Religion
Faith, institutions and reform.
Category: Culture, Society
- c. 1349 BCEAkhenaten founds Akhetaten (Amarna)
About his fifth year Akhenaten decrees a new capital, Akhetaten, now Amarna, midway between Thebes and Memphis. His reign is dated c. 1353-1336 or 1351-1334 BCE. He favours the Aten; whether his religion was monotheistic is debated. His monuments were dismantled after his death.
- c. 622 BCEKing Josiah's reform after a 'book of the law' is found in the Temple
In his 18th year, c. 622 BCE, Josiah of Judah centralizes worship in Jerusalem after a scroll is found in the Temple. Many scholars link it to an early form of Deuteronomy; some see the account as largely legendary.
- c. 587 BCEBabylon destroys Jerusalem and exiles Judah's elite
Nebuchadnezzar II burns Jerusalem and its Temple in 587 or 586 BCE and deports Judeans to Babylonia. In exile, scribes gather and reshape the traditions that would form the Hebrew Bible.
- c. 457 BCEEzra brings the Torah to Jerusalem
According to tradition, the priest and scribe Ezra leads a return from Babylon c. 457 BCE and reintroduces the Torah in Jerusalem. Many scholars place the Torah's final shaping and authority in this Persian period.
- c. 250 BCE – 132 BCEThe Hebrew scriptures are translated into Greek: the Septuagint
Jews in Ptolemaic Egypt, probably around Alexandria, translate the Torah into Greek in the 3rd century BCE and the other books by 132 BCE. Some copies include books later called deuterocanonical.
- 167 BCEThe Maccabean revolt begins
In 167 BCE, as Antiochus IV's decrees ban Jewish practices, the priest Mattathias kills a Jew sacrificing to an idol and a Seleucid officer, and the revolt begins. His son Judas Maccabeus leads it after 166.
- 164 BCEThe Temple is rededicated: Hanukkah
In 164 BCE the Maccabees take Jerusalem, and cleanse and rededicate the Temple on 25 Kislev, the origin of Hanukkah. The Seleucid ban on Jewish practice is revoked. Judas dies at Elasa in 160.
- c. 150 BCEPharisees, Sadducees and Essenes emerge
In the mid-2nd century BCE, under the Hasmonean priest-rulers, Jewish groups take shape: Pharisees, Sadducees and Essenes. Pharisees accept an oral Torah and the Sadducees only the written one; the Essenes live apart. Josephus first mentions the Pharisees under Jonathan.
- c. 5 BCEThe birth of Jesus (traditional)
Matthew places Jesus's birth in the reign of Herod, so before 4 BCE; scholars give a range of 7 to 2 BCE. Luke links it to the census of Quirinius, in 6 CE, which most critical scholars take as an error. Both put it in Bethlehem; the Gospels give no year.
- c. 28John the Baptist preaches and is killed
About 28-29 CE John the Baptist preaches and baptizes; Jesus's baptism by him is among the events scholars accept most widely. Herod Antipas has John killed, around 30. The Gospels cite his rebuke of Antipas's marriage; Josephus says Antipas feared revolt.
- c. 30The crucifixion of Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth is crucified in Jerusalem under Pontius Pilate, most likely at Passover in 30 or 33 CE. Tacitus mentions it, and the baptism and crucifixion are the points scholars accept most widely. The Gospels differ over how much blame falls on Pilate.
- c. 48 – c. 62Paul writes the earliest surviving Christian texts
From c. 48 CE the apostle Paul writes letters to early Christian communities, among them Galatians, 1 Thessalonians and Romans. They are the oldest writings of the New Testament.
- c. 70The Gospel of Mark, the earliest gospel, is written
Around 70 CE, near the First Jewish–Roman War and the destruction of the Temple, the Gospel of Mark is composed. Most scholars see it as the first gospel; its place of writing is debated.
- 70The Second Temple is destroyed
The Second Temple burns in the summer of 70 CE, on 10 Av in Josephus's account, the day Tisha B'Av recalls. Josephus says Titus tried to save it; later writers say he ordered it burned. Scholars are divided. Excavations show burn layers and fallen stones.
- c. 70Yohanan ben Zakkai and Yavneh
The Talmud says the sage Yohanan ben Zakkai left besieged Jerusalem in a coffin and asked Vespasian to spare Yavneh. At Yavneh he turned a school into a centre of learning, where prayer came to replace sacrifice. The tale is unconfirmed, but rabbinic Judaism took shape there.
- c. 140Marcion proposes the first Christian canon
Around 140 CE the teacher Marcion offers a canon of ten Pauline letters and an edited Gospel of Luke, rejecting the Hebrew scriptures. His list is often seen as prompting the church to define its own.
- c. 240Origen compiles the Hexapla
By about 240 CE the scholar Origen of Alexandria sets out the Hebrew Bible in six parallel columns: Hebrew, its Greek transliteration and four Greek versions, including the Septuagint. Only fragments survive.
- c. 350Codex Sinaiticus, an early complete Greek Bible, is copied
In the mid-4th century (c. 325–360) a Greek Old and New Testament is copied in one codex. Codex Sinaiticus includes deuterocanonical books such as Tobit, Judith and Sirach, plus the Epistle of Barnabas.
- 367Athanasius lists the 27 books of the New Testament
In his Easter letter of 367, Bishop Athanasius of Alexandria names the same 27 New Testament books Christians use today, the earliest known list of exactly that set.
- c. 370The Bible is translated into Gothic
In the 4th century the Arian bishop Wulfila, probably with a team, translates much of the Bible into Gothic, in the Balkans. The best-known manuscript is the Codex Argenteus, now in Uppsala.
- 382 – 405Jerome translates the Bible into Latin: the Vulgate
Commissioned by Pope Damasus I in 382, Jerome revises the Latin Gospels and later translates the Old Testament from Hebrew, finishing by 405 in Bethlehem. He doubted the status of the deuterocanonical books.
- 393The Synod of Hippo accepts a Christian canon
In 393 a North African church synod at Hippo Regius, in the circle of Augustine, probably becomes the first council to accept the Catholic canon of Old and New Testament books, deuterocanonical books included.
