Editing 1540

{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2011}}
{{About year|1540|the disc drive|Commodore 1540|The United Nations Security Council Resolution|United Nations Security Council Resolution 1540}}
{{Year nav|1540}}
[[File:Charles V punishes the rebels of Ghent in 1540.gif|250px|thumb|[[February 14]]: Holy Roman Emperor Charles V ends Revolt of Ghent, leaves rebels begging for mercy]]
{{C16 year in topic}}
[[File:Kadırga Minyatür.jpg|thumb|right|[[October 1]]: [[Battle of Alborán]]]]
Year '''1540''' ('''[[Roman numerals|MDXL]]''') was a [[leap year starting on Thursday]] of the [[Julian calendar]].

== Events ==
<onlyinclude>

=== January&ndash;March ===
* [[January 6]] &ndash; King [[Henry VIII]] marries [[Anne of Cleves]], his fourth [[Queen consort]]; the marriage lasts six months.<ref>{{cite book|author1=Retha M. Warnicke|author2=Warnicke, Retha Marvine Warnicke|title=The Marrying of Anne of Cleves: Royal Protocol in Early Modern England|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P1PrjR79wzgC|date=13 April 2000|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-77037-8|page=1}}</ref>
* [[February 14]] &ndash; [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor]], enters [[Ghent]] without resistance, and executes rebels, ending the [[Revolt of Ghent (1539–1540)]].
* [[March 23]] &ndash; [[Waltham Abbey Church|Waltham Abbey]] is the last to be closed as part of Henry VIII of England's  [[dissolution of the monasteries]].

=== April&ndash;June ===
* [[April 3]]&ndash; [[Estêvão da Gama (16th century)|Estêvão da Gama]] becomes the new Governor of [[Portuguese India]].
* [[April 7]]&ndash; The English cathedral priories of [[Canterbury Cathedral|Canterbury]] and [[Rochester Cathedral|Rochester]] are transformed into secular cathedral chapters on Easter Sunday, concluding the [[Dissolution of the Monasteries]].<ref>James Clark, ''The Dissolution of the Monasteries: A New History'' (Yale University Press, 2021)  p.454</ref>
* [[April 12]]&ndash; Printing of the first translation of the [[New Testament]] into the [[Icelandic language]] is completed after King [[Christian III of Denmark]] finishes having [[Oddur Gottskálksson]]'s text compared to the original Latin.<ref>{{cite web|title=Oddur Gottskálksson's Translation of the New Testament|url=https://landsbokasafn.is/index.php?mact=News,cntnt01,detail,0&cntnt01articleid=750&cntnt01origid=1&cntnt01detailtemplate=LBS_KjorgripurDetail&cntnt01returnid=1|access-date=8 February 2021|publisher=Landsbókasafn Íslands Háskólabókasafn|location=Reykjavík, Iceland}}</ref>
* [[May 17]] &ndash; Battle of Kannauj: [[Sher Shah Suri]] defeats and deposes [[Mughal Empire|Mughal Emperor]] Humayan, establishing the [[Sur Empire]].
* [[June 10]] &ndash; [[Thomas Cromwell]], Chief Minister for King Henry VIII, is arrested at meeting of the [[Privy Council of England]] at [[Westminster]] and charged with treason. Cromwell is removed from his positions as [[Chancellor of the Exchequer]], [[Lord Privy Seal]], [[Lord Great Chamberlain]] and [[Governor of the Isle of Wight]], and will be executed on July 28.

