date: March 4

text: March 4 – Jean-Baptiste Greuze, French painter (b. 1725)


date: May 7

section: Deaths

text: May 7 – William Petty, 2nd Earl of Shelburne, Prime Minister of Great Britain (b. 1737)

source_section: Deaths › January–June


date: May 9

text: May 9 – Friedrich Schiller, German playwright (b. 1759)


date: May 12

text: May 12 – Ferdinand von Hompesch zu Bolheim, 71st Grandmaster of the Order of Malta (b. 1744)


date: May 25

text: May 25 – William Paley, English philosopher (b. 1743)


date: August 3

text: August 3 – Christopher Anstey, English writer (b. 1724)

source_section: Deaths › July–December


date: October 5

text: October 5 – Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis, British general (b. 1738)


date: October 21

text: October 21 – John Cooke, English captain (b. 1762)


date: October 23

text: October 23 – On the early death of her husband, Madame Clicquot Ponsardin takes over his champagne wine business in France as Veuve Clicquot.

source_section: Events › October–December


date: December 23

text: December 23 – Geneviève Thiroux d'Arconville, French novelist, translator and chemist (b. 1720)


date: January 1

section: Geopolitics & Diplomacy

text: January 1 – The Kingdom of Bavaria is established by Napoleon.

source_section: Events › January–March


date: January 18

text: January 18 – The Dutch Cape Colony capitulates to British forces, the origin of its status as a colony within the British Empire.


date: March 30

text: March 30 – The Napoleonic Kingdom of Naples is proclaimed.


date: June 5

text: June 5 – Louis Bonaparte is appointed as King of Holland by his brother, Emperor Napoleon, replacing the Batavian Republic.

source_section: Events › April–June


date: July 12

text: July 12 – Sixteen German Imperial States leave the Holy Roman Empire and form the Confederation of the Rhine, leading to the collapse of the Empire. Liechtenstein is given full sovereignty.

source_section: Events › July–September


date: August 6

text: August 6 – Francis II, the last Holy Roman Emperor, abdicates, thus ending the Holy Roman Empire after 844 years.


date: January 8

section: Conflict & Security

text: January 8 – Battle of Blaauwberg: British infantry force troops of the Batavian Republic in the Dutch Cape Colony to withdraw.


date: January 9

text: January 9 – The Dutch commandant of Cape Town surrenders to British forces. On January 10, formal capitulation is signed under the Treaty Tree in Papendorp (modern-day Woodstock).


date: January 23

text: January 23 – Invasion of Naples: Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies flees to the Kingdom of Sicily under British protection.


date: February 6

text: February 6 – Battle of San Domingo: The British Royal Navy gains a victory over the French off Santo Domingo.


date: February 15

text: February 15 – Invasion of Naples: Joseph Bonaparte enters Naples.


date: April 25

text: April 25 – Rana Bahadur Shah is killed by his step-brother Sher Bahadur Shah in the late night meeting which triggers the two weeks' long Bhandarkhal garden massacre in Khatmandu.


date: May 30

text: May 30 – Future President of the United States Andrew Jackson fights his third duel, killing lawyer Charles Dickinson following a dispute over payment of a forfeit.


date: July 4

text: July 4 – Invasion of Naples (War of the Third Coalition): Battle of Maida – Britain defeats the French in Calabria.


date: July 10

text: July 10 – Vellore Mutiny: Indian sepoys mutiny against the East India Company, for the first time.


date: July 23

text: July 23 – British invasions of the River Plate: A British expeditionary force of 1,700 men lands on the left bank of the Río de la Plata and invades Buenos Aires.


date: September 25

text: September 25 – Prussia issues an ultimatum to Paris, threatening war if France does not halt marching its troops through Prussian territory to reach Austria; the message does not reach Napoleon Bonaparte until October 7, and he responds by attacking Prussia.


date: October 8

text: October 8 – Napoleon responds to the September 25 ultimatum from Prussia, and begins the War of the Fourth Coalition; Prussia is joined by Saxony and other minor German states.


date: October 9

text: October 9 – Battle of Schleiz: French and Prussian forces fight for the first time since the war began. A more numerous French force easily defeats the Prussian army.


date: October 10

text: October 10 - Battle of Saalfeld: French forces under Marshal Jean Lannes clash at Saalfeld with a Prussian advance guard. The Prussian troops are routed, and Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia is killed in combat.


date: October 14

text: October 14 – Battle of Jena–Auerstedt: At Jena, Napoleon defeats the Prussian army of Prince Hohenlohe, while at Auerstedt, Marshal Davout defeats the main Prussian army under Karl Wilhelm Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick (who is fatally wounded).


date: October 17

text: October 17 – Emperor Jacques I of Haiti (Jean-Jacques Dessalines) is assassinated at the Pont-Rouge, Haiti, and Alexandre Pétion becomes first President of the Republic of Haiti.


date: October 24

text: October 24 – French forces enter Berlin.


date: October 30

text: October 30 – Capitulation of Stettin: Believing themselves massively outnumbered, the 5,300-man garrison at Stettin in Prussia surrenders to a much smaller French force without a fight.


date: November 24

text: November 24 – The last major Prussian field force, under Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, surrenders to the French near Lübeck. Frederick William III has by this time fled to Memel in East Prussia.


date: November 28

text: November 28 – French troops enter Warsaw.


date: December 26

text: December 26 – War of the Fourth Coalition:


text: Battle of Golymin – Russian forces under General Golitsyn fight a successful rearguard action against French forces, under Marshal Murat.


text: Battle of Pułtusk – Russian forces under General Bennigsen narrowly escape from a direct confrontation with Napoleon, who goes into winter quarters.


date: March 23

section: Exploration & Expansion

text: March 23 – Explorers Lewis and Clark and their Corps of Discovery, having reached the Pacific Ocean after traveling through the Louisiana Purchase, begin their journey home.


date: July 15

text: July 15 – Pike Expedition: Near St. Louis, Missouri, United States Army Lieutenant Zebulon Pike leads an expedition from Fort Bellefontaine, to explore the American West.


date: August 18

text: August 18 – English seal hunter Abraham Bristow discovers the Auckland Islands.


date: September 23

text: September 23 – The Lewis and Clark Expedition reaches St. Louis, Missouri, ending a successful exploration of the Louisiana Territory and the Pacific Northwest. Their arrival comes "much to the amazement of residents, who had given the travelers up for dead" according to one historian.


date: November 15

text: November 15 – Pike Expedition: During his second exploratory expedition, Lieutenant Zebulon Pike sees a distant mountain peak while near the Colorado foothills of the Rocky Mountains (later named Pikes Peak in his honor).


date: November 21

text: November 21 – Napoleon's Berlin Decree initiates the Continental System, blocking the import of British manufactured goods to the rest of Europe.


date: January 9

section: Religion & Belief

text: January 9 – Lord Nelson is given a state funeral and interment at St Paul's Cathedral in London, attended by the Prince of Wales.


date: May 16

text: May 16 – A British Order in Council of 16 May 1806 declares all ports from Brest (France) to the Elbe to be under a state of blockade by the British Royal Navy.


date: January 1

section: Economy & Finance

text: January 1 – The French Republican Calendar is abolished.


date: July 18

section: Disasters & Accidents

text: July 18 – 1806 Birgu polverista explosion: A gunpowder magazine explosion in Birgu, Malta kills around 200 people.


date: October 20

text: October 20 – British ship of the line is wrecked in the Strait of Sicily with the loss of 347 of the 488 on board.


date: March 28

section: Culture & Society

text: March 28 – Washington College (modern-day Washington & Jefferson College) is chartered by the Pennsylvania General Assembly.


date: April 8

text: April 8 – Stéphanie de Beauharnais, adopted daughter of Emperor Napoleon I, marries Prince Karl Ludwig Friedrich of Baden.


date: December 23

text: December 23 – Ludwig van Beethoven premieres his violin concerto at the Theater an der Wien.


date: March 4

section: Births

text: March 4 – Ephraim Wales Bull, American farmer, creator of the Concord grape (d. 1895)

source_section: Births › January–June


text: March 4 – George Bradburn, American abolitionist, women's rights advocate (d. 1880)


date: March 6

text: March 6 – Elizabeth Barrett Browning, English poet (d. 1861)


date: March 12

text: March 12 – Jane Pierce, First Lady of the United States (d. 1863)


date: April 3

text: April 3 – Ivan Kireyevsky, Russian literary critic, philosopher (d. 1856)


date: May 12

text: May 12 – J. V. Snellman, Finnish statesman and influential Fennoman philosopher (d. 1881)


date: May 20

text: May 20 – John Stuart Mill, British philosopher (d. 1873)


date: June 12

text: June 12 – John Augustus Roebling, German-American engineer (d. 1869)


date: June 27

text: June 27 – Augustus De Morgan, British mathematician, logician (d. 1871)


date: September 22

text: September 22 – Bernardino António Gomes, Portuguese physician and naturalist (d. 1877)

source_section: Births › July–December


date: October 3

text: October 3 – Oliver Cowdery, American religious leader (d. 1850)


date: October 25

text: October 25 – Max Stirner, German philosopher (d. 1856)


date: November 13

text: November 13 – Emilia Plater, Polish heroine (d. 1831)


date: December 11

text: December 11 – Otto Wilhelm Hermann von Abich, German geologist (d. 1886)


date: January 23

text: January 23 – Following the death of William Pitt the Younger, his cousin Lord Grenville succeeds him as wartime Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.


date: March 30

text: March 30 – Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire, English noblewoman, socialite, political organizer, style icon, author and activist (b. 1757)


date: April 10

text: April 10 – Horatio Gates, British soldier, served as an American general during the American Revolutionary War (b. 1727)


date: May 9

text: May 9 – Robert Morris, English-born merchant, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States, "financier of the American Revolution" (b. 1734)


date: July 4

text: July 4 – Charles Henri Sanson, Royal Executioner of France during the reign of King Louis XVI (b. 1739)


date: July 10

text: July 10 – George Stubbs, English animal painter (b. 1724)


date: July 11

text: July 11 – James Smith, Irish-born American lawyer and politician, signer of the United States Declaration of Independence (b. 1719)


date: August 10

text: August 10 – Michael Haydn, Austrian composer and brother of Joseph Haydn (b. 1737)


date: September 9

text: September 9 – William Paterson, Irish-born American judge, signer of the United States Constitution, Governor of New Jersey (b. 1745)


date: September 13

text: September 13 – Charles James Fox, English politician (b. 1749)


date: October 9

text: October 9 – Benjamin Banneker, American astronomer and surveyor (b. 1731)


date: October 10

text: October 10 – Louis Ferdinand of Prussia, German prince (killed in battle) (b. 1772)


date: October 26

text: October 26 – John Graves Simcoe, English army officer and colonial administrator, first Lieutenant-Governor of Upper Canada (b. 1752)


date: November 10

text: November 10 – Karl Wilhelm Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick, German ruling prince and general (died of wounds) (b. 1735)


date: January 7

text: January 7 – The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland issues an Order in Council prohibiting British ships from trading with France or its allies.


date: February 17

text: February 17 – Henry Christopher is elected first President of the State of Haiti, ruling the northern part of the country.


