Editing 1800s (decade)

{{short description|Decade of the Gregorian calendar (1800–1809)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2023}}{{Multiple issues|
{{original research|date=March 2017}}
{{more citations needed|date=March 2017}}
}}
<imagemap>File:1800s collage.jpg|thumb|335x335px|From top left, clockwise: [[Napoleon Bonaparte]] is crowned Emperor of the French Empire and embarked on trans-European conquests, which would later on be best known as the [[Napoleonic Wars]] – a conflict that forever transformed European politics, and gave rise to the [[superpower|global struggle for hegemony]]; [[Ceres (dwarf planet)|Ceres]] was discovered, proving the existence of an [[asteroid belt]] between the [[Solar System]]'s inner and outer planets; Inventor [[Isaac de Rivas]] created a hydrogen gas-powered vehicle, an inception to [[automotive engineering]] and internal combustion engines; - The [[Louisiana Purchase]] was made, singlehandedly expanding the [[United States of America]] in a scale larger than ever; to this day the purchase is still viewed as one of the largest expansions within [[North America]] to date; [[William Symington|Symington]]'s [[Charlotte Dundas]] became the world's first functioning steamboat; [[Haiti]] [[Haitian Revolution|declares independence]] in 1804, becoming the world's first black-led republic and the first independent Caribbean state, with its victory marking the world's arguably only successful slave revolution in history; [[Morphine]] is successfully isolated from [[opium]] and is produced for the first time as a separate medicinal product in 1804; [[Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor|Francis II]] [[Peace of Pressburg (1805)|abdicates]] in 1806, thus [[Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire|dissolving the Holy Roman Empire]].
rect 40 40 1658 1074 [[Coronation of Napoleon I]]
rect 1699 40 3223 1074 [[Ceres (dwarf planet)]]
rect 40 1115 1105 2148 [[Morphine]]
rect 1146 1115 2180 2148 [[Peace of Pressburg (1805)]]
rect 2221 1115 3223 2148 [[De Rivaz engine]]
rect 40 2189 1105 3223 [[Haitian Revolution]]
rect 1146 2189 2180 3223 [[Charlotte Dundas]]
rect 2221 2189 3223 3223 [[Louisiana Purchase]]
</imagemap>
{{Decadebox|180}}

The '''1800s''' (pronounced "eighteen-hundreds") was a [[decade]] of the [[Gregorian calendar]] that began on 1 January 1800, and ended on 31 December 1809. 

The term "eighteen-hundreds" could also mean the entire century from 1 January 1800 to 31 December 1899 (the years beginning with "18"),{{citationneeded|date=January 2025}} and is almost synonymous with the [[19th century]] (1801–1900).

The decade was a period of drastic change. The advancements of the previous three decades towards the end of the 18th century had propelled the [[Industrial Revolution]] into a global movement, with entire wars fought with the newly developed technologies – creating an impetus to imperialist campaigns across [[Africa]] and [[Asia]], as well as the counter-movement on [[Latin America]] later on.

==Politics and wars==
[[File:Jacques-Louis David - The Emperor Napoleon in His Study at the Tuileries - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|upright|The early 1800s saw the rise of [[Napoleon|Napoleon Bonaparte]], who led the French Army to conquer a substantial portion of Europe during this time.]]

===Napoleonic Wars===
{{Main|Napoleonic Wars}}

The European political landscape was dominated by the [[Napoleonic Wars]], a series of conflicts declared against [[Napoleon]]'s [[First French Empire]] and changing sets of European allies by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the [[French Revolution]] of 1789, they revolutionized European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to the application of modern [[Levée en masse|mass conscription]]. French power rose quickly, conquering most of Europe by the end of the decade. The decade brought hard times.