=== July&ndash;September ===
* [[July 7]] &ndash; Spanish conquistador [[Francisco Vázquez de Coronado]] captures [[Hawikuh Ruins|Hawikuh]] in modern-day New Mexico, at this time known as part of [[Zuni-Cibola Complex|Cíbola]], but fails to find the legendary gold.
* [[July 9]] &ndash; King [[Henry VIII of England]]'s marriage to [[Anne of Cleves]], his fourth [[Queen consort]], is [[annulled]].<ref name="Routh1990">{{cite book|first=C. R. N.|last=Routh|title=Who's who in Tudor England|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MltmAAAAMAAJ|year=1990|publisher=Shepheard-Walwyn|isbn=978-0-85683-093-8|pages=48–49}}</ref>
* [[July 28]] &ndash; [[Thomas Cromwell]], is executed for [[treason]] on the orders of king [[Henry VIII of England]]. Henry marries his fifth wife, [[Catherine Howard]], on the same day.<ref name="Routh1990"/>
* [[August 15]] &ndash; In [[Peru]], Spanish captain [[Garcí Manuel de Carbajal]] founds the Villa Hermosa de [[Arequipa]]; one year later, [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Charles V]] of Germany and I of Spain will give the valley a status of 'city' by royal decree.
* [[September 3]] &ndash; [[Gelawdewos]] succeeds his father [[Lebna Dengel]] as [[Emperor of Ethiopia]].
* [[September 10]] &ndash; [[Gibraltar]] is sacked by the fleet of [[Barbary pirate]] Ali Hamet, a [[Sardinia]]n [[Turncoat|renegade]] in the service of the [[Ottoman Empire]], and many of its leading citizens are taken as captives to [[Peñón de Vélez de la Gomera]] in [[Morocco]].<ref>{{cite book|first1=David|last1=Thomas |first2=John|last2=Chesworth |title=Christian-Muslim Relations: A Bibliographical History|year=2017 |publisher=Brill |isbn=9789004281110 |page=217}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Drinkwater|first=John|authorlink=John Drinkwater Bethune|title=A history of the late siege of Gibraltar: With a description and account of that garrison, from the earliest periods|url=https://archive.org/details/historyoflatesie00drin|access-date=2012-10-27|year=1786|publisher=Printed by T. Spilsbury|page=[https://archive.org/details/historyoflatesie00drin/page/8 8]}}</ref> This leads to construction of the defensive [[Charles V Wall]], at this time known as the ''Muralla de San Benito''.
* [[September 27]] &ndash; The [[Society of Jesus]] (Jesuits) is approved by [[Pope Paul III]], in his bull ''[[Regimini militantis Ecclesiae]]''.

=== October&ndash;December ===
* [[October 1]] &ndash; [[Battle of Alborán]]:  A [[Habsburg Spain|Habsburg Spanish]] fleet, under the command of [[Bernardino de Mendoza (Captain General)|Bernardino de Mendoza]], destroys an Ottoman fleet commanded by Ali Hamet off [[Alborán Island]] in the Mediterranean.
* [[October 18]] &ndash; An expedition led by Spanish [[conquistador]] [[Hernando de Soto]] destroys the fortified village of [[Mabila]] in modern-day [[Alabama]], killing [[paramount chief]] [[Tuskaloosa]].
* [[November 8]] &ndash; [[William Whorwood]] becomes the new [[Attorney General for England and Wales]], succeeding Sir John Baker
* [[December 16]] &ndash; [[Honoré I, Lord of Monaco]] reaches the age of 19 and after the future principality of [[Monaco]] had been administered by regents for more than 18 years.
* [[December 20]] &ndash; [[Stephen V of Moldavia|Stephen V]], [[Prince of Moldavia]], is assassinated by two of the Moldavian nobles ([[boyar]]s), Mihul and Trotsanul, after word arrives that he will be replaced by [[Petru IV Rareş]], who had paid a bribe to the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman in order to be appointed the new Prince. [[Alexandru Cornea]] is crowned temporarily as Prince Alexandru III.<ref>Constantin Rezachevici, ''Cronologia critică a domnilor din Țara Românească și Moldova a. 1324 - 1881, Volumul I. Editura Enciclopedică'' (2001)</ref>
* [[December 31]] &ndash; [[Estêvão da Gama (16th century)|Estêvão da Gama]], Governor of [[Portuguese India]], departs from [[Goa]] with a plan to sail into the [[Red Sea]], and destroy the Ottoman Empire's access to the [[Indian Ocean]] by plundering [[Suez]]. The planned attack fails.

===Date unknown===
* Europe is hit by [[1540 European drought|a heat wave and drought]] lasting for about seven months. Rivers such as the [[Rhine]] and [[Seine]] dry up, and many people die from [[dysentery]] and other illnesses, caused by lack of safe drinking water.<ref>{{cite web|title=Weather chronicler relates of medieval disasters|url=http://www.godutch.com/newspaper/index.php?id=474|work=goDutch.com|date=2003-10-07|access-date=2012-11-08}}</ref>
* [[Georg Joachim Rheticus]] publishes ''[[Narratio Prima|De libris revolutionum Copernici narratio prima]]'' in [[Danzig]], an abstract of [[Nicolaus Copernicus|Copernicus]]' as yet unpublished ''[[De revolutionibus orbium coelestium]]'', and the first printed publication of [[Copernican heliocentrism]].
* [[Martin Luther]] expels theologian [[Caspar Schwenckfeld]] from [[Silesia]].
* ''approximate date'' &ndash; The [[musket]] is introduced into [[Japan]] from [[Europe]].</onlyinclude>

