* Roman Golden Age brought about by Pope Julius II
* Henry VIII came to power
* Charles V became Holy Roman Emperor, the last to be crowned
* Charles V sacks Rome in 1527. This would be a good battle to recreate in ANR. Marks the end of the unified Renaissance period
Read more about it here:
* Reformation started in 1517 with Martin Luther nails the Ninety-five Theses on the church door in Germany
* Luther was excommunicated in 1521. He translated Bible into German
* In 1522 reformation spread to Switzerland with Hludrych Zwingli.
* In 1525 more splinter groups emerge.
* In 1531 Petri became Protestant archbishop in Sweden.
* In 1534 Henry VIII of England breaks with the pope and establishes the Anglican Church. He did this to divorce his wife and marry Ann Bolyn, who became the mother of Queen Elizabeth I. She is beheaded. Henry the VIII had 8 wives and most of them died either beheaded or some tragedy.
* In 1545 Catholic Church reformed at Council of Trent.
* In 1547 John Knox establishes Protestant religion in Scotland.
* In 1618 The Thirty Years War begins partly for religious reasons. Costs 8 million lives and redraws the map of Europe.
Here’s more about the Thirty Years’ War: https://www.britannica.com/event/Thirty-Years-War