1204 Byzantium: The Crusaders conquer Byzantium, resulting in the rediscovery by the West of ancient Greek texts.
1209 Italy: St. Francis establishes the Franciscan Order. The rule of the order receives confirmation in 1223 from Pope Honorius III.
1253 Italy: Building of the Church of San Francesco in Assisi is completed.
1255 Italy: Nicola Pisano begins work on the pulpit of the Baptistery of Pisa.
1260 Italy: The Monteaperti Battle between Siena and Florence takes place. The Sienese defeat the Florentine army, they dedicate their city to the Virgin to thank her for her protection, and begin construction of the Siena Cathedral in her honor. St. Bonaventure begins work on his Legenda Maior, the official life of St. Francis. In c. 1260, Jacopo da Voragine composes the Golden Legend.
1265 Italy: Charles d’Anjou claims the kingdom of Naples. Nicola Pisano receives the commission for the pulpit of the Cathedral of Siena.
1278 Italy: Nicola Pisano works on the exterior sculptures of the Baptistery of Pisa and completes the Fontana Maggiore in Perugia. The original Sancta Sanctorum in Rome is destroyed by an earthquake. Nicholas III has it rebuilt.
1279 Italy: Construction of the Church of Santa Maria Novella in Florence begins. Cimabue works on the frescoes in the Upper Church of San Francesco, Assisi, sometime after 1279.
1285 Italy: Giovanni Pisano begins work on the Cathedral of Siena façade. He surrenders his Pisan citizenship to become a citizen of Siena. Duccio receives the commission for the Rucellai Madonna from the Confraternity of the Laudesi to be placed in the Church of Santa Maria Novella, Florence. In c. 1285, Giotto begins work on the Crucifixion for the Church of Aracoeli, Rome. Spain: Charles of Valois, son of Philip III the Bold, is crowned king of Aragon by Cardinal Jean Cholet.
1287 Italy: The Council of Nine assumes power in Siena. In c. 1287, Giotto works on the scenes from the life of St. Francis in the Upper Church of San Francesco, Assisi. These are based on St. Bonaventure’s Legenda Maior.
c. 1290 Italy: Cardinal Bertoldo Stefaneschi commissions mosaics from Cavallini for the apse of Santa Maria in Trastevere, Rome. Cavallini also receives the commission to paint the Last Judgment at Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, Rome, from Cardinal Jean Cholet.
1293 Italy: Cardinal Jean Cholet commissions Arnolfo di Cambio to create a baldachin for the main altar of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, Rome.
1294 Italy: Jacopo Torriti works on the mosaics at Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome. Construction of the Church of Santa Croce, Florence, begins, possibly under Arnolfo di Cambio’s direction.
1295 Italy: The Visconti become the rulers of Milan.
1296 Italy: Construction of the Cathedral of Florence begins under the direction of Arnolfo di Cambio.
1297 Italy: Ottone Visconti, archbishop of Milan, arranges for the appointment of his great-nephew Matteo Visconti as Capitano del Popolo. With this, Matteo becomes lord of Milan. France: A Duch de Siene is documented in Paris. He is believed to be Duccio, who has traveled to Paris to obtain firsthand knowledge of French Gothic art.
1298 Italy: Construction of the Palazzo Pubblico in Siena, the city’s seat of government, is initiated.
1299 Italy: Arnolfo di Cambio begins construction of the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence, the city’s governmental building.
1300 Italy: In Florence, the Guelfs split into two factions, the Bianchi and Neri. Two years later, the Neri seize power and expel the Bianchi, among them the poet Dante. In c. 1300, Giotto and Arnolfo di Cambio are in Rome working for Pope Boniface VIII.
1301 Italy: Giovanni Pisano executes the pulpit for Sant’ Andrea in Pistoia.
1303 Italy: Pope Boniface VIII attempts to stop the hostilities between France and England over the fiefs of Guienne and Gascony. His efforts result in a major quarrel with Philip IV of France, whom he excommunicates. The pope is seized by Philip’s advisor, Guillaume de Nogaret, the feudal Colonna family of Rome, and a group of mercenaries who demand his resignation. The Roman populace rescues Boniface and he is able to continue his reign with the protection of the Orsini, staunch enemies of the Colonna.
1305 Italy: Giotto works on the frescoes of the Arena Chapel in Padua, commissioned by Enrico Scrovegni as his family’s private place of devotion.
c. 1307 Italy: Giotto paints the Stefaneschi Altarpiece for Cardinal Jacopo Stefaneschi to be placed in the canon’s choir at Old St. Peter’s in Rome. Giotto also renders for the cardinal the Navicella in the courtyard façade of Old St. Peter’s.
1308 Italy: Dante works on the Divine Comedy, which will prove to be a major influence on art, especially in representations of the Last Judgment. Duccio begins work on the Maestà Altarpiece. Lorenzo Maitani arrives in Orvieto to work on the cathedral.
1309 Italy: Robert D’Anjou becomes king of Naples. France: Pope Clement V moves the seat of the papacy to Avignon, thus initiating the Babylonian Captivity, which will last until 1377. Germany: Henry VII of Luxemburg is crowned king of Germany.
1311 Italy: Margaret, wife of Henry VII of Luxemburg, dies in Genoa. Giovanni Pisano works on her monument in the Church of San Francesco in Castelleto. Simone Martini begins work on the Maestà fresco in the Council Chamber of the Palazzo Pubblico, Siena.
1317 Italy: St. Louis of Toulouse is canonized. To commemorate the event, his brother, Robert D’Anjou, king of Naples, commissions Simone Martini to render the St. Louis of Toulouse Altarpiece. Lippo Memmi paints the Maestà in the Palazzo Comunale di San Gimignano.
1323 Italy: St. Thomas Aquinas is canonized by Pope John XXII. France: Pucelle begins work on the Belville Breviary. Spain: The Count of Orgáz, benefactor of the Church of San Tomé and the Augustinian Monastery of San Esteban in Toledo, dies and supposedly Sts. Augustine and Stephen (Esteban) descend from heaven to bury him, the scene El Greco will depict in 1586 for San Tomé.
1325 Italy: Pietro Lorenzetti begins work on the scenes from Christ’s Passion in the transept of the Lower Church of San Francesco in Assisi. In c. 1325, Giotto works on the Bardi Chapel in the Church of Santa Croce, Florence. France: Jean Pucelle begins work on the Hours of Jeanne d’Evreux.
1328 Italy: Luigi Gonzaga is elected Captain General of the People and thus becomes the ruler of Mantua. Giotto arrives in Naples to work for Robert D’Anjou for whom he paints scenes in the Castel Nuovo. In c. 1328, Simone Martini paints the frescoes in the Montefiore Chapel in the Lower Church of San Francesco in Assisi.
1330 Italy: Andrea Pisano receives the commission for the bronze doors of the Baptistery of Florence. In the 1330s, Francesco Traini paints the Triumph of Death in the Campo Santo in Pisa, and Bernardo Daddi begins work on the Pulci Chapel at Santa Croce, Florence.
1333 Italy: Simone Martini paints the Annunciation for the Cathedral of Siena, with Lippo Memmi executing the outer panels. The Arno River floods and Taddeo Gaddi provides plans to rebuild the Ponte Vecchio and Ponte Trinità in Florence. France: Petrarch recovers Cicero’s Pro Archia in Liège.
1334 Italy: Giotto returns to Florence from Naples and is appointed Director of the Cathedral Works. He begins construction of the cathedral’s campanile.
1335 Italy: Ambrogio Lorenzetti begins work on the Maestà Altarpiece for the high altar of the Church of Sant’ Agostino in Massa Marittima. France: Simone Martini arrives in the papal court in Avignon, bringing the Sienese mode of painting to the region and thus inaugurating the International Style.
