The Renaissance and Reformation

The Fourth Crusade begins

Jan 1, 1202

Crusaders organize themselves and agree to meet in Venice. When they are unable to pay for transport, they agree to conquer outlying territories on the behalf of the Byzantine emperor

Sack of Constantinople

Jan 1, 1204

Crusaders, irritated at treatment of the Byzantine government, capture and sack Constantinople, destroying priceless artifacts and stealing relics. They establish a Latin ruler.

Crusade called by Pope Innocent III

Jan 1, 1208

Pope Innocent III calls for a crusade against the Albigensians or Cathars, a heretical sect in Langueodoc (southern France). The heresy is particularly dangerous to orthodoxy because it refutes the need for worship in churches, the sacraments, and the material wealth of the church.

Pope Innocent III, excommunicates King John of England

Jan 1, 1209

Pope Innocent III, excommunicates King John of England

Pope Innocent declares King John of England deposed

Jan 1, 1213

Pope Innocent declares King John of England deposed. John mends his ways to make peace.

Fourth Lateran Council

Jan 1, 1215

Pope Innocent III calls the Fourth Lateran Council, one of the most important events in Church history, with 71 statements of doctrine ratified. For the first time in church history, yearly confession is required of all Christians, and transubstantiation became an official part of Catholic doctrine. Pope Innocent introduces a policy in which soldiers--if fighting non-Christian forces on crusade--could be given forgiveness of sins without penance. (This doctrine was a key element in rousing publi

Magna Carta signed

May 5, 1215

English barons force King John to sign a statement concerning the rights of the nobility, severely limiting the power of the monarchy. This "Great Charter" (Magna Carta) will form a legal model for later groups seeking to de-centralize state power.

Frederick II crowned in France

Jun 26, 1215

Frederick II crowned in France; he renews French struggle for control over the papacy.

Pope Honorius III claims the Papal Seat

Jan 1, 1216

Pope Honorius III claims the Papal See, ruling the church until 1227

Henry III becomes King of England

Dec 31, 1216

Henry III becomes King of England. As Henry is only nine years old, a regent-protector controls the kingdom until Henry achieves adulthood. Henry III's reign lasts 56 years, ending in 1272.

The Fifth Crusade begins

Jan 1, 1217

The Fifth Crusade begins, lasting until 1222. The crusaders set out to conquer Egypt in order that its grain supplies and troops will not be available to Muslim forces, who are becoming increasingly organized and centralized under a single ruler.

The Fifth Crusade ends

Jan 1, 1222

The Fifth Crusade ends in failure. Egypt remains in Muslim hands.

Louis VIII takes the throne of France

Jun 26, 1223

Louis VIII takes the throne of France, ruling until 1226

France and England go to war

Jan 1, 1224

France and England go to war over French territories held by England.

War ends between France and England.

Jun 1, 1224

Gregory IX assumes control of Papal Seat.

Jan 1, 1227

Gregory IX assumes control of Papal Seat. He serves as pope until 1241

Emperor Frederick II leads the Sixth Crusade

Jan 1, 1228

Emperor Frederick II leads the Sixth Crusade, comparatively the most successful venture into Muslim lands since the first crusade in the late eleventh-century.

Frederick II gains Jerusalem

Jun 26, 1229

The crusaders of the Sixth Crusade surround Jerusalem. Frederick II gains Jerusalem by diplomacy

Innocent IV claims the Papal Seat.

Jan 1, 1243

Innocent IV claims the Papal Seat. He rules the church until 1254

Egyptians recapture Jerusalem

Jun 26, 1243

Egyptians recapture Jerusalem. The Christian occupational forces flee or are slaughtered.

Innocent IV declare Emperor Frederick II legally deposed

Jun 26, 1245

Innocent IV calls the Synod of Lyon. The Synod and Pope Innocent IV declare Emperor Frederick II legally deposed.

Emperor Frederick II and and Pope Innocent IV's warfare

Jan 1, 1247

Struggle between Emperor Frederick II and and Pope Innocent IV's allies. The bitter warfare lasts until 1250 when Conrad IV becomes Emperor.

Louis IX of France leads the Seventh Crusade.

Jun 26, 1248

Louis IX of France leads the Seventh Crusade.

Louis IX takes the city of Damieta in Egypt.

Jun 26, 1249

Louis IX takes the city of Damieta in Egypt.

Conrad IV, becomes Holy Roman Emperor.

Jun 26, 1250

Frederick II dies. Conrad IV, becomes Holy Roman Emperor. He rules until 1254, and his death triggers a nineteen-year power struggle for the crown.

The Inquisition began

May 15, 1252

Torture to elicit confessions was first authorized by Pope Innocent IV in his Bull Ad exstirpanda of May 15, 1252, which was confirmed by Pope Alexander IV on November 30, 1259, and by Pope Clement IV on November 3, 1265.

End of the Seventh Crusade

Jun 26, 1270

King Louis IX of France dies of plague while on Crusade. His death leads quickly to the end of the Seventh Crusade

Late Middle Ages

Jun 26, 1300

The beginning of the Late Middle Ages witnesses the invention of the magnetic compass, greatly aiding overseas expansion and enhancing trade between places such as Italy and the North. Boniface VIII calls the first papal "jubilee," thereby recognizing pilgrimages to Rome instead of Jerusalem, which is no longer accessible to the West

The papacy is moved from Rome to Avignon

Jun 26, 1305

The papacy is moved from Rome to Avignon, beginning the Church's "Babylonian Captivity." For most of the fourteenth century, the papacy is subordinate to French authority with the majority of cardinals and popes being French.

Hundred Years' War begins

Jun 26, 1337

The French attack the English and initiate the Hundred Years' War, a series of battles lasting until 1453 CE. The three greatest battles of the war are fought at Crecy (1346), Poitiers (1356) and Agincourt (1415). Due to the military superiority of the English, the French are defeated in most of the battles

The Black Death in Europe

May 1, 1348

Coming out of the East, the Black Death reached the shores of Italy in the spring of 1348 unleashing a rampage of death across Europe unprecedented in recorded history. By the time the epidemic ended in 1352, anywhere between 25% and 50% of Europe's population had fallen victim to it.

The Renaissance began

Jan 1, 1350

The Renaissance (from French: Renaissance "re-birth", Italian: Rinascimento, from rinascere "to be reborn") was a cultural movement that spanned the period roughly from the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe.

The Renaissance

Period: Jan 1, 1350 to Dec 31, 1600

The Renaissance (from French: Renaissance "re-birth", Italian: Rinascimento, from rinascere "to be reborn") was a cultural movement that spanned the period roughly from the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. *The days and months are not exact