Culture & Society in the 16th century

586 sourced entries, 1500 CE to 1599 CE, oldest first. Also see Culture & Society across every century or everything else in the 16th century.

1500May 8 – The first guide to distilling of liquor is published, Liber de arte distillandi de simplicibus by Hieronymus Brunschwig.source
1500September 12 – George the Bearded begins a reign of more than 38 years as Duke of Saxony at the Saxon capital of Emden, after the death of his father, Albert III, who had ruled 36 years. George also becomes George II, Margrave of Meissen.source
1501April 7 – Shwenankyawshin Narapati begins an almost 26-year reign as King of Burma upon the death of his father, King Minkhaung II.source
1501May 10 – The formal coronation of King Shwenankyawshin of Burma takes place at his capital in Inwa in the Mandalay Region on the 9th waning of Kason, 863 ME.source
1501May 15 – Harmonice Musices Odhecaton, the first printed collection of polyphonic music, is published by Ottaviano Petrucci in Venice.source
1501October 2 – Spanish princess Catherine of Aragon arrives in England and arrives at Plymouth. Although she will later become the wife of King Henry VIII in 1509, she initially arrives to marry Henry's older brother, Arthur, Prince of Wales.source
1501November 14 – Arthur, Prince of Wales, marries the Spanish princess Catherine of Aragon.source
1501December 12 – Grand Duke Aleksandras Jogailaitis, Grand Duke of Lithuania becomes the King of Poland as Aleksander I Jagiellończyk.source
1501Martin Luther enters the University of Erfurt.source
1501Michelangelo returns to his native Florence, to begin work on the statue David.source
1501Rudra Pratap Singh founded Orchha StateIndia source
1502April 14 – The formal coronation of Ivan the Great as Grand Prince of Moscow (encompassing most of the Russian people's territory) to reflect that he is the nation's sole ruler. Ivan had been co-ruler of Moscow from 1449 to 1462, ruler from 1462 to 1471 and 1490 to 1498, and co-ruler with his eldest son (Ivan the Young, 1471-1490) and his grandson, Dmitry Ivanovich from 1498 onward.source
1502September 29 – Anne of Foix-Candale is proclaimed Queen of Hungary upon her marriage to Vladislaus II, King of Hungary and Bohemia, at a ceremony in Székesfehérvár.source
1502Wittenberg University is founded.source
1502The King's School, Macclesfield, England, is founded by Sir John Percyvale.source
1502Wilhelm Bombast moves to Villach with his son, Paracelsus.source
1503May 24 – The coronation of Moctezuma II as ruler of the Aztec Empire takes place at the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan, part of modern-day Mexico City.source
15038 August – marriage of James IV and Margaret TudorScotland source
1503October – Earliest record of Leonardo da Vinci working on a portrait of Lisa del Giocondo, probably the Mona Lisa, in Florence.source
1503Gerald FitzGerald, 9th Earl of Kildare married Elizabeth Zouche, daughter of John Zouche of CodnorIreland source
1504February 18 – The investiture of Prince Henry of England as Prince of Wales and Earl of Chester takes place.source
1504July 2 – Bogdan III the One-Eyed becomes the new Prince of Moldavia upon the death of his father Stephen the Great.source
1504September 8 – Michelangelo's sculpture of David is unveiled in Florence.source
1504Raphael paints The Marriage of the Virgin, which exemplifies some major principles of High Renaissance art.source
1504Aldus Manutius publishes his edition of Demosthenes in Venice.source
1505February 7 – During a visit to Windsor Castle as guests of King Henry VII of England, Philip the Handsome, Duke of Burgundy, plays a game of tennis against Thomas Grey, 2nd Marquess of Dorset in the first recorded use of tennis rackets. A year later, a chronicler notes that on the 7th of February, "the kynge of Castelle played w the Rackete and gave the marques xv".source
1505April- Due to king Louis XII's illness, he had his will changed to stipulate the betrothal of his daughter Claude to the heir to the French throne Francis I . The betrothal became official the next year.France source
1505May 1 – Christ's College, Cambridge, England, is re-founded, receiving its charter from Lady Margaret Beaufort.source
1505June 19 – Zhu Houzhao, the 13-year-old son of the late Hongzhi Emperor of Ming Dynasty China, is enthroned as the Zhengde Emperor upon his father's death.source
1505June 21 – Piers Butler, future 8th Earl of Ormond appointed seneschal of Tipperary LibertyIreland source
1505June 27 – The future King Henry VIII repudiates his engagement to Catherine of Aragon, at his father's command.source
150528 June – planned marriage of Henry Tudor and Catherine of Aragon postponed when the dowry fails to arrive from Spain.England source
1505Christ's College, Cambridge is granted a royal charter at the instigation of Lady Margaret Beaufort, the King's mother, refounding it under its present name.England source
1505Thomas Butler, 7th Earl of Ormond, leases Irish estates to Piers Butler, his eventual successorIreland source
150624 April – After being extradited to England as part of Henry's agreement with Philip, Edmund de la Pole is imprisoned in the Tower of London as a rival claimant to the throne.England source
1506May 14- Theologian Thomas Bricot awarded King Louis XII the honorary title of "Father of the People-Le Père du Peuple" during an assembly of the Estates at Plessis.France source
1506June 15 – Mahmud Shah II begins a 41-year reign as the Sultan of Kedah, a Muslim kingdom on the Malay Peninsula, on the death of his father, Adilin I.source
1506Leonardo da Vinci completes most of his work on the Mona Lisa.source
1507January 24 – Sigismund I the Old is formally crowned King of Poland, at a ceremony in Kraków.source
1507March 11 – Italian mercenary leader and former prince Cesare Borgia, later cited by Niccolò Machiavelli in The Prince as an example of "conquest by fortune", completes his conquest of the Spanish city of Viana by driving out the defenders of the castle of the Count of Lerín, but makes the mistake of pursuing the fleeing enemy by himself. He is killed the next day by his captors.source
1507April 25 – Martin Waldseemüller publishes his Cosmographiae Introductio ("Introduction to Universal Cosmography") and accompanying wall map, the first to show the Americas as a separate continent, naming them in honour of Amerigo Vespucci, his friend and idol.source
1507June 28 – Ferdinand II is welcomed by Louis XII of France at the Italian city of Savona in a spectacular ceremony, and the two monarchs begin a series of meetings on the division of the Italian kingdoms between France and Spain.source
1507June 28 – King Ferdinand II of Aragon is welcomed by Louis XII at the Italian city of Savona in a spectacular ceremony, and the two monarchs begin a series of meetings on the division of the Italian kingdoms between France and Spain.France source
1507June – The tournament of the Wild Knight and the Black Lady is held in Edinburgh.Scotland source
150715 September – Walter Chepman and Andrew Myllar are licensed to establish a printing press and granted a monopoly in printed books within Scotland.Scotland source
1507December 21 – Princess Mary of England, the 11-year-old daughter of King Henry VII, is betrothed to the 7-year-old Duke of Burgundy.source
150721 December – Henry VII arranges a marriage between his younger daughter, Mary Tudor and Habsburg Archduke Charles.England source
1507Raphael paints The Deposition, among other works.source
1507The Aztec New Fire ceremony is held for the last time (according to Bernardino de Sahagún).source
1507Stephen Lynch fitz Dominick Dubh becomes the 23rd Mayor of GalwayIreland source
1508March 5 – La Cassaria by Ludovico Ariosto, the first Italian language comedy, is premiered at Ferrara.source
1508March 13 – The oldest annual foot race in Europe, the "Red Hose Race", is run for the first time, taking place in Scotland at Carnwath, Lanarkshire.source
1508March 18 – Wilhelm IV becomes the new Duke of Bavaria upon the death of his father, Albrecht IV.source
1508April 23 – Prince Mihnea cel Rău, son of Vlad the Impaler, becomes the Voivode of Wallachia, with a palace at Târgoviște (now in Romania), upon the death of his cousin Radu IV the Great.source
1508June 4 – The coronation of Prince Lajos as the designated successor to his father, King Vladislaus II of Hungary, takes place in Székesfehérvár.source
1508July 27 – The process of removing the former layers of paint on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel is completed, and Michelangelo begins the next phase of marking the surface for painting.source
1508November 1 – At the age of 16, Prince Wolfgang of the House of Ascania becomes the new ruler of the German principality of Anhalt-Köthen, succeeding his father Waldemar VI. In 1521, he will meet Martin Luther and, in 1525, will introduce the Reformation to his principality, making Anhalt-Köthen only the second nation (after the Electorate of Saxony) to officially adopt Protestantism.source
1508William Preston, 2nd Viscount Gormanston married Eleanor, daughter of Thomas Dowdall, Master of the RollsIreland source
1509June 11 – Henry VIII marries Catherine of Aragon.source
1509June 11 – Luca Pacioli's De divina proportione, concerning the golden ratio, is published in Venice, with illustrations by Leonardo da Vinci.source
1509June 24 – King Henry VIII and Queen Consort Catherine of Aragon are crowned.source
1509Royal Grammar School, Guildford, England, is founded under the will of Robert Beckingham.source
1509Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Blackburn, England, is founded as a grammar school for boys.source
1509Erasmus writes his most famous work, In Praise of Folly.source
1510January 23 – An 18-year-old Henry VIII jousts anonymously at Richmond, Surrey and draws applause, before revealing his identity.source
1510January 31 – Catherine of Aragon gives birth to her first child, and the first known child of King Henry VIII, a stillborn daughter.source
1511February 12 – King Henry VIII of England opens the two-day Westminster Tournament to celebrate the birth (on January 1) of his son Prince Henry. Sadly, the infant prince dies on February 22, nine days after the tournament's end. The festivities are later memorialized in the 1511 Westminster Tournament Roll, a series of 36 separately painted pictures stitched together to form a roll almost 60 ft long and 143/4 inches (37.5 cm) wide.source
1511April 9 – St John's College, Cambridge, England, founded by Lady Margaret Beaufort, receives its charter.source
1511July 29 – Henry VIII of England's flagship, the Mary Rose, is launched from Portsmouth.source
1511August 14 – In Rome, the completed first half of Michelangelo's painting of Biblical scenes on the Sistine Chapel ceiling is unveiled for a select group of patrons and church officials. The viewing is open to the public the next day.source
1511Erasmus publishes his most famous work, The Praise of Folly (Laus stultitiae).source
1512July 23 – Sten Sture the Younger is elected new Regent of Sweden, replacing Eric Trolle.source
