18th century

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File:1700 CE world map.PNG
Political boundaries at the beginning of year 1700
File:Maquina vapor Watt ETSIIM.jpg
Development of the Watt steam engine in the late 18th century was an important element in the Industrial Revolution in Europe.
File:Surrender of Lord Cornwallis.jpg
The American Revolutionary War took place in the late 18th century.

The 18th century lasted from 1 January 1701 (represented by the Roman numerals MDCCI) to 31 December 1800 (MDCCC). During the 18th century, elements of Enlightenment thinking culminated in the Atlantic Revolutions. Revolutions began to challenge the legitimacy of monarchical and aristocratic power structures. The Industrial Revolution began during mid-century, leading to radical changes in human society and the environment. The European colonization of the Americas and other parts of the world intensified and associated mass migrations of people grew in size as part of the Age of Sail. During the century, slave trading expanded across the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, while declining in Russia[1] and China.[2]

Western historians have occasionally defined the 18th century otherwise for the purposes of their work. For example, the "short" 18th century may be defined as 1715–1789, denoting the period of time between the death of Louis XIV of France and the start of the French Revolution, with an emphasis on directly interconnected events.[3][4] To historians who expand the century to include larger historical movements, the "long" 18th century[5] may run from the Glorious Revolution of 1688 to the Battle of Waterloo in 1815[6] or even later.[7]

In Europe, philosophers ushered in the Age of Enlightenment. This period coincided with the French Revolution of 1789, and was later compromised by the excesses of the Reign of Terror. At first, many monarchies of Europe embraced Enlightenment ideals, but in the wake of the French Revolution they feared loss of power and formed broad coalitions to oppose the French Republic in the French Revolutionary Wars. Various conflicts throughout the century, including the War of the Spanish Succession and the Seven Years' War, saw Great Britain triumph over its rivals to become the preeminent power in Europe. However, Britain's attempts to exert its authority over the Thirteen Colonies became a catalyst for the American Revolution. The 18th century also marked the end of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth as an independent state. Its semi-democratic government system was not robust enough to prevent partition by the neighboring states of Austria, Prussia, and Russia.

In West Asia, Nader Shah led Persia in successful military campaigns. The Ottoman Empire experienced an unprecedented period of peace and economic expansion, taking no part in European wars from 1740 to 1768. As a result, the empire was not exposed to Europe's military improvements during the Seven Years' War. The Ottoman military consequently lagged behind and suffered several defeats against Russia in the second half of the century.

In South Asia, the death of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb was followed by the expansion of the Maratha Confederacy and an increasing level of European influence and control in the region. In 1739, Persian emperor Nader Shah invaded and plundered Delhi, the capital of the Mughal Empire. Later, his general Ahmad Shah Durrani scored another victory against the Marathas, the then dominant power in India, in the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761.[8] By the middle of the century, the British East India Company began to conquer eastern India,[9][8] and by the end of the century, the Anglo-Mysore Wars against Tipu Sultan and his father Hyder Ali, led to Company rule over the south.[10][11]

In East Asia, the century marked the High Qing era and the continual seclusion policy of the Tokugawa shogunate.

In Southeast Asia, the Konbaung–Ayutthaya Wars and the Tây Sơn Wars broke out while the Dutch East India Company established increasing levels of control over the Mataram Sultanate.

In Africa, the Ethiopian Empire underwent the Zemene Mesafint, a period when the country was ruled by a class of regional noblemen and the emperor was merely a figurehead. The Atlantic slave trade also saw the continued involvement of states such as the Oyo Empire.

In Oceania, the European colonization of Australia and New Zealand began during the late half of the century.

In the Americas, the United States declared its independence from Great Britain. In 1776, Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence. In 1789, George Washington was inaugurated as the first president. Benjamin Franklin traveled to Europe where he was hailed as an inventor. Examples of his inventions include the lightning rod and bifocal glasses. Túpac Amaru II led an uprising that sought to end Spanish colonial rule in Peru.

Events

Template:For timeline

1701–1750

File:Europe, 1700 - 1714.png
Europe at the beginning of the War of the Spanish Succession, 1700
File:Marten's Poltava.jpg
The Battle of Poltava in 1709 turned the Russian Empire into a European power.
File:The Battle of Culloden.jpg
The extinction of the Scottish clan system came with the defeat of the clansmen at the Battle of Culloden in 1746.[20]

1751–1800

Inventions, discoveries, and introductions

File:Red building Putuo Zongcheng Temple.JPG
The Chinese Putuo Zongcheng Temple of Chengde, completed in 1771, during the reign of the Qianlong Emperor.

Literary and philosophical achievements

Musical works

References

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  5. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
  6. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value., "Introduction" by P. J. Marshall, page 1
  7. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
  8. 8.0 8.1 Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
  9. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
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  11. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
  12. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
  13. Ricklefs (1991), page 82
  14. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
  15. Ricklefs (1991), page 84
  16. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
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  19. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
  20. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
  21. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
  22. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
  23. Ricklefs (1991), page 102
  24. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
  25. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
  26. Photo Gallery for Supercentenarians born before 1850, as of May 17, 2019
  27. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
  28. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
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  30. Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2058: attempt to index a boolean value.
  31. Ricklefs (1991), page 106
  32. Encyclopædia Britannica's Great Inventions, Encyclopædia Britannica Archived August 7, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  33. Meggs, Philip B. A History of Graphic Design. (1998) John Wiley & Sons, Inc. p 146 ISBN 978-0-471-29198-5

Further reading

  • Black, Jeremy and Roy Porter, eds. A Dictionary of Eighteenth-Century World History (1994) 890pp
  • Klekar, Cynthia. "Fictions of the Gift: Generosity and Obligation in Eighteenth-Century English Literature." Innovative Course Design Winner. American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies: Wake Forest University, 2004. <Home | American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies (ASECS)>. Refereed.
  • Langer, William. An Encyclopedia of World History (5th ed. 1973); highly detailed outline of events online free
  • Morris, Richard B. and Graham W. Irwin, eds. Harper Encyclopedia of the Modern World: A Concise Reference History from 1760 to the Present (1970) online
  • Milward, Alan S, and S. B. Saul, eds. The economic development of continental Europe: 1780–1870 (1973) online; note there are two different books with identical authors and slightly different titles. Their coverfage does not overlap.
    • Milward, Alan S, and S. B. Saul, eds. The development of the economies of continental Europe, 1850–1914 (1977) online
  • The Wallace Collection, London, houses one of the finest collections of 18th-century decorative arts from France, England and Italy, including paintings, furniture, porcelain and gold boxes.

External links

  • File:Commons-logo.svg Media related to Lua error in Module:Commons_link at line 63: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). at Wikimedia Commons

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