King Henry VII held a tournament at the Tower of London. ¹

After rebuilding the palace formerly known as Sheen, King Henry renamed it Richmond.

The Portuguese explorer Joao da Nova found the island which he named Ascension possibly after the feast day of the same name. St Helena, a nearby island was found around the same time. ¹

Henry Deane became archbishop of Canterbury. He had been Abbot of Lanthony, Chancellor of Ireland, Bishop of Bangor, Bishop of Salisbury and Lord Keeper of the Great Seal. ¹

At a meeting at Calais the terms of the marriage bewteen Arthur, Prince of Wales and Catherine of Aragon were finally agreed.

The French army invaded Naples and forced King Frederick to negotiate with Louis XII of France. Frederick agreed to give Naples to France in return for an annual pension and the county of Maine.

Catherine of Aragon finally arrived at Plymouth in preparation for her marriage to Prince Arthur after several months of travelling.

After several days of celebration and reception Prince Arthur and Catherine of Aragon were married at St. Paul's Cathedral. ¹

Alexander Jagiellon became the King of Poland as Alexander I after the death of his brother John. He reigned until his death in 1506. ¹

Three men taken from the New Found Isle lands were taken to King Henry VII. They spoke a language that was not understood, wore fur clothes and ate raw meat. The men lived at the court of Westminster for several years.

Prince Arthur took up his position as governor of the Welsh Marches and moved to Ludlow Castle. He was accompanied by his wife Catherine of Aragon.

This peace treaty signed between King Henry VII of England and King James IV of Scotland was an attempt to bring long term peace between the two nations. Part of the agreement was the marriage of James to Henry's daughter Margaret.

Prince Arthur fell ill at Ludlow with consumption, an illness that he seems to have suffered from a lot during his life. The illness was severe and he died.

With the support of the Spanish King and Queen Columbus set sail from Cadiz with four ships and 140 men under his command. After a delayed start due to bad weather the fleet headed towards the Canary Islands to take on supplies. ¹

With favourable winds behind him Columbus left the Canary Islands and set sail towards the New World for the fourth time. ¹

Columbus arrived at the island now called Martinique after an uneventful crossing of the Atlantic. The fleet stayed there for several days while supplies were taken on board and the sailors got chance to go ashore. From here the fleet turned north and headed towards Hispaniola. ¹

King Henry VII and Emperor Maximilian agree to peace and not support or assist rebels who may plot against each other. Maximilian was given membership of the Order of the Garter and money to fight the Turks. ¹

Columbus anchored outside the harbour or Santo Domingo and asked for permission to enter port. The King and Queen of Spain had ordered Columbus not to visit Santo Domingo because they thought he might take revenge for being arrested and taken back to Spain in chains. Columbus ignored the order and headed there. In Santo Domingo a new governor had been appointed. His name was Don Nicolas de Ovando and he had been there since April. Columbus was refused entry but was aware that a storm was approaching. Bobadilla, the man who had sent Columbus back in chains, with a large fleet of ships was preparing to leave for Spain and his sailors were unable to read the signs in the weather that Columbus could see. Columbus warned them not to leave until the storm had passed but they ignored the warning. Within days the storm broke and the fleet was caught in its fury. Nineteen ships were sunk with the deaths of several hundred men including Bobadilla and the loss of a lot of gold. Although Columbus was not able to get his fleet into the relative safety of the harbour he did get the ships as close to shore as possible in a sheltered spot to ride out the storm. ¹

After the storm had passed Columbus headed west into uncharted seas. At the end of July his fleet saw the island of Bonacca just off the coast of Honduras. Landing there Columbus noticed that the natives of the island were more advanced than those he had met so far. To the south of Bonacca was the mainland coast and Columbus was eager to explore it. Columbus heard stories that the mainland was just a narrow strip of land with another large sea on the other side (the Pacific) and there was a way of sailing between the sea they were in and the other nearby, ¹

Columbus did not go any further west but turned east and sailed along the coast of Honduras in search of the strait that did not exist. On around the 14th of September the fleet stopped following an easterly course along the coast as the coastline began to head south. ¹

Columbus spent many days at a place called Cariay, now Puero Limon in Costa Rica. The native people were advanced and used combinations of metals to create their jewellery. Columbus was still looking for the strait that would take him into the second ocean and he believed it led to the Indian ocean.  ¹

The title of Duke of Cornwall was transferred to Prince Henry after the death of Arthur. The title is normally given to the eldest son of the reigning monarch or their sons.

