1748 in Great Britain
Encyclopedia
.svg.png) 1748 in Great Britain: |
| Other years |
| 1746 1746 in Great Britain Events from the year 1746 in Great Britain.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George II*Prime Minister - Henry Pelham, Whig-Events:... | 1747 1747 in Great Britain Events from the year 1747 in Great Britain.-Incumbents:*Monarch - George II of the United Kingdom*Prime Minister - Henry Pelham, Whig-Events:* 31 January - The first venereal diseases clinic opens at London Lock Hospital.... | 1748 | 1749 1749 in Great Britain Events from the year 1749 in Great Britain.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George II*Prime Minister - Henry Pelham, Whig-Events:* February - Admiralty revises the command structure of the Royal Navy and issues new Fighting Instructions.... | 1750 1750 in Great Britain Events from the year 1750 in Great Britain.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George II*Prime Minister - Henry Pelham, Whig-Events:* 17 January - John Canton reads a paper before the Royal Society on a method of making artificial magnets.... |
| Sport |
| 1748 English cricket season 1748 English cricket season In the 1748 English cricket season, single wicket games, "threes" and "fives" were the vogue and have perhaps never been so popular before or since.- Matches :-Other events:... |
Events from the year 1748 in Great Britain
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
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Incumbents
- Monarch - King George II
- Prime Minister - Henry PelhamHenry PelhamHenry Pelham was a British Whig statesman, who served as Prime Minister of Great Britain from 27 August 1743 until his death in 1754...
, WhigBritish Whig PartyThe Whigs were a party in the Parliament of England, Parliament of Great Britain, and Parliament of the United Kingdom, who contested power with the rival Tories from the 1680s to the 1850s. The Whigs' origin lay in constitutional monarchism and opposition to absolute rule...
Events
- 28 March - A fire in the City of LondonCity of LondonThe City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
causes over a million pounds worth of damage. - August - Admiral Edward BoscawenEdward BoscawenAdmiral Edward Boscawen, PC was an Admiral in the Royal Navy and Member of Parliament for the borough of Truro, Cornwall. He is known principally for his various naval commands throughout the 18th Century and the engagements that he won, including the Siege of Louisburg in 1758 and Battle of Lagos...
commands a Royal NavyRoyal NavyThe Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
siege of Pondicherry. - 18 October - The Treaty of Aix-la-ChapelleTreaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748)The Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle of 1748 ended the War of the Austrian Succession following a congress assembled at the Imperial Free City of Aachen—Aix-la-Chapelle in French—in the west of the Holy Roman Empire, on 24 April 1748...
ends the War of the Austrian SuccessionWar of the Austrian SuccessionThe War of the Austrian Succession – including King George's War in North America, the Anglo-Spanish War of Jenkins' Ear, and two of the three Silesian wars – involved most of the powers of Europe over the question of Maria Theresa's succession to the realms of the House of Habsburg.The...
, by which Madras in IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
is restored to British rule in exchange for the fortress of Louisbourg in CanadaCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
with FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
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Undated
- Adam SmithAdam SmithAdam Smith was a Scottish social philosopher and a pioneer of political economy. One of the key figures of the Scottish Enlightenment, Smith is the author of The Theory of Moral Sentiments and An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations...
begins to deliver public lectures in EdinburghEdinburghEdinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
. - Henry FieldingHenry FieldingHenry Fielding was an English novelist and dramatist known for his rich earthy humour and satirical prowess, and as the author of the novel Tom Jones....
organises the forerunner of the Bow Street RunnersBow Street RunnersThe Bow Street Runners have been called London's first professional police force. The force was founded in 1749 by the author Henry Fielding and originally numbered just six. Bow Street runners was the public's nickname for these officers, "although the officers never referred to themselves as...
, with eight men at first. - John FothergillJohn Fothergill (physician)John Fothergill FRS was an English physician, plant collector, philanthropist and Quaker.- Life and work :...
's pamphlet Account of the Sore Throat attended with Ulcers contains the first description of diphtheriaDiphtheriaDiphtheria is an upper respiratory tract illness caused by Corynebacterium diphtheriae, a facultative anaerobic, Gram-positive bacterium. It is characterized by sore throat, low fever, and an adherent membrane on the tonsils, pharynx, and/or nasal cavity...
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Publications
- David HumeDavid HumeDavid Hume was a Scottish philosopher, historian, economist, and essayist, known especially for his philosophical empiricism and skepticism. He was one of the most important figures in the history of Western philosophy and the Scottish Enlightenment...
's philosophical treatise An Enquiry concerning Human UnderstandingAn Enquiry Concerning Human UnderstandingAn Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding is a book by the Scottish empiricist philosopher David Hume, published in 1748. It was a revision of an earlier effort, Hume's A Treatise of Human Nature, published anonymously in London in 1739–40...
