This article contains information about the literary events and publications of 1715.

Events

*c. August – Nicholas Rowe becomes the Poet Laureate of Great Britain. *The first record of the actress and writer

Eliza Haywood Eliza Haywood (c. 1693 – 25 February 1756), born Elizabeth Fowler, was an English writer, actress and publisher. An increase in interest and recognition of Haywood's literary works began in the 1980s. Described as "prolific even by the standar ...

tells of her performing in

Thomas Shadwell Thomas Shadwell ( – 19 November 1692) was an English poet and playwright who was appointed Poet Laureate in 1689. Life Shadwell was born at either Bromehill Farm, Weeting-with-Broomhill or Santon House, Lynford, Norfolk, and educated at Bury ...

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

adaptation, ''

Timon of Athens ''Timon of Athens'' (''The Life of Tymon of Athens'') is a play written by William Shakespeare and probably also Thomas Middleton in about 1606. It was published in the '' First Folio'' in 1623. Timon lavishes his wealth on parasitic companio ...

; or, The Man-Hater'' at the

Smock Alley Theatre Since the 17th century, there have been numerous theatres in Dublin with the name Smock Alley. The current Smock Alley Theatre () is a 21st-century theatre in Dublin, converted from a 19th-century church building, incorporating structural mat ...

, Dublin.

New books

Prose

Joseph Addison Joseph Addison (1 May 1672 – 17 June 1719) was an English essayist, poet, playwright and politician. He was the eldest son of The Reverend Lancelot Addison. His name is usually remembered alongside that of his long-standing friend Richard S ...

– ''The Free-Holder'' (periodical) * Jane Barker – ''Exilius; or, The Banished Roman'' *

Richard Bentley Richard Bentley FRS (; 27 January 1662 – 14 July 1742) was an English classical scholar, critic, and theologian. Considered the "founder of historical philology", Bentley is widely credited with establishing the English school of Hellen ...

– ''A Sermon upon Popery'' *

Samuel Croxall Samuel Croxall (c. 1690 – 1752) was an Anglican churchman, writer and translator, particularly noted for his edition of Aesop's Fables. Early career Samuel Croxall was born in Walton on Thames, where his father (also called Samuel) was vicar. ...

– ''The Vision'' *

Daniel Defoe Daniel Defoe (; born Daniel Foe; – 24 April 1731) was an English writer, trader, journalist, pamphleteer and spy. He is most famous for his novel ''Robinson Crusoe'', published in 1719, which is claimed to be second only to the Bible in its ...

**''An Appeal to Honour and Justice'' **''The Family Instructor'' **''A Hymn to the Mob'' *

Elizabeth Elstob Elizabeth Elstob (29 September 1683 – 3 June 1756), the "Saxon Nymph", was a pioneering scholar of Anglo-Saxon. She was the first person to publish a grammar of Old English written in modern English. Life Elstob was born and brought up in th ...

– ''The Rudiments of Grammar for the English-Saxon Tongue, first given in English; with an apology for the study of northern antiquities'', the first grammar of

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

* Thomas-Simon Gueullette – ''Les Mille et un quarts-d’heure, contes tartares (The Thousand and One Quarters of an Hour, Tartarian Tales)'' *

Alain-René Lesage Alain-René Lesage (; 6 May 166817 November 1747; older spelling Le Sage) was a French novelist and playwright. Lesage is best known for his comic novel '' The Devil upon Two Sticks'' (1707, ''Le Diable boiteux''), his comedy ''Turcaret'' (170 ...

(anonymous) – '' L'Histoire de Gil Blas de Santillane'' (Books 1–6) * Charles Montagu – ''The Works and Life of the Late Earl of Halifax'' *

Jonathan Richardson Jonathan Richardson (12 January 1667 – 28 May 1745), sometimes called "the Elder" to distinguish him from his son (Jonathan Richardson the Younger), was an English artist, collector of drawings and writer on art, working almost entirely as a ...

– ''An Essay on the Theory of Painting'' *"Captain" Alexander Smith – ''The Secret History of the Lives of the Most Celebrated Beauties, Ladies of Quality, and Jilts'' *

Richard Steele Sir Richard Steele (bap. 12 March 1672 – 1 September 1729) was an Anglo-Irish writer, playwright, and politician, remembered as co-founder, with his friend Joseph Addison, of the magazine ''The Spectator''. Early life Steele was born in Du ...

**''The Englishman: Second Series'' (periodical) **''Town-Talk'' (periodical)

Children

Isaac Watts Isaac Watts (17 July 1674 – 25 November 1748) was an English Congregational minister, hymn writer, theologian, and logician. He was a prolific and popular hymn writer and is credited with some 750 hymns. His works include "When I Survey the ...

