This article contains information about the literary events and publications of 1798.

Events

*February –

Samuel Taylor Coleridge Samuel Taylor Coleridge (; 21 October 177225 July 1834) was an English poet, literary critic, philosopher, and theologian who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake ...

writes the conversation poem " Frost at Midnight", commonly seen as the best of the series. *April – Coleridge writes the

conversation poems The conversation poems are a group of at least eight poems composed by Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772–1834) between 1795 and 1807. Each details a particular life experience which led to the poet's examination of nature and the role of poetry. Th ...

" Fears in Solitude" ("Written ... During the Alarm of an Invasion", soon published in a pamphlet) and " The Nightingale". *

April 16 Events Pre-1600 * 1457 BC – Battle of Megido - the first battle to have been recorded in what is accepted as relatively reliable detail. * 69 – Defeated by Vitellius' troops at Bedriacum, Otho commits suicide. * 73 – Masad ...

– Coleridge's " The Recantation: An Ode" appears in ''

The Morning Post ''The Morning Post'' was a conservative daily newspaper published in London from 1772 to 1937, when it was acquired by ''The Daily Telegraph''. History The paper was founded by John Bell. According to historian Robert Darnton, ''The Morning Po ...

'', describing his disillusionment with the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...

. *

April 30 Events Pre-1600 *311 – The Diocletianic Persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire ends. *1315 – Enguerrand de Marigny is hanged at the instigation of Charles, Count of Valois. *1492 – Spain gives Christopher Columbus hi ...

–

Richard Cumberland Richard Cumberland may refer to: * Richard Cumberland (philosopher) (1631–1718), bishop, philosopher * Richard Cumberland (dramatist) (1732–1811), civil servant, dramatist * Richard Cumberland (priest) (1710–1737), Archdeacon of Northa ...

's comedy '' The Eccentric Lover'' is first performed at the Covent Garden Theatre in London. *

September 18 Events Pre-1600 * 96 – Domitian, who has been conducting a reign of terror for the past three years, is assassinated as a result of a plot by his wife Domitia and two Praetorian prefects. * 96 – Nerva is proclaimed Roman emperor a ...

– '' Lyrical Ballads, with a Few Other Poems'' by

William Wordsworth William Wordsworth (7 April 177023 April 1850) was an English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic Age in English literature with their joint publication '' Lyrical Ballads'' (1798). Wordsworth's ' ...

and

is first published anonymously in

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

Joseph Cottle Joseph Cottle (1770–1853) was an English publisher and author. Cottle started business in Bristol. He published the works of Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Robert Southey on generous terms. He then wrote in his ''Early Recollections'' an exposur ...

(who also remains anonymous), marking the beginning of English literary

Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic, literary, musical, and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century, and in most areas was at its peak in the approximate ...

. Most of the poems are by Wordsworth, including '' Lines composed a few miles above Tintern Abbey on revisiting the banks of the Wye during a tour, 13 July 1798'', but also opening with the first publication of Coleridge's '' The Rime of the Ancyent Marinere'', whose first London publication is on

October 4 Events Pre-1600 *AD 23 – Rebels sack the Chinese capital Chang'an during a peasant rebellion. *1209 – Otto IV is crowned Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire by Pope Innocent III. *1302 – The Byzantine–Venetian War comes t ...

. *

October 11 Events Pre-1600 *1138 – A massive earthquake strikes Aleppo; it is one of the most destructive earthquakes ever. *1142 – A peace treaty ends the Jin–Song wars. * 1311 – The peerage and clergy restrict the authority of Engl ...

–

Elizabeth Inchbald Elizabeth Inchbald (née Simpson, 15 October 1753 – 1 August 1821) was an English novelist, actress, dramatist, and translator. Her two novels, '' A Simple Story'' and '' Nature and Art'', have received particular critical attention. Life Bo ...

