Events - Browse By Major Periods - Enlightenment/Industrial Revolution (1753 to 1843)

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"Apollo and the Four Continents" by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo
1753
Arts, Germany
Benjamin Franklin proposes a confederation of Britain's American colonies
1754
Government, United States
Samuel Johnson publishes "Dictionary of English Language"
1755
Education, United Kingdom
Lisbon destroyed by earthquake
1755
Disaster, Portugal
Indians attack fort of British East India Company & put prisoners in Black Hole
1756
War, India
Robert Clive wins Battle of Plassey after bribing the enemy's military commander
1757
War, India
General Wolfe is killed as British capture Quebec
1759
War, Canada
Catherine becomes empress of Russia after seizing power from her husband
1762
Government, Russia
Edward Gibbon publishes "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire"
1764
Education, United Kingdom
American colonists react to Stamp Act: "No taxation without representation"
1765
Government, United States
Nepal declares itself a kingdom in 1768
1768
Government, Nepal
Captain Cook travels to Tahiti to observe Venus and determine distance from Earth
1769
Discovery, Pacific Islands
Captain Cook charts the eastern coast of Australia
1770
Discovery, Austral Realm
Struensee, the king's physician, becomes dictator in Denmark
1770
Government, Denmark
Partition of Poland agreed to by Russia, Prussia, and Austria
1772
War, Poland
Lord Mansfield emancipates a slave
1772
Human Rights, United Kingdom
John Harrison received reward for invention of marine chronometer
1773
Transportation, United Kingdom
Boston Tea Party
1773
Government, United States
Treaty of Kuchuk Kainarji with Russia
1774
Peace, Bulgaria
George Washington becomes commander of Continental Army
1775
War, United States
Goethe writes The Sorrows of Young Werther and creates "Werther Fever"
1775
Arts, Germany
Washington crosses the Delaware and defeats German mercenaries at Trenton
1776
War, United States
American Declaration of Independence signed
1776
Government, United States
Americans seize momentum as Burgoyne surrenders at Saratoga
1777
War, United States
Wedgwood builds successful earthenware mass-production industry
1779
Trade, United Kingdom
Captain Cook is killed by Hawaii islanders
1779
Discovery, Pacific Islands
Protestant mobs crying "No Popery" burn Catholic churches
1780
Religion, United Kingdom
First Iron Bridge opens in Shropshire
1781
Transportation, United Kingdom
Tupac Amaru II, a Jesuit-educated Incan, is executed after leading a revolt
1781
War, Peru
Cornwallis surrenders at Yorktown
1781
War, United States
British parliament begins peace negotiations with the American Congress
1783
Peace, Global
Montgolfier brothers demonstrate hot-air balloon flight
1783
Invention, France
The Constitution of the United States is signed
1787
Government, United States
"Mrs. Richard Brinsley Sheridan" by Thomas Gainsborough
1787
Arts, United Kingdom
The first convicts from Britain are delivered to the penal colony in Australia
1788
Geography, Austral Realm
The Times of London begins--first by reporting scandal and later real news
1788
Culture, United Kingdom
French Revolution begins with the storming of the Bastille
1789
War, France
French declare the universal rights of man
1789
Human Rights, France
George Washington becomes the first president of the United States
1789
Government, United States
Mozart's Magic Flute premieres in Vienna
1791
Music, Austria
French Revolution continues as mob storms the Tuileries Palace
1792
War, France
Russia annexes Crimea from Ottomans under the Treaty of Jassy
1792
Peace, Global
British defeat Tippoo in the Third Mysore War
1792
War, India
French defeat invading Austro-Prussian army at Battle of Valmy
1792
War, France
"Death of Marat" by Jacques-Louis David
1793
Arts, France
Fugitive Slave Act makes criminal assisting runaway slaves
1793
Human Rights, United States
In January, King Louis XVI executed by guillotine
1793
Government, France
Thomas Jefferson resigns as Secretary of State
1793
Government, United States
In October, Queen Marie Antoinette executed by guillotine
1793
Government, France
In September, Robespierre's Jacobins begin Reign of Terror
1793
Government, France
In June, French declare Montagnard Constitution the legal framework for Republic
1793
Government, France
In April, Robespierre's Jacobins take control as the Committee of Public Safety
1793
Government, France
Robespierre is executed by guillotine
1794
Government, France
Third partition of Poland follows revolt against Russian rule led by Kosciuszko