On 9 November 1799 ([[18 Brumaire]]), Napoleon overthrew the French government, replacing it with the [[French Consulate|Consulate]], in which he was First Consul. On 2 December 1804, after a failed assassination plot, he crowned himself [[First French Empire|Emperor]]. In 1805, Napoleon planned to invade Britain, but a renewed British alliance with Russia and Austria ([[Third Coalition]]), forced him to turn his attention towards the continent, while at the same time failure to lure the superior British fleet away from the [[English Channel]], ending in a decisive French defeat at the [[Battle of Trafalgar]] (in this battle, British [[Admiral Horatio Nelson]] was fatally wounded<ref name="ThoughtCo"> J. McNamara, Robert. "Major Events of the First Decade of the 19th Century". ThoughtCo. Retrieved 13 April 2022.</ref>) on 21 October put an end to hopes of an invasion of Britain. On 2 December 1805, Napoleon defeated a numerically superior Austro-Russian army at [[Battle of Austerlitz|Austerlitz]], forcing Austria's withdrawal from the coalition (''see [[Treaty of Pressburg (1805)|Treaty of Pressburg]]'') and dissolving the [[Holy Roman Empire]]. In 1806, a [[Fourth Coalition]] was set up, on 14 October Napoleon defeated the Prussians at the [[Battle of Jena-Auerstedt]], marched through Germany and defeated the Russians on 14 June 1807 at  [[Battle of Friedland|Friedland]]. The [[Treaties of Tilsit]] divided Europe between France and Russia and created the [[Duchy of Warsaw]].

The [[War of the Fifth Coalition]], fought in the year 1809, pitted a coalition of the [[Austrian Empire]] and the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|United Kingdom]] against the French Empire and [[Bavaria]]. Major engagements between France and Austria, the main participants, unfolded over much of [[Central Europe]] from April to July, with very high casualty rates. Britain, already involved on the European continent in the ongoing [[Peninsular War]], sent another expedition, the [[Walcheren Campaign]], to the Netherlands in order to relieve the Austrians, although this effort had little impact on the outcome of the conflict. After much campaigning in Bavaria and across the [[Danube River|Danube valley]], the war ended favorably for the French after the bloody struggle at [[Battle of Wagram|Wagram]] in early July, resulting in the [[Treaty of Schönbrunn]] . Although fighting in the [[Peninsular War|Iberian Peninsula]] continued, the War of the Fifth Coalition was the last major conflict on the European continent until the [[Napoleon's invasion of Russia|French invasion of Russia]] in 1812 sparked the [[War of the Sixth Coalition|Sixth Coalition]].

===Other wars and political upheavals===
* End of the [[White Lotus Rebellion]] (1796–1804), an uprising against the [[Qing dynasty]] in [[China]].
* Beginning of the [[Russo-Turkish War (1806–1812)]] between Russia and the [[Ottoman Empire]].
* The [[First Barbary War]] (1801–1805) is fought between the United States and the [[Barbary States]] of North Africa.
* End of the [[Quasi-War]] (1800).
* The [[Second Anglo-Maratha War]] (1803–1805) is fought between the [[Peshwa|Maratha Peshwa]] on one side and minor chieftains of the Maratha Confederacy [[Sindhia]], [[Bhonsle]] and [[House of Holkar|Holkar]] on the other resulting in a crushing defeat of the rebel chieftains and the breakup of the Maratha confederacy.
* The [[Fulani War]] (1804–1810) is fought in present-day [[Nigeria]] and [[Cameroon]].
* The [[First Serbian Uprising]] (1804−1813) marks the first time in 300 years [[Serbia]] perceives itself an independent state.
* [[Haiti]] gains [[independence]] from France on 1 January 1804.
* Irish Republican, orator, and rebel leader [[Robert Emmet]] leads a rebellion in [[Dublin, Ireland]] on 23 July 1803 but the rebellion is crushed and Emmet is captured and later executed on 20 September 1803.<ref name="ThoughtCo" />

===Slavery===
{{See also|History of slavery}}

This decade marked the greatest increase of the [[Atlantic slave trade]] to the United States. During the period of 1798 and 1808, approximately 200,000 slaves were imported from Africa to the United States.<ref name="www.america.gov">{{cite web
|title = U.S.-Africa Chronology|url = http://iipdigital.usembassy.gov/st/english/article/2008/09/20080924135836idybeekcm0.5395624.html#axzz3WdqOJXlU|access-date = 7 April 2015|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140714213038/http://iipdigital.usembassy.gov/st/english/article/2008/09/20080924135836idybeekcm0.5395624.html#axzz3WdqXy0E4|archive-date = 14 July 2014}}</ref> Still, the [[Abolitionism|abolitionist]] movement began to gain ground in this period. Britain enacted the [[Slave Trade Act 1807]], which barred the trade of slaves in Great Britain (though slavery was still legal). The United States enacted a similar ban in 1808.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/30/opinion/30foner.html Foner, Eric. "Forgotten step towards freedom,"] ''New York Times.'' 30 December 2007,</ref> However, Napoleon revoked the French Empire's ban on slavery with the [[Law of 20 May 1802]].