1512November 1 – The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, painted by Michelangelo, is exhibited to the public for the first time.source
1512The word masque is first used to denote a poetic drama.source
1513July 22 – Christian II becomes King of Denmark-Norway.source
151321 September – James V is crowned in the Chapel Royal at Stirling Castle.Scotland source
1513October 21 – The coronation of James V, 17 months old, as King of Scotland takes place in the Chapel Royal at Stirling Castle.source
1513Niccolò Machiavelli is suspected of trying to overthrow the House of Medici and is arrested and tortured. He is soon after released and moves to his farm in San Casciano, and writes The Prince.source
1514May 15 – The earliest printed edition of Saxo Grammaticus' 12th century Scandinavian history Gesta Danorum, edited by Christiern Pedersen from an original found near Lund, is published as Danorum Regum heroumque Historiae, by Jodocus Badius in Paris.source
1514July 20 – King Christian II is crowned King of Norway in Oslo. This coronation will be the last in Norway for 304 years until the crowning of King Karl III Johan in 1818.source
1514August 13 – Mary Tudor, sister of King Henry VIII, is married by proxy to France's King Louis XII in accordance with the August 7 peace treaty.source
15143 October – The Earl of Worcester reports from Abbeville on King Louis XII's preparations for Mary Tudor's arrival.France source
1514October 9 – King Louis XII marries Mary Tudor (sister of King Henry VIII) at Abbeville, as part of the Kingdom of England's peace with France.source
15149 October – Louis XII marries Mary Tudor (sister of King Henry VIII) at Abbeville, as part of the English peace with France.France source
1514November 5 – Mary Tudor is formally crowned as the Queen consort of France.source
1514Albrecht Dürer makes his famous engraving Melencolia I.source
1515March 3 - Mary Tudor, sister of King Henry VIII of England and widow of King Louis XII of France, is secretly married to the Duke of Suffolk in the presence of the new King of France, Francois.source
1515May 13 – Mary Tudor, Queen of France, and Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, are officially married at Greenwich (near London).source
1515July 2 – Manchester Grammar School is endowed by Hugh Oldham, the first free grammar school in England.source
1515July 22 – At the First Congress of Vienna, a double wedding takes place to cement agreements. Louis, only son of King Vladislaus II of Hungary, marries Mary of Austria, granddaughter of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor; and Mary's brother, Archduke Ferdinand, marries Vladislaus' daughter, Anna.source
1515August 12 – Isabella of Austria is crowned as Queen consort of Denmark and Norway after her marriage to King Christian II is ratified.source
1516March 1 – Desiderius Erasmus publishes a new Greek edition of the New Testament, Novum Instrumentum omne, in Basel.source
1516March 13 – At the age of 9, Louis II of Jagiellon becomes the new King of Hungary, Croatia and Bohemia upon the death of his father, King Vladislaus II.source
1516Gillingham School is founded, the oldest in Dorset, England.source
1516c. December – Thomas More's most famous work, Utopia, completed this year, is published in Leuven (in Latin).source
1516The predecessor of the Royal Mail, known as the Master of the Posts, is established by Henry VIII of England.source
1517February 12 – At the age of 13, Henry II becomes the King of Navarre, by then limited to the part of the Iberian peninsula north of the Pyrennes, upon the death of his mother, Queen Catherine in the capital, Pamplona.source
1517April 22 – In what is now Romania, Stephen IV becomes the new Prince of Moldavia at Suceava upon the death of his father, Bogdan III the One-Eyed.source
1517May 10 – The coronation of Queen Consort Claude of France, wife of King Francis I, takes place at the Basilica of St Denis with Cardinal Philippe de Luxembourg performing the ceremony.source
1517October 31 – Martin Luther publishes his 95 Theses (posting them on the door of the Wittenberg Castle Church), and begins the Protestant Reformation. This story is possibly apocryphal.source
1517December 6 – Bona Sforza of Italy, daughter of the late Duke of Milan, Gian Galeazzo Sforza, marries King Sigismund of Poland by proxy at Naples, then begins a three month journey to Kraków to assume the throne.source
1518April 26 – Martin Luther makes the first public defense of his views at a gathering of the Roman Catholic order of Augustinians, at what becomes known as the Heidelberg Disputation at a lecture hall at Heidelberg in the Electoral Palatinate in Germany. While there, he is challenged to a theological debate by Johann Eck, the German leader of the anti-Reformation movement.source
1518May 19 – In Venice, Renaissance artist Tiziano Vecellio, known as "Titian", unveils his painting Assumption of the Virgin, to the public.source
1518June 6: Archduke Ferdinand, son of Philip the Fair of Burgundy and his wife, Joanna the Mad, and grandson to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella visit Kinsale.Ireland source
1518August 10 – Construction of the Manchester Grammar School is completed in England. The total cost of the project was £218 13s 5d.source
1518Johann Froben publishes Erasmus's work Colloquies, which was unauthorized, and it took until 1519 that an authorized version would be published.source
1519June 27 – The Leipzig Debate begins at the Pleissenburg lecture hall in the German city of Leipzig in Saxony, as Martin Luther defends his ideas on the Protestant Reformation against challenges by Johann Eck, the German leader of the anti-Reformation movement. While there, he is challenged to a theological debate by Johann Eck, the German leader of the anti-Reformation movement. The debate lasts until July 15 and gains new followers to Luther's theology.source
1519St. Olaf's Church, Tallinn is completed in Estonia.source
1519University of Auvergne establishedFrance source
1520March 10 – Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk becomes England's new Lord Deputy of Irelandsource
152031 May - Gustav Vasa return to Sweden at Kalmar.Sweden source
1520June 7 – King Henry VIII of England and King Francis I of France meet at the famous Field of the Cloth of Gold.source
1520August – Martin Luther publishes To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation.source
15207 September – The official entry of Christian II in Stockholm.Sweden source
1520October 23 – Charles V is crowned King of Germany in Aachen.source
1520November 1 – Christian II is crowned king of Sweden in Nikolai Church. The coronation is followed by a three-day feast in Stockholm.source
15204 November – Coronation of Christian II in Stockholm by Gustav Trolle. Sören Norby, Berend von Mehlen and Otto Krumpen is knighted.Sweden source
1520Aleksandra Lisowska (Roxelana) is given as a gift to Suleiman I on the occasion of his accession to the throne.source
1521March 31 – The First Mass in the Philippines is held.source
1521May 27 – After the death of his cousin, Prince Zhu Houcong became the new Ming dynasty Emperor of China, taking the imperial name of the Emperor Jiajing<.source
1521August - Gustav Vasa is elected King of Sweden at Vadstena.Sweden source
1522March 31 – Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, turns over control of the Duchy of Württemberg from the Duke Ulrich to the Emperor's brother, the Archduke Ferdiand of Austria.source
1522August 3 – Lord Erskine is appointed by Margaret Tudor, regent of Scotland, to be the "keeper" of Margaret's 10-year-old son, King James V, who is to remain within the confines of Erskine's home at Stirling Castle.source
1522September 21 – Luther Bible: Martin Luther's translation of the Bible's New Testament into Early New High German from Greek, Das newe Testament Deutzsch, is published in Germany, selling thousands in the first few weeks.source
1522The third edition of Erasmus's Greek Textus Receptus of the New Testament, Novum Testamentum (with parallel Latin text), is published in Basel.source
1523March 26 – Frederick I is provisionally declared as King of Denmark by Danish nobles at Viborg, although loyalists at Copenhagen refuse to recognize his claim to the throne.source
1523April 15 – Sir Thomas More, noted for being a Catholic social philosopher and author of the 1516 novel Utopia, is appointed by King Henry VIII as the Speaker of the English House of Commons for the first parliamentary session since 1515. He serves until the Parliament adjourns on August 15.source
1523May 20 – Andrea Gritti is elected as the new Doge of the Republic of Venice, 13 days after the death of Antonio Grimani.source
1523June - Gustav Vasa make his formal entry to Stockholm and is celebrated as King.Sweden source
1523c. July – Martin Luther's translation of the Pentateuch into German (Das allte Testament Deutsch) is published by Melchior Lotter Jr. in Wittenberg.source
1524June – Gerald FitzGerald, 9th Earl of Kildare was exonerated in a Royal inquiry at Christ Church, Dublin.Ireland source
1524August 5 – Two days before his coronation in Denmark, Frederick I is elected King of Norway.source
1524August 7 – The coronation of Frederick I of Denmark takes place in Copenhagen.source
1525January 21 – The Anabaptist Movement is born when Conrad Grebel, Felix Manz, George Blaurock, and about a dozen others baptize each other in the home of Manz's mother on Neustadt-Gasse, Zürich, breaking a thousand-year tradition of church-state union.source
1525March 20 – In the German town of Memmingen, the pamphlet The Twelve Articles: The Just and Fundamental Articles of All the Peasantry and Tenants of Spiritual and Temporal Powers by Whom They Think Themselves Oppressed is published, the first human rights related document written in Europe.source
1525April 10 – Albert, Duke of Prussia commits Prussian Homage.source
1525June 13 – Martin Luther marries ex-nun Katharina von Bora. The painter Lucas Cranach the Elder is one of the witnesses.source
1525June 18 – Henry VIII of England appoints his six-year-old illegitimate son Henry FitzRoy Duke of Richmond and Somerset.source
1525August 13 – The coronation of Sophie of Pomerania as Queen consort of Denmark takes place in Copenhagen, a little more than a year after her husband's coronation as King Frederick I. She is granted Lolland and Falster, the castles in Kiel and Plön, and several villages in Holstein for her income.source
1526February 15 – Spanish author Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés, commonly called "Oviedo", publishes the chronicle La Natural Hystoria De Las Indias (The Natural History of the Indies)source
1526March 10 – Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain, marries Princess Isabella of Portugal at the Alcázar of Seville palace in Spain.source
1526June 9 – Emperor Go-Nara ascends to the throne of Japan.source
152622 October – James Hamilton of Finnart is appointed keeper of Linlithgow Palace.Scotland source
1526October 24 – The Bohemian Diet elects Archduke Ferdinand of the House of Habsburg as the King of Bohemia.source
