Beeldenstormˌstɔr (ə)m]) in Dutch and Bildersturm [ˈbɪldɐˌʃtʊʁm] in German (roughly translatable from both languages as 'attack on the images or statues') are terms used for outbreaks of destruction of religious images that occurred in Europe in the 16th century, known in English as the Great Iconoclasm or Iconoclastic Fury. During these spates of iconoclasm, Catholic art and many forms of church fittings and decoration were destroyed in unofficial or mob actions by Calvinist Protestant crowds as part of the Protestant Reformation. Most of the destruction was of art in churches and public places. The Dutch term usually specifically refers to the wave of disorderly attacks in the summer of 1566 that spread rapidly through the Low Countries from south to north.
Beeldenstorm [Iconoclastic Fury] reaches Amsterdam
Beeldenstormˌstɔr (ə)m]) in Dutch and Bildersturm [ˈbɪldɐˌʃtʊʁm] in German (roughly translatable from both languages as 'attack on the images or statues') are terms used for outbreaks of destruction...
Events Before
Battle of Talikota: The Deccan Sultanates destroy Vijayanagar's army and the last Hindu kingdom of Southern India
The Deccan sultanates is a historiographical term referring to five medieval Indian Persianate Muslim kingdoms on the Deccan Plateau between the Krishna River and the Vindhya Range.
Portuguese soldier Estácio de Sá founds the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Estácio de Sá (1520 – 20 February 1567) was a Portuguese soldier and officer. Sá travelled to the colony of Brazil on the orders of the Portuguese crown to wage war on the French colonists commanded...
First Spanish settlement in the Philippines is founded in Cebu City
The recorded pre-colonial history of the Philippines, sometimes also referred to as its "protohistoric period" begins with the creation of the Laguna Copperplate Inscription in 900 AD and ends with…
Mary, Queen of Scots (22) marries for the second time her cousin, Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley (19)
Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley (1546 – 10 February 1567) was King of Scotland as the second husband of Mary, Queen of Scots, from 29 July 1565 until his murder.
First permanent European settlement in the US is founded in St. Augustine, Florida
St. Augustine or Saint Augustine is a city in and the county seat of St. Johns County, Florida, United States.
Events After
Mary, Queen of Scots marries James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell
Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication on 24 July 1567. The…
Mary, Queen of Scots, is forced to abdicate; her 1-year-old son becomes King James VI of Scotland
James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and...
War of Religion breaks out in France as Huguenots try to kidnap King Charles IX
War of Religion breaks out in France as Huguenots try to kidnap King Charles IX
Geuzen army leaves Walcheren to return to Oosterweel
Geuzen army leaves Walcheren to return to Oosterweel
Battle of Oosterweel: Spanish mercenary troops destroy a band of Dutch rebels near Antwerp, start of the Eighty Years' W
Battle of Oosterweel: Spanish mercenary troops destroy a band of Dutch rebels near Antwerp, start of the Eighty Years' War
More from the 1560s
Battle of Talikota: The Deccan Sultanates destroy Vijayanagar's army and the last Hindu kingdom of Southern India
The Deccan sultanates is a historiographical term referring to five medieval Indian Persianate Muslim kingdoms on the Deccan Plateau between the Krishna River and the Vindhya Range.
The Council of Trent issued its conclusions in the Tridentinum, establishing a distinction between Roman Catholicism and
The Council of Trent issued its conclusions in the Tridentinum, establishing a distinction between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism
Spanish King Philip II (10) marries Elisabeth of Valois (13), daughter of Henry II of France
Henry II (French: Henri II; 31 March 1519 – 10 July 1559) was King of France from 1547 until his death in 1559.
Treaty of Adrianople: Representatives of Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian II and Ottoman Sultan Selim II agree to a peace p
Treaty of Adrianople: Representatives of Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian II and Ottoman Sultan Selim II agree to a peace plan ending the war between the Habsburg monarchy and the Ottoman Empire; Maximilian agrees to provide a cash "present" and ruling authority is granted to the Ottomans in Transylvan
Frequently Asked Questions
- What happened on August 23, 1566?
- Beeldenstormˌstɔr (ə)m]) in Dutch and Bildersturm [ˈbɪldɐˌʃtʊʁm] in German (roughly translatable from both languages as 'attack on the images or statues') are terms used for outbreaks of destruction of religious images that occurred in Europe in the 16th century, known in English as the Great Iconoclasm or Iconoclastic Fury. During these spates of iconoclasm, Catholic art and many forms of church fittings and decoration were destroyed in unofficial or mob actions by Calvinist Protestant crowds as part of the Protestant Reformation. Most of the destruction was of art in churches and public places.
- Why is Beeldenstorm [Iconoclastic Fury] reaches Amsterdam historically important?
- Most of the destruction was of art in churches and public places. The Dutch term usually specifically refers to the wave of disorderly attacks in the summer of 1566 that spread rapidly through the Low Countries from south to north.