date: February 23

text: February 23 – The Slave Trade Act is passed in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom by an overwhelming majority.


date: March 2

text: March 2 – The United States Congress passes the Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves "into any port or place within the jurisdiction of the United States ... from any foreign kingdom, place, or country" (to take effect January 1, 1808).


date: May 29

text: May 29 – Selim III, Ottoman Emperor since 1789, is deposed in favour of his nephew Mustafa IV.


date: June 9

text: June 9 – The Duke of Portland is chosen as Prime Minister after the United Kingdom general election.


date: July 7

text: July 7–9 – The Treaties of Tilsit are signed between France, Prussia and Russia. Napoleon and Russian Emperor Alexander I ally together against the British. The Prussians are forced to cede more than half their territory, which is formed into the Duchy of Warsaw in their former Polish lands, and the Kingdom of Westphalia in western Germany. The Free City of Danzig is also formed (established July 21 by Napoleon).


date: November 29

text: November 29 – Portuguese Queen Maria I and the Court embark at Lisbon, bound for Brazil. Rio de Janeiro becomes the Portuguese capital.


date: December 17

text: December 17 – Napoleonic Wars: France issues the Milan Decree which confirms the Continental System (i.e. no European country is to trade with the United Kingdom).


date: December 22

text: December 22 – The United States Congress passes the Embargo Act, a trade embargo on all foreign nations.


date: February 3

text: February 3 – Napoleonic Wars and Anglo-Spanish War: Battle of Montevideo – The British Army captures Montevideo from the Spanish Empire, as part of the British invasions of the Río de la Plata.


date: February 7

text: February 7 – Napoleon leads the forces of the French Empire in an invasion of the Russian Empire, and begins fighting at the Battle of Eylau against Russian and Prussian forces.


date: February 8

text: February 8 – Battle of Eylau: Napoleon fights a hard but inconclusive battle against the Russians under Bennigsen.


date: April 4

text: April 4–12 – Froberg mutiny: The British suppress a mutiny at Fort Ricasoli, Malta, by men of the irregularly-recruited Froberg Regiment.


date: May 24

text: May 24 – Siege of Danzig ends after 6 weeks with Prussian and Russian defenders capitulating to French forces.


date: June 10

text: June 10 – The Battle of Heilsberg ends in a draw.


date: June 14

text: June 14 – Battle of Friedland: Napoleon decisively defeats Bennigsen's Russian army.


date: June 22

text: June 22 – Chesapeake–Leopard affair: British Royal Navy fourth rate attacks and boards United States Navy frigate USS Chesapeake off Norfolk, Virginia, seeking deserters. This act of British aggression plays a role in the run-up to the War of 1812.


date: July 5

text: July 5 – A disastrous British attack is mounted against Buenos Aires, during the second failed invasion of the Río de la Plata.


date: September 2

text: September 2–7 – Battle of Copenhagen: The British Royal Navy bombards Copenhagen with fire bombs and phosphorus rockets, to prevent the Dano-Norwegian navy from surrendering to Napoleon; 30% of the city is destroyed, and 2,000 citizens are killed.


date: November 24

text: November 24 – Battle of Abrantes, Portugal: The French under Jean-Andoche Junot take the town.


date: December 5

text: December 5–11 – Napoleonic Wars: Raid on Griessie – A British Royal Navy squadron attacks the Dutch port of Griessie on Java in the Dutch East Indies, eliminating the last Dutch naval force in the Pacific and concluding the Java campaign of 1806–1807.


text: Battle of Hingakaka between two factions of Māori people, the largest battle ever fought in New Zealand, and the last fought there without firearms. In 1807 or 1808 is fought the Battle of Moremonui, first of the Musket Wars.

source_section: Events › Approximate date


text: Coup d'état of Pengiran Muda Omar Ali Saifuddien by Pengiran Digadong Ayah.


date: February 10

text: February 10 – The Survey of the Coast (renamed the United States Coast Survey in 1836 and the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey in 1878) is established; work begins on August 3, 1816.


date: September 7

text: September 7 – Robert Morrison, the first Protestant missionary to China, arrives in Guangzhou (Canton).


date: January 20

text: January 20 – The Sierra Leone Company, faced with bankruptcy because of the imminent abolition of the slave trade in British colonies, petitions the British government for purchase and transfer of its property to the Crown; Parliament approves the transfer on July 29, and it takes effect on January 1, 1808.


date: March 25

text: March 25 – The United Kingdom Slave Trade Act becomes law abolishing the slave trade in most of the British Empire with effect from 1 May (slavery itself is abolished in British colonies in 1833).


section: Technology & Infrastructure

text: March 25 – The Swansea and Mumbles Railway in South Wales, at this time known as the Oystermouth Railway, becomes the first passenger-carrying railway in the world.


date: July 20

text: July 20 – Nicéphore Niépce is awarded a patent by Emperor Napoleon for the Pyréolophore, the world's first internal combustion engine, after it successfully powers a boat upstream on the river Saône in France.


date: August 17

text: August 17 – The North River Steamboat, Robert Fulton's first American steamboat, leaves New York City for Albany on the Hudson River, inaugurating the first commercial steamboat service in the world.


date: March 29

section: Science & Discovery

text: March 29 – H. W. Olbers discovers the asteroid Vesta.


date: October 6

text: October 6 – English chemist Humphry Davy electrochemically isolates potassium from potash.


date: February 19

section: Crime & Justice

text: February 19 – Burr conspiracy: In Alabama, former Vice President of the United States Aaron Burr is tried for conspiracy, but acquitted.


date: May 22

text: May 22 – A grand jury indicts former Vice President of the United States Aaron Burr for treason.


date: September 1

text: September 1 – Former U.S. Vice President Aaron Burr is acquitted of treason. He had been accused of plotting to annex parts of Louisiana and Mexico, to become part of an independent republic.


date: September 27

text: September 27 – Napoleon purchases the Borghese art collection, including the Antinous Mondragone, and brings it to Paris.


date: October 30

text: October 30 – El Escorial Conspiracy: Ferdinand, Prince of Asturias is arrested for conspiring against his father Charles IV of Spain.


text: Le Petit Oracle des Dames 42 card deck and booklet are published in Paris by the widow of Gueffier.


date: April 14

text: April 14 – African Institution holds its first meeting in London; it is intended to improve social conditions in Sierra Leone.


date: May 31

text: May 31 – Primitive Methodism originates in an All Day of Prayer at Mow Cop, in the north midlands of England.


date: September 13

text: September 13 – Beethoven's Mass in C major, Op. 86, is premiered, commissioned by Nikolaus I, Prince Esterházy, and displeasing him.


date: October 9

text: October 9 – Prussian Reform Movement: Serfdom is abolished by the October edict.


date: November 13

text: November 13 – The Geological Society of London is founded.


date: February 10

text: February 10 – Lajos Batthyány, 1st Prime Minister of Hungary (d. 1849)


date: February 27

text: February 27 – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, American poet (d. 1882)


date: March 1

text: March 1 – Wilford Woodruff, American religious leader (d. 1898)


date: March 14

text: March 14 – Josephine of Leuchtenberg, Queen of Sweden and Norway (d. 1876)


date: May 28

text: May 28 – Louis Agassiz, Swiss-born zoologist and geologist (d. 1873)


date: June 16

text: June 16 – John Westcott, American surveyor and politician (d. 1888)


date: August 11

text: August 11 – David Rice Atchison, American politician (d. 1886)


date: August 18

text: August 18 – Charles Francis Adams Sr., American historical editor, politician and diplomat (d. 1886)


date: September 7

text: September 7 – Henry Sewell, 1st Premier of New Zealand (d. 1879)


date: September 16

text: September 16 – John Lenthall, American naval architect and shipbuilder (d. 1882)


date: October 8

text: October 8 – Harriet Taylor, English philosophical writer (d. 1858)


date: October 29

text: October 29 – Anđeo Kraljević, Herzegovinian Catholic bishop (d. 1879)


date: December 8

text: December 8 – Friedrich Traugott Kützing, German pharmacist, botanist and phycologist (d. 1893)


date: December 17

text: December 17 – John Greenleaf Whittier, American Quaker poet and abolitionist (d. 1892)


date: February 5

text: February 5 – Pasquale Paoli, Corsican patriot, military leader (b. 1725)


date: April 10

text: April 10 – Duchess Anna Amalia of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, regent of Weimar and Eisenach (b. 1739)


date: May 10

text: May 10 – Jean-Baptiste Donatien de Vimeur, comte de Rochambeau, French soldier (b. 1725)


date: May 17

text: May 17 – John Gunby, Maryland soldier in the American Revolutionary War (b. 1745)


date: July 13

text: July 13 – Henry Benedict Stuart, Italian-born cardinal, Jacobite claimant to the British throne (b. 1725)


text: July 13 – With the death of Henry Benedict Stuart, the last Stuart claimant to the throne of the United Kingdom, Jacobitism comes to an effective end.


date: July 19

text: July 19 – Uriah Tracy, American politician and congressman from Connecticut, 1793 until 1807 (b. 1755)


date: August 5

text: 5 August – Jeanne Baret French explorer, naturalist, botanist (b. 1740)


date: September 14

text: September 14 – George Townshend, 1st Marquess Townshend, British field marshal (b. 1724)


date: November 2

text: November 2 – Louis Auguste Le Tonnelier de Breteuil, Prime Minister of King Louis XVI of France (b. 1730)


date: November 5

text: November 5 – Angelica Kauffman, Swiss painter (b. 1741)


date: November 26

text: November 26 – Oliver Ellsworth, American founding father and 3rd Chief Justice of the United States (b. 1745)


date: December 19

text: December 19 – Friedrich Melchior, Baron von Grimm, German writer (b. 1723)


date: December 21

text: December 21 – John Newton, English cleric, hymnist (b. 1725)


date: January 1

text: January 1 – The importation of slaves into the United States is formally banned, as the 1807 Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves takes effect. However Americans still continue the slave trade by transporting Africans to Cuba and Brazil.


text: January 1 – Sierra Leone becomes a British Crown Colony.


date: January 22

text: January 22 – Transfer of the Portuguese court to Brazil: John (Dom João), Prince Regent, and the Braganza royal family of Portugal arrive in their colony of Brazil in exile from the French occupation of their home kingdom.


date: February 21

text: February 21 – Russia issues an ultimatum to Sweden, to join Napoleon's Continental System against the United Kingdom.


date: March 7

text: March 7 – Transfer of the Portuguese court to Brazil: The Portuguese royal court arrives in Rio de Janeiro, making it the centre of the Portuguese Empire.


date: March 19

text: March 19 – Charles IV of Spain abdicates in favor of his son, Ferdinand VII.


date: May 6

text: May 6 – Ferdinand VII is forced to abdicate as King of Spain by Napoleon. This effectively ends the Anglo-Spanish War (1796–1808) as the United Kingdom allies with Spain and Portugal against the French in the Peninsular War.


date: July 8

text: July 8 – Joseph Bonaparte approves the Bayonne Statute, a royal charter intended as the basis for his rule as King of Spain, during the Peninsular War.


date: September 27

text: September 27 – The Congress of Erfurt, between the emperors Napoleon I of France and Alexander I of Russia, begins.


