The 17th century

6,238 sourced entries across 100 documented years, grouped into 10 decades. A century here runs 1900–1999 rather than 1901–2000, so its decades sit inside it exactly.

Decades

The 1600s — 10 years, 636 entries
The 1610s — 10 years, 679 entries
The 1620s — 10 years, 632 entries
The 1630s — 10 years, 590 entries
The 1640s — 10 years, 631 entries
The 1650s — 10 years, 592 entries
The 1660s — 10 years, 637 entries
The 1670s — 10 years, 584 entries
The 1680s — 10 years, 601 entries
The 1690s — 10 years, 656 entries

By subject

Conflict & Security in the 17th century — 1,081 entries
Geopolitics & Diplomacy in the 17th century — 562 entries
Culture & Society in the 17th century — 403 entries
Religion & Belief in the 17th century — 357 entries
Exploration & Expansion in the 17th century — 329 entries
Crime & Justice in the 17th century — 173 entries
Science & Discovery in the 17th century — 145 entries
Climate & Environment in the 17th century — 101 entries
Disasters & Accidents in the 17th century — 95 entries
Technology & Infrastructure in the 17th century — 83 entries
Health & Medicine in the 17th century — 77 entries
Economy & Finance in the 17th century — 63 entries

A few of the years

1602February 2 (Candlemas night) – In London, the first known production of William Shakespeare's comedy Twelfth Night takes place.
1615March 10 – John Ogilvie, a Jesuit priest, is hanged and drawn at Glasgow Cross in Scotland for refusing to pledge allegiance to King James VI of Scotland; he will be canonised in 1976, becoming the only post-Reformation Scottish saint.
1626February 10 – Battle of Ningyuan: In Xingcheng in China, after an 8-day battle, Ming dynasty commander Yuan Chonghuan defeats the much larger force of Manchu leader Nurhaci, who dies soon after and is succeeded by Huang Taiji.
1637May – Chinese encyclopedist Song Yingxing publishes his Tiangong Kaiwu ("Exploitation of the Works of Nature"), considered one of the most valuable encyclopedias of classical China.
1651January 1 – Charles II is crowned King of Scots at Scone (his first crowning).
1662April 22 – The Paugussett tribe, granted reservations in the British colony of Connecticut in North America, sell a large amount of tribal land to Captain Joseph Hawley including several towns in Fairfield County: Shelton, Trumbull, Derby and Monroe.
1674February 19 – England and the Netherlands sign the Treaty of Westminster, ending the Third Anglo-Dutch War. Its provisions come into effect gradually (see November 10).
1685January 6 – American-born British citizen Elihu Yale, for whom Yale University in the U.S. is named, completes his term as the first leader of the Madras Presidency in India, administering the colony on behalf of the East India Company, and is succeeded by William Gyfford.