The University of Edinburgh is a public research university in the Scottish capital, and one of the ancient universities of Scotland. It was established by a royal charter granted in 1582 by King James VI, and teaching began the following year in the town's college, which grew out of a grammar school. In the eighteenth century it became one of the main centres of the Scottish Enlightenment, with its medical school gaining an international reputation. Its alumni include Charles Darwin, who studied medicine there for a time, as well as James Clerk Maxwell, Arthur Conan Doyle and many other writers, scientists and statesmen. Today it is among the leading universities in the United Kingdom.
Before and after
- 24 February 1582Pope Gregory XIII reforms the calendar
- 3 April 1582Battle of Tenmokuzan
- 26 July 1582Battle of Ponta Delgada
- 23 October 1582Battle of Chuvash Cape
- 1583Founding of University of Edinburgh
- from 1583 to 1588Cologne War
- from c. 1583 to 1997British Empire
- from 26 July 1583 to 2 August 1583Conquest of the Azores
- 18 March 1584Death of Ivan the Terrible
More in Society, economy & sport
- 8 February 1575Founding of Leiden University
- from 31 December 1600 to 1 June 1874Founding of East India Company
- August 1619The first enslaved Africans arrive in English Virginia
- November 1660Founding of Royal Society of London
- 1734Founding of University of Göttingen
- 14 November 1740Founding of University of Pennsylvania
The era
This moment belongs to the Early modern world (1500 CE to 1760 CE), voyages, printing and new ideas. You can also browse everything in the 16th century.