ufo_data/bin/overmeiere/tran_chron3.txt

!1606
!1799
#1606, February 13
FRANCE, southeast
It is a "column of fire" that is still observed in the southeast of France. (M. FIGUET/ J.L. RUCHON: "Ovni: le premier dossier complet..." ed. Alain LEFEUVRE 1979, p. 35)

#May 1606
JAPAN, Kyoto
Balls of fire had been constantly flying over the city of Kyoto and one night a red wheel had even come to spin and hover above the Nijo Castle. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.86)

#August 1, 1608
MEDITERRANEAN: Cannes, Genoa, Marseille, Nice
On the sea of Genoa were seen the most horrible signs that have ever been spoken or written of! Some were in human figures, having arms that seemed to be covered in scales and each holding in their hands two horrible flying serpents, which entwined their arms and only appeared from the navel upwards, out of the sea, and they threw out cries so horrible that it was a terrifying thing, and sometimes they plunged into the sea and then reappeared in other places far away, howling cries so terrifying that many were made ill from the fear they had. They saw some that seemed to be in female figures. Others had a body like a human, all covered in scales, but the head was in the shape of a dragon. From the first day of the said month, they were ordinarily seen to the great astonishment of all the Genoese. The seigniory had some cannons fired in order to try to make them leave that place. About 800 shots were fired at them, but in vain, for they were not in the least astonished. The churches assembled and, going to the true remedy, made many processions, commanded the youth, and the good Capuchin fathers ordered the 40 hours in order to try to appease the wrath of God, with their salutary remedy. On the fifteenth day of August, on the said sea of the port of Genoa, three chariots were seen, each drawn by six figures all on fire in the semblance of a dragon. And the said chariots were drawn by the said signs which always had their serpents, continuing their terrifying cries and approaching quite close to Genoa, so that the spectators, at least the greater part, astonished, fled, fearing the effects of such a prodigy.<br/><br/>
But when they had made the circuit three times along the port, after they had thrown such powerful cries of noise that they made the mountains in the vicinity resound, they were lost in the said sea and since then, none have seen or heard any news of them. This brought great damage to many citizens of Genoa, some of whom died of fear, such as the son of Mr. Gasparino de Loro and also the brother of Signor Anthonio Bagatello, and many women were afflicted and had such fear that they died of it... From the length of the sea of Nice and all along the coast of Provence, both on the marine side and on the plain, it was found to have rained natural blood which ran and tried to redden the leaves and fruits of the trees. At Toulon, most of the houses on the roof were stained with the said blood, and the pavement of the parish church of the said place, at the exit of Mass, was seen to be sprinkled with a horn of real and natural blood. On the eighteenth of the said month, it rained blood in such abundance that it ran along the streets and it seemed as if an infinity of people had been slaughtered at Riliane.<br/><br/>
At Lambex, on the twentieth of the said month, in the presence of all the people, it was seen to rain blood so much that none went out of the houses without being stained with the said blood which distilled from the roof of the houses, or else from that which fell from the first rain. In short, along the marine from Nice to Marseille, blood rained on various days... Dreadful things, worthy of memory, happened almost at the same time in the town of the Isle of Martègue, on the twenty-second day of the said month, when two men appeared in the air, each with weapons and shields in their hands, and they fought in such a way that they astonished the spectators, and after having fought for a long time, they rested for a certain time, then returned to battle and their combat lasted two hours. On the twenty-seventh of the said month, they fought on foot and quarreled in such a way that it seemed to some that each of them was armed with a fortress or castle, and after having made a good show against each other, there was a noise as of some shots from a cannon. The noise was so frightful that it seemed to the listeners to be the end of the world, then having continued the said days for seven hours all at once, a thick cloud appeared in the air and covered so darkly that nothing was seen for two hours but clouds and black mists, darkened, smelling like gunpowder, and after the air was purified, none of these chimeras were seen, which had vanished. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.87-88)

#1614, March 4
JAPAN, Kinki
It was observed the passage of a square object. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.89)

#1619
SWITZERLAND, Fluelen (Uri).
Herr Christophorus Schere, Prefect of the Canton of Uri, saw near Fluelen, along the Lake of Uri, a long and shining flying object. (Henry DURRANT: "The Black Book of UFOs" - Laffont 1970, p. 61) In 1619, in Flüelen, an enormous elongated and fiery-colored object was seen near a lake by Professor Christopher Scherer, Prefect of the Canton of Uri: "Having lingered on the balcony to admire the purity of the firmament, I saw a brilliant fiery dragon emerge from one of the caves of Mount Pilate and quickly head towards Flüelen at the other end of the lake. It was enormous, its tail long and its neck stretched out...It left behind, in flying, numerous sparks...At first I thought I saw a meteor, but then, looking more closely, I was convinced by its flight...that I was seeing a real dragon." (UFOs in Heidi, cfr GREPI, 1997)

#1620, February 1
FRANCE, Quimper-Corentin
Between 7 and 8 PM lightning struck the lead-covered pyramid on the roof of the cathedral. It caught fire, exploded and crashed to the ground with a terrifying noise. People who came to see it then saw in the flames and smoke a demon of either green or blue color, doing its best to stoke the fire... (Jacques VALLEE: "Chronicles of E.T. Appearances" - DENOEL 1972 - coll. J'AI LU - p. 95, 96)

#1620, April 5
SWITZERLAND, Geneva
Palm Sunday. Another pamphlet published in 1620 entitled: "Horrible Battle Seen
over the City of Geneva on Last Palm Sunday..." recounts:
"Two suns were seen, one red and the other yellow, which clashed with each other... Shortly afterwards a long cloud like an arm appeared from the side of the sun, which stopped near the said Sun, and from this cloud a great number of people dressed in black and armed like soldiers emerged... and then yellow clouds like saffron appeared, from which clouds reflections resembling large high and wide hats emerged and the whole earth was shown yellow and bloody... The sun split in two and everything ended in a rain of blood." (Les Soucoupes chez Heidi, cfr GREPI, 1997)

#1621, July 28
SWITZERLAND, Geneva
The presence of a cross in the sky of Geneva is still reported on July 28, 1621, a cross that threw flames as if to burn the city and its surroundings. (Les Soucoupes chez Heidi, cfr GREPI, 1997)

#1621, September 12
FRANCE, Paris and Saint-Denis
"Various small white clouds appeared which, as if in squadrons, separated from each other, came afterwards to join each other with prodigious speed, after which they disappeared, and others presented themselves and, on approach, sent out shapes and forms like lances and arrows against each other, just like squadrons that come fiercely to the shock and, after having fought for a while, were lost and no longer appeared..." wrote Pierre de l'Estoile. While Jacques Thevenyn, notary, described: "The night of Sunday, the twelfth of September, between Monday the thirteenth, although we had no moon, nevertheless it was very clear and in the air there were swans of medium size. Around ten o'clock in the evening I saw, being at our door, in the sky like three long white paths, one smaller than the others and they moved. I thought it was the wind but I do not know what it was and on this, I saw like a crown which was not at all closed on the side of the Saint Anthoine Gate and was around it, against which there were several branches that came to merge..." (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.89-90)

