1744

2025-09-30T07:10:02Z

2605:9080:51:101A:8B81:5044:3B68:A299:

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[[File:HMS Victory sinking.jpg|250px|thumb|[[October 4]]: The sinking of the British ship HMS ''Victory'' kills over 1,100 members of the Royal Navy.(1750 painting by [[Peter Monamy]])]]
[[File:Comet 1744.jpg|250px|thumb|[[February 16]]: The [[Great Comet of 1744]] is visible in the skies over Europe.]]
{{Year article header|1744}}
{{C18 year in topic}}

[[File:Action off toulon 4.jpg|thumb|300px|[[February 23]]: A French and Spanish fleet defeats the British at the [[Battle of Toulon (1744)|Battle of Toulon]], clearing the way for a possible French invasion of Britain.]]

== Events ==
<onlyinclude>

=== January–March ===
* [[January 6]] – The Royal Navy ship ''Bacchus'' engages the Spanish Navy privateer ''Begona'', and sinks it; 90 of the 120 Spanish sailors die, but 30 of the crew are rescued.
* [[January 24]] – The [[Dagohoy rebellion]] in the [[Philippines]] begins, with the killing of Father Giuseppe Lamberti.
* [[February 22]]–[[February 23|23]] – [[Battle of Toulon (1744)|Battle of Toulon]]: The British fleet is defeated by a joint Franco-Spanish fleet.
* [[February 27]] – Violent storms frustrate a [[Planned French invasion of Britain (1744)|planned French invasion of Britain]].
* [[March 1]] (approximately) – The [[Great Comet of 1744]], one of the brightest ever seen, reaches [[perihelion]].
* [[March 13]] – The British ship ''Betty'' capsizes and sinks off of the Gold Coast (modern-day [[Ghana]]) near [[Anomabu]]. More than 200 people on board die, although there are a few survivors.
* [[March 15]] – France declares war on Great Britain.

=== April–June ===
* [[April]] – ''[[The Female Spectator]]'' (a monthly) is founded by [[Eliza Haywood]] in England, the first periodical written for women by a woman.
* [[April 2]] – The first Rules of [[golf]] are drawn up at [[Leith]], for the first golf competition.<ref>Rules of Golf 1744 Scottish Golf History accessed 10 Feb 2017 http://www.scottishgolfhistory.org/origin-of-golf-terms/rules-of-golf/</ref><ref>Instructions, golf club rules and competitions History of Golf accessed 10 Feb 2017 [[History of golf]]</ref>
* [[April 27]] – [[Siege of Villafranca (1744)]]: A joint French and Spanish force defeats Britain and Sardinia.
* [[May 11]] – [[Russia]]'s treasury begins an effort to reduce the number of copper five-kopeck pieces (20 of which equal a [[Russian ruble]]) by declaring that it will buy them back at a ruble for every 20 until August 1, after which kopecks would be redeemed at a ruble for every 25; then at the rate of 33 for a ruble on October 1, and 50 for a ruble on and after August 28, 1746.<ref>"Banking in the Russian Empire", by Antoine E. Horn, in A History of Banking in All the Leading Nations (Journal of Commerce and Commercial Bulletin, 1896) pp342-343</ref>
* [[May 22]] – The Union of Germany is proclaimed in Frankfurt [[Frederick II of Prussia]], as articles of union are signed between [[Prussia]], [[Hesse-Kassel]] and the [[Electoral Palatinate|Rhineland Palatinate]].<ref>Martin Philippson, The Age of the European Balance of Power, translated by John Henry Wright (Lea Brothers & Company, 1905) p267</ref>
* [[May 24]] – After receiving the news from Europe that Great Britain and France are at war, the French Army at [[Louisbourg]] [[Raid on Canso|attacks the British settlement]] at [[Fort William Augustus]] at [[Canso, Nova Scotia]] and forces its surrender.<ref>"Canso, Battle of (1744)", by John D. Hamilton, in Colonial Wars of North America, 1512-1763: An Encyclopedia, ed. by Alan Gallay (Routledge, 2015) p100</ref>
* [[June 13]] – [[Alexey Bestuzhev-Ryumin]] is named as the new [[Chancellor of the Russian Empire]] by the [[Elizabeth of Russia|Empress Elizabeth]].<ref>John T. Alexander, Catherine the Great: Life and Legend (Oxford University Press, 1989) pp27-28</ref>
* [[June 15]] – Commodore [[George Anson's voyage around the world]] concludes after four years as [[HMS Centurion (1732)|HMS ''Centurion'']] returns to England at [[Spithead]] and Anson is greeted as a hero.<ref>"Anson, George", by Joseph A. Devine, Jr., in Historical Dictionary of the British Empire, ed. by James S. Olson and Robert Shadle (Greenwood Publishing Group, 1996) p68</ref>
* [[June 28]] – At the age of 15, Princess Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst, the future Empress of Russia, is received into the [[Russian Orthodox Church]] after converting from [[Lutheranism|the Lutheran faith]]. Upon her conversion to the Russian Orthodox religion, she is given the name Yekaterina (Catherine). In 1762, she takes the throne as the Empress Catherine II, later known as [[Catherine the Great]].

