This article contains information about the literary events and publications of 1610.

Events

June 5 Events Pre-1600 * 830 – Theodora is crowned Byzantine empress and marries then emperor Theophilos in the Hagia Sophia. She is credited with restoring orthodoxy and the icons. * 1086 – Tutush, brother of Seljuk sultan Malik Sh ...

– The masque '' Tethys' Festival'' by

Samuel Daniel Samuel Daniel (1562–1619) was an English poet, playwright and historian in the late-Elizabethan and early- Jacobean eras. He was an innovator in a wide range of literary genres. His best-known works are the sonnet cycle ''Delia'', the epic ...

is performed at

Whitehall Palace The Palace of Whitehall – also spelled White Hall – at Westminster was the main residence of the English monarchs from 1530 until 1698, when most of its structures, with the notable exception of Inigo Jones's Banqueting House of 1622, ...

to celebrate the investiture of

Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales, (19 February 1594 – 6 November 1612), was the eldest son and heir apparent of King James VI and I and Anne of Denmark, Queen Anne. His name derives from his grandfathers: Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley; and Fr ...

. *

September 7 Events Pre-1600 * 878 – Louis the Stammerer is crowned as king of West Francia by Pope John VIII. * 1159 – Cardinal Rolando Bandinelli is elected Pope Alexander III, prompting the election of Cardinal Octaviano Monticelli as Anti ...

–

Lope de Vega Félix Lope de Vega y Carpio (; 25 November 156227 August 1635) was a Spanish playwright, poet, and novelist who was a key figure in the Spanish Golden Age (1492–1659) of Spanish Baroque literature, Baroque literature. In the literature of ...

buys a house in Madrid. *

December 12 Events Pre-1600 * 627 – Battle of Nineveh: A Byzantine army under Emperor Heraclius defeats Emperor Khosrau II's Persian forces, commanded by General Rhahzadh. * 1388 – Maria of Enghien sells the lordship of Argos and Nauplia ...

– Sir

Thomas Bodley Sir Thomas Bodley (2 March 1545 – 28 January 1613) was an England, English diplomat and Scholarly method, scholar who founded the Bodleian Library in Oxford. Origins Thomas Bodley was born on 2 March 1545, in the second-to-last year of the re ...

makes an agreement with the

Stationers' Company The Worshipful Company of Stationers and Newspaper Makers (until 1937 the Worshipful Company of Stationers), usually known as the Stationers' Company, is one of the livery companies of the City of London. The Stationers' Company was formed in 1 ...

of London to put a copy of every book registered with it into his new

Bodleian Library The Bodleian Library () is the main research library of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1602 by Sir Thomas Bodley, it is one of the oldest libraries in Europe. With over 13 million printed items, it is the second-largest library in ...

in the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

. *''unknown dates'' **The

Douay–Rheims Bible The Douay–Rheims Bible (, ), also known as the Douay–Rheims Version, Rheims–Douai Bible or Douai Bible, and abbreviated as D–R, DRB, and DRV, is a translation of the Bible from the Latin Vulgate into English made by member ...

(''The Holie Bible Faithfully Translated into English''), a translation of the

Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...

from the

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

Vulgate The Vulgate () is a late-4th-century Bible translations into Latin, Latin translation of the Bible. It is largely the work of Saint Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels used by the Diocese of ...

into English made by members of the

English College, Douai The English College ( French: ''College des Grands Anglais'') was a Catholic seminary in Douai, France (also previously spelled Douay, and in English Doway), associated with the University of Douai. It was established in 1568, and was suppresse ...

, is published under the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. **At the

Dominican Order The Order of Preachers (, abbreviated OP), commonly known as the Dominican Order, is a Catholic Church, Catholic mendicant order of pontifical right that was founded in France by a Castilians, Castilian priest named Saint Dominic, Dominic de Gu ...

