Explore 189 historical events from 1550–1559.
George Clifford, 3rd Earl of Cumberland, 13th Baron de Clifford, 13th Lord of Skipton, was an English peer, naval commander, and courtier of Queen Elizabeth I of England. He was no…
George Clifford, 3rd Earl of Cumberland, English noble (died 1605)
Philippe-Emmanuel de Lorraine, Duke of Mercœur and of Penthièvre was a French soldier, a prince of the Holy Roman Empire and a prominent member of the Catholic League, who fought f…
Philippe Emmanuel, Duke of Mercœur (died 1602)
Maximilian III of Austria, was a member of the House of Habsburg and the Archduke of Further Austria from 1612 until his death. He was also briefly known as Maximilian of Poland du…
Maximilian III, Archduke of Austria (died 1618)
Jacques Nompar de Caumont, 1st Duke of La Force was a Marshal of France and Peer of France.
Jacques-Nompar de Caumont, duc de La Force, Marshal of France (died 1652)
Jean François Fernel was a French physician who introduced the term "physiology" to describe the study of the body's function. He was the first person to describe the spinal canal.…
Jean Fernel, French physician (born 1497)
Francisco de Sá de Miranda was a Portuguese poet of the Renaissance.
Francisco de Sá de Miranda, Portuguese poet (born 1485)
Elisabeth of Brandenburg was a Duchess consort of Brunswick-Göttingen-Calenberg by marriage to Eric I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, and Regent of the Duchy of Brunswick-Göttingen-Ca…
Elisabeth of Brandenburg, Duchess of Brunswick-Calenberg-Göttingen (born 1510)
Sir Philip Hoby PC was a 16th-century English Ambassador to the Holy Roman Empire and Flanders.
Philip Hoby, English general and diplomat (born 1505)
Piero Strozzi was an Italian military leader. He was a member of the rich Florentine family of the Strozzi.
Piero Strozzi, Italian general (born 1510)
Johannes Bugenhagen, also called Doctor Pomeranus by Martin Luther, was a German theologian and Lutheran priest who introduced the Protestant Reformation in the Duchy of Pomerania …
Johannes Bugenhagen, German priest and theologian (born 1485)
Charles V was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain from 1516 to 1556, King of Sicily and Naples from 1516 to 1554, and also Lord of the Nethe…
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (born 1500)
Mary of Austria, also known as Mary of Hungary, was Queen of Hungary and Bohemia as the wife of King Louis II, and was later governor of the Habsburg Netherlands.
Mary of Hungary (born 1505)
Julius Caesar Scaliger, or Giulio Cesare della Scala, was an Italian scholar and physician, who spent a major part of his career in France. He employed the techniques and discoveri…
Julius Caesar Scaliger, Italian physician and scholar (born 1484)
Philip II, sometimes known in Spain as Philip the Prudent, was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from 1580, and King of Naples and Sicily from 1554 until his death in 1598.…
King Philip II of Spain, consort of Queen Mary I of England, sets out from Dover to war with France, which eventually…
The Battle of Saint-Quentin of 1557 was a decisive engagement of the Italian War of 1551–1559 between the Kingdom of France and the Spanish Empire, at Saint-Quentin in Picardy. A H…
Battle of St. Quentin: Spanish victory over the French in the Italian War of 1551–59.
The Battle of Saint-Quentin of 1557 was a decisive engagement of the Italian War of 1551–1559 between the Kingdom of France and the Spanish Empire, at Saint-Quentin in Picardy. A H…
The Battle of St. Quentin results in Emmanuel Philibert becoming Duke of Savoy.
Leandro Bassano, also called Leandro dal Ponte, was an Italian Renaissance painter from Bassano del Grappa who was awarded a knighthood by the Doge of Venice. He was the younger br…
Leandro Bassano, Italian painter (died 1622)
Philip Howard, 13th Earl of Arundel was an English nobleman. He was canonised by Pope Paul VI in 1970, as one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales. Howard lived mainly during …
Philip Howard, 20th Earl of Arundel, English nobleman (died 1595)
Agostino Carracci was an Italian painter, printmaker, tapestry designer, and art teacher. He was, together with his brother, Annibale Carracci, and cousin, Ludovico Carracci, one o…
Agostino Carracci, Italian painter and etcher (died 1602)
Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow was Queen of Denmark and Norway from 1572 to 1588 as the wife of Frederick II. She was the mother of Christian IV and Anne of Denmark, and served as r…
Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow, queen consort of Denmark and Norway (died 1631)
Joseph Calasanz, also known as Joseph Calasanctius and Josephus a Matre Dei, was a Spanish Catholic priest, educator and the founder of the Pious Schools, which provided free educa…
Joseph Calasanz, Spanish priest and founder of Piarists (died 1648)
Jacques Mauduit was a French composer of the late Renaissance. He was one of the most innovative French composers of the late 16th century, combining voices and instruments in new …
Jacques Mauduit, French composer (died 1627)
Petrus Apianus, also known as Peter Apian, Peter Bennewitz, and Peter Bienewitz, was a German humanist, known for his works in mathematics, astronomy and cartography. His work on "…
Petrus Apianus, German mathematician and astronomer (born 1495)
John III, nicknamed The Pious, was the King of Portugal and the Algarve from 1521 until he died in 1557. He was the son of King Manuel I and Maria of Aragon, the third daughter of …
John III of Portugal (born 1502)