The Cambridge History of English and American Literature in Eighteen Volumes (1907–21).
Volume IX. From Steele and Addison to Pope and Swift.

Table of Principal Dates.



1616 Roger L’Estrange born (d. 1704).
1622 Peacham’s Compleat Gentleman.
1624 Jacob Boehme died.
1643 Gilbert Burnet born (d. 1715).
1643 John Strype born (d. 1737).
1644 Milton’s Of Education.
1648 Nova Solyma.
1650 Jeremy Collier born (d. 1726).
1651 Hobbes’s Leviathan.
1655 Dugdale’s Monasticon Anglicanum, vol. I.
1656 Dugdale’s Antiquities of Warwickshire.
1656 Harrington’s Oceana.
1656 Osborne’s Advice to a Son.
1657 Comenius’s Opera didactica omnia.
1660. The Restoration.
1660? Daniel Defoe born (d. 1731).
1661 Sir Samuel Garth born (d. 1719).
1662 Richard Bentley born (d. 1742).
1663–8 Butler’s Hudibras.
1664 Matthew Prior born (d. 1721).
1664 Cotton’s Scarronides.
1665 Burnet’s Discourse on Sir Robert Fletcher of Saltoun.
1665 The Oxford Gazette (afterwards The London Gazette) established.
1667 John Arbuthnot born (d. 1735).
1667 George Granville, Lord Lansdowne, born (d. 1735).
1667 Jonathan Swift born (d. 1745).
1667 Sprat’s History of the Royal Society.
1668 Burnet’s Thoughts on Education (ptd. 1761).
1669 Chamberlayne’s Angliae notitia.
1672 Joseph Addison born (d. 1719).
1672 Sir Richard Steele born (d. 1729).
1674 Wood’s Historia et antiquitates Universitatis Oxoniensis.
1675 Samuel Clarke born (d. 1729).
1675? Ambrose Philips born (d. 1749).
1678 Rymer’s Tragedies of the Last Age.
1679 Act for disabling Roman Catholics from sitting in Parliament.
1679 Burnet’s History of the Reformation, vol. I (vol. II, 1681; vol. III, 1714).
1681 L’Estrange establishes The Observator.
1685 George Berkeley born (d. 1753).
1685 John Gay born (d. 1732).
1685 Cotton’s translation of Montaigne’s Essays.
1685 Revocation of Edict of Nantes.
1685–8 James II.
1686 William Law born (d. 1761).
1686 Thomas Tickell born (d. 1740).
1686 Dryden’s The Hind and the Panther.
1687 Declaration of Indulgence.
1687 Montague and Prior’s The Hind and the Panther Transvers’d to the Story of the Country-Mouse and the City Mouse.
1688 The Revolution.
1688 Alexander Pope born (d. 1744).
1689 Toleration Act.
1689–94 William and Mary.
1690 Temple’s Essay on Ancient and Modern Learning.
1691 Langbaine’s Account of the English Dramatic Poets.
1691–2 Wood’s Athenae Oxonienses.
1692 John Byrom born (d. 1763).
1692. L’Estrange’s edition of the Fables of Aesop (pt. II in 1699). 1692 Rymer’s Short View of Tragedy (dated 1693).
1692–3 Bentley’s Boyle Lectures on The Folly and Unreasonableness of Atheism.
1693 Locke’s Some Thoughts concerning Education.
1694 Bank of England established.
1694 Leslie’s Short and easy method with the Deists.
1694 Strype’s Memorials of Cranmer.
1694 Wotton’s Reflections upon Ancient and Modern Learning.
1694–1702 William III.
1695 Blackmore’s Prince Arthur.
1695 Tanner’s Notitia monastica.
1695 The Flying Post (Whig) begins to appear.
1695 The Post Boy (Tory) begins to appear.
1696 Aubrey’s Miscellanies.
1696 Toland’s Christianity not mysterious.
1697 Peace of Ryswyk.
1697 Collier’s Essays.
1697 Defoe’s Essay upon Projects.
1698 Andrew Fletcher’s Discourse of Government with relation to Militias.
1698 Granville’s Heroick Love.
1698 Ward’s London Spy begins to appear.
1699 Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge founded.
1699 Bentley’s Dissertation on the Epistles of Phalaris.
1699 Garth’s Dispensary.
1699 William King’s Dialogues of the Dead.
1700 Death of Dryden.
1700 Pomfret’s Choice.
1700–31 Strype’s Annals of the Reformation.