date: November 8

text: November 8 – 1808 United States presidential election: James Madison defeats Charles C. Pinckney, winning 122 electoral votes to Pinckney's 47. Ten of the 17 states choose their electors by popular vote; the rest choose through state legislatures. George Clinton, who is separately elected as vice president, gets six electoral votes for president.


date: December 1

text: December 1 – Tsar Alexander I of Russia proclaims Finland a part of Russia.


date: January 26

text: January 26 – Rum Rebellion: On the 20th anniversary of the foundation of the colony of New South Wales, disgruntled military officers of the New South Wales Corps (the "Rum Corps") overthrow and imprison Governor William Bligh and seize control of the colony.


date: February 6

text: February 6 – The ship Topaz (from Boston April 5, 1807, hunting seals) "rediscovers" the Pitcairn Islands; only one HMS Bounty mutineer is still alive, John Adams, who is using the pseudonym Alexander Smith.


text: February 21 – The Finnish War begins as Russian troops cross the border into Finland without a declaration of war.


date: March 2

text: March 2 – Russian troops occupy Helsinki and threaten Sveaborg.


date: March 22

text: March 22 – English Wars (Scandinavia): Battle of Zealand Point – British ships defeat those of Denmark and Norway.


date: May 2

text: May 2 – Peninsular War: Dos de Mayo Uprising – The people of Madrid rise up against the French troops.


date: May 3

text: May 3 – The Madrid rebels who rose on May 2 are executed near the hill of Príncipe Pío (Goya paints the fight and the execution in 1814).


text: May 3 – Finnish War: The fortress of Sveaborg is lost by Sweden to Russia.


date: June 12

text: June 12 – Finnish War: A landing of Swedish troops at Ala-Lemu, near Turku, fails.


date: June 15

text: June 15–August 14 – Peninsular War: First siege of Zaragoza – Spanish resist the French.


date: June 19

text: June 19 – Finnish War: A second landing of Swedish troops at Ala-Lemu fails.


date: June 30

text: June 30 – Finnish War – Battle of Turku: The Swedish archipelago fleet defeats the Russians.


date: July 5

text: July 5 – Wooster, Ohio, established and named for General Wooster.


date: July 14

text: July 14 – Finnish War: Swedish troops under Colonel Adlercreutz force the Russians to withdraw in Lapua.


date: July 22

text: July 22 – Peninsular War: Battle of Bailén: French General Dupont surrenders to Spanish irregular forces.


date: August 10

text: August 10 – Finnish War: Swedish troops under Carl von Döbeln defeat a Russian attack in Kauhajoki.


date: August 17

text: August 17 – The Finnish War: the Battle of Alavus is fought.


text: August 17 – Peninsular War: Battle of Roliça: A British-Portuguese army under Sir Arthur Wellesley defeats an outnumbered French army under General Henri Delaborde.


date: August 21

text: August 21 – Peninsular War: Battle of Vimeiro – British-Portuguese troops under Wellesley defeat the French under General Jean-Andoche Junot.


date: September 13

text: September 13 – Finnish War – Battle of Jutas – Swedish forces under Lieutenant General Georg Carl von Döbeln beat the Russians, making von Döbeln a Swedish war hero.


date: September 29

text: September 29 – Finnish War: A truce is declared between Swedish and Russian troops in Finland.


date: November 15

text: November 15 – Mahmud II (1808–1839) succeeds Mustafa IV (1807–1808), as sultan of the Ottoman Empire.


date: November 23

text: November 23 – Peninsular War: Battle of Tudela: French forces under Marshal Jean Lannes defeat a Spanish army.


date: November 30

text: November 30 – Peninsular War: Battle of Somosierra: A French cavalry charge of the Polish Chevau-léger (some 8,000 horsemen) of the Imperial Guard under Baron Jan Kozietulski overwhelm the Spanish positions at Somosierra. The victory removes the last obstacle barring the road to Madrid.


date: March 1

text: March 1 – The slave trade is abolished by the United Kingdom in all of its colonies as the Slave Trade Act 1807 takes effect. This year, the British Royal Navy establishes the West Africa Squadron on the coast of West Africa to enforce the abolitionist Blockade of Africa.


date: November 12

text: November 12 – Four large French frigates under the command of Jacques Félix Emmanuel Hamelin, including the Venus, are sent to operate from Isle de France (Mauritius) against British trade in the Indian Ocean, triggering the Mauritius campaign of 1809–1811.


date: April 6

text: April 6 – John Jacob Astor incorporates the American Fur Company.


date: October 12

text: October 12 – Banco do Brasil, a major financial group in South America, founded in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.


text: June 30 – English chemist Humphry Davy informs the Royal Society of London of his isolation and discovery of two elements by electrolysis. From lime, he has produced calcium and established that lime is calcium oxide; by heating boric acid and potassium in a copper tube, he creates a substance he calls boracium, which is eventually called boron. This year he also isolates magnesium and strontium.


date: December 9

text: December 9 – At 20:34 UTC, Mercury occults Saturn (there are no observation records).


text: The Rijksmuseum moves from The Hague to Amsterdam, where it is located temporarily at the Royal Palace.

source_section: Events › Date unknown


date: February 11

text: February 11 – In Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, Jesse Fell becomes the first known person to burn anthracite coal as residential heating fuel.


date: December 20

text: December 20 – The original Covent Garden Theatre in London is destroyed by a fire, along with most of the scenery, costumes and scripts.


section: Climate & Environment

text: A volcano erupts from an unknown location in the western Pacific. This causes a localized drop in marine air temperatures during this year and a worldwide drop in marine air temperature for the following decade.


date: March 2

text: March 2 – The inaugural meeting of the Wernerian Natural History Society, a Scottish learned society, is held in Edinburgh (preliminary meeting January 12).


date: December 22

text: December 22 – Beethoven concert of 22 December 1808: Ludwig van Beethoven conducts and plays piano in a marathon benefit concert, at the Theater an der Wien in Vienna, consisting entirely of first public performances of works by him, including Symphony No. 5, Symphony No. 6, Piano Concerto No. 4 and Choral Fantasy.


text: Goethe's Faust, Part One (Faust. Eine Tragödie, erster Teil) is published in full in Tübingen.


text: Prussian philosopher Johann Gottlieb Fichte publishes his Addresses to the German Nation, having delivered them over the winter at the Prussian Academy of Sciences in Berlin before crowded audiences.


text: The Academy of Fine Arts, Munich is given the title of Royal Academy of Fine Arts by King Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria.


date: January 13

text: January 13 – Salmon P. Chase, American politician, Chief Justice of the United States (d. 1873)


date: February 26

text: February 26 – Honoré Daumier, French painter, illustrator and sculptor (d. 1879)


date: March 22

text: March 22 – Caroline Norton, née Sheridan, English social reformer and author (d. 1877)


date: March 24

text: March 24 – Maria Malibran, née García, Spanish-French operatic singer (d. 1836)


date: April 13

text: April 13 – Antonio Meucci, Italian-born inventor (d. 1889)


date: May 6

text: May 6 – William Strong, American politician, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (d. 1895)


date: May 9

text: May 9 – John Scott Russell, Scottish civil engineer (d. 1882)


date: June 3

text: June 3 – Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederate States (d. 1889)


date: June 13

text: June 13 – Patrice de MacMahon, Duke of Magenta, French general and politician, first president of the Third Republic (1875–1879) (d. 1893)


date: June 16

text: June 16 – James Frederick Ferrier, Scottish metaphysical writer and philosopher (d. 1864)


date: June 20

text: June 20 – Samson Raphael Hirsch, German rabbi (d. 1888)


date: July 9

text: July 9 – Alexander William Doniphan, American lawyer, military leader (d. 1887)


date: November 1

text: November 1 – John Taylor, American Mormon leader (d. 1887)


date: December 29

text: December 29 – Andrew Johnson, 17th President of the United States (d. 1875)


date: January 4

text: January 4 – Prince Benedetto, Duke of Chablais, Italian general in the French Revolution (b. 1741)


date: January 5

text: January 5 – Alexei Grigoryevich Orlov, Russian soldier and statesman (b. 1737)


date: January 8

text: January 8 – William Linn, American President of Queen's College) (b. 1752)


date: February 12

text: February 12 – Anna Maria Bennett, English novelist (d. 1750)


date: February 14

text: February 14 – John Dickinson, American lawyer, governor of Delaware and Pennsylvania (b. 1732)


date: March 13

text: March 13 – King Christian VII of Denmark (b. 1749)


text: March 13 – Upon the death of Christian VII, Frederick VI becomes king of Denmark. The next day (March 14), Denmark declares war on Sweden.


date: May 18

text: May 18 – Elijah Craig, American minister, inventor (b. 1738)


date: September 5

text: September 5 – John Home, Scottish writer (b. 1722)


date: September 13

text: September 13 – Saverio Bettinelli, Italian writer (b. 1718)


date: September 17

text: September 17 – Benjamin Bourne, American politician (b. 1755)


date: November 3

text: November 3 – Theophilus Lindsey, English theologian (b. 1723)


date: November 10

text: November 10 – Guy Carleton, 1st Baron Dorchester, British soldier, governor of Quebec (b. 1724)


date: November 17

text: November 17 – David Zeisberger, Moravian missionary (b. 1721)


text: January 5 – The Treaty of the Dardanelles, between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the Ottoman Empire, is concluded.


date: January 14

text: January 14 – The Apodaca–Canning treaty is signed in London between Britain and Spain


date: February 3

text: February 3 – The Illinois Territory is created from the western part of the Indiana Territory.


date: February 20

text: February 20 – United States v. Peters: The Supreme Court of the United States rules that the power of the federal government is greater than any individual state.


date: March 29

text: March 29 – At the Diet of Porvoo, Finland's four Estates pledge allegiance to Alexander I of Russia, commencing the secession of the future Grand Duchy of Finland from Sweden. The Emperor, in return, promises to retain and uphold former laws and privileges, as well as the dominant Lutheran religion. His pledge is later interpreted by the Finns as a confirmation of constitutional laws, which had, effectively, established Finland as a separate state in real union with Russia.


text: March 29 – King Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden abdicates after the Coup of 1809 and is later exiled.


date: May 5

text: May 5 – The Swiss canton of Aargau declares Jews citizens.


date: May 10

text: May 10 – Gustav IV Adolf is officially deposed from the Swedish throne, by the Riksdag of the Estates.


date: June 6

text: June 6 – Sweden promulgates a new Instrument of Government, which restores political power to the Riksdag of the Estates, after authoritarian rule since 1772. On the same day, Duke Charles (uncle of the deposed king Gustav IV Adolf) is elected King, under the name Charles XIII. In November he is affected by a heart attack and will be largely incapacitated for the remainder of his reign (until 1818).


date: June 7

text: June 7 – Shoja Shah of the Durrani Empire signs a treaty with the British; only weeks later, he is succeeded by Mahmud Shah.


date: June 26

text: June 26 – Danish adventurer Jørgen Jørgensen deposes Count Frederich Trampe as governor of Iceland in the Revolution of 1809 and declares himself "Protector of Iceland".