1526December 17 – At Pozsony in western Hungary (now Bratislava in Slovakia), the Diet elects the Archduke Ferdinand as the King of Hungary.source
1526The New Testament and a psalm book is published in the Swedish language by Olaus Petri.Sweden source
1527February 24 – Ferdinand of the House of Habsburg is formally crowned as King of Bohemia at Pressburg (now Bratislava in Slovakia).source
1527June 17 – The Protestant Reformation begins in Sweden. The Riksdag of the Estates in Västerås adopts Lutheranism as the state religion, in place of Roman Catholicism. This results in the confiscation of church property and dissolution of Catholic convents in accordance with the Reduction of Gustav I of Sweden.source
1527June 22 – Jakarta, modern-day capital of Indonesia, is founded as Jayakarta.source
1527November 3 – Archduke Ferdinand of Austria is formally crowned as the King of Hungary at the Basilica of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary at Székesfehérvár.source
1527James Butler, 9th earl of Ormond, becomes Esquire of the Body to King Henry VIII.Ireland source
1528August 4 – The "Peace of St. Ambrose" is signed in Milan at the Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio, bringing an end to the civil strife between the Milanese nobility and the local merchants.source
1528October 13 – Cardinal Thomas Wolsey founds a college in his birthplace of Ipswich, England, which becomes the modern-day Ipswich School (incorporating institutions in the town dating back to 1299).source
1528Chateau Fontainebleau in France is begun.source
1528St George's Chapel in Windsor Castle is completed.source
1528Baldassare Castiglione publishes The Book of the Courtier.source
1529January 8 – Zhang Qijie becomes the most powerful woman in Ming dynasty China as the primary wife of the Jiajing Emperor, shortly after the death of the Empress Xiaojiesu.source
1529April 19 – Diet of Speyer: A group of rulers (German: Fürst) and independent cities (German: Reichsstadt) protest the reinstatement of the Edict of Worms, beginning the Protestant movement.source
1529June 21 – King Henry VIII and Queen consort Catherine of Aragon appear in person before the Blackfriars court, with Catherine making a pathetic display before the court and her husband, and the king making a speech about his uneasiness about his marriage.source
1529September 8 – The city of Maracaibo, Venezuela is founded by Ambrosius Ehinger.source
1529Achyuta Deva Raya, brother of Krishnadevaraya, begins his reign as emperor of Vijayanagara Empire.India source
1529Sir Thomas Boleyn, father of Anne Boleyn, became the Earl of Wiltshire and Ormonde.Ireland source
1530March 23 – The Tribute of the Maltese Falcon, an agreement by the Grand Master of the Order of St John of Jerusalem to pay an annual tribute to the Charles V, King of Sicily, in return for an order granting the Knights full rulership of Tripoli and the islands of Malta and Gozo, is reached. The transfer of ownership takes place on October 26, 1550, although Tripoli is conquered by the Ottomans on August 15, 1551.source
1530July 4 – King François of France marries Eleanor of Austria, daughter of King Philip the Handsome of Castile and widow of King Manuel I of Portugal.source
1530Erasmus publishes On Civility in Children (De Civilitate Morum Puerilium Libellus), which becomes popular and widely translated.source
1530First complete edition of the 'Zürich Bible', Huldrych Zwingli's translation into German printed by Christoph Froschauer, is published.source
1531June 24 – The city of San Juan del Río, Mexico, is founded.source
1531September 16 – (5th waxing of Thadingyut 893 ME) In Burma (now Myanmar), the formal coronation of General Min Pa as King Min Bin of Arakan takes place in the Arakan capital, Mrauk U.source
1531September 24 – At the age of 35, King Gustav I Vasa of Sweden is married for the first time, taking Catherine of Saxe-Lauenburg as his bride on her 18th birthday.source
153126 September – Mary of Hungary appointed regent over the Habsburg Netherlands.Belgium source
1531The University of Sarajevo is founded by Gazi Husrev-beg based on Sufi philosophy.source
1531Manus O'Donnell of Tyrconnell applies to the Lordship of Ireland for protection against the O'Neills of Tyrone.Ireland source
1532February 12 – The Deceived Ones (Gl'ingannati), a stage comedy written collectively by the Accademia degli Intronati in Siena, makes its debut as part of the festivities of the Italian city's annual carnival.source
1532September 1 – Anne Boleyn is created Marquess of Pembroke by her fiancé, King Henry VIII of England.source
1532Pantagruel is published by François Rabelais.source
1532The Prince is published, five years after the death of the author, Niccolò Machiavelli.source
1532Stamford School is founded in England by William Radcliffe.source
1533January 25 – King Henry VIII of England formally but secretly marries Anne Boleyn, who becomes his second queen consort.source
1533June 1 – Cartagena, Colombia, is founded by Pedro de Heredia.source
1533September 7 – Anne Boleyn, the second wife of King Henry VIII of England gives birth to a daughter, at Greenwich, a little more than three months after she and Henry were married. The King's second daughter, Elizabeth, will become the reigning monarch of England 25 years later and rule for more than 44 years.source
1533October 28 – The 14-year olds Henry, Duke of Orléans – the future King Henry II of France – and Catherine de' Medici are married at the Église Saint-Ferréol les Augustins in Marseille.source
1533October 28 - Catherine de’ Medici and Henry II, future Queen and King of France, got married in Marseille.France source
1533December 3 – Ivan IV succeeds his father Vasili III as Grand Prince of Muscovy at the age of three; he will rule in Russia until his death in 1584.source
15331533–1534 – Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent makes the Ruthenian harem girl Roxelana his legal wife.source
1534July 4 – The Election of Christian III, as King of Denmark, takes place in the town of Rye.source
1534July 20 – Cambridge University Press is given a Royal Charter by Henry VIII of England, and becomes the first of the privileged presses.source
1534September 24– The first of Brazil's capitancias, the Capitancy of Pernambuco, is established for Pernambuco.source
1534Gargantua is published by François Rabelais.source
1535January 18 – Lima, now the capital of Peru, is founded by Francisco Pizarro, as Ciudad de los Reyes.source
1535January 21 – King Francis I organized a procession in Paris as a show of religious devotion, displaying holy relics such as the Crown of thorns and giving a speech declaring his faith that has come into question due to some of his alliances.France source
1535February 27 – George Joye publishes his Apologye in Antwerp, to clear his name from the accusations of William Tyndale.source
1535December 28 – James Atkenhead, the envoy of Scotland's King James V, leaves Scotland to travel to France to evaluate Mary of Bourbon, daughter of Charles, Duke of Vendôme, as a prospective queen consort. After the evaluation, and a personal visit by King James to France, the Scottish monarch decides to return to his plan to marry Madeline of Valois, daughter of King Francois of France.source
1536January 6 – The Colegio de Santa Cruz de Tlatelolco, the oldest European school of higher learning in the Americas, is established by Franciscans in Mexico City.source
1536May 14 – Thomas Cranmer declares Henry VIII's marriage to Anne Boleyn to be null and void.source
1536May 30 – Henry VIII of England marries Jane Seymour.source
1536June 24 – San Juan Bautista del Teul is founded by Cristóbal de Oñate in New Spain.source
15361 October - Marriage between the King Gustav Vasa and Margaret Leijonhufvud.Sweden source
15362 October - Coronation of the queen.Sweden source
1536November 13 – Robert Aske meets with royal delegates at York, including the Duke of Norfolk and negotiates the return of the homes of Catholic monks and nuns, as well as a safe passage for Aske and several Catholic representatives for a meeting with King Henry VIII.source
1536November 26 – At the Château de Blois, the marriage contract between King James V of Scotland and King Francois of France to arrange the marriage of James to Francois' daughter Madeline, is signed despite the reluctance of the French monarch to send his daughter to an unhealthy climate.source
1536The first edition of John Calvin's Institutes of the Christian Religion, a seminal work of Protestant systematic theology, is published in Basel.source
1536The tomb of Jamal Kamali completedIndia source
15371 January – James V and Madeleine of Valois are married at Notre-Dame de Paris.Scotland source
1537March 12 – Recife is founded by the Portuguese, in Brazil.source
153719 May – James V and Madeleine of Valois arrive at Leith.Scotland source
1537July 22 – Upon the death of his father, Bhim Singh, Ratan Singh becomes the new ruler of the Kingdom of Amber with a capital at Amber in what is now the Rajasthan state in Indiasource
1537August 12 – The coronation of Christian III as King of Denmark and King of Norway takes place at Copenhagen.source
1537The first evangelical Catechism of Olaus Petri is published.Sweden source
15383 March - Marriage between Svante Stensson Sture and Martha Leijonhufvud.Sweden source
1538April 6 – In India, Sher Shah Suri, who had been the Mughal Empire's Governor of the Bihar Subah province, declares the founding of the Sur Empire and crowns himself as Emperor in a ceremony at Delhi.source
1538May 9 – Mary of Guise is wed by proxy to King James V of Scotland, while she is at the Château de Châteaudun and he is in London, with neither of the two seeing each other.source
15389 May – James V and Mary of Guise are married by proxy at the Château de Châteaudun. The King's proxy Lord Maxwell gave the bride a diamond ring.Scotland source
1538May 10 – In India Mahmud Khan, 11-year-old the nephew of the late Sultan Bahadur Shah, is enthroned as Mahmud Shah III, Sultan of Gujarat.source
1538July 17 – The betrothal ceremony of 12-year-old Princess Elisabeth, niece of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor to the 17-year-old Prince Sigismund II Augustus, son of King Sigismund of Poland (who is also the Grand Duke of Lithuania) and heir to the throne, takes place in Innsbruck. The two are married five years later on May 5, 1543.source
1538September 18 – Ştefan V Lăcustă of the Bogdan-Musat dynasty in Romania is appointed as the new Prince of Moldavia by the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman, replacing uncle, Petru Rareș.source
1538October 28 – The first university of the New World, the Universidad Santo Tomás de Aquino, is founded on the island of Hispaniola in Santo Domingo.source
153816 November – Mary of Guise makes her royal entry to Edinburgh on St Margaret's Day.Scotland source
1538Michelangelo starts work on the Piazza del Campidoglio on the Capitoline Hill in Rome.source
1538Church of Ireland Kilkenny College is founded as Kilkenny Grammar School by Piers Butler, 8th Earl of Ormond, and his wife, Margaret, to replace the School of the Vicars Choral.Ireland source