1337 Italy: Francesco Talenti, Neri Fioravanti, and Benci di Cione work on the construction of Orsanmichele in Florence.
1338 Italy: Ambrogio Lorenzetti paints the Allegory of Good and Bad Government in the Palazzo Pubblico in Siena.
1340 Italy: In Venice, the Doge’s Palace is constructed. Taddeo Gaddi paints the frescoes in the refectory of the Church of Santa Croce, Florence. In the 1340s, Francesco Traini paints the Triumph of St. Thomas in the Church of Santa Caterina in Pisa, and Maso di Banco works on the Bardi di Vernio Chapel in Santa Croce, Florence. France: In the 1340s, Simone Martini paints frescoes of the Blessing Christ and Madonna of Humility for Cardinal Jacopo Stefaneschi in the Church of Notre-Damedes-Doms in Avignon. He also works on his Road to Calvary.
1341 Italy: Petrarch is crowned poet laureate on the Capitoline Hill, Rome, in the manner of the ancients.
1345 Italy: Doge Andrea Dandolo makes additions to the Pala d’Oro altarpiece in Venice. Petrarch recovers Cicero’s letters in Verona.
1346 Italy: The Bardi and Peruzzi banks in Florence go bankrupt as Edward III of England and other international rulers default on their loans.
1348 Italy: The Black Death strikes, decimating the European population. In Italy, the event has a grave impact on art. Andrea Pisano, Pietro and Ambrogio Lorenzetti, and Bernardo Daddi die from the plague. Andrea da Firenze begins work on the Guidalotti Chapel in Santa Maria Novella, Florence. France: Queen Joanna I of Sicily, Countess of Provence, sells Avignon to the papacy, an ownership that will last until 1791 when the city is incorporated into the French territory.
c. 1350 Italy: Boccaccio begins work on the Decameron.
1355 Italy: In Siena, the Council of Nine falls from power. Andrea Orcagna and Nardo del Cione begin work on the Strozzi Chapel at Santa Maria Novella, Florence.
1356 Germany: Emperor Charles IV draws up a constitution assigning seven electors to be in charge of selecting Germany’s emperors. This prevents the establishment of a centralized form of government in the region.
1358 Italy: Orcagna is documented in Orvieto supervising the execution of the mosaics on the cathedral’s façade.
1360 Italy: Giangaleazzo Visconti of Milan marries Isabelle of Valois, daughter of King John II of France, whose dowry includes land in the Champagne region. He thus establishes monarchic ties that ensure his position of power. France: Jean, son of King Jean II the Good, receives the Duchies of Berry and Auvergne from his father. In c. 1360, André Beauneveu enters in the service of Charles V of France. Philip the Bold receives the Duchy of Touraine.
1363 Burgundy: Philip the Bold receives the Duchy of Burgundy as reward for his participation in the Battle of Poitiers against England.
1364 Italy: The Battle of Cascina between Florence and Pisa takes place. Florence wins. The event will be commemorated later by Michelangelo in a fresco in the Sala del Consiglio in the Palazzo Vecchio, Florence.
1370s Italy: Bonifazio Lupi commissions Altichiero to paint the frescoes in the Chapel of St. James at San Antonio in Padua.
1374 France: André Beauneveu enters in the service of Louis de Mâle, Count of Flanders.
1377 Italy: Altichiero frescoes the Oratory of St. George in Padua for Raimondo Lupi. France: The Babylonian Captivity in Avignon ends.
1378 Italy: The Great Schism begins. The Ciompi, the woolen industry’s day laborers in Florence, revolt for not being allowed to form a guild. They force the Florentine government to grant them guild status and to institute legislations to improve their living standards. A few weeks later, the legislations are rescinded.
1380 France: Jean, Duke of Berry, becomes a member of the regency council for his nephew Charles VI, heir to the French throne. André Beauneveu enters in the duke’s service and begins work on 24 illustrations of apostles and prophets in the Psalter of the Duke of Berry. Jean Bondol works on the Bible of Jean de Sy.
1382 Italy: The Albizzi return to Florence after their exile in 1378 and establish an oligarchic regime.
1384 Burgundy: Louis de Mâle, Count of Flanders, dies and his lands pass to his son-in-law, Philip the Bold, Duke of Burgundy. Philip moves his court to Dijon.
1389 Burgundy: Philip the Bold places Claus Sluter in charge of the sculptural decorations at the Chartreuse de Champmol in Dijon.
1394 Burgundy: Melchior Broederlam begins work on the Dijon Altarpiece for the Chartreuse de Champmol in Dijon.
1395 Italy: Giangaleazzo Visconti becomes Duke of Milan. Burgundy: Claus Sluter begins work on the Well of Moses for the Chartreuse de Champmol in Dijon.
1397 Italy: The Medici open their bank in Florence.
1400 Italy: Most of Plato’s manuscripts are recovered from Constantinople. These will be translated later into Latin and thus made available to a Western audience. In c. 1400, Cennino Cennini publishes Il libro dell’ arte. Spain: Andrés Marzal de Sax begins work on the Retable of St. George.
1401 Italy: The competition for the east doors of the Baptistery of Florence takes place. Ghiberti wins.
1402 Italy: Giangaleazzo Visconti of Milan surrounds Florence but dies suddenly, forcing his army to retreat. Giovanni di Bicci de’ Medici is elected prior of the Signoria, Florence’s legislative body. Burgundy: Pol and Jean Limbourg are employed by Philip the Bold as manuscript illuminators.
1406 Italy: Padua falls to Venice, and Florence takes Pisa.
1410 France: In c. 1410, the Boucicaut Master renders the Dialogues of Pierre Salmon and Les Grandes Heures du duc de Berry, and the Limbourg brothers create their own Grandes Heures for the duke. Spain: Marzal de Sax receives free lodging from the city of Valencia in recognition of his artistic abilities and his willingness to impart his knowledge of art to local masters.
1411 Italy: The filling of the niches at Orsanmichele, Florence, with statuary begins, with Donatello executing his St. Mark for the Arte dei Linaiuoli e Rigattieri and Nanni di Banco the Quattro Coronati for the Arte dei Maestri di Pietra e Lengame. Spain: Luis Borrasá begins work on the Retable of St. Peter in the Church of Santa María, Tarrasa.
1415 Italy: Donatello executes his St. George for Orsanmichele, Florence, a commission he receives from the Arte dei Corazzai e Spadai. He also begins work on the prophets for the niches of the Campanile. Flanders: In c. 1415, Robert Campin paints his Entombment Triptych.
1416 France: The Limbourg brothers execute Les Trés Riches Heures du duc de Berry. The duke, their patron, dies shortly thereafter. Burgundy: Jean Malouel paints the Martyrdom of St. Denis, perhaps for the Chartreuse de Champmol in Dijon.
1417 Germany: The Council of Constance puts an end to the Great Schism by deposing competing popes and electing Martin V to the throne.
1419 Italy: Brunelleschi begins work on the Ospedale degli Innocenti, Florence. The Hieroglyphica of Horus Apollo is discovered by a monk on the island of Andros, Greece. The text will be published first in Venice in 1505 and inspire Andrea Alciato to write his Emblemata.
1420 Italy: Martin V moves the papacy back to Rome and begins the renovation of pilgrimage sites. Brunelleschi initiates construction of the dome of the Cathedral of Florence. Flanders: Robert Campin paints the Nativity in c. 1420.
1421 Italy: Brunelleschi begins work on the Old Sacristy in the Church of San Lorenzo as a final resting place for Giovanni di Bicci de’ Medici.
1422 France: Charles VI of France dies and the infant Henry VI of England is installed to the French throne, with the Duke of Bedford acting as his regent.
1424 Flanders: Jan van Eyck enters in the service of Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy.
1425 Italy: Ghiberti begins work on the Gates of Paradise for the Baptistery of Florence and Jacopo della Quercia on the main portal of San Petronio, Bologna. In c. 1425, Felice Brancacci commissions Masaccio and Masolino to paint frescoes in his chapel in the Church of Santa Maria delle Carmine, Florence. Flanders: Jan van Eyck paints the Ghent Altarpiece.
c. 1426 Flanders: Robert Campin executes the Mérode Altarpiece.
