Webb Family Tree

William Shakespeare was christened on April 26, 1564 during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. The exact date of his birth is unknown, but has been celebrated on April 23, the feast of St. George. By 1592, William was in London and was already recognized as an actor and playwright. He was then 28 years old. In that year, Robert Greene, a playwright, accused him of borrowing from the plays of others. Between 1592 and 1594 plague kept the London theaters closed most of the time. During those years, Shakespeare wrote his earliest sonnets and two long narrative poems. 'Venus and Adonis' and 'The Rape of Lucree'. Both were printed by Richard Field, a boyhood friend from Stratford. These were well received and established him as a poet. Queen Elizabeth I died in 1603. King James I followed her throne. Shakespeare's theatrical company was taken under the King's patronage and called the King's Company. Shakespeare and the other actors were made officers of the royal household.

Shakespeare retired from his theater work in 1610 and returned to Stratford. On April 23, 1616 Shakespeare died at the age of 52. This date is according to the old style, or Julian calendar of his time. The New Style or Gregorian, calendar date is May 3, 1616. He was buried in the Chancel of the church of the Holy Trinity in Stratford.

In 1607, when he was 43, he may have suffered a serious physical breakdown. In the same year, his daughter Susanna married John Hall, a doctor. The next year, his first grandchild, Elizabeth was born. Also, in 1607 his brother, Edmund, also a London actor, died at the age of 27.

1560 AD Treaty of Edinburgh - Mary, Queen of Scots declared herself Queen of England in 1559. The next year French troops in Scotland try to assert the claim of Mary against Elizabeth, who the Catholics claim is illegitimate (Elizabeth was the daugther of Henry and Anne Boleyn whose marriage to Henry was consider null by the Catholics). The French troops were beseiged at Leith, and the French were forced to sign the treaty of Edinburgh ceasing their interferance in the affairs of Scotland.

1562 AD Tan Sen Made Court Musician in India Emperor Akbar (1556-1605) brought Tan Sen from the court of Reva to become his own court musician. Tan Sen is best known for his attempts to join Hindu and Muslim musical styles. While Tan Sen was a master of the ancient Hindu vocal style, Dhrupad, he also created a new genre, Dabari.

1562 AD French Establish Settlement In Florida -The French first attempted to settle Florida in 1562. A group of Huguenots, under the direction of Jean Ribault, established a temporary settlement on the coast of what became South Carolina. When they were not resupplied, they abandoned the settlement. In 1864, a second group of Huguenots established a settlement at Ft. Caroline at the mouth of the St. Johns River.

1562 AD First French War of Religion France became embroiled in a religious civil war between the Huguenots and Catholics. The war was touched off by the massacre of Hugenots at Vassy on March 1. The Hugenots retailiated by killing priests and raping nuns. The Hugenots maintained a hold on Orleans, Lyon and Rouen. Queen Elizabeth of England pledged her support to the Hugenots.

1564 AD Michelangelo Dies -Michelangelo (properly Michelagniolo Buonarotti) died in 1567 His many works included the sculpture Bacchus, Maddona and Moses as well as the painting Last Judgement on the back of the Sistine Chapel.

1567 AD Rio de Janeiro Founded The Portuguese founded Rio de Janeiro. They first ousted the French colonists who were there.

1567 AD Second French War Begins -A second religious civil war broke out in France between the Catholics and the Hugenonts. The war broke out when the Hugenots attempted the capture King Charles IX and his regent mother Catherine de Medicis. The war ended with the signing of the Peace of Longjumeau in 1568.

1568 AD Eighty Years War BeginsA war that lasted for eighty years broke out when Flemish opponents to the Spanish inquisition were beheaded. 20 leading Flemish opponents inlcuding the Comte d' Egmont and Comte d' Horn were killed. The Flemish and Dutch then began a rebellion against Spanish rule.

1569 AD Northern Rebellion -Dukes of Northern England revolted against Elizabeth in order to restore Catholicism to England. The rebels hoped to free Mary, Queen of Scotts from captivity. Elizabeth put down the rebellion, and her troops killed 3,000 of the rebels.

1570 AD Third French War Begins The peace ended quickly when the Third French War broke out the next year. It lasted for two years and ended with the Peace of Saint Germain-en Laye.

1571 AD Battle of Lepanto -On October 7th, 1571 the Ottoman fleet of 240 galleys was defeated by a fleet from the Maritime League. The League's fleet consisted of ships from Spain, Malta, Genoa and Venice. The Maritime league takes 4,000 prisoneers, frees 12,000 Chritstian slaves and kills 25,000 Otoman in the battle.

