- May 15 Andrew of Austria, Austrian nobleman (Margrave of Burgau), clergyman (Catholic cardinal and bishop), and Governor-General of the Habsburg Netherlands (1598-1599), born in Bresnitz Castle, Březnice, Bohemia (now Czech Republic) (d. 1600)
- Jul 11 Robert Greene, English writer (Friar Bacon), born in Norwich, England (d. 1592)
- Aug 19 Paulus Merula, Dutch lawyer and historian (Historia Belgica), born in Dordrecht, Netherlands (d. 1607)
Thomas Kyd (1558-1594)
Nov 6 English dramatist (The Spanish Tragedy), born in London