Events

January–March

January 5 Events Pre-1600 * 1477 – Battle of Nancy: Charles the Bold is defeated and killed in a conflict with René II, Duke of Lorraine; Burgundy subsequently becomes part of France. 1601–1900 * 1675 – Battle of Colmar: The French ...

– The

First War of Villmergen The First War of Villmergen Encarta-encyclopedie Winkler Prins (1993–2002) s.v. "Zwitserland. §5.2 Reformatie". Microsoft Corporation/Het Spectrum. was a Swiss religious war which lasted from 5 January until 7 March 1656, at the time of the Ol ...

, a civil war in the

Confederation of Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

pitting its Protestant and Roman Catholic

cantons A canton is a type of administrative division of a country. In general, cantons are relatively small in terms of area and population when compared with other administrative divisions such as counties, departments, or provinces. Internationally, th ...

against each other, breaks out but is resolved by March 7. The Lutheran cantons of the larger cities of Zurich, Bern and Schaffhausen battle against seven Catholic cantons of Lucerne, Schwyz, Uri, Zug, Baden Unterwalden (now Obwalden and Nidwalden) and St. Gallen. *

January 17 Events Pre-1600 * 38 BC – Octavian divorces his wife Scribonia and marries Livia Drusilla, ending the fragile peace between the Second Triumvirate and Sextus Pompey. * 1362 – Saint Marcellus' flood kills at least 25,000 peopl ...

– The Treaty of Königsberg is signed, establishing an alliance between

Charles X Gustav of Sweden Charles X Gustav, also Carl X Gustav (; 8 November 1622 – 13 February 1660), was King of Sweden from 1654 until his death. He was the son of John Casimir, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken-Kleeburg and Catherine of Sweden. After his father's ...

and

Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg Frederick William (; 16 February 1620 – 29 April 1688) was Elector of Brandenburg and Duke of Prussia, thus ruler of Brandenburg-Prussia, from 1640 until his death in 1688. A member of the House of Hohenzollern, he is popularly known as "th ...

. *

January 24 Events Pre-1600 * 41 – Claudius is proclaimed Roman emperor by the Praetorian Guard after they assassinate the previous emperor, his nephew Caligula. * 914 – Start of the First Fatimid invasion of Egypt. * 1438 – The Co ...

– The first Jewish doctor in the

Thirteen Colonies The Thirteen Colonies were the British colonies on the Atlantic coast of North America which broke away from the British Crown in the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), and joined to form the United States of America. The Thirteen C ...

of America, Jacob Lumbrozo, arrives in

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

. *

January 20 Events Pre-1600 * 250 – Pope Fabian is martyred during the Decian persecution. *1156 – Finnish peasant Lalli kills English clergyman Henry (bishop of Finland), Henry, the Bishop of Turku, on the ice of Köyliönjärvi, Lake Köyli� ...

– Reinforced by soldiers dispatched by the Viceroy of Peru, Spanish Chilean troops defeat the indigenous

Mapuche The Mapuche ( , ) also known as Araucanians are a group of Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous inhabitants of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina, including parts of Patagonia. The collective term refers to a wide-ranging e ...

warriors in a battle at

San Fabián de Conuco San Fabián de Conuco is a fort four kilometers south of the town of Rafael, Chile. It was first established by governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in s ...

in what is now central Chile, turning the tide in the Spanish colonists favor in the Mapuche uprising after more than a year. *

February 18 Events Pre-1600 * 3102 BC – Kali Yuga, the fourth and final yuga of Hinduism, starts with the death of Krishna. * 1229 – The Sixth Crusade: Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, signs a ten-year truce with al-Kamil, regaining J ...

(February 8 O.S.) – Battle of Golab: Swedish Empire troops led by King Carl X Gustav defeat troops of the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, also referred to as Poland–Lithuania or the First Polish Republic (), was a federation, federative real union between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ...

commanded by General

Stefan Czarniecki Stefan Czarniecki (Polish: of the Łodzia coat of arms, 1599 – 16 February 1665) was a Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, Polish szlachta, nobleman, general and military commander. In his career, he rose from a petty nobleman to a magnate hol ...

in the first major engagement of the

Swedish Deluge The Deluge was a series of mid-17th-century military campaigns in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. In a wider sense, it applies to the period between the Khmelnytsky Uprising of 1648 and the Truce of Andrusovo in 1667, comprising the Pol ...

. *

February 23 Events Pre-1600 * 303 – Roman emperor Diocletian orders the destruction of the Christian church in Nicomedia, beginning eight years of Diocletianic Persecution. * 532 – Byzantine emperor Justinian I lays the foundation stone o ...

–

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

Lord Mayor Lord mayor is a title of a mayor of what is usually a major city in a Commonwealth realm, with special recognition bestowed by the sovereign. However, the title or an equivalent is present in other countries, including forms such as "high mayor". A ...

Christopher Packe suggests to

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English statesman, politician and soldier, widely regarded as one of the most important figures in British history. He came to prominence during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, initially ...

, the

Lord Protector Lord Protector (plural: ''Lords Protector'') is a title that has been used in British constitutional law for the head of state. It was also a particular title for the British heads of state in respect to the established church. It was sometime ...

and chief executive of the

Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

, that the monarchy should be restored with Cromwell as its King. Cromwell declines to become King Oliver, but his right to name his successor becomes effective on May 25, 1657 with the commencement of the

Humble Petition and Advice The Humble Petition and Advice was the second and last codified constitution of England after the Instrument of Government. On 23 February 1657, during a sitting of the Second Protectorate Parliament, Sir Christopher Packe, a Member of Parliam ...

. *

February 26 Events Pre-1600 * 747 BC – According to Ptolemy, the epoch (origin) of the Nabonassar Era began at noon on this date. Historians use this to establish the modern BC chronology for dating historic events. * 320 – Chandragupta ...

– A rebellion of Turkish soldiers, leading to the "

Çınar incident Çınar, also spelled chinar and çinar, is a Turkic word meaning Platanus tree (commonly called " plane tree" or "sycamore tree" depending on the English dialect, derived from the Persian word chenar (Persian: چنار), and may refer to: Plac ...

", takes place after a palace guard for Ottoman Sultan Mehmet IV turns away a representative group who had come for payment for their services during the war in Crete. The rebellion ends with the mass killing 30 men identified by the rebels as being responsible for the non-payment. *

March 3 Events Pre-1600 * 473 – Gundobad (nephew of Ricimer) nominates Glycerius as emperor of the Western Roman Empire. * 724 – Empress Genshō abdicates the throne in favor of her nephew Shōmu who becomes emperor of Japan. * 1575 ...

– Fyodor Baykov, the Russian Empire's first envoy to China, is admitted to the

Forbidden City The Forbidden City () is the Chinese Empire, imperial Chinese palace, palace complex in the center of the Imperial City, Beijing, Imperial City in Beijing, China. It was the residence of 24 Ming dynasty, Ming and Qing dynasty, Qing dynasty L ...

within

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

, after being sent by

Tsar Alexis Alexei Mikhailovich (, ; – ), also known as Alexis, was Tsar of all Russia from 1645 until his death in 1676. He was the second Russian tsar from the House of Romanov. He was the first tsar to sign laws on his own authority and his council ...

to negotiate a trade agreement with the Emperor Shunzi. *

March 4 Events Pre-1600 * AD 51 – Nero, later to become Roman emperor, is given the title '' princeps iuventutis'' (head of the youth). * 306 – Martyrdom of Saint Adrian of Nicomedia. * 581 – Yang Jian declares himself Emperor ...

– The "

", named for the Turkish word for the

sycamore tree Sycamore is a name which has been applied to several types of trees, but with somewhat similar leaf forms. The name derives from the Ancient Greek () meaning . Species of otherwise unrelated trees known as sycamore: * ''Acer pseudoplatanus'', a ...

takes place after Ottoman Sultan Mehmet IV declines the request of soldiers to have 30 named government officials put to death. When Mehmet agrees only to dismiss the people from office, the rebels seek out the men on the list and publicly hang most of them from the cinar trees. *

March 5 Events Pre-1600 * 363 – Roman emperor Julian leaves Antioch with an army of 90,000 to attack the Sasanian Empire, in a campaign which would bring about his own death. * 1046 – Nasir Khusraw begins the seven-year Middle Easte ...