1572 AD St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre On August 23 and 24th Catholics in France killed 50,000 Hugenonts in Paris and the provinces. The massacre was called for by the queen mother Catherine de Medici and is applauded by Pope Gregory XIII.

1577 AD Sixth War of Religion -A Sixth war of Religion broke out between Catholics and Hugenots in 1577. The war was brief and Henri III offered the Hugenots generous terms as a settlement.

1581 AD Tartar Khanate of Siberia- Russian -The Russians doubled the size of their country by taking control of the Tartar Khanate of Siberia. The Khanate was subdued by Ermak Timofeev and his peasant soldiers who were hired by Ivan the Terrible.

1584 AD Russian Czar Ivan the Terrible Dies On March 18th 1584 Ivan the Terrible the Czar of Russia died at the age of 53. Ivan had been the Russian Czar for 34 years. He was seceded by his son Fedor Ivanovich who was considered feebleminded.

1585 AD Eighth War of Religion- The Eighth Religious War otherwise known as the War of the Three Henry’s began when the Holy League vowed to deny Henri of Navarre the French throne. Henri II of Valoois and Henri of Guise, both Catholics, battled Henri of Navarre. The Catholics were victorious.

1587 AD Drake attacks Spanish Court of Cadiz The Spanish plans under Philip II to invade England were delayed when Sir Francis Drake attacked the Bay of Cadiz. Drake destroyed 10,000 tons of Spanish shipping and delayed the Spanish assault for a year.

1588 AD Rakuware Pottery Developed - Rakuware a renowned Japanese pottery style was so named when a prize with that name was given to the family who helped develop the process that made it possible.

1588 AD Spanish Armada The Spanish fleet sailed on July 12, 1588. It consisted of 128 ships carrying 29,522 sailors. The British fleet consisted of 116 large ships and numerous coastal vessels.

On the morning of the 21st, elements of the British fleet attacked superior Spanish forces to forestall their landing troops. The British fleet succeeded in sowing confusion amongst the Spanish fleet, causing many a Spanish ship to collide . The fight continued on and off for five days. There were no decisive battles, just continued engagements in which the English consistently achieved the upper hand. After five days of battering, the Spanish armada which was running low on provisions decided to withdraw. Their path back to Spain became littered with wrecks of additional ships that never made it home.

1595 AD Battle of Fontaine- Francaise -The French House of Bourbon was officially established on February 27, 1594 with the official Roman Catholic coronation of Henri of Bourbon. The next year Henri IV declared war on Spain. He won an important battle at Fontaine-Francaise near Dijon. The Catholic League then abandoned by the Spanish.

1595 AD Dutch East Indies Company Begins Trading in Asia The Dutch East Indies Company sent its first ships to the Orient to trade. It soon became an important factor in trading in Asia.

1597 AD Jesuits Crucified in Japan -Toyotomi Hideyoshi orders the crucifixion of 3 Jesuits, 6 Franciscans and 17 Japanese converts to Christianity. He then orders the remaining missionaries to leave the country. When they do not he backs off, fearing an end to Portuguese trading, trading that has become more important now that he was at war with China.

1597 AD Shakespeare's "Love's Labour's Lost" Published In 1597 Love's Labour's Lost, the first play under William Shakespeare's name was published.

1598 AD Edict of Nantes -Henry IV King of France issued on April 13, 1598 the Edict of Nantes. The edict gave full civil rights to Protestants in France. It did not provide them with full religious freedom, but did allow them to gather and pray in select locations.

1598 AD Revolt Against the English Irish forces under the leadership of Hugh O’Neill, defeated the English at the Battle of Yellow River on August 14, 1598. The battle began a revolt that swept through Ireland. In April 1599 English forces led by Robert Devereux landed in Dublin to put down the revolt. He was defeated in September 1599.

1600 AD Battle of Nieuwport -On July 2, 1600 the combined forces of the Dutch and English defeated the Spanish Hapsburgs at the battle of Nieuwpoort. The Dutch and English forces were commanded by Maurice of Nassau, and the Hapsburgs by Albert, Archduke of Austria. The Hapsburg defeat secured the independence of the Netherlands.

1600 AD Battle of Sekigahara - Japanese General Ieysasu is victorious in the Battle of Sekigahara against the other regents of the son of late Japanese leader Oyotomi Hideyoshi. The victory took place on September 15, 1600 and solidifies his leadership over Japan. Ieysasu enlisted the help of Will Adams the English navigator to be his advisor. He also moved his capital from Kyoto to Edo, which became Tokyo.

1603 AD Kabuki Theater Begun - The Kabuki form of theater began in Japan when a woman danced a popular drama at a Buddhist temple.

