Editing 1744 (section)

=== April&ndash;June ===
* [[April]] &ndash; ''[[The Female Spectator]]'' (a monthly) is founded by [[Eliza Haywood]] in England, the first periodical written for women by a woman.
* [[April 2]] &ndash; The first Rules of [[golf]] are drawn up at [[Leith]], for the first golf competition.<ref>Rules of Golf 1744 Scottish Golf History accessed 10 Feb 2017 http://www.scottishgolfhistory.org/origin-of-golf-terms/rules-of-golf/</ref><ref>Instructions, golf club rules and competitions History of Golf accessed 10 Feb 2017 [[History of golf]]</ref>
* [[April 27]] &ndash; [[Siege of Villafranca (1744)]]: A joint French and Spanish force defeats Britain and Sardinia.
* [[May 11]] &ndash; [[Russia]]'s treasury begins an effort to reduce the number of copper five-kopeck pieces (20 of which equal a [[Russian ruble]]) by declaring that it will buy them back at a ruble for every 20 until August 1, after which kopecks would be redeemed at a ruble for every 25; then at the rate of 33 for a ruble on October 1, and 50 for a ruble on and after August 28, 1746.<ref>"Banking in the Russian Empire", by Antoine E. Horn, in A History of Banking in All the Leading Nations (Journal of Commerce and Commercial Bulletin, 1896) pp342-343</ref>
* [[May 22]] &ndash; The Union of Germany is proclaimed in Frankfurt [[Frederick II of Prussia]], as articles of union are signed between [[Prussia]], [[Hesse-Kassel]] and the [[Electoral Palatinate|Rhineland Palatinate]].<ref>Martin Philippson, The Age of the European Balance of Power, translated by John Henry Wright (Lea Brothers & Company, 1905) p267</ref>
* [[May 24]] &ndash; After receiving the news from Europe that Great Britain and France are at war, the French Army at [[Louisbourg]] [[Raid on Canso|attacks the British settlement]] at [[Fort William Augustus]] at [[Canso, Nova Scotia]] and forces its surrender.<ref>"Canso, Battle of (1744)", by John D. Hamilton, in Colonial Wars of North America, 1512-1763: An Encyclopedia, ed. by Alan Gallay (Routledge, 2015) p100</ref> 
* [[June 13]] &ndash; [[Alexey Bestuzhev-Ryumin]] is named as the new [[Chancellor of the Russian Empire]] by the [[Elizabeth of Russia|Empress Elizabeth]].<ref>John T. Alexander, Catherine the Great: Life and Legend (Oxford University Press, 1989) pp27-28</ref>
* [[June 15]] &ndash; Commodore [[George Anson's voyage around the world]] concludes after four years as [[HMS Centurion (1732)|HMS ''Centurion'']] returns to England at [[Spithead]] and Anson is greeted as a hero.<ref>"Anson, George", by Joseph A. Devine, Jr., in Historical Dictionary of the British Empire, ed. by James S. Olson and Robert Shadle (Greenwood Publishing Group, 1996) p68</ref>
* [[June 28]] &ndash; At the age of 15, Princess Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst, the future Empress of Russia, is received into the [[Russian Orthodox Church]] after converting from [[Lutheranism|the Lutheran faith]]. Upon her conversion to the Russian Orthodox religion, she is given the name Yekaterina (Catherine).  In 1762, she takes the throne as the Empress Catherine II, later known as [[Catherine the Great]].