Chronology of events: 1694--1702

For some events, the year is certain but the month and day are not. Example: We know only the year for the collections of Leeuwenhoek's letters published in Dutch during his lifetime.

For other events, the season or month are certain but the day is not. Example: Leeuwenhoek mentions that someone visited him "last month".

On the other hand, many events did indeed happen on the first day of a month. Example: public appointments to Delft's city offices took effect on January 1 of each year. Thus:

  • A date of January 1 in a given year may indicate that the year is certain but the month and day are not.
  • A date of 1 in a given month may indicate that the year and month are certain but the day is not.

Unless otherwise indicated, for events in England, the date given is Old Style, 10 days behind the Dutch Republic's New Style until 1700 and then 11 days behind.

Date
October 15, 1697 Visited by Tsar Peter the Great of Russia
November 2, 1697 Wrote Letter L-330 of 1697-11-02 to Antonio Magliabechi to thank him for two of his letters and to complain that the book sent to him has not yet arrived
November 7, 1697 Hendrik van Bleyswijk wrote to Gottfried Leibniz about encouraging Leeuwenhoek to take on students
December 10, 1697 aunt Anna Verloo left coins to Maria Thonis and her cousin Magdaleentje
January 1, 1698 Published A. van Leeuwenhoeks 41ste Missive, Geschreven aen (written to) de Koninklijke Societeit tot Londen
January 1, 1698 Published Onsigtbare Verborgentheden (Invisible Mysteries), Letters 38, 42, 43 (3rd)
January 1, 1698 Wrote Letter L-331 of sometime between late December 1697 and mid-January to Johan Arnoldi about the book that Magliabechi had sent
January 3, 1698 Gottfried Leibniz wrote to Hendrik van Bleyswijk about encouraging Leeuwenhoek to train students
January 10, 1698 Antonio Magliabechi wrote Letter L-332 to Leeuwenhoek in early 1698 with reports on several recent books that he thought might be of interest written by Italians and a German
January 15, 1698 Johan Arnoldi wrote Letter L-333 to Leeuwenhoek about problems delivering Magliabechi's gift book
January 19, 1698 Wrote Letter L-334 of 1698-01-19 to Govert Bidloo about how little animals get into the human body through canal water and food preparation
February 10, 1698 Wrote Letter L-335 in February 1698 to Johan Arnoldi that he should do whatever it takes to get the book that Magliabechi sent and that he will reimburse whatever it costs
February 17, 1698 Hendrik van Bleyswijk wrote to Gottfried Leibniz about encouraging Leeuwenhoek to take on students and teach them his "secret methods"
February 20, 1698 Wrote Letter L-336 of 1698-02-20 to Antonio Magliabechi about problems during the transport of the book that Magliabechi had sent to Leeuwenhoek as a present
March 1, 1698 Antonio Magliabechi wrote Letter L-337 to honor Leeuwenhoek with a poem in praise of great erudition
March 21, 1698 Govert Bidloo wrote Letter L-338 to Leeuwenhoek about little animals in sheep's livers
April 1, 1698 Johan Arnoldi wrote Letter L-339 to Leeuwenhoek that he had to spend a pistole to get the book that Magliabechi had sent to Leeuwenhoek the previous year
April 1, 1698 Wrote Letter L-340 to Johan Arnoldi that he will reimburse him for his expenses in getting the book
April 15, 1698 Wrote Letter L-341 around April 1698 to Harmen van Zoelen about using plaster to whitewash wooden storage containers to prevent damage from worms
April 17, 1698 Wrote Letter L-342 of 1698-04-17 to Antonio Magliabechi that the book had at last arrived and received a place of honour in his house
May 9, 1698 Wrote Letter L-343 of 1698-05-09 to the members of the Royal Society about the compound eye of a beetle and the number of facets, the human cornea, drone flies, and gnat brains and leg muscles
June 1, 1698 Antonio Magliabechi wrote Letter L-344 to Leeuwenhoek with reports on several recent books that he thought might be of interest written in Latin and Italian by Italians
June 9, 1698 Robert Hooke wrote Letter L-345 of 1698-06-09 to Leeuwenhoek recent letters and sending copies of Leeuwenhoek’s missing numbers of Philosophical Transactions; he encourages Leeuwenhoek’s continuing research
July 1, 1698 Traveled to Antwerp, visited Daniël Papenbroek
July 5, 1698 Appointed curator of the insolvent estate of Hendrick van Tol
August 14, 1698 Wrote Letter L-346 of 1698-08-14 to Antonio Magliabechi about payment for and arrival of a book sent by Magliabechi as a present as well as an enclosed catalogue of an art collection of the Mennonite minister A. van Beusecom
