Historical Events in 1521

Martin Luther Excommunicated

Jan 3 Martin Luther is excommunicated by Pope Leo X from the Roman Catholic Church for failing to recant parts of his Ninety-five Theses which started the Protestant Reformation

Event of Interest

Jan 28 Emperor Charles V opens the Diet of Worms in Worms, Germany which lasts until May 25th; Produced the "Edict of Worms" which denounced Martin Luther

Magellan Discovers Guam

Mar 6 Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan is the first European to sight Guam in the western Pacific

  • Mar 17 Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan reaches the Philippines
  • Mar 31 First Mass held in the Philippines, generally believed to be on the Island of Limasawa in the Archipelago of St Lazarus by Ferdinand Magellan and 50 of his men. They take possession of the island the same day.
  • Apr 7 Inquisitor-general Adrian Boeyens bans Lutheran books
  • Apr 7 Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan's fleet reaches Cebu
  • Apr 16 Martin Luther arrives at the Diet of Worms assembly
  • Apr 18 Diet of Worms: Cardinal Alexander questions Martin Luther
  • Apr 21 Battle at Villalar: Emperor Charles I beats Communards

Declaration of War

Apr 22 French King Francis I declares war on Spain

  • Apr 28 Treaty of Worms: Emperor Charles names his brother Ferdinand Archduke of Netherlands-Austria
  • May 17 Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, is executed for treason
  • May 20 Ignatius Loyola seriously wounded by a cannonball
  • May 25 Edict of Worms outlaws Martin Luther and his followers

Treaty of Interest

May 28 Pope Leo X signs treaty with Holy Roman Emperor Charles V

  • Jul 25 About 300 heretics burned in Vrijdagmarkt Gent

Cortés Captures Cuauhtémoc

Aug 13 Spanish conquistadors under Hernán Cortés capture Aztec Emperor Cuauhtémoc in Tenochtitlan marking the end of the Aztec Empire

  • Aug 28 Belgrade captured by troops of Turkish Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent

Event of Interest

Oct 11 Pope Leo X titles King Henry VIII of England "Defender of the Faith"

Event of Interest

Oct 25 Emperor Charles V bans wooden buildings in Amsterdam

  • Nov 19 Battle at Milan: Emperor Charles V's pontifical, Spanish and German troops beat French forces and occupy Milan
  • Nov 20 Arabs attribute shortage of water in Jerusalem to Jews making wine
  • Dec 27 The "Zwickau Prophets" appear in Wittenberg