1497Year 1497 (MCDXCVII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. February 7 (Shrove Tuesday) – Followers of Girolamo Savonarola burn thousands of "immoral" objects, at the Bonfire of the Vanities in Florence. March – The Russo-Swedish War (1495–1497) ends with a six year truce. Due to gathering unrest at home, the Swedish leader Sten Sture the Elder was forced to offer a peace to Ivan III of Moscow. May – The Cornish Rebellion breaks out in England, incited by war taxes.
1500Year 1500 (MD) was a leap year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. The year 1500 was not a leap year in the proleptic Gregorian calendar. The year was seen as being especially important by many Christians in Europe, who thought it would bring the beginning of the end of the world. Their belief was based on the phrase "half-time after the time", when the apocalypse was due to occur, which appears in the Book of Revelation and was seen as referring to 1500.
1492Year 1492 (MCDXCII) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. 1492 is considered to be a significant year in the history of the West, Europe, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Spain, and the New World, among others, because of the number of significant events that took place. The events which propelled the year into Western consciousness, listed below, include the completion of the Reconquista of Spain, Europe's (Spain) discovery of the New World, and the expulsion of Jews from Spain.
1610Some have suggested that 1610 may mark the beginning of the Anthropocene, or the 'Age of Man', marking a fundamental change in the relationship between humans and the Earth system, but earlier starting dates (ca. 1000 C.E.) have received broader consensus, based on high resolution pollution records that show the massive impact of human activity on the atmosphere. January 6 – Nossa Senhora da Graça incident: A Portuguese carrack sinks near Nagasaki, after fighting Japanese samurai for four nights.
1616January 1 – King James I of England attends the masque The Golden Age Restored, a satire by Ben Jonson on fallen court favorite the Earl of Somerset. The king asks for a repeat performance on January 6. January 3 – In the court of James I of England, the king's favorite George Villiers becomes Master of the Horse (encouraging development of the thoroughbred horse); on April 24 he receives the Order of the Garter; and on August 27 is created Viscount Villiers and Baron Waddon, receiving a grant of land valued at £80,000.
1624January 14 – After 90 years of Ottoman occupation, Baghdad is recaptured by the Safavid Empire. January 22 – Korean General Yi Gwal leads an uprising of 12,000 soldiers against King Injo in what is called then the Joseon Kingdom, and occupies Hanseong. January 24 – Afonso Mendes, appointed by Pope Gregory XV as Prelate of Ethiopia, arrives at Massawa from Goa. February 7 – (January 28, 1623/4 old style) England first colonizes Saint Kitts and Nevis. February 11 – Yi Gwal installs Prince Heungan, son of the late King Seongjo, to the Korean throne.
1604January 1 – The earliest recorded performance of William Shakespeare's play A Midsummer Night's Dream takes place at Hampton Court prior to the main presentation, The Masque of Indian and China Knights, which is performed by courtiers of King James. January 14 – The Hampton Court Conference is held between James I of England, the Anglican bishops and representatives of the Puritans. Work begins on the Authorized King James Version of the Bible and revision of the Book of Common Prayer.
