. Later, his general
Ahmad Shah Durrani
Ahmad Shāh Durrānī (; ; – 4 June 1772), also known as Ahmad Shāh Abdālī (), was the first ruler and founder of the Durrani Empire. He is often regarded as the founder of modern Afghanistan.
Throughout his reign, Ahmad Shah fought ov ...
scored another victory against the Marathas, the then dominant power in India, in the
Third Battle of Panipat
The Third Battle of Panipat took place on 14 January 1761 between the Maratha Empire and the invading army of the Durrani Empire. The battle took place in and around the city of Panipat, approximately north of Delhi. The Afghan (ethnonym), Af ...
in 1761.
By the middle of the century, the
British East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...
began to conquer eastern India,
and by the end of the century, the
Anglo-Mysore Wars against
Tipu Sultan
Tipu Sultan (, , ''Sultan Fateh Ali Sahab Tipu''; 1 December 1751 – 4 May 1799) commonly referred to as Sher-e-Mysore or "Tiger of Mysore", was a ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore based in South India. He was a pioneer of rocket artillery ...
and his father
Hyder Ali
Hyder Ali (''Haidar'alī''; ; 1720 – 7 December 1782) was the Sultan and ''de facto'' ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore in southern India. Born as Hyder Ali, he distinguished himself as a soldier, eventually drawing the attention of Mysore's ...
, led to
Company rule
Company rule in India (also known as the Company Raj, from Hindi , ) refers to regions of the Indian subcontinent under the control of the British East India Company (EIC). The EIC, founded in 1600, established its first trading post in India ...
over the south.
In
East Asia
East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...
, the century was marked by the
High Qing era, a period characterized by significant cultural and territorial expansion. This period also experienced relative peace and prosperity, allowing for societal growth, increasing literacy rates, flourishing trade, and consolidating imperial power across the vast Qing dynasty's territories. Conversely, the continual
seclusion policy of the
Tokugawa shogunate
The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868.
The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...
also brought a peaceful era called
Pax Tokugawa and experienced a flourishment of the
arts
The arts or creative arts are a vast range of human practices involving creativity, creative expression, storytelling, and cultural participation. The arts encompass diverse and plural modes of thought, deeds, and existence in an extensive ...
as well as
scientific knowledge and advancements, which were introduced to Japan through the Dutch port of Nagasaki. In
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...
, the
Konbaung–Ayutthaya Wars and the
Tây Sơn Wars broke out while the
Dutch East India Company
The United East India Company ( ; VOC ), commonly known as the Dutch East India Company, was a chartered company, chartered trading company and one of the first joint-stock companies in the world. Established on 20 March 1602 by the States Ge ...
established
increasing levels of control over the
Mataram Sultanate
The Sultanate of Mataram () was the last major independent Javanese people, Javanese kingdom on the island of Java (island), Java before it was Dutch Empire, colonised by the Dutch. It was the dominant political force radiating from the inte ...
.
In
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...
, the
Ethiopian Empire
The Ethiopian Empire, historically known as Abyssinia or simply Ethiopia, was a sovereign state that encompassed the present-day territories of Ethiopia and Eritrea. It existed from the establishment of the Solomonic dynasty by Yekuno Amlak a ...
underwent the
Zemene Mesafint, a period when the country was ruled by a class of regional noblemen and the emperor was merely a figurehead. The
Atlantic slave trade
The Atlantic slave trade or transatlantic slave trade involved the transportation by slave traders of Slavery in Africa, enslaved African people to the Americas. European slave ships regularly used the triangular trade route and its Middle Pass ...
also saw the continued involvement of states such as the
Oyo Empire
The Oyo Empire was a Yoruba people, Yoruba empire in West Africa. It was located in present-day western Nigeria (including the South West (Nigeria), South West zone, Benin Republic, and the western half of the North Central (Nigeria), North Cent ...
. In
Oceania
Oceania ( , ) is a region, geographical region including Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Outside of the English-speaking world, Oceania is generally considered a continent, while Mainland Australia is regarded as its co ...
, the European colonization of
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
and
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
began during the late half of the century. In the
Americas
The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...
, the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
declared its independence from Great Britain. In 1776,
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...
wrote the
Declaration of Independence
A declaration of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the territory of another state or failed state, or are breaka ...
. In 1789,
George Washington
George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...
was inaugurated as the first president.
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 ...
traveled to Europe where he was hailed as an inventor. Examples of his inventions include the
lightning rod
A lightning rod or lightning conductor (British English) is a metal rod mounted on a structure and intended to protect the structure from a lightning strike. If lightning hits the structure, it is most likely to strike the rod and be conducted ...
and
bifocal glasses.
Túpac Amaru II
Tupac Amaru II (born José Gabriel Condorcanqui Noguera, – 18 May 1781) was an Indigenous ''cacique'' who led a Rebellion of Túpac Amaru II, large Andean rebellion against the Viceroyalty of Peru, Spanish in Peru as Self-proclaimed monarc ...
led an
uprising that sought to end
Spanish colonial rule in Peru.
Events
1701–1750

*
1700–
1721:
Great Northern War
In the Great Northern War (1700–1721) a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern Europe, Northern, Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the ant ...
between the
Russian and
Swedish Empire
The Swedish Empire or the Great Power era () was the period in Swedish history spanning much of the 17th and early 18th centuries during which Sweden became a European great power that exercised territorial control over much of the Baltic regi ...
s.
*
1701:
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia (, ) was a German state that existed from 1701 to 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1946. It played a signif ...
declared under King
Frederick I.
*
1701: The
Battle of Feyiase marks the rise of the
Ashanti Empire
The Asante Empire ( Asante Twi: ), also known as the Ashanti Empire, was an Akan state that lasted from 1701 to 1901, in what is now modern-day Ghana. It expanded from the Ashanti Region to include most of Ghana and also parts of Ivory Coast ...
.
*
1701–
1714: The
War of the Spanish Succession
The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict fought between 1701 and 1714. The immediate cause was the death of the childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700, which led to a struggle for control of the Spanish E ...
is fought, involving most of continental
Europe
Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
.
*
1702
In the Swedish calendar it was a common year starting on Wednesday, one day ahead of the Julian and ten days behind the Gregorian calendar.
Events
January–March
* January 2 – A total solar eclipse is visible from the southern ...
–
1715
Events
For dates within Great Britain and the British Empire, as well as in the Russian Empire, the "old style" Julian calendar was used in 1715, and can be converted to the "new style" Gregorian calendar (adopted in the British Empire in ...
:
Camisard rebellion in France.
*
1703
In the Swedish calendar it was a common year starting on Thursday, one day ahead of the Julian and ten days behind the Gregorian calendar.
Events
January–March
* January 9 – The Jamaican town of Port Royal, a center of trade ...
:
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...
is founded by
Peter the Great
Peter I (, ;
– ), better known as Peter the Great, was the Sovereign, Tsar and Grand Prince of all Russia, Tsar of all Russia from 1682 and the first Emperor of Russia, Emperor of all Russia from 1721 until his death in 1725. He reigned j ...
; it is the Russian
capital until
1918
The ceasefire that effectively ended the World War I, First World War took place on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of this year. Also in this year, the Spanish flu pandemic killed 50–100 million people wor ...
.
*
1703
In the Swedish calendar it was a common year starting on Thursday, one day ahead of the Julian and ten days behind the Gregorian calendar.
Events
January–March
* January 9 – The Jamaican town of Port Royal, a center of trade ...
–
1711: The
Rákóczi uprising against the
Habsburg monarchy
The Habsburg monarchy, also known as Habsburg Empire, or Habsburg Realm (), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities (composite monarchy) that were ruled by the House of Habsburg. From the 18th century it is ...
.
*
1704: End of Japan's
Genroku
was a after Jōkyō and before Hōei. The Genroku period spanned the years from September 1688 to March 1704. The reigning emperor was .Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). ''Annales des empereurs du japon'', p. 415.
The period was known for its peace and ...
period.
*
1704:
First Javanese War of Succession.
[Ricklefs (1991), page 82]
*
1706
In the Swedish calendar it was a common year starting on Monday, one day ahead of the Julian and ten days behind the Gregorian calendar.
Events
January–March
* January 26
** War of Spanish Succession: The uprising by Bavarians aga ...
–
1713
Events
January–March
* January 17 – Tuscarora War: Colonel James Moore leads the Carolina militia out of Albemarle County, North Carolina, in a second offensive against the Tuscarora. Heavy snows force the troops to take ...
: The War of the Spanish Succession: French troops defeated at the
Battle of Ramillies
The Battle of Ramillies (), fought on 23 May 1706, was a battle of the War of the Spanish Succession. For the Grand AllianceAustria, England, and the Dutch Republicthe battle had followed an indecisive campaign against the Bourbon armies of K ...
and the
Siege of Turin
The siege of Turin took place from June to September 1706, during the War of the Spanish Succession. A French army led by Louis de la Feuillade besieged the Savoyard capital of Turin, whose relief by Prince Eugene of Savoy has been called th ...
.
*
1707
In the Swedish calendar it was a common year starting on Tuesday, one day ahead of the Julian and ten days behind the Gregorian calendar.
Events
January–March
* January 1 – John V is crowned King of Portugal and the Algarv ...
: Death of Mughal Emperor
Aurangzeb
Alamgir I (Muhi al-Din Muhammad; 3 November 1618 – 3 March 1707), commonly known by the title Aurangzeb, also called Aurangzeb the Conqueror, was the sixth Mughal emperors, Mughal emperor, reigning from 1658 until his death in 1707, becomi ...
leads to the fragmentation of the
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire was an Early modern period, early modern empire in South Asia. At its peak, the empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus River Basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north, to ...