's ''

Lovers' Vows ''Lovers' Vows'' (1798), a play by Elizabeth Inchbald arguably best known now for having been featured in Jane Austen's novel ''Mansfield Park'' (1814), is one of at least four adaptations of August von Kotzebue's ''Das Kind der Liebe'' (1780; lit ...

'' (adapted from

Kotzebue Kotzebue ( ) or Qikiqtaġruk ( , ) is a city in the Northwest Arctic Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the borough's seat, by far its largest community and the economic and transportation hub of the subregion of Alaska encompassing t ...

's ''Das Kind der Liebe'' – the child of love) is first performed at the

Theatre Royal, Drury Lane The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) and backs onto Dr ...

, London. *

October 12 Events Pre-1600 * 539 BC – The army of Cyrus the Great of Persia takes Babylon, ending the Babylonian empire. (Julian calendar) * 633 – Battle of Hatfield Chase: King Edwin of Northumbria is defeated and killed by an alliance u ...

– The rebuilt Weimarer Hoftheater are inaugurated with the first performance of the first part of Friedrich Schiller's dramatic trilogy ''

Wallenstein Albrecht Wenzel Eusebius von Wallenstein () (24 September 1583 – 25 February 1634), also von Waldstein ( cs, Albrecht Václav Eusebius z Valdštejna), was a Bohemian military leader and statesman who fought on the Catholic side during the Th ...

'': ''Das Lager'' (The Camp), directed by

Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as tr ...

. *''unknown dates'' **

Ivan Kotliarevsky Ivan Petrovych Kotliarevsky ( uk, Іван Петрович Котляревський) ( in Poltava – in Poltava, Russian Empire, now Ukraine) was a Ukrainian writer, poet and playwright, social activist, regarded as the pioneer of modern Ukra ...

mock-heroic Mock-heroic, mock-epic or heroi-comic works are typically satires or parodies that mock common Classical stereotypes of heroes and heroic literature. Typically, mock-heroic works either put a fool in the role of the hero or exaggerate the heroic ...

poem ''Eneyida'' (Енеїда) becomes the first printed work in the

modern Ukrainian language Ukrainian ( uk, украї́нська мо́ва, translit=ukrainska mova, label=native name, ) is an East Slavic language of the Indo-European language family. It is the native language of about 40 million people and the official state langu ...

. **The

National Library of the Netherlands The Royal Library of the Netherlands (Dutch: Koninklijke Bibliotheek or KB; ''Royal Library'') is the national library of the Netherlands, based in The Hague, founded in 1798. The KB collects everything that is published in and concerning the Ne ...

originates when the Batavian Republic opens the former library of the stadtholder to the public. **The Académie française publishes the 5th edition of its '' Dictionnaire''. ** Thomas Nelson's publishing company is established in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

as a second-hand religious bookshop.

New books

Fiction

Charles Brockden Brown Charles Brockden Brown (January 17, 1771 – February 22, 1810) was an American novelist, historian, and editor of the Early National period. He is generally regarded by scholars as the most important American novelist before James Fenimore ...

**''Alcuin: a Dialogue'' **'' Wieland: or, The Transformation; an American Tale'' * Emily Clark – ''Ianthé, or the Flower of Caernarvon'' *

Francis Lathom Francis Lathom (14 July 1774 – 19 May 1832) was a British gothic novelist and playwright. Biography Francis Lathom was born on 14 July 1774, in Rotterdam, Netherlands, where his father, Henry, conducted business for the East India Company and ...

– ''

The Midnight Bell ''The Midnight Bell'' is a gothic novel by Francis Lathom. It was first published anonymously in 1798 and has, on occasion, been wrongly attributed to George Walker. It was one of the seven "horrid novels" lampooned by Jane Austen in her novel ...

: a German story, founded on incidents in real life'' *

Regina Maria Roche Regina Maria Roche (1764–1845) is considered a minor Gothic novel, Gothic novelist, encouraged by the pioneering Ann Radcliffe. However, she was a bestselling author in her own time. The popularity of her third novel, ''The Children of the Abbe ...