1538The Variarum rerum vocabula is published in Sweden.Sweden source
1539February 9 – The first horse race is held at Chester Racecourse, the oldest still in use in England.source
1539May 25 – The inaugural declaration of the Protestant Reformation takes place in Leipzig (now part of Germany) with Martin Luther present, as Duke Henry IV pledges to adopt Lutheranism as the official religion of make the Duchy of Saxony.source
1539October 4 – Henry VIII contracts to marry Anne of Cleves.source
1539December 27 – Anne of Cleves arrives in England in fulfillment of the October 4 contract for marriage to King Henry VIII and the payment of a dowry of 100,000 florins to her brother. Anne and Henry are married 10 days later, but the marriage is annulled on July 12.source
1539The first edition of the Calvinist Genevan Psalter is published.source
1539The Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, a former royal palace, is rebuilt.France source
1539St. Catherine's Priory, Co. Dublin (25 June).Ireland source
1539St. Mary's Carmelite Friary, Dublin (3 August).Ireland source
1540January 1 (New Year's Day), Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, at the invite of King Francis I, visits Paris for the first and only time and stays for 2 months.France source
1540January 6 – King Henry VIII marries Anne of Cleves, his fourth Queen consort; the marriage lasts six months.source
1540July 9 – English King Henry VIII's marriage to Anne of Cleves, his fourth Queen consort, is annulled.source
1540December 16 – Honoré I, Lord of Monaco reaches the age of 19 and after the future principality of Monaco had been administered by regents for more than 18 years.source
1540Georg Joachim Rheticus publishes De libris revolutionum Copernici narratio prima in Danzig, an abstract of Copernicus' as yet unpublished De revolutionibus orbium coelestium.source
1540Murrough O'Brien usurps the title of King of Thomond from his nephew, Donough O'Brien.Ireland source
1541February 19 – Petru Rareș becomes the Prince of Moldavia for a second time, overthrowing the Voivode Alexandru Cornea at Suceava (now in Romania) at the direction of the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman.source
1541November 1 – King Henry VIII of England is first informed of that the Queen consort, Catherine Howard, has been having an affair with Thomas Culpeper.source
1541John Calvin translates his Institutio Christianae religionis into French, as L'Institution chrétienne.source
1541The Honorable Society of King's Inns is created in Dublin.Ireland source
1542September 4 – The earliest recorded Preston Guild Court is held in Lancashire, England, in the modern sequence, which lasts unbroken until 1922.source
1542December 14 – Mary, Queen of Scots, aged six days, becomes queen regnant on the death of her father, James V of Scotland.source
1542Bartolomé de las Casas completes A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies, which will be published in 1552.source
1542Kilcrea Friary (friars remaining in occupancy under protection of the MacCarthy family).Ireland source
1543March 15 – James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran, is elected by the Scottish Parliament as the Regent for the infant Mary Queen of Scots.source
1543June – Andreas Vesalius publishes De humani corporis fabrica (On the Fabric of the Human Body), revolutionising the science of human anatomy.source
1543July 12 – King Henry VIII of England marries Catherine Parr. It is Henry's sixth and last marriage and Catherine's third. Princess Elizabeth attends the wedding. This month, the Parliament of England passes the Third Succession Act, restoring the Princesses Mary and Elizabeth, Henry's daughters, to the line of succession to the English throne.source
154324 July – The Secret Bond is made, during controversy over the move of Mary, Queen of Scots, from Linlithgow Palace to Stirling Castle.Scotland source
1543September 9 – Mary Stuart is crowned the Queen of Scots in Stirling at the age of nine months old.source
15439 September – Coronation of Mary, Queen of Scots at Stirling.Scotland source
1543Martin Luther publishes On the Jews and Their Lies.source
1543Mikael Agricola publishes Abckiria.source
1543The Lighthouse of Genoa is completed in present form.source
1544January 13 – At Västerås, the estates of Sweden swear loyalty to King Gustav Vasa and to his heirs, ending the traditional electoral monarchy in Sweden. Gustav subsequently signs an alliance with the Kingdom of France.source
1544January 24 – During a solar eclipse visible over the Netherlands, Dutch mathematician and designer Gemma Frisius makes the first recorded use of a camera obscura and uses it to observe the event without directly looking at the Sun. Frisius writes about the event the next year and illustrates it in his book De Radio Astronomica et Geometrica (Regarding rays of light in astronomy and geometry).source
15446 July – Lady Margaret Douglas marries Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox in London.Scotland source
1544July 20 – Albert, Duke of Prussia signs a deed granting land for creation of the University of Königsberg.source
1544November 24 – Rüstem Opuković Pasha, son-in-law of the Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, is appointed as the new Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire, replacing Hadım Suleiman Pasha.source
1545May 27 – Prince Jalal Khan, the second son of the late Sher Shah Suri, is crowned as the new King of the Suri Empire and takes the regnal name of Islam Shah Suri.source
1545August 16 – The elaborate Tomb of Sher Shah Suri is completed in Sasaram, three months after Sher Shah's death, in what is now India's Bihar state.source
1546September 3 – Ilie II Rareș becomes the new Prince of Moldavia upon the death of his father Petru IV Rareș, in the Moldavian capital, Suceava.source
1546October 28 – Thomas Butler, 10th Earl of Ormond succeeds the earldom following the death of his father James.Ireland source
1546November 4 – Christ Church, Oxford, is refounded as a college by Henry VIII of England under this name.source
1546December 19 – Trinity College, Cambridge, is founded by Henry VIII of England.source
1547January 8 – The first Lithuanian-language book, a Catechism (Katekizmo paprasti žodžiai, Simple Words of Catechism), is published in Königsberg by Martynas Mažvydas.source
1547January 28 – Edward VI becomes King of England and Ireland upon the death of Henry VIII; start of Edwardian Reformation in Ireland (lasting until 1553).Ireland source
1547April 4 – Catherine Parr, widow of King Henry VIII of England, secretly marries Thomas Seymour, 1st Baron Seymour of Sudeley.source
1547June 4 – Maurice, Duke of Saxony is formally raised to the status of the Elector.source
1547July 10 – In France, a duel takes place at between Guy I de Chabot, the future Baron of Jarnac, and François de Vivonne, Lord of La Châtaigneraie, in front of the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye. Vivonne, known for his fencing ability, is wounded and dies the next day.source
1547November 5 – Catherine Parr, the former Queen consort of England and widow of King Henry VIII, publishes her book The Lamentation of a Sinner.source
1548February 10 – The Exchequer orders the minting of groats at Dublin Castle.Ireland source
1548April 1 – Sigismund II Augustus succeeds his father, Sigismund I the Old, as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania.source
1548September 13 – Archduke Maximilian of Austria, is married to his first cousin, Maria of Spain, at the arrangement of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, Maria's father and Maximilian's uncle. Charles, who also serves as King of Spain, makes the arrangement in order to have the couple serve as his regents while he travels to Germany.source
1548October 1 – Archduke Maximilian and Princess Maria, who married 18 days earlier, become the co-regents of Spain as King Charles V departs for Germany to administer the affairs of the Holy Roman Empire. They serve until Prince Philip, the first regent, returns from battle on July 12, 1551.source
1548October 31 – At the first sejm of King Sigismund II Augustus of Poland, deputies demand that the king renounce his wife Barbara Radziwiłł.source
1548John Dee starts to study at the Old University of Leuven.source
1549January 4 – Gaspare Grimaldi Bracelli begins a two-year term as the Doge of the Republic of Genoa in Italy, succeeding Benedetto Gentile Pevere.source
1549January 19 – Maha Chakkraphat is crowned as the King of Siam after having been installed on the throne in 1548 by Maha Thammaracha of Burma.source
1549March 29 – The city of Salvador da Bahia, Brazil's first capital, is founded by Tome de Sousa.source
1549April 23 – In County Wicklow in Ireland, Phelim O'Toole is granted a pardon by the King for unspecified offenses.source
1549September 29 – Shimazu Takahisa, the ruling daimyo of Japan's Satsuma Province, welcomes the Jesuit party of Francis Xavier.source
1549October 22 – Catherine of Habsburg, daughter of Ferdinand, Duke of Habsburg, marries Francesco III Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua. Francesco, only 16 years old, dies of pneumonia after only four months of marriage.source
1549Excerpta antiqua is published by Hervagius at Basel, Switzerland.source
1549Maidstone Grammar School is founded in England by Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset.source
1549Peter Canisius starts the Counter-Reformation in Bavaria.source
1550March 12 – Acapulco is founded by 30 families sent from Mexico City.source
1550March 29 – Sherborne School in England is refounded by King Edward VI.source
1550June 12 – The city of Helsinki (now in Finland but known as Helsingfors in Sweden at this time) is founded by King Gustav I of Sweden.source
155012 June - King Gustav Vasa founds Helsingfors, now the Helsinki, the capital of Finland.Sweden source
1550The first grammatical description of the French language is published by Louis Maigret.source
1550Nostradamus' first almanac is written.source
1551April 4 – Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor, issues an edict to reduce tensions among the three major ethnic groups in the Kingdom of Hungary, with an administration to have equal representation of for ethnic Hungarians, Slovaks and Germans.source
1551May 12 – The National University of San Marcos is founded in Lima in the Viceroyalty of Peru, being the first officially established university in the Americas.source
1551June 11 – With the approval of the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, Prince Ilie's brother Ștefan VI Rareș becomes the new Prince of Moldavia.source
1551July 12 – The regency over the Kingdom of Spain by Archduchess Maria and her husband, Archduke Maximilian of Austria, ends after almost three years when Maria's brother Crown Prince Philip returns to Madrid. Philip resumes his role as regent for King Charles I, the father of both Maria and Philip; Maria and Maximilian had served during the absence of both the King and the Crown Prince starting on October 1, 1548.source