#1621, October 12
FRANCE, Lyon, Nismes, Montpellier
On the night of the 12th of October last, around eight o'clock in the evening, with no moonlight at its last quarter, the air, beyond what is natural, began to clear up from the east and continued for an hour and a half or so, making the time as clear and bright as the most beautiful days of summer, which caused great astonishment to the inhabitants of Lyon. Most of them, looking up, perceived things that were entirely strange and beyond the course of nature. Namely, on the large Bellecourt square they saw like a large mountain, on which was the figure of a castle, from which came forth many flashes of light that gave off light in all directions and lost their light in an instant. And this figure of the castle was consumed as these said flashes came out. It seemed to cover the entire quarter of the Rosne gate, Saint Michel, the Saone river, and reach as far as the faux-bourg of Saint George. On the side of the Terreaux square it was seen (by more than four hundred people) in the air, like the shape of a battalion of soldiers on horseback, at the head of which there was a very luminous star, which seemed to lead them, which was larger and brighter than those usually seen in the sky. This star, like a second sun, made all the clouds that presented themselves in various shapes disperse before it, and seemed to want to keep its brightness, but being overcome by its great light, they entirely lost their shapes and were no longer visible. The whole city and surrounding areas were covered this night and others following with various signs and prodigies, like burning lances, which seemed to come from the side of the faux-bourg of La Guillotière, which, approaching the Rosne bridge, dispersed and were no longer visible, and this until daybreak.<br/><br/>
In the city of Nismes (...) at the same time previously mentioned by the inhabitants of the said city, principally the night of the thirteenth of the said month around nine to ten o'clock in the evening, on the Amphitheatre there was seen like a great and very resplendent sun, which was surrounded by a number of other luminous torches and seemed to want to go straight to the Roman Tower.. on which there appeared like carts on fire all around surrounded by very bright stars. There also appeared other signs both on the Capitol and on the Temple, which seemed to cover the whole city, which greatly astonished all the inhabitants of the said city and other surrounding areas. In the city and town of Montpellier... there began to appear on it a quantity of burning torches in the form of torches of light from which came a number like lances of fire that went back and forth. This way of doing lasted from nine to ten o'clock at night until three o'clock in the morning when there appeared a great and luminous star with a long tail, other small stars, which seemed to make a large cloud mixed with various flashes disperse, which wanted to cover it and prevent its brightness...

#1636, March
FRANCE, Belle-Ile (Morbihan)
Extract from the letter of the Duke of Retz to his friend the R.P. Césarée -
Méjanes Library in Aix-en-Provence, manuscript no. 1209) ... the man
marain was on a rock on the west side called Arbonne... and
appeared to be sitting. The great height of the coast prevented him from
judging what was under the water, but what appeared outside was the belly, the navel, the body, the head, the arms and the
hands very well proportioned, except for the hands which were
extraordinarily large and white inside and the arms which
were a bit short. His body appeared to be the size of a barrel of wine and the rest in proportion. His hair down to his shoulders
very greasy and whitish, his beard similar and going down to
his stomach, his eyes very big and rough, his skin neither white nor tanned,
but it had the appearance of being rough. ... but they saw well that
the groin appeared wide of more than a foot and that his back was
like the top of his hands and arms with a grayish skin without scales. .... instead of legs, two fish tails made
like a salmon... sometimes he beat his hands against
each other and made a certain whistle that they took for laughter... At
the same time that it appeared in Belle Ile, inhabitants who went to
Vannes assure that in broad daylight they saw the same thing...
(Yves Naud: "Les E.T. et les OVNI dans l'histoire" Famot 1977, Volume 2 p.
147-148)

#1639, March
USA, Boston
James Everll saw a blazing light in the sky. It was square or rectangular in shape, 2.5 to 3 meters wide, and moved in a zigzag pattern. (Christiane PIENS: "Les ovni du passé" - Marabout 1977 - p. 65) (Yves Naud: "Les E.T. et les OVNI dans l'histoire" Famot 1977, Volume 2 p. 152-153)

#1639, April
CHINA, Yuan (Shansi)
The villagers were offering their condolences to the family of Yuan Yingta, National Defense Minister during the Ming dynasty, who had sacrificed himself on the battlefield while resisting the Man soldiers. Then a luminous thing in the shape of a star, of red, white, yellow and blue color, flew over the funeral procession (...) This bright thing did not land on the ground, but it circled over the village for a very long time, then it rose into the sky. Its lights were seen up to more than five kilometers away. (SHI BO: "China and the Extraterrestrials" ed. Mercure de France, 1983, p.45)

#1640
BELGIUM, Knokke,
The Spanish Memorial Historica Tome XVI states that in 1640 at the Fort of Kenoque (Knokke), which was a defense of the city of Ypres, the soldiers of the fort saw at the zenith a complete army marching through the flames. Hardly had it been deployed when they saw two others, one coming from the east and the other from the west. According to the text "these two armies put themselves in battle order and fought against the one coming from the north. The battle lasted an hour and the shots were heard clearly..."
(Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.93)

#1644, January 18
USA, Boston (Virginia)
At around 8 o'clock in the evening, several inhabitants of the Boston area by the sea saw a light the size of a full moon rise above the sea to the northeast. Shortly afterwards, another light appeared to the east. Then the inhabitants witnessed a curious game of hide and seek between the two lights. (...) During this celestial ballet, several people known to be sober and pious who were on the water between Dorchester and Boston claimed to have heard a voice in the sky pronouncing "in a most terrible manner" the following words: "Little, little, come, come" .... These calls were repeated about twenty times from various directions. A week later, other witnesses saw the same ballet and heard the same calls coming from the depths of the sky. (Yves Naud: "Les E.T. et les OVNI dans l'histoire" Famot 1977, Volume 2 p. 153-154)

#1646, May
NETHERLANDS, The Hague
Strange people and animals appeared in the sky of The Hague.
While "coming from the southeast a large fleet of airships
with many sailors on board" approached this unusual spectacle.
A gigantic battle followed and at the moment of the disappearance of the phenomenon
one saw then "like a large cloud appear where there was nothing
before.." (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977
p.94)

#1655
Portugal
The Inquisition was called upon due to the allegations of a businessman,
suddenly appearing in Portugal, who claimed that only a few seconds
earlier he was in Goa, east coast of India, in the street, in front of
his shop. Finding him with diabolical powers, the Inquisition condemned
him to the stake. (Roger BOAR and Nigel BLUNDEL: "The World's Greatest
UFO Mysteries" ed. Hamlyn 1995, p. 72)

#1661
FRANCE, Goult (Vaucluse)
Antoine de Nantes, a messenger from Goult, suffering from a cruel illness, saw
a child of wonderful beauty, hovering above the debris of a halo of fire. And when the divine figure had disappeared, the messenger found himself perfectly restored. A chapel was erected, inaugurated on January 3, 1663; "miracles multiplied from that day: meteors of fire burst in the shadows on the blessed dome." (M. FIGUET/ J.L. RUCHON: "Ovni, le premier dossier complet..." - éd. Alain Lefeuvre 1969, p. 38)

