Renaissance & Reformation
From the flowering of Italian humanism through Martin Luther's challenge to the Catholic Church, the Renaissance and Reformation reshaped European culture, religion, and politics between 1400 and 1600.
Italian Renaissance Begins
Florence and other Italian city-states lead a cultural revival inspired by classical antiquity, producing revolutionary art, architecture, and humanist philosophy.
Gutenberg Invents the Printing Press
Johannes Gutenberg develops movable-type printing in Mainz, Germany — within decades, the technology revolutionizes the spread of knowledge across Europe.
Fall of Constantinople
Ottoman forces under Mehmed II breach the ancient walls of Constantinople, ending the Byzantine Empire and sending Greek scholars westward to fuel the Renaissance.
Leonardo da Vinci Paints The Last Supper
Leonardo's masterpiece in Milan exemplifies Renaissance mastery of perspective, anatomy, and psychological drama.
Erasmus Publishes In Praise of Folly
The Dutch humanist's satirical critique of Church corruption anticipates the Reformation and exemplifies Northern Renaissance scholarship.
Martin Luther Posts the Ninety-Five Theses
Luther's challenge to the sale of indulgences, spread rapidly by the printing press, ignites the Protestant Reformation and permanently splits Western Christianity.
Henry VIII Breaks with Rome
England's king declares himself Supreme Head of the Church of England, severing ties with the papacy over his desire for an annulment.
Council of Trent
The Catholic Church launches its Counter-Reformation, reaffirming core doctrines while addressing corruption and establishing new religious orders including the Jesuits.
Peace of Augsburg
The principle cuius regio, eius religio ('whose realm, his religion') allows German princes to choose Lutheranism or Catholicism for their territories — a temporary settlement.
Edict of Nantes
Henry IV of France grants Huguenots (French Protestants) limited religious freedom, ending decades of devastating French Wars of Religion.