- 397The Council of Carthage confirms the canon of Scripture
In 397 the Council of Carthage accepts a summary of the Synod of Hippo's decisions and its list of biblical books. A further council in 419 repeats it, shaping the canon of Latin Christianity.
- c. 405 – c. 434Mesrop Mashtots and the Armenian Bible
Around 405 Mesrop Mashtots creates the Armenian alphabet. A first Bible translation from Syriac follows (c. 411), then a revision from Greek completed c. 434.
- c. 496Clovis, king of the Franks, is baptised a Catholic
Clovis I, who united the Frankish kingdoms in Gaul, converted to Catholic Christianity. Tradition says December 496 at Reims; modern scholars propose dates between 498 and 508.
- c. 700Codex Amiatinus, the oldest complete Vulgate, is made in Northumbria
Ordered by Abbot Ceolfrith in 692 and made at Monkwearmouth–Jarrow around 700, the Codex Amiatinus is the oldest complete Vulgate Bible. It leaves for Italy in 716 and is now in Florence.
- February 4, 781The Nestorian Stele is erected at Chang'an
On 4 February 781 a Chinese and Syriac stele at Chang'an records the Church of the East in Tang China, from the arrival of Alopen in 635. Composed by the monk Jingjing, it was buried probably in 845 and found in the 1620s. It was long suspected a forgery; scholars now accept it.
- 799 – 801Alcuin revises the Vulgate text at Tours
Around 799–801 Alcuin of York, abbot of Marmoutier at Tours under Charlemagne, has Bibles prepared from a corrected Vulgate. The aim is to recover Jerome's text, though his changes were probably modest.
- c. 859The Qarawiyyin mosque is founded at Fez
Most sources date the Qarawiyyin mosque to 857-859 and credit Fatima al-Fihri; an inscription naming Dawud ibn Idris says 877, and some doubt Fatima. Clear evidence of teaching dates from 1121. It is called the oldest university, though scholars call it a madrasa.
- 863Cyril and Methodius begin translating the Gospels into Slavonic
Arriving in Great Moravia in 863, the brothers Cyril and Methodius translate the Gospels and liturgical books into Old Church Slavonic, using the Glagolitic script they devised.
- c. 920The Aleppo Codex, a model Masoretic Hebrew Bible, is written in Tiberias
Around 920 the scribe Shlomo ben Buya'a copies the consonants of the Hebrew Bible in Tiberias. Aaron ben Asher later adds vowels and Masoretic notes, making it a reference text for the Hebrew Bible.
- 970The Fatimids found Al-Azhar in Cairo
The Fatimids begin the Al-Azhar mosque at Cairo in 970 and finish it in 972. In 988 the vizier Ya'qub ibn Killis makes it a centre of higher learning with 35 scholars. Saladin later turns it Sunni. Whether it was a university before 1961, or a madrasa, is disputed.
- 1008The Leningrad Codex, the oldest complete Hebrew Bible, is copied
A colophon dates the Leningrad Codex to 1008 (possibly 1009) in Cairo. It is the oldest known complete manuscript of the Hebrew Bible and the base text of most modern scholarly editions.
- 1065Nizam al-Mulk founds the Nizamiyya of Baghdad
In 1065 Nizam al-Mulk founds the Nizamiyya madrasa at Baghdad, one of a network across Seljuk lands and among the first well-organised higher schools. Al-Ghazali later teaches there. Some scholars see the network as meant to counter Ismaili influence.
- 1095Al-Ghazali writes The Incoherence of the Philosophers
In 1095, as a professor at Baghdad, al-Ghazali attacks Avicenna and al-Farabi for following Greek philosophy against Islam. Of its 20 points, 17 are called heretical and three disbelief: the world's eternity, God knowing only universals, and denial of bodily resurrection.
- 1147Portugal takes Lisbon from the Almoravids with help from crusaders
King Afonso Henriques of Portugal captures Lisbon after a siege in 1147, helped by northern European crusaders on their way to the Holy Land. The conquest roughly doubles the size of the young Portuguese kingdom.
- c. 1160Léonin compiles the Magnus liber organi at Notre-Dame, Paris
Léonin, working at the Paris cathedral then under construction, gathered polyphonic settings of the chant for the liturgical year, the foundation of the Notre Dame school. The date is approximate.
- 1169Averroes begins his commentaries on Aristotle
In 1169 Ibn Tufayl introduces Averroes (1126-1198) to the Almohad caliph Abu Yaqub Yusuf, who asks him to explain Aristotle. His commentaries follow. In the Latin West he becomes known as "the Commentator". He is also appointed qadi of Seville that year.
- 1178Averroes answers al-Ghazali
In 1178 Averroes writes On the Harmony of Religions and Philosophy, arguing that Islam and philosophy are compatible. In 1180 his Incoherence of the Incoherence answers al-Ghazali, defending the philosophers passage by passage as a dialogue.
- c. 1190Maimonides writes the Guide for the Perplexed
Maimonides (d. 1204) composes the Guide c. 1185-1190, seeking to reconcile Aristotelianism and science with the Torah. It is highly controversial in his day; French rabbis burn copies at Montpellier.
- 1195Averroes is condemned and his books burned
In 1195 a tribunal at Córdoba condemns Averroes's teachings, orders his works burned and banishes him to Lucena. He is later recalled to Marrakesh and restored to favour, and dies there in 1198.
- c. 1198Pérotin writes four-voice polyphony for Notre-Dame
Pérotin, who revised Léonin's collection, composed the four-part gradual Viderunt omnes, probably for Christmas 1198 under Bishop Odo of Paris. The date is inferred from episcopal edicts and may be a year or two later.
- c. 1205Stephen Langton's chapter divisions shape the modern Bible
Around 1205 the English theologian Stephen Langton divides the Vulgate into the chapters still used in most Bibles. They spread through the Paris Bibles of the 13th century. Verse numbers come only in the 1550s.
- 1210Paris bans Aristotle's natural philosophy
In 1210 a provincial synod at Sens, with the Bishop of Paris, forbids reading Aristotle's natural philosophy and its commentaries at Paris, in public or private, on pain of excommunication. The ban is local and binds only the Arts faculty; theologians may still read them.
