1550s - Wikiwand

The 1550s decade ran from January 1, 1550, to December 31, 1559.

1550

January–March

January 6 – Spanish Captain Hernando de Santana founds the city of Valledupar, in modern-day Colombia.^[1]
February 7 – After a 10-week conclave in Rome to elect a new Pope, Giovanni Maria Ciocchi del Monte, Bishop of Palestrina, is selected on the 61st ballot after Reginald Pole of England falls two votes short of winning. Ciocchi del Monte takes the name Pope Julius III and is crowned the next day, succeeding the late Pope Paul III.^[2]
February 25 – (10th day of 2nd month of Tenbun 19) In Oita, Ōita Prefecture, an attack within the Ōtomo clan of Japanese samurai takes place after clan leader Ōtomo Yoshikazu seeks to disinherit his oldest son and to make his third son, Ōtomo Shioichimaru, as his designated successor. Supporters of the oldest son, Ōtomo Yoshishige, invade Yoshikazu's home and kill Shioichimaru and four other family members.^[3]
March 12
- Arauco War: Battle of Penco – Several hundred Spanish and indigenous troops under the command of Pedro de Valdivia defeat an army of 60,000 Mapuche in modern-day Chile.
- Acapulco is founded by 30 families sent from Mexico City.^[4]
March 24 – "Rough Wooing": England and France sign the Treaty of Boulogne, by which England withdraws from Boulogne in France and returns territorial gains in Scotland.^[5]
March 29 – Sherborne School in England is refounded by King Edward VI.^[6]^[7]

April–June

April 16 – The Valladolid debate on the rights and treatment of indigenous peoples of the Americas by their Spanish conquerors opens at the Colegio de San Gregorio in Valladolid, Castile.^[8]^[9]
April 30 – King Tabinshwehti of Burma is assassinated by two of his bodyguards while he is on a hunting trip. The two swordsmen, sent by Smim Sawhtut, Governor of Sittaung, behead the King, and a civil war begins as major governors rebel against the new Burmese King Bayinnaung.^[10]
May 6 – Italian Protestant Michelangelo Florio, jailed since 1548 before being brought to trial for and sentenced to death for heresy, escapes from prison and is able flee to France.^[11]
May 15 – The vestments controversy is resolved in the Church of England with a compromise on the style of clothing worn by Anglican priests. John Hopper is allowed ordination as the Bishop of Gloucester without being required to wear Anglican vestments, but must not forbid anyone in his bishoporic from wearing the vestments if they wish.^[12]
May 20 – The Spanish Catalan city of Cullera is plundered by the Ottoman Empire General Dragut Reis,^[13] and most of its inhabitants are sold into slavery in Algeria.
June 12 – The city of Helsinki (now in Finland but known as Helsingfors in Sweden at this time) is founded by King Gustav I of Sweden.^[14]
June 28 – Capture of Mahdia (1550): The Spanish Armada arrives in North Africa to begin the process of capturing the fortress of Mahdia (now in Tunisia) from control of the Ottoman Empire.^[15]

July–September

July 21 – The Society of Jesus (Jesuits) is approved by Pope Julius III.^[16]
July 25 – Capture of Mahdia (1550): Troops commanded by Ottoman General Turgut Reis make a counterattack on the Spanish invaders, led by General Andrea Doria. Both sides sustain heavy losses, and the Spanish succeed in forcing the Ottomans to retreat back inside Mahdia.^[15]
August 5 – The University of Santa Catalina is authorized in Spain by a canonical bull from Pope Julius III.^[17]
September 2 (5th waning of Tawthalin 912 ME) – King Bayinnaung of Burma begins a four-month siege of the former Burmese capital, Toungoo, occupied by the king's rebellious brother Minkhaung.
September 10 – Spanish troops, commanded by Genoa's General Andrea Doria, capture the Tunisian fortress of Mahdia from the Ottoman Empire after fighting that began on June 28.^[15]

October–December

October 2 – Battle of Sauðafell in Iceland: Daði Guðmundsson of Snóksdalur defeats the forces of Catholic Bishop Jón Arason, resulting in Iceland becoming fully Protestant.^[18] Arason is captured; he is executed, along with his two sons, on November 7.
November 25 – Luis de Velasco becomes the second Viceroy of New Spain, which encompasses all Spanish territory in North America and Central America. Velasco succeeds Antonio de Mendoza, the first Viceroy, who has been ordered to become the Viceroy of Peru.
December 29 – Bhuvanaikabahu VII, King of Kotte on most of the island of Sri Lanka, is assassinated by a gunman hired by the government of Portuguese India.^[19]

Date unknown

Altan Khan crosses the Great Wall of China and besieges Beijing, burning the suburbs.^[20]
The summit level canal between the Alster and the Trave in Germany ceases to be navigable.^[21]
The first grammatical description of the French language is published by Louis Maigret.^[22]
The first book in Slovene, Catechismus, written by Protestant reformer Primož Trubar, is printed in Schwäbisch Hall, Holy Roman Empire.^[23]
Nostradamus' first almanac is written.^[24]
Approximate date – The discovery of silver at Guanajuato in Mexico stimulates silver rushes.^[25]

