Explore 105 historical events from 1490–1499.
Eskender was Emperor of Ethiopia and a member of the Solomonic dynasty. His throne name was Constantine II. The son of Emperor Baeda Maryam I by his wife Queen Romna, his early yea…
Eskender, Emperor of Ethiopia (born 1471)
Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed four Spanish-based voyages across the Atlantic Ocean sponsored by the Catholic M…
Spain and Christopher Columbus sign the Capitulations of Santa Fe for his voyage to Asia to acquire spices
Johann or Johannes Agricola was a German Protestant Reformer during the Protestant Reformation. He was a follower and friend of Martin Luther, who became his antagonist in the matt…
Johannes Agricola, German theologian and reformer (died 1566)
Sabina of Bavaria-Munich was Duchess consort of Württemberg by marriage to Ulrich, Duke of Württemberg.
Sabina of Bavaria, Bavarian duchess and noblewoman (died 1564)
On 31 March 1492, the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile, issued the Alhambra Decree, ordering all unconverted Jews to leave t…
The Crown's decision to expel the Jews is announced in Zaragoza, Aragon, to the kingdom's procurators
Pedro Gutiérrez de Valdivia or Valdiva was a Spanish conquistador and the first Governor of Colonial Chile. After having served with the Spanish army in Italy and Flanders, he was …
Pedro de Valdivia, Spanish conquistador, conquered northern Chile (died 1553)
The Alhambra Decree was an edict issued on 31 March 1492 by the joint Catholic Monarchs of Spain, Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon, ordering the expulsion of unconv…
The Edict of Expulsion is officially proclaimed in Castile, requiring all Jewish residents to leave within three months
Muhammad Abu 'Abd Allah ibn Muhammad at-Tarabulsi al-Hattab al-Ru'yani, more commonly referred to in Islamic scholarship as al-Hattab or Imam al-Hattab, was a 16th-century CE Musli…
Al-Hattab, Muslim jurist (died 1547)
Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed four Spanish transatlantic voyages in the name of the Catholic Monarchs, opening…
On his second voyage to the New World, Christopher Columbus sights Jamaica, landing at Discovery Bay and declares Jamaic
Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed four Spanish transatlantic voyages in the name of the Catholic Monarchs, opening…
Spain gives Christopher Columbus his commission of exploration
Catherine of Aragon was Queen of England as the first wife of Henry VIII from their marriage on 11 June 1509 until its annulment on 23 May 1533. She had previously been Princess of…
Catherine of Aragon is married by proxy to Arthur, Prince of Wales
Amerigo Vespucci was an Italo-Spaniard explorer and navigator from the Republic of Florence after whom America is named.
Amerigo Vespucci sights what is now Amapá State in Brazil
The Battle of Dornach was fought on 22 July 1499 between the troops of Emperor Maximilian I and the Old Swiss Confederacy, close to the Swiss village of Dornach. The battle ended i…
Battle of Dornach: The Swiss decisively defeat the army of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor.
The naval Battle of Zonchio took place on four separate days: 12, 20, 22, and 25 August 1499. It was a part of the Ottoman–Venetian War of 1499–1503.
First engagement of the Battle of Zonchio between Venetian and Ottoman fleets.
Alonso de Ojeda was a Spanish explorer, governor and conquistador. He is famous for having named Venezuela, which he explored during his first two expeditions, for having been the …
Alonso de Ojeda sets sail from Cádiz on his voyage to what is now Venezuela
Nicolau Coelho was an expert Portuguese navigator and explorer during the Age of Discovery. He participated in the discovery of the route to India by Vasco da Gama, where he comman…
The Portuguese explorer Nicolau Coelho returns to Lisbon after discovering the sea route to India as a companion of…
Vasco da Gama was a Portuguese mariner, explorer and nobleman. His discovery of the first direct maritime route between Europe and India via the Cape of Good Hope and across the In…
The citizens of Lisbon celebrate the triumphal return of the explorer Vasco de Gama, completing his two-year journey…
Johann (Johannes) Brenz was a German Lutheran theologian and the Protestant Reformer of the Duchy of Württemberg.
