1769 CE

Charles III of Spain sends Spanish missionaries, who found California missions in San Diego, Santa Barbara, San Francisco and Monterey, and begin the settlement of California. Father Junípero Serra founds Mission San Diego de Alcalá, the first of the 21 California missions. The party of Gaspar de Portolà becomes the first white group to set foot in the area now known as Santa Monica, California.

In the 1760s, the 18th century.

Geopolitics & Diplomacy

February 17 – The British House of Commons votes not to allow MP John Wilkes to take his seat after he wins a by-election, on the grounds that he was an outlaw when standing.source
May 9 – France conquers Corsica, ending the Corsican War of Independence.source
May - The Riksdag of the Estates assemble in Norrköping, the Caps (party)-government fall, and the Riksdag move to Stockholm.Sweden source
October – Prussia, Russia and Denmark form an alliance in order to preserve the current Swedish political system to keep Sweden unstable.Sweden source
November 21 – Ireland's House of Commons rejects a spending bill passed by Great Britain's parliament, by a 94–71 margin.source
Count Lymar presented to Frederick the Great the plan of a partition of Poland.Austria source
1769 Austrian annexation of SpisAustria source
Austria received back Dalmatia in accordance with the Treaty of Campo-Formio.Austria source
In August 1769, a meeting was held between Joseph II and Frederick the Great at Neisse.Austria source
Prince Edward Island becomes a separate colony from Nova Scotia.Canada source
Swea rikes historia by Sven LagerbringSweden source

Conflict & Security

8 May – Battle of Ponte Novu begins between royal French forces and the native Corsicans.France source
9 May – Battle of Ponte Novu ends, marking the end of the Corsican War and paving the way for French dominance over the island.France source
September 10 – Russo-Turkish War (1768–1774): Russian forces take the Ottoman fortress of Chocim in Bukovina.source
14 September - Start of the Dano–Algerian War.Norway source
November 12 –The Gorkhali Army conquer the last standing Malla Kingdom of Bhaktapur marking the end of The Malla dynasty in Nepal.source
December 22 – The Sino-Burmese War (1765–69) is ended by a truce.source
In November 1769, fearing Russian gains in the Russo-Turkish War (1766-1774), Austria sends two infantry and two cavalry regiments to Transylvania to deter further Russian aggression.Austria source
In February 1769, Austria occupied the county of Zips.Austria source
Russo-Turkish War (1768–74): Russian forces take the Ottoman fortress of Chocim in Bukovina.Russia source
Castillo de Guardias Viejas built in Almeria, AndalusiaSpain source
William Williams (Pantycelyn) - Ffarwel Weledig, vol. 3Wales source

Exploration & Expansion

March 16 – Louis Antoine de Bougainville returns to Saint-Malo, following a three-year circumnavigation of the world with the ships Boudeuse and Étoile, with the loss of only seven out of 330 men; among the members of the expedition is Jeanne Baré, the first woman known to have circumnavigated the globe. She returns to France some time after Bougainville and his ships.source
16 March – Louis Antoine de Bougainville returns to Saint-Malo, following a three-year circumnavigation of the world with the ships Boudeuse and Étoile, with the loss of only seven out of 330 men; among the members of the expedition is Jeanne Baré, the first woman known to have circumnavigated the globe (she returns to France some time after Bougainville and his ships).France source
April 13 – James Cook arrives in Tahiti, on the ship HM Bark Endeavour, preparing for the 1769 Transit of Venus observed from Tahiti on June 3. After the voyage, the data is found to be inaccurate in determining the distance between the Sun and Earth.source
13 April – first voyage of James Cook: James Cook arrives in Tahiti on the ship HM Bark Endeavour, preparing to observe the transit of the planet Venus, which takes place on 3 June. After the voyage, the data is found to be inaccurate in determining the distance between the Sun and Earth.United Kingdom source
May 14 – Charles III of Spain sends Spanish missionaries, who found California missions in San Diego, Santa Barbara, San Francisco and Monterey, and begin the settlement of California.source
June 7 – Frontiersman Daniel Boone first begins to explore modern-day Kentucky.source
July 17 – Welsh naturalist Thomas Pennant, having left Chester on 26 June, travels from Bamburgh to Dunbar to begin his tour of Scotland.Scotland source
July 20 – Recently appointed as the Governor of Spanish Louisiana, Irish-born soldier of fortune Alejandro O'Reilly sails into the French fort of La Balize with 21 Spanish ships, along with 2,056 soldiers, cannons and ammunition, and informs French Louisiana Governor Charles Philippe Aubry of his royal commission to take Louisiana on behalf of the King of Spain.source
Sømarke and the northern part of Klinteskoven (now Liselund) were sold to Mathias Schmidt.Denmark source
Rstate No. 4 (Nordfeld) is sold tp local farmers for 41,650 rigsdaler.Denmark source
October 1 – James Cook names White Island, off the coast of New Zealand.source
October 7 – James Cook lands in New Zealand, at Poverty Bay.source
7 October – James Cook reaches New Zealand.United Kingdom source
October 9 – In the first encounter between the Māori people and Europeans (at the future site of Gisborne, New Zealand), one Maori is shot and killed after he steals a sword from one of the officers of the Cook expedition. Several more Māori are killed in fighting the next day.source
November 1 – A party of the expedition of Spanish explorer Gaspar de Portola becomes the first Europeans to reach San Francisco Bay. Sergeant Jose Francisco de Ortega and his group accidentally discover the area while searching for Drakes Bay in Alta California.source
The American colonies begin their westward expansion, settling Tennessee.Canada source
Thomas Pennant employs Moses Griffith to illustrate his books of tours.Wales source