Births

1550

January 18 – Tsugaru Tamenobu, Japanese daimyō (d. 1607)
February 17 – Philip of Hohenlohe-Neuenstein, Dutch army commander (d. 1606)^[208]
February 22 – Charles de Ligne, 2nd Prince of Arenberg (d. 1616)^[209]
March 6 – Michelangelo Naccherino, Italian sculptor (d. 1622)^[210]
March 8 – William Drury, English politician (d. 1590)^[211]
April 5 – Andrés Pacheco, Spanish churchman and theologian (d. 1626)^[212]
April 9 – Giulio Pace, Italian philosopher (d. 1635)^[213]
April 12 – Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford, Lord Great Chamberlain of England (d. 1604)^[214]
April 16 – Francis Anthony, English apothecary and physician (d. 1623)^[215]
April 18 – Alessandro Pieroni, Italian painter (d. 1607)^[216]
May 8 – John I, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken (d. 1604)^[217]
May 25 – Camillus de Lellis, Italian saint and nurse (d. 1614)^[218]
June 16 – Marie Eleonore of Cleves, Duchess consort of Prussia (1573–1608) (d. 1608)^[219]
June 27 – King Charles IX of France (d. 1574)^[220]
June 28 – Johannes van den Driesche, Flemish Protestant clergyman and scholar (d. 1616)^[221]
July 3 – Jacobus Gallus, Slovenian composer (d. 1591)
August 6 – Enrico Caetani, Italian Catholic cardinal (d. 1599)^[222]
August 8 – Petrus Gudelinus, Belgian jurist (d. 1619)^[223]
September 2 –
September 10 – Alonso de Guzmán El Bueno, 7th Duke of Medina Sidonia, commander of the Spanish Armada (d. 1615)
September 17 – Pope Paul V (d. 1621)^[224]
September 29 – Joachim Frederick of Brieg, Duke of Wołów (1586–1602) (d. 1602)^[225]
September 30 – Michael Maestlin, German astronomer and mathematician (d. 1631)^[226]
October 1 – Anne of Saint Bartholomew, Spanish Discalced Carmelite nun (d. 1626)^[227]
October 4 – King Charles IX of Sweden (d. 1611)^[228]
October 8 – Antonio Zapata y Cisneros, Spanish cardinal (d. 1635)^[229]
October 25 – Ralph Sherwin, English Roman Catholic priest (martyred 1581)
October 28 – Stanislaus Kostka, Polish saint (d. 1568)^[230]
November 1 – Henry of Saxe-Lauenburg, Prince-Archbishop of Bremen, Prince-Bishop of Osnabruck and Paderborn (d. 1585)^[231]
November 6 – Karin Månsdotter, Swedish queen (d. 1612)^[232]
December 2 – Antonio Fernández de Córdoba y Cardona, Spanish diplomat (d. 1606)
December 6 – Orazio Vecchi, Italian composer (d. 1605)^[233]
December 7 – Lithuanian noble Barbara Radziwiłł, wife of Sigismund II Augustus, King of Poland and Duke of Lithuania since 1547, has an elaborate coronation in Kraków as Queen consort and Grand Duchess, five months before her death at the age of 30.^[234]
December 21
- Aegidius Hunnius, German theologian (d. 1603)^[235]
- Man Singh I, Mughal noble (d. 1614)^[236]
December 22 – Cesare Cremonini, Italian philosopher (d. 1631)^[237]
December 28 – Vicente Espinel, Spanish writer (d. 1624)^[238]
December 28 – Abu al-Abbas Ahmad III, the Sultan of Ifriqiya (now Tunisia), signs a six-year treaty with Spain.^[239]
December 29 – García de Silva Figueroa, Spanish diplomat and traveller (d. 1624)^[240]
December 31 – Henry I, Duke of Guise (d. 1588)^[241]
date unknown
- Jacob ben Isaac Ashkenazi, Polish Jewish author (d. 1625)^[242]
- Willem Barentsz, Dutch navigator and explorer (d. 1597)
- Anselmus de Boodt, Belgian mineralogist and physician (d. 1632)^[243]
- Matthijs Bril, Flemish painter (d. 1583)^[244]
- Helena Antonia, Austrian court dwarf (d. 1595)
- Sarsa Dengel, Emperor of Ethiopia (d. 1597)^[245]
- Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone, Irish rebel (d. 1616)^[246]
- John Napier, Scottish mathematician (d. 1617)^[247]
probable
- Robert Balfour, Scottish philosopher (d. 1625)^[248]
- Henry Barrowe, English Puritan and Separatist (d. 1593)^[249]
- Emilio de' Cavalieri, Italian composer (d. 1602)^[250]
- Cornelis Corneliszoon, Dutch inventor of the sawmill (d. c. 1600)
- Philip Henslowe, English theatrical entrepreneur (d. 1616)^[251]
- Brianda Pereira, Azorean Portuguese heroine (d. 1620)

1551

January 5 – Jean Chapeauville, Belgian theologian and historian (d. 1617)
January 14 – Abu'l-Fazl ibn Mubarak, Grand vizier of the Mughal emperor Akbar (d. 1602)
January 26 – Robert Dormer, 1st Baron Dormer, English politician (d. 1616)
February 2 – Nicolaus Reimers, German astronomer (d. 1600)
March 9 – Alessandro Alberti, Italian painter (d. 1596)
March 21 – Maria Anna of Bavaria (d. 1608)
March 30 – Salomon Schweigger, German theologian (d. 1622)
April 9 – Peter Monau, German physician (d. 1588)
April 30 – Jacopo da Empoli, Italian painter (d. 1640)
May 2 – William Camden, English historian (d. 1623)^[252]
May 8 – Thomas Drury, English government informer and swindler (d. 1603)
May 17 – Martin Delrio, Flemish theologian and occultist (d. 1608)
September 19 – King Henry III of France (d. 1589)^[253]
October 4 – Philip VI, Count of Waldeck (1567–1579) (d. 1579)
October 8 – Giulio Caccini, Italian composer (d. 1618)
October 26 – Charlotte de Sauve, French courtesan (d. 1617)
November 11 – Giovanni I Cornaro, Doge of Venice (d. 1629)
date unknown
- Bhai Gurdas – original scribe of Guru Granth Sahib
- George Tuchet, 1st Earl of Castlehaven (d. 1617)
- Fausto Veranzio, Dalmatian/Croatian polymath, bishop, humanist (d. 1617)
- Job of Pochayiv, Ukrainian Christian Orthodox Saint (d. 1651)
probable
- Patrick Galloway, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland (d. c.1626)
- Boris Godunov, Tsar of Russia (d. 1605)
- Stanisław Stadnicki, Polish nobleman (d. 1610)

1552

January 14 – Alberico Gentili, Italian jurist (d. 1608)
January 22 – Walter Raleigh, English explorer (d. 1618)^[254]
February 1 – Edward Coke, English colonial entrepreneur and jurist (d. 1634)
February 8 – Agrippa d'Aubigné, French poet and soldier (d. 1630)^[255]
February 19 – Melchior Klesl, Austrian statesman and cardinal (d. 1630)
February 20 – Sengoku Hidehisa, Japanese daimyō (d. 1614)
February 25 – Magdalene of Lippe, Countess of Lippe by birth, and by marriage Landgravine of Hesse-Darmstadt (d. 1587)
February 28 – Joost Bürgi, Swiss clockmaker and mathematician (d. 1632)
March 1 – Anna of Cleves, Duchess of Jülich-Cleves-Berg by birth and by marriage Countess Palatine of Neuburg (d. 1632)
March 18 – Polykarp Leyser the Elder, German theologian (d. 1610)
March 20 – Christoph, Count of Hohenzollern-Haigerloch (d. 1592)
April 20 – Frederick IV of Liegnitz, German noble (d. 1596)
May 8 – Petrus Ryff, Swiss scientist (d. 1629)
May 12 – Edmund Bowyer, English politician (d. 1627)
June 2 – Raja Wodeyar I, King of Mysore (d. 1617)
June 8 – Gabriello Chiabrera, Italian poet (d. 1638)
June 17 – John George of Ohlau, Duke of Oława and Wołów (1586-1592) (d. 1592)
June 29 – Elizabeth Spencer, Baroness Hunsdon, English baroness (d. 1618)
July 18 – Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1612)^[256]
July 22
- Anthony Browne, Sheriff of Surrey and Kent (d. 1592)
- Mary Wriothesley, Countess of Southampton, Lady of English peer and others (d. 1607)
August 14 – Paolo Sarpi, Italian writer (d. 1623)
August 21 – Muhammad Qadiri, Founder of the Naushahia branch of the Qadri order (d. 1654)
August 24 – Lavinia Fontana, Italian painter (d. 1614)
September 12 – Andreas Schott, Flemish academic, linguist, translator, editor and a Jesuit priest (d. 1629)
September 20 – Lorenz Scholz von Rosenau, German botanist (d. 1599)
September 21 – Barbara Longhi, Italian painter (d. 1638)
September 22 – Tsar Vasili IV of Russia (d. 1612)
September 27 – Flaminio Scala, Italian playwright and stage actor (d. 1624)
October 6 – Matteo Ricci, Italian Jesuit missionary to China (d. 1610)
October 11 – Tsarevich Dmitry Ivanovich of Russia, Grand Prince of Moscow (d. 1553)
October 18
- Elisabeth of Saxony, Countess Palatine of Simmern (d. 1590)
- Francis Cherry, English diplomat (d. 1605)
October 23 – Odet de Turnèbe, French dramatist (d. 1581)
October 28 – Simón de Rojas, Spanish saint (d. 1624)
December 18 – Ahmad Ibn al-Qadi, Moroccan writer, judge and mathematician (d. 1616)
November 20 – Gilbert Talbot, 7th Earl of Shrewsbury, English politician and Earl (d. 1616)
November 26 – Seonjo of Joseon, King of Joseon (d. 1608)
December 27 – William Cavendish, 1st Earl of Devonshire, English politician and Earl (d. 1626)
December 29 – Henri I de Bourbon, prince de Condé (d. 1588)
December 31 – Simon Forman, English occultist and astrologer (d. 1611)
Date unknown:
- Hans von Aachen, German mannerist painter (d. 1615)
- Thomas Aufield, English Catholic martyr (d. 1585)
- Jean Bertaut, French poet (d. 1611)^[257]
- Philemon Holland, English translator (d. 1637)
- Prince Masahito, Japanese prince (d. 1586)
- Lady Saigō, Japanese concubine (d. 1589)
- Dom Justo Takayama, Japanese daimyo (d. 1615)
- Anthony Tyrrell, Roman Catholic renegade priest and spy (d. circa 1610)
- Jean Hotman, Marquis de Villers-St-Paul, French diplomat (d. 1636)
- Cvijeta Zuzorić, Croatian poet (d. 1648)
probable
- Miguel de Benavides, Spanish clergyman and sinologist (d. 1605)
- Francisco Goméz de Sandoval y Rojas, Duke of Lerma, Spanish politician (d. 1625)