- July 16, 1212Christian kings defeat the Almohads at Las Navas de Tolosa
On 16 July 1212 a coalition of Castile, Aragon, Navarre and Portugal defeats the Almohad caliph al-Nasir in the Sierra Morena. The Almohads' power in Iberia collapses, opening Andalusia to Castilian conquest.
- 1245Carpini carries a papal mission to the Mongols
Giovanni da Pian del Carpine leaves Lyon on 16 April 1245 on Innocent IV's mission, witnesses Güyük's enthronement on 24 August 1246, and returns in 1247 with the khan's demand that Europe submit. His Ystoria Mongalorum is the oldest European account of the Mongols.
- 1253William of Rubruck reaches Karakorum
Sent by Louis IX in 1253, the Flemish Franciscan William of Rubruck reaches Karakorum in December and is received by Möngke on 4 January 1254. He watches a debate among Christians, Buddhists and Muslims in May and returns in 1255. His route shows the Caspian is an inland sea.
- c. 1260William of Moerbeke translates Aristotle from the Greek
William of Moerbeke (d. c. 1286) translates much of Aristotle directly from Greek, including On the Parts of Animals (1260), the Politics (c. 1260) and On the Soul (1267). Much earlier Latin Aristotle came via Arabic. An Aquinas request is assumed, not documented.
- 1265Aquinas joins Aristotle to Christian doctrine
Thomas Aquinas (c. 1225-1274), who studied under Albertus Magnus, seeks to combine Aristotelian philosophy with Christian principles. He writes the unfinished Summa Theologiae (1265-74) and, in Paris (1268-72), On the Unity of the Intellect against the Averroists.
- c. 1269Kublai Khan's court introduces the 'Phags-pa script for the Mongol empire
The Tibetan monk Drogön Chögyal Phagpa devises a new alphabet at Kublai Khan's request to write Mongolian and other languages of the empire. Sources date it to 1269 or 1270.
- March 7, 1277Tempier condemns 219 propositions at Paris
On 7 March 1277 Bishop Étienne Tempier condemns 219 propositions, mainly from Aristotle and Averroes, after a narrower 1270 ban on 13. Twenty are Thomistic, which hurts Aquinas's reputation for years; the condemnation is later partly annulled as far as it touched him.
- 1287Rabban Bar Sauma travels from China to Europe
Born near Beijing, the Church of the East monk Rabban Bar Sauma travels west for the Ilkhan Arghun in 1287-88, seeking an alliance against the Mamluks. He meets Andronicus II, Philip IV and Edward I, and Pope Nicholas IV in Rome. The alliance fails.
- 1294John of Montecorvino reaches Khanbaliq
The Franciscan John of Montecorvino reaches China in 1294, just after Kublai's death, and builds a church at Khanbaliq in 1299 and a second in 1305. He translates the New Testament and Psalms into Uyghur and is consecrated archbishop of Peking in 1308.
- September 1303French agents seize Pope Boniface VIII at Anagni
Agents of Philip IV of France and the Colonna family attacked Boniface VIII at Anagni and held him for days. The pope died soon after, marking the shift of power from papacy to the French crown.
- 1309Clement V moves the papal court to Avignon
The French pope Clement V settled the papacy at Avignon, beginning a period (1309-1376) in which the popes were widely seen as under French royal influence.
- November 1344Pope Clement VI grants the Canary Islands to Luis de la Cerda as 'Prince of Fortune'
In November 1344 Clement VI gives the islands, still unconquered, to the Castilian noble Luis de la Cerda with the title Prince of Fortune. A January 1345 bull makes the conquest a crusade, but Luis dies in 1348 without leading one.
- c. 1361Guillaume de Machaut composes the Messe de Nostre Dame
Machaut, the leading figure of the French ars nova, wrote the earliest known complete setting of the Mass Ordinary by a single composer, probably for Reims Cathedral in the early 1360s.
- January 17, 1377Gregory XI returns the papacy from Avignon to Rome
Pope Gregory XI, who left Avignon in September 1376, enters Rome on 17 January 1377, ending the papal residence in France. He dies fourteen months later, and the disputed election that follows splits the Church.
- September 20, 1378The Western Schism begins with two rival popes
After the cardinals elect Urban VI in April 1378, dissident cardinals meeting at Fondi elect Clement VII on 20 September. Two popes, in Rome and Avignon, claim the Church's obedience until 1417.
- c. 1382 – c. 1388The first complete English Bible, the Wycliffite Bible, is made
Around 1382 a first English Bible is translated from the Latin Vulgate in the circle of John Wycliffe at Oxford; a freer revision follows c. 1388. Wycliffe's own part in the translation is disputed.
- 1407 – 1409England restricts unlicensed Bible translation
In 1407–1409 Archbishop Thomas Arundel's constitutions, issued at Oxford, require church approval for any new English translation of Scripture and bar the public reading of Wycliffe's writings.
- c. 1409Zheng He erects a Chinese, Persian and Tamil stele at Galle, Ceylon
A trilingual stele in Chinese, Persian and Tamil is set up at Galle in Sri Lanka, dated 15 February 1409 in most sources (one says 1411). It records offerings to Buddha, Allah and the Hindu god Tenavarai Nayanar.
- November 16, 1414 – April 22, 1418The Council of Constance meets to end the Western Schism
Convened in 1414, when three men claimed to be pope, the council sidelines all three and elects Martin V in 1417. It also has the Czech reformer Jan Hus burned for heresy on 6 July 1415.
- November 11, 1417Martin V is elected pope, ending the Western Schism
At Constance on 11 November 1417, 23 cardinals and 30 council delegates elect Oddone Colonna as Martin V, reuniting the Church under one pope. He enters Rome in September 1420.
- January 13, 1435Pope Eugene IV orders the release of enslaved Canary Islanders in Sicut dudum
Eugene IV issues Sicut dudum on 13 January 1435, threatening excommunication for those who keep Canarians enslaved after Christian conversion. It follows Creator omnium and is partly reversed for Portugal in 1436.