1551September 21 – The Royal and Pontifical University of Mexico is founded in Mexico City (Mexico), being the second officially established university in the Americas.source
1551October 11 – John Dudley, Earl of Warwick, de facto Lord Protector of the Kingdom of England, is created Duke of Northumberland.source
1551The new edition of the Genevan psalter, Pseaumes octantetrois de David, is published, with Louis Bourgeois as supervising composer, including the first publication of the hymn tune known as the Old 100th.source
1551The first volume of "História do descobrimento e conquista da Índia pelos portugueses" (History of the discovery and conquest of India by the Portuguese) by Portuguese historia Fernão Lopes de Castanheda is publishedIndia source
1552February 2 – The office of Ulster King of Arms and Principal Herald of Ireland is established (based at Dublin Castle) by King Edward VI.Ireland source
155222 August - The wedding between the King and Catherine Stenbock.Sweden source
1552King Edward VI of England founds 35 grammar schools by royal charter, including Shrewsbury; Leeds Grammar School is also established.source
1553May 25 – Lady Jane Grey, a 16-year-old first cousin of King Edward VI of England, marries Lord Guildford Dudley, son of the Duke of Northumberland, who has engineered the marriage.source
1553June 21 – Under threats from the Duke of Northumberland, the devise by King Edward to make Jane Grey the heir to the throne is signed by over 100 prominent persons.source
1553July 10 – Four days after the death of her cousin King Edward VI, Lady Jane Grey is proclaimed Queen of England – a position she holds for the next nine days.source
1553August 3 – Queen Mary I of England arrives in London from East Anglia.source
1553The xiii Bukes of Eneados of the famose Poete Virgill, the first complete translation of any major work of classical antiquity into one of the English languages, is published in London.source
1554January 12 (10th waxing of Tabodwe 915 ME) – Bayinnaung is crowned king of the Burmese Taungoo Dynasty at his new capital at Pegu, after a previous coronation on January 11, 1551, and takes the regnal name of Thiri Thudhamma Yaza.source
1554January 25 – São Paulo, Brazil, is founded.source
1554April 12 – Mary of Guise becomes Regent of Scotland.source
1554May 13 – the Earldom of Kildare is revived in favour of Gerald FitzGerald, 11th Earl.Ireland source
155422 May – Date carved as "XXII MAY 1554" on the sill of an armorial panel of George Durie at Rossend Castle.Scotland source
155428 December – Edinburgh burgh council resolves to produce a play written by William Lauder (poet), probably as a New Year's Day gift to Mary of Guise.Scotland source
1554Jephthes, sive Votum, a tragedy by George Buchanan is published in Paris.Scotland source
1555March 25 – Valencia, Venezuela, is founded by Captain Alonso Díaz Moreno.source
1555May 1 – Foundation of St John's College, Oxford, England, to teach Catholic theology.source
1555May 25 – Jeanne d'Albret becomes the Queen of Navarre upon the death of her father, King Henry II.source
155525 May - Antoine de Bourbon (1518–1562) and Jeanne d'Albret become king and queen of Navarre.France source
1555June Francisco Barreto takes up the position of viceroy in Goa, Portuguese IndiaIndia source
155515 August - Nostradamus, invited by the queen, arrives in Paris after passing Lyon. He is received at the Court, in Paris and Blois.France source
1555William Annyas becomes the Mayor of Youghal, Ireland, the first Jew to hold such a position in Ireland.source
1555Orlande de Lassus' first book of madrigals is published, in Antwerp.source
1555Richard Eden publishes The Decades of the Newe Worlde or West India, a translation into English of parts of Pietro Martire d'Anghiera's De orbe novo decades, the Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés work Natural hystoria de las Indias and others, urging his countrymen to follow the lead of Spain in exploring the New World; the work includes the first recorded use in English of the country name 'China'.source
1555Establishment in England of the following grammar schools: Boston Grammar School, Gresham's School at Holt, Norfolk (founded by Sir John Gresham) and Ripon Grammar School (re-foundation).source
1555Nostradamus publishes his Centuries.France source
155614 February – at the age of 13 Akbar becomes the emperor of Mughal IndiaIndia source
1556June 14 – Lorenzo Priuli becomes the new Doge of the Venetian Republic.source
155629 June - Prince John establish himself as the ruler of his Duchy of Finland.Sweden source
1556The first printing press in India is introduced by Jesuits, at Saint Paul's College, Goa.source
1556Future King Prince John, younger son of King Gustav I of Sweden becomes Duke of Finland.source
1557May 4 – The Stationers' Company, officially the Worshipful Company of Stationers and Newspaper Makers, is granted a royal charter and a monopoly on the English publishing industry. For the next 150 years, the Stationers will regulate and censor the printing industry until the passage of the Copyright Act 1710 on April 10, 1710.source
1557June 10 – The New Testament of the Geneva Bible, a Protestant Bible translation into English (produced under the supervision of William Whittingham, and printed in Roman type), is published in Geneva.source
1557June 16 Sebastião I is crowned as the new King of Portugal, five days after the death of his father, King João III.source
1557Welsh-born mathematician Robert Recorde publishes The Whetstone of Witte in London, containing the first recorded use of the equals sign, and the first use in English of plus and minus signs.source
1557Emperor Akbar welcomes his mother to IndiaIndia source
1558February 2 – The University of Jena is founded in Thuringia, Germany.source
1558April 24 – Mary, Queen of Scots, marries Francis, Dauphin of France, at Notre-Dame de Paris.source
1558John Knox's attack on female rulers, The First Blast of the Trumpet Against the Monstruous Regiment of Women, is published anonymously from Geneva.source
1558Queen Elizabeth I of England grants rest and refreshment to pilgrims and travellers who pass by the Holy Well Spring at Malvern in England.source
1558A new order of mass, Liturgia eller Then Svenska Messordning, is published in both Latin and Swedish.Sweden source
1558Jöran Persson appointed royal secretary.Sweden source
1558Crown Prince Eric proposes to Elizabeth I of England.Sweden source
1559June 22 – King Philip II of Spain and the 14-year-old Elisabeth of Valois are married in Spain, having married by proxy in January.source
1559June 30 – King Henry II of France participates in a jousting tournament at the Place des Vosges in Paris, where French nobles are celebrating the marriage of Princess Elisabeth to King Philip of Spain. During competition against Gabriel de Lorges, Count of Montgomery, commander of King Henry's bodyguards, the Garde Écossaise, King Henry is struck in the eye by a splinter from Montgomery's lance and fatally injured. Henry survives for 10 days without treatment until dying from sepsis.source
1559July 25 – The Articles of Leith are signed in Edinburgh between the Protestant Lords of the Congregation and the Roman Catholic representatives of the Scottish regent, Mary of Guise, the widow of King James V, who is ruling on behalf of her daughter, the 17-year-old Mary, Queen of Scots. The Lords, who have occupied Edinburgh since June, withdraw their troops in return for the Scottish crown's agreement to not interfere with the practice of Protestantism in Scotland.source
155911 September - Duke John is sent to England to negotiate the wedding between Queen Elizabeth and Prince Erik.Sweden source
1559September 21 – Francis II of France is crowned at Reims. The crown is too heavy for him, and has to be held in place by his nobles.source
1559September 25 – At the age of 12, Petru cel Tânăr (Peter the Younger) is named as the new Prince of Wallachia at the capital, Târgoviște (now in Romania) after the death of his father, Mircea the Shepherd. In response, members of Wallachian nobility (boyars) opposed to Mircea's rule launch the first of three attempts to take the throne, fighting battles at Românești, Șerpătești and Boiani.source
155913 December - Wedding between Princess Catherine and Edzard II, Count of East Frisia. A great scandal takes place when Princess Cecilia of Sweden and Johan II of East Frisia is discovered to have an illegal sexual relationship, known as Vadstena Rumble.Sweden source
1559John Calvin publishes the final edition of the Institutes of the Christian Religion.source
1559The University of Geneva is founded by John Calvin.source
1560April - Duke John returns home from England with a negative reply to the proposal of Crown Prince Eric to Elizabeth I of England.Sweden source
15601 July - The dying king makes his formal farewell to the public.Sweden source
1560September 29 – Eric XIV becomes King of Sweden, upon the death of his father, Gustav Vasa.source
1560December 5 – Seventeen-year-old Mary, Queen of Scots, is widowed by the death of her first husband, King Francis II of France. Her mother-in-law, Catherine de' Medici, becomes regent of France.France source
1560The complete Geneva Bible is published.source
1560Solihull School is founded in the West Midlands of England.source
1561February 13 – Queen Elizabeth of England summons the Ambassador from Spain, Álvaro de la Quadra, for a private audience to ask how the Spanish government would react if she were to marry Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester, who had recently lost his wife Amy Robsart in a questionable accident.source
156115 May – The coronation of Charles IXFrance source
1561June 29 – Erik XIV is crowned King of Sweden.source
156129 June - Coronation of Eric XIV. The hereditary titles friherre (Baron) and count are introduced in Sweden.Sweden source
1561September 2 – The Entry of Mary, Queen of Scots into Edinburgh, a civic celebration for the Queen of Scotland, is marred by religious controversy.source
1561William Baldwin's Beware the Cat (written early 1553), an early example of extended fiction (specifically horror fiction) in English, is published anonymously in London. This edition appears to have been suppressed, and no copies survive.source
1561The Anglo-Genevan metrical psalter is published, including the Old 100th, the version of the hymn All People That on Earth Do Dwell made from Psalm 100, attributed to the probably-Scottish clergyman and biblical translator William Kethe, exiled in Geneva.source
1561Merchant Taylors' School is founded in the City of London by Sir Thomas White, Sir Richard Hilles, Emanuel Lucar, and Stephen Hales.source
15621 January – The poet Alexander Scott may have presented Ane New Yeir Gift to Quene Mary at Seton Palace.Scotland source
1562January 18 – Thomas Norton and Thomas Sackville's play Gorboduc is performed for the first time, before Queen Elizabeth I of England. It is the first known English tragedy, and the first English language play to employ blank verse.source