1553

January 20 – Bernardino de Cárdenas y Portugal, Duque de Maqueda, Spanish noble (d. 1601)^[258]
January 22 – Mōri Terumoto, Japanese warrior (d. 1625)^[259]^{[unreliable source?]}
February 24 – Cherubino Alberti, Italian engraver and painter (d. 1615)^[260]
March – Eleonora di Garzia di Toledo, Italian noble (d. 1576)^[261]
March 26 – Vitsentzos Kornaros, Greek writer (d. 1613)^[262]
April 24 – John Maxwell, 8th Lord Maxwell, Scottish noble (d. 1593)^[263]
April 30 – Louise of Lorraine, French queen consort (d. 1601)^[264]
May 7 – Albert Frederick, Duke of Prussia (d. 1618)^[265]
May 14 – Margaret of Valois, Queen of France (d. 1615)^[266]
June 5 – Bernardino Baldi, Italian mathematician and writer (d. 1617)^[267]
June 15 – Archduke Ernest of Austria, Austrian prince, the son of Maximilian II (d. 1595)^[268]
July 1 – Peter Street, English carpenter (d. 1609)^[269]
September 26 – Nicolò Contarini, Doge of Venice (d. 1631)^[270]
October 8 – Jacques Auguste de Thou, French historian (d. 1617)^[271]
October 18 – Luca Marenzio, Italian composer (d. 1599)^[272]
November 2 – Magdalene of Jülich-Cleves-Berg, Countess Palatine of Pfalz-Zweibrücken (d. 1633)^[273]
November 4 – Roger Wilbraham, Solicitor-General for Ireland (d. 1616)^[274]
November 23 – Prospero Alpini, Italian physician and botanist (d. 1617)^[275]
November 28 – George More, English politician (d. 1632)^[276]
December 13 – King Henry IV of France (d. 1610)^[277]
date unknown
- Patriarch Filaret of Moscow and All Rus' (d. 1633)^[278]
- Giovanni Florio, English writer and translator (d. 1625)^[279]
- Richard Hakluyt, English travel writer (d. 1616)^[280]
- Robert Hues, English mathematician and geographer (d. 1632)^[281]
- Amago Katsuhisa, Japanese nobleman (d. 1578)^[282]
- Pierre de Rostegny, French jurist (d. 1631)^[283]
- William Russell, 1st Baron Russell of Thornhaugh, Spanish military leader (d. 1613)^[284]
- Moses Székely, Hungarian noble (d. 1603)^[285]
- Beatrice Michiel, Venetian spy (d. 1613)
- Mirza Muhammad Hakim, son of Mughal emperor Humayun and brother of emperor Akbar (d. 1585)^[286]

1554

January 1 – Louis III, Duke of Württemberg (d. 1593)
January 9 – Pope Gregory XV (d. 1623)^[287]
January 20 – King Sebastian of Portugal (d. 1578)^[288]
February 8 – Marina de Escobar, Spanish nun (d. 1633)
February 27 – Giovanni Battista Paggi, Italian painter (d. 1627)
March – Richard Hooker, Anglican theologian (d. 1600)
March 1 – William Stafford, English courtier and conspirator (d. 1612)
March 18 – Josias I, Count of Waldeck-Eisenberg, Count of Waldeck-Eisenberg (1578-1588) (d. 1588)
March 22 – Catherine de Parthenay, French noblewoman and mathematician (d. 1631)
March 26 – Charles of Lorraine, Duke of Mayenne, French military leader (d. 1611)
March 28 – Tsarevich Ivan Ivanovich of Russia (d. 1581)
March 30 – Paul Laurentius, German divine (d. 1624)
April – Stephen Gosson, English satirist (d. 1624)
April 15 – Simon VI, Count of Lippe, Count of Lippe-Detmold (1563-1613) (d. 1613)
May 20 – Paolo Bellasio, Italian composer (d. 1594)
June 3 – Pietro de' Medici, Italian noble (d. 1604)
June 5 – Benedetto Giustiniani, Italian Catholic cardinal (d. 1621)
June 21 – Joachim of Zollern, Titular Count of Hohenzollern (d. 1587)
July 5 – Elisabeth of Austria, Queen of France (d. 1592)
October 1 – Leonardus Lessius, Jesuit theologian (d. 1623)
October 3 – Fulke Greville, 1st Baron Brooke, English poet (d. 1628)
October 10 – Arnold III, Count of Bentheim-Steinfurt-Tecklenburg-Limburg and Lord of Rheda (d. 1606)
October 20 – Bálint Balassi, Hungarian writer and noble (d. 1594)
October 28 – Enevold Kruse, Danish noble (d. 1621)
October 30 – Prospero Farinacci, Italian jurist (d. 1618)
November 30 – Sir Philip Sidney, English courtier and poet (d. 1586)^[289]
December 17 – Ernest of Bavaria, Roman Catholic bishop (d. 1612)
December 19 – Philip William, Prince of Orange (d. 1618)
date unknown
- Jacques Bongars, French scholar and diplomat (d. 1612)
- James Lancaster, English navigator (d. 1618)
- Walter Raleigh, English writer, poet, and explorer (d. 1618)
- Francis Throckmorton, English conspirator (d. 1584)

