1814 CE

The first weekly newspaper in Welsh is published, when Seren Gomer is founded by Joseph Harris (Gomer), a Baptist minister in Swansea. Gaspar de Vigodet, Spain's last colonial administrator of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata (covering nearly all of modern-day Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay), surrenders the city of Montevideo to independence fighters, led by General Carlos María de Alvear. The Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814 is signed in London, returning most possessions of the Dutch Empire acquired by the United Kingdom since 1803 to the Netherlands, although Britain retains the Cape of Good Hope and the South American settlements of Demerara, Essequibo and Berbice (later consolidated as British Guiana). In addition, the British cede the island of Banca off the island of Sumatra, in exchange for the settlement of Cochin, India.

In the 1810s, the 19th century.

1814 at a glance

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Who led every country in 1814 →

Geopolitics & Diplomacy

January 14 – Treaty of Kiel: Frederick VI of Denmark cedes the Kingdom of Norway into personal union with Sweden, in exchange for west Pomerania. This marks the end of the real union of Denmark-Norway.source
January 31 – Gervasio Antonio de Posadas becomes Supreme Director of Argentina.source
4 February – The Court of Civil Jurisdiction is abolished by the Second Charter of Justice; it was replaced by the Supreme Court of Civil Judicature of New South Wales. The court had jurisdiction to deal with civil disputes where the amount in dispute in the colony was more than £50 sterling.Australia source
February 11 – Norway's independence is proclaimed, marking the ultimate end of the Kalmar Union.source
February – George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen, represents Britain at the Congress of Chatillon.source
March 9 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Treaty of Chaumont signed by four Allied powers, deepening their alliance against France.source
April 11 – Napoleonic Wars – Treaty of Fontainebleau: The War of the Sixth Coalition ends, and Napoleon is forced to abdicate unconditionally as Emperor of the French.source
April 12 – The Royal Norwegian Navy is re-established.source
May 3 – Treaty of Lircay signed between Royalists and Patriots during the Chilean War of Independence.source
May 4 – Ferdinand VII abolishes the Spanish Constitution of 1812, returning Spain to absolute monarchy.source
May 17 – The occupation of Monaco changes from French to Austrian hands.source
May 17 – The Constitution of Norway is signed and the Danish Crown Prince Christian Frederik is elected King of Norway, by the Norwegian Constituent Assembly.source
May 30 – Napoleonic Wars: The First Treaty of Paris is signed, returning France's borders to their 1792 extent. Napoleon is exiled to Elba on the same day.source
June 4 – Charter of 1814: Louis XVIII of France issues the Charter of 1814, a written constitution that retains royal supremacy and will remain in force from 1814 to 1815 and again from 1815 to 1830.source
June 17 – In London, Alexander, Frederick William and George exchange their ratifications of the Peace Treaty ending the war with France.source
June 21 – The secret Eight Articles of London are signed between the Great Powers, uniting the Low Countries under William I of the Netherlands.source
July 22 – War of 1812 – The Treaty of Greenville is signed between the U.S. government and Native American tribes.source
July 28 – The revived Ligurian Republic is dissolved.source
August 9 – Creek War – The Treaty of Fort Jackson is signed, ending the Creek War.source
August 13 – The Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814 is signed in London, returning most possessions of the Dutch Empire acquired by the United Kingdom since 1803 to the Netherlands, although Britain retains the Cape of Good Hope and the South American settlements of Demerara, Essequibo and Berbice (later consolidated as British Guiana). In addition, the British cede the island of Banca off the island of Sumatra, in exchange for the settlement of Cochin, India.source
November 1 – The Congress of Vienna formally opens in Austria to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars, and the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, with the European powers agreeing upon the redrawing of national borders following the victory over France; it will last until June 9, 1815.source
November 1: The first group of patriot prisoners are sent to the Juan Fernández Islands.Chile source
1 November – The Congress of Vienna formally opens in Austria to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars, and the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, with the European powers agreeing upon the redrawing of national borders following the victory over France; it will last until 9 June 1815.Germany source
December 15 – The Hartford Convention is convened by members of the American Federalist Party.United States source
20 December – At Matauri Bay, Marsden persuades Ngāti Uru and Ngāpuhi to make peace.New Zealand source
December 24 – War of 1812: The Treaty of Ghent is signed, formally ending the war.source
Frederick VI ceded Norway to King Charles XIII of Sweden, and the Danish-Norwegian union came to an end, formally ending Norwegian possession of Iceland.Iceland source
Treaty of Fontainebleau (1814)Russia source
In the complex peace treaty, the Cape Colony is permanently taken from the Dutch by the United Kingdom.South Africa source

