Chronology of events: 1702--1776

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
March 3, 1714 Richard Waller wrote Letter L-502 of 3 March 1714 to discuss recent observations about muscles
March 8, 1714 Richard Waller wrote Letter L-503 to Leeuwenhoek on behalf of the Royal Society about recent observations on muscle fibers and numbers of Philosophical Transactions
March 22, 1714 Gottfried Leibniz wrote to Louis Bourguet: "a fable of extravagant proportions"
May 9, 1714 Visited by Dr. Richard Bradley, professor of botany at Cambridge
June 22, 1714 Wrote Letter L-504 of 1714-06-22 to the members of the Royal Society to acknowledge Letter L-503 and numbers of Philosophical Transactions and to query why figures of the muscle fibres of whales were not published
July 5, 1714 Royal Society read Letter L-504 and asked Richard Waller to reply and send the numbers of Philosophical Transactions for 1713
July 19, 1714 Richard Waller wrote Letter L-505 to Leeuwenhoek about how the Royal Society received his observations
July 27, 1714 Richard Waller wrote Letter L-506 about Letter L-504 and promised to publish whatever Leeuwenhoek sent
August 17, 1714 Andries Jacobs appointed assistant city inspector / wine gauger
August 21, 1714 Wrote Letter L-507 of 1714-08-21 to the members of the Royal Society about the muscle fibres of cow, chicken, mouse, honeybee, flea, ant, and whale and the blood vessels in the leg of a fly; thanks for recent numbers of Philosophical Transactions
August 30, 1714 Richard Waller wrote Letter L-508 to Leeuwenhoek about the receipt of his latest letter and the Royal Society's annual recess
October 23, 1714 niece Maria Jans de Molijn's widowed husband Cornelis Haaxman made will
October 26, 1714 Wrote Letter L-509 of 1714-10-26 to the members of the Royal Society about muscle fibres and enclosing membranes in the legs of a mosquito, rose chafer, fly, crane fly, honeybee and cow; rectifying earlier opinion, the contractions in a muscle are spiral
November 4, 1714 Wrote Letter L-510 of 1714-11-04 to Adriaen van Assendelft, comparison between muscle fibres and a tightened rope; the shorter the rope, the quicker it can shrink; application of this comparison on the size of muscle fibres of a cow and of a mouse
November 9, 1714 Wrote Letter L-511 of 1714-11-09 to Isaac Newton, now lost, to cover Letter L-512
November 9, 1714 Wrote Letter L-512 of 1714-11-09 to the members of the Royal Society about the muscles of an ox, sheep, chicken, mouse, and hare
November 17, 1714 newphew Adriaan Johannes Swalmius married Adriana de Bries
November 20, 1714 Wrote Letter L-513 of 1714-11-20 to the members of the Royal Society about muscle fibres and tendons from a mouse leg, a duck wing, a honeybee, a polecat leg, and between the ribs of a mouse; a theory about the structure and action of tendons
January 1, 1715 astronomer Edmond Halley, editor again of Philosophical Transactions from 1715-1719, published only one letter by Leeuwenhoek
January 1, 1715 Published Continuatio Epistolarum (Continuation of the Letters), Letters 53-60 (3rd)
January 11, 1715 Wrote Letter L-514 of 1715-01-11 to Anthonie Heinsius, a cover letter for a copy of a recent letter on muscle fibres
February 27, 1715 Appointed executor of Leeuwenvelt estate
February 28, 1715 Anthonie Heinsius wrote Letter L-515 of 1715-02-28 to thank Leeuwenhoek for the letters sent by him over the years and expects that posterity will be grateful for what he has discovered
March 26, 1715 Wrote Letter L-516 of 1715-03-26 to Antony Cinck about the structure and action of muscle fibres and tendons from the leg of a mouse and the head of cod and a wire model of spiral contraction
July 1, 1715 Visited by Joachim Georg Reinerding
July 2, 1715 Antoni Cink wrote Letter L-517 of 2 July 1715 to Leeuwenhoek about his colleagues' reaction to Letter L-516 about muscle fibers
July 7, 1715 Wrote Letter L-518 of 1715-07-07 to Antony Cinck about contracting and stretching of muscle fibres and tendons; their connection in lobster and crab; no observed nerves between muscle fibres and membranes; cannot confirm that nerves are hollow
