What happened in 1540–1549

World7

• 1543The Parliament of Scotland votes against ratifying the Treaty of Greenwich that had been signed with England on July 1.
• 1543The Eight Years War, also called the "War of Rough Wooing", begins as Scotland's Parliament votes to declare war on the Kingdom of England.
• 1544Albert, Duke of Prussia signs a deed granting land for creation of the University of Königsberg.
• 1544The University of Königsberg is inaugurated in Prussia.
• 1545The Council of Trent officially opens in northern Italy (it closes in 1563).
• 1546The Council of Trent, by a vote of 24 to 15, with 16 abstentions, issues the Decretum de Canonicis Scripturis for the scripture considered to be canon by the Roman Catholic Church. The decree recites that if anyone declines to receive all parts of the Vulgate edition of the Bible, they are in contempt of the Church and should be excommunicated. and approves the 4th century Vulgate of Jerome as its official Bible
• 1546The Council of Trent approves its second decree on Roman Catholic doctrine, Decretum de Pecatto Originali, regarding original sin, declaring that excommunication should be applied to any person who denies the teaching that the sins of Adam in the Garden of Eden condemned all of humanity, or that Christian baptism remits the guilt of original sin.

Japan3

• 1545(26th day of 9th month of Tenbun 14) The Siege of Kawagoe Castle begins, as part of an unsuccessful attempt by the Uesugi clan to regain Kawagoe Castle from the Late Hōjō clan in Japan.
• 1546The Siege of Kawagoe Castle ends in defeat for the Uesugi clan, in their attempt to regain Kawagoe Castle from the Late Hōjō clan in Japan.
• 1548(Tenbun 18, 4th day of 1st month) At the Battle of Uedahara, firearms are used for the first time on the battlefield in Japan, and Takeda Shingen is defeated by Murakami Yoshikiyo.

Europe71

• 1540The Society of Jesus (Jesuits) is approved by Pope Paul III, in his bull Regimini militantis Ecclesiae.
• 1543In Nuremberg, De revolutionibus orbium coelestium (On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres) is printed during the illness of Nicholas Copernicus, offering mathematical arguments for the existence of the heliocentric universe, denying the geocentric model. According to legend, Copernicus, who had a stroke in December, is presented a copy of the book on his deathbed shortly before dying on May 24 in Frombork at the age of 70.
• 1545The Duchy of Parma and Piacenza is created in Italy by order of Pope Paul III, formerly Alessandro Farnese, to be ruled by his son, Pier Luigi Farnese.
• 1546Martin Luther delivers his final sermon, three days before his death about "obdurate Jews, whom it was a matter of great urgency to expel from all German territory,"
• 1546After the death of Martin Luther, the leaders of the Lutheran Schmalkaldic League German states (Saxony, Hesse, the Palatinate, Württemberg, Pomerania and Anhalt-Köthen) gather at Ichtershausen as the guests of Saxon Elector John Frederick I in order to make plans to defend against the Roman Catholic forces of the Holy Roman Empire.
• 1546In the Imperial counterattack in the Schmalkaldic War, the Holy Roman Empire army attacks Frankfurt, the German stronghold of the Schmalkaldic League, but is forced to retreat after a two-day siege.
• 1546Pier Luigi Farnese, already the Duke of Parma and Piacenza, is given control of the Italian cities of Camerino and Nepi by after a donation to the Papal States, ruled by Pope Paul III.
• 1546Trinity College, Cambridge, is founded by Henry VIII of England.
• 1547King Henry VIII of England dies in London, and is succeeded by his 9-year-old son Edward VI, as King of England.
• 1547King Francis I of France dies at the Château de Rambouillet and is succeeded by his eldest surviving son Henry II (on his 28th birthday) as King of France.
• 1547Catherine Parr, widow of King Henry VIII of England, secretly marries Thomas Seymour, 1st Baron Seymour of Sudeley.
• 1547Battle of Mühlberg: Emperor Charles V defeats the Lutheran forces of the Schmalkaldic League and takes John Frederick I.
• 1547Catherine Parr, the former Queen consort of England and widow of King Henry VIII, publishes her book The Lamentation of a Sinner.
• 1547Work on construction of the Château de Chambord, in the Loire Valley, for Francis I of France, ceases.
• 1549Giovanni Angelo Medici is appointed as a Roman Catholic cardinal by Pope Paul III, effective May 10. In 1559, Medici is elected as Pope Pius IV.

