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1346
Start of the Black Plague
The Black Plague also known as the bubonic plague was a massive global epidemic that mainly effected Europe. The virus originated from rats onboard a ship. Over the course of 5 years the virus killed over 20 million people in Europe. People affected by the virus become covered in black boils that oozed blood and pus. -
1368
Ming Dynasty Founded
The Ming dynasty is a Chinese dynasty that lasted from 1368 to 1644. The dynasty founded by Zhu Yuanzhang who assumed the reign title of Hongwu. This dynasty had great cultural and political influence on east Asia, the Turks, and Vietnam. Also the civil service system was perfected during the Ming dynasty. -
1401
The Florence Baptistery Door Competition
This competition was Florence's most prestigious public commission. The competition consisted of seven artist who made a bronze plaque depicting the “Sacrifice of Isaac”. These submissions were judged by a committee of thirty-four native-born citizens of Florence. Lorenzo Ghiberti ultimately won the competition and went on to work on the doors for 21 years. -
1418
Portugal Begins to Colonize the African Coast
The Portuguese wanted faster access to luxury goods found in Asia, This motivated a European quest for a faster means to reach South Asia. Consequently the Portuguese explored a huge portion of the African coast. Due to the discovery how much gold, ivory, and pepper the coast had the Portuguese started to colonize and export the goods from roughly 1415–1600. They also exported more than 175,000 slaves during this period. -
1436
Invention of the Printing Press
The printing press was invented by German goldsmith Johannes Gutenberg. Although both China and Korea had made a printing press far before Johannes Gutenberg, his invention which employed a screw-type press to press evenly on the inked metal type proved far more useful. His invention sped up the Renaissance and allowed for much great spread of information. -
1450
Formation of the Iroquois League
The Iroquois League as known as the Iroquois Confederacy was a league formed by 5 different native American tribes that all spoke the Iroquois language. The 5 groups were the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga and Seneca. This league controlled a large portion of northern US namely, New York and Pennsylvania -
May 29, 1453
Constantinople Conquered by the Ottoman Empire
The fall of Constantinople marked the end of the Byzantine Empire. The city fell after the Ottomans laid siege on the empire for 55 days. Sultan Mehmed II lead the ottoman forces during this attack. A notable fact about the siege is that the Ottomans used a massive cannon to fire constantly against the great walls of Constantinople. -
1494
Treaty of Tordesillas
Treaty of Tordesillas was a treaty to help divide the land discovered by Columbus between Spain and Portugal. Portugal was given most of what is known today as brazil. While Spain was given the rest of south America. -
1508
Michelangelo Paints the Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel
Michelangelo was commissioned by Pope Julius II to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Over the course of four years Michelangelo painted the ceiling with depictions of "The Creation of the Heavens and Earth" then "The Creation of Adam and Eve" and the "Expulsion from the Garden of Eden" and lastly the story of Noah's Arc and the Great Flood. -
Oct 31, 1517
Martin Luther’s 95 Theses Nailed To Church Door
Martin Luther's 95 Theses written in Latin argued against indulgences given by Pope Leo X. He supposedly nailed the theses against the door of the Schlosskirche (Castle Church) . This unintentionally started the beginning of the Protestant Reformation. -
1518
Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Begins
The Transatlantic slave trade was a part of the global slave trade that transported 10-12 million African slaves to the Americas. This slave trade was started by the Portuguese when they explored and colonized the coast of Africa. The demand for slaves in the us was very large due to the growth of sugar plantations in the Caribbean and tobacco in North America. -
Aug 13, 1521
Fall of Tenochtitlán
The fall of Tenochtitlán was caused by Spanish conquistadores lead by Hernán Cortés who joined forces with local tribes in order to capture the Aztec capital city of Tenochtitlán. The Spanish laid siege for 93 days on Tenochtitlán. Apart from better weapons the reason they were successful was a massive and devastating smallpox outbreak in Tenochtitlán. -
1570
Potatoes Brought to Europe
Although Columbus brought back many crops to Europe the potato eluded discovery due to thriving in the high Andes. They were discovered by the Spaniards in 1532. However the actual date potatoes were brought to Europe is not known as no account has been discovered of potatoes being brought to Europe -
Shah Abbās Becomes Leader of the Safavid Empire
Abbās I also known as Abbās the Great was the shah(leader) of the Safavid dynasty from 1588 to 1629. He is well known for removing Ottoman and Uzbek troops from Persian land. He is also known for allowing arts and commerce to flourish. Also he made Eṣfahān the capital of Persia. -
Unification of Japan Under the Tokugawa Shogunate
Tokugawa Ieyasu establishes the Tokugawa Shogunate after the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600. The the Tokugawa Shogunate lasts for 250 years of peace and order. This period of peace allows for great economic and social changes in Japan. This in turn prepared Japan for rapid modernization in the following period. -
First Enslaved Africans Arrive in the British Colonies
About 20 Angolans who were enslaved by the Portuguese arrived in the British colony of Virginia. These slaves were then purchased by the citizens of the British colony. This marked the start of a massive influx of slavery in the US. -
Trial of Galileo Galilei
Galileo Galilei was tried for heresy for holding the belief that the Earth revolves around the sun. The Catholic Church said the idea that the sun revolves around the earth was an undeniable fact of Scripture. The result was that Galileo had to spend the rest of his life under house arrest and his book of Dialogues was prohibited. -
End of the Thirty Years’ War & the Peace of Westphalia
The Thirty Years' War was a series of wars that lasted 30 years and was fought by European nations for a variety of reasons. The war caused many changes in Europe namely: Sweden became in control of the Baltic, the Netherlands became independent from Spain, and France was revealed to be the preeminent Western power. Also the Germans were able to chose their religion the Holy Roman Empire was no longer powerful. -
Pueblo Uprising
The Pueblo Uprising/Rebellion was an organized revolt against the Spanish rule in New Mexico. The Pueblo people managed to overthrow the Spanish rule for 12 years. This revolt was organized and led by Popé of the San Juan pueblo. -
Maria Sibylla Merian Publishes Metamorphosis insectorum Surinamensium
Maria Sibylla Merian was a German born scientist mainly focusing on insects. She discovered many things about plants and insects that were not previously known. In 1699 she sailed to south America to study insects. He discovery were later published in her book, " Metamorphosis insectorum Surinamensium".