– '' Clermont: a Tale'' * Eleanor Sleath – '' The Orphan of the Rhine: a romance'' * Caroline von Wolzogen (anonymously) – ''Agnes von Lilien'' (first complete book publication, in 2 vols) *

Mary Wollstonecraft Mary Wollstonecraft (, ; 27 April 1759 – 10 September 1797) was a British writer, philosopher, and advocate of women's rights. Until the late 20th century, Wollstonecraft's life, which encompassed several unconventional personal relationsh ...

– ''Posthumous Works'' (edited by William Godwin) including '' Maria: or, The Wrongs of Woman''

Children

* François Guillaume Ducray-Duminil – ''Cœlina, ou l'Enfant du mystère'' (Celina, or the Mystery Child) * Edward Augustus Kendall **''Keeper's Travels in Search of His Master'' **''The Sparrow. A Tale'' * Richmal Mangnall (anonymously) – ''Historical and Miscellaneous Questions for the Use of Young People'' (often known as ''Mangnall's Questions'') *

Samuel Jackson Pratt Samuel Jackson Pratt (25 December 1749 – 4 October 1814) was a prolific English poet, dramatist and novelist, writing under the pseudonym of "Courtney Melmoth" as well as under his own name. He authored around 40 publications between 1770 a ...

– ''Pity's Gift: a collection of interesting tales, to excite the compassion of youth for the animal creation'' (Selected by a Lady)

Drama

* Elizabeth Craven – ''The Georgian Princess'' *

– ** '' The Eccentric Lover'' ** ''

A Word for Nature ''A Word for Nature'' is a 1798 comedy play by the British writer Richard Cumberland. It is also known by the alternative title of ''The Passive Husband''. The original Drury Lane cast included James Aickin as Lord Glenadry, Richard Suett as Si ...

'' *

Thomas Holcroft Thomas Holcroft (10 December 174523 March 1809) was an English dramatist, miscellanist, poet and translator. He was sympathetic to the early ideas of the French Revolution and helped Thomas Paine to publish the first part of ''The Rights of Ma ...

– **'' He's Much to Blame'' ** ''

Knave or Not? ''Knave or Not?'' is a 1798 comedy play by the British writer Thomas Holcroft. The original Drury Lane cast included John Palmer as Monsrose, Richard Wroughton as Sir Guy Taunton, Richard Suett as Sir Job Ferment, Ralph Wewitzer as Mr Taunton, ...

'' *

– ''

'' * Thomas Morton ** '' Secrets Worth Knowing'' ** ''

Speed the Plough ''Speed the Plough'' is a five-act comedy by Thomas Morton, first performed in 1798 at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden to great acclaim. It is mostly remembered today for the sake of the unseen character, Mrs Grundy Mrs Grundy is a figurati ...

'' *

Friedrich von Schiller Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (, short: ; 10 November 17599 May 1805) was a German playwright, poet, and philosopher. During the last seventeen years of his life (1788–1805), Schiller developed a productive, if complicated, friendsh ...

– '' Wallensteins Lager''

Poetry

and

– ''

Lyrical Ballads ''Lyrical Ballads, with a Few Other Poems'' is a collection of poems by William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, first published in 1798 and generally considered to have marked the beginning of the English Romantic movement in literatu ...

'' *

Richard Polwhele Richard Polwhele (6 January 1760 – 12 March 1838) was a Cornish clergyman, poet and historian of Cornwall and Devon. Biography Richard Polwhele's ancestors long held the manor of Treworgan, 4 3/4 miles south-east of Truro in Cornwall, whi ...

(anonymously) – ''

The Unsex'd Females ''The Unsex'd Females, a Poem'' (1798), by Richard Polwhele, is a polemical intervention into the public debates over the role of women at the end of the 18th century. The poem is primarily concerned with what Polwhele characterizes as the encroach ...

'' *

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner ''The Rime of the Ancient Mariner'' (originally ''The Rime of the Ancyent Marinere'') is the longest major poem by the English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, written in 1797–1798 and published in 1798 in the first edition of ''Lyrical Ballad ...

