This Year in History:
1541
Discover what happened in this year with HISTORY’s summaries of major events, anniversaries, famous births and notable deaths.
On May 8, 1541, south of present‑day Memphis, Tennessee, Spanish conquistador Hernando de Soto reaches the Mississippi River, one of the first European explorers to ever do so. After building…
Francisco Pizarro, the governor of Peru and conqueror of the Inca civilization, is assassinated in Lima by Spanish rivals. The illegitimate son of a Spanish gentleman, Pizarro served under Spanish…