#1663, August 15
RUSSIA, Belozero
Extract from the report of the St Cyrille monastery: "The peasant Levka Fedorov from the village of Mys told me the following: ... from various lands and various domains people were attending mass, ... in great numbers.. and at that moment a very loud noise came from the sky, and many people went out to the courtyard and saw... from the winter side of the brightest sky, not from a cloud, a great fire came out from Roboziero and headed towards the South, along the lake, above the water and had this flame twenty sagènes (1 sagène = 2.13 m) and more on all sides, and a blue smoke was next to it and becoming the flame, on twenty sagènes, two beams of fire as well ... and from the great fire and the two smaller flames, nothing more was seen. After about an hour, the same fire returned again to the lake, from the same place where it had disappeared the first time and went from the south to the west for half a verste (1 verste = 1.066m) and disappeared in the same way. The third time this fire became more frightening than the first one due to its size and then went towards the west. And it stayed on Roboziero, this fire, above the lake, for about an hour and a half and said lake was two verstes long and one across... On the lake peasants were sailing in a boat and the flame of this fire was so hot that they could not approach it. And the lake was lit up to the bottom, to the deepest, in the center of it, this lake, four sagènes and the fish fleeing to the shores, all saw it and under the fire, the water became, due to the flame, as if covered in rust.." (Ion Hobana/Julien Weverbergh: "Les Ovni en URSS et dans les pays de l'est" - Kluwer 1972 - translation Laffont 1976 pp. 79 to 87)

#1665, March 23
GERMANY, Leipzig
There would have been such an abundant fall of blue silk filaments,
that entire fields were covered with them. These filaments would have
fallen from the sky and clung to the feet of men and animals.
(Inforespace n° 52 - 1980, p. 3)

#1672, February 8
At sea, in the English Channel
At one hour after midday, in the clearest of weather, a star appeared above our heads, about fifteen feet in length. From there it went to fall to the north side, leaving a smoke which formed into two ships, each with two masts and the mizzen and their large sails tight and furled, both having the front facing upwards. The one to the north was larger than the one above. And as they went thus, they separated about four feet apart, in the middle of which formed another ship, appearing larger than the others, all black, showing us the back and turning the front to the north, without any sail but yet equipped with its masts, yards and ropes, as if it had been at anchor. This appeared to us for the space of a large half hour. And then afterwards, having come together, they dissipated, going to the side of the above without leaving any mark... (Captain Izaac Guiton, Port De Fosse, Nantes) (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.96)

#1677, December 30
At sea to the west of Granada (SPAIN)
Pierre Boutard, an officer aboard the "La Maligne" noted in the logbook "on Thursday, the 30th of December 1677 in the morning at 4 o'clock, we saw a star to the northwest 1/4 of west and ending in the southeast 1/4 of east, but bearing a great light that we all believed in our ship that the fire was everywhere, but it was accompanied by more than 200 rays bearing an unequalled clarity, that we were all amazed. We sailed towards the small harbor of Granada around 9 or 10 o'clock in the morning." (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.97)

#1678, December 12
FRANCE
The "Journal des Savants" publishes a letter from Mr. Toynard in which he reports that "Mr. S. Besnier, locksmith of the Sable, in the country of Maine, has invented a four-winged machine to fly". ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 14)

#1680
RUSSIA, MOSCOW
A polish peasant, whose name is lost, attempted a flight in Moscow in the presence of Minister Froecourov. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 14)

#1686, June and July
SCOTLAND, Crosford, Nanark
From chronicler Patrick Malker: ... near the ford of Crosford, two miles
below Nanark and particularly at the Hands, on the Clyde River, a great
crowd gathered several times in the afternoon. There was a shower of
hats, flags, guns and swords. The trees and the ground were covered.
Companies of armed men marched in order along the river, companies
meeting companies rushed against each other and falling to the ground,
disappeared. Others reappeared immediately and marched in the same
direction... those who had seen were seized with such fear and such
trembling that those who had not seen were troubled... (Yves Naud:
"The E.T. and the UFOs in History" Famot 1977, Volume 2 p. 151)

#1687
GREAT BRITAIN, London
In his law "action and reaction", Isaac Newton gives the explanation of the principle of operation of the rocket. ("The Rockets of the Future" - Hans K; Kaiser, ed. Amiot -Dumont 1954, p. 12)

#1688, spring-summer
CHINA, Kunmin (Yun'nan)
(notes of Gu-Sheng, chap. 6) between the end of spring and the beginning of summer of the twenty-seventh year under the reign of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing dynasty, my brother-in-law Bixilin went to his home in the mountains 20 kilometers from the city of Kunmin. During his stay, he saw every noon, when it was nice, a large lid young like an umbrella rise slowly from a ridge. This thing threw bright lights that he did not dare to look at directly. It took height and penetrated into the clouds. Soon after it descended, always slowly, to go up and down in the same way. When night fell, the flying object lost the brightness of its yellow color and became paler and blurred. It completely disappeared when the sky became black. (SHI BO: "China and the Extraterrestrials" ed. Mercure de France, 1983, p. 36)

#1692
GRANDE-BRETAGNE, pays de Galles
According to "Morden's Atlas of Wales": "a burning exhalation crossed the sea and set fire to haystacks, wheat fields and barns, close to Harlech. This thing infected the grass but it was not dangerous for men, even for those who were in the middle of it. It always happened at nightfall, most often on a Saturday or Sunday, and it lasted for a few months. The only way to extinguish it and make it flee was to sound a hunting horn or fire shots..." (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.99)

#1694, January
GREAT BRITAIN, Dolgelly (Wales)
The priest of Dolgelly reported that "sixteen haystacks and two barns
had been burned by some kind of flaming vapor that is often seen
coming from the sea..." (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" -
Delarge 1977 p.99)

#1697, November 4
GERMANY, Hamburg
A kind of huge, very bright sphere slowly flew over Hamburg and other cities in northwest Germany. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.99)

#1699
FRANCE, Avignon
Extract from "The History of the Diocese of Avignon" by Abbot Granget: "Arriving near the oratory which is opposite the chapel of Notre Dame Ste Garde (St Didier, Vaucluse) I saw the sky open, a great light appeared and soon I saw three globes of fire. The one in the middle was raised above the others. Here I said to myself, the lights of which I have been told. Immediately I fell to my knees and I blessed God for such a great wonder. At the same time, two new lights appeared but a little above the place where the chapel is. I advanced to the oratory where the mystery of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ is represented. The two globes then joined the one in the middle and disappeared. (Michel BOUGARD: "The Chronicle of UFOs" - Delarge 1977 p.99-100)

#1700, April 17 
FRANCE, Dolus (Oléron)
Easter Tuesday. Approximate date. During a procession a luminous cross was seen in the sky. It was
approximately 50 cubits long and preceded the procession for nearly
two hours. It stopped when the procession stopped and disappeared when
the procession entered the church. The weather was warm, without clouds
or wind. The cross was almost lying from east to west; the foot was
very long. More than a thousand people saw it. (Pierre VIEROUDY:
"These UFOs that announce the Superman" - Laffont 1979, p. 35)

#1707, April 3
GREAT BRITAIN, Upminster (Essex)
William Derham saw an object of pyramidal shape of red color. It emerged about a quarter of an hour after sunset. (Christiane PIENS: "Les Ovni du passé" - Marabout 1977 - p. 76)