Religion & Belief

March 4 – Mozart departs Italy, after the last of his three tours there.source
May 19 – Cardinal Giovanni Vincenzo Antonio Ganganelli is elected as the 249th pope, succeeding the late Clement XIII and choosing to take the regnal name of Pope Clement XIV.source
July 16 – Father Junípero Serra founds Mission San Diego de Alcalá, the first of the 21 California missions.source

Economy & Finance

National income - ₹9,897 millionIndia source
John Maxwell (of Dargavel) begins to practice as a lawyer in Glasgow, origin of McGrigors which continues as an independent firm until 2012.Scotland source

Technology & Infrastructure

8 April – the Theatre Royal, York, reopens under this title having been granted a Royal Patent. (The manager, Tate Wilkinson, also obtains a patent for his theatre in Hull.)United Kingdom source
April 29 – Scottish inventor James Watt is granted a British patent for "A method of lessening the consumption of steam in steam engines" – the separate condenser, a key improvement (first devised by Watt in 1765) and the basis for the Watt steam engine which stimulates the Industrial Revolution.source
29 April – James Watt is granted a British patent for "A method of lessening the consumption of steam in steam engines" – the separate condenser, a key improvement (first devised by Watt in 1765 in Glasgow) which stimulates the Industrial Revolution. In September he completes a full-size experimental engine at Kinneil House.Scotland source
July 3 – Richard Arkwright patents a spinning frame in England, able to spin threads mechanically.source
3 July – Richard Arkwright patents a spinning frame able to weave fabric mechanically.United Kingdom source
3 August – part of the first North Bridge, Edinburgh, collapses while nearing completion, killing five.Scotland source
August/September - Robert Williams, a Welsh travelling preacher, arrives in America, the first licensed preacher to obtain permission from John Wesley to address the Methodist societies there.Wales source
October 23 – Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot demonstrates a steam-powered artillery tractor (see drawing) in France.source
23 October – Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot demonstrates a steam-powered artillery tractor (or 'automobile').France source
19 November – Blackfriars Bridge across the River Thames in London opens to traffic.United Kingdom source
November – River Shannon made navigable from Killaloe (Lough Derg) to Roosky above Lough Ree.Ireland source

Science & Discovery

June 3 – A transit of Venus is followed five hours later by a total solar eclipse, the shortest such interval in historical times. The transit is viewed by King George III of Great Britain, at the Kew Observatory.source
First recorded use of 'literally' as a metaphorical intensifier.source
Maximilian Hell and his assistant János Sajnovics traveled to Vardø to observe the 1769 transit of Venus.Norway source

Health & Medicine

21 January – first of the Letters of Junius, criticising the government, appears in the Public Advertiser.United Kingdom source
15 August – The first census in Denmark-Norway to attempt completely covering all citizens (including women and children who had previously been listed only as numbers) takes place. At that point, Norway included, there 797,584 citizens in Denmark.Denmark source
14 September – The outbreak of the Danish-Algerian War.Denmark source
The population of Iceland is recorded as being 46,201.Iceland source
Daniel Rowland turns down the living of Newport, Pembrokeshire, to stay with his congregation at Llangeitho.Wales source

Crime & Justice

Estate No. 2 (Fanegjord) is sold to the local farmers for 42,750 rigsdaler.Denmark source
Estate No. 3 (Sønderskov) is sold to the local farmers for 30,450 rigsdaler.Denmark source
Estate No. 1 (Nygård, later Marienborg) is sold to quartermaster Esaias Fleischer for r 40,550 rigsdaler.Denmark source
25 October – Murder of Alexander Montgomerie at Ardrossan.Scotland source
Work on Syon House, Middlesex, to the design of Robert Adam, ceases.United Kingdom source
Elizabeth Griffith - The School for Rakes (play)Wales source
Wesley speaks at Newtown, Montgomeryshire, and Llanidloes.Wales source
John Wesley is turned away from Welshpool Town Hall by the bailiff when he attempts to preach there during his tour of Wales.Wales source