Johannes Brenz, German theologian and the Protestant Reformer (died 1570)
Maria Salviati was a Florentine noblewoman, the daughter of Lucrezia di Lorenzo de' Medici and Jacopo Salviati. She married Giovanni delle Bande Nere and was the mother of Cosimo I…
Maria Salviati, Italian noblewoman (died 1543)
John de Vere, 14th Earl of Oxford was an English peer and landowner.
John de Vere, 14th Earl of Oxford, English politician (died 1526)
Alesso or Alessio Baldovinetti was an Italian early Renaissance painter and draftsman.
Alesso Baldovinetti, Florentine painter (born 1427)
Vasco da Gama was a Portuguese mariner, explorer and nobleman. His discovery of the first direct maritime route between Europe and India via the Cape of Good Hope and across the In…
Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama discovers the sea route to India when he arrives at Kozhikode (previously known as Cal
Girolamo Savonarola, OP, also referred to as Jerome Savonarola, was an Italian ascetic Dominican friar from Ferrara and a preacher active in Renaissance Florence. He became known f…
Girolamo Savonarola is burned at the stake in Florence, Italy
Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed four Spanish transatlantic voyages in the name of the Catholic Monarchs, opening…
On his third voyage to the Western Hemisphere, Christopher Columbus becomes the first European to discover the island…
Cesare Borgia was an Italian cardinal deacon and later a condottiero, as well as a member of the Spanish House of Borgia. He was the illegitimate son of Pope Alexander VI and sibli…
Cesare Borgia, son of Pope Alexander VI, becomes the first person in history to resign the cardinalate; later that…
Maarten van Heemskerck, also known as Marten Jacobsz Heemskerk van Veen, was a Dutch portrait and religious painter, who spent most of his career in Haarlem. He was a pupil of Jan …
Maarten van Heemskerck, Dutch painter (died 1574)
Hernando de Aragón y de Gurrea, OCist, Archbishop of Zaragoza and Lieutenant General of Aragon, was an Aragonese humanist and historian.
Hernando de Aragón, Archbishop of Zaragoza (died 1575)
Miguel da Paz, Hereditary Prince of Portugal and Prince of Asturias and Girona was a Portuguese royal prince, son of King Manuel I of Portugal and his first wife, Isabella of Arago…
Miguel da Paz, Prince of Portugal (died 1500)
Christopher Columbus was an Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed four Spanish transatlantic voyages in the name of the Catholic Monarchs, opening…
Christopher Columbus becomes the first European to visit what is now Venezuela.
Vasco da Gama was a Portuguese mariner, explorer and nobleman. His discovery of the first direct maritime route between Europe and India via the Cape of Good Hope and across the In…
Vasco da Gama decides to depart Calicut and return to the Kingdom of Portugal.
The 1498 Meiō earthquake struck off the coast of Nankaidō, Japan, at approximately 08:00 local time on September 20, 1498. With an estimated magnitude of 8.6 Ms, it triggered a mas…
The Nankai tsunami washes away the building housing the Great Buddha at Kōtoku-in; it has been located outside ever…
John of Saxony, also known as "John the Younger" or "Hans of Saxony" was Hereditary Prince of Saxony from the Albertine line of the House of Wettin.
John, Hereditary Prince of Saxony (died 1537)
Girolamo Savonarola, OP, also referred to as Jerome Savonarola, was an Italian ascetic Dominican friar from Ferrara and a preacher active in Renaissance Florence. He became known f…
Girolamo Savonarola, Italian friar and preacher (born 1452)
Isabella, Princess of Asturias, also known as Isabella of Aragon, was the eldest child and heiress presumptive of King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile. She w…
Isabella of Aragon, Queen of Portugal, eldest daughter of Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon (born 1470)