wing of the archive
The Early Modern Era
Navigators, reformers, and the first scientists, from the Renaissance to the age of revolutions.
Early Modern era
Christoph Jentzsch
April 13, 1599 – April 25, 1648
Historical figure
Early Modern era
Charles III
January 20, 1716 – December 14, 1788
King of Spain from 1759 to 1788
Early Modern era
Abdul Momin of Brunei
May 21, 1788 – May 29, 1885
Sultan of Brunei (1788-1885)
Early Modern era
Jean Cavalier
November 28, 1681 – May 17, 1740
Camisard rebel leader, Governor of Jersey
Early Modern era
King Sobhuza I
1780 – 1836
King of Eswatini
Early Modern era
William II of the Netherlands
December 6, 1792 – March 17, 1849
King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg from 1840 to 1849 (1792-1849)
Early Modern era
Prince Alois II, Prince of Liechtenstein
May 26, 1796 – November 12, 1858
Prince of Liechtenstein (1796-1858)
Early Modern era
Johann I Joseph, Prince of Liechtenstein
June 26, 1760 – April 20, 1836
Austrian marshal (1760-1836)
Early Modern era
William I of the Netherlands
August 24, 1772 – December 12, 1843
King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg 1815-1840 (1772-1843)
Early Modern era
Teresa of Avila
March 28, 1515 – October 15, 1582
Roman Catholic saint (1515-1582)
Early Modern era
Martin Luther
November 10, 1483 – February 18, 1546
Reformer whose 95 Theses split Western Christianity
Early Modern era
John Calvin
July 10, 1509 – May 27, 1564
French Protestant reformer (1509–1564)
Early Modern era
Anne Boleyn
1501 – May 19, 1536
Second wife of Henry VIII of England (died 1536)
Early Modern era
Mary I of England
February 18, 1516 – November 17, 1558
Queen of England and Ireland from 1553 to 1558 (1516-1558)
Early Modern era
Elizabeth I
September 7, 1533 – March 24, 1603
Queen whose reign made England a global power and cultural beacon
Early Modern era
Mary, Queen of Scots
December 8, 1542 – February 8, 1587
Queen of Scotland from 1542 to 1567 (1542–1587)
Early Modern era
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
February 24, 1500 – September 21, 1558
Holy Roman Emperor from 1519 to 1556 (1500–1558)
Early Modern era
Philip II of Spain
May 21, 1527 – September 13, 1598
King of Spain, Portugal, Naples and Sicily; King consort of England, lived 1527-1598
Early Modern era
Louis XIV
September 5, 1638 – September 1, 1715
King of France and Navarre from 1643 to 1715 (1638-1715)
Early Modern era
Louis XVI
August 23, 1754 – January 21, 1793
King of France and Navarre from 1774 to 1791, then King of the French from 1791 to 1792 (1754-1793)
Early Modern era
Marie Antoinette
November 2, 1755 – October 16, 1793
Last Queen of France prior to the French Revolution (1755–1793)
Early Modern era
Frederick the Great
January 24, 1712 – August 17, 1786
King of Prussia from 1740 to 1786 (1712-1786)
Early Modern era
Maria Theresa
May 13, 1717 – November 29, 1780
Ruler of the Habsburg Dominions (1717-1780)
Early Modern era
Ivan the Terrible
August 25, 1530 – March 18, 1584
Tsar of all Russia from 1547 to 1584
Early Modern era
Peter the Great
May 30, 1672 – January 28, 1725
Tsar/Emperor of Russia from 1682 to 1725
Early Modern era
Catherine the Great
April 21, 1729 – November 17, 1796
Empress who modernized and expanded the Russian Empire
Early Modern era
Gustavus Adolphus
December 9, 1594 – November 6, 1632
Swedish king (regent 1611–1632) (1594–1632)
Early Modern era
Oliver Cromwell
April 25, 1599 – September 3, 1658
English military and political leader (1599–1658)
Early Modern era
Akbar
October 15, 1542 – October 15, 1605
The third and greatest Mughal emperor from 1556 to 1605
Early Modern era
Shah Jahan
January 15, 1592 – January 22, 1666
The fifth Mughal Emperor from 1628 to 1658