date: July 16

text: July 16 – The city of La Paz (in modern-day Bolivia) declares its independence from the Spanish Crown and forms the Junta Tuitiva, the first independent government in Spanish America, led by Pedro Domingo Murillo.


date: August 10

text: August 10 – Ecuador declares independence from Spain.


text: September 17 – Finnish War: The Peace of Hamina is signed between Russia and Sweden. The future Grand Duchy of Finland is ceded to Russia by the Treaty of Fredrikshamn.


date: October 8

text: October 8 – Prince Klemens von Metternich becomes foreign minister of the Austrian Empire.


date: October 14

text: October 14 – The Treaty of Schönbrunn cedes the Illyrian Provinces to France, and ensures peace between The First French Empire, and The Austrian Empire.


text: British recruits to the British East India Company (and subsequently to the Indian Civil Service) are required to learn at least one Indian language fluently.


date: January 10

text: January 10 – Peninsular War – French Marshal Jean Lannes begins the Siege of Zaragoza.


date: January 16

text: January 16 – Peninsular War – Battle of Corunna in Galicia (Spain): The British (under General Sir John Moore, who is killed) resist an attempt by the French (under Marshal Soult) to prevent them from embarking.


date: February 25

text: February 25 – Battle of Valls: Spanish forces are defeated in Catalonia by Marshal Laurent de Gouvion Saint-Cyr.


date: March 13

text: March 13 – A military coup ousts Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden; he is confined in Gripsholm Castle.


date: March 28

text: March 28 – Battle of Medellín at Extremadura: Massive casualties are suffered, in a rout by French cavalry, under Marshal Victor.


text: March 29 – Peninsular War – First Battle of Porto: 8,000 Portuguese soldiers are killed in a rout after defeat by the French under Marshal Soult. In the Porto Boat Bridge disaster, 4,000 fleeing civilians drown when a pontoon bridge collapses.


date: April 9

text: April 9 – Tiroleans rise, under the command of Andreas Hofer, against French and Bavarian occupation.


date: April 10

text: April 10 – Napoleonic Wars – The War of the Fifth Coalition begins when forces of the Austrian Empire invade Bavaria.


date: April 11

text: April 11–15 – Napoleonic Wars – Battle of the Basque Roads: The British Royal Navy defeats the French fleet in the mouth of the Charente, although officers on both sides face subsequent courts-martial.


date: April 20

text: April 20 – Battle of Abensberg, Bavaria: Napoleon defeats Austria.


date: April 23

text: April 23 – Battle of Ratisbon: Napoleon I fights his last battle during the Bavarian phase of the War of the Fifth Coalition


date: May 3

text: May 3 – Battle of Ebelsberg: André Masséna defeats Austrian General Johann von Hiller, forcing him to retreat.


date: May 10

text: May 10–11 – Peninsular War – Battle of Grijó: the Anglo-Portuguese Army, commanded by Sir Arthur Wellesley, defeats the French army, commanded by Marshal Soult, in Portugal.


date: May 12

text: May 12 – Peninsular War – Second Battle of Porto: The Anglo-Portuguese Army, commanded by Wellesley, drives the French army, commanded by Marshal Soult, out of Porto, and forces them to retreat from the country.


date: May 22

text: May 22 – Battle of Aspern-Essling: Austrian troops under Archduke Karl beat the French under Napoleon, in a hard-fought battle.


date: June 14

text: June 14 – A French victory, in the battle of Raab, prevents archduke John of Austria from bringing any significant force to the Battle of Wagram.


date: July 5

text: July 5 – Battle of Wagram begins.


date: July 6

text: July 6 – Napoleon defeats the Austrians at the Battle of Wagram.


date: July 8

text: July 8–9 – Finnish War – Naval Battle of Porkala: The Swedish archipelago fleet defeats the Russians.


date: July 28

text: July 28 – Peninsula War – Battle of Talavera: Sir Arthur Wellesley's British, Portuguese and Spanish army defeats a French force.


date: July 30

text: July 30 – Walcheren Campaign: A British invasion army lands on Walcheren.


date: September 21

text: September 21 – British Secretary of War Lord Castlereagh and Foreign Secretary George Canning meet in a duel on Putney Heath, with Castlereagh wounding Canning in the thigh.


date: November 18

text: November 18 – Napoleonic Wars: Action of 18 November 1809 – In the Bay of Bengal, a French frigate squadron captures three British East Indiamen mainly carrying recruits for the presidency armies in India.


date: December

text: December – Boyd massacre: Whangaroa Māori people kill and eat 66 crew and passengers of the brigantine Boyd in New Zealand.


date: May 31

text: May 31 – Mauritius campaign of 1809–11 – Action of 31 May 1809 in the Bay of Bengal: The French frigate Caroline, operating from Isle de France (Mauritius), captures most of a British East India Company fleet


date: August 8

text: August 8 – Seventy disciples of Vilna Gaon arrive in Palestine.


date: August

text: August – The ("Old Ironsides") is recommissioned as the flagship of the North Atlantic Squadron.


text: Arorae an atoll of the Gilbert Islands was sighted by Captain John Patterson, on British brig Elizabeth.


date: May 17

text: May 17 – Napoleon I of France orders the annexation of the Papal States to the French Empire. When he announces that the Pope's secular power has ended, the Pope excommunicates him.


text: July 6 – French troops arrest Pope Pius VII, and take him to Liguria.


date: March 1

text: March 1 – The Embargo Act of 1807 is repealed in the United States; the Non-Intercourse Act replaces it.


date: February 11

text: February 11 – Robert Fulton patents the steamboat in the United States.


date: May 5

text: May 5 – Mary Kies is the first American woman to be awarded a patent (for a technique of weaving straw hats with silk and thread).


date: November 21

text: November 21 – First stone laid of first 'guided bus' passenger wagonway Gloucester and Cheltenham Tramroad.


text: Louis Poinsot describes the two remaining Kepler–Poinsot polyhedra.


text: Jean-Baptiste Lamarck publishes Philosophie Zoologique, outlining a (wrong) concept of evolution, by acquisition or loss of inherited characteristics, through use or disuse.


date: December 25

section: Health & Medicine

text: December 25 – American physician Ephraim McDowell performs the first ovariotomy, removing a 22-pound tumor.


date: December 30

text: December 30 – Wearing masks at balls is forbidden in Boston, Massachusetts.


text: William Combe begins publication of the verse Tour of Dr. Syntax in search of the Picturesque in Ackermann's Political Magazine (London), illustrated with cartoons by Thomas Rowlandson, depicting comic and ridiculous scenes involving a hapless country physician, and coming to represent British Regency humour.


date: November 25

text: November 25 – Benjamin Bathurst, a British diplomat, mysteriously disappears (possibly murdered) in Perleberg, west of Berlin.


date: February 17

text: February 17 – Miami University (Ohio) is established (by Act of February 2) on the township of land required to be set aside for it, under the conditions of the Miami Purchase in 1794.


date: April 18

text: April 18 – The 2,000 Guineas Stakes horse race is first run in England.


date: September 18

text: September 18 – A new theatre for the Royal Opera House opens in London to replace the first, burnt down in a fire in 1808. The price increases lead to the Old Price Riots, which last for 64 days.


date: October 25

text: October 25 – The Golden Jubilee of George III is celebrated in commemoration of the forty-ninth anniversary of the accession of King George III and his entrance into the 50th year of his reign.


date: January 4

text: January 4 – Louis Braille, French teacher, inventor of braille (d. 1852)


date: January 15

text: January 15 – Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, French anarchist (d. 1864)


text: January 15 – Cornelia Connelly, American founder of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus (d. 1879)


date: February 24

text: February 24 – Edwin Freiherr von Manteuffel, Prussian field marshal (d. 1885)


date: March 15

text: March 15 – Joseph Jenkins Roberts, 2-time President of Liberia (d. 1876)


date: April 1

text: April 1 – Nikolai Gogol, Russian writer (d. 1852)


date: June 4

text: June 4 – Columbus Delano, American statesman (d. 1896)


date: June 27

text: June 27 – François Certain de Canrobert, French general, Marshal of France (d. 1895)


date: August 29

text: August 29 – Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr., American physician, writer (d. 1894)


date: November 4

text: November 4 – Benjamin Robbins Curtis, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (d. 1874)


date: November 20

text: November 20 – Gustav Koerner, German-born revolutionary, journalist, lawyer, politician, statesman of Illinois and Germany, Colonel of the U.S. Army (d. 1896)


date: November 27

text: November 27 – Fanny Kemble, British-born American actress, writer (d. 1893)


date: December 24

text: December 24 – Kit Carson, American frontiersman (d. 1868)


date: December 29

text: December 29 – George Washington Baines, American politician, journalist and educator (d. 1882)


date: February 25

text: February 25 – John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore (Lord Dunmore)(b. 1730)


date: March 20

text: March 20 – Mary Bateman, English woman executed for murder, known as the Yorkshire Witch


date: March 25

text: March 25 – Anna Seward, English writer (b. 1747)


date: May 13

text: May 13 – Beilby Porteus, English bishop, abolitionist (b. 1731)


date: May 31

text: May 31 – The famous composer Joseph Haydn dies in Vienna at age 77 following Napoleon's second siege of Vienna


date: June 21

text: June 21 – Daniel Lambert, English jail keeper and animal breeder, famous for his unusually large size (b. 1770)


date: July 6

text: July 6 – Antoine Charles Louis de Lasalle, French cavalry general (killed in battle) (b. 1775)


date: August 18

text: August 18 – Matthew Boulton, English manufacturer, engineer (b. 1728)


date: September 7

text: September 7 – Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke (Rama I), King of Siam, founder of the Chakri dynasty of Thailand (b. 1737)


date: October 11

text: October 11 – Meriwether Lewis, American explorer (suicide) (b. 1774)


text: October 11 – Along the Natchez Trace in Tennessee, explorer Meriwether Lewis dies under mysterious circumstances at an inn called Grinder's Stand.


date: October 30

text: October 30 – William Cavendish-Bentinck, 3rd Duke of Portland, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1738)


date: November 28

text: November 28 – Jakob Heinrich Laspeyres, German lepidopterist (b. 1769)


date: December 16

text: December 16 – Antoine François, comte de Fourcroy, French chemist (b. 1755)


text: Imperator Lucius Aurelius Commodus and Lucius Antistius Burrus become Roman Consuls.

source_section: Events › By place › Roman Empire


date: June

text: June: Liang Long is captured and beheaded, and his rebellion is suppressed by general Zhu Juan.

source_section: Events › By place › Asia


text: Nanhai inspector Kong Zhi led thousands of residents to join Liang Long's rebellion against the Han dynasty.


text: The Antonine Wall is overrun by the Picts in Britannia (approximate date).


text: The volcano associated with Lake Taupō in New Zealand erupts, one of the largest on Earth in the last 5,000 years. The effects of this eruption are seen as far away as Rome and China.

source_section: Events › By place › Oceania


date: April 2

text: April 2 – Xian of Han, Chinese emperor (d. 234)

source_section: Births


text: Zhuge Liang, Chinese chancellor and regent (d. 234)


text: Aelius Aristides, Greek orator and writer (b. 117)

source_section: Deaths


text: Cao Jie, Chinese court eunuch and official


date: January 1

text: January 1 – Major-General Lachlan Macquarie officially becomes Governor of New South Wales.