Columbus sailed along the coast of what is now Panama. He called the area Veragua and here Columbus found the natives had more gold ornaments than anywhere else that he had explored. The months of October and November were extremely stormy and the fleet had to take shelter to avoid being sunk. He heard accounts that the land in this area was so narrow that he could have crossed it on foot to see the ocean on the other side but Columbus still wanted to find a way to get his ships across.  ¹

Throughout November and December the storms and rain did not stop. Columbus and his men were forced to find refuge in sheltered harbours along the coast. ¹

Columbus sailed into what he considered to be a lovely port and so named it Puerto Bello. The fleet stayed there for several days.  ¹

William Wareham was elected to the post of Archbishop of Canterbury by Pope Julius II.

Henry VII ordered the construction of a new Lady chapel at the east end of Westminster Abbey. The building work was carried out in the Perpendicular style.

Two years after the death of his father, Thomas was sent to Jesus College, Cambridge to continue his studies.

Captain Ruy Lourenco Ravasco Marques, part of a Portuguese expedition to India, found himself off the coast of Zanzibar, an island off the east coast of Africa. In exchange for peace, Zanzibar became part of the Portuguese Empire.

Columbus arrived at a natural harbour at the mouth of a river which he named Belen, (after Bethlehem). A sand bar at the entrance to the harbour only allowed the ships to enter with great care. Once inside the natural harbour the Spaniards met the local people and things at first were friendly. The chief of the natives allowed the Spaniards to sail up river to explore. What they found was a source of gold. Columbus decided to build a fort in the harbour and leave some men behind while he went back to Santo Domingo to get supplies and more men, But the Spaniards treated the natives badly stealing their gold.. Eventually the native people had had enough and they attacked the fort. Several Spaniards were killed before Columbus and his ships were able to escape. But one ship was left behind as it could not cross the sand bar. Columbus was now down to three ships. ¹

Elizabeth, Henry VII's wife died in childbirth.

Henry VII and his eldest daughter Margaret, started their journey to Scotland where the arranged marriage between Margaret and the Scottish King James IV would take place. Margaret was only fourteen years old.

Columbus is stranded for a year. The three remaining ships were in a serious condition. Wood worms had eaten into the hulls of the ships and they were letting in water. The navigation was not accurate and instead of reaching Hispaniola Columbus and his remaining ships landed on the north coast of Jamaica unable to go any further. The remaining ships were beached to provide somewhere to live. It would be a year before rescue would arrive. The Spaniards met the local native people and traded what ever they had for food. It was decided that the only hope of rescue was to send a message to Santo Domingo so that a ship could be sent to pick them up. Two canoes were filled with supplies for the 100 mile sea crossing. The two canoes were commanded by Diego Mendez and Bartolomeo Fiecshi. After several days of rowing the fresh water ran out and the native oarsmen they had taken collapsed from thirst. But the two canoes finally reached the coast of Haiti a long way from Santo Domingo. The survivors of the crossing were found by natives and restored to health. After several days rest Diego Mendez was able to continue his journey by canoe along the coast to Santo Domingo. ¹

After the death of Prince Arthur, Catherine of Aragon was now a widow and on the 23rd of June the marriage was arranged between her and Prince Henry. Being the widow of Henry's brother special dispensation was required from the Pope for the marriage to be lawful.

The marriage of the 30 year old Scottish king James IV to Margaret the 14 year old daughter of Henry VI took place at Holyrood house in Edinburgh.

Learning from earlier acts of misconduct and to keep the native people happy Columbus had given his men strict rules about their behaviour towards the women. After six months the strain of living under such strict rules came to a head and several sailors rebelled. Led by Francisco Porras the mutineers took several canoes from the natives and filled them with supplies. They also took several native people to row the canoes and set off. But bad weather forced them back to shore. After several attempts the rebels gave up and returned. But instead of moving back into the beached ships they set up their own camp and started to mistreat the native people. After this the Jamaicans started to reduce the amount of food that they were prepared to give to Columbus until eventually the Spaniards were at risk of starvation. ¹

Columbus had a book written by a German astronomer that predicted eclipses and he was able to use this information to trick the native Jamaicans. Columbus informed the leaders of the natives that God was not happy because they had stopped supplying the Spaniards with food and to prove this God would turn the moon blood red. This happens when the moon goes behind the Earth. When this event took place the natives were so afraid that they began supplying all the food that the Spaniards needed. ¹