– Zurnazen Mustafa Pasha is appointed as the Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire after persuading Mehmet IV to rescind the February 28 selection of

Gazi Hüseyin Pasha Gazi Hüseyin Pasha ("Hüseyin Pasha the Warrior"; died 1659), also known as Deli Hüseyin Pasha ("the Mad") or Sarı Hüseyin Pasha ("the Blonde") or Baltaoğlu Hüseyin Pasha ("of the Baltadji, Axe"), was an Ottoman Empire, Ottoman military o ...

. Zurnazen Mustafa's rule lasts only four hours and he is sent into exile the same day. *

March 7 Events Pre-1600 * 161 – Marcus Aurelius and L. Commodus (who changes his name to Lucius Verus) become joint emperors of Rome on the death of Antoninus Pius. * 1138 – Konrad III von Hohenstaufen was elected king of Germany at Cobl ...

– The

in the Confederation of

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

ends with a peace agreement, mediated by France and the Duchy of Savoy, between the Protestant and Roman Catholic cantons. *

March 15 Events Pre-1600 * 474 BC – Roman consul Aulus Manlius Vulso celebrates an ovation for concluding the war against Veii and securing a forty years truce. * 44 BC – The assassination of Julius Caesar, the dictator of the Roman R ...

– Battle of Jaroslaw: Almost a month after their defeat by Sweden at the Battle of Golab, Polish and Lithuanian troops commanded by

defeat King Karl X Gustav's Swedish Army. *

March 23 Events Pre-1600 * 1400 – The Trần dynasty of Vietnam is deposed, after one hundred and seventy-five years of rule, by Hồ Quý Ly, a court official. * 1540 – Waltham Abbey is surrendered to King Henry VIII of England; the las ...

– Roman Catholic

Pope Alexander VII Pope Alexander VII (; 13 February 159922 May 1667), born Fabio Chigi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 April 1655 to his death, in May 1667. He began his career as a vice- papal legate, and he held various d ...

issues a decree ending the Chinese Rites controversy between Jesuit missionaries (who tolerate the rites as compatible with Catholicism) and Dominican and Franciscan missionaries (who consider the Chinese rituals incompatible). The Pope rules that practices ""favorable to Chinese customs", including Confucianism and ancestor worship, can be accepted as compatible with Catholic rites.

April–June

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 ...

–

John II Casimir Vasa John II Casimir Vasa (; ; 22 March 1609 – 16 December 1672) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1648 to his abdication in 1668 as well as a claimant to the throne of Sweden from 1648 to 1660. He was the first son of Sigis ...

King of Poland Poland was ruled at various times either by dukes and princes (10th to 14th centuries) or by kings (11th to 18th centuries). During the latter period, a tradition of Royal elections in Poland, free election of monarchs made it a uniquely electab ...

, crowns the

Black Madonna of Częstochowa The Black Madonna of Częstochowa (; ), also known as Our Lady of Częstochowa () is a venerated icon of the Blessed Virgin Mary enshrined at the Jasna Góra Monastery in Częstochowa, Poland. Pope Clement XI issued a Pontifical decree of canon ...

as Queen and Protector of Poland in the cathedral of

Lwów Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

, after the miraculous saving of the

Jasna Góra Monastery The Jasna Góra Monastery ( , ''Luminous or Light Mountain'', ) in Częstochowa, Poland, is a shrine dedicated to the Virgin Mary and one of the country's places of pilgrimage. The image of the Black Madonna of Częstochowa, also known as Ou ...

during the

Deluge A deluge is a large downpour of rain, often a flood. The Deluge refers to the flood narrative in the biblical book of Genesis. Deluge or Le Déluge may also refer to: History *Deluge (history), the Swedish and Russian invasion of the Polish-L ...

, an event which changed the course of the

Second Northern War The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of ...

. The King swears a vow, the Lwów Oath, pledging to protect Poland's people from being conquered again. *

April 2 Events Pre-1600 * 1513 – Having spotted land on March 27, Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León comes ashore on what is now the U.S. state of Florida, landing somewhere between the modern city of St. Augustine and the mouth of the St ...

– The

Treaty of Brussels The Treaty of Brussels, also referred to as the Brussels Pact, was the founding treaty of the Western Union (WU) between 1948 and 1954, when it was amended as the Modified Brussels Treaty (MTB) and served as the founding treaty of the Western Eu ...

is signed, creating an alliance between

Philip IV of Spain Philip IV (, ; 8 April 160517 September 1665), also called the Planet King (Spanish: ''Rey Planeta''), was King of Spain from 1621 to his death and (as Philip III) King of Portugal from 1621 to 1640. Philip is remembered for his patronage of the ...

and the exiled Royalists of the

British Isles The British Isles are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner Hebrides, Inner and Outer Hebr ...

, led by Charles II. *

April 28 Events Pre-1600 * 224 – The Battle of Hormozdgan is fought. Ardashir I defeats and kills Artabanus V, effectively ending the Parthian Empire. * 357 – Emperor Constantius II enters Rome for the first time to celebrate his victor ...

– The

Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( ; VOC ), commonly known as the Dutch East India Company, was a chartered company, chartered trading company and one of the first joint-stock companies in the world. Established on 20 March 1602 by the States Ge ...

ship ''

Vergulde Draeck ''Vergulde Draeck'' (), also spelled ''Vergulde Draak'' and ''Vergulde Draek'' (meaning ''Gilt Dragon''), was a , ship constructed in 1653 by the Dutch East India Company (, commonly abbreviated to VOC). The ship was lost off the coast of West ...

'', with 193 crew aboard and a valuable cargo is wrecked off Ledge Point, Western Australia, with the loss of 118 members. Another 75 make it to shore, with limited provisions. The ship had been bound from the

Cape of Good Hope The Cape of Good Hope ( ) is a rocky headland on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa. A List of common misconceptions#Geography, common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Afri ...

to Batavia in the

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...

(now Jakarta in Indonesia). *

May 7 Events Pre-1600 * 351 – The Jewish revolt against Constantius Gallus breaks out after his arrival at Antioch. * 558 – In Constantinople, the dome of the Hagia Sophia collapses, twenty years after its construction. Justinian I im ...

– Nine days after the wreck of the ''Vergulde Draeck'', a steersman and six crew members are dispatched to Batavia to get help. The other 68 survivors remain at Ledge Point and await rescue but are not seen again. *

May 12 Events Pre-1600 * 254 – Pope Stephen I succeeds Pope Lucius I, becoming the 23rd pope of the Catholic Church, and immediately takes a stand against Novatianism. * 907 – Zhu Wen forces Emperor Ai into abdicating, ending the ...

– The Dutch capture the city of

Colombo Colombo, ( ; , ; , ), is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. The Colombo metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of 5.6 million, and 752,993 within the municipal limits. It is the ...

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

, marking the start of Netherlands colonial rule of

Dutch Ceylon Dutch Ceylon (; ) was a governorate established in present-day Sri Lanka by the Dutch East India Company. Although the Dutch managed to capture most of the coastal areas in Sri Lanka, they were never able to control the Kingdom of Kandy locate ...

. *

May 17 Events Pre-1600 * 1395 – Battle of Rovine: The Wallachians defeat an invading Ottoman army. * 1521 – Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, is executed for treason. * 1527 – Pánfilo de Narváez departs Spain to explo ...

– In elections by the nobility of Venice for the Leader of the Venetian Republic, Francesco Cornaro defeats Bertuccio Valier. Cornaro dies less than three weeks later, on June 5. *

June 15 Events Pre-1600 * 763 BC – Assyrians record a solar eclipse that is later used to fix the chronology of Mesopotamian history. * 844 – Louis II is crowned as king of Italy at Rome by pope Sergius II. * 923 – Battle of So ...