August 1, 1715 Wrote Letter L-519, now lost, of sometime before August 1715 to Gottfried Leibniz about his observations and recent letters
August 5, 1715 Gottfried Leibniz wrote about Leeuwenhoek to Louis Bourguet, who was "not persuaded by his hypothesis"
August 5, 1715 Gottfried Leibniz wrote Letter L-520 to Leeuwenhoek about sperm and encouraging young people and training students
August 5, 1715 Named in document using Vermeer estate as security
September 28, 1715 Wrote Letter L-521 of 1715-09-28 to Gottfried Leibniz about scholars who do not agree with Leeuwenhoek; sperm the same size in different animals; the pulse; posthumous letters; muscle fibers, tendons, and nerves; Hartsoeker; why he won't train students
October 29, 1715 Gottfried Leibniz wrote Letter L-522 to Leeuwenhoek about his observations and teaching his methods to students
November 18, 1715 Wrote Letter L-523 of 1715-11-18 to Gottfried Leibniz, a cover letter for Letter L-524
November 18, 1715 Wrote Letter L-524 of 1715-11-18 to Gottfried Leibniz about vessels in the flesh of fruit and in the seeds of various strains of pears, a pear's embryo and the structure of a pear's skin, and spiral vessels in tea-leaves
January 1, 1716 Paid the familiegeld (estate tax) of 20 gulden
January 1, 1716 Wrote Letter L-525 of some years before 1716 to Frederik Adriaan van Reede about the large number of eggs in the roe of a ling
February 25, 1716 Wrote Letter L-526 of 1716-02-25 to Anthonie Heinsius as a cover letter to "notes" about tendons, muscle fibres, and starch grains
March 3, 1716 Wrote Letter L-527 of 1716-03-13 to Gottfried Leibniz about human twins, trees, birds, size of sperm, number of eggs in fishes' hard roe, structure of tendons and muscle fibres, the heart; does not want to be paid for research or to teach students
March 31, 1716 Gottfried Leibniz wrote Letter L-528 to Leeuwenhoek about membranes, multiple births, and reproduction; he did not mention students
April 3, 1716 Gottfried Leibniz wrote to Louis Bourguet in defense of Leeuwenhoek, "to whom the public owes thanks. ... It is not right to despise him."
May 1, 1716 Cornelis Spiering wrote Letter L-529 in May 1716 to Leeuwenhoek about an accident in which a large carp from his pond died; encloses some scales
May 10, 1716 Wrote Letter L-530 of 1716-05-10 to Hubert Kornelis Poot to thank him for two published panegyrics; the size and origin of little animals; wonder at the smallness of little animals and the largeness of the universe; periwinkle seeds
May 16, 1716 Wrote Letter L-531 of 1716-05-16 to Gerard van Loon about hops from Liege, the structure of hops, its bitter oil, and salt particles from the oil, a comparison with sugar candy, and hop embryos; Leeuwenhoek descended from a family of beer brewers
May 19, 1716 Wrote Letter L-532 of 1716-05-19 to Gottfried Leibniz about muscle and tendon fibers, mammal teats, sperm; did not find eggs in ovaries, Fallopian tube, or womb; cannot imagine how the Fallopian tube could suck sperm; does not know the ovary's function
May 22, 1716 Wrote Letter L-533 of 1716-05-22 to Cornelis Spiering about the scales of a carp that Spiering sent him, using scales to age a fish, eggs in hard roe and sperm in soft roe food for other fishes, shrimp eggs, and the life span of whales and fish
May 24, 1716 Antoni Cink, Ursmer Narez, and Hendrik Jozef Rega, professors in Louvain, wrote Letter L-534 of 1716-05-24 to tell Leeuwenhoek how important they think his work is, well deserving of the accompanying honorary medal and laudatory poem
June 3, 1716 Jacob van den Werf, notary, wrote Letter L-535, the notary act whereby Leeuwenhoek received a medal from the faculty at Louvain
June 12, 1716 Wrote Letter L-536 of 1716-06-12 to thank professors Cink, Narez, and Rega for the honorary medal; barley germination and nutrients; again rejects spontaneous generation