1427 Italy: The catasto, a property tax, is introduced in Florence. Leonardo Bruni is named the city’s chancellor. Masaccio paints the Holy Trinity in the Church of Santa Maria Novella, Florence.
1428 Italy: Masolino works on the decorations of the Castiglione Chapel at San Clemente, Rome. Flanders: Jan van Eyck travels to Lisbon, sent by Philip the Good on a diplomatic mission. In c. 1428, he paints his Annunciation, and Robert Campin executes the Virgin and Child before a Fire Screen.
1429 France: Joan of Arc takes control of the French army, drives the English out of France, and leads Charles VII to his coronation in Reims. She is captured two years later by Burgundian troops and burned at the stake in Rouen.
1430s Italy: Poggio Bracciolini begins work on his De Varietate Fortunae, which describes the ruins of Rome. Fra Angelico moves into the Monastery of San Marco, Florence, which Michelozzo renovates under the patronage of Cosimo de’ Medici. Donatello works on his Cantoria for the Cathedral of Florence and his Mary Magdalen. Flanders: Jan and Hubert van Eyck execute the Crucifixion and Last Judgment panels.
1432 Italy: Sigismondo Malatesta becomes the ruler of Rimini. The Battle of San Romano takes place, an event Paolo Uccello depicts in three scenes. Leon Battista Alberti is appointed apostolic abbreviator at the Vatican. Flanders: Robert Campin is banished from Tournai for immoral behavior and forced to go on pilgrimage to St. Gilles in Provence. Jacqueline of Bavaria, daughter of Count William IV of Holland, intervenes and Campin’s sentence is reduced to only the payment of a fine. In c. 1432, Rogier van der Weyden paints the Virgin and Child in a Niche.
1433 Italy: The Medici are exiled from Florence. Lorenzo Valla is expelled from Pavia for writing an open letter criticizing a jurist and ridiculing Pavian jurisprudence. Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund gives Gianfrancesco Gonzaga of Mantua the title of marquis. Brunelleschi begins work on the Pazzi Chapel in the Church of Santa Croce, Florence, and Fra Angelico paints the Linaiuoli Altarpiece. Flanders: In c. 1433, Jan van Eyck renders the Madonna with the Chancellor Nicolas Rolin.
1434 Italy: Cosimo de’ Medici returns to Florence, removes the Albizzi from power, and takes their place. Brunelleschi begins work on the Church of Santa Maria degli Angeli, the seat of the Camaldolites of Florence. Flanders: Jan van Eyck paints the Arnolfini Wedding Portrait and begins work on the Madonna of Canon George van der Paele.
1435 Italy: Leon Battista Alberti’s treatise On Painting is published. The work will help disseminate the one-point linear perspective technique thought to have been invented by Brunelleschi. Flanders: Rogier van der Weyden moves to Brussels and becomes the city’s official painter. Germany: In c. 1435, Stephan Lochner begins work on the Last Judgment Altarpiece for the Church of St. Lawrence in Cologne. In c. 1435, Konrad Witz paints the Heilspiegel Altarpiece in Basel.
1436 Italy: The Sylvestrine monks are expelled from the Monastery of San Marco, which is then given to the Dominicans. Michelozzo begins work on the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi, and Brunelleschi begins work on the Church of Santo Spirito in Florence. Uccello paints the monument to Sir John Hawkwood in the Cathedral of Florence. France: The French recapture Paris from the British. Spain: Luis Dalmau returns to Barcelona after a five-year stay in Flanders where he was sent to learn the Flemish tapestry technique. He eventually melds local and Flemish elements in his art, thus establishing the Hispano-Flemish style.
1438 Italy: The ecumenical Council of Basel transfers to Ferrara, its purpose to end the schism of the Eastern and Western churches. In the following year, the Council of Ferrara is moved to Florence and results in the formal reunification of the Greek Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches. Fra Angelico begins painting his frescoes in the monks’ cells at the Monastery of San Marco, Florence. Flanders: In c. 1438, Rogier van der Weyden paints the Prado Deposition for the Archer’s Guild of Louvain and the Calvary Triptych. Germany: In c. 1438, Stephan Lochner renders the Madonna in the Rose Bower.
1439 Italy: Cosimo de’ Medici establishes the Platonic Academy in Florence.
1440 Italy: The Battle of Anghiari between Florence and Milan takes place, with Florence emerging victorious. Leonardo will later paint a fresco of the subject in the Sala del Consiglio of the Palazzo Vecchio, Florence, opposite Michelangelo’s Battle of Cascina. Andrea del Castagno works on the fresco on the façade of the Palazzo del Podestà, now Bargello, in Florence, depicting members of the Albizzi family and their associates hanging upside-down, their sentence for treason. Lorenzo Valla writes the Donation of Constantine in which he declares an eighth-century document used by the papacy to support its claims to temporal power to be a forgery. France: In the 1440s, Jean Fouquet paints the portrait Pope Eugenius IV and His Nephews during his stay in Rome, thereby establishing a new genre of papal portraiture.
1444 Italy: Federico da Montefeltro becomes ruler of Urbino, and Ludovico Gonzaga of Mantua. Donatello begins work on the high altar of San Antonio, Padua. Flanders: Petrus Christus paints the Exeter Madonna.
c. 1445 Italy: Bernardo Rossellino works on the tomb of Leonardo Bruni, chancellor of Florence; Domenico Veneziano paints his St. Lucy Altarpiece for the Church of Santa Lucia de’ Magnoli; and Donatello begins work on the Monument of Gattamelata to be placed in the Campo Santo in Padua. Spain: In 1445, Luis Dalmau renders the Virgin of the Councilors for the town hall chapel in Barcelona. In c. 1445, Bernardo Martorell begins work on the Retable of the Transfiguration for the Barcelona Cathedral.
1447 Italy: Filippo Maria Visconti, ruler of Milan, dies without a male heir. He is succeeded by his son-in-law Francesco Sforza. Andrea del Castagno works on the refectory frescoes in the Monastery of Sant’ Apollonia, Florence. In c. 1447, Lorenzo Ghiberti begins work on the Commentarii, the earliest autobiography by an artist.
1448 Italy: The plague strikes again in Florence, lasting for three consecutive summers. The pope invites Lorenzo Valla to Rome to translate Greek texts. Andrea del Castagno paints his series on illustrious men and women in the Villa Carducci at Legnaia, and Fra Angelico renders his frescoes in the Chapel of Nicholas V at the Vatican. Flanders: In c. 1448, Rogier van der Weyden paints the Seven Sacraments Altarpiece and Petrus Christus the Lamentation. Spain: Jaime Huguet returns to Barcelona from Zaragoza and Tarragona and becomes the city’s leading master.
1449 Italy: Polissena Sforza, wife of Sigismundo Malatesta dies, probably from poisoning. Her husband is suspected of her murder. Flanders: Petrus Christus renders his St. Eligius as a Goldsmith. France: Jean Fouquet applies for papal legitimization of his birth.
1450 Italy: Leon Battista Alberti begins work on the Tempio Malatestiano in Rimini. In c. 1450, Paolo Uccello works on the Chiostro Verde scenes at Santa Maria Novella, Florence, and Antonello da Messina on his St. Jerome in His Study. Flanders: Dirk Bouts begins work on the Deposition Altarpiece. France: Jean Fouquet paints his self-portrait on enamel, the first to be executed by a Northern master. In c. 1450, he begins work on his Melun Diptych for Etienne Chevalier, controller general to King Charles VII. Portugal: Nuno Gonçalves becomes court painter to Alfonso V.
1452 Italy: Borso d’Este assumes the rulership of Ferrara. Fra Filippo Lippi begins work on the frescoes in the choir of Prato Cathedral, commissioned by the Datini family. France: Enguerrand Charonton paints the Virgin of Mercy for the Celestine Convent of Avignon.
