A Reformation Time Line

1215
Signing of Magna Carta; English barons force King John to agree to a statement of their rights

1290
Edward I expells all Jews from England
1291
Sacreans (Muslims) capture Accre, last Christian stronghold in Palestine; end of Crusades after 200
years
1294
Kublai Khan dies after 35-year reign establishing Ming dynasty
1295
England’s Model Parliament—Edward I summons bishops, knights, and burgesses from all parishes for
first representative parliament
1296
A Genoese prisoner, Marco Polo, writes about his travels to Orient
1302
“Unam Sanctam,” papal bull of Pope Boniface VIII, asserts papal supremacy over every human being
King Philip IV of France convenes first Estates-General (Parliament) with all estates represented
1306
England expels 100,000 Jews who remained after Edward expulsion order of 1290
1307
Dante Alighieri, Italian poet, begins writing The Divine Comedy
1309
Pope Clement, a Frenchman, move papal court to Avignon, France, beginning “The Babylonian
Captivity,” lasting until 1377
1310
England’s barons force Edward II to appoint lords ordainers to help him rule
Parliament rules taxation shall be imposed only by Parliament
c. 1310
Perfection of the mechanical clock
1314
Battle of Bannockburn assures independence of Scotland—30,000 Scotsmen under Robert Bruce VIII
rout 100,000 led by Edward II
1318
At Battle of Dundalk, Ireland’s Edward Bruce killed three years after being proclaimed king
1325
Mexico City has its beginning in the city of Tenochtitlan founded by Aztecs in Lake Texcoco
1326
Queen Isabella and her paramour, Roger Mortimer, invade England and capture her husband, Edward
II
First mention of gunpowder (in Venice) for warfare
1327
Edward II is killed in prison; Isabella’s 14-year-old son becomes Edward III
1328
Louis IV invades Italy and declares Pope John XXII deposed for heresy
1330
John Wycliffe born in Wycliffe-on-Tees
Edward III seizes power, ends regencey of Isabella and Mortimer
1337
Beginning of “Hundred Years War” between England and France—Edward III assumes title of King of
France; French king Philip VI contests England’s claims to Normandy
1338
Declaration of Rhense—Electors of Holy Roman Empire can select emperor without papal
intervention
1341
English Parliament divided into Upper House (Lords) and Lower House (Commons)
1345
Cathedral of Notre Dame completed in Paris after 182 years of construction
1346
Battle of Crecy establishes England as military power; English longbowmen change face of warfare
1347–1351
The Black Death (bubonic plague) devastates Europe, killing as many as two-thirds of the population in
some parts
1348
Black Death reaches England
1349
Death of William of Ockham, English philosopher, who sowed seeds of independance of church and
state
1351
England removes Pope’s power to give English benefices to foreigners
1353
Parliament’s Statue of Praemunrie forbids appeals to the Pope
1356
Edward, the Black Prince of Wales, destroys French army at Battle of Poitiers
“The Golden Bull” of Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV transforms empire from monarchy into
aristocratic federation to last 450 years
1359
First Swedish Riksdag (parliament); all classes represented
1360
First francs coined in France
1362
English becomes the authorized language of the law courts; French still used for legal documents
Piers Plowman written by English poet over next 30 years
Palace of Popes at Avignon completed after 28 years of construction
1366
Parliament refuses to pay feudal tribute to Pope
Statute of Kilkenny forbids marriage between Irish and English
1370
Wycliffe’s First Presentation of his doctrine on the Eucharist; he clarifies a theme which is later
enshrined as a central doctrine of the Reformation
John Ball in England preaches man’s natural equality
1374
John of Gaunt returns from French wars to become leader of the state
1377
Rioting ends Wycliffe’s trial at St. Paul’s
Pope Gregory XI issues five bulls against Wycliffe
Wycliffe agrees to “house arrest” at Oxford
Leaving Avignon, Pope Gregory XI moves papal court to Rome; ending the “Babylonian Captivity”
1378
Queen Mother ends Wycliffe’s trial at Lambeth Palace
The Great Schism divides the Catholic Church for 39 years when two opposing popes are elected—
Pope Urban V in Rome and Pope Clement VII in Avignon{Avignon }
1378
Pope Urban VI presides in Rome whilst Pope Clement VII presides in Avignon
1381
John Wycliffe publishes Confession, denying that the "substance" of bread and wine are
miraculously changed during the Eucharist; Wycliffe withdraws from public to Lutterworth
The Peasant Revolt; 30,000 rioters converge on London; ends when Wat Tyler, their leader, is betrayed
and killed
1381–1384
Wycliffe, with the assistance of his aides, intensifies his work on an English translation of Bible
(from the Latin Vulgate not the Biblical Greek and Hebrew); this is the first translation of the
Bible into the English tongue
1382
Blackfriars Synod condemns Wycliffe’s writings, followed by purge of Wycliffites at Oxford.
