Timeline August 1772

Events in August 1772 3

• 1772 First Partition of Poland Russia, Prussia, and Austria carve up Polish-Lithuanian territory On 5 August 1772, Russia, Prussia, and Austria signed a treaty dividing roughly a third of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth among themselves. It was the first of three partitions that would erase Poland from the map by 1795. The commonwealth was left militarily unable to resist the three neighboring powers.
• 1772 Eruption of Mount Papandayan Volcanic collapse in Java kills nearly 3,000 people On 11-12 August 1772, Mount Papandayan in West Java erupted violently, and part of the volcano collapsed in a debris avalanche that buried villages below. Around 2,957 people are estimated to have died, making it one of the deadliest volcanic disasters on record. Forty villages were reported destroyed by the collapse and subsequent devastation.
• 1772 Gustav III's coup d'état Swedish king seizes absolute power from parliament On 19 August 1772, King Gustav III of Sweden staged a bloodless coup, arresting the Council of State and forcing through a new constitution that restored royal absolutism. The move ended the parliamentary "Age of Liberty" that had limited the Swedish crown since 1719. It was broadly welcomed by a public weary of factional rule by the nobility.