Events in History
- Feb 6 King Henri de Bourbon of Navarra becomes leader of the Huguenots
- Feb 12 Spanish land guardian Don Juan of Habsburg signs "Eternal Edict"
- Jul 24 Spanish army/German mercenaries conquer Namur
- Jul 24 Treason of Don Juan in Brussels
- Aug 17 Peace of Bergerac: Political rights for Huguenots
- Oct 25 Pope Gregory XIII asks renewal of ecclesiastical hymns
Event of Interest
Nov 15 Sir Francis Drake aboard Pelican travels from Chile to Washington

Francis Drake
- Nov 23 Water Geuzen under Captain Slope enters Amsterdam
- Dec 13 Sir Francis Drake sets sail from England on a circumnavigationof the world
- Dec 16 Danzig surrenders to troops of Polish king Istvan Bathory
Birthdays in History
- Feb 6 Beatrice Cenci, Italian noblewoman executed for fratricide (d. 1599)
- Feb 8 Robert Burton, British writer and Anglican clergyman (The Anatomy of Melancholy), born in Lindley, Leicestershire, England (d. 1640)
- Mar 26 Elisabeth of Nassau, Daughter of Willem I & Charlotte of Bourbon, born in Middelburg, Netherlands (d. 1642)
- Apr 12 Christian IV of Denmark, King of Denmark and Norway (1588-1648), born in Frederiksborg Palace, Denmark (d. 1648)
- May 1 Francois van Kinschot, Dutch treasurer
- May 28 Floris II van Pallandt, Dutch earl of Culemborg/politician
- Jun 12 Paul Guldin, Swiss astronomer and mathematician (d. 1643)
- Jun 28 Peter Paul Rubens, Flemish Baroque painter (Circumcision), born in Siegen (d. 1640)
- Jul 9 Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr, English Jamestown colonist (d. 1618)
- Sep 16 Pietro Tacca, Italian sculptor and architect (Aanbidding of the Point), born in Carrara, Italy (d. 1640)
- Oct 1 Fidelis of Sigmaringen, Swiss friar, martyr, and saint (d. 1622)
- Oct 7 Ferdinand, of Bayern, prince-bishop of Liege/archbishop
- Oct 17 Cristofano Allori, Italian painter (Judith)
- Nov 10 Jacob Cats [Father Cats], Dutch grand pensionary and poet (Houwelyck), born in Brouwershaven, Netherlands (d. 1660)
- Nov 25 Piet Heyn, Dutch privateer and admiral (captured Spanish silver fleet), born in Delft (d. 1629)
Deaths in History
- Feb 26 Erik XIV, King of Sweden (1560-69), dies of lethal arsenic poisoning at 43
- May 8 Viglius ab Aytta Zuichemus, lawyer/President (Raad van State), dies
- Aug 12 Thomas Smith, English diplomat and scholar (b. 1513)
- Oct 7 George Gascoigne, English poet
- Nov 19 Matsunaga Hisahide, Japanese warlord (b. 1510)
- Nov 29 Cuthbert Mayne, English saint (b. 1543)
- Dec 18 Anna, duchess of Saxon/wife of prince Willem of Orange, dies at 32