.
*
1707
In the Swedish calendar it was a common year starting on Tuesday, one day ahead of the Julian and ten days behind the Gregorian calendar.
Events
January–March
* January 1 – John V is crowned King of Portugal and the Algarv ...
: The
Act of Union is passed, merging the Scottish and English Parliaments, thus establishing the
Kingdom of Great Britain
Great Britain, also known as the Kingdom of Great Britain, was a sovereign state in Western Europe from 1707 to the end of 1800. The state was created by the 1706 Treaty of Union and ratified by the Acts of Union 1707, which united the Kingd ...
.
*
1708: The
Company of Merchants of London Trading into the East Indies and English Company Trading to the East Indies merge to form the United Company of Merchants of England Trading to the East Indies.
*
1708–
1709: Famine kills one-third of
East Prussia
East Prussia was a Provinces of Prussia, province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1772 to 1829 and again from 1878 (with the Kingdom itself being part of the German Empire from 1871); following World War I it formed part of the Weimar Republic's ...
's population.
*
1709: Foundation of the
Hotak Empire.
*
1709: The
Great Frost of 1709
The Great Frost, as it was known in England, or ' ("The Great Winter"), as it was known in France, was an extraordinarily cold winter in Europe in 1708–1709,. and was the coldest European winter during the past 500 years.
Notability
William ...
marks the coldest winter in 500 years, contributing to the defeat of
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
at
Poltava
Poltava (, ; , ) is a city located on the Vorskla, Vorskla River in Central Ukraine, Central Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Poltava Oblast as well as Poltava Raion within the oblast. It also hosts the administration of Po ...
.
*
1710: The world's first
copyright legislation, Britain's
Statute of Anne
The Statute of Anne, also known as the Copyright Act 1709 or the Copyright Act 1710 (cited either as 8 Ann. c. 21 or as 8 Ann. c. 19), was an act of the Parliament of Great Britain passed in 1710, which was the first statute to provide for ...
, takes effect.
*
1710–
1711:
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
fights Russia in the
Russo-Turkish War and regains
Azov
Azov (, ), previously known as Azak ( Turki/ Kypchak: ),
is a town in Rostov Oblast, Russia, situated on the Don River just from the Sea of Azov, which derives its name from the town. The population is
History
Early settlements in the vici ...
.
*
1711:
Bukhara Khanate dissolves as local begs seize power.
*
1711–
1715
Events
For dates within Great Britain and the British Empire, as well as in the Russian Empire, the "old style" Julian calendar was used in 1715, and can be converted to the "new style" Gregorian calendar (adopted in the British Empire in ...
:
Tuscarora War
The Tuscarora War was fought in North Carolina from September 10, 1711, until February 11, 1715, between the Tuscarora people and their allies on one side and European American settlers, the Yamasee, and other allies on the other. This was con ...
between British, Dutch, and German settlers and the
Tuscarora people
The Tuscarora (in Tuscarora language, Tuscarora ''Skarù:ręˀ'') are an indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands in Canada and the United States. They are an Iroquoian Peoples, Iroquoian Native Americans in the United States, Native Amer ...
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 ...
.
*
1713
Events
January–March
* January 17 – Tuscarora War: Colonel James Moore leads the Carolina militia out of Albemarle County, North Carolina, in a second offensive against the Tuscarora. Heavy snows force the troops to take ...
: The
Kangxi Emperor
The Kangxi Emperor (4 May 165420 December 1722), also known by his temple name Emperor Shengzu of Qing, personal name Xuanye, was the third emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper. His reign of 61 ...
acknowledges the full recovery of the Chinese economy since its apex during the
Ming.
*
1714: In Amsterdam,
Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit
Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit FRS (; ; 24 May 1686 – 16 September 1736) was a physicist, inventor, and scientific instrument maker, born in Poland to a family of German extraction. Fahrenheit invented thermometers accurate and consistent enough t ...
invents the
mercury-in-glass thermometer, which remains the most reliable and accurate thermometer until the electronic era.
*
1715
Events
For dates within Great Britain and the British Empire, as well as in the Russian Empire, the "old style" Julian calendar was used in 1715, and can be converted to the "new style" Gregorian calendar (adopted in the British Empire in ...
: The
first Jacobite rising breaks out; the British halt the Jacobite advance at the
Battle of Sheriffmuir
The Battle of Sheriffmuir (, ) was an engagement in 1715 at the height of the Jacobite rising of 1715, Jacobite rising in Scotland. The battlefield has been included in the Inventory of Historic Battlefields in Scotland and protected by Histor ...
;
Battle of Preston.
*
1716: Establishment of the
Sikh Confederacy
The Sikh Confederacy was a confederation of twelve sovereign Sikh states (each known as a Misl, derived from the Arabic word مِثْل meaning 'equal'; sometimes spelt as Misal) which rose during the 18th century in the Punjab region in the n ...
along the present-day India-
Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
border.
*
1716–
1718:
Austro-Venetian-Turkish War.
*
1718: The city of
New Orleans
New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
is founded by the French in North America.
*
1718–
1720
Events
January–March
* January 21 – Sweden and Prussia sign the Treaty of Stockholm (Great Northern War).
* February 10 – Edmond Halley is appointed as Astronomer Royal for England.
* February 17 – The Treaty o ...
:
War of the Quadruple Alliance
The War of the Quadruple Alliance, 1718 to 1720, was a conflict between Spain and a coalition of Austria, Great Britain, France, and Savoy, joined in 1719 by the Dutch Republic. Most of the fighting took place in Sicily and Spain, with minor engag ...
with Spain versus France, Britain, Austria, and the Netherlands.
*
1718–
1730
Events
January–March
* January 30 (January 19 O.S.) – At dawn, Emperor Peter II of Russia dies of smallpox, aged 14 in Moscow, on the eve of his projected marriage.
* February 26 (February 15 O.S.) – Anna of Russia ( ...
:
Tulip period of the Ottoman Empire.
*
1719:
Second Javanese War of Succession.
[Ricklefs (1991), page 84]
*
1720
Events
January–March
* January 21 – Sweden and Prussia sign the Treaty of Stockholm (Great Northern War).
* February 10 – Edmond Halley is appointed as Astronomer Royal for England.
* February 17 – The Treaty o ...
: The
South Sea Bubble
South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east.
Etymology
The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...
.
*
1720
Events
January–March
* January 21 – Sweden and Prussia sign the Treaty of Stockholm (Great Northern War).
* February 10 – Edmond Halley is appointed as Astronomer Royal for England.
* February 17 – The Treaty o ...
–
1721: The
Great Plague of Marseille.
*
1720
Events
January–March
* January 21 – Sweden and Prussia sign the Treaty of Stockholm (Great Northern War).
* February 10 – Edmond Halley is appointed as Astronomer Royal for England.
* February 17 – The Treaty o ...
: Qing forces oust
Dzungar invaders from
Tibet
Tibet (; ''Böd''; ), or Greater Tibet, is a region in the western part of East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are other ethnic groups s ...
.
*
1721: The
Treaty of Nystad is signed, ending the
Great Northern War
In the Great Northern War (1700–1721) a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern Europe, Northern, Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the ant ...
.
*
1721:
Sack of Shamakhi, massacre of its Shia population by
Sunni
Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Mu ...
Lezgins
Lezgins ( or ) are a Northeast Caucasian ethnic group native to southern Dagestan, a republic of Russia, and northern Azerbaijan, who speak the Lezgin language. Their social structure is firmly based on equality and deference to individuality ...
.
*
1722
Events
January–March
* January 27 – Daniel Defoe's novel '' Moll Flanders'' is published anonymously in London.
* February 10 – The Battle of Cape Lopez begins off of the coast of West Africa (and present-day Gabon), ...
:
Siege of Isfahan
The siege of Isfahan () was a six-month-long siege of Isfahan, the capital of the Safavid dynasty of Iran, by the Hotaki-led Afghan army. It lasted from March to October 1722 and resulted in the city's fall and the beginning of the end of the ...
results in the handover of Iran to the
Hotaki Afghans.
*
1722
Events
January–March
* January 27 – Daniel Defoe's novel '' Moll Flanders'' is published anonymously in London.
* February 10 – The Battle of Cape Lopez begins off of the coast of West Africa (and present-day Gabon), ...
–
1723:
Russo-Persian War.
*
1722
Events
January–March
* January 27 – Daniel Defoe's novel '' Moll Flanders'' is published anonymously in London.
* February 10 – The Battle of Cape Lopez begins off of the coast of West Africa (and present-day Gabon), ...
–
1725: Controversy over
William Wood's halfpence leads to the ''
Drapier's Letters
''Drapier's Letters'' is the collective name for a series of seven pamphlets written between 1724 and 1725 by the Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin, Jonathan Swift, to arouse public opinion in Ireland against the imposition of a priv ...
'' and begins the Irish economic independence from England movement.
*
1723:
Slavery
Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...
is abolished in Russia;
Peter the Great
Peter I (, ;
– ), better known as Peter the Great, was the Sovereign, Tsar and Grand Prince of all Russia, Tsar of all Russia from 1682 and the first Emperor of Russia, Emperor of all Russia from 1721 until his death in 1725. He reigned j ...
converts household
slaves
Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...
into house
serfs
Serfdom was the status of many peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to manorialism and similar systems. It was a condition of debt bondage and indentured servitude with similarities to and differences from slavery. It developed dur ...
.