1555

January 26 – Charles II, Lord of Monaco (d. 1589)
February 25 – Alonso Lobo, Spanish musician (d. 1617)
March 18 – François, Duke of Anjou, youngest son of Henry II of France and Catherine de' Medici (d. 1584)^[290]
March 21 – John Leveson, English politician (d. 1615)
March 31 – Elizabeth Stuart, Countess of Lennox, English countess (d. 1582)
April 21 – Ludovico Carracci, Italian painter (d. 1619)
April 28 – Karl Friedrich of Jülich-Cleves-Berg, heir apparent of Jülich-Cleves-Berg (d. 1575)
May 5 – Queen Uiin, Korean royal consort (d. 1600)
May 9 – Jerónima de la Asunción, founder of the first Catholic monastery in Manila, the Monastery of Santa Clara (d. 1630)
May 29 – George Carew, 1st Earl of Totnes, English earl, general and administrator (d. 1629)
June 11 – Lodovico Zacconi, Italian composer and music theorist (d. 1627)
June 13 – Giovanni Antonio Magini, Italian mathematician, cartographer and astronomer (d. 1617)
June 16 – Duke Otto Henry of Brunswick-Harburg, Hereditary Prince of Brunswick-Lüneburg-Harburg (d. 1591)
July – Henry Garnet, English Jesuit (d. 1606)
July 6 – Louis II, Cardinal of Guise, French Catholic cardinal (d. 1588)
July 17 – Richard Carew, English scholar (d. 1620)
August 1 – Edward Kelley, English spirit medium (d. 1597)
September 3 – Jan Zbigniew Ossoliński, Polish nobleman (d. 1628)
September 21 – John Thynne, English landowner and politician (d. 1604)
September 23 – Louise de Coligny, princess consort of Orange (d. 1620)
September 28 – Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne, vicomte de Turenne, duc de Bouillon, Marshal of France (d. 1623)
October 6 – Ferenc Nádasdy, Hungarian noble (d. 1604)
October 12 – Peregrine Bertie, 13th Baron Willoughby de Eresby, English baron (d. 1601)
November 8 – Nyaungyan Min, king of Burma (d. 1605)
December 4 – Heinrich Meibom, German historian and poet (d. 1625)
December 27 – Johann Arndt, German Lutheran theologian (d. 1621)
date unknown
- Lancelot Andrewes, English clergyman and scholar (d. 1626)
- Adam Sędziwój Czarnkowski, Polish nobleman (d. 1628)
- Samuel Eidels, Polish Jewish rabbi and Talmudist (d. 1631)
- Joshua Falk, Polish Jewish rabbi and commentator (d. 1614)
- Elijah Loans, German Jewish rabbi and kabbalist (d. 1636)
- François de Malherbe, French poet (d. 1628)
- Okudaira Sadamasa, Japanese nobleman (d. 1615)
- Konishi Yukinaga, Japanese Christian daimyō (d. 1600)
- Moderata Fonte, Italian poet, writer and philosopher (d. 1592)
- Maria van Schooten, Dutch war heroine (d. 1573)
- Naresuan, King of Ayutthaya (d. 1605)

1556

January 8 – Uesugi Kagekatsu, Japanese samurai and warlord (d. 1623)
January 24 – Christian Barnekow, Danish noble, explorer and diplomat (d. 1612)^[291]
February 4 – Dorothea of Hanau-Münzenberg, German noblewoman (d. 1638)
February 7 – Countess Maria of Nassau (d. 1616)^[292]
February 16 – Tōdō Takatora, Japanese daimyō (d. 1630)^[293]
February 21 – Sethus Calvisius, German calendar reformer (d. 1615)^[294]
March 7 – Guillaume du Vair, French statesman and philosopher (d. 1621)^[295]
March 13 – Dirck van Os, Dutch merchant (d. 1615)
April 8 – David Hoeschel, German librarian (d. 1617)^[296]
April 9 – Andreas von Auersperg, Carniolan noble and military commander in the battle of Sisak (d. 1593)
April 27 – François Béroalde de Verville, French writer (d. 1626)^[297]
May 31 – Jerzy Radziwiłł, Polish Catholic cardinal (d. 1600)^[298]
June 6 – Edward la Zouche, 11th Baron Zouche, English politician and diplomat (d. 1625)^[299]
June 13 – Pomponio Nenna, Italian composer (d. 1608)^[300]
June 24
- Victoria of Valois, French princess (d. 1556)
- Joan of Valois, French princess (d. 1556)
July 9 – Elizabeth Finch, 1st Countess of Winchilsea, English countess (d. 1634)^[301]
July 22 – Otto Henry, Count Palatine of Sulzbach (d. 1604)^[302]
July 26 – James Melville, Scottish divine and reformer (d. 1614)^[303]
August 10 – Philipp Nicolai, German Lutheran pastor (d. 1608)^[304]
August 16 – Bartolomeo Cesi, Italian painter (d. 1629)^[305]
September 21 – William Harris, English knight (d. 1616)
October 18
- Charles I, Duke of Elbeuf, French duke and nobleman (d. 1605)^[306]
- John Dormer, English Member of Parliament (d. 1626)^[307]
October 24 – Giovanni Battista Caccini, Italian artist (d. 1613)^[308]
October 26 – Ahmad Baba al Massufi, Malian academic (d. 1627)^[309]
November 25 – Jacques Davy Duperron, French cardinal (d. 1618)^[310]
November 28 – Francesco Contarini, Doge of Venice (d. 1624)^[311]
December 5 – Anne Cecil, Countess of Oxford, English countess (d. 1588)^[312]
December 17 – Abdul Rahim Khan-I-Khana, Indian composer (d. 1627)^[313]
December 27 – Jeanne de Lestonnac, French saint (d. 1640)
date unknown
- Margaret Clitherow, English Catholic martyr (d. 1586)^[314]
- Ahmad Baba al Massufi, Sudanese writer and political leader (d. 1627)^[315]
- Alexander Briant, English Jesuit martyr (d. 1581)^[316]

1557

January 1 – Stephen Bocskay, Prince of Transylvania (d. 1606)^[317]
February 11 – Johannes Wtenbogaert, Leader of the Remonstrants (d. 1644)^[318]
February 15
- Alfonso Fontanelli, Italian composer (d. 1622)^[319]
- Vittoria Accoramboni, Italian noblewoman (d. 1585)^[320]
February 24 – Mathias, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1619)^[321]
March 1 – Anne Howard, Countess of Arundel, English countess and poet (d. 1630)^[322]
March 22 – Casimir VI, Duke of Pomerania and Lutheran Administrator of Cammin Prince-Bishopric (d. 1605)^[323]
April 4 – Lew Sapieha, Polish-Lithuanian noble (d. 1633)^[324]
April 11 – Frederick, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken-Vohenstrauss-Parkstein (d. 1597)^[325]
May 5 – Emanuel Philibert de Lalaing, Belgian noble and army commander (d. 1590)^[326]
May 31 – Tsar Feodor I of Russia (d. 1598)^[327]
June 28 – Philip Howard, 20th Earl of Arundel, English nobleman (d. 1595)^[328]
August 2 – At Colchester in England, 10 convicted Protestant heretics are burned at the stake.^[156]
August 16 – Agostino Carracci, Italian painter and graphical artist (d. 1602)^[329]
August 19 – Frederick I, Duke of Württemberg (d. 1608)^[330]
August 26 – Sibylle of Jülich-Cleves-Berg, Duchess of Jülich-Cleves-Berg by birth and by marriage Margravine of Burgau (d. 1628)^[331]
September 4 – Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow, Danish-Norwegian royal consort (d. 1631)^[332]
September 11 – Joseph Calasanz, Spanish priest and founder of Piarists (d. 1648)^[333]
September 16 – Jacques Mauduit, French composer (d. 1627)^[334]
October 5 – Antoine Favre, Savoisian lawyer, first President of the Sovereign Senate of Savoy (d. 1624)^[335]
date unknown
- Giovanni Croce, Italian composer (d. 1609)^[336]
- Balthasar Gérard, assassin of William I of Orange (d. 1584)^[337]
- Toda Katsushige, Japanese warlord (d. 1600)
- Olaus Martini, Archbishop of Uppsala (d. 1609)^[338]
- Thomas Morley, English composer (d. 1602)^[339]
- Oda Nobutada, Japanese general (d. 1582)^[340]
probable – Giovanni Gabrieli, Italian composer and organist (d. 1612)^[341]

