1760 in Great Britain

Events from the year 1760 in Great Britain . This year sees a change of monarch.

Incumbents

• Monarch – George II (until 25 October), George III (starting 25 October)
• Prime Minister – Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle (Whig) ^[1]

Events

• 22 January – Seven Years' War: At the Battle of Wandiwash in India, British general Sir Eyre Coote is victorious over the French under Marquis de Bussy-Castelnau. ^[2]
• 15 February – HMS Royal Katherine runs aground off Bolt Head, South Devon, with the loss of 699 lives.
• 21–26 February – Seven Years' War: At the Battle of Carrickfergus in the north of Ireland, a force of French troops under the command of privateer François Thurot captures and holds the town and castle of Carrickfergus before retiring; the force is defeated (and Thurot killed) in the naval Battle of Bishops Court in the Irish Sea on 28 February. ^[3]
• June – Scottish Presbyterian preacher Dr. James Fordyce moves to London.
• 3 July – a lightning strike causes a major fire at Portsmouth Royal Dockyard; substantial rebuilding follows. ^{[4] [5]}
• 31 July – Seven Years' War: At the Battle of Warburg, the British-Hanoverian army of Ferdinand of Brunswick storms Warburg, with a heroic role being played by the British commander Lord Granby. ^[6]
• 8 September – Seven Years' War: Jeffery Amherst captures Montreal. ^[7]
• 25 October – George III ascends to the throne following the death of his grandfather George II. ^[2] He will reign until 29 January 1820. He surrenders the income from the Crown Estate to the government in exchange for a civil list contribution to maintaining the Royal Household.
• Thomas Braidwood establishes Braidwood's Academy for the Deaf and Dumb in Edinburgh, the first school for the deaf in Britain.

Publications

• Geologist John Michell's essay "Conjectures concerning the Cause and Observations upon the Phaenomena of Earthquakes". ^[8]
• Fragments of Ancient Poetry collected in the Highlands of Scotland by James Macpherson. ^[2]
• The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman by Laurence Sterne. ^[2]

Births

• 28 March – Thomas Clarkson, abolitionist (died 1846) ^[9]
• 27 October – Sir Richard Strachan, 6th Baronet, Royal Navy Admiral (died 1828)
• probable – Lemuel Francis Abbott, portrait painter (died 1802)

Deaths

• 5 May – Laurence Shirley, 4th Earl Ferrers, murderer (hanged) (born 1720)
• 30 September – Maria Coventry, Countess of Coventry, society beauty (lead poisoning) (born 1732)
• 25 October – King George II of Great Britain (born 1683, Hanover)

See also

• 1760 in Wales

References

1. "History of Thomas Pelham-Holles 1st Duke of Newcastle - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 19 June 2023.
2. Williams, Hywel (2005). Cassell's Chronology of World History . Weidenfeld & Nicolson. pp.  320. ISBN   0-304-35730-8.
3. Rodger, N. A. M. (2006). The Command of the Ocean: A Naval History of Britain, 1649–1815. London: Penguin Books; National Maritime Museum. p. 283. ISBN   0-14-102690-1.
4. "Portsmouth Dockyard". Battleships-Cruisers.co.uk. Retrieved 2011-09-27.
5. "Chronology Of Events In Portsmouth – 1700–1799". History In Portsmouth. Archived from the original on 2011-08-22. Retrieved 2011-09-27.
6. "BritishBattles.com" . Retrieved 2007-08-02.
7. Palmer, Alan; Palmer, Veronica (1992). The Chronology of British History. London: Century Ltd. p. 222. ISBN   0-7126-5616-2.
8. Philosophical Transactions , li. 1760
9. "BBC - History - Thomas Clarkson". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 17 March 2022.

Further reading

• Annual Register...1760, London: J. Dodsley, 1789