Non-fiction

* Nathan Drake – ''Literary Hours'' *

Hannah Webster Foster Hannah Webster Foster (September 10, 1758/59 – April 17, 1840) was an American novelist. Her epistolary novel, '' The Coquette; or, The History of Eliza Wharton'', was published anonymously in 1797. Although it sold well in the 1790s, it was no ...

– ''

The Boarding School; or, Lessons of a Preceptress to Her Pupils ''The Boarding School; or, Lessons of a Preceptress to Her Pupils'', or ''The Boarding School'' is a novel written by Hannah Webster Foster which was published in 1798. Background ''The Boarding School'' was written by Hannah Webster Foster in 1 ...

'' * William Godwin – ''

Memoirs of the Author of A Vindication of the Rights of Woman ''Memoirs of the Author of A Vindication of the Rights of Woman'' (1798) is William Godwin's biography of his late wife Mary Wollstonecraft. Rarely published in the nineteenth century and sparingly even today, ''Memoirs'' is most often viewed ...

'' *

Edward Jenner Edward Jenner, (17 May 1749 – 26 January 1823) was a British physician and scientist who pioneered the concept of vaccines, and created the smallpox vaccine, the world's first vaccine. The terms ''vaccine'' and ''vaccination'' are derived f ...

– ''An Inquiry Into the Causes and Effects of the Variolæ Vaccinæ'' *

Thomas Malthus Thomas Robert Malthus (; 13/14 February 1766 – 29 December 1834) was an English cleric, scholar and influential economist in the fields of political economy and demography. In his 1798 book ''An Essay on the Principle of Population'', Mal ...

(anonymously) – '' An Essay on the Principle of Population'' * Richmal Mangnall – ''Historical and Miscellaneous Questions for the Use of Young People''

Births

January 5 Events Pre-1600 *1477 – Battle of Nancy: Charles the Bold is defeated and killed in a conflict with René II, Duke of Lorraine; Burgundy subsequently becomes part of France. 1601–1900 * 1675 – Battle of Colmar: The French a ...

–

David Macbeth Moir David Macbeth Moir (5 January 17986 July 1851) was a Scottish physician and writer. Biography Moir was born at Musselburgh on 5 January 1798, the son of Elizabeth Macbeth (1767–1842) and Robert Moir (''d''. 1842). He was educated at Muss ...

, Scottish poet and humorist (died 1851) *

January 29 Events Pre-1600 * 904 – Sergius III is elected pope, after coming out of retirement to take over the papacy from the deposed antipope Christopher. * 946 – Caliph Al-Mustakfi is blinded and deposed by Emir Mu'izz al-Dawla, rul ...

–

Henry Neele Henry Neele (29 January 1798 – 7 February 1828) was an English poet and literary scholar. He was also a practising attorney in the West End of London. Early life Neele was the son of Samuel John Neele (1758–1824), a cartographer, engraver, ...

, English poet and scholar (died

1828 Events January–March * January 4 – Jean Baptiste Gay, vicomte de Martignac succeeds the Comte de Villèle, as Prime Minister of France. * January 8 – The Democratic Party of the United States is organized. * January 22 – Arth ...

) *

February 12 Events Pre-1600 *1404 – The Italian professor Galeazzo di Santa Sophie performed the first post-mortem autopsy for the purposes of teaching and demonstration at the Heiligen–Geist Spital in Vienna. *1429 – English forces under ...

– Catherine Gore, English novelist and dramatist (died

1861 Statistically, this year is considered the end of the whale oil industry and (in replacement) the beginning of the petroleum oil industry. Events January–March * January 1 ** Benito Juárez captures Mexico City. ** The first stea ...

) * February 17 – Auguste Comte, French philosopher (died 1857) *

March 30 Events Pre-1600 * 598 – Balkan Campaign: The Avars lift the siege at the Byzantine stronghold of Tomis. Their leader Bayan I retreats north of the Danube River after the Avaro- Slavic hordes are decimated by the plague. *1282 &ndash ...

