1000 to 1500AD

Science & Technology

· 1169 Ibn-Rushd begins translating Aristotle's works.

· 1282 Eyeglasses invented by Alessandro di Spina in Florence – extending the productive period of men’s lives

Exploration

· 860 Iceland discovered by the Vikings. 982 Greenland discovered by Eric the Red. 1002 Leif Eiriksson discovers America

· 1240 The Hanseatic League is formed in the Baltic region and becomes the North terminus for Far East trade.

· 1271-1295 Marco Polo of Venice travels to China to Shangdu (also known as Xanadu), Mongol ruler Kublai Khan’s summer capital. From there he continued to Kublai’s new city of Daidu, today part of Beijing. He lives in the court of Kublai Khan until 1292, returns to Venice (1295) and writes his Travels.

· About 1275, close to the time the Polos arrived at the court of Kublai Khan, two Nestorian Christian monks left Daidu (modern Beijing) on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. One of the two, Rabban Sauma, would become the first person known to travel from Beijing to Paris, and, like Marco, he would leave a record of his journey.

· 1453 The fall of Constantinople to the Ottomans causes Europeans to seek new trade routes via the oceans

Agriculture and Food Production

· 1025 Sugar extraction obtained from sugar cane by the Seljuk Persians

· 1283 Salting fish is used in the Netherlands to preserve them

· 1400s Rice appears in northern Italy

Metal Working, Textiles, and Pottery

· 1200s The spinning wheel spreads from Asia to Europe

· 1225 Cotton manufacturing established in Spain.

· 1300 Rhinelanders are the first Europeans to cast iron

· 1460 The Portuguese bring Japanese folding fans and silk screen printing to Europe

Architecture

· 1184 Paris is the first European city to have city paving

· 1280 Stucco is used in Italy

Transportation

· 1050 Astrolabes arrive in Europe from the East.

· 1180 Rudders first used on ships in Europe.

· c. 1190 Compass introduced in Europe

· 1260 Toll roads are built in England

· 1400 Binnacles are used in Europe for protecting and keeping level a ship's compass

· 1450 Three-mast ships appear in Europe

Communication

· 1041 Moveable type developed by Pi-Cheng, a commoner, in China.

· 1100 Europe began using paper (via Moorish Spain) which had been invented in China in 100 AD

· 1396 Metal printing blocks made of bronze are used in Korea

· 1440 Printing press developed at Mainz, Germany by Johannes Gutenberg, German businessman. Prints 300 sheets per day. 1455 Gutenberg completes his first Bible.

Military

· 1044 The earliest formula for gunpowder (coal, salt pepper, and sulfur) is recorded in China

· 1050 Artillery (bombs launched from catapaults) used in China

· 1151 Explosives first used in war in China.

· 1180 Rockets are used in China with solid fuel

· 1277 Lands mines are used by the Chinese against Mongol invaders

· 1288 Guns used in Manchuria. .

· 1310s Guns and grenades are introduced into Europe

· 1325 Iron Cannons are use. Bronze cannons soon follow, and cast-iron cannons in the 1400s. This promotes the authority of kings, who could afford them

· 1325 Steel Crossbows are introduced to Europe

· 1330 Longbows are used in Wales

· 1340 Shipboard guns are used at the Battle of Sluys between England and France

· 1400 Hand Guns are used in Europe

· 1453 Siege Guns are used by the Ottomans in the siege of Constantinople

Mathematics

· c1200 Abacus developed in China

· c. 1200 Arabaic numerals replace Roman numerals in Europe

Medicine

· 980-1037 Avicenna writes The Canons of Medicine, becomes principal European medical text until 1650

Mechanics

· 1078 Tidal Mill is used in Venice

· 1100s The flywheel is developed. The cam had been used at least since Carolingian times to drive hammers making mash

· 1233 Coal is mined in Newcastle, England. By 1306 Edward I objects to the noxious fumes from London's many coal-burning fires and tries (unsuccessfully) to ban its use by anyone except blacksmiths

· 1280 The spinning wheel, the first geared machine, is used in India

· 1328 Sawmill invented, spurs shipbuilding.

Sports

· 1400 Playing Cards are developed in Egypt

Time-Keeping

· 1275 Mechanical clocks are reinvented in Europe

· 1320 The Hourglass is used in Europe

· 1335 The first Public clock is erected in Milan (household clocks later in 1300s)

· 1350 Weight-driven clocks are used in Europe

· 1430 Spring-driven clocks are used in Europe

◄ ►

Europe

Arts

· Troubadours (wandering minstrels) glorify romantic concepts of feudalism.

· 1150-1200 Universities established at Bologna, Paris, and Oxford. Revives interest in Classical writings; separates scholarship from the Church

· 1300 Humanism, defined as the study of classical literature, history, and rhetoric, evolves from the literary activity of lawyers and notaries at Padua, Bologna, Florence, and other cities. Humanism coincides with the profound secularization of Italian culture

· 1397 Manuel Chrysoloras becomes first professor of Greek at Florence University. Italian scholars seize on the work of Classical authors.

· 1450 Florence becomes center of Renaissance arts and learning under the Medicis. Characterized by a humanism and an emphasis on rational space, proportion, and perspective, the Renaissance style makes its way to northern Italy. 1488 Lorenzo de Medici establishes the first art school. Students include Michelangelo. Michelangelo and DaVinci both paint a wall of the Great Council Chamber of the town hall in Florence.Vasari writes The Lives of the Artists, detailing the Medici sponsored artists, introducing the term “Renaissance”.

Architecture

· Castles: Motte and bailey castles, the first Norman castles,were constructed of earthworks and timbers, with a central tower or "keep" on a raised hill or "motte" surrounded by an enclosed "bailey," the whole within an outer wall or walls. The bailey held all the domestic buildings for the complete household with the lord's family and their immediate entourage housed in the keep, and in times of siege outlying farmers and villagers would also seek refuge. These wooden structures began to be replaced by stone buildings in the 12th century and the great age of castle building began.

o The walls were between 8 and 20 feet in thickness to withstand bombardment from trebuchet or catapult, or a battering ram. The shape of the towers changed from square to circular. A tower could be pulled down by undermining: an enemy's soldiers would dig a tunnel under one corner of a tower, prop it up with wood, and then set the wood on fire. The round tower caused cannon balls to bounce off, and were not vulnerable to undermining. The splayed plinth added support at the base of the towers by placing sturdy legs into the earth at the base of the tower, so that it would not lean or be likely to fall down.

o The curtain wall (which surrounded the main castle) became much thicker and was intersected by towers for observation, living quarters, the chapel, for storage, or the dungeon.

o The gatehouse, originally a simple doorway, became the strong point equipped with the portcullis (a heavy iron grate); heavy wooden doors; strategically-placed arrowslits; and murder holes (gaps in the ceiling through which boiling liquids or stones could be thrown down upon attackers).

o Most castles were surrounded by a moat; some were water-filled, others never had water. Wooden drawbridges were built to span the ditches and could be moved away. Entry to the towers, especially the keep, was by a wooden ladder to the second floor.

o Building took ten feet of elevation per year. Henry II's castle at Orford took eight years, Dover Castle required ten years, Edward I's fortresses in north Wales took five to seven years, with the exception of Beaumaris (never finished) and Caernarfon (45 years).

Romanesque, 9^th – 13^th c.

· 1068 Construction on the Pisa Cathedral begins.

· 1087-1133 Durham Cathedral, the most ambitious product of Anglo-Norman architecture

Gothic, 12^th – 16^th c.

· Pointed arches, flying buttresses, and ribbed vaults allow very light walls. Stained-glass windows depict religious scenes.

· 1137-1144 Abbey of St. Denis, near Paris, constructed by Abbot Suger. Beginning of Gothic Churches.

· 1100s–1300s Construction of Chartres Cathedral.

· 1228-1253 San Francesco, Assisi

· 1377–1446 Filippo Brunelleschi. Among Brunelleschi's most celebrated architectural projects is the ribbed dome for the Cathedral in Florence (1436), sponsored by Cosimo Medici. 1434 Brunelleschi develops linear perspective.

Painting and Sculpture

· 1077 The Bayeux Tapestry: Embroidered linen seventy meters in length, depicts the Battle of Hastings

· 1266-1337 Giotto: Florentine painter, painted more realistic views of people than had been pained before. Frescos in the Areana Chapel, Padua, 1305-6, Madonna Enthroned, 1310. The Nativity.

· 1378–1455 Lorenzo Ghiberti. Florentine sculptor. He wins a competition for the commission for the bronze doors of the Baptistery of San Giovanni, Florence. Spanning nearly fifty years, the doors illustrate a transition from the International Gothic to classical forms and perspective. He runs a large and successful workshop.

· 1386–1466. Donatello. Florentine sculptor. Makes the first bronze statue since the Romans.

· 1413-6 The Limbourg brothers, Netherlandish painters trained as goldsmiths in Paris, enter the service of the duc de Berry, for whom they produce two illuminated manuscripts: the Belles Heures and the Très Riches Heures

· 1430–1516 Giovanni Bellini. Venetian painter. Known for compositions of the Madonna and Child

· Boticelli Florentine painter, works under the patronage of Lorenzo de Medici. La Primevera. The Birth of Venus. Paints fantastic and Roman mythologic subjects, as opposed to Catholic imagery. Birth of humanistic, secular painting.

· 1400s Netherlandish panel painting. Founded by Robert Campin, Jan van Eyck, and Rogier van der Weyden, is noted for its detail and its enamel-like surface achieved by built-up layers of oil paint.

· 1410-1450s Utrecht is a major center for illuminated manuscripts, which disseminate the inventions of the great panel painters throughout Europe. The undisputed masterpiece of the Utrecht school is the Hours of Catherine of Cleves (ca. 1435–40)

· 1400s Bruges is a hub for international banking and trade, and a court location of the dukes of Burgundy. Many artists settle there, including Jan van Eyck, Petrus Christus, Hans Memling, and Gerard David.

· 1400-1500s Tapestries are at first produced on commission, but the demand for them is so great that by 1500 they are available ready-made at fairs throughout the Low Countries. Brussels is a major production center.

· Late 1400s Bruges' prominence declines as the Zwin River becomes unnavigable. Maximilian orders the relocation of foreign merchants to Antwerp. As a result, Antwerp becomes a center for printing and book manufacture, artists including Quentin Massys, Joos van Cleve, Joachim Patinir, and Pieter Bruegel the Elder. It is here that a school of painting known as Antwerp mannerism emerges, combining Italian Renaissance and Northern motifs.

Literature

· c.1000 Beowulf, Old English epic

· 1321 Dante Alighieri writes The Divine Comedy in Italian. Dante held civil positions in Florence as a “White”.

· 1304–1374 The lyricist Petrarch, renowned for his love poetry (Il Canzoniere), is considered the first humanist.

· 1387 Geoffrey Chaucer begins work on The Canterbury Tales

◄ ►

Economics

· 1000-1350: A period of economic growth arises from the agricultural revolution of the preceding centuries. Population in Europe rises from 40 million to 75 million in 1350, only to be lowered with the bubonic plague to 50 million, where it remained until 1500. The growth was more significant in northern Europe than in the south, as more agricultural land was developed there.

· Development of towns and trade associations: As the population and trade grow, so do towns. By 1350 Paris, Venice, Florence, and Genoa have 80,000 people, London has 30,000. Few in Germany have over 10,000. Flanders (Ypres, Ghent) and Tuscany were large textile centers. Venice and northern Italy became a banking center. As shop-keepers transform into the merchant class they form guilds and associations – combines that monopolize a trade or profession, given by a royal charter or privilege. The bourgeois – burghers or town-dwellers, gain power.

· Feudalism: By 1200 50% are English peasants are free and 50% are serfs. Serfs may gain their freedom by buying it, by a charter from their lord, or by remaining in a free borough for a year and a day. A lord could turn a village in to a borough and free all its inhabitants.

· Mediterranean trade: Flemish or English cloth, German or Slavic slaves, thru Italy or Catalonia, to North Africa, the Levant, Constantinople, or the Black sea. In the 1200s the first overseas trade voyage was made from Italy to Bruges (before that it had been overland). Insurance grows out of shipping insurance.