– Bertuccio Valier is elected as the new Doge of the Venetian Republic in Venice. *

June 16 Events Pre-1600 * 632 – Yazdegerd III ascends the throne as king (''shah'') of the Persian Empire. He becomes the last ruler of the Sasanian dynasty (modern Iran). *1407 – Ming–Hồ War: Retired King Hồ Quý Ly and his son K ...

– After a 41-day voyage, the seven-member team dispatched from the ''Vergulde Draeck'' reaches Batavia and alerts Dutch East India Company officials that the ship was wrecked on April 28. Two rescue ships, the ''Goede Hoop'' and the ''Witte Valck'' are sent to rescue the men marooned in Western Australia. By the time the ''Goede Hoop'' arrives, the crew find no sign of the wreckage of the ''Vergulde Draeck''. *

June 21 Events Pre-1600 * 533 – A Byzantine expeditionary fleet under Belisarios sails from Constantinople to attack the Vandals in Africa, via Greece and Sicily. * 1307 – Külüg Khan is enthroned as Khagan of the Mongols and Wuzong o ...

– Poland's capital,

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

, is recaptured by Poland's

11 months after the capital had fallen on July 25, 1655 to Sweden. *

June 27 Events Pre-1600 * 1358 – The Republic of Ragusa is founded. * 1497 – Cornish rebels Michael An Gof and Thomas Flamank are executed at Tyburn, London, England. * 1499 – Amerigo Vespucci sights what is now Amapá State in B ...

– The Navy of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

suffers a major defeat after two days of fighting against the navies of the Republic of

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

and of Malta in the Battle of the Dardanelles, one of the Turkish straits that connects the Black Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. Out of 98 Ottoman Turkish ships under the command of Kenan Pasha, 82 are either captured or destroyed. Venice loses only three of its ships, but its commander, Admiral Lorenzo Marcello, is killed by a direct cannon hit to his flagship. *

June 29 Events Pre-1600 * 226 – Cao Rui succeeds his father as emperor of Wei. * 1149 – Raymond of Poitiers is defeated and killed at the Battle of Inab by Nur ad-Din Zangi. * 1170 – A major earthquake hits Syria, badly damagi ...

– The

Treaty of Marienburg __NOTOC__ The treaty of Marienburg, concluded on 29 June 1656, was a Brandenburg-Prussian – Swedish alliance during the Second Northern War.Frost (2000), p. 173 In January 1656, Charles X Gustav of Sweden made Frederick William I, Elector of ...

is signed by representatives of Sweden and of Brandenburg and Prussia to create a military alliance during the

. King Karl X Gustav signs for Sweden and the Elector Friedrich Wilhelm signs for Brandenburg and Prussia.

July–September

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, ...

– In an attempt to find survivors of the ''

'', a search party is sent ashore by the rescue ship ''Goede Hoop''; eleven men from two search parties while in the forests around the wreckage site. No trace of the ''Vergulde Draeck'' will be found for more than three centuries, until its wreckage is discovered by skin divers on April 13, 1963. *

July 27 Events Pre-1600 *1054 – Siward, Earl of Northumbria, invades Scotland and defeats Macbeth, King of Scotland, somewhere north of the Firth of Forth. This is known as the Battle of Dunsinane. *1189 – Friedrich Barbarossa arrives a ...

– A Writ of Excommunication is issued against

Baruch Spinoza Baruch (de) Spinoza (24 November 163221 February 1677), also known under his Latinized pen name Benedictus de Spinoza, was a philosopher of Portuguese-Jewish origin, who was born in the Dutch Republic. A forerunner of the Age of Enlightenmen ...

. *

July 30 Events Pre-1600 * 762 – Baghdad is founded. * 1419 – First Defenestration of Prague: A crowd of radical Hussites kill seven members of the Prague city council. * 1502 – Christopher Columbus lands at Guanaja in the Bay I ...

– After a battle of three days, Swedish and Brandenburger troops led by King

, defeat the forces of the

, near

and recapture the recently liberated capital. *

August 8 Events Pre-1600 * 685 BC – Spring and Autumn period: Battle of Qianshi: Upon the death of the previous Duke of Qi, Gongsun Wuzhi, Duke Zhuang of Lu sends an army into the Duchy of Qi to install the exiled Qi prince Gongzi Jiu as t ...

– In the

Ayutthaya Kingdom The Ayutthaya Kingdom or the Empire of Ayutthaya was a Thai people, Thai kingdom that existed in Southeast Asia from 1351 to 1767, centered around the city of Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya (city), Ayutthaya, in Siam, or present-day Thailand. Europe ...

, comprising most of the territory now occupied by

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

, King

Prasat Thong Prasat ThongThe Royal Institute. List of monarchs Ayutthaya''. (, ; c. 1599–1655; 1629–1655) was the first king of the Prasat Thong dynasty, the fourth dynasty of the Siamese Ayutthaya Kingdom. Before being king, he defeated a rebellion led ...

dies after a reign of more than 25 years. His eldest son, Prince Chao Fa Chai, is crowned as King Sanpet VI but Prasat's brother plots the new king's overthrow. *

August 9 Events Pre-1600 *48 BC – Caesar's Civil War: Battle of Pharsalus: Julius Caesar decisively defeats Pompey at Pharsalus and Pompey flees to Egypt. * 378 – Gothic War: Battle of Adrianople: A large Roman army led by Emperor Vale ...

– King Sanpet's uncle, Prince

Si Suthammaracha Si Suthammaracha (, ) was the King of Ayutthaya from August 1656 to 26 October 1656 (2 months 17 Days). He was a younger brother of Prasat Thong. Not long after Si Suthammaracha seized the throne from Chao Fa Chai, He quarrelled with his nephe ...

, stages a coup d'etat and becomes the new King of Ayutthaya, now Thailand. Suthammaracha appoints another nephew, Prince Narai, as his chief minister and former King Sanpet is executed two days later on August 11. Suthammaracha's reign lasts less than three months. *

August 14 Events Pre-1600 * 74 BC – A group of officials, led by the Western Han minister Huo Guang, present articles of impeachment against the new emperor, Liu He, to the imperial regent, Empress Dowager Shangguan. * 29 BC – Octavian ...

– In one of the first battles of the Russo-Swedish War, Russian troops capture the Swedish-controlled city of Kokenhusen in

Swedish Livonia Swedish Livonia () was a dominion of the Swedish Empire from 1629 until 1721. The territory, which constituted the southern part of modern Estonia (including the island of Ösel ceded by Denmark after the Treaty of Brömsebro) and the northe ...

(

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

, ruler of the Russian Empire and the leader of the Russian troops in battle, renames Kokenhausen "Tsarevich-Dmitriev" in honor of his late first-born son. Russia holds the city for more than 30 years before it is ceded back to Sweden. Kokenhusen is now the Latvian town of

Koknese Koknese () is a town in Aizkraukle Municipality in the Vidzeme region of Latvia, on the right bank of the Daugava River. It has a population of nearly 3,000. According to the provisions of the 2021 Latvian administrative reform, Koknese gained ...

. *

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 ...

– The Treaty of Butre is signed in West Africa by representatives of the

Dutch West India Company The Dutch West India Company () was a Dutch chartered company that was founded in 1621 and went defunct in 1792. Among its founders were Reynier Pauw, Willem Usselincx (1567–1647), and Jessé de Forest (1576–1624). On 3 June 1621, it was gra ...

and of the Ahanta Kingdom and allows the Netherlands to have a protectorate over the

Dutch Gold Coast The Dutch Gold Coast or Dutch Guinea, officially Dutch possessions on the Coast of Guinea (Dutch language, Dutch: ''Nederlandse Bezittingen ter Kuste van Guinea'') was a portion of contemporary Ghana that was gradually colonized by the Dutch (et ...

. The area is now part of the

Republic of Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

. *

September 15 Events Pre-1600 * 994 – Major Fatimid victory over the Byzantine Empire at the Battle of the Orontes. * 1440 – Gilles de Rais, one of the earliest known serial killers, is taken into custody upon an accusation brought against hi ...