#1709, February 5
ROMANIA
A great sign appeared in the sky on February 5, a Friday. Two large columns of fire appeared, one to the west, the other to the east and they moved until they formed the letter A. They then joined together and transformed into a rainbow emitting a strong luminosity for three hours before disappearing. (Biblioteca Academici: Manuscris românesc 706, folio 1) (Ion HOBANA/Julien WEVERBERGH: "Les OVNI en URSS et dans les pays de l'Est - trad. Laffont 1976, p. 287)

#1709, April 17
PORTUGAL
John V. of Portugal granted a pension of 600,000 Reis to R.P. Bartholomeo Lourenco de Gusmao, who proposed an aerial apparatus (type dirigible). ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 14)

#1709, August 8
PORTUGAL
Bartholomeo Lourenco de Gusmao's flying machine would have made a flight in the presence of King John V. of Portugal. This inventor is often confused, rightly or wrongly; the chronicles are not very precise, with the experimenter of 1736. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 14)

#1710, May 18
GREAT BRITAIN, Leeds (Yorkshire)
At around 9:45 pm Ralph Thoresby saw an object "resembling a trumpet" above Leeds. (Michel BOUGARD: "The Chronicle of UFOs" - Delarge 1977 p.103)

#1712, June 7
Spain, Seville
At the death of Reverend Mother Teresa of Jesus from the Assumption Convent, there were numerous testimonies saying that at the moment of her death a large pyramidal mass of light descended on the convent, so bright and resplendent that all who saw it in and out of the city were filled with great joy. (ABC, Opinion, Album de recuerdos, Seville 8.5.99)

#1716, March 1
Off the coast of SPAIN
The captain wrote at the time: On March 1 at 9:00 PM we were at 45°36' latitude, off the northwest coast of Spain, when a bright cloud appeared towards the east, but not far from the zenith. It split into a large number of luminous rays, each of them resembling the tail of a comet. This luminous body appeared to the northwest of us and continued to shine until the next noon. It was then at a good distance from the ship, just before it suddenly disappeared". (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.103)

#March 6, 1717
Southwest of MARTINIQUE
In his logbook, the knight de Ricouart, commander of the frigate "La Valeur" noted: "At two o'clock in the morning we were going a little forward, the course to the southeast. We saw pass along the side like the mast of a ship, which was standing two feet above the water." (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.104-Inforespace n° 26 p. 45)

#1719, March 30
FRANCE, Dieppe
Many people who were walking along the beach saw a column of fire emitting a very bright light, which, approaching the city, exploded with a sound like three shots of artillery and fell defeated in smoke, on the walls, without doing any harm. (Pierre DELVAL: "Contacts of the 4th type" - De Vecchi 1979, p. 207)

#1720
NETHERLANDS, Gravezande
Further trials of the same kind were carried out by the Dutchman J.W. He
built models of reduced vehicles and presented them in an amphitheatre.
However, he did not use rockets, but water vapor; the propulsion mode,
the reaction, was nonetheless identical. ("The Future Vehicle Rockets" - Hans K; Kaiser, ed. Amiot - Dumont 1954, p. 12)

#1726, October 19
BELGIUM, Ath (Hainaut)
In "The History of the City of Ath" written by Gilles Joseph de Boussu, there is mention of phenomena that caused panic in the region. "On Saturday, October 19, at about seven-thirty in the evening, large clouds of fire rose on our horizon, driven by the south wind towards the north. They seemed to collide with each other in a terrifying way, yet without any noise. The sky, although clear, seemed to be all ablaze. One could also see among these troops of fire, large luminous circles, open at the bottom, which pushed each other, like the waves of a stormy sea. Around eleven o'clock these phenomena passed over the city, which continued far into the night, causing terror and admiration everywhere..." (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.105)

#1726, October 29
BELGIUM, Vilvorde - (Brabant)
At around nine o'clock in the evening and for two consecutive hours, one could see in the sky horrible and curious meteors coming among the clouds like flashes and disappearing in the same way. Their aspect was most terrible. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.105)

#1728, December 17
ITALY, Bologna
On the 17th another one was seen, having the appearance of a cross, followed by the appearance of a young man on horseback, with a helmet on his head, adorned with feathers, which caused great consternation among the people. On the 18th, in the province of Marca, a violent earthquake was experienced. (Pierre DELVAL: "Contacts of the 4th Type" - De Vecchi 1979, p. 210)

#1731, December 9
ITALY, Florence
A luminous cloud, moving at great speed, disappears beyond the horizon (before an earthquake) (Charles FORT: "The Book of the Damned" - ed. Eric Losfeld 1967, p. 187) Strange globes of light in the sky. (Desmond Leslie and Georges Adamski: "The S.V. Have Landed" - J'ai Lu 1971 - p. 31) Strange luminous balls appear in the sky of Florence. An author of the time, Bianchini, adds that they made a loud humming sound and that he was able to distinguish windows. (Moustique n° 1508 of 19.12.1954, p. 17, article by Bert Brem)

#1736
PORTUGAL, LISBON
Gusman ascended to the height of the Lisbon Tower (66 m) on board a basket of wicker covered with paper. He descended without any harm. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 14)

#1737, December 5
GREAT BRITAIN, Sheffield.
At around 5:00 PM, Mr. Thomas Short was the witness of "the appearance of a dark red cloud beneath which was a luminous body sending out very bright beams of light. This was nothing like the aurora borealis as the light rays moved slowly for some time and then stopped. Suddenly it became so hot that I had to take off my shirt even though I was outside. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.105)

#1740, night of February 23rd to 24th
FRANCE, Toulon
In the Toulon harbor a fireball was seen. It then plunged into the sea from where it rose up like a bouncing ball. Having reached a certain height it exploded and spread various fireballs, some of which fell into the sea and others on the mountain. (Christiane PIENS: "Les Ovni du passé" - Marabout 1977 - p. 77, 78)

#1741, September 21
GREAT BRITAIN, Bradly, Selborne, Alresford.
According to the Wernerian Natural Historical Society Transactions (vol. 5, p.386) it would have fallen between Bradly, Selborne and Alresford over several tens of square kilometers "like spider webs in the form of flakes or tatters, about 3 cm wide and 15 to 18 cm long".<br/><br/>
Apparently this fall was made in large quantities and twice.
After several hours of calm, a second "shower" would last from 9 am until dusk. The "All the Year Around" (vol. 8, p 254) describes the same phenomenon but specifies that the three locations form a triangle of 13 km side and that the matter fell at great speed. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.106)

#1741, December 12
GREAT BRITAIN, Sussex
"Around 12:00 or 13:00 a terrible thunderclap was heard in the direction of the north. It sounded like two very large cannons firing one after the other. But the rumble and echo did not resemble those produced by a cannon shot. Within a 30 km radius, all the houses were shaken." Another witness, a canon at Canterbury, was luckier. On the same day, also around 13:00 his house was strongly shaken by what he took for an earthquake. But he rushed out and then saw "what seemed to be a cloud of storm in the sky and a ball of light that passed very quickly over the eastern region towards the west. It had begun with two loud detonations like cannon shots. It was like a very large shooting star in the middle of the day." (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.106-107)

#1742
FRANCE, PARIS
Jumping from the roof of his hotel, on the banks of the Seine in Paris, the Marquis de Bacqueville made a gliding flight (wings attached to his body), which allowed him to almost entirely cross the river. He landed abruptly on a boat moored to the opposite shore. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 14)