Conflict & Security

January 1 – War of the Sixth Coalition – The Royal Prussian Army led by Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher crosses the Rhine.source
1 January – War of the Sixth Coalition – The Royal Prussian Army led by Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher crosses the Rhine.Germany source
January 3 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Siege of Metz: Allied armies lay siege to the French city and fortress of Metz.source
January 11 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Battle of Hoogstraten: Prussian forces under Friedrich Wilhelm Freiherr von Bülow defeat the French.source
January 14 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Siege of Antwerp: Allied forces besiege French Antwerp.source
January 29 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Battle of Brienne: A French army led by Napoleon is victorious against von Blücher.source
February 1 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Battle of La Rothière: Blücher's Allied army defeats the French under Napoleon.source
February 10 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Battle of Champaubert: A French army led by Napoleon effectively destroys a small Russian corps led by Zakhar Dmitrievich Olsufiev, opening the Six Days' Campaign.source
February 11 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Battle of Montmirail: A French army led by Napoleon is victorious against Fabian Gottlieb von der Osten-Sacken and Ludwig Yorck von Wartenburg in the Six Days' Campaign.source
February 12 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Battle of Château-Thierry (1814): A French army led by Napoleon is victorious against Ludwig Yorck von Wartenburg and Fabian Gottlieb von der Osten-Sacken in the Six Days' Campaign.source
February 14 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Battle of Vauchamps: A French army led by Napoleon is victorious against von Blücher, the last major action of the Six Days' Campaign.source
February 15 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Battle of Garris: An Allied army led by the Duke of Wellington is victorious against the French under Jean Isidore Harispe.source
February 18 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Battle of Montereau: A French army led by Napoleon is victorious against Austrian forces.source
February 27 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Battle of Orthez: An Allied army led by the Duke of Wellington is victorious against the French under Jean-de-Dieu Soult.source
March 5 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Battle of Berry-au-Bac: French cavalrymen led by Napoleon defeat Cossacks under Ferdinand von Wintzingerode.source
March 27 – War of 1812 – Battle of Horseshoe Bend: In northern Alabama, United States forces under General Andrew Jackson defeat the Creek Indians.source
March 27 – Creek War – Battle of Horseshoe Bend: In northern Alabama, United States forces under General Andrew Jackson defeat the Creek Indians.United States source
March 28 – War of 1812 – Battle of Valparaíso: Two British Royal Navy ships easily defeat and capture USS Essex and a sister ship off the coast of Chile.source
May 28 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Barcelona is restored to Spanish Bourbon rule as the French garrison leaves the city.source
June 20 – Gaspar de Vigodet, Spain's last colonial administrator of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata (covering nearly all of modern-day Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay), surrenders the city of Montevideo to independence fighters, led by General Carlos María de Alvear.source
July 13 – The Carabinieri (the national military police of Italy) is established by Victor Emmanuel, as the police force of the Kingdom of Sardinia.source
July 25 – War of 1812 – Battle of Lundy's Lane: Reinforcements arrive near Niagara Falls, Ontario for General Riall's British and Canadian force, and a bloody, all-night battle with Jacob Brown's Americans commences at 18.00 hours; Americans retreat to Fort Erie.source
July 25 – The United States lose about 1,000 of 3,000 at the Battle of Lundy's Lane.Canada source
25 July – The Active departs the Bay of Islands for Sydney. Along with Kendall and Hall are the Ngāpuhi chiefs Ruatara, Hongi Hika, Korokoro, Te Nganga, Punahou and Hongi's son Ripiro.New Zealand source
26 July – The Swedish campaign against Norway started.Norway source
August 24 – War of 1812 – Burning of Washington: British troops, after defeating American forces at the Battle of Bladensburg, occupy Washington, D.C., setting numerous buildings on fire, including the Capitol and Presidential Mansion.source
September 11 – War of 1812 – Battle of Lake Champlain: An American squadron under Thomas Macdonough defeats the British squadron, ultimately forcing the invading army to retreat back into Canada.source
October 5: The Royalist forces enter Santiago. Begins the mass exodus of patriots towards Mendoza.Chile source
November 1 – Francis Rawdon-Hastings, the Governor-General of India declares war on Kingdom of Nepal and Anglo-Nepalese War begins.source
December 15 – War of 1812: The Hartford Convention is convened, by members of the American Federalist Party.source
Anglesea Barracks is established.Australia source
The Anglo-Nepalese War (also known as the Nepal War or the Gorkha War) began.India source

