1440 – 1450s

Events in the 1440s 10

• 1377 – 1445 Oswald von Wolkenstein German composer and poet Oswald von Wolkenstein was a South Tyrolean composer and poet whose multilingual songs reflect his extensive travels across Europe. He is one of the last Minnesänger.
• 1380 – 1440 Baude Cordier French Ars Subtilior composer Baude Cordier was a French composer of the Ars Subtilior style known for his innovative notation and elegant chansons, including the famous circular canon Belle, bonne, sage.
• 1385 – 1445 Johannes Brassart Franco-Flemish composer Johannes Brassart was a Franco-Flemish composer who served at the Council of Constance and the imperial court. His motets and mass movements reflect the early Franco-Flemish polyphonic style.
• 1390 – 1441 Jan van Eyck Northern Renaissance · Flanders Jan van Eyck (c. 1390 – July 9, 1441) was a Flemish painter who perfected the oil painting technique. His Ghent Altarpiece and the Arnolfini Portrait are among the most celebrated works of the Northern Renaissance.
• 1440 – 1492 Antoine Busnois Franco-Flemish composer Antoine Busnois was a significant composer and poet of the Burgundian court whose chansons and masses were widely admired across Europe.
• 1440 Gutenberg printing press Movable type transforms the spread of knowledge Around 1440, Johannes Gutenberg of Mainz developed a system of movable metal type and oil-based ink that made printing books fast and cheap for the first time. The Gutenberg Bible of 1455 was among the first major books printed. The printing press transformed the spread of scientific knowledge — enabling Copernicus, Vesalius, and later Newton and Galileo to reach audiences across Europe within years rather than decades. It is arguably the single most important technological enabler of the Scientific Revolution.
• 1440 – 1521 Imperial expansion -- the eagle warriors march The Aztec empire expands through a combination of military conquest, diplomatic marriage, trade pressure and the calculated use of terror. The empire reaches its maximum extent under Moctezuma I (1440-1469) and Ahuitzotl (1486-1502), extending from the Gulf coast to the Pacific, from central Mexico to the borders of modern Guatemala. The military engine is formidable: a standing professional officer class (distinguished by elaborate feathered costumes -- Eagle Warriors, Jaguar Warriors) supplemented by a mass levy of commoner soldiers (macehualtin). Aztec weapons -- obsidian-edged clubs (macuahuitl), atlatl (spearthrower), bows and arrows, shields -- are effective for Mesoamerican warfare. The strategic logic is tribute extraction rather than cultural assimilation: conquered peoples pay in goods, maintain their own rulers and gods, and provide military service when required. Rebellion is punished by exemplary violence.
• 1445 – 1518 Loyset Compère Franco-Flemish Renaissance composer Loyset Compère was a French composer and singer at the Sforza court in Milan and later at the French royal chapel. His motets and chansons show graceful melodic invention.
• 1445 – 1510 Sandro Botticelli Early Renaissance · Italy Sandro Botticelli (March 1, 1445 – May 17, 1510) was a Florentine painter whose Birth of Venus and Primavera are icons of the Early Renaissance. He was a favourite of the Medici family.
• 1446 – 1506 Alexander Agricola Franco-Flemish Renaissance composer Alexander Agricola was a highly regarded composer who served several European courts. His complex, ornamented style distinguished him from his contemporaries.