Famous People Of The 17th Century

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The 17th century was a politically chaotic period in almost all parts of the world. Several great military conflicts took place including the Thirty Years' War, the Great Turkish War, and the Dutch-Portuguese War which led to the emergence of military leaders like Gustav II Adolf and Axel Gustafsson Oxenstierna, and other important political personnel like John III Sobieski and Mehmed IV. European politics were majorly controlled by Louis XIV and the period marked in earnest the European colonization of the Americas. The 17th century was also an important one in the scientific field. It saw the birth of Blaise Pascal, the French mathematician, physicist, inventor, writer and Christian philosopher. Pierre de Fermat, Robert Hooke, Sir Isaac Newton, and Gottfried Wilhelm (von) Leibniz were also prominent scientists born in this era. The world of music and fine arts was enriched by the birth of the likes of Dieterich Buxtehude, Danish-German composer and Francesco Cavalli, Venetian opera composer. Artists like André Le Nôtre, Jan Steen, and Johannes Vermeer were also born in this era. Read on to learn more about the life and works of famous people of the 17th century.
Vote for Your Favourite People Of The 17th Century
 1 
William Shakespeare
(English Playwright & Poet Who is Regarded as the Greatest Writer in the English Language)
William Shakespeare
192
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: April 26, 1564
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Stratford-upon-Avon, England
Died: April 23, 1616
 2 
Isaac Newton
(One of the Most Influential Scientists of All Time )
Isaac Newton
102
Listed In: Scientists
Birthdate: January 4, 1643
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Lincolnshire, England
Died: March 31, 1727
 3 
Galileo Galilei
(Known as “Father” of Observational Astronomy who Invented the ‘Thermoscope’ and Various Military Compasses)
Galileo Galilei
84
Listed In: Scientists
Birthdate: February 15, 1564
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Pisa, Italy
Died: January 8, 1642
 4 
Elizabeth I of England
(Queen of England)
Elizabeth I of England
51
Birthdate: September 7, 1533
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Palace of Placentia
Died: March 24, 1603
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 5 
Johann Sebastian Bach
(One of the Greatest Composers of All Time)
Johann Sebastian Bach
19
Listed In: Musicians
Birthdate: March 31, 1685
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Eisenach, Germany
Died: July 28, 1750
 6 
John Locke
(English Philosopher and Physician, Popularly Known as the ‘Father of Liberalism’)
John Locke
33
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: August 29, 1632
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Wrington, Somerset, England
Died: October 28, 1704
 7 
Elizabeth Báthory
(Hungarian Noblewoman and Serial Killer)
Elizabeth Báthory
67
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: August 7, 1560
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Nyírbátor, Hungary
Died: August 21, 1614
 8 
René Déscartes
(French Philosopher, Mathematician and Inventor of ‘Analytic Geometry’)
René Déscartes
18
Listed In: Scientists
Birthdate: March 31, 1596
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Descartes, France
Died: February 11, 1650
 9 
Peter the Great
(First Emperor of Russia)
Peter the Great
31
Birthdate: June 9, 1672
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Moscow
Died: February 8, 1725
Height: 6'8" (203 cm)
 10 
Francis Bacon
(Philosopher, Statesman and Lord High Chancellor of England)
Francis Bacon
21
Birthdate: January 22, 1561
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: The Strand, London, England
Died: April 9, 1626
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 11 
Rembrandt
(One of the Greatest Visual Artists in the History of Art)
Rembrandt
14
Birthdate: July 15, 1606
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Leiden, Netherlands
Died: October 4, 1669
 12 
Charles II
(King of England, Scotland and Ireland from 1660 to 1685)
Charles II
31
Birthdate: May 29, 1630
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: St James's Palace, London, England
Died: February 6, 1685
Height: 6'1" (185 cm)
 13 