Exploration & Expansion

January 1: Brigadier Gabino Gaínza and his military expedition sail from Callao.Chile source
January 31: The Royal Expedition arrives to Chile.Chile source
March 9 – The USS Enterprise reaches Wilmington, North Carolina, returning from the Caribbean.United States source
14 March – Thomas Kendall and William Hall leave Sydney on the Active, captain Dillon, for Hobart, on the way to explore the Bay of Islands for a suitable mission site. Also with them is Tui (Tupaea), younger brother of the Ngāpuhi chief Korokoro, who has been staying with Kendall in Sydney.New Zealand source
June 6 – Beginning of the Allied sovereigns' visit to England: Tsar Alexander I of Russia and King Frederick William III of Prussia sail from Boulogne-Sur-Mer to Dover on board the Royal Navy ship HMS Impregnable as guests of George, Prince of Wales, the regent during the incapacity of King George III.source
6 June – Beginning of the Allied sovereigns' visit to England: Tsar Alexander I of Russia and King Frederick William III of Prussia sail from Boulogne-Sur-Mer to Dover on board the Royal Navy ship HMS Impregnable as guests of George, Prince of Wales, the regent during the incapacity of King George III.Germany source
11 June – 3 July – Kendall and Hall meet a number of Ngāpuhi chiefs including Kawiti, Ruatara, Tara (of Kororāreka), Pōmare I, Hauraki (aka Te Wera, of Kerikeri), and Hongi Hika.New Zealand source
August 12: Brigadier Mariano Osorio and his expedition arrive to Talcahuano.Chile source
David Thompson delivers his map of western North America to partners of North West Company.Canada source

Religion & Belief

March 7: Francisco de la Lastra is elected as the first Supreme Director of Chile.Chile source
March 8 – The council sustain their Clerk's refusal to show their minutes to a Committee of the Assembly.Canada source
March 9 – The Assembly vote 2,000 pounds, for impeachment of Chief Justices Sewell and Monk. The council will not pass the item.Canada source
March 17 – The Assembly resolve that the council's disallowance of a money bill is contrary to English and Canadian usage.Canada source
August 7 – Pope Pius VII decrees the bull Sollicitudo omnium ecclesiarum, reestablishing the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) all over the world, after having approved their survival and existence in Russia.source
December 25 – Samuel Marsden of the Church Missionary Society preaches the first sermon in New Zealand, probably in the Māori language, at Oihi.source
25 December – Marsden preaches the first sermon in New Zealand.New Zealand source
William Shaw Mason's A Statistical Account or Parochial Survey of Ireland, drawn up from the communications of the clergy begins publication in Dublin.Ireland source
Chapel of St Mary's, designed by James Gillespie Graham, opened in Edinburgh, the origin of St Mary's Cathedral, Edinburgh (Roman Catholic).Scotland source
The Benedictine monastic community is established at Downside in Somerset.United Kingdom source

Economy & Finance

31 January – The "holey dollar" and "dump" go into circulation.Australia source
February 21 – The Great Stock Exchange Fraud is exposed in London.source
21 February – Great Stock Exchange Fraud in London.United Kingdom source
March 25 – De Nederlandsche Bank is established.source
Faroe Islands, Greenland and Iceland becomes a part of Denmark.Denmark source
National income - ₹13,556 millionIndia source

Technology & Infrastructure

4 February – The Governors Court is established by Letters Patent dated 4 February 1814 issued by King George III. The court had jurisdiction over civil claims in New South Wales.Australia source
18 June – improved navigation of River Shannon between Limerick and Killaloe opens.Ireland source
22 June – First cricket match is played at Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood.United Kingdom source
July 25 – George Stephenson tests his first locomotive Blücher successfully in England.source
October – Thomas Telford's Lovat Bridge, the first over the River Beauly, is opened.Scotland source
15 December – The Active passes North Cape.New Zealand source
The world's first complex machine mass-produced from interchangeable parts, Eli Terry's wooden pillar-and-scroll clock, comes off the production line in Plymouth, Connecticut.source
Having received a hand flour mill from Marsden, Ruatara is at last able to grind the wheat that he has been growing and also that which he brought back from Sydney two years earlier.New Zealand source
A mail packet service is started between Great Britain and the CapeSouth Africa source
Completion of the Boston Manufacturing Company's integrated cotton weaving mill on the Charles River at Waltham, Massachusetts, engineered by Paul Moody for Francis Cabot Lowell and 'The Boston Associates', and inaugurating the Waltham-Lowell system of manufacturing.United States source