's printing press at Abucay Church in the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

Tomas Pinpin Tomas may refer to: People * Tomás (given name), a Spanish, Portuguese, and Gaelic given name * Tomas (given name), a Swedish, Dutch, and Lithuanian given name * Tomáš, a Czech and Slovak given name * Tomàs, a Catalan given name and surname ...

prints Father Francisco Blancas de San Jose's ''Arte y Reglas de la Lengua Tagala'' and his assistant Diego Talaghay prints Pinpin's own ''Librong Pagaaralan nang mga Tagalog nang Uicang Castilla'', the first book written by a native Filipino in the local

Tagalog language Tagalog ( ,According to the ''OED'' anMerriam-Webster Online Dictionary ; ''Baybayin'': ) is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by the ethnic Tagalog people, who make up a quarter of the population of the Philippines, and as ...

. It encourages his countrymen to learn

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

. **

Henry Savile Henry Savile may refer to: *Henry Savile (died 1558) (1498–1558), MP for Yorkshire *Henry Savile (died 1569) (1518–1569), MP for Yorkshire and Grantham *Henry Savile (Bible translator) (1549–1622), English scholar and Member of the Parliament ...

begins publication at

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

at his own expense of ''Tou en hagiois patros hemon Ioannou Archiepiskopou Konstantinoupoleos tou Chrysostomou ton heuriskomenon'', his edition of the works of St

John Chrysostom John Chrysostom (; ; – 14 September 407) was an important Church Father who served as archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his preaching and public speaking, his denunciation of abuse of authority by both ecclesiastical and p ...

, a notable work of English scholarship.

New books

Prose

Jean Beguin Jean Beguin (1550–1620) was an iatrochemist noted for his 1610 '' Tyrocinium Chymicum'' (Begin Chemistry), which many consider to be one of the first chemistry textbooks. In the 1615 edition of his textbook, Beguin made the first-ever chemical e ...

– '' Tyrocinium Chymicum'' * Edmund Bunny – *

William Camden William Camden (2 May 1551 – 9 November 1623) was an English antiquarian, historian, topographer, and herald, best known as author of ''Britannia'', the first chorographical survey of the islands of Great Britain and Ireland that relates la ...

– ''Britannia'', in an enlarged translation by

Philemon Holland Philemon Holland (1552 – 9 February 1637) was an English schoolmaster, physician and translator. He is known for the first English translations of several works by Livy, Pliny the Elder, and Plutarch, and also for translating William Camden's ...

into English *'' Foxe's Book of Martyrs'', fourth edition *

John Healey John Healey (born 13 February 1960) is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Defence since July 2024. A member of the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party, he has been the Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parl ...

– ''St. Augustine of the Citie of God'', a translation of St. Augustine's ''

De Civitate Dei ''On the City of God Against the Pagans'' (), often called ''The City of God'', is a book of Christian philosophy written in Latin by Augustine of Hippo in the early 5th century AD. Augustine wrote the book to refute allegations that Christian ...

'' into English * Charles Loyseau – ''Traité des ordres et simples dignités''

Drama

– '' Tethys' Festival or the Queenes Wake'' (

masque The masque was a form of festive courtly entertainment that flourished in 16th- and early 17th-century Europe, though it was developed earlier in Italy, in forms including the intermedio (a public version of the masque was the pageant). A mas ...

) *

**' **''El divino africano'' **' * John Fletcher – ''

The Faithful Shepherdess ''The Faithful Shepherdess'' is a Jacobean era stage play, the work that inaugurated the playwriting career of John Fletcher. Though the initial production was a failure with its audience, the printed text that followed proved significant, in t ...

'' (published) *

Ben Jonson Benjamin Jonson ( 11 June 1572 – ) was an English playwright, poet and actor. Jonson's artistry exerted a lasting influence on English poetry and stage comedy. He popularised the comedy of humours; he is best known for the satire, satirical ...

**'' The Alchemist'' **''

The Speeches at Prince Henry's Barriers ''The Speeches at Prince Henry's Barriers'', sometimes called ''The Lady of the Lake'', is a masque or entertainment written by Ben Jonson in honour of Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales, the son and heir of King James I of England. The speeches we ...

