1775

January 8

• John Baskerville English printer/type designer, dies at age 68. [1]

January 10

• Jemeljan Pugatshov Russian kosak leader/"czar Peter III", dies. [1]

January 11

• Francis Salvador becomes first Jew elected to office in America (South Carolina). [1]
• Yemelyan Pugachov Don Cossack rebel, executed by tsarist Russia. [1]

January 15

• Giovanni Battista Sammartini composer, dies. [1]

January 17

• Nine old women burnt as witches for causing bad harvests, Kalisk, Poland. [1]
• R B Sheridan's "Rivals" premieres in London. [1]

January 22

• Marshal Oscar von Lubomirski expels Jews from Warsaw Poland. [1]

January 25

• Americans drag cannon up hill to fight British (Gun Hill Road, Bronx). [1]

February 8

• Leidse University 400th anniversary dinner. [1]

February 9

• English Parliament declares Massachusetts colony is in rebellion. [1]

February 15

• Angelo Braschi chosen as Pope Pius VI. [1]

February 22

• First US joint stock company (to make cloth) offers shares at £10. [1]
• Jews expelled from outskirts of Warsaw Poland. [1]

March 6

• First Negro Mason in US initiated, Boston. [1]

March 19

• Four people buried by avalanche for 37 days, three survive (Italy). [1]
• Poland and Prussia sign trade agreement. [1]

March 22

• Edmund Burke presents his 13 articles to the English parliament. [1]

March 23

• Patrick Henry proclaims "Give me liberty or give me death". [1]

April 14

• First abolitionist society in US organizes in Philadelphia Pennsylvania. [1]

April 18

• Paul Revere and William Dawes warn "the British are coming!". [1]

April 19

• British troops and local militia of Massachusetts fire the first shots of the American Revolution at Lexington. [1] [129]

April 20

• British begin siege of Boston. [1]

April 23

• The opera "Il Ré Pastore" is produced (Salzburg). [1]

May 7

• Turkish state of Bukovina secedes from Austria. [1]

May 10

• Second Continental Congress convened in Pennsylvania; issues paper currency for first time. [1]
• Second Continental Congress names George Washington, supreme commander. [1]
• Green Mountain Boys capture Fort Ticonderoga NY-American Revolution. [1]

May 20

• Citizens of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina declare independence of Britain. [1]

June 7

• United Colonies change name to United States. [1]

June 12

• First naval battle of Revolution-Unity (Am) captures Margaretta (Br). [1]

June 14

• US Army founded. [1]

June 15

• George Washington appointed commander-in-chief of American Army. [1]

June 17

• Battle of Bunker Hill (actually it was Breed's Hill). [1]

June 22

• First Continental currency issued ($3,000,000). [1]

June 23

• First regatta held on Thames, England. [1]

July 3

• Washington takes command of Continental Army at Cambridge, Massachusetts [1]

July 10

• Horatio Gates, issues order excluding blacks from Continental Army. [1]

July 16

• John Adams graduates Harvard. [1]

July 17

• First military hospital approved. [1]

July 22

• George Washington takes command of the troops. [1]

July 25

• Maryland issues currency depicting George III trampling Magna Carta. [1]

July 26

• Benjamin Franklin becomes first Postmaster General. [1]

August 5

• First Spanish ship, San Carlos, enters San Francisco Bay. [1]

August 22

• King George III proclaims colonies to be in open rebellion. [1]

September 25

• American Revolutionary War hero Ethan Allen captured. [1]

October 8

• Officers decide to bar slaves and free blacks from Continental Army. [1]

October 13

• Continental Congress orders construction of a naval fleet. [1]

October 16

• Portland, Maine burned by British. [1]

October 23

• Continental Congress approves resolution barring blacks from army. [1]

October 27

• US Navy established. [1]

November 7

• Lord Dunmore, promises freedom to male slaves who join British army. [1]

November 10

• US Marine Corps established by Congress. [1]

November 12

• General Washington forbids recruiting officers enlisting blacks. [1]

November 13

• American Revolutionary forces capture Montreal. [1]

December 3

• First official US flag raising (aboard naval vessel Alfred). [1]

December 22

• Continental navy organized with 7 ships. [1]

December 25

• Pope Pius VI encyclical on the problems of the pontificate. [1]

December 28

• Peter A van de Parra Governor-General of (Netherlands Indies), dies at age 61. [1]

December 31

• Battle of Québec; Americans unable to take British stronghold. [1]
• General Richard Montgomery dies fighting the British. [1]

1776

January 1

• General George Washington hoists Continental Union Flag. [1]

January 2

• First revolutionary flag displayed. [1]
• Austria ends interrogation torture. [1]

January 5

• Assembly of New Hampshire adopts its first state constitution. [1]

