visit Alaska. August 4–5 – War of Jenkins' Ear: Invasion of Cuba – British Admiral Edward Vernon captures Guantánamo Bay in Cuba, which he renames Cumberland Bay, but which his forces are forced to abandon on December 9. August 10 – Raja Marthanda Varma of Travancore defeats the Dutch East India Company in the Battle of Colachel, ending the Dutch colonial rule in India and marking the first "major" defeat of a European colonial military power in India. August 23 – At least 2,000 die along the shores of the Sea of Japan after a volcanic eruption on an island generated the Kampo Tsunami. September 11 – Linz falls to the Bavarian Army. October–December October 12 – George II, as Elector of Hanover, signs the Neustadt Protocol with France, but fails to inform his British government until after his return from Germany. November 25–26 – Franco-Bavarian troops commanded by Maurice of Saxony storm in Battle of Prague city Prague. December 6 (November 25, O.S.) – Elizabeth of Russia becomes czarina after a palace coup. December 7 Charles Albert of Bavaria has himself proclaimed King of Bohemia. Aleksei Chirikov of Russia presents the first written description of the northwest coast of North America. December 19 – Vitus Bering dies during his expedition, east of Siberia. December 25 – Anders Celsius develops his own thermometer scale, Centigrade, the predecessor of the Celsius scale. Date unknown Stemmatographia by Hristofor Zhefarovich, regarded as the first Serbian and Bulgarian secular printed book, is printed in Vienna. The Royal Order of Scotland in freemasonry is founded. Births January 14 – Benedict Arnold, American Revolutionary War general, traitor (d. 1801) January 27 – Hester Thrale, Welsh diarist (d. 1821) February 7 – Henry Fuseli, Swiss painter and writer (d. 1825) March 13 – Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1790) March 17 – William Withering, British physician (d. 1799) March 20 – Jean Antoine Houdon, French sculptor (d. 1828) April 14 – Emperor Momozono of Japan (d. 1762) May 13 – Ingeborg Akeleye, Norwegian noble known for her love life (d. 1800) May 23 – Andrea Luchesi, Italian composer (d. 1801) June 11 – Joseph Warren, American Patriot, physician (d. 1775) June 26 – John Langdon, American politician (d. 1819) September 22 – Peter Simon Pallas, German zoologist (d. 1811) October 4 – Edmond Malone, Irish scholar (d. 1812) October 18 – Pierre Choderlos de Laclos, French