George II of Great Britain
(Former King of Great Britain & Ireland (1727 - 1760))
George II of Great Britain
15
Birthdate: November 10, 1683
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Hanover, Germany
Died: October 25, 1760
 14 
Antonio Lucio Vivaldi
(Baroque Composer & Virtuoso Violinist Known for His Violin Concertos 'The Four Seasons')
Antonio Lucio Vivaldi
17
Listed In: Musicians
Birthdate: March 4, 1678
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Venice, Italy
Died: July 28, 1741
 15 
Blaise Pascal
(One of the Greatest Mathematicians of All Time Who Invented the Mechanical Calculator)
Blaise Pascal
12
Birthdate: June 19, 1623
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Clermont-Ferrand, France
Died: August 19, 1662
 16 
Johannes Kepler
(Astronomer Best Known for his Laws of Plantery Motion)
Johannes Kepler
17
Listed In: Scientists
Birthdate: December 27, 1571
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Weil der Stadt, Germany
Died: November 15, 1630
 17 
Louis XIV of France
(King of France from 1643 to 1715)
Louis XIV of France
24
Birthdate: September 5, 1638
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France
Died: September 1, 1715
 18 
Caravaggio
(One of the Most Prominent Italian Painters of His Generation)
Caravaggio
12
Birthdate: September 29, 1571
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Milan, Italy
Died: July 18, 1610
 19 
Henry IV of France
(King of France from 1589 to 1610)
Henry IV of France
22
Birthdate: December 13, 1553
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Pau, France
Died: May 14, 1610
 20 
Antonie van Leeuwenhoek
4
Birthdate: October 24, 1632
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Delft, Netherlands
Died: August 26, 1723
 21 
Miyamoto Musashi
(Japanese Swordsman and Philosopher Who Became Popular Through His Unique Double-Bladed Swordsmanship)
Miyamoto Musashi
7
Birthdate: 1584 AD
Birthplace: Harima Province, Japan
Died: June 13, 1645
 22 
Thomas Hobbes
(English Philosopher and One of the Founders of Modern Political Philosophy)
Thomas Hobbes
15
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: April 5, 1588
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Westport, Wiltshire, England
Died: December 4, 1679
 23 
Charles I of England
(King of England, Scotland & Ireland from 1625 to 1649)
Charles I of England
20
Birthdate: November 19, 1600
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Dunfermline Palace, Dunfermline, Scotland
Died: January 30, 1649
Height: 5'4" (163 cm)
 24 
John Smith
(British Explorer)
John Smith
7
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: January 6, 1580
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Lincolnshire, England
Died: June 21, 1631
 25 
Johannes Vermeer
(One of the Greatest Painters of the Dutch Golden Age)
Johannes Vermeer
11
Birthdate: October 31, 1632
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Delft, Netherlands
Died: December 15, 1675
 26 
Jonathan Swift
(Satirist & Author of 'Gulliver's Travels',' A Tale of a Tub' and 'A Modest Proposal')
Jonathan Swift
14
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: November 30, 1667
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Dublin, Ireland
Died: October 19, 1745
 27 
Henry Hudson
(Navigator and Explorer)
Henry Hudson
14
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: 1565 AD
Birthplace: England, United Kingdom
Died: 1611 AD
 28 
Walter Raleigh
(English Statesman, Soldier, Writer, Explorer and One of the Most Notable Figures of the Elizabethan Era)
Walter Raleigh
8
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: 1552 AD
Birthplace: Hayes Barton,United Kingdom, United Kingdom
Died: October 29, 1618
 29 
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
(Founder of the Maratha Kingdom of India)
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
40
Birthdate: February 19, 1630
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Maharashtra, India
Died: April 3, 1680
 30 
Robert Hooke
(Philosopher)
Robert Hooke
11
Listed In: Architects
Birthdate: July 28, 1635
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Freshwater, Isle of Wight
Died: March 3, 1703
 31 
Charles II of Spain
(King of Spain from 1665 to 1700)
Charles II of Spain
14
Birthdate: November 6, 1661
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Madrid, Spain