–

Köprülü Mehmed Pasha Köprülü Mehmed Pasha (, , ; or ''Qyprilliu'', also called ''Mehmed Pashá Rojniku''; 1575, Roshnik,– 31 October 1661, Edirne) was Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire and founding patriarch of the Köprülü political dynasty. He helped ...

becomes

Grand Vizier Grand vizier (; ; ) was the title of the effective head of government of many sovereign states in the Islamic world. It was first held by officials in the later Abbasid Caliphate. It was then held in the Ottoman Empire, the Mughal Empire, the Soko ...

of the

October–December

October 26 Events Pre-1600 * 1185 – The Uprising of Asen and Peter begins on the feast day of St. Demetrius of Thessaloniki and ends with the creation of the Second Bulgarian Empire. * 1341 – The Byzantine civil war of 1341–1347 formally ...

– King

of Ayutthaya (now Thailand) is overthrown in a coup d'etat by his nephew and former ally, Prince Narai, 11 weeks after having staged a coup to seize the throne. Narai is crowned as King Ramathibodi III. *

November 3 Events Pre-1600 * 361 – Emperor Constantius II dies of a fever at Mopsuestia in Cilicia; on his deathbed he is baptised and declares his cousin Julian rightful successor. * 1090 – The Rouen Riot, an attempt by English king ...

– The Truce of Vilna is signed between Russia and the

. In addition to agreeing to a temporary ceasefire in their ongoing war, Tsar

Alexis of Russia Alexei Mikhailovich (, ; – ), also known as Alexis, was Tsar of all Russia from 1645 until his death in 1676. He was the second Russian tsar from the House of Romanov. He was the first tsar to sign laws on his own authority and his council ...

agrees to help defend the commonwealth against Sweden's invasion in return for Tsar Alexis being named heir to the thrones of Poland and Lithuania by King

. *

November 4 Events Pre-1600 * 1354 – War of the Straits: The Genoese fleet under Paganino Doria defeats and captures the entire Venetian fleet under Niccolò Pisani at the Battle of Sapienza. * 1429 – Armagnac–Burgundian Civil War: Jo ...

–

Ali Adil Shah II Ali Adil Shah II (; reigned 4 November 1656 – 24 November 1672) was the 8th Sultan of Bijapur. He succeeded to the throne of Bijapur through the efforts of the Prime Minister Khan Muhammad and the Queen, Badi Sahiba, sister of Qutb Shah of ...

becomes the new Sultan of Bijapur (located in what is now India's

Karnataka Karnataka ( ) is a States and union territories of India, state in the southwestern region of India. It was Unification of Karnataka, formed as Mysore State on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, States Re ...

state) upon the death of his father, Mohammed Adil Shah. *

November 6 Events Pre-1600 * 447 – A powerful earthquake destroys large portions of the Walls of Constantinople, including 57 towers. * 963 – Synod of Rome: Emperor Otto I calls a council at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. Pope John XII ...

– At the age of 13, Prince Afonso, Duke of Braganza becomes the new

King of Portugal This is a list of Portuguese monarchs who ruled from the establishment of the Kingdom of Portugal, in 1139, to the deposition of the Portuguese monarchy and creation of the Portugal, Portuguese Republic with the 5 October 1910 revolution. Thro ...

upon the death of his father, King João IV. Because of his age and a mental disability King Afonso VI's authority is exercised instead by his mother, Queen Luisa, as

Regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

. *

November 20 Events Pre-1600 * 284 – Diocletian is chosen as Roman emperor. * 762 – During the An Shi Rebellion, the Tang dynasty, with the help of Huihe tribe, recaptures Luoyang from the rebels. *1194 – Palermo is conquered by Henry ...

– The

Treaty of Labiau The Treaty of Labiau was a treaty signed between Frederick William I, Elector of Brandenburg and Charles X Gustav of Sweden on 10 November ( O.S.) / 20 November ( N.S.) 1656 in Labiau (now Polessk). With several concessions, the most important b ...

is signed, between

and

. *

December 1 Events Pre-1600 * 800 – A council is convened in the Vatican, at which Charlemagne is to judge the accusations against Pope Leo III. * 1420 – Henry V of England enters Paris alongside his father-in-law King Charles VI of France. * ...

– A treaty of alliance is signed between the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

and the

. *

December 6 Events Pre-1600 * 1060 – Béla I is crowned king of Hungary. * 1240 – Mongol invasion of Rus': Kyiv, defended by Voivode Dmytro, falls to the Mongols under Batu Khan. *1492 – After exploring the island of Cuba (which he h ...

– The

Treaty of Radnot Treaty of Radnot was a treaty signed during the Second Northern War in Radnot in Transylvania (now Iernut in Romania) on 6 December 1656. The treaty divided the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth between the signing parties. According to the treaty ...

is signed between Sweden, the Electorate of Brandenburg, Transylvania (now Romania), and two rebels groups within Poland on how to divide the

in the event of a victory in the

. *

December 16 Events Pre-1600 * 714 – Pepin of Herstal, mayor of the Merovingian palace, dies at Jupille (modern Belgium). He is succeeded by his infant grandson Theudoald, while his widow Plectrude holds actual power in the Frankish Kingdom. * ...

– English Quaker

James Nayler James Nayler (or Naylor; 1618–1660) was an English Quaker leader. He was among the members of the Valiant Sixty, a group of early Quaker preachers and missionaries. In 1656, Nayler achieved national notoriety when he re-enacted Christ's Palm ...

is convicted of

blasphemy Blasphemy refers to an insult that shows contempt, disrespect or lack of Reverence (emotion), reverence concerning a deity, an object considered sacred, or something considered Sanctity of life, inviolable. Some religions, especially Abrahamic o ...

but spared the death penalty. *

December 17 Events Pre-1600 * 497 BC – The first Saturnalia festival was celebrated in ancient Rome. * 546 – Siege of Rome: The Ostrogoths under king Totila plunder the city, by bribing the Eastern Roman garrison. * 920 – Romanos I ...

– King Frederick III of Denmark and Norway decrees that loan repayments and payments of interest to lenders will be made on two specific days, May 29 and June 11, each one nicknamed the ''Fandens fødselsdag'' or " Devil's Birthday", *

December 25 Events Pre-1600 * 36 – Forces of Emperor Guangwu of the Eastern Han, under the command of Wu Han, conquer the separatist Chengjia empire, reuniting China. * 274 – A temple to Sol Invictus is dedicated in Rome by Emperor Aurelian. ...

– The

pendulum clock A pendulum clock is a clock that uses a pendulum, a swinging weight, as its timekeeping element. The advantage of a pendulum for timekeeping is that it is an approximate harmonic oscillator: It swings back and forth in a precise time interval dep ...

is invented by

Christiaan Huygens Christiaan Huygens, Halen, Lord of Zeelhem, ( , ; ; also spelled Huyghens; ; 14 April 1629 – 8 July 1695) was a Dutch mathematician, physicist, engineer, astronomer, and inventor who is regarded as a key figure in the Scientific Revolution ...

, so accurate that it only loses 10 seconds per day. Huygens will mention the date in a letter to Ismail Boulliau a year later.

Undated

* The Stockholm Banco, the first bank to issue

banknotes A banknote or bank notealso called a bill (North American English) or simply a noteis a type of paper money that is made and distributed ("issued") by a bank of issue, payable to the bearer on demand. Banknotes were originally issued by commer ...

, is founded in

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

. * The only

English fifty shilling coin The English fifty shilling coin, worth pounds sterling, was only ever minted once, in the year 1656. It was a milled gold coin weighing and with a diameter of . Only eleven examples are known to survive. One extremely fine specimen was recorded to ...

is minted. * Konoike Zen'amon (son of Konoike Shinroku) founds a baking and money-changing business in

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. *

Adams' Grammar School Haberdashers' Adams Grammar School is a selective state grammar school for high-achieving boys and girls aged 11–18 with boarding for boys, located in Newport, Shropshire, offering day and boarding education. As of 2024, boarding fees are £14, ...

