Spanish forces under Hernán Cortés and their Indigenous allies capture the Aztec capital.
Date given in the Julian calendar.
Spanish conquistadors under Hernán Cortés land on Mexico's Gulf Coast and found Villa Rica de la Vera Cruz, beginning the conquest of the Aztec Empire.
A small Spanish force led by Francisco Pizarro ambushes and captures the Inca emperor Atahualpa, beginning the fall of the Inca Empire.
Francisco Pizarro founds Lima, which becomes the capital of the Spanish Viceroyalty of Peru.
From the 16th to the 19th century, an estimated 12.5 million enslaved Africans were shipped across the Atlantic to the Americas, with profound consequences for both continents.
A Portuguese fleet under Pedro Álvares Cabral reaches the coast of Brazil, beginning Portugal's claim to and colonization of the land.
The vast silver deposits of Cerro Rico at Potosí begin to be mined, supplying huge quantities of silver to Spain and the world economy.