Explore 119 historical events from 1640–1649.
Canonicus was a chief of the Narragansett people. He was wary of the colonial settlers, but he ultimately befriended Roger Williams and other settlers.
Canonicus, Grand Chief Sachem of the Narragansett (born 1565)
Leonard Calvert was an English-born colonial administrator who served as the first proprietary governor of Maryland from 1634 to 1647. He was the second son of George Calvert, 1st …
Leonard Calvert, Colonial governor of Maryland (born 1606)
Thomas Farnaby was an English schoolmaster and scholar. He operated a successful school in the Cripplegate ward of London and enjoyed great success with his annotations of classic …
Thomas Farnaby, English scholar and educator (born 1575)
Thomas Hooker was a prominent English colonial leader and Congregational minister, who founded the Connecticut Colony after dissenting with Puritan leaders in Massachusetts. He was…
Thomas Hooker, English minister, founded the Colony of Connecticut (born 1586)
Tommaso Aniello, popularly known by the contracted name of Masaniello, was an Italian fisherman, who led the Neapolitan Revolt of 1647 against the rule of Habsburg Spain in the Kin…
Masaniello, Italian rebel (born 1622)
Jules Hardouin-Mansart was a French Baroque architect and builder whose major work included the Place des Victoires (1684–1690); Place Vendôme (1690); the domed chapel of Les Inval…
Jules Hardouin-Mansart, French architect (probable; (died 1708)
Charles Plumier was a French botanist after whom the frangipani genus Plumeria is named. Plumier is considered one of the most important of the botanical explorers of his time. He …
Charles Plumier, French botanist and author (died 1704)
Elena Lucrezia Cornaro Piscopia or Elena Lucrezia Corner, also known in English as Helen Cornaro, was a Venetian philosopher of noble descent who in 1678 became one of the first wo…
Elena Cornaro Piscopia, Italian mathematician and philosopher (died 1684)
Johann Theile was a German composer of the Baroque era, famous for the opera Adam und Eva, Der erschaffene, gefallene und aufgerichtete Mensch, first performed in Hamburg on 2 Janu…
Johann Theile, German organist and composer (died 1724)
Laughlin Ó Cellaigh, Gaelic-Irish Lord, died 29 June 1646.
Laughlin Ó Cellaigh, Gaelic-Irish Lord
Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz was a German polymath active as a mathematician, philosopher, scientist, and diplomat who is credited, alongside Isaac Newton, with the creation of calcul…
Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, German mathematician and philosopher (died 1716)
The First English Civil War took place in England and Wales from 1642 to 1646, and forms part of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. An estimated 15% to 20% of adult males…
First English Civil War: Charles I surrendered himself to Scottish Covenanter leader David Leslie near Newark, England
The Franco-Spanish War, May 1635 to November 1659, was fought between France and Spain, each supported by various allies at different points. It consists of two distinct phases, th…
Franco-Spanish War: French and Spanish fleets fought the inconclusive Battle of Orbetello, with sailing vessels of both
George Jeffreys, 1st Baron Jeffreys was a Welsh judge and politician. He became notable during the reign of King James II, rising to the position of Lord Chancellor. His conduct as…
George Jeffreys, 1st Baron Jeffreys, British judge (died 1689)
Sidney Godolphin, 1st Earl of Godolphin, was a British Tory statesman. He was a Privy Councillor and Secretary of State for the Northern Department before he attained real power as…
Sidney Godolphin, 1st Earl of Godolphin, English politician (died 1712)
Marguerite Louise d'Orléans was a French princess who became grand duchess of Tuscany as the wife of Grand Duke Cosimo III de' Medici.
Marguerite Louise d'Orléans, French princess (died 1721)
Tobias Hume was a Scottish composer, viol player and soldier.
Tobias Hume, Scottish soldier, viol player, and composer (born 1569)
Miyamoto Musashi was a Japanese swordsman, strategist, artist, and writer who became renowned through stories of his unique double-bladed swordsmanship and undefeated record in hi…
Miyamoto Musashi, Japanese samurai (born 1584)
Robert Carr, Earl of Somerset, was a politician, and favourite of King James VI and I.
Robert Carr, 1st Earl of Somerset, English-Scottish politician, Lord Chamberlain of the United Kingdom (born 1587)
Michael I was Tsar of all Russia from 1613 after being elected by the Zemsky Sobor of 1613 until his death in 1645. He was the first tsar of the House of Romanov, which succeeded t…
Michael I, Russian tsar (born 1596)
The term Cavalier was first used to describe cavalrymen, and later by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of Charles I of England and his son Charle…
Scottish Royalist forces under Lord Montrose defeat Covenanter forces under John Urry
The Yangzhou Massacre refers to the mass killing of people in Yangzhou, China, in May, 1645. Commanded by the Manchu prince Dodo, following the collapse of the Ming dynasty, Qing d…
Yangzhou massacre: The ten day massacre of the residents of the city of Yangzhou, part of the Transition from Ming to Qi
The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Royalists and Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. P…
English Civil War: Battle of Naseby: Twelve thousand Royalist forces are beaten by fifteen thousand Parliamentarian sold
The Wars of the Three Kingdoms is the collective term for a series of conflicts fought between 1639 and 1653 in England, Scotland and Ireland, then separate entities in a personal …
Wars of the Three Kingdoms: Battle of Alford.