Early Modern era
Aurangzeb
November 3, 1618 – March 3, 1707
The sixth Mughal Emperor from 1658 to 1707
Early Modern era
Shivaji
February 19, 1627 – April 3, 1680
Indian Maratha king and founder of the Maratha Swaraj (Empire)
Early Modern era
Kangxi Emperor
May 4, 1654 – December 20, 1722
3rd Emperor of the Qing dynasty (r. 1661–1722)
Early Modern era
Qianlong Emperor
September 25, 1711 – February 7, 1799
Emperor of the Qing Dynasty (1711–1799)
Early Modern era
Oda Nobunaga
June 23, 1534 – June 21, 1582
Japanese samurai and warlord (1534–1582)
Early Modern era
Toyotomi Hideyoshi
February 2, 1536 – September 18, 1598
Japanese samurai and daimyo (1537–1598)
Early Modern era
Tokugawa Ieyasu
January 31, 1543 – June 1, 1616
Founder and first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan (1543–1616)
Early Modern era
Atahualpa
March 20, 1502 – August 29, 1533
Last Incan emperor
Early Modern era
Thomas Jefferson
April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826
Founding Father, U.S. president from 1801 to 1809 (1743–1826)
Early Modern era
Benjamin Franklin
January 17, 1706 – April 17, 1790
American polymath and statesman (1706–1790)
Early Modern era
John Adams
October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826
Founding Father, U.S. president from 1797 to 1801 (1735–1826)
Early Modern era
Alexander Hamilton
January 11, 1757 – July 12, 1804
American Founding Father and statesman (1755/1757–1804)
Early Modern era
James Madison
March 16, 1751 – June 28, 1836
President of the United States from 1809 to 1817 (1751–1836)
Early Modern era
Marquis de Lafayette
September 6, 1757 – May 20, 1834
French general and politician (1757–1834)
Early Modern era
Duke of Wellington
May 1, 1769 – September 14, 1852
British Field Marshal, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, 1828–1830, 1834 (1769-1852)
Early Modern era
Horatio Nelson
September 29, 1758 – October 21, 1805
British admiral (1758–1805)
Early Modern era
Maximilien Robespierre
May 6, 1758 – July 28, 1794
French revolutionary lawyer and politician (1758–1794)
Early Modern era
Toussaint Louverture
May 20, 1743 – April 7, 1803
Haitian national hero (1743–1803)
Early Modern era
Simon Bolivar
July 24, 1783 – December 17, 1830
Venezuelan statesman and military officer (1783–1830)
Early Modern era
Jose de San Martin
February 25, 1778 – August 17, 1850
Argentine general and independence leader (1778–1850)
Early Modern era
Miguel Hidalgo
May 8, 1753 – July 30, 1811
Catholic priest, leader of the Mexican War of Independence
Early Modern era
Andrew Jackson
March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845
President of the United States from 1829 to 1837
Early Modern era
Leonardo da Vinci
April 15, 1452 – May 2, 1519
Renaissance polymath — painter of the Mona Lisa, engineer, and anatomist
Early Modern era
Galileo Galilei
February 15, 1564 – January 8, 1642
Astronomer and physicist, father of observational science
Early Modern era
Isaac Newton
December 25, 1642 – March 31, 1727
Physicist and mathematician who formulated the laws of motion and universal gravitation
Early Modern era
Johannes Kepler
December 27, 1571 – November 15, 1630
German mathematician and astronomer (1571–1630)
Early Modern era
Tycho Brahe
December 14, 1546 – October 24, 1601
Danish astronomer and alchemist, 1546–1601
Early Modern era
Edmond Halley
November 8, 1656 – January 14, 1742
English astronomer, mathematician, geophysicist, meteorologist and physicist (1656–1742)
Early Modern era
William Herschel
November 15, 1738 – August 15, 1822
German-born British astronomer and composer (1738–1822)
Early Modern era
Caroline Herschel
March 16, 1750 – January 9, 1848
German-British astronomer (1750-1848)