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Period: Nov 1, 1095 to Jan 1, 1291
Crusades are Fought
The Crusades were a series of religious and political wars fought between 1096 and 1291 for control of the Holy Land -
Jan 1, 1300
Renaissance Begins
The term 'renaissance' is derived from the French word meaning 'rebirth'. It is used to describe this phase of European history because many of the changes experienced between the 14th and 16th centuries were inspired by a revival of the classical art and intellect of Ancient Greece and Rome. -
Jan 1, 1337
100 Year War Begins
A war between France and England that lasted from the middle of the fourteenth century to the middle of the fifteenth. The kings of England invaded France, trying to claim the throne. -
Jan 1, 1347
Black Death Begins in Europe
The Black Death was an epidemic of bubonic plague, a disease caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis that circulates among wild rodents where they live in great numbers and density. Such an area is called a 'plague focus' or a 'plague reservoir'. -
May 1, 1431
Joan of Arc Burned at the Stake
Joan of Arc, a devout saint of God, was burned at the stake on charges of heresy. After a long trial that lasted over a year, three major indictments were made against her. The first of these was that she used magic because she claimed to hear voices from St. Michael, St. Margaret, and St. Catherine. -
Jan 1, 1440
Johannes Gutenberg printing press
The Gutenberg press with its wooden and later metal movable type printing brought down the price of printed materials and made such materials available for the masses. It remained the standard until the 20th century -
Period: Jan 1, 1462 to Jan 1, 1492
Columbian Exchange
The Columbian Exchange was the widespread transfer of plants, animals, culture, human populations, technology, and ideas between the Americas and the Old World in the 15th and 16th centuries -
Nov 1, 1478
Start of the Spanish Inquisition
judicial institution ostensibly established to combat heresy in Spain. In practice, the Spanish Inquisition served to consolidate power in the monarchy of the newly unified Spanish kingdom, but it achieved that end through infamously brutal methods. -
Period: Jun 28, 1491 to Jan 28, 1547
King Henry VIII Reign
King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. Henry was the second Tudor monarch, succeeding his father, Henry VII. -
Oct 12, 1492
Christopher Columbus Lands in the New World
After sailing across the Atlantic Ocean, Italian explorer Christopher Columbus sights a Bahamian island, believing he has reached East Asia. His expedition went ashore the same day and claimed the land for Isabella and Ferdinand of Spain, who sponsored his attempt to find a western ocean route to China, India, and the fabled gold and spice islands of Asia. -
Jan 1, 1506
Mona Lisa Completed 1506
The Mona Lisa is a half-length portrait painting by the Italian Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci -
Jan 1, 1508
Michelangelo begins painting the Sistine Chapel
The Sistine Chapel is one of the most famous painted interior spaces in the world, and virtually all of this fame comes from the breathtaking painting of its ceiling from about 1508-1512 -
Jan 1, 1513
'The Price"
The Prince is a 16th-century political treatise by the Italian diplomat and political theorist Niccolò Machiavelli. From correspondence a version appears to have been distributed in 1513 -
Oct 31, 1517
Martin Luther post 95 Theses
Acting on this belief, he wrote the “Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences,” also known as “The 95 Theses,” a list of questions and propositions for debate. -
Aug 13, 1521
Cortez Conquers the Aztecs
The Spanish campaign declared victorious when a coalition army of Spanish forces and native Tlaxcalan warriors led by Hernán Cortés and Xicotencatl the Younger captured the emperor Cuauhtemoc and Tenochtitlan, the capital of the Aztec Empire. -
Period: Sep 7, 1533 to Mar 24, 1558
Queen Elizabeth’s Reign
While the end of her reign had been difficult, Elizabeth has largely been remembered as being a queen who supported her people. Her lengthy time on the throne provided her subjects with stability and consistency, and her sharp wits and clever mind helped navigate the nation through religious and political challenges. Sometimes referred to as the Golden Age, the arts had a chance to blossom with Elizabeth's support. -
Period: Jan 1, 1545 to Jan 1, 1563
counter reformation
the period of Catholic resurgence initiated in response to the Protestant Reformation, beginning with the Council of Tren -
Sep 1, 1555
Peace of Augsburg
The Peace of Augsburg, also called the Augsburg Settlement, was a treaty between Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and 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 -
Aug 1, 1562
Edict of Nantes
The edict upheld Protestants in freedom of conscience and permitted them to hold public worship in many parts of the kingdom, though not in Paris. It granted them full civil rights, including access to education, and established a special court, the Chambre de l’Édit, composed of both Protestants and Catholics, to deal with disputes arising from the edict. -
Spanish Armada
a Spanish fleet of 130 ships that sailed from La Coruña in August 1588, under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia with the purpose of escorting an army from Flanders to invade England. Spanish naval invasion force sent against England was by Philip II of Spain,It was defeated by the English fleet and almost completely destroyed by storms off the Hebrides. -
William Shakespeare’s Death
Historians believe Shakespeare was born on this day in 1564, the same day he died in 1616. Although the plays of William Shakespeare may be the most widely read works in the English language, little is known for certain about the playwright himself. -
petition of rights
The Petition of Right is a major English constitutional document that sets out specific liberties of the subject that the king is prohibited from infringing. -
Period: to
slave trade
the procuring, transporting, and selling of human beings as slaves, in particular the former trade in African blacks as slaves by European countries and North America. -
King Charles the First Executed
In London, King Charles I is beheaded for treason -
Period: to
Opium War
The Opium Wars were two wars in the mid-19th century involving Anglo-Chinese disputes over British trade in China and China's sovereignty. The disputes included the First Opium War and the Second Opium War.
