Renaissance/Refformation/Scientific Revolution Timeline

  • 1395

    Gutenberg

    Gutenberg
    Johan Gutenberg is credited for the printing press. He started experimenting with printing in 1438. He printed the first book with moveable type in 1455. His invention lead to the printing revolution.
  • 1400

    Humanism

    Humanism
    Humanism was the focus more on the individual. This idea began during the Renaissance. As people were discovering more of the arts and nature, people focused on making it more realistic, in proportions, and turned away from only religious arts and religion being in everything they do.
  • 1415

    Perspective

    Perspective
    Perspective in art began during the Renaissance. Artists wanted to create more realistic artwork. Perspective and depth provided this effect.
  • 1440

    Printing Revolution

    Printing Revolution
    The printing revolution was a major event beginning in the Renaissance. Johann Gutenberg created the first printing press with movable type. This invention lead to printing books and printing more bibles and slowly the people started learning to read and books became a lot cheaper.
  • 1452

    Leonardo da Vinci

    Leonardo da Vinci
    Da Vinci was a painter, architect, inventor, and scientist. He was known as a Renaissance man, well rounded in many areas. His most famous works of art are the Mona Lisa, and The Last Supper.
  • 1466

    Erasmus

    Erasmus
    Erasmus was a huge figure in the humanist movement. He was a high end scholar and philosopher. He translated the New Testament of the Bible to Greek.
  • 1469

    Machiavelli

    Machiavelli
    Niccolo Machiavelli was a writer during the Renaissance. Best known for his book, "The Prince". This book was his thoughts and ideas on how to rule a country and political theory.
  • 1471

    Albrecht Durer

    Albrecht Durer
    Durer was a painter, printmaker, and theorist of the German Renaissance. He is best known for his high quality wood cut prints. Taking human anatomy, and animals and creating art in a realistic way.
  • 1473

    Copernicus

    Copernicus
    Copernicus is known for concept of in which the sun, rather than the earth, is the center of the solar system. His discoveries and findings were banned from the Catholic Church. He was an important figure in the Scientific Revolution for his scientific findings.
  • 1475

    Michelangelo

    Michelangelo
    Michelangelo was a sculptor, painter, poet, and architect. He is one of the most famous Italian Renaissance artists. His most famous works are The statue of David, and the ceiling of Rome's Sistine Chapel.
  • 1478

    Thomas More

    Thomas More
    More was an journalist, lawyer, philosopher, and saint. Most famous for his book Utopia. During the Renaissance, this book was groundbreaking as it was a vision for a perfect society, in a way addressing what was wrong with the society they lived in back then.
  • 1483

    Raphael

    Raphael
    Raphael was an architect, and painter. He was a leading figure in the Italian Renaissance. Known for his series of "Madonnas". Raphael created architecture in this series along with oil paintings.
  • 1483

    Martin Luther

    Martin Luther
    Marin Luther was the Protestant Reformation Leader. He is best known for his 95 Theses. This was an article of complaints against the Catholic Church, which lead to breaking away from the church and starting his own branch of Christianity religion, Lutheranism.
  • 1489

    Thomas Cranmer

    Thomas Cranmer
    Cranmer was a leader of the English Reformation. He became the Archbishop of Canterbury. He is responsible for establishing the basic structures of the Church of England.
  • 1491

    Henry VIII

    Henry VIII
    King Henry VIII was the king of England. He instigated the English Reformation. Keyed the term Tudor Days, and was one of the biggest Kings of England ever, with several health issues.
  • 1500

    Sale of Indulgences

    Sale of Indulgences
    An Indulgence is, in simple words, paying the church to forgive your sins. The church made the selling of indulgences a huge "fundraiser" from themselves, as people believed if they paid all this money to make their sins away they would go to heaven.
  • 1500

    Scientific Method

    Scientific Method
    The scientific method is a series of events that scientists perform to prove their idea through experiments. Galileo used this method a lot through his experiments. Francis Bacon originated the idea behind the scientific method, but Galileo and other uprising scientists utilized it.
  • 1509

    John Calvin

    John Calvin
    John Calvin was Martin Luther's successor. He had a major impact on the Protestant doctrines. He believed in predestination. That there were saints and sinners, and you were born one or the other. He went on to live in Geneva, Switzerland and lead their community.
  • 1533

    Elizabeth I

    Elizabeth I
    Elizabeth was the Queen of England. She claimed the throne young and was Queen for 44 years. She kept England stable throughout wars and political issues, and now has "The Elizabeth Era" named after her.
  • 1543

    Heliocentric Theory

    Heliocentric Theory
    Theory proposed by Copernicus. He found the sun was the center of the universe not the Earth. Also that there were other planets and other moons surrounding them.
  • 1561

    Francis Bacon

    Francis Bacon
    Bacon was a Lawyer, Academic, Academic, and Scientist. Known best for promoting the scientific method. This method is used to prove experiments and observations to be true.
  • 1564

    Shakespeare

    Shakespeare
    William Shakespeare was a Renassisance author. He wrote plays, and acted. He wrote plays very dramatically and emotionally. His most famous play is Romeo and Juliet.
  • 1564

    Galileo

    Galileo
    Galileo Galilei was an astronomer, mathematician, physicist, philosopher and professor. He improved the telescope and made serval observations on the solar system that were groundbreaking during this time period. The church accused him of heresy for his observations. Galileo was a very intelligent man in the scientific world, and is known as, "The Father of Modern Science."
  • Rene Descartes

    Rene Descartes
    Descartes was an Philosopher, Academic, Mathematician, and Scientist. He was a well educated man who is the father of modern philosophy. He had started fresh with his new philosophy and by forgetting the past which was more feeling based, and started focusing on facts and scientific reasoning.
  • Isaac Newton

    Isaac Newton
    Newton was an Astronomer, Physicist, Philosopher, Scientist, and Mathematician. Known for his law of gravitation. Newton was an important Scientific Revolution figure.