1453 Italy: The Medici appoint Poggio Bracciolini the new chancellor of Florence. Leon Battista Alberti begins work on the Palazzo Rucellai, Florence. Desiderio da Settignano executes the Tomb of Chancellor Carlo Marsuppini in the Church of Santa Croce, Florence. France: The Hundred Years’ War with England comes to an end. France becomes a free monarchy.
1454 Italy: The Peace of Lodi is effected between Venice and Milan. Permanent boundaries between these two territories are established and Francesco Sforza is confirmed Duke of Milan. Mantegna begins work on the Ovetari Chapel in the Church of the Eremitani, Padua. In c. 1454, Andrea del Castagno works on the Vision of St. Jerome in the Church of Santisima Annunziata, Florence, and Piero della Francesca renders scenes from the Legend of the True Cross at San Francesco in Arezzo. France: Enguerrand Charonton paints his Coronation of the Virgin for the Church of the Carthusians in Villeneuve-lès-Avignon.
1456 Italy: Andrea del Castagno paints his monument to Niccolò da Tolentino in the Cathedral of Florence. Mantegna begins work on the San Zeno Altarpiece for the Church of San Zeno in Verona and Leon Battista Alberti on the façade of Santa Maria Novella, Florence, financed by Giovanni Rucellai. Filarete works on the Ospedale Maggiore in Milan, where Antonello da Messina is recorded in the Sforza court working alongside Petrus Christus. Germany: Gutenberg produces the first printed Bible.
1459 Italy: Bernardo Rossellino carries out the urban planning of the town of Pienza for Pope Pius II. Mantegna moves to Mantua to work for Duke Ludovico Gonzaga. In c. 1459, Benozzo Gozzoli paints the Procession of the Magi in the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi. Spain: Jaime Huguet begins work on his Retable of Sts. Abdón and Senén (1459–1460) in the Church of Santa María, Tarrasa.
1460 Italy: Antonio Rossellino initiates work on the Tomb of the Cardinal of Portugal at San Miniato, Florence, and Leon Battista Alberti on the Church of San Sebastiano, Mantua, for Ludovico Gonzaga. In c. 1460, Giovanni Bellini paints the Agony in the Garden. Portugal: In c. 1460, Nuno Gonçalves begins work on his Retable of St. Vincent for the Convent of St. Vincent in Lisbon.
1461 Italy: Filarete begins work on a treatise on architecture that includes a description of the invented city of Sforzinda, named after his patrons, the Sforza dukes of Milan.
1462 Italy: Pope Pius II excommunicates Sigismondo Malatesta on charges of impiety and sexual misconduct and casts him to hell in front of St. Peter’s, Rome.
1465 Italy: The first printing press is established in Italy, in Subiaco. Mantegna begins work on the Camera Picta in the Palazzo Ducale, Mantua. In c. 1465, Pollaiuolo engraves the Battle of the Ten Nudes, and Verrocchio begins sculpting his Doubting of Thomas at Orsanmichele for the Guild of Merchants.
1468 Italy: Cardinal Basilius Bessarion leaves his collection of Greek manuscripts to the Republic of Venice. It becomes the core of the collection of the Library of St. Mark. Flanders: Hans Memlinc begins work on the Donne Triptych for Sir John Donne of Kidwelly, and Dirk Bouts becomes the official painter of Louvain.
1469 Italy: Lorenzo “the Magnificent” de’ Medici takes over as ruler of Florence. Marsilio Ficino begins work on the Theologia Platonica, where he seeks to reconcile Christianity with pagan philosophy.
1471 Italy: Ercole I d’Este becomes Duke of Ferrara. Domenico Ghirlandaio decorates the Vespucci Chapel in the Church of Ognissanti, Florence. Germany: Michael Pacher begins work on the Altarpiece of St. Wolfgang. Portugal: Nuno Gonçalves becomes the official painter of the city of Lisbon.
1474 Italy: Federico da Montefeltro becomes Duke of Urbino. Marsilio Ficino writes his Concerning the Christian Religion. Flanders: In c. 1474, Hugo van der Goes begins work on the Portinari Altarpiece.
1475 Italy: Pope Sixtus IV establishes the Vatican Library. He also gives official approval to the doctrine of the Virgin’s Immaculate Conception, though it does not become Church dogma until 1854. Antonello da Messina arrives in Venice and brings with him the oil painting technique. Girolamo Savonarola enters the Dominican Order. Flanders: In c. 1475, Hieronymus Bosch paints the Seven Deadly Sins.
1476 Italy: Giangaleazzo Maria Sforza of Milan is murdered by republican conspirators in the Church of San Stefano. Francesco di Giorgio Martini arrives in Urbino and works on the building of the Ducal Palace. France: Nicolas Froment paints his Altarpiece of the Burning Bush at the Cathedral of St.-Sauveur in Aix-en-Provence.
1477 Burgundy: Charles the Bold dies. His lands are inherited by his daughter, Mary of Burgundy.
1478 Italy: The Pazzi Conspiracy against the Medici takes place in Florence. Giuliano de’ Medici is killed and his brother Lorenzo “the Magnificent” is wounded. The conspirators are captured and executed. Bramante begins work on the Church of Santa Maria presso San Satiro in Milan. The Scuola di San Rocco is founded in Venice. Flanders: Hugo van der Goes enters the Monastery of the Red Cloister in Soignes as a lay brother. Spain: The tribunal of the Inquisition is reinstated.
1479 Italy: The Venetians establish ties with the Turks and Sultan Mahomet II. Gentile Bellini is sent to Constantinople to work for the sultan. Flanders: Hans Memlinc paints the Altarpiece of the Virgin and Angels.
1480 Italy: Marsilio Ficino translates the works of Plotinus and Proclus, thus providing information on the ancient Platonists. Melozzo da Forli begins work on Sixtus IV, His Nephews, and Platina, His Librarian. In the 1480s, Giuliano da Sangallo works on the Villa Medici at Poggio a Caiano, and Botticelli paints his Venus and Mars and Birth of Venus for the Medici. Flanders: Hans Memlinc is recorded among the wealthiest citizens of Bruges who were required to pay added tax to finance the war against France. He paints the Life of the Virgin and Christ panel.
1481 Italy: Work on the wall frescoes in the Sistine Chapel, Rome, by Perugino, Botticelli, Ghirlandaio, and others is initiated. Leonardo goes to Milan to enter in the service of the Sforza dukes and begins work on the Adoration of the Magi for the monks of San Donato in Scopeto. Filippino Lippi receives the commission to complete the decoration of the Brancacci Chapel in the Church of Santa Maria delle Carmine, Florence. Verrocchio begins work on the Colleoni Monument for the Campo dei Santi Giovanni e Paolo in Venice. Melozzo da Forli paints his Christ in Glory for the Church of Santi Apostoli, Rome. Flanders: Hugo van der Goes suffers a mental breakdown. In c. 1481, he paints the Dormition of the Virgin.
1482 Burgundy: Mary of Burgundy dies. Her lands are inherited by her children, Margaret and Philip the Handsome. Margaret marries the heir to the French throne, later Charles VIII, and the Burgundian lands become part of France. Philip succeeds his father, the Hapsburg Archduke Maximilian, and the Low Countries are thus annexed to the Hapsburg dominion.
1483 Italy: Pope Sixtus IV imposes an interdict (suspension of public worship and withdrawal of the Church’s sacraments) on Venice. Giovanni Bellini receives the appointment of official painter of the Venetian Republic. Leonardo begins work on the Madonna of the Rocks, commissioned by the Confraternity of the Immaculate Conception in Milan, and Ghirlandaio receives the commission for the Sassetti Chapel in the Church of Santa Trinità, Florence. Botticelli paints for the Medici the Nastagio degli Onesti panels for the celebration of the Pucci-Bini wedding. Spain: Pedro Berruguete returns to Spain after a stay in the ducal court of Urbino and begins work on the Retablo de Santa Eulalia for the Church of Santa Eulalia in Paredes de Nava.
