Center for Biblical Theology and Eschatology
A R e f o r m a t i o n T i m e L i n e
by William Tyndale
II.
The Reformation Period (1516 – 1563)
III. The Post-Reformation
Period (1564 – 1689) 1290
1291
1294
1295
1296
1302
King Philip IV of France convenes first Estates-General (Parliament)
with all estates represented
1306
1307
1309
1310
Parliament rules taxation shall be imposed only by Parliament
c. 1310
1314
1318
1325
1326
First mention of gunpowder (in Venice) for warfare
1327
1328
1330
Edward III seizes power, ends regencey of Isabella and Mortimer
1337
1338
1341
1345
1346
1347–1351
1348
1349
1351
1353
1356
“The Golden Bull” of Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV transforms empire
from monarchy into aristocratic federation to last 450 years
1359
1360
1362
Piers Plowman written by English poet over next 30 years
Palace of Popes at Avignon completed after 28 years of construction
1366
Statute of Kilkenny forbids marriage between Irish and English
1370
John Ball in England preaches man’s natural equality
1374
1377
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
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
1381
The Peasant Revolt; 30,000 rioters converge on London; ends when Wat
Tyler, their leader, is betrayed and killed
1381–1384
1382
1383
1387
1389
1393
1399
1414
1415
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
1431
1452
1453
End of Hundred Years War between England and France
1455
War of Roses begin in England
1463
c. 1469
1469
Ferdinand and Isabella marry
1470
1471
1473
1476
1478
1480
Ivan III styles himself Czar of the Russians
1482
1483
1484
Japan’s shogun Yoshimasa introduces the tea ceremony
Ulrich (Huldrych) Zwingli born at Wildhaus (Toggenburg) in Canton of
St. Gall
1484
1485
Henry VII crowned first king of 117-year Tudor dynasty
1488 1489
1490
1491
1492
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
The pope divides the New World between Spain and Portugal
1494
c.1494
1495
Leonardo da Vinci’s “Last Supper”
1496
John Cabot reaches coast of Newfoundland; Vasco de Gama discovers west
coast of India
1497
Melanchthon born
Albrecht Durer paints Apocalypse
John Cabot discovers Newfoundland
1498
Vasco de Cama establishes sea route between Portugal and India
1499
Granada’s Moors revolt as Inquisitor de Cisneros introduces forced wholesale
Christian conversion
1500
First human Caesarian operation performed by Swiss pig gelder Jakob
Nufer
Postal service between Vienna and Brussels established
1501
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
1503
Da Vinci paints “Mona Lisa”
Pocket handkerchief comes into use
1504
1505
1506
Pope Julius orders work on St. Peter’s in Rome; Da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa”
1507
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
1509
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
1511
1512
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
Peasant and labor rebellions spread eastward from Switzerland
Henry VIII conducts brief invasion of France
Balboa discovers the Pacific Ocean
1515
Thomas Wolsey is appointed Cardinal and Lord Chancellor of England
I. The Pre-Reformation Period
(1215 – 1515)
1215
Signing of Magna Carta; English barons force King John to agree to
a statement of their rights
Edward I expells all Jews from England
Sacreans (Muslims) capture Accre, last Christian stronghold in Palestine;
end of Crusades after 200 years
Kublai Khan dies after 35-year reign establishing Ming dynasty
England’s Model Parliament—Edward I summons bishops, knights, and burgesses
from all parishes for first representative parliament
A Genoese prisoner, Marco Polo, writes about his travels to Orient
“Unam Sanctam,” papal bull of Pope Boniface VIII, asserts papal supremacy
over every human being
England expels 100,000 Jews who remained after Edward expulsion order
of 1290
Dante Alighieri, Italian poet, begins writing The Divine Comedy
Pope Clement, a Frenchman, move papal court to Avignon, France, beginning
“The Babylonian Captivity,” lasting until 1377
England’s barons force Edward II to appoint lords ordainers to help
him rule
Perfection of the mechanical clock
Battle of Bannockburn assures independence of Scotland—30,000 Scotsmen
under Robert Bruce VIII rout 100,000 led by Edward II
At Battle of Dundalk, Ireland’s Edward Bruce killed three years after
being proclaimed king
Mexico City has its beginning in the city of Tenochtitlan founded
by Aztecs in Lake Texcoco
Queen Isabella and her paramour, Roger Mortimer, invade England and
capture her husband, Edward II
Edward II is killed in prison; Isabella’s 14-year-old son becomes Edward
III
Louis IV invades Italy and declares Pope John XXII deposed for heresy
John Wycliffe born in Wycliffe-on-Tees
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
Declaration of Rhense—Electors of Holy Roman Empire can select emperor
without papal intervention
English Parliament divided into Upper House (Lords) and Lower House
(Commons)
Cathedral of Notre Dame completed in Paris after 182 years of construction
Battle of Crecy establishes England as military power; English longbowmen
change face of warfare
The Black Death (bubonic plague) devastates Europe, killing as many
as two-thirds of the population in some parts
Black Death reaches England
Death of William of Ockham, English philosopher, who sowed seeds of
independance of church and state
England removes Pope’s power to give English benefices to foreigners
Parliament’s Statue of Praemunrie forbids appeals to the Pope
Edward, the Black Prince of Wales, destroys French army at Battle of
Poitiers
First Swedish Riksdag (parliament); all classes represented
First francs coined in France
English becomes the authorized language of the law courts; French still
used for legal documents
Parliament refuses to pay feudal tribute to Pope
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 of Gaunt returns from French wars to become leader of the state
Rioting ends Wycliffe’s trial at St. Paul’s
Queen Mother ends Wycliffe’s trial at Lambeth Palace
Pope Urban VI presides in Rome whilst Pope Clement VII presides in
Avignon
John Wycliffe publishes Confession, denying
that the "substance" of bread and wine are miraculously changed during
the Eucharist; Wycliffe withdraws from public to Lutterworth
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
Blackfriars Synod condemns Wycliffe’s writings, followed by purge of
Wycliffites at Oxford.