date: February 17

text: February 17 – Napoleon I decrees that Rome would become the second capital of the French Empire.


date: April 19

text: April 19 – Venezuela achieves home rule: Vicente Emparán, Governor of the Captaincy General of Venezuela, is removed by the people of Caracas, and Supreme Junta is installed. Venezuela is the first South American state to proclaim independence from Spain.


date: April

text: April – Kaumualii receives an assurance of the continued independence of the Kingdom of Hawaii.


date: June 7

text: June 7 – Argentina's new junta publishes the country's first newspaper, the Gazeta de Buenos-Ayres, edited by Mariano Moreno.


date: July 9

text: July 9 – Russia acquires Sukhumi through a treaty with the Abkhazian dukes, and declares a protectorate over the whole of Abkhazia.


date: July 20

text: July 20 – First Republic of New Granada: Patria Boba: A junta of seven patriots, led by José Acevedo y Gómez, assemble in Bogotá in the Viceroyalty of New Granada (modern-day Colombia), to declare its independence from the Spanish Empire, the first South American nation to break away from Spain as the third oldest independent republic state after Haiti.


date: August 6

text: August 6 – The city of Santa Cruz de Mompox, in modern-day Colombia, declares independence from the Spanish Empire.


date: September 18

text: September 18 – Chile forms its First National Junta, which is the country's first step towards its independence.


date: September 23

text: September 23 – The Republic of West Florida declares independence from Spain.


date: September 26

text: September 26 – A new Act of Succession is adopted by the Riksdag of the Estates, and Jean Baptiste Bernadotte becomes heir to the Swedish throne.


date: October 27

text: October 27 – The United States annexes the Republic of West Florida.


date: November 2

text: November 2 – A peace treaty in Haiti confirms its division between the northern State of Haiti, ruled autocratically by the gen de couleur Henri Christophe, and the southern Republic, ruled by mulatto Alexandre Pétion.


date: February 13

text: February 13 – After seizing Jaén, Córdoba, Seville and Granada, Napoleonic troops enter Málaga under the command of General Horace Sebastiani.


date: February 20

text: February 20 – Tyrolean rebel leader Andreas Hofer is executed.


date: May 1

text: May 1 – Macon's Bill Number 2 becomes law in the United States, intending to motivate Britain and France to stop seizing American vessels during the Napoleonic Wars.


text: July 9 – Napoleon I dissolves the Kingdom of Holland, ruled by his younger brother Louis Bonaparte, and annexes the country into the French Empire.


date: July 10

text: July 10 - Peninsular War: Siege of Ciudad Rodrigo: French forces (28,000 men) under Marshal André Masséna take the fortified city of Ciudad Rodrigo on route into Portugal.


date: July 24

text: July 24 – Paraguay governor Bernardo de Velasco and the Cabildo of Asunción declare their loyalty to Ferdinand VII of Spain and break up their relationship with Buenos Aires.


date: August 2

text: August 2 – In Quito, Ecuador, 200 citizens are slaughtered in the Royal barracks and the surrounding streets by royalist troops.


date: August 20

text: August 20–27 – Battle of Grand Port: The French defeat a Royal Navy frigate squadron attempting to blockade a harbour on Isle de France (Mauritius).


date: August 27

text: August 27 – Peninsular War: Siege of Almeida: French forces under André Masséna capture the fortified city of Almeida before the advance toward Lisbon.


date: September 16

text: September 16 – Grito de Dolores: Miguel Hidalgo, a Catholic priest from Guanajuato, incites the revolt that becomes the Mexican War of Independence.


date: September 22

text: September 22 – Manuel Belgrano prepares his invasion to the Provincia del Paraguay.


date: September 27

text: September 27 - Peninsular War: Battle of Bussaco: Anglo-Portuguese forces under General Arthur Wellington repel several attacks of the French invasion force (65,000 men) under André Masséna at Bussaco. Wellington is forced to withdraw to the Lines of Torres Vedras after Masséna's troops outflank his positions. The French lose 522 dead and 3,612 wounded. The allied losses are 200 dead and 1,001 wounded.


date: November 17

text: November 17 – Anglo-Swedish War (1810–12): Sweden declares war on the United Kingdom.


date: November 29

text: November 29–December 3 – Invasion of Isle de France: British forces force the French to surrender Isle de France (Mauritius).


date: December 20

text: December 20 – Manuel Belgrano crosses the Paraná River to Itapúa Department, starting his invasion of Paraguay.


text: Ching Shih and Cheung Po Tsai surrender their pirate fleet to the Chinese government.


text: Amadou Lobbo initiates his jihad, in present-day Mali.


date: January 4

text: January 4 – Australian seal hunter Frederick Hasselborough discovers Campbell Island, in the Subantarctic.


date: May 3

text: May 3 – Lord Byron swims across the Hellespont in Turkey.


date: July 11

text: July 11 – Frederick Hasselborough discovers Macquarie Island, in the subantarctic.


date: September 8

text: September 8 – The Tonquin sets sail from New York Harbor, with 33 employees of John Jacob Astor's newly created Pacific Fur Company on board. After a six-month journey around the tip of South America, the ship arrives at the mouth of the Columbia River, and Astor's men establish the fur-trading town of Astoria.


date: June 23

text: June 23 – John Jacob Astor forms the Pacific Fur Company.


date: May 10

text: May 10 – Rev. Henry Duncan opens the world's first commercial savings bank, in Ruthwell, Scotland.


date: June

text: June – Nicolas Appert publishes L'art de conserver pendant plusieurs années toutes les substances animales ou végétales, the first description of modern food preservation using airtight containers.


date: October

text: October – King George III of the United Kingdom is deemed permanently insane.


text: 4,500 chests of opium are sold in China.


date: December 22

text: December 22 – British ship of the line is wrecked on Texel in the West Frisian Islands with the loss of 500 lives.


date: December 27

text: December 27 – Chartered British East Indiaman Elizabeth is wrecked off Dunkirk with the loss of more than 360 lives, many of them lascar seamen.


date: January 12

text: January 12 – The marriage of Napoleon I and Joséphine is annulled.


date: March 11

text: March 11 – Napoleon I marries Marie-Louise of Austria by proxy in Vienna.


date: April 2

text: April 2 – Emperor Napoleon I of France marries Marie-Louise of Austria in person in Paris.


date: April 27

text: April 27 – Beethoven composes his famous piano piece, Für Elise.


date: May 16

text: May 16 – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe publishes his book Zur Farbenlehre (Theory of Colours).


date: May 18

text: May 18–25 – May Revolution: Armed citizens of Buenos Aires expel the Viceroy and establish a provincial government for Argentina (the Primera Junta). Baltasar Hidalgo de Cisneros is removed.


date: August 21

text: August 21 – Jean Baptiste Bernadotte, Marshal of France, is elected Crown Prince of Sweden, by the Swedish Riksdag of the Estates.


date: October 12

text: October 12 – First Oktoberfest: Bavarian royalty invites the citizens of Munich to join the celebration of the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria, to Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen.


date: January 3

text: January 3 – Antoine Thomson d'Abbadie, Irish-French geographer (d. 1897)


date: March 1

text: March 1 – Frédéric Chopin, Polish composer, pianist (d. 1849)


date: March 28

text: March 28 – Alexandre Herculano, Portuguese writer and historian (d. 1877)


date: May 23

text: May 23 – Margaret Fuller, American journalist, literary critic and feminist (d. 1850)


date: May 24

text: May 24 – Abraham Geiger, German rabbi, founder of European Reform Judaism (d. 1874)


date: May 31

text: May 31 – Horatio Seymour, 18th Governor of New York, 1868 Democratic Party Presidential Nominee (d. 1886)


date: June 8

text: June 8 – Robert Schumann, German composer and pianist (d. 1856)


date: June 14

text: June 14 – Ward Hunt, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (d. 1886)


date: July 20

text: July 20 – Leonhard Graf von Blumenthal, Prussian field marshal (d. 1900)


date: August 24

text: August 24 – Theodore Parker, American preacher, Transcendentalist, and abolitionist (d. 1860)


date: August 29

text: August 29 – Juan Bautista Alberdi, Argentinian politician, writer and Constitution main promoter (d. 1884)


date: September 29

text: September 29 – Elizabeth Gaskell, British novelist (d. 1865)


date: November 26

text: November 26 – William Armstrong, 1st Baron Armstrong, English engineer, inventor of the Hydraulic accumulator (d. 1900)


date: December 4

text: December 4 – Barbara Bronisława Czarnowska, Polish noblewoman, independence fighter and soldier (d. 1891)


date: January 15

text: January 15 – Yekaterina Romanovna Vorontsova-Dashkova, Russian princess, courtier and patron of the arts and sciences, first woman to head a scientific academy (b. 1743)


date: January 20

text: January 20 – Benjamin Chew, Chief Justice of colonial Pennsylvania (b. 1722)


date: February 20

text: February 20 – Andreas Hofer, Tyrolean national hero (executed) (b. 1767)


date: February 22

text: February 22 – Charles Brockden Brown, American novelist (b. 1771; tuberculosis)


date: March 7

text: March 7 – Cuthbert Collingwood, 1st Baron Collingwood, British admiral (b. 1750)


date: May 9

text: May 9 – Benjamin Lincoln, major general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War (b. 1733)


date: May 21

text: May 21 – Chevalier d'Eon, French-born diplomat, spy, soldier and transvestite (b. 1728)


date: July 6

text: July 6 – Andrianampoinimerina, ruler of Madagascar (b. 1745)


date: July 19

text: July 19 – Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Queen of Prussia (b. 1776)


date: August 26

text: August 26 – Santiago de Liniers, 1st Count of Buenos Aires, French officer in Spanish colonial military service (executed) (b. 1753)


date: September 13

text: September 13 – William Cushing, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (b. 1732)


date: September 17

text: September 17 – Ulla von Höpken, Swedish courtier, influential socialite (b. 1749)


date: November 2

text: November 2 – Princess Amelia of the United Kingdom, Member of the British Royal Family (b. 1783)


date: December 14

text: December 14 – Cyrus Griffin, last President of the Continental Congress (b. 1749)


date: March 28

text: March 28 – Henri Christophe is proclaimed King Henri I, turning the northern State of Haiti into the Kingdom of Haiti.


date: May 14

text: May 14 – Paraguay declares independence from the Spanish Empire (recognised May 15).


date: July 5

text: July 5 – Venezuela declares its Independence from the Spanish Empire.


date: October 17

text: October 17 – The silver deposits of Agua Amarga in Chile are discovered becoming, in the following years, instrumental for the Patriots to finance the Chilean War of Independence.


date: October 26

text: October 26 – The Argentine Government declares freedom of expression for the press.


date: November 17

text: November 17 – José Miguel Carrera, Chilean founding father, is sworn in as President of the executive Junta of the government of Chile.


date: December 21

text: December 21 – The first Constitution of the Republic of Venezuela, after it declares its independence from Spain, goes into effect.