- 1438Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges asserts royal control of the French church
Charles VII issued an ordinance limiting papal authority in France and giving the crown and French clergy control of church appointments and revenues.
- July 6, 1439The Council of Florence proclaims the union of the Latin and Greek churches
On 6 July 1439 Pope Eugene IV and Emperor John VIII Palaiologos sign the decree Laetentur caeli at Florence. The East rejected it, and it never took effect, even after Constantinople fell in 1453.
- May 29, 1453Fall of Constantinople
The Ottomans take the Byzantine capital, ending the Eastern Roman Empire.
- c. 1455Gutenberg Bible printed
Movable-type printing in Mainz produces the first major book in Europe.
- 1459 – 1460Pius II calls the Congress of Mantua to organise a crusade
Pope Pius II gathers European princes at Mantua to answer the Ottoman advance; the crusade he proclaims in January 1460 for three years stays largely on paper.
- 1473 – August 15, 1483Sixtus IV builds the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican
Built for Pope Sixtus IV between 1473 and 1481, the chapel receives wall frescoes by Botticelli, Perugino, Ghirlandaio and Rosselli in 1481–82. It is consecrated on 15 August 1483.
- 1478Ferdinand and Isabella obtain papal approval for a Spanish Inquisition
In 1478 the Catholic Monarchs request, and Pope Sixtus IV approves, an Inquisition in Castile under royal control, aimed at conversos suspected of secretly practising Judaism. Sources date its start to 1478, 1480 or 1483.
- April 26, 1478The Pazzi conspiracy strikes the Medici in Florence Cathedral
On 26 April 1478, conspirators backed by Pope Sixtus IV kill Giuliano de' Medici at High Mass; Lorenzo survives. Sixtus excommunicates Lorenzo (1 June) and puts Florence under interdict (20 June).
- June 21, 1481Pope Sixtus IV confirms the Alcáçovas division in the bull Aeterni regis
Sixtus IV issues Aeterni regis on 21 June 1481, confirming the Treaty of Alcáçovas, including Portugal's rights to African lands. John II of Portugal later cites it against Columbus's claims.
- 1488The first complete printed Hebrew Bible appears at Soncino
In 1488 the Soncino printers in northern Italy publish the first complete printed Hebrew Bible, without commentary. Most sources date its completion to 22 April 1488; some give February.
- June 1489Josquin des Prez joins the papal choir in Rome
The Franco-Flemish composer Josquin des Prez, previously in the service of Cardinal Ascanio Sforza in Milan, sang in the papal choir from June 1489 until at least 1494 under Innocent VIII and Alexander VI.
- March 31, 1492Alhambra Decree expels the Jews from Castile and Aragon
Ferdinand and Isabella order all Jews who will not convert to Christianity to leave Castile and Aragon, in a decree dated 31 March 1492, less than three months after the fall of Granada.
- August 11, 1492Rodrigo Borgia is elected Pope Alexander VI
Rodrigo Borgia is elected pope on 11 August 1492 after a costly conclave, amid rumours of vote-buying that were never proven. His son Cesare Borgia later employed Leonardo da Vinci as a military engineer.
- May 4, 1493Pope Alexander VI issues Inter caetera granting Castile lands in the west
On 4 May 1493 Pope Alexander VI grants the Catholic Monarchs the lands discovered or to be discovered west and south of a line near the Azores and Cape Verde. It is revised by the Treaty of Tordesillas in 1494.
- November 1494After the Medici are expelled, Savonarola dominates Florence
Following Charles VIII's invasion of Italy, the Florentines expel the Medici. The Dominican friar Girolamo Savonarola urges them to form a republic and gains great influence over it from November 1494.
- c. 1495 – 1498Leonardo paints The Last Supper
For Duke Ludovico Sforza, Leonardo paints The Last Supper on a wall of the Santa Maria delle Grazie convent in Milan. The exact dates are undocumented; sources range from 1493 to 1498.
- February 7, 1497Savonarola's followers burn the 'vanities' in Florence
On Shrove Tuesday, 7 February 1497, followers of Girolamo Savonarola burn mirrors, cosmetics, playing cards, musical instruments, books and artworks in Florence's public square.
- May 23, 1498Savonarola is hanged and burned in Florence
Excommunicated by Alexander VI in May 1497 and arrested after a failed trial by fire in April 1498, Girolamo Savonarola and two fellow friars are hanged and burned in Florence's main square on 23 May 1498.
- November 1, 1503Giuliano della Rovere is elected Pope Julius II
Giuliano della Rovere is elected pope on 1 November 1503. He will lay the foundation of a new St. Peter's in 1506, commission Michelangelo's Sistine ceiling in 1508 and convene the Fifth Lateran Council in 1512.
- April 18, 1506Julius II lays the foundation stone of the new St. Peter's Basilica
On 18 April 1506 Pope Julius II lays the foundation stone of a new basilica in Rome, to Donato Bramante's design. It replaces the fourth-century church of Constantine, which had stood for more than a thousand years.
- 1508 – October 31, 1512Michelangelo paints the Sistine Chapel ceiling for Julius II
Commissioned by Pope Julius II in 1508, Michelangelo paints nine scenes from Genesis, with prophets and sibyls, on the Sistine Chapel ceiling. The full work is unveiled on 31 October 1512.
- December 21, 1511Antonio de Montesinos denounces the treatment of the Taíno in a sermon at Santo Domingo
On 21 December 1511 the Dominican friar Antonio de Montesinos tells the colonists of Hispaniola that their abuse of the Taíno is a sin. Bartolomé de las Casas hears it, and it leads to the Laws of Burgos.
- May 3, 1512 – March 16, 1517The Fifth Lateran Council meets in Rome
Called by Julius II in response to a rival council at Pisa, the council (3 May 1512–16 March 1517) annuls Pisa and sets reforms such as a minimum age of 30 for bishops. Few of its decrees were put into practice.
- December 1512The Laws of Burgos regulate the treatment of Indigenous people in the Spanish colonies
In response to Montesinos's sermon, Ferdinand II issues the Laws of Burgos in December 1512, the first Spanish code for the Americas. They limit labour and require conversion but do not end encomienda or slave raids.