1701 Act of Settlement.
1701 Defoe’s The True-Born Englishman.
1701 John Philips’s Splendid Shilling.
1701 Steele’s Christian Hero.
1702 Defoe’s Shortest Way with the Dissenters.
1702 The Daily Courant (first daily paper founded.)
1702–14 Anne.
1703 Death of Pepys.
1703 Defoe’s Hymn to the Pillory.
1703 Steele’s Lying Lover.
1703? Henry Brooke born (d. 1783.)
1704 Death of Locke.
1704 Battle of Blenheim.
1704 Addison’s Campaign.
1704 Dennis’s Grounds of Criticism in Poetry.
1704 Swift’s A Tale of a Tub and The Battle of the Books (written about 1697).
1704 Defoe establishes The Review, which is carried on till 1713.
1704–5 Samuel Clarke’s Boyle Lectures.
1704–35 Rymer’s Foedera.
1706 Death of Evelyn.
1706 Act of Succession.
1706 Union with Scotland.
1707 Echard’s History of England, vol. I.
1707 Prior’s Poems on Several Occasions (unauthorised ed.).
1708 Collier’s Ecclesiastical History, vol. I.
1708 Motteux’s translation of Rabelais (begun by Urquhart).
1708 John Philips’s Cyder.
1708 Swift’s Sentiments of a Church of England man; Argument against abolishing Christianity; Predictions of Isaac Bickerstaff; and Account of Partridge’s Death.
1709 Defoe’s History of the Union of Great Britain.
1709 Berkeley’s Essay towards a new theory of vision.
1709 Pope’s Pastorals appear in Tonson’s Miscellany.
1709 Prior’s Poems on Several Occasions.
1709 Rowe’s edition of Shakespeare.
1709 The Tatler begins to appear.
1710 Trial of Sacheverell. Tory Ministry.
1710 Berkeley’s Principles of Human Knowledge.
1710 Ambrose Philips’s Pastorals.
1710 Swift’s City Shower and Baucis and Philemon. 1710–12 Hearne’s edition of Leland’s Itinerary.
1711 Bentley’s edition of Horace.
1711 Pope’s Essay on Criticism.
1711 Occasional Conformity Act.
1711 Shaftesbury’s Characteristics.
1711 Swift’s Conduct of the Allies.
1711 2 January. Last number of The Tatler.
1711 First number of The Spectator, March 1.
1712 Arbuthnot’s Art of Political Lying.
1712 Blackmore’s Creation.
1712 Clarke’s Scripture Doctrine of the Trinity.
1712 Dennis’s Essay on … Shakespeare.
1712 Ambrose Philips’s Distressed Mother.
1712 Pope’s The Rape of the Lock published in Lintot’s Miscellany.
1712 Whiston’s Primitive Christianity revived.
1712 Last number of The Spectator appears, December 6.
1712 The Examiner established.
1712–13 Arbuthnot’s History of John Bull.
1713 Treaty of Utrecht.
1713 Addison’s Cato.
1713 Anthony Collins’s Discourse of Free-Thinking.
1713 Bentley’s Remarks on a late Discourse of Free-Thinking.
1713 Berkeley’s Three Dialogues.
1713 Arthur Collier’s Clavis Universalis.
1713 Gay’s Rural Sports.
1713 Pope’s Windsor Forest and Ode on Saint Cecilia’s Day.
1713 Swift’s Cadenus and Vanessa.
1713 Lady Winchilsea’s Poems.
1714 Gay’s Shepherd’s Week.
1714 Schism Act.
1714–27 George I.
1715 Jacobite rising.
1715 Gay’s Trivia.
1715 Pope’s edition of Homer’s Iliad, vol. I, appears. (Vol. II, 1716; vol. III, 1717; vol. IV, 1718; vols. V, VI, 1720.)
1715 Tickell’s translation of Homer’s Iliad., Book I.
c. 1715 Carey’s Sally in our Alley.
1716 Septennial Act.
1716 Hearne begins publication of a series of English chronicle histories.
1717 Sittings of Convention close.
1717 Hoadly’s Preservative against the principles and practices of the non-jurors and Sermon on the nature of Christ’s Kingdom.
1717 Pope’s Works.
1717–19 Law’s Three Letters to the Bishop of Bangor.
1718 Society of Antiquaries instituted.
1718 Prior’s Poems on Several Occasions.
1719 Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe.