*
1723–
1730
Events
January–March
* January 30 (January 19 O.S.) – At dawn, Emperor Peter II of Russia dies of smallpox, aged 14 in Moscow, on the eve of his projected marriage.
* February 26 (February 15 O.S.) – Anna of Russia ( ...
: The "Great Disaster", an invasion of
Kazakh territories by the
Dzungars.
*
1723–
1732: The Qing and the Dzungars fight a series of wars across
Qinghai
Qinghai is an inland Provinces of China, province in Northwestern China. It is the largest provinces of China, province of China (excluding autonomous regions) by area and has the third smallest population. Its capital and largest city is Xin ...
,
Dzungaria
Dzungaria (; from the Mongolian words , meaning 'left hand'), also known as Northern Xinjiang or Beijiang, is a geographical subregion in Northwest China that corresponds to the northern half of Xinjiang. Bound by the Altai Mountains to the n ...
, and
Outer Mongolia
Outer Mongolia was the name of a territory in the Manchu-led Qing dynasty of China from 1691 to 1911. It corresponds to the modern-day independent state of Mongolia and the Russian republic of Tuva. The historical region gained ''de facto'' ...
, with inconclusive results.
*
1724:
Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit
Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit FRS (; ; 24 May 1686 – 16 September 1736) was a physicist, inventor, and scientific instrument maker, born in Poland to a family of German extraction. Fahrenheit invented thermometers accurate and consistent enough t ...
proposes the
Fahrenheit
The Fahrenheit scale () is a scale of temperature, temperature scale based on one proposed in 1724 by the German-Polish physicist Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit (1686–1736). It uses the degree Fahrenheit (symbol: °F) as the unit. Several accou ...
temperature scale.
*
1725:
Austro-Spanish alliance revived. Russia joins in 1726.
*
1727–
1729
Events
January–March
* January 8 – 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 ...
:
Anglo-Spanish War ends inconclusively.
*
1730
Events
January–March
* January 30 (January 19 O.S.) – At dawn, Emperor Peter II of Russia dies of smallpox, aged 14 in Moscow, on the eve of his projected marriage.
* February 26 (February 15 O.S.) – Anna of Russia ( ...
:
Mahmud I takes over Ottoman Empire after the
Patrona Halil revolt, ending the
Tulip period.
*
1730
Events
January–March
* January 30 (January 19 O.S.) – At dawn, Emperor Peter II of Russia dies of smallpox, aged 14 in Moscow, on the eve of his projected marriage.
* February 26 (February 15 O.S.) – Anna of Russia ( ...
–
1760
Events
January–March
* January 9 – Battle of Barari Ghat: Afghan forces defeat the Marathas.
* January 22 – Seven Years' War – Battle of Wandiwash, India: British general Sir Eyre Coote is victorious over th ...
: The
First Great Awakening
The First Great Awakening, sometimes Great Awakening or the Evangelical Revival, was a series of Christian revivals that swept Britain and its thirteen North American colonies in the 1730s and 1740s. The revival movement permanently affected Pro ...
takes place in Great Britain and North America.
*
1732–
1734:
Crimean Tatar raids into Russia.
*
1733–
1738
Events
January–March
* January 1 – At least 664 African slaves drown when the Dutch West Indies Company slave ship ''Leusden'' capsizes and sinks in the Maroni River during its arrival in Surinam. The Dutch crew escapes ...
:
War of the Polish Succession
The War of the Polish Succession (; 1733–35) was a major European conflict sparked by a civil war in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth over the succession to Augustus II the Strong, which the other European powers widened in pursuit of ...
.

*
1735–
1739
Events
January–March
* January 1 – Bouvet Island is discovered by French explorer Jean-Baptiste Charles Bouvet de Lozier, in the South Atlantic Ocean.
* January 3 – A 7.6 earthquake shakes the Ningxia Hui Autonomou ...
:
Austro-Russo-Turkish War.
*
1735–
1799
Events
January–March
* January 9 – British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger introduces an income tax of two shillings to the pound, to raise funds for Great Britain's war effort in the French Revolutionary Wars.
* January ...
: The
Qianlong Emperor
The Qianlong Emperor (25 September 17117 February 1799), also known by his temple name Emperor Gaozong of Qing, personal name Hongli, was the fifth Emperor of China, emperor of the Qing dynasty and the fourth Qing emperor to rule over China pr ...
of China oversees a huge expansion in territory.
*
1738
Events
January–March
* January 1 – At least 664 African slaves drown when the Dutch West Indies Company slave ship ''Leusden'' capsizes and sinks in the Maroni River during its arrival in Surinam. The Dutch crew escapes ...
–
1756
Events
January–March
* January 16 – The Anglo-Prussian alliance (1756)#Treaty, Treaty of Westminster is signed between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Prussia, guaranteeing the neutrality of the Electorate of Hanover, c ...
:
Famine
A famine is a widespread scarcity of food caused by several possible factors, including, but not limited to war, natural disasters, crop failure, widespread poverty, an Financial crisis, economic catastrophe or government policies. This phenom ...
across the
Sahel
The Sahel region (; ), or Sahelian acacia savanna, is a Biogeography, biogeographical region in Africa. It is the Ecotone, transition zone between the more humid Sudanian savannas to its south and the drier Sahara to the north. The Sahel has a ...
; half the population of
Timbuktu
Timbuktu ( ; ; Koyra Chiini: ; ) is an ancient city in Mali, situated north of the Niger River. It is the capital of the Tombouctou Region, one of the eight administrative regions of Mali, having a population of 32,460 in the 2018 census.
...
dies.
*
1737–
1738
Events
January–March
* January 1 – At least 664 African slaves drown when the Dutch West Indies Company slave ship ''Leusden'' capsizes and sinks in the Maroni River during its arrival in Surinam. The Dutch crew escapes ...
: Hotak Empire ends after the
siege of Kandahar by
Nader Shah
Nader Shah Afshar (; 6 August 1698 or 22 October 1688 – 20 June 1747) was the founder of the Afsharid dynasty of Iran and one of the most powerful rulers in Iranian history, ruling as shah of Iran (Persia) from 1736 to 1747, when he was a ...
.
*
1739
Events
January–March
* January 1 – Bouvet Island is discovered by French explorer Jean-Baptiste Charles Bouvet de Lozier, in the South Atlantic Ocean.
* January 3 – A 7.6 earthquake shakes the Ningxia Hui Autonomou ...
: Great Britain and Spain fight the
War of Jenkins' Ear
The War of Jenkins' Ear was fought by Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and History of Spain (1700–1808), Spain between 1739 and 1748. The majority of the fighting took place in Viceroyalty of New Granada, New Granada and the Caribbean ...
in the Caribbean.
*
1739
Events
January–March
* January 1 – Bouvet Island is discovered by French explorer Jean-Baptiste Charles Bouvet de Lozier, in the South Atlantic Ocean.
* January 3 – A 7.6 earthquake shakes the Ningxia Hui Autonomou ...
: Nader Shah defeats a pan-Indian army of 300,000 at the
Battle of Karnal
The Battle of Karnal (Persian Language, Persian: نبرد کرنال) (24 February 1739) was a decisive victory for Nader Shah, the founder of the Afsharid dynasty of Persian Empire, Iran, during his Nader Shah's invasion of India, invasion of ...
. Taxation is stopped in Iran for three years.
*
1739
Events
January–March
* January 1 – Bouvet Island is discovered by French explorer Jean-Baptiste Charles Bouvet de Lozier, in the South Atlantic Ocean.
* January 3 – A 7.6 earthquake shakes the Ningxia Hui Autonomou ...
–
1740:
Nader Shah's Sindh expedition.
*
1740:
George Whitefield
George Whitefield (; 30 September 1770), also known as George Whitfield, was an English Anglican minister and preacher who was one of the founders of Methodism and the evangelical movement. Born in Gloucester, he matriculated at Pembroke Coll ...
brings the
First Great Awakening
The First Great Awakening, sometimes Great Awakening or the Evangelical Revival, was a series of Christian revivals that swept Britain and its thirteen North American colonies in the 1730s and 1740s. The revival movement permanently affected Pro ...
to New England
*
1740–
1741
Events
January–March
* January 13
** Lanesborough, Massachusetts is created as a township.
** Conventicle Act of 1741 is introduced in Denmark-Norway.
*February 13 – Sir Robert Walpole, the Prime Minister of Great Britain ...
:
Famine in Ireland kills 20 percent of the population.
*
1741
Events
January–March
* January 13
** Lanesborough, Massachusetts is created as a township.
** Conventicle Act of 1741 is introduced in Denmark-Norway.
*February 13 – Sir Robert Walpole, the Prime Minister of Great Britain ...
–
1743: Iran invades
Uzbekistan
, image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg
, image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg
, symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem
, national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...
,
Khwarazm
Khwarazm (; ; , ''Xwârazm'' or ''Xârazm'') or Chorasmia () is a large oasis region on the Amu Darya river delta in western Central Asia, bordered on the north by the (former) Aral Sea, on the east by the Kyzylkum Desert, on the south by th ...
,
Dagestan
Dagestan ( ; ; ), officially the Republic of Dagestan, is a republic of Russia situated in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe, along the Caspian Sea. It is located north of the Greater Caucasus, and is a part of the North Caucasian Fede ...
, and
Oman
Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...
.
*
1741
Events
January–March
* January 13
** Lanesborough, Massachusetts is created as a township.
** Conventicle Act of 1741 is introduced in Denmark-Norway.
*February 13 – Sir Robert Walpole, the Prime Minister of Great Britain ...