- March 9, 1513Giovanni de' Medici is elected Pope Leo X
Giovanni de' Medici, second son of Lorenzo the Magnificent and a cardinal since the age of 13, is elected pope on 9 March 1513. He backs Raphael's work in the Vatican and on St. Peter's.
- 1514 – 1520The Complutensian Polyglot, the first printed polyglot Bible, is produced in Alcalá
Funded by Cardinal Cisneros, the six-volume Bible in Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek and Latin is printed at Alcalá de Henares in 1514–1517 and issued in 1520–21. It holds the first printed Greek New Testament.
- c. 1514Las Casas gives up his encomienda and begins to speak out
While preparing a Pentecost sermon in 1514, Las Casas decides the encomienda is unjust and gives up his enslaved labourers. Some accounts date the formal act to 1515.
- 1516Pomponazzi argues from Aristotle against the soul's immortality
Pietro Pomponazzi's On the Immortality of the Soul (1516), following Alexander of Aphrodisias, holds that Aristotle's soul cannot exist apart from the body. The Venetian Senate orders it burned in 1517; Leo X's admonition is revoked in 1518 after Bembo intervenes.
- August 18, 1516Concordat of Bologna between Francis I and Pope Leo X
The agreement let the king of France nominate bishops and abbots, with the pope confirming them. It gave the crown lasting control over the French church, which stayed Catholic through the Reformation.
- September 4, 1517Luther attacks Aristotle in theology
Luther's 97 theses against scholastic theology, dated 4 September 1517, reject Aristotle's place in theology: thesis 41 calls virtually his whole Ethics "the worst enemy of grace" and thesis 50 says Aristotle is to theology as darkness is to light.
- October 31, 1517Luther's Ninety-five Theses
Martin Luther's challenge to indulgences sparks the Protestant Reformation.
- June 1519 – July 1519Luther is drawn into the Leipzig Debate with Johann Eck
In June and July 1519 Johann Eck debates Andreas Karlstadt and then Martin Luther at Leipzig's Pleissenburg castle. It widens to purgatory, indulgences and papal authority, and leads Leo X to censure Luther in 1520.
- December 10, 1520Luther burns the papal bull Exsurge Domine at Wittenberg
Leo X's bull of 15 June 1520 condemned 41 propositions from Luther's writings and gave him sixty days to recant. On 10 December Luther burns it publicly at Wittenberg's Elster Gate, and is excommunicated in January 1521.
- 1522Bartolomé de las Casas enters the Dominican order in Santo Domingo
After the Cumaná failure Las Casas becomes a novice at the Dominican Santa Cruz monastery in Santo Domingo in 1522 and takes his vows in 1523. He spends years in study and writing.
- September 1522Luther publishes his German New Testament
Luther's German New Testament, the 'September Bible', appears in Wittenberg in September 1522. His complete Bible follows in 1534 from Hans Lufft's press, and helps move German toward a standard written form.
- January 29, 1523Zurich's council backs Zwingli after the First Zurich Disputation
On 29 January 1523 Zurich's council lets Huldrych Zwingli keep preaching and rules that preachers must teach only what Scripture supports. In 1525 his new communion service replaces the Mass.
- May 1524The Twelve Franciscans arrive in New Spain to begin the conversion of the Aztec heartland
A group of twelve Franciscans led by Martín de Valencia reaches Veracruz in May 1524, with one source giving 13 May. They begin the mass evangelisation of central Mexico.
- September 1524 – December 1525Luther answers Erasmus on free will with On the Bondage of the Will
Erasmus defends human free will in On Free Will (September 1524). Luther replies in December 1525 with On the Bondage of the Will, arguing that sin leaves people unable to save themselves and that salvation is God's act alone.
- June 13, 1525Luther marries the former nun Katharina von Bora
Martin Luther marries Katharina von Bora, who fled Nimbschen Abbey in 1523, on 13 June 1525; a public ceremony follows on 27 June. They live in Wittenberg's Black Cloister, and the marriage becomes a model for Protestant clerical marriage.
- October 1, 1529 – October 4, 1529Luther and Zwingli fail to agree on the Eucharist at the Marburg Colloquy
Philip of Hesse hosts Luther, Zwingli, Melanchthon, Oecolampadius and Bucer at Marburg Castle on 1–4 October 1529. They agree on fourteen of fifteen points but not on Christ's presence in the Eucharist, so the Protestants stay divided.
- June 25, 1530The Augsburg Confession is presented to Charles V
On 25 June 1530 Lutheran estates present their statement of faith to Emperor Charles V at the Diet of Augsburg. Written by Melanchthon, Luther and others, it becomes the main confession of the Lutheran Church.
- 1532Guillaume Farel begins preaching the Reformation in Geneva
In 1532 the French reformer Guillaume Farel starts preaching in Geneva under the protection of Protestant Bern. His sermons turn the dispute with the bishop and Savoy into a religious one.
- February 1534 – June 24, 1535Anabaptists seize Münster and set up a short-lived kingdom
Anabaptists take control of Münster in February 1534, and John of Leiden later takes royal regalia and absolute power. The prince-bishop's forces retake the city on 24 June 1535, and its leaders are executed in January 1536.
- August 15, 1534Ignatius of Loyola and six companions take vows at Montmartre
On 15 August 1534 Ignatius of Loyola and six fellow students of the University of Paris, among them Francis Xavier, Diego Laínez and Peter Faber, take vows together at Montmartre. The group grows into the Society of Jesus.
- August 10, 1535Geneva's Grand Council bans the Catholic Mass
On 10 August 1535 Geneva's Grand Council resolves to prohibit the celebration of Mass, after Farel and others stir crowds to destroy images in churches. The same resolution forbids further icon-breaking.
- 1536 – 1541Michelangelo paints the Last Judgment in the Sistine Chapel
Michelangelo paints the Last Judgment on the Sistine Chapel's altar wall between 1536 and 1541, begun for Clement VII and completed under Paul III. Critics attack its nudity, and Daniele da Volterra later paints drapery over nearly 40 figures.
