istoryworld
Britain timeline
John Bunyan publishes The Life and Death of Mr Badman, an allegory of a misspent life that is akin to a novel
A comet intrigues Edmund Halley, who works out that it has been around before
James II succeeds to the throne in Britain and immediately introduces pro-Catholic policies
Denis Papin, a French scientist working in England, demonstrates a pressure cooker fitted with a safety valve
English naturalist John Ray begins publication of his Historia Plantarum, classifying some 18,600 plants in 'mutual fertility' species
Newton publishes Principia Mathematica, proving gravity to be a constant in all physical systems
A son (the future 'Old Pretender') is born to James II, giving Britain a Catholic heir to the throne
Aphra Behn's novel Oroonoko makes an early protest against the inhumanity of the African slave trade
English grandees invite William III of Orange and his wife Mary, daughter of James II, to claim the British throne
William III of Orange lands with an army at Torbay and marches to London with almost no opposition from supporters of James II
Parliament in Westminster makes the restrictive Bill of Rights the condition on which William III and Mary II are crowned
The Church of Scotland finally wins recognition as an independent Presbyterian body
John Locke publishes his Essay concerning Human Understanding, arguing that all knowledge is based on experience
Government soldiers, mainly Campbells, massacre their MacDonald hosts in Glencoe
The Bank of England is founded and soon becomes the central banker for England's many private banks
The joint monarch of England, Mary II, dies - leaving her husband, William III, to reign alone
The Russian tsar, Peter I, studies western European technology, working as a ship's carpenter in Dutch and English shipyards
Thomas Savery creates the first practical steam engine, designed to pump water out of mines
Holland and England are now producing the magnificent ocean-going merchant vessels known as East Indiamen
The Act of Settlement declares that no Catholic may inherit the English crown
The Augustan Age begins in English literature, claiming comparison with the equivalent flowering under Augustus Caesar
On the death of her brother-in-law, William III, Anne becomes queen of England and Scotland
The Act of Union merges England and Scotland as 'one kingdom by the name of Great Britain', a century after the union of the crowns
The Tatler launches a new style of journalism in Britain's coffee houses, followed two years later by the Spectator