June 22, 1716 Wrote Letter L-537 of 1716-06-22 to Jan Gerard Kerkherdere about how wheat, barley, beans, peas, rice, buckwheat, and maize become food for animals and discusses Leeuwenhoek's techniques for preparing samples
June 25, 1716 Witnessed baptism of great-niece Barbera, who died two weeks later
September 1, 1716 Visited by Hermaan Boerhaave, Frederik Ruysch, and Abraham van Bleiswijk
September 17, 1716 Wrote Letter L-538 of 1716-09-17 to Abraham Cornelis van Bleyswyck about his own intestinal ailment and the roles of chyle, gall (bile), and the diaphragm in the digestive process
September 25, 1716 Gottfried Leibniz wrote Letter L-539 of 28 September 1716 to report that he has forwarded Leeuwenhoek's Letter L-532 about ovaries to two doctors in Leipzig
September 28, 1716 Wrote Letter L-540 of 1716-09-28 to Herman Boerhaave about how trees grow and withstand wind; coconut palm wood and nut; he acknowledges previous errors in his observations of coconut tree trunks
October 1, 1716 Visited again by Joachim Georg Reinerding
October 10, 1716 Herman Boerhaave wrote Letter L-541 to Leeuwenhoek in response to Letter L-540 about coconuts
November 4, 1716 Abraham van Bleyswijk wrote Letter L-543 to Herman Boerhaave to report on research that he conducted with Leeuwenhoek about rabbit sperm
November 4, 1716 Herman Boerhaave wrote Letter L-542 to Leeuwenhoek that his discoveries and thoughts are agreeable to him
November 5, 1716 Wrote Letter L-544 of 1716-11-05 to Herman Boerhaave about the size of sperm from rams, cod, and ling, little animals from rain water and soil, and blood in arteries and veins
November 17, 1716 Wrote Letter L-545 of 1716-11-17 to Gottfried Leibniz about reproduction, numbers of sperm and seeds, reproductive organs of sheep and ram, fallopian tube too small to let eggs through
November 21, 1716 Wrote Letter L-546 of 1716-11-21 to Herman Boerhaave about ram sperm and details of his experimental methods
January 12, 1717 niece Maria Jans de Molijn's widowed husband Cornelis Haaxman's estate inventoried
January 16, 1717 cousin Maria Maertens Leeuwenhoek buried
March 2, 1717 Wrote Letter L-547 of 1717-03-02 to Abraham van Bleyswyck about the structure of nerves and the associated fat in the spinal cords of cows and sheep
March 6, 1717 Wrote Letter L-548 of 1717-03-06 to the members of the Royal Society tendons and muscle fibres in sheep, flea, ox, honeybee, oyster, and mussel
March 6, 1717 Wrote Letter L-549 of 1717-03-06 to the members of the Royal Society about pig brains, apples, and coconuts; blood circulation nourishes; new technique to examine brains; tea and coffee keep the blood thin
May 6, 1717 Wrote Letter L-550 of 1717-05-06 to Ewout van Bleiswijk about dragonflies' muscle fibres, compound eyes, and corneal facets, flies, lobster, and crab
May 26, 1717 Wrote Letter L-551 of 1717-05-26 to Abraham van Bleyswyck about the structure of nerves and associated blood vessels and membranes, the structure of the spinal cord and brains of a pig, cow, and mouse, and the nerves of a calf, bream, and lamb
June 8, 1717 Named as neighbor in the inventory of Pieter van der Wilt's property
June 15, 1717 Wrote Letter L-552 of 1717-06-15 to the members of the Royal Society about the muscle fibres of an ox and a flea and the reproduction of fleas
July 6, 1717 Wrote Letter L-553 of 1717-07-06 to Antony Cink about how two doctors treated his recent illnesses with saltpeter and opium; saltpeter’s effects on the blood and its efficacy as a drug
July 13, 1717 Wrote Letter L-554 of 1717-07-13 to Jan Gerard Kerkherdere about one of his personal ailments, the consequences for the digestion of eating fatty meat, the particles in his own excrement, and the role of chyle and gall during digestion
August 1, 1717 Adriaan Swalmius wrote Letter L-555 to Leeuwenhoek sometime in August 1717 to ask whether Leeuwenhoek had studied a chicken’s egg shell and the membrane within it
August 18, 1717 Wrote Letter L-556 of 1717-08-19 to Adriaan Swalmius about membranes inside an eggshell, salt crystals from an eggshell, and how birds and oysters produce shells
