1210s

This is a list of events occurring in the 1210s, ordered by year.

1210

By area

Asia

• Emperor Juntoku succeeds Emperor Tsuchimikado on the throne of Japan.
• Jochi, eldest son of Genghis Khan, leads a Mongol campaign against the Kyrgyz.
• The Delhi Sultanate begins.

Europe

• July 17 – Former king Sverker II of Sweden is defeated and killed by the current king Erik X in the Battle of Gestilren.
• November 18 – Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor is excommunicated by Pope Innocent III for invading southern Italy in defiance of the Concordat of Worms.
• King John I of England raises £100,000 from church property as an extraordinary fiscal levy; the operation is described as an “inestimable and incomparable exaction” by contemporary sources.^[1]
• Livonian Crusade: Estonian forces defeat the Livonian Brothers of the Sword in the Battle of Ümera.
• The citadel of the Acrocorinth surrenders to the Crusaders after a five-year siege.

By topic

Arts and culture

• Gottfried von Strassburg writes his epic poem Tristan (approximate date).
• 1210–1211 – Shazi makes Pen box, from Persia (Iran) or Afghanistan. It is now kept at Freer Gallery of Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C..

Nature

• September 24 – Venus occults Jupiter, the last such occurrence until 1570.

Religion

• Pope Innocent III gives oral permission to Francis of Assisi to begin the Order of Friars Minor.
• The church of St Helen's Bishopsgate in the City of London is founded as a priory of Benedictine nuns.

1211

• September 14 – Canons Regular of the Order of the Holy Cross are founded in Liège.
• October 15 – Battle of the Rhyndacus: the Latin emperor Henry of Flanders defeats the Nicaean emperor Theodore I Lascaris.
• Troops led by Estonian resistance fighter Lembitu of Lehola destroy a garrison of missionaries in the historical Estonian region of Sakala, and raid the town of Pskov in the Novgorod Republic.
• Mongol forces under Genghis Khan invade Jin Dynasty China, aiming at this stage simply to loot the countryside. A Chinese army is defeated and slaughtered at the Battle of the Badger Mouth near Zhangjiakou and another is beaten at Mukden, where the city is taken. Beijing is also besieged by the Mongol hordes.
• The church in the French city of Reims burns down; soon after, construction begins on Reims Cathedral.
• King John of England sends a gift of herrings to nunneries in almost every shire despite his status as an excommunicant.^[2]
• The oldest extant double-entry bookkeeping system record dates from this year.

1212

• July 10 – The most severe of several early fires of London burns most of the city to the ground, Over 3,000 people die.
• July 16 – Battle of Navas de Tolosa: The Christian kingdoms of Spain decisively defeat the Almohads. This victory leaves however the Kingdom of Castile in a difficult financial position as the numerous soldiers have to be paid by the treasury.^[3]
• December – Frederick II of Hohenstaufen is crowned King of Germany with the support of Pope Innocent III.
• The Children's Crusade for the Holy Land is organised. There are probably two separate movements of young people, both led by shepherd boys, neither of which embark from Europe, but both of which suffer considerable hardship:^[4]
  • Early spring – Nicholas leads a group from the Rhineland to Genoa and Rome.
  • June – 12-year-old Stephen of Cloyes leads a group across France to Marseilles.
• The contemplative Order of Poor Clares is founded by Clare of Assisi.
• In Japan, Kamo no Chōmei writes the Hōjōki, one of the great works of classical Japanese prose.
• Bran Castle is erected by the Teutonic Knights.
• John of England impounds the revenue of all prelates appointed by bishops who had deserted him at his excommunication. He remains on good terms, however, with churchmen who stood by him, including Abbot Sampson, who this year bequeaths John his jewels.^[5]
• The Banner of Las Navas de Tolosa is begun. It is a trophy of Ferdinand III of Castile, and will end up in the Museo de Telas Medievales.

1213

• May 15 – King John of England submits to Pope Innocent III, who in turn lifts the interdict of 1208.
• May 30 – Battle of Damme: The English fleet under William Longespée, 3rd Earl of Salisbury destroys a French fleet off the Belgian port, in the first major victory for the fledgling Royal Navy.
• September 12 – Battle of Muret: The Toulousain and Aragonese forces of Raymond VI of Toulouse and Peter II of Aragon are defeated by the Albigensian Crusade under Simon de Montfort.
• Jin China is overrun by the Mongols under Genghis Khan, who plunder the countryside and cities, until only Beijing remains free, despite two bloody palace coups and a lengthy siege.
• Pope Innocent III issues a charter, calling for the Fifth Crusade to recapture Jerusalem.
• Mukhali seizes Mizhou and orders all the inhabitants massacred.