Even though Diego Mendez had managed to reach Santo Domingo and tell the governor Ovando that Columbus and the rest of his crew were stranded the Governor was in no rush to send them help. Ovando was no friend of Columbus and did not want him to return to Santo Domingo and possibly take his job. Ovando told Mendez he would have to wait for the next ships to arrive from Spain and then possibly they could help. Eventually Ovando did send a ship but not one that was big enough to rescue the men. It was sent just to check the situation Columbus was in. ¹

Two brothers, Aruj (Uruj) and Hayreddin Barbarossa led a band of pirates operating in the Mediterranean from the African north coast. In the summer of this year they captured two papal galleys full of valuables and slaves.

Finally Diego Mendez was able to charter a ship that had arrived from Spain and he sent it to rescue Columbus and his men.  ¹

When Isabella of Castile died many of her children were also dead. The rule of Castile passed to Joanna her eldest surviving daughter. But Joanna's mental state was in question and Isabella had stated in her will that Ferdinand her husband would act a regent if Joanna was unable to rule.

The fourth voyage ended when Columbus landed at Sanlucar de Barrameda in Spain. The death of Queen Isabella was a serious blow to Columbus as she had been his main supporter and he was not invited to the royal court. In his final couple of years his health suffered but because of the agreements that he had made regarding eighth of the profits he was not short of money. ¹

Pope Julius II gave permission for the marriage between Catherine of Aragon and King Henry VIII. The legality of the marriage was in question because Catherine had been married to Henry's elder brother Arthur.

The explorer Francisco de Almeida was given the title viceroy of India and sent with a large fleet of ships by the Portugusese King to dominate the spice trade along the coasts of Africa and India that had previously been controlled by the Egyptions and Venetians.

With a royal charter from the her son King Henry VII, Lady Margaret Beaufort re-founded Christ's College, Cambridge and has been honoured ever since as the Foundress. To raise the funds needed, she bought several small monasteries, including North Creake in Norfolk.

When bad weather forced Archduke Philip of Flanders to take shelter in Weymouth harbour, King Henry VII took the opportunity to extort more favourable trade terms between the English and Flemish, building on the terms agreed in the Intercursus Magnus of 1496. The terms were far more favourable to the English and so the agreement was known as the Intercursus Malus or evil agreement.

A violent and prolonged storm hit England causing a lot of damage to houses and severe flooding. Many animals were killed in the floods.

Christopher Columbus died on May 20th, Ascension Day. He was living in Valladolid in Spain at the time. He was around 55 years old. ¹

Thomas Wolsey was given the position of royal chaplain to Henry VII.

Tournaments were held at Carew Castle to celebrate the appointment of the owner, Sir Rhys ap Thomas, to the Order of the Garter. Sir Rhys was reported to be the person who killed Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth. ¹

The first printing press in Scotland was set up by Walter Chepman and Andro Myllar in Edinburgh.

In a publication called Cosmographiae Introductio, it was proposed to call the new lands that had originally been discovered by Christopher Columbus, not after Columbus himself, but after Amerigo Vespucci who had proved that it was a new continent.

This earthquake was felt throughout Scotland and England.

Thomas Wolsey was given the position of royal almoner to King Henry VIII.

Repairs at Norwich Cathedral, because of a fire, resulted in the transept roofs being replaced by stone vaulting. ¹

Urquhart Castle was given as a gift to the Grant family by King James IV of Scotland with the understanding that extensive building work was to be carried out. This included the construction of a new tower and supporting buildings so that the surrounding lands could be better protected.

Shortly before his death King Henry granted a general pardon releasing all debtors out of prison who only owed small amounts of money. Henry paid off the debts from his own purse.

King Henry fell ill and within a day he had died. His body was first moved to St. Paul's and then to Westminster Abbey where he was buried next to his wife. ¹

After the death of his father, Henry became the King of England.

Henry VII was buried inside the Lady Chapel that he had funded the construction of at Westminster Cathedral. ¹

King Henry VIII married Catherine of Aragon at Greenwich Palace. Catherine was the wife of Henry's elder brother, Arthur, who had died in 1502. Henry had to obtain permission from the Pope for the marriage, but not everyone agreed that is was lawful.

Henry and Catherine of Aragaon were crowned at Westminster Abbey.