January 10

• "Common Sense" by Thomas Paine, published. [1]

January 16

• Continental Congress approves enlistment of free blacks. [1]

February 8

• Wolfgang von Goethes' "Stella" premieres in Hamburg. [1]

February 17

• First volume of Gibbon's "Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" published. [1]

March 2

• Americans begin shelling British troops in Boston. [1]

March 3

• US commodore Esek Hopkins occupies Nassau Bahamas. [1]

March 17

• British forces evacuate Boston to Nova Scotia during Revolutionary War. [1]

March 25

• Continental Congress authorizes a medal for General George Washington. [1]

April 1

• Friedrich von Klinger's "Sturm und Drang", premieres in Leipzig. [1]

April 3

• Washington receives honorary Ll.D. degree from Harvard College. [1]

April 12

• Halifax resolution for independence adopted by North Carolina. [1]

April 15

• Duchess of Kingston found guilty of bigamy. [1]

April 19

• Jacob Israel Emden [Jacob ben Tswi] German rabbi, dies at age 78. [1]

April 22

• Johann Adolph Scheibe German music theroist/composer, dies at age 67. [1]

April 24

• Carolus van de Abeele Flemish Jesuit, dies at age 84. [1]
• Giuseppi Paolucci composer, dies at age 49. [1]

May 1

• Adam Weishaupt founds the secret society of Illuminati. [1]

May 2

• France and Spain agree to donate arms to American rebels. [1]

May 4

• Rhode Island declares independence from England. [1]

May 6

• James Kent composer, dies at age 76. [1]

May 12

• Turgot, French minister of Finance, resigns. [1]

May 13

• Anton de Haen medical Ratio medendi, dies at age 71. [1]

June 7

• Richard Lee (Virginia) moves Declaration of Independence in Continental Congress. [1]

June 10

• Continental Congress appoints a committee to write a Declaration of Independence. [1]

June 12

• Virginia adopts Declaration of Rights. [1]

June 28

• Charleston, South Carolina repulses British sea attack. [1]
• Thomas Hickey American sergeant convicted of treason, hanged. [1]

June 29

• Mission Dolores founded by San Francisco Bay. [1]
• Va state constitution adopted and Patrick Henry made governor. [1]

July 1

• First vote on the Declaration of Independence. [1]

July 2

• Continental Congress resolves "these United Colonies are and of right. [1]

July 4

• In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the Continental Congress adopts the Declaration of Independence, proclaiming the independence of the United States of America from Great Britain and its king. Twelve colonies adopt the declaration. [1] [129]

July 6

• Declaration of Independence announced on front page of the "PA Evening Gazette". [1]

July 8

• Colonel John Nixon gives first public reading of Declaration of Independence. [1]

July 9

• Declaration of Independence read aloud to General Washington's troops in New York. [1]

July 19

• New York adopts the declaration of independence from Great Britain. [129]

August 2

• Formal signing of the American Declaration of Independence. [1] [129]

August 27

• British defeat Americans in Battle of Long Island. [1]

August 28

• Battle of Long Island. [1]

August 29

• Americans withdraw from Manhattan to Westchester. [1]

September 7

• The World's first submarine attack occurs, as the American submersible craft Turtle attempts to attach a time bomb to the hull of the British flagship HMS Eagle in New York Harbor. [5]

September 9

• Continental Congress renames "United Colonies," "United States". [1]

September 10

• George Washington asks for a spy volunteer, Nathan Hale volunteers. [1]

September 12

• Nathan Hale leaves Harlem Heights Camp (127th St) for spy mission. [1]

September 15

• British forces capture Kip's Bay Manhattan during the Revolution. [1]

September 17

• Presidio of San Francisco forms as a Spanish fort. [1]

September 21

• Great fire in New York. [1]
• Nathan Hale spied on British for American rebels, hanged. [1]

September 22

• Nathan Hale executed as a spy by the British. [1]

October 9

• Father Francisco Palou founds Mission San Francisco de Asis in what is now San Francisco, California. [1] [5]

October 11

• Brigadier General Arnold's Lake Champlain fleet defeated by British. [1]

October 12

• British Brigade begins guarding Throgg Necks Road in the Bronx. [1]

October 18

• Colonel John Glover and Marblehead regiment meet British Forces in Bronx. [1]
• In a New York bar decorated with bird tail, customer orders "cock tail". [1]

October 28

• Battle of White Plains; Washington retreats to New Jersey. [1]

November 1

• Mission San Juan Capistrano founded in California. [1]

November 16

• Hessians capture Fort Washington, Manhattan. [1]

November 18

• Hessians capture Fort Lee, New Jersey. [1]