• The salt trade is vital for preserving food, as evidenced in the number of English towns ending in “-wich” and German towns ending in “-halle”, both words for salt.

· Banking started with goldsmiths. They initially provided safekeeping services, making a profit from vault storage fees for gold and coins deposited with them. People would redeem their "deposit receipts" whenever they needed gold or coins to purchase something, and physically take the gold or coins to the seller who, in turn, would deposit them for safekeeping, often with the same banker. Everyone soon found that it was a lot easier simply to use the deposit receipts directly as a means of payment. These receipts, which became known as notes, were acceptable as money since whoever held them could go to the banker and exchange them for metallic money.

• Then, bankers discovered that they could make loans merely by giving their bank notes to borrowers. In this way, banks began to create money – “fiat money”. More notes could be issued than the gold and coin on hand because only a portion of the notes outstanding would be presented for payment at any one time. Enough metallic money had to be kept on hand, of course, to redeem whatever volume of notes was presented for payment.

· c. 1100 King Henry I of England decided to try to wrestle the power away from the Goldsmiths by inventing the "Tally Stick" system. This system lasted 726 years until 1826. Notches were carved along side a wooden stick, indicating various denominations, or amounts. Then the stick was split down the middle, with each half holding a record. Then the King would hold one-half in safekeeping to avoid counterfeiting and he would "spend" the other half into the kingdom or economy, and they would circulate as money. As a matter of fact, shares in the Bank of England were purchased with a tallystick, by at least one of it's shareholders.

· 1100s Trade associations, or hanses, form in many German towns. Lubeck and Cologne gradually lead the development of an alliance of over 100 towns known as the Hanseatic League, which dominates Scandinavia and London. The term is first used in 1344. It began to lose power in the 1400s and was dissolved in 1669.

· 1200s The bill of exchange appears along with the first bankers in Italy.

· 1300s The trans-Saharan gold trade from Mali relieves a bullion shortage

· 1300s Cloth production in Flanders falls by two-thirds. Famines still devastate towns.

· 1347-1351 The bubonic plague (Black Death) spreads from China via rats on ships, to Cyprus, then Mediterranean countries, then Central Europe. 25 millions Europeans died. Peasant revolts followed. Wages rose 50%, hastening the end of feudalism as labor shortages allowed laborers more freedom. Population and economic growth remain anemic until 1500.

· 1401 The first modern bank was formed, Bank of Barcelona. 1407 Casa di San Giorgio, one of the first public banks, founded in Genoa.

· 1487 The first global financiers, the Fuggers in Germany, begin business

· By 1500 much of modern accounting and finance has been developed, such as double-entry bookkeeping and joint-stock companies.

◄ ►

International Politics and Conflicts

· The nobility becomes better defined as landownership and inheritance become more important than skill in battle. The idea of chivalry develops. Nobles are only permitted to master arms, manage their estate, or join the Church – engaging in trade or a profession is taboo.

· Dinner at an English feudal lord’s table consisted of eating with wooden or earthenware cups and spoons (until pewter is used in the 1400s). Knives are worn to the table by each diner in a sheath on their belt. Forks are not introduced until the late 1500s, and are not standard until the 1750s. Wine was drunk from a common cup. Food was seved on pieces of bread, later on wooden plates. The lord sat in the middle, with the salt bowl on his left, important guests on the right “above the salt’.

· 1096-1291 The Crusades

The First Crusade (1096) Spurred by appeals from the the Byzantine emperor and reports of difficulties from Christian pilgrims in the Holy Land, in 1095 at Council of Clermont, Pope Urban II calls for war to rescue Holy Land from Muslim control. Most never reach enemy territory. The Christians capture Antioch (1098) and Jerusalem (1099), where they burn mosques and synagogues and slaughter the cities Muslim inhabitants. They establish the Crusader States. It is the only successful crusade.

1113 Military orders of Knights Hospitallers (Knights of St. John) and Knights Templars (1118) founded by crusaders in Jerusalem. The Knights of St. John will continue to fight Muslims from their base on Rhodes. The Knights Templar will be destroyed out of jealousy by a French king.

The Second Crusade begins after the Seljuk Turks recapture Edessa, one of the Crusader States, in 1144. It is led by King Louis VIII of France and Holy Roman Emperor Conrad III. Crusaders perish in Asia Minor (1147). Saladin controls Egypt (1171), unites Islam in holy war (jihad) against Christians, recaptures Jerusalem (1187).

Third Crusade (1189) under kings of France, England (Richard the Lion-Heart, who defeats Saladin at Arsuf), and Germany fails to reduce Saladin's power.

1190 The Teutonic Knights are founded in Jerusalem by German merchants to. They fight agai care for Christian pilgrims. In the 1220s they move to fight against the Magyars, and in 1233 settle Germany to fight the heathen Prussians. They virtually replace the local leaders, and are acknowledged as rulers by the pope and emperor. In 1308 they move their capital to Marienberg, They will form the aristocratic junker class controlling the Baltic.

Fourth Crusade (1200–1204)—Financed by Venice and diverted by a deposed pretender to the Byzantine throne, to recapture the throne for him (with Venice’s approval). French knights sack Constantinople, and establish a Latin empire in Byzantium. Greeks reestablish the Orthodox faith in Constantinople in 1262. The bronze horses of the Hippodrome (horse racetrack) are brought to sit in front of St. Mark’s Cathedral in Venice until 1981.

Children's Crusade (1212)—only one of 30,000 French children and about 200 of 20,000 German children survive to return home

Other Crusades—Fifth, against Egypt (1217), Sixth – Emperor Frederick II captures Jerusalem and crowns himself king (1228), Jerusalem retaken 1244, Seventh- Louis IX is captured and ransomed (1248), Eighth – Louis IX’s second crusade (1270). Mamelukes conquer Acre; end of the Crusades (1291).

· 1150–1250 The Holy Roman Empire and the Italian City-states

· 1157 At an imperial diet the papal legate presents a document implying that the Empire is a fief of the Pope’s. In response Holy Roman emperor Frederick I Barbarossa invades Italy to reassert imperial jurisdiction. He seizes Milan and claims the right to appoint a governor in every city-state. In 1166 he seizes Rome and appoints an Anti-Pope. In 1167 16 city-states form the Lombard League to oppose Frederick, and they defeat him at Legano in 1176. After this he accepts their semi-autonomy. Although the antagonists reach an agreement in 1183 (Peace of Constance), the League is renewed until the virtual collapse of the empire in 1250.

The Hundred Years War, England & France, 1337-1453

· The wars accomplish much in defining English and French national identities, for example Joan of Arc as a national hero, and strengthen the crowns’ authority

· 1329 Edward III of England does simple homage to Philip VI of France for Aquitaine but refuses to do liege homage

· 1337 Philip VI of France declares Edward's fiefs forfeit, harasses the frontiers of Aquitaine; Edward III declares himself king of France; The Hundred Years' War begins. Treaty of Koblenz: alliance between England and the Holy Roman Empire

· 1340 Naval victory at Sluys gives England the command of the English Channel; 1346 Battle of Crécy: Edward III invades France and defeats Philip VI. English longbowmen defeat the French cavalry which had three-times as many men; 1347 The English capture Calais

· 1356 Battle of Poitiers: Edward the Black Prince, son of Edward III, defeats the French, capturing King John II who is held for ransom in London

· 1360 Peace of Bretigny ends the first stage of the Hundred Years' War. Edward III gives up claim to French throne in return for complete sovereignty (instead of as a vassal to the French king) over Aquataine, Poitou, and Calais. The French break the treaty in 1368.

· 1369-1375 Second stage

· 1370-2 Edward, the Black Prince, sacks Limoges, French troops recapture Poitou and Brittany; Naval battle of La Rochelle: French regain control of English Channel; 1375 England loses Aquitane

· 1415 Henry V reasserts his claim to the throne, invades France, and defeats the French at Agincourt, conquers Normandy

· 1420 Treaty of Troyes: Henry V marries the daughter of France’s Charles VI, is named heir to the throne

· 1422 Henry V and Charles VI die

· 1424 John, Duke of Bedford, regent for Henry VI of England, defeats the French at Cravant

· 1428 Henry VI begins the Siege of Orleans. 1429-31 A French force, led by military commander Joan of Arc (Jeanne d'Arc), relieves the siege of Orleans; Burgundians capture Jeanne d'Arc and hand her over to the English. Jeanne d'Arc burned as a witch at Rouen; Henry VI of England is crowned king of France in Paris

• 1436 Loss of Paris after the Anglo-Burgundian Alliance collapses
• 1453 Bordeaux falls to the French, Hundred Years' War ends; England's only French possession is Calais (but the title “King of France” is kept by the English king until the 1800s)

· 1378-1417 During The Great Schism— with rival popes in Rome and Avignon - France, Scotland, Aragon, and Milan support the pope in Avignon, while England, Germany, Naples, and Flanders support the Roman Pope.

· 1386 The Treaty of Windsor is signed between Portugal and England. This treaty has never been broken and is the longest lasting treaty between any two nations

· 1470 France’s Louis XI supports the Earl of Warwick’s rebellion against England’s Edward IV. 1474 War between Louis XI of France against Edward IV of England and Charles the Bold of Burgundy. 1475 Edward IV invades France; Peace of Piequigny between England and France

· 1463-1479 Ottomans and Venetians at war. 1471 Turks seize Negroponte. 1472 Venetians destroy Smyrna. 1479 The Turks take the Ionian islands and impose an annual charge for trade on the Black Sea. 1481 The Venetians take Cyprus. A long economic and military competition between the Ottomans and Venice begins. Battle of Otluk-Beli: Turks defeat the Persians, allies of Venice.

· 1474-1477 War between Burgundy and the Swiss Confederation. Charles of Burgundy is defeated by the Swiss at Grandson, Morat, and killed at Nancy.

◄ ►

Roman Catholic Church

· 1018 The Council of Pavia initiates the first reform movement to rekindle the spiritual aspect of the Church by making clerical celibacy mandatory.

· 1054 The Great Schism. Ongoing dissension between the Orthodox Church of Byzantium, led by the patriarch of Constantinople, and the Roman church, led by the pope Leo IX, comes to a head in a mutual excommunication by the two leaders after Leo closes Byzantine churches in southern Italy because of “unorthodox practices”

· 1073-1085 Pope Gregory VII. He takes the throne without imperial consent, pushes for clerical celibacy, end of simony and in 1075 bans lay investiture (naming of bishops and abbots by secular rulers) beginning the Investiture Controversy, particularly with Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV. He excommunicates and deposes Henry, but Henry storms Rome, installs an anti-Pope, and Gregory is driven into exile where he dies. Emergence of a strong papacy; conflict with English and French kings and German emperors will continue throughout medieval period. He also ordered that only the bishop of Rome could be called papa, previously any bishop could be so called.

· 1084 Carthusian Order founded by St. Bruno at the Grande Chartreuse, near Grenoble, France. It is an ascetic, hermetical order where every monk lives entirely alone in a private cell, except for group prayer three times a day.

· 1098 Cistercian Order founded by St. Robert at Citeaux, Burgundy, to protest Benedictine extravagance; they eat once a day and do not adorn their monasteries. It grows to a loose federation of 500 abbeys.

· 1100-1200 Cathedral building is common in Northern European towns

· 1113 Military orders of Knights Hospitallers (Knights of St. John) and Knights Templars (1118) founded by crusaders in Jerusalem

· 1122 The Concordat of Worms settles the Investiture struggle between the Holy Roman Emperor and the papacy over the control of church offices. While the clergy chooses bishops and abbots, the emperor retains the power to decide contested elections and invests bishops with their scepter, signifying their temporal power over their estates. This, in turn, gives the local nobility greater influence in the choice of church officials, and increased independence from the imperial crown.

· 1123 The first Catholic Laternan ecumenical council is held in Rome, its decrees are promulgated under the pope’s authority

· 1195-1215 Pope Innocent III formalizes clerical celibacy, individual confession, and the doctrine of transubstantiation – that the body and blood of Christ is physically present in the bread and wine. He makes the new monastic orders subservient to the papacy. He encourages the persecution of heretics, particularly French Albigensians, and excommunicates England’s King John.

