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The Treaty of Madrid between Spain and Portugal authorizes a larger Brazil than had the Treaty of Tordesillas of 1494, which originally established the boundaries of the Portuguese and Spanish territories in South America. -
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Treaty of Westminster signed between Great Britain and Prussia guaranteeing the neutrality of the German province of Hanover controlled by King George II of Great Britain -
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Seven Years' War – At the Battle of Carrickfergus in the north of Ireland, a force of French troops under the command of privateer François Thurot captures and holds the town and castle of Carrickfergus before retiring; the force is defeated (and Thurot killed) in a naval action in the Irish Sea on February 28 -
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Pontiac's War – Battle of Bushy Run: British forces led by Henry Bouquet defeat Chief Pontiac's Indians at Bushy Run in the Pennsylvania backcountry. -
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James Cook arrives in Tahiti on the ship HM Bark Endeavour, preparing for the 1769 Transit of Venus observed from Tahiti on June 3. After the voyage, the data is found to be inaccurate in determining the distance between the Sun and Earth. -
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Boston Massacre: Eleven Americans are shot, five fatally, by British troops in an event that helps start the American Revolutionary War five years later. -
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American Revolution: Thomas Paine publishes his pamphlet Common Sense "written by an Englishman" in Philadelphia arguing for independence from British rule in the Thirteen Colonies -
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American Revolutionary War: American Patriots capture Dorchester Heights dominating the port of Boston. -
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British troops surrender to the Marathas in Wadgaon, India, and are forced to return all territories acquired since 1773. -
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The Omicron Delta Omega co-ed fraternity is founded by Benjamin Franklin. -
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11 minor states of the Austrian Netherlands which took part in the Brabant Revolution at the end of 1789 sign a Treaty of Union creating the United States of Belgium. Prime Minister of Great Britain William Pitt refuses to recognize the new confederation's independence. -
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A public plebiscite in France confirms Napoleon as First Consul by a substantial majority.