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The 1560s: 1560–1569

Stories set in the 1560s — top stories

1560–1569 · worldwide, all places

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Ivan the Terrible created the oprichnina in 1565, a black-clad political police that terrorized Russia's own nobility. Dutch Calvinists smashed church images in 1566 and started the revolt against Spain, and in Malta 500 knights held off 40,000 Ottomans in the Great Siege of 1565.

1565 was a year of sieges in Malta and purges in Moscow. Kate Forsyth's The Puzzle Ring sends its heroine back to Mary's Scotland of 1567, and Tim Willocks's The Religion defends Malta wall by wall in 1565. Open the 1560s on the StoryTerra map and explore its stories by place.

Sets 1560–1569 automatically — all places

A smaller shelf: only 9 stories in the catalogue are tagged to the 1560s so far — every one of them worth the visit.

9 famous stories set in the 1560s

Live snapshot of the top 9 most popular catalogue items (2026-09-05). Click any card to open this entry on the live map.

Browse 7 books, 1 movie and 1 game set in the 1560s (1560–1569).

The Puzzle Ring

The Puzzle Ring

by Kate Forsyth
book

Hannah Rose was not quite 13 years old when she discovered her family was cursed. . . .The arrival of a mysterious letter changes Hannah’s life forever. One day she is an ordinary teenage girl. The next day she…

Setting: Scotland, UKTime Period: 1560
The Ringed Castle

The Ringed Castle

by Dorothy Dunnett
book

For the first time Dunnett's Lymond Chronicles are available in the United States in quality paperback editions.Fifth in the legendary Lymond Chronicles, The Ringed Castle leaps from Mary Tudor's England to the barbaric…

Setting: ['Moscow, Russia', 'Scotland', 'London, England']Time Period: 1560; Reign of Ivan the Terrible
La lettrice di fiori

La lettrice di fiori

by Elizabeth Loupas, Pachi Guarini (Editor)
book

Corte di Scozia, 1560. Rinette Leslie di Granmuir, figlia di cortigiani, possiede un’abilità unica e preziosa: pratica la floromanzia, l’antica arte di predire il futuro leggendo i fiori. Eppure questo dono non la…

Setting: Scotland, UKTime Period: 1560
Onimusha: Warlords

Onimusha: Warlords

game

Onimusha: Warlords is an epic saga of 16th century Japan inspired by the battle scenes of famed Japanese director Akira Kurosawa. It takes place in a world of darkness and magic when power hungry warlords battle for…

Setting: FeudalJapanTime Period: 1560
El Dorado

El Dorado

Canal+-France 3 Cinéma-TVE-RAI-Compañía Iberoamericana de TV-Chrysalide Film-Iberoamericana Films Produccion-SACIS
movie

The story of an expedition down the Orinoco and Amazon rivers in 1560 by Spanish soldiers searching for the fabled city of gold El Dorado.

Setting: Orinoco River; Amazon River; South AmericaTime Period: 1560
The Religion

The Religion

by Tim Willocks
book

This is what we dream of: to be so swept away, so poleaxed by a book that the breath is sucked right out of us. Brace yourselves. May 1565. Suleiman the Magnificent, emperor of the Ottomans, has declared a jihad against…

Setting: ['Malta']Time Period: 1565; Siege of Malta
Spy for the Queen of Scots

Spy for the Queen of Scots

by Theresa Breslin
book

As lady-in-waiting to Mary, Queen of Scots, the beautiful Ginette—known as Jenny—is the young queen’s closest childhood friend. Growing up in the elegant but ruthless French court, surrounded by enemies and traitors—not…

Setting: French Court, France; Scotland, UKTime Period: 1560s
Altai

Altai

by Wu Ming (Goodreads Author)
book

«Che segno è quando un arcobaleno appare, non c'è stata pioggia e l'aria è secca e tersa?È quando la terra sta per tremare, e il mondo intero vacilla».Quindici anni dopo l'epilogo di Q.Venezia, Anno Domini 1569. Un…

Setting: ['Costantinopoli', 'Venice (Italy)', 'Dubrovnik (Croatia)', 'Thessaloniki (Greece)', 'Lepanto (Greece)', 'Famagosta (Cyprus)']Time Period: 1569; Venice
Devotion and the Devil

Devotion and the Devil

by Mark Montgomery
book

1560. One chronicle; two stories; three cities; four journeys. This is the second volume in the Borderer Chronicles series.Four men of dedication, motivated by their own devotion, take different journeys to the same…

Setting: Leith, Scotland, UK; Edinburgh, Scotland, UK; Newcastle, UK; Antwerp, BelgiumTime Period: 1560

The 9 stories above are just a sample of the 9 in the catalogue for this entry. For the live 1560–1569 catalogue, use the button above — or browse the whole 16th century. On the live map you can also filter by the exact time the stories take place — any year, decade or century, from BCE to the future.

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Keep exploring

1550s · 16th century · Time hub · All places · 1570s