Newport, Shropshire Newport is a market town and Civil parishes in Shropshire, civil parish in the borough of Telford and Wrekin in Shropshire, England. It lies north-east of Telford, west of Stafford, and is near the Shropshire-Staffordshire border. The 2001 Ce ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

is founded by William Adams. *

Physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

Samuel Stockhausen of the metal mining town of

Goslar Goslar (; Eastphalian dialect, Eastphalian: ''Goslär'') is a historic town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the administrative centre of the Goslar (district), district of Goslar and is located on the northwestern wikt:slope, slopes of the Harz ...

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony is a States of Germany, German state (') in Northern Germany, northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ' of the Germany, Federal Re ...

publishes his ''Libellus de lithargyrii fumo noxio morbifico, ejusque metallico frequentiori morbo vulgò dicto die Hütten Katze oder Hütten Rauch'' ("Treatise on the Noxious Fumes of

Litharge Litharge (from Greek , 'stone' + 'silver' ) is one of the natural mineral forms of lead(II) oxide, PbO. Litharge is a secondary mineral which forms from the oxidation of galena ores. It forms as coatings and encrustations with internal tetr ...

, Diseases caused by them and Miners' Asthma"), a pioneering study of

occupational disease An occupational disease or industrial disease is any chronic ailment that occurs as a result of work or occupational activity. It is an aspect of occupational safety and health. An occupational disease is typically identified when it is shown th ...

Births

January 1 January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in the Gregorian Calendar; 364 days remain until the end of the year (365 in leap years). This day is also known as New Year's Day since the day marks the beginning of the year. __TOC__ Events ...

– William Fleetwood, Anglican bishop (d.

1723 Events January–March * January 25 – English-born pirate Edward Low intercepts the Portuguese ship ''Nostra Signiora de Victoria''. After the Portuguese captain throws his treasure of 11,000 gold coins into the sea rather th ...

) *

January 2 Events Pre-1600 * 69 – The Roman legions in Germania Superior refuse to swear loyalty to Galba. They rebel and proclaim Vitellius as emperor. * 366 – The Alemanni cross the frozen Rhine in large numbers, invading the Roman Emp ...

–

Paolo Panelli Paolo Panelli (15 July 1925 – 18 May 1997) was an Italian comedian and film actor. He appeared in 55 films between 1948 and 1996. He was married to Bice Valori. Selected filmography * '' Guarany'' (1948) * ''Arrivederci, papà!'' (1948) * ...

, Italian

painter Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...

(d.

1759 In Great Britain, this year was known as the ''Annus Mirabilis'', because of British victories in the Seven Years' War. Events January–March * January 6 – George Washington marries Martha Dandridge Custis. * January 11 & ...

) *

January 14 Events Pre-1600 * 1236 – King Henry III of England marries Eleanor of Provence. * 1301 – Andrew III of Hungary dies, ending the Árpád dynasty in Hungary. 1601–1900 * 1761 – The Third Battle of Panipat is fought in I ...

– Duchess

Johanna Magdalena of Saxe-Altenburg Johanna Magdalena of Saxe-Altenburg (14 January 1656 in Altenburg – 22 January 1686 in Weißenfels) was a member of the House of Wettin. She was a Duchess of Saxe-Altenburg by birth and by marriage a Duchess of Saxe-Weissenfels-Querfurt. Life ...

(d.

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 ...

–

John Ashburnham, 1st Baron Ashburnham John Ashburnham, 1st Baron Ashburnham (15 January 1656 – 21 January 1710) was an English landowner and politician. Ashburnham was the son of William Ashburnham and the grandson of John Ashburnham. His mother was the Honourable Elizabeth, daug ...

, English politician (d.

1710 In the Swedish calendar it was a common year starting on Saturday, one day ahead of the Julian and ten days behind the Gregorian calendar. Events January–March * January 1 – In Prussia, Cölln is merged with Alt-Berlin ...

) *

January 29 Events Pre-1600 * 904 – Sergius III is elected pope, after coming out of retirement to take over the papacy from the deposed antipope Christopher. * 946 – Caliph al-Mustakfi is blinded and deposed by Mu'izz al-Dawla, ruler ...

– Samuel Andrew, American Congregational clergyman and educator (d.

1738 Events January–March * January 1 – At least 664 African slaves drown when the Dutch West Indies Company slave ship ''Leusden'' capsizes and sinks in the Maroni River during its arrival in Surinam. The Dutch crew escapes ...

) *

February 2 Events Pre-1600 * 506 – Alaric II, eighth king of the Visigoths, promulgates the Breviary of Alaric (''Breviarium Alaricianum'' or ''Lex Romana Visigothorum''), a collection of " Roman law". * 880 – Battle of Lüneburg Heath: ...

– Charles Churchill, English Army general and politician (d.

1714 Events January–March * January 21 – After being tricked into deserting a battle against India's Mughal Empire by the rebel Sayyid brothers, Prince Azz-ud-din Mirza is blinded on orders of the Emperor Farrukhsiyar as punishment. * ...

) *

February 9 Events Pre-1600 * 474 – Zeno (emperor), Zeno is crowned as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire, Eastern Roman Empire *1003 – Boleslaus III, Duke of Bohemia, Boleslaus III is restored to authority with armed support from Bolesław I ...

–

Rose Venerini Rose Venerini (9 February 1656 – 7 May 1728), also called Rosa Venerini, was an Italian Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion ...

, Italian saint, educational pioneer (d.

1728 Events January–March * January 5 – The '' Real y Pontificia Universidad de San Gerónimo de la Habana'', the oldest university in Cuba, is founded in Havana. * January 9 – The coronation of Peter II as the Tsar of t ...

) *

February 10 Events Pre-1600 * 1258 – The Siege of Baghdad ends with the surrender of the last Abbasid caliph to Hulegu Khan, a prince of the Mongol Empire. * 1306 – In front of the high altar of Greyfriars Church in Dumfries, Robert the Bru ...

– Ferdinand de Marsin,

Marshal of France Marshal of France (, plural ') is a French military distinction, rather than a military rank, that is awarded to General officer, generals for exceptional achievements. The title has been awarded since 1185, though briefly abolished (1793–1804) ...

(d.

1706 In the Swedish calendar it was a common year starting on Monday, one day ahead of the Julian and ten days behind the Gregorian calendar. Events January–March * January 26 ** War of Spanish Succession: The uprising by Bavarians aga ...

) *

February 16 Events Pre-1600 * 1249 – Andrew of Longjumeau is dispatched by Louis IX of France as his ambassador to meet with the Khagan of the Mongol Empire. * 1270 – The Grand Duchy of Lithuania defeats the Livonian Order in the Battl ...

–

Anthony Cary, 5th Viscount of Falkland Anthony Cary, 5th Viscount Falkland PC (16 February 1656 – 24 May 1694) was an English nobleman and politician. Biography Cary was born at Farley Castle, Somerset, the son of Henry Cary, 4th Viscount Falkland, to whose peerage he succeeded ...

, English politician (d. 1694) *

March 1 Events Pre-1600 * 509 BC – Publius Valerius Publicola celebrates the first triumph of the Roman Republic after his victory over the deposed king Lucius Tarquinius Superbus at the Battle of Silva Arsia. * 293 – Emperor Diocleti ...

– Maria Angela Caterina d'Este, Italian princess (d.

1722 Events January–March * January 27 – Daniel Defoe's novel '' Moll Flanders'' is published anonymously in London. * February 10 – The Battle of Cape Lopez begins off of the coast of West Africa (and present-day Gabon), ...

) *

March 2 Events Pre-1600 * 537 – Siege of Rome: The Ostrogoth army under king Vitiges begins the siege of the capital. Belisarius conducts a delaying action outside the Flaminian Gate; he and a detachment of his '' bucellarii'' are almost ...

– Jan Frans van Douven, Dutch painter (d.