December 5

• Phi Beta Kappa, first American scholastic fraternity (William and Mary College), is founded. [1]

December 8

• George Washington's retreating army crosses Delaware River from New Jersey. [1]

December 19

• Thomas Paine published his first "American Crisis" essay, in which he wrote, "These are the times that try men's souls". [1]

December 23

• Continental Congress negotiates a war loan of $181,500 from France. [1]
• Thomas Paine writes "These are the times that try men's souls". [1]

December 25

• Washington crosses Delaware and surprises and defeats 1,400 Hessians. [1]

December 26

• Battle of Trenton-major British defeat. [1]
• George Washington defeats Hessians at Trenton. [1]
• Johann Gottlieb Rall Hessian colonel/mercenary, dies in battle. [1]

December 31

• Rhode Island establishes wage and price controls to curb inflation: Limit is 70 cents a day for carpenters, 42 cents for tailors. [1]

1777

January 1

• Emanuele Barbella composer, dies at age 58. [1]

January 3

• Washington defeats British at Battle of Princeton, New Jersey. [1]

January 12

• Mission Santa Clara de Asis founded in California. [1]

January 15

• People of New Connecticut (Vermont) declare independence from England. [1]

January 16

• Vermont declares independence from New York. [1]

January 18

• San Jose California founded. [1]

February 5

• Georgia becomes first US state to abolish both entail and primogeniture. [1]

February 13

• Marquis de Sade arrested without charge, imprisoned in Vincennes fortress. [1]

February 16

• Messier adds M53 to his catalog (globular cluster in Coma Berenice). [1]

February 21

• English ambassador Joseph Yorke demands dismissal of Governor John de Graaff for saluting US flag. [1]

March 1

• Georg Christoph Wagenzeil Austria (court)composer/pianist, dies at age 62. [1]

March 22

• John Bartram father of American botany, dies at age 77. [1]

April 12

• Claude-Prosper J de Crébillon French writer (Le sopha), dies at age 70. [1]

April 14

• New York adopts new constitution as an independent state. [1]

April 16

• Battle of Bennington-New England's Green Mountain Boys rout British. [1]

April 20

• New York adopts new constitution as an independent state. [1]

April 26

• Sybil Ludington, 16, rode from New York to Connecticut rallying her father's militia. [1]

May 1

• RB Sheridans "School for Scandal" premieres in London. [1]

May 12

• First ice cream advertisement (Philip Lenzi-New York Gazette). [1]

May 13

• University library at Vienna opens. [1]

May 16

• Button Gwinnet US revolutionary leader, dies from wounds. [1]

June 13

• Marquis de Lafayette lands in US. [1]

June 14

• The American Continental Congress adopts a resolution stating that "the flag of the United States be thirteen alternate stripes red and white" and that "the Union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new Constellation." [1] [129]

July 6

• British General Burgoyne captures Fort Ticonderoga from Americans. [1]

July 8

• Vt becomes first state abolishing slavery, adopts male sufferage. [1]

July 31

• Marquis de Lafayette, 19, made major-general of Continental Army. [1]

August 4

• Retired British cavalry officer Philip Astley establishes first circus. [1]

August 16

• Americans defeat British in Battle of Bennington, Vt. [1]

September 11

• Battle of Brandywine, Pennsylvania; Americans lose to British. [1]

September 19

• Battle of Freeman's Farm (Bemis Heights) or first Battle of Saratoga. [1]

September 20

• Paoli massacre. [1]

September 26

• British troops occupy Philadelphia during the American Revolution. [1]

September 27

• Battle of Germantown; Washington defeated by the British. [1]

September 30

• US Congress, flees to York Pennsylvania, as British forces advance. [1]

October 4

• Battle of Germantown. [1]

October 7

• Americans beat Brits in second Battle of Saratoga and Battle of Bemis Hts. [1]

October 17

• British General John Burgoyne surrenders at Saratoga, New York. [1]

November 15

• Articles of Confederation adopted by Continental Congress. [1]

December 2

• British General Howe plots attack on Washington's army for December 4. [1]

December 8

• Captain Cook leaves Society Islands. [1]

December 12

• Albrecht von Haller Swiss physician/biologist/author, dies at age 69. [1]

December 17

• France recognizes independence of English colonies in America. [1]
• George Washington's army returns to Valley Forge Pennsylvania. [1]

December 18

• First national Thanksgiving Day, commemorating Burgoyne's surrender. [1]

December 19

• Washington settles his troops at Valley Forge Pennsylvania for the winter. [1]

December 30

• Maximilian III Jozef elector of Bayern (1745-77), dies at age 50. [1]

1778

January 4

• Charles D J Eisen French engraver/painter, dies at age 57. [1]

