1493
Papal Bull Inter Caetera
Pope Alexander VI drew an imaginary line one hundred leagues west of the Azores and granted Spain everything beyond it, Portugal everything east. The Borgia pope was dividing a world he had never seen and which already belonged to people who had never heard of him. Africa and the Americas were parceled out in Latin.
Askia Muhammad Usurps Songhai Throne
Muhammad Ture, a devout Muslim general, overthrew Sunni Ali's son and took the throne as Askia Muhammad. He centralized the Songhai administration, built madrasas at Timbuktu and Djenne, and made the pilgrimage to Mecca with three hundred thousand gold pieces. Islamic West Africa had acquired its most systematic ruler. His administrative reforms made Songhai the most efficiently governed state in West African history.
Columbus Returns to Spain
The Nina limped into Palos after a winter Atlantic crossing that nearly killed the crew. Columbus carried parrots, gold samples, and six captive Taino. Ferdinand and Isabella received him in Barcelona, confirmed his titles, and ordered him back with a seventeen-ship fleet. The casual commercialization of the Americas began within weeks.
Maximilian I Becomes Holy Roman Emperor
On his father Frederick III's death, Maximilian inherited the imperial title. The Habsburg dream of continental dominance now rested on a prince who wrote poetry, designed armor, and juggled half a dozen bankruptcies at once. His marriages and his debts would together reshape Europe over the coming decades. His strategic marriages would join Habsburg blood to the royal houses of Spain, Burgundy, and Hungary, reshaping European politics.
Sunni Ali Drowns in the Niger
The Songhai warrior-king drowned while crossing a river on return from a campaign, possibly ambushed, possibly from a horse's misstep. His son was overthrown within months by Askia Muhammad, a general who would turn Songhai into a proper Islamic state and make the pilgrimage to Mecca with a column of gold-laden camels.
Nuremberg Chronicle Published
Hartmann Schedel's illustrated world history was printed in Nuremberg with hundreds of woodcut views of cities, most fanciful, some accurate. It was one of the earliest printed books to integrate text and image on every page. Many of its city portraits remain the earliest known printed views of European towns.