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Sep 28, 1066
william the conqueror invades england
William argued that Edward had previously promised the throne to him, and that Harold had sworn to support William's claim. William built a large fleet and invaded England in September 1066, decisively defeating and killing Harold at the Battle of Hastings on 14 October 1066. -
Sep 27, 1150
paper is first mass-produced in Spain
The Muslim conquest of Spain brought papermaking into Europe. -
Sep 28, 1215
Magna Carta
The magna carter 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. -
Sep 28, 1270
end of the Crusades
The last major crusade aimed at the Holy Land, and an failure that well symbolises the end of the crusades. -
Sep 28, 1348
The Plague
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. -
Sep 27, 1378
The first appearance of Robin Hood in literature.
The first clear reference to "rhymes of Robin Hood" is from the c. 1377 poem Piers Plowman. -
Sep 27, 1387
Chaucer writes The Canterbury Tales
The tales (mostly written in verse, although some are in prose) 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. -
first printing of Le Morte d’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 -
War of the Roses
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. -
First Tudor king, Henry VII, is crowned
The real matter was decided on the battlefield, at the Battle of Bosworth Field. It was here that Henry and his forces met with Richard III and Henry won the crown.