–
1751:
Maratha invasions of Bengal
The Maratha invasions of Bengal (1742–1751), were the a series of raids by the Maratha Army, Maratha forces in the Bengal Subah (Bengal, Bihar, parts of modern Odisha, Orissa), after the successful campaign in the Carnatic region at the Siege ...
.
*
1740–
1748:
War of the Austrian Succession
The War of the Austrian Succession was a European conflict fought between 1740 and 1748, primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italian Peninsula, Italy, the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Related conflicts include King Ge ...
.
*
1742:
Marvel's Mill, the first water-powered
cotton mill
A cotton mill is a building that houses spinning or weaving machinery for the production of yarn or cloth from cotton, an important product during the Industrial Revolution in the development of the factory system.
Although some were driven ...
, begins operation in England.
*
1742:
Anders Celsius
Anders Celsius (; 27 November 170125 April 1744) was a Swedes, Swedish astronomer, physicist and mathematician. He was professor of astronomy at Uppsala University from 1730 to 1744, but traveled from 1732 to 1735 visiting notable observatories ...
proposes an inverted form of the centigrade temperature, which is later renamed
Celsius
The degree Celsius is the unit of temperature on the Celsius temperature scale "Celsius temperature scale, also called centigrade temperature scale, scale based on 0 ° for the melting point of water and 100 ° for the boiling point ...
in his honor.
*
1742: Premiere of
George Frideric Handel
George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel ( ; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well-known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concerti.
Born in Halle, Germany, H ...
's
''Messiah''.
*
1743–
1746
Events
January–March
* January 8 – The Young Pretender Charles Edward Stuart occupies Stirling, Scotland.
* January 17 – Battle of Falkirk Muir: British Government forces are defeated by Jacobite forces.
* February ...
: Another
Ottoman-Persian War involves 375,000 men but ultimately ends in a stalemate.

*
1744: The
First Saudi State is founded by
Mohammed Ibn Saud
Muhammad bin Saud Al Muqrin Al Saud (; 1687–1765), also known as Ibn Saud, was the emir of Diriyah and is considered the founder of the First Saudi State and the Saud dynasty, named after his father, Saud bin Muhammad Al Muqrin. His reign la ...
.
*
1744:
Battle of Toulon is fought off the coast of France.
*
1744–
1748: The
First Carnatic War
The First Carnatic War (1744/1746–1748) was the Indian theatre of the War of the Austrian Succession and the first of a series of Carnatic Wars that established early British dominance on the east coast of the Indian subcontinent. In this co ...
is fought between the British, the French, the Marathas, and Mysore in India.
*
1745:
Second Jacobite rising is begun by
Charles Edward Stuart
Charles Edward Louis John Sylvester Maria Casimir Stuart (31 December 1720 – 30 January 1788) was the elder son of James Francis Edward Stuart, making him the grandson of James VII and II, and the Stuart claimant to the thrones of England, ...
in Scotland.
*
1747: The
Durrani Empire
The Durrani Empire, colloquially known as the Afghan Empire, or the Saddozai Kingdom, was an Afghanistan, Afghan empire founded by the Durrani tribe of Pashtuns under Ahmad Shah Durrani in 1747, which spanned parts of Central Asia, the Iranian ...
is founded by
Ahmad Shah Durrani
Ahmad Shāh Durrānī (; ; – 4 June 1772), also known as Ahmad Shāh Abdālī (), was the first ruler and founder of the Durrani Empire. He is often regarded as the founder of modern Afghanistan.
Throughout his reign, Ahmad Shah fought ov ...
.
*
1748: The
Treaty of Aix-La-Chapelle ends the War of the Austrian Succession and First Carnatic War.
*
1748–
1754: The
Second Carnatic War is fought between the British, the French, the Marathas, and Mysore in India.
*
1750: Peak of the
Little Ice Age
The Little Ice Age (LIA) was a period of regional cooling, particularly pronounced in the North Atlantic region. It was not a true ice age of global extent. The term was introduced into scientific literature by François E. Matthes in 1939. Mat ...
.
1751–1800
*
1752
In the British Empire, it was the only year with 355 days (11 days were dropped), as September 3–13 were skipped when the Empire adoption of the Gregorian calendar, adopted the Gregorian calendar.
Events January–March
* January 1 ...
: The
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...
adopts the
Gregorian Calendar
The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It went into effect in October 1582 following the papal bull issued by Pope Gregory XIII, which introduced it as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian cale ...
, skipping 11 days from 3 September to 13 September. On the calendar, 2 September is followed directly by 14 September.
*
1754: The Treaty of Pondicherry ends the Second Carnatic War and recognizes
Muhammed Ali Khan Wallajah as
Nawab of the Carnatic.
*
1754:
King's College is founded by a royal charter of
George II of Great Britain
George II (George Augustus; ; 30 October / 9 November 1683 – 25 October 1760) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (Electorate of Hanover, Hanover) and a prince-elector of the Holy Roman Em ...
.
*
1754–
1763: The
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...
, the North American chapter of the
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...
, is fought in colonial North America, mostly by the French and their allies against the English and their allies.
*
1755: The
great Lisbon earthquake destroys most of
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
's capital and kills up to 100,000.
*
1755: The
Dzungar genocide depopulates much of northern Xinjiang, allowing for Han, Uyghur, Khalkha Mongol, and Manchu colonization.
*
1755–
1763: The
Great Upheaval forces transfer of the French Acadian population from Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.
*
1756
Events
January–March
* January 16 – The Anglo-Prussian alliance (1756)#Treaty, Treaty of Westminster is signed between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Prussia, guaranteeing the neutrality of the Electorate of Hanover, c ...
–
1763: The
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...
is fought among European powers in various theaters around the world.
*
1756
Events
January–March
* January 16 – The Anglo-Prussian alliance (1756)#Treaty, Treaty of Westminster is signed between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Prussia, guaranteeing the neutrality of the Electorate of Hanover, c ...
–
1763: The
Third Carnatic War is fought between the British, the French, and Mysore in India.
*
1757
Events
January–March
* January 2 – Seven Years' War: The British East India Company Army, under the command of Robert Clive, captures Calcutta, India.
* January 5 – Robert-François Damiens makes an unsuccessful assa ...
:
British conquest of Bengal.

*
1760
Events
January–March
* January 9 – Battle of Barari Ghat: Afghan forces defeat the Marathas.
* January 22 – Seven Years' War – Battle of Wandiwash, India: British general Sir Eyre Coote is victorious over th ...
:
George III
George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and ...
becomes King of Britain.
*
1761
Events
January–March
* January 14 – Third Battle of Panipat: In India, the armies of the Durrani Empire from Afghanistan, led by Ahmad Shah Durrani and his coalition decisively defeat the Maratha Confederacy, killing over 1 ...
:
Maratha Empire
The Maratha Empire, also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, was an early modern India, early modern polity in the Indian subcontinent. It comprised the realms of the Peshwa and four major independent List of Maratha dynasties and states, Ma ...
defeated at
Battle of Panipat.
*
1762
Events
January–March
* January 4 – Seven Years' War: Kingdom of Great Britain, Britain declares war against Enlightenment in Spain, Spain and Kingdom of Naples, Naples, following their Treaty of Paris (1761), recent alliance ...
–
1796
Events
January–March
* January 16 – The first Dutch (and general) elections are held for the National Assembly of the Batavian Republic. (The next Dutch general elections are held in 1888.)
* February 1 – The capital of Upper Can ...
: Reign of
Catherine the Great
Catherine II. (born Princess Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst; 2 May 172917 November 1796), most commonly known as Catherine the Great, was the reigning empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796. She came to power after overthrowing her husband, Peter I ...
of Russia.
*
1763: The
Treaty of Paris ends the Seven Years' War and Third Carnatic War.
*
1764
Events
January–June
* January 7 – The Siculicidium is carried out as hundreds of the Székely minority in Transylvania are massacred by the Austrian Army at Madéfalva.
* January 19 – John Wilkes is expelled from th ...
:
Dahomey
The Kingdom of Dahomey () was a West African List of kingdoms in Africa throughout history, kingdom located within present-day Benin that existed from approximately 1600 until 1904. It developed on the Abomey Plateau amongst the Fon people in ...
and the
Oyo Empire
The Oyo Empire was a Yoruba people, Yoruba empire in West Africa. It was located in present-day western Nigeria (including the South West (Nigeria), South West zone, Benin Republic, and the western half of the North Central (Nigeria), North Cent ...
defeat the
Ashanti army at the
Battle of Atakpamé.
*
1764
Events
January–June
* January 7 – The Siculicidium is carried out as hundreds of the Székely minority in Transylvania are massacred by the Austrian Army at Madéfalva.
* January 19 – John Wilkes is expelled from th ...
: The Mughals are defeated at the
Battle of Buxar
The Battle of Buxar was fought between 22 and 23 October 1764, between the forces of the British East India Company, under the command of Major Hector Munro, against the combined armies of Balwant Singh, Maharaja of the Benaras State; Mir Qa ...
.
*
1765
Events
January–March
* January 23 – Prince Joseph of Austria marries Princess Maria Josepha of Bavaria in Vienna.
* January 29 – One week before his death, Mir Jafar, who had been enthroned as the Nawab of Bengal and ...
: The
Stamp Act is introduced into the
American colonies by the British Parliament.
*
1765–1767: The
Burmese invade Thailand and utterly destroy
Attuthaya.
*
1765
Events
January–March
* January 23 – Prince Joseph of Austria marries Princess Maria Josepha of Bavaria in Vienna.