1795
War, Poland
Warren Hasting, the first governor-general of India, is impeached and acquitted
1795
Government, United Kingdom
Scottish doctor Mungo Park explores the River Niger for African Association
1796
Discovery, Sub-Saharan Africa
Edward Jenner, an English doctor, invents the smallpox vaccination
1796
Invention, United Kingdom
George Washington gives his Farewell Address
1796
Government, United States
Napoleon shows military genius in Battle of Rivoli and occupies northern Italy
1797
War, Italy
William Wordsworth and Samuel Coleridge publish Lyrical Ballads
1798
Arts, United Kingdom
In August, Nelson destroys the French fleet in Egypt
1798
War, Egypt
In July, Napoleon arrives in Egypt on a military and scientific expedition
1798
War, Egypt
British forces defeat the United Irishmen and French forces
1798
War, Ireland
Napoleon claims himself emperor after coup d'état
1799
Government, France
Progressive income tax introduced in Britain to pay for Napoleonic wars
1799
Trade, United Kingdom
Rosetta Stone discovered in Egypt--engraved with 3 languages
1799
Science, Egypt
Humphrey Davy predicts nitrous oxide (laughing gas) will be used as anesthetic
1799
Science, United Kingdom
Dutch government takes control of Indonesia after expiration of VOC charter
1799
War, Indonesia
Mary Wollstonecraft publishes "Vindication of the Rights of Women"
1799
Human Rights, Europe
World population reaches 1 billion
1800
Geography, Global
American government moves capital to Washington, D.C.
1800
Geography, United States
Toussaint L'Ouverture writes new constitution for Saint-Domingue
1801
Government, Haiti
Tsar Paul I, son of Catherine the Great, is assassinated
1801
Government, Russia
Acts of Union establish United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
1801
Geography, United Kingdom
Robert Emmet is hanged for treason and becomes a hero for Irish nationalism
1803
Government, Ireland
United States doubles in size after the Louisiana Purchase
1803
Geography, United States
Napoleon's coronation ceremony portrays him as a superhuman figure
1804
Government, France
The Code Napoleon establishes clear laws in France and later in all of Europe
1804
Government, France
Richard Trevithick produces the first locomotive to carry passengers
1804
Transportation, United Kingdom
Serbia gains independence from the Ottoman Empire
1804
Geography, Serbia
Ludwig van Beethoven completes his Third Symphony
1804
Arts, Europe
Napoleon's army defeats Austria and Russia at the Battle of Austerlitz
1805
War, Austria
Nelson killed but British Navy defeats fleets of Spain & France at Trafalgar
1805
War, Spain
Beethoven's Eroica symphony is performed
1805
Music, Germany
Lewis and Clark expedition opens way to conquest of the West
1805
Discovery, United States
Napoleon dissolves the Holy Roman Empire
1806
Government, Europe
Napoleon defeats Prussian army at the Battle of Jena/Auerstadt
1806
War, Germany
Britain abolishes slave trading in the empire
1807
Human Rights, United Kingdom
Napoleon meets Tsar Alexander I at Niemen River to discuss European policy
1807
War, Lithuania
Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleons brother, becomes king of Spain
1808
Government, Europe
Chile gains independence from Spain
1810
Geography, Chile
Venezuela gains independence from Spain
1811
Geography, Venezuela
Harrison and Indiana militia defeat Indians at Battle of Prophetstown (Tippecanoe)
1811
War, United States
Mehmet Ali begins dynasty in Egypt after slaughtering Mamluk rulers
1811
Government, Egypt
In September, Battle of Borodino--Napoleon fails to destroy Russian army
1812
War, Russia
In June, Napoleon invades Russia
1812
War, Russia
Battle of Vitoria in June ends the Peninsula War--Wellington defeats King Joseph
1813
War, Spain
Battle of Leipzig in October finds recipe to defeat Napoleon--unite against him
1813
War, Germany
Norway gains independence from Denmark
1814
Geography, Norway
"The Third of May, 1808" by Goya
1814
Arts, Spain
In March, Russians, Prussians and Austrians enter Paris & Napoleon abdicates
1814
War, France
In August, British attack Washington and Baltimore in Anglo-American War
1814
War, United States
On June 8, Congress of Vienna ends & establishes peace in Europe for forty years
1815
Peace, Europe
On June 18, Wellington and Marshal Blucher defeat Napoleon at Waterloo
1815
War, Netherlands
In February, Napoleon escapes from Elba and governs France for 100 more days
1815
Government, France
"Wivenhoe Park, Essex" by John Constable
1816
Arts, United Kingdom
Argentina gains independence from Spain
1816
Geography, Argentina
Colombia gains independence from Spain
