Directory

1509 CE

The Venetians, encamped around the town of Treviglio, move south towards the Po River in search of better positions. Luca Pacioli's De divina proportione, concerning the golden ratio, is published in Venice, with illustrations by Leonardo da Vinci. Portuguese fidalgo Diogo Lopes de Sequeira becomes the first European to reach Malacca, having crossed the Gulf of Bengal.

Geopolitics & Diplomacy

  • March 13 – At Bourges, the French king Louis XII ratifies treaties that were concluded 10 December 1508, regarding the creation of the League of Cambrai.source
  • May 2 – Juan Ponce de León obtains authorization to bring his family from Spain to his home in the Casa de Contratación in Caparra, Puerto Rico.source
  • July 26 – Krishnadevaraya ascends the throne of the Vijayanagara Empire.source
  • Basil Solomon becomes Syriac Orthodox Maphrian of the East.source

Conflict & Security

  • January 30 – French ambassador Janus Lascaris leaves Venice, after being recalled by king Louis XII in the eve of the War of the League of Cambrai.source
  • February 3 – Battle of Diu: The Portuguese defeat a coalition of Indians, Muslims and Italians.source
  • April 17 – In Venice, the envoy of the French king Louis XII delivers the declaration of war to the Venetian doge Leonardo Loredan, thus marking the official beginning of the War of the League of Cambrai.source
  • May 9 – The French army under the command of Louis XII crosses the Adda River at Cassano d'Adda.source
  • May 14 – Battle of Agnadello: French forces defeat the Venetians. The League of Cambrai occupies Venice's mainland territories.source
  • May 17 – Venice made an effort to appease the emperor Maximilian I by offering various political and territorial concessions, but the effort failed.source
  • July 17 – Venetian forces retake the city of Padua from French forces.source
  • August 10 – Maximillian I of the Holy Roman Empire along with French allies begins a siege of Padua that would last for months to retake the city.source
  • October 1 – The siege of Padua ends with Venetian victory, causing the retreat of HRE and French forces back to Tyrol and Milan.source
  • November 4 – Afonso de Albuquerque becomes the Viceroy of Portuguese India, replacing Francisco de Almeida, who departs five days later from Diu. Almeida never makes it home, getting killed along with his 64 men in a battle on March 1 with the local Khoekhoe people at South Africa's Cape of Good Hope.source
  • December 1 – Prince Le Oanh is installed as the new Emperor of Vietnam by a coup d'etat against his cousin, Emperor Le Uy Muc, and is enthroned at the age of 14 as Emperor Le Tuong Duc. Uy Muc is granted his request to be allowed to commit suicide rather than to be executed.source

Exploration & Expansion

  • January 21 – The Portuguese first arrive at the Seven Islands of Bombay and land at Mahim after capturing a barge of the Gujarat Sultanate in the Mahim Creek.source
  • May 9 – The Venetians, encamped around the town of Treviglio, move south towards the Po River in search of better positions.source
  • September 11 – Portuguese fidalgo Diogo Lopes de Sequeira becomes the first European to reach Malacca, having crossed the Gulf of Bengal.source

Religion & Belief

  • March 18 – Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor, names Margaretha land guardians of the Habsburg Netherlands.source
  • March 23 – Pope Julius II issues the papal bull Petierunt a nobis, declaring his allegiance to the League of Cambrai.source
  • April 27 – Pope Julius II places Venice under interdict and excommunication for refusing to cede part of Romagna to papal control.source
  • June 19 – Brasenose College, Oxford, is founded by a lawyer, Sir Richard Sutton, of Prestbury, Cheshire, and the Bishop of Lincoln, William Smyth.source
  • August 19 – Maximillian I orders all Jews within the Holy Roman Empire to destroy all books opposing Christianity.source
  • November 10 – Uriel von Gemmingen is assigned to secure others' opinions before continuing the Jewish book purge started on August 19th.source
  • St Paul's School, London is founded by John Colet, Dean of St Paul's Cathedral.source
  • Johannes Pfefferkorn writes his fourth and fifth pamphlets condemning the Jewish faith and people, Das Osterbuch and Der Judenfeind.source

