Major Events
- Feb 5 A group of early Japanese Christians, known as the 26 Martyrs, are killed by the new government of Japan for being seen as a threat to Japanese society
- Apr 23 William Shakespeare's "The Merry Wives of Windsor" is first performed, with Queen Elizabeth I of England in attendance
- Aug 20 1st Dutch East India Company ships return from the Far East
- More 1597 Events
Born in 1597
- Jan 12 François Duquesnoy, French sculptor (d. 1643)
- Jan 31 John Francis Regis, French saint (d. 1640)
- Feb 24 Vincent Voiture, French poet (d. 1648)
- Mar 1 Jean-Charles de la Faille, Belgian mathematician (d. 1652)
- Apr 9 John Davenport, Puritan clergyman and cofounder of the New Haven Colony, born in Coventry, Warwickshire, England (d. 1670)
More People Born in 1597
Who Died in 1597
- Jan 15 Juan de Herrera, Spanish Renaissance architect and mathematician (El Escorial, Vallododid Cathedral), dies (b. c. 1530)
- Jan 19 Maharana Pratap, Rajput king of Mewar (1572-1597), dies of injuries sustained in a hunting accident at 56
- Jan 29 Elias Ammerbach, German organist dies at about 67
- Feb 2 Lucas van Valckenborch, Flemish painter, buried at about 61
- Feb 15 Pieter J Kies, Dutch mayor of Haarlem (1572-73), dies at about 66
More 1597 Deaths
Famous Weddings in 1597
- Apr 27 Astronomer Johannes Kepler marries widow Barbara Müller
- May 29 French nobleman and future Governor of Arcadia Pierre Dugua de Monts marries Judith Chesnel
- Nov 7 Emilia of Nassau weds Dom Emanuel of Portugal
William Shakespeare
Elizabeth I
Philip II of Spain