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Aug 19, 1310
Dante writes the Devine Comedy
The Devine Comedy (Inferno Canto)Dante Alighieri 1265-1321 is one of Italys famouse poets, along with the devine comedy somtimes known as " the Inferno Canto" he completed the devine comedy a year before his death, One of the most boldest Epics at its time and still now. Dante is taking us threw the layers of hell (inferno) then Purgatory (Purgatorio), and then reaches Heaven (Paradiso), to re unite with his wife Beatrice -
Aug 19, 1390
Chaucer writes The Canterbury Tales
The question wether the Canterbury Tales is finished has not yet been answered. The Canterbury Tales is a collection of stories written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer at the end of the 14th century. The tales (mostly in verse, although some are in prose) are told as part of a story-telling contest by a group of pilgrims as they travel together on a journey from Southwark to the shrine of Saint Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral. -
Aug 22, 1415
Donatello creates his statue of St. George
Donatello was an early Renaissance Italian artist and sculptor from Florence. Donatello was the son of Niccolò di Betto Bardi, and was born in Florence, most likely in the year 1386. He apparently received his early artistic training in a goldsmith's workshop, and then worked briefly in the studio of Lorenzo Ghiberti. -
Aug 22, 1434
Jan van Eyck paints the Arnolfini
The date of van Eyck's birth is not known. As a painter and "valet de chambre" to the Duke, Jan van Eyck was exceptionally well paid. Jan van Eyck produced paintings for private clients in addition to his work at the court.Other works include two remarkable commemorative panels, the Madonna with Chancellor Rolin, and the Madonna with canon Joris van der Paele, some other religious paintings, notably the Annunciation, and a number of haunting portraits, including that of his wife, Margareta. -
Aug 13, 1447
Last Vistconti ruler of Milan dies
He was the second brother and he succeeded as the Duke of Milan. He married the widow of Facino Cane to recieve a large sum of dowry. When he died he brought an end to the famed line of the Vistconti family as rulers in Milan. When he died his son-in-law Francesco Sforza took over, -
Aug 19, 1494
Charles VIII of France invades Naples
Charles VIII was borne June 30, 1470. He took the crown of France at the age of 13. He was the last king of Valois dynasty. He married Anne of Brittanny. He attempted to take over Naples. He died April 7, 1498 at the age of 28. -
Aug 22, 1505
Leonardo da Vinci paints the Mona Lissa
portrait by the Florentine artist Leonardo da Vinci. It is a painting in oil on a poplar panel. It is on permanent display at the Musée du Louvre in Paris. is thought to have continued to work on Mona Lisa for three years after he moved to France and to have finished it shortly before he died in 1519. Leonardo took the painting from Italy to France in 1516 when King François I invited the painter to work at the Clos Lucé near the king's castle in Amboise. -
Aug 22, 1509
Erasmus writes his satire The Praise of Folly
Erasmus was a classical scholar who wrote in a pure Latin style. Erasmus revised and extended the work, which he originally wrote in the space of a week while sojourning with Sir Thomas More at More's estate in Bucklersbury. In Praise of Folly is considered one of the most notable works of the Renaissance -
Aug 19, 1513
Machiavelli writes the Prince
His book The Prince is one of the most influential works on political power in the Western world. His central thesis in The Prince concerns how to aquire political power. From his point of view, a prince's attitude toward power must be based on an understanding of human nature. -
Aug 22, 1517
Martin Luther presents the Ninet-five Theses
Martin Luther was a German priest whose disillusionment with the abuses of the 16th century Roman Catholic Church sparked the Reformation. He was born in 1483. His father encouraged him to be a lawyer but he was struck by lightening and the decided to become a monk. The background to Luther's Ninety-Five Theses centers on practices within the Catholic Church regarding baptism and absolution. -
Aug 22, 1521
The church excommunicates Luther
His refusal to retract all of his writings at the demand of Pope Leo X in 1520 and the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V at the Diet of Worms in 1521 resulted in his excommunication by the pope and condemnation as an outlaw by the emperor.Luther taught that salvation is not earned by good deeds but received only as a free gift of God's grace through faith in Jesus Christ as redeemer from sin. -
Aug 19, 1527
Invading armies sack Rome
The city was attacked by the Visigoths. At that time, Rome was no longer the capital of the Western Roman Empire. The city of Rome retained a paramount position as "the eternal city" and a spiritual center of the empire. The sack was to prove a major shock to contemporaries, friends and foes of the empire alike. -
Aug 19, 1528
Castiglione writes The Book of the Courtier
The Book of the Courtier remains the definitive account of Renaissance court life. Because of this, it is considered one of the most important Renaissance works. The book is organized as a series of fictional conversations that occur between the courtiers of the Duke of Urbino. The Book of the Courtier was one of the most widely distributed books of the 16th century, with editions printed in six languages and in twenty European centers. -
Aug 22, 1531
War between the Protestant and Catholic states in Switzerland
The Protestant Reformation in Switzerland was promoted initially by Huldrych Zwingli, who gained the support of the magistrate and population of Zürich in the 1520s. After the violent conflicts of the late 15th century the Swiss cantons had had a generation of relative political stability. -
Aug 22, 1534
The act of Supremacy is passed in England
The name "Act of Supremacy" is given to two separate acts of the English Parliament, one passed in 1534 and the other in 1559. Both acts had the same purpose. One important point to know is that the Act effectively made it treasonable to support the authority of the Pope over the Church of England.There were three levels of penalties for refusal to take the Oath of Supremacy. A first refusal to resulted in loss of all movable goods. A second offence could mean life in prison and a loss of all re -
Aug 22, 1540
The Society of Jesus becomes a religious order
In 1537, The Company of Jesus traveled to Italy to seek papal approval for their order. Pope Paul III gave them a commendation, and permitted them to be ordained priests. These initial steps led to the founding of what would be called the Society of Jesus later in 1540. -
Aug 22, 1545
The council of Trent is formed
The General Council of Trent became inevitable on the day that Martin Luther began his revolt against the rule of the Catholic Church. The Council of Trent was the 16th-century Ecumenical Council of the Roman Catholic Church. It is considered to be one of the Church's most important councils. -
Aug 22, 1553
Mary Tudor, "bloody Mary," becomes Queen of England
Mary I was Queen regnant of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death. She was the eldest daughter. Queen Mary I of England reigned as Queen of England for a short five years. -
Aug 22, 1555
The Peace of Augsburg divides Germany
The Peace of Augsburg, also called the Augsburg Settlement, was a treaty between Charles V and the forces of the Schmalkaldic League. It officially ended the religious struggle between the two groups and made the legal division of Christendom permanent within the Holy Roman Empire. The Peace established the principle which allowed German princes to select either Lutheranism or Catholicism within the domains they controlled, ultimately reaffirming the independence they had over their states.