* January 29 – One week before his death, Mir Jafar, who had been enthroned as the Nawab of Bengal and ...
–
1769
Events
January–March
* February 2 – Pope Clement XIII dies, the night before preparing an order to dissolve the Jesuits.Denis De Lucca, ''Jesuits and Fortifications: The Contribution of the Jesuits to Military Architecture ...
:
Burma
Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...
under
Hsinbyushin repels
four invasions from Qing China, securing hegemony over the
Shan states
The Shan States were a collection of minor Shan people, Shan kingdoms called ''mueang, möng'' whose rulers bore the title ''saopha'' (''sawbwa''). In British rule in Burma, British Burma, they were analogous to the princely states of Britis ...
.
*
1766
Events
January–March
* January 1 – Charles Edward Stuart ("Bonnie Prince Charlie") becomes the new House of Stuart, Stuart claimant to the throne of Great Britain, as King Charles III, and figurehead for Jacobitism.
* Januar ...
:
Christian VII becomes king of Denmark. He was
king of Denmark
The monarchy of Denmark is a constitutional political system, institution and a historic office of the Kingdom of Denmark. The Kingdom includes Denmark proper and the autonomous administrative division, autonomous territories of the Faroe Is ...
to
1808
Events January–March
* January 1
** The importation of slaves into the United States is formally banned, as the 1807 Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves takes effect. However Americans still continue the slave trade by transpor ...
.
*
1766
Events
January–March
* January 1 – Charles Edward Stuart ("Bonnie Prince Charlie") becomes the new House of Stuart, Stuart claimant to the throne of Great Britain, as King Charles III, and figurehead for Jacobitism.
* Januar ...
–
1799
Events
January–March
* January 9 – British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger introduces an income tax of two shillings to the pound, to raise funds for Great Britain's war effort in the French Revolutionary Wars.
* January ...
:
Anglo-Mysore Wars.
*
1767:
Taksin
King Taksin the Great (, , ) or the King of Thonburi (, ; ; Teochew: Dên Chao; 17 April 1734 – 7 April 1782) was the only king of the Thonburi Kingdom that ruled Thailand from 1767 to 1782. He had been an aristocrat in the Ayutthaya Kingdom ...
expels Burmese invaders and reunites Thailand under an authoritarian regime.
*
1768–
1772:
War of the Bar Confederation.
*
1768–
1774:
Russo-Turkish War.
*
1769
Events
January–March
* February 2 – Pope Clement XIII dies, the night before preparing an order to dissolve the Jesuits.Denis De Lucca, ''Jesuits and Fortifications: The Contribution of the Jesuits to Military Architecture ...
: Spanish
missionaries
A missionary is a member of a religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Miss ...
establish the first of 21
missions in
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 ...
.
*
1769
Events
January–March
* February 2 – Pope Clement XIII dies, the night before preparing an order to dissolve the Jesuits.Denis De Lucca, ''Jesuits and Fortifications: The Contribution of the Jesuits to Military Architecture ...
–
1770
Events January– March
* January 1 – The foundation of Fort George, Bombay is laid by Colonel Keating, principal engineer, on the site of the former Dongri Fort.
* February 1 – Thomas Jefferson's home at Shadwell, Vi ...
:
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 ...
explores and maps New Zealand and Australia.
*
1769
Events
January–March
* February 2 – Pope Clement XIII dies, the night before preparing an order to dissolve the Jesuits.Denis De Lucca, ''Jesuits and Fortifications: The Contribution of the Jesuits to Military Architecture ...
–
1773
Events
January–March
* January 1 – The hymn that becomes known as '' Amazing Grace'', at this time titled "1 Chronicles 17:16–17", is first used to accompany a sermon led by curate John Newton in the town of Olney, Buck ...
: 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 ...
kills one-third of the Bengal population.
*
1769
Events
January–March
* February 2 – Pope Clement XIII dies, the night before preparing an order to dissolve the Jesuits.Denis De Lucca, ''Jesuits and Fortifications: The Contribution of the Jesuits to Military Architecture ...
: The
French East India Company dissolves, only to be revived in 1785.
*
1769
Events
January–March
* February 2 – Pope Clement XIII dies, the night before preparing an order to dissolve the Jesuits.Denis De Lucca, ''Jesuits and Fortifications: The Contribution of the Jesuits to Military Architecture ...
: French expeditions capture
clove
Cloves are the aromatic flower buds of a tree in the family Myrtaceae, ''Syzygium aromaticum'' (). They are native to the Maluku Islands, or Moluccas, in Indonesia, and are commonly used as a spice, flavoring, or Aroma compound, fragrance in fin ...
plants in
Ambon, ending the
Dutch East India Company
The United East India Company ( ; VOC ), commonly known as the Dutch East India Company, was a chartered company, chartered trading company and one of the first joint-stock companies in the world. Established on 20 March 1602 by the States Ge ...
's (VOC) monopoly of the plant.
[Ricklefs (1991), page 102]
*
1770
Events January– March
* January 1 – The foundation of Fort George, Bombay is laid by Colonel Keating, principal engineer, on the site of the former Dongri Fort.
* February 1 – Thomas Jefferson's home at Shadwell, Vi ...
–
1771:
Famine in Czech lands kills hundreds of thousands.
*
1771: The
Plague Riot in Moscow.
*
1771: The
Kalmyk Khanate dissolves as the territory becomes colonized by Russians. More than a hundred thousand
Kalmyks
Kalmyks (), archaically anglicised as Calmucks (), are the only Mongolic ethnic group living in Europe, residing in the easternmost part of the European Plain.
This dry steppe area, west of the lower Volga River, known among the nomads as ...
migrate back to
Qing Dzungaria.
*
1772:
Gustav III of Sweden
Gustav III (29 March 1792), also called ''Gustavus III'', was King of Sweden from 1771 until his assassination in 1792. He was the eldest son of King Adolf Frederick and Queen Louisa Ulrika of Sweden.
Gustav was a vocal opponent of what he s ...
stages a coup d'état, becoming almost an absolute monarch.
*
1772–
1779
Events
January–March
* January 11
** British troops surrender to the Marathas in Wadgaon, India, and are forced to return all territories acquired since 1773.
* January 22 – American Revolutionary War – Claudius Smi ...
: Maratha Empire fights Britain and
Raghunathrao's forces during the
First Anglo-Maratha War.
*
1772–
1795
Events
January–June
* January – Central England records its coldest ever month, in the CET records dating back to 1659.
* January 14 – The University of North Carolina opens to students at Chapel Hill, becoming the ...
: The
Partitions of Poland
The Partitions of Poland were three partition (politics), partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that took place between 1772 and 1795, toward the end of the 18th century. They ended the existence of the state, resulting in the eli ...
end the
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, also referred to as Poland–Lithuania or the First Polish Republic (), was a federation, federative real union between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ...
and erase Poland from the map for 123 years.
*
1773
Events
January–March
* January 1 – The hymn that becomes known as '' Amazing Grace'', at this time titled "1 Chronicles 17:16–17", is first used to accompany a sermon led by curate John Newton in the town of Olney, Buck ...
–
1775
Events
Summary
The American Revolutionary War began this year, with the first military engagement on April 19 Battles of Lexington and Concord on the day after Paul Revere's ride. The Second Continental Congress took various steps tow ...
:
Pugachev's Rebellion, the largest peasant revolt in Russian history.
*
1773
Events
January–March
* January 1 – The hymn that becomes known as '' Amazing Grace'', at this time titled "1 Chronicles 17:16–17", is first used to accompany a sermon led by curate John Newton in the town of Olney, Buck ...
: East India Company starts operations 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 ...
to smuggle
opium into China.
*
1775
Events
Summary
The American Revolutionary War began this year, with the first military engagement on April 19 Battles of Lexington and Concord on the day after Paul Revere's ride. The Second Continental Congress took various steps tow ...
: Russia imposes a reduction in autonomy on the
Zaporizhian Cossacks of Ukraine.
*
1775
Events
Summary
The American Revolutionary War began this year, with the first military engagement on April 19 Battles of Lexington and Concord on the day after Paul Revere's ride. The Second Continental Congress took various steps tow ...
–
1782
Events
January–March
* January 7 – The first American commercial bank (Bank of North America) opens.
* January 15 – Superintendent of Finance Robert Morris (financier), Robert Morris goes before the United States Con ...
:
First Anglo-Maratha War.
*
1775
Events
Summary
The American Revolutionary War began this year, with the first military engagement on April 19 Battles of Lexington and Concord on the day after Paul Revere's ride. The Second Continental Congress took various steps tow ...
–
1783
Events
January–March
* January 20 – At Versailles, Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain signs preliminary peace treaties with the Kingdom of France and the Kingdom of Spain.
* January 23 – The Confederation Congress ...
:
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...
.
*
1776
Events January–February
* January 1 – American Revolutionary War – Burning of Norfolk: The town of Norfolk, Virginia is destroyed, by the combined actions of the British Royal Navy and occupying Patriot forces.
* January ...
: Several
kongsi republic
The kongsi republics (), also known as kongsi democracies () or kongsi federations (), were Self-governance, self-governing Polity, political entities in Borneo that formed as federations of Chinese mining communities known as kongsis. By the mid ...
s are founded by Chinese settlers in the island of
Borneo
Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...
. They are some of the first democracies in Asia.
*
1776
Events January–February
* January 1 – American Revolutionary War – Burning of Norfolk: The town of Norfolk, Virginia is destroyed, by the combined actions of the British Royal Navy and occupying Patriot forces.
* January ...
