Year

1520

6 sourced events from this year.

Events

1520 Timeline

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1520

Military 16th Century Latin America & Caribbean

Spanish Forces Flee Tenochtitlan in La Noche Triste

Hernán Cortés and his Spanish conquistadors, along with Indigenous allies, had occupied the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan since late 1519 after capturing Emperor Moctezuma II. Tensions escalated into open revolt when the Spanish massacred Aztec nobles during a festival. On the night of June 30, 1520, Cortés ordered a desperate retreat under cover of darkness and rain, laden with stolen gold and treasure. Aztec warriors detected the escape, launching a fierce attack on the causeways that resulted in heavy Spanish losses, including many allies and much of the loot. Cortés survived but wept at the defeat, later regrouping to conquer the empire two years later.

Event Detail US Military Atlas

1520

Military 16th Century Latin America & Caribbean

Spanish and Tlaxcalan Forces Win Battle of Otumba

Following the Spanish arrival in Mexico in 1519, Hernán Cortés and his men faced fierce resistance from the Aztec Empire centered in Tenochtitlan. After suffering heavy losses during their nighttime retreat from the capital in what became known as La Noche Triste, the surviving Spaniards and their Tlaxcalan allies pushed eastward across difficult terrain. On July 7, 1520, they encountered a large Aztec army on the plains near Otumba, where the Aztecs sought to finish off the invaders. Despite being vastly outnumbered and low on supplies, Cortés led a bold cavalry charge that targeted and killed the Aztec commander, causing the enemy forces to scatter. The victory allowed the Spanish to regroup, secure reinforcements, and eventually complete the conquest of...

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1520

Politics 16th Century Middle East & North Africa

Suleiman the Magnificent Ascends as Ottoman Sultan

Following the death of his father Selim I on September 22, 1520, the Ottoman Empire faced a transition amid ongoing expansionist policies. Suleiman, then in his mid-twenties and serving as governor in various provinces, succeeded without immediate challenge. On September 30, 1520, he was formally proclaimed sultan in Constantinople. His early reign focused on consolidating power, reforming legal and administrative systems, and launching military campaigns that would expand Ottoman territories into Hungary, the Mediterranean, and North Africa. Suleiman ruled for 46 years, overseeing a period of cultural and military peak.

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1520

Exploration 16th Century Latin America & Caribbean

Magellan Enters Strait Leading to Pacific

During the early 16th century, European powers raced to find a western sea route to Asia's spice trade. Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan, sailing for Spain with a fleet of five ships, had endured mutinies and the loss of vessels while probing South America's southern coast. On October 21, 1520, the remaining three ships located the narrow, winding entrance to what became known as the Strait of Magellan. Crews spent over a month battling currents, winds, and unknown channels before emerging into a vast new ocean Magellan named the Pacific. This passage provided the first European route connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans around South America, enabling the expedition's eventual circumnavigation of the globe despite Magellan's death in the Philippines.

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1520

Exploration 16th Century Global

Magellan Fleet Enters the Pacific Ocean

In the early 16th century, European powers raced to find western routes to Asian spices after the Portuguese controlled the eastern path around Africa. Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan, sailing for Spain, led five ships from Seville in September 1519. After a grueling Atlantic crossing, mutinies, and months navigating the tortuous strait at South America's southern tip that now bears his name, the remaining three vessels emerged into open water. On November 28, 1520, Magellan named the vast, relatively calm sea the Mar Pacifico, or Pacific Ocean. The fleet then began the longest leg of its voyage, crossing the ocean in 98 days with severe shortages of food and water that claimed many lives.

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1520

Law 16th Century Europe

Martin Luther Burns Papal Bull in Wittenberg

By the early sixteenth century, growing discontent with Catholic Church practices such as the sale of indulgences had already prompted Martin Luther to post his Ninety-Five Theses in 1517. The document challenged papal authority and ignited widespread debate across German-speaking lands. In response, Pope Leo X issued the bull Exsurge Domine in June 1520, ordering Luther to recant his writings within sixty days or face excommunication. On December 10, 1520, Luther publicly burned the bull along with other canon law books outside Wittenberg's Elster Gate, an act witnessed by students and townspeople. This symbolic rejection escalated the conflict, leading directly to his formal excommunication in January 1521 and solidifying the Protestant challenge to Rome.

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