Famous People Who Died In 1676

Michiel de Ruyter was a Dutch admiral best remembered for his achievements during the Anglo-Dutch Wars. An important member of the Dutch Navy during his time, De Ruyter is widely considered one of the most talented admirals of all time. Regarded as a Dutch folk hero, Michiel de Ruyter's life and career inspired the 2015 Dutch film, Michiel de Ruyter.

Seventeenth-century Italian composer Francesco Cavalli had taken up the surname of his Venetian patron Federico Cavalli. He was initially a soprano at the St. Mark's Basilica. While he mainly composed for operas, he also developed the early recitative-aria technique. Two of his most notable works were Erismena and L’Ormindo.

Saib Tabrizi was a Persian poet considered to be one of the greatest masters of a form of classical Arabic and Persian lyric poetry known as the ghazal. He composed primarily in Persian and also wrote a few ghazals and molammas in Azerbaijani Turkic. Shah Abbas II, the emperor of Persia, bestowed upon him the title King of Poets. 

Swedish military commander Carl Gustaf Wrangel is best known for his exploits during the Thirty Years’ War. When Swedish king Charles XI was a minor, Wrangel served the Regency Council. As the governor-general of Swedish Pomerania, he gained a lot of fortune, which he spent on books and palaces.

A Dutch theologian from the 17th century, Gisbertus Voetius was a Calvinist scholar. He promoted the Calvinist take on predestination, taught theology at Utrecht, and was also the youngest delegate of the Synod of Dort. Politica Ecclesiastica and Diatriba de Theologia remain two of his best-known works.

A cartographer who was a pioneer of road atlases, John Ogilby was also a well-known poet and translator. Initially a dance master, he is also credited with building Ireland’s first theater in Dublin. He was the target of satirical attacks by Alexander Pope in The Dunciad and by John Dryden in MacFlecknoe.

Protestant reformer Gerrard Winstanley is best known for leading the Diggers, a group of English agrarian communists. Initially a cloth merchant, he was later drawn to communism, believing that land should be available to the poor, and penned The Law of Freedom in a Platform. He also advocated for universal religious tolerance.