Reign of

Event

Furniture

William III & Mary II 1689 - 1702	1697 William Hogarth, artist and satirist, born 1698 The earliest evidence of organised trading in marketable securities in London, later becoming the Stock Exchange in 1773
William III & Mary II 1689 - 1702	1697 William Hogarth, artist and satirist, born 1698 The earliest evidence of organised trading in marketable securities in London, later becoming the Stock Exchange in 1773
William III & Mary II 1689 - 1702	1701 The Act of Settlement ensures a protestant successor to the crown 1702 England's first daily newspaper, the Daily Courant is founded 1703 St Petersburg (Leningrad) founded by Peter the Great 1704 America's first newspaper "The Boston News Letter" published 1704 Duke of Marlborough wins the Battle of Blenheim 1705 Thomas Newcomen patents first steam engine 1706 Thomas Twinings opened his tea shop in London. 1707 England, Wales & Scotland form UK of Great Britain and on Oct 23, The first Parliament of Great Britain met. 1709 Bartolomeo Cristofori invents the piano
George I 1714 - 1727	1710 Matthias Lock, rococo draughtsman, born (d.1765) 1711 Horse racing began at the Royal Ascot track west of London. 1712 The first sperm whale is captured at sea by an American from Nantucket. 1714 Typewriter patented by Englishman Henry Mill (built years later) 1714 Tea is introduced for the first time into the American Colonies. 1715 A French manufacturer debuted the first folding umbrella. 1716 The 1st lighthouse in US was lit in Boston Harbour. 1717 Edmund Halley invents the diving bell 1718 Thomas Chippendale, furniture-maker, born (d.1779) 1718 Blackbeard the pirate dies. 1719 Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe published
George I 1714 - 1727	1721 Robert Walpole becomes first Prime Minister 1722 French C. Hopffer patents the fire extinguisher 1724 Gabriel Fahrenheit invents the first Mercury Thermometer 1726 Jonathan Swift's Gullivers Travels published 1727 Brazil planted its first coffee. 1727 George Hepplewhite, furnituremaker, born (d.1786) 1728 Robert Adam, architect and designer, born (d.1792) 1729 John Linnell, designer, born (d.1796)
George II 1727 - 1760	1730 In Germany A. Ketterer invented the cuckoo clock 1730 Josiah Wedgewood, potter, born (d.1795) 1731 The first American Public Library is founded in Philadelphia 1732 George Washington born (d.1799) 1733 The 1st polar bear exhibited in America was in Boston. 1734 Richard Gillow, cabinetmaker, born (d.1811) 1735 Robert Walpole became the 1st British PM to live at 10 Downing Street 1739 Dick Turpin, the infamous highwayman, was executed in England for horse stealing.
George II 1727 - 1760	1740 Thomas Arne's song "Rule Britannia," which celebrated Britain's military and commercial prowess, was performed for the 1st time. It grew to become the unofficial anthem. 1742 May 28, 1st indoor swimming pool opened at Goodman's Fields, London. 1744 World's first golf club formed in Edinburgh 1747 Simon Fraser, 12th baron Lovat (Jacobite), became the last man to be officially beheaded in England 1748 The ruins of Pompeii were found
George II 1727 - 1760	1751 Voltaire published "Micromegas" in which he mentioned "aliens from outer space." This is believed to be the first mention of such aliens in literature. 1751 Thomas Sheraton, cabinetmaker, born (d.1806) 1752 Benjamen Franklin's kite is struck by lightning 1754 Chippendale publishes "The Gentleman & Cabinet Maker's Director" 1755 Dr Samuel Johnson's Dictionary of the English Language published 1756 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, musician, born (d.1791) 1758 Halley's Comet appears for the first time after Halley's discovery 1759 British Museum opens in Montague House, London
George III 1760 - 1820	1761 John Harrison invents the navigational clock or marine chronometer for measuring longitude. 1767 Joseph Priestley invents carbonated water - soda water. 1768 Sir Joshua Reynolds becomes first President of the Royal Academy 1769 Napoleon Bonaparte born (d.1821)
George III 1760 - 1820	1770 Captain Cook reaches Eastern Coast of Australia 1770 Ludgwig Van Beethoven born (d.1827) 1773 The Boston Tea Party 1773 The first public museum in the U.S. is established in Charleston, South Carolina. 1774 Joseph Priestly discovers oxygen (We all breath a huge sigh of relief) 1775 Joseph Mallord William Turner, artist, born (d.1851) 1776 Congress of Philadelphia declares American Independence 1776 John Constable, artist, born (d.1837) 1776 Bolshoi Ballet Company established 1778 Oliver Pollock, a New Orleans businessman, created the "$" symbol.
