The Grand Duchy of Finland or, more accurately, the Grand Principality of Finland, was the predecessor state of modern Finland. It existed between 1809 and 1917 as an autonomous part of the Russian Empire.
The Royal Navy established the West Africa Squadron in 1808 to patrol the coast of West Africa, and between 1808 and 1860 freed 150,000 Africans aboard slave ships.
The Austrian Empire was a Central European multinational great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the realms of the Habsburgs.
In his patent applications, he described the concept of laminating several layers of veneer with glue to form a thicker piece — the first description of what we now call plywood.
In the West, Jenner is often called “the father of immunology”, and his work is said to have “saved more lives than the work of any other human”.
A hydraulic press is a machine press using a hydraulic cylinder to generate a compressive force.
Universal suffrage (or franchise) ensures the right to vote for as many people who are bound by a government’s laws as possible, as supported by the “one person, one vote” principle.
Mozart’s Requiem is a choral masterpiece whose genesis is shrouded in mystery — one that makes the piece all the more fascinating and emotionally stirring.
In 1790, the English inventor Thomas Saint invented the first sewing machine design, but he did not successfully advertise or market his invention. His machine was meant to be used on leather and canvas material.
The first school lunches were thought to be served in 1790 in Munich, Germany, by an American-born physicist, Benjamin Thompson, also known as Count Rumford. In Munich, Thompson founded the Poor People’s Institute, which employed both adults and children to make uniforms for the German Army. They were fed and clothed for their work, and the children were taught reading, writing, and arithmetic. Years later, Thompson would feed 60,000 people a day from his soup kitchen in London.