date: January 8

text: January 8 – An unsuccessful slave revolt is led by Charles Deslondes, in St. Charles and St. James Parishes, Louisiana.


date: January 17

text: January 17 – Mexican War of Independence – Battle of Calderón Bridge: A heavily outnumbered Spanish force of 6,000 troops defeats nearly 100,000 Mexican revolutionaries.


date: January 22

text: January 22 – The Casas Revolt begins in San Antonio, Spanish Texas.


date: January 26

text: January 26 – First Siege of Badajoz: French troops (17,000 men) under Marshal Jean-de-Dieu Soult begin the siege at the fortress of Badajoz.


date: February 5

text: February 5 – British Regency: George, Prince of Wales becomes prince regent, because of the perceived insanity of his father, King George III of the United Kingdom.


date: February 19

text: February 19 – Peninsular War – Battle of the Gebora: An outnumbered French force under Édouard Mortier routs and nearly destroys the Spanish, near Badajoz, Spain.


date: March 1

text: March 1 – Citadel Massacre in Cairo: Egyptian ruler Muhammad Ali kills the last Mamluk leaders.


date: March 5

text: March 5 – Peninsular War – Battle of Barrosa: A French attack fails, on a larger Anglo-Portuguese-Spanish force attempting to lift the Siege of Cádiz in Spain.


date: March 13

text: March 13 – Battle of Lissa: The British fleet defeats the French.


date: March 27

text: March 27 – Battle of Anholt: The British Navy defeats Denmark.


date: April 5

text: April 5–6 – Revolutionary riots occur in Buenos Aires.


date: May 3

text: May 3–5 – Peninsular War – Battle of Fuentes de Oñoro: An Anglo-Portuguese Army under General Arthur Wellington defeats the French forces under Marshal André Masséna.


date: May 16

text: May 16 – Peninsular War – Battle of Albuera: Spain, Portugal, and Great Britain defeat the French.


date: May 18

text: May 18 – Battle of Las Piedras near Las Piedras, Banda Oriental: The independentists of Uruguay gain their first victory.


date: June 15

text: June 15 – The Klågerup riots erupt in Sweden.


date: July 30

text: July 30 – Mexican War of Independence: Priest and military leader Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla is executed as a rebel, by the Spanish government of New Spain.


date: November 4

text: November 4 – Luddite uprisings, in which workers destroy industrial machines, begin in northern England and the Midlands. According to one historian, "The first attack on textile machines by men who used the name 'General Ludd' and called themselves his followers, was on the night of 4th November 1811 in the village of Bulwell, four miles north of Nottingham, when a small band of men gathered in the darkness and marched to the home of a master weaver called Hollingsworth," then destroyed six of his weaving machines.


date: November 7

text: November 7 – Battle of Tippecanoe: American troops led by William Henry Harrison defeat the Native American spiritual leader Tenskwatawa, also known as The Prophet (Chief Tecumseh's brother).


date: July 9

text: July 9 – British explorer David Thompson posts a notice at the confluence of the Columbia and Snake Rivers (in modern-day Washington), claiming the area for the United Kingdom.


date: July 14

text: July 14 – David Thompson reaches the mouth of the Columbia River, finding Fort Astoria under construction.


date: December 2

text: December 2 – Reverend Samuel Marsden sends the first commercial shipment of wool from New South Wales to England.


text: The Red River Colony is founded in Manitoba, Canada.


date: July 11

text: July 11 – The Russian Empire removes Anton II, Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia, from his office, placing a Russian-appointed bishop at the head of the Georgian church.


date: March 22

text: March 22 – The Commissioners' Plan for Manhattan is presented.


date: October 11

text: October 11 – Inventor John Stevens' boat, the Juliana, begins operation as the first steam-powered ferry service, between New York City and Hoboken, New Jersey.


date: March 25

text: March 25 – The Great Comet of 1811 is discovered by Honoré Flaugergues.


text: Iodine was discovered by French chemist Bernard Courtois.


date: October 23

text: October 23 – José Gervasio Artigas and 16,000 orientales leave the Banda Oriental del Uruguay, to go into exile.


text: July 9 – The Great Podil fire breaks out in Kiev, Ukraine.


date: July 26

text: July 26 – Forest fires break out in the Tyrol region of Switzerland, reportedly destroying 64 villages and hamlets.


date: December 26

text: December 26 – The Richmond Theatre fire in Virginia kills 72 people, including the Governor of Virginia George William Smith and the president of the First National Bank of Virginia, Abraham B. Venable.


date: June 10

text: June 10 – A volcanic eruption briefly creates Sabrina Island (Azores).


date: December 16

text: December 16 – The New Madrid earthquake in the Mississippi Valley, near New Madrid, reverses the course of the river for a while. Other earthquakes along the fault occur on January 23, 1812 and February 7, 1812.


date: June 19

text: June 19 – The Carlton House Fête is held at the Prince Regent's London residence Carlton House to celebrate the establishment of the Regency era.


text: July 14 – Italian scientist Amedeo Avogadro publishes his memoir about the molecular content of gases.


date: August 3

text: August 3 – Jungfrau, the third highest summit in the Bernese Alps, is first ascended.


date: September

text: September – Nathan of Breslov leads the first annual Rosh Hashana kibbutz (pilgrimage) of Breslov Hasidim, to the grave of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov in Uman, Ukraine.


text: The first novel by Jane Austen, Sense and Sensibility, was published.


date: January 6

text: January 6 – Charles Sumner, American senator, civil rights activist (d. 1874)


date: February 3

text: February 3 – Horace Greeley, American journalist, editor, and publisher (d. 1872)


date: February 13

text: February 13 – François Achille Bazaine, French general (d. 1888)


date: February 15

text: February 15 – Domingo Faustino Sarmiento, Argentinian politician, writer and father of education (d. 1888)


date: May 11

text: May 11 – Chang and Eng Bunker, Siamese twins and sideshow performers (d. 1874)


date: June 14

text: June 14 – Harriet Beecher Stowe, American author, abolitionist (d. 1896)


date: June 24

text: June 24 – John Archibald Campbell, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (d. 1889)


date: July 13

text: July 13 – George Gilbert Scott, British architect (d. 1878)


date: August 11

text: August 11 – Judah P. Benjamin, Cabinet officer of the Confederate States (d. 1884)


date: September 2

text: September 2 – J.C. Jacobsen, Danish industrialist, founder of Carlsberg Group (d. 1887)


date: September 30

text: September 30 – Augusta of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, German empress (d. 1890)


date: October 24

text: October 24 – Georg August Wallin, Finnish orientalist, explorer and professor (d. 1852)


date: October 27

text: October 27 – Stevens Thomson Mason, first governor of Michigan (d. 1843)


date: December 21

text: December 21 – Archibald Campbell Tait, Archbishop of Canterbury (d. 1882)


date: February 9

text: February 9 – Nevil Maskelyne, English Astronomer Royal (b. 1732)


date: February 24

text: February 24 – James Brudenell, 5th Earl of Cardigan, English noble and politician (b. 1715)


date: February 26

text: February 26 – Mateo de Toro Zambrano, 1st Count of La Conquista, Governor of Chile (b. 1727)


date: March 12

text: March 12 – Judah Leib Ben-Ze'ev, Galician Jewish modern Hebrew philologist, lexicographer, Biblical scholar and poet (b. 1764)


date: March 14

text: March 14 – Augustus FitzRoy, 3rd Duke of Grafton, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1735)


date: May 28

text: May 28 – Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville, British minister (b. 1742)


date: June 19

text: June 19 – Samuel Chase, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (b. 1741)


date: June 26

text: June 26 – Ignacio Allende, captain of the Spanish Army in Mexico (b. 1769)


date: July 30

text: July 30 – Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, leader of the Mexican War of Independence (b. 1753)


date: August 2

text: August 2 – William Williams, Connecticut politician, signer of the United States Declaration of Independence (b. 1731)


date: August 12

text: August 12 – Sir John Acton, 6th Baronet, Prime Minister of Naples (b. 1736)


date: September 8

text: September 8 – Peter Simon Pallas, German zoologist (b. 1741)


date: September

text: September – Ulrich Jasper Seetzen, German explorer (b. 1767)


date: November 21

text: November 21 – Heinrich von Kleist, German writer (suicide) (b. 1777)


date: January 1

text: January 1 – The Allgemeines bürgerliches Gesetzbuch (the Austrian civil code) enters into force in the Austrian Empire.


text: February 24 – Prussia and France sign the Treaty of Paris, a military alliance.


date: February 27

text: February 27 – Argentine War of Independence: Manuel Belgrano raises the Flag of Argentina (which he designed) in the city of Rosario, for the first time.


text: February 27 – English poet Lord Byron gives his first address as a member of the British House of Lords, in defense of Luddite violence against industrialism, in his home county of Nottinghamshire.


text: March 14 – France and Austria sign the Treaty of Paris.


date: March 19

text: March 19 – The Cortes of Cádiz creates the first modern Spanish constitution.


date: March 26

text: March 26 – In the United States, the Boston Gazette prints a political cartoon coining the term Gerrymander, after former Massachusetts Governor Elbridge Gerry's approval (on February 11) of legislation creating oddly shaped electoral districts, designed to help incumbents win re-election.


date: April 30

text: April 30 – Louisiana is admitted as the 18th U.S. state.


date: May 16

text: May 16 – Russian field marshal Mikhail Kutuzov signs the Treaty of Bucharest, ending the Russo-Turkish War (1806–12) and annexing Bessarabia to Imperial Russia.


date: June 4

text: June 4 – Following Louisiana's admittance as a U.S. state, the territory previously known by that name is renamed the Missouri Territory.


date: October 12

text: October 12 – The capital of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania is permanently moved from Lancaster to Harrisburg.


date: November 5

text: November 5 – 1812 United States presidential election: James Madison defeats DeWitt Clinton.


date: November 10

text: November 10 – 1812 United Kingdom general election: The Tory Party is victorious, under Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool.


date: December 30

text: December 30 – The Convention of Tauroggen is signed.


text: The Ranikot Fort is reconstructed in Sindh.


date: March 16

text: March 16–April 6 – Siege of Badajoz (Peninsular War): The Anglo-Portuguese Army, under the Earl of Wellington, besieges Badajoz, Spain and forces the surrender of the French garrison.


date: May 11

text: May 11 – Assassination of Spencer Perceval, the British Prime Minister, by John Bellingham, in the lobby of the British House of Commons in London.


date: June 18

text: June 18 – The United States declaration of war upon the United Kingdom begins the War of 1812 between the U.S., Britain and Canada.


date: June 24

text: June 24 – Napoleon's Grande Armée crosses the Neman River, and invades Russia.


date: July 12

text: July 12 – Americans invade Canada at Windsor, Ontario.


date: July 18

text: July 18 – Russia's Patriotic War – Battle of Klyastitsy: Kulnev defeats Oudinot, but sustains a mortal wound.


date: July 22

text: July 22 – Peninsular War – Battle of Salamanca: British forces led by the Earl of Wellington defeat French troops near Salamanca, Spain.


date: August 5

text: August 5 – War of 1812: Tecumseh's Indian force ambushes Thomas Van Horne's 200 Americans at Brownstone Creek, causing them to flee and retreat.