- January 6, 1536The Franciscans open the Colegio de Santa Cruz de Tlatelolco for sons of Nahua nobles
Opened on 6 January 1536, the college teaches the sons of Nahua leaders the trivium and quadrivium, though a school had run there since 1533. It is often called the first European higher-education school in the Americas.
- May 21, 1536Geneva swears to live by the Protestant faith and becomes a republic
On 21 May 1536 Geneva's General Council takes a public oath to the Protestant faith and confiscates Church property. The city, now free of its bishop and Savoy, is proclaimed a Protestant republic.
- 1537 – 1538Las Casas and the Dominicans try peaceful conversion in Tuzulutlán, Guatemala
From 1537 Las Casas and fellow Dominicans enter the unconquered highlands of Tuzulutlán, the 'Land of War', to convert people by preaching and not force. The region is later renamed Verapaz ('True Peace'); he is recalled in 1538.
- 1537Pope Paul III declares in Sublimis Deus that the Indigenous peoples of the Americas are rational beings
In 1537 Paul III issues Sublimis Deus, saying the Indians are fully human, may not be enslaved and should be converted peacefully. Las Casas's writing and Dominican allies helped bring it about.
- March 9, 1537Cardinals present Paul III with the Consilium de emendanda ecclesia
A commission of cardinals under Gasparo Contarini reads its report on Church abuses to Paul III on 9 March 1537, criticising papal fiscal abuses and simony. It is never implemented; it leaks in 1538, and Luther publishes it with sarcastic notes.
- September 27, 1540Paul III approves the Society of Jesus
Paul III confirms the Society of Jesus on 27 September 1540 with the bull Regimini militantis ecclesiae. Ignatius of Loyola and his six companions found an order devoted to missions and teaching, with a special obedience to the pope.
- 1542Paul III founds the Roman Inquisition
In 1542 Paul III founds the Roman Inquisition to prosecute heresy, at the urging of Giovanni Pietro Carafa, later Paul IV, after the failed Regensburg Colloquy of 1541. It targets Protestantism in Italy and later tries Giordano Bruno and Galileo.
- 1544Las Casas is consecrated bishop of Chiapas
Las Casas is made bishop of Chiapas in southern Mexico in 1544, after helping shape the New Laws of 1542. His refusal to absolve encomenderos who held enslaved people leads to conflict with colonists.
- 1545 – 1590Bernardino de Sahagún and Nahua scholars compile the Florentine Codex
From 1545 until his death in 1590 the Franciscan Sahagún works with Nahua elders and former Tlatelolco students on a twelve-book study of Aztec life in Nahuatl and Spanish. The final version is dated 1569 in the source used.
- December 13, 1545The Council of Trent opens to answer the Protestant Reformation
The Council of Trent opens on 13 December 1545 in northern Italy. It meets in three periods until 1563 and issues decrees on scripture, tradition, justification and the sacraments, while most Protestants stay away.
- April 8, 1546The Council of Trent defines the canon of Scripture
On 8 April 1546, in its fourth session, the Council of Trent lists the sacred books as found in the Vulgate, including the deuterocanonical books that Protestants reject, and treats tradition as a source beside Scripture.
- January 16, 1547Ivan IV is crowned first tsar of Russia with Byzantine imperial ritual
Ivan IV is crowned in Moscow's Dormition Cathedral by Metropolitan Macarius with a rite modelled on Byzantine precedent, presenting Moscow as heir to the Roman and Byzantine emperors.
- May 15, 1548Charles V issues the Augsburg Interim after defeating the Protestants
On 15 May 1548, after Mühlberg, Charles V orders Protestants to readopt Catholic practices, allowing only clerical marriage and communion in both kinds. Many pastors refuse, and it is mostly enforced where his army holds power.
- March 29, 1549Tomé de Sousa founds Salvador as seat of Brazil's first governor-general
In 1549 Tomé de Sousa, Brazil's first governor-general, arrives with six ships and the first six Jesuits and founds Salvador, which is dated to 29 March. The city is Brazil's capital until 1763 and a major port for sugar and the slave trade.
- June 9, 1549The first Book of Common Prayer is imposed in England
Parliament passes the Act of Uniformity on 21 January 1549, and the first Book of Common Prayer, largely edited by Thomas Cranmer, must be in use from Whitsunday, 9 June. Cranmer's stricter revision follows in 1552.
- August 15, 1549Francis Xavier lands at Kagoshima, beginning the Christian mission to Japan
Francis Xavier goes ashore at Kagoshima on 15 August 1549, beginning the first Christian mission to Japan. His ship had reached Japan on 27 July, but he was not allowed into port until 15 August.
- August 1550 – April 1551Las Casas debates Juan Ginés de Sepúlveda at Valladolid over the conquest
A council of theologians and jurists hears Las Casas and Sepúlveda argue whether Spain's conquests and the treatment of the Indigenous peoples are just. The result is inconclusive, and both sides claim victory.
- 1551Palestrina becomes choirmaster of the Cappella Giulia, St Peter's
Pope Julius III appointed Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina maestro di cappella of the Cappella Giulia in Rome in 1551. In 1554 he dedicated to the pope his first book of Masses.
- October 27, 1553Michael Servetus is burned for heresy at Geneva
Geneva's council burns Michael Servetus for anti-Trinitarian views on 27 October 1553, after Calvin denounced him. Catholic authorities at Vienne had already condemned him in absentia in June.
- February 4, 1555 – 1558Mary I's government burns Protestants as heretics
From 4 February 1555, when John Rogers is burned, Mary I's government burns Protestants under revived heresy laws. At least 280 people are executed by the end of her reign in 1558, which earns her the name 'Bloody Mary'.
- May 23, 1555Giovanni Pietro Carafa is elected Pope Paul IV
Giovanni Pietro Carafa is elected pope on 23 May 1555, taking the name Paul IV. A founding Inquisitor, he strengthens the Roman Inquisition, issues the Index of forbidden books and restricts the Jews of Rome.
- July 1555Paul IV's bull Cum nimis absurdum creates the Roman Ghetto
In July 1555 Paul IV's bull Cum nimis absurdum requires Rome's roughly 2,000 Jews to live in a walled ghetto locked at night, wear yellow hats and accept limits on trades and property. Sources date it 14 or 17 July.
