1579

January–March

• January 6 – The Union of Arras unites the southern Netherlands under the Duke of Parma, governor in the name of king Philip II of Spain.^[1]
• January 23 – The Union of Utrecht unites the northern Netherlands in a confederation called the United Provinces. William I of Orange becomes Stadtholder, and the Duc d'Anjou, younger brother of Henry III of France, is invited to become hereditary sovereign.^[1]
• February 4 – The Ghent Republic joins the Union of Utrecht.^[2]
• February 28 – The seizure in September by Willem IV van den Bergh, of the Boxmeer Castle in September in the Netherlands is condemned by the other Dutch members of the Union of Utrecht.^[3]
• March 1 – Off of the coast of what is now Ecuador, the English galleon Golden Hind, captained by Francis Drake, captures the Spanish freighter Nuestra Señora de la Concepción (unofficially called "Cagafuego") and its cargo, including 26 tons of silver and 1,000 pounds of gold.^[4]
• March 2 – Battle of Borgerhout in Brabant (now Belgium): Spanish troops under the command of the Duke of Parma overwhelm rebels fighting for the Union of Utrecht.^[5]
• March 12 – The Siege of Maastricht, a center of the Dutch resistance to Spanish rule, is started in the Netherlands by Spanish troops under the command of Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma.^[6] The siege will last almost four months before Maastricht falls on July 1.

April–June

• April 10 – In the village of Cuers in France, near Toulon rebel peasants kill 600 nobles and upper-class gentlemen of the Catholic League serving the Count of Carces.^[7]
• May 17 – The Treaty of Arras is concluded between Spain (represented by the Duke of Parma), and members of the Union of Arras that had been formed in January. The Union of Utrecht continues its resistance against Spain while the County of Hainaut, the County of Artois, and the cities of Douai, Lille, Orchies and Arras agree to a separate peace under Spanish rule.^[8]
• May 21 – Battle of Mimaomote: In Japan, Doi Kiyonaga defeats the forces of Kumu Yorinobu.^[9]
• June 17 – Francis Drake, during his circumnavigation of the world, lands in modern-day California, which he claims for Queen Elizabeth I.^[10][11] With an English claim here and in Newfoundland, it becomes the basis for English colonial charters which will claim all land from the Atlantic to the Pacific, from "sea to sea." Drake's claim is called Nova Albion (New England), and subsequent maps will show all lands north of New Spain and New Mexico under this name.

July–September

• July 1 – Maastricht surrenders to Spanish troops after a surprise attack by the Duke of Parma, who had besieged the city for more than three months.
• July 13 – Karlovac in Croatia is founded.^[12][13]
• July 17 – James FitzMaurice FitzGerald lands with a small force of Irish, Spanish, and Italian troops at Smerwick, on the Dingle Peninsula in south-western Ireland, and commences the Second Desmond Rebellion against the rule in Ireland of Elizabeth I of England.^[14]
• August 6 – In the Spanish-controlled Netherlands, the representatives of the Union of Utrecht declare that they will no longer respect the authority of King Philip of Spain.
• August 17 – "Yasuke", a man of African origin who has been hired as a manager by the Chancellor of the Realm, Oda Nobunaga, arrives in Japan. Called "The Black Samurai" in dramatizations of his experience, he begins a service of three years to the Chancellor, ending on June 21, 1582.
• August 30 – Livonian War: In what is now Belarus, the city of Polotsk falls to the forces of Stephen Báthory, Grand Duke of Lithuania and King of Poland.^[15]
• September 10 – (5th waning of Tawthalin 941 ME) In the Kingdom of Mrauk U in what is now Myanmar and Bangladesh, King Min Phalaung becomes the owner of the first of three white elephants, and gives himself the title of Hsinbyushin.^[16]
• September 12 – Amendments are made to the May 17 Treaty of Arras, with further concessions to Spain by the Union of Arras. The final version is promulgated by King Philip of Spain in Mons, one of the regions in the Arras Union.^[8]
• September 28 – In Switzerland, a mutual assistance pact was signed at Lucerne between representatives of Roman Catholic cantons by the efforts of the Catholic Bishop of Basel, Jakob Christoph Blarer von Wartensee.^[17]

October–December

• October 5 – At Banda Aceh, on the island of Sumatra in what is now Indonesia, Alauddin Mansur Syah becomes the new Sultan of Aceh upon the death of Sultan Zainul Abidin.^[18]
• October 11 – Sokollu Mehmed Pasha, Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire for more than 14 years, is assassinated in Constantinople.^[19]
• October 13 – Semiz Ahmed Pasha is appointed as the new Ottoman Grand Vizier by Sultan Murad III.^[19]
• October 19 – King James VI of Scotland makes his ceremonial entry into Edinburgh to assume the throne at the age of 13, after being declared to have reached the age of majority.^[20] Scotland had been ruled by regents since 1567, when James was declared king.
• October 20 – Nicolò Doria is elected to a two-year term as the new Doge of the Republic of Genoa.^[21]

• November 3 – The English puritan John Stubbs, author of numerous pamphlets against the doctrines of the Church of England, is convicted of sedition, and his right hand is amputated as punishment.^[22]
• November 13 – During the Second Desmond Rebellion, rebel troops in Ireland, led by Gerald FitzGerald, 14th Earl of Desmond, carry out the Sack of Youghal and massacre the English Army garrison, then pillage and burn the homes of local residents.^[23]
• November 21 – Iancu Sasul becomes the new Prince of Moldavia as Peter the Lame steps down for the second time.^[24] Peter will replace Sasul on October 17, 1582.
• November 23 – Jeremias II Tranos is removed from office as Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, leader of the Eastern Orthodox Church, and replaced by his rival Metrophanes III of Constantinople, whom he deposed on May 4, 1572.^[25]
• December 16 – After Willem van Pamele, the Spanish Governor of Flanders, is forced to flee during the Dutch Revolt, the Duke of Parma orders Pamele and the Catholic members of the Council of Flanders to convene at Douai as the temporary Flemish capital.^[26]
• December 24 – German astronomer Michael Maestlin makes the first cataloging of the Pleiades cluster, recording 11 separate stars visible to the naked eye, with a detailed illustration and measurements.^[27]
• December 25 – In France, Protestant French troops under the command of Matthieu Merle, make a surprise attack on the Roman Catholic cathedral in the village of Mende during Mass, and kill 400 civilians.^[28]

Date unknown

• In the Mughal Empire in India, Akbar abolishes the jizya, the tax placed upon non-Muslim residents.
• Akbar issues a mazhar signed by the leading ulamas, putting himself as the highest religious authority, allowing him to interpret the Quran.^[29]
• The municipality of Boac in Marinduque, Philippines is founded.^[30]
• The Bible of Kralice begins publication. The first complete translation of the Bible into the Czech language (with notes), it is prepared by the Unity of the Brethren, and published at Kralice nad Oslavou, Bohemia.^[31]