January 1781Rear AdmiralSamuel Hood Hood, 1st
Joins Rodney in his flagship Barfleur, and remains in the West Indies or on the coast of North America until the close of the War of American Independence
Historical records for Great Britain in 1781, rendered directly from the World History Database and ordered by month, day and event.
Joins Rodney in his flagship Barfleur, and remains in the West Indies or on the coast of North America until the close of the War of American Independence
Despite victory Cornwallis cannot hold Georgia & the Carolinas
Discovers Uranus using a home made telescope from his back garden in Bath
Defeated by the Dutch on his way to attack the Dutch colony of Cape of Good Hope
Birth of George Stephenson
Defeats General Lafayette at Jamestown Ford, Virginia
Hood joins Admiral Thomas Graves in the unsuccessful effort to relieve the army at Yorktown, when the British fleet is driven off by the French Admiral, the Comte de Grasse, at the Battle of the Chesapeake
A major defeat for the British, since it prevented the Royal Navy from reinforcing or evacuating the blockaded forces of General Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown, Virginia, as a result, Cornwallis surrendered his army after the Siege of Yorktown
Crucial naval Battle near the mouth of Chesapeake Bay between a British fleet led by Rear Admiral Sir Thomas Graves and a French fleet led by Rear Admiral Francois Joseph Paul, the Comte de Grasse.
Graves arrived at the mouth of the Chesapeake early on 5 September to see de Grasses fleet at anchor in the bay.
The British leave the sea near Chesapeake to the French & Graves returns to New York
On 13 September de Grasse broke away from the British and returned to the Chesapeake, where de Barras had arrived, Graves returned to New York to organize a larger relief effort; this did not sail until 19 October, two days after Cornwallis surrendered
Surrenders 7,000 soldiers ending the American Revolution & the War of Independence
Cornwallis's army is removed from the field, effectively ending major fighting in the American War of Independence.
Surrenders 7,000 soldiers ending the American Revolution & the War of Independence
Herschel is awarded the Copley Medal and elected a Fellow of the Royal Society
Calls the new planet the Georgian star (Georgium sidus) after King George III
Calls the new planet the Georgian star (Georgium sidus) after King George III
Publication of "Duplicity"
Enters Eton
Commands HMS Albemarle on convoy and patrol duties.
De Grasse attacks the British islands of St Kitts and Nevis with a force much superior to Hoods squadron
First elected MP
Washington allows 2 days for written peace proposals but insists on complete surrender
Herschel is awarded the Copley Medal and elected a Fellow of the Royal Society
This page is generated from stored World History Database records matching the exact country and year shown above. Exact duplicate display records are collapsed. Records without a month are listed after the monthly sections. Source provenance varies by record; formal academic citation should be checked against the relevant primary source, archive or specialist historical reference.