Science & Discovery

23 May – The Active departs Hobart.New Zealand source
22 August – The Active arrives in Sydney.New Zealand source
12 November – Kendall appointed Justice of the Peace for New Zealand by Governor Macquarie.New Zealand source
28 November – The Active finally departs Port Jackson on its way to establish the mission at Rangihoua.New Zealand source
Sydenham Edwards founds The Botanical Register.Wales source

Health & Medicine

May - Caernarvon and Anglesey Hospital is founded.Wales source
23 October – The first plastic surgery carried out in England by Dr Joseph Constantine Carpue.United Kingdom source
From midyear – Highland Clearances: Patrick Sellar begins mass expulsion of crofting tenants from Strathnaver at Grummore to make way for sheep farming as factor for the Marquess and Marchioness of Stafford.Scotland source
Glasgow Medical Society is established.Scotland source
Gartnavel Royal Hospital is established as the Glasgow Lunatic Asylum.Scotland source
John Abernethy appointed lecturer in anatomy to the Royal College of Surgeons.United Kingdom source
John Keats leaves apprenticeship to become a student at a local hospital.United Kingdom source
Thomas William - Perl Mewn AdfydWales source

Crime & Justice

February – Samuel Marsden buys the brig Active, for £1400, after the Church Missionary Society refuses to provide funds for a ship.New Zealand source
February - Anthony Bushby Bacon sells his mineral rights at Cyfarthfa to Richard Crawshay for £95,000.Wales source
March 3 – The Governor refuses to suspend Chief Justices Sewell and Monk, on suggestion of one branch of the Legislature. James Stuart moves, affirming the Assembly's right to inform the Governor of irregularities, without concurrence of the council; and that the Governor has violated the Constitution.Canada source
March 6: José Miguel Carrera and his brother Luis Carrera are captured by a Royalist squadron under Clemente de Lantaño.Chile source
May 12: José Miguel Carrera and his brother Luis Carrera escape from prison.Chile source
August 12 – In England, the last hanging under the Black Act is carried out, of William Potter for cutting down an orchard (although the judge petitions for reprieve).source
19 November – The Active attempts to leave Sydney but is forced to turn back by bad weather.New Zealand source
The first Icelandic police officer, Jón Benjamínsson, took office.Iceland source

Disasters & Accidents

February 12 – A fire destroys the Custom House in the City of London.source
12 February – A fire destroys the Custom House in the City of London.United Kingdom source
20 May – The convict transport ship Three Bees catches fire and blows up in Sydney Harbour.Australia source
25 July – George Stephenson puts his first steam locomotive into service, the Blücher for Killingworth Colliery on Tyneside.United Kingdom source
July 30 – The Great fire of Tirschenreuth in Bavaria destroys the town and 907 buildings.source
30 July – The Great fire of Tirschenreuth in Bavaria destroys the town and 907 buildings.Germany source
September 1 – War of 1812 – Sinking of HMS Avon by the USS Wasp.source
18 October – British troop transport Sovereign is wrecked on St. Paul Island (Nova Scotia) with the loss of between 199 and 212 of the 237 people on board.United Kingdom source

Climate & Environment

14 January – The third-coldest month in the CET series with an average of −2.9 allows the last River Thames frost fair in London.United Kingdom source
February 1 – Mount Mayon in the Philippines erupts for the second time; more than 1,200 people die and the Cagsawa Church is destroyed.source
12 August – The last hanging under the Black Act in England is of William Potter for cutting down an orchard; the judge petitions for reprieve.United Kingdom source
October 17 – London Beer Flood: A large vat full of porter owned by Meux's Brewery of London bursts, demolishing buildings and killing 8 people.source
17 October – London Beer Flood: a large vat of porter in Meux's Brewery bursts, demolishing buildings and killing nine.United Kingdom source
Ayrshire cattle recognised as a distinct breed by the Highland and Agricultural Society.Scotland source
John Jones - Natur a Chyneddfau Gweddi (2nd edition)Wales source