– '' Divine Songs Attempted in Easy Language for the Use of Children''

Drama

Christopher Bullock Sir Christopher Llewellyn Bullock, KCB, CBE (10 November 1891 – 16 May 1972), a prominent member of the Bullock family, was Permanent Under-Secretary at the British Air Ministry from 1931 to 1936. Appointed at the age of 38, he remains one o ...

– '' A Woman's Revenge'' *

Henry Carey Henry Carey may refer to: *Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon (1526–1596), politician, general, and potential illegitimate son of Henry VIII *Henry Carey, 1st Earl of Dover (1580–1666), English peer *Henry Carey, 2nd Earl of Monmouth (1596–1661), ...

– ''

The Contrivances ''The Contrivances'' is a 1715 comedy play by the British writer Henry Carey. A farce, it produced was an afterpiece to follow on from a revival of ''Bonduca''. The original Drury Lane cast included Henry Norris as Argus, James Quin as Rovew ...

'' *

Susanna Centlivre Susanna Centlivre (c. 1669 (baptised) – 1 December 1723), born Susanna Freeman and also known professionally as Susanna Carroll, was an English poet, actress, and "the most successful female playwright of the eighteenth century". Centlivre's " ...

– ''The Gotham Election'' (not performed because of political content) *

Chikamatsu Monzaemon was a Japanese dramatist of jōruri, the form of puppet theater that later came to be known as bunraku, and the live-actor drama, kabuki. The ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' has written that he is "widely regarded as the greatest Japanese dramatis ...

– ''

The Battles of Coxinga is a puppet play by Chikamatsu Monzaemon. It was his most popular play. First staged on November 26, 1715, in Osaka, it ran for the next 17 months, far longer than the usual few weeks or months. Its enduring popularity can largely be attributed t ...

(国姓爺合戦, Kokusen'ya Kassen'') * Charles Rivière Dufresny – ''La Coquette de village'' *

John Gay John Gay (30 June 1685 – 4 December 1732) was an English poet and dramatist and member of the Scriblerus Club. He is best remembered for ''The Beggar's Opera'' (1728), a ballad opera. The characters, including Captain Macheath and Polly Peac ...

– ''

The What D'Ye Call It ''The What D'Ye Call It'' is a 1715 farce by the British writer John Gay. It was written as a parody of tragic plays, with particular reference to Thomas Otway's ''Venice Preserv'd''. It was originally performed as an afterpiece with Nicholas ...

'' * Benjamin Griffin **''Injured Virtue; or, The Virgin Martyr'' **''Love in a Sack'' *

Newburgh Hamilton Newburgh Hamilton (1691–1761) was an Irish author and librettist. He was born in County Tyrone, Ireland (now Northern Ireland) and entered Trinity College, Dublin, in 1708, aged sixteen, but (as was common in those days) he left without obtai ...

– ''

The Doating Lovers ''The Doating Lovers: Or, the Libertine Tam'd'' is a 1715 comedy play by the Irish writer Newburgh Hamilton. The original cast included John Leigh as Gaylove, William Bullock as Sir Butterfly Ayrewould, Christopher Bullock as Sr Timothy Twiddle ...

'' * Charles Johnson – ''

The Country Lasses ''The Country Lasses: or, The Custom of the Manor'' is a 1715 comedy play by the British writer Charles Johnson. The original Drury Lane cast included Robert Wilks as Modely, Barton Booth as Heartwell, John Mills as Freehold, Benjamin Johnson ...

'' * Charles Knipe – ''

A City Ramble ''A City Ramble: or, the humours of the compter'' (sometimes ''The City Ramble'') is a 1715 dramatic comedy play by the British writer Charles Knipe. It was first performed at Lincoln's-Inn Fields Theatre, London in 1715. It was performed as an a ...

'' * Charles Molloy – '' The Perplexed Couple'' * Nicholas Rowe -''

The Tragedy of Lady Jane Grey ''The Tragedy of Lady Jane Grey'', often shortened to ''Lady Jane Grey'', is a 1715 tragedy by the British writer Nicholas Rowe. It portrays the brief reign of Lady Jane Grey, a pretender to the English throne following the death of Edward VI an ...

'' *

Lewis Theobald Lewis Theobald (baptised 2 April 1688 – 18 September 1744), English textual editor and author, was a landmark figure both in the history of Shakespearean editing and in literary satire. He was vital for the establishment of fair texts for Sha ...

