1800

Events in 1800 9

• 1780 – 1800 Galvani and Volta — animal electricity and the battery Electricity in living things, and electricity from chemistry Luigi Galvani discovered in 1780 that electric current causes muscle contraction in frogs, suggesting electricity is fundamental to living things. Alessandro Volta's voltaic pile (1800) — the first battery — showed that electricity could be generated chemically without biological tissue. Volta's invention provided the first sustained source of electric current and launched all subsequent electrical and electrochemical science.
• 1800 – 1860 Charles Goodyear (1800-1860) Died 1 July 1860, aged 59 Charles Goodyear was an American inventor who developed the vulcanization process that made rubber commercially durable and usable. His discovery, patented in 1844, transformed manufacturing but left him financially ruined by litigation and debt. He died in New York City on 1 July 1860.
• 1800 – 1846 Emperor Ninkō (1800-1846) Died 21 February 1846, aged 45 Ninkō was the 120th Emperor of Japan and reigned from 1817. He founded the Gakushūin court school in Kyoto. His son Kōmei succeeded him.
• 1800 – 1891 George Bancroft (1800-1891) Died 17 January 1891, aged 90 American historian and statesman, author of the multi-volume History of the United States. He served as US Secretary of the Navy and helped establish the US Naval Academy. His historical writing shaped 19th-century American national identity.
• 1800 Herschel discovers infrared radiation Light beyond the visible — the electromagnetic spectrum begins In 1800, William Herschel discovered infrared radiation by passing sunlight through a prism and placing thermometers beyond the red end of the visible spectrum. He found the temperature rose even where no visible light was present, demonstrating the existence of invisible radiation. This was the first discovery of a form of electromagnetic radiation beyond visible light and opened the way to understanding the full electromagnetic spectrum.
• 1800 – 1844 Hyrum Smith (1800-1844) Died 27 June 1844, aged 44 American religious leader, elder brother of Joseph Smith and Assistant President of the Latter Day Saint church. He was killed alongside his brother at Carthage Jail.
• 1800 – 1862 James Clark Ross (1800-1862) Died 3 April 1862, aged 61 Ross was a British naval officer and polar explorer who located the North Magnetic Pole and led expeditions that charted the Antarctic coastline now bearing his name. He died at his home in Aylesbury, England.
• 1800 – 1859 Thomas Babington Macaulay (1800-1859) Died 28 December 1859, aged 59 Thomas Babington Macaulay was a British historian and politician whose History of England and essays were widely read and admired for their style. He also served in colonial administration in India, where he shaped early legal and educational policy. He was created Baron Macaulay in 1857 and died at his home near London.
• 1800 – 1874 Millard Fillmore 13th President — last Whig president Millard Fillmore (Jan 7, 1800 – Mar 8, 1874) was the 13th President 1850-1853, the last Whig president. He signed the Compromise of 1850 including the Fugitive Slave Act, which damaged his legacy.