56 more in the app

Asia5

• 1540Battle of Kannauj: Sher Shah Suri defeats and deposes Mughal Emperor Humayan, establishing the Sur Empire.
• 1542Palace plot of Renyin year: A group of Ming dynasty palace women fail to murder the Jiajing Emperor, and are executed by slow-slicing.
• 1544Crown Prince Yi Ho becomes the new King of Korea upon the death of his father, King Joseon. Yi Ho reigns for eight months before being poisoned by his own mother, and is posthumously named as King Injong of Joseon.
• 1545Sher Shah Suri, King of the Sur Empire in northern India, is fatally injured by an explosion from one of his own cannons while leading the siege of the Kalinjar Fort and dies two days later.
• 1545King Injong of Joseon, ruler of the Korean Empire, dies at the age of 30, after only eight months as monarch. His allies suspect that he had slowly been poisoned by his stepmother, Queen Janggyeong, who had been Queen consort as the wife of King Jungjong. Queen Janggyeong's 12-year-old son Myeongjong is enthroned as the new King, with Janggyeong as the regent.

Middle East3

• 1541The Janissaries of Suleiman the Magnificent besiege Buda, wounding Wilhelm von Roggendorf, who dies from his wounds on the way to Komárno a few days later.
• 1545Battle of Sokhoista: The army of the Ottoman Empire defeats an alliance of Georgian dynasties.
• 1547A fleet of 60 Ottoman Navy ships, commanded by Piri Reis, arrives at the port of Aden (now in Yemen) and captures the city in slightly more than three months, by February 26, 1548.

Latin America4

• 1541In what is now the capital of Ecuador, San Francisco de Quito is declared a city by the decree of King Charles I of Spain and the Viceroyalty of Peru.
• 1541At Lima, Francisco Pizarro, the Spanish conqueror of the Inca Empire of Peru and Governor of Nueva Castilla since 1529, is assassinated by 20 heavily-armed supporters of Diego de Almagro II in retaliation for the 1538 execution of Diego de Almagro.
• 1546The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mexico, one of the largest in the world, with over four million Catholics, is created
• 1549The city of Salvador da Bahia, Brazil's first capital, is founded by Tome de Sousa.

Africa7

• 1540Gelawdewos succeeds his father Lebna Dengel as Emperor of Ethiopia.
• 1541Battle of Sahart: Gelawdewos is defeated by the forces of Imam Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi.
• 1541Algiers Expedition: One day after thousands of Spanish, German and Italian soldiers arrived on the North African coast and proceeded to surround the city of Algiers, heavy storms begin and the Algerian defenders surround King Charles and the other commanders. Fifteen European ships are wrecked onshore, and 33 others sink. Over the next 30 days, the Europeans are forced to retreat.
• 1542Battle of Baçente: The Portuguese under Cristóvão da Gama capture a Muslim-occupied hillfort in northern Ethiopia.
• 1542The Battle of Jarte begins in Ethiopia as the Army of the Portuguese Empire, commanded by Cristóvão da Gama encounters the army of the Ethiopian ruler, the Imam Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi, achieving a victory on April 16.
• 1542Battle of Wofla in Ethiopia: Reinforced with at least 2900 arquebusiers and cavalry, the Imam Ahmed ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi attacks the Portuguese camp. The Portuguese are scattered; Cristóvão da Gama is captured and executed.
• 1543Battle of Wayna Daga: A joint Ethiopian-Portuguese force of 8,500, under Emperor Gelawdewos of Ethiopia, defeats Imam Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi's army of over 14,000, ending the Ethiopian–Adal War.