1558

January or February – Hendrik Goltzius, Dutch painter (d. 1617)
January 16 – Jakobea of Baden, Margravine of Baden by birth, Duchess of Jülich-Cleves-Berg by marriage (d. 1597)
January 29 – Paul Hentzner, German lawyer (d. 1623)
March 7 – Johann VII, Duke of Mecklenburg, Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (1576–1592) (d. 1592)
April 30 – Mikołaj Oleśnicki the younger, Polish noble (d. 1629)
June 15 – Margrave Andrew of Burgau, German nobleman, Cardinal, Bishop of Constance and Brixen (d. 1600)
July 9 – David Origanus, German astronomer (d. 1628)
July 11 – Robert Greene, English dramatist (d. 1592)
August 2 – Herman van den Bergh, Dutch soldier in the Eighty Years' War (d. 1611)
August 8 – George Clifford, 3rd Earl of Cumberland, English noble (d. 1605)
August 19 – François de Bourbon, Prince of Conti (d. 1614)
September 9 – Philippe Emmanuel, Duke of Mercœur, French soldier (d. 1602)
September 24 – Ralph Eure, 3rd Baron Eure, English politician (d. 1617)
October 12 – Maximilian III, Archduke of Austria (d. 1618)
October 24 – Szymon Szymonowic, Polish writer (d. 1629)
October 30 – Jacques-Nompar de Caumont, duc de La Force, Marshal of France (d. 1652)
November 27 – Mingyi Swa, Crown Prince of Burma (d. 1593)
December 3 – Gregorio Pagani, Italian painter (d. 1605)
December 8 – François de La Rochefoucauld, French Catholic cardinal (d. 1645)
December 9 – André du Laurens, French physician (d. 1609)
date unknown
- Meir Lublin, Polish rabbi (d. 1616)
- Kōriki Masanaga, Japanese military commander (d. 1599)
- Bessho Nagaharu, Japanese nobleman (d. 1580)
- Olivier van Noort, first Dutchman to circumnavigate the world (d. 1627)
- Chidiock Tichborne, English conspirator and poet (d. 1586)
- Michael the Brave, Prince of Wallachia (1593–1601) (d. 1601)
- Thomas Kyd, English playwright (d. 1594)
- Françoise de Cezelli, French war hero (d. 1615)
probable – Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Mons, French merchant (d. 1628)

1559

January 1 – Virginia Eriksdotter, Swedish noble (d. 1633)
January 8 – William Helyar, English chaplain (d. 1645)
January 25 – Aleixo de Menezes, Roman Catholic archbishop (d. 1617)
February 7 – Catherine de Bourbon, Princess of Navarre and Duchess consort of Lorraine (d. 1604)
February 18 – Isaac Casaubon, French-born classical scholar (d. 1614)
February 19 – Philip II, Margrave of Baden-Baden (d. 1588)
February 21 – Nurhaci, Chinese emperor (d. 1626)
March 12 – Christoph Brouwer, Dutch historian (d. 1617)
March 16 – Amar Singh I, eldest son and successor of Maharana Pratap of Mewar (d. 1620)
March 26 – Wolf Dietrich Raitenau, Prince-Bishop of Salzburg (d. 1617)
May 4 – Alice Spencer, Countess of Derby, Baroness Ellesmere and Viscountess Brackley (d. 1637)
May 12
- Stanisław Radziwiłł, Grand Marshal of Lithuania (d. 1599)
- Johann Georg Gödelmann, German demonologist (d. 1611)
July 2 – Margareta Brahe, Swedish political activist (d. 1638)
July 22 – Lawrence of Brindisi, Italian saint (d. 1619)
July 27 – Countess Palatine Barbara of Zweibrücken-Neuburg and Countess consort of Oettingen-Oettingen (d. 1618)
August 18 – Frederik van den Bergh, Dutch soldier in the Eighty Years' War (d. 1618)
August 24 or September 1556 – Sophia Brahe, Danish astronomer, horticulturalist (d. 1643)
September 21 – Cigoli, Italian painter (d. 1613)
September 15 – Edmond Richer, French theologian (d. 1631)
October 12 or October 22 – Jacques Sirmond, French Jesuit scholar (d. 1651)
November 11 – Tokuhime, Japanese noble (d. 1636)
November 12 – Yaza Datu Kalaya, Crown Princess of Burma (d. 1603)
November 13 – Al-Mansur al-Qasim, Imam of Yemen (d. 1620)
November 15 – Albert VII, Archduke of Austria, Governor of the Low Countries (d. 1621)
December 14 – Lupercio Leonardo de Argensola, Spanish writer (d. 1613)
date unknown
- George Chapman, English dramatist (d. 1634)
- Ikeda Motosuke, Japanese military commander (d. 1584)
- John Penry, Welsh Protestant martyr (d. 1593)^[342]
- Honinbo Sansa, Japanese player of Go (d. 1623)
- John Spenser, president of Corpus Christi College, Oxford (d. 1614)

Deaths

1550

January 12 – Andrea Alciato, Italian jurist and writer (b. 1492)^[343]
January 22 – Jamsheed Quli Qutb Shah, second ruler of Golconda
January 28 – Magnus III of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Lutheran administrator of the Prince-Bishopric of Schwerin (b. 1509)^[344]
February 22 – Francesco III Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua (b. 1533)^[345]
March 7 – William IV, Duke of Bavaria (b. 1493)^[346]
March 8 – John of God, Spanish friar and saint (b. 1495)^[347]
April 12 – Claude, Duke of Guise, French soldier (b. 1496)^[348]
April 13 – Innocenzo Cybo, Italian Catholic cardinal (b. 1491)^[349]
April 30 – King Tabinshwehti of Burma (b. 1516)
May 18 – Jean, Cardinal of Lorraine, French churchman (b. 1498)^[350]
May 20 – Ashikaga Yoshiharu, Japanese shōgun (b. 1511)^[351]^{[unreliable source?]}
June 13 – Veronica Gambara, Italian poet (b. 1485)^[352]
July 19 (probable date) – Jacopo Bonfadio, Italian historian, executed (b. c. 1508)^[353]
July 22 – Jorge de Lencastre, Duke of Coimbra (b. 1481)^[354]
July 30 – Thomas Wriothesley, 1st Earl of Southampton, English politician (b. 1505)^[355]
August 18 – Antonio Ferramolino, Italian architect and military engineer^[356]
October 20 – Ferdinand, Duke of Calabria (b. 1488)^[357]
October 23 – Tiedemann Giese, Polish Catholic bishop (b. 1480)^[358]
October 24 – Louis of Valois, French prince (b. 1549)^[359]
October 26 – Samuel Maciejowski, Polish Catholic bishop (b. 1499)^[360]
November 6 – Ulrich, Duke of Württemberg (b. 1487)^[361]
November 7 – Jón Arason, last Catholic bishop of Iceland (b. 1484)^[362]
December 6 – Pieter Coecke van Aelst, Flemish painter (b. 1502)^[363]
December 8 – Gian Giorgio Trissino, Italian humanist, poet, dramatist and diplomat (b. 1478)^[364]
December 29 – Bhuvanaikabahu VII, King of Kotte (b. 1468)^[365]
date unknown – Aq Kubek of Astrakhan, ruler of Astrakhan Khanate