1214

By area

Asia

• November 1 – Siege of Sinope: The Black Sea port city of Sinope surrenders to the Seljuq Turks.
• The Emperor Xuanzong of Jin China surrenders to the Mongols under Genghis Khan, who have besieged Beijing for a year. He pays a huge ransom and then abandons northern China, heading for Kaifeng.
• In his campaigns in Liaodong, the Mongol general Mukhali commands a newly formed Khitan–Chinese army and a special corps of 12,000 Chinese auxiliary troops.

Europe

• February 15 – John, King of England, lands an invasion force at La Rochelle in France.^[6]
• July 27 – Battle of Bouvines: Philip II of France defeats an army of Imperial German, English and Flemish soldiers led by Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor, in the Kingdom of France, ending the Anglo-French War (1202–14).^[6]
• Summer – King Alfonso VIII of Castile besieges Almohad troops in Baeza. The famine experienced in the peninsula is such that neither army is able to fight.
• September 18 – Treaty of Chinon signed by John, King of England, and Philip II of France recognising the Capetian gains from the Angevin Empire.^[6]
• October 5 – Upon the death of their father, King Alfonso VIII of Castile, and of their mother, Eleanor (October 31), Bernguela becomes the regent of her young brother, King Henry I.^[3]
• December 4 – Death of William the Lion, King of the Scots, having reigned since 1165; he is succeeded by his son, Alexander II (crowned at Scone on December 6) who will reign until his death in 1249.
• The German city of Bielefeld is founded.

By topic

Education

• June 20 – Papal ordinance defines the rights of the scholars at the University of Oxford.^[6]

Religion

• April 13 (approx.) – Simon of Apulia elected Bishop of Exeter in England.
• According to Catholic Church tradition, the rosary is given to Saint Dominic by Mary (mother of Jesus).

1215

• March 4 – King John of England makes an oath to Pope Innocent III as a crusader to gain his support.
• June 1 – Mongol conquest of the Jin dynasty: after the long Battle of Zhongdu, Genghis Khan's Mongols captured and torched Beijing (the city burns for more than a month).
• June 15 – King John of England is forced by rebellious barons of England at Runnymede to put the Great Seal of the Realm on a set of articles confirming their rights and those of the towns and Church, and confirming the status of trial by jury,^[7] which on June 19 is confirmed as Magna Carta.
• August – King John of England rejects the Magna Carta, leading to the First Barons' War.
• August 24 – Pope Innocent III declares the Magna Carta invalid.
• November 11 – The Fourth Council of the Lateran gathers in Rome under Pope Innocent III, who adopts the style "Vicar of Christ".
• December – First Barons' War: Alexander II of Scotland invades northern England.^[6]
• Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor, is excommunicated and forced to abdicate as Emperor and King of Burgundy, replaced by Frederick II (King of the Romans 1212–1250).
• The Dominican Order is founded, according to some sources.
• Bhiksu Ananda of Kapitanagar completes writing the holy Buddhist book Arya Astasahasrika Prajnaparamita (sutra) in gold ink in Ranjana script.
• 1215–1216 – The Macy Jug, from Iran, is made. It is now kept at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
• Kalinga Magha from Kalinga Province in India lands in Sri Lanka with a force of 24,000 men, to capture the city of Polonnaruwa and depose its King, Parakrama Pandya.

1216

By area

Europe

• January – First Barons' War: The English army sacks Berwick-on-Tweed and raids southern Scotland.^[6]
• April 10 – Upon the death of Erik Knutsson, he is succeeded by his rival Johan Sverkersson as king of Sweden.
• April 22 – Battle of Lipitsa: Mstislav the Daring and Konstantin of Rostov defeat their rivals for the rule of the Principality of Vladimir-Suzdal.
• May 21 – First Barons' War: Prince Louis of France, the future King Louis VIII, invades England in support of the barons, landing in Thanet. Entering London without opposition, he is proclaimed, but not crowned, King of England at Old St Paul's Cathedral.^[6]
• July 24 – The French Albigensian Crusaders of the castle of Beaucaire surrender to Raymond, future count of Toulouse.^[8]
• October 18 or 19 – John, King of England, dies at Newark Castle, Nottinghamshire; he is succeeded by his nine-year-old son Henry, with William Marshal, Earl of Pembroke, as regent. The young Henry III of England is crowned at Gloucester on October 28.^[7]
• November 12 – William Marshal and the papal legate to England, Guala Bicchieri, issue a Charter of Liberties, based on the Magna Carta, in the new King of England's name.^[7][9]
• Dresden receives city rights.
• In England, Roger of Wendover begins to cover contemporary events in his continuation of the chronicle Flores Historiarum.

By topic

Religion

• July 24 – Pope Honorius III succeeds Pope Innocent III as the 177th pope.
• Pope Honorius III officially approves the Order of Preachers (the Dominican Order).
• Ballintubber Abbey is founded by King Cathal Crovdearg O'Connor of Connaught in Ireland.