1562February 6 – In the Mughal Empire in India, the Emperor Akbar marries Mariam-uz-Zamani, daughter of Raja Bharmal, the ruler of the Kingdom of Amber. The marriage takes place in Sambhar in what is now the state of Rajasthan, where Akbar has stopped on his way back to the Mughal capital of Agra.source
15628 February – Agnes Keith marries James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray at St Giles, Edinburgh.Scotland source
1562February 1562: Mughal emperor Akbar's marriage to a Rajput princess, Mariam-uz-Zamani, daughter of Raja Bharmal of Amber.India source
15621 April – A royal guard of archers is created.Scotland source
1562June 14 – At dinner at Dunfermline Castle, Mary, Queen of Scots, displays a gold ring set with a heart shaped diamond from her collection and declares that she will send it to Queen Elizabeth of England as a gift and a possible summit conference in the future.source
15624 October - The wedding between Prince John and Catherine Jagiellon causes a conflict between the king and his brother, due to a bet on which brother would marry her, based on the belief that she was homely.Sweden source
1562Dudley Grammar School is established, and Gresham's School is granted a royal charter, in England.source
1562Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola publishes Regola delli cinque ordini d'architettura (Rules of the Five Orders of Architecture); in succeeding centuries it will become the most published book in architectural history.source
1563January 25 – In Italy, Instituto Bancario San Paolo di Torino, a constituent of the major financial group Sanpaolo IMI, is founded.source
1563April 23 – The cornerstone is laid for the construction of El Escorial, the royal palace for the monarch of Spain. Construction will not be finished for 21 more years, with completion on September 13, 1584.source
1563May 25 – Elizabeth College, Guernsey is founded, by order of Queen Elizabeth I of England.source
1564June - Wedding between Princess Cecilia of Sweden and Christopher II, Margrave of Baden-Rodemachern.Sweden source
1564October 10 – Lucrezia Di Siena, the first well-known female actress in Europe, begins her career by signing a contract with the Commedia dell'arte theatre company in Rome.source
1564The first Scottish Psalter is published.source
1565March 1 – The city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, is founded as São Sebastião do Rio de Janeiro by Estácio de Sá.source
1565May 2 – Huntingdon Grammar School is established in England.source
1565July 29 – The widowed Mary, Queen of Scots, marries her half-cousin Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, at Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh, in a Catholic ceremony.source
156529 July – Wedding of Mary, Queen of Scots, and Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, at Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh.Scotland source
1565August 6 – Sark, in the Channel Islands, is granted as a fief by Elizabeth I of England to Hellier de Carteret, Seigneur of Saint Ouen.source
15658 September - Princess Cecilia of Sweden arrives on her official visit to England. Among the persons in her retinue is Helena Snakenborg.Sweden source
1565John Beddoes School is founded at Presteigne, Wales.source
1565Herlufsholm School is founded at Næstved, Denmark.source
1565Bungay Grammar School is established in England.source
1565Lycée Alexandre Ribot founded in Saint-Omer as a Walloon Jesuit college.France source
156624 February – Wedding of Jean Gordon and James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell.Scotland source
156618 March – Mary returns to Edinburgh with an army raised by James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell.Scotland source
1566April – Mary takes up residence at Edinburgh Castle in preparation to give birth.Scotland source
156619 June – Mary gives birth to her son James at Edinburgh Castle.Scotland source
1566October 8 – Catherine of the Austrian Habsburgs, Queen of consort of Poland since 1553 as wife of Sigismund II Augustus, leaves Poland to return to Austria after the failure of her marriage. She never comes back to Poland, though she remains the official queen consort until her death in 1572.source
156615 November – Mary, Queen of Scots visits Halidon Hill in England with John Forster, Marshal of Berwick.Scotland source
1566November 26 – At the Craigmillar Castle, the advisers to Mary, Queen of Scots – James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray; Secretary of State William Maitland of Lethington; Lord Chancellor George Gordon, 5th Earl of Huntly; Archibald Campbell, 5th Earl of Argyll; and James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell – advise her to divorce her husband, Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley. She refuses and the advisers decide that Darnley must be killed.source
1566December 17 – The baptism of Prince James, son of Mary Queen of Scots, takes place at Stirling Castlesource
1566The Tomb of Humayun in Delhi is completed.India source
1567February 4 – Prince Zhu Zaiji, son of the Jiajing Emperor, ascends the throne of Ming dynasty China as the Longqing Emperor.source
156720 April – Ainslie Tavern Bond signed in support of the Earl of Bothwell.Scotland source
1567May 15 – Mary, Queen of Scots, marries the Earl of Bothwell, under duress.source
156715 May – Mary, Queen of Scots, marries the Earl of Bothwell, at Holyrood Palace.Scotland source
156713 July - The King unofficially marries Karin Månsdotter.Sweden source
1567July 29 – James VI is crowned at Stirling.source
156729 July – Coronation of James VI at Stirling, Church of the Holy Rude.Scotland source
1567September 9 – At a dinner, the Duke of Alba arrests Lamoral, Count of Egmont and Philip de Montmorency, Count of Horn for treason.source
1567December 4 – Antão de Noronha, Viceroy of Portuguese India (the modern-day Indian state of Goa) issues decrees prohibiting the public performance of Hindu rituals for marriages, cremations, and sacred thread wearing. Other rules require all natives 15 or older to attend Christian religious services, upon penalty of punishment.source
156728 December - The King's secret marriage to Karin Månsdotter is revealed.Sweden source
1567Rugby School, one of the oldest public schools in England, is founded.source
15684 July - The second, official wedding between Eric XIV and Karin Månsdotter.Sweden source
15685 July - Coronation of Karin Månsdotter.Sweden source
1568October – Regent Moray shows Mary's "casket letters" at a conference in York headed by the Duke of Norfolk, and again at Westminster Palace on 7 DecemberScotland source
1568December 28 – Ludwig III becomes the Duke of Württemberg in German Bavaria after the death of his father, Christoph.source
156910 July - Coronation of John III and Catherine Jagiellon.Sweden source
1569September 28 – The first complete printed Bible in a Spanish translation (La Biblia), made by Casiodoro de Reina, is published in Basel.source
1569November 9 – The Rising of the North begins in England as the Earl of Westmorland and the Earl of Northumberland, both Catholic nobles, set off from Brancepeth Castle in County Durham with 700 men, in hopes of overthrowing Queen Elizabeth I and placing the Catholic Mary, Queen of Scots, on the English throne.source
1570May 20 – Abraham Ortelius publishes the first modern atlas, Theatrum Orbis Terrarum, in Antwerp.source
157012 July – Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox is elected and proclaimed Regent of Scotland at the Tolbooth of Edinburgh.Scotland source
1570October 3 – Princess Anna of Austria arrives in Spain to become the Queen Consort of Spain as the bride of her uncle King Philip of Spain, whom she had married by proxy on May 4. Having traveled through the Netherlands, she asks King Philip to spare the life of the rebel Floris of Montmorency, but the King arranges the strangulation of Floris on October 14.source
1570November 26 - King Charles IX marries Elisabeth of Austria in the town of Mézières in Champagne.France source
1570Andrea Palladio publishes I quattro libri dell'architettura in Venice.source
1571March 25 – Elisabeth of Austria is crowned as queen of France.France source
1571April 2 – Dumbarton Castle is recaptured from Lord Fleming by the forces of Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox, the Regent for King James VI of Scotland.source
1571June 25 – Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Horncastle, is founded in Lincolnshire, England.source
1571June 27 – Jesus College is established "within the City and University of Oxford of Queen Elizabeth's foundation" in England, by Welsh cleric and lawyer Hugh Price.source
1571July 25 – St Olave's Grammar School is founded in Tooley Street, London.source
1571October - The deposed monarch and his family is taken to Gripsholm Castle.Sweden source
1571December 24 – Henry XI, Duke of the German Duchy of Liegnitz (now part of Poland), who had increased the Duchy's debts from 80,000 thalers to 700,000 thalers over 11 years, attempts to get the representatives of the Congress of Estates to pledge their own goods and valuables as collateral for refinancing the debt. When the representatives of the different parts of the Duchy refuse, he has them jailed until they agree to pay taxes for 10 percent of the debt owed.source
1571Glenquin Castle was confiscated by the Crown from the Geraldines.Ireland source
1572February 19 – Harrow School is founded, with a royal charter from Queen Elizabeth I of England.source
1572February 28 – In what is now the Rajasthan state in India, Maharana Pratap is crowned as the new Rana of Mewar at the Kingdom's capital at Udaipur after the death of his father, Udai Singh II.source
1572August 18 – Huguenot King Henry III of Navarre marries Margaret of Valois, sister of King Charles and daughter of Catherine de' Medici, in a supposed attempt to reconcile Protestants and Catholics in France.source
1572Portugal's national epic Os Lusíadas by Luís de Camões is first published.source
1573February 2 – The Wanli Era begins in Ming dynasty China on the first New Year after 9-year-old Zhu Yijun ascends the throne.source
157323 February – The "Pacification of Perth" was a step to ending the Marian Civil War.Scotland source
1573May 16– The Henry, Duke of Anjou, son of the late King Henry II of France is elected to the throne of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth by the Polish nobility, after being nominated on May 11.source
1573November 15 – Santa Fe, Argentina, is founded by Juan de Garay.source
1573December 3 – The French Duke of Anjou, recently elected as King Henry of Poland, departs from Metz with an entourage of 1,200 people, arriving at Kraków on February 18.source
1573Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School for Boys, Barnet, England, is formed.source
1574July 13 – In Berlin, John George, Elector of Brandenburg, orders the founding of the Evangelisches Gymnasium zum Grauen Kloster, which remains 450 years later as one of the most prestigious preparatory schools in Germany.source
