1658 CE

(February 26 OS) – The peace between Sweden and Denmark-Norway is concluded in Roskilde by the Treaty of Roskilde, under which Denmark is forced to cede significant territory. This leads to Sweden reaching its territorial height during its time as a great power. First stage coach services advertised: 4-day trips from London to Exeter, York and Chester. Šarhūda's Manchu fleet annihilates Onufriy Stepanov's Russian flotilla, on the Amur River.

In the 1650s, the 17th century.

Geopolitics & Diplomacy

  • 4 February – Oliver Cromwell dissolves the Second Protectorate Parliament.Englandsource
  • February 5 – Prince Muhi al-Din Muhammad, one of the sons of India's Mughal, Emperor Shah Jahan, proclaims himself Emperor after Jahan names Muhi's older brother, Dara Shikoh, as regent, and departs from Aurangabad with troops.source
  • 11 February – Having not expected a Swedish offensive until spring at the earliest, Denmark panics and yields. The Treaty of Taastrup is signed as a preliminary accord and negotiations continue.Denmarksource
  • 26 February – After the signing of the treaty, the Danish king hosts a peace banquet (Fredstaffelet) at Frederiksborg Castle.Denmarksource
  • 26 February – The negotiations are finalized with the signing of the Treaty of Roskilde in Roskilde. It cedes Scania, Halland, Blekinge and Bornholm as well as two provinces in Norway to Sweden. Even after the treaty enters into force, the Swedish forces continue their campaign.Denmarksource
  • February 26 – The peace between Sweden and Denmark is concluded in Roskilde by the Treaty of Roskilde, under which Denmark is forced to cede significant territory.Swedensource
  • March 8 (February 26 OS) – The peace between Sweden and Denmark-Norway is concluded in Roskilde by the Treaty of Roskilde, under which Denmark is forced to cede significant territory. This leads to Sweden reaching its territorial height during its time as a great power.source
  • 8 March - The Treaty of Roskilde resulted in the ceding of the Norwegian provinces of Båhuslen and Trondhjems len to Sweden. (At the Treaty of Copenhagen (1660) Trondhjems len was returned to Norway).Norwaysource
  • July 31 – After Shah Jahan completes the Taj Mahal, his son Aurangzeb deposes him as ruler of the Mughal Empire.source
  • 10 August – As Swedish troops approach Copenhagen once again, the king, in a letter, promises that Copenhagen and Christianshavn will be free rigsstæder and heard on all matters of national importance, particularly those relating to customs and octroi.Denmarksource
  • August 14 – The League of the Rhine (Rheinische Allianz) is formed by 50 German princes whose cities are on the Rhine river.source
  • December 20 – Representatives of the Russian Empire and the Swedish Empire sign the Treaty of Valiesar at the Valiesar Estate near Narva, part of modern-day Estonia. In return for ceasing hostilities between the two empires in the Second Northern War, Russia is allowed to keep captured territories in Livonia (part of modern-day Latvia) for a term of three years.source
  • The end of the Swedish occupation of BornholmSwedensource