1383
Wycliffe, “morning star of the Reformation”, dies on New Year’s Eve
1387
Chaucer begins work on The Canterbury Tales
1389
Statute of Provisors makes papal appointments in England invalid
1393
Second Statue of Praemunrie prohibits introduction of papal bulls
1399
John of Gaunt dies; Richard II confiscates his estates; John Gaunt’s son, Henry of Bolingbroke, returns
from exile and is acclaimed by Parliament as King Henry IV; Richard II dies a year later in prison
1414
Sir Jon Oldcastle (Lord Cobham), disciple of Wycliffe, burned at stake
1415
The Council of Constance condemns Wycliffe on 267 different heresies
At Battle of Agincourt, Henry V leads English archers in victory over larger French cavalry
Council of Constance condemns Wycliffe of 267 heresies and demands that John Hus recant; he refuses
and is burned at the stake
1428
At papal command, remains of Wycliffe dug up, burned, and scattered on the river Swift
1431
Jeanne d'Arc (Joan of Arc) burned as a witch at Rouen
1452
Leonardo da Vinci born
1453
Sack of Constantinople by the Turks; Christian refugees are welcomed into Florence bring their
libraries, including ancient copies of the Greek Septuagint, with them; this encourages the revival
of “New Learning” throughout western Europe and will make possible Erasmus’s ground
breaking work on the Greek New Testament (the basis of the Textus Receptus)
End of Hundred Years War between England and France
1455
Gutenberg completes printing the Bible using movable type (first printing of the Bible in any
language); the invention of the commercial printing press revolutionizes how knowledge and
information are shared; it proves to be an essential and powerful tool in spreading the Gospel
War of Roses begin in England
1463
Turks capture Bosnia
c. 1469
Erasmus born
1469
Lorenzo de’ Medici rules Florence
Ferdinand and Isabella marry
1470
Portuguese explorers discover Gold Coast of Africa
1471
Thomas á Kempis, author of The Imitation of Christ, dies
1473
Copernicus born
1476
William Caxton sets up printing press at Westminster
1478
Spanish Inguisition Spanish Inquisition persecutes Jews, Muslims, and heretics
1480
Ferdinand and Isabella appoint Inquisition against heresy among converted Jews
Ivan III styles himself Czar of the Russians
1482
Portuguese explorers discover bananas on west coast of Africa
1483
Luther is born at Eisleben (November 10)
1484
“At Hammel in Saxony, on the 20th of June, 1484, the Devil, in the likeness of a pied piper, carried
away 130 children, that were never after seen.”
Japan’s shogun Yoshimasa introduces the tea ceremony
Ulrich (Huldrych) Zwingli born at Wildhaus (Toggenburg) in Canton of St. Gall
1484
Caxton prints Morte D'Arthur, the poetic collection of legends about King Arthur compiled by Sir
Thomas Malory
1485
Treaty of Leipzig divides Saxony
Henry VII crowned first king of 117-year Tudor dynasty
1488
Battle of Bosworth on August 22 ends England’s 15-year Wars of the Roses;
1489
Symbols + and – come into use
1490
Beginnings of ballet at Italian courts
1491
Henry VIII born
1492
Spanish forces conquer city of Granada, expelling Islamic Moors from Iberian peninsula
Christopher Columbus, with three ships and 78 men set sail on September 6 after first attempt aborted;
arrives in the Bahamas, thinking he has reached the East Indies
Lorenzo de’ Medici dies
Christopher Columbus introduces Europeans to the pineapple, parrots, Indians, peppers, allspice,
maize, and sweet potatoes
Nuremberg geographer Behaim constructs first terrestrial globe
Leonardo da Vinci draws a flying machine
Profession of publisher emerges, consisting of typefounder, printer, and bookseller
Inquisitor-general Torquemada gives Spanish Jews three months to convert or leave country; 200,000
Jews are expelled
1493
Maximilian I becomes Holy Roman Emperor
The pope divides the New World between Spain and Portugal
1494
First mobile artillery firing iron cannon balls, used by Charles VIII in Italy
c.1494
William Tyndale is born
1495
First recorded outbreak of syphilis; infects army of Charles VIII at Naples
Leonardo da Vinci’s “Last Supper”
1496
Menno Simons born
John Cabot reaches coast of Newfoundland; Vasco de Gama discovers west coast of India
1497
The College of Cardinals discusses a church bill condemning “licentious clergy,” but the idea is soon