'' * John Marston – '' Histriomastix'' (published) *John Mason – ''The Turk'' (published) *

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

– ''

Cymbeline ''Cymbeline'' (), also known as ''The Tragedie of Cymbeline'' or ''Cymbeline, King of Britain'', is a play by William Shakespeare set in British Iron Age, Ancient Britain () and based on legends that formed part of the Matter of Britain concer ...

'' *

Joost van den Vondel Joost van den Vondel (; 17 November 1587 – 5 February 1679) was a Dutch playwright, poet, literary translator and writer. He is generally regarded as the greatest writer in the Dutch language as well as an important figure in the history of Wes ...

– ''Het Pascha''

Poetry

Giles Fletcher Giles Fletcher (also known as Giles Fletcher, The Younger; 1586? – 1623 in Alderton, Suffolk) was an English cleric and poet chiefly known for his long allegorical poem ''Christ's Victory and Triumph'' (1610). Life Fletcher was the younger ...

the younger – ''Christ's Victory and Triumph''

Births

January 10 Events Pre-1600 *49 BC – Julius Caesar crosses the Rubicon, signalling the start of civil war. * 9 – The Western Han dynasty ends when Wang Mang claims that the divine Mandate of Heaven called for the end of the dynasty and th ...

– Louis Maimbourg, French historian (died

1686 Events January–March * January 3 – In Madras (now Chennai) in India, local residents employed by the East India Company threaten to boycott their jobs after corporate administrator William Gyfford imposes a house tax on resid ...

) *

January 15 Events Pre-1600 *AD 69, 69 – Otho seizes power in Rome, proclaiming himself Roman emperor, Emperor of Rome, beginning a reign of only three months. *1541 – King Francis I of France gives Jean-François Roberval a commission to set ...

(baptised) –

Sidney Godolphin Sidney Godolphin is the name of: * Sidney Godolphin (colonel) (1652–1732), Member of Parliament for fifty years * Sidney Godolphin (poet) (1610–1643), English poet * Sidney Godolphin, 1st Earl of Godolphin Sidney Godolphin, 1st Earl of G ...

, English poet, politician and soldier (killed in action

1643 Events January–March * January 21 – Abel Tasman sights the island of Tonga. * February 6 **(17 Dhu al-Qadah 1052 AH) In India, the first ceremony at the nearly-complete Taj Mahal in Agra, the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan ob ...

) *

April 1 Events Pre-1600 * 527 – Byzantine Emperor Justin I names his nephew Justinian I as co-ruler and successor to the throne. * 1081 – Alexios I Komnenos overthrows the Byzantine emperor Nikephoros III Botaneiates, and, after his tro ...

–

Charles de Saint-Évremond Charles de Marguetel de Saint-Denis, seigneur de Saint-Évremond (1 April 16139 September 1703) was a French soldier, hedonist, essayist and literary critic. After 1661, he lived in exile, mainly in England, as a consequence of his attack on F ...

, French soldier, critic and essayist (died

1703 In the Swedish calendar it was a common year starting on Thursday, one day ahead of the Julian and ten days behind the Gregorian calendar. Events January–March * January 9 – The Jamaican town of Port Royal, a center of trade ...

) *

July 4 Events Pre-1600 * 362 BC – Battle of Mantinea: The Thebans, led by Epaminondas, defeated the Spartans. * 414 – Emperor Theodosius II, age 13, yields power to his older sister Aelia Pulcheria, who reigned as regent and procla ...

–

Paul Scarron Paul Scarron (; – 6 October 1660) (a.k.a. Monsieur Scarron) was a French poet, dramatist, and novelist, born in Paris. Though his precise birth date is unknown, he was baptized on 4 July 1610. Scarron was the first husband of Françoise d'A ...

, French poet, dramatist and novelist (died

1660 Events January–March * January 1 ** At daybreak, English Army Colonel George Monck, with two brigades of troops from his Scottish occupational force, fords the River Tweed at Coldstream in Scotland to cross the Anglo-Scottish ...

) *

July 18 Events Pre-1600 * 477 BC – Battle of the Cremera as part of the Roman–Etruscan Wars. Veii ambushes and defeats the Roman army. * 387 BC – Roman-Gaulish Wars: Battle of the Allia: A Roman army is defeated by raiding Gauls, ...

