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Jan 1, 1066
William the Conqueror invades England
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. -
Jan 1, 1150
paper is first mass-produced in Spain
Both Spain and Italy claim to be the first to manufacture paper in Europe. Muslim conquest of Spain brought paper making to Europe. -
Jan 1, 1215
Magna Carta
Magna Carta was the first document forced onto an English King by a group of his subjects, the feudal barons, in an attempt to limit his powers by law and protect their privileges. It was preceded and directly influenced by the Charter of Liberties in 1100, in which King Henry I had specified particular areas wherein his powers would be limited. -
Jan 1, 1270
End of Crusades
With Louis' death, the Crusades died out with a whimper and not a bang. Continued military failure was a principal reason for their end. For a chronicle of military and political ineptitude, coupled with sheer hubris, they have no comparison in history. -
Jan 1, 1348
The Plague
The Black Death was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, peaking in Europe between 1348 and 1350. Although there were several competing theories as to the etiology of the Black Death, it has been conclusively proven via analysis of ancient DNA from victims in northern and southern Europe that the pathogen responsible is the Yersinia pestis bacterium -
Jan 1, 1378
First appearance of Robin Hood in literature
The first literary references to Robin Hood appear in a series of 14th- and 15th-century ballads about a violent yeoman who lived in Sherwood Forest with his men and frequently clashed with the Sheriff of Nottingham. -
Jan 1, 1387
Chaucer writes The Canterbury Tales
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). The pilgrims, who come from all layers of society, tell stories to each other to kill time while they travel to Canterbury. -
Period: Jan 1, 1455 to Jan 1, 1485
War of the Roses
The Wars of the Roses were a series of dynastic wars fought between supporters of two rival branches of the royal House of Plantagenet: the houses of Lancaster and York (whose heraldic symbols were the "red" and the "white" rose, respectively) for the throne of England. They were fought in several sporadic episodes between 1455 and 1485, although there was related fighting both before and after this period. -
Jan 1, 1485
First printing of Le Morte d'Arthur
Malory probably started work on Le Morte d'Arthur while he was in prison in the early 1450s and completed it by 1470. -
Jan 1, 1485
First Tudor king, Henry VII, is crowned
Henry VII, crowned king in 1485, was the first ruler from the Tudor line. During the later part of the Wars of the Roses (1471 - 1485), Henry lived in Northwest France in the Duchy of Brittany. After the deaths of Henry VI and his son Edward, Henry through his mother's ancestry became the head of the House of Lancaster.