1727 Events January–March * January 1 – (December 21, 1726 O.S.) Spain's ambassador to Great Britain demands that the British return Gibraltar after accusing Britain of violating the terms of the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht. Britain ...

) *

March 11 Events Pre-1600 * 843 – Triumph of Orthodoxy: Empress Theodora II restores the veneration of icons in the Orthodox churches in the Byzantine Empire. * 1343 – Arnošt of Pardubice becomes the last Bishop of Prague (3 March 13 ...

– Duchess Marie Elisabeth of Hesse-Darmstadt (d.

1715 Events For dates within Great Britain and the British Empire, as well as in the Russian Empire, the "old style" Julian calendar was used in 1715, and can be converted to the "new style" Gregorian calendar (adopted in the British Empire in ...

) *

March 13 Events Pre-1600 * 222 – Roman emperor Elagabalus is murdered alongside his mother, Julia Soaemias. He is replaced by his 14-year old cousin, Severus Alexander. * 624 – The Battle of Badr, the first major battle between the Mu ...

–

Hachisuka Tsunamichi (March 13, 1656 – September 15, 1678) was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Edo period, who ruled the Tokushima Domain. His court title was ''Kokushi (officials), Awa no kami''. He formally converted to Buddhism. Family * Father: Hachisuka Mitsut ...

, Japanese daimyō, ruler of the Tokushima Domain (d. 1678) *

March 26 Events Pre-1600 * 590 – Emperor Maurice proclaims his son Theodosius as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire. * 624 – First Eid al-Fitr celebration. * 1021 – The death of the Fatimid caliph al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, kept secret ...

–

Nicolaas Hartsoeker Nicolaas Hartsoeker (26 March 1656 – 10 December 1725) was a Dutch mathematician and physicist who invented the screw-barrel simple microscope . Biography He was the son of Anna van der Meij and Christiaan Hartsoeker (1626–1683), a Remonst ...

, Dutch mathematician and physicist (d.

1725 Events January–March * January 1 – J. S. Bach leads the first performance of his chorale cantata ''Jesu, nun sei gepreiset'', BWV 41, which features the trumpet fanfares from the beginning also in the end. * January 6 &nd ...

) *

March 30 Events Pre-1600 * 598 – Avar–Byzantine wars: The Avars lift the siege at the Byzantine stronghold of Tomis. Their leader Bayan I retreats north of the Danube River after the Avaro- Slavic army is decimated by the plague. * 1282 ...

–

Nicolas de Largillière Nicolas de Largillière (; baptised 10 October 1656 – 20 March 1746) was a French people, French painter and Drawing, draughtsman. Biography Early life Largillière was baptised at the in Paris on 10 October 1656. The son of a merchant hatm ...

, French painter (d.

1746 Events January–March * January 8 – The Young Pretender Charles Edward Stuart occupies Stirling, Scotland. * January 17 – Battle of Falkirk Muir: British Government forces are defeated by Jacobite forces. * February ...

) *

March 31 Events Pre-1600 * 307 – After divorcing his wife Minervina, Constantine marries Fausta, daughter of the retired Roman emperor Maximian. * 1146 – Bernard of Clairvaux preaches his famous sermon in a field at Vézelay, urging ...

** Giovanni Batista Bussi, Italian Catholic cardinal (d.

1726 Events January–March * January 23 – (January 12 Old Style) The Conventicle Act (''Konventikelplakatet'') is adopted in Sweden, outlawing all non-Lutheran religious meetings outside of church services. * January 26 – T ...

) ** Juan Andrés de Ustariz, Royal Governor of Cuba (d.

1718 Events January – March * January 7 – In India, Sufi rebel leader Shah Inayat Shaheed from Sindh who had led attacks against the Mughal Empire, is beheaded days after being tricked into meeting with the Mughals to discuss ...

) *

April 17 Events Pre-1600 * 1080 – Harald III of Denmark dies and is succeeded by Canute IV, who would later be the first Dane to be canonized. * 1349 – The rule of the Bavand dynasty in Mazandaran is brought to an end by the murder of H ...

–

William Molyneux William Molyneux Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS (; 17 April 1656 – 11 October 1698) was an Anglo-Irish writer on science, politics and natural philosopher, natural philosophy. He is noted as a close friend of fellow philosopher John Lock ...

, Irish politician, philosopher and writer (d.

1698 Events January–March * January 1 – The Abenaki tribe and Massachusetts colonists sign a treaty, ending the conflict in New England. * January 4 – The Palace of Whitehall in London, England is destroyed by fire. * January 23 – ...

) *

April 9 Events Pre-1600 * 193 – The distinguished soldier Septimius Severus is proclaimed emperor by the army in Illyricum. * 475 – Byzantine Emperor Basiliscus issues a circular letter (''Enkyklikon'') to the bishops of his empire, ...

– Francesco Trevisani, Italian painter (d.

) *

April 10 Events Pre-1600 * 428 – Nestorius becomes the Patriarch of Constantinople. * 837 – Halley's Comet makes its closest approach to Earth at a distance equal to 0.0342 AU (5.1 million kilometres/3.2 million miles). * 140 ...

–

René Lepage de Sainte-Claire Rene Lepage de Sainte-Claire (April 10, 1656, in Ouanne, Burgundy – August 4, 1718, in Rimouski, Quebec) is the lord-founder of the town of Rimouski, Quebec, Canada. Origin Born close to Auxerre in Burgundy, René Lepage immigrated to New Fran ...

, lord-founder of

Rimouski Rimouski ( ; ) is a city in Quebec, Canada. Rimouski is located in the Bas-Saint-Laurent region, at the mouth of the Rimouski River. It has a population of 48,935 (as of 2021). Rimouski, whose motto is ''Legi patrum fidelis'' (Faithful to ...

in eastern

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

, Canada (d.

) *

April 12 Events Pre-1600 * 240 – Shapur I becomes co-emperor of the Sasanian Empire with his father Ardashir I. * 467 – Anthemius is elevated to Emperor of the Western Roman Empire. * 627 – King Edwin of Northumbria is converted to ...

–

Benoît de Maillet Benoît de Maillet ( Saint-Mihiel, 12 April 1656 – Marseille, 30 January 1738) was a well-travelled French diplomat and natural historian. He was French consul general at Cairo, and overseer in the Levant. He formulated an evolutionary hypoth ...

, French diplomat and natural historian (d.

) *

April 23 Events Pre-1600 * 215 BC – A temple is built on the Capitoline Hill dedicated to Venus Erycina to commemorate the Roman defeat at Lake Trasimene. *599 – Maya king Uneh Chan of Calakmul attacks rival city-state Palenque in so ...

– Anton Egon, Prince of Fürstenberg-Heiligenberg, Governor of the Electorate of Saxony (d.

1716 Events January–March * January 16 – The application of the Nueva Planta decrees to Catalonia make it subject to the laws of the Crown of Castile, and abolishes the Principality of Catalonia as a political entity, conclud ...

) *

May 2 Events Pre-1600 * 1194 – King Richard I of England gives Portsmouth its first royal charter. * 1230 – William de Braose is hanged by Prince Llywelyn the Great. * 1536 – Anne Boleyn, Queen of England, is arrested and impris ...

–

Sir Richard Levinge, 1st Baronet Sir Richard Levinge, 1st Baronet (2 May 1656 – 13 July 1724) was an Irish politician and judge, who played a leading part in Irish public life for more than 30 years. Background Levinge was born at Leek, Staffordshire, the second son of Ric ...

, Anglo-Irish politician and judge (d. 1724) *

May 4 Events Pre-1600 * 1256 – The Augustinian monastic order is constituted at the Lecceto Monastery when Pope Alexander IV issues a papal bull ''Licet ecclesiae catholicae''. * 1415 – Religious reformer John Wycliffe is condemned a ...

– John Louis I, Prince of Anhalt-Dornburg (d.

1704 In the Swedish calendar it was a leap year starting on Friday, one day ahead of the Julian and ten days behind the Gregorian calendar. Events January–March * January 7 – Partial solar eclipse, Solar Saros 146, is visible i ...