Lady Margaret Beaufort died just two months after her son Henry. She was buried in Westminster Abbey within the Henry VII Chapel.

Edmund Dudley was a key administrator during the reign of King Henry VII. He was able to amass a large amount of money while undertaking financial transactions for the King. After the death of Henry VII, Dudley and his co-conspirator Sir Richard Empson were arrested and found guilty of treason. They were executed for their crimes. While awaiting trial, Dudley was held at the Tower of London.

Catherine gave birth to a boy on the first of January but the child did not live long and died in February of the same year.

King Henry VIII held a jousting tournament at Greenwich Palace. ¹

Pope Julius II declared Louis XII was no longer the rightful King of France. Venice and Spain joined the League to remove the French king from power. King Henry VIII also joined the League declaring war on France.

A fire at the Tower of London damages St. Peter's chapel within the castle grounds. ¹

Westminster Palace was damaged by a fire in the year. The Palace had been used as a royal residence up until this point.

Thomas Wolsey organised Henry's invasion into France ensuring the army was feed, watered and had good accommodation.

The Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon sailed to Florida. ¹

The Spanish explorer or Conquistador, Vasco Nunez de Balboa crossed the Isthmus of Panama to become the first European to discover the Pacific Ocean from the New World.

Henry prepared an invasion fleet and set sail for Calais.

The French cavalry arrived to assist the town of Therouanne which was under siege from the English. The French horsemen were attacked and turned and fled with the English in hot pursuit across the area of Guingate. The battle was known as the Battle of the Spurs due to the speed of the French retreat from the battlefield. The town of Therouanne fell to the English a couple of weeks later. The English entered the town and raised it to the ground.

After the victory at Therouanne, Henry turned to Tournai. The town fell to the English who entered it but this time took control and stationed a garrison there. Thomas Wolsey was given the bishopric of the town.

King James IV of Scotland's invasion of England came to an end at the Battle of Flodden where he was killed. The English were led by Thomas Howard, Earl of Surrey. King Henry VIII was in France at the time.

Shortly after the death of his father, James V was crowned King of Scotland at Stirling Castle. His mother, Margaret became regent as the young king was too young to rule.

After the death of James IV at Flodden, Sir Donald Macdonald of Lochalsh, took the castle and over the following three years robbed it and the surrounding lands of all of its assets.

Wolsey started the construction of his magnificent palace at Hampton Court.

Thomas Wolsey was rewarded with the Bishopric of Lincoln.

The French landed at Brighthelmstone, now known as Brighton, and attacked the port. Almost all of the buildings were burnt to the ground.

A peace treaty was negotiated by Thomas Wolsey with France. One of the terms was that Louis XII of France would marry Mary Tudor, the younger sister of King Henry VIII. Louis died only a few months later.

Wolsey negotiated a peace treaty between England and France whereby King Louis XII married the younger sister Mary of King Henry VIII and had to pay Henry pension money owed to him under the treaty of Etaples. Peace should be maintained not less than a year after the first of them should die.

Thomas Wolsey is promoted to the position of Archbishop of York.

To cement peace between England and France, Mary Tudor, the younger sister of King Henry VIII married the French king Louis XII.

King Louis XII of France died at the age of 52 leaving Mary a widow. His nephew, Francis, became the next king of France.

Princess Mary ran away with Charles Brandon after the death of Louis XII. They were secretly married but caught and forced to pay a fine.

Princess Mary, the younger sister of King Henry VIII, married Charles Brandon, the Duke of Suffolk at Greenwich. Henry VIII gave full consent to the marriage.

Anne of Cleves was born in Dusseldorf, Germany.

The book entitled 'Utopia' was written by Sir Thomas More and published in this year.

Sweating Sickness affects England.

When Ferdinand died, he was succeeded by his daughter Joanna. Joanna's mental state was poor and her son Charles became ruler on her behalf.

All of Catherine of Aragon's children died in infancy until Princess Mary was born in February of 1516. Mary was healthy and King Henry VIII was happy to have an heir. But Henry would have been happier to have a son.

Londoners were affected by a wide-spread illness forcing King Henry VIII and his court to move to the countryside where they felt safer. ¹

Pope Leo X made proposals for a new crusade and sent word to the leading European countries for support. King Henry VIII and Thomas Wolsey were not convinced that it was a good idea. ¹

Upset by the abuses he saw in the Catholic Church, Martin Luther nailed the Ninety-five Theses to the door of the church of Wittenberg. The abuses included the practice of selling high positions in the Church for money and the sale of indulgences allowing those with enough wealth to be forgiven for their sins.

