Drake's Ship Strikes Reef
Jan 9 Francis Drake's ship the 'Golden Hind' strikes a reef off the Celebes islands, slips off the next day and sails onward to Java then around the Cape of Good Hope and back to Plymouth in England [1]
Philip II's Bounty
Mar 15 Spanish King Philip II puts 25,000 gold coins on head of Prince William I of Orange
- Mar 17 Prince William I of Orange welcomed in Amsterdam
- Apr 11 Drenthe joins Union of Utrecht
William Declared an Outlaw
Jun 15 Phillip II of Spain declares William I of Orange an outlaw and places a bounty on his head of 25,000 crowns
- Jun 17 Battle at Hardenberg: Spanish troops beat rebels
- Jun 18 States of Utrecht forbid Catholic worship
- Jun 25 Book of Concord, standards of Lutheran Church, 1st published
- Jun 27 Duke of Alva's army occupies Portugal
- Jul 12 Ostrog Bible, the first printed Bible in a Slavic language, is published
- Aug 25 Battle of Alcantara, Spain defeats Portugal
Francis Drake's Circumnavigation
Sep 26 Francis Drake completes circumnavigation of the world, sailing into Plymouth aboard the 'Golden Hind'
Gregory I
Gregory XIII
Julius II
Julius III
Leo X
Pius V