1491
Henry VIII Born at Greenwich
Henry VII's second son was born in a riverside palace. Being the spare, not the heir, he was educated in theology and languages to become perhaps an archbishop. His brother's early death would redirect him. The boy who would split England from Rome was already, at birth, being trained for the Church.
Nzinga Nkuwu of Kongo Baptized
The king of Kongo and several nobles were baptized by Portuguese missionaries, taking Christian names. The king chose Joao I. Within a decade, Kongo's elite would be writing letters in Portuguese, wearing European clothing, and debating Catholic theology. Africa's first Christian kingdom south of Ethiopia had just opened for business.
Ignatius of Loyola Born
The Basque gentleman whose leg would be shattered by a French cannonball at Pamplona and whose spiritual crisis would produce the Society of Jesus was born in a castle in Guipuzcoa. He would spend his youth as a courtier and soldier. The Jesuit order was more than three decades away.
Leonardo Begins Sforza Horse
Leonardo modeled a clay horse twenty-four feet tall for an equestrian monument to Francesco Sforza, intended to be cast in seventy tons of bronze. The clay model stood for years; the bronze was requisitioned for cannons when the French invaded. The horse became Renaissance Milan's most spectacular incomplete project. The bronze was requisitioned for cannons when the French invaded, and the horse became Renaissance Milan's most spectacular failure.