1574December 27 – Murad III, eldest son of Selim II, is formally enthroned as the Ottoman Sultan after eliminating his other brothers as rival claimants to the throne.source
1574La Alameda, Seville, is laid out in Spain, as Europe's first public garden.source
1575February 8 – William I of Orange founds Leiden University.source
15755 March – Agnes Keith, Countess of Moray returns the Great H of Scotland to Regent Morton.Scotland source
1575June 24 – William the Silent, Prince of Orange, marries Charlotte of Bourbon.source
1575November – During Regent Morton's justice ayre at Dumfries, Lord John and Claud Hamilton hold a horse race against English borderers at Solway sands.Scotland source
1575The seat of the Audiencia Real in Chile moves from Concepción to Santiago.source
1576May 1 – Stephen Báthory, the Hungarian Prince of Transylvania, is crowned king of Poland.source
1576November 1 – Coronation of Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor.source
1576December – James Burbage opens the first permanent public playhouse in Britain, The Theatre.source
1576An early example of autobiography is written in English, by Thomas Whythorne.source
1576Konstanty Wasyl Ostrogski founds Ostroh Academy, the first university-level school in Eastern Europe.source
1577May 28 – The Bergen Book, better known as the Solid Declaration of the Formula of Concord, one of the Lutheran confessional writings, is published. The earlier version, known as the Torgau Book (1576), had been condensed into an Epitome; both documents are part of the 1580 Book of Concord.source
1577June 13 – Mirza Salman Jaberi is appointed as the new Grand Vizier of Persia by Shah Ismail II, replacing Mirza Shokrollah Isfahani.source
1577September 8 – (11th waning of Tawthalin 939 ME) Min Phalaung, King of Arakan in what is now northern Myanmar and southern Bangladesh on the Bay of Bengal, enters his new palace in dedication ceremonies at the capital at Mrauk U.source
1577Casiodoro de Reina publishes his "Declaracion, o confesion de fe", the first and only Spanish confession of faith in the post Reformation period.source
1578March 20 – James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton, the last of the regents for King James VI of Scotland, resigns after having served as regent since November 24, 1572.source
1578April 27 – The Duel of the Mignons claims the lives of two favorites of Henry III of France, and two favourites of Henry I, Duke of Guise.source
1579October 19 – King James VI of Scotland makes his ceremonial entry into Edinburgh to assume the throne at the age of 13, after being declared to have reached the age of majority. Scotland had been ruled by regents since 1567, when James was declared king.source
157919 October – Entry of James VI into Edinburgh, ceremonially marking the start of his personal rule.Scotland source
1579Esmé Stewart, Sieur d'Aubigny, James's cousin, arrives from France and becomes the king's first favourite.Scotland source
1580May – The Lipizzan stud is established by Charles II, Archduke of Austria.source
1580June 25 – The Book of Concord, a collection of Lutheran confessional documents, is published.source
1580July 24 – Portuguese succession crisis of 1580: António, Prior of Crato, a grandson of the late King Manuel by Manuel's second son, the Duke of Beja is proclaimed King of Portugal by his supporters in the city of Santarém, and popular acclamation follows in Lisbon and other locations. Portugal's parliament, the Cortes, refuses to acknowledge Antonio and he is defeated 32 days later at Alcântara.source
1581January – James Stewart marries Elizabeth Stuart, 2nd Countess of Moray, celebrated with masques and running at the ring. James VI takes part.Scotland source
15817 May - The wedding of Princess Elizabeth of Sweden and Christopher, Duke of Mecklenburg took place. This union was a significant event in the year, fortifying the alliance between Sweden and Mecklenburg. The marriage was celebrated with grandeur, reflecting the political significance of the event.Sweden source
1581October 15 – Ballet Comique de la Reine, the first narrative ballet, devised by Louise of Lorraine, wife of Henry III of France, and choreographed by Balthasar de Beaujoyeulx, opens in its first performance at the court of Catherine de' Medici, in the Louvre Palace in Paris, as part of the wedding celebrations for Marguerite of Lorraine.source
1581John Derricke publishes The Image of Irelande, with a Discoverie of Woodkarne.Ireland source
1581The notable work, Oeconomia eller Hushållsbok för ungt adelsfolk by Per Brahe was published, which served as a guide for young nobles in the conduct of their households and estates. This book played an instrumental role in setting the standards for the aristocratic lifestyle in Sweden during that period.Sweden source
1582January 2 – The University of Würzburg is refounded.source
1582February 10 – François, Duke of Anjou, arrives in the Netherlands, where he is personally welcomed by William the Silent.source
1582March – The New Testament of the Douai Bible, the translation into English by Father Gregory Martin from Latin of the New Testament, for use in the Roman Catholic Church, is published. Martin had started his work on October 16, 1578.source
1582March – traditional melody Cailín Óg a Stór first on record.Ireland source
1582April 14 – King James VI of Scotland signs a charter creating the Tounis College, which becomes the University of Edinburgh.source
1582November 29 – Ten years before he begins writing his first known plays, William Shakespeare, 18 years old, marries pregnant 26-year-old Anne Hathaway in England.source
1582December 9 (Julian) (December 19 Gregorian) – France discards the Julian Calendar at the end of the day and adopts the Gregorian Calendar at midnight. Sunday, December 9 is followed the next day in France by Monday, December 20.source
1582The earliest reference is made to the publishing of private newspapers in Beijing.source
1582George Buchanan's History of Scotland (Rerum Scoticarum Historia) is first published, in Edinburgh.Scotland source
1583January 1 – The Duchy of Savoy adopts the Gregorian Calendar, replacing the Julian Calendar.source
1583March 10 (February 28 O.S.) – The Queen Elizabeth's Men troupe of actors is founded in England by order of Queen Elizabeth to Edmund Tilney, the royal Master of the Revels.source
1583May 28 – The first installment of the translation by Jurij Dalmatin of the Bible into the Slovene language, Bibilija, tu je vse svetu pismu stariga inu noviga testamenta (The Bible, featuring the complete Old and New Testaments), is published in Wittenberg.source
1583August 19 – Petru Cercel enters Bucharest, and becomes Prince of Wallachia.source
1583September 4 – King James VI of Scotland orders a gift to Colonel William Stewart in recognition of Stewart's rescue of the King from prison. Colonel Stewart is presented with some of the jewels of Mary, Queen of Scots (the King's mother).source
1583October 14 – In Scotland, the University of Edinburgh holds its first classes, accepting more than 80 students as "Tounis College". In continuous operation for more than 440 years, the University will have more than 41,000 students.source
1583October 17 – Peter the Lame becomes Prince of Moldavia (in modern-day Romania) for the third and last time, reigning until 1591.source
1583The world's oldest, intact, surviving amusement park, Dyrehavsbakken, is founded north of Copenhagen.source
1583James VI signs a charter (dated 1582) creating the Tounis College, the modern-day University of Edinburgh.Scotland source
1584January 11 – Sir Walter Mildmay is given a royal licence to found Emmanuel College, Cambridge in England.source
1584March 5 – The city of Karlstad, Sweden gaines city status by Duke Charles.source
1584June 1 – With the death of the Duc d'Anjou, the Huguenot Henry of Navarre becomes heir-presumptive to the throne of France.source
1584July 5 – The Maronite College is established in Rome.source
1584Richard Stanihurst's history De rebus in Hibernia gestis is published by Christophe Plantin in Antwerp.Ireland source
1585February 21 – King Johan III of Sweden, widowed since 1583, marries Gunilla Bielke in a ceremony at Västerås, which the King's siblings refuse to attend. The coronation of Queen consort Gunilla takes place the next day. Over the next seven years, she works on changing the Catholic government's attitude towards Protestants.source
1585December 1 – Hadim Mesih Pasha is appointed the new Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire by Sultan Murad III.source
1585By marrying Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy on 11 March, Catalina Micaela of Spain becomes the Duchess consort of Savoy from 18 March until her death in 1597.France source
1585The Neubau of Strasbourg is finished. The building is not modified until around 300 years later, when Eugène Petiti (1809–1883) added an aisle on the south side of the building, in 1867.France source
1585Pierre Bonnet (composer) is active from 1585 to 1600France source
1585Prince Mansingh was appointed asIndia source
1585Tuileagna Ó Maoil Chonaire composes the poem Labhram ar iongnaibh Éireann.Ireland source
1586January 3 – Augustus of Wettin, the Elector of Saxony, marries Agnes Hedwig of Anhalt, the 12-year-old daughter of Joachim Ernest, Prince of Anhalt. Augustus dies less than six weeks later.source
1586February 23 – The Scottish crown jewels, recovered for King James VI by William Stewart of Caverston, are formally returned to the royal treasurer, Lord Melville. The jewels include a square gold pendant, inlaid with a large diamond and a ruby and several other diamonds, the "Great H of Scotland".source
1586March 18 – The Black Assize of Exeter begins in England as infected prisoners go on trial and an epidemic of typhus spreads quickly through the courtrooms above Exeter Prison. The disease is quickly transmitted from body lice on inmates who had been incarcerated in unsanitary conditions. In addition to prisoners who died from the disease, typhus claims the life of eight judges and 11 of the 12 jurors. Author Alexander Jenkins writes later, "A noisome and pestilential smell came from the prisoners who were arraigned at the crown bar which so affected the people present that many were seized with a violent sickness which proved mortal to the greatest part of them."source
1587February 5 (1st waxing of Tabaung 948 ME) – King Nanda of Burma appoints his eldest son and heir apparent, Minye Kyawswa II, as Viceroy of Ava, later part of upper Burma, with a capital at Inwa (located in the modern-day Mandalay Region of Myanmar).source
1587August 19 – Polish and Lithuanian nobles elect Sigismund III Vasa, King of Sweden, as the ruler of the after the death in December of the previous King of Poland and Duke of Lithuania, Stephen Báthory.source
1587August 22 – A small group of nobles who oppose Sigismund Vasa as King vote to proclaim Maximilian III, Archduke of Austria, as ruler of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, a decision supported by the Primate of Poland, Stanisław Karnkowski. The divide begins the War of the Polish Succession.source