date: August 12

text: August 12 – Peninsular War: The combined English and Portuguese army under the command of Wellington enters Madrid, following the Battle of Salamanca.


date: August 15

text: August 15 – War of 1812 – Battle of Fort Dearborn: Potawatomi warriors overrun the United States fort in Illinois Territory.


date: August 16

text: August 16 – War of 1812: American General William Hull surrenders Fort Detroit, without a fight, to the British Army.


text: August 16–18 – Battle of Smolensk: The Grande Armée (180,000 men) under Emperor Napoleon I defeats the Russian army on the road to Moscow.


date: August 19

text: August 19 – War of 1812: defeats the British frigate , off the coast of Nova Scotia. The British shot is said to have bounced off Constitutions sides, earning her the nickname "Old Ironsides".


date: August 24

text: August 24 – Siege of Cádiz: Marshal Jean-de-Dieu Soult abandons the two-and-a-half-year siege at Cádiz. He withdraws eastward with his forces to join King Joseph Bonaparte and Louis-Gabriel Suchet in Valencia.


date: September 7

text: September 7 – Napoleonic Wars – French invasion of Russia – Battle of Borodino: The bloodiest battle of the Napoleonic Wars so far ends in a tactical victory for Napoleon. There are at least 70,000 casualties, with a minimum of 6,562 dead from the French Grande Armée alone.


date: September 14

text: September 14 – French invasion of Russia and Fire of Moscow: Napoleon's troops enter Moscow, which is deliberately set on fire by Muscovites, on orders of Fyodor Rostopchin. Later accounts report that France lost 40,000 troops during four days of fire between September 17 and 20, and that 20,000 Russian soldiers were killed in what would be described in 1876 as "the greatest example in history of national self-sacrifice for the destruction of an invader."


date: October 9

text: October 9 – War of 1812: American naval forces under Lieutenant Jesse Duncan Elliott capture two British warships, and .


date: October 13

text: October 13 – War of 1812 – Battle of Queenston Heights: As part of the Niagara campaign in Ontario, Canada, United States forces under General Stephen Van Rensselaer are repulsed from invading Canada by British and native troops, led by Sir Isaac Brock (who dies during the battle).


date: October 21

text: October 21 – Siege of Burgos: British troops under Arthur Wellington are forced to abandon the siege of Burgos after a month. Meanwhile, Joseph Bonaparte makes plans to recapture Madrid. He assembles an army led by Louis-Gabriel Suchet and Jean-de-Dieu Soult to drive Wellington out of central Spain.


date: October 23

text: October 23 – Malet coup of 1812: General Claude François de Malet attempts unsuccessfully to overthrow the Napoleonic régime in Paris.


date: October 24

text: October 24 – Napoleonic Wars – Battle of Maloyaroslavets: An inconclusive encounter between the French vanguard and a Russian force leads Napoleon to decide to retreat along the same line as his advance, with disastrous results.


date: November 3

text: November 3 – Napoleonic Wars – Battle of Vyazma: The rearguard of Napoleon's retreating army is defeated.


date: November 15

text: November 15–18 – Napoleonic Wars – Battle of Krasnoi: Napoleon's retreating army is again defeated in a series of skirmishes.


date: December 14

text: December 14 – The French invasion of Russia comes to an end as the remnants of the Grande Armée are expelled from Russia.


date: July 19

text: July 19 – Beethoven and Goethe meet each other in Teplice, Bohemia.


date: April 8

text: April 8 – The capital of Finland is moved from Turku to Helsinki, when Russia's Tsar Alexander I signs an edict moving the Government Council of the Grand Duchy of Finland.


text: The Bishop James Madison Society is founded at the College of William & Mary, Williamsburg, Virginia.


date: April 4

text: April 4 – U.S. President James Madison enacts a 90-day embargo on trade with the United Kingdom.


date: June 16

text: June 16 – New York State charters the City Bank of New York (later Citibank).


text: The Woodford Reserve Bourbon whiskey distillery, established in 1780 along Glenn's Creek in Woodford County, Kentucky, passes to the control of Oscar Pepper.


date: February 12

text: February 12 – Napoleon I authorizes the usage of Mesures usuelles, the basis of the metric system.


date: March 15

text: March 15 – Luddites attack the wool-processing factory of Frank Vickerman in West Yorkshire.


date: May 25

text: May 25 – Felling mine disaster: A mine explosion at the Felling colliery near Jarrow, England, leaves 96 dead.


date: February 7

text: February 7 – The last New Madrid earthquake strikes New Madrid, Missouri, with an estimated moment magnitude of over 8.


date: March 26

text: March 26 – The 1812 Caracas earthquake destroys Caracas, capital of Venezuela.


date: December 8

text: December 8 – The M6.9–7.5 San Juan Capistrano earthquake affects Alta California with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VII (Very strong) to IX (Violent), killing 40 parishioners at Mission San Juan Capistrano.


date: February 13

text: February 13 – The first Chilean newspaper Aurora de Chile deals with political philosophy, and stands in favor of the new national government.


date: December 18

text: December 18 – The first Spanish Christmas Lottery is drawn, in Cádiz; it will be continuing more than two centuries later. The first Lotería Nacional was drawn on March 4.


date: December 20

text: December 20 – The first volume of Grimms' Fairy Tales is published in Germany.


date: February 3

text: February 3 – William Fraser Tolmie, Scottish-Canadian scientist, politician (d. 1886)


date: February 11

text: February 11 – Alexander Hamilton Stephens, Vice President of the Confederate States of America (d. 1883)


date: February 15

text: February 15 – Charles Lewis Tiffany, American jeweler, co-founder of Tiffany & Co. (d. 1902)


date: March 1

text: March 1 – Augustus Pugin, English-born architect (d. 1852)


date: March 6

text: March 6 – Aaron Lufkin Dennison, American watch manufacturer (d. 1895)


date: March 27

text: March 27 – William Robinson (Canadian architect), Canadian architect and land surveyor (died 1894)


date: April 14

text: April 14 – George Grey, Portuguese-born British colonial governor, 11th Premier of New Zealand (d. 1898)


date: April 22

text: April 22 – Solomon Caesar Malan, Genevan orientalist (d. 1894)


date: April 23

text: April 23 – Frederick Whitaker, English-New Zealand lawyer, politician, 5th Prime Minister of New Zealand (d. 1891)


date: May 12

text: May 12 – Edward Lear, English artist, nonsense poet (d. 1888)


date: June 14

text: June 14 – Fernando Wood, American politician (d. 1881)


date: July 31

text: July 31 – Amélie of Leuchtenberg, Empress consort of Brazil (d. 1873)


date: September 18

text: September 18 – Herschel Vespasian Johnson, American politician (d. 1880)


date: December 14

text: December 14 – Charles Canning, 1st Earl Canning, British Viceroy of India (d. 1862)


date: January 23

text: January 23 – Robert Craufurd, British general (mortally wounded in battle) (b. 1764)


date: February 2

text: February 2 – Isaac Titsingh, Dutch scholar, merchant-trader and ambassador (b. 1745)


text: April 14 – William Nicholas (officer), English army officer, at the Siege of Badajoz (b. 1785)


date: April 20

text: April 20 – George Clinton, 4th Vice President of the United States (b. 1739)


date: April 25

text: April 25 – Edmond Malone, Irish scholar (b. 1741)


date: May 11

text: May 11 – Spencer Perceval, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (assassinated) (b. 1762)


text: May 12 – Martha Ballard, American diarist and midwife (b. 1734 or 1735)


date: August 30

text: August 30 – George Mathews, American army officer and politician (b. 1739)


date: September 13

text: September 13 – Leonardo Bravo, Mexican general who fought in the Mexican War of Independence, father of Nicolas Bravo, executed (b. 1764)


date: September 21

text: September 21 – Emanuel Schikaneder, German dramatist, actor and singer (b. 1751)


date: September 24

text: September 24 – Pyotr Bagration, Russian general and prince of Georgian origin (b. 1765)


date: October 13

text: October 13 – Isaac Brock, British general (killed in action) (b. 1769)


date: December 15

text: December 15 – Schneur Zalman, Polish rabbi and founder of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement (b. 1745)


date: December 20

text: December 20 – Sacagawea, Shoshone guide (b. ca. 1788)


date: January 31

text: January 31 – The Assembly of the Year XIII is inaugurated in Buenos Aires.


date: February 9

text: February 9 – Prussia abolishes the canton system.


date: June 6

text: June 6 – 1813 crossing of the Blue Mountains: Gregory Blaxland, William Lawson and William Wentworth succeed in crossing the Blue Mountains (New South Wales) and return home.


date: July 21

text: July 21 – U.K. Parliament passes the Doctrine of the Trinity Act 1813, repealing legal penalties for non-trinitarian sects such as Unitarians, and codifying religious tolerance in Great Britain (the Toleration Act of 1688 did not apply to Jews, non-trinitarians, or Roman Catholics).


date: July 23

text: July 23 – Sir Thomas Maitland is appointed as the first Governor of Malta, transforming the island from a British protectorate to a de facto colony.


date: September

text: September – Robert Southey becomes Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom.


date: October 14

text: October 14 – After a ceremony in Caracas, Venezuela, the municipality gives Simón Bolívar the title of El Libertador.


date: October 24

text: October 24–November 5 – Persia and Russia sign the Treaty of Gulistan at the end of the Russo-Persian War, by which Persia loses modern-day Georgia, Dagestan and most of Azerbaijan to Russia.


date: November 21

text: November 21 – An independent government is restored in the Netherlands.


text: The Supreme Council for the Northern Jurisdiction of the United States of America is founded.


date: January 18

text: January 18–23 – War of 1812: The Battle of Frenchtown is fought in modern-day Monroe, Michigan between the United States and a British and Native American alliance.


date: February 3

text: February 3 – Argentine War of Independence: José de San Martín and his Regiment of Mounted Grenadiers gain a largely symbolic victory against a Spanish royalist army in the Battle of San Lorenzo.


date: March 17

text: March 17 – Napoleonic Wars: Prussia declares war on France, and introduces the Iron Cross military award (backdated to March 10).


date: March 29

text: March 29 – Mexican War of Independence: Battle of Rosillo Creek – The Republican Army of the North defeats the Spanish Royalist Army in modern-day Bexar County, Texas.


date: April 8

text: April 8 – War of 1812: Colonel James Ball arrives at Fort Meigs with 200 dragoons.


date: April 27

text: April 27 – War of 1812: Battle of York – United States troops raid and destroy but do not hold the capital of Upper Canada, York (modern-day Toronto).


date: May 1

text: May 1–9 – War of 1812: Fort Meigs is first besieged, by British allied forces under General Henry Proctor and Chief Tecumseh.


date: May 2

text: May 2 – Napoleonic Wars: Battle of Lützen – Napoleon wins against the German alliance.


date: June 1

text: June 1 – War of 1812: Capture of USS Chesapeake in Boston Harbor by British Royal Navy frigate .


text: June 6 – War of 1812: Battle of Stoney Creek – A British force of 700 under John Vincent defeats an American force three times its size, under William H. Winder and John Chandler.