1485 Italy: Leon Battista Alberti’s De re aedificatoria is published, a treatise on architecture inspired by Vitruvius’ writings on the subject. It provides the earliest modern account of the architectural orders.
1490 Italy: Mauro Codussi begins work on the façade of the Scuola di San Marco, Venice. Girolamo Savonarola transfers to the Monastery of San Marco, Florence, at the request of Lorenzo “the Magnificent” de’ Medici. He is appointed prior of the monastery in the following year. Flanders: Hieronymus Bosch paints the Hay Wain Triptych. Spain: Bartolomé Bermejo renders his Pietà for the funerary monument of Canon Luis Desplá in the Cathedral of Barcelona.
1492 Italy: Lorenzo “the Magnificent” de’ Medici dies. Pinturicchio begins work on the frescoes in the Borgia Apartments at the Vatican for Pope Alexander VI. Germany: Dürer travels to Colmar to work with Martin Schongauer only to find that the master had died the year before. Instead, he enters the studio of Schongauer’s brother Georg in Basel. Spain: Ferdinand of Castile and Isabella of Aragon expel the Jews from Spain and annex Granada to their dominion. They also finance Christopher Columbus’ first voyage to the Americas, which brings great prosperity to their kingdom and ensures its position as the most powerful state in Europe.
1494 Italy: Ludovico “il Moro” Sforza becomes Duke of Milan after deposing his nephew Giangaleazzo. He encourages Charles VIII of France to invade Naples. Piero de’ Medici cedes Pisa to Charles, resulting in Medici exile from Florence, an action provoked by the preachings of Savonarola. Germany: Dürer travels to Venice.
1495 Italy: Botticelli paints the Calumny of Apelles, the earliest Renaissance work to recreate an ekphrasis from antiquity. In c. 1495, Vittore Carpaccio begins work on the paintings for the Confraternity of St. Ursula in Venice. Spain: Juan de Flandes is sent to the Spanish court of Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I to paint portraits of the royal children. In the following year, Isabella of Spain appoints him official court painter.
1496 Italy: Isabella d’Este plans her studiolo in the Palazzo Ducale, Mantua. Gentile Bellini paints the Procession of the Relic of the True Cross for the Scuola di San Giovanni Evangelista, Venice. Michelangelo goes to Rome and renders his Bacchus. Germany: Dürer enters in the service of Frederick the Wise, elector of Saxony, and in c. 1496 he paints for him the Dresden Altarpiece.
1497 Italy: Leonardo begins work on the Last Supper in the refectory of the Monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan. In Florence, Savonarola destroys precious art objects in the “Bonfire of the Vanities.” He is excommunicated by the pope and, in the following year, he is declared a heretic and executed. Germany: Dürer renders his famed woodcuts of the Apocalypse.
1499 Italy: Francesco Colonna publishes the Hypnerotomachia Polifili in Venice, an architectural work of fiction amply illustrated with woodcuts that include monuments from antiquity.
1500 Italy: Louis XII of France invades Milan and imprisons Ludovico Sforza. Leonardo leaves Milan for Venice and Bramante for Rome. In c. 1500, Giorgione paints the Castelfranco Altarpiece and The Tempest, and Michelangelo works on the Taddei Tondo. France: Jean Bourdichon begins work on the Book of Hours of Anne of Brittany.
1501 Italy: Michelangelo begins work on the David for one of the buttresses of Florence Cathedral. Leonardo provides a cartoon for his Madonna and Child with St. Anne for the high altar of the Church of Santissima Annunziata in Florence.
1503 Italy: Leonardo paints the Mona Lisa. In c. 1503, Michelangelo begins work on the Doni Tondo and Giuliano da Sangallo the Younger moves to Rome where he works as Bramante’s assistant. Germany: Matthias Grünewald paints the Mocking of Christ for the Church of Aschaffenburg.
1505 Italy: Michelangelo begins work on the tomb of Pope Julius II and Giovanni Bellini paints the St. Zaccaria Altarpiece. In c. 1505, Raphael renders the portraits Angelo Doni and Maddalena Strozzi. Flanders: In c. 1505, Hieronymus Bosch begins work on the Garden of Earthly Delights. Germany: Dürer visits Italy for the second time. In Venice, he paints the Rozenkranz Madonna for the Church of San Bartolomeo, commissioned by the Fondaco dei Tedeschi, the association of German merchants in Venice.
1506 Italy: Julius II takes Bologna and annexes it to the Papal States. Construction of New St. Peter’s begins in Rome under his rule, with Bramante providing his plan for the project. In the following year, the pope issues indulgences to finance the cost of its construction. Jacopo Sansovino travels to Rome and enters the circle of Bramante. Germany: Conrad Meit enters in the service of Frederick the Wise, elector of Saxony. Netherlands: Philip the Handsome dies and his son, Charles V of Spain, inherits the Low Countries.
1508 Italy: The Montefeltro line dies out and the della Rovere take over as the rulers of Urbino. Julius II forms the League of Cambrai with King Louis XII of France and Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I to curtail Venice’s territorial expansion. The league collapses in 1510 when the pope allies himself with Venice to drive the French out of Italy. Michelangelo begins painting the frescoes on the Sistine ceiling and Baldassare Peruzzi works on the Villa Farnesina for Agostino Chigi. Flanders: Quinten Metsys paints the Deposition for the Chapel of the Carpenters’ Guild in Antwerp Cathedral. Germany: Dürer begins work on the Holy Trinity.
1510 Italy: Raphael initiates work in the Stanza della Segnatura at the Vatican. In the following year he has the opportunity to view Michelangelo’s Sistine ceiling while in progress and is so taken by it that he changes his style to a more monumental mode of painting. He also includes Michelangelo among the great ancient philosophers in his School of Athens, one of the frescoes in the Stanza. In c. 1510, Giorgione paints the Fête Champetre and Sleeping Venus. Netherlands: In c. 1510, Jan Mostaert paints the Passion Triptych.
1512 Italy: The Medici return to Florence. The Holy League, formed in 1511 by Pope Julius II, Venice, Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I, and Ferdinand II of Aragon, expel the French from Italy and reinstate the Sforza as the rulers of Milan.
1513 Italy: Machiavelli composes The Prince. Raphael paints the Sistine Madonna and begins work on the frescoes in the Villa Farnesina, Rome. Leonardo moves to Rome at the invitation of Pope Leo X. He engages in scientific experiments at the Vatican. Antonio da Sangallo the Younger begins work on the Palazzo Farnese, Rome, commissioned by Cardinal Alessandro Farnese, who will later be elected to the papal throne as Paul III. Germany: Hans von Kulmbach paints the Tucher Altarpiece.
1515 Italy: Venice allies itself with France. The French recover their territories in Italy and two years later return the lands taken from Venice by the League of Cambrai. Flanders: Jan Gossart renders St. Luke Painting the Virgin for the Church of St. Ronbout at Malines. Germany: Matthias Grünewald completes the Isenheim Altarpiece. France: Louis XII dies and is succeeded by Francis I. Netherlands: Bernard van Orley is commissioned by Philip the Handsome to paint six portraits of his children to be given to the king of Denmark. This leads to his appointment as court painter to Margaret of Austria, regent of the Netherlands, in 1518.
1516 Italy: Ariosto publishes his Orlando Furioso, an epic poem that celebrates the ancestry of the d’Este family, rulers of Ferrara. Titian receives the commission for the Assumption Altarpiece in the Church of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari in Venice, Raphael paints the portrait Baldassare Castiglione, and Michelangelo works on the façade of the Church of San Lorenzo, Florence. France: Jean Clouet is documented as court painter to Francis I.