George III 1760 - 1820	1780 Charles Bunbury on Diomed wins first Epsom Derby 1780 Giles Grendey, cabinetmaker, dies (b. 1693) 1781 Pierre Langlois, French ébéniste, dies (b. 1759) 1781 Uranus Discovered by Astronomer William Herschel 1782 The first commercial bank in the U.S., the Bank of North America, opens in Philadelphia. 1783 Treaty of Paris signed. America gets its Independence 1783 Dollar adopted as monetary unit in USA 1783 Montgolfier brothers launch first hot-air balloon (unmanned) 1785 "Daily Universal Register" forerunner of The Times publishes first issue 1785 The first balloon flight across English Channel (Blanchard & Jeffries) 1786 George Smith Cabinetmaker, born (d. 1828)
George III 1760 - 1820	1790 Mozart's opera "Cosi fan tutti" premieres, Vienna 1790 Lifeboat first tested at sea by Mr Greathead, the inventor 1791 NYC traffic regulation created the 1st 1-way street. 1791 United States "Bill of Rights" amends the constitution 1792 Denmark becomes the first country to abolish slavery 1792 The New York Stock Exchange established 1793 Louis XVI executed 1796 Edward Jenner creates the small pox vaccine 1797 Bank of England issues first £1-note 1798 Admiral Horatio Nelson wins the Battle of the Nile 1799 Napoleon seizes power as first consul of France
George III 1760 - 1820	1800 Washington, DC, established as capital city of the United States 1800 James Ross discovers North Magnetic pole 1803 The Louisiana Purchase doubles the size of the United States. 1804 Napoleon crowned Emperor 1805 Admiral Horatio Nelson dies at the Battle of Trafalgar 1805 William Wilberforce, anti-slavery champion, born 1807 London's Pall Mall is first street lit by gaslight 1809 Abraham Lincoln born (d.1865) 1809 Robert Fulton patents the steamboat 1809 William Gladstone, English politician and statesman, born (d.1898) 1809 Charles Darwin born (d. 1882)
George III 1760 - 1820	1810 Peter Durand, a British merchant, was granted a patent by King George III for his idea of preserving food in "vessels of glass, pottery, tin (tin can), or other metals or fit materials." 1811 The first Women's Golf Tournament held at Musselburgh, Scotland. 1812 British PM Spencer Perceval was shot by Bellingham in the lobby of the House of Commons (see link to memorable pieces for the chair Perceval was seated in) 1813 The first pineapples planted in Hawaii 1814 Joseph Nicéphore Niépce was the first person to take a photograph. 1815 Wellington defeats Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo 1816 Jane Austin completed her last novel, "Persuasion." 1816 Lord Elgin sold his Parthenon sculptures to the British government for 35,000 pounds. A request in 1811 for 62,400 pounds had been rejected. 1817 The 1st Mississippi "Showboat," left Nashville on maiden voyage.
George IV 1820 - 1830	1822 Hieroglyphs deciphered by Thomas Young and Jean-François Champollion using the Rosetta Stone 1823 Mackintosh (raincoat) invented by Charles Mackintosh of Scotland 1827 Ludwig Van Beethoven dies 1824 The name Australia, recommended by Matthew Flinders in 1804, is finally adopted as the official name of the country once known as New Holland 1825 The world's first modern railway, the Stockton and Darlington Railway opens in England 1826 John Walker invents friction match in England 1828 Zoological Gardens at Regent's Park London, opens 1829 Oxford University Boat Club win the very first boat race
William IV 1830 - 1837	1831 In the first recorded bank heist in US history, $245,000 taken 1831 HMS Beagle, sets sail around the world with Charles Darwin returns in 1843 1833 Parliament passes the Abolition of Slavery Bill giving all slaves in the British Empire their freedom (enacted 1834) 1834 Sandpaper patented by Isaac Fischer Jr, Springfield, Vermont 1835 Charles Darwin reaches the Galapogos Islands aboard the HMS Beagle 1836 Davy Crockett arrives in Texas, just in time for the Alamo 1839 The first Henley Royal Regatta is held and the first photograph of the moon was taken by Daguerre
Victoria 1837 - 1901	1840 Britain issues the Penny Black, world's first postage stamp 1842 Anaesthesia used for the first time in an operation 1848 Gold is discovered in California by James Marshall at Sutters Mill triggering the San Francisco gold rush of '49
Victoria 1837 - 1901	1863 The first underground passenger railway opens in London 1876 Alexander Graham Bell Patents the telephone 1883 Brooklyn Bridge opens 1887 Sherlock Holmes appears in print for the first time in 'A Study in Scarlet' 1889 Monsieur Eiffel opens his tower. 1896 Henry Ford test drives his first car