Explore 151 historical events from 1540–1549.
Franciscus Junius the Elder was a Reformed scholar, Protestant reformer and theologian. Born in Bourges in central France, he initially studied law, but later decided to study theo…
Franciscus Junius, French theologian (died 1602)
Don Carlos, Prince of Asturias, was the eldest son and heir apparent of King Philip II of Spain. His mother was Maria Manuela of Portugal, daughter of John III of Portugal. Carlos …
Carlos, Prince of Asturias (died 1568)
In England and Wales, the Tudor period occurred between 1485 and 1603, including the Elizabethan era. The Tudor period coincides with the reign of the House of Tudor, which began w…
The Tudor warship Mary Rose sinks off Portsmouth; in 1982 the wreck is salvaged in one of the most complex and…
The Isle of Wight is an island off the south coast of England. It is a unitary authority and also a ceremonial county. It is separated from the mainland county of Hampshire by the …
The first landing of French troops on the coast of the Isle of Wight during the French invasion of the Isle of Wight.
Andrew Melville was a Scottish scholar, theologian, poet and religious reformer. His fame encouraged scholars from the European continent to study at Glasgow and St. Andrews.
Andrew Melville, Scottish theologian and scholar (died 1622)
Alexander Farnese was an Italian noble and military leader, who was Duke of Parma, Piacenza and Castro from 1586 to 1592, as well as Governor of the Spanish Netherlands from 1578 t…
Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma (died 1592)
Giovanni Giovenale Ancina was an Italian Roman Catholic prelate who served as the Bishop of Saluzzo and was a professed member from the Oratorians. The bishop was also a scholar an…
John Juvenal Ancina, Italian Oratorian and bishop (died 1604)
Sher Shah Suri, also known by his title Sultan Adil, was the Sultan of Hindustan, as the first Sur Emperor, from 1540 until his death in 1545. Prior to his ascension, he also serve…
Sher Shah Suri, Indian ruler (born 1486)
Abraomas Kulvietis was a Lithuanian jurist and a professor at Königsberg Albertina University, as well as a reformer of the church.
Abraomas Kulvietis, Lithuanian Lutheran lawyer and jurist (born 1509)
Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk was an English military leader and courtier. Through his third wife, Mary Tudor, he was the brother-in-law of King Henry VIII.
Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk, English politician and husband of Mary Tudor (born c. 1484)
Piotr Gamrat of Sulima arms was Archbishop of Gniezno and Primate of Poland.
Piotr Gamrat, Polish archbishop (born 1487)
Albert von Brandenburg was a German cardinal, elector, Archbishop of Mainz from 1514 to 1545, and Archbishop of Magdeburg from 1513 to 1545.
Albert of Mainz, German cardinal (born 1490)
John Taverner was an English composer and organist, regarded as one of the most important English composers of his era. He is best-known for Missa Gloria tibi Trinitas and The West…
John Taverner, English organist and composer (born 1490)
The Mary Rose was a carrack in the English Tudor navy of King Henry VIII. She was launched in 1511 and served for 34 years in several wars against France, Scotland, and Brittany. A…
The English warship Mary Rose sank outside Portsmouth during the Battle of the Solent; it was raised from the seabed…
Giovanni Battista Pastene (1507–1580) was a Genoese maritime explorer who, while in the service of the Spanish crown, explored the coasts of Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Chi…
The expedition of Juan Bautista Pastene makes landfall in San Pedro Bay, southern Chile, claiming the territory for…
Renata of Lorraine was a noblewoman of the House of Lorraine who became a Duchess of Bavaria by her marriage to Duke William V.
Renata of Lorraine, Duchess consort of Bavaria (died 1602)
William Gilbert, also known as Gilberd, was an English physician, physicist and natural philosopher. He passionately rejected both the prevailing Aristotelian philosophy and the Sc…
William Gilbert, English physician, physicist, and astronomer (died 1603)
Bogislaw XIII of Pomerania, son of Philip I and Maria of Saxony, was a prince of Stettin and Wolgast, and a member of the Griffins.
Bogislaw XIII, Duke of Pomerania (died 1606)
Takenaka Shigeharu , who was also known as Hanbei (半兵衛), was a Japanese samurai during the Sengoku period of the 16th century. Hanbei was the castle lord in command of Bodaiyama Ca…
Takenaka Shigeharu, Japanese samurai (died 1579)
The Burning of Edinburgh in 1544 by an English army was the first major action of the war of the Rough Wooing. The Provost of Edinburgh was compelled to allow the English to sack L…
The Burning of Edinburgh by an English army is the first action of the Rough Wooing
The Italian War of 1542–1546 was a conflict late in the Italian Wars, pitting Francis I of France and Suleiman I of the Ottoman Empire against the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and …
Italian War of 1542–46: The first Siege of Boulogne begins.
Thomas Audley, 1st Baron Audley of Walden KG, PC, KS, JP, was an English barrister and judge who served as Lord Chancellor of England from 1533 to 1544.
Thomas Audley, 1st Baron Audley of Walden, English lawyer and judge, Lord Chancellor of England (born 1488)
Antoine, known as the Good, was Duke of Lorraine from 1508 until his death in 1544. Raised at the French court, Antoine would campaign in Italy twice: once under Louis XII and the …
Antoine, Duke of Lorraine (born 1489)
René of Chalon, also known as Renatus of Chalon, was the prince of Orange and stadtholder of Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht and Gelre.
René of Châlon (born 1519)