) *

May 8 Events Pre-1600 * 453 BC – Spring and Autumn period: The house of Zhao defeats the house of Zhi, ending the Battle of Jinyang, a military conflict between the elite families of the State of Jin. * 413 – Emperor Honorius signs a ...

– Sir John Mainwaring, 2nd Baronet, English member of Parliament (d.

1702 In the Swedish calendar it was a common year starting on Wednesday, one day ahead of the Julian and ten days behind the Gregorian calendar. Events January–March * January 2 – A total solar eclipse is visible from the southern ...

) *

May 23 Events Pre-1600 * 1430 – Joan of Arc is captured at the Siege of Compiègne by troops from the Burgundian faction. * 1498 – Girolamo Savonarola is burned at the stake in Florence, Italy. *1533 – The marriage of King Henry ...

– Rebecca Rawson, Massachusetts heroine of the 1849 book ''Leaves from Margaret Smith's Journal'' (d.

1692 Events January–March * January 24 – At least 75 residents of what is now York, Maine are killed in the Raid on York (1692), Candlemas Massacre, carried out by French soldiers led by missionary Louis-Pierre Thury, along with a ...

) *

May 28 Events Pre-1600 * 585 BC – A solar eclipse occurs, as predicted by the Greek philosopher and scientist Thales, while Alyattes is battling Cyaxares in the Battle of the Eclipse, leading to a truce. This is one of the cardinal dates from ...

–

Anton Florian, Prince of Liechtenstein Anton Florian (28 May 1656 – 11 October 1721) was the Prince of Liechtenstein between 1718 and 1721. Anton Florian was born in Wilfersdorf, in what is now Lower Austria. During the War of the Spanish Succession, he went to Spain, where he was ...

(d.

1721 Events January–March * January 6 – The Committee of Inquiry on the collapse of the South Sea Company in Great Britain publishes its findings. * February 5 – James Stanhope, chief minister of Great Britain, dies a day after ...

) *

May 31 Events Pre-1600 * 455 – Emperor Petronius Maximus is stoned to death by an angry mob while fleeing Rome. * 1215 – Zhongdu (now Beijing), then under the control of the Jurchen ruler Emperor Xuanzong of Jin, is captured by th ...

–

Marin Marais Marin Marais (; 31 May 1656, in Paris – 15 August 1728, in Paris) was a French composer and viol player. He studied composition with Jean-Baptiste Lully, often conducting his operas, and with master of the bass viol Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe ...

, French composer and viol player (d.

) *

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 ...

–

Joseph Pitton de Tournefort Joseph Pitton de Tournefort (5 June 165628 December 1708) was a French botanist, notable as the first to make a clear definition of the concept of genus for plants. Botanist Charles Plumier was his pupil and accompanied him on his voyages. Li ...

, French botanist (d.

1708 In the Swedish calendar it was a leap year starting on Wednesday, one day ahead of the Julian and ten days behind the Gregorian calendar. Events January–June * January 1 – Charles XII of Sweden invades Russia, by crossing the ...

) *

June 17 Events Pre-1600 * 653 – Pope Martin I is arrested and taken to Constantinople, due to his opposition to monothelitism. *1242 – Following the Disputation of Paris, twenty-four carriage loads of Jewish religious manuscripts were burn ...

– Paul Thymich, German poet (d. 1694) *

July 1 Events Pre-1600 * 69 – Tiberius Julius Alexander orders his Roman legions in Alexandria to swear allegiance to Vespasian as Emperor. * 552 – Battle of Taginae: Byzantine forces under Narses defeat the Ostrogoths in Italy, and ...

– Polykarp Leyser III, German Lutheran theologian (d.

) *

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 ...

–

John Leake Admiral of the Fleet Sir John Leake (4 July 1656 – 21 August 1720) was a Royal Navy officer and politician. As a junior officer he saw action at the Battle of Texel during the Third Anglo-Dutch War. He then distinguished himself when he led th ...

, English Royal Navy admiral (d.

1720 Events January–March * January 21 – Sweden and Prussia sign the Treaty of Stockholm (Great Northern War). * February 10 – Edmond Halley is appointed as Astronomer Royal for England. * February 17 – The Treaty o ...

) *

July 5 Events Pre-1600 * 328 – The official opening of Constantine's Bridge built over the Danube between Sucidava ( Corabia, Romania) and Oescus ( Gigen, Bulgaria) by the Roman architect Theophilus Patricius. * 1316 – The Burgundian ...

– John Hamilton, 2nd Lord Belhaven and Stenton, Scottish politician (d.

) *

July 7 Events Pre-1600 * 1124 – The city of Tyre falls to the Venetian Crusade after a siege of nineteen weeks. * 1456 – A retrial verdict acquits Joan of Arc of heresy 25 years after her execution. * 1520 – Spanish ''conquistad ...

–

Guru Har Krishan Guru Har Krishan ( Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਹਰਿ ਕ੍ਰਿਸ਼ਨ, pronunciation: ; 7 July 1656–30 March 1664) also known as Bal Guru (Child Guru),HS Singha (2009), The Encyclopedia of Sikhism, Hemkunt Press, , pp. 96–97 or Hari Krish ...

, 8th Guru of Sikhism (d.

1664 Events January–March * January 5 – Battle of Surat in India: The Maratha leader, Chhatrapati Shivaji, defeats the Mughal Army Captain Inayat Khan, and sacks Surat. * January 7 – Indian entrepreneur Virji Vora, desc ...

) *

July 15 Events Pre-1600 * 484 BC – Dedication of the Temple of Castor and Pollux in ancient Rome * 70 – First Jewish–Roman War: Titus and his armies breach the walls of Jerusalem. ( 17th of Tammuz in the Hebrew calendar). * 756 &ndas ...

** Massimiliano Soldani Benzi, Italian sculptor (d.

1740 Events January–March * January 8 – All 237 crewmen on the Dutch East India Company ship ''Rooswijk'' are drowned when the vessel strikes the shoals of Goodwin Sands, off of the coast of England, as it is beginning its second ...

) **

Gerard Langbaine Gerard Langbaine (15 July 1656 – 23 June 1692) was an English dramatic biographer and critic, best known for his ''An Account of the English Dramatic Poets'' (1691), the earliest work to give biographical and critical information on the playwrig ...

, English dramatic biographer and critic (d.

) *

July 16 Events Pre-1600 * 622 – The Hijrah of Muhammad begins, marking the beginning of the Islamic calendar. * 997 – Battle of Spercheios: Bulgarian forces of Tsar Samuel are defeated by a Byzantine army under general Nikephoros Ouran ...

– George Ashby, English member of Parliament (d.

) *

–

Joachim Bouvet Joachim Bouvet (, courtesy name: 明远) (July 18, 1656, in Le Mans – June 28, 1730, in Peking) was a French Jesuit who worked in China, and the leading member of the Figurist movement. China Bouvet was born in Le Mans, France; he entered th ...

, French Jesuit active in China (d.

1730 Events January–March * January 30 (January 19 O.S.) – At dawn, Emperor Peter II of Russia dies of smallpox, aged 14 in Moscow, on the eve of his projected marriage. * February 26 (February 15 O.S.) – Anna of Russia ( ...

) *

July 20 Events Pre-1600 * 70 – Siege of Jerusalem: Titus, son of emperor Vespasian, storms the Fortress of Antonia north of the Temple Mount. The Roman army is drawn into street fights with the Zealots. * 792 – Kardam of Bulgaria defe ...

–

Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach (20 July 1656 – 5 April 1723) was an Austrian architect, sculptor, engraver, and architectural historian whose Baroque architecture profoundly influenced and shaped the tastes of the Habsburg Empire. His inf ...

, Austrian architect (d.

) *

August 6 Events Pre-1600 *686 – The Ummayad forces suffer a deceisive defeat against the pro-Alid forces under Ibrahim ibn al-Ashtar in the battle of Khazir. *1284 – The Republic of Pisa is defeated in the Battle of Meloria (1284), Battle o ...

