See also: 1715 in literature, other events of 1716, 1717 in literature, list of years in literature.
Events
- Anne Lefèvre, Madame Dacier, meets Antoine Houdar de la Motte in person.
- Voltaire is exiled to Tulle.
New books
New drama
- Voltaire - Oedipe
Births
- December 26 - Thomas Gray (died 1771)
- December 26 - Jean François de Saint-Lambert, French poet (died 1803)
Deaths
- January 1 - William Wycherley, dramatist (born c.1640)
- November 14 - Gottfried Leibniz, philosopher (born 1646)