Christian II was a Danish monarch and King of Denmark, Norway (1513 – 1523) and Sweden (1520 – 1521), under the Kalmar Union. Christian was born the son of King Hans of Denmark and Christina of Saxony, at Nyborg Castle in 1481 and succeeded...

Shah Ismail I, was the founder of the Safavid dynasty of Iran, ruling from 1501 to 23 May 1524 as shah (king). The rule of Ismail is one of the most vital in the history of Iran—before his accession in 1501, Iran, since its occupation by...

Isabella of Austria (also known as Isabella or Elisabeth of Burgundy, of Habsburg, or of Castile), Archduchess of Austria, Infanta of Castile and Princess of Burgundy by birth and Queen of Denmark, Sweden and Norway by her marriage to King...

John Calvin was an influential French theologian and pastor during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of Christian theology later called Calvinism. Originally trained as a humanist lawyer,...

Giorgio Vasari was an Italian painter, writer, historian, and architect, who is famous today for his biographies of Italian artists, considered the ideological foundation of art-historical writing. Vasari was born in Arezzo, Tuscany. Recomm...

Francisco Álvarez de Toledo, Count of Oropesa, was Spanish viceroy of Peru from November 26, 1569 to September 23, 1581. Toledo became the fifth viceroy of Peru in 1569. He was appointed viceroy by Philip II after serving as a steward in th...

Maximilian II was king of Bohemia from 1562, king of Hungary from 1563, emperor of the Holy Roman Empire from 1564 and king of the Romans until his death. He was a member of the House of Habsburg. Born in Vienna, he was a son of his predece...

John Dee was a noted British mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and consultant to Queen Elizabeth I. He also devoted much of his life to alchemy, divination, and Hermetic philosophy. Dee straddled the worlds of science and...

Murad III was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1574 until his death. He was the eldest son of sultan Selim II (1566–74), and succeeded his father in 1574. From him descend all succeeding Sultans, through his marriage to his maternal re...

Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor as Rudolf II (1576-1612), King of Hungary as Rudolf (1572-1608), King of Bohemia as Rudolf II (1575-1608/1611) and Archduke of Austria as Rudolf V (1576-1608). He was a member of the Habsburg family. Rudolf's l...

Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor, of the house of Habsburg, ruled 1620-1637. Originally Archduke of Styria, his appointment as King of Bohemia was one of the causes of the Thirty Years' War. He was also the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire...

Mikhail I Fyodorovich Romanov was the first Russian Tsar of the house of Romanov. He was the son of Feodor Nikitich Romanov (later known as Patriarch Filaret) and Xenia (later known as "the great nun" Martha). His reign marked the end of th...

Jules Mazarin was an Italian cardinal, diplomat, and politician, who served as the chief minister of France from 1642 until his death. Mazarin succeeded his mentor, Cardinal Richelieu. He was a noted collector of art and jewels, particularl...

Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn was a Dutch painter and etcher. He is generally considered one of the greatest painters and printmakers in European art and the most important in Dutch history. His contributions to art came in a period of gre...

Ferdinand III of Hapsburg, Holy Roman emperor (1637 – 57), archduke of Austria (1621 – 57), king of Hungary (1625 – 57) and king of Bohemia (1627 – 57). Denied command of the Habsburg armies in the Thirty Years' War, Ferdinand conspired to...