=== July–September ===
* [[July 8]] – The Royal Navy privateer ''Somerset'' capsizes and sinks in the [[Bristol Channel]], killing 86 of the 97 crew.
* [[July 19]] – [[Battle of Casteldelfino]]: France defeats the [[Kingdom of Sardinia]].
* [[July 29]] – [[Nader Shah]] lays siege to the Ottoman citadel of [[Kars]].
* [[August 12]] – [[Battle of Velletri (1744)|Battle of Velletri]] in the [[Kingdom of Naples]]: Spanish-Neapolitan forces defeat those of the [[Archduchy of Austria]].
* [[September 30]] – [[Battle of Madonna dell'Olmo]]: France and Spain defeat the Kingdom of [[Sardinia]].

=== October–December ===
* [[October 4]] – In one of the greatest disasters for the [[Royal Navy]], [[HMS Victory (1737)|HMS ''Victory'']] sinks in a storm in the English Channel, killing 1,100 sailors and officers it had been bringing back from Gibraltar to England, including Admiral [[John Balchen]].<ref>Stewart Gordon, A History of the World in Sixteen Shipwrecks (ForeEdge, University Press of New England, 2015) p.140</ref> The wreck will be located 264 years later, in January, 2009.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7863840.stm "Legendary British warship 'found'", BBC News, February 1, 2009]</ref>
* [[October 12]] – The creator of [[binomial nomenclature]] for the identification of plant and animal species, [[Carl Linnaeus]], is selected as president of the [[Royal Swedish Academy of Science]], succeeding the late [[Anders Celsius]], who had devised the centigrade measurement of temperature.<ref>Florence Caddy, ''Through the Fields with Linnaeus: A Chapter in Swedish History'' (Little, Brown, and Company, 1886) p159</ref>
* [[October 19]] – [[William Shirley]], the British colonial Governor of the [[Province of Massachusetts Bay]], announces the declaration of war against the [[Miꞌkmaq]] and [[Maliseet]] Indian tribes.<ref>Frederic J. Baumgartner, ''Declaring War in Early Modern Europe'' (Springer, 2011) p149</ref>
* [[October 25]]
** The [[Massachusetts General Court]], colonial legislature for the Massachusetts Bay Province, approves an incentive for the killing of enemy Indians, authorizing the payment of 100 [[Massachusetts pound]]s for the [[scalping]] of a Mi'kmaq or Maliseet Indian, and 50 for the scalps of women or children.<ref>Geoffrey Plank, An Unsettled Conquest: The British Campaign Against the Peoples of Acadia (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2018) p110</ref>
** Spanish explorers [[Antonio de Ulloa]] and [[Jorge Juan y Santacilla]] complete their mission of exploration and depart from the [[Peru]]vian seaport of [[Callao]] for a return to Spain.<ref>Robert Whitaker, The Mapmaker's Wife: A True Tale Of Love, Murder, And Survival In The Amazon (Basic Books, 2004) p197</ref>
* [[November 1]] – [[Second Silesian War]]: The Prussian Army, under the command of Field Marshal [[Kurt Christoph Graf von Schwerin]], begins the bombardment of [[Prague]]. The Bohemian capital surrenders after two weeks.<ref>Peter Demetz, Prague in Black and Gold: Scenes from the Life of a European City (Macmillan, 1998) p243</ref>
* [[December 18]] – Queen [[Maria Theresa]] of [[Habsburg monarchy|Austria]] issues a proclamation to rid [[Bohemia]] of its Jewish residents, with the [[History of the Jews in Prague|Jews]] to leave Prague over the next two weeks, and then to depart from Bohemia entirely in 1745.<ref>Selma Stern, ''The Court Jew - A Contribution to the History of the Period of Absolutism in Central Europe'' (Read Books, 2011)</ref>

=== Date unknown ===
* The third French and Indian War, known as [[King George's War]], breaks out at [[Annapolis Royal]], [[Nova Scotia]].
* ''[[Tommy Thumb's Pretty Song Book]]'', sequel to ''[[Tommy Thumb's Song Book]]'', containing the oldest version of many well-known and popular rhymes, is published in London.</onlyinclude>