date: July 5

text: July 5 – War of 1812: Three weeks of British raids on Fort Schlosser, Black Rock and Plattsburgh, New York begin.


date: July 13

text: July 13 – The Carabinieri, the national military police of Italy, are founded by Victor Emmanuel I as the police force of the Kingdom of Sardinia.


date: August 23

text: August 23 – Napoleonic Wars – Battle of Großbeeren: Napoleon is defeated by Prussia and Sweden.


date: August 26

text: August 26 – Napoleonic Wars – Battle of Katzbach: Napoleon's troops are defeated by Prussia and Russia.


text: August 26–27 – Napoleonic Wars – Battle of Dresden: Napoleon's troops are victorious.


date: August 30

text: August 30 – Creek War – Fort Mims massacre: A force of Creeks, belonging to the Red Sticks faction, kills hundreds of settlers in Fort Mims, Alabama.


date: September 6

text: September 6 – Napoleonic Wars – Battle of Dennewitz: The armies of Napoleon I are again defeated by Prussia and Russia.


date: September 10

text: September 10 – War of 1812 – Battle of Lake Erie: An American squadron under Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry defeats a British squadron, capturing 6 ships.


date: October 5

text: October 5 – War of 1812 – Battle of the Thames in Upper Canada: William Henry Harrison defeats the British, and native leader Tecumseh is killed in battle.


date: October 16

text: October 16–19 – Napoleonic Wars – Battle of Leipzig: Napoleon is defeated by the forces of the Sixth Coalition. More than 600,000 troops are in the field, with well over 10% killed, wounded or missing. Many of the German states forming the Confederation of the Rhine defect from Napoleon I to the Coalition, as a result of the battle.


date: October 26

text: October 26 – War of 1812 – Battle of the Chateauguay: Charles de Salaberry defeats an American invasion.


date: November 11

text: November 11 – War of 1812 – Battle of Crysler's Farm: An outnumbered British–Canadian force defeats the Americans, forcing them to give up their attempt to capture Montreal.


date: December 8

text: December 8 – Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 7, together with his Wellington's Victory, are premiered in Vienna under the composer's baton, in a benefit concert for Austrian and Bavarian soldiers wounded at the Battle of Hanau.


date: December 18

text: December 18–19 – War of 1812: British soldiers and native allies invade the United States, and are successful in the Capture of Fort Niagara, and attack Lewiston, New York.


date: February

text: February – War of 1812 in North America: General William Henry Harrison sends out an expedition to burn the British vessels at Fort Malden by going across Lake Erie via the Bass Islands in sleighs, but the ice is not hard enough, and the expedition returns.


date: May 11

text: May 11 – 1813 crossing of the Blue Mountains: Gregory Blaxland, William Lawson and William Wentworth leave on an expedition to cross the Blue Mountains of Australia.


date: March 4

text: March 4 – Cyril VI of Constantinople is elected Ecumenical Patriarch.


date: January 5

text: January 5 – The Danish state bankruptcy of 1813 occurs.


text: Probable date – George E. Clymer invents the Columbian press, used to print newspapers worldwide.


date: March 28

text: March 28 – 1813–1814 Malta plague epidemic spreads from Egypt.


text: Charles Waterton begins the process of turning his estate at Walton Hall, West Yorkshire, England into what is, in effect, the world's first nature reserve.


date: January 24

text: January 24 – The Philharmonic Society (later the Royal Philharmonic Society) is founded in London.


date: January 28

text: January 28 – Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice is published anonymously in London.


date: July 13

text: July 13 – Missionaries Adoniram Judson and his wife, Ann Hasseltine Judson, arrive in Burma.


date: September 4

text: September 4 – The name of Germany's national card game, "Scat" (modern-day Skat), appears for the first time, in the gaming records of Hans Carl Leopold von der Gabelentz.


date: October 2

text: October 2 – The Philomathean Society of the University of Pennsylvania is founded (the oldest continuously existing literary society in the United States).


text: Mathieu Orfila publishes his groundbreaking Traité des poisons, formalizing the field of toxicology.


date: January 26

text: January 26 – Juan Pablo Duarte, founder of the Dominican Republic (d. 1876)


date: February 12

text: February 12 – James Dwight Dana, American geologist, mineralogist (d. 1895)


date: March 14

text: March 14 – Joseph P. Bradley, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (d. 1892)


date: March 15

text: March 15 – John Snow, English doctor, pioneer of epidemiology (d. 1858)


date: March 21

text: March 21 – James Strang, Mormon splinter group leader (d. 1856)


date: April 23

text: April 23 – Stephen A. Douglas, American Senator from Illinois, presidential candidate (d. 1861)


date: June 8

text: June 8 – David Dixon Porter, American admiral (d. 1891)


text: June 8 – Maximilian Piotrowski, Polish painter, Kunstakademie Königsberg professor (d. 1875)


date: June 24

text: June 24 – Henry Ward Beecher, American clergyman, reformer (d. 1887)


date: August 29

text: August 29 – Henry Bergh, American founder of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (d. 1888)


date: September 17

text: September 17 – John Sedgwick, Union Army General, American Civil War (d. 1864)


date: September 24

text: September 24 – Gerardo Barrios, President of El Salvador (d. 1865)


date: November 30

text: November 30 – Charles-Valentin Alkan, French composer (d. 1888)


date: December 29

text: December 29 – Alexander Parkes, English metallurgist and inventor (d. 1890)


date: January 24

text: January 24 – George Clymer, American signer of the Declaration of Independence (b. 1739)


date: February 26

text: February 26 – Robert Livingston, American signer of the Declaration of Independence (b. 1746)


date: March 23

text: March 23 – Princess Augusta of Great Britain, elder sibling of King George III (b. 1737)


date: April 19

text: April 19 – Benjamin Rush, Founding Father of the United States (b. 1746)


date: April 28

text: April 28 – Mikhail Kutuzov, Russian field marshal (b. 1745)


date: May 1

text: May 1 – Jean-Baptiste Bessières, French marshal (killed in action) (b. 1768)


date: June 17

text: June 17 – Charles Middleton, 1st Baron Barham, English sailor, politician (b. 1726)


date: July 6

text: July 6 – Granville Sharp, English abolitionist (b. 1735)


date: August 15

text: August 15 – Abigail Amelia, First born daughter of John and Abigail Adams (b. 1765)


date: August 21

text: August 21 – Sophia Magdalena of Denmark, Queen consort of Sweden (born 1746)


date: September 2

text: September 2 – Jean Victor Marie Moreau, French general (mortally wounded in battle) (b. 1763)


date: October 5

text: October 5 – Tecumseh, Native American (Shawnee) leader (b. 1768)


date: October 19

text: October 19 – Józef Poniatowski, Polish prince, Marshal of France (friendly fire) (b. 1763)


text: November 30 – Giambattista Bodoni, Italian publisher and engraver (b. 1740)


date: January 14

text: 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_section: Events › January


date: January 31

text: January 31 – Gervasio Antonio de Posadas becomes Supreme Director of Argentina.


date: February 11

text: February 11 – Norway's independence is proclaimed, marking the ultimate end of the Kalmar Union.

source_section: Events › February


date: February

text: February – George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen, represents Britain at the Congress of Chatillon.


date: March 9

text: March 9 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Treaty of Chaumont signed by four Allied powers, deepening their alliance against France.

source_section: Events › March


date: April 11

text: 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.


date: April 12

text: April 12 – The Royal Norwegian Navy is re-established.


date: May 3

text: May 3 – Treaty of Lircay signed between Royalists and Patriots during the Chilean War of Independence.


date: May 4

text: May 4 – Ferdinand VII abolishes the Spanish Constitution of 1812, returning Spain to absolute monarchy.


date: May 17

text: May 17 – The occupation of Monaco changes from French to Austrian hands.


text: 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.


date: May 30

text: 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.


date: June 4

text: 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.


date: June 17

text: June 17 – In London, Alexander, Frederick William and George exchange their ratifications of the Peace Treaty ending the war with France.


date: June 21

text: June 21 – The secret Eight Articles of London are signed between the Great Powers, uniting the Low Countries under William I of the Netherlands.


date: July 22

text: July 22 – War of 1812 – The Treaty of Greenville is signed between the U.S. government and Native American tribes.


date: July 28

text: July 28 – The revived Ligurian Republic is dissolved.


date: August 9

text: August 9 – Creek War – The Treaty of Fort Jackson is signed, ending the Creek War.


date: August 13

text: 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.


date: November 1

text: 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.


date: December 24

text: December 24 – War of 1812: The Treaty of Ghent is signed, formally ending the war.


date: January 1

text: January 1 – War of the Sixth Coalition – The Royal Prussian Army led by Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher crosses the Rhine.


date: January 3

text: January 3 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Siege of Metz: Allied armies lay siege to the French city and fortress of Metz.


date: January 11

text: January 11 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Battle of Hoogstraten: Prussian forces under Friedrich Wilhelm Freiherr von Bülow defeat the French.


date: January 14

text: January 14 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Siege of Antwerp: Allied forces besiege French Antwerp.


date: January 29

text: January 29 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Battle of Brienne: A French army led by Napoleon is victorious against von Blücher.


date: February 1

text: February 1 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Battle of La Rothière: Blücher's Allied army defeats the French under Napoleon.


date: February 10

text: 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.


date: February 11

text: 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.


date: February 12

text: 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.


date: February 14

text: 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.


date: February 15

text: 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.


date: February 18

text: February 18 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Battle of Montereau: A French army led by Napoleon is victorious against Austrian forces.


date: February 27

text: 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.


date: March 5

text: March 5 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Battle of Berry-au-Bac: French cavalrymen led by Napoleon defeat Cossacks under Ferdinand von Wintzingerode.


date: March 27

text: March 27 – War of 1812 – Battle of Horseshoe Bend: In northern Alabama, United States forces under General Andrew Jackson defeat the Creek Indians.


date: March 28

text: 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.


date: May 6

text: May 6 – War of 1812 – Battle of Fort Oswego: British forces attack Fort Ontario at Oswego, New York.


date: May 28

text: May 28 – War of the Sixth Coalition – Barcelona is restored to Spanish Bourbon rule as the French garrison leaves the city.


date: June 20

text: 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.


date: July 13

text: July 13 – The Carabinieri (the national military police of Italy) is established by Victor Emmanuel, as the police force of the Kingdom of Sardinia.


date: August 24

text: 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.


date: September 11

text: 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.


date: November 1

text: November 1 – Francis Rawdon-Hastings, the Governor-General of India declares war on Kingdom of Nepal and Anglo-Nepalese War begins.


date: December 15

text: December 15 – War of 1812: The Hartford Convention is convened, by members of the American Federalist Party.


date: June 6

text: 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.


date: June 12

text: June 12 – The poem "She Walks in Beauty" is written by Lord Byron.


date: August 7

text: 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.


date: December 25

text: December 25 – Samuel Marsden of the Church Missionary Society preaches the first sermon in New Zealand, probably in the Māori language, at Oihi.


date: February 21

text: February 21 – The Great Stock Exchange Fraud is exposed in London.


date: March 25

text: March 25 – De Nederlandsche Bank is established.


date: July 25

text: July 25 – George Stephenson tests his first locomotive Blücher successfully in England.