· 1209 St. Francis of Assisi founds the Franciscan Order (Grey Friars), son of a prosperous businessman who gave away his possessions, emphasizing poverty and humility. 1216 St Dominic de Guzman founds the Dominican Order (Black Friars), advocates the Rosary. 1226 The Carmelites (White Friars) founded.

· 1215 A Laternan council bans trial by ordeal – where the accused is put on water and whether they sink or float determines their innocence

· 1231 The Inquisition begins as Pope Gregory IX assigns Dominicans responsibility for combating heresy. It began with the Albigensians in Toulouse. Accused were given one month to recant, then were tortured into confession. Usual punishments were fines and imprisonment (occasionally burning at the stake).

· 1273 Thomas Aquinas’ Summa Theologica, the basis of all Catholic theological teaching; based on Aristotle, a systematic review of Christian teaching; remains uncompleted.

· 1274 The Council of Lyon reunites the Byzantine and Roman churches, divided since the Schism of 1054. The 1274 measure is repealed in 1282, only to be reconsidered several times until the empire's fall in the mid-fifteenth century.

· 1294-1303 Pope Boniface VIII imprisons a reforming pope and takes the papacy. He asserts his authority with kings and issues a Bull stating that all Christians must acknowledge his supremacy to achieve salvation. He forbids the clergy to pay taxes and conflicts with the Philip IV of France over the trial of a French bishop in a royal court. He is forcibly seized, treated indignantly, and dies in prison.

· 1309-1376 The “Babylonian Captivity”, Philip IV pressures Pope Clement V to reside in Avignon in return for French support against the Italian Guelphs. The next seven popes reside there. This begins an isolation of the papacy from England and Germany, France’s enemies. The papacy’s extravagancy is exemplified by a huge new palace

· 1377 Pope Gregory XI returns to Rome, then dies. Roman mob pressures papal conclave to elect Italian, Urban VI, who institutes reforms on clerical luxury

· 1378-1417 13 Cardinals declare Urban IV’s election invalid, and elect Clement VII (cousin of King Charles V of France). Begins The Great Schism—rival popes in Rome and Avignon, which damages church authority.

· 1409 The Conciliar Movement pushes for the authority of Church Councils over the pope. The two colleges of cardinals depose both popes and elect a 3^rd at the Council of Pisa. There will be four councils, the last at Basel in 1431.

· 1376–1382 John Wycliffe, an Oxford scholar, and his followers the “Lollards”, translate the Bible into English from Latin, causing a furor in the church as one of its basic tenets is that only a trained priest can interpret the Bible. 1381 Wycliffe publishes his "Confession", denying the doctrine of transubstantiation and is expelled from Oxford. 1401 Persecution of Lollards for revolting against clergy.

· 1414-18 The Council of Constance condemns Jan Hus (1415), a Bohemian Lollard preacher supported by the Bohemian and Moravian nobility, who is burned at the stake in Constance as heretic. Later it deposes all 3 popes and elects Martin V of the powerful Colonna family (1417), who dissolves the council without promised reforms.

· 1431-1449 The Council at Basel, gridlocked over the issue of its primacy over the pope, does much to weaken papal authority, which, in turn, prepares for the Reformation in the sixteenth century. It is thereafter heresy to appeal to a council for authority over the pope.

· 1478-1834 Spanish Inquisition.

· 1492-1503 Pope Alexander VI, a Borgia, bought the papacy, father of 9 illegitimate children including Lucretia and Cesare (model for Machiavelli’s The Prince), increased selling of indulgences. Divided New World between Spain & Portugal

◄ ►

French	English
close	shut
reply	answer
odour	smell
annual	yearly
demand	ask
chamber	room
desire	wish
power	might
ire	wrath / anger

Britain

Normans, 1066-1153

· French became the language of the Norman aristocracy. Because the English underclass cooked for the Norman upper class, the words for most domestic animals are English (ox, cow, calf, sheep, swine, deer) while the words for the meats derived from them are French (beef, veal, mutton, pork, bacon, venison). The Germanic form of plurals (house, housen; shoe, shoen) was eventually displaced by the French method of making plurals: adding an -s (house, houses; shoe, shoes). Only a few words have retained their Germanic plurals: men, oxen, feet, teeth, children. French also affected spelling so that the cw sound came to be written as qu (eg. cween became queen). It wasn't till the 14th Century that English became dominant in Britain again. In 1399, King Henry IV became the first king of England since the Norman Conquest whose mother tongue was English. By the end of the 14th Century, the dialect of London had emerged as the standard dialect of what we now call Middle English. Chaucer wrote in this language. Modern English began around the 16th Century. One change occurred when the -th of some verb forms became -s (loveth, loves: hath, has). Auxillary verbs also changed (he is risen, he has risen).

· The historical influence of language in Britain can best be seen in place names. Examples include ac (as in Acton, Oakwood) which is Anglo-Saxon for oak; by (as in Whitby) is Old Norse for farm or village; pwll (as in Liverpool) is Welsh for anchorage; baile (as in Balmoral) is Gaelic for farm or village; ceaster (as in Lancaster) is Latin for fort.

· The Normans bring motte and bailey castles to England. Tower of London begun. William gave his knights estates and permission to build castles. In return, he expected these earls or lords to control their lands as the king's representative, to keep the local population from rebelling, and to force them to work and pay rent to the lord (who then passed it onto the king). The king retained the ability to seize any of his lords' castles if they displeased him or if the king had a special reason to want to use it. The greatest of Norman knights, William Marshall, introduced the use of round towers to Britain, and they were especially used in Wales. The major Norman castles - for example Windsor Castle (originally wooden and built in 1070 and replaced by stone from 1170 and added to until George IV) and the Tower of London (stone-built in 1080 and added to until the 19th century) which functioned as a prison (the last prisoner to be held there was Rudolf Hess, Hitler's deputy and the last execution at the Tower in 1941.)

William I, the Conqueror, first Norman King of England (1066-1087)

· 1068-9 The Norman Conquest. William subdues the north of England (the "Harrying of the North"): the region is laid waste. William confiscates the estates of Saxon nobles and gives them to his Norman knights.

· 1070-1071 Saxon revolt in Yorkshire under Hereford the Wake.

· 1070 Lanfranc, an Italian lawyer, becomes Archbishop of Canterbury, establishes the primacy of Canterbury over York. 1080 William, in a letter, reminds the Pope that the King of England owes him no allegiance.

· 1086 King William commissions the Domesday Book, which lists all of his new country's fiefs and manors, along with information about who lives on them, what they produce, and to whom he has granted them

· 1087 William dies, leaves Normandy to his eldest son Robert, England to his 2^nd son William Rufus.

William II, Rufus (1087 –1100)

Henry I, youngest son of William the Conqueror (1100-1135),

• 1106 Henry defeats Robert, duke of Normandy, at the Battle of Tinchebrai, imprisons him, unites England & Normandy

Stephen, (1135-1153), Nephew to Henry I is recognized by the English barons despite his and their promise to support Henry’s daughter Matilda before his death

· 1141 Empress Matilda, daughter of Henry I, widow of Emperor Henry V, and wife of Geoffrey the Handsome, Count of Anjou (nicknamed "Plantagenet ") captures Stephen at the battle of Lincoln, reigns disastrously as queen; she is driven out by a rebellion, Stephen is restored, but the Barons refuse to accept his son as king, instead favorings Matilda and Geoffrey’s son Henry II.

Plantagenets (Angevin), 1153-1399

Henry II (1153-1189)

• 1153 Henry of Anjou, son of Matilda, marries Eleanor of Aquitaine, allying Aquitaine to his lands of Anjou and Normandy; Henry invades England and forces Stephen to make him heir to the English throne as Henry II. He restores law and order, creating the first traveling Assizes, or law courts with “circuit judges”. He increases the power of the royal courts at the expense of the local feudal courts. A permanent King’s Court (to become the Court of Common Pleas) also is formed at Westminister
• 1162 Thomas a Becket appointed Archbishop of Canterbury and quarrels with Henry II over the Church's rights. 1164 Henry II asserts his authority over the church and the right to try church officials in royal courts in the Constitutions of Clarendon. Clergy are forbidden to communicate with Rome without royal approval. Becket refuses to accept this and flees to France. 1170 Becket reconciles with Henry II, returns to Canterbury and excommunicates his foes (royal supporters); he is murdered in Canterbury Cathedral by four knights after Henry's hasty words against him, cursing “idle cowards of my court who stand by while this miserable priest insults me.” Three years later he is canonized.
• 1166 Assizes of Clarendon: a set of instructions governing the traveling Assize courts. Codifies trial by jury: allows traveling judges to have the case decided by 12 of the accused peers from the same hundred

· 1171 Henry II invades Ireland

· 1173 Rebellion of Henry's eldest sons, Henry, Richard, and Geoffrey, supported by their mother, Eleanor of Aquitaine. Eleanor is imprisoned by Henry. The episode is portrayed in the play and movie The Lion in Winter

Richard I, “Lionheart”, eldest surviving son of Henry II, (1189-1199)

· 1191-4 Richard I participates in the Third Crusades, defeating Saladin at Ansur. On the way home he is captured by Duke Leopold of Austria. Leopold hands Richard over to Emperor Henry VI. Richard is ransomed and returned to England.

· 1194-1196 While Richard I is on the Third Crusade, Philip II of France occupies much of his land in France. Richard wins much of it back by 1196. He is killed in France in 1199

John, youngest son of Henry II, (1199-1216)

· 1199 The barons of Brittany and Main revolt against John, and John withdraws to England. He refuses to attend Philip II’s court to answer charges about his marriage. Phillip declares John’s lands in France forfeit. In 1204 after an 8 month siege John’s forces at Chateau-Gaillard surrender to Philip, and John loses all of his French holdings except Gascony. He attempts to recover Normandy in 1214 but fails.

· 1207 Pope Innocent III appoints Stephen Langton Archbishop of Canterbury; John refuses to let him take office. Innocent III lays England under interdict – meaning that no subject could undertake of the sacraments (baptism, mass, marriage, etc) and faced damnation until John repented - and excommunicates John for attacks on Church property. 1213 Innocent III declares John deposed; John resigns his kingship and receives it back as a holding from the pope, thereby ending the interdict.

· 1215 Signing of Magna Carta at Runnymede; English barons force John to agree to a statement of their rights – legal tax collection, fair trials, no imprisonment without trial

Henry III (1216-1272)

· 1258 Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester, and other English barons force Henry III to sign the Provisions of Oxford, reforms including a council of 15 barons to advise the King. 1261 Henry cancels the Provisions. 1264 de Montfort and the barons defeat Henry III at battle of Lewes. 1265 De Montfort's Parliament: burgesses from major towns summoned to Parliament for the first time; Henry III's son Prince Edward defeats and kills Simon de Montfort at battle of Evesham

Edward I (1272-1307)

· 1283 Edward I conquers Wales and builds castles at Caernarfon and many others

· 1296-1314 Wars with Scotland

· 1295 The Model Parliament is called by Edward I to gain money for his wars of conquests. The respresentatives of the towns and shires (the Commons) meet with the king and the House of Lords, but the Commons have little power and must accept the king’s and lords’ decisions. It is considered the first representative parliament. It confirms the principles that the redress of greviences should preceed the collection of taxes, and extraordinary taxes requires national consent.

Edward II (1307-1327)

· 1311 In the Ordanances of 1311 English barons led by the earl of Lancaster appoint 21 peers, the Lords Ordainers, to manage Edward II's household instead of Edward’s Franch favorite, Piers Gaveston, who is executed. In 1322 Edward defeats Lancaster in battle and repeals the Ordanances, placing a new Frenchman, Hugh le Despenser, in charge.

· 1326 Edward’s wife Isabella (daughter of Philip II of France) and her lover Roger Mortimer sail from France with an army to rebel against Edward. 1327 Parliament declares Edward II deposed. Although technically Parliament did not have the authority to do so, it is carried through, raising the status of Parliament.

Edward III (1327-1376).

