A Chronology of History
Events Which Influenced and Shaped the United States FIND option of the Edit Menu. | |
| 1400 - 1599 Discovery and Migration | |
| DATE | EVENT |
|---|---|
| 1400 | Richard II murdered in prison; first casualty of the War of the Roses. |
| 1401 | De Heritico Comburendo England's first anti-heresy statute enacted. |
| 1413 | Henry IV dies after long illnesses with leprosy and epilepsy. Succeeded by his eldest son, Henry V. |
| 1415 | Henry V wages war against French; wins Battle of Agincourt. And in 1419 takes Normandy, Picardy, Capetian stronghold: Ile-de-France. |
| 1420 | Charles VI of France agrees to Treaty of Troyes with King Henry V. Makes Henry V heir to throne of France. |
| 1422 | King Henry V dies; Charles VI of France dies. Had Henry lived 2 more months he would have ruled both France and England. Henry V's only son succeeds him as King Henry VI. |
| 1422 | Charles VII of France, the Victorious or the Well Served, begins his reign but is denied the throne until Joan of Arc cross-dresses in 1429. |
| ~1429 | Joan of Arc, French saint and national heroine, helps Charles VII get his throne. |
| 1438 | Inca rule begins in Peru. |
| 1441 | Black slavery: Portugese sailors enter slave trade with African Negroes at Cape Blanc. |
| 1457 | First book in Europe, printed with Gutenberg's movable type and bearing the name of the printer, is published. |
| 1485 | England's King Richard III was killed in the Battle of Bosworth Field, ending the War of the Roses. |
| 1492 | Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain complete the "reconquista" by capturing the Alhambra and expelling the Moors from Spain. They then required that their Jewish subjects either convert to Christianity or depart from Spain. |
| 1492 | Letter to Christopher Columbus from the King and Queen of Spain. On August 3, Columbus departs Palos, Spain, in Santa Maria. Hopes to find gold and short route to Indies. |
| 1492 | Journal, Christopher Columbus [Cristoforo Columbo.] |
| 1493 | Epistola De Insulis Nuper Inventis, Christopher Columbus. |
| 1494 | Letter to the King and Queen of Spain, Christopher Columbus. |
| 1494 | Treaty of Tordesillas. Spain and Portugal divide New World with treaty. |
| 1496 | John Cabot receives Commission from Prince Henry VII. |
| 1497 | Amerigo Vespucci is "supposed" to have discovered mainland Americas. |
| 1498 | John Cabot makes landfall in Newfoundland. Explores as far south as the Chesapeake Bay; claims continent for England. |
| 1500 | Primitive Railroads put into use in mid-1500's. Used in mining operations. |
| 1507 | Amerigo Vespucci is honored by Waldseemuller: Lands of New World get his name. |
| 1510 | Spain begins settlements in Jamaica; two years later in Cuba. |
| 1512 | Juan Ponce de Leon names discovery after Easter Sunday; Pascua Florida. |
| 1513 | Vasco Nunez de Balboa names large body of water "South Sea" - or Pacific Ocean. |
| 1513 | Machiavelli: The Prince. Practical advice on governance and statecraft. |
| 1515 | Machiavelli: Writes La Mandragola. |
| 1519 | Hernando Cortes begins assault on Mexico, defeats the Aztecs. Brings Arabian horses from Spain to America. |
| 1520 | Machiavelli's works The Art of War and The Life of Castruccio Castracane appear. |
| 1520 | Magellan navigates through the straits from Atlantic to Pacific. Expedition completes first journey around the world in 1522. |
| 1521 | Martin Luther excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church, Jan 3. |
| 1521 | Spanish conqueror Hernando Cortez, August 13, captures present-day Mexico City from the Aztec Indians. |
| 1521 | Guam, where America's day begins, explored by Magellan. |
| 1523 | "On Secular Authority," Luther. MAY BE FOUND ONLINE. Document started the political discussion about religious liberties. |
| 1524 | Giovanni da Verrazzano explores Hudson River and New York harbor waters. |
| 1526 | Spanish attempt colonization of Cape Fear; it lasts only a few months. |
| 1527 | Cabeza de Vaca takes an amazing journey, and returns alive. |