dropped
Melanchthon born
Albrecht Durer paints Apocalypse
John Cabot discovers Newfoundland
1498
Savonarola burned at the stake for heresy in Florence
Vasco de Cama establishes sea route between Portugal and India
1499
War between Swabian League and Swiss Cantons. Swiss victory forces Treaty of Basel granting Swiss
independance
Granada’s Moors revolt as Inquisitor de Cisneros introduces forced wholesale Christian conversion
1500
Pope Alexander VI proclaims a Year of Jubilee; imposes a tithe for crusade against Turks
First human Caesarian operation performed by Swiss pig gelder Jakob Nufer
Postal service between Vienna and Brussels established
1501
Music printed for the first time by use of movable type
Peace of Trent between France and Emperor Maximilian I recognizes French conquests in Upper Italy
Erasmus’ Enchiridion promotes a Christianity based on the Sermon of the Mount
Michaelangelo completes Pieta
Papal bull orders the burning of any books questioning Church’s authority
1502
University of Wittenberg established by Frederick, Elector of Saxony
1503
Canterbury Cathedral completed after 436 years of construction
Da Vinci paints “Mona Lisa”
Pocket handkerchief comes into use
1504
Venice sends ambassadors to Sultan of Turkey, proposing construction of a Suez Canal
1505
John Knox , the leader of the Scottish Reformation, is born
1506
William Tyndale (age 12?) enters Magdalen College at Oxford; as a youth “singularly addicted to
the scriptures”, he reads the Bible in English (translating from the Latin Vulgate) to his fellow
students (11 years prior to Luther’s 95 Thesis).
Pope Julius orders work on St. Peter’s in Rome; Da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa”
1507
Martin Luther ordained and celebrates first Mass
New geography by Waldseemüller proposes the New World be called “America” after Amerigo
Vespucci
League of Cambrai formed by Margaret of Austria, the Cardinal of Rouen, and Ferdinand of Aragon to
despoil Venice
Diet of Constance recognizes unity of Holy Roman Empire
1508
Michelangelo begins painting Sistine Chapel ceiling
1509
Henry VIII assumes English throne and marries Catherine of Aragon
Luther visits Rome
First shipload of African slaves arrives in Hispaniola (Haiti)
John Calvin, the Swiss Reformer, is born in Noyon, France
Erasmus writes Praise of Folly at Thomas More’s home
1510
African slaves cross the Atlantic to work in Portuguese sugar plantations in Brazil
1511
Pope Julius forms Holy League with Venice and Aragon to drive French out of city; Henry VIII joins
Holy League
1512
William Tyndale completes his B.A. at Oxford
Ponce de Leon discovers Florida
Copernicus publishes that the earth actually revolves around the sun
Forces of the Holy League meet defeat at Ravenna; coalition of Swiss, papal, and imperial forces drive
French and their German mercenaries out of Milan
1513
Giovanni de Medici becomes Pope Leo X—“one of most severe trials to which God ever subjected his
church”
Peasant and labor rebellions spread eastward from Switzerland
Henry VIII conducts brief invasion of France
Balboa discovers the Pacific Ocean
1515
Tyndale completes his M.A. at Oxford and is ordained, but refuses to enter monastic orders
Thomas Wolsey is appointed Cardinal and Lord Chancellor of England

II. The Reformation Period (1516 – 1563)

Select another Time Period: < Pre-Reformation > < Post Reformation >
(1215 - 1515) (1564 - 1689)
1516–17
Erasmus publishes his edition of Greek-Latin New Testament, Novum Instrumentum; this
translation powerfully demonstrated the corruption of the Latin Vulgate’s text; Erasmus
promotes the translation of the Bible into vernacular tongues for reading by the plowboy and the
“simplest woman”
Pope Julius II convenes the Lateran Council to undertake reforms in abuses of Church in Rome
Sir Thomas More writes Utopia
1517
Martin Luther posts 95 theses in protest against saleable indulgences
Erasmus publishes anti-war tract
Tetzel hired by Albert of Mainz to sell indulgences
1518
At meeting of Augustinians in Heidelberg, Luther defends his theology; later he appears before
Cardinal Cajetan at Augsburg, but refuses to recant; in December, Frederick the Wise protects Luther
from being handed over to Rome.