–

Claude de Forbin Claude, comte de Forbin-Gardanne (6 August 1656 – 4 March 1733) was a French Navy officer, nobleman and diplomat. From 1685 to 1688, he led a diplomatic mission to the Ayutthaya Kingdom. He became governor of Bangkok and a general in the Siamese ...

, French naval commander (d.

1733 Events January–March * January 13 – Borommarachathirat V becomes King of Siam (now Thailand) upon the death of King Sanphet IX. * January 27 – George Frideric Handel's classic opera, ''Orlando'' is performed for the ...

) *

August 12 Events Pre-1600 *1099 – First Crusade: Battle of Ascalon Crusaders under the command of Godfrey of Bouillon defeat Fatimid forces led by Al-Afdal Shahanshah. This is considered the last engagement of the First Crusade. * 1121 – Bat ...

– Claude de Visdelou, French missionary (d.

1737 Events January–March * January 5 – Spain and the Holy Roman Empire sign instruments of cession at Pontremoli in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany in Italy, with the Empire receiving control of Tuscany and the Grand Duchy of Parm ...

) *

August 16 Events Pre-1600 * 1 BC – Wang Mang consolidates his power in China and is declared marshal of state. Emperor Ai of Han, who died the previous day, had no heirs. * 942 – Start of the four-day Battle of al-Mada'in, between the H ...

–

Christian Knaut Christian Knaut (August 16, 1656 – April 11, 1716) was a German physician, botanist and librarian born in Halle an der Saale. His older brother, Christoph Knaut (1638–1694) was also a physician and botanist. He studied medicine at the Unive ...

, German physician (d.

) *

August 18 Events Pre-1600 * 684 – Battle of Marj Rahit: Umayyad partisans defeat the supporters of Ibn al-Zubayr and cement Umayyad control of Syria. * 707 – Princess Abe accedes to the imperial Japanese throne as Empress Genmei. * 130 ...

–

Ferdinando Galli-Bibiena Ferdinando Galli-Bibiena (18 August 1657 – 3 January 1743),"Galli-Bibiena, Ferdinando" (dates, Farnese dynasty, to Barcelona for Karl VI),''Encyclopedia of Austria'', 2006, aeiou.iicm.tugraz.at webpag."Ferdinando Galli Bibiena Online" (overview ...

, Italian painter (d.

1743 Events January–March * January 1 – The Verendrye brothers, probably Louis-Joseph and François de La Vérendrye, become the first white people to see the Rocky Mountains from the eastern side (the Spanish conquistadors ...

) *

September 6 Events Pre-1600 * 394 – Battle of the Frigidus: Roman emperor Theodosius I defeats and kills Eugenius the usurper. His Frankish ''magister militum'' Arbogast escapes but commits suicide two days later. *1492 – Christopher Co ...

– Guillaume Dubois, French cardinal and statesman (d.

) * September 7 – Robert Molesworth, 1st Viscount Molesworth, Irish politician (d.

) * September 9 ** Johann Caspar Ferdinand Fischer, German organist and composer (d.

) ** Thomas Hewet, English landowner and architect (d.

) * September 11 – Ulrika Eleonora of Denmark, Swedish queen consort (d. 1693) * September 14 – Thomas Baker (antiquarian), Thomas Baker, English antiquarian (d.

) * September 26 – William des Bouverie, English aristocrat and merchant (d. 1717) * October 2 – Hendrik Carré, Dutch painter (d.

) * October 20 –

, French painter (d.

) *

– Georg Reutter, German composer and organist (d.

) * November 8 – Edmond Halley, English scientist (d. 1742) * November 18 – Jacques de Tourreil, French lawyer (d.

) *

– Duchess Eleonore Charlotte of Württemberg-Montbéliard (d.

) * November 23 – Jacob de Heusch, Dutch painter (d. 1701) * December 2 – Joshua Oldfield, English Presbyterian minister (d. 1729) * December 11 – Johann Michael Rottmayr, Austrian painter (d.

) * ''date unknown'' ** Patrick Abercromby, Scottish physician and antiquarian (d. c.

) ** Maria Oriana Galli-Bibiena, Italian painter (d. 1749) ** Kateri Tekakwitha, Native American beatified in the Roman Catholic Church (d. 1680)

Deaths

* January 3 – Mathieu Molé, French statesman (b. 1584) * January 18 – Augustus, Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg, German noble (b. 1577) * January 22 – Thomas Francis, Prince of Carignano (b. 1596) * February 13 – Ferdinando Hastings, 6th Earl of Huntingdon, English politician (b. 1609) * February 25 – Henriette Catherine de Joyeuse, Duke of Joyeuse (b. 1585) * February 27 – Meleki Hatun, influential Ottoman lady-in-waiting (killed by rebels) * March 21 – James Ussher, Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland (b. 1581) * March 19 – Georg Calixtus, German Lutheran theologian who looked to reconcile all Christendom (b. 1586) * April 7 – Krzysztof Arciszewski, Polish-Lithuanian noble (b. 1592) *

– Gerard Pietersz Hulft, Dutch general (b. 1621) * April 24 – Thomas Fincke, Danish mathematician and physicist (b. 1561) * April 27 ** Jan van Goyen, Dutch painter (b. 1596) ** Gerard van Honthorst, Dutch painter (b. 1592) * May 1 – Carlo Contarini, Doge of Venice (b. 1580) *

– Dirck Hals, Dutch painter (b. 1591) * May 19 – George Louis, Prince of Nassau-Dillenburg, German noble (b. 1618) *

– Francesco Cornaro, Doge of Venice (b. 1585) * June 9 – Thomas Tomkins, Welsh-born composer (b. 1572) * June 12 – Charles Worsley, English soldier and politician (b. 1622) *

– Maximilian van der Sandt, Dutch theologian (b. 1578) * July 2 – François-Marie, comte de Broglie, Italian-born French commander (b. 1611) * July 12 – Giovanni Giacomo Barbelli, Italian painter (b. 1604) *

– Brás Garcia de Mascarenhas, Portuguese soldier, poet and writer (b. 1596) * August 11 – Ottavio Piccolomini, Austrian-Italian field marshal (b. 1599) * August 17 – Marie Anne d'Orléans, French princess (b. 1652) * August 24 – Aegidius Gelenius, German heraldist (b. 1595) * September 8 – Joseph Hall (bishop), Joseph Hall, English bishop and writer (b. 1574) * September 22 – Christian II, Prince of Anhalt-Bernburg since 1630 (b. 1599) * October – Stephen Bachiler, English clergyman (b. c. 1561) * October 3 – Myles Standish, ''Mayflower'' colonist (b. c. 1584) * October 8 – John George I, Elector of Saxony (b. 1585) * October 12 ** Juan Alonso y Ocón, Spanish Catholic prelate, Archbishop of La Plata o Charcas (b. 1597) ** Juan Tellez-Girón y Enriquez de Ribera, 4th Duke of Osuna (b. 1597) * October 30 – Ferruccio Baffa Trasci, Italian bishop (b. 1590) *

** King John IV of Portugal (b. 1604) ** Jean-Baptiste Morin (mathematician), Jean-Baptiste Morin, French mathematician (b. 1583) * November 12 ** Albrycht Stanisław Radziwiłł, Polish nobleman (b. 1595) ** Hendrick van Anthonissen, Dutch painter (b. 1605) * December 2 – Alessandro dal Borro, Austrian field marshal (b. 1600) * December 20 – David Beck, Dutch portrait painter (b. 1621) * December 21 – Thomas Trevor (1586–1656), Thomas Trevor, English politician and judge (b. 1586) * December 27 – Andrew White (Jesuit), Andrew White, Apostle of Maryland (b. 1579) * December 28 – Laurent de La Hyre, French Baroque painter (b. 1606) * ''Date unknown'' – Andrea Calcese, Italian Baroque era comic actor (plague) (b. 1595)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1656 1656, Leap years in the Gregorian calendar