Culture & Society

1 January - The first weekly newspaper in Welsh is published, when Seren Gomer is founded by Joseph Harris (Gomer), a Baptist minister in Swansea.Wales source
26 January – Actor Edmund Kean makes his London debut in an adult leading role as Shylock at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane.United Kingdom source
February 1 – Lord Byron's semi-autobiographical tale in verse The Corsair is published by John Murray in London, and sells 10,000 copies on this day.source
16 February – The meeting of notables took place at Eidsvoll verk.Norway source
12 March - Louis-Antoine, Duke of Angoulême enters Bordeaux, marking the restoration of the Bourbon dynasty.France source
April 6 – Napoleonic Wars – Bourbon Restoration: Louis XVIII is invited to occupy the restored French throne.source
May 3 – The Duke of Provence, the future Louis XVIII, returns to Paris.source
27 May – Harriet Smithson makes her stage debut at the Crow Street Theatre, Dublin, as Albina Mandeville in Frederick Reynolds's The Will.Ireland source
June 12 – The poem "She Walks in Beauty" is written by Lord Byron.source
July 7 – Walter Scott's Waverley, his first prose fiction and one of the first significant historical novels in English, is published anonymously by Archibald Constable in Edinburgh, selling out in two days.source
7 July – Walter Scott's Waverley, his first prose fiction and one of the first significant historical novels in English, set during the Jacobite rising of 1745, is published anonymously by Archibald Constable in Edinburgh, selling out in two days.Scotland source
August 1 – The Grand Jubilee of 1814 is held in Britain, celebrating the hundredth anniversary of the Hanoverian Successionsource
November 4 – King Charles XIII of Sweden becomes King of Norway, as Charles II .source
St George's Church, Charlotte Square, New Town, Edinburgh, designed by Robert Reid after Robert Adam, is completed.Scotland source
Journalist and preacher Elijah Waring settles at Neath.Wales source

Births

January 1 – Hong Xiuquan, Chinese rebel (died 1864)source
January 27 – Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, French architect (died 1879)source
February 9 – Samuel J. Tilden, 25th Governor of New York, 1876 Democratic Party Presidential Nominee (died 1886)source
March 9 – Taras Shevchenko, Ukrainian poet (died 1861)source
March 17 – Kamehameha III, King of the Hawaiian Islands (died 1854)source
April 3 – Lorenzo Snow, 5th president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (died 1901)source
May 30 – Mikhail Bakunin, Russian anarchist (died 1876)source
5 June - John Molteno, future first Prime Minister of the CapeSouth Africa source
July 19 – Samuel Colt, American gun maker (died 1862)source
August 23 – James Roosevelt Bayley, American bishop (died 1877)source
August 28 – Sheridan Le Fanu, Irish writer (died 1873)source
September 7 – William Butterfield, British architect (died 1900)source
6 October (in England): Octavius Hadfield, 2nd Bishop of New Zealand.New Zealand source
October 15 – Mikhail Lermontov, Russian writer (died 1841)source
2 November= Julius von Mayer, German physician, physicist, one of the founders of thermodynamics (died 1878)Germany source
November 13 – Joseph Hooker, American general (died 1879)source
November 22 – Serranus Clinton Hastings, American politician (died 1893)source
? – Emamqoli Mirza Emad od-Dowleh, Persian Qajar prince and governor.Iran source

Deaths

January 26 – Manuel do Cenáculo, Portuguese prelate and antiquarian (born 1724)source
January 27 – Johann Gottlieb Fichte, German philosopher (born 1762)source
27 January – Johann Gottlieb Fichte, German philosopher (born 1762)Germany source
March 3: First Battle of Talca. Patriot Colonel Carlos Spano dies in the defense of Talca from the Royalist forces under the command of Ildefonso Elorreaga.Chile source
March 6 – Angelica Schuyler Church, daughter of Genl.Philip Schuyler, sister to Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton (born 1756)source
May 29 – Joséphine de Beauharnais, Empress of France (born 1763)source
July 12 – William Howe, 5th Viscount Howe, British general (born 1729)source
July 19 – Captain Matthew Flinders, English explorer of the coasts of Australia (born 1774)source
July 25 – Charles Dibdin, English composer (born 1745)source
August 21 – Benjamin Thompson, American physicist, inventor (born 1753)source
August 31 – Arthur Phillip, British admiral, 1st Governor of New South Wales (born 1738)source
31 August – Admiral Arthur Phillip RN, British naval officer and former Governor of New South Wales, dies at Bath, England aged 75.Australia source
September 8 – Maria Carolina of Austria, queen of Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies, and de facto ruler (born 1752)source
October 19 – Mercy Otis Warren, American playwright (born 1728)source
November 18 – Aleijadinho, Colonial Brazil-born sculptor and architect (born 1730 or 1738)source
November 23 – Elbridge Gerry, 5th Vice President of the United States (born 1744)source
November 23 – Vice President Elbridge Gerry dies from heart failure. The office remains vacant through the remainder of James Madison's presidency.United States source
December 2 – Marquis de Sade, French writer for whom sadism is named (born 1740)source