May 26

Born into the imperial family, Koreyasu was appointed shōgun at a young age and held power during a turbulent era of samurai rule. Though his role was largely ceremonial under the Hōjō clan, his tenure marked significant political maneuvering among warrior lords. He faced internal strife and power struggles that ultimately led to his removal. His life reflects the complexities of shogunal authority in medieval Japan. Koreyasu's legacy remains tied to the rise and fall of the Kamakura bakufu and the Hōjō regents.

Elected in 1523, Clement VII navigated political alliances amid rising religious dissent. He faced the sack of Rome in 1527 and complex relations with Emperor Charles V and King Henry VIII. His refusal to annul Henry's marriage contributed to the English Reformation. Clement's papacy saw challenges to papal authority and efforts at church reform. He patronized the arts and sought to strengthen the Vatican's spiritual and temporal influence. His decisions had lasting impacts on European politics and religion.

A member of the House of Zähringen, James III inherited Baden-Hachberg and governed amid regional religious tensions of the Reformation. He maintained alliances through marital ties and managed local affairs in his margraviate. His rule was marked by efforts to balance Catholic and Protestant influences. James III's early death at 28 prevented long-term dynastic consolidation. His tenure illustrates the challenges faced by minor territorial rulers in 16th-century Germany. After his death, the margraviate passed to his relatives, reshaping local power dynamics.

Succeeding his father Murad III, Mehmed III oversaw conflicts against the Habsburgs and Safavids during the Long Turkish War. He personally commanded the Ottoman army to victory at the Battle of Keresztes in 1596. Mehmed's reign included the controversial execution of nineteen brothers to secure the throne. He supported architecture and art but struggled with court factions and Janissary unrest. His leadership shaped the empire's military and administrative reforms. Mehmed III's death ended a period of both expansion and internal turmoil in the Ottoman state.

Born in Brussels, Champaigne moved to Paris where he became a leading court artist for Cardinal Richelieu and Louis XIV. He co-founded the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture in 1648, shaping French artistic institutions. His works are noted for their realism, clarity of form, and solemn spirituality. Major paintings include portraits of Anne of Austria and religious scenes in the Château de Versailles. Champaigne influenced subsequent generations of artists with his disciplined style. His legacy endures in museum collections across Europe.

Petty began his career as a physician and served under Oliver Cromwell, conducting the Down Survey of Ireland. He applied quantitative methods to economics, land valuation, and public finance. His seminal work 'Political Arithmetick' introduced statistical concepts to government policy. Petty advanced theories on population growth, wealth distribution, and labor value. He was a founding fellow of the Royal Society and engaged in debates with Hobbes and Locke. His interdisciplinary approach laid foundations for modern economics and demography.

Born in Devon, Churchill rose through military ranks under Charles II and William III, earning acclaim at the Battle of Sedgemoor. As Duke of Marlborough, he secured decisive victories at Blenheim (1704), Ramillies (1706), and Oudenarde (1708), shaping the European balance of power. Churchill served as a key advisor to Queen Anne and held political offices including Lord Lieutenant of Oxfordshire. His marriage to Sarah Jennings influenced court politics. Despite political rivalries and exile, he returned to favor under George I. His strategic genius and statesmanship left a lasting impact on British military history.

A Huguenot exile in England, de Moivre made foundational contributions to probability theory and early statistical methods. His book 'The Doctrine of Chances' became a seminal text in probability. De Moivre's formula (cos θ + i sin θ)^n provided a powerful link between complex analysis and trigonometry. He collaborated with and influenced Newton, Euler, and other leading mathematicians. De Moivre's work anticipated the central limit theorem and advanced analytical approaches. He spent his later years in London, teaching and writing until his death.

Vaillant served at the Jardin du Roi in Paris, conducting extensive studies of Parisian flora and fungi. His publication 'Botanicon Parisiense' cataloged plants around Paris and introduced innovative classification criteria. He is credited with coining the term 'Mycologie' for the study of fungi. Vaillant's meticulous observations advanced botanical taxonomy and influenced Carl Linnaeus. He contributed to the development of herbarium collections and botanical gardens. His legacy endures in botanical nomenclature and mycological research.

Born into Saxon nobility, Zinzendorf offered asylum on his estates to Moravian refugees, leading to the founding of the Herrnhut community in 1722. He organized the Renewed Moravian Church, emphasizing personal piety, ecumenism, and global missions. Zinzendorf traveled extensively to promote missionary work in the Caribbean, North America, and Africa. His writings on ecclesiology and hymnody influenced Protestant worship practices. Beatified by the Catholic Church, he is remembered for his visionary leadership and dedication to Christian unity. His reforms impacted evangelical movements across Europe.

Born in Wigan, Lancashire, in 1750. He became the first actuary of the Equitable Life Assurance Society in London and produced one of the earliest accurate life tables. His 1789 Treatise on the Valuation of Annuities and Assurances established mathematical methods for calculating insurance premiums. Morgan introduced principles of risk management and solvency that shaped the life insurance industry. His systematic approach to probability and statistics laid the groundwork for the professional actuarial field. He served in his role until his death in 1833, leaving a lasting legacy in finance and insurance.

Born in Frankfurt in 1799, August Kopisch trained as a painter at the Berlin Academy before embarking on travels through Italy. In 1826, he rediscovered the Blue Grotto on the island of Capri and introduced it to the wider European public. His poetry collections, including 'Gedichte', blend folklore, nature, and Romantic sensibility. As a painter, he produced luminous landscape and genre scenes that captured Mediterranean light. Kopisch also authored illustrated travelogues that combined his artistic and literary talents. His dual legacy in poetry and painting made him a key figure of German Romanticism until his death in 1853.