| 1528 | Panfilo de Narvaez invades Florida from Cuba, wars with Indians. |
| 1531 | Spain invades Peru; end of Inca civilization. |
| 1533 | King Henry VIII of England excommunicated by Pope Clement VII; July 11. |
| 1534 | The Act of Supremacy, Henry VIII. Pope stripped of jurisdiction. |
| 1534 | Jacques Cartier explores coasts of Labrador, Newfoundland, and St. Lawrence River. |
| 1535 | Saint Thomas More, English philosopher: Gives heart to "utopia" and loses head over Supremacy, July 6. |
| 1536 | Pedro de Mendoza founds Buenos Aries. |
| 1537 | Cabeza de Vaca arrives in Lisbon, Portugal after 10 year journey. |
| 1539 | Hernando de Soto leaves Havana to find Seven Cities; finds Indian war. |
| 1539 | First printing press set up in the New World - at Mexico City. |
| 1540 | Francisco Vasquez de Coronado treks north from Mexico to Zuni territory. Discovers the Grand Canyon. |
| 1541 | Hernando de Soto explores Mississippi River valley and Gulf Coast. |
| 1542 | Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo explores in area of San Diego for Spain. |
| 1543 | Revolutions of the Heavenly Bodies described by Nicolas Copernicus. |
| 1544 | Sebastian Cabot publishes map of the world with remarkable detail. |
| 1547 | Ivan the Terrible (Ivan IV) - becomes the first Czar of Russia. |
| 1552 | Bartoleme De Las Casas, "Apostle to the Indians," publishes In Defense of the Indian. |
| 1555 | Charles I, King of Spain, (Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor). The conquest of Mexico and Peru occurred during his reign. |
| 1555 | First tobacco taken from America to Spain. |
| 1556 | St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus - the Jesuit order of Catholic priests and brothers - dies in Rome, July 31. |
| 1558 | Elizabeth I begins Reign. Last of the Tudors, rules 45 years. |
| 1562 | French establish trading post in South Carolina, erect monument in FL. |
| 1562 | Slave trade started by John Hawkins between Guinea and West Indies. |
| 1564 | French Huguenots found colony at Jacksonville; killed by Spaniards, 1565. Fort Caroline, FL, founded; 1st European colony on mainland. |
| 1565 | St. Augustine, FL, founded, August 28 by Avilés; he attacks Fort Caroline. |
| ~1570 | Massacre of St. Bartholomew's Day: A young man, De Thou (1553-1617), witnessed and wrote about this massacre. |
| 1572 | Francis Drake attacks Spanish harbors in the Americas. |
| 1577 | Sir Francis Drake begins explorations on west coast of North America. |
| 1580 | Michel de Montaigne begin to publish his writings. |
| 1581 | Franciscan friars begin missionary work in "New Mexico." |
| 1581 | Dutch Declaration of Independence. Declares rulers are responsible to people. |
| 1584 | Walter Raleigh granted charter for exploration in the new lands. |
| 1585 | Walter Raleigh knighted by Virgin Queen for naming new colony for her. |
| 1586 | Roanoke Island, NC: Ralph Lane's account of first English colony in America. |
| 1586 | Herriot introduces Potatoes from Columbia to England. |
| 1587 | New colony established at Pamlico Sound. It disappeared within 2 years. |
| 1587 | Virginia Dare, first child born in the colonies; fate unknown. |
| 1588 | English defeat Spanish armada of King Philip II. |
| 1590 | John White's account of return to Roanoke Island - The Lost Colony. |
| 1590 | Galileo describes the law of falling bodies. [Explore the Cosmos with Hubble. We've come a long way!] |
| 1597 | Francis Bacon, English philosopher and essayist. Publishes Colours of Good and Evil and Meditationes Sacrae. |
| 1598 | Henry IV issues Edict of Nantes to quiet religious wars. |
| 1598 | Don Juan de Onate claims all of New Mexico for Spain. |
| 1599 | Walter Raleigh writes about "The Dutie of a King in His Royal Office." |
| 1599 | Samuel de Champlain makes first trip to Americas: To American Spanish colonies and explores Central America for 2 years. |
| < PREVIOUS | NEXT > |
|
| |
All commercial-use rights reserved. For details and contact information see Copyright Notice. Permission for student, teacher and classroom use is granted. |