1551

February 4 – John V, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst, Prince of Anahlt-Dessau (1516–1544) and Anhalt-Zerbst (1544–1551) (b. 1504)
February 28 – Martin Bucer, German Protestant reformer (b. 1491)^[366]
April 6 – Joachim Vadian, Swiss humanist (b. 1484)
April 8 – Oda Nobuhide, Japanese warlord (b. 1510)
May 8 – Barbara Radziwiłł, queen of Sigismund II of Poland (b. 1523)
May 17 – Shin Saimdang, Korean artist, calligrapher and writer (b. 1504)
May 18 – Domenico di Pace Beccafumi, Italian painter (b. 1486)
June 24 – Charles II de Croÿ, Belgian duke (b. 1522)
July – Adriaen Isenbrandt, Flemish painter (b. 1490)
July 13 – John Wallop, English soldier and diplomat (b. 1490)
July 14 – Henry Brandon, 2nd Duke of Suffolk (b. 1535)
August 8 – Fray Tomás de Berlanga, Bishop of Panama (b. 1487)
August 12 – Paul Speratus, German Lutheran (b. 1484)
August 26 – Margaret Leijonhufvud, queen of Gustav I of Sweden (b. 1516)
September 30 – Ōuchi Yoshitaka, Japanese warlord (b. 1507)
November 20 – Hindal Mirza, Mughal Empire emperor (b. 1519)
date unknown
- Sagara Taketō, Japanese samurai (b. 1498)
- Helena Ungler, Polish printer
- Alice Arden, English murderer (b. 1516; executed by burning)^[367]

1552

January 3 – Henry of the Palatinate, bishop of Utrecht (b. 1487)
January 10 – Johann Cochlaeus, German humanist and controversialist (b. 1479)
January 22 – Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset, English politician (b. 1509)
February 6 – Henry V, Duke of Mecklenburg (b. 1479)
February 20 – Anne Parr, Countess of Pembroke, English countess (b. 1515)
February 26 – Heinrich Faber, German composer (b. 1500)
March 29 – Guru Angad, Indian religious leader (b. 1504)
April 19 – Olaus Petri, Swedish clergyman (b. 1493)
April 18 – John Leland, English historian (b. 1502)^[368]
April 21 – Petrus Apianus, German astronomer (b. 1495)
May 26 – Sebastian Münster, German cartographer and cosmographer (b. 1488)
June 10 – Alexander Barclay, British poet (b. 1476)
July 9 – György Szondy, Hungarian soldier
August 15 – Hermann of Wied, German Catholic archbishop (b. 1477)
September 23 – Barbara of Brandenburg-Ansbach-Kulmbach, Landgravine of Leuchtenberg (b. 1495)
October 14 – Oswald Myconius, Swiss Protestant reformer (b. 1488)
October 17 – Andreas Osiander, German Protestant theologian (b. 1498)
November 10 – Günther XL, Count of Schwarzburg (b. 1499)
December 3 – Francis Xavier, Spanish Jesuit missionary and saint (b. 1506)^[369]
December 20 – Katharina von Bora, wife of Martin Luther (b. 1499)

1553

January 13 – George II, Duke of Münsterberg-Oels, Count of Glatz (b. 1512)
February 4 – Caspar Othmayr, German Protestant priest, theologian and composer (b. 1515)^[370]
February 6 – Ernest, Margrave of Baden-Durlach (b. 1482)^[371]
February 8 – John Ernest, Duke of Saxe-Coburg, (b. 1521)
February 17 – Chamaraja Wodeyar III, King of Mysore (b. 1492)
February 19 – Erasmus Reinhold, German astronomer and mathematician (b. 1511)^[372]
February 25 – Hirate Masahide, Japanese diplomat and tutor of Oda Nobunaga (suicide) (b. 1492)^[373]
April – Minkhaung of Prome, last king of Prome in Burma (Myanmar)
April 9 – François Rabelais, French writer^[374]
May 5 – Erasmus Alberus, German humanist (b. 1500)^[375]
May 28 – Johannes Aal, Swiss theologian (b. 1500)^[376]
June 26 – Tsarevich Dmitry Ivanovich of Russia, Grand Prince of Moscow (b. 1552)^[377]
July 6 – King Edward VI of England (b. 1537)^[378]
July 9 – Maurice, Elector of Saxony (b. 1521)^[66]
July 16 – Bernardino Maffei, Catholic cardinal (b. 1514)^[379]
August 6 – Girolamo Fracastoro, Italian physician (b. 1478)^[380]
August 17 – Charles III, Duke of Savoy (b. 1486)^[381]
August 22 – John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland (b. 1502; executed)^[382]
September 6 – Juan de Homedes y Coscon, 47th Grandmaster of the Knights Hospitaller (b. c. 1477)^[383]
October 6 – Şehzade Mustafa, Suleiman the Magnificent's first-born son by Mahidevran Hatun (b. 1515)^[384]
October 7 – Cristóbal de Morales, Spanish composer (b. 1500)^[385]
October 16 – Lucas Cranach the Elder, German painter (b. 1472)^[386]
October 17 – George III, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau, German prince (b. 1507)^[387]
October 27 – Michael Servetus, Spanish Protestant theologian (burned at the stake) (b. 1511)^[73]
October 28 – Giovanni Salviati, Italian Catholic cardinal (b. 1490)^[388]
October 30 – Jacob Sturm von Sturmeck, German statesman and reformer (b. 1489)^[389]
November 15 – Lucrezia de' Medici, Italian noblewoman (b. 1470)
November 23 – Sebastiano Antonio Pighini, Italian cardinal (b. 1500)^[390]
November 27 – Şehzade Cihangir, Ottoman prince (b. 1531)^[391]
December 3 – Ludwig of Hanau-Lichtenberg, German nobleman (b. 1487)^[392]
December 25 – Pedro de Valdivia, Spanish conquistador (b. 1497)^[393]
date unknown
- George Joye, English Protestant Bible translator (b. c. 1495)^[394]
- Gunilla Bese, Finnish noble and fiefholder (b. 1475)^[395]