· 1337 Hundred Years War Begins

· 1337 The first English Duke is created as the nobility become more stratified

· 1340 English Parliament passes four statues providing that taxation shall be imposed only by Parliament

· 1348 Black Death (bubonic plague) reaches England

· 1351 The English remove the Pope's power to give English benefices to foreigners. 1353 Statue of Praemunire: English Parliament forbids appeals to Pope

· 1374 John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, son of Edward III, returns to England and takes charge of the government; Edward III in his dotage, the Black Prince is ill

· 1376 The Good Parliament, called by Edward the Black Prince, introduces many reforms of government; Peter de la Mare is elected first speaker of the House of Commons to treat with the king.

Richard II, son of Edward the Black Prince (1377-1399)

· 1377 Edward III and Edward the Black Prince are both dead. The Black Prince’s 10-year old son becomes King Richard II with John of Gaunt as Regent

· 1381 Peasants' Revolt captures London briefly. Result of increasing rents and a poll tax after the plague decreases the labor force. Led by Wat Tyler and an excommunicated priest, John Ball. The peasants withdraw from London after Richard II disingenuously promises to abolish serfdom.

· 1385 Richard II reaches his majority (18 years-old), and begins to fight the parliamentary council lead by John of Gaunt, which had ruled during his minority. In 1386 the “Wonderful Parliament” appoints a commission to control the king. Richard musters an army in response but is defeated at Radcot Bridge in 1387. In 1387 in the Questions to Judges, royal judges affirm the kings right to royal prerogatives (i.e. taxation without parliamentary consent). The “Merciless Parliament” of 1388 executes 3 of Richard’s friends and councilors.

· 1386-1388 John of Gaunt, who had married the daughter of Pedro I of Castile, leads an unsuccessful expedition to overthrow Juan I, whose father had usurped the throne from Pedro I

· 1394 John of Gaunt marries Katherine Swynford, with whom he has had several illegitimate children, known as the Beauforts, whose descendants will include Henry VII

· 1397 Richard demands an oath of Loyalty from the House of Lords, extracts forced loans, and in 1398 exiles John of Gaunt's eldest son, Henry of Bolingbroke

· 1399 Henry of Bolingbroke lands in Yorkshire with 40 followers, and soon has 60,000 supporters including the Percy and Neville families. Richard II is deposed and dies in prison; Bolingbroke becomes Henry IV

House of Lancaster (1399-1461)

Henry IV (1399-1413)

· 1401-15 Welsh Rebellion led by Owen Glendower

· 1403 Battle of Shrewsbury; rebellion by the Percy family: Henry IV defeats and kills Harry "Hotspur" Percy

Henry V (1413-1422)

· 1415 Henry V invades France, and defeats the French at Agincourt

Henry VI (1422-1461) (1470-1471)

· 1453 End of Hundred Years War; England gives up possessions in France

War of the Roses (1455-1485): Civil war between royal houses of York and Lancaster

· 1455 Richard, Duke of York, is regent of England while Henry VI is insane. Henry VI recovers. Richard of York is replaced by Somerset and excluded from the Royal Council; Battle of St. Albans. Somerset defeated and killed.

· 1460 Battle of Wakefield. Richard of York is defeated and killed; Earl of Warwick (the Kingmaker) captures London for the Yorkists; Battle of Northampton: Henry VI is imprisoned by Yorkists

· 1461 Battles of Mortimer's Cross and Towton: Richard's son, Edward of York, defeats Lancastrians and becomes king

House of York

Edward IV, of York (1461-1483)

· 1470-1 Warwick turns Lancastrian: forms alliance with France’s Louis XI, he defeats Edward IV and restores Henry VI. Battle of Barnet: Edward IV defeats and kills Warwick; Henry VI dies, probably murdered in the Tower of London

· 1475 Edward IV invades France; Peace of Piequigny between England and France

· 1483 Death of Edward IV; Edward V is deposed by his uncle, Richard III Duke of Gloucester; Edward V and his brother are murdered in the Tower of London

Richard III, King of England (1483-1485);

· 1485 Battle of Bosworth Field: Henry Tudor, with men, money and arms provided by Charles VIII of France, defeats and kills Richard III in the decisive (but not final) battle of the Wars of the Roses.

Wales

· 1007-1063 Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, prince of Powys, gradually brings the rest of Wales under his control. By 1055 he rules it as a unified kingdom, but it will dissolve after his death. Wales remains fragmented until finally conquered by England.

· 1256 Prince Llewellyn sweeps the English from Wales. 1283 Edward I defeats Llewellyn and conquers Wales. Edward I invests his baby son Edward as Prince of Wales. Edward builds 7 stone castles in northwest Wales.

· 1401-15 The Welsh Rebellion is led by Owen Glendower (Owain Glyndwr), who had been trained in the law in England, served in the English army, then returned in 1400 and proclaimed himself Prince of Wales. He gains the support of the Percy family, who had broken alliances with Henry IV. In 1404 Glendower conquers the castles at Aberystwyth and Harlech, and in 1405 summons a Welsh parliament. The English recapture the castles in 1408-1409. The English afterwards place severe legal restrictions on the Welsh.

· 1536 Act of Union with England

◄ ►

Scotland

· 1005-1034 Malcom II conquers Strathclyde. 1034-1040 Duncan, Malcom’s son, king.

· 1040 Macbeth murders Duncan, king of Scotland, who is in turn killed by Duncan’s son Malcom Canmore at the Battle of Lumphanan in 1057. Macbeth’s stepson Lulach is king 1057-1058, until he is killed by Malcom, who becomes Malcom III (1058-1093).

· 1072 William invades Scotland. Malcom III acknowledges William as overlord.

· 1124 David I ("the Saint") becomes king of the Scots. Despite strong links with the English royal court, he is an effective king, introducing royal councils and evolving the ancestor of the Scottish Parliament. He also builds cathedrals, like those in Glasgow, Elgin, and Saint Andrews, and castles which reflect the Norse influence.

· 1249-1286 Alexander III unifies Scotland. 1263 Norway gives the Hebrides to the Scots. His only descendant, Margaret, dies four years later.

· 1291 Edward I of England arbitrates in succession dispute between John Balloil and Robert Bruce. Edward rules in favor of Balloil, who swears fealty to Edward as his overlord. 1296 Edward I defeats the Scots at Berwick, deposes John Balliol, and moves the Stone of Scone to Westminister

· 1297 Battle of Cambuskenneth: William Wallace (“Braveheart”) defeats English army. 1298 Edward I defeats Wallace at battle of Falkirk and reconquers Scotland. 1305 The English capture and execute William Wallace

· 1306-1314 Rebellion led by Robert Bruce. Edward I dies on march north to crush Robert Bruce. 1314 Battle of Bannockburn: Robert Bruce defeats Edward II and makes Scotland independent. 1328 England acknowledges Scottish independence. Robert I, the Bruce crowned King of Scotland (to 1329) at Scone.

· 1333 Edward III invades Scotland on Balliol's behalf and defeats the Scots at battle of Halidon Hill

House of Stuart (1371-1707)

· 1371 Robert II, first Stuart king

· 1382 The Scots, with a French army, attack England

◄ ►

Ireland

· 1000-1100 O’Brian’s (Boru’s successors), fight with O’Neills. Both overpowered by O’Connors of Connacht by 1150. Turloch More O'Connor (1119-1156), king of Connacht, High King.

· 1169-1171 Arrival of Normans starts 800 year struggle between English and Irish. Normans conquer Dublin, Leinster and Meath.

· 1166 Dermot MacMurrough, king of Dublin & Leinster, is deposed by Rory O’Connor. Dermot appeals to Henry II for assistance, who accepts homage and allows him to use his subjects. Dermot recruits Richard de Clare, earl of Pembroke, known as Strongbow, and other Norman knights.

· 1170 Arrival of Richard de Clare (“Strongbow”), who marries Dermot’s daughter Aoife. 1171 At the death of Dermot Strongbow becomes king of Leinster. Concern over an independent kingdom and appeals from the Irish prompts the journey of Henry II to Ireland to assert his authority. Strongbow meets him en route to beg forgiveness and swear fealty. Henry II grants him Leinster as a fief but keeps Dublin. He lands at Waterford with a large army, and receives submission in Munster. In 3 generations Normans own 75% of land.

· 1235 Richard de Burgo conquers Connacht.

· 1258 Gallowglasses (mercenary soldiers) come to Ulster from Scotland to recapture Ireland from Normans.

· 1264 Walter de Burgo was made Earl of Ulster.

· 1272 The English had now conquered Ulster, east of Lough Neagh, in Meath, as well as most of Connacht and of Munster.

· 1315 Edward Bruce of Scotland invaded Ireland but failed in his attempt to overthrow Norman Rule. 1318 Edward Bruce killed by the English, near Dundalk, after having failed to become the Ard Ri

· 1350 Irish & Scottish recapture most of Ireland except for Fitzgeralds (Kildare), Desmond (West Munster), Butlers of Ormond (Kilkenny & East Munster). By this time the Normans had become Gaelicized.

· 1361 An edict bans Irish from becoming mayors, baillifs, officers of the king or clerygmen

· 1366 Statutes of Kilkenny forbade Irish/English marriages and preventing English to use Irish language, custom or laws.

· 1394 King Richard II, landed at Waterford, and marched up to Dublin. Loses to Gaelic chieftains twice.

· 1461 After the War of the Roses ends, Edward IV makes Earl of Desmond the Chief Governor of Ireland. However the Earl proves to be too Gaelicized for the King and is beheaded, and the title passes to the Fitzgeralds in 1470. By 1478 the Fitzgeralds had control of most of Ireland. They raised their own armies and taxes.

· 1496 Line of "the Pale" at Clongowes. This was a small enclave around Dublin, which became the area of English rule.

◄ ►

Scandinavia

· 1000 Sweyn of Denmark kills Olaf of Norway at the Battle of Svolder, annexes Norway to Denmark

· 1013-1035 Canute of Denmark takes English throne (1016), kills Olaf II and conquers Norway (1028), dies (1035); kingdom divided among his sons: Harold Harefoot (England), Sweyn (Norway), Hardecanute (Denmark). 1042 Harold Harefoot dies, Saxons retake English throne.

· 1255 Birger Jarl of Sweden founds Stockholm, a city of brick that reflects the influence of the Hanseatic League

· 1370 The Peace of Stralsund establishes the right of the Hanse towns to veto the Danish king

· 1397 Union of Kalmar. Margaret, queen of Denmark married the king of Norway, and it was agreed that their son, Olaf, should become king of both countries, but since Olaf was still a child, Margaret reigned as regent. 1386 Margaret persuades the Swedes to renounce their king in favor of her rule. 1387 Olaf dies, Margaret becomes ruler of all three countries, which agreed to accept whomever she proposed as her successor. At Kalmar, Margaret advances her choice, Eric of Pomerania, and Copenhagen becomes the capital of all Scandinavia.

◄ ►

Netherlands

· The Low Countries are in the cultural and political orbit of France and Germany.Most of the counties and duchies in the region are, technically at least, vassals of the Holy Roman Empire. The exception is Flanders, the most important and powerful county, which belongs to France. There are emerging urban organizations of merchants, the burgomasters, who meet regularly, have a common treasury, oversee the town’s finances and defense, are responsible for artistic patronage, and are of such importance that they can clear themselves of a charge by merely swearing an oath of innocence.

· 1050 onward A rise in population and an increased need for space and food drive the reclamation of coastal and marsh land below sea level, using dikes, canals, and windmills. Villages and towns expand. The difficulty of taking and maintaining land from the sea results in a communal organization unusual for the period

· 1197 The Holy Roman Empire's hold on the Low Countries weakens as the Ghibellines and the Guelphs, opposing aristocratic factions in Italy, struggle for the imperial throne. The Low Countries are plunged into the conflict as both groups look for aid there. King Philip Augustus (Philip II) of France uses his alliance with the Ghibellines to invade Flanders.

· 1214 Philip Augustus of France wins the Battle of Bouvines subjecting the count of Flanders, beginning a long period of French control.

· 1302 Philip IV almost completes the French conquest of Flanders In the Battle of the Golden Spurs (Courtrai) fought outside Kortrijk an untrained Flemish militia wins a decisive victory over French knights, preventing official absorption into France.

