| 1469 |
Ferdinand and Isabella begin their rule of Castile and Aragon |
| 1485 |
Henry VII begins the reign of the Tudor dynasty in England |
| 1517 |
The Protestant Reformation starts in Germany |
| 1519 |
Charles V of Spain becomes Hapsburg emperor of the Holy Roman Empire |
| 1556-1598 |
Philip II of Spain persecutes Jews and Muslims |
| 1559 |
Treaty of peace between France and Spain |
| 1560s-1609 |
Netherlands revolts against Spanish rule |
| 1562-1589 |
Religious wars in France |
| 1572 |
Saint Bartholomew's Day Massacre: Queen Catherine of France thought to have ordered thousands
of Protestants executed |
| 1579 |
Vindiciae contra Tyrannos, published by Huguenots, justifies regicide |
| 1588 |
English fleet defeats the Spanish Armada |
| 1590s |
A reaction in Russia against Ivan IV, the Terrible |
| 1593 |
Henry IV of France renounces his Protestantism to restore peace in France |
| 1598 |
French Protestants granted limited religious toleration by the Edict of Nantes |
| 1640-1660 |
Revolution in England |
| 1648 |
Treaty of Westphalia ends Thirty Years' War |
| 1649 |
Charles I, Stuart king of England, is executed by an act of Parliament |
| 1649-1660 |
England is coruled by Parliament and the army under Oliver Cromwell |
| 1660 |
Charles II returns from exile and becomes king of England |
| 1683 |
Turks attack Vienna and are defeated |
| 1685 |
Louis XIV of France revokes the Edict of Nantes |
| 1688-1689 |
Revolution in England: end of absolutism; religious toleration for all Protestants |
| 1699 |
Treaty of Karlowitz marks Austrians' victory over Turks and affirms Austria's right to rule Hungary, Transylvania, and parts of Croatia |
| 1701 |
Louis XIV tries to bring Spain under French control |
| 1702-1714 |
War of the Spanish Succession establishes a balance of power between England and France |