1554

January 2 – João Manuel, Prince of Portugal, Portuguese prince (b. 1537)^[396]
January 11 – Min Bin, king of Arakan (b. 1493)
January 16
- Christiern Pedersen, Danish humanist (b. c. 1480)
- Ambrosius Moibanus, German theologian (b. 1494)
February 12
- Lord Guildford Dudley, consort of Lady Jane Grey (executed) (b. 1536)^[397]
- Lady Jane Grey, claimant to the throne of England (executed) (b. 1537)^[398]
February 21
- Hieronymus Bock, German botanist (b. 1498)
- Sibylle of Cleves, Electress consort of Saxony (b. 1512)
February 23 – Henry Grey, 1st Duke of Suffolk, English politician (executed) (b. c.1515)
March 3 – John Frederick I, Elector of Saxony (b. 1503)
April 11 – Thomas Wyatt the Younger, English rebel (executed) (b. 1521)
April 23 – Gaspara Stampa, Italian poet (b. 1523)
May 2 – William Waldegrave, English Member of Parliament (b. 1507)
June 19
- Sixt Birck, German humanist (b. 1501)
- Philip II, Count of Nassau-Saarbrücken, German noble (b. 1509)
June 28 – Leone Strozzi, French Navy admiral (b. 1515)
August 25 – Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, English politician (b. 1473)
September 22 – Francisco Vázquez de Coronado, Spanish conquistador (b. c. 1510)
December 22 – Alessandro Bonvicino, Italian painter (b. 1498)
December – John Taylor, Bishop of Lincoln (b. 1503)
approx. date – Susannah Hornebolt, English artist (b. 1503)
date unknown
- Argula von Grumbach, German Protestant reformer (b. 1492)
- Leo Africanus, Andalusian Berber writer (b. 1485)
- Sebastiano Serlio, Italian architect (b. 1475)
- Sir Hugh Willoughby, English Arctic explorer

1555

January 14 – Jacques Dubois, French anatomist (b. 1478)
February 4 – John Rogers, English clergyman (burned at the stake) (b. c. 1505)
February 8 – Laurence Saunders, English clergyman (burned at the stake) (b. 1519)
February 9
- Christian Egenolff, German printer (b. 1502)
- John Hooper, English churchman (burned at the stake) (b. c. 1497)
- Rowland Taylor, English Protestant martyr (burned at the stake) (b. 1510)
February 17 – Giuliano Bugiardini, Italian painter (b. 1475)
March 14 – John Russell, 1st Earl of Bedford (b. 1485)
March 23 – Pope Julius III (b. 1487)^[399]
March 27 – Al-Mutawakkil Yahya Sharaf ad-Din, Imam of the Zaidi state in Yemen (b. 1473)
April 12 – Queen Joanna of Castile, long under confinement (b. 1479)
April 18 – Polydore Vergil, English historian (b. 1470)^[400]
May 1 – Pope Marcellus II (b. 1501)
May 21 – George III, Landgrave of Leuchtenberg (b. 1502)
May 25
- Gemma Frisius, Dutch mathematician and cartographer (b. 1508)
- Henry II of Navarre (b. 1503)^[107]
June 10 – Elizabeth of Denmark, Electress of Brandenburg (1502–1535) (b. 1485)
September 8 – Thomas of Villanova, Spanish Roman Catholic bishop and saint (b. 1488)
October 5 – Edward Wotton, English zoologist (b. 1492)
October 9 – Justus Jonas, German Protestant reformer (b. 1493)
October 16
- Hugh Latimer, English clergyman (burned at the stake) (b. c. 1487)
- Nicholas Ridley, English clergyman (burned at the stake)
- Sue Harukata, Japanese retainer under the Ouchi clan (b. 1521)
October 26 – Olympia Fulvia Morata, Italian classical scholar (b. 1526)
November 4 – Agnes of Hesse, German nobleman, by marriage, Princess of Saxony (b. 1527)
November 12
- Stephen Gardiner, English bishop and Lord Chancellor (b. 1493)
- Yang Jisheng, Ming Chinese statesman (beheaded) (b. 1516)
- Zhang Jing, Ming Chinese general (beheaded)
November 21 – Georgius Agricola, German scientist (b. 1490)
December – Stanisław Kostka, Polish noble (b. 1487)
December 9 – Elisabeth of Culemborg, German noble (b. 1475)

1556

January 8 – Anne Shelton, English courtier, elder sister of Thomas Boleyn (b. 1475)^[401]
January 27 – Humayun, 2nd Mughal Emperor (b. 1508)^[402]
February 12 – Giovanni Poggio, Italian cardinal and diplomat (b. 1493)^[403]
February 26 – Frederick II, Elector Palatine (1544–1556) (b. 1482)^[404]
March 21 – Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury (burned at the stake) (b. 1489)^[405]
April 18
- Luigi Alamanni, Italian poet and statesman (b. 1495)^[406]
- John Gage, English courtier of the Tudor period (b. 1479)^[407]
April 26 – Valentin Friedland, German scholar and educationist of the Reformation (b. 1490)^[408]
May 4 – Luca Ghini, Italian physician and botanist (b. 1490)^[409]
May 28 – Saitō Dōsan, Japanese warlord (b. 1494)
June 10 – Martin Agricola, German composer (b. 1486)^[410]
June 24 – Joan of Valois, French princess (b. 1556)^[411]
July 31 – Ignatius of Loyola, Spanish founder of the Jesuit order and saint (b. 1491)^[412]
August 1 – Girolamo da Carpi, Italian painter (b. 1501)^[413]
August 11 – John Bell, Bishop of Worcester^[414]
August 17 – Victoria of Valois, French princess (b. 1556)
September – Patrick Hepburn, 3rd Earl of Bothwell, Scottish traitor (b. 1512)^[415]
October 7 – Frederick of Denmark, Prince-bishop (b. 1532)^[416]
October 21 – Pietro Aretino, Italian author (b. 1492)^[417]
November 10 – Richard Chancellor, English Arctic explorer (drowned at sea) (b. c. 1521)^[418]
November 14 – Giovanni della Casa, Italian poet (b. 1503)^[419]
date unknown
- Tullia d'Aragona, Italian poet, author and philosopher (b. 1510)^[420]
- Fuzûlî, Turkish poet (b. 1494)^[421]
probable
- Brian mac Cathaoir O Conchobhair Failghe, last of the Kings of Ui Failghe
- Jacob Clemens non Papa, Flemish composer (b. 1510)^[422]