– Antonio de Solís y Ribadeneyra, Spanish dramatist and historian (died

) *

July 28 Events Pre-1600 *1364 – Troops of the Republic of Pisa and the Republic of Florence clash in the Battle of Cascina. *1540 – Henry VIII of England marries his fifth wife, Catherine Howard. *1571 – La Laguna encomienda, known t ...

(baptised) – Henry Glapthorne, English dramatist (died c. 1643) *

December 18 Events Pre-1600 * 1118 – The city of Zaragoza is conquered by king Alfonso I of Aragon from the Almoravid. * 1271 – Kublai Khan renames his empire "Yuan" (元 yuán), officially marking the start of the Yuan dynasty of Mongolia an ...

–

Charles du Fresne, sieur du Cange Charles du Fresne, sieur du Cange (; December 18, 1610 in Amiens – October 23, 1688 in Paris, aged 77), also known simply as Charles Dufresne, was a distinguished French philologist and historian of the Middle Ages and Byzantium. Life Educate ...

, French philologist and historian (died

1688 Events January–March * January 2 – Fleeing from the Spanish Navy, French pirate Raveneau de Lussan and his 70 men arrive on the west coast of Nicaragua, sink their boats, and make a difficult 10 day march to the city of Ocota ...

) *''Unknown dates'' ** Richard Bulstrode, English author and soldier (died

1711 In the Swedish calendar it was a common year starting on Sunday, one day ahead of the Julian and ten days behind the Gregorian calendar. Events January–March * January – Cary's Rebellion: The Lords Proprietor appoint Edward ...

) **

Edmund Chilmead Edmund Chilmead (1610 – 19 February 1654) was an English writer and translator, who produced both scholarly works and hack-writing. He is also known as a musician. Life He was born in 1610 at Stow-on-the-Wold, Gloucestershire. He studied at Ma ...

, English writer and translator (died

1654 Events January–March * January 6 – In India, Jaswant Singh of Marwar (in the modern-day state of Rajasthan) is elevated to the title of Maharaja by Emperor Shah Jahan. * January 11 – Arauco War – Battle of Río B ...

) **

Reinhold Curicke Reinhold Curicke (12 January 1610 – 2 April 1667) was a jurist and historian from Danzig (Gdańsk) who specialized in the history of the city Towns and city, cities have a long history, although opinions vary on which Ancient history, ancie ...

, German historian of the Hanseatic League (died

1667 Events January–March * January 11 – Aurangzeb, monarch of the Mughal Empire, orders the removal of Rao Karan Singh as Maharaja of the Bikaner State (part of the modern-day Rajasthan state of India) because of Karan's derelic ...

) ** Jeremias de Dekker, Dutch poet (died

1666 This is the first year to be designated as an ''Annus mirabilis'', in John Dryden's 1667 Annus Mirabilis (poem), poem so titled, celebrating Kingdom of England, England's failure to be beaten either by the Dutch or by fire. Events Januar ...

) **

Jin Shengtan Jin Shengtan (; 1610?7 August 1661), former name Jin Renrui (), also known as Jin Kui (), was a Chinese editor, writer and critic, who has been called the champion of Vernacular Chinese literature. Biography The year of Jin's birth is unclear, ...

, born Jin Renrui, Chinese editor, writer and critic (died

1661 Events January–March * January 6 – The Fifth Monarchists, led by Thomas Venner, unsuccessfully attempt to seize control of London; George Monck's regiment defeats them. * January 29 – The Rokeby baronets, a Br ...

) ** Li Yu (李漁), Chinese comic writer (died

1680 Events January–March * January 2 – King Amangkurat II of Mataram (located on the island of Java, part of modern-day Indonesia), invites Trunajaya, who had led a failed rebellion against him until his surrender on Decem ...

) **

François Eudes de Mézeray François Eudes de Mézeray (1610 – 10 July 1683) was a French historian. Mézeray was born at Ri, Orne, Ri near Argentan, France, Argentan, where his father was a surgeon. He had two brothers, one of whom, Jean-Eudes de Mézeray, Jean-Eudes ...