August 26, 1717 Wrote Letter L-557 of 1717-08-26 to Herman Boerhaave, following up on Letter L-546, about a ram's seed balls, vas deferens, and epididymis, millet grains or mustard seeds as units of measurement, sperm compared smaller little animals, and a sperm’s tail
September 10, 1717 Wrote Letter L-558 of 1717-09-10 to Frederik Adriaan van Reede about haddock intestines, roach and cod, and how scales determine the age of herring, perch, bream, and cod
September 17, 1717 Wrote Letter L-559 of 1717-09-17 to the members of the Royal Society about his own skin's fat globules and sweat ducts, holes in his finger nails, sweat ducts in humans and in cow teats, and how lice and fleas use sweat ducts to obtain their food
October 8, 1717 Wrote Letter L-560 of 1717-10-08 to the members of the Royal Society about Pareira Brava root and the effect of salt particles from it upon blood, starch grains from the membranes of the root, and the roots of “China” and “Irias"
October 22, 1717 Wrote Letter L-561 of 1717-10-22 to the members of the Royal Society about the brain of a cod, the nerves of cod and haddock, and the spinal cord of haddock
November 20, 1717 Wrote Letter L-562 of 1717-11-20 to the members of the Royal Society about tendons and nerves of sheep, lamb, cow, and ox; his last letter to the Royal Society; expresses his gratitude for being elected a fellow and for Philosophical Transactions
December 8, 1717 Wrote Letter L-563 of 1717-12-08 to Charles VI, Holy Roman emperor, as the dedication for Send-Brieven
December 15, 1717 Received payment from the city for inspector / wine gauger duties
December 23, 1717 Named again as neighbor in the disposition of Pieter van der Wilt's estate
January 1, 1718 Published Send-Brieven (Epistles), Letters I - XLVI
April 1, 1718 cousin Pieter Maartens Leeuwenhoek married Kniertje van der Doe
April 19, 1718 nephew Adriaan Johannes Swalmius married Elisabet van Heering
November 28, 1718 Wrote Letter L-564 of 1718-11-28 to Francesco Corner, a cover letter for Epistolae Physiologicae
December 6, 1718 Named again as a neighbor in final sale of Pieter van der Wilt's property
December 30, 1718 Delft's mayors decided that the camerbewaarder would no longer receive 300 g after the death of Leeuwenhoek
January 1, 1719 Published Epistolae ad Societatem (Letters to the Society), Letters 108 - 146
January 1, 1719 Published Epistolae Physiologicae (Physiological Letters), Letters I - XLVI
January 23, 1719 Received payment from the city for inspector / wine gauger duties
June 26, 1719 Made will with daughter Maria
January 9, 1720 Wrote Letter L-565 of 1720-01-09 to the members of the Royal Society about muscle fibres and membranes of a cow, mites on the flesh of a whale, and the nerves around the muscle fibres and tendons of a cow
April 8, 1720 cousin Magdaleentje (Helena) Maertens Leeuwenhoek buried
April 29, 1720 Received payment from the city for inspector / wine gauger duties
April 29, 1720 Rented the farm in Den Bommel to Johannes Braber
August 3, 1720 Anthonie Heinsius died
November 20, 1720 Wrote Letter L-566 of 1720-11-20 to the members of the Royal Society about bone membrane and the canals in bone, the cell layers and blood vessels in the bone membrane, and bone from the rib of a cow
December 30, 1720 cousin Maarten Pieters Hogenhouck buried
January 11, 1721 Philosophical Transactions, vol. 31, no. 366 published, including Letter L-566
January 15, 1721 Wrote Letter L-567 of 1721-01-15 to members of the Royal Society about the stomata of the leaves of boxwood, the number of them, and the down on the skin of a peach and a quince
January 24, 1721 Wrote Letter L-568 of 1721-01-24 to the members of the Royal Society about vessels in wood from Ambon (Indonesia), oakwood, and pinewood, the muscle fibres of a cow, a whale, and a mouse, and the structure of a red blood cell
April 11, 1721 Wrote Letter L-569 of 1721-04-11 to the members of the Royal Society about how flesh fibers are nourished by the blood vessels, this time in fish