· 1337 The outbreak of the Hundred Years' War between France and England further strains Flemish-Franco relations. Although Count Louis I of Flanders remains loyal to France, most of his subjects side with England, because its wool is vital to the local textile industry; Louis I takes refuge at the French court in 1338. Until its annexation to the Burgundian territories later in the century, the region is ruled primarily by the powerful cities of Ghent, Bruges, and Ypres.

· 1345 The death of Willem IV, count of Holland, leads to a lasting civil war between an aristocratic faction known as the Hooks and a middle-class faction known as the Cods. The intervention of the House of Wittelsbach settles the issue, and its members rule as counts of Holland until the province surrenders to Philip the Good, duke of Burgundy, in 1433.

· 1369 The marriage of Philip the Bold, duke of Burgundy, to Margaret of Flanders marks the beginning of Burgundian rule in the Low Countries, which will last until the region passes to the Habsburgs in 1482. His efforts toward centralization help develop a national feeling, which results eventually in an enduring union of all the Low Countries.

· 1430 In an effort to strengthen Burgundian control over the Low Countries, Philip the Good creates the Order of the Golden Fleece, which he bestows on preeminent members of the local nobility.

· 1477 At the death of Charles the Bold, his daughter Mary of Burgundy becomes regent of the Low Countries (1477-1482) and marries Maximillian I, Holy Roman Emperor. Mary grants local authorities—the States General—control over the waging of war, currency, and taxation. These rights are documented in a constitution.

· 1482 Mary's husband Maximilian I becomes ruler of the Low Countries. His use of heavy taxation and brutal military force to recover the institutional and territorial losses since 1477 leads to ten years of revolt and internal warfare.

· 1482-1506 Philip I, Duke of Burgundy, ruler. Philip I marries Juana the Mad of Spain.

◄ ►

France

Between 1000 and 1400, the kingdoms of the Franks, divided among many leaders, becomes the kingdom of France, which energes under the Capetian dynasty as one of the most powerful in Christendom. Three kings stand out: Philip II (Philip Augustus, r. 1180–1223), Louis IX (Saint Louis, r. 1226–70), and Philip IV (Philip the Fair, r. 1285–1314). Each expands his authority well beyond Paris, wresting lands from the English. Each establishes a centralized administration, a hierarchical judicial system, and an efficient system of taxation.

The Capetians earn prestige on the religious front: they use clerics as advisors and confer privileges on churches and abbeys. The most famous of these "ministers" is Abbot Suger of Saint-Denis, counselor to Louis VI and Louis VII, and regent during the Second Crusade. Participation in the Crusades and pilgrimages, and, especially, the concept that the king's authority derives from God, give the Capetians the title of "very Christian kings". The Crusades waged in the East, alongside constant battles with the English, generate a sense of French identity.

The expansion of royal authority is halted in the fourteenth century by an economic crisis, the loss of a third of the population to the plague, and, from 1337, constant military conflict with the English, who hold large territories in France. The fourteenth century also sees the establishment of the papacy in Avignon, under pontiffs who are natives of central France.

Capetians, 987-1328

· 996-1027 Richard II, Duke Of Normandy. 1035-1087 William, bastard son of Richard II, Duke of Normandy. 1066 William becomes king of England.

· 1031-1060 Henry I

· 1137 Eleanor of Aquitaine marries King Louis VII. The duchy of Aquitaine is a far larger domain than that possessed by the French kings. Their marriage is annulled in 1152, and Eleanor immediately marries Henry Plantagenet, who becomes Henry II, king of England, in 1154. This marriage brings Aquitaine, Normandy, and England under one rule

· 1140–1150 Abbot Suger, advisor to Louis VI and Louis VII, remodels the royal abbey church of Saint-Denis outside Paris, spelling out the basic principles of Gothic architecture.

· 1180-1223 Philip Augustus. Official documents begin to speak of "a king of France" rather than "the king of the Franks." Philip augments the royal domain through marriage and conquest. He reforms his administration, increases the royal treasury, and builds extensive defenses. He establishes the court permanently at Paris in 1194.

· 1209 The Albigensian Crusade is launched around Toulouse by Pope Innocent III with the help of Cistercian monks. The Albigensians are a sect (named after the town of Albi) whose philosophy is closer to Manicheism than Catholicism. The war is also a political struggle between the independent Provencal-speaking southern territories and lords of northern France, joined by Louis VIII. It begins with a massacre of 15,000 in Beziers in 1209. In 1229, Count Raymond VII of Toulouse, who had been Louis VIII's main adversary, is compelled to cede Provence to the king's control.

· 1226-1270 Louis IX. He exemplifies the virtues of the Christian knight. Having bought the Crown of Thorns from the Byzantine emperor in 1237, Louis IX commissions the Sainte-Chapelle, his royal chapel on the Île de la Cité in Paris, as its reliquary. He is canonized in 1297

· 1285-1314 Philip the Fair

· 1300s With 20 million inhabitants, France is reputed the most powerful nation in Europe, as compared to Germany with a population of 14 million and England with 4 million.

· 1309–1367 Due in part to political insecurity in Italy, the French pope Clement V takes up residence in Avignon, which at the time belongs to the count of Provence, a vassal of the king of France.

Valois, 1328-1589

· 1328 Philip VI, the first French king from the Valois branch of the Capetian dynasty, ascends to the French throne.

· 1337-1453 Hundred Years War

· 1348 The Bubonic Plague reaches France, killing a third of the population.

· 1358 The Jacquerie, a revolt by French peasants, followed the capture of King John II at the Battle of Poitiers and breakdown of royal authority. The name comes from “Jacques Bonhomme”, the traditional name for a French peasant. It’s caused by resentment of feudal dues and church tithes. The immediate provocation was the battening of French and English troops around Paris. It is joined by the Parisian artisans. Many nobles are murdered and 200 castles burned. After six weeks the Dauphin brings the revolt to an end and 20,000 rebels are executed.

· 1380–1422 Armagnacs and Burgundians, two powerful political factions, war for control of France during the frequent periods of insanity suffered by Charles VI. The Dukes of Burgundy ally themselves with England

· 1407 John the Fearless, duke of Burgundy, arranges the murder to Louis, Duke of Orleans. 15 years of civil war ensues between the Burgundians and Armagnacs (after Louis’ son, count of Armagnac). Both woo English support.

· 1420 English king Henry V is named heir to the throne, with the Duke of Burgundy as co-regent.

· 1422–61 Charles VII. He is not accepted as king in the north. 1429 Charles VII is, with the help of Joan of Arc, crowned in Reims. Charles's reconciliation with Philip the Good, duke of Burgundy, facilitates his gradual reconquest of northern France

· 1465 The League of Public Weal: The Dukes of Alencon, Berri, Burgundy, and Lorraine conspire against Louis XI

· 1477 At the death of Charles of Burgundy, the duchy of Burgundy is absorbed by France.

· 1494-1559 Hapsburg-Valois Wars

Duchy of Burgundy

· 1419-1467 Philip the Good initally allies with England against the Valois. Philip moves his court from Dijon to Bruges

· 1467–1477 Charles the Bold. He continually struggles with Louis XI for control of the territory between Burgundy and the Netherlands

o 1468 He marries Margaret of York.

o 1474 War between France, allied with Edward IV of England, and Burgundy.

o 1474-1477 War between Burgundy and the Swiss Confederation. Charles is defeated by the Swiss at Grandson, Morat, and killed at Nancy. 1477 Charles’ daughter Mary marries Maximillian I, Holy Roman Emperor and becomes regent of the Netherlands; the remainder of the duchy of Burgundy is absorbed by France. Burgundy and the Netherlands are united with Hapsburg territories in Austria.

◄ ►

Spain

· 1031–1085 Following the collapse of the Umayyad caliphate, local governors designate themselves as autonomous Ta’ifa rulers. The strongest among them are Sevilla's Abbasid rulers, Toledo's Dhu’l-Nun family, Saragossa's Banu Hud rulers, and Granada's Zirids.

· 1075 Construction begins on the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela on the site of the tomb of Saint James the Great. After Jerusalem and Rome, Santiago de Compostela becomes the third most important pilgrimage goal. Saint James, said to have brought Christian faith to the Iberian Peninsula, takes on a political dimension as patron of the reconquista.

· 1085 Alfonso VI, king of Castile and Leon, conquers Toledo, creating a large Christian realm in the very center of Spain.

· 1094-1099 Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar (El Cid), life inspires epic literature. He had been exiled from Castille after fighting for Alfonso’s brother in a succession dispute until 1072 and leading an unauthorized raid on Toledo, then a client state, in 1081. He enters the service of the Islamic Taifa rulers of Saragossa, ignores Alfonso’s attempts at reconciliation, then conquers and rules Valencia on his own. The Almoravids recover Valencia in 1102 however and rule it until 1238

· 1085–1145 The Almoravids enter al-Andalus after the fall of Toledo in response to the Ta’ifa leaders' plea for help. The Almoravids assume control of al-Andalus in 1090, while maintaining their primary seat of government in Marrakesh.

· 1100–1200 Ibn Rushd (Averroës, 1126–1198), Islamic philosopher, and Moses Maimonides (1135–1204)

· 1143 Portugal is recognized as independent by Castille.

· 1145–1232 The Almohads, another Berber dynasty, supplant the Almoravids and make Sevilla their capital

· 1212 The combined armies of Aragon and Castile defeat the Almohads at the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa, a turning point in the peninsula's history. Al-Andalus fractures into tribute-paying principalities, vulnerable to invasion by the Christian kingdoms.

· 1232–1492 The Nasrid dynasty rules the Kingdom of Granada. Christian armies make the Nasrids tribute-paying vassals in 1243.

· 1300–1400 Nasrid sultans build the Alhambra, the last major Islamic monument of Spain

· 1385 Juan I usurps the throne from Pedro I of Castille. He then proclaims himself King of Portugal since he had married the daughter of Ferdinand I of Portugal. John of Gaunt of England, who had married Constance, daughter of Pedro I, leads an expedition to Castille to overthrow Juan I. John of Gaunt is unable to recapture the Castillian throne, but Juan of Aviz becomes King of Portugal.

· 1391 Pogroms results in the massacre of many Jews in Sevilla

· 1416 Prince Henry, "the Navigator", establishes a naval base and a school of navigation at Sagres

· 1469 Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon are married. Her half-brother King Henry IV names instead as his heir Juana, supposedly his daughter but of dubious paternity. At Henry's death, Isabella takes the throne and civil war breaks out between Isabella's and Juana's supporters, including Alfonso V of Portugal who marries Juana in 1475. In 1476, Alfonso is defeated at Toro, and Isabella is acknowledged as queen of Castile in 1479, the same year in which her husband accedes to the throne of Aragon as Ferdinand II (1479–1516). Called the "Catholic Monarchs," Ferdinand and Isabella not only regain Catholic hegemony in Spain, but also curtail the power of the nobility and consolidate that of the monarchy.

· 1478 Ferdinand and Isabella establish the Spanish Inquisition. Tomás de Torquemada is Grand-inquisitor

· 1492 The Kingdom of Granada is conquered by Ferdinand and Isabella, with the expulsion of Moors and 200,000 Jews from Spain.

◄ ►

Portugal

· 1143 Portugal is recognized as independent by Castille after Alfonso Henriques expels the Moors. The Portuguese rapidly push the Muslims back into Spain, aided by English Crusaders. Portugal then becomes an important Atlantic sea power exporting tin and silver.

· 1385 Juan I of Castille, who had usurped the throne from Pedro I, proclaims himself King of Portugal since he had married the daughter of Ferdinand I of Portugal. Juan gathered support from the Portugese nobility but was opposed by the peasants and merchants, who supported the grand master of the Knights of Aviz, also named Juan. John of Gaunt of England, who had married Constance, daughter of Pedro I of Castile, leads an expedition to Castille to overthrow Juan I, in support of Juan of Aviz, and they defeat Juan I at Aljubarrota. John of Gaunt is unable to recapture the Castillian throne, but Juan of Aviz becomes King of Portugal. Portugal and England sign the longest-lasting treaty in European history (unbroken to this day).

