Explore 151 historical events from 1540–1549.
Clément Marot was a French Renaissance poet. He was influenced by the writers of the late 15th century and paved the way for the Pléiade, and is undoubtedly the most important poet…
Clément Marot, French poet (born 1496)
The Rough Wooing, also known as the Eight Years' War, was part of the Anglo-Scottish Wars of the 16th century. Following the English Reformation, the break from the Catholic Church…
During the Rough Wooing, an English army carried out the Burning of Edinburgh
Henry VIII was King of England and Ireland from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547.
King Henry VIII of England marries his sixth and last wife, Catherine Parr, at Hampton Court Palace.
António da Mota was a Portuguese trader and explorer who, in 1543, together with Fernão Mendes Pinto and Francisco Zeimoto, became one of the first Europeans to set foot in Japan.
António Mota and a few companions become the first Europeans to visit Japan.
Mary, Queen of Scots, also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication on 24 July 1567.
Mary Stuart, at nine months old, is crowned "Queen of Scots" in the central Scottish town of Stirling.
Christine of Hesse was Duchess consort of Holstein-Gottorp as the spouse of Duke Adolf of Holstein-Gottorp. She exerted some political influence as a widow after 1586.
Christine of Hesse, Duchess consort of Holstein-Gottorp (died 1604)
The Battle of Solway Moss took place on Solway Moss near the River Esk on the English side of the Anglo-Scottish border in November 1542 between English and Scottish forces.
Having been defeated in the battle of Solway Moss in the previous year, the Scots conclude the peace treaty of…
Finnish is a Finnic language of the Uralic language family, spoken by the majority of the population in Finland and by ethnic Finns outside of Finland. Finnish is one of the two of…
The first Finnish-language book, the Abckiria by Mikael Agricola, is published in Stockholm.
Claudio Acquaviva, SJ was an Italian Jesuit priest. Elected in 1581 as the fifth Superior General of the Society of Jesus, he has been referred to as the second founder of the Jesu…
Claudio Acquaviva, Italian priest, 5th Superior General of the Society of Jesus (died 1615)
Nicolaus Copernicus was a Renaissance polymath who formulated a model of the universe that placed the Sun rather than Earth at its center. The publication of Copernicus's model in …
Nicolaus Copernicus, Polish mathematician and astronomer (born 1473)
Mary Boleyn, also known as Lady Mary, was the sister of English queen consort Anne Boleyn, whose family enjoyed considerable influence during the reign of King Henry VIII.
Mary Boleyn, English daughter of Elizabeth Boleyn, Countess of Wiltshire (born 1499)
Magnus I of Saxe-Lauenburg was a Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg from the House of Ascania.
Magnus I, Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg (born 1488)
Francis Xavier, venerated as Saint Francis Xavier, was a Navarrese cleric and missionary. He co-founded the Society of Jesus and, as a representative of the Portuguese Empire, led …
Francis Xavier reaches Old Goa, the capital of Portuguese India at the time
Thomas Cecil, 1st Earl of Exeter KG, known as Lord Burghley from 1598 to 1605, was an English politician, courtier and soldier.
Thomas Cecil, 1st Earl of Exeter, English soldier and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Northamptonshire (died 1623)
Countess Anna Sibylle of Hanau-Lichtenberg was a German noblewoman. She was born in Lichtenberg, the eldest surviving daughter of Count Philipp IV and his wife, Countess Eleonore o…
Anna Sibylle of Hanau-Lichtenberg, German noblewoman (died 1580)
Sir Richard Grenville, also spelt Greynvile, Greeneville, and Greenfield, was an English privateer and explorer. Grenville was lord of the manors of Stowe, Cornwall and Bideford, D…
Richard Grenville, English captain and explorer (died 1591)
The Prome kingdom also known as Pyay kingdom was a kingdom that existed for six decades between 1482 and 1542 in present-day central Burma (Myanmar). Based out of the city of Prome…
The Prome Kingdom falls to the Taungoo Dynasty in present-day Myanmar
Guayaquil, officially Santiago de Guayaquil, is the capital of Guayas Province and the seat of Guayaquil Canton. It is the largest city in Ecuador and also the nation's economic ca…
A year and a half after leaving Guayaquil on the Pacific coast, Francisco de Orellana finishes his overland journey…
The Ottoman–Portuguese conflicts also known as the Ottoman–Portuguese War, were a period of conflict during the Ottoman–Portuguese confrontations and series of armed military encou…
Turkish–Portuguese War: Battle of Wofla: The Portuguese are scattered, their leader Christovão da Gama is captured and…
Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo was a Portuguese maritime explorer best known for investigations of the west coast of North America, undertaken on behalf of the Spanish Empire. He was the …
Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo of Portugal arrives at what is now San Diego, California. He is the first European in…
Charles Neville, 6th Earl of Westmorland was an English nobleman, politician and Roman Catholic rebel leader, who led the Rising of the North against Elizabeth I in 1569. After the…
Charles Neville, 6th Earl of Westmorland (died 1601)
John Frederick was Duke of Pomerania from 1560 to 1600, and Bishop of Cammin (Kamień) from 1556 to 1574. Elected bishop in 1556 and heir of the duchy in 1560, he remained under the…
John Frederick, Duke of Pomerania and Protestant Bishop of Cammin (died 1600)
Álvaro de Mendaña y Neira was a Spanish navigator, explorer, and cartographer, best known for two of the earliest recorded expeditions across the Pacific Ocean in 1567 and 1595. Hi…
Álvaro de Mendaña de Neira, Spanish explorer (died 1595)
Robert Bellarmine was an Italian Jesuit and a cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was canonized a saint in 1930 and named Doctor of the Church, one of only 27 at the time. He was o…
Robert Bellarmine, Italian cardinal and saint (died 1621)