1777

Events in 1777 9

• 1771 – 1777 Lavoisier — oxygen and the chemical revolution The role of oxygen in combustion, breathing and chemistry Antoine Lavoisier of Paris identified oxygen as a distinct element (naming it in 1777), demonstrated its role in combustion and respiration, showed that air is a mixture of gases, and established the law of conservation of mass. His Traité Élémentaire de Chimie (1789) reformulated chemistry using a new systematic nomenclature still used today. He is considered the founder of modern chemistry.
• 1777 – 1855 Carl Friedrich Gauss (1777-1855) Died 23 February 1855, aged 77 Carl Friedrich Gauss, one of history's most influential mathematicians, died in Gottingen. He made foundational contributions to number theory, statistics, algebra, geometry, and magnetism, and is often called the "Prince of Mathematicians." His work underpins much of modern mathematics and physics.
• 1777 – 1851 Hans Christian Ørsted (1777-1851) Died 9 March 1851, aged 73 Hans Christian Ørsted was a Danish physicist and chemist who discovered that electric currents create magnetic fields, founding the field of electromagnetism. The SI unit of magnetic field strength, the oersted, is named after him.
• 1777 – 1852 Henry Clay (1777-1852) Died 29 June 1852, aged 75 Henry Clay was a US senator and three-time presidential candidate known as "The Great Compromiser" for brokering sectional agreements including the Missouri Compromise and Compromise of 1850. He died in Washington, D.C.
• 1777 – 1849 Juliette Recamier (1777-1849) Died 11 May 1849, aged 71 French socialite whose Paris salon was a famous gathering place for writers and politicians during and after the Napoleonic era. She was renowned for her beauty and immortalized in Jacques-Louis David's portrait of her reclining on a chaise longue. She died in Paris during a cholera epidemic.
• 1777 – 1864 Roger Taney (1777-1864) Died 12 October 1864, aged 87 Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court, author of the 1857 Dred Scott decision denying citizenship to Black Americans. He died in Washington, D.C., still serving on the Court.
• 1777 – 1844 Thomas Campbell (1777-1844) Died 15 June 1844, aged 66 Scottish poet best known for The Pleasures of Hope and patriotic war lyrics such as "Ye Mariners of England". He also helped found University College London.
• 1777 – 1860 Queen Desideria The Reluctant Queen Desirée Clary, once engaged to Napoleon, she became Queen of Sweden but struggled with the cold climate.
• 1777 – 1825 Alexander I Grand Duke of Finland The Russian Tsar who took Finland from Sweden and granted the country its autonomous status.