– ''

The Perfidious Brother ''The Perfidious Brother'' is a 1716 tragedy by the British writer Lewis Theobald. A dispute rose of the authorship of the play when a watchmaker and aspiring playwright Henry Meystayer claimed that Theobald had stolen it from him.Carnegie & Tayl ...

'' (allegedly plagiarized, staged the following year) *

John Vanbrugh Sir John Vanbrugh (; 24 January 1664 (baptised) – 26 March 1726) was an English architect, dramatist and herald, perhaps best known as the designer of Blenheim Palace and Castle Howard. He wrote two argumentative and outspoken Restora ...

– ''The Country House''

Poetry

Charles Cotton Charles Cotton (28 April 1630 – 16 February 1687) was an English poet and writer, best known for translating the work of Michel de Montaigne from the French, for his contributions to ''The Compleat Angler'', and for the influential ''The Comp ...

– ''The Genuine Works of Charles Cotton'' *

Alexander Pope Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 O.S. – 30 May 1744) was an English poet, translator, and satirist of the Enlightenment era who is considered one of the most prominent English poets of the early 18th century. An exponent of Augustan literature, ...

**''The Temple of Fame'' (based on Chaucer) **''The Iliad of Homer vol. i.'' *

Thomas Tickell Thomas Tickell (17 December 1685 – 23 April 1740) was a minor English poet and man of letters. Life The son of a clergyman, he was born at Bridekirk near Cockermouth, Cumberland. He was educated at St Bees School 1695–1701, and in 1701 ente ...

– ''The First Book of Homer's Iliad'' *

**''Divine Songs'' **''A Guide to Prayer''

Births

January 14 Events Pre-1600 *1236 – King Henry III of England marries Eleanor of Provence. *1301 – Andrew III of Hungary dies, ending the Árpád dynasty in Hungary. 1601–1900 *1639 – The "Fundamental Orders of Connecticut, Fundamenta ...

(baptised) –

Frances Vane, Viscountess Vane Frances Anne Vane, Viscountess Vane (formerly Hamilton, ''née'' Hawes; c. January 1715 – 31 March 1788), was a British memoirist known for her highly public adulterous relationships. Early life and first marriage Frances Anne Hawes was th ...

(Lady Fanny), English memoirist (died

1788 Events January–March * January 1 – The first edition of ''The Times'', previously ''The Daily Universal Register'', is published in London. * January 2 – Georgia ratifies the United States Constitution, and becomes the fourth U.S ...

) *

January 26 Events Pre-1600 * 661 – The Rashidun Caliphate is effectively ended with the assassination of Ali, the last caliph. *1531 – The 6.4–7.1 1531 Lisbon earthquake, Lisbon earthquake kills about thirty thousand people. *1564 – ...

February 26 Events Pre-1600 *747 BC – According to Ptolemy, the epoch (origin) of the Nabonassar Era began at noon on this date. Historians use this to establish the modern BC chronology for dating historic events. * 364 – Valentinian I is p ...

–

Claude Adrien Helvétius Claude Adrien Helvétius (; ; 26 January 1715 – 26 December 1771) was a French philosopher, freemason and '' littérateur''. Life Claude Adrien Helvétius was born in Paris, France, and was descended from a family of physicians, originally ...

, French philosophical writer (died 1771) *

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 ...

(c. 1715–1724) –

Cao Xueqin Cáo Xuěqín ( ; ); (4 April 1710 — 10 June 1765)Briggs, Asa (ed.) (1989) ''The Longman Encyclopedia'', Longman, was a Chinese writer during the Qing dynasty. He is best known as the author of ''Dream of the Red Chamber'', one of the Four G ...

, Chinese writer (died

1763 Events January–March * January 27 – The seat of colonial administration in the Viceroyalty of Brazil is moved from Salvador to Rio de Janeiro. * February 1 – The Royal Colony of North Carolina officially creates Meck ...

) *

September 30 Events Pre-1600 * 489 – The Ostrogoths under Theoderic the Great defeat the forces of Odoacer for the second time. * 737 – The Turgesh drive back an Umayyad invasion of Khuttal, follow them south of the Oxus, and capture their b ...

–

Étienne Bonnot de Condillac Étienne Bonnot de Condillac (; ; 30 September 17142 August or 3 August 1780) was a French philosopher and epistemologist, who studied in such areas as psychology and the philosophy of the mind. Biography He was born at Grenoble into a legal ...

, French philosophical writer (died 1780) *

October 1 Events Pre-1600 * 331 BC – Alexander the Great defeats Darius III of Persia in the Battle of Gaugamela. * 366 – Pope Damasus I is consecrated. * 959 – Edgar the Peaceful becomes king of all England, in succession to Eadwig. ...