- 1559Calvin founds the Academy of Geneva
In 1559 John Calvin founds the Academy of Geneva to train pastors for Reformed churches. It later becomes the University of Geneva and draws students from across Protestant Europe.
- 1559Paul IV's Index bans the complete works of about 550 authors
The 1559 Index issued under Paul IV bans the entire works of about 550 authors, including Erasmus, Machiavelli, Aretino and Rabelais, and unapproved Bible editions. An earlier Roman list of 1557 had been withdrawn; Trent's revised Index followed in 1564.
- April 1559Elizabeth I's Parliament passes the Acts of Supremacy and Uniformity
In April 1559 Elizabeth I's Parliament abolishes the pope's authority and makes her Supreme Governor of the Church of England. The Act of Uniformity, passed by about three votes in the Lords, restores a revised Book of Common Prayer.
- 1562 – 1598The French Wars of Religion begin between Catholics and Huguenots
Conflict between Catholic and Protestant (Huguenot) factions, entangled with noble rivalries and a weakened Valois crown, broke into open civil war in 1562 and continued intermittently until 1598.
- 1562Teresa of Ávila founds the reformed Carmelite convent of St Joseph
Teresa of Ávila founds the reformed Carmelite convent of St Joseph in Ávila in 1562, starting the Discalced Carmelite reform. The older order opposes her, and Inquisition cases against her and her associates are dropped in 1579.
- 1563The Heidelberg Catechism is published in the Calvinist-leaning Palatinate
In 1563 Elector Frederick III of the Palatinate has the Heidelberg Catechism, mainly by Zacharias Ursinus, approved by a synod. Calvinism is not covered by the 1555 Peace of Augsburg, which tolerates only Lutherans.
- December 4, 1563The Council of Trent closes and Pius IV confirms its decrees
The Council of Trent ends on 4 December 1563 after 25 sessions in three periods, and Pius IV confirms its decrees on 26 January 1564. It issued 17 dogmatic decrees that shaped Catholic doctrine, liturgy and censorship.
- August 10, 1566The Beeldenstorm: Calvinist crowds strip Catholic churches in the Netherlands
From 10 August 1566, starting at Steenvoorde, Calvinist crowds destroy images in Catholic churches across the Netherlands, reaching Antwerp on 20 August. Philip II sends the Duke of Alba with an army in 1567, which leads to the Dutch Revolt.
- January 1570The Inquisition's tribunal is established in Lima
In January 1570 the Holy Office opens a tribunal in Lima, with jurisdiction over Spain's possessions from Panama southward. Viceroy Toledo's fleet brings the first inquisitors, and it operates until 1820.
- October 7, 1571Holy League defeats the Ottoman fleet at Lepanto
A Holy League of Spain, Venice and the papacy under Don John of Austria destroys most of the Ottoman fleet off western Greece. The league then falls apart and the Ottomans rebuild.
- August 24, 1572St. Bartholomew's Day massacre of Huguenots in Paris
During the wedding celebrations of Henry of Navarre, King Charles IX ordered the killing of Huguenot leaders, and mobs in Paris and other cities then massacred thousands of Protestants. It began the night of 23-24 August 1572.
- 1577The Formula of Concord settles Lutheran disputes
In 1576–1577 Jakob Andreä, Martin Chemnitz and others write the Formula of Concord for Elector Augustus of Saxony. About two-thirds of German Lutherans, including three electors, subscribe, and it draws a firm line against Calvinism.
- 1581Ivan Fedorov prints the Ostrog Bible, the first complete Church Slavonic Bible
In 1581 Ivan Fedorov prints at Ostroh, under Prince Konstanty Ostrogski, the first complete Bible in Church Slavonic, also the first in Cyrillic type. It becomes a model for later Russian editions.
- 1582 – 1610English Catholics publish the Douay–Rheims Bible
The English College's Catholic translation from the Vulgate appears with the New Testament at Rheims in 1582, mainly by Gregory Martin, and the Old Testament at Douai in 1609–1610. It is a Counter-Reformation answer to Protestant Bibles.
- August 1589Henry IV becomes king, founding the Bourbon dynasty
After Henry III's assassination, Henry of Navarre inherited the French throne as its first Bourbon king. He had to fight the Catholic League for years and converted to Catholicism in 1593 to win acceptance.
- 1590 – 1592Sixtus V and Clement VIII issue an official Vulgate
Pope Sixtus V's 1590 Vulgate, the first papally authorized edition, is halted after his death and recalled in 1592 for errors. Clement VIII's revision replaces it and stays the Catholic standard text.
- February 2, 1594Death of Palestrina in Rome
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, whose smooth polyphony became a model of Catholic church music, died in Rome on 2 February 1594. The tale that his Missa Papae Marcelli saved polyphony at Trent is not accepted by historians.
- 1597Giovanni Gabrieli publishes the Sacrae symphoniae in Venice
Gabrieli, organist at St Mark's Basilica, issued works for separated choirs and instruments that developed into the Baroque concertato style and drew pupils such as Heinrich Schütz from across Europe.
- April 13, 1598Edict of Nantes grants Huguenots religious rights
Henry IV granted French Protestants freedom of conscience, limited public worship and legal protections, largely ending the Wars of Religion and restoring royal authority.
- 1599The Jesuit Ratio Studiorum prescribes Aristotle
The Jesuits issue their final Ratio Studiorum in 1599 (the text is dated 1598). It prescribes Aristotle as the standard author for philosophy, physics and mathematics, and Aquinas for theology, in a school network that reaches 444 schools within a century.
- November 5, 1605The Gunpowder Plot against James I is foiled in London
On the night of 4–5 November 1605 Guy Fawkes is caught guarding 36 barrels of gunpowder under the House of Lords. English Catholics led by Robert Catesby had plotted to kill James I, and harsher anti-Catholic laws follow.
- April 1606 – April 1607Paul V places Venice under interdict
In April 1606 Pope Paul V lays an interdict on Venice after it asserts control over its clergy and church property. Venice, backed by Paolo Sarpi, resists, and French mediation ends the quarrel in April 1607.