Conflict & Security

  • January 30 – The "March Across the Belts" (Tåget över Bält), Sweden's use of winter weather to send troops across the waters of the Danish Straits at a time when winter has turned them to ice, begins. Within 17 days, Sweden's King Karl X Gustav leads troops across the ice belts to capture six of Denmark's islands as Swedish territory.source
  • 30 January – The March across the Belts begins when the harsh winter weather, which has also forced the Danish fleet to port, enables a Swedish army of 9,000 cavalrymen and 3,000 foot soldiers to move across the ice of Little Belt from Jutland to Gunen.Denmarksource
  • April 15 – In India, the Battle of Dharmat is fought in the modern-day state of Madhya Pradesh between rival claimants to the throne of the Mughal Empire. Prince Muhi al-Din Muhammad, the son of the Emperor Shah Jahan, leads 30,000 men in a triumph over 22,000 troops led by Jaswant Singh of Marwar and Ratan Singh Rathore. Despite heavy losses, with more than 11,000 casualties, Prince Muhi, who has adopted the name Aurangzeb, continues toward Samugarh and Agra and captures the throne at the end of July.source
  • 25 May – Siege of Dunkirk beginsBelgiumsource
  • May 29 – Aurangzeb wins the Battle of Samugarh as Indian Mughal regent Dara Shikoh makes a last effort to defend the Mughal capital Agra.source
  • June 14 – Anglo-Spanish War (1654–1660) and Franco-Spanish War (1635–1659): In the Battle of the Dunes, a Spanish force attempting to lift a siege of Dunkirk is defeated by the French and English. England is then given Dunkirk, for its assistance in the victory.source
  • 14 June – Anglo-Spanish War (1654–1660): Battle of the Dunes – a French and English army defeats the Spanish in the Spanish Netherlands.Englandsource
  • June 25–27 – In the Battle of Rio Nuevo, part of the Anglo-Spanish War, a Spanish invasion force fails to recapture Jamaica from the English.source
  • 28 June to 1 July – Siege of BerguesBelgiumsource
  • July 2 – The Siege of Toruń begins in Poland as troops of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and of Austria seek to recapture the city of Toruń from a garrison of the Swedish Army. Within six months, the Swedish occupiers surrender.source
  • July – Šarhūda's Manchu fleet annihilates Onufriy Stepanov's Russian flotilla, on the Amur River.source
  • August 5 – Just six months after winning territory from Denmark-Norway in war and subsequent treaty, Sweden's King Charles X Gustav declares a second war against Denmark. By August 11, the King's troops have surrounded Denmark's capital, Copenhagen, while the Swedish Navy blocks the harbor to prevent the city from being resupplied, and begins bombardment.source
  • 14 September - The First Battle of Frederikshald, Swedish forces are defeated by the Norwegian forces.Norwaysource
  • September 17 – Portuguese Restoration War: In the Battle of Vilanova, a Spanish army, having crossed the Minho, defeats the Portuguese.source
  • 4 October - The siege of Trondheim starts, Norwegian forces besiges the city.Norwaysource
  • October 7 – The Netherlands enters the Dano-Swedish War to come to the rescue of Denmark, sending a 45-ship fleet from Vlie.source
  • October 29 – The 45-ship fleet of the Netherlands arrives at Denmark and begins its counterattack on Sweden's army and navy with three squadrons.source
  • 29 October – In the Battle of the Sound, a Dutch fleet come in support of Denmark which forces the Swedish fleet to end the blockade of Copenhagen. Soon after, Sweden has to abandon the siege of the city and withdraw from the Danish isles while they remain present in Jutland.Denmarksource
  • November 8 (October 29 old style) – The Battle of the Sound takes place between the navies of the Dutch Republic (with 41 warships) and of Sweden (with 45) at the Øresund, a strait between Denmark and Sweden's newly-acquired territory, the former Danish island of Scania. The Dutch Republic is successful at breaking the Swedish Navy's blockade of Copenhagen, and Sweden is forced to retreat, bringing an end to the attempted conquest of Denmark.source
  • December 11 – Abaza Hasan Pasha, an Ottoman provincial governor who is attempting to depose the Grand Vizier, wins a battle at the Turkish city of Ilgin, defeating loyalist forces led by Murtaza Pasha. The victory is the last for the rebels. Two months later (February 16, 1659) Abaza Hasan is assassinated after being invited to peace negotiations by the loyalists.source
  • December 25 – Polish and Danish forces defeat a Swedish Army in the Battle of Kolding in Denmark.source
  • December 30 – The Siege of Toruń ends almost six months after it started, with Poland recapturing the city from Sweden.source
  • Portuguese traders are expelled from Ceylon by Dutch invaders.source
  • The end of the Swedish occupation of JyllandSwedensource

Exploration & Expansion

  • February 6 – Swedish troops of Charles X Gustav of Sweden cross The Great Belt in Denmark, over frozen sea.source
  • February 6 – Swedish troops of Charles X Gustav of Sweden cross the Great Belt (Storebælt) in Denmark over frozen sea.Swedensource
  • April – first stage coach services advertised: 4-day trips from London to Exeter, York and Chester.Englandsource
  • The Dutch in the Cape Colony start to import slaves from India and South-East Asia (later from Madagascar).source
  • Swedish occupation of CourlandSwedensource

Religion & Belief

  • June 3 – Pope Alexander VII appoints François de Laval vicar apostolic of New France.source
  • 9 June – In a letter to the king, citizens of Copenhagen make a demand for special privileges and a City Council of 32 men.Denmarksource
  • July 18 – Prince Leopold of the House of Habsburg, son of the late Ferdinand III, is elected as the new Holy Roman Emperor.source
  • September 3 – Richard Cromwell proclaimed Lord Protector of England, Scotland and Ireland upon the death of his father, Oliver Cromwell.Irelandsource
  • The pulpit in the Stavanger Cathedral is carved by Andrew Lawrenceson Smith.Norwaysource

Economy & Finance

  • Undated – Tea first arrives in England, exported from China via Holland.Englandsource

Science & Discovery

  • 8 February – The Swedish host reaches Zealand.Denmarksource
  • May 1 – Hydriotaphia, Urn Burial and The Garden of Cyrus are published by Thomas Browne in England.source
  • First domestic pendulum clocks advertised for sale in England, by Ahasuerus Fromanteel of London.Englandsource