. - Samuel RichardsonSamuel RichardsonSamuel Richardson was an 18th-century English writer and printer. He is best known for his three epistolary novels: Pamela: Or, Virtue Rewarded , Clarissa: Or the History of a Young Lady and The History of Sir Charles Grandison...
's novel ClarissaClarissaClarissa, or, the History of a Young Lady is an epistolary novel by Samuel Richardson, published in 1748. It tells the tragic story of a heroine whose quest for virtue is continually thwarted by her family, and is the longest real novelA completed work that has been released by a publisher in...
. - Tobias SmollettTobias SmollettTobias George Smollett was a Scottish poet and author. He was best known for his picaresque novels, such as The Adventures of Roderick Random and The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle , which influenced later novelists such as Charles Dickens.-Life:Smollett was born at Dalquhurn, now part of Renton,...
's novel The Adventures of Roderick RandomThe Adventures of Roderick RandomThe Adventures of Roderick Random is a picaresque novel by Tobias Smollett, first published in 1748. It is partially based on Smollett's experience as a naval-surgeon’s mate in the British Navy, especially during Battle of Cartagena de Indias in 1741...
. - James Thomson's poem The Castle of IndolenceThe Castle of IndolenceThe Castle of Indolence is a poem by James Thomson.The Castle of Indolence may also refer to:* The Castle of Indolence , a solitaire card game* The Castle of Indolence: On Poetry, Poets, and Poetasters, a book by Thomas Disch...
, shortly before his death.
Births
- 15 February - Jeremy BenthamJeremy BenthamJeremy Bentham was an English jurist, philosopher, and legal and social reformer. He became a leading theorist in Anglo-American philosophy of law, and a political radical whose ideas influenced the development of welfarism...
, philosopher and writer (died 18321832 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1832 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King William IV*Prime Minister - Earl Grey, Whig-Events:...
) - 5 March - William ShieldWilliam ShieldWilliam Shield was an English composer, violinist and violist who was born in Swalwell near Gateshead, the son of William Shield and his wife, Mary, née Cash.-Life and musical career:...
, violinist and composer (died 18291829 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1829 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George IV*Prime Minister - Duke of Wellington, Tory-Events:* 8 January - Hanging of body-selling murderer William Burke in Edinburgh...
) - 10 March - John PlayfairJohn PlayfairJohn Playfair FRSE, FRS was a Scottish scientist and mathematician, and a professor of natural philosophy at the University of Edinburgh. He is perhaps best known for his book Illustrations of the Huttonian Theory of the Earth , which summarized the work of James Hutton...
, scientist (died 18191819 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1819 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch — King George III*Prime Minister — Lord Liverpool, Tory-Events:...
) - 13 April - Joseph BramahJoseph BramahJoseph Bramah , born Stainborough Lane Farm, Wentworth, Yorkshire, England, was an inventor and locksmith. He is best known for having invented the hydraulic press...
, inventor and locksmith (died 18141814 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1814 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George III*Prime Minister - Lord Liverpool, Tory-Events:* 14 January** Treaty of Kiel cedes Danish Heligoland to Britain.** Last River Thames frost fair in London....
) - 28 May - Frederick Howard, 5th Earl of CarlisleFrederick Howard, 5th Earl of CarlisleFrederick Howard, 5th Earl of Carlisle, KG, KT, PC was a British diplomat and the son of Henry Howard, 4th Earl of Carlisle and his second wife Isabella Byron....
(died 18251825 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1825 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George IV*Prime Minister - Earl of Liverpool, Tory-Events:* 23 April - Royal Charter granted to the Geological Society of London....
) - August - James SayersJames SayersJames Sayers was an English caricaturist.He was born at Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, the son of a merchant captain. He began as clerk in an attorney's office, and was for a time a member of the borough council. In 1780 his father's death provided him with a small fortune, and he went to London...
, caricaturist (died 18231823 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1823 in the United Kingdom.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George IV*Prime Minister - Lord Liverpool, Tory-Events:...
) - 14 December - William Cavendish, 5th Duke of DevonshireWilliam Cavendish, 5th Duke of DevonshireWilliam Cavendish, 5th Duke of Devonshire, KG was a British aristocrat and politician. He was the eldest son of the William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire by his wife the heiress Lady Charlotte Boyle, suo jure Baroness Clifford of Lanesborough, who brought in considerable money and estates to...
(died 18111811 in the United KingdomEvents from the year 1811 in the United Kingdom. This is a Census year and the start of the British Regency.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George III*Prime Minister - Spencer Perceval, Tory-Events:...
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Unknown date
- George Dixon, sea captain and explorer (died 17961796 in Great BritainEvents from the year 1796 in Great Britain.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King George III*Prime Minister - William Pitt the Younger, Tory-Events:...
