| January 11 | Emperor Maximilian II grants Austrian adel freedom of religion |
| January 23 | Queen Elizabeth I opens Royal Exchange in London |
| March 19 | Spanish troops occupy Manila |
| March 25 | Catholic Italian businessman Roberto Ridolfi leaves Enngeland |
| May 16 | Johannes Kepler, by his own calculations, is conceived at 4:37 AM |
| May 19 | Miguel Lopez de Lagazpi founded Manilla in the Phillipines |
| May 20 | Venice, Spain and Pope Pius form anti-Turkish Saint League |
| September 4 | Catholic coup in Scotland |
| October 4 | Synod of Emden |
| October 7 | Battle at Lepanto: Saint League (Spain and Italy) destroys Turkish fleet |