–

Richard Jago Richard Jago (1 October 1715 – 8 May 1781) was an English clergyman poet and minor landscape gardener from Warwickshire. Although his writing was not highly regarded by contemporaries, some of it was sufficiently novel to have several imitators ...

, English poet (died 1781) *''Probable year of birth'' ** John Hawkesworth, English writer and editor (died 1773) ** Alexander Russell, Scottish physician and naturalist (died

1768 Events January–March * January 9 – Philip Astley stages the first modern circus, with acrobats on galloping horses, in London. * February 11 – Samuel Adams's circular letter is issued by the Massachusetts House of Rep ...

)

Deaths

January 7 Events Pre-1600 *49 BC – The Senate of Rome says that Caesar will be declared a public enemy unless he disbands his army. This prompts the tribunes who support him to flee to Ravenna, where Caesar is waiting. * 1325 – Alfonso IV ...

–

François Fénelon François de Salignac de la Mothe-Fénelon (), more commonly known as François Fénelon (6 August 1651 – 7 January 1715), was a French Catholic archbishop, theologian, poet and writer. Today, he is remembered mostly as the author of '' Th ...

, French archbishop, theologian, poet and writer (born 1651) *

February 25 Events Pre-1600 * 138 – Roman emperor Hadrian adopts Antoninus Pius as his son, effectively making him his successor. * 628 – Khosrow II, the last great Shah of the Sasanian Empire (Iran), is overthrown by his son Kavadh II. ...

–

Pu Songling Pu Songling (, 5 June 1640 – 25 February 1715) was a Chinese writer during the Qing dynasty, best known as the author of '' Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio'' (''Liaozhai zhiyi''). Biography Pu was born into a poor merchant family from Z ...

(蒲松齡), Qing Dynasty Chinese writer (born

1640 Events January–March * January 6 – The Siege of Salses ends almost six months after it had started on June 9, 1639, with the French defenders surrendering to the Spanish attackers. * January 17 – A naval battle over ...

) *

March 8 Events Pre-1600 * 1010 – Ferdowsi completes his epic poem ''Shahnameh''. *1126 – Following the death of his mother, queen Urraca of León, Alfonso VII is proclaimed king of León. * 1262 – Battle of Hausbergen between bour ...

–

William Dampier William Dampier (baptised 5 September 1651; died March 1715) was an English explorer, pirate, privateer, navigator, and naturalist who became the first Englishman to explore parts of what is today Australia, and the first person to circumnav ...

, English explorer and writer (born 1651) *

March 17 Events Pre-1600 * 45 BC – In his last victory, Julius Caesar defeats the Pompeian forces of Titus Labienus and Pompey the Younger in the Battle of Munda. * 180 – Commodus becomes sole emperor of the Roman Empire at the age of eigh ...

–

Gilbert Burnet Gilbert Burnet (18 September 1643 – 17 March 1715) was a Scottish philosopher and historian, and Bishop of Salisbury. He was fluent in Dutch, French, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. Burnet was highly respected as a cleric, a preacher, an academic, ...

, Scottish theologian and historian (born 1643) *

July 30 Events Pre-1600 * 762 – Baghdad is founded. *1419 – First Defenestration of Prague: A crowd of radical Hussites kill seven members of the Prague city council. * 1502 – Christopher Columbus lands at Guanaja in the Bay Islan ...

–

Nahum Tate Nahum Tate ( ; 1652 – 30 July 1715) was an Irish poet, hymnist and lyricist, who became Poet Laureate in 1692. Tate is best known for ''The History of King Lear'', his 1681 adaptation of Shakespeare's ''King Lear'', and for his libretto for ...

, Irish poet and hymnist (born 1652) *

October 13 Events Pre-1600 * 54 – Roman emperor Claudius dies from poisoning under mysterious circumstances. He is succeeded by his adoptive son Nero, rather than by Britannicus, his son with Messalina. * 409 – Vandals and Alans cross the Py ...

–

Nicolas Malebranche Nicolas Malebranche ( , ; 6 August 1638 – 13 October 1715) was a French Oratorian Catholic priest and rationalist philosopher. In his works, he sought to synthesize the thought of St. Augustine and Descartes, in order to demonstrate the ...

, French priest and rationalist philosopher (born

1638 Events January–March * January 4 – **A naval battle takes place in the Indian Ocean off of the coast of Goa at South India as a Netherlands fleet commanded by Admiral Adam Westerwolt decimates the Portuguese fleet. **A fleet of 80 ...

) *''Unknown date'' – Mary Monck, Irish poet (date of birth unknown)

References

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