#1743, August 31
ITALY, between Castel-Nuovo and Rome.
In his memoirs Girolamo-Giacomo Casanova, barely 18 years old and not yet having acquired the reputation of a seducer that will be attributed to him, wrote: "From Terni I went to Cirocoli.. and from there to Castel-Nuovo, from where I went to Rome where I arrived on the first of September at nine in the morning. I must not forget to mention here a particular circumstance which will please more than one reader, however ridiculous it may be in the end. An hour after Castel-Nuovo, the air was calm and the sky serene, I saw to my right and ten steps away from me a pyramidal flame of the height of a cubit and raised four or five feet above the level of the ground. This apparition struck me because it seemed to accompany me. Wanting to study it, I tried to get closer to it, but the more I went in its direction the more it moved away from me. It stopped as soon as I stopped and, when the part of the road I was crossing was bordered by trees, I stopped seeing it, but I found it again as soon as the edge of the road became free again. I also tried to turn back, but each time it disappeared and only reappeared when I was heading back towards Rome. This strange beacon did not leave me until the light of day had chased away the darkness.... I had the prudence not to tell anyone about it." (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.108-109)

#1743, December 16
GREAT BRITAIN, Westminster
Mortimer Cromwell, a physicist, was returning home at 8:40 pm when he saw a light towards the southwest from St James Park. It moved in a wavelike motion, and he saw it for 30 seconds. At the front was a bright flame projected backwards, followed by a glowing fire in an opaque capsule, followed by a long tail becoming increasingly darker towards the end. The head of this tadpole-shaped object had an apparent diameter of half a degree, the tail a length of three degrees, and for the thickness 1/8 of a degree. (Flying Saucer Review vol. 23 no. 2 pp. 14-15)

#1743
GRANDE-BRETAGNE, Peibio (Anglesay - pays de Galles)
At Peibio, near Holyhead, two farmers working in the fields saw
"a ship with its sails, flying in the air." The object came from the
southeast, from the direction of Mount Snowdon (Caernarvan) and was
heading towards the witnesses. They added that a "flock of birds
gathered to watch the phenomenon and then dispersed in all directions".
According to the farmers, the object must have weighed 90 tonnes and
was moving at an altitude of about 40 m. The "airship" resembled the
old steamships that used to shuttle between Holyhead and Ireland. They
could clearly see the bottom of the "ship" when it passed almost
vertically. The weather was quite cloudy. According to the witnesses,
similar observations had already been made in the region ten or twenty
years before. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.109-110)

#1744, May 27
GREAT BRITAIN, London
Mr. Henry Baker shortly after 11pm saw a strange trumpet-shaped object above Somerset House at the moment when this unusual craft emitted a white flame. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.110)

#1744, June 23
SCOTLAND
From two hours before dusk until nightfall above a Scottish hill: "a troop of armed men" was observed in the air by 27 witnesses including a magistrate. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.110)

#1745, July 4
GREAT BRITAIN, London
The Reverend George Costard saw a trumpet-shaped craft at around 8:00 PM above Stanlake Broad. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.110)

#1749, April 27
GREAT BRITAIN, London
The Ruggieri, of Bolognese origin, were famous throughout Europe. Louis XV had them come to his court to organize real pyrotechnic spectacles at Versailles. But it was in London, in St James's Park, that the firework display was fired that has probably never been surpassed in magnificence. King George II had asked Gaetano Ruggieri, assisted by Giuseppe Sarti, to celebrate the Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle. He was so impressed that a complete description was published in a special book. (...) The success of these spectacles was such that they became the obligatory complement of all festivities. ("To the Assault of Space" Georges H. Gallet, ed. of Modern Thought, p. 30)

#1752, April 15
NORWAY, Slavane (Stavanger?)
(Preceded by a violent storm and) a strange, 8-sided star. (Charles Fort: "The Book of the Damned" - ed. Eric Losfeld 1967, p. 187) (A strange, sparkling, 8-sided object: cfr UFO-ORIENTERING., 1966, 7, listing of Ole Jonny Braenne)

#1752, September
USA
Benjamin Franklin launches the first electric kite in a thundercloud. He feels a shock when touching the apparatus' cable. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 18)

#1752
SWEDEN, Augermannland
(Before the earthquake) balls of fire raced across the sky.
(Charles FORT: "The Book of the Damned" - ed. Eric Losfeld 1967, p. 187)
Spheres of fire emanating from a long, flaming tubular object.
(Desmond Leslie and George Adamski: "The S.V. Have Landed" - J'ai Lu 1971, p. 31)

#1753, May 14
FRANCE
First experience in France (second in the world), of an electric kite, by Romas. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 18)

#1753, December 8
GREAT BRITAIN, Fleet Dorset
At around 11:45, on a sunny day, Mr. Cracker saw something resembling a child's kite but shining like silver, passing back and forth through the clouds. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.111)

#1753, December 11
GREAT BRITAIN, Berkshire
Around 5:00 PM in an area stretching from London to Kent, the maneuvers of a kite were preceded by a dull explosion. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.111)

#1756, January 2
ITALY, Turin
An explosion shook the sky of Turin, just after the passage of a blue flying object which, during its entire flight, projected flames. It remained visible for 20 minutes. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.111)

#1757, September 13
USA, BOSTON
John Childs made several flights or gliding descents (with parachute?) from the top of a church tower in Boston. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 18)

#1757, November 26
SCOTLAND, Edinburgh
A conical object flew over the city at high speed. Before disappearing, this UFO released three satellite-shaped discs. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.112)

#1759, February 24
GREAT BRITAIN, Liskeard (Cornwall)
At 10pm a slight tremor like an earthquake was felt: it was a vibratory movement that lasted 2 or 3 seconds. George Thompson went out to observe the sky and saw multitudes of red blood rays converging from all corners of the sky towards a dark point. (Christiane PIENS: "Les OVNI du passé" - Marabout 1977 - p.79)

#1759, June 9
FRANCE, Bazas
At 9 o'clock in the evening, the curate of Captioux who was walking in front of his church with the curate of Loubens, his brother, saw a column of fire going from east to south. It passed behind a wood which hid it from their view. An hour later, a second column of fire was seen rushing into the river, near the mill. That same evening, from the town of Bazas, at the end of the horizon, towards Langdon, a whirlwind of fire was seen. (M. FIGUET/ J.L. RUCHON: "Ovni, le premier dossier complet..." - ed. Alain LEFEUVRE 1979, p. 38, 39)

#1759, 10 October
GREAT BRITAIN, Mendips (Somerset)
Objects resembling balls quickly flew in the direction of Essex. One of them emitted a bluish light and made a kind of loop before disappearing on the horizon. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.112)

#November 2, 1761
SWITZERLAND
(Before the earthquake) a "huge globe" was seen. (Charles FORT: "The Book of the Damned" - ed. Eric Losfeld 1967, p. 187) A procession of "huge globes" flew over Switzerland. (Desmond Leslie and Georges Adamski: "The S.V. Have Landed" - J'ai Lu 1971 - p. 32) A procession of "huge globes" flew over Switzerland on November 2, 1761. (The Saucers with Heidi, cfr GREPI, 1997)

