• January –
Pedro Calderón de la Barca and his friends break into a convent in an attempt to seize Pedro de Villegas, who had stabbed Calderón's brother. •
April 6 –
Tommaso Campanella is released from custody in
Rome, and gains the confidence of
Pope Urban VIII. • July –
Richard James lends
Oliver St John a manuscript tract on the bridling of parliaments which was written in 1612 by Sir
Robert Dudley, titular
Duke of Northumberland. St John circulates it among parliamentary supporters, and James is arrested as a result. • September –
Pierre Corneille brings his first play,
Mélite to a group of travelling actors. •
November 22 – The
King's Men perform
Othello at the
Blackfriars Theatre in London. •
unknown dates • The first known performance is given at the
Corral de comedias de Almagro in Spain (rediscovered in the 1950s) by Juan Martinez's theatrical company
Autor. •
Inigo Jones redesigns the
Cockpit-in-Court in London as a venue for staging
court masques. • In Japan, women's
kabuki dance-drama is prohibited, and young men take over female roles. The prohibition would last until 1877. ==New books==