Science & Discovery

  • Erasmus writes his most famous work, In Praise of Folly.source
  • Georg Tannstetter is appointed by Maximilian I as the Professor of Astronomy at the University of Vienna.source

Disasters & Accidents

  • September 27 – A violent storm ravages the Dutch coast, killing potentially thousands of people.source

Climate & Environment

  • September 10 – The Constantinople earthquake destroys 109 mosques and kills an estimated 10,000 people.source

Culture & Society

  • June 11 – Henry VIII marries Catherine of Aragon.source
  • June 11 – Luca Pacioli's De divina proportione, concerning the golden ratio, is published in Venice, with illustrations by Leonardo da Vinci.source
  • June 24 – King Henry VIII and Queen Consort Catherine of Aragon are crowned.source
  • Royal Grammar School, Guildford, England, is founded under the will of Robert Beckingham.source
  • Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Blackburn, England, is founded as a grammar school for boys.source

Births

  • January 3 – Gian Girolamo Albani, Italian Catholic cardinal (d. 1591)source
  • January 25 – Giovanni Morone, Italian Catholic cardinal (d. 1580)source
  • February 2 – John of Leiden, Dutch Anabaptist leader (d. 1536)source
  • March 27 – Wolrad II, Count of Waldeck-Eisenberg, German nobleman (d. 1578)source
  • April 23 – Afonso of Portugal, Portuguese Roman Catholic cardinal (d. 1540)source
  • July 4 – Magnus III of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, German Lutheran bishop of the Prince-Bishopric of Schwerin (d. 1550)source
  • July 10 – John Calvin, French religious reformer (d. 1564)source
  • July 25 – Philip II, Count of Nassau-Saarbrücken, German nobleman (d. 1554)source
  • August 3 – Étienne Dolet, French scholar and printer (d. 1546)source
  • August 7 – Joachim I, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau, German prince (d. 1561)source
  • August 25 – Ippolito II d'Este, Italian cardinal and statesman (d. 1572)source
  • October 20 – Arthur Stewart, Duke of Rothesay, Scottish prince (d. 1510)source
  • November 4 – John, Duke of Münsterberg-Oels, Polish-German nobleman (d. 1565)source
  • November 7 – Bernardino Telesio, Italian philosopher and natural scientist (d. 1588)source

Deaths

  • January 27 – John I, Count Palatine of Simmern, German nobleman (b. 1459)source
  • January – Adam Kraft, German sculptor and architect (b. circa 1460)source
  • March 14 – Giovanni Antonio Sangiorgio, Italian cardinal (b. unknown)source
  • April 21 – Henry VIII becomes King of England on the death of his father, Henry VII.source
  • April 27 – Margaret of Brandenburg, German abbess of the Poor Clares monastery at Hof (b. 1453)source
  • May 28 – Caterina Sforza, Italian countess of Forlì (b. 1463)source
  • June 29 – Margaret Beaufort, Countess of Richmond and Derby, mother of Henry VII of England (b. 1443)source
  • July 11 – William II, Landgrave of Hesse, German nobleman (b. 1469)source
  • July 16 – Mikalojus Radvila the Old, Lithuanian nobleman (b. circa 1450)source
  • July 16 – Joao da Nova, Portuguese explorer (b. 1460)source
  • July 28 – Ignatius Noah of Lebanon, Syriac Orthodox patriarch of Antioch (b. 1451).source
  • December 1 – Lê Uy Mục, 8th king of the later Lê Dynasty of Vietnam (b. 1488)source
  • Viranarasimha Raya, Indian ruler of the Vijayanagar Empire (b. unknown)source
  • Shen Zhou, Chinese painter (b. 1427)source