◄ ►

Germany/Holy Roman Empire

The eleventh and twelfth centuries witness the growth of a strong government in central Europe. The Holy Roman Empire, as the union of Germany and the northern Italian principalities under a German emperor came to be known, temporarily asserts its authority even over the church, and both are energetic patrons of the arts. By the thirteenth century, imperial power begins to decline, while the autonomy of principalities, prince-bishoprics, and cities increases. The emperor and the pope, as the leading patrons of the arts in the High Middle Ages, are emulated by lesser rulers and city governments.

· The Reichstag: The principal political organ, apart from the emperor, was the Diet (Reichstag), which was crystallized by the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries into three Estates or Colleges. Each Estate voted separately. The three Estates: The seven imperial electors, the other imperial princes, and the free imperial cities. The two princely Estates almost always outvoted the cities, so that the latter in practice exercised very little power. Moreover, groups of princes, or even individual ones if they were powerful enough, could often successfully defy laws passed by a majority of their peers. The Diet was, therefore, much less a legislature with power to enforce its decisions, than it was an assembly of sovereign princes, with power either to prevent decisions or to resist them.

· 1200-1400 Germans push east into Pomerania and Prussia, partially under the Teutonic Knights

Franconian (Salian) Emperors, 1024-1137

· 1024-1039 Conrad II. Limits aristocratic & ecclesiastic powers.

· 1046 Henry III deposes three rival popes and reaffirms the right to appoint the pope

· 1056-1106 Henry IV. 1075 He conflicts with Pope Gregory VII over who should appoint bishops in Germany – the Investiture Controversy. 1076 At the Synod of Worms, Henry gets German bishops to declare Gregory deposed. Gregory excommunicates Henry IV. 1077 To avoid a trial by German bishops presided over by Gregory (who was on his way), Henry does penance to Gregory (barefoot in the snow) at Canossa. 1080 Gregory again excommunicates Henry and declares him deposed. 1083 Henry storms Rome, Gregory is driven into exile where he dies. Henry installs anti-Pope.

· 1100-1500 The Hanseatic League of German merchants and towns is established. 1293 Lübeck became the leading city of the Hanseatic League. 1370 Victory of the Hanseatic League over the Danes

· 1122 The Concordat of Worms settles the struggle between the Holy Roman Emperor and the papacy over the control of church offices. While the clergy chooses bishops and abbots, the emperor retains the power to decide contested elections. This gives the local nobility greater influence in the choice of church officials, and increased independence from the imperial crown

· 1125 The elective principle for the selection of Emperors is established with the election of Lothair II.

Hohenstaufens, 1138-1254

· 1138-1152 Conrad III

· 1152-90 Frederick Barbarossa.1156 He gains Burgundy by marriage. 1157 He defeats Denmark & Poland. 1158 Threatened by the autonomy of the Italian communes, he invades Italy, seizes Milan and Rome, installs an anti-Pope. He is defeated at Legano in 1176 and the antagonists reach an agreement in 1183 (Peace of Constance). 1180 Frederick I (Barbarossa) outlaws the Saxon Duke Henry the Lion. 1190 He drowns on the Third Crusade.

· 1190 The Teutonic Order was founded in Akko. In the 13th and 14th centuries it dominated vast territories along the Baltic coast

· 1218-50 Frederick II. Unites crowns of Holy Roman Empire, Germany, Sicily, Lombardy, Burgundy, & Jerusalem. 1235 Frederick II proclaimed the Peace of Mainz, the first imperial law in the German language 1245 Pope Inonocent II declares Frederick II deposed at the Synod of Lyon. 1247-1250 War in Italy between Frederick II and papal allies.

The Great Interregnum, 1250–1273. Imperial authority dissolves

Rulers from Various Houses, 1273- 1437

· 1273 Rudolf of Hapsburg became Emperor. He increased power by his victory over King Ottocar II of Bohemia. 1278 Rudolf I conquers Bohemia, surrenders claims to Sicily and the Papal States

· 1328 The Holy Roman Emperor is crowned in Rome for the last time.

· 1348 The founding of the first German university in Prague, which Charles IV made the permanent capital of the empire

· 1348-1352 The Plague ("black death")

· 1356 Charles IV issues the Golden Bull, a constitution in which the election of the Emperor is in the hands of seven electoral princes (Archbishop of Mainz, Archbishop of Cologne Archbishop of Trier, King of Bohemia, Count Palatine of the Rhine, Duke of Saxony, Margrave of Brandenburg). Each emperor rules from his chosen capital. The Electors, in turn, have complete authority within their territories, with no legal appeal to the Emperor; they also have the “royal privledges” to mint coins, mine salt and metals, and tax Jews. Electoral states are made indivisible and use primogeniture for succession. These rights are gradually adopted by local princes, as the authority of the Emperor lessens. It also ignores the papacy, denying the pope’s practice of confirming the election of the emperor.

· 1415-1450 Czech cleric Jan Hus and his followers the Hussites lead a series of rebellions in Bohemia

Hapsburgs, 1438-1806 (until 1918 Kings of Austria)

· 1438-1439 Albert II of Habsburg, duke of Austria, who had married the Emperor Sigismund’s daughter, is elected Emperor. He also succeeds to the thrones of Bohemia and Hungary.

· 1440-1493 Frederick III. His rule is a continuous struggle to check the growing autonomy of princes of the empire. Frederick recovers Austria and claims the thrones of Hungary and Bohemia (upon the death of Hungarian king Matthias Corvinus).

· 1477 Maximillian I, son of Frederick III, marries Mary of Burgundy. Burgundy and the Netherlands are united with Hapsburg territories in Austria.

· 1493 Peasants' uprising on the upper Rhine

Bavaria

· 1158 Duke Henry the Lion (Lion Heart) founds a new settlement on river Isar, which is the Munich of today. After the fall of Henry the Lion, Emperor Friedrich Barbarossa in 1180 gave the Duchy to the Bavarian Count Palatine Otto von Wittelsbach. 1214 The Wittelsbachs acquired also the Palatinate. The Wittelsbach Dukes expand their domain, peaking under Ludwig the Bavarian (1302 - 1347), who as Emperor added Brandenburg, Tyrol, Holland and the Hennegau to his empire. In the 14th and 15th centuries the House of Wittelsbach was weakened by the partition of its lands through inheritance. Finally, Albrecht IV the Wise (1467-1508) reunited the Duchy of Bavaria and introduced the Law of Primogeniture.

◄ ►

Italy

· While the north witnesses rapid urban growth leading to the formation of city-states, Sicily and the south are ruled by successive monarchies. Power struggles between the Holy Roman Empire, the papacy, and the northern city-states preclude domination by a central authority.

· A group of Italian mercenaries in the 14th century fashioned a pragmatic war strategy that fit the new "professional" aspect of soldiering. The group known as the "condottieri" hired themselves out during the period of regional conflict in Italy and in some cases they would end up fighting each other from time to time. For them the concept of victory was more decisive and less bloody, and by extension less expensive. From the ranks of these professionals emerged new techniques of fighting best expressed by two of their noted practitioners Paolo Vitelli and Prospero Colonna who explained, "Wars are won rather by industry and cunning than by clash of arms."

Northern Italy

· 1000-1500 Venice expands into the Dalmatian coast, and controls the trade routes to the East, which becomes important during the Crusades. Relations between Venice and Constantinople break down, leading to Venetian support of the sacking of Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade.

· 1015 At the encouragement of the pope, an allied fleet from Genoa and Pisa evicts the Arabs from Sardinia and Corsica, and for the next three centuries the two republics wrestle for control over the islands.

· 1076 Emperor Henry IV opposes reforms by Pope Gregory VII intended to limit imperial power over the church. Although the conflict is settled in a compromise in 1122 (Concordat of Worms), the issue of papal versus imperial supremacy polarizes Italy for the next 200 years, and two opposing political factions, the Guelphs (supporting the pope) and the Ghibellines (supporting the German emperor), dominate intercity relations.

· 1080–1130 The cities of northern Italy, ruled by the German emperors since 962, assert their independence and establish municipal corporations, called communes. The communes become city-states by conquering weaker neighboring cities.

· 1150–1250 Threatened by the autonomy of the Italian communes, the German emperor Frederick I Barbarossa of Hohenstaufen wages war against the northern Italian cities in an attempt to reassert imperial jurisdiction. Although the antagonists reach an agreement in 1183 (Peace of Constance), in 1245 Pope Inonocent II declares Frederick II deposed at the Synod of Lyon. 1247-1250 War in Italy between Frederick II and papal allies ends with the collapse of Imperial authority in Italy

· 1250–1273 Imperial authority over Italy dissolves during a interregnum in the Holy Roman Empire.

· 1250–1450 As assertive rulers begin to seize control of northern Italian cities, the communal governments are replaced by signorie, or governments by permanent lordship.

· 1297 Pope Boniface VIII attempts to end the rivalry between Genoa and Pisa over Sardinia and Corsica, naming James II of Aragon as regent. The Aragonese rulers conquer Sardinia in 1324, but Corsica remains in the hands of the Genoese until 1768

· 1309-1378 Clement V moves the papacy from Rome to Avignon, beginning the period of French domination of the papacy

· 1347–1349 Plague ravages Sicily and the Italian peninsula, killing more than half of the population. Combined with the devastating collapse of the banking industry in Florence in 1346, the Black Death brings to an end to growth in Italy.

· 1400s The Medici family of merchants and bankers rises to power in Florence. Giovanni Medici supports Pope John XXIII through his career, becomes papacy’s bank. 1434 His son, Cosimo (1389-1464), after battling with the Florentine oligarchy and Albizzi family, and exile, takes control of the city, later sponsors Brunelleschi’s completeion of the cathedral dome. 1469 His nephew Lorenzo (“The Magnificent”) becomes head of the family. 1478 Conspirators including the Pazzi family and Pope Sixtus IV devise a plot to oust the Medici, namely Lorenzo and his brother Giuliano. Giuliano is assassinated during Easter mass at the cathedral, while Lorenzo escapes. Although the Medici quell the conspiracy, revolts against their rule continue until Lorenzo dies (1493) and they are expelled from Florence (1494). During their exile, religious reformer Fra Girolamo Savonarola comes to power, condemning the worldliness and corruption of the city, instigates the “Bonfire of the Vanities”, but he is tried and burned at the stake as a false prophet in 1498. The Medici return to power after 1512.

· 1447 The death of Filippo Maria Visconti ends more than two centuries of Visconti rule in Milan. A republic is established at his death, but by 1450, Filippo's son-in-law, Francesco Sforza is named duke of Milan. The Sforza family remain in power, with interruptions, until 1535, after which possession of the duchy is contested by Spain and France

· 1463-1479 Ottomans and Venetians at war. 1471 Turks seize Negroponte. 1472 Venetians destroy Smyrna. 1479 The Turks take the Ionian islands and impose an annual charge for trade on the Black Sea. 1481 The Venetians take Cyprus. A long economic and military competition between the Ottomans and Venice begins.

· 1480 The Turks besiege Rhodes, held by the Knights of St. John, who are expelled. In 1530 the Knights are given Malta by Charles V.

Southern Italy

· 1016 Norman pilgrims travel from France to southern Italy, where they establish themselves as mercenaries for Lombard rebels attempting to overthrow Byzantine rule.

· By 1030, the Normans have become lords of Aversa, and from there they set out to conquer all of South Italy. By 1071, the Norman princes capture Bari, the last Byzantine stronghold in Italy, ending five centuries of Byzantine rule. 1084 Robert Guiscard, Norman invader, sacks Rome.

· 1061–1091 Normans capture Sicily from the Arabs. 1072 Roger d’Hauteville becomes Count of Sicily. He employs Muslim administrators.

· 1130–1154 Roger II unites Norman territories in southern Italy and Sicily and becomes the first ruler of the Kingdom of Sicily

· 1265 The papacy invites Charles of Anjou to conquer southern Italy and of Sicily from its Hohenstaufen rulers. Charles is crowned king of Naples and Sicily. 1282 Charles’ oppressive rule and taxation causes the Sicilians to revolt (with Byzantine support). It begins during Eastern morning vespers (“the Sicilian vespers”), and hundreds of French officials are massacred. The crown of Sicily is given to Peter III of Aragon, who assists in the revolt.