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Deaths
- 14 March - George WadeGeorge WadeField Marshal George Wade served as a British military commander and Commander-in-Chief of the Forces.-Early career:Wade, born in Kilavally, Westmeath in Ireland, was commissioned into the Earl of Bath's Regiment in 1690 and served in Flanders in 1692, during the Nine Years War, earning a...
, military leader (born 1673, Ireland) - 12 April - William KentWilliam KentWilliam Kent , born in Bridlington, Yorkshire, was an eminent English architect, landscape architect and furniture designer of the early 18th century.He was baptised as William Cant.-Education:...
, architect, landscape architect and furniture designer (born c. 16851685 in EnglandEvents from the year 1685 in the Kingdom of England.-Incumbents:*Monarch - King Charles II , King James II-Events:* 6 February - James Stuart, Duke of York becomes King James II of England.* 23 April - Coronation of King James II....
) - 12 May - Thomas LowndesThomas Lowndes (astronomer)Thomas Lowndes was the founder of the Lowndean professorship of astronomy at Cambridge University, England.Both his father and mother were Cheshire landowners. In 1725 he was appointed provost marshal of South Carolina, a post he preferred to hold by deputy...
, astronomer (born 16921692 in EnglandEvents from the year 1692 in the Kingdom of England.-Events:* 19 February - Princess Anne leaves the court after quarrelling with her sister, Queen Mary....
) - 27 August - James Thomson, poet (born 17001700 in ScotlandEvents from the year 1700 in the Kingdom of Scotland.-Births:* April - John Kennedy, 8th Earl of Cassilis * 27 August - Charles Colyear, 2nd Earl of Portmore * 11 September - James Thomson, poet -Full date unknown:...
) - 6 September - Edmund GibsonEdmund GibsonEdmund Gibson was a British divine and jurist.-Early life and career:He was born in Bampton, Westmorland. In 1686 he was entered a scholar at Queen's College, Oxford...
, jurist (born 16691669 in EnglandEvents from the year 1669 in England.-Events:* 31 May - Citing poor eyesight, Samuel Pepys records the last entry in his diary, one of the most important primary sources for the English Restoration period....
) - 12 September - Anne BracegirdleAnne BracegirdleAnne Bracegirdle was an English actress.Little is known of Bracegirdle's early life. Her precise date of birth is a source of great dispute due to conflicting records of her life. She was baptised in Northampton on 15 November 1671, although her tombstone says that she died at the age of 85...
, actress (born c.16711671 in EnglandEvents from the year 1671 in the Kingdom of England.-Events:* 9 May - Thomas Blood, disguised as a clergyman, attempts to steal the Crown Jewels from the Tower of London. He is immediately caught because he is too drunk to run with the loot...
) - 21 September - John BalguyJohn BalguyJohn Balguy was an English divine and philosopher.-Early years:He was born at Sheffield and educated at the Sheffield Grammar School and at St John's College, Cambridge, graduated BA in 1706, was ordained in 1710, and in 1711 obtained the small living of Lamesley and Tanfield...
, philosopher (born 16861686 in EnglandEvents from the year 1686 in the Kingdom of England.- Events :* 10 July - Court of Ecclesiastical Commission created.* 17 July - King James appoints four Catholics to the Privy Council of England.-Undated:...
) - October - Donald Cameron of LochielDonald Cameron of LochielDonald Cameron of Lochiel , was an influential Highland Clan Chief known for his magnanimous and gallant nature. His support of Charles Edward Stuart was instrumental in the Jacobite Rising of 1745...
(born 17001700 in ScotlandEvents from the year 1700 in the Kingdom of Scotland.-Births:* April - John Kennedy, 8th Earl of Cassilis * 27 August - Charles Colyear, 2nd Earl of Portmore * 11 September - James Thomson, poet -Full date unknown:...
) - 25 November - Isaac WattsIsaac WattsIsaac Watts was an English hymnwriter, theologian and logician. A prolific and popular hymnwriter, he was recognised as the "Father of English Hymnody", credited with some 750 hymns...
, hymn writer (born 16741674 in EnglandEvents from the year 1674 in the Kingdom of England.-Events:* 19 February - England and the Netherlands sign the Treaty of Westminster ending the Third Anglo-Dutch War...
) - 2 December - Charles Seymour, 6th Duke of SomersetCharles Seymour, 6th Duke of SomersetCharles Seymour, 6th Duke of Somerset , sometimes referred to as the "Proud Duke". The son of Charles Seymour, 2nd Baron Seymour of Trowbridge, and Elizabeth Alington , he succeeded his brother Francis Seymour, 5th Duke of Somerset, to the dukedom when the latter was shot in 1678...
, politician (born 16621662 in EnglandEvents from the year 1662 in the Kingdom of England.-Events:* 17 March - Two old women are hanged after being found guilty of witchcraft at the Bury St. Edmunds witch trial.* 2 May/3 May - Catherine of Braganza marries Charles II of England...
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