Explore 404 historical events from 1780–1789.
The American Revolutionary War, also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader Amer…
American Revolutionary War: In the largest defeat of the Continental Army, Charleston, South Carolina is taken by Britis
John Adams was a Founding Father and the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before his presidency, he was a leader of the American Revolution that achieved in…
John Adams sworn in as first US Vice President (nine days before George Washington)
John Adams was a Founding Father and the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before his presidency, he was a leader of the American Revolution that achieved in…
John Adams secures Dutch recognition of the United States as an independent government
John James Audubon was a French-American artist, entrepreneur, naturalist, explorer, and ornithologist. His combined interests in painting and ornithology turned into a plan to mak…
John James Audubon, French-American ornithologist and painter (died 1851)
Jean Paul de Gua de Malves was a French mathematician who published in 1740 a work on analytical geometry in which he applied it, without the aid of differential calculus, to find …
Jean Paul de Gua de Malves, French mathematician and academic (born 1713)
Maria Amalia of Naples and Sicily was Queen of the French by marriage to Louis Philippe I, King of the French. She was the last Queen of the French.
Maria Amalia of Naples and Sicily, Queen of France (died 1866)
Johann Ludwig Uhland was a German poet, philologist, literary historian, lawyer and politician.
Ludwig Uhland, German poet, philologist, and historian (died 1862)
Rear-Admiral Sir John Franklin was a British Royal Navy officer, explorer and colonial administrator. After serving in the Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812, he led two expeditio…
John Franklin, English admiral and politician, fourth Lieutenant Governor of Van Diemen's Land (died 1847)
George Washington's reception at Trenton was a celebration hosted by the Ladies of Trenton social club on April 21, 1789, in Trenton, New Jersey, as George Washington, then preside…
George Washington's reception at Trenton is hosted by the Ladies of Trenton as he journeys to New York City for his firs
Franz Friedrich Wilhelm von Fürstenberg was a German politician and the most important statesman in the Principality of Münster in the second half of the 18th century. Fürstenberg …
Franz Friedrich Wilhelm von Fürstenberg founds the University of Münster
George Washington was a Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot forces…
George Washington arrives at Grays Ferry, Philadelphia, while en route to Manhattan for his inauguration
John Adams was a Founding Father and the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before his presidency, he was a leader of the American Revolution that achieved in…
John Adams sworn in as first US Vice President (nine days before George Washington)
George Washington's reception at Trenton was a celebration hosted by the Ladies of Trenton social club on April 21, 1789, in Trenton, New Jersey, as George Washington, then preside…
George Washington's reception at Trenton is hosted by the Ladies of Trenton as he journeys to New York City for his firs
The Mutiny on the Bounty occurred in the Pacific Ocean on 28 April 1789. Disaffected crewmen, led by acting-Lieutenant Fletcher Christian, seized control of HMS Bounty from the cap…
Mutiny on the Bounty: Lieutenant William Bligh and 18 sailors are set adrift, and the rebel crew returns to Tahiti brief
Federal Hall was the first capitol building of the United States established under the Constitution. Serving as the meeting place of the First United States Congress and the site o…
On the balcony of Federal Hall on Wall Street in New York City, George Washington takes the oath of office to become the
A legislator, or lawmaker, is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are often elected by the people, but they can be…
Deputies of the French Third Estate take the Tennis Court Oath
The federal government of the United States is the national government of the United States.
The first U.S. federal government agency, the Department of Foreign Affairs, is established (it will be later renamed…
The United States Department of War, also called the War Department, was the United States Cabinet department responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Arm…
The United States Department of War is established.
France, officially the French Republic, is a country primarily located in Western Europe. Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre …
In France, the Estates-General convenes for the first time since 1614
James Madison was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Father who served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison was popularly acclaimed as…
James Madison introduces twelve proposed amendments to the United States Constitution in Congress
The Mutiny on the Bounty occurred in the Pacific Ocean on 28 April 1789. Disaffected crewmen, led by acting-Lieutenant Fletcher Christian, seized control of HMS Bounty from the cap…
Mutiny on the Bounty: HMS Bounty mutiny survivors including Captain William Bligh and 18 others reach Timor after a near
France, officially the French Republic, is a country primarily located in Western Europe. Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre …
In France, the Third Estate declares itself the National Assembly
Versailles is a commune in the department of Yvelines, Île-de-France. It is known for the Château de Versailles and the Gardens of Versailles, the latter of which is designated a U…
In Versailles, the National Assembly reconstitutes itself as the National Constituent Assembly and begins preparations…
The First Battle of Svensksund, also known as the First Battle of Rochensalm, was a naval battle fought in the Gulf of Finland in the Baltic Sea outside the present-day city of Kot…
The first naval battle of the Svensksund began in the Gulf of Finland.
Frederick William Herschel was a German–British astronomer and composer. He frequently collaborated with his younger sister and fellow astronomer Caroline Herschel. Born in the Ele…
William Herschel discovers a new moon of Saturn: Enceladus.
The First Battle of Svensksund, also known as the First Battle of Rochensalm, was a naval battle fought in the Gulf of Finland in the Baltic Sea outside the present-day city of Kot…
The first naval battle of the Svensksund begins in the Gulf of Finland.
Sir Alexander Mackenzie was a Scottish explorer and fur trader known for accomplishing the first crossing of North America north of Mexico by a European in 1793. The Mackenzie Rive…
Alexander Mackenzie reaches the Mackenzie River delta.
Jacques Necker was a Genevan banker, financier and statesman who served as finance minister of France for Louis XVI. He was a reformer, but his innovations sometimes caused great d…
Jacques Necker is dismissed as France's Finance Minister sparking the Storming of the Bastille.
Jacques Necker was a Genevan banker, financier and statesman who served as finance minister of France for Louis XVI. He was a reformer, but his innovations sometimes caused great d…
In response to the dismissal of the French finance minister Jacques Necker, the radical journalist Camille Desmoulins…
The Storming of the Bastille, which occurred in Paris, France, on 14 July 1789, was an act of political violence by revolutionary insurgents who attempted to storm and seize contro…
Storming of the Bastille in Paris. This event escalates the widespread discontent into the French Revolution. Bastille…
The French Revolution was a period of political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the Coup of 18 Brumaire on 9 November 1799.…
French Revolution: Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, is named by acclamation Colonel General of the new…
Alexander Hamilton was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first U.S. secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795 under the presidency of…
Alexander Hamilton is appointed the first United States Secretary of the Treasury.
The United States postmaster general (PMG) is the chief executive officer of the United States Postal Service (USPS). The PMG is responsible for managing and directing the day-to-d…
The office of United States Postmaster General is established.
The United States Department of War, also called the War Department, was the United States Cabinet department responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Arm…
The United States Department of War first establishes a regular army with a strength of several hundred men.