1517 Italy: Raphael paints the Transfiguration and Andrea del Sarto executes the Madonna of the Harpies. Germany: Martin Luther nails his Ninety-Five Theses on the main portals of Wittenberg Cathedral in Germany, initiating the Reformation. In c. 1517, Grünewald begins work on the Stuppach Madonna. France: Francis I invites Leonardo to his court. The artist is given the Château de Cloux as his residence, where he engages in scientific experiments and the staging of pageants for the king. Spain: Charles V takes the Spanish throne.
1518 Italy: Antonio da Sangallo the Elder begins construction of the Church of the Madonna di San Biagio, Montepulciano. Netherlands: Jan van Scorel travels to Italy, where in 1521 he is charged by Pope Hadrian VI with the care of the antiquities in the Belvedere at the Vatican, a position he holds until 1523 when the pope dies.
1519 Italy: Michelangelo begins work on the Medici Chapel in San Lorenzo, Florence, and Titian on the Madonna of the Pesaro Family. Federigo Gonzaga becomes Marquis of Mantua. Netherlands: Jan Mostaert is documented working for Margaret of Austria. Spain: Charles V becomes Holy Roman Emperor.
1521 Spain: Charles V invades Northern Italy, at the time controlled by the French, and convokes the Diet of Worms where he vehemently opposes the doctrines of Martin Luther, vows to fight heresy, and enacts the Edict of Worms that outlaws Lutheranism. Charles splits the Hapsburg dominion in half by granting the Austrian empire to his brother Ferdinand I. He will later cede the rest to his son Phillip II of Spain.
1523 Italy: The plague strikes Florence. St. Antonine Pierozzi, once prior of the Monastery of San Marco in Florence, is canonized. Rosso Fiorentino renders his Moses Defending the Daughters of Jethro and then moves to Rome. Germany: Dürer completes his treatise on art. Hans Holdbein the Younger paints the portrait Erasmus of Rotterdam in Basel.
1524 Italy: Michelangelo begins work on the Laurentian Library in Florence. Parmigianino arrives in Rome, where he remains until 1527. Before his trip, he paints his Self-Portrait in a Convex Mirror. In c. 1524, Giulio Romano arrives in Mantua to work for Duke Federigo Gonzaga.
1525 Italy: Emperor Charles V captures Francis I of France in Pavia and forces him to sign the Treaty of Madrid with which he renounces his claims to Northern Italy and cedes Burgundy to Charles. As soon as he is released, Francis recants and forms the League of Cognac with Pope Clement VII, Venice, Milan, and Florence against the emperor. Pontormo begins work on the Deposition for the Capponi Chapel in Florence. Germany: The Peasant’s Revolt takes place and is crushed by the Swabian League, resulting in the death of approximately 100,000 peasants. The event marks the end of the golden age of art in Germany. Dürer publishes The Teaching of Measurements with Rule and Compass. Barthel Beham and his brother Sebald are expelled from Nuremberg for their anarchistic and heretic inclinations.
1527 Italy: The sack of Rome by the imperial forces of Charles V takes place. The Medici are expelled from Florence, and Michelangelo’s David is damaged in the ensuing riots. Pietro Aretino settles in Venice. Giulio Romano begins work on the Palazzo del Tè in Mantua for Federigo Gonzaga. England: Hans Holbein the Younger, who moved to England in 1526, paints portraits of Sir Thomas More and his family.
1528 Italy: Baldassare Castiglione publishes the Book of the Courtier. Andrea Doria drives the French troops out of Genoa with the help of Emperor Charles V. He establishes a new republican constitution and declares himself dictator. Germany: Dürer’s Four Books on Human Proportions is published posthumously. Hans Burgkmair paints Esther and Ahasuerus for Duke William IV of Bavaria. France: Jean Clouet is named chief painter to Francis I.
1529 Italy: Sansovino is made principal architect of the city of Venice. Germany: In c. 1529, Altdorfer paints the Battle of Alexander.
1530 Italy: Pope Clement VII crowns Charles V Holy Roman Emperor in Bologna in exchange for the reinstatement of the Medici in Florence. The Medici and Federigo Gonzaga of Mantua are conferred the title of duke. France: Rosso Fiorentino arrives in France and, with Primaticcio, establishes the Fontainebleau School. In c. 1530, Joos van Cleve enters in the service of Francis I. Netherlands: Bernard van Orley enters in the service of Mary of Hungary, Charles V’s sister and regent of the Netherlands.
1533 England: During a second stay in England, Hans Holbein the Younger paints The Ambassadors, a tour de force of optical illusion.
1534 Italy: Michelangelo receives the commission to paint the Last Judgment on the altar wall of the Sistine Chapel from Pope Paul III. Parmigianino paints the Madonna with the Long Neck. Spain: St. Ignatius of Loyola establishes the Jesuit Order, which receives confirmation from Pope Paul III in 1540.
1536 England: Hans Holbein the Younger becomes Henry VIII’s court painter.
1537 Italy: Jacopo Sansovino receives the commission to build the Library of St. Mark in Venice to house the collection of Greek manuscripts donated by Cardinal Bessarion to the Venetian Republic in 1468. Alessandro de’ Medici is assassinated and Cosimo I de’ Medici assumes power in Florence.
1545 Italy: Pope Paul III convokes the Council of Trent, thus launching the Counter-Reformation. Bronzino paints the Deposition for the Chapel of Eleonora da Toledo in the Palazzo Vecchio, Florence. Benvenuto Cellini returns to Florence after having worked for Francis I of France. He enters in the service of Cosimo I de’ Medici and sculpts for him the Perseus and Medusa for the Loggia dei Lanzi. Michelangelo finishes the tomb of Pope Julius II. A frost causes the roof of the Library of St. Mark, Venice, to collapse and Sansovino is imprisoned for it. His friends Titian and Aretino intervene. Sansovino is released and he resumes his post as principal architect of the Venetian Republic.
1546 Italy: Michelangelo takes over the construction of New St. Peter’s. France: Pierre Lescot begins work on the west wing of the Louvre Palace in Paris.
1548 Italy: Tintoretto paints his St. Mark Freeing a Christian Slave. Titian spends nine months in Germany and there he paints the portrait Charles V on Horseback. Spain: St. Ignatius of Loyola publishes the Spiritual Exercises.
1550 Giorgio Vasari publishes his first edition of the Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects, thus becoming the first art historian in history. Daniele Barbaro is elected Patriarch of Aquileia. Palladio begins work on the Villa Rotonda. In c. 1550, Bronzino paints the portrait Eleonora da Toledo and Her Son Giovanni de’ Medici. France: Philibert de L’Orme begins construction of the Chateau d’Anet for Diane de Poitiers, Henry II’s mistress. In c. 1550, François Clouet paints the Lady in Her Bath, believed to be a portrait of Diane.
1557 Italy: Venice is struck by a bout of the plague that will last until 1577. The city looses 30 percent of its population. Siena is taken by Florence and becomes part of the Duchy of Tuscany. Spain: Spanish troops win the Battle of San Quentin against the French. To celebrate the victory, Philip II of Spain vows to build the Monastery of San Lorenzo in El Escorial.
1558 Spain: Charles V abdicates and retires to the Monastery of Yuste.
1560 Italy: Bartolomeo Ammannati begins work on the Pitti Palace courtyard in Florence for the Medici. In c. 1560, Cosimo I de’ Medici asks Vasari to build the Uffizi in Florence to consolidate all governmental offices under one roof. Paolo Veronese travels to Rome.
1562 Italy: The Accademia del Disegno is established in Florence. Netherlands: Pieter Bruegel the Elder paints his Dulle Griet [Mad Meg].
1563 Italy: The last session of the Council of Trent takes place. Among the topics discussed is the role of art in the fight against the spread of Protestantism. Ammannati works on his Neptune Fountain in the Piazza della Signoria, Florence, and Veronese paints the Marriage at Cana for the refectory of San Giorgio Maggiore in Venice. France: Germain Pilon begins work on the tombs of Henry II and Catherine de’ Medici at St. Denis in Paris under the direction of Primaticcio. Netherlands: Pieter Bruegel the Elder paints the Tower of Babel.