–
1777
Events
January–March
* January 2 – American Revolutionary War – Battle of the Assunpink Creek: American general George Washington's army repulses a British attack by Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis, in a second ...
:
A Spanish-Portuguese War occurs over land in the South American frontiers.
*
1776
Events January–February
* January 1 – American Revolutionary War – Burning of Norfolk: The town of Norfolk, Virginia is destroyed, by the combined actions of the British Royal Navy and occupying Patriot forces.
* January ...
:
Illuminati founded by
Adam Weishaupt
Johann Adam Weishaupt (; 6 February 1748 – 18 November 1830)''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie'Vol. 41, p. 539van Dülmen, Richard. ''Der Geheimbund der Illuminaten''. Stuttgart: Frommann-Holzboog, 1975.Stauffer, Vernon. '' ew Englandand the B ...
.
*
1776
Events January–February
* January 1 – American Revolutionary War – Burning of Norfolk: The town of Norfolk, Virginia is destroyed, by the combined actions of the British Royal Navy and occupying Patriot forces.
* January ...
: The
United States Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence, formally The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen States of America in the original printing, is the founding document of the United States. On July 4, 1776, it was adopted unanimously by the Second Continen ...
is adopted by the
Second Continental Congress
The Second Continental Congress (1775–1781) was the meetings of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that united in support of the American Revolution and American Revolutionary War, Revolutionary War, which established American independence ...
in Philadelphia.
*
1776
Events January–February
* January 1 – American Revolutionary War – Burning of Norfolk: The town of Norfolk, Virginia is destroyed, by the combined actions of the British Royal Navy and occupying Patriot forces.
* January ...
: Adam Smith publishes ''The Wealth of Nations''.
* 1778:
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 ...
becomes the first European to land on the Hawaiian Islands.
* 1778: Franco-American alliance signed.
* 1778: Spain acquires its Spanish Guinea, first permanent holding in Africa from the Portuguese, which is administered by the newly-established Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata, La Plata Viceroyalty.
* 1778: Đại Việt, Vietnam is reunified for the first time in 200 years by the Tây Sơn dynasty, Tay Son brothers. The Tây Sơn dynasty has been established, terminating the Lê dynasty.
*
1779
Events
January–March
* January 11
** British troops surrender to the Marathas in Wadgaon, India, and are forced to return all territories acquired since 1773.
* January 22 – American Revolutionary War – Claudius Smi ...
–1879: Xhosa Wars between British and Boer settlers and the Xhosa people, Xhosas in the South African Republic.
*
1779
Events
January–March
* January 11
** British troops surrender to the Marathas in Wadgaon, India, and are forced to return all territories acquired since 1773.
* January 22 – American Revolutionary War – Claudius Smi ...
–
1783
Events
January–March
* January 20 – At Versailles, Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain signs preliminary peace treaties with the Kingdom of France and the Kingdom of Spain.
* January 23 – The Confederation Congress ...
: Spain and the American Revolutionary War, Britain loses several islands and colonial outposts all over the world to the combined Franco-Spanish navy.
*
1779
Events
January–March
* January 11
** British troops surrender to the Marathas in Wadgaon, India, and are forced to return all territories acquired since 1773.
* January 22 – American Revolutionary War – Claudius Smi ...
: Iran enters yet another period of conflict and civil war after the prosperous reign of Karim Khan Zand.
* 1780: Outbreak of the Rebellion of Túpac Amaru II, indigenous rebellion against Spanish colonization led by
Túpac Amaru II
Tupac Amaru II (born José Gabriel Condorcanqui Noguera, – 18 May 1781) was an Indigenous ''cacique'' who led a Rebellion of Túpac Amaru II, large Andean rebellion against the Viceroyalty of Peru, Spanish in Peru as Self-proclaimed monarc ...
in Peru.
* 1781: The city of Los Angeles is founded by Spanish settlers.

* 1781–1785: Serfdom is abolished in the Habsburg monarchy, Austrian monarchy (first step; second step in 1848).
*
1782
Events
January–March
* January 7 – The first American commercial bank (Bank of North America) opens.
* January 15 – Superintendent of Finance Robert Morris (financier), Robert Morris goes before the United States Con ...
: The Thonburi Kingdom of Thailand is dissolved after a palace coup.
*
1783
Events
January–March
* January 20 – At Versailles, Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain signs preliminary peace treaties with the Kingdom of France and the Kingdom of Spain.
* January 23 – The Confederation Congress ...
: The Treaty of Paris (1783), Treaty of Paris formally ends the
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...
.
*
1783
Events
January–March
* January 20 – At Versailles, Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain signs preliminary peace treaties with the Kingdom of France and the Kingdom of Spain.
* January 23 – The Confederation Congress ...
: Russian annexation of Crimean Khanate, Crimea.
* 1785–1791: Imam Sheikh Mansur, a Chechen people, Chechen warrior and Muslim mystic, leads a coalition of Muslim Peoples of the Caucasus, Caucasian tribes from throughout the Caucasus in a Jihad, holy war against Russian settlers and military bases in the Caucasus, as well as against local traditionalists, who followed the traditional customs and common law (Adat) rather than the theocratic Sharia.
* 1785–
1795
Events
January–June
* January – Central England records its coldest ever month, in the CET records dating back to 1659.
* January 14 – The University of North Carolina opens to students at Chapel Hill, becoming the ...
: The Northwest Indian War is fought between the United States and Native Americans in the United States, Native Americans.
* 1785–1787: The Maratha–Mysore wars, Maratha–Mysore Wars concludes with an exchange of territories in the Deccan Plateau, Deccan.
* 1786–1787: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart premieres ''The Marriage of Figaro'' and ''Don Giovanni''.
* 1787: The Tuareg people, Tuareg occupy Timbuktu until the 19th century.
* 1787–1792: Russo-Turkish War (1787–1792), Russo-Turkish War.
* 1788: First Fleet arrives in Australia
* 1788–1790: Russo-Swedish War (1788–1790).
* 1788: Dutch Geert Adriaans Boomgaard (1788–1899) would become the first generally accepted validated case of a supercentenarian on record.
[Photo Gallery for Supercentenarians born before 1850, as of May 17, 2019](_blank)
/ref>
* 1788–1789: A Qing attempt to reinstall an exiled Lê Chiêu Thống, Vietnamese king in northern Vietnam Battle of Ngọc Hồi-Đống Đa, ends in disaster.
* 1789: George Washington
George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...
is elected the first President of the United States; he serves until 1797.
* 1789: Quang Trung defeats the Qing dynasty, Qing army.
* 1789–1799
Events
January–March
* January 9 – British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger introduces an income tax of two shillings to the pound, to raise funds for Great Britain's war effort in the French Revolutionary Wars.
* January ...
: French Revolution.
* 1789: The Liège Revolution.
* 1789: The Brabant Revolution.
* 1789: The , an unsuccessful separatist movement in central Brazil led by Tiradentes
* 1791: Suppression of the Liège Revolution by Holy Roman Empire, Austrian forces and re-establishment of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège.
* 1791–1795
Events
January–June
* January – Central England records its coldest ever month, in the CET records dating back to 1659.
* January 14 – The University of North Carolina opens to students at Chapel Hill, becoming the ...
: George Vancouver explores the world during the Vancouver Expedition.
* 1791–1804: The Haitian Revolution.
* 1791: Mozart premieres ''The Magic Flute''.
* 1792–1802: The French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars () were a series of sweeping military conflicts resulting from the French Revolution that lasted from 1792 until 1802. They pitted French First Republic, France against Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain, Habsb ...
lead into the Napoleonic Wars
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Napoleonic Wars
, partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars
, image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg
, caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...
, which last from 1803–1815.
* 1792: The New York Stock Exchange, New York Stock & Exchange Board is founded.
* 1792: Polish–Russian War of 1792.
* 1792: Margaret Ann Neve (1792–1903) would become the first recorded female supercentenarian to reach the age of 110.
* 1793: Upper Canada Act Against Slavery, bans slavery.
* 1793: The largest 1793 Philadelphia yellow fever epidemic, yellow fever epidemic in American history kills as many as 5,000 people in Philadelphia, roughly 10% of the population.
* 1793–1796
Events
January–March
* January 16 – The first Dutch (and general) elections are held for the National Assembly of the Batavian Republic. (The next Dutch general elections are held in 1888.)
* February 1 – The capital of Upper Can ...
: Revolt in the Vendée against the French Republic at the time of the French Revolution, Revolution.
* 1794–1816: The Hawkesbury and Nepean Wars, which were a series of incidents between settlers and New South Wales Corps and the Aboriginal Australian clans of the Hawkesbury River, Hawkesbury river in Sydney, Australia.
* 1795
Events
January–June
* January – Central England records its coldest ever month, in the CET records dating back to 1659.
* January 14 – The University of North Carolina opens to students at Chapel Hill, becoming the ...
: The Marseillaise is officially adopted as the French national anthem.
* 1795
Events
January–June
* January – Central England records its coldest ever month, in the CET records dating back to 1659.
* January 14 – The University of North Carolina opens to students at Chapel Hill, becoming the ...
: The Battle of Nuuanu in the final days of King Kamehameha I's wars to Unification of Hawaii, unify the Hawaiian Islands.
* 1795
Events
January–June
* January – Central England records its coldest ever month, in the CET records dating back to 1659.
* January 14 – The University of North Carolina opens to students at Chapel Hill, becoming the ...
–1796
Events
January–March
* January 16 – The first Dutch (and general) elections are held for the National Assembly of the Batavian Republic. (The next Dutch general elections are held in 1888.)
* February 1 – The capital of Upper Can ...
