Famous People Born In 1580

John Smith was an English explorer, soldier, colonial governor, author, and Admiral of New England. In the early-17th century, Smith played a major role in the establishment of the first indissoluble English settlement in America, which came to be known as the English colony at Jamestown. Apart from helping Jamestown survive various challenges, Smith's leadership also helped the colony flourish.

Spanish nobleman, politician and writer Francisco Gómez de Quevedo y Santibáñez Villegas, KOS of the Baroque era is counted among the most prominent writers of Spain's Golden Age. Quevedo adhered to the conceptismo style compared to his lifelong rival, Luis de Góngora’s culteranismo style. His notable works include the picaresque novel El Buscón and the satirical prose Los Sueños.

Willebrord Snell was a Dutch mathematician and astronomer. He is credited with rediscovering the law of refraction, which is named Snell's law in his honor. A much-revered mathematician in the Netherlands, Willebrord Snell was honored by the Royal Netherlands Navy by naming three of its survey ships after him. Snellius, a lunar crater, is also named in his honor.

Peter Claver was a Spanish Jesuit missionary and priest. His lifelong work with African slaves made him the patron saint of slaves. Peter Claver was canonized by Pope Leo XIII in 1888. Many organizations, religious congregations, schools, missions, parishes, and hospitals have been named in his honor.

Belgian physician and chemist Jan Baptista van Helmont often considered the founder of pneumatic chemistry, is also said to have used the word “gas” for the first time in the scientific world. He is also said to have been the first to identify gas sylvestre, which later came to be known as carbon dioxide.

John Billington was an Englishman best remembered for his voyage to the New World on the famous Mayflower. He was one of the co-creators and signers of the Mayflower Compact. John Billington murdered another white settler named John Newcomen. He was tried by a jury in September 1630 and executed at the age of 40.

Gábor Bethlen reigned as the King of Hungary from 25 August 1620 to 31 December 1621. He is best remembered as the Prince of Transylvania and Duke of Opole. Although he was the king of Hungary, Gábor Bethlen never took control of the entire kingdom. 

The son of an affluent surgeon from Provence, Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc grew up to be a famous astronomer, known mostly for his research on longitudes. He is also remembered for discovering the Orion Nebula and owned a huge collection of coins, which he used to study history.

While he initially studied law and science, Philipp Clüver later joined the military and traveled throughout Europe on foot. Largely known for pioneering historical geography, he is remembered for his 6-volume treatise Introduction to Universal Geography. He had also been an academic geographer in Leiden.