1720 South Sea Bubble.
1720 Defoe’s Memoirs of a Cavalier and Captain Singleton.
1721–42 Sir Robert Walpole in power.
1721 Parnell’s Poems on Several Occasions.
1721 Death of Prior.
1721 Ramsay’s Poems.
1721 Strype’s Ecclesiastical Memorials.
1722 Defoe’s Journal of the Plague Year, Moll Flanders, Colonel Jacque.
1722 Steele’s Conscious Lovers.
1723 Mallet’s William and Margaret.
1723 Mandeville’s Fable of the Bees and Law’s Remarks upon it.
1724 “Atterbury’s plot.”
1724 Burnet’s History of my own time (vol. II, 1734).
1724 Defoe’s Roxana.
1724 Ramsay’s Tea-Table Miscellany; and The Evergreen.
1724 Swift’s Drapier’s Letters.
1725 Pope’s edition of Shakespeare.
1725 Pope’s translation of Homer’s Odyssey (Vols. IIII) appears.
1725 Ramsay’s Gentle Shepherd.
1726 Bentley’s edition of Terence
1726 Butler’s Sermons.
1726 Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels.
1726 First number of The Craftsman appears, 5 December.
1727 Death of Newton. 1727 Gay’s Fables.
1727 The Occasional Writer (by Bolingbroke and others.)
1727–60 George II.
1728 Gay’s Beggar’s Opera.
1728 Pope’s Dunciad.
1729 Death of Congreve.
1729 Gay’s Polly.
1729 Law’s Serious Call.
1729 Swift’s Modest Proposal.
1730 Tindal’s Christianity as old as the Creation.
1730–7 The Grub Street Journal.
1731 Swift’s On the Death of Dr. Swift (published 1739).
1731 The Gentleman’s Magazine established.
1732 Bentley’s edition of Paradise Lost.
1732 Berkeley’s Alciphron.
1732 Granville’s Works.
1732 Neal’s History of the Puritans.
1732–5 Pope’s Moral Essays.
1733 Walpole’s Excise Scheme.
1733 Pope’s Essay on Man, Epistles IIII.
1733–7 Pope’s Imitations of Horace.
1735 Bolingbroke’s Dissertation upon Parties.
1735 Pope’s Epistle to Dr. Arbuthnot.
1736 Porteous Riots in Edinburgh.
1736 Butler’s Analogy.
1737 Pope’s Correspondence (authoritative edition).
1737 Whiston’s translation of Josephus.
1737 Wilkins’s Concilia.
1738 Swift’s Compleat collection of genteel and ingenious conversation.
1738 Warburton’s Divine Legation of Moses.
1739 Bentley’s edition of Manilius.
1739 Bloomfield’s History of Norfolk began to appear (completed 1775).
1740 Cibber’s Apology.
1740 Law’s Appeal to all that doubt.
1740 North’s Lives of the Norths.
1740 Prior’s History of his own time.
1741 Memoirs of Scriblerus.
1741 Middleton’s Life of Cicero.
1742 Pope’s Dunciad (with the addition of Book IV).
1744 Dodsley’s Old Plays.
1744 Zachary Grey’s edition of Butler’s Hudibras.
1744 Johnson’s Life of Savage.
1744–6 The Harleian Miscellany.
1745 Jacobite Rebellion.
1748 Dodsley’s Poems by Several Hands.
1748 Middleton’s Free Inquiry into miraculous powers.
1748 Tanner’s Bibliotheca Britannico-Hibernica.
1749 Bolingbroke’s Idea of a Patriot King and Letters on Patriotism.
1749–50 Law’s Spirit of Prayer.
1751 Death of Bolingbroke.
1752 Bolingbroke’s Letters on the Study and Use of History published.
1753 Bolingbroke’s Letter to Sir William Wyndham published.
1760–1820 George III.
1762 Locke’s Of the conduct of the Understanding.
1763 Lady Mary Wortley Montagu’s Letters published.
1766–8 Swift’s Journal to Stella published.
1766–70 Henry Brooke’s Fool of Quality.
1773 Fergusson’s Poems.
1776 Herd’s Ancient and Modern Scottish Songs.
1784 George Bubb Dodington’s Diary (1748/9–61) published.
1819–21 Hogg’s Jacobite Relics of Scotland.
1848 Lord Hervey’s Memoirs of the reign of George II published.