| Years: 1553 1554 1555 - 1556 - 1557 1558 1559 | |
| Decades: 1520s 1530s 1540s - 1550s - 1560s 1570s 1580s | |
| Centuries: 15th century - 16th century - 17th century | |
| Gregorian calendar | 1556 MDLVI |
| Ab urbe condita | 2309 |
| Armenian calendar | 1005 ԹՎ ՌԵ |
| Assyrian calendar | 6306 |
| Balinese saka calendar | 1477–1478 |
| Bengali calendar | 962–963 |
| Berber calendar | 2506 |
| English Regnal year | 2 Ph. & M. – 3 Ph. & M. |
| Buddhist calendar | 2100 |
| Burmese calendar | 918 |
| Byzantine calendar | 7064–7065 |
| Chinese calendar | 乙卯年 (Wood Rabbit) 4253 or 4046 — to — 丙辰年 (Fire Dragon) 4254 or 4047 |
| Coptic calendar | 1272–1273 |
| Discordian calendar | 2722 |
| Ethiopian calendar | 1548–1549 |
| Hebrew calendar | 5316–5317 |
| Hindu calendars | |
| - Vikram Samvat | 1612–1613 |
| - Shaka Samvat | 1477–1478 |
| - Kali Yuga | 4656–4657 |
| Holocene calendar | 11556 |
| Igbo calendar | 556–557 |
| Iranian calendar | 934–935 |
| Islamic calendar | 963–964 |
| Japanese calendar | Kōji 2 (弘治２年) |
| Javanese calendar | 1475–1476 |
| Julian calendar | 1556 MDLVI |
| Korean calendar | 3889 |
| Minguo calendar | 356 before ROC 民前356年 |
| Nanakshahi calendar | 88 |
| Thai solar calendar | 2098–2099 |
| Tibetan calendar | 阴木兔年 (female Wood-Rabbit) 1682 or 1301 or 529 — to — 阳火龙年 (male Fire-Dragon) 1683 or 1302 or 530 |
Events
- January 16 - Abdication of Emperor Charles V. His son, Philip II becomes King of Spain, while his brother Ferdinand becomes Holy Roman Emperor
- January 23 - The Shaanxi Earthquake, the deadliest earthquake in history, occurs with its epicenter in Shaanxi province, China. 830,000 people may have been killed.
- February - Truce of Vaucelles - Temporary end to the fighting between France and Spain.
- February 14 - Thomas Cranmer is declared a heretic
- March 9 - Scottish nobles kill David Rizzio, the secretary to Mary I of Scotland in the queen's presence
- March 21 - In Oxford, Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Cranmer is burned at the stake for treason.
- November - Collapse of the Truce of Vaucelles. War resumes between Henry II of France and Philip II of Spain
- November 5 - Second Battle of Panipat - Fifty miles north of Delhi, a Mogul Army defeats Hindu forces of General Hemu to ensure Akbar the throne of India.
- Lorenzo Priuli becomes Doge of Venice
- Bloody Mary establishes the Fort of Maryborough, in what is now Portlaoise, County Laois, Ireland
- The kings of Spain take control of the Flanders region, including what is now the French département of Nord
- The false Martin Guerre appears in the French village of Artigat.
- King John III of Sweden becomes ruler of Finland as Hertig Johan.
- Jellaladin Mahommed Akbar ascends to the throne of the Mughal Empire; he rules until his death in 1605
- Welser banking families of Augsburg lose colonial control of Venezuela
- Ivan the Terrible conquers Astrakhan, opening the Volga River to Russian traffic and trade
Births
- January 8 - Uesugi Kagekatsu, Japanese samurai and warlord (died 1623)
- February 21 - Sethus Calvisius, German calendar reformer (died 1615)
- March 7 - Guillaume du Vair, French statesman and philosopher (died 1621)
- June 6 - Edward la Zouche, 11th Baron Zouche, English politician and diplomat (died 1625)
- November 15 - Jacques-Davy Duperron, French cardinal (died 1618)
- Henry Briggs, English mathematician (died 1630)
- Margaret Clitherow, English Catholic martyr (died 1586)
- Shibata Katsutoyo, Japanese military commander (died 1583)
- Nakagawa Kiyohide, Japanese military commander (died 1583)
- Ahmad Baba al Massufi, Sudanese writer and political leader
- James Melville, Scottish divine and reformer (died 1614)
ANDRE SUX CRAP See also Category: 1556 births
Deaths
- March 21 - Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury (burned at the stake) (born 1489)
- April 18 - Luigi Alamanni, Italian poet and statesman (born 1495)
- June 10 - Martin Agricola, German composer (born 1486)
- July 31 - Ignatius of Loyola, Spanish founder of the Jesuit order
- November 14 - Giovanni della Casa, Italian poet (born 1503)
- December 23 - Nicholas Udall, English dramatist (born 1504)
- Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus (born 1490)
- Pietro Aretino, Italian author (born 1492)
- John Bell, Bishop of Worcester
- Patrick Hepburn, 3rd Earl of Bothwell, Scottish traitor (born 1512)
- Girolamo da Carpi, Italian painter (born 1501)
- Jacob Clemens non Papa, Flemish composer (born 1510)
- Saito Dosan, Japanese warlord (born 1494)
- Fuzuli, Turkish poet (born 1494)
- Lorenzo Lotto, Italian painter (born 1480)
- Brian mac Cathaoir O Conchobhair Failghe, last of the Kings of Ui Failghe
See also Category: 1556 deaths.