French frigate Méduse (1810)

Historical eventJuly 21816

French frigate Méduse (1810)

The French frigate Méduse ran aground off the coast of present-day Mauritania, with the survivors escaping on a makeshift raft, depicted in Théodore Géricault's painting The Raft of the Medusa.

Everything on July 2Original source

In context

When
Tuesday, July 2 1816210 years ago
Category
Historical eventA dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
Era
19th century · 1810s
Recorded from
Wikipedia “On this day” feed

Russia, Greece and some other countries used the Julian calendar into the early 20th century, so local records may show a date up to 13 days earlier.

At a glance

Dates: From 1816.

What happened

The French frigate Méduse ran aground off the coast of present-day Mauritania, with the survivors escaping on a makeshift raft, depicted in Théodore Géricault's painting The Raft of the Medusa.

July 2 through the years

Other entries on the same calendar day, in order.

  1. 1816French frigate Méduse (1810)
  2. 1994USAir Flight 1016
  3. 1997Thai baht
  4. 1998Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
  5. 2000Vicente Fox
  6. 2005Live 8
  7. 2013International Astronomical Union
  8. 2013Aceh
  9. 20132013 Aceh earthquake
  10. 20202020 Hpakant jade mine disaster
  11. 20242024 Hathras crowd crush

Also in 1816

  • September 5Louis XVIIIFacing rising discontent in France, Louis XVIII was forced to dissolve the Chambre introuvable, the legislature dominated by Ultra-royali…
  • May 25Kubla KhanThe poems Kubla Khan and Christabel by English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge were published.
  • August 14Tristan da CunhaThe United Kingdom formally annexed the Tristan da Cunha archipelago, administering the islands from the Cape Colony in South Africa.
  • August 5Sir John Barrow, 1st BaronetSir John Barrow, secretary at the Admiralty, rejected a proposal to use Francis Ronalds's electrical telegraph, deeming it "wholly unnece…
  • February 20The Barber of SevilleThe Barber of Seville, an opera buffa composed by Gioachino Rossini, premiered at the Teatro Argentina in Rome to jeers from the audience.

Everything we record for 1816 →

Sources

Cite this page

“French frigate Méduse (1810)”, What's On This Date, https://whatsonthisdate.com/app/event/french-frigate-m-duse-1810-1816-july-2, accessed October 29, 2026.

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Questions about this entry

When did French frigate Méduse (1810) happen?

July 2 1816 — 210 years ago, on a Tuesday.

Where does this text come from?

Wikipedia “On this day” feed. Summaries are short adaptations that link back to the source, not reprints.

How do I cite this page?

Use the ready-made citation near the sources at the bottom of the page, and follow the source link to cite the underlying record as well.

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