Wycliffe, “morning star of the Reformation”, dies on New Year’s Eve
Chaucer begins work on The Canterbury Tales
Statute of Provisors makes papal appointments in England invalid
Second Statue of Praemunrie prohibits introduction of papal bulls
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
Sir Jon Oldcastle (Lord Cobham), disciple of Wycliffe, burned at stake
The Council of Constance condemns Wycliffe on 267 different heresies
At papal command, remains of Wycliffe dug up, burned, and scattered
on the river Swift
Jeanne d'Arc (Joan of Arc) burned as a witch at Rouen
Leonardo da Vinci born
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)
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
Turks capture Bosnia
Erasmus born
Lorenzo de’ Medici rules Florence
Portuguese explorers discover Gold Coast of Africa
Thomas á Kempis, author of The Imitation of Christ, dies
Copernicus born
William Caxton sets up printing press at Westminster
Spanish Inguisition Spanish Inquisition persecutes Jews, Muslims, and
heretics
Ferdinand and Isabella appoint Inquisition against heresy among converted
Jews
Portuguese explorers discover bananas on west coast of Africa
Luther is born at Eisleben (November 10)
“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.”
Caxton prints Morte D'Arthur, the poetic collection of legends about
King Arthur compiled by Sir Thomas Malory
Treaty of Leipzig divides Saxony
Battle of Bosworth on August 22 ends England’s 15-year Wars of the Roses;
Symbols + and – come into use
Beginnings of ballet at Italian courts
Henry VIII born
Spanish forces conquer city of Granada, expelling Islamic Moors from
Iberian peninsula
Maximilian I becomes Holy Roman Emperor
First mobile artillery firing iron cannon balls, used by Charles VIII
in Italy
William Tyndale is born
First recorded outbreak of syphilis; infects army of Charles VIII at
Naples
Menno Simons born
The College of Cardinals discusses a church bill condemning “licentious
clergy,” but the idea is soon dropped
Savonarola burned at the stake for heresy in Florence
War between Swabian League and Swiss Cantons. Swiss victory forces
Treaty of Basel granting Swiss independance
Pope Alexander VI proclaims a Year of Jubilee; imposes a tithe for
crusade against Turks
Music printed for the first time by use of movable type
University of Wittenberg established by Frederick, Elector of Saxony
Canterbury Cathedral completed after 436 years of construction
Venice sends ambassadors to Sultan of Turkey, proposing construction
of a Suez Canal
John Knox , the leader of the Scottish Reformation, is born
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).
Martin Luther ordained and celebrates first Mass
Michelangelo begins painting Sistine Chapel ceiling
Henry VIII assumes English throne and marries Catherine of Aragon
African slaves cross the Atlantic to work in Portuguese sugar plantations
in Brazil
Pope Julius forms Holy League with Venice and Aragon to drive French
out of city; Henry VIII joins Holy League
William Tyndale completes his B.A. at Oxford
Giovanni de Medici becomes Pope Leo X—“one of most severe trials to
which God ever subjected his church”
Tyndale completes his M.A. at Oxford and is
ordained, but refuses to enter monastic orders
II. The Reformation Period (1516 – 1563)
Select another Time Period: < Pre-Reformation > < Post Reformation >
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 >
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
Select a Time Period: < Pre-Reformation (1215 - 1515) > < Reformation (1516 - 1563) > < Post Reformation (1564 - 1689) >