1819
Geography, Colombia
Simon Bolivar forms Republic of Great Colombia after military victories
1819
War, Colombia
Peterloo Massacre climaxes 4 years of high unemployment & low wages in England
1819
Government, United Kingdom
Missouri Compromise delays civil war as Missouri joins U.S. as slave state
1820
Government, United States
Nathaniel Palmer and others discover Antarctica
1820
Discovery, Global
Greeks call for rebellion against Turkish rule
1821
War, Greece
Napoleon dies on the island of St. Helena
1821
Government, France
Peru declares independence from Spain
1821
War, Peru
Guatemala gains independence from Spain
1821
Geography, Guatemala
Dominican Republic gains independence from Spain
1821
Geography, Domincan Republic
Nicaragua gains independence from Spain
1821
Geography, Nicaragua
Costa Rica gains independence from Spain
1821
Geography, Costa Rica
Mexico gains independence from Spain
1821
Geography, Mexico
Brazil gains independence from Portugal
1822
Geography, Brazil
Ecuador gains independence from Spain
1822
Geography, Ecuador
Michael Faraday invents the electric motor
1822
Invention, United Kingdom
James Monroe and John Quincy Adams create the Monroe Doctrine
1823
Government, United States
British leaders form Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
1824
Culture, United Kingdom
Beethoven composes his ninth and final symphony
1824
Arts, Europe
Royalist forces defeated at Battle of Ayacucho to secure independence of Peru
1824
War, Peru
"Man and Woman Contemplating the Moon" by Caspar David Friedrich
1824
Arts, Germany
Bolivia gains independence from Spain
1825
Geography, Bolivia
Stephenson establishes the first successful railway: Stockton to Darlington
1825
Transportation, United Kingdom
The first photograph was taken by Niepce after finding a suitable image fixative
1827
Invention, France
A combined British, Russian, and French fleet attacks the Ottomans at Navarino
1827
War, Greece
King Shaka is killed and Zulus decline
1828
Culture, South Africa
First professional police force created by Home Secretary Sir Robert Peel
1829
Government, United Kingdom
Stephenson's Rocket wins race of locomotives
1829
Transportation, United Kingdom
Greece gains independence from Ottomans--first Balkan state to do so
1829
Geography, Greece
Algeria seized by the French
1830
War, Algeria
"Liberty Leading the People" by Eugene Delacroix
1830
Arts, France
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints established by Joseph Smith
1830
Religion, United States
King Charles X, an ultra-royalist, is forced to abdicate by rioters in Paris
1830
Government, France
Faraday experiments with electromagnetism and invents the first dynamo
1831
Invention, United Kingdom
Charles Darwin serves as botanist on the HMS Beagle's trip to South America
1831
Science, Americas
Slavery Abolition Act forbids slavery In the British Empire
1833
Human Rights, United Kingdom
Factory Act reduces the number of hours that children are allowed to work
1833
Human Rights, United Kingdom
Palace of Westminster burns down in 1834, but is rebuilt in 1840-1860
1834
Architecture, United Kingdom
Dickens begins publishing the Pickwick Papers
1836
Arts, United Kingdom
Mexican army & Santa Anna defeats Texans at the Alamo (Feb. 23-March 6, 1836)
1836
War, Mexico
Alexander Pushkin, founder of romantic Russian literature, dies after a duel
1837
Arts, Russia
18-year old Victoria accedes to throne after death of King William IV, her uncle
1837
Government, United Kingdom
Samuel Morse demonstrates Morse Code
1838
Invention, United States
Zulus kill Boer leader Pieter Retief and his Voortrekkers (pioneers)
1838
War, South Africa
The Great Western, first transatlantic steamship, leaves for New York from Bristol
1838
Transportation, Global
Chartism calls for greater representation in democratic government
1838
Government, United Kingdom
Daguerre invents the first practical photographic process
1839
Invention, France
The Opium War begins after China's expulsion of the British
1839
War, China
"The Fighting Temeraire" by J.M.W. Turner
1839
Arts, United Kingdom
British take control of New Zealand after Maori sign Treaty of Waitangi
1840
Peace, Global
An adhesive postage stamp is used for the first time
1840
Invention, United Kingdom
Hong Kong becomes a possession of Great Britain. in 1841
1841
Government, Hong Kong
British force weak Qing Empire to sign Treaty of Nanking
1842
War, China
In Anglo-Afghan War, British soldiers and civilians are massacred at Gandamak Pass
1842
War, Afghanistan
Ether is used as a general anesthetic for the first time
1842
Invention, United States