Historical figures of the Renaissance
The atlas holds 45 people and 720 moments here, from 1300 to 1600. The most recorded lives are Petrarch, Albrecht Dürer and Elizabeth I. Among them Writers, Political Leaders and Philosophers.
Notable people
Albrecht Dürer
from 1471 to 1528
34 moments here
German painter, printmaker, and theorist of the Northern Renaissance. Born and died in Nuremberg, Dürer trained there before traveling through the…
Bartolomeu Dias
from 1487 to 1488
2 moments here
Portuguese navigator and explorer best known for leading the first recorded European voyage around southern Africa.…
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
from 1500 to 1558
27 moments here
Charles V (1500–1558), also Charles I of Spain, was Holy Roman Emperor, king of Spain, and ruler of the Habsburg Netherlands.…
Christopher Columbus
from 1451 to 1506
29 moments here
Genoese navigator who completed four Castilian-sponsored Atlantic expeditions between 1492 and 1504.…
Dante Alighieri
from 1300 to 1321
19 moments here
Florentine poet, prose writer, philosopher, and statesman whose Divine Comedy became a foundational work of Italian and European literature.…
Desiderius Erasmus
from 1466 to 1536
27 moments here
Dutch Renaissance humanist, Catholic priest, theologian, editor, and author. Erasmus was born in the Burgundian Netherlands, educated in the Low…
Diego Velázquez
in 1599
1 moment here
Spanish Baroque painter and court artist to Philip IV of Spain. Born in Seville, he trained there before establishing his long-term home and career…
Elizabeth I
from 1533 to 1592
34 moments here
Elizabeth I (1533–1603), daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, was Queen of England and Ireland from 1558 until her death.…
Ferdinand Magellan
from 1517 to 1519
3 moments here
Portuguese navigator and naval officer who served Portugal in the Indian Ocean, Malacca, and Morocco before relocating to Spain in 1517.…
Francis Bacon
from 1561 to 1600
6 moments here
English philosopher, lawyer, statesman, Attorney General, and Lord Chancellor under James I.…
François Rabelais
from 1520 to 1553
11 moments here
French Renaissance writer, physician, humanist, and Catholic priest. His birth date is disputed, with scholarship placing it between 1483 and 1494;…
Galileo Galilei
from 1564 to 1592
10 moments here
Italian astronomer, physicist, engineer, mathematician, and natural philosopher. Born in Pisa, Galileo was educated in Tuscany, taught mathematics at…
Geoffrey Chaucer
from 1359 to 1400
16 moments here
English poet, courtier, diplomat, and civil servant, best known for The Canterbury Tales. His documented career included military service in France,…
Giordano Bruno
from 1548 to 1600
31 moments here
Italian Renaissance philosopher, Dominican friar, writer, and cosmological theorist. Born at Nola, Bruno studied and lived in Italy, Switzerland,…
Giovanni Boccaccio
from 1313 to 1375
26 moments here
Italian writer, poet, and humanist, best known for the Decameron. His documented life moved between Florence, Naples, Romagna, papal Avignon and…
Hernán Cortés
from 1485 to 1547
3 moments here
Spanish conquistador, commander, explorer, governor, and writer whose 1519–1521 campaign against the Aztec Empire helped establish Spanish rule in…
Ibn Battuta
from 1333 to 1350
10 moments here
Maghrebi Muslim jurist, traveller, explorer, and author from Tangier. Between 1325 and 1354 he journeyed through North and East Africa, the Middle…
Ibn Khaldun
from 1362 to 1364
2 moments here
