Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift.

Famous People Born in 1776

  • Jan 6 Ferdinand von Schill, Prussian officer & rebel, born in Bannewitz, Germany (d. 1809)
  • Jan 24 Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann, German Romantic writer, judge and composer (Undine), born in Königsberg, Kingdom of Prussia (d. 1822)
  • Feb 11 Ioannis Kapodistrias, Greek diplomat of the Russian Empire and first head of state of independent Greece (d. 1831)
  • Feb 18 John Parry [Bardd Alaw], Welsh composer and harpist, born in Denbigh, Wales (d. 1851)
  • Feb 21 Vincenzo Lavigna, Italian composer, born in Altamura, Kingdom of Naples (d. 1836)
  • Feb 23 John Walter II, English newspaper owner (who made The Times into an important newspaper, 1812-47), born in London, England (d. 1847)
  • Mar 10 Louise, Queen of Prussia, wife of Frederick William III (famously pleaded with Napoleon), born in Hanover (d. 1810)
  • Mar 12 Hester Stanhope, English aristocrat, traveller and archaeologist, born in Chevening, England (d. 1839)
  • Mar 16 Johan Gijsbert Verstolk van Soelen, Dutch minister of Foreign Affairs, born in Rotterdam, Netherlands (d. 1845)

Sophie Germain (1776-1831)

Apr 1 French mathematician, born in Paris, France

  • Apr 8 Thaddäus Weigl, German-Austrian composer, publisher, and conductor, born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1844)
  • Apr 25 Princess Mary, Duchess of Gloucester and Edinburgh, born in Buckingham Palace, London (d. 1857)
  • Apr 26 Joan Melchior Kemper, Dutch lawyer (designed civil code law book), born in Amsterdam (d. 1824)
  • May 4 Johann Friedrich Herbart, German philosopher and psychologist, born in Oldenburg, Germany (d. 1841)
  • May 10 George Thomas Smart, English composer and conductor (Covent Garden), born in London (d. 1867)
  • May 13 Charles Ots, Belgian composer, born in Brussels, Austrian Netherlands (d. 1845)
  • May 13 Rodrigo Ferreira da Costa, Portuguese composer, born in Setúbal, Portugal (d. 1825)
  • May 20 Simon Fraser, Canadian explorer and fur trader (explored the Fraser River), born in Mapletown, New York (d. 1862) [1]
  • Jun 1 George Schetky, Scottish-American cellist, music teacher, and composer, born in Edinburgh, Scotland (d. 1831)
  • Jun 11 John Constable, English landscape painter (Hay Wain), born in East Bergholt, Suffolk, England (d. 1837)
  • Jul 13 Caroline of Baden, Queen of Bavaria, born in Karlsruhe, Margraviate of Baden (d. 1841)
  • Aug 4 Wenzel Sedlak, Bohemian clarinetist and composer, born in Jezbořice, Bohemia (d. 1851)

Amedeo Avogadro (1776-1856)

Aug 9 Italian scientist who contributed to molecular theory, including what is known as Avogadro's law (6.022 x 10 ^ 23), born in Torino, Italy

  • Aug 15 Gottlieb Schick, German painter (Apollo under the Hirten), born in Stuttgart, Germany (d. 1812)
  • Aug 15 Ignaz von Seyfried, Austrian composer, born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1841)
  • Aug 16 Philipp Jakob Riotte, German composer, born in St. Wendel, Saarland (d. 1856)
  • Sep 27 Maria Versfelt [Ida Saint-Elme], Dutch writer, stage actress, and mistress (General Moreau & Marshal Ney), born in Lith, Netherlands (d. 1845)
  • Nov 14 Henri Dutrochet, French physiologist (discovered & named process of osmosis), born in Néon, France (d. 1847)
  • Dec 6 Paul Friedrich Struck, composer, born in Stralsund, Holy Roman Empire (d. 1820)
  • Dec 16 Johann Wilhelm Ritter, German physicist (d. 1810)
  • Dec 27 Nikolay Kamensky, Russian general (d. 1811)
  • Dec 29 Charles Macintosh, Scottish chemist and inventor (waterproof fabric), born in Glasgow, Scotland (d. 1843)
  • Dec 31 Johann Spurzheim, German physician, born in Trier, Electorate of Trier, Germany (d. 1832)