, French historian (died

1683 Events January–March * January 5 – The Brandenburger-African Company, of the German state of Brandenburg, signs a treaty with representatives of the Ahanta tribe (in modern-day Ghana), to establish the fort and settlement ...

) ** Madeleine Patin, French moralist writer (died

1682 Events January–March * January 7 – The Republic of Genoa forbids the unauthorized printing of newspapers and all handwritten newssheets; the ban is lifted after three months. * January 12 – Scottish minister James Ren ...

)

Deaths

*July – Richard Knolles, English historian (born c. 1545) *

August 27 Events Pre-1600 * 410 – The sacking of Rome by the Visigoths ends after three days. * 1172 – Henry the Young King and Margaret of France are crowned junior king and queen of England. * 1232 – Shikken Hojo Yasutoki of the ...

–

Anne Bacon Anne, Lady Bacon (née Cooke; 1527 or 1528 – 27 August 1610) was an English lady and scholar. She made a lasting contribution to English religious literature with her translation from Latin of John Jewel's ''Apologie of the Anglican Church'' ...

, English translator (born c. 1528) * September 22 – Jan Moretus, Flemish printer (born 1543) *

November 21 Events Pre-1600 *164 BCE – Judas Maccabeus, son of Mattathias of the Hasmonean family, rededicates the Temple in Jerusalem, an event that is commemorated each year by the festival of Hanukkah. (25 Kislev 3597 in the Hebrew calendar.) * 2 ...

– Benet Canfield, English mystical writer (born

1562 __NOTOC__ Year 1562 ( MDLXII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. Events January–March * January 6 – Shane O'Neill of Tír Eoghain pleads his cause at the Palace of Whitehall in London, before Qu ...

) *

November 23 Events Pre-1600 *534 BC – Thespis of Icaria becomes the first recorded actor to portray a character on stage. *1248 – Siege of Seville, Conquest of Seville by Christian troops under King Ferdinand III of Castile. *1499 – Seve ...

– Bernard de Girard Haillan, French historian (born c. 1535) *

November 28 Events Pre-1600 * 587 – Treaty of Andelot: King Guntram of Burgundy recognizes Childebert II as his heir. * 936 – Shi Jingtang is enthroned as the first emperor of the Later Jin by Emperor Taizong of Liao, following a revolt ...

– Lorenzo Scupoli, Italian theologian (born c. 1530) *''unknown dates'' ** Adam Berg, German printer and publisher (born

1540 Year 1540 ( MDXL) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. Events January–March * January 6 – King Henry VIII marries Anne of Cleves, his fourth Queen consort; the marriage lasts six months. * February 1 ...

) ** Georgios Chortatzis, Greek verse dramatist (born c. 1545) **

Nikola Vitov Gučetić Nikola Vitov Gučetić (, ; 1549–1610) was a Ragusan statesman, polymath, philosopher, science writer and author of one of the first scientific dissertations regarding speleology. Life Gučetić was born in Ragusa (now Dubrovnik, Croatia), i ...

, Ragusan philosopher and science writer (born 1549) **

Yuan Hongdao Yuan Hongdao (, style name Zhonglang, 1568–1610) was a scholar-official and one of the greatest Chinese poets and littérateurs of the Ming Dynasty. He is also a well known author on Pure Land Buddhism.Jones, Charles B. 2009“Yuan Hongdao and ...

(袁宏道), Chinese poet (born

1568 Year 1568 ( MDLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. Events January–March * January 6 – In the Eastern Hungarian Kingdom, the delegates of Unio Trium Nationum to the Diet of Torda convene i ...

) *''probable'' ** Peter Bales, English inventor of shorthand (born

1547 Year 1547 ( MDXLVII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. Events January–March * January 8 – The first Lithuanian-language book, a ''Catechism'' (, Simple Words of Catechism), is published in Königsbe ...

) ** Philip Stubbs, English pamphleteer (born c. 1555)

References

{{Year in literature article categories