Ibn Khaldun (1332–1406) was a Tunis-born historian, jurist, political official, teacher, and author of the Muqaddimah.…
Ignatius of Loyola
from 1491 to 1556
29 moments here
Basque Spanish priest, former soldier, and founder of the Society of Jesus. His documented movements span Gipuzkoa, Castile, Catalonia, France, the…
Jacques Cartier
from 1491 to 1557
8 moments here
French navigator and explorer from Saint-Malo whose three Atlantic voyages of 1534, 1535–1536, and 1541–1542 surveyed the Gulf and River of Saint…
Joan of Arc
from 1412 to 1431
23 moments here
French visionary and military figure of the Hundred Years' War. Born at Domrémy, Joan sought the support of Charles VII, helped relieve Orléans,…
Johannes Gutenberg
from 1400 to 1468
13 moments here
German inventor and craftsman associated with the development of European movable-type printing.…
Johannes Kepler
from 1571 to 1600
8 moments here
German astronomer, mathematician, astrologer, natural philosopher, and music theorist. Kepler’s documented life moved from Württemberg schooling…
John Calvin
from 1509 to 1564
17 moments here
French Protestant reformer, pastor, and author. Born in Noyon, he studied law in Bourges and spent formative periods in Paris and Basel before moving…
Moments
- 1300 Observed Jubilee crowds in Rome Dante Alighieri
- 1300 Embassy to San Gimignano Dante Alighieri
- 1300 Resided in the Palazzo della Signoria as prior Dante Alighieri
- 1301 Joined the embassy to Pope Boniface VIII Dante Alighieri
- 1302 Received news of exile in Siena Dante Alighieri
- 1302 Met fellow exiles at San Godenzo Dante Alighieri
- 1303 Guest of Bartolomeo della Scala in Verona Dante Alighieri
- 1303 Served with Scarpetta Ordelaffi in Forlì Dante Alighieri
- 1304 Birth at Arezzo Petrarch
- 1305 Childhood at Incisa Petrarch
- 1306 Concluded the Peace of Castelnuovo Dante Alighieri
- 1306 Received Malaspina authority in Sarzana Dante Alighieri
- 1307 Stayed with the Guidi in Casentino Dante Alighieri
- 1308 Stayed in Lucca Dante Alighieri
- 1311 Documented at Poppi Castle Dante Alighieri
- 1312 Returned to Verona under Cangrande Dante Alighieri
- 1312 Childhood at Pisa Petrarch
- 1312 Schooling at Carpentras Petrarch
- 1313 Birth at Certaldo Giovanni Boccaccio
- 1314 Possible later return to Lucca Dante Alighieri
- 1316 Law studies at Montpellier Petrarch
- 1319 Settled at Guido Novello's court in Ravenna Dante Alighieri
- 1320 Arrival for studies at Bologna Petrarch
- 1321 Journey through Venice Petrarch
- 1321 Undertook an embassy to Venice Dante Alighieri
- 1321 Died in Ravenna Dante Alighieri
- 1321 Returned ill to Ravenna Dante Alighieri
- 1322 Return to Bologna Petrarch
- 1324 Buried at San Lorenzo Marco Polo
- 1324 Dies in Venice Marco Polo
- 1326 Move with family to Naples Giovanni Boccaccio
- 1326 Return to Avignon Petrarch
- 1330 Service at Lombez Petrarch
- 1333 Meets the emir at Azov Ibn Battuta
- 1333 Stays in Kaffa Ibn Battuta
- 1333 Visits Qiram Ibn Battuta
- 1333 Manuscript discovery at Liège Petrarch
- 1333 Visit to Cologne Petrarch
- 1333 Visit to Ghent Petrarch
- 1333 Visit to Paris Petrarch
- 1336 Ascent of Mont Ventoux Petrarch
- 1337 First Roman visit Petrarch
- 1337 Move to Vaucluse Petrarch
- 1341 Return to Florence Giovanni Boccaccio
- 1341 Residence at Parma after coronation Petrarch
- 1341 Visit to Naples before coronation Petrarch
- 1341 Poet laureate at Rome Petrarch
- 1345 Residence at Ostasio da Polenta’s court Giovanni Boccaccio
- 1345 Stay at Verona Petrarch
- 1347 Guest of Francesco Ordelaffi Giovanni Boccaccio