1217

By area

Asia

• Mukhali is back in Genghis Khan's camp in Mongolia and receives the hereditary title of prince, a golden seal, and a white standard with 9 tails and a black crescent in the middle. He is appointed commander in chief of operations in North China.

• The Fifth Crusade reaches the Holy Land

Europe

• April 9 – Peter II of Courtenay is crowned emperor of the Latin Empire of Constantinople at Rome, by Pope Honorius III.
• May 20 – First Barons' War in England: Occupying French forces are defeated at the Battle of Lincoln by English royal troops led by William Marshal, Earl of Pembroke^[6] and survivors forced to flee south.
• June 6 – King Henry I of Castile dies aged thirteen from the fall of a roof tile in Palencia, an event which his regent, Álvaro Núñez de Lara, attempts to conceal. Henry's sister Berengaria succeeds to the throne.
• June – Haakon Haakonsson becomes King Haakon IV of Norway following the death of Inge II and largely ends the civil war era in Norway, reigning until 1263.
• August 24 – First Barons' War: In the Battle of Sandwich in the English Channel, English forces destroy the French and the French mercenary Eustace the Monk is captured and beheaded.
• August 31 – Ferdinand becomes King of Castile on abdication of his mother Berengaria.
• September 12 – First Barons' War in England ended by the Treaty of Kingston upon Thames: French and Scots are to leave England, and an amnesty is granted to rebels.^[6]
• September 20 – Treaty of Lambeth signed ratifying the Treaty of Kingston.
• September 21 – Livonian Crusade: The Livonian Brothers of the Sword and allied Livs and Letts defeat the Estonian army in the Battle of St. Matthew's Day and kill their leader Lembitu.
• November – In the Kingdom of Castile, former regent Álvaro Núñez de Lara is captured and forced to relinquish all his castles.^[3]
• Stefan Nemanjić is elevated to be first King of the Serbian lands by Pope Honorius III and crowned by Stefan's brother, Archimandrite Sava, in Žiča.
• Alcácer do Sal is reconquered by the troops of King Afonso II of Portugal.^[10]
• A decree made in England establishes that only Englishman can be clergy of Ireland.

1218

By area

Africa

• August 31 – Al-Kamil becomes the new Egyptian Sultan on the death of his father Al-Adil.
• May 24 – The Fifth Crusade leaves Acre for Egypt.
• Damietta is besieged by the knights of the Fifth Crusade.

Asia

• Minamoto no Sanetomo becomes Udaijin of Japan.
• The Kara-Khitan Khanate is destroyed by Genghis Khan's Mongolian cavalry.
• Genghis Khan's Mongols, under the leadership of his eldest son Jochi, conduct a second campaign against the Kyrgyz.
• Genghis Khan proposes to the Khwarazm shah of Persia that he accept Mongol overlordship and establish trade relations.

Europe

• March – Treaty of Worcester recognises Llywelyn the Great as regent of south Wales.^[11]
• July – Spain: In order to facilitate the movement of Reconquista, Pope Honorius III reverses Innocent III’s earlier judgement and declares Ferdinand III of Castile legitimate heir to the Kingdom of Leon.^[3]
• The Livonian Brothers of the Sword begin to conquer Estonia.

By topic

Education

• Alfonso IX of Castile founds the University of Salamanca.

Markets

• The northern French city of Rheims emits the first recorded public life annuity in medieval Europe. Theretofore, this type of instrument had been mostly issued by religious institutions. The emission by Rheims is the first evidence of a consolidation of public debt that is to become common in the Langue d'Oïl, the Low Countries and Germany.^[12]

Religion

• Saint Pedro Nolasco founds the Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy in Barcelona, Spain.

1219

By area

Africa

• November 5 – Damietta, Egypt falls to the Crusaders after a siege.
• Saint Francis of Assisi introduces Catholicism into Egypt, during the Fifth Crusade.
• The Egyptian city of Al Mansurah is founded.

Asia

• By letter, Genghis Khan summons Qiu Chuji (Chongchan) to visit him to advise him on the medicine of immortality (the Philosopher's Stone)
• The Hojo family, vassals of the Shogun, reduce him to a figurehead.

Europe

• June 15 – Livonian Crusade: Danish crusaders led by King Valdemar II conquer Tallinn in the Battle of Lyndanisse. The Flag of Denmark allegedly falls from the sky during that battle. Their stronghold in Tallinn will help the Danes conquer the entire Northern Estonia.
• Twenty-four Lithuanian dukes and nobles purportedly sign a peace treaty with Halych-Volhynia, stating common cause against invading Christian Crusaders.^[13]
• Upon the death of Aymeric of Saint Maur, Alan Marcell becomes master of the Temple in England.^[14]
• The East Frisian island of Burchana is broken up in a North Sea flood.

By topic

Technology

• The windmill is first introduced to China with the travels of Yelü Chucai to Transoxiana.

Significant people

Births

Deaths

References

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