Major Events
- Feb 26 First known European landing in Australia by Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon at the Pennefather River, Cape York, northern Australia
- Apr 12 England adopts the Union Flag, replaced in 1801 by current Union Flag, also known as the Union Jack
- May 1 Spanish Queirós Expedition are the first Europeans to discover Espíritu Santo, Vanuatu - although they think they have discovered Terra Australis (southern continent) [1]
- May 16 2,000 foreigners murdered in Russia
- Aug 7 Possible first performance of Shakespeare's tragedy Macbeth, performed in the Great Hall at Hampton Court Palace for King James I
- Oct 1 Spanish troops under Spinola occupies fort Rhine birch
- Nov 11 Turkey & Austria sign Treaty of Zsitva-Torok
- Nov 14 First play staged in Arcadia at Port-Royal, a performance of "Muses de la Nouvelle-France" by Marc Lescarbot [1]
- Dec 20 The English colonial expedition to America, consisting of the ships Discovery, Godspeed and Susan Constant, departs Blackwall, London to found Jamestown, Virginia
- Dec 26 First known performance of William Shakespeare's tragedy "King Lear" before the court of King James I at Whitehall, London
Did You Know?
Possible first performance of Shakespeare's tragedy Macbeth, performed in the Great Hall at Hampton Court Palace for King James I
Pierre Corneille
Rembrandt van Rijn
Jeanne Mance
Guy Fawkes
William Shakespeare
James I and VI