September 20, 1698 Wrote Letter L-347 of 1698-09-20 to Anthonie Heinsius about blood circulation in an eel's tail, the transition of arterial into venous capillaries, and the connection between the thickness of the wall of the blood vessels and the viscosity of the blood
November 27, 1698 Fortunato Vinacessi wrote Letter L-348 of 1698-11-27 to Leeuwenhoek, enclosing letters from Italy about protecting gunpowder from the effects of water
December 17, 1698 Wrote Letter L-349 of 1698-12-17 to Harmen van Zoelen to defend himself against Hartsoeker's claim to have been the first to discover sperm
December 20, 1698 Antonio Magliabechi wrote Letter L-350 to Leeuwenhoek in late 1698 with reports on several recent books that he thought might be of interest written in Latin by Italians
February 1, 1699 Johan Arnoldi wrote Letter L-351 to Leeuwenhoek about the pistolet that he was returning
February 1, 1699 Wrote Letter L-352 of 1699-02-01 to a "right honorable sir" about his inspection of a mineral containing gold and silver from the Salida mine in Sumatra; his theory about the formation of gold and silver ores
February 15, 1699 Wrote Letter L-353 of February 1699 to Johan Arnoldi about how he can repay Leeuwenhoek
February 28, 1699 Wrote Letter L-354 of 1699-02-28 to Antonio Magliabechi about reimbursement for Arnoldi's expenses for the book that Leeuwenhoek finally received
March 4, 1699 Listed as a correspondent of Claude Burlet by the Académie des Sciences of Paris
March 29, 1699 At Leeuwenhoek's request, the mayors relieved him of his duties as camerbewaarder, appointed Arnold Ramp in his place, and appointed Christiaen Drom to replace Ramp as travelling messsenger
April 26, 1699 Wrote Letter L-355 of 1699-04-26 to Harmen van Zoelen about the damage caused to mace by insects and their larvae, damage to bamboo, and the biting and stinging of noxious white ants and the struggle against them by chalking of wood
June 9, 1699 Wrote Letter L-356 of 1699-06-09 to the members of the Royal Society to dispute Dalenpatius's 'Nouvelles de la Republique des lettres', in which sperm are described as having the shape of the human body
June 23, 1699 Wrote Letter L-357 of 1699-06-23 to the members of the Royal Society in response to Martin Lister's objections against his theory of generation; his opposition to the theory of spontaneous generation; the assumption of male and female spermatozoa
August 5, 1699 Wrote Letter L-358 of 1699-08-05 to the directors of the United East India Company in Delft about circulation of the blood in the leg of a scorpion from India that they had sent to him; a description of the eight eyes and the pincers
September 8, 1699 Antonio Magliabechi wrote Letter L-359 to Leeuwenhoek with reports on several recent books written in Latin by Italians that he thought might be of interest
September 25, 1699 Wrote Letter L-360 of 1699-09-25 to Hans Sloane to request a reaction to previously sent letters and as cover letter for Letter L-361 of the same day to the Royal Society
September 25, 1699 Wrote Letter L-361 of 1699-09-25 to the members of the Royal Society about the circulation of blood in tadpole capillaries, the transition from arteries to veins, blood clotting, the dissolution of clotted blood, and the origin of the name thunder-pad
October 1, 1699 Wrote Letter L-362 of sometime in October 1699 to Ehrenfried von Tschirnhaus about medicines, his aversion to bleeding and purging, and his preference for tea and coffee as medicine; credulity of people who trust impostors and poorly trained physicians
October 16, 1699 Wrote Letter L-363 of 1699-10-16 to Antonio Magliabechi about tiny animalcules from ditchwater, his opposition to spontaneous generation, and how animals serve as food for each other
December 1, 1699 Received payment from city for duties with magistrate's court
December 12, 1699 City set salaries for camerbewaarders serving as inspectors
January 1, 1700 Visited (possibly) by Hans Sloane, his editor at Philosophical Transactions
January 2, 1700 Wrote Letter L-364 of 1700-01-02 to Hans Sloane about liver fluke, gnat larvae, circulation of blood in a frog, and little animals in its feces
January 14, 1700 Wrote Letter L-365 of 1700-01-14 to Nicolaes Boogaert van Belois about blood circulation in lizard legs, the way a lizard and a scorpion react to one another, the scorpion's eyes, pincers, and sting and the muscle fibres in that sting