- 1610 – August 1613Monteverdi publishes the Vespers, then becomes maestro di cappella at St Mark's
Monteverdi's Vespro della Beata Vergine, dedicated to Pope Paul V, appeared in 1610. After leaving Mantua he was appointed maestro di cappella at St Mark's, Venice, in August 1613 and held the post until his death.
- 1611The King James Bible is published
Approved at the Hampton Court Conference in 1604, the Authorized Version is made by about 47 scholars and published in 1611 by Robert Barker. It draws on Tyndale and the Geneva Bible and long dominates English Bible reading.
- November 13, 1618 – May 9, 1619The Synod of Dort condemns Arminianism and sets out Reformed doctrine
From 13 November 1618 to 9 May 1619 the Dutch Reformed Church meets at Dordrecht, expels the Remonstrants (Arminians) on 14 January 1619 and issues the Canons of Dort, often summed up as the "Five Points of Calvinism".
- 1637The Dutch Statenvertaling is published
Ordered by the Synod of Dort in 1618 and paid for by the Dutch Republic, the Statenvertaling appears in 1637. It is the first Dutch Bible made directly from Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek, and the Reformed Church's standard text.
- 1663John Eliot's Massachusett Bible is printed in Cambridge, Massachusetts
In 1663 the Puritan missionary John Eliot, with Massachusett assistants such as James Printer, publishes a complete Bible in the Massachusett language, the first in an Indigenous American language. The New Testament came out in 1661.
- 1678Richard Simon's critical history of the Old Testament is suppressed
In 1678 the French priest Richard Simon publishes his Histoire critique du Vieux Testament, questioning Moses's authorship of much of the Pentateuch. Royal authorities seize and destroy the printing.
- October 18, 1685Louis XIV revokes the Edict of Nantes (Edict of Fontainebleau)
Louis XIV ended legal toleration of Protestants, ordering their churches destroyed. Hundreds of thousands of Huguenots fled France over the following years, taking skills and capital abroad.
- 1723 – 1750Bach becomes Thomaskantor in Leipzig
Johann Sebastian Bach succeeded Johann Kuhnau as cantor of the St Thomas School, directing music for Leipzig's main churches until his death in 1750. There he wrote most of his church cantatas and the Passions.
- July 27, 1733Bach presents the Kyrie and Gloria of the future B minor Mass to the Saxon Elector
On 27 July 1733 Johann Sebastian Bach petitioned the new Elector Augustus III in Dresden, sending a Kyrie and Gloria. He expanded them into the complete Mass in B minor in 1748-49.
- 1742Juan Santos Atahualpa rises in the Peruvian jungle and expels the missionaries
In 1742 Juan Santos, who claims to be the reincarnated Inca Atahualpa, leads the Asháninka and others from the Gran Pajonal against Spain. Over a decade, the rebels force the evacuation of 23 missions. Sources give the end as 1752 or 1756.
- April 13, 1742Handel's Messiah is first performed in Dublin
Composed in London in 24 days in 1741 to a text by Charles Jennens, Messiah premiered on 13 April 1742 at the Great Music Hall, Fishamble Street, as a charity concert that freed 142 imprisoned debtors.
- September 3, 1759Pombal expels the Jesuits from Portugal and its empire
On 3 September 1759 the Marquis of Pombal, chief minister of Joseph I, decrees the expulsion of the Jesuits from all Portuguese domains. Their temporal power in Brazil had already been curtailed in 1758.
- July 12, 1790Civil Constitution of the Clergy
The National Assembly made French priests and bishops elected, salaried state officials, splitting the clergy and Catholics between oath-takers and refusers and deepening opposition to the Revolution.
- March 7, 1804The British and Foreign Bible Society is founded
On 7 March 1804 a group including William Wilberforce founds the British and Foreign Bible Society to spread the Scriptures widely and cheaply. It begins a wave of Bible societies and mass translation and distribution.
- 1813Robert Morrison completes a Chinese New Testament
Reaching Macau in 1807 as the first Protestant missionary in China, Robert Morrison completes and prints a Chinese New Testament by the end of 1813, working in Canton. A full Bible follows later.
- 1881 – 1885The Revised Version updates the King James Bible
A British committee of over fifty scholars publishes the Revised Version New Testament in 1881 and the Old Testament in 1885. The New Testament follows the Westcott–Hort Greek text, drawing on Vaticanus and Sinaiticus.
- 1942Wycliffe Bible Translators is founded to translate Scripture into every language
In 1942 William Cameron Townsend founds Wycliffe Bible Translators in the United States. Its alliance now aims to start translation in every language that still lacks one; Scripture exists in over 4,000 languages.
- September 30, 1943Pius XII's Divino afflante Spiritu endorses critical Bible study
On 30 September 1943 Pope Pius XII's encyclical urges Catholic translations from the original Hebrew and Greek rather than the Vulgate, and permits textual and historical-critical methods.
- 1945The Nag Hammadi library is found in Egypt
In late 1945 a cache of twelve papyrus codices, plus loose leaves of a thirteenth, is found near Nag Hammadi. The Coptic texts include Gnostic works and the only complete Gospel of Thomas.
- 1946 – 1956The Dead Sea Scrolls are found at Qumran
From late 1946 Bedouin shepherds and then excavators recover about 15,000 scrolls and fragments from caves near Qumran, until 1956. Dating from c. 3rd century BCE to 1st century CE, they include the oldest biblical manuscripts known.
- 1952The Revised Standard Version is published
After its 1946 New Testament, the National Council of Churches issues the complete Revised Standard Version in 1952, updating the American Standard Version while keeping the Tyndale–King James tradition. A Catholic edition follows in 1965–66.
- November 18, 1965Vatican II's Dei Verbum calls for wide access to Scripture
On 18 November 1965 Paul VI promulgates Dei Verbum, Vatican II's constitution on divine revelation. It asks that easy access to Scripture be given to all the faithful and supports translations into many languages.
- 1978The New International Version Bible is completed
A project launched by a 1965 conference and taken over by the New York Bible Society in 1967 issues its New Testament in 1973 and the complete New International Version in 1978. Over 500 million copies have been printed.