1518–22
The Spanish carry out their conquest of Mexico
1519
Luther questions papal infallibility in a debate
Luther begins New Testament sermon series, signaling new era of Biblical preaching
Zwingli begins New Testament sermons; Swiss reformation is born
Cortes enters Aztec capital, Tenochtitlan
Charles V (of Spain) succeeds Maximilian as Holy Roman Emperor
1520
Papal bull “Exsurge Domine” gives Luther 60 days to recant or be excommunicated; writes 3 seminal
documents: To the Christian Nobility, On the Babylonian Captivity of the Church, and The Freedom of
a Christian; burns papal bull and canon law
Suleiman I (the Magnificent) becomes sultan of the Ottoman Empire (Turks)
1521
Cambridge students form a study-group at the White Horse Tavern Little Bilney, William
Tyndale, John Frith, and Thomas Cranmer are among them
Luther is Excommunicated by the papal bull Decet Romanum Pontificem; at Diet of Worms in April,
he refuses to recant writings, and edict (in May) condemns him as heretic and outlaw; he is
“kidnapped” and hidden at Wartburg Castle; begins translating the New Testament into German
Religious unrest in Wittenberg: private masses abolished, Karlstadt serves Communion in both
elements, religious statues destroyed
Pope titles Henry VIII “Defender of the Faith” for attacking Luther’s views of the sacraments
Lutheran books appear in England
“Zwickau prophets,” early Anabaptists, arrive in Wittenberg
Pope Leo X dies, succeeded by Hadrian VI
The Turks capture Belgrade
Carlstadt celebrates first Protestant communion at Wittenburg
Diet of Worms; Luther refuses to recant; gets backing of German princes; begins German translation of
Bible
1521–1523
William Tyndale begins teaching at Little Sodbury; disputes with local clergy and is arraigned on
charges of heresy; translates Erasmus’s Enchiridion
1522
Anabaptist movement begins in Germany
Stump and Reublin challenge paying of tithes
Luther introduces German liturgy in Wittenburg
1523
Tyndale resides with Humphrey Monmouth in London
1524
Tyndale seeks patronage of Bishop Tunstall and is rebuffed; then, assisted by Monmouth, he
travels to Germany and registers at the University of Wittenburg
1524
Luther debates Karlstadt on the Lord’s Supper
Erasmus publishes On Freedom of the Will
Peasant Wars breaks out in southern Germany
Diet of Nuremberg fails to enforce Edict of Worms condemning Luther
1525
In Cologne, Tyndale prepares to print an English New Testament; but he is discovered and
escapes with only a few printed portions
Anabaptist movement begins in Zürich, spreads to Germany; First Zürich disputation with those
opposed to infant baptism; First believer’s baptism in Zürich; Denck banished from Nuremberg for
views on Lord’s Supper; First Anabaptist congregation of 35 converts established in Zollikon; First
imprisonment of Anabaptists occurs in Zürich; they escape
Luther marries Katherine von Bora; writes Bondage of the Will (against Erasmus).
Charles V defeats Francis I; Elector Frederick the Wise dies;
France makes pact with Suleiman I
1526
Tyndale completes the printing of New Testament (in Worms); (It is the first printing of the New
Testament in English and the first English translation of the scriptures from the Biblical Greek);
smuggled copies of his New Testaments are soon being circulated throughout England
Cardinal Wolsey presides at a massive burning of “Lutheran” books
Reformation spreads to Sweden and Denmark
League of Torgau formed; First Diet of Speyer postpones enforcement of Edict of Worms
Erasmus publishes the works of St. Augustine
1527
Bishop Tunstall orders the purchase and burning of all the testaments; but this serves only to
finance Tyndale’s second edition of the New Testament
The German and Spanish Imperial troops of Charles V sack Rome
Basel orders corporeal punishment and confiscation of property for adult baptism and sheltering
Anabaptists
Luther pens “A Mighty Fortress”; writes against Zwingli’s views on the Lord’s Supper
First Protestant university (Marburg) founded
Plague strikes Wittenberg
1527–1530
English agents seek to capture Tyndale on the Continent; he keeps moving and continues to
translate and write
1528
Reformation established in Bern
Swabian League authorizes military division of 400 horsemen to scout for Anabaptists
Thomas Bilney, respected Cambridge preacher and “Lutheran sympathizer,” is dragged from his pulpit
and imprisoned
Simon Fish, a London attorney and amateur actor who has fled to Antwerp after spoofing the clergy,
writes "A Supplication for Beggars", which urges an end to taxes for Rome. (Henry VIII really likes
this book.)
1529
Tyndale publishes Obedience of a Christian Man; Sir Thomas More begins writing against
Tyndale and Luther (Dialogue)
Henry VIII dismisses Lord Chancellor Thomas Wolsey for failing to obtain the Pope's consent to his
divorce from Catherine of Aragon; Sir Thomas More appointed Lord Chancellor; Henry VIII summons
the “Reformation Parliament" and begins to cut the ties with the Church of Rome
Reformation becomes official in Basel
Diet of Speyer—Luther’s followers name Protestants (first use of the term)
Luther and Zwingli attend Marburg Colloquy, but no agreement reached on the Lord’s Supper
Tyrolean Anabaptists flea homeland for Moravia
Diet of Speyer restores death penalty for rebaptizing
Turks lay siege to Vienna
1530
Tyndale’s translation of the the first five books of the Old Testament appears in England (printed
in Worms); he also publishes Practice of Prelates
Hoffman baptizes 300 Anabaptists in Emden and sends lay preachers to Netherlands
Luther, as outlaw, cannot attend the Diet of Augsburg, held in attempt to end religious division in the
empire; Melanchthon presents Augsburg Confession, a statement of Lutheran beliefs
Protestants form Schmalkaldic League against Emperor Charles V
1531
Tyndale meets Henry VIII’s agent Steven Vaughan, but declines the king’s invitation to return to
England; Tyndale’s translation of the Book of Jonah and his Exposition of the first Epistle of St.
John are printed; Tyndale responds to Thomas More’s Dialogue, with An Answer
Thomas Bilney is burned at stake
Bullinger succeeds Zwingli and publishes first book against Anabaptists
Zwingli angles for French support for the Reformation by allowing Swiss mercenaries to be hired
Dressed in battle armor, Zwingli joins the forces on October 11 and is killed in battle
1532
Thomas More responds to Tyndale’s An Answer with his Confutation; Tyndale, choosing to spend
his energies in more essential endeavors, breaks off debate with More
English clergy submit to Henry VIII
Calvin starts Protestant movement in France; publishes his first work—a commentary on Seneca’s De
Clementia.
Diet of Regensburg and Peace of Nuremberg guarantee religious toleration in face of Turkish threat
1533
Tyndale’s translation of Erasmus’s Enchiridion and his revision of chapters five, six, and seven of
Matthew’s Gospel are printed; his beloved friend, John Frith, is burned at the stake in
Smithfield;
Thomas Cranmer appointed Archbishop of Canterbury; (This effectly ends clerical celibacy among
Anglicans, as Cranmer is twice-married)
The Act in Restraint of Appeals prohibits appeals to the bishop of Rome.
Henry VIII’s marriage to Catherine is declared void; Anne Boleyn crowned Queen
Calvin and Nicolas Cop flee Paris. At about this time Calvin undergoes a “sudden conversion.”
Hutter joins Moravian group who become known as Hutterites
Pizarro conquers Peru
Ivan “the Terrible” (age 3) ascends Russian throne
1534
Tyndale’s revised New Testament is printed; he moves into Thomas Poyntz’s English merchants’
boarding house in Antwerp (English House)
Pope Paul III, the father of three illegitimate children, comes to power
Luther completes translation of Bible into German
Act of Supremacy Henry VIII establishes himself as Supreme Head of Church and Clergy of England
Ignatius Loyola founds Society of Jesus to spread Counter Reformation
Strassburg decrees that Anabaptists must leave the city
1535
King’s agent Henry Phillips arrives in Antwerp and “befriends” Tyndale, then arranges to have
him arrested while Thomas Poyntz is out of town; Tyndale is cast into Vilvoorde prison near
Brussels
Myles Coverdale, a close aide of Tyndale, translates the portions of the Old Testament not
completed by Tyndale (relying heavily on Tyndale's early drafts) and publishes the "Coverdale
Bible"; This is the first printing of the entire Bible in the English language
Thomas More and Cardinal Fisher beheaded for opposing Henry VIII
Anabaptist uprising at Münster put down, and Anabaptists executed
Charles V conquers Tunis and frees 20,000 Christian slaves; Emperor forms Catholic Defense League
France makes pact with Suleiman I
1536
Following a fifteen month imprisonment William Tyndale is strangled and burned at stake for
heresy (6th October)
Luther agrees to Wittenberg Concord on the Lord’s Supper, in an attempt to resolve differences with
other reformers, but the Zwinglians do not accept it
Denmark and Norway become Lutheran;
Erasmus dies
Menno Simons breaks with Rome; becomes Anabaptist leader in Netherlands
Calvin is persuaded by Farel to remain in Geneva; publishes the first edition of Institutes of the
Christian Religion
Henry VIII dissolves 376 monasteries and nuneries
1537
John Rogers, a close aide of Wm. Tyndale, publishes the second complete English Bible.
Because the major part of this Bible was the translation of Tyndale, whose writings had been
condemned by the English authorities, it is published under the pseudonym "Thomas Matthew".
The "Matthew's Bible" is a composite made up of Tyndale's Pentateuch and New Testament
(1534-1535 edition) and Coverdale's Bible and a small amount of Roger's own translation.
1538
Landgrave Philip of Hesse arranges debate between Anabaptists and Bucer; results in Hessian
Anabaptists returning to state church and state church deciding to excommunicate immoral Christians
Calvin and Farel are banished from Geneva. Calvin goes to Strasbourg as pastor to the French-speaking
congregation.
Luther writes against the Jews in Against the Sabbatarians
1539
Thomas Cranmer, the Archbishop of Canterbury, at the bequest of the King Henry VIII
commissions Myles Coverdale to publish a large pulpit Bible. It became the first English Bible
authorized for public use, distributed to every church and chained to the pulpit. The Great Bible
was approved by Henry VIII: “sent abroad among the people” to be read by all and “set forth
with the king’s most gracious license”.
This Bible — mostly comprised of Tyndale’s translation — was known as the "Great Bible" due
to its great size: a large pulpit folio measuring over 14 inches tall. Seven editions of this version
were printed between April of 1539 and December of 1541. Printers and sellers of books were
encouraged to provide for the “free and liberal use of the Bible in our own maternal English
tongue”. By the decree of the king every church was to provide a reader so that the illiterate
could hear the Word of God in their own tongue. It would seem that William Tyndale's last
prayer had been granted three years after his martyrdom.
The Six Articles, against Lutheranism. Hugh Latimer, bishop of Winchester, resigns in protest. Henry
VIII is still occasionally burning Lutherans and hanging Roman Catholics.
Henry VIII marries and divorces Anne of Cleves, executes the now-unpopular Thomas Cromwell, and
marries Katherine Howard.
Cardinal Sadeleto writes letter to Geneva. Calvin is asked to respond on behalf of Geneva.
Frankfurt Truce declared between Catholic and Protestant territories
1539–40
Simons publishes the Foundation Book of Anabaptist faith
1540
Pope recognizes order of Jesuits; will make them the chief agents of Counter Reformation
Conferences at Hagenau and Worms fail to reconcile Protestants and Catholics
1541
John Calvin establishes theocracy in Geneva
John Knox establishes Calvinist Reformation in Scotland
Peter Riedeman writes Hutterite Confession of Faith
Henry VIII assumes titles of King of Ireland and Head of Irish Church
At Conference of Regensburg, Melanchthon and Bucer reach agreement with Catholics on most
doctrines, but Luther and Rome reject their work
Calvin writes a treatise on free will against the Roman Catholic theologian Albert Pighius
1543
Luther writes On the Jews and Their Lies
Copernicus writes that earth revolves around sun
Alliance between Henry and Charles V (Holy Roman Emperor) against Scotland and France
1544
Ferdinand I and Suleiman I agree to truce
Council of Trent, for reform of Catholic Church, opens
Cranmer instructed to write prayers and a litany (for the army) in English. He does this so well that he
is asked to make a prayer book in English, based on the service at Salisbury Cathedral
1545
Henry VIII's last speech to Parliament; He says Papist, Lutheran, Anabaptist are names devised by the
devil to sunder one man's heart from another
Luther writes Against the Papacy at Rome, an Institution of the Devil
Peace of Augsburg allows rulers to determine religion of their region
1546
Luther dies
1547
Henry VIII dies
1553
Edward VI dies; succeeded by Mary I (“Bloody Mary”)
Servetus, Spanish theologian and physician executed in Geneva as a heretic
1554
Mary I marries Philip (later Philip II of Spain); Catholicism restored in England; Elizabeth is
imprisoned. During Mary’s reign, about 300 Protestants are burned, including 5 bishops, 100 priests, 60
women. John Rogers, Tyndale's close assistant (alias "Thomas Matthew"), is the first to burn.
Protestants are forced into exile or hiding. An attempt by Cardinal Pole (Mary's archbishop of
Canterbury) to restore monasticism fizzles when, among 1500 surviving monks, nuns, and friars, fewer
than 100 are willing to return to celibacy.
In the 1550's the Church in Switzerland was very sympathetic to the reformer refugees and was one of
only a few safe havens for a desperate people. Many of them gathered in Geneva, led by Myles
Coverdale and John Foxe as well as Thomas Sampson and William Whittingham. Over 200 including 8
pastors and 2 bishops found refuge in John Knox’s congregation and there were many more English
Protestants in exile elsewhere. There, with the protection of John Calvin, the Church of Geneva
determined to produce a Bible that would educate their families while they continued in exile.
1555
Bishops Hugh Latimer and Nicholas Ridley are burned at the stake as Cranmer watches; Later John
Hooper and John Bradford are also burned
1556
Archbishop Thomas Cranmer, is forced to recant but later repudiates; He is burned at the stake
1557
Publication of Geneva New Testament
1560
Publication of Geneva Bible (complete Old and New Testament); This is the first time a Bible is
printed with verse divisions
1563
Thirty-Nine Articles drafted as a doctrinal statement by a convocation of the Church of England.
John Foxe's publishes Acts & Monuments ("Foxe’s Book of Martyrs"); to this day it remains the only
exhaustive reference work on the persecution and martyrdom of Early Christians and Protestants from
the first century up to the mid-16th century

III. The Post-Reformation Period (1564 – 1689)

Select another Time Period: < Pre-Reformation > < Reformation >
(1215 - 1515) (1516 - 1563)
1564
The term “Puritan” first used
Calvin dies
William Shakespeare born
1577
Alliance between England and Netherlands;
Francis Drake sails around the world (to 1580)
1587
Mary I dies; succeeded by Elizabeth I
1588
Defeat of Spanish Armada
1598
Boris Godunov seizes throne on death of Fyodor I of Russia
1600
Elizabeth I grants charter to East India Company
1603
Elizabeth I dies; James VI proclaimed King of England, Scotland, France and Ireland, as James I
1605
"Gunpowder plot"; Guy Fawkes and other Roman Catholic conspirators fail in attempt to blow up
Parliament
1607
Parliament rejects proposals for union between England and Scotland
Colony of Virginia is founded at Jamestown by John Smith;
Henry Hudson begins voyage to eastern Greenland and Hudson River (Hudson Bay discovered 1610)
1611
Publication of King James Bible; approximately 85% of the New Testament and the first half of
the Old Testament are rendered as Tyndale translated them
English and Scottish Protestant colonists settle in Ulster
1620
Separatists (“Pilgrims”) land at Plymouth Rock on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, in the "Mayflower";
found New Plymouth
1643
Scots adopt the Solemn League and Covenant
1647
Westminster Assembly drafts Westminster Confession of Faith and the Larger and Shorter Catechisms
1648
Scots invade England and are defeated by Cromwell at battle of Preston Pride's Purge
1664
England siezes New Amsterdam from the Dutch, change name to New York
1665
Great Plague in London
1666
Great Fire of London
1667
John Milton publishes Paradise Lost
1670
Secret Treaty of Dover between Charles II of England and Louis XIV of France to restore Roman
Catholicism to England
Hudson's Bay Company founded
1679
Act of Habeas Corpus passed, forbidding imprisonment without trial
1687
James II issues Declaration of Liberty of Conscience, extends toleration to all religions
1688
England's 'Glorious Revolution'; William III of Orange is invited to save England from Roman
Catholicism, lands in England, James II flees to France
1689
Convention Parliament issues Bill of Rights; establishes a constitutional monarchy in Britain; bars
Roman Catholics from the throne; William III and Mary II become joint monarchs of England and
Scotland (to1694),
Toleration Act grants freedom of worship to dissenters in England