1581
| Years: 1578 1579 1580 - 1581 - 1582 1583 1584 | |
| Decades: 1550s 1560s 1570s - 1580s - 1590s 1600s 1610s | |
| Centuries: 15th century - 16th century - 17th century | |
Events
- January 16 - English Parliament outlaws Roman Catholicism
- April 4 - Francis Drake completes a circumnavigation of the world and is knighted by Elizabeth I.
- The Northern Netherlands proclaim their independence from Spain in the Oath of Abjuration. They abjure loyalty to Philip II of Spain as their sovereign and become a Republic.
- Russia Beginning of the conquest of Siberia
- January 4 - James Ussher, Anglo-Irish priest and scholar