1780s
America's founding decade
The 1780s refers to the decade spanning 1780 through 1789.
Like other decade designations, it groups years for historical discussion: The 1780s saw the ratification of the U.S. Constitution.
Pronounced "seventeen-eighties."
Hat with triangular silhouette
- panniersPaired cargo baskets
- waistcoatSleeveless torso garment
- breechesTrousers ending below knee
- chemiseLoose sleeveless undergarment
macaroni · stockings · jabot · stomacher · petticoat · queue · muslin · silk
Paris fortress-prison
- ConstitutionGoverning principles document
- YorktownVirginia siege site
- guillotineVertical beheading apparatus
- republicanismGovernment by elected officials
Basis or justification
- philosophyStudy of fundamental truths
- VoltaireFrench Enlightenment satirist
- RousseauFrench surname, philosopher or painter
- DiderotPhilosopher who assembled comprehensive knowledge
Montesquieu · encyclopedia · salons · empiricism · rationalism · secularism · progress · skepticism
Domain under unified control
- expansionIncrease in scope
- plantationsLarge-scale farming operations
- slaveryOwnership of people
- mercantilismTrade policy favoring exports
territories · colonists · subjugation · trade · missionaries · protectorate · exploitation · Caribbean
Dug water passage
- coalCombustible sedimentary rock
- factoryIndustrial production facility
- mechanizationConverting to machine operation
- loomFabric-making frame
waterwheel · textile · manufacture · patent · innovation · Wedgwood · machinery
Modern chemistry's founder
- UranusSideways-spinning outer world
- oxygenElement eight, colorless gas
- chemistryStudy of substances' interactions
- astronomyScience of celestial objects
Linnaeus · electricity · botany · balloon · specimen · classification · telescope · laboratory
tricorne
Hat with triangular silhouette
chemise · macaroni · stockings · jabot · stomacher · petticoat · queue · muslin · silk · lace
Bastille
Paris fortress-prison
- ConstitutionGoverning principles document
- YorktownVirginia siege site
- guillotineVertical beheading apparatus
reason
Basis or justification
- philosophyStudy of fundamental truths
- VoltaireFrench Enlightenment satirist
- RousseauFrench surname, philosopher or painter
Montesquieu · Diderot · encyclopedia · salons · empiricism · rationalism · secularism · progress · skepticism · deism
empire
Domain under unified control
- expansionIncrease in scope
- plantationsLarge-scale farming operations
- slaveryOwnership of people
mercantilism · territories · colonists · subjugation · trade · missionaries · protectorate · exploitation · Caribbean · Bengal
canal
Dug water passage
- coalCombustible sedimentary rock
- factoryIndustrial production facility
- mechanizationConverting to machine operation
loom · waterwheel · textile · manufacture · patent · innovation · Wedgwood · machinery
Lavoisier
Modern chemistry's founder
- UranusSideways-spinning outer world
- oxygenElement eight, colorless gas
- chemistryStudy of substances' interactions
astronomy · Linnaeus · electricity · botany · balloon · specimen · classification · telescope · laboratory · experimentation
1780s2020s
Third decade, 21st century
21st century · 2000s · modern era · distant future · far future
1780s1950s
Decade after WWII
1960s · 20th century · Gilded Age · Cold War era · 1770s
1780sDigital Age
Post-internet historical period
Industrial Revolution · industrial era · modern age · computer age · 2010s