The Middle Ages

William the Conqueror invades England

Sep 28, 1066

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. On Christmas Day, 1066, William the Conqueror was crowned the first Norman king of England, in Westminster Abbey, and the Anglo-Saxon phase of English history came to an end.

Paper is first mass-produced in Spain

Sep 27, 1150

The Muslim conquest of Spain brought papermaking into Europe. The English word "ream" (meaning 500 sheets) is derived through Spanish and French from the Arabic word rizmah that translates as "a bundle". Both Spain and Italy claim to be the first to manufacture paper in Europe.

Magna Carta

Jun 15, 1215

Magna Carta is a charter agreed to by King John of England at Runnymede, near Windsor, on 15 June 1215. First drafted by the Archbishop of Canterbury to make peace between the unpopular King and a group of rebel barons, it promised the protection of church rights, protection for the barons from illegal imprisonment, access to swift justice, and limitations on feudal payments to the Crown, to be implemented through a council of 25 barons.

End of the Crusades

Sep 28, 1270

The Crusades were predominantly a series of religious wars undertaken by the Latin Church between the 11th and 15th centuries. Crusades were fought for many reasons: to capture Jerusalem, recapture Christian territory or defend Christians in non-Christian lands, resolve conflict among rival Roman Catholic groups, gain political or territorial advantage, or to combat paganism and heresy.

The Plague

Sep 28, 1348

The Black Death or Black Plague was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, resulting in the deaths of an estimated 75 to 200 million people and peaking in Europe in the years 1346–53. The Black Death is thought to have originated in the arid plains of Central Asia, where it then travelled along the Silk Road, reaching Crimea by 1343. From there, it was most likely carried by Oriental rat fleas living on the black rats that were regular passengers on merchant ships.

First appearance of Robin Hood in literature

Sep 27, 1378

Robin Hood is a heroic outlaw in English folklore who, according to legend, was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. Traditionally depicted as being dressed in Lincoln green, he is often portrayed as "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor" alongside his band of Merry Men. Robin Hood became a popular folk figure in the late-medieval period, and continues to be widely represented in literature, films and television.

Chaucer writes The Canterbury Tales

Sep 27, 1387

The Canterbury Tales is a collection of 24 stories that runs to over 17,000 lines written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer. The tales are presented as part of a story-telling contest by a group of pilgrims as they travel together on a journey from London to Canterbury in order to visit the shrine of Saint Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral. The prize for this contest is a free meal at the Tabard Inn at Southwark on their return.

War of the Roses

Sep 28, 1455

The Wars of the Roses were a series of wars for control of the throne of England. They were fought between supporters of two rival branches of the royal House of Plantagenet, those of Lancaster and York. They were fought in several sporadic episodes between 1455 and 1487. The final victory went to a claimant of the Lancastrian party, Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond, who defeated the last Yorkist king, Richard III, at the Battle of Bosworth Field.

First Tudor king, Henry VII, is crowned

Aug 22, 1485

Henry VII, known before accession as Henry Tudor, 2nd Earl of Richmond was King of England after seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death, the first monarch of the House of Tudor. He ruled the Principality of Wales until 29 November 1489 and was Lord of Ireland. Henry won the throne when his forces defeated King Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field, the culmination of the Wars of the Roses.

First printing of Le Morte d’Arthur

Sep 27, 1485

Le Morte d'Arthur (originally spelled Le Morte Darthur, Middle French for “the death of Arthur”) is a reworking of traditional tales by Sir Thomas Malory about the legendary King Arthur, Guinevere, Lancelot, Merlin and the Knights of the Round Table. Malory interprets existing French and English stories about these figures and adds original material