January 20 » The Kingdom of Great Britain signed preliminary articles of peace with France, setting the stage to the official end of hostilities in the American Revolutionary War later that year.
June 22 » A poisonous cloud caused by the eruption of the Laki volcano in Iceland reaches Le Havre in France.
July 25 » American Revolutionary War: The war's last action, the Siege of Cuddalore, is ended by a preliminary peace agreement.
August 18 » A huge fireball meteor is seen across Great Britain as it passes over the east coast.
October 15 » The Montgolfier brothers' hot air balloon makes the first human ascent, piloted by Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier.
December 23 » George Washington resigns as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army at the Maryland State House in Annapolis, Maryland.
Day of marriage December 12, 1808
The temperature on December 12, 1808 was about 9.0 °C. Wind direction mainly north-northwest. Weather type: betrokken dampig regen. Source: KNMI
This page is only available in Dutch.
De Republiek der Verenigde Nederlanden werd in 1794-1795 door de Fransen veroverd onder leiding van bevelhebber Charles Pichegru (geholpen door de Nederlander Herman Willem Daendels); de verovering werd vergemakkelijkt door het dichtvriezen van de Waterlinie; Willem V moest op 18 januari 1795 uitwijken naar Engeland (en van daaruit in 1801 naar Duitsland); de patriotten namen de macht over van de aristocratische regenten en proclameerden de Bataafsche Republiek; op 16 mei 1795 werd het Haags Verdrag gesloten, waarmee ons land een vazalstaat werd van Frankrijk; in 3.1796 kwam er een Nationale Vergadering; in 1798 pleegde Daendels een staatsgreep, die de unitarissen aan de macht bracht; er kwam een nieuwe grondwet, die een Vertegenwoordigend Lichaam (met een Eerste en Tweede Kamer) instelde en als regering een Directoire; in 1799 sloeg Daendels bij Castricum een Brits-Russische invasie af; in 1801 kwam er een nieuwe grondwet; bij de Vrede van Amiens (1802) kreeg ons land van Engeland zijn koloniën terug (behalve Ceylon); na de grondwetswijziging van 1805 kwam er een raadpensionaris als eenhoofdig gezag, namelijk Rutger Jan Schimmelpenninck (van 31 oktober 1761 tot 25 maart 1825).
January 1 » The United States bans the importation of slaves.
January 22 » The Portuguese royal family arrives in Brazil after fleeing the French army's invasion of Portugal two months earlier.
January 26 » The Rum Rebellion is the only successful (albeit short-lived) armed takeover of the government in New South Wales.
May 2 » Outbreak of the Peninsular War: The people of Madrid rise up in rebellion against French occupation. Francisco de Goya later memorializes this event in his painting The Second of May 1808.
December 20 » Peninsular War: The Siege of Zaragoza begins.
December 20 » The original Garden Theatre in London is destroyed by a fire, along with most of the scenery, costumes and scripts.
Day of death July 15, 1868
The temperature on July 15, 1868 was about 22.0 °C. The air pressure was 1 kgf/m2 and came mainly from the east-northeast. The airpressure was 76 cm mercury. The atmospheric humidity was 58%. Source: KNMI
From June 1, 1866 till June 4, 1868 the Netherlands had a cabinet Van Zuijlen van Nijevelt - Heemskerk with the prime ministers Mr. J.P.J.A. graaf Van Zuijlen van Nijevelt (AR) and Mr. J. Heemskerk Azn. (conservatief).
From June 4, 1868 till January 4, 1871 the Netherlands had a cabinet Van Bosse - Fock with the prime ministers Mr. P.P. van Bosse (liberaal) and Mr. C. Fock (liberaal).
May 14 » Boshin War: The Battle of Utsunomiya Castle ends as former Tokugawa shogunate forces withdraw northward.
May 30 » Decoration Day (the predecessor of the modern "Memorial Day") is observed in the United States for the first time after a proclamation by John A. Logan, head of the Grand Army of the Republic (a veterans group).
June 10 » Mihailo Obrenović III, Prince of Serbia is assassinated.
August 13 » The 8.5–9.0 Mw Arica earthquake struck southern Peru with a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme), causing 25,000+ deaths and a destructive basin wide tsunami that affected Hawaii and New Zealand.
November 2 » Time zone: New Zealand officially adopts a standard time to be observed nationally.
November 3 » John Willis Menard (R-Louisiana) was the first African American elected to the United States Congress. Because of an electoral challenge, he was never seated.
When copying data from this family tree, please include a reference to the origin: Peter John Oswald, "Pop Oswald Tree", database, Genealogy Online (https://www.genealogieonline.nl/pop-oswald-tree/P8207.php : accessed February 23, 2026), "John HILLAM (1783-1868)".
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