Conflict between Dutch farmers and Khoikhoi breaks…

Rákóczi, returning in 1659 with other Hungarian recruits to Transylvania, is again proclaimed prince.

Turkish forces under the pasha (governor) of Buda invade in response and attack from Temesvár to Torda and Herrmannstadt, victorious all the way.

French ships had entered the estuary of the Sénégal River in 1658; in 1659, France establishes the trading post of Saint-Louis on an uninhabited island called Ndar.

Christened Saint-Louis-du-Fort in homage to the French king Louis XIV, it is the first permanent French settlement in Senegal.

Commanding trade along the Senegal River, the fortified factory exports slaves, hides, beeswax, ambergris and, later, gum arabic.

Huygens had proposed in 1655 that Saturn was surrounded by a solid ring, "a thin, flat ring, nowhere touching, and inclined to the ecliptic."

Using a 50 power refracting telescope that he designed himself, Huygens had so discovered the first of Saturn's moons, Titan.

In the same year he had observed and sketched the Orion Nebula.

His drawing, the first such known of the Orion nebula, is published in Systema Saturnium in 1659.

Using his modern telescope he succeeds in subdividing the nebula into different stars. (The brighter interior of the Orion Nebula bears the name of the Huygens Region in his honor.)

He also discovers several interstellar nebulae and some double stars.

The Spanish Infanta Maria Theresa brings cocoa to Paris in 1659, the year Diego Velázquez's portrait of the Infanta is first exhibited.

Considered one of the artist's best late portraits, it shows its subject in a majestic pose, illuminated in a light dress against a dark background.

Its seriousness and formality is added to by the two watches she carries, while the handkerchief in her left hand is one of the painting's highlights.

(Now in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, it has been cut down at the top and bottom.)

The Iroquois Confederacy has seized control of the Illinois Country as far west as the Mississippi River by the late 1650s.

The Navajo, or Diné, agriculturist kin to the semi-nomadic Apaches, begin in 1659 to breed horses, increasing trade with other nations with a developing horse culture.

The anti-Swedish alliance has meanwhile deployed an army to Denmark, to confront Charles X Gustav with a force of fourteen thousand five hundred Brandenburgers commanded by Frederick William I, ten thousand six hundred Austrians commanded by Raimondo Montecuccoli, and forty-five hundred Poles commanded by Czarniecki.

By January 1659, the allied forces stand at Fredriksodde, ...

...Kolding and ...

...Als.

The Battle of the Lines of Elvas (January 17, 1659): A Decisive Portuguese Victory

The Battle of the Lines of Elvas, fought on January 17, 1659, was a major Portuguese victory in the Portuguese Restoration War (1640–1668). The battle ended Spain’s attempt to capture the strategic fortress city of Elvas, strengthening Portugal’s independence and demonstrating its ability to resist Spanish domination.

Spanish Siege of Elvas (December 1658 – January 1659)

• In December 1658, a Spanish army of 18,000 men, commanded by Don Luis de Haro, campaigned along the Portuguese frontier, crossing the River Caia to besiege Elvas, a key Portuguese stronghold south of the Tagus.
• The Spanish bombarded the city, causing panic and heavy casualties among civilians.
• Complicating the defense, a plague outbreak (possibly the Black Death) was killing 300 people per day.

Portuguese Response and Army Mobilization

With Elvas in dire straits, Queen-Regent Luisa de Guzmán took decisive action:

• She appointed António Luís de Meneses, Count of Cantanhede, as supreme commander of Portuguese forces in Alentejo.
• She transferred Sancho Manoel de Vilhena, who became Field-Master, further strengthening the army.
• Cantanhede assembled a relief army in Estremoz, despite severe logistical challenges:
  • Recruits were gathered from Viseu and Madeira.
  • Garrison forces from Borba, Juromenha, Campo Maior, Vila Viçosa, Monforte, and Arronches joined the main army.

Forces in the Battle

The Battle (January 17, 1659)

• The Portuguese plan was to attack the Spanish lines near Murtais, using the hill of Assomada as a vantage point.
• At 8:00 AM, Cantanhede’s forces launched a frontal assault on Spanish positions.
• The battle was initially evenly matched, with the Spanish putting up a strong defense.
• Over time, Portuguese forces broke through, forcing the Spanish army to retreat in disarray.

Aftermath: A Crushing Defeat for Spain

• The Spanish suffered huge casualties:
  • Only 5,000 infantry and 300 cavalry made it back to Badajoz.
  • The rest of the 18,000-strong Spanish force was either killed, captured, or scattered.
• The defeat ended Spain’s last major invasion attempt before the final phase of the Portuguese Restoration War.

Conclusion: A Pivotal Moment in Portugal’s Fight for Independence

The Battle of the Lines of Elvas was one of Portugal’s greatest victories against Spain during the Restoration War. It secured the Portuguese frontier, proving that Spain could not subjugate Portugal militarily. The battle also boosted national morale, reinforcing Portugal’s determination to maintain its independence, which Spain would eventually recognize in 1668.