1564 Italy: Tintoretto is charged with the frescoes in the Scuola di San Rocco, Venice, which he completes in 1587. Michelangelo completes work on the Piazza del Campidoglio, Rome.
1567 Netherlands: Philip II of Spain sends the Duke of Alba to restore order in the Netherlands after the local Protestants engage in an iconoclastic campaign. William “the Silent” of Orange leads a revolt against the Spaniards that results in the emancipation of the Dutch Provinces in 1581.
1568 Italy: Cardinal Farnese funds the building of the Church of Il Gesù in Rome, the mother church of the Jesuit Order. El Greco arrives in Venice. Spain: Navarrete is appointed court painter by Philip II.
1569 Italy: Cosimo I de’ Medici is made Grand Duke of Tuscany. Daniele Barbaro publishes the Prattica della prospettiva, which includes a description of the camera obscura used by artists as a perspective aid.
1570 Italy: Palladio publishes the Quattro Libri, his treatise on architecture. Vasari and assistants work on the studiolo of Francesco I de’ Medici in the Palazzo Vecchio, Florence.
1573 Italy: Torquato Tasso publishes the Aminta, one of the best examples of Renaissance pastoral drama. Veronese is brought before the tribunal of the Inquisition for painting his Last Supper in the Monastery of Santi Giovanni e Paolo in a manner that is deemed offensive as it includes dwarfs, buffoons, and animals. Veronese avoids persecution by changing the title of the work to Feast in the House of Levi. Spain: St. Theresa of Avila writes The Way of Perfection, which includes her prescriptions on how to attain spiritual excellence. With this and other writings, she establishes herself as one of the great mystics of the era.
1575 Italy: Torquato Tasso finishes work on the Gerusalemme Liberata, an epic poem that celebrates d’Este ancestry and that will become a major source of subjects for artists. Federico Barocci begins work on the Madonna del Popolo. Spain: Navarrete paints his Abraham and the Three Angels for El Escorial.
1576 Italy: In c. 1576, Titian paints the Pietà for his own tomb, and Carlo Maderno moves to Rome from Capolago, now Switzerland. Flanders: Flanders joins the Dutch Provinces in the revolt against Spain only to be recovered in 1584 by the Spanish army. Spain: El Greco moves to Toledo at the invitation of Don Diego de Castilla.
1577 Italy: St. Charles Borromeo publishes his treatise on church building and decoration. Torquato Tasso is imprisoned for his violent outburst in front of Lucrezia d’Este. Palladio begins construction of Il Redentore in Venice.
1579 Netherlands: The United Provinces of Holland, led by William “the Silent” of Orange, sign the Union of Utrecht, which leads to their independence from Spain in 1581.
1580 Italy: Gregory XIII recognizes the Order of the Discalced Carmelites established by St. Theresa of Avila. Portugal: As the son of Isabella of Portugal, Philip II of Spain lays claim to the Portuguese throne when Sebastian I dies without an heir. With the Portuguese crown, he also obtains Brazil and its colonies in Africa and the West Indies.
1581 Netherlands: Philip II of Spain denounces William of Orange as a traitor and offers a reward on his head, at the same time as Brabant, Flanders, Utrecht, Gelderland, Holland, and Zeeland declare Philip’s deposition from sovereignty over them.
1582 Italy: The Gregorian calendar is introduced. Archbishop Gabriele Paleotti of Bologna writes his Intorno alle imagini sacre e profane, a treatise on the correct depiction of religious subjects in art. The Carracci open the Accademia dei Desiderosi. Agostino Carracci travels to Venice and executes engravings of the works of Titian and other Venetian masters. Spain: Alonso Sánchez Coello begins work on the Martyrdom of Sts. Justus and Pastor for El Escorial.
1584 Flanders: Justus Lipsius publishes his De Constantia where he expounds his Neo-Stoic philosophy. Netherlands: William of Orange is assassinated in Delft by a Catholic fanatic.
c. 1585 Italy: Veronese paints the Triumph of Venice in the Great Hall of the Doge’s Palace in Venice. Spain: Alonso Sánchez Coello paints the portrait Infanta Isabella Clara Eugenia with Magdalena Ruiz.
1588 England: Philip II sends the Spanish Armada to England, which he ruled briefly while married to Mary Tudor, a Catholic who sought to reinstate Catholicism to her kingdom but died (1558) before accomplishing her goal. Her Protestant sister, Queen Elizabeth, ascended the throne as her successor. Philip uses the fact that the British provided support to the Protestants in Holland during their revolt as an excuse to oust Elizabeth from power. Heavy winds and large ships prove disastrous to the Spanish Armada as they try to invade England.
1589 Italy: Annibale Carracci paints the San Ludovico Altarpiece for the Church of Santi Ludovico e Alessio in Bologna. Flanders: Justus Lipsius publishes his Politicorum sive civilis doctrinae.
1593 Italy: The Accademia di San Luca is established in Rome. Cesare Ripa publishes the Iconologia, a manual on the representation of allegorical figures. France: Henry IV converts to Catholicism and is crowned king in the following year.
1598 Italy: Carlo Maderno works on the façade of Santa Susanna, Rome, and Annibale Carracci on the Farnese ceiling in the Palazzo Farnese, Rome, and also paints his Christ in Glory. France: Henry IV signs the Treaty of Nantes and ends the Wars of Religion in France. He begins an urban renovation campaign in Paris that results in the construction of the Pont Neuf, Place Dauphine, and Place Royale (now Vosges).
1599 Italy: Caravaggio begins work on the Contarelli Chapel at San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome. The body of St. Cecilia is discovered under the high altar of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere. To mark the event, Stefano Maderno is commissioned in the following year to render her as she was found, his work to be incorporated into the church’s high altar.
1600 Italy: Caravaggio paints his first version of the Supper at Emmaus and receives the commission for the Cerasi Chapel at Santa Maria del Popolo, Rome. Bartolomeo Schedoni is temporarily banished from Parma for his violent behavior. Rubens travels to Italy, where he enters in the service of the Gonzaga in Mantua. France: Henry IV marries Marie de’ Medici. Spain: El Greco paints the View of Toledo.
1603 Italy: Caravaggio begins work on his Entombment. He openly ridicules Giovanni Baglione when the latter’s Resurrection in the Church of Il Gesú, Rome, is unveiled. Baglione takes Caravaggio to court for slander. In c. 1603, he paints his Divine Love as response to Caravaggio’s Amor Vincit Omnia. Spain: Rubens is sent to Spain by the Duke of Mantua, where he paints the Equestrian Portrait of the Duke of Lerma, which will become the prototype for subsequent Spanish royal equestrian portraits. Juan Sánchez Cotán almost completely abandons his career as painter when he enters the Carthusian Monastery of Granada as a lay brother.
1604 Netherlands: Karel van Mander publishes the Schilderboeck, a biography of artists that will become the major biographical source on Northern masters.
1605 Italy: Pope Paul V calls for a competition to convert St. Peter’s from a central to a longitudinal plan basilica. Carlo Maderno wins the competition. England: The Gunpowder Plot to assassinate James I, his family, and members of the aristocracy by blowing up Parliament fails. Paul V sends a letter to the king asking that the Catholics in England be spared the consequences. Inigo Jones enters in the service of Anne of Denmark, wife of James.
c. 1607 Italy: Giovanni Battista Agucchi begins work on his treatise on painting. Domenichino is believed to have a hand in the project.
1609 Flanders: Having returned to Antwerp in 1608, Rubens is appointed court painter to Archdukes Isabella and Albert of Flanders. He marries Isabella Brant and commemorates the event by painting the Honeysuckle Bower. Spain: Vicente Carducho becomes court painter to Philip II.
1610 Flanders: Rubens paints the Elevation of the Cross for the Church of St. Walburga. France: Henry IV is assassinated. He is succeeded by his son Louis XIII, then a minor. Marie de’ Medici, Henry’s wife, becomes Louis’ regent.