On 30 August 1800, under the cloak of religious meetings, [[Gabriel Prosser]] and Jack Bowler planned a slave rebellion in [[Richmond, Virginia]]. The rebellion was postponed due to poor weather and was ultimately unsuccessful because of unnamed two slaves betraying the cause.<ref name = "Jim Crow Museum">“Slavery in America.” Ferris State University, https://www.ferris.edu/HTMLS/news/jimcrow/timeline/slavery.htm. </ref>

===Prominent political events===
* 1800
** The unfinished [[White House]] (at the time known as the "Executive Mansion") housed its first president, [[President John Adams]], on 1 November 1800.<ref name="ThoughtCo" />
* 1801
** Under the [[District of Columbia Organic Act of 1801]], [[Washington, D.C.]], a new [[New town|planned city]] and [[Capital (political)|capital]] of the [[United States]], was placed under the jurisdiction of the [[United States Congress|U.S. Congress]].
** The [[Kingdom of Great Britain]] and the [[Kingdom of Ireland]] merge into the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland]] in 1801.
* 1803
** United States doubles its size with territories gained from [[Napoleon Bonaparte]] in the [[Louisiana Purchase]].
** The [[Supreme Court of the United States|United States Supreme Court]] rules in [[Marbury v. Madison]], giving themselves the ability of [[Judicial review in the United States|Judicial review]], and substantially expanding the Judicial branch's power.<ref>{{Cite web |date= |title=Marbury v. Madison |url=https://www.oyez.org/cases/1789-1850/5us137 |access-date=6 November 2024 |website=Oyez}}</ref>
*1809
**The first British monarch to mark a jubilee in a significant way was [[King George III]]. The [[Golden Jubilee of George III]] on 25 October 1809 marked the forty-ninth anniversary of his accession and his entrance into the 50th year of his reign.

===World leaders===
*[[List of state leaders in the 18th century]] (1701–1800)
*[[List of state leaders in the 19th century (1801–1850)]]

===Colonies===
{|
|-
|
* North America/Latin America
** [[Canada]] - a colony of Great Britain under the control of [[Secretary of State for War and the Colonies]]
** [[Russian America]] - Alaska down through parts of California were claimed by Russia during this time, commercialized through the establishment of the [[Russian-American Company]]
** [[New Spain]] - Present day Mexico, Central America, and the western United States were under the control of Spain during this decade.
* South America
** Largely under colonial rule by [[Spain]] and [[Portugal]]. Spain was losing its grip due to problems at home, setting the stage for [[Spanish American wars of independence]] in the following decade.
* Africa
** The Ottoman Empire loosely controlled the [[Maghreb]] (a.k.a. the [[Barbary Coast]])
||

|}

==Science and technology==

===Electricity===
{{See also|History of electromagnetism|History of electrochemistry}}
[[Image:VoltaBattery.JPG|thumb|upright|A voltaic pile on display in the [[Alessandro Volta#Honours|Tempio Voltiano]].]]
This decade contained some of the earliest experiments in [[electrochemistry]]. In 1800 [[Alessandro Volta]] constructed a [[voltaic pile]], the first device to produce a large electric current, later known as the [[electric battery]]. [[Napoleon]], informed of his works, summoned him in 1801 for a command performance of his experiments. He received many medals and decorations, including the [[Légion d'honneur]].

Also in [[1800]], [[William Nicholson (chemist)|William Nicholson]] and [[Johann Wilhelm Ritter]] succeeded in decomposing water into [[hydrogen]] and [[oxygen]] by [[electrolysis]]. Soon thereafter Ritter discovered the process of [[electroplating]]. He also observed that the amount of metal deposited and the amount of oxygen produced during an electrolytic process depended on the distance between the [[electrode]]s. By 1801 Ritter observed [[thermoelectricity|thermoelectric currents]] and anticipated the discovery of thermoelectricity by [[Thomas Johann Seebeck]].