Health & Medicine

  • Savoy Declaration, A Declaration of the Faith and Order owned and practised in the Congregational Churches in England, is drawn up by Independents and Congregationalists meeting at the Savoy Hospital, London.Englandsource

Crime & Justice

  • November 6 – The Mexican Inquisition carries out the execution, by public burning, of 14 men convicted of homosexuality, while another 109 arrested are either released or given less harsh sentences.source
  • Baroque Altar of Our Lady in the Church of Our Lady of the Chapel in Brussels.Belgiumsource
  • Sweden takes Mitau and captures the Duke of Courland.Swedensource
  • Thet Swenska Språketz Klagemål by Skogekär BergboSwedensource
  • Swedish occupation of BornholmSwedensource

Climate & Environment

  • 30 August – hurricane storms in southern England, the worst for centuries.Englandsource

Culture & Society

  • April 16 – In Skåneland, a region recently ceded by Denmark to the Swedish Empire, representatives of the nobility of the provinces of Blekinge, Halland and Scania gather at the Scanian city of Malmö to swear their allegiance to King Charles X Gustav of Sweden.source
  • August 1 – The coronation of Leopold I takes place in Frankfurt.source
  • 30 August – The Royal Life Guards on foot is founded.Denmarksource
  • David Teniers the Younger designs the frontispiece of Theatrum Pictorium (published 1660)Belgiumsource

Births

  • January 17 – Samson Wertheimer, European rabbi (died 1724)source
  • March 5 – Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac, French explorer (died 1730)source
  • March 23 – Jean-Baptiste Santerre, French painter (died 1717)source
  • April 11 – James Hamilton, 4th Duke of Hamilton, Scottish peer (died 1712)source
  • April 19 – Johann Wilhelm, Elector Palatine, German noble (died 1716)source
  • 11 June – Victor Honoré Janssens, painter (died 1736)Belgiumsource
  • July 10 – Luigi Ferdinando Marsili, Italian soldier and naturalist (died 1730)source
  • August 11 – Sir Justinian Isham, 4th Baronet, English baronet and Member of Parliament (died 1730)source
  • August 16 – Ralph Thoresby, British historian (died 1725)source
  • August 22 – John Ernest IV, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (died 1729)source
  • September 16 – John Dennis, English dramatist and critic (died 1734)source
  • October 2 – Nicholas Roosevelt (1658–1742), Dutch-American politician (died 1742)source
  • October 5 – Mary of Modena, queen of James II of England (died 1718)source
  • 5 October – Mary of Modena, queen of King James II (died 1718)Englandsource
  • 11 October – Henri de Boulainvilliers, nobleman and historian (died 1722)Francesource
  • October 21 – Henri de Boulainvilliers, French nobleman (died 1722)source
  • December 10 – Lancelot Blackburne, Archbishop of York (died 1743)source
  • Hedvig Eleonora Stenbock, courtier (died 1714)Swedensource

Deaths

  • January 7 – Theophilus Eaton, English-born Connecticut colonist (born 1590)source
  • January 13 – Edward Sexby, English Puritan soldier (born 1616)source
  • January 13 – Edward Sexby, who had plotted against Oliver Cromwell, dies in the Tower of London.source
  • 15 January – John Colgan (born c.1592), Irish FranciscanBelgiumsource
  • February 19 – Henry Wilmot, 1st Earl of Rochester (born 1612)source
  • April 7 – Juan Eusebio Nieremberg, Spanish mystic (born 1595)source
  • April 19 – Robert Rich, 2nd Earl of Warwick, English colonial administrator and admiral (born 1587)source
  • April 24 – Francesco Maria Richini, Italian architect (born 1584)source
  • June 8 – Sir Henry Slingsby, 1st Baronet, English baronet (born 1602)source
  • August 5 – Gundakar, Prince of Liechtenstein, court official in Vienna (born 1580)source
  • September 3 – Oliver Cromwell dies and his son Richard assumes his father's position as Lord Protector of England, Scotland and Ireland.source
  • September 3 – Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland (born 1599)source
  • 3 September – Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector (born 1599)Englandsource
  • November 8 – Witte de With, Dutch naval officer (born 1599)source
  • December 6 – Baltasar Gracián y Morales, Spanish writer (born 1601)source
  • 8 December - Johan Printzensköld, army officer (born 1615)Swedensource
  • December 20 – Jean Jannon, French typefounder (born 1580)source
  • 8–9 December – The Bornholm uprising: Resistance fighters on Bornholm try to capture the Swedish commander on the island, Redigerer Printzenskiöld, who is killed in the subsequent uproar.Denmarksource