1587September 9 – In the Burgundian Netherlands (part of modern-day Belgium), the faculty at the University of Leuven publishes a condemnation of the 34 propositions drawn up by the Jesuit scholar Michel Baius, leading to a campaign by traditional Belgian Catholics against the Jesuits.source
1587September 22 – The coronation of Vincenzo Gonzaga as Duke of Mantua in Italy takes place.source
1587October 31 – Leiden University Library opens its doors, after its founding in 1575.source
1587December 27 – Sigismund III Vasa is formally crowned as King Zygmunt Waza of Poland and Duke of Lithuania in a coronation ceremony at Kraków.source
1587The Rose (theatre), the first on Bankside in London, is built by Philip Henslowe and functioning by the year's end.source
1587Everard Digby's De Arte Natandi, the first treatise on swimming in England, is published.source
1588April 4 – Christian IV becomes king of Denmark–Norway, upon the death of his father, Frederick II.source
158828 June – Sir Valentine Browne purchases estates, including the Lakes of Killarney, from the estate of Donald Maccarty, 1st Earl of Clancare.Ireland source
1588William Morgan's Welsh translation of the Bible is published.source
1588The Armada Portrait of Elizabeth I of England is created, to celebrate the English defeat of the Spanish Armada, and to assert the strength of Elizabeth herself.source
1588date unknown – Hamilton Academy founded as a grammar school in Lanarkshire (closed 1972).Scotland source
1589January 5 – The reign of Catherine de' Medici as Countess of Auvergne ends after 64 years and she is succeeded by her grandson, Charles de Valois.source
1589February 26 – Valkendorfs Kollegium is founded in Copenhagen, Denmark.source
1589May 2 – Girolamo Bargagli's play The Pilgrim Woman is given its first performance, premiering in Florence, three years after Bargagli's death.source
1589May 17 – Ercole Grimaldi becomes the new Lord of Monaco upon the death of his older brother Charles II.source
158920 August – Anne of Denmark marries James VI by proxy at Kronborg Castle. James's proxy George Keith, 5th Earl Marischal made speeches and gave her a jewel.Scotland source
1589November 21 – At Oslo, Patrick Vans, Lord Barnbarroch ratifies the marriage contract between King James VI of Scotland, and Anne of Denmark.source
1589December 10 – In India, Man Singh I becomes the new raja of the Kingdom of Amber (now part of the Rajasthan state) upon the death of his father, Bhagwant Das.source
1589San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome, is completed by Domenico Fontana.source
1589The Hofbräuhaus is founded, by William V, Duke of Bavaria, in Munich.source
1589Johan Kasimir av Pfalz-Zweibrücken, a German count, Palatine Count and Duke, is married to Gustav II Adolf's sister Catherine.Sweden source
1590March – English printer Robert Waldegrave establishes himself in EdinburghScotland source
15901 May – King James VI and Anne of Denmark arrive at Leith.Scotland source
1590July 19 – The day after his 12th birthday, Ferdinand of Habsburg becomes the new Archduke of Inner Austria (Innerösterreich) upon the death, in Graz, of his father Charles II. A regency council rules in the place of Ferdinand until 1596.source
1590John Burrell writes The Description of the Queenis Maiesties most honourable entry into the town of Edinburgh.Scotland source
1590A new succession order, the 1590 års arvförening, is issued.Sweden source
159121 June - Wedding of Lilias Murray and John Grant of Freuchie at Tullibardine Castle.Scotland source
1591November 19 – Queen Elizabeth I grants a royal charter founding Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Wakefield, a boys' school; the institution, now known as Queen Elizabeth's School, later develops into an independent day school.source
1591November 27 – In Italy, Giovanni Giustiniani Campi is elected as the new Doge of the Republic of Genoa after a 12-day search for a successor to Battista Negrone.source
1591The city of Hyderabad, India, is founded by Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah.source
1591The first of the Conimbricenses commentaries on Aristotle, by the Jesuits of the University of Coimbra, is published.source
1591Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone, elopes with Mabel, sister of Henry Bagenal, Provincial President of Ulster.Ireland source
1591Burgh of Cockenzie created by James VIScotland source
1592March 3 – Trinity College Dublin, Ireland's oldest university, is founded.source
15928 July - The King's brother Duke Charles, is wed to Christina of Holstein-Gottorp in a ceremony attended by noted German travel writer and poet Michael Heberer, who pens a record of the events.Sweden source
1592November 17 – Sigismund III Vasa becomes the new King of Sweden upon the death of his father, King John III.source
1592Negotiations begin for the annulment of the childless marriage of Henry IV of France and Marguerite of Valois.source
1592Henry Constable's Diana, one of the first sonnet sequences in English, is published in London.source
1593March 17 – Henri IV, visiting Saumur to see his sister Catherine de Bourbon, grants the inhabitants local tax privileges.France source
1593April 29 – Opening of conferences at Suresnes between the king and the deputies of the League.France source
1593After April – William Shakespeare's poem Venus and Adonis probably becomes his first published work, printed in London from his own manuscript. In his lifetime it will be his most frequently reprinted work: at least nine times.source
1593The Academy of Saumur is founded as a Huguenot university at Saumur by Philippe de Mornay.France source
1593Marischal College is founded in Aberdeen by George Keith, 5th Earl Marischal.Scotland source
1593A decision to re-open the Uppsala University is taken.Sweden source
1594January 24 – William Shakespeare's play Titus Andronicus, is given its first performance, presented by the Admiral's Men company of players at The Rose in London.source
159430 January – Joyous Entry into Brussels and Antwerp of Archduke Ernest of AustriaBelgium source
1594February 19 – The coronation of Sigismund III Vasa as King of Sweden takes place at Uppsala.source
1594June 11 – Philip II of Spain recognizes the rights and privileges of the local nobles and chieftains in the Philippines, which paves the way for the stabilization of the rule of the Principalía.source
1594August 25 – San Luis, in the Viceroyalty of Peru (now in Argentina), is founded by Luis Jufré de Loaysa y Meneses.source
1594August 30 – Diplomats meet at Stirling Castle for the Masque at the baptism of Prince Henry, heir to the throne of Scotland.source
159430 August - Baptism of Prince Henry at Stirling Castle.Scotland source
1594December 28 – The earliest known performance of William Shakespeare's play The Comedy of Errors takes place at Gray's Inn in London, and is played by the Lord Chamberlain's Men acting company. The production is held before members of the English court on Innocents' Day as part of the Gray's Inn Christmas festivities.source
1594St. Paul's College is founded in Macau by Jesuits, being the first western style university in the far east.source
1594Tulip bulbs planted by Carolus Clusius in the Hortus Botanicus Leiden, Holland, flower for the first time.source
1594Hendrick de Clerck appointed court painter to Archduke ErnestBelgium source
1594Maerten de Vos, The Temptation of St Anthony (Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp)Belgium source
1595February 25 – The Goa state archives are established at the city of Panaji in Portuguese India (now India's Goa state) by historian Diogo do Couto.source
1595May 24 – The Nomenclator of Leiden University Library appears, the first printed catalog of an institutional library.source
1595November 9 – In India, Prince Man Singh I, Maharaja of Amber within the Mughal Empire, becomes the Mughal Governor (subahdar) of Bengal in what is now Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal. He lays the foundations of a new capital of Bengal, Akbarnagar (now Rajmahal, Jharkhand state).source
1595December 9 – What is probably the first performance of William Shakespeare's play, Richard II, takes place in London.source
1595Probable first performance of William Shakespeare's plays Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Night's Dream in London.source
1595The Riksdag of the Estates at Söderköping in Sweden elects the Lutheran Duke Charles as the country's regent, in place of Sigismund III Vasa, King of Poland and Sweden.source
1595Unknown date – Uppsala University, revived two years prior, is granted its official letter of privilege.Sweden source
1596February 11 – Albert of Austria arrives in Brussels to begin his administration as Governor General of the Habsburg Netherlands.source
1596Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, is founded.source
1596King Sigismund III Vasa moves the capital of Poland from Kraków to Warsaw.source
1597April 23 – Probable first performance of William Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor.source
1597April 27 – Johannes Kepler marries Barbara Muhleck.source
1597June 13 – The Staten-Generaal of the Dutch Republic approves a proposal for the Generaliteitscollege, a common board for the Republic's five separate navies, the Admiralty of Amsterdam, the Admiralty of Rotterdam, the Admiralty of Zeeland, the Admiralty of the Noorderkwartier and the Admiralty of Friesland.source
159717 July – George Heriot is appointed as goldsmith to the queen consort Anne of Denmark.Scotland source
1597The first edition of Francis Bacon's Essays is published.source
1597Jacopo Peri writes Dafne, now recognised as the first opera.source
1597King James VI's Daemonologie is published.Scotland source
1598January 8 – In Berlin, Joachim Frederich of the House of Hohenzollern becomes the new Elector of Brandenburg upon the death of his father, Johann Georg von Brandenburg.source
1598July 22 – William Shakespeare registers the rights to his new play, The Merchant of Venice, in the Register of the Stationers Company, under the title The Marchaunt of Venyce or otherwise called The Jewe of Venyce.source
1598Carnival – Jacopo Peri's Dafne, the earliest known modern opera, is premièred at the Palazzo Corsini, Florence.source
1598Pentecost – Calvinist congregations in Zurich introduce music into their services.source
1599February 20 – On Shrove Tuesday, the earliest known performance of William Shakespeare's play As You Like It is given, presented at Richmond Park for Queen Elizabeth.source
159917 April – the title Marquess of Huntly is created in the Peerage of Scotland in favour of George Gordon, 6th Earl of Huntly.Scotland source
1599July 24 – Swedish King Sigismund III Vasa is dethroned by his uncle Duke Charles, who takes over as regent of the realm until 1604, when he becomes King Charles IX.source
1599September 21 – The first reported performance at the Globe Theatre in London (erected over Spring/Summer), a presentation of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar (probably new to that year), is recorded by Swiss traveller Thomas Platter the Younger.source