1770s

Events and trends

For more events, see 18th century

United States Declaration of Independence ratified by the Continental Congress (July 4, 1776). The document was drafted by a committee consisting of representatives John Adams of Massachusetts, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania, Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, Robert R. Livingston of New York and Roger Sherman of Connecticut.
Abol Fath Khan accends to the throne of Persia as the second Shah of the Zand dynasty in 1779.
The Ferguson rifle, an invention by British Major Patrick Ferguson, was most likely the first breech loading rifle to be adopted by any organized military force. It was used for an interval by the British in the American Revolutionary war, but its superior firepower was unappreciated as being outside the paradigm of armed lines of men standing face to face.
The British East India Company troops suffer a crushing defeat at the hands of the Marathas in the Battle of Wadgaon in January 1779. This is the first ever defeat for the Company's troops since Plassey.

Millennia:	2nd millennium
Centuries:	17th century - 18th century - 19th century
Decades:	1740s 1750s 1760s - 1770s - 1780s 1790s 1800s
Years:	1770 1771 1772 1773 1774 1775 1776 1777 1778 1779
Categories:	Births - Deaths - Architecture Establishments - Disestablishments