January 10

• Carolus Linnæus "Carl von Linné" Swedish botanist/explorer/"Father of Taxonomy", dies at age 70. [1]

January 18

• Captain James Cook becomes the first known European to discover the Hawaiian Islands, which he names the "Sandwich Islands." [1] [5]

January 20

• First American military court martial trial begins, Cambridge Massachusetts. [1]

January 27

• Piccinni's opera "Roland" premieres, Paris. [1]

February 5

• Articles of Confederation ratified by first state, South Carolina. [1]

February 6

• England declares war on France. [1]
• France recognizes US, signs treaty of aid in Paris; first US treaty. [1]

February 14

• "Stars and Stripes" arrives in foreign port for first time (France). [1]

February 15

• Johann Gottlieb Gorner composer, dies at age 80. [1]

February 23

• Baron von Steuben joins the Continental Army at Valley Forge. [1]

February 28

• Rhode Island General Assembly authorizes enlistment of slaves. [1]

March 5

• Thomas A Arne English composer (Alfred, Rule Britannia), dies at age 67. [1]

March 7

• Captain James Cook first sights Oregon coast, at Yaquina Bay. [1]

March 15

• Nootka Sound, Vancouver Island discovered by Captain Cook. [1]

March 22

• Captain Cook sights Cape Flattery, in Washington state. [1]

March 30

• Playwright Voltaire crowned with laurel wreath. [1]

April 1

• Oliver Pollock, a New Orleans businessman, creates "$" symbol. [1]

April 7

• Johann Balthasar Kehl composer, dies at age 52. [1]

April 8

• Pieter Teyler van der Hulst Dutch founder (Teyler Museum), dies at age 76. [1]

April 22

• James Hargreaves inventor (spinning jenny), dies. [1]

May 11

• William Pitt Sr English premier (1756-61, 1766-68), dies at age 69. [1]

May 30

• Voltaire [François-Marie Arouet] French writer (Candide), dies at age 42. [1] [5]

June 19

• Washington's troops finally leave Valley Forge. [1]

June 24

• David Rittenhouse observes a total solar eclipse in Philadelphia. [1]

June 28

• Battle of Monmouth, New Jersey. [1]
• Mary Ludwig Hayes "Molly Pitcher" aids American patriots. [1]

July 3

• British forces massacre 360 men, women and children in Wyoming, Pennsylvania. [1]

August 9

• Captain Cook passes through Bering Strait. [1]

August 31

• British kill 17 Stockbridge indians in the Bronx during Revolution. [1]

November 11

• Iroquois Indians in New York kill 40 in Cherry Valley Massacre. [1]

November 26

• Captain Cook discovers Maui (Sandwich Islands). [1]

December 29

• English troops occupy Savannah, Georgia. [1]

1779

January 17

• Captain Cook's last notation in ship's log Discovery. [1]

January 20

• John Burman Dutch botanist/director (botanical gardens), dies at age 71. [1]

January 23

• Charles Messier catalogs M56 (globular cluster in Lyra). [1]

January 31

• Charles Messier adds M57 (Ring Nebula in Lyra) to his catalog. [1]

February 2

• Georg Philipp Kress composer, dies at age 59. [1]

February 7

• William Boyce composer, dies at age 67. [1]

February 14

• James Cook British explorer, murdered by natives in fracas with Hawaiians. [1]

February 16

• William Boyce English organist/composer (Cathedral Music), dies. [1]

February 24

• George Rogers Clark captures Vincennes IN from British. [1]

February 27

• Jan Nepveu Dutch Governor-General of Suriname (1769-79), dies at age 59. [1]

March 11

• US army Corps of Engineers established (first time). [1]

April 6

• Tommaso MFS Traetta Italian opera composer (Farnace), dies at age 52. [1]

May 11

• John Heart US farmer (signed Declaration of Independence), dies at about age 68. [1]

May 13

• War of Bavarian Succession ends. [1]

June 15

• General Anthony Wayne captures Stony Point, Bronx. [1]

June 20

• Battle of Stone Ferry. [1]

September 23

• John Paul Jones' "Bon Homme Richard" defeats 'HMS Serepis'. [1]

September 27

• John Adams negotiates Revolutionary War peace terms with Britain. [1]

October 11

• General Casimir Pulaski dies. [1]

December 6

• Jean-Baptiste Siméon Chardin French still life painter, dies at age 80. [1]

December 15

• Manuel Jeronimo Romero de Avila composer, dies at age 62. [1]

December 18

• Jan Punt engraver/illustrator/actor (Gideonschool), dies at age 68. [1]

December 23

• Benedict Arnold court-martialed for improper conduct. [1]

December 28

• Gennaro Manna composer, dies at age 64. [1]

December 31

• English fleet beat Dutch Merchant vessels. [1]