1612 Italy: Artemisia Gentileschi is raped by Agostino Tassi. After a seven-month trial, Tassi is acquitted and Artemisia marries a relative of one of the key witnesses. The couple moves from Rome to Florence to avoid gossip. Domenichino works on the frescoes in the Polet Chapel at San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome. Flanders: Rubens paints the Four Philosophers as homage to his deceased brother and Justus Lipsius.
1613 Italy: Guido Reni paints the Aurora in the Casino Rospigliosi, Rome. In c. 1613, he renders the St. Sebastian Thrown into the Cloaca Maxima. England: Inigo Jones becomes Surveyor of the King’s Works. He travels to Italy with Thomas Howard, Earl of Arundel.
1615 France: Salomon de Brosse initiates the construction of the Luxembourg Palace for Marie de’ Medici where Rubens will paint in 1622–1625 his famed Medici Cycle. Louis XIII marries Anne of Austria.
1616 France: Cardinal Richelieu is appointed secretary of state. England: Inigo Jones receives the commission to design the Queen’s House in Greenwich for Henrietta Maria, Charles I’s wife.
1617 Italy: Giulio Mancini begins writing his Considerazioni sulla pittura, a guide for art collectors and patrons. France: Louis XIII attains his majority. He exiles his mother, Marie de’ Medici, to Blois. Concino Concini, Marquis of Ancre, Marie’s favorite, is assassinated.
1619 France: Marie de’ Medici escapes from Blois and allies herself with her younger son, Gaston D’Orleans, against Louis XIII. England: Inigo Jones begins work on the new Banqueting House in Whitehall Palace, London, after the old structure burns down.
1622 Italy: St. Ignatius of Loyola and St. Theresa of Avila are canonized by Gregory XV. France: Cardinal Richelieu negotiates a reconciliation between Louis XIII and Marie de’ Medici.
1623 France: George de la Tour is documented working for the Duke of Lorraine. François Mansart begins work on the façade of the Church of Feuillants and Château de Berny. Spain: Velázquez moves from Seville to Madrid to become court painter to Philip IV.
1624 Italy: Bernini renovates the façade of the Church of St. Bibiana, Rome, and begins the execution of a standing statue of the saint in the following year. He also begins work on the baldachin of St. Peter’s. The remains of St. Rosalie are recovered in Palermo, and Anthony van Dyck is commissioned to paint scenes in the Oratory of St. Rosalie to commemorate the event. Nicolas Poussin settles in Rome. Simon Vouet is elected president of the Accademia di San Luca. France: Cardinal Richelieu is appointed first minister of France. Orazio Gentileschi is working in Marie’s court.
1625 England: Charles I ascends the throne. Orazio Gentileschi becomes his court painter.
1626 Italy: Urban VIII forces Duke Francesco Maria della Rovere to cede the Duchy of Urbino to the papacy.
1627 Italy: The French Gonzaga become the rulers of Mantua as the Italian family line ends. Poussin paints his Et in Arcadia Ego, a scene he will render once again in 1637–1638. In c. 1627, he paints the Triumph of Flora. France: Simon Vouet returns to France after his stay in Italy and becomes official court painter. He establishes a workshop in the Louvre where he trains some of the most important French artists of the next generation. Cardinal Richelieu seizes La Rochelle, a Huguenot stronghold.
1629 Italy: Bernini begins work on the crossing of St. Peter’s for which he will contribute his statue of St. Longinus. Andrea Sacchi begins work on his Divine Wisdom in the Barberini Palace, Rome, and Valentin de Boulogne paints the Martyrdom of Sts. Processus and Martinian for one of the altars of St. Peter’s. France: Richelieu defeats the French Protestants and signs the Peace of Alais, which abolishes their political rights and protections. Netherlands: Rembrandt paints Judas Returning the Thirty Pieces of Silver. England: Rubens paints the Allegory of War and Peace at Whitehall Banqueting House. Anthony van Dyck paints his Rinaldo and Armida for Endymion Porter, while serving as court painter to Charles I. Spain: Velázquez travels to Italy. Zurbarán settles in Seville to become the most important master there.
1630 Italy: Artemisia Gentileschi moves to Naples and renders her Self-Portrait as Allegory of Painting. In the 1630s, the Cortona/Sacchi controversy at the Accademia di San Luca on the correct depiction of history paintings takes place. Dutch artists living in Rome form a group led by Pieter van Laer, known as the Bamboccianti, who specialize in genre scenes. Bernini proposes the building of the towers of St. Peter’s, Rome, which Urban VIII approves. The south tower is built but cracks almost immediately and is torn down. The fiasco proves to be a major blow to Bernini’s career. France: Louis XIII exiles his mother, Marie de’ Medici, permanently from court. She lives out the rest of her days in Germany. The Luxemburg Palace is sealed and Rubens’ Medici Cycle in one of its galleries is not rediscovered until the end of the 17th century, when it causes a major sensation.
1633 Italy: Pietro da Cortona begins work on the Glorification of the Reign of Urban VIII in the Barberini Palace, and Bernini begins construction of Sant’ Andrea al Quirinale, Rome. France: Jacques Callot renders Les Grandes Misères de la Guerre, which record the horrors that resulted from Cardinal Richelieu’s invasion of Nancy in the Lorraine region. Mathieu Le Nain is named official painter of the city of Paris. Spain: Vicente Carducho writes the Diálogos de la Pintura.
1634 Italy: Pietro da Cortona is granted permission to build his own funerary chapel in the Church of Santa Martina, Rome. During construction, the body of St. Martina is recovered. To celebrate the event, Cardinal Francesco Barberini, Urban VIII’s nephew, commissions Cortona to build a whole new church on the site.
1640 Italy: In 1640, Poussin is summoned to the French court where he remains until 1642. In the 1640s, he develops his Theory of the Modes. Netherlands: Rembrandt paints his Self-Portrait Leaning on a Stone Sill, based on Raphael’s portrait of Baldassare Castiglione he sees at an auction. Spain: Portugal revolts against Spain and the Spanish monarch loses his position as their king. Zurbarán paints his Christ and the Virgin in the House at Nazareth.
1641 Italy: Pope Urban VIII seizes the Duchy of Castro from the Farnese when they default on their interest payments. He returns the duchy to them in 1644 when both parties sign a peace agreement. Domenichino dies and is suspected of having been poisoned by jealous local masters while working in Naples. Francesco Borromini receives the commission for the Church of San Ivo della Sapienza, Rome, from Urban VIII. France: Vouet paints the Presentation for the high altar of the Novitiate Church of the Jesuits in Paris, commissioned by Cardinal Richelieu. England: William Dobson succeeds Anthony van Dyck as court painter to Charles I.
1642 Italy: Giovanni Baglione publishes his Vite de’ pittori, scultori, e architetti. Netherlands: Rembrandt paints The Night Watch.
1643 Spain: Philip IV dismisses the Count of Olivares, his minister, for his political and economic failures. England: Civil war breaks out as a result of confrontations between Parliament and the Puritans who opposed Charles I’s religious policies. This leads to Charles I’s execution in 1649.
1645 Italy: Bernini begins work on the Cornaro Chapel at Santa Maria della Vittoria, Rome, where he will execute his famed Ecstasy of St. Theresa.
1648 Italy: Bernini begins work on the Four Rivers Fountain in the Piazza Navona, Rome. France: The French Academy is established, its principles based on those of Nicolas Poussin. Laurent de La Hyre paints his Allegory of the Regency of Anne of Austria, Eustache Le Seur begins work on his St. Bruno series for the Chartreuse de Paris, and Jacques Sarazin begins work on his Tomb of Henri de Bourbon in the Church of St. Paul-St. Louis. Netherlands: The Peace of Westphalia is negotiated and Philip IV of Spain recognizes the independence of the Dutch provinces. Spain: Velázquez paints the Rokeby Venus for Gaspar Méndez de Haro, marquis of Carpio and Heliche.