#1762, December 5
GREAT BRITAIN, Bideford (Devon)
At around 8:50 PM a kind of writhing serpent descended slowly above Bideford and remained visible for only a few minutes. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.112)

#1763, August 19
GREAT BRITAIN, London
Darkness more impenetrable than that of the eclipse of 1748 (Gentleman's Magazine 33-414) (Charles FORT: "The Book of the Damned" - ed. Eric Losfeld 1967, p. 182) In broad daylight it suddenly became as dark as in a furnace. The most astonishing thing is that the darkness was quite impenetrable to the light of candles or lanterns. (Jacques BERGIER: "The E.T. in History" - J'AI LU - 1970 - p. 161)

#1766
INDIA, Mysore
In India, rockets retained their favor and developed into a feared weapon. The army of the Prince of Mysore, Haider Ali, counted 1200 rocket launchers. (see 1782) ("Rockets, Vehicles of the Future" Hans K. Kaiser, ed. Amiot-Dumont 1954, p. 13)

#1767, June 19
FRANCE, Gévaudan
The beast killed by Jean Chastel with a blessed bullet was very different from a wolf, with reddish fur. The grass did not grow for a long time where the corpse had fallen. (There were a hundred authenticated cases of children being devoured). (Pierre VIEROUDY: "These UFOs that Announce the Superman" - Laffont 1979, p. 270)

#1767, September
SCOTLAND, Coupar Angus (Pertshire)
Some kind of fiery house approached close to the ground and caused some damage in the town. "It took the form of a pyramid and suddenly moved forward in the direction of the Erick. It then rushed into this river at great speed and disappeared a little after Blairgowrie (more than 7 km away). This caused considerable excitement... When it passed, this object carried a large cart and transported it several meters away, into a field. A man who was on the main road at that moment was thrown off his horse and knocked out; he remained unconscious for a long time. The object also destroyed a house and the arch of the new bridge in Blairgowrie. After that it quickly disappeared." (Michel BOUGARD: "The Chronicle of UFOs" - Delarge 1977 p.113)

#September 1768
GERMANY, between Frankfurt and Leipzig
Excerpt from the 6th book of Goethe's autobiography. At the time he was 16 years old and was on his way to the University of Leipzig. The journey was arduous in the pouring rain and on the hills, the travelers had to get down to relieve the effort of the horses. During one of these forced marches, he noticed an astonishing phenomenon: "Suddenly, in a ravine to the right of the road, I saw a kind of amphitheater, wonderfully lit. In a pipe-shaped space an incalculable number of small lights were placed one on top of the other. They shone so brightly that the eye was dazzled. But what troubled most in this vision was that the lights were not fixed, they jumped here and there, went up and down and vice versa, in all directions. The greatest number of them, however, remained stable and radiated. It was with the greatest reluctance that I consented, when I was called, to move away from this spectacle that I would have liked to examine more closely. The postilion, when I questioned him, declared that he had never had knowledge of such a phenomenon, but that there was an old stone quarry nearby whose excavation was filled with water. It remains to be seen now whether this was a pandemonium of goblins, or an assembly of luminous creatures, I cannot decide. (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p.113-114)

#1769, October 24
GREAT BRITAIN, Oxford
Observation of "houses of fire" flying. (Michel BOUGARD: "The Chronicle of UFOs" - Delarge 1977 p.113)

#1772
FRANCE, ETAMPES
The canon Desforges attempts an experiment using his flying chariot at Etampes, but the apparatus refuses to rise. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout Université 1967, p. 18)

#1777
FRANCE
Joseph Montgolfier jumps off the roof of his house with a parachute of his own invention. (Follow-ups: 1779, December 29th 1782, June 3rd 1785 and October 22nd 1797) ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout Université 1967, p. 18)

#1778 to 1779
USA, Northwest Coast - Nootka Tribe.
The Nootka Man - Source: Dark Visions, by John Robert Colombo. John Meares (1756-1809) was a lieutenant in the Royal Navy where he enlisted in 1771. He made, as captain, three voyages from China to Nootka Sound. (...). In these travel memoirs he recounts a story of an extraordinary stranger from the sky, of whom the Nootka Indians spoke. The stranger was dressed in copper, traveled in a copper canoe and that all the stranger possessed was made of metal.
The stranger warned the Indians saying that he came from the sky and that one day their nation would be destroyed and all the people killed. Finally it would be the Nootka who would have the last word on the stranger by killing him and stealing all his metal objects. (UFO Joe website, collected from the Internet May 1997)

#1779
FRANCE, AVIGNON
Joseph Montgolfier re-enacted his experience in Avignon in the presence of the Vice-Legate of the Pope and the Marquis de Brantes. This Avignon parachute allowed a sheep to land safely, even though it had been launched from the top of the Palace tower. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 19)

#1781, August 28
FRANCE
In a letter to the "Journal de Paris", Blanchard announces that he has been working for twelve years on the realization of a flying machine and that he is now on his sixth operation (let us read: experience). He is experimenting with a sail chariot that many witnesses have seen in Paris. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 19)

#1782
INDIA, Symore
(cf. 1766) His son, Tippoe Sahib increased the force to 5000 fuseens. They used rockets of 3 to 6 kilos consisting of a 20 cm long and 4 cm diameter iron tube, stuffed with powder and fixed to a long bamboo rod serving as a guide. Their range was around 800 meters. ("The Rockets, Vehicles of the Future" Hans K. Kaiser, ed. Amiot-Dumont 1954, p. 13)

#1782, June 4
FRANCE, ANNONAY
First public captive ascent of an aerostat (a hot air balloon)
built by the Montgolfier brothers in Annonay. ("The Conquest of the Air,
Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 22)

#1782, August 27
FRANCE, PARIS
Ascension of the balloon "Le Globe" by Charles and the Robert brothers. It was inflated with hydrogen. The balloon, not having ascended, landed in Gonesse (north of Paris), and was destroyed by the population after having been exorcised by the local priest. ("La conquête de l'air, chronologie..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - éd. Marabout Université1967, p. 22)

#1782, September 12
FRANCE, PARIS
First captive ascent of a hot air balloon in the Faubourg St. Antoine. Rain interrupted the experience. The apparatus remained exposed to the rain for more than 24 hours. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 22)

#1782, 19th September
FRANCE, PARIS
In the presence of King Louis XVI, the first three aerial passengers in history made an ascent in a hot air balloon: a cock, a duck and a sheep. their return, unharmed, proved that it is possible to breathe at a few tens of metres above the ground. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 22)

#1782, October 15
FRANCE
First captive ascent of a man: Pilatre de Rozier rising to 26 metres above the ground, on board of a hot air balloon. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 22)

#1782, October 19
FRANCE
The ascent of October 15 had taken place in a courtyard. On the date of the 19th, Pilatre de Rozier resumed the experience in front of a large crowd. He rose to 60 meters and remained at this altitude for six minutes. He ascended a second time to 80 meters and maintained it for nearly 10 minutes. A third and final ascent on the same day was made in the company of Giroud de la Villette; the altitude reached was 324 feet; the ascent lasted 9 minutes. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 22)

#1782, November 21
FRANCE, PARIS
First free ascent in human history and first aerial voyage in a hot air balloon: Pilatre de Rozier and the Marquis d'Arlandes surveyed the city of Paris. The verbal process of this event is signed, in particular by Benjamin Franklin. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 22)