May 20, 1700 Wrote Letter L-366 of 1700-05-20 to Hendrik van Bleyswijk about the eyes and the sting of a centipede and the reactions of a fly and a lizard to a centipede
May 20, 1700 Wrote Letter L-367 of 1700-05-20 to Anthonie Heinsius about peat, its composition and origin, how much soil washed into the sea by rivers and effect on sea level compared to amount of soil lost through peat cutting
June 2, 1700 Royal Society discussed Letter L-364 and wanted Leeuwenhoek to try to find worms in other animals
June 2, 1700 Wrote Letter L-368 of 1700-06-02 to Frederik Adriaan van Reede about the eyes, mouth parts, food, intestines, and eggs of a shrimp
June 8, 1700 Hans Sloane wrote Letter L-369 to Leeuwenhoek about translation problems and parasitic worms
June 14, 1700 Wrote Letter L-370 of 1700-06-14 to answer Hans Sloane's Letter L-369 that he has examined the sperm of many animals, but if there is any animal that the Royal Society would like him to investigate, he will do so.
June 16, 1700 Wrote Letter L-371 of 1700-06-16 to a "Highly Learned Sir" summarizing his earlier investigations of bees, especially the queen bee and her eggs, and of the propagation of other insects
July 9, 1700 Wrote Letter L-372 of 1700-07-09 to Hans Sloane about red blood cells in flounder and salmon, how their oval form changes shape to pass through capillaries, and the sperm of a young cock
July 10, 1700 Wrote Letter L-373 of 1700-07-10 to Anthonie Heinsius about seeds of plants and parts of invertebrates in peat found near Hellevoetsluis
July 15, 1700 Hans Sloane wrote Letter L-374 to Leeuwenhoek about the three living larvae that he was sending
July 19, 1700 Received Letter L-374 from Hans Sloane with larvae to examine
July 24, 1700 Began series of observations of rams' testicles
July 27, 1700 Continued observations of rams' testicles
July 27, 1700 Wrote Letter L-375 of 1700-07-27 to Hans Sloane about experiments with the larvae of cheese flies received from Sloane a week earlier and the treatment of his wife's toothache with vitriol
July 30, 1700 Concluded series of observations of rams' testicles
August 1, 1700 Wrote Letter L-376 of 1700-08-01 to "Your Most Serene Highness" about the influence of atmospheric pressure on the level of a water column in a glass tube during a capillary rise; comparison to the column of mercury in a barometer
August 14, 1700 John Chamberlayne wrote to Hans Sloane about whether his Dutch was good enough to translate Leeuwenhoek's letters
September 7, 1700 Wrote Letter L-377 of 1700-09-07 to Hans Sloane to follow up on Letter L-375 to Sloane about fly larvae in cheese
October 26, 1700 Wrote Letter L-378 of 1700-10-26 to Hans Sloane about black flies on fruit trees, aphids, comparing the parthenogenetic procreation of aphids with sperm, and the development of the pupae of moths
November 9, 1700 John Chamberlayne wrote to Hans Sloane about difficulties translating Leeuwenhoek's letters, full of "frequent tautologies, incoherent expressions, ungrammatical & unsyntaxical sentences without number"
November 29, 1700 Hans Sloane wrote Letter L-379 of 1700-11-29 to Leeuwenhoek about the reception of his recent letters at the Royal Society
December 8, 1700 Royal Society read Letter L-378 of 26 October 1700
December 25, 1700 Wrote Letter L-380 of 1700-12-25 to Hans Sloane about the sperm of a ram and his objections to Nicolaas Hartsoeker's claim to have discovered sperm first in 1678 when Leeuwenhoek had written to the Royal Society about sperm in 1677
January 1, 1701 Antonio Magliabechi wrote Letter L-381 to Leeuwenhoek with reports on several recent books written in Latin by Italians that he thought might be of interest
January 4, 1701 cousin Lambrecht Huijchs Leeuwenhoek buried
January 26, 1701 Royal Society read Letter L-380 of 25 December 1700
January 28, 1701 Wrote Letter L-382 of 1701-01-28 to Hans Sloane about gall on a willow and more about larvae from cheese
February 9, 1701 Wrote Letter L-383 of 1701-02-09 to Frederik Adriaan van Reede about pores in willow wood and advice for the improvement of peat
March 11, 1701 Royal Society read Letter L-382 of 28 January 1701
April 8, 1701 Wrote Letter L-384 of 1701-04-08 to the mayors of Delft about his calculation of the difference between the coal measures of Delft and Rotterdam and how to calculate the volume of a pyramid
April 15, 1701 Wrote Letter L-385 of 1701-04-15 to the members of the Royal Society about sperm from cod, a calculation of its size, and ram and pike sperm