1557

January 2 – Pontormo, Italian painter (b. 1494)^[423]^[424]
January 4 – Philip, Duke of Mecklenburg, (b. 1514)^[425]
January 8 – Albert Alcibiades, Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach ("Albert the Warlike"), Prince of Bayreuth (b. 1522)^[426]
March 13 – Louis de Bourbon de Vendôme, French cardinal (b. 1493)^[427]
April 9 – Mikael Agricola, Finnish scholar (b. c. 1510)^[428]
April 24 – Georg Rörer, German theologian (b. 1492)^[429]
April 29 – Lautaro, Mapuche warrior (b. 1534)^[430]
May 18 – John II, Count Palatine of Simmern, Count Palatine of Simmern (1509-1557) (b. 1492)^[431]
June 10 – Leandro Bassano, Italian painter (d. 1622)^[432]
June 11 – King John III of Portugal (b. 1502)^[433]
July 10 – Giovanni Battista Ramusio, Italian geographer (b. 1485)^[434]
July 16 – Anne of Cleves, fourth queen of Henry VIII of England (b. 1515)^[435]
August 1 – Olaus Magnus, Swedish ecclesiastic and writer (b. 1490)^[436]
August 18 – Claude de la Sengle, 48th Grandmaster of the Knights Hospitaller (b. 1494)^[437]
September 1 – Jacques Cartier, French explorer (b. 1491)^[438]
September 13 – John Cheke, English classical scholar and statesman (b. 1514)^[439]
September 15 – Juan Álvarez de Toledo, Spanish Catholic cardinal (b. 1488)^[440]
September 27 – Emperor Go-Nara of Japan (b. 1495)
October 5 or October 6 – Kamran Mirza, Mughal prince (b. 1509)^[441]
October 20 – Jean Salmon Macrin, French poet (b. 1490)^[442]
October 25 – William Cavendish, English courtier (b. 1505)^[443]
November 19
- Bona Sforza, queen of Sigismund I of Poland (b. 1494)^[444]
- Maria de' Medici, Italian noble (b. 1540)^[445]
December 6 – Elisabeth of Hesse, Hereditary Princess of Saxony (b. 1502)^[446]
December 13 – Niccolò Fontana Tartaglia, Italian mathematician (b. 1499)^[447]^[448]
December 27 – Queen Dangyeong, Korean royal consort (b. 1487)
date unknown
- Gonzalo Fernández de Oviedo y Valdés, Spanish historian (b. 1478)^[449]
- Charlotte Guillard, French printer^[450]
- Nicolas de Herberay des Essarts, French translator
- Geoffrey Glyn, English lawyer^[451]
probable
- Sebastian Cabot, Italian-born English explorer (b. 1476)^[452]
- Thomas Crecquillon, Flemish composer (b. 1490)^[453]

1558

Queen Mary I of England and Cardinal Reginald Pole died on November 17, 1558

January 28 – Jacob Micyllus, German humanist (b. 1503)
February 25 – Eleanor of Austria, Queen of Portugal and France (b. 1498)
February 27
- Johann Faber of Heilbronn, controversial Catholic preacher (b. 1504)
- Kunigunde of Brandenburg-Kulmbach, German noblewoman (b. 1524)
March 6 – Luca Gaurico, Italian astrologer (b. 1475)
March 24 – Anna van Egmont, Countess of Egmond and Buren (b. c. 1533)
March 25 – Marcos de Niza, French Franciscan explorer (b. c. 1495)
April 2 – Wolfgang of the Palatinate, Count Palatine of Neumarkt (b. 1494)
April 15 – Hurrem Sultan, Ruthenian-born wife of Suleiman the Magnificent (b. c. 1500)
April 20 – Johannes Bugenhagen, German reformer (b. 1485)
April 26 – Jean Fernel, French physician (b. 1497)^[454]
May 17 – Francisco de Sá de Miranda, Portuguese poet (b. 1485)
May 19 – Juan Téllez-Girón, 4th Count of Ureña, Spanish count (b. 1494)
May 25 – Elisabeth of Brandenburg, Duchess of Brunswick-Calenberg-Göttingen (1525–1540) (b. 1510)^[455]
May 31 – Philip Hoby, English politician (b. 1505)
June 28 – Thomas Darcy, 1st Baron Darcy of Chiche, English courtier (b. 1506)
July 17 – George I of Württemberg-Mömpelgard (b. 1498)
August 11 – Justus Menius, German Lutheran pastor (b. 1499)^[456]
September 21 – Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1500)^[457]
October – Mellin de Saint-Gelais, French poet (b. c. 1491)
October 18 – Maria of Austria, queen of Louis II of Hungary and Bohemia (b. 1505)
October 21 – J. C. Scaliger, Italian scholar (b. 1484)^[458]
November 1
- Anne Brooke, Baroness Cobham, English noble (b. 1501)
- Erhard Schnepf, German theologian (b. 1495)
November 15 – Gilbert Kennedy, 3rd Earl of Cassilis, Scottish politician and judge (b. 1515)
November 17
- (bur.) Hugh Aston, English composer (b. 1485)
- Queen Mary I of England (b. 1516)^[459]
- Reginald Pole, Cardinal Archbishop of Canterbury (b. 1500)
December 7 – Johann Forster, German theologian (b. 1496)
December 16 – Thomas Cheney, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports (b. c. 1485)
December 19 – Cornelius Grapheus, Flemish writer (b. 1482)
December 28 – Hermann Finck, German composer (b. 1527)
date unknown
- Archibald Campbell, 4th Earl of Argyll, Scottish nobleman and politician (b. 1507)
- Robert Recorde, Welsh physician and mathematician (b. c. 1512)

1559

January – Christina Gyllenstierna, leading opponent of King Christian II of Denmark and Norway (b. 1494)
January 1 – King Christian III of Denmark and Norway (b. 1503)^[460]
January 25 – King Christian II of Denmark, Norway and Sweden (b. 1481)
February 12 – Prince-elector Otto Henry of the Palatinate (b. 1502)
March 8 – Thomas Tresham, English Catholic politician
March 13 – Johann Gropper, German Catholic cardinal (b. 1503)
March 16 – Anthony St. Leger, Lord Deputy of Ireland (b. 1496)
March 23 – Emperor Gelawdewos of Ethiopia (in battle) (b. 1522)
March 30 – Adam Ries, German mathematician (b. 1492)
June 3 – Elisabeth of Nassau-Siegen, German noblewoman (b. 1488)
July 10 – King Henry II of France (jousting accident) (b. 1519)^[195]
August 18 – Pope Paul IV (b. 1476)^[461]
September 7 – Robert Estienne, French printer (b. 1503)
September 15 – Isabella Jagiellon, queen consort of Hungary (d. 1519)
October 2 – Jacquet of Mantua, French composer (b. 1483)
October 3 – Ercole II d'Este, Duke of Ferrara, Italian noble (b. 1508)
October 4 – Philip III, Count of Nassau-Weilburg (b. 1504)
October 6 – William I, Count of Nassau-Siegen (b. 1487)
November 5 – Kanō Motonobu, Japanese painter (b. 1476)
November 10 – Jacob Milich, German astronomer and mathematician (b. 1501)
November 18 – Cuthbert Tunstall, English church leader (b. 1474)
November 20 – Frances Grey, Duchess of Suffolk, English noblewoman and claimant to the throne of England (b. 1517)
November 26 – Adolph of Nassau-Saarbrücken, Count of Nassau (b. 1526)
December 17 – Irene di Spilimbergo, Italian Renaissance poet and painter (b. 1538)
December 31 – Owen Oglethorpe, deposed English bishop
date unknown
- Realdo Colombo, Italian surgeon and anatomist (b. 1516)
- Elizabeth Wilford, English merchant and company founder
- Father Francis of Aberdeen, Catholic Trinitarian friar
- Leonard Digges, English mathematician and surveyor (b. c. 1515)
- Conn O'Neill, 1st Earl of Tyrone, Irish rebel (b. 1480)
- Wen Zhengming, Chinese painter (b. 1470)

References

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