1519

1519 was a year marked by major geopolitical shifts and the expansion of European overseas exploration. In Europe, Charles I of Spain was elected Holy Roman Emperor as Charles V, inaugurating a Habsburg empire that would span Europe and the Americas.

In the Americas, Spanish forces under Hernán Cortés began the campaign that would culminate in the conquest of the Aztec Empire. Cortés landed at Veracruz in 1519, formed alliances with Indigenous groups such as the Tlaxcalans, and advanced on Tenochtitlán, where he established relations with Moctezuma II.

Also in 1519, Ferdinand Magellan's expedition set sail from Spain, seeking a westward route to the Spice Islands. The voyage would become the first circumnavigation of the globe, although Magellan himself was killed in the Philippines in 1521 and the voyage was completed by his crew.

Notable births in 1519 included Henry II of France and Catherine de' Medici, figures who would play prominent roles in European politics in the subsequent decades.

Overall, 1519 stands as a turning point in the early modern era, highlighting the intensification of global maritime exploration and the expansion of Iberian imperial power.