◄ ►

Balkans

· 1018-1188 The Byzantine emperor Basil II conquers Bulgaria, brutally blinding thousands of captive enemy soldiers.

· 1188 Second Bulgarian Kingdom is established.

· 1300–1350 Albanians, originally settled in the northwestern Balkans, migrate to Byzantine territories and seize control of parts of central Greece (Epirus and Thessaly).

· 1346 Stephen Dushan, King of the Serbs, is crowned “Emperor of the Serbs and Greeks”

· 1389 At the Battle of Kosovo Polje, Ottoman forces under Murad I defeat the Bulgarian, Serbian, and Bosnian armies. Following the conquest, Ottoman expansion continues throughout the Balkans. Bulgaria and Serbia become dependent vassal states

◄ ►

Eastern Europe

Hungary

· 998-1038 Stephen I, first Roman Catholic Christian king of Hungary when he is sent a crown by the Pope. He is later canonized.

· 1458-1490 Matthias Corvinus, King of Hungary. He assembles a powerful army and safeguards his country against Turkish invaders. Scholarship and the arts flourish at his court in Buda, where he establishes a celebrated library. 1478 Hungary gains Moravia and Silesia. 1485 Hungary captures Vienna and lower Austria.

· 1491 Upon the death of Matthias Corvinus, Holy Roman Emperor Maximillian I claims the throne of Hungary and Bohemia

◄ ►

Bohemia

· 907-929 St. Wenceslaus becomes the first King of Bohemia and is baptized in the Roman church

· 950 Bohemia becomes a tributary to Germany

· 955 Bohemia conquers Moravia

· 1003-1041 Poland controls Bohemia and Moravia

· 1088 Bohemia becomes an independent state

◄ ►

Poland and the Baltic

· 960-992 Mieczyslaw I (Miesko) becomes first duke of Poland. He chooses Roman Catholicism for his kingdom, a German tributary.

· 992-1025 Boleslav I the Brave establishes the Polish National Church. He conquers Silesia in 999 and Bohemia and Moravia in 1003. In 1025 he becomes the first King of Poland, with Russia as a vassal state.

· 1343 The Peace of Kalisch gives land to the Teutonic Knights, cutting off Poland from the Baltic.

· 1341-1377 Under Grand-Duke Olgierd Lithuania reaches its greatest extent

· 1386 A personal union is formed between Lithuania and Poland when the heirs of the two states marry. Lithuania becomes Roman-Catholic.

· 1410 Battle of Tannenberg: Poland/Lithuania defeats the Teutonic Knights. 1466 Poland gains much of Prussia from the Teutonic Knights.

· 1471 Vladislav I of Poland is elected king of Bohemia.

· 1494 Lithuania concedes Ivan III’s claim to be “Czar of all Russia”

◄ ►

Russia

Russia at this time was not a unified state, but rather a collection of principalities known as Rus.

· 1019-1054 Under Jaroslav “the Wise” the building of Byzantine churches in Kiev rivals Constantinople. His family marries into western royal families, increasing the principality’s prestige. The Primary Chronicle of Russian history is written.

· 1169 Prince Andrei Bogolubski moves capital to Vladimir, near Moscow

· 1236-1240 The Mongols settle in Russia, capturing Moscow and Kiev, establishing the Golden Horde (Tatars) on the lower Volga.

· 1236-1263 Alexander Nevsky, Prince of Novgorod, defeats the Swedes at the Battle of Neva.

· 1271 Moscow becomes capital of Grand Duchy of Suzdal-Vladimir. The Duke’s palace is the Kremlin.

· 1328-1340 Ivan I “Kalita” (“”money-bags”) of Moscow gains the right to collect tribute himself and the right of “absolute rule” over his subjects from the Golden Horde

· 1380 Dmitri Donskoi defeats the Mongols at the Battle of Kulikovo; takes title Grand Duke of Moscow

· 1400s Many princes in Ukraine and Russia rule by patents granted by the khan of the Golden Horde. Weakening of the Horde fosters the ambitions of more daring princes, most notably the Daniilovichi of Moscow who crown their heirs without consulting the khan.

· 1453 After the fall of Constantinople to the Ottomans the Russian Orthodox Church becomes independent

· 1462-1505 Ivan III the Great, Duke of Moscow. In 1480 he ends payment of tribute to the Tatars. He marries the niece of the last Byzantine emperor, and declares himself Tzar (Casear) in 1483. He rebuilds the Kremlin, begins annexing surrounding areas, conquers Novogorod, builds an autocratic state, challenges Lithuania and Sweden for control of Baltic ports. He begins tieing peasants to the land, allowing them to change landlords once a year.

◄ ►

Near East

Byzantine Empire

· 1018 Emperor Basil II conquers Bulgaria and Armenia. Byzantium reaches its greatest extent.

· 1054 The Great Schism. Dissension between the Orthodox Church and the Roman church leads to mutual excommunication.

· 1055-1075 Seljuk Turks defeat the Byzantines and capture Baghdad, Armenia (1064), Anatolia at the Battle of Mazinkart (1071), Syria, and Palestine (1075). In 1097 The Byzantine Empire is reduced to Constantinople, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Greece, and cities scattered around the Black Sea (Sinope, Trebizond, Gothia)

· 1100s-1400s Weak emperors and divisions between the provincial aristocratic military and the bureaucracy in Constantinople further weaken the government.

· 1204 Byzantium is occupied by armies of the Fourth Crusade. In place of a centralized Byzantine government, independent Byzantine states are established: the empire of Nicaea (1204–61), the empire of Trebizond (1204–1461), and the despotate of Epirus in Albania (1204–1318).

· 1261-1453 A new Byzantine emperor, Michael VIII Palaiologos, emerges from exile in the state of Nicaea and recovers Constantinople, reestablishing the empire on a much reduced scale. Begins the Palaeologi dynasty.

· 1274 The Council of Lyon reunites the Byzantine and Roman churches, but is repealed in 1282, only to be reconsidered several times until the empire's fall (last in 1439 when Constantinople was surrounded by the Ottomans the patriach assented to papal primacy – but later recanted).

· 1311 Mercenaries from Catalonia attack Constantinople and set up their own Catalan duchy of Athens

· 1354 Ottoman armies occupy the Byzantine fortress of Gallipoli and begin expansion into the Balkans. 1391 First siege of Constantinople by the Ottomans.

· 1453 The Byzantine empire, reduced to the city of Constantinople, falls to the Ottoman armies led by Mehmed II. The Hagia Sophia becomes a mosque. A last outpost of the empire, the city of Mystras in southern Greece falls in 1460. Christians in formerly Byzantine territories maintain some degree of self-rule, and a number of churches and monasteries have their privileges continued by the sultan.

◄ ►

Ottoman Empire

· 1055-1075 Seljuk Turks, originally led by chief Seljuk and settled in Bokhara (Uzbekistan) in the late 900s. They had been sunni Muslims since the 700s, and recruited as mercenaries by the Abbasids. Under Alp Arslan they defeat the Byzantines and capture Baghdad (1055), Armenia (1064), Anatolia (1071), Syria, and Palestine (1075). They call their empire the Sultanate of Rum (derived from Rome)

· 1261–1310 After Mongol invasions independent principalities replace the unity of Seljuk rule in Anatolia, including the Osmanli (Ottomans), founded by Osman in 1290 when he declared the independence of his kingdom of Bythnia from the Seljuks. The Ottomans gradually conquer Anatolia.

· 1345 The Ottomans enter Europe to assist the Byzantine emperor in a civil war. 1354 Ottoman armies occupy the Byzantine fortress of Gallipoli and begin expansion into the Balkans.

· 1376 The Ottoman capital is transferred from Prousa in Anatolia to the Byzantine city of Adrianople.

· 1389 At the Battle of Kosovo Polje, Ottoman forces under Murad I defeat the Bulgarian, Serbian, and Bosnian armies. Following the conquest, Ottoman expansion continues throughout the Balkans.

· 1389–1402 Bayezid I ("the Thunderbolt") In 1391 begins the first siege of Constatinople. Conquests in Anatolia and the Balkans lead to the fatal battle of Ankara against Tamerlane. In the aftermath of Bayezid's death, his sons fight for the throne while conquered regions declare their autonomy.

· 1413-1421 Emerging from the interregnum after his father Bayezid's death, Mohammed I reestablishes a unified Ottoman state.

· 1453 The turks carry 70 ships overland to bypass a Byzantine blockade at the Bosporus. After 6 weeks of siege Constantinople falls to the Ottoman armies led by Mohammed II, who establishes Constantinople his capital, and the name Istanbul gradually supercedes Constantinople. The Hagia Sophia becomes a mosque. Topkapi palace is built in Istabul 1462.

· 1456-1481 Under Mohammed II the Ottomans Ottomans conquer Greece (1456), Serbia (1459), the Crimea (1475), Albania (1478), besiege Rhodes, held by the Knights of St. John (1480).

· 1463-1479 Ottomans and Venetians at war. 1471 Turks seize Negroponte. 1472 Venetians destroy Smyrna. 1479 The Turks take the Ionian islands and impose an annual charge for trade on the Black Sea. 1481 The Venetians take Cyprus. A long economic and military competition between the Ottomans and Venice begins. Battle of Otluk-Beli: Turks defeat the Persians, allies of Venice.

◄ ►

Egypt and Palestine

· 909-1171 Fatimid dynasty rules Algeria, Tunisia, Sicily, Egypt, and Syria from Cairo.

· 1071-1098 Seljuk turks conquer Syria & Palestine. 1009 Fatamids destroy the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.

· 1099–1244 Crusader forces expel the Fatimid governor from Jerusalem and control the city until Saladin recovers it in 1244

· 1171–1250 The Ayyubid sultanate in Egypt is founded by Salah al-Din (Saladin), a Kurdish (Zengid) general, who repulses a Crusader army that reaches the gates of Cairo (1160s). In 1171, he declares the Fatimid caliphate to be over, proclaims himself sultan in 1174, recovers Acre, Jaffa, Beirut, and Jerusalem from the Crusaders (1187), gains control over the Hejaz and Yemen (1173) and Syria (1174). He gives Christians safe passage out of the sultanate. During the Third crusade he is defeated at Arsuf by Richard Lion-Heart of England, and they sign a truce in 1192. As orthodox Sunnis, the Ayyubids resist Shiite tendencies in the region and introduce madrasas for this purpose.

· 1250–1516 Mamluks. Former military slaves of Circassian origin, the Mamluks replace their overlords the Ayyubids, and conquer Egypt, Palestine, and Syria, and control Mecca and Medina.

· 1228–1454 The Rasulid sultanate rules in Yemen independently of the Ayyubids and the Mamluks

· 1370–1405 Timur (Tamerlane) devastates Syria, burning Aleppo and Damascus (1400)

· 1516 Ottoman armies under Selim conquer Syria and Egypt, bringing an end to the Mamluk sultanate.

◄ ►

Iraq and Iran

· 945–1055 The weakened Abbasid caliphate is ruled by the Iranian Buyid dynasty, its political power is effectively limited to Iraq, and its influence is limited to the spiritual spheres as the heads of Orthodox Sunni Islam.

· 1055–1194 The Seljuk Turks unifiy West Asia through conquest. They capture Baghdad and the Abassid caliphate (1055), Armenia (1064), Anatolia (1071), Syria, and Palestine (1075).

o 1090 Hasan ibn al-Sabbah founds the Assassin sect in Persia

· 1194-1258 The Abbasid caliphate has a brief revival in Baghdad until 1258 when the Mongols sack Baghdad and kill the last Abbasid caliph

· 1157-1221 The Khwarizm Shahs rule Iran

· 1220-1258 Mongols conquer Iraq and Iran.

o 1220 Bukhara and Samarkand fall to Genghis Khan. 1221 The Persian cities of Merv, Nishapur, and Balkh had fallen. The Mongols decimated the population, sparing only the artisans they deemed useful, and uprooted many Muslim graves, including that of Harun al-Rashid. 1258 they conquer Baghdad, ending the Abbasid caliphate and establishing the Ilkhanid dynasty. By tradition, the last Abbasid caliph was rolled in a carpet and stomped upon because the Mongols were superstitious about shedding his blood.

