Important Events In Europe

  • Bubonic Plague begins
    Jan 1, 1337

    Bubonic Plague begins

    One of the most devastating pandemics in human history. It is estimated to have killed 30-60% of Europes population.
  • Renaissance begins
    Jan 1, 1350

    Renaissance begins

    The Renaissance was an intellectual and artistic movement. It was a period of revolutionary changes and a rebirth or revival.
  • Brunelleschi creates Linear Perspective
    Jan 1, 1413

    Brunelleschi creates Linear Perspective

    Linear perspective changed the way people saw art. It gave depth to paintings that up until now were two dimensional.
  • Joan of Arc and the Siege of Orleans
    Jan 1, 1429

    Joan of Arc and the Siege of Orleans

    The Siege of Orleans marked a turning point in the Hundred Years War between England an France. This was the first major military victory for Joan of Arc.
  • Johann Gutenberg invents the printing press
    Jan 1, 1439

    Johann Gutenberg invents the printing press

    The invention of the mechanical movable type printing was the begininng of the Printing Revolution. It is also considered to be one of the most important inventions of the modern period and spread knowledge to the masses.
  • Cosimo de Medici dies
    Aug 1, 1464

    Cosimo de Medici dies

    Cosimo marked the begininng of the Medici political dynasty in Florence. Had a key role in Renaissance.
  • Spanish Inquisition begins
    Jan 1, 1478

    Spanish Inquisition begins

    It was intended to maintain Catholic orthodoxy and to ensure the orthodoxy of those who converted from Judaism to Islam and became one of the most deadly inquisitions in history.
  • Sandro Botticelli paints the Birth of Venus
    Jan 1, 1486

    Sandro Botticelli paints the Birth of Venus

    It depicts the Goddess Venus emerging from the sea as a fully grown woman. She is painted in a way that is thought to have been done so that it brings pleasure to the viewer.
  • Columbus discovers the America's
    Jan 1, 1492

    Columbus discovers the America's

    His discovery of America lead to a lasting contact between Europe and America. He started a period of exploration and colonization of foreign lands that lasted for many years.
  • Raphael paints The School of Athens
    Jan 1, 1510

    Raphael paints The School of Athens

    It is one of the most famous frescoes that was painted by Raphael. It has been viewed as "Raphael's masterpiece and the perfect embodiment of the classical spirit of the High Renaissance"
  • Machiavelli writes the Prince
    Jan 1, 1512

    Machiavelli writes the Prince

    The Prince is a political treatise that is claimed by some to be the first work of modern philosophy.
  • Michelangelo paints the Sistine Chapel
    Jan 1, 1514

    Michelangelo paints the Sistine Chapel

    It was commissioned by Pope Julius II and is considered a cornerstone work of High Renaissance art.
  • Thomas More Utopia
    Jan 1, 1514

    Thomas More Utopia

    Utopia is a fictional work of political philosophy. It is a frame story about a fictional island society and the political, religious and social customs.
  • Martin Luther 95 Theses
    Jan 1, 1517

    Martin Luther 95 Theses

    The 95 theses are widely regarded to have accelerated the Protestant Reformation. His disputation protested clerical abuses primarily the sale of indulgences.
  • Ivan the Terrible is born
    Aug 25, 1530

    Ivan the Terrible is born

    Was the Grand Prince of Moscow from 1533 until his death in 1584. He was described as devout and intelligent, but often was prone to rages and out braks of mental illness
  • Henry VIII of England excommunictaed
    Jan 1, 1533

    Henry VIII of England excommunictaed

    Henry VIII was excommunicated for divorcing his first wife Catherine of Argon and marrying Anne Boleyn.
  • Jesuit Order founded by Ignatius Loyola
    Jan 1, 1534

    Jesuit Order founded by Ignatius Loyola

    It was founded to "strive especially for the propagation and defense of the faith and progress of souls in Christian life and docterine". They participateed in the Counter-Reformation. Jesuits are also known as "God's Marines".
  • Desiderius Erasmus dies
    Jul 12, 1536

    Desiderius Erasmus dies

    Was a classical scholar who wrote in pure Latin style. He was a supporter of religious toleration and was nicknamed "Prince of the Humanists" He converted the New Testament from Greek to Latin.
  • Scientific Revolution/ Copernocus
    Jan 1, 1550

    Scientific Revolution/ Copernocus

    Tthe Scientific Revolution is an era during which new ideas and knowledge in chemistry, biology, physics, astronomy and medicine changed the views of medieval nature and made way for modern science. Nicolaus Copernocus was an astronomer during the Renaissance and was the first person to realize that the earth and other planets revolve around the sun.
  • Spain declares bankruptcy for the first time
    Jan 1, 1557

    Spain declares bankruptcy for the first time

    Charles V had left Phillip II with a tremendous amount of debt of approximately 36 million ducats and an annual deficit of 1 million ducats. This caused him to declare bankruptcy first in 1557, then again in 1560, 1575 and 1596.
  • Coronation of Queen Elizabeth I
    Jan 1, 1558

    Coronation of Queen Elizabeth I

    Elizabeth I was the daugther of Henrey VIII and Anne Boleyn. She rset out to rule by good counsel and heavily depended on a group of advisors. One of her first acts as queen was establishing an English Protestant Church and becoming the Supreme Governor of it.
  • Start of European Wars of Religion
    Jan 1, 1560

    Start of European Wars of Religion

    The European Wars of Religion were a series of wars that waged in Europe following the beginning of the Protestant Reformation in Northern and Western Europe.
  • Saint Bartholomew's Massacre
    Jan 1, 1572

    Saint Bartholomew's Massacre

    It was a targeted group of assassinations followed by Roman Catholic mob violence toward the Huguenots during the Wars of Religion. It is believed to have been instigated by Catherine de Medici.
  • da Vinci paints The Last Supper

    da Vinci paints The Last Supper

    The Last Supper is a mural in Milan that was painted by Leonardo da Vinci for the Duke Ludovico Sforza and duchess Beatrice d'Este. The scene is one the final days of Jesus where he tells his 12 apostles that one of them will betray him.
  • Edict of Nantes

    Edict of Nantes

    The Edict of Nantes was issued by Henry IV of France and granted the Huguenots substantial rights in an area that was still mostly Catholic. The Edict was mostly aimed to create civil unity. It treated protestants for the first time as more than schismatics and heretics, and opened a path for tolerance.