-
1300
The Renaissance Begins
-
Period: Jan 1, 1300 to
From the Renaissance to the Thirty Years War-Jacob Schwier
-
Jul 20, 1304
Petrarch "the Father of Humanism" is born
He is born in Arezzo where he grows up in the house of his father who is a Lawyer. He was then sent to France then Italy to study law. He began to write vernacular poetry that started to influence ideas of individualism, and to bring together the ideas of classical and Christian cultures. -
Mar 4, 1394
Prince Henry the Navigator is Born
He began the Age of Exploration by becoming the sponsor of all the Portuguese explorers as they tried to find a water route to India. -
1433
The Medici Family Become Ruler's of Florence
Cosimo Medici returns to Florence after being banished for a year and takes control of the city with the People and the Pope behind him. -
1450
Gutenberg invents Printing Press
Johannes Gutenberg invents the Printing Press creating a revolution of knowledge and learning that would soon spawn a rebirth of writings and knowledge. The Bible was the first book printing using it. -
Apr 6, 1453
The Fall of Constantinople
The Ottoman Empire invaded and conquered Constantinople from the Byzantine Empire and started to block trade to the East for Europe. -
Oct 19, 1469
Marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain
The marriage of Queen Isabella of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon unified the Catholic Spanish nations. -
Feb 19, 1473
Birth of Copernicus
A Polymath, Genius, and a Frenchman. He was a main proponent on the Heliocentric Theory which states that the Earth orbits around the sun. -
Oct 12, 1492
Columbus Discovers America
The Italian Explorer Christopher Columbus stepped foot in the Caribbean and became the first European in almost 500 years to journey there. This reopened the way for Europeans to come to the New World. -
1506
Leonardo Da Vinci Creates the Mona Lisa
Created when he fled to Florence after his patrons were attacked he created a 21 by 31-inch portrait of a woman that has become the subject of speculation for centuries. Da Vinci was a thinker and innovator that created many inventions studied many subjects and painted many fine paintings. He died in 1519 -
Oct 31, 1517
Martin Luther Nails the 95 Theses on the Church Door
Martin Luther wrote the 95 Theses a criticism of the corruptness of the Catholic Church. These writings were considered the main causes of the Reformation which caused a schism in Christianity and for the Catholic Church to change its laws. -
1532
Machiavelli's "The Prince" was written
The Most Remembered of Machiavelli's works, this short treatise was published 5 years after his death and was a political commentary on the runnings of Princedoms, and Kingdoms of Europe at the time. Considered the first work of modern philosophy -
1534
Ignatius of Loyola
He was a Spanish priest who grew up to become a Saint in the Catholic Church. He founded the Jesuit Order and became one of the Most Influential People in the Counter-Reformation. -
1536
John Calvin creates the Institutes of the Christian Religion
John Calvin was a french man who created his own form of Christianity during the Reformation. This form was called Calvinism and was mainly a tool to press his political beliefs upon people. -
Nov 17, 1558
Queen Elizabeth I ascends to the throne of England
Queen Elizabeth I was 25 when she took the throne of England. She was called the virgin queen because she never married making her the last monarch of the house of Tudor. She formally created what would become the Church of England. She also was the monarch to grant permission for Sir Walter Raliegh to found the Roanoke Colony in North Carolina. -
Birth of Descartes
Descartes was a native of the Kingdom of France but spent most of his 20 years in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. He is considered one of the founders of modern philosophies. -
Shakespeare's Era of Tragedies: Years he wrote Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, and Macbeth
William Shakespeare was an English Playwrite, poet, storyteller, and is considered the greatest writer in the English language to date. He was called by Ben Jonson- "He was not of an age, but for all time." -
Galileo Discovers the 4 Largest Moons of Jupiter
Galileo is the person that confirmed the Heliocentric theory. He was excommunicated by the Church for his beliefs, but his beliefs led to Copernicus's theory being confirmed. -
The Start of the English Civil Wars
The English Civil Wars was between the supporters of the Kings and the Parlement. This ended with the English Monarchy being banished from the isles until they were called back during the Glorious Revolution -
Period: to
Wars of the Three Kingdoms
The British Civil Wars were a period of unrest and strife formed by the intertwined conflicts of the Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland. -
King Louis XIV of France Takes the Throne
Louis the Great is the longest-ruling king in the history of France with a reign of 72 years and 110 days. He was the most absolute ruler in all of Europe and controlled every aspect of his people's lives. He also created the Treaty of Nantes which removed all rights for Protestant Christians in France. -
Second English Civil War
Series of conflicts that included England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. Parliamentarians vs Royalists (backed by the Scottish engagers) -
End of the Thirty Years War: The Signing of the Treaties of Westphalia
The Thirty Years War was a series of wars between the protestant and catholic nations of Europe that started because the Emperor of the HRE forced Catholic Principles upon his Protestant subjects and they rebelled. -
Period: to
From the End of the 30 Years war to the Industrial Revolution-Jonathan Emons
-
Peter the Great of Russia
Became the king of Russia, further westernization the country and expanding the Tsardom. Also known for developing one of the biggest cities in Russia today, St. Petersburg. -
Glorious Revolution
Shifted England from an absolute monarchy to constitutional monarchy. -
Voltaire
French philosopher famous for his criticism to christianity and his advocacy to freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and separation of church and state. -
Invention of the Steam Engine
Created by Thomas Savery, this machine can effectively draw water from flooded mines using steam pressure. -
Frederick the Great of Prussia
The last Hohenzollern monarch. Expanded Prussia's borders through conflict and war furthering the country's strength. Very influential military theorist. -
American Revolutionary War
Thirteen colonies declaring independence from Great Britain over their objection to the Parliament's direct taxes and lack of colonial representation causing a 8 year war. -
French Revolution
Period of social and political upheaval in France and it's colonies. Revolution overthrew the monarchy and installed a Republic. -
Invention of the Cotton Gin
A machine that revolutionized the production of cotton by greatly speeding up the process of removing seeds. -
Robespierre
French lawyer and statesman, known for being one of the most influential figures in the French Revolution. Played an important role in the collapse of the French monarchy. -
Napoleon Bonaparte
French statesman and military leader who became notorious for being an artillery commander during the French Revolution. Led many successful campaigns during the French Revolutionary Wars and became leader of France in 1804. -
Congress of Vienna
One of the most important international conferences in European history. It remade Europe after the downfall of Napoleon's rule in France. -
Birth of Otto von Bismarck
German conservative statesman who masterminded the unification of Germany and served as the first chancellor of Germany. -
Battle of Waterloo
A battle fought during the Napoleonic Wars near Belgium. French Army led by Napoleon was defeated by Coalition forces marking the end of the Napoleonic Wars. -
Communist Manifesto
Political document by German philosophers Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. The Manifesto of the Communist Party. -
Revolutions of 1848
Series of republican revolts against monarchies beginning in Sicily and spreading to France, Germany, Italy and Austria. All ended in failure and caused widespread disillusionment among liberals. -
Unification of Italy
IN the town of Moncalieri, the Proclamation of Moncalieri was signed, forming the Kingdom of Italy, along with a cabinet under Massimo d’Azeglio. -
Period: to
From the Industrial Revolution to Today-Michael Calkins
-
The Start of the Crimean War
After Russian demands to exercise protection over the Ottoman Sultan's Orthodox Subjects and conflicts with the French over the privileges of the Russian Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches in the holy places of Palestine, erupting in a war between the Russians and the British, French, and Ottomans. -
End of the Crimean War
After the signing of the Treaty of Paris, the integrity of the Ottoman Empire was guaranteed, Russia had to surrender southern Bessarabia, the Black Sea was neutralized, and the Danube was opened to shipping of all nations. -
Conquering of Sicily and Naples
After his exile in South America, Garibaldi became a master at Guerrilla Warfare, along with experience defending allied Italian Territories there. He led a guerrilla campaign that resulted in him conquering Sicily and Naples, Italy's larger city, which he then promptly handed over to Victor Emmanuel. -
Unification of Germany
After the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-1871, the German states were proclaimed under the banner of the German Empire -
Joseph Stalin is Born
He is born in Georgia to a poor abusive cobbler father and washerwoman mother, growing up reading Marx and other forbidden texts whilst working at a theological society. -
Garibaldi's Death
After his service in the Risorgimento, he became a political thinker, announcing his opinions on the goings-on of Italy, and espousing the beliefs of women's emancipation, racial equality, labor rights, and the abolition of capital punishment. His legacy is his undisputed mastery of Guerrilla warfare and humility, giving him a distinct spot in all of Italian history. -
Death of Otto von Bismarck
After resigning from being Chancellor of Germany in 1890 at the age of 75 years old, Bismarck spent the rest of his days issuing sharp critiques of his successors, writing memoirs which became best sellers, wrought with a sense of failure that never passed him by. -
Beginning of World War 1
After a complex series of military alliances after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and spurred on by nationalism, the Major Powers of Europe, split into two groups, the Entente and the Central Powers, went to war. -
The Bolshevik Revolution
After the humiliation of Russia's military in World War 1 as well as food shortages in the capital of Petrograd, the people had revolted, firstly against the imperial government, and eventually coming under the banner of the Bolsheviks through persuasion of the workers with phrases like "peace, land and bread", headed by Vladimir Lenin, ending in the formation of the USSR after a second revolution put the Bolsheviks in power. -
Lenin returns to Petrograd
One month after the Tsar had been forcefully abdicated, Lenin started the foundations to seizing power in the Provisional Government. -
World War 1 Ends
After all of the Central Powers but Germany had surrendered,
with them being surrounded on every front, and revolution right around the corner from a discontented public, the Germans decided to settle for peace terms. -
Lenin gains full control over Russia
After a grueling civil war, Lenin had crushed all of the opposition, instating policies to silence any dissonance the people had, with "show" trials and frequently resorting to the death penalty. -
Stalin's Rise to Power
Stalin takes charge after Lenin dies, creating a cult of personality and reworking Lenin's NEP into a 5-year state-mandated industrialization plan. -
Death of Vladimir Lenin
He suffered a stroke, leaving behind a party whose future was insecure according to him. -
Great Depression begins
A recession accelerated into a world-wide depression leaving enormous economic impacts. -
Hitler becomes Chancellor of Germany
Hitler's final step to seizing power over all of Germany was actualized. -
Spanish Civil War Begins
The Hitler-backed Fascists led by Franco Francisco and the Mixed bunch of not-Fascists supported by the Allies and USSR erupted in a conflict lasting for 3 years. -
Great Depression Ends
After a multitude of programs, switching off the gold standard, and boosted wartime economies, the world was able to bounce back from this worldwide recession. -
Spanish Civil War Ends
All of the opposing forces of the Fascists were routed, leading in the Fascist takeover of Spain. -
World War 2 Begins
After creating a treaty of mutual defense, the UK and France declare war on Nazi Germany after it began the invasion of Poland, with the USSR not intervening. -
Pearl Harbor
Years of worsening relations between the US and Japan culminated in a surprise attack by the Japanese on Pearl Harbor, leading to the public wanting to cast away neutrality to respond to the offense they had suffered. -
World War 2 Ends
After the fall of Germany in the spring of 1945 and the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Japanese surrendered, with the last formal declaration being held in Nanjing. -
Cold War Begins
After the end of World War 2, no longer having a common enemy in Nazi Germany, the tensions between the alliances of the USA and the USSR developed into a decades-long period of period of proxy-wars, intelligence wars, and espionage. -
NATO Established
NATO was formed as an opposite force to the military might of the Warsaw Pact between the US, Canada, and many of the non-communist Western European countries. -
Stalin's Death
He died suddenly after ordering the death of a group of Doctors, leaving rumors of Foul Play. -
Bay of Pigs Invasion
After Fidel Castro led a coup and became the Communist leader of Cuba, the US funded a counter-coup by 1,500 exiled Cubans. -
Prague Spring
It was a brief period of Liberalization in Czechoslovakia headed by Alexander Dubček, giving freedom to Slovakia, granting freedom of the Press, rehabilitating victims of Stalin's purge, formed a revised constitution that guarenteed civil rights and liberties, and much more. -
The Berlin Wall Falls
After a trend of democratization in Eastern Europe, the East German Government opened up borders between East and West Germany, ceasing the Wall's function as a political barrier between these two countries. -
Cold War Ends
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, with 15 new countries springing out of it's corpse and newly elected anti-communist leaders, the era of proxy wars and espionage came to an end. -
Fall of the Soviet Union
After the reforms of Mikhail Gorbachev, growing discontentment with the Soviet Union, and growing power of non-communist parties, the government was reborn as a new republic. -
Maastricht Treaty became effective.
This treaty established the EU, formed a central banking system, common currency, cooperation of issues like policing, the environment, etc., and much more. -
September 11th Terrorist Attacks
After 19 militants associated with Al-Qaeda hijacked planes and headed suicide attacks in New York, specifically the Twin Towers, The Pentagon, and Pennsylvania, killing 2,974 civilians in the process, and killing around 400 police and firemen in New York alone, leading to a wave of support for counter-terrorist efforts by the US.