== Births ==
[[File:Jan Zygmunt Zapolya.jpg|thumb|110px|right|[[John Sigismund Zápolya]]]]
[[File:Unknown woman, formerly called Cecilia of Sweden - Nationalmuseum.jpg|thumb|110px|[[Princess Cecilia of Sweden]]]]
* [[January 18]] &ndash; [[Catarina of Portugal, Duchess of Braganza]], claimant to the Portuguese throne in [[1580]] (d. [[1614]])
* [[January 25]] &ndash; [[Edmund Campion]], English Jesuit and Roman Catholic martyr (d. [[1581]])<ref>{{cite book|author=Campion Hall (University of Oxford)|title=The Reckoned Expense: Edmund Campion and the Early English Jesuits : Essays in Celebration of the First Centenary of Campion Hall, Oxford (1896-1996)|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f01RY4H7MfoC&pg=PR14|year=1996|publisher=Boydell & Brewer Ltd|isbn=978-0-85115-590-6|pages=14}}</ref>
* [[January 28]] &ndash; [[Ludolph van Ceulen]], German mathematician (d. [[1610]])
* [[February 12]] &ndash; [[Won Gyun]], Korean general and admiral during the Joseon Dynasty (d. [[1597]])
* [[February 23]] &ndash; [[Hedwig of Brandenburg, Duchess of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel]] (d. [[1602]])
* [[February 25]] &ndash; [[Henry Howard, 1st Earl of Northampton]], English aristocrat and courtier (d. [[1614]])
* [[March 1]] &ndash; [[Enrique de Guzmán, 2nd Count of Olivares]], Spanish noble (d. [[1607]])
* [[March 17]] &ndash; [[Bernhard VII, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst]], German prince of the House of Ascania (d. [[1570]])
* [[April 3]] &ndash; [[Maria de' Medici (1540–1557)|Maria de' Medici]], Italian noble (d. [[1557]])
* [[April 8]] &ndash; [[Toyotomi Hidenaga]], Japanese warlord (d. [[1591]])
* [[May 9]] &ndash; [[Maharana Pratap]], Indian warrior king (d. [[1597]])
* [[May 14]]
** [[Paolo Paruta]], Italian historian (d. [[1598]])
** [[Bartholomäus Scultetus]], German mayor of [[Görlitz]], astronomer (d. [[1614]])
* [[May 22]] &ndash; [[James, Duke of Rothesay (born 1540)|James, Duke of Rothesay]], Scottish prince (d. [[1541]])
* [[May 31]] &ndash; [[Henry Cheyne, 1st Baron Cheyne]], English politician and baron (d. [[1587]])
* [[June 3]] &ndash; [[Charles II, Archduke of Austria]], regent of Inner Austria (d. [[1590]])
* [[June 9]] &ndash; [[Shima Sakon]], Japanese samurai (d. [[1600]])
* [[June 11]] &ndash; [[Barnabe Googe]], English poet (d. [[1594]])
* [[June 29]] &ndash; [[Ana de Mendoza, Princess of Eboli]], Spanish countess (d. [[1592]])
* [[June 30]] &ndash; [[Countess Palatine Elisabeth of Simmern-Sponheim]], Duchess of Saxony (d. [[1594]])
* [[July 7]] &ndash; [[John Sigismund Zápolya]], King of Hungary (d. [[1571]])
* [[July 11]] &ndash; [[Adolf of Nassau (1540–1568)|Adolf of Nassau]], Count of Nassau, Dutch soldier (d. [[1568]])
* [[July 16]] &ndash; [[Alfonso Carafa]], Italian cardinal (d. [[1565]])
* [[July 19]] &ndash; [[Ludowika Margaretha of Zweibrücken-Bitsch]], spouse of Count Philip V of Hanau-Lichtenberg (d. [[1569]])
* [[August 4]] &ndash; [[Sisto Fabri]], Italian theologian (d. [[1594]])
* [[August 5]] &ndash; [[Joseph Justus Scaliger]], French Protestant scholar (d. [[1609]])
* [[August 25]] &ndash; [[Lady Catherine Grey]], English noblewoman, potential successor to the throne (d. [[1568]])
* [[September 5]] &ndash; [[Magnus, Duke of Holstein]], Prince of Denmark (d. [[1583]])
* [[September 9]] &ndash; [[John VII, Count of Oldenburg]] (d. [[1603]])
* [[October 1]] &ndash; [[Johann Jakob Grynaeus]], Swiss Protestant clergyman (d. [[1617]])
* [[November 12]] &ndash; [[Anna of Veldenz]], Margrave of Baden (d. [[1586]])
* [[November 16]] &ndash; [[Princess Cecilia of Sweden]] (d. [[1627]])
* [[December 8]] &ndash; [[Giovanni Vincenzo Gonzaga]], Italian Catholic cardinal (d. [[1591]])
* [[December 21]] &ndash; [[Thomas Schweicker]], German artist (d. [[1602]])
* [[December 28]] &ndash; [[Charles I, Duke of Mecklenburg]] (d. [[1610]])
* [[December 31]] &ndash; [[Silvio Antoniano]], Italian Catholic cardinal (d. [[1603]])
* ''date unknown''
** [[Andrea Andreani]], Italian wood engraver (d. [[1623]])
** [[Inés de Hinojosa]], Venezuelan [[hacendada]] (d. [[1571]])
** [[Francis Drake]], English sea captain, privateer, navigator, slaver, pirate and politician (d. [[1596]])
** [[Christopher Hatton]], English politician (d. [[1591]])
** [[George Hastings, 4th Earl of Huntingdon]], English nobleman (d. [[1604]])
** [[Pierre Jeannin]], French statesman (d. [[1622]])
** [[François Viète]], French mathematician (d. [[1603]])
** [[Amago Yoshihisa]], Japanese samurai and warlord (d. [[1610]])
* ''probable''
** [[William Byrd]], English composer (d. [[1623]])
** [[Bernardino de Mendoza]], Spanish military commander (d. [[1604]])
** [[Paschal Baylon]], Spanish friar (d. [[1592]])