– Luise Hensel, German religious author and poet (died

1876 Events January–March * January 1 ** The Reichsbank opens in Berlin. ** The Bass Brewery Red Triangle becomes the world's first registered trademark symbol. * February 2 – The National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs is ...

) *

June 29 Events Pre-1600 * 226 – Cao Rui succeeds his father as emperor of the Kingdom of Wei. *1149 – Raymond of Poitiers is defeated and killed at the Battle of Inab by Nur ad-Din Zangi. * 1194 – Sverre is crowned King of Norway, ...

– Count

Giacomo Leopardi Count Giacomo Taldegardo Francesco di Sales Saverio Pietro Leopardi (, ; 29 June 1798 – 14 June 1837) was an Italian philosopher, poet, essayist, and philologist. He is considered the greatest Italian poet of the nineteenth century and one of ...

, Italian poet, essayist and philologist (died

1837 Events January–March * January 1 – The destructive Galilee earthquake causes 6,000–7,000 casualties in Ottoman Syria. * January 26 – Michigan becomes the 26th state admitted to the United States. * February – Charles Dick ...

)

Deaths

April 12 Events Pre-1600 * 240 – Shapur I becomes co-emperor of the Sasanian Empire with his father Ardashir I. * 467 – Anthemius is elevated to Emperor of the Western Roman Empire. * 627 – King Edwin of Northumbria is converted to ...

– Madeleine de Puisieux, French philosopher and feminist writer (born

1720 Events January–March * February 10 – Edmond Halley is appointed as Astronomer Royal for England. * January 21 – Sweden and Prussia sign the Treaty of Stockholm (Great Northern War). * February 17 – The Treaty o ...

) *

June 4 Events Pre-1600 *1411 – King Charles VI granted a monopoly for the ripening of Roquefort cheese to the people of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon as they had been doing for centuries. * 1561 – The steeple of St Paul's, the medieval cathedr ...

–

Giacomo Casanova Giacomo Girolamo Casanova (, ; 2 April 1725 – 4 June 1798) was an Italian adventurer and author from the Republic of Venice. His autobiography, (''Story of My Life''), is regarded as one of the most authentic sources of information about the c ...

, Italian librarian and memoirist (born

1725 Events January–March * January 15 – James Macrae, a former captain of a freighter for the British East India Company, is hired by the Company to administer the Madras Presidency (at the time, the "Presidency of Fort St. Geo ...

) * June 20 –

Jeremy Belknap Jeremy Belknap (June 4, 1744 – June 20, 1798) was an American clergyman and historian. His great achievement was the ''History of New Hampshire'', published in three volumes between 1784 and 1792. This work is the first modern history written ...

, American historian of New Hampshire (born

1744 Events January–March * January 6 – The Royal Navy ship ''Bacchus'' engages the Spanish Navy privateer ''Begona'', and sinks it; 90 of the 120 Spanish sailors die, but 30 of the crew are rescued. * January 24 – The Dag ...

) *

December 16 Events Pre-1600 * 714 – Pepin of Herstal, mayor of the Merovingian palace, dies at Jupille (modern Belgium). He is succeeded by his infant grandson Theudoald, while his widow Plectrude holds actual power in the Frankish Kingdom. * 755 ...

–

Thomas Pennant Thomas Pennant (14 June OS 172616 December 1798) was a Welsh naturalist, traveller, writer and antiquarian. He was born and lived his whole life at his family estate, Downing Hall near Whitford, Flintshire, in Wales. As a naturalist he h ...

, Welsh naturalist and travel writer (born

1726 Events January–March * January 23 – (January 12 Old Style) The Conventicle Act (''Konventikelplakatet'') is adopted in Sweden, outlawing all non-Lutheran religious meetings outside of church services. * January 26 – ...

)

References

{{Year in literature article categories Years of the 18th century in literature