Explore 404 historical events from 1780–1789.
Denis Vasilyevich Davydov was a Russian soldier-poet of the Napoleonic Wars who invented the genre of hussar poetry, characterised by hedonism and bravado. He used events from his …
Denis Davydov, Russian general and poet (died 1839)
Ferdinand VII was King of Spain and the Indies during the early 19th century, and king of the Spains during the Spanish liberal period. He reigned as a prisoner of Napoleon, in abs…
Ferdinand VII of Spain (died 1833)
Thomas Robert Bugeaud, marquis de la Piconnerie, duc d'Isly was a Marshal of France and Governor-General of Algeria during the French colonization. Born an aristocrat, he has a com…
Thomas Robert Bugeaud, French general and politician, Governor-General of Algeria (died 1849)
José Fructuoso Rivera y Toscana was a Uruguayan general who fought for the liberation of Banda Oriental from Brazilian rule, thrice served as President of Uruguay and was one of th…
Fructuoso Rivera, first president of Uruguay (died 1854)
James Henry Leigh Hunt, best known as Leigh Hunt, was an English critic, essayist and poet.
Leigh Hunt, English poet and critic (died 1859)
Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston, known as Lord Palmerston, was an Anglo-Irish nobleman and statesman who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1855 to 1858 and f…
Henry John Temple, 3rd Viscount Palmerston, English academic and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom…
Sir Moses Haim Montefiore, 1st Baronet, was a British financier and banker, activist, philanthropist and Sheriff of London. Born to an Italian Sephardic Jewish family based in Lond…
Moses Montefiore, British philanthropist, sheriff and banker (died 1885)
Solomon I the Great was a Georgian monarch who reigned as king (mepe) of Imereti in western Georgia from 1752 to 1765 and again from 1767 until his death in 1784.
Solomon I of Imereti (born 1735)
Honora "Nano" Nagle was an Irish Catholic religious sister who served as a pioneer of Catholic education in Ireland despite legal prohibitions. She founded the Sisters of the Prese…
Nano Nagle, Irish nun and educator, founded the Presentation Sisters (born 1718)
Abraham Trembley was a Genevan naturalist. He is best known for being the first to study freshwater polyps or hydra and for being among the first to develop experimental zoology. H…
Abraham Trembley, Swiss zoologist and academic (born 1710)
Wilhelm Friedemann Bach was a German composer, organist and harpsichordist. He was the second child and eldest son of Johann Sebastian Bach and Maria Barbara Bach. Despite his ackn…
Wilhelm Friedemann Bach, German composer (born 1710)
Henry Middleton was an American politician and planter from South Carolina. A member of the colonial legislature, during the American Revolution he attended the First Continental C…
Henry Middleton, American farmer and politician, 2nd President of the Continental Congress (born 1717)
Caesar Rodney was an American Founding Father, lawyer, and politician from St. Jones Neck in Dover Hundred, Kent County, Delaware. He was an officer of the Delaware militia during …
Caesar Rodney, American lawyer and politician, 4th Governor of Delaware (born 1728)
Torbern Olof Bergman (KVO) was a Swedish chemist and mineralogist noted for his 1775 Dissertation on Elective Attractions, containing the largest chemical affinity tables ever publ…
Torbern Bergman, Swedish chemist and mineralogist (born 1735)
Denis Diderot was a French philosopher, art critic, and writer, best known for serving as co-founder, chief editor, and contributor to the Encyclopédie along with Jean le Rond d'Al…
Denis Diderot, French philosopher and critic (born 1713)
Allan Ramsay was a Scottish painter who specialised in portrait painting.
Allan Ramsay, Scottish-English painter (born 1713)
Nathaniel Hone was an Irish-born portrait and miniature painter, and one of the founder members of the Royal Academy in 1768.
Nathaniel Hone the Elder, Irish-born English painter and academic (born 1718)
Junípero Serra Ferrer, popularly known simply as Junipero Serra, was a Spanish Catholic priest and missionary of the Franciscan Order. He is credited with establishing the Francisc…
Junípero Serra, Spanish priest and missionary (born 1713)
César-François Cassini de Thury, also called Cassini III or Cassini de Thury, was a French astronomer and cartographer.
César-François Cassini de Thury, French astronomer and cartographer (born 1714)
Ann Lee, commonly known as Mother Ann Lee, was the founding leader of the Shakers, later changed to United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing following her death. Sh…
Ann Lee, English-American religious leader (born 1736)
Élisabeth Thible, or Elizabeth Tible, was the first woman to make a flight in an untethered hot air balloon. She was born in Lyon, France, on 8 March 1757. On 4 June 1784, eight mo…
Élisabeth Thible became the first woman to fly in an untethered hot air balloon, covering a distance of 4 km (2
A volcanic eruption occurs when material is expelled from a volcanic vent or fissure. Several types of volcanic eruptions have been distinguished by volcanologists. These are often…
A poisonous cloud caused by the eruption of the Laki volcano in Iceland reaches Le Havre in France
Mount Asama is an active stratovolcano in central Honshū, the main island of Japan. The volcano is the most active on Honshū. The Japan Meteorological Agency classifies Mount Asam…
Mount Asama erupts in Japan, killing about 1,400 people (Tenmei eruption). The eruption causes a famine, which results…
The 1783 Great Meteor was a meteor procession observed on 18 August 1783 from the British Isles, at a time when such phenomena were not well understood. The meteor was the subject …
A huge fireball meteor is seen across Great Britain as it passes over the east coast.