Middle Ages

William the Conqueror invades England

Sep 26, 1066

Claiming his right to the English throne, William, duke of Normandy, invades England at Pevensey on Britain’s southeast coast. His subsequent defeat of King Harold II at the Battle of Hastings marked the beginning of a new era in British history.

Paper is first mass-produced in Spain.

Sep 25, 1150

Papermaking and manufacturing in Europe was started by Muslims living on the Iberian Peninsula, (today's Portugal and Spain) and Sicily in the 10th century, and slowly spread to Italy and Southern France reaching Germany by 1400.

Magna Carta

Sep 26, 1215

Magna Carta, meaning ‘The Great Charter’, is one of the most famous documents in the world. Originally issued by King John of England as a practical solution to the political crisis he faced in 1215, Magna Carta established for the first time the principle that everybody, including the king, was subject to the law.

The Plague

Sep 26, 1348

An outbreak of deadly bubonic plague occurred in China. The bubonic plague mainly affects rodents, but fleas can transmit the disease to people. Once people are infected, they infect others very rapidly

First appearnce of Robin Hood in literature.

Sep 25, 1378

Robin Hood is a heroic outlaw in English folklore who, according to legend, was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. Often portrayed as "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor". Robin Hood became a popular folk figure in the late-medieval period.

Chaucer writes The Cantebury Tales.

Sep 25, 1387

Geoffrey Chaucer wrote The Canterbury Tales, a collection of stories in a frame story, between 1387 and 1400. It is the story of a group of thirty people who travel as pilgrims to Canterbury (England).

War of the Roses

Sep 28, 1455

The Wars of the Roses (1455-85) marked the struggle for the English throne between the houses of York and Lancaster. After Henry VI attempted to override a power grab by Richard, Duke of York, the fighting began with the 1455 Battle of St. Albans.

First printing of Le Morte d’Arthur

Sep 26, 1485

Le Morte D'Arthur is the story of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, beginning with Arthur's conception and birth, and concluding with his death at the hands of his son, Mordred.

First Tudor king, Henry VII, is crowned

Sep 26, 1485

KING HENRY VII, of England, was the first of the Tudor dynasty. His claim to the throne was through his mother.

End of the Crusades

Sep 26, 2015

Of the many reasons for the failure of the crusades, three require special consideration. In the first place, there was the inability of eastern and western Europe to cooperate in supporting the holy wars. A united Christendom might well have been invincible. But the bitter antagonism between the Greek and Roman churches effectually prevented all unity of action.