West and the World

The Bubonic Plague Begins

Jan 1, 1348

The bubonic plague was an outbreak of the disease which devistated Europe where it killed around one third of it's population. It travelled from Central Asia on black rats and found it's way to Europe through merchant ships. It peaked in Europe for about 2 years (between 1348 and 1350) killing from 75 million to 200 million people.

Renaissance begins

Jan 1, 1350

The Renaissance was a cultural movement and rebirth after the horrible Black death. It affected intellegence level in the Early Modern Europe period. It influenced almost every aspect (art, music, politics etc.). Starting in Italy, it spread to most of europe by the 16th century.

Brunelleschi creates Linear Perspective

Jan 1, 1420

Brunelleschi is famous for two panel paintings creating linear perpective. In his famous experiment he painted two panels, the first of an unfinished cathedral, and the other of a man seen in the building's northwest corner. Doing this he was one of the first to create accurate linear perpective.

Joan of Arc and the Siege of Orleans

Oct 12, 1428

The Siege of Orleans between France and England resulted in Joan of Arc and France winning an absolute victory. It happened during the Hundered Years' War between France and England. This was so significant because it was a turning point of the Hundered Years' War and Joan of Arc's first real military victory.

Johann Gutenburg invents the printing press

Jan 1, 1445

Gutenburg developed the printing system using existing technologies and also incorporated some of his own inventions into his desgin. This new printing system would be able to produve 3,600 pages per workday.

Cosimo de' Medici dies

Aug 1, 1464

Cosimo de' Medici represented the Medici bank and was the most wealthy man of the time period. He controlled Florence, Italy, his hometown, and his famiily name held this powerful position for generations. He died on August 1st 1464 at an age of 74.

Spanish Inquisition Begins

Jan 1, 1480

Was a tribunal established by Catholic Monarchs intended to replace the Medieval Inquisition and keep Catholic Orthodox in their country.

Sandro Botticelli paints Birth of Venus

Jan 1, 1486

One of Botticelli's most famous paintings. It was hung in the country cilla of the Medici. The Birth of Venus is a very recognisable piece of art in art history.

Columbus discovers the America's

Jan 1, 1492

Christopher Columbus was known for his love of travelling and finding new land. He went on a total of four Voyages. In 1492 he discovered the Americas and was the reason why we know of North America today.

Leonardo da Vinci paints The Last Supper

Jan 1, 1495

The Last Supper, a very famous painting by da Vinci, represents Jesus and his deciples eating his last supper before he is crucified.

Michelangelo paints the Sistine Chapel

Jan 1, 1508

The Sistine Chapel painting was painted directly on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, hence the name, by Michelangelo. Comissioned by the Pope of the Chapel, it took Michelangelo about 4 years to complete.

Raphael paints the School of Athens

Jan 1, 1510

The School of Athens represents the great scientist, philosophers, and mathematicians of the time period. The painting shows all of these people gathered together learning from each other.This is another one of the most famous paintings ever.

Machiavelli writes the Prince

Jan 1, 1513

The Prince was written by Niccolo Machiavelli in 1513. It was written in Italian and it was one of the first works of modern philosophy.

Thomas More writes Utopia

Jan 1, 1516

Utopia was published in 1516 and is a fiction book written by Thams More. It was originally written in Latin but was translated to english in 1551. It was about a firctional island society and its religious, social, and political characheristics.

Martin Luther 95 Theses

Oct 31, 1517

The 95 Theses began as a protest letter to Albert of Mainz which was protesting against the sale of indulges which were cards that you would buy from the Catholic Church to "buy" your way into heaven. Martin Luther called his letter "Disputation of Martin Luther on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences". It later became known as the 95 Theses. The 95 thesis was written in latin. On this day, it was posted on the door of the Castle Church of Wittenberg. This was a brave act on Luther's part.

Start of the European Wars of Religion

Jan 1, 1524

The European Wars of Religion started in 1524 and lasted until 1697. It consisted of series of wars and was obviously fought over religion.

Ivan the Terrible is born

Aug 25, 1530

Ivan IV Vasilyevich was the Hreand Prince of Moscow which he created to be centrally controlled. He was a military dominant by which he acquired insane amounts of land using ruthless tactics.

Jesuit Order founded by Ignatius Loyola

Jan 1, 1534

Was also called the Society of Jesus. The rules for the group were written by Ignatius and is called the Tormula of the Institue. People in this group were called Jesuits and were known for working with education, research, missionaries, and cultural pursuits.

Desiderius Erasmus dies

Jul 12, 1536

Desiderius Erasmus was also known as Erasmus of Rotterdam. He was a Catholic priest, teacher, theologian, social critic, and a renaissance humanist. He was said to be the best scholar of his time who was involved in the publication of the Greek New Testament. He died on July 12 1536.

Henry VIII of England excommunicated

Dec 17, 1538

Henry VIII had already done questionable things that caused his excommunication. First of all he broke off his marriage and married someone else. He also declared himself "Supreme Head of the Churh of England". Because these things, Pope Paul II excommunicated him from the Catholic Church.

Scientific Revolution

Jan 1, 1543

The Scientific Revolution, otherwise known as the Copernican Revolution was established by Nicolaus Copernicus. It showed that the earth was not at the center of our solar system and that it is actually revolving around the sun. It was the foundation of the Scientific Revolution.

Spain declares bankruptcy for the first time

Jan 1, 1557

In 1557 Philip II of Spain had to declare bankruptcy. When Philip II started as leader of spain he was left with about 36 million dollars of dept. This made it hard from the start for him as a leader of spain.

Coronation of Queen Elizabeth I

Jan 15, 1559

Queen Elizabeth became queen at the age of 25. She made a speech of her intentions to the Council before the coronation happened. The actual coronation was the traditional way as it always is in England which is placeing the crown upon the head and usually dubbing the person with a sword.

Saint Bartholomew's Massacre

Aug 23, 1572

The St. Bartholomew's Day massacre started out as King Charles IX of France persuaded by his mother, Catherine de Medici, to assassinate Huguenot Protestant leaders in Paris which resulted in the killing of thousands of huguenots.

Edict of Nantes

Apr 13, 1598

Edict of Nantes was a set of laws passed by Henry IV in France to give Huguenots certain rights which were considered to be Catholic. With the Edict of Nantes, Henry IV attempted to create civil agreement.