The Middle Ages

William the Conqueror Invades England

Aug 27, 1066

William of Poitiers describes a council called by Duke William, in which the writer gives an account of a great debate that took place between William's nobles and supporters over whether to risk an invasion of England. William remained in England after his coronation and tried to reconcile the native magnates. William returned to England in December 1067 and marched on Exeter, which he besieged. The town held out for 18 days, and after it fell to William he built a castle to secure his control.

Paper First Being Mass-Produced in Spain

Aug 27, 1150

In medieval Europe, the hitherto handcraft of papermaking was mechanized by the use of waterpower, the first water papermill in the Iberian Peninsula having been built in the Portuguese city of Leiria in 1411, and other processes. Papermaking and manufacturing in Europe was started by Muslims living on the Iberian Peninsula. Paper, being made from wood or rags, could be produced anywhere, and it could be manufactured in almost any quantity at moderate cost.

The Magna Carta

Aug 27, 1215

Magna Carta was the first document imposed upon a King of England by a group of his subjects, the feudal barons, in an attempt to limit his powers by law and protect their rights. The charter is widely known throughout the English speaking world as an important part of the protracted historical process that led to the rule of constitutional law in England and beyