Timeline History

The 16th century

5,058 recorded events across 100 years of the 16th century, 1501 to 1600. 4,618 of them are dated to a specific year; the rest are recorded only as belonging to the 16th century. The largest categories are people (1,462), wars & conflicts (1,108) and religion & belief systems (978).

Open the 16th century on the interactive map →

Busiest years

Every year in the 16th century

Years with no recorded events are omitted. The number is how many events are dated precisely to that year; entries known only to a century or decade are listed on the year page separately.