· 1258–1353 The Ilkhanid (Il-Khan) dynasty of Mongols rules Iraq and Iran from the city of Tabriz in Iran. The Ilkhanids convert to Islam at the end of the thirteenth century

o 1325 Shams ud-Din Mohammad (better known as Hafiz), the national poet of Persia, was born.

· 1353-1534 Iraq & Iran are ruled by a series of Turco-Mongol dynasties.

o 1370–1405 Timur (Tamerlane) invades Iraq, sacks Baghdad (1401)

· 1534 Iran and Iraq are incorporated into the Ottoman empire.

◄ ►

Asia

India

· 998-1175 Mahmud, leader of the Ghazni Turks (Ghaznavids), conquers Punjab. Islam begins to exert a powerful influence in northwest India.

· 1175-1398 Delhi Sultanate

· 1192 Mohammed Ghuri leads the “Ghurid Turks” to defeat the Ghazni Turks in the Punjab. 1206 Qutb al-Din Aybak, one of Ghuri’s slaves, becomes the first sultan of Delhi beginning the Dynasty of Slave Kings (1206-1290)

· 1398 Delhi is sacked by Mongols led by Tamerlane, who massacres 100,000 prisoners, but the Tughluq sultans return to power upon their withdrawal. The Sayyid sultans rule from 1414, succeeded by the Lodis in 1451. Delhi-based sultanates never reestablish a strong political hold over India.

· 1459 Rao Jodha, the maharaja of Marwar, founds Jodhpur. He builds a large hill fort and sets the pattern for Rajput states.

· 1490 The governors of the four provinces of the Bahmanid sultanate in the Deccan break away, resulting in the formation of five smaller Deccani sultanates: Ahmadnagar, Berar, Bidar, Bijapur, and Golconda.

· 1498 The Portuguese arrive on the western coast of India and establish trading posts. 1510 With their conquest of Goa, the Portuguese begin a century of control over the East Indies spice trade.

Sri Lanka

· 1400s Sri Lanka is politically divided into three main regions. In the north there is the Tamil kingdom at Jaffna, and Sinhala kingdoms centered in Kotte and Kandy.

◄ ►

Mongols, 1206-1405

· 1206 Temujin unites the Mongol tribes and is enthroned as the Genghis Khan. 1211 Genghis Khan invades China, captures Peking (1214), conquers Turkestan and Persia (1218), establishes Karakorum as his capital (1220), invades Russia (1223). In his Great Law, he forbids the kidnapping of women and institutes complete religious freedom. He dies in 1227 and his empire is divided between two of his sons, Ogadai and Chagatai.

· 1229 Ogadai (Ughetai), son of Genghis, is elected Great Khan. 1233 The Jin (Jurgen) empire in northern China surrenders to the Mongols. 1241 Mongols under Batu defeat Germans in Silesia, invade Poland and Hungary, withdraw from Europe after Ogadai Khan dies.

· Chagatai Khanate, 1227-1405. 1227 Chagatai was given a small area of Central Asia while maintaining allegiance to Ogodei as Great Khan. The region was populated mostly by Turkish nomads, many of which had converted to Islam. Bukhara and Samarkand fell within Chagatai's sphere, both influential centres of Islamic scholarship. The Chagatai Khanate ruled non-urbanised communities, preserving the nomadic ways of the Mongols while other Khanates became more urbanised. The Chagatai Khanate was the weakest of all Mongol empires because it was small and easily absorbed into the spheres of influence of more powerful Khanates. After Chagatai's death in 1242, the Khanate retained its original name, but fell into Ogodei's realm under his grandson, Kaidu. In 1326 the Chagatai Khanate became an officially Muslim state, and Central Asia has remained Islamic ever since and all three western Mongol empires (Chagatai, the Golden Horde and the Il-Khanate) were Islamic. The Chagatai Khanate fell to Timur, and Timur's successors were in turn ousted by the Sheibanids, descendants of a brother of Batu, the original Khan of the Golden Horde. The Sheibanids later called themselves the Uzbeks, the name by which they are still known today. Another Islamic group, the Kazakhs, originated as dissident Uzbeks during the same period. Both groups became part of the Soviet Union in 1917 and today, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan are independent countries.

· The Golden Horde, 1242–1502 (aka Tatars). 1236-1240 Ogadai orders the invasion of Russia (not a unified state but rather a collection of principalities known as Rus) by his nephew, Batu. Batu supported his cousin, Mongke, in the struggle for the position of Great Khan against several challengers, and Mongke prevailed in 1251. Batu was rewarded for his support and built a capital, Sarai, on the Volga River, and he named his empire the Golden Horde. The word "horde" is derived from the Turkic-Mongol word, ordu, meaning "encampment." Princes in Ukraine and Russia rule by patents granted by the khan of the Golden Horde.

· 1258 Berke is the first Muslim ruler of the Golden Horde, and although he was unable to establish Islam as the Khanate's official religion, his faith caused a serious rift to develop between him and his cousin, Hugalu, the Mongol ruler of the Il-Khanate in Persia. For Hugalu, who was a shamanist with Buddhist sympathies, the sacking of Baghdad was just another military conquest, but the Muslim Berke was appalled, leading to several wars, the first to pit Mongol armies against each other. In addition to their religious differences, Berke and Hugalu fought over control of the Caucasus Mountains. Berke reportedly ordered the troops he had loaned to Hugalu's army years earlier to defect to the Egyptian Mamluk army. Additionally, Berke concluded a peace treaty with the Mamluks in 1261, the first alliance between a Mongol and non-Mongol. In 1260, Berke removed the Great Khan Kublai's name from the Golden Horde's coins. Kublai, Mongke's brother, had succeeded as Great Khan, after a struggle with another brother, Arik-Boke. Hugalu had supported Kublai's claim, while Berke supported Arik-Boke. Kublai's victory pushed Berke and his Islamic faith further into isolation from his Mongol brethren. Berke died in 1267, only a year after Hugalu, and the feud between the Golden Horde and the Il-Khans died down.

· By the end of the 13th century, Turkish had replaced Mongol as the language of administration, and in 1313 Islam became the official religion of the Golden Horde.

· 1300s Civil War weakens the Khanate.

· 1400s Weakening of the Horde after Timur’s invasion fosters the ambitions of Russian princes who crown their heirs without consulting the khan. In 1419 it is divided into three separate Khanates: Crimea, Astrakhan, and Kazan.

· 1462 Ivan III the Great of Russia ends payment of tribute to Mongols. The Russian tsar, Ivan the Terrible, annexed Kazan and Astrakhan in 1552 and 1554, while Crimea survived under the protection of the Ottoman Empire until 1783, when Catherine the Great annexed it to the Russian Empire. The Islamic Tatars of the Golden Horde, as Europeans have historically called the Mongols, survive today in small population groups, primarily in southern Russia.

· Ilkhanid dynasty. 1258 Hugalu, a grandson of Ghengis Khan, invades Persia and capture Baghdad, ending the Abbasid caliphate and establishing the Ilkhanid dynasty.

· 1260 Kublai Khan ascends to the Mongol throne as Great Khan after governing China, and in 1279 conquers the Sung dynasty, establishing the Yuan dynasty (to 1368) in China.

· 1370–1405 Timur “the Lame” (Tamerlane). He is born near Samarkand, the son of the leader of the Barlas tribe of Turks. He views himself as restoring the empire of Genghis Khan, and forged genealogies to claim descent from him. He marries two Mongolian princesses descended from Genghis. He establishes rule in Samarkand in 1369, and expands westward, gaining control over most of Persia (1379), Iraq, Syria, and Anatolia, as well as parts of southern Russia. In 1398 he conquers Delhi and Northern India. He builds his capital at Samarkand. His visciousness is legendary; he kills all men in the towns he conquers except the artisans, which he sends to Samarkand. When Delhi revolts he reportedly decapitates 75,000 of its inhabitants and builds a pyramid with their skulls. In 1402 he captures the Ottoman sultan Bayezid in battle. He dies on a march to China in 1405 and his empire is divided among his sons. Though Timur's vast empire is relatively short-lived, his descendants continue to rule over Transoxiana

◄ ►

China

· It was around the year 1000 when China rose to the leading position on the world's oceans. Chinese shipbuilders began to build massive oceangoing junks, up to 300 feet long. They had a capacity of approximately 1,250 tons and were able to carry from five hundred to a thousand people. These ships, the technology for which partly drew on Arab models, were capable of undertaking very long-distance voyages and transporting vast cargoes. At about the same time, the Indians, Persians and Arabs who had dominated the seaborne trade became distracted by other concerns nearer to home, and the volume of foreign shipping reaching China diminished. This left a vacuum that the newly competent Chinese merchant marine was ready and able to fill. The Chinese made a series of major technical advances related to their improved knowledge of geography, astronomy, mapmaking and shipbuilding. They invented the compass, which radically improved their ability to navigate. Soon every Chinese ship carried one. They instituted lighthouses and beacons. Far more accurately than before, they observed tides, winds, weather patterns and stars — and they calculated distances and plumbed depths. Experienced sailors made records of all this new knowledge, and a new genre of technical literature came into existence, consisting, among other things, of marine charts and itineraries and records of islands, currents, and reefs with precise bearings. The Chinese authorities decisively promoted international trade because it was such a valuable source of revenue. Their policy, initiated soon after the founding of the Song dynasty, was to “invite and stimulate” foreign merchants. In 988, the Chinese emperor dispatched a mission to various foreign countries, bearing elaborate gifts with which to lure merchants to China. At the same time the Song envoys purchased valuable goods, such as ivory and pearls, plants and animal horns for medicinal use, and perfumes, to sell upon their return. In China itself, government officials in the main trading ports held annual farewell banquets and other celebrations for the encouragement of foreign sailors and traders. Merchant shipping that was blown onto the coast or damaged was taken under Chinese government protection, which included protection from ill-treatment by local officials. If however, those officials succeeded in encouraging foreign trade, they might be rewarded by banquets or promotions. foreign trade expanded rapidly, but so did Chinese government control over it — both to maintain its function as an important source of revenue and to restrict the outward flow of hard currency. Customs duties on imports ran at about 10%.The central government maintained monopolies on the most profitable goods, such as ivory, coral, rhinoceros horn and crocodile skins. They banned any private traffic in a number of luxury commodities and retained an option for preferential purchase of anything imported. The government also kept a close watch on exports. A Chinese merchant going overseas had to declare his intended destination. If subsequently he claimed to have been blown off course to some other place, he had to report it promptly and, if possible, produce evidence. He needed inventory for export items and a receipt for taxes already paid. Products that could be used to make weapons could not be exported legally, although illicit commerce in iron with Southeast Asia flourished steadily. Nor could rice, presumably in case the surplus should be needed in times of famine or war. To guard against the threat of piracy, merchants engaged in the overseas trade were allowed to carry arms, but they had to deposit their weapons when they returned to China. If they went overseas again, they could reclaim them. The surging trade patterns and the taste for luxury that became commonplace during this period in China's history propelled the country forward after the Mongol invasion in 1276. Merchants from all over the world came to China. Up and down the east coast, to the ports of Shandong, Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong provinces, navigators and traders came from Vietnam, Borneo, Java, Sumatra, Pagan, India and the Middle East — as well as from Korea and Japan and from farther afield.

· 960–1127 The Sung (Song) dynasty controls most of China

· 1032–1227 The Xixia or Western Xia, a people of Tangut origin, control northwest China until conquered by the Mongols.

· 1125–1234 The Jurchen Jin of Manchuria conquer Liao territories and move into northern China, capture the Sung capital at Kaifeng and force the Sung court south. They establish the Ch’in dynasty. 1234 The Jurchen capital at Kaifeng surrenders to the Mongols.

· 1127–1279 Southern Sung Dynasty rules South China from Hangchow, until the Mongol invasion under Kublai Khan in 1279

· The Mongols 1211 Genghis Khan invades China, captures Peking (1214).