In [[1806]], [[Humphry Davy]] decomposed potash and soda, employing a voltaic pile of approximately 250 cells, showing that these substances were respectively the oxides of potassium and sodium, which metals previously had been unknown. Employing a battery of 2,000 elements of a voltaic pile and charcoal enclosed in a vacuum, Davy gave the first public demonstration of the electric [[arc lamp]] in 1809.<ref name="EncyclopediaAmericana">Maver, William Jr.: "Electricity, its History and Progress", [https://archive.org/stream/encyclopediaame21unkngoog#page/n210/mode/1up The Encyclopedia Americana; a library of universal knowledge, vol. X, pp.&nbsp;172ff]. (1918). New York: Encyclopedia Americana Corp.</ref>

[[Image:Trevithicks Dampfwagen.jpg|thumb|left|The ''[[London Steam Carriage]]'']]

Steam transportation started to become viable during this decade. In 1803, [[William Symington]]'s ''[[Charlotte Dundas]]'', generally considered to be the world's first practical [[steamboat]], made her first voyage. Later, in 1807, [[Robert Fulton]]'s ''[[North River Steamboat]]'', the world's first commercially successful steamboat, made her maiden voyage.

In [[1801]], [[Richard Trevithick]] ran a full-sized steam '[[Traction engine#Road locomotive|road locomotive]]' on the road in [[Camborne|Camborne, England]],<ref name="buchanan">{{cite book
|author=C.D. Buchanan
|title=Mixed Blessing: The Motor in Britain
|url=https://archive.org/details/mixedblessingmot0000buch
|url-access=registration
|publisher=Leonard Hill
|year=1958
|chapter=1
}}</ref> followed by his 10-seater [[London Steam Carriage]] in 1803.<ref name="buchanan"/> In [[1804]], Trevithick built a prototype steam-powered [[railway locomotive]].

The first railway began operating during this time. The [[Surrey Iron Railway]] in Great Britain was established by the British Parliament in 1801,<ref>Introduction to ''Rail 150: The Stockton and Darlington Railway and what followed'' by [[Jack Simmons (historian)|Jack Simmons]], publ. 1975 by Methuen</ref> and began operation on 26 July 1803. The railway relied on horse-drawn haulage than powered locomotives.

In [[1807]], [[Isaac de Rivas]] made a [[hydrogen]] gas-powered vehicle, the first vehicle powered by an [[internal combustion engine]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Eckermann|first=Erik|title=World History of the Automobile|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yLZeQwqNmdgC&q=%22François+Isaac+de+Rivaz%22&pg=PA18|publisher=Society of Automotive Engineers|location=Warrendale, PA|year=2001|isbn=0-7680-0800-X}}</ref>
James Watt creates first steam engine based on Newcomen's design.

===Astronomy===
* The first known [[asteroids]] are discovered in this decade:
** [[Ceres (dwarf planet)|Ceres]] (1 January 1801).<ref>{{cite book |first=Michael |last=Hoskin |year=1999 |title=The Cambridge Concise History of Astronomy |publisher=Cambridge University press |isbn=978-0-521-57600-0 |pages=160–161 }}</ref> Ceres is reclassified as a [[dwarf planet]] in 2006.
** [[2 Pallas|Pallas]] (28 March 1802)
** [[3 Juno|Juno]] (1 September 1804)
** [[4 Vesta|Vesta]] (29 March 1807)

===Other advances===
* The [[Jacquard loom]] is invented in 1801.
* [[Ultraviolet|Ultraviolet radiation]] is discovered by [[Johann Wilhelm Ritter]] in 1801.
* [[Flag semaphore]] is gradually adopted by various [[navy|navies]] of the world.
* [[Morphine]] is isolated from [[opium]] for the first time in 1804.
* [[Nicolas Appert]] develops a method to preserve food by means of [[canning]] in 1809.
* [[John Dalton]] publishes his atomic theory 1803.