1604 AD Time of Troubles Begin in Russia - The Russian time of troubles began with the appearance of a false Dimitri- a pretender to the Russian thrown. He gained support from the Poles and the Cossacks. For a period of nine years, virtual anarchy reigned in Russia, as the various parties fought over rule. It was a period when roving bands would rape and pillage all that lay before them. For three years, between 1610 and 1602, a Polish garrison occupied Moscow.

It was not until the Poles were thrown out and a new Russian dynasty- the Romanovs- could be established that this period came to an end.

1605 AD Akbar, Ruler of India Dies -Akbar the Mughal ruler of India dies. By the end of his life he had successfully gained control of the complete Indian subcontinents.

1605 AD Gunpowder Plot On November 5, 1605, the gunpowder plot was discovered. The planners of the plot, Guy Fawkes, Thomas Percy and Thomas Winter English were all Catholics and planned to assassinate King James and blow up Parliament. All the conspirators where either killed resisting arrest, or hung after being captured.

1606 AD Dutch Land in Australia - The first European landing in Australia took place when the Dutch ship the Duyfken landed in the present day Queensland.

1607 AD Orfeo Performed Claudio Monteverdis opera, Orfeo, is performed in Mantua, Italy, using the first modern European orchestra, with more than 36 instruments.

1607 AD Jamestown Established - King James I of England granted the London Company a charter to settle the southern part of English North America. 144 men embarked on three ships to settle on the James River. The settlers endured many trials, but became the first permanent English settlement in North America.

1609 AD Kepler Publishes His Laws of Planetary Motion In 1609 Johannes Kepler published his first two laws of planetary motion. His laws explained the movement of planets around the sun.

1610 AD Galileo Proves Copernican System Correct -In 1610 Galileo Galilei published in Sidereus nuncius the results of his telescopic observations. Galileo showed the Copernican system in which the planets circle the sun was correct. In 1632 he published another work that clearly proved that Copernican system was correct. This resulted in Galileo's trial by the Roman Inquisition and his recantation .

1610 AD Sante Fe Founded The Spanish government established Santa Fe as the capial of New Mexico in December 1610. This first capital had been established despite the close presence of hostile Indians.

1611 AD Kalamar War Begins -In 1611 the Danish declared war on Sweden after 40 year of peace. The Danes captured the Swedish frontier fortresses of Kalmar and Alvsborg. The war ended with the Treaty of Knaerod in January 1613.

1613 AD Michael Romanov Founds Russian Romanov Dynasty On March 3, 1613 Michael Romanov, then 17, was elected czar of Russia. Thus began the Romanov dynasty, which lasted until being overthrown by Lenin in 1917. It also ended the Russian Times of Trouble.

1614 AD Christians Ordered Out of Japan -The missionaries in Japan begin to quarrel among themselves. Japanese shogun Ieysasu then orders the immediate expulsion of all Christian missionaries. He begins to persecute all Christians in Japan.

1614 AD El Greco Dies El Greco the Spanish painter died. His paintings included Laocoon and The Resurrection.

1616 AD William Shakespeare Dies -William Shakespeare died at his home at Stratford– upon– Avon in 1616. His plays comprise the single greatest collection of plays in the English language

1617 AD Peace of Stolbova The Peace of Stolbova was reached between Sweden and Russia. Under its terms the Russians ceded Estonia to the Swedes.

1618 AD Thirty Years War Begins -The Thirty Years war began when two Catholic members of the Prague Diet were thrown out of the window by Protestants. The members who were thrown out represented the interest of Mathius, the Holy Roman Emperor. This began a general Protestant uprsing. The next year the the Bohemian League deposed the Catholic King Ferdinand and placed Calvinist Frederick V in his place.

1620 AD Battle of White Mountain Johan Tserciaes, Count of Tilly, led the Catholic League in the Battle of White Mountain. The battle which was fought near Prague resulted in a defeat for the Bohemians. Their new king was forced to flee to the Netherlands.

1620 AD Mayflower Lands at Plymouth -One hundred and two individuals, most of whom were Puritans, received a grant of land on which to set up their own colony. They set sail from England on the Mayflower, arriving in Massachusetts in December. When they landed, the colonists called their home "New Plymouth". The colonists all signed the "Mayflower Covenant" before landing, promising to establish "just and equal laws".

1621 AD Battle of Khotin At the battle of Khotin the Ottoman troops, led by Osman II, were defeated by Polish troops of Sigismund III. The battle took place on the Dneister River which was on the border between Poland and the Ottoman vassal state of Moldovia. Osman II was forced to return to Constantinople, where he was killed the next year.