16th century

(15th century - 16th century - 17th century - more centuries)

As a means of recording the passage of time, the 16th century was that century which lasted from 1501 to 1600.

Table of contents

1 Events 2 Significant people 3 Inventions, discoveries, introductions 4 Decades and years

Events

• The modern square root symbol is first used.
• Poland is the largest state in Europe and has its Polish Golden Age.
• Portugal conquers the Sultanate of Malacca. Start of European colonisation in South-East Asia. (1511)
• Castile invades the kingdom of Navarre (1512).
• The Ottoman Empire reaches its peak during the reign of sultan Suleiman the Magnificent (reigned 1520-1566). Troops of the Ottoman Empire lay siege upon Vienna, but fail to conquer the city (1529)
• European explorers explore the New World. Spain conquers the Aztec Empire in Central America (1521) and the Incan Empire in South America (1533), resulting in the destruction of the native civilizations of Mesoamerica and the Andes. Vast increase in amount of gold in circulation in Europe. The horse introduced to the Americas.
• First circumnavigation of the globe by a ship of Ferdinand Magellan's expedition. Only one ship survived the journey, under the command of the Basque captain Sebastian Elkano (1522).
• Protestant reform of the Christian church in several countries in Northern Europe.
  • In the Diet of Speyer, a group of princes and imperial cities of the Holy Roman Empire sign a protestation against the Edict of Worms. This marks their support of Lutheranism (1529).
  • Poland choose religious tolerance.
    • Polish writers are eager to discuss religious differences. They print their works in the Polish language for the first time.
  • King Henry VIII of England breaks with Roman Catholic Church and forms Church of England (1533)
  • French Wars of Religion between Catholics and Huguenots in France (1562 - 1598).
• Copernicus publishes his theory that the Earth and the other planets revolve around the Sun (1543)
• The Council of Trent (1545 - 1563), one of the ecumenical councils of the Catholic Church, defined a large number of new dogmas in response to the Protestant Reformation.
• In the Dutch revolt of 1568-1648, a small nation gained independence from the superpower of the day (Spain).
• Poland and Lithuania form the Commonwealth (1569 - 1795)
• Gregorian Calendar adopted by Catholic countries (1582)
• After the Fall of Antwerp (1585), many of its merchants fled to Amsterdam

Significant people

• Michelangelo Buonarroti, Italian painter and sculptor (1475 - 1564).
• Thomas More, English politician and author (1478 - 1535).
• Martin Luther, German religious reformer (1483 - 1546).
• Hernán Cortés, Spanish Conquistador (1485 - 1547).
• King Henry VIII of England, founder of Anglicanism (1491 - 1547).
• King Francis I of France, considered the first Renaissance monarch of his Kingdom (1494 - 1547).
• Suleiman the Magnificent, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire. Conqueror and legal reformer (1494 - 1566).
• Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor and the first to reign as King of Spain. Involved in almost constant conflict with France and the Ottoman Empire while promoting the Spanish colonization of the Americas (1500 - 1558).
• King Philip II of Spain, self-proclaimed leader of Counter-Reformation (1527 - 1598).
• Queen Elizabeth I of England, central figure of the Elizabethan era (1533 - 1603).
• Miguel de Cervantes, Spanish author (1547 - 1616).
• King Henry IV of France and Navarre, ended the French Wars of Religion and reunited the kingdom under his command (1553 - 1610).
• William Shakespeare, English author (1564 - 1616).

Inventions, discoveries, introductions

• Introduction of the spinning wheel revolutionizes textile production.
• New world crops such as maize corn, potatoes, chocolate, and tomatoes, become known to Europeans.

Decades and years

1490s	1490	1491	1492	1493	1494	1495	1496	1497	1498	1499
1500s	1500	1501	1502	1503	1504	1505	1506	1507	1508	1509
1510s	1510	1511	1512	1513	1514	1515	1516	1517	1518	1519
1520s	1520	1521	1522	1523	1524	1525	1526	1527	1528	1529
1530s	1530	1531	1532	1533	1534	1535	1536	1537	1538	1539
1540s	1540	1541	1542	1543	1544	1545	1546	1547	1548	1549
1550s	1550	1551	1552	1553	1554	1555	1556	1557	1558	1559
1560s	1560	1561	1562	1563	1564	1565	1566	1567	1568	1569
1570s	1570	1571	1572	1573	1574	1575	1576	1577	1578	1579
1580s	1580	1581	1582	1583	1584	1585	1586	1587	1588	1589
1590s	1590	1591	1592	1593	1594	1595	1596	1597	1598	1599
1600s	1600	1601	1602	1603	1604	1605	1606	1607	1608	1609