== Deaths ==
[[File:Saint Angela Merici.jpg|thumb|110px|[[Angela Merici]]]]
[[File:Cromwell,Thomas(1EEssex)01.jpg|thumb|110px|right|[[Thomas Cromwell]]]]
[[File:Arolsen Klebeband 01 463 4.jpg|thumb|110px|[[Dawit II|Lebna Dengel]]]]
* c. January &ndash; [[Elizabeth Blount]], mistress of [[Henry VIII of England]] (b. [[1502]])
* [[January 27]] &ndash; [[Angela Merici]], Italian religious leader and saint (b. [[1474]])
* [[March 30]] &ndash; [[Matthäus Lang von Wellenburg]], German statesman and archbishop of Salzburg (b. [[1469]])
* [[April 21]] &ndash; [[Afonso of Portugal, Cardinal|Afonso of Portugal]], Catholic cardinal (b. [[1509]])
* [[May 6]] &ndash; [[Juan Luís Vives]], Spanish scholar (b. [[1492]])
* [[May 22]] &ndash; [[Francesco Guicciardini]], Italian statesman and historian (b. [[1483]])
* [[June 16]] &ndash; [[Konrad von Thüngen]], German noble (b. c. [[1466]])
* [[July 22]] &ndash; [[John Zápolya]], King of Hungary (b. c. [[1490]])
* [[July 28]] &ndash; [[Thomas Cromwell, 1st Earl of Essex]], English statesman (executed) (b. c.[[1485]])<ref>{{cite book|author=Derrik Mercer|title=Chronicle of the Royal Family|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ivo9okUs30wC|date=February 1993|publisher=Chronicle Communications|isbn=978-1-872031-20-0|page=155}}</ref>
* [[July 30]]
** [[Thomas Abel (martyr)|Thomas Abel]], English priest (martyred) (b. c. [[1497]])
** [[Robert Barnes (martyr)|Robert Barnes]], English reformer (martyred) (b. [[1495]])
** [[Eric I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg]], Prince of Calenberg (1491–1540) (b. [[1470]])
* [[August 23]] &ndash; [[Guillaume Budé]], French scholar (b. [[1467]])<ref>{{cite book|author=K. Staikos|title=Charta of Greek Printing: Fifteenth century|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sd1EAQAAIAAJ|year=1998|publisher=Dinter|isbn=978-3-924794-19-4|page=265}}</ref>
* [[August 24]] &ndash; [[Parmigianino|Girolamo Francesco Maria Mazzola (Parmigianino)]], Italian artist (b. [[1503]])
* [[August 28]] &ndash; [[Federico II Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua]] (b. [[1500]])
* [[September 2]] &ndash; [[Dawit II|Lebna Dengel]], Emperor of Ethiopia (in battle) (b. [[1501]])
* [[September 16]] &ndash; [[Enrique de Borja y Aragón]], Spanish noble of the House of Borgia (b. [[1518]])
* [[September 20]] &ndash; [[Infante Edward, 4th Duke of Guimarães|Infante Duarte, Duke of Guimarães]], son of King Manuel I of Portugal (b. [[1515]])
* [[October 5]] &ndash; [[Helius Eobanus Hessus]], German Latin poet (b. [[1488]])
* ''date unknown'' &ndash; [[Francisco de Ulloa]], Spanish explorer
* ''probable''
** [[Tristão da Cunha]], Portuguese explorer (b. [[1460]])
** [[Johann Georg Faust]], German alchemist (b. [[1480]])

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:1540}}
[[Category:1540| ]]