== Births ==
[[File:Jean-baptiste lamarck2.jpg|thumb|110px|[[Jean-Baptiste Lamarck]]]]
[[File:Herder by Kügelgen.jpg|thumb|110px|[[Johann Gottfried Herder]]]]
* [[February 6]] – [[Pierre-Joseph Desault]], French anatomist and surgeon (d. [[1795]])
* [[February 23]] – [[Mayer Amschel Rothschild]], German banker, founder of the Rothschild banking dynasty (d. [[1812]])
* [[May 19]] – [[Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz]], queen of [[George III]] (d. [[1818]])
* [[May 21]] – [[Samuel Ireland]], British author and engraver (d. [[1800]])
* [[May 31]] – [[Richard Lovell Edgeworth]], Anglo-Irish politician, writer and inventor (d. [[1817]])
* [[July 20]] – [[Joshua Clayton]], American politician (d. [[1798]])
* [[August 1]] – [[Jean-Baptiste Lamarck]], French naturalist (d. [[1829]])
* [[August 16]] – [[Pierre Méchain]], French astronomer (d. [[1804]])
* [[August 25]] – [[Johann Gottfried Herder]], German writer (d. [[1803]])
* [[September 25]] – King [[Frederick William II of Prussia]] (d. [[1797]])
* [[October 13]] – [[Henrik Johan Nauckhoff]], Swedish admiral
* ''date unknown''
** [[Marie Barch]], Danish ballerina (d. [[1827]])
** [[Marie-Louise-Adélaïde Boizot]], French engraver (d. [[1800]])

== Deaths ==
[[File:Beato Gennaro Maria Sarnelli - tela per la beatificazione.jpg|thumb|110px|right|Blessed [[Januarius Maria Sarnelli]]]]
* [[January 11]] – [[James Hamilton, 7th Earl of Abercorn]] (b. [[1686]])
* [[January 22]] – [[Pierre Lepautre (1659–1744)|Pierre Lepature]], French artist (b. [[1659]])
* [[January 23]] – [[Giambattista Vico]], Italian philosopher and historian (b. [[1668]])
* [[January 26]] – [[Ludwig Andreas von Khevenhüller]], Austrian field marshal (b. [[1683]])
* [[February 11]] – [[Hedvig Taube]], mistress to King [[Frederick I of Sweden]] (b. [[1714]])
* [[February 14]] – [[John Hadley]], English mathematician (b. [[1682]])
* [[March 3]] – [[Jean Barbeyrac]], French jurist (b. [[1674]])
* [[March 4]] – [[John Anstis]], English herald (b. [[1669]])
* [[April 25]] – [[Anders Celsius]], Swedish astronomer (b. [[1701]])
* [[May 25]] – [[Charles Edzard, Prince of East Frisia]] (b. [[1716]])
* [[May 30]] – [[Alexander Pope]], English writer (b. [[1688]])
* [[June 29]]
** [[André Campra]], French composer (b. [[1660]])
** [[John Eames]], English academic (b. [[1686]])
* [[June 30]] – [[Januarius Maria Sarnelli]], Italian [[Roman Catholic]] priest and blessed (b. [[1702]])
* [[July]] – [[Mihai Racoviță]], Prince of Moldavia and Prince of Wallachia (b. c. [[1660]])
* [[August 9]] – [[James Brydges, 1st Duke of Chandos]], English patron of the arts (b. [[1673]])
* [[August 13]] – [[John Cruger]], Dutch-born Mayor of New York (b. [[1678]])
* [[August 26]] – [[William Byrd II]], prominent planter from Virginia (b. [[1674]])
* [[September 28]] – Princess [[Thérèse of France]], daughter of [[Louis XV]] (b. [[1736]])
* [[October 10]] – [[Johann Heinrich Schulze]], German professor and polymath (b. [[1687]])
* [[October 18]] – [[Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough]], English friend of [[Anne, Queen of Great Britain]] (b. [[1660]])
* [[October 31]] – [[Leonardo Leo]], Italian composer (b. [[1694]])
* [[December 8]] – [[Marie Anne de Mailly-Nesle]], French mistress of King Louis XV (b. [[1717]])
* [[December 23]] – [[Élisabeth Charlotte d'Orléans]], duchess and regent of Lorraine (b. [[1676]])
* ''date unknown'' – [[Catherine Jérémie]], French-Canadian botanist (b. [[1644]])

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

[[Category:1744| ]]
[[Category:Leap years in the Gregorian calendar]]

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1744