| 1606–1657 | Ottoman Empire, Habsburg Monarchy, Hungary, Transylvania [treaties] | The 1606 peace treaties between the Habsburg and Ottoman empires lead to half a century of peace and stability in Hungary; no major campaigns are fought between the two, though frontier skirmishes and raids are endemic, and Transylvania develops into a rich regional power. |
| 1607–1700 | North America, UK [food and drink] | Fruits introduced to the North American colonies from England include apples, which adapt well in New England, and peaches, which grow easily in Virginia and other warmer regions. Native vegetables like pumpkins, squash, and beans are favoured over European vegetables. |
| 1640–1700 | North America [literature and language] | Literacy rates in the colonies, particularly in New England, are high relative to those in the Old World. Shipton, New England has a 95% literacy rate; males in Virginia have a literacy rate between 54% and 60%. |
| 1641 | England [memoirs] | The English diarist John Evelyn (friend and fellow diarist of Samuel Pepys) begins his Diary, which he keeps until his death in 1706. It is not published until 1818. |
| 1641 | Netherlands [painting] | The Dutch artist Frans Hals paints The Governors of Saint Elizabeth Hospital. |
| 1641 | France [philosophy] | French philosopher René Descartes publishes Meditationes de Prima Philosophia/Meditations of the First Philosophy, in Latin. The French version follows in 1647. In this major philosophical work – one of the key works of modern philosophy – Descartes attempts to demonstrate the existence of God, the possibility of knowledge, and his famous distinction between mind and body. |
| 16 January 1641 | Spain, France [political events] | Pau Claris, the leader of the Catalan revolt, announces that Catalonia is now an independent republic under the protection of the French. The rebels swear allegiance to King Louis XIII of France. |
| July 1641 | Brandenburg, Germany, Sweden, Holy Roman Empire [political events] | Having declared the 1635 Peace of Prague an unsatisfactory basis for settlement of the Holy Roman Empire at the Imperial Diet (legislative assembly) in Regensburg, Bavaria, Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg, concludes a truce with Sweden, sparking off a growth in opposition to the Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand III on the part of the German princes. |
| 12 August 1641 | UK [treaties] | King Charles I of Great Britain and Ireland signs the Treaty of London with Scotland, an agreement which ratifies the 1640 Treaty of Berwick.Two days later he departs for Scotland to try to gain the support of the Covenanters against the English Parliament. |
| 23 October 1641 | UK, Ireland [revolution] | After a period of increasing tension in Ireland following the removal of the strong rule of Thomas Wentworth, Earl of Strafford, the Irish Rebellion breaks out. It is accompanied by a massacre of Ulster Protestants which creates great fear in England. The Long Parliament's desire to control the armed forces that are to be raised to suppress the rebellion causes a further deterioration in relations between King Charles I and Parliament. |
| 22 November 1641 | UK [law and government] | The Grand Remonstance is carried in the English House of Commons by 11 votes but is rejected by King Charles I. It demands that the appointment of ministers be subject to parliamentary approval, that the temporal power of bishops be reduced, and that church matters be referred to a synod of Protestant divines. Its perceived extremism rallies many moderates to support Charles and causes the divide between Royalists and parliamentarians to harden. |