: Battle of Krtsanisi, Iran invades and devastates Georgia, prompting Persian expedition of 1796, Russia to intervene and march on Tehran.
* 1796
Events
January–March
* January 16 – The first Dutch (and general) elections are held for the National Assembly of the Batavian Republic. (The next Dutch general elections are held in 1888.)
* February 1 – The capital of Upper Can ...
: Edward Jenner administers the first smallpox vaccination; smallpox killed an estimated 400,000 Europeans each year during the 18th century, including five reigning monarchs.
* 1796
Events
January–March
* January 16 – The first Dutch (and general) elections are held for the National Assembly of the Batavian Republic. (The next Dutch general elections are held in 1888.)
* February 1 – The capital of Upper Can ...
: War of the First Coalition: The Battle of Montenotte marks Napoleon Bonaparte's first victory as an army commander.
* 1796
Events
January–March
* January 16 – The first Dutch (and general) elections are held for the National Assembly of the Batavian Republic. (The next Dutch general elections are held in 1888.)
* February 1 – The capital of Upper Can ...
: The British eject the Dutch from Ceylon and Dutch Cape Colony, South Africa.
* 1796
Events
January–March
* January 16 – The first Dutch (and general) elections are held for the National Assembly of the Batavian Republic. (The next Dutch general elections are held in 1888.)
* February 1 – The capital of Upper Can ...
–1804: The White Lotus Rebellion against the Manchu dynasty in China.
* 1797: John Adams is elected the second President of the United States; he serves until 1801.
* 1798: The Irish Rebellion of 1798, Irish Rebellion fails to overthrow British rule in Ireland.
* 1798–1800
As of March 1 ( O.S. February 18), when the Julian calendar acknowledged a leap day and the Gregorian calendar did not, the Julian calendar fell one day further behind, bringing the difference to 12 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 16), ...
: The Quasi-War is fought between the United States and France.
* 1799
Events
January–March
* January 9 – British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger introduces an income tax of two shillings to the pound, to raise funds for Great Britain's war effort in the French Revolutionary Wars.
* January ...
: Dutch East India Company
The United East India Company ( ; VOC ), commonly known as the Dutch East India Company, was a chartered company, chartered trading company and one of the first joint-stock companies in the world. Established on 20 March 1602 by the States Ge ...
is dissolved.
* 1799
Events
January–March
* January 9 – British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger introduces an income tax of two shillings to the pound, to raise funds for Great Britain's war effort in the French Revolutionary Wars.
* January ...
: Austro-Russian Alliance (1781), Austro-Russian forces under Alexander Suvorov Italian and Swiss expedition, liberates much of Italy and Switzerland from French occupation.
* 1799
Events
January–March
* January 9 – British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger introduces an income tax of two shillings to the pound, to raise funds for Great Britain's war effort in the French Revolutionary Wars.
* January ...
: Coup of 18 Brumaire - Napoleon's coup d'etat brings the end of the French Revolution.
* 1799
Events
January–March
* January 9 – British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger introduces an income tax of two shillings to the pound, to raise funds for Great Britain's war effort in the French Revolutionary Wars.
* January ...
: Death of the Qianlong Emperor after High Qing era, 60 years of rule over China. His favorite official, Heshen, is ordered to commit suicide.
* 1800
As of March 1 ( O.S. February 18), when the Julian calendar acknowledged a leap day and the Gregorian calendar did not, the Julian calendar fell one day further behind, bringing the difference to 12 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 16), ...
: On 1 January, the bankrupt VOC is formally dissolved and the nationalized Dutch East Indies are established.[Ricklefs (1991), page 106]
Inventions, discoveries, and introductions
* 1709: The first piano was built by Bartolomeo Cristofori
* 1711: Tuning fork was invented by John Shore (trumpeter), John Shore
* 1712: Steam engine invented by Thomas Newcomen
* 1714: Mercury thermometer by Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit
Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit FRS (; ; 24 May 1686 – 16 September 1736) was a physicist, inventor, and scientific instrument maker, born in Poland to a family of German extraction. Fahrenheit invented thermometers accurate and consistent enough t ...
* 1717: Diving bell was successfully tested by Edmond Halley, sustainable to a depth of 55 ft
* c. 1730
Events
January–March
* January 30 (January 19 O.S.) – At dawn, Emperor Peter II of Russia dies of smallpox, aged 14 in Moscow, on the eve of his projected marriage.
* February 26 (February 15 O.S.) – Anna of Russia ( ...
: Octant (instrument), Octant navigational tool was developed by John Hadley in England, and Thomas Godfrey (inventor), Thomas Godfrey in America
* 1733: Flying shuttle invented by John Kay (flying shuttle), John Kay
* 1736: Europeans encountered rubber – the discovery was made by Charles Marie de La Condamine while on expedition in South America. It was named in 1770
Events January– March
* January 1 – The foundation of Fort George, Bombay is laid by Colonel Keating, principal engineer, on the site of the former Dongri Fort.
* February 1 – Thomas Jefferson's home at Shadwell, Vi ...
by Joseph Priestley
* c. 1740: Modern steel was developed by Benjamin Huntsman
* 1741
Events
January–March
* January 13
** Lanesborough, Massachusetts is created as a township.
** Conventicle Act of 1741 is introduced in Denmark-Norway.
*February 13 – Sir Robert Walpole, the Prime Minister of Great Britain ...
: Vitus Bering discovers Alaska
* 1745: Leyden jar invented by Ewald Georg von Kleist was the first electrical capacitor
* 1751: Jacques de Vaucanson perfects the first precision lathe
* 1752
In the British Empire, it was the only year with 355 days (11 days were dropped), as September 3–13 were skipped when the Empire adoption of the Gregorian calendar, adopted the Gregorian calendar.
Events January–March
* January 1 ...
: Lightning rod invented by 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 ...
* 1753: The first clock to be built in the New World (North America) was invented by Benjamin Banneker.
* 1755: The tallest ''wooden'' Bodhisattva statue in the world is erected at Puning Temple (Hebei), Puning Temple, Chengde, China.
* 1764
Events
January–June
* January 7 – The Siculicidium is carried out as hundreds of the Székely minority in Transylvania are massacred by the Austrian Army at Madéfalva.
* January 19 – John Wilkes is expelled from th ...
: Spinning jenny created by James Hargreaves brought on 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 ...
* 1765
Events
January–March
* January 23 – Prince Joseph of Austria marries Princess Maria Josepha of Bavaria in Vienna.
* January 29 – One week before his death, Mir Jafar, who had been enthroned as the Nawab of Bengal and ...
: James Watt enhances Newcomen's steam engine, allowing new steel technologies
* 1761
Events
January–March
* January 14 – Third Battle of Panipat: In India, the armies of the Durrani Empire from Afghanistan, led by Ahmad Shah Durrani and his coalition decisively defeat the Maratha Confederacy, killing over 1 ...
: The problem of longitude was finally resolved by the fourth marine chronometer, chronometer of John Harrison
* 1763: Thomas Bayes publishes first version of Bayes' theorem, paving the way for Bayesian probability
* 1768–1779
Events
January–March
* January 11
** British troops surrender to the Marathas in Wadgaon, India, and are forced to return all territories acquired since 1773.
* January 22 – American Revolutionary War – Claudius Smi ...
: 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 ...
mapped the boundaries of the Pacific Ocean and discovered many Pacific Islands
* 1774: Joseph Priestley discovers "dephlogisticated air", oxygen
* 1775
Events
Summary
The American Revolutionary War began this year, with the first military engagement on April 19 Battles of Lexington and Concord on the day after Paul Revere's ride. The Second Continental Congress took various steps tow ...
: Joseph Priestley's first synthesis of "phlogisticated nitrous air", nitrous oxide, "laughing gas"
* 1776
Events January–February
* January 1 – American Revolutionary War – Burning of Norfolk: The town of Norfolk, Virginia is destroyed, by the combined actions of the British Royal Navy and occupying Patriot forces.
* January ...
: First improved steam engines installed by James Watt
* 1776
Events January–February
* January 1 – American Revolutionary War – Burning of Norfolk: The town of Norfolk, Virginia is destroyed, by the combined actions of the British Royal Navy and occupying Patriot forces.
* January ...
: Steamboat invented by Claude de Jouffroy
* 1777
Events
January–March
* January 2 – American Revolutionary War – Battle of the Assunpink Creek: American general George Washington's army repulses a British attack by Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis, in a second ...
: Circular saw invented by Samuel Miller
* 1779
Events
January–March
* January 11
** British troops surrender to the Marathas in Wadgaon, India, and are forced to return all territories acquired since 1773.
* January 22 – American Revolutionary War – Claudius Smi ...
: Photosynthesis was first discovered by Jan Ingenhousz
* 1781: William Herschel announces discovery of Uranus
* 1784: Bifocals invented by 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 ...
* 1784: Argand lamp invented by Aimé Argand
* 1785: Power loom invented by Edmund Cartwright
* 1785: Production line, Automatic flour mill invented by Oliver Evans
* 1786: Threshing machine invented by Andrew Meikle
* 1787: Jacques Charles discovers Charles's law
* 1789: Antoine Lavoisier discovers the law of conservation of mass, the basis for chemistry, and begins modern chemistry
* 1798: Edward Jenner publishes a treatise about smallpox vaccination
* 1798: The Lithography, Lithographic printing process invented by Alois Senefelder[Meggs, Philip B. A History of Graphic Design. (1998) John Wiley & Sons, Inc. p 146 ]
* 1799
Events
January–March
* January 9 – British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger introduces an income tax of two shillings to the pound, to raise funds for Great Britain's war effort in the French Revolutionary Wars.