#1782, December
USA, Philadelphia
Wilcox would have risen, carried by a cluster of balloons. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 22)

#1782, 1 December
FRANCE, PARIS
First flight of a hydrogen-filled balloon: Professor Charles and mechanic Robert take off from Paris (Tuileries) and land at Nnesle, travelling approximately 40 km in 2 hours. ("La conquête de l'air, chronologie..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - éd. Marabout Université 1967, p. 22)

#1782, 29 December
FRANCE, MONTPELLIER
Lenormand carries out the first practical experiments with parachute jumps. The parachutists are a cat and a dog. ("La conquête de l'air, chronologie..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - éd. Marabout Université1967, p. 22)

#1783, October 18
GREAT BRITAIN, Windsor
Mr. Tiberius Cavallo made an exceptional observation from the terrace of Windsor Castle: "To the northeast of the terrace, in a clear sky and warm weather, I suddenly saw an oblong cloud moving almost parallel to the horizon. Below this cloud one could distinguish something like a luminous object which soon became spherical, brightly lit and eventually stayed stationary. It was then about 9:45 pm. This strange ball first appeared bluish and pale, but its luminosity increased and soon it started moving east. The object then changed direction and moved parallel to the horizon before disappearing to the southeast. I was able to observe it for half a minute and the light it emitted was prodigious. It illuminated any object on the ground. Before its disappearance it changed shape, became oblong and at the moment when a kind of trail appeared, it seemed to split into two small bodies. Barely two minutes later the sound of an explosion was heard." The same kind of phenomenon was reported that evening in Deptford (Wiltshire) as well as in Hartlepool. (Durham) (Michel BOUGARD: "La chronique des OVNI" - Delarge 1977 p. 115-116)

#January 19, 1784
FRANCE, LYON
The gigantic Montgolfiere (23,270 cubic meters) named "La Flesselles" rises from Lyon, carrying 7 passengers to 1000 meters in altitude. The six planned passengers were: J. Montgolfier, Pilatre de Rozier, Prince Ch. de Ligne, Marquis de Laurencin, Marquis de Dampierre, Count de La Porte d'Anglefort and Count d'Entraigues. At the last moment, the young Fontaine rushes into the gondola: he can be considered the first stowaway of the conquest of the air. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 23)

#1784, February 22
GREAT BRITAIN: Sandwich (Kent)
BELGIUM, WARNETON
A small balloon, unmounted, diameter 1.50 m rises from Sandwich and lands in Warneton (Belgium) after a three hour ascent. It thus makes the first crossing of the channel. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 23)

#1784, February 25
ITALY
Italy is the second country to witness the ascension of a human being aboard a balloon; the pilot is Paolo Andreani. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 23)

#1784, 2 March
FRANCE, PARIS
In an attempt to steer his balloon, Blanchard rises from Paris and lands, unsuccessfully, in Billancourt. He uses oars and a rudder as if on a boat. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout Université 1967, p. 23)

#1784, April 25
FRANCE, LYON
Guyton de Morveau conducts tests of direction of a balloon,
using oars whose pallets have one meter of width. ("The
Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout
University 1967, p. 23)

#1784, April 28
FRANCE, PARIS
Lannoy and Bienvenu present to the "Academy of Sciences" of Paris, a reduced model of a helicopter. The device makes a flight in the meeting room. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 23)

#1784, May 6
FRANCE
Xavier de Maistre made an ascent in a hot air balloon that he built with the help of some friends. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 23)

#1784, June 4
SPAIN, ARANJUEZ
Bouche makes first ascent in a balloon. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 23)

#1784, June 4
FRANCE, LYON
The hot air balloon "Le Gustave", named in honor of the King of Sweden, Gustave III, rises in Lyon in the presence of the sovereign. It carries, in addition to its pilot Fleurant, the first passenger of space, Madame Tible. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 23)

#1784, June 12
FRANCE, DIJON
Guyton de Morveau makes a 20 km trip, from Dijon to Etrevaux. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 23)

#1784, June 23
FRANCE
Piloting the "Marie-Antoinette" hot air balloon, Pilatre de Rozier and Proust
rise to 4000 meters in altitude. ("The Conquest of the Air,
Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 23)

#1784, June 24
USA, BALTIMORE
American P. Carnes builds a balloon whose ascensional force is too reduced to be able to carry it: it is a 13 year old child, Ed Warren, who, in Baltimore, becomes the first aeronaut of the United States. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 23)

#1784, June 29
BELGIUM
First attempt at parachute jumping in Belgium, by De Groof. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 23)

#1784, July 7
AUSTRIA, Vienna
Stuver in Vienna makes the first ascent in Austria. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 23)

#1784, July 8
FRANCE, AVIGNON
In the "Courrier d'Avignon", M. Aries claims to have risen to 70 feet with the help of two wings of cloth. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 23)

#1784, July 15
FRANCE
The Robert brothers, the Duke of Chartres and Collin-Hullin, made an ascent in a balloon (hydrogen) named "Caroline". Upon landing, the balloon not deflating quickly enough, the Duke punctured the envelope with the flagpole of a flag. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 24)

#1784, July 17
USA, BALTIMORE
P. Carnes in Baltimore conducted the first captive ascent of an adult. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 24)

#1784, August 25
GREAT BRITAIN
J. Tytler launches the first British-built hot air balloon.
("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 24)

#1784, September 14
GREAT BRITAIN
The Italian Lunardi performs the first ascent in Great Britain and goes from Moorsfield (London) to Ware. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 24)

#1784, October 4
GREAT BRITAIN, OXFORD
J. Sadler, first English aeronaut, succeeded in an ascension at Oxford.
("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 24)

#1785, 7 January
THE ENGLISH CHANNEL
Frenchman Blanchard and American Jeffries make the first crossing of the English channel in the history of aerial locomotion. They cover approximately 50 km in 2 hours and 20 minutes. They would have carried some letters, which would bring the birth of air mail to this first crossing of the "channel". ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 24)

#1785, June 3
GREAT BRITAIN, LONDON
During an ascent made in London, Blanchard carried, for their first air
flight, the two youngest passengers to date, the Simonet Sisters, aged
17 and 14. A dog accompanied the travellers. On this occasion,
Blanchard tried out a parachute of his own invention: the dog was
released from the balloon, it landed without harm. ("The Conquest of
the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University
1967, p. 24)

#1785, June 15
THE CHANNEL
Pilatre de Rozier, accompanied by P.A. de Romain, attempts a crossing of the channel on board of an "Aero-Montgolfiere", a combination of a hydrogen balloon and a Montgolfiere. A few minutes after taking off, the aerostat returns towards the French coast, catches fire and crashes in Wimereux. Both occupants are killed. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout Université 1967, p. 24)

#1785, June 17
IRELAND, DUBLIN
Dr. Potain ascended from Dublin in a balloon with the intention of crossing the St. George's Channel. He advanced far out over the sea, but a contrary wind drove him back to the Irish coast. Some claim that Dr. Potain did not even reach above the sea. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 24)