==Culture==
* The end of the [[Age of Enlightenment|Enlightenment]] following the beginning of the [[Romantic era]] in the [[1810s|next decade]].

[[Image:Beethoven 3.jpg|120px|thumb|right|Ludwig van Beethoven in 1804]]

===Music===
* [[Ludwig van Beethoven]]'s [[Symphony No. 1 (Beethoven)|Symphony No. 1]] premiers in Vienna in 1800.
* [[Johann Sebastian Bach|Bach's]] [[Sonatas and partitas for solo violin]] are published by [[Bote and Bock]] in 1802.
* [[Symphony No. 3 (Beethoven)|Symphony No. 3 'Eroica']] by [[Ludwig van Beethoven]] is completed in 1804.
* ''[[Fidelio]]'' by [[Ludwig van Beethoven]] is completed in 1805.
* ''[[Piano Concerto No. 4 (Beethoven)|Fourth Piano Concerto]]'' and ''[[Violin Concerto (Beethoven)|Violin Concerto]]'' by [[Ludwig van Beethoven]] are completed in 1806.
* ''[[La Vestale]]'' by [[Gaspare Spontini]] is completed in 1807.
* [[Ludwig van Beethoven|Beethoven]] completes both his [[Symphony No. 5 (Beethoven)|5th Symphony]] and [[Symphony No. 6 (Beethoven)|6th Symphony "Pastoral"]] in 1808.

===Fashion===
{{Main|1795–1820 in fashion}}
[[File:Dancing-Dress-1809.jpg|120px|thumb|right|High-waisted dancing dress from 1809]]
Fashion in this period in [[Europe]]an and European-influenced countries saw the final triumph of undress or informal styles over the [[brocade (fabric)|brocades]], [[lace]], [[periwig]], and powder of the earlier [[1700–1750 in fashion|eighteenth century]].

[[Image:BrummellEngrvFrmMiniature.jpg|left|thumb|120px|[[Beau Brummell]]]] Fashionable women's clothing styles were based on the [[Empire silhouette]] — dresses were closely fitted to the torso just under the bust, falling loosely below. Inspired by neoclassical tastes, the short-waisted gowns sported soft, flowing skirts and were often made of white, almost transparent [[muslin]], which was easily washed and draped loosely like the garments on Greek and Roman statues. No respectable woman would leave the house without a hat or [[Bonnet (headgear)|bonnet]]. The antique head-dress, or Queen Mary ''[[coif]]'', Chinese hat, Oriental inspired turban, and Highland helmet were popular. As for bonnets, their crowns and brims were adorned with increasingly elaborate ornamentations, such as feathers and ribbons.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.regencygarderobe.com/Monthly%20QA%20Pages/BonnetsPart2.htm |title=Regency Fashion and Costume |access-date=2010-02-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040306115929/http://www.regencygarderobe.com/Monthly%20QA%20Pages/BonnetsPart2.htm |archive-date=2004-03-06 |url-status=usurped }}</ref> In fact, ladies of the day embellished their hats frequently, replacing old decorations with new trims or feathers.

1800–1809 was the height of [[dandy]]ism in men's fashion in Europe, following the example of [[Beau Brummell]]. Older men, military officers, and those in conservative professions such as lawyers and physicians retained their [[Wig (hair)|wigs]] and powder into this period, but younger men of fashion wore their hair in short curls, often with long sideburns. This period saw the final abandonment of [[lace]], [[embroidery]], and other embellishment from serious men's clothing outside of formalized [[court dress]]. Instead, cut and tailoring became much more important as an indicator of quality.<ref>Payne, Blanche: ''History of Costume from the Ancient Egyptians to the Twentieth Century'', pp. 452–455, Harper & Row, 1965. No ISBN for this edition; ASIN B0006BMNFS</ref>

==Wikisource reference work==
*{{cite wikisource |title=History of the United States During the Administrations of Thomas Jefferson |first=Henry |last=Adams |authorlink1=Henry Adams |publisher=Charles Scribner's Sons |location=New York |date=1889–90}} History that in part contains six chapters of narration remarking upon significant individuals of that era with added wikilinks linking back to their Wikipedia articles

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{19th century}}

[[Category:1800s| ]]