April 24, 1701 Hans Sloane wrote Letter L-387 of 1701-04-24 to Leeuwenhoek to introduce him to his new translator, John Chamberlayne
April 24, 1701 John Chamberlayne wrote Letter L-386 to Leeuwenhoek to ask about the taste of water and whether razors are spoiled by extreme heat and cold
May 20, 1701 Hans Sloane wrote Letter L-388 to Leeuwenhoek about the reception of his recent letters in London
June 6, 1701 John Chamberlayne wrote to Hans Sloane about difficulties translating Leeuwenhoek's Dutch, "so abstruse that even his own countrymen cannot explain him"
June 21, 1701 Wrote Letter L-389 of 1701-06-21 to John Chamberlayne about salt crystals in rain-water and notches in a sharpened knife
June 21, 1701 Wrote Letter L-390 of 1701-06-21 to the members of the Royal Society about spiders, their blood, their silk thread and its structure, their sting, and laying their eggs
June 21, 1701 Wrote Letter L-391 of 1701-06-21 to Hans Sloane about the claimed qualtity of other people's magnifying glasses, injuries to the cornea, and the impossibility of observing the smallest particles of matter
August 1, 1701 At age 68, his 50th publication in Philosophical Transactions
August 2, 1701 Wrote Letter L-392 of 1701-08-02 to the members of the Royal Society about circulation of blood in young eels and announcing his bequest of 26 magnifying glasses
August 26, 1701 Wrote Letter L-393 of 1701-08-26 to Frederik Adriaan van Reede about measuring the fall of water, an accurate instrument for such measurements, and his invention of a level
September 27, 1701 Hans Sloane wrote Letter L-394 to Leeuwenhoek personally thanking him for the bequest of 26 magnifying glasses
November 15, 1701 John Somers wrote Letter L-395 of 15 November 1701 to Leeuwenhoek about the bequest of 26 magnifying glasses and accepting Leeuwenhoek's unverified observations as "matters of fact"
November 18, 1701 Hans Sloane wrote Letter L-396 to Leeuwenhoek to express the thanks of the Royal Society for the bequest of 26 magnifying glasses and as a cover letter for Letter L-395 from John Somers
December 6, 1701 Wrote Letter L-397 of 1701-12-06 to Hans Sloane as a cover letter for Letter L-398 to John Somers
December 6, 1701 Wrote Letter L-398 of 1701-12-06 to John Somers about the sperm of young cocks living for days outside the cock and whether that was long enough to fertilise a hen's egg
December 20, 1701 Wrote Letter L-399 of 1701-12-20 to the members of the Royal Society about the sperm of spiders and how they copulate
January 1, 1702 Published Sevende Vervolg der Brieven (Seventh Continuation of the Letters), Letters 108 - 146
February 9, 1702 Wrote Letter L-400 of 1702-02-09 to Hendrik van Bleyswijk about three types of little animals from the gutter of his house, one of which was eaten by a larger animal, which could revive after being dried out
February 14, 1702 Wrote Letter L-401 of 1702-02-14 to the members of the Royal Society about balsam, an apparatus he designed to inhale smoke and vapour, blood vessels in sheep lungs, his own phlegm, and the theory that cold air harms lungs
April 1, 1702 Hans Sloane wrote Letter L-402 of sometime before April 1702 to introduce James Vernon when he visited Leeuwenhoek
April 19, 1702 cousin Cornelis Lambrechts Leeuwenhoek (1670-1702) buried
April 20, 1702 Wrote Letter L-403 of 1702-04-20 to Karl von Hessen-Kassel as a cover letter for Letter L-404
April 20, 1702 Wrote Letter L-404 of 1702-04-20 to Karl von Hessen-Kassel about silkworms, the structure of the silk thread, and the organs that produce it, eyes, pincers, blood vessels, and cocoons, sperm from an adult silk moth, and the scales on its wings
April 28, 1702 Wrote Letter L-405 of 1702-04-28 to the members of the Royal Society about little animals and air bubbles in rain water and the circulation of blood in an eel
September 12, 1702 John Chamberlayne wrote Letter L-406 to Leeuwenhoek about a friend’s dental problems as well as his dental hygiene practices, enclosing one of the teeth that fell out of his friend’s mouth
December 8, 1702 Wrote Letter L-407 of 1702-12-08 to John Chamberlayne about cleaning and preserving teeth by polishing them with salt and ash of tobacco and whether tea and coffee harm teeth; requested a book on Peruvian silver mines
December 25, 1702 Wrote Letter L-408 of 1702-12-25 to the members of the Royal Society about duckweed, its roots and reproduction, the little animals attached to it, and asexual reproduction

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