Died: November 1, 1700
 32 
Anne, Queen of Great Britain
(Queen of Great Britain and Ireland (1707 – 1714))
Anne, Queen of Great Britain
21
Birthdate: February 6, 1665
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: St James's Palace, Westminster, England
Died: August 1, 1714
 33 
Akbar
(3rd Emperor of the Mughal Empire (1556 - 1605))
Akbar
74
Birthdate: October 25, 1542
Sun Sign: Scorpio
Birthplace: Umarkot, Pakistan
Died: October 27, 1605
Height: 5'7" (170 cm)
 34 
John Milton
(English Poet and Intellectual Known for His Epic Poem ‘Paradise Lost’)
John Milton
23
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: December 9, 1608
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Cheapside, London, England
Died: November 8, 1674
 35 
Louis XIII of France
(Former King of France (1610 – 1643))
Louis XIII of France
9
Birthdate: September 27, 1601
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Château de Fontainebleau, Fontainebleau, France
Died: May 14, 1643
 36 
James II of England
(King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 1685 to 1688)
James II of England
8
Birthdate: October 14, 1633
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: London, England
Died: September 16, 1701
 37 
Baruch Spinoza
(One of the Most Important Philosophers of the Early Modern Period)
Baruch Spinoza
22
Birthdate: November 24, 1632
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Amsterdam, Netherlands
Died: February 21, 1677
 38 
Samuel de Champlain
16
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: August 13, 1574
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Hiers-Brouage, Marennes-Hiers-Brouage, France
Died: December 25, 1635
 39 
Gottfried W. Leibniz
(German Mathematician Who Developed the Present Day Notation for the Differential and Integral Calculus)
Gottfried W. Leibniz
28
Birthdate: July 1, 1646
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Leipzig, Germany
Died: November 14, 1716
 40 
William Penn
(Writer)
William Penn
6
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: October 14, 1644
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: London, England
Died: July 30, 1718
 41 
Nader Shah
(Shah of Iran from 1736 to 1747)
Nader Shah
10
Birthdate: October 22, 1688
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Dargaz, Iran
Died: June 19, 1747
 42 
Mary II of England
(Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland (1689 - 1694))
Mary II of England
14
Birthdate: April 30, 1662
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: London, England
Died: December 28, 1694
 43 
Philippe I, Duke of Orléans
(Son of Louis Xiii of France and His Wife Anne of Austria)
Philippe I, Duke of Orléans
6
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: September 21, 1640
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France
Died: June 9, 1701
 44 
El Greco
(Greek Painter, Sculptor and Architect of the Spanish Renaissance)
El Greco
6
Listed In: Architects
Birthdate: October 1, 1541
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Heraklion, Greece
Died: April 7, 1614
 45 
Moliere
(French Playwright and One of the Greatest Writers of French Comedy)
Moliere
5
Birthdate: January 15, 1622
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Rue Saint Honoré, Paris, France
Died: February 17, 1673
 46 
Artemisia Gentileschi
(One of the Most Progressive and Expressive Painters of Her Generation)
Artemisia Gentileschi
9
Birthdate: July 8, 1593
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Rome, Italy
Died: 1652 AD
 47 
Robert Boyle
(Founder of Modern Chemistry, Boyle's Law)
Robert Boyle
11
Listed In: Scientists
Birthdate: January 25, 1627
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Ireland
Died: December 30, 1691
 48 
Tokugawa Ieyasu
(Military Leader)
Tokugawa Ieyasu
20
Listed In: Leaders
Birthdate: January 31, 1543
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Okazaki Castle, Mikawa (now Okazaki, Japan)
Died: June 1, 1616
 49 
Peter Paul Rubens
(One of the Most Influential Artists of the Flemish Baroque Tradition)
Peter Paul Rubens
7
Birthdate: June 28, 1577
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Siegen, Germany
Died: May 30, 1640
 50 
Ahmed I
(Ottoman Emperor)
Ahmed I
16
Birthdate: April 18, 1590
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Manisa, Turkey
Died: November 22, 1617