All the usual things were happening in the world of 1574 CE: Mughal Emperor Akbar consolidating his growing territories; Protestants and Catholics contending over broad areas of Europe; Portuguese and Spanish conquistadors doing their transnational thing, and so on. The main development of world-historical importance that year, however, was the Ottoman navy’s final conquest of … Continue reading Key developments of 1574 (mainly, Ottoman)
Here they are: Akbar takes Gujarat for the Mughals Spanish ship full of S. American silver reaches Manila Ottomans and Venetians conclude peace treaty Maldivian nationalists expel Portuguese Wars of religion (still) in France and Netherlands; News of women’s role in defense of Haarlem Spanish conquistadors establish new cities in today’s Peru, Argentina Akbar takes … Continue reading Key developments of 1573
In 1571 CE, by far the major development– from the perspective of “Western” Christian powers– was the Battle of Lepanto, in which an alliance of Christian navies dealt a big defeat to the Ottoman navy in the Mediterranean. Most of this post will be about that. Scroll on down. But I also want to note … Continue reading Key developments of 1571 (mainly, Lepanto)
This is the 50th anniversary edition of the Project 500 Years daily bulletin. I have completed 10% of my self-assigned task! To mark the occasion I shall shortly– today or tomorrow– be issuing “Communique #2” for the project. But for now, this fascinating daily grind must continue. Readers: the main developments of 1570 CE: Ottoman … Continue reading Key developments of 1570
Well, lots of things happening in 1560 CE. Today’s survey will take us to many of that era’s empires! Here we go: Spain’s king Philip II had assembled a coalition of Christian naval powers with the goal of retaking Tripoli, in today’s Libya, from the Ottomans, who had captured it in 1551. The Christian fleet, … Continue reading Key developments of 1560
It is still less than 60 years since 1492… but here we were in 1551 CE with the Spanish conquistadores taking new steps to consolidate their settler-colonial grip on the Americas. Things were also happening in the Mediterranean: In May, an order of Spain’s King/Emperor Charles established the “Royal and Pontifical University of the City … Continue reading Key developments of 1551
Probably the most world-historical development of 1540 CE was something that happened in the north of the Indian subcontinent. But elsewhere, lots of interesting things were happening, too: In May, an Afghan leader called Sher Shah Suri swept out of the highlands and in a battle at Chausa in Bengal he vanquished the armies of … Continue reading Key developments of 1540
1538 CE was a huge year for the Ottoman navy– in both the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean. It also saw the usual kinds of things going on, on land, in Europe and the Americas, and some tragic things happening in China: Diu is a coastal city in Gujarat in northwest India. In the early … Continue reading Key developments of 1538
So 1535 CE was another busy year in the emergence of European-origined empires: Spanish conquistadores in “the New World” founded the settler-city today known as Lima, Peru and imprisoned the Inca leader they had installed as their puppet in the country just a year or so earlier. But in Yucatán, the fierce resistance of the … Continue reading Key developments of 1535
So, in 1522 CE, our story of the development of Western imperialism continues to focus on many of the same actors as we were tracing the past two years: In January, and on behalf of “Spain” (more precisely, perhaps, the union of Castile and Aragon inaugurated by the 1469 marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella), the … Continue reading Key developments of 1522 (and notes on the Portuguese Empire)
