istoryworld
All Events
US author Philip Freneau publishes his first collection of poems, dating back to 1771
Daniel Shays is the most prominent figure in a violent protest movement by farmers against the government of Massachusetts
Francisco de Goya is appointed painter to the king of Spain, Charles III
French chemist Antoine Laurent Lavoisier publishes a system for classifying and naming chemical substances
The Continental Congress passes the Northwest Ordinance, a plan for the establishment of new states north and west of the Ohio river
The French finance minister, Charles Alexandre de Calonne, is dismissed when his proposed reforms meet aristocratic opposition
The Society for the Abolition of the Slave Trade is founded in London, with a strong Quaker influence
The First Fleet (eleven ships carrying about 750 convicts) leaves Portsmouth for Australia
A British ship lands a party of freed slaves as the first modern settlers in Sierra Leone, on the west coast of Africa
Scottish engineer James Watt devises the governor, the first example of industrial automation
Delegates meeting in Philadelphia agree a final draft for a US consitution, to be submitted to the states for ratification
The Federalist Papers, in support of the Constitution and mainly written by Alexander Hamilton, begin appearing in New York
Mozart's opera Don Giovanni has its premiere in Prague
After a journey of eight months from England the First Fleet reaches Australia, anchoring in Botany Bay
Arthur Phillip, selecting a suitable coastal site for the first penal colony in Australia, names the place Sydney Cove
The constitution of the United States is ratified by the states, but it is immediately agreed that amendments will be desirable
Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788) is buried in St Anne's churchyard in Kew.
Tiradentes (the 'puller of teeth') leads the first rebellion against Portuguese rule in Brazil
The ministers of Louis XVI reluctantly announce that the estates general will meet in 1789, for the first time since 1614
Spain's affairs are controlled by Manuel de Godoy, lover of the queen, Maria Luisa
Joseph-Louis Lagrange publishes Mécanique Analytique ('Analytical Mechanics'), describing the law of virtual work and mechanical principles for both solids and fluids
England's champion pugilist, the Jewish prize-fighter Daniel Mendoza, publishes The Art of Boxing
George Washington, unanimously elected first president of the United States, is inaugurated on Wall Street in New York
Alexander Hamilton becomes secretary of the treasury in the administration of George Washington, whose federalist views he shares
A pamphlet published in France by Emmanuel Joseph Sieyès asks a challenging question, What is the Third Estate?