May 1, 1721 At age 88, his 100th publication in Philosophical Transactions
May 11, 1721 Philosophical Transactions, vol. 31, no. 367 published with two letters by Leeuwenhoek, L-565 and L-568
June 27, 1721 Wrote Letter L-570 of 1721-06-27 to the members of the Royal Society about finally discovering the little holes in the membranes of beans and peas and about the little vessels in seed membranes
July 3, 1721 Royal Society ordered Letter L-570 to be translated
September 11, 1721 Philosophical Transactions, vol. 31, no. 368 published with two letters by Leeuwenhoek, L-569 and L-570
November 17, 1721 Made will with daughter Maria
November 26, 1721 Amended will of November 17
November 30, 1721 Presented will of November 17 to notary Jan de Bries
December 19, 1721 grand-nephew Jan Cornelis Haaxman buried
January 1, 1722 Published Arcana Naturae Detecta (Nature's Mysteries Disclosed), Letters 32, 33, 37, 39 - 41, 61 - 92 (2nd)
January 1, 1722 Published Continuatio Arcanorum Naturae detectorum (Continuation of Nature's Mysteries Disclosed), Letters 93 - 107 (2nd)
January 1, 1722 Published Opera Omnia, seu Arcana Naturae Microscopiorum (The Works, or Nature's Microscopical Mysteries), 25 Letters from 28 - 60 (4th)
January 11, 1722 Philosophical Transactions, vol. 31, no. 369 published, containing Letter L-567
January 22, 1722 Royal Society read Letter L-566 about bone membranes
February 22, 1722 James Jurin wrote Letter L-571 to Leeuwenhoek summarizing and praising his life's work
April 21, 1722 Wrote Letter L-572 of 1722-04-21 to the members of the Royal Society about the muscular fibres of different animals and whether iron becomes magnetic over time
May 1, 1722 Wrote Letter L-573 of 1722-05-01 to the members of the Royal Society about the structure of fat particles in sheep, lamb, flatfish, and perch
May 1, 1722 Wrote Letter L-574 of 1722-05-01 to James Jurin, a cover letter to Letter L-573, asking for support for his observations of hermaphroditic animals
May 15, 1722 Received payment from the city for inspector / wine gauger duties
May 21, 1722 Royal Society read Letter L-572 about muscle fibers and iron
May 26, 1722 James Jurin wrote Letter L-575 asking Leeuwenhoek to send Latin translations of his letters and passing along Hans Sloane's request for Leeuwenhoek to investigate smallpox pustules for insects
June 11, 1722 Philosophical Transactions, vol. 31, no. 371 published, containing Letter L-572
June 13, 1722 Wrote Letter L-576 of 1722-06-13 to the members of the Royal Society about the reproductive organs of a ewe and a fetus from it
June 13, 1722 Wrote Letter L-577 of 1722-06-13 to James Jurin, a cover letter for Letter L-576, expressing doubts that inoculations protect against smallpox
July 2, 1722 Royal Society read Letter L-573 about fat particles
July 7, 1722 Wrote Letter L-578 of 1722-07-07 to the members of the Royal Society about calluses on human skin
July 7, 1722 Wrote Letter L-579 of 1722-07-07 to James Jurin, a cover letter to Letter L-578, that no little animals are to be found in smallpox pustules; again opposes a proponent of spontaneous generation
July 13, 1722 Received payment from the city for inspector / wine gauger duties
September 11, 1722 Philosophical Transactions, vol. 32, no. 372 published, containing Letter L-573
October 12, 1722 James Jurin wrote Letter L-580 to Leeuwenhoek, saying that his ideas about pocks are acceptable to the Royal Society
November 11, 1722 Philosophical Transactions, vol. 32, no. 373 published with two letters by Leeuwenhoek, L-576 and L-578
November 20, 1722 Wrote Letter L-581 of 1722-11-20 to James Jurin about the miscroscopic structure of diamonds and rock crystal
January 4, 1723 James Jurin wrote Letter L-582 to Leeuwenhoek about how to measure his microscopic observations
January 11, 1723 Philosophical Transactions, vol. 32, no. 374 published, containing Letter L-581
March 19, 1723 Wrote Letter L-583 of 1723-03-19 to the members of the Royal Society about blood, now lost

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