The world in
What happened in 1789?
10 events across 3 world regions, each with its sources.
Europe
- French Revolution
From 1789 to 1799, France experienced a profound political and social transformation, beginning with the Estates General and ending with Napoleon Bonaparte's Coup of 18 Brumaire. The revolution ended the Ancien Régime, and its liberal democratic ideas had a lasting impact.
- Storming of the Bastille
On 14 July 1789 in Paris, insurgents aligned with the revolutionary movement forced entry into the Bastille and took control. The episode has since been treated by historians and public memory as a symbolic beginning of the French Revolution, highlighting an early large-scale intervention by Parisians in political affairs.
- Industrial Revolution
A transition in manufacturing processes that began in Great Britain around the 1760s and spread to continental Europe and the United States by about 1840. It was marked by the replacement of human and animal power with machinery and of handicraft with factory production, signaling a historic shift from agrarian to industrial society.
- Tennis Court Oath
On 20 June 1789 at Versailles, 576 deputies—mainly of the Third Estate with some clergy and nobles—swore not to separate and to reassemble as needed until the kingdom’s constitution was established. The act became a pivotal early moment of the French Revolution.
- Women's March on Versailles
On 5–6 October 1789, women from Paris markets protested high bread prices and shortages. The unrest merged with revolutionary aims for liberal reforms and a constitutional monarchy, culminating in forcing King Louis XVI and his family to move to Paris; the French assembly followed soon after.
- Caucasian War
The Caucasian War was a 19th-century conflict of conquest by the Russian Empire against various peoples of the North Caucasus, lasting from 1817 to 1864. Imam Shamil led fierce resistance, repeatedly repelling Russian attacks, until the fall of Gunib and his capture in 1859. The war ended with the final subjugation of the Circassians and the annexation of the region in 1864.
- Outbreak of the Sixth Russo-Turkish War
In 1787, the Ottoman Empire attempted to regain lands lost to Russia in the previous Russo-Turkish War (1768-1774) and declared war, beginning the Sixth Russo-Turkish War. The conflict lasted about four years, ending in a Turkish defeat and the Treaty of Jassy, which ceded territory east of the Dniester River.
- Outbreak of the Russo-Circassian War
In 1763, the Russian Empire invaded Circassia and occupied Mozdok, prompting the Circassian people to organize a resistance movement to preserve their independence, marking the beginning of the Russo-Circassian War. This conflict became the longest war in the history of the Caucasus and of Russia, ending in 1864 with the defeat of Circassian forces.
East Asia
- First Gurkha Invasion of Tibet
In 1788, Gurkha forces of the Kingdom of Nepal invaded Tibet, a Qing protectorate, over trade and currency disputes. They plundered the region, prompting Qing military intervention, and the war lasted until 1789.
North America
- Outbreak of the Northwest Indian War
In 1785, armed conflict broke out between the United States and a confederation of Native American tribes in the Northwest Territory, with British support for the tribes. The U.S. Army considers this the first of the American Indian Wars. The war lasted a decade.
Around 1789
These are known only to the century, not to the year. They are listed separately so a rough date is never mistaken for an exact one.
- Founding of Kew Gardens
- Establishment of the British Convict System in Australia
- Completion of the Jantar Mantar observatory complex
- Emergence of the Enlightenment
- Creation of the Dessau-Wörlitz Garden Realm
- Construction of Hwaseong Fortress Begins
- Construction of the Palace of Mafra begins
- Founding of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew