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Jan 1, 1449
Birth of Lorenzo de' Medici
Lorenzo de' Medici was an Italian statesman, de facto ruler of the Florentine Republic and the most powerful and enthusiastic patron of Renaissance culture in Italy. Also known as Lorenzo the Magnificent by contemporary Florentines, he was a magnate, diplomat, politician and patron of scholars, artists and poets. -
1455
Gutenberg prints the first Bible
The Gutenberg Bible was the first major book printed using mass-produced movable metal type in Europe. It marked the start of the "Gutenberg Revolution" and the age of the printed book in the West. Widely praised for its high aesthetic and artistic qualities, the book has an iconic status. -
1492
Columbus discover the new world
Columbus set sail from Palos, Spain, with three small ships, the Santa Maria, the Pinta, and the Nina. -
1503
Leonardo da Vinci paints the Mona Lisa
The Mona Lisa is a half-length portrait painting by the Italian Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci that has been described as "the best known, the most visited, the most written about, the most sung about, the most parodied work of art in the world". -
1504
Michelangelo sculpts David
The statue represents the Biblical hero David, a favoured subject in the art of Florence. -
1517
Martin Luther Post 95 Theses on the door of Castle Church
Martin Luther approaches the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany, and nails a piece of paper to it containing the 95 revolutionary opinions that would begin the Protestant Reformation. -
1532
Niccolo machiavelli writes the prince
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, using a Latin title, De Principatibus. -
1534
Founding of the society of jesus by ignatius of loyola
The first Jesuits–Ignatius and six of his students–took vows of poverty and chastity and made plans to work for the conversion of Muslims. -
1536
John Calvin publishes Institutes of the Christian Religion
The book was written as an introductory textbook on the Protestant creed for those with some previous knowledge of theology and covered a broad range of theological topics from the doctrines of church and sacraments to justification by faith alone and Christian liberty. -
1543
nicolaus copernicus publishes on the revolutions of heavenly spheres
Copernicus initially outlined his system in a short, untitled, anonymous manuscript that he distributed to several friends, referred to as the Commentariolus. -
1564
William Shakespeare is born
William Shakespeare was an English poet, playwright and actor, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's greatest dramatist. -
Galileo invents a thermometer
Galileo Galilei discovered that the density of liquids reacts predictably to changes in temperature.