Disasters & Accidents

August 18 – Brescia Explosion: The city of Brescia, Italy is devastated when the Church of San Nazaro is struck by lightning. The resulting fire ignites 200,000 lb (90,000 kg) of gunpowder being stored there, causing a massive explosion, which destroys 1/6 of the city and kills 3,000 people.source

Climate & Environment

February–April – John Wilkes is expelled from Parliament three times in the Middlesex election affair.United Kingdom source
September – Massive droughts in Bengal lead to the Bengal famine of 1770, in which ten million people, a third of the population, will die, the worst natural disaster in human history (in terms of lives lost).source

Culture & Society

29 January – The Royal Danish Agricultural Society is founded.Denmark source
23 March – Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton, the Prime Minister, and his wife, Anne, are divorced; on 24 June the Duke remarries.United Kingdom source
30 May – Claes Ekeblad appointed Privy Council Chancellery.Sweden source
15 July – the Royal Hibernian Military School, founded in Dublin to educate orphaned children of members of the British armed forces in Ireland, is granted its Royal charter.Ireland source
August 3 – The party of Gaspar de Portolà becomes the first white group to set foot in the area now known as Santa Monica, California.source
September 6–9 – David Garrick holds a Shakespeare Jubilee festival at Stratford-upon-Avon in England.source
16 November - Henry Bayley succeeds to the barony of Beaudesert and takes the surname Paget.Wales source
9 December – first Theatre Royal, Edinburgh, opens.Scotland source
December 13 – Dartmouth College is established in Hanover, New Hampshire, as John Wentworth, the Royal Governor, conveys a charter from King George III of Great Britain.source
The Authorized King James Version of the Bible is published in England in the Oxford standard text, edited by Benjamin Blayney.source
Ulrich Ferdinand Beenfeldt cmpletes the Fenger family portrait.Denmark source
The Concert des Amateurs is founded by François-Joseph Gossec in Paris at the Hôtel de Soubise.France source

Births

January 1 – Jane Marcet, British science writer (died 1858)source
8 January — Claus Pavels, bishop (died 1822)Norway source
January 10 – Michel Ney, French marshal (died 1815)source
February 23 – Princess Pauline of Anhalt-Bernburg; German regent and social reformer (died 1820)source
March 2 – DeWitt Clinton, American politician and naturalist, 6th Governor of New York (died 1828)source
March 4 – Muhammad Ali of Egypt, Egyptian ruler (died 1849)source
March 29 – Jean-de-Dieu Soult, French marshal (died 1851)source
April 13 – Thomas Lawrence, English painter (died 1830)source
May 1 – Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, British general, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (died 1852)source
June 18 – Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh, British statesman, diplomat, and soldier (suicide 1822)source
August 15 – Napoleon Bonaparte, French Emperor (died 1821)source
August 23 – Georges Cuvier, French naturalist and zoologist; known as the Father of Paleontology (died 1832)source
August 31 – David Hosack American physician and botanist, a Hamilton family doctor (died 1835)source
September 14 – Alexander von Humboldt, German explorer, scientist (died 1859)source
October 6 – Isaac Brock, British general, administrator (died 1812)source
October 6: Isaac Brock, military commander, administrator of Upper Canada (d.1812)Canada source
Aleksey Arakcheyev, Russian generalRussia source
Enrique O'Donnell, Conde de La Bisbal, Spanish general of Irish descent (died 1834)Spain source

Deaths

January 5 – Charles Sackville, 2nd Duke of Dorset, English cricketer (born 1711)source
February 2 – Pope Clement XIII (born 1693)source
February 2 – Pope Clement XIII dies, the night before preparing an order to dissolve the Jesuits.source
24 February – Johan von Mangelsen, military officer and businessperson (born 1694).Norway source
12 April - Thomas Morgan, politician and lawyer, 66Wales source
April 13 – Anna Canalis di Cumiana, morganatic spouse of Victor Amadeus II of Savoy (born 1680)source
April 20 – Chief Pontiac, Ottawa chief (murdered) (born c. 1719)source
April 20 – Chief Pontiac of the Ottawa is killed by a Kaskaskia Indian in Illinois.Canada source
May 14 – Iyoas I, Emperor of Ethiopia.source
June 1 – Edward Holyoke, American President of Harvard University (born 1689)source
August 1 – Jean-Baptiste Chappe d'Auteroche, French astronomer (born 1722)source
August 2 – Daniel Finch, 8th Earl of Winchilsea, English politician (born 1689)source
August 29 – Edmond Hoyle, English game expert (born 1672)source
September 22 – Antonio Genovesi, Italian philosopher (born 1712)source
November 3 – Diane Adélaïde de Mailly, third of the five famous French de Nesle sisters (born 1713)source
November 23 – Constantine Mavrocordatos, Prince of Wallachia and Prince of Moldavia (born 1711)source
December 13 – Christian Fürchtegott Gellert, German poet (born 1715)source
Stepan Glotov, Russian navigatorRussia source