#1785, 29th June
GREAT BRITAIN, LONDON
The Italian Lunardi and the British Biggin ascend in London, accompanied by the first British female aeronaut, Mrs Sage. This fact is often contested despite an engraving depicting Mrs Sage and Biggin in the balloon's gondola. It seems that the ascensional power of the aerostat was insufficient. The authentic passengers of Lunardi would have been a dog, a cat and a pigeon. We have not found the name of the one who would be the first female aeronaut of English nationality, if one disregards Mrs Sage. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 24)

#1785, July 13
NETHERLANDS, THE HAGUE
First ascent in Holland, in the Hague, by the Frenchman Blanchard.
("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 24)

#1785, October 3
GERMANY, FRANKFURT
Blanchard again, performs the first ascent in Germany at Frankfurt. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 25)

#November 20, 1785
BELGIUM, GHENT
It is Blanchard who makes the first ascent in Ghent. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 25)

#1786, June 18
FRANCE
Pierre Testu-Brissy makes the first night ascension. [note from vog: after reading his numerous tests and flights carried out in the 18th century, I am forced to think that the appearance 100 years later in the USA of the famous "airships" is a hoax...] ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 25)

#1788, May 3
SWITZERLAND, BASEL
First ascent of a balloon in Switzerland at Basel, performed by the Frenchman Blanchard. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 25)

#1789, May 30
POLAND, WARSAW
Blanchard makes an ascent in Poland, in Warsaw, the first in this country. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 25)

#1789, October 31
BOHEMIA, PRAGUE
Blanchard made an ascent in Prague, the first in Bohemia. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 25)

#1790, June 12
FRANCE, Alençon (Orne)
Report written by Inspector of Police Liabeuf: "At five o'clock in the morning, some peasants observed an enormous globe that seemed to be surrounded by flames. At first they thought it was a burning hot air balloon, but its great speed and the whistling it emitted intrigued them greatly. The globe descended gently, turned and eventually crashed at the top of a hill, uprooting the vegetation that grew on its sides. The heat emitted by the object was so great that the grass and shrubs caught fire shortly afterwards. The peasants managed to contain the fire which otherwise would have spread throughout the region. In the evening, the globe was still hot and then something extraordinary happened, barely believable. The witnesses of this event are two mayors, a doctor, and three other local personalities who confirm my report, not to mention the dozens of peasants who were also present. The sphere, which was large enough to contain a whole crew, was intact after the flight it had just made. It slowly aroused the curiosity of the people who came from all directions to see it. Then, suddenly, a door opened and a person came out, just like us, but dressed in a strange way with clothes that clung to his body; seeing the crowd, this person muttered some incomprehensible words and fled into the woods. ('but he seemed to have dissolved in thin air,'"Liabeuf wrote: "he dissolved like air, Liabuef wrote - cfr John KEEL) The peasants instinctively recoiled, frightened, and ran away. Shortly afterwards the sphere exploded silently, sending debris in all directions; these debris burned until they were reduced to powder. Searches were carried out to find the mysterious man but he seemed to have evaporated into the air and so far no trace of him has been found..." [note from vog: is there really a report about this somewhere, or is this stuff made up by an author and taken up by others without further ado?] (Henry DURRANT: "The Black Book of UFOs" - Laffont 1970, p. 62, summary) (Michel BOUGARD: "The Chronicle of UFOs" - Delarge 1977 p.116-117, full text) (See OPERATION TROJAN HORSE by John A. Keel, Manor Books, New York, NY, 1970, page 66.)

#1791, 18 September
FRANCE, PARIS
Day of the proclamation of the Constitution; the German de Ste. Croix
rises from Paris, carrying a certain number of copies of the
"Declaration of the Rights of Man". Arrives at 12,000 feet of altitude, in
shirt, he reads the text aloud. ("The Conquest of the Air,
Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 25)

#1792
INDE, Seringapatam
The British were greatly impressed by the rocket army during the siege of Seringapatam in the southern part of INDIA. "A single rocket killed three men and wounded four" reported Colonel Gerrard of the British Indian Army. ("Assault on Space" Georges H. Gallet, Ed. de la Pensée Moderne, p. 22) ("Rockets, Vehicles of the Future" Hans Kaiser, Ed. Amiot - Dumont 1954, p. 13)

#1793, January 9
USA, PHILADELPHIA
Blanchard makes the first air travel in the United States. He travels from Philadelphia to Gloucester County (New Jersey) in 46 minutes. He carries a letter from George Washington. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 25)

#1793, June 6
USA
First parachute drop in the United States: Blanchard experiments with his parachute and releases a dog, a cat, then a squirrel. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 25)

#1794, June 2
FRANCE, MAUBEUGE
A balloon is used, for the first time, for military observation.
The first official one will be on June 26. ("The Conquest of the Air,
Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 26)

#1794, June 26
BELGIUM, FLEURUS
(8 Messidor an II) The balloon "L'Entreprenant" piloted by Captain Coutelle (French, appointed on April 2nd) monitored the battlefield during the Battle of Fleurus. It stayed in the air for 10 hours, transmitting numerous messages to the ground. General Jourdan took a seat in the balloon in order to make a direct observation of the battle. The balloon had been brought inflated from Maubeuge to Fleurus (approximately 60 km). ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout Université 1967, p. 26)

#1794, August 24
PORTUGAL, LISBON
Italian Lunardi makes the first ascent in Portugal at Lisbon. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 26)

#1795, 27 January
CHINA
... in the sky of the southeast a big star of the size of a bushel suddenly emerged. Sparkling it descended and rose up to descend and rise three times in a row. Another star repeated the same movement and finally fell before crashing in a village. (SHI BO: "China and the Extraterrestrials" ed. Mercure de France, 1983, p.44)

#1796
GREAT BRITAIN
Englishman George Cayley repeats the experience of the French Lannoy and Bienvenu (helicopter). ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - Ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 26)

#1797
FRANCE
The aeronaut Testu Brissy made an ascent on a horse placed as a nacelle under a balloon. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 27)

#1797, October 22
FRANCE
(1 Brumaire an VI) Frenchman Garnerin makes a parachute jump from a balloon at an altitude of 1000 meters. This is the first successful parachute jump by a man. ("The Conquest of the Air, Chronology..." A. Van Hoorebeeck - ed. Marabout University 1967, p. 26)

#1798, September 10
GREAT BRITAIN, Alnwick (Northumberland)
At around 8:40 pm an object resembling an apothecary's pestle suddenly emerged from a cloud. One of the witnesses added that it seemed to branch out and then split into two half-moons with rays of light. This strange object disappeared after 5 minutes of observation. (Michel BOUGARD: "The Chronicle of UFOs" - Delarge 1977 p.118)

#1799
GRANDE BRETAGNE
William Congreve, aged 29, set out to study war rockets in depth. With the help of his father, Lieutenant General Sir William Congreve, who was in charge of the Royal Laboratory of Woolwich, he was very successful. Soon Congreve produced rockets with a range of about 2000 meters which were tested successfully in front of the Prince Regent, the Prime Minister and the Lords of the Admiralty. ("A l'Assaut de l'Espace" Georges H. Gallet, éd. de la Pensée Moderne, p. 22)

#1799, November 12
GREAT BRITAIN, Hereford
A large red pillar flew over Hereford from north to south. (Michel BOUGARD: "The Chronicle of UFOs" - Delarge 1977 p.118)