Timeline of David Hume’s Life and Times

In order to better understand what might have influenced David Hume to write the footnote, we wanted to better understanding what was happening in the world while David Hume was alive. This would help us answer questions like:

• Did Hume know any black people?

• Was his view on race challenged in his own time?

• Did his ideas change the world we live in?

This timeline below is a snapshot of key events during David Hume’s life and legacy. It was not possible to include every event but this aims to give a sense of what was happening in the world when Hume was alive and how the things he did and who he interacted with may have influenced him.

The timeline was developed in consultation with academics from across the UK.