* January ...
: Rosetta Stone discovered by Napoleon's troops
Literary and philosophical achievements
* 1703
In the Swedish calendar it was a common year starting on Thursday, one day ahead of the Julian and ten days behind the Gregorian calendar.
Events
January–March
* January 9 – The Jamaican town of Port Royal, a center of trade ...
: ''The Love Suicides at Sonezaki'' by Chikamatsu first performed
* 1704–1717: ''One Thousand and One Nights'' translated into French by Antoine Galland. The work becomes immensely popular throughout Europe.
* 1704: ''A Tale of a Tub'' by Jonathan Swift first published
* 1712: ''The Rape of the Lock'' by Alexander Pope (publication of first version)
* 1719: ''Robinson Crusoe'' by Daniel Defoe
* 1725: ''The New Science'' by Giambattista Vico
* 1726: ''Gulliver's Travels'' by Jonathan Swift
* 1728: ''The Dunciad'' by Alexander Pope (publication of first version)
* 1744: ''A Little Pretty Pocket-Book'' becomes one of the first Children's literature#History, books marketed for children
* 1748: ''Chushingura'' (''The Treasury of Loyal Retainers''), popular Japanese bunraku, puppet play, composed
* 1748: ''Clarissa; or, The History of a Young Lady'' by Samuel Richardson
* 1749: ''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'' by Henry Fielding
* 1751: ''Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard'' by Thomas Gray published
* 1751–1785: The French Encyclopédie
* 1755: ''A Dictionary of the English Language'' by Samuel Johnson
* 1758: ''Arithmetika Horvatzka'' by Mihalj Šilobod Bolšić
* 1759: ''Candide'' by Voltaire
* 1759: ''The Theory of Moral Sentiments'' by Adam Smith
* 1759– 1767: ''Tristram Shandy'' by Laurence Sterne
* 1762
Events
January–March
* January 4 – Seven Years' War: Kingdom of Great Britain, Britain declares war against Enlightenment in Spain, Spain and Kingdom of Naples, Naples, following their Treaty of Paris (1761), recent alliance ...
: ''Emile: or, On Education'' by Jean-Jacques Rousseau
* 1762
Events
January–March
* January 4 – Seven Years' War: Kingdom of Great Britain, Britain declares war against Enlightenment in Spain, Spain and Kingdom of Naples, Naples, following their Treaty of Paris (1761), recent alliance ...
: ''Social Contract (Rousseau), The Social Contract, Or Principles of Political Right'' by Jean-Jacques Rousseau
* 1774: ''The Sorrows of Young Werther'' by Goethe first published
* 1776
Events January–February
* January 1 – American Revolutionary War – Burning of Norfolk: The town of Norfolk, Virginia is destroyed, by the combined actions of the British Royal Navy and occupying Patriot forces.
* January ...
: (''Tales of Moonlight and Rain'') by Ueda Akinari
* 1776
Events January–February
* January 1 – American Revolutionary War – Burning of Norfolk: The town of Norfolk, Virginia is destroyed, by the combined actions of the British Royal Navy and occupying Patriot forces.
* January ...
: ''The Wealth of Nations'', foundation of the modern theory of economy, was published by Adam Smith
* 1776
Events January–February
* January 1 – American Revolutionary War – Burning of Norfolk: The town of Norfolk, Virginia is destroyed, by the combined actions of the British Royal Navy and occupying Patriot forces.
* January ...
–1789: ''The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'' was published by Edward Gibbon
* 1779
Events
January–March
* January 11
** British troops surrender to the Marathas in Wadgaon, India, and are forced to return all territories acquired since 1773.
* January 22 – American Revolutionary War – Claudius Smi ...
: ''Amazing Grace'' published by John Newton
* 1779
Events
January–March
* January 11
** British troops surrender to the Marathas in Wadgaon, India, and are forced to return all territories acquired since 1773.
* January 22 – American Revolutionary War – Claudius Smi ...
–1782
Events
January–March
* January 7 – The first American commercial bank (Bank of North America) opens.
* January 15 – Superintendent of Finance Robert Morris (financier), Robert Morris goes before the United States Con ...
: ''Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets'' by Samuel Johnson
* 1781: ''Critique of Pure Reason'' by Immanuel Kant (publication of first edition)
* 1781: ''The Robbers'' by Friedrich Schiller first published
* 1782
Events
January–March
* January 7 – The first American commercial bank (Bank of North America) opens.
* January 15 – Superintendent of Finance Robert Morris (financier), Robert Morris goes before the United States Con ...
: ''Les Liaisons dangereuses'' by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos
* 1786: ''Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect'' by Robert Burns
* 1787–1788: ''The Federalist Papers'' by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay
* 1788: ''Critique of Practical Reason'' by Immanuel Kant
* 1789: ''Songs of Innocence'' by William Blake
* 1789: ''The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano'' by Olaudah Equiano
* 1790: ''Journey from St. Petersburg to Moscow'' by Alexander Radishchev
* 1790: ''Reflections on the Revolution in France'' by Edmund Burke
* 1791: ''Rights of Man'' by Thomas Paine
* 1792: ''A Vindication of the Rights of Woman'' by Mary Wollstonecraft
* 1794: ''Songs of Experience'' by William Blake
* 1798: ''Lyrical Ballads'' by William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge
* 1798: ''An Essay on the Principle of Population'' published by Thomas Malthus
* (mid–18th century): ''The Dream of the Red Chamber'' (authorship attributed to Cao Xueqin), one of the most famous Chinese novels
Musical works
* 1711: ''Rinaldo (opera), Rinaldo'', Handel's first opera for the London stage, premiered
* 1721: ''Brandenburg Concertos'' by Johann Sebastian Bach, J.S. Bach
* 1723: ''The Four Seasons (Vivaldi), The Four Seasons'', violin concertos by Antonio Vivaldi, composed
* 1724: ''St John Passion'' by Johann Sebastian Bach, J.S. Bach
* 1727: ''St Matthew Passion'' composed by Johann Sebastian Bach, J.S. Bach
* 1727: ''Zadok the Priest'' is composed by George Frideric Handel, Handel for the coronation of George II of Great Britain
George II (George Augustus; ; 30 October / 9 November 1683 – 25 October 1760) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg (Electorate of Hanover, Hanover) and a prince-elector of the Holy Roman Em ...
. It has been performed at every subsequent British coronation.
* 1733: ''Hippolyte et Aricie'', first opera by Jean-Philippe Rameau
* 1741
Events
January–March
* January 13
** Lanesborough, Massachusetts is created as a township.
** Conventicle Act of 1741 is introduced in Denmark-Norway.
*February 13 – Sir Robert Walpole, the Prime Minister of Great Britain ...
: ''Goldberg Variations'' for harpsichord published by Johann Sebastian Bach, Bach
* 1742: ''Messiah (Handel), Messiah'', oratorio by Handel premiered in Dublin
* 1749: ''Mass in B minor'' by Johann Sebastian Bach, J.S. Bach assembled in current form
* 1751: ''The Art of Fugue'' by Johann Sebastian Bach, J.S. Bach
* 1762
Events
January–March
* January 4 – Seven Years' War: Kingdom of Great Britain, Britain declares war against Enlightenment in Spain, Spain and Kingdom of Naples, Naples, following their Treaty of Paris (1761), recent alliance ...
: ''Orfeo ed Euridice'', first "reform opera" by Christoph Willibald von Gluck, Gluck, performed in Vienna
* 1786: ''The Marriage of Figaro'', opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Mozart
* 1787: ''Don Giovanni'', opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Mozart
* 1788: ''Symphony No. 41 (Mozart), Jupiter Symphony (Symphony No. 41)'' composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Mozart
* 1791: ''The Magic Flute'', opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Mozart
* 1791–1795
Events
January–June
* January – Central England records its coldest ever month, in the CET records dating back to 1659.
* January 14 – The University of North Carolina opens to students at Chapel Hill, becoming the ...
: London symphonies by Joseph Haydn, Haydn
* 1798: The Piano Sonata No. 8 (Beethoven), Pathétique, piano sonata by Ludwig van Beethoven, Beethoven
* 1798: ''The Creation (Haydn), The Creation'', oratorio by Joseph Haydn, Haydn first performed
References
Further reading
* Black, Jeremy and Roy Porter, eds. ''A Dictionary of Eighteenth-Century World History'' (1994) 890pp
* Klekar, Cynthia. "Fictions of the Gift: Generosity and Obligation in Eighteenth-Century English Literature." Innovative Course Design Winner. ''American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies'': Wake Forest University, 2004.
Home , American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies (ASECS)
. Refereed.
* Langer, William. ''An Encyclopedia of World History'' (5th ed. 1973); highly detailed outline of event
online free
* Morris, Richard B. and Graham W. Irwin, eds. ''Harper Encyclopedia of the Modern World: A Concise Reference History from 1760 to the Present'' (1970
online
* Milward, Alan S, and S. B. Saul, eds. ''The economic development of continental Europe: 1780–1870 '' (1973)
online
note there are two different books with identical authors and slightly different titles. Their coverfage does not overlap.
** Milward, Alan S, and S. B. Saul, eds. ''The development of the economies of continental Europe, 1850–1914'' (1977
online
* Wallace Collection, The Wallace Collection, London, houses one of the finest collections of 18th-century decorative arts from France, England and Italy, including paintings, furniture, porcelain and gold boxes.
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:18th Century
18th century,
2nd millennium
Centuries
Early modern period