The Treaty of London or Universal Peace was signed in London between the major European countries, England, France, Burgundy and many more. For Cardinal Wolsey this treaty was a plan to produce a peaceful Europe. The treaty stated that the countries must not attack one another and if they did the other countries would come to the aid of those being attacked. Within the treaty was the agreement that Mary, the 2 year-old daughter of King Henry VIII, would marry the French dauphin.

Ferdinand Magellan set sail from Seville with five ships in search of a passageway to the south of South America in order to reach the Pacific Ocean and the Far East. The five ships were the Trinidad, the San Antonio, the Conception, the Victoria and the Santiago. The flagship Trinidad was commanded by Magellan. Juan de Catagena commanded the San Antonio; Gaspar de Quesada commanded the Conception; Luis de Mendoza was captain of the Victoria and the Santiago was captained by Juan Serrano.

After leaving Seville Magellan's fleet anchored in the estuary of the Guadalquivir river south Seville. Here they took on the supplies they needed for the long voyage ahead. At the end of the month they set sail for Teneriffe. ¹

The five ships commanded by Magellan reach Teneriffe. On October 3rd, the fleet set sail for South America.

On the 13th of December, Magellan's fleet arrived at Brazil. The the location they anchored at may have been the bay of Rio de Janeiro, near the location of the present capital of Brazil.

Magellan's fleet of ships sailed down the east coast of South America reaching Rio de la Plata in late January and then Port St Julian in Argentina towards the end of March. It was here that Magellan decided to spend the Winter.

Magellan observed a solar eclipse while anchored off the east coast of current-day Argentina.

The Field of the Cloth of Gold was a meeting between King Henry VIII and King Francis I of France somewhere between Guines and Ardres near Calais. The meeting included a series of tournaments and jousts. The extravagant nature of the event giving the meeting its name.

After spending the winter in the harbour of St. Julian Megellan and his ships continued on their voyage south. Shortly afterwards a storm drove the Santiago onto the shore and the ship was lost. The crew and supplies on board the ship were saved though.

Magellan's fleet of four ships began their passage along what is now known as the Strait of Magellan.

Ferdinand Magellan found a route from the Altantic Ocean through to the Pacific via a passage that is now called the Strait of Magellan. Magellan named the sea Mar Pacifico, or Peaceful Sea because of its calmness.

Christian was the king of Denmark and attempted to extend his authority over Sweden. He did this with the execution of around ninety of the aristocracy of Stockholm. But these actions inflamed the ordinary people of Sweden who rose up against him.

Unlike the inhabitants of Zebu (Cebu in the Philippines) who had accepted Magellan's offer to ally themselves with the King of Spain, the inhabitants of the nearby island of Mactan did not. The King of Mactan challenged Magellan and a fight ensued. In the fighting Magellan was killed.

The Treaty of Bruges was conducted in secrecy at Bruges between King Charles V, the Holy Roman Emporer, and Thomas Wolsey. In the terms of the treaty Wolsey promised Charles that King Henry VIII would join him in a joint campaign against France and Francis I. The meeting was held in secret because England was supposed to be a mediator in the dispute between Charles and Francis. The joint attacks of France would have to wait until March or May of 1523.

At a ceremony at Greenwich Palace, King Henry VIII was bestowed with the title Defender of the Faith. The title being confered by the Pope in recognition of the book Henry wrote against Luther.

Emporer Charles V visited England and during his stay took part in a ceremony at Windsor Castle to become a member of the Order of the Garter.

Only one ship, the Victoria, out of the five that originally set sail as part of Magellan's fleet managed to return to Spain. Less than twenty men returned. Magellan did not return as he was killed by natives on one of the islands of the Philippines. ¹

The island of Rhodes had been under attack from the Turks led by Suleiman for several months and after a lengthy siege the island fell. The knights on the island were given twelve days to leave with their weapons. ¹

As Bishop of Durham, Thomas Wolsey's power and influence inreased greatly. ¹

Thomas Wolsey founded a new college at Oxford called Cardinal College. After his death the college was refounded by King Henry VIII as Christ Church.

Francis of France was encamped several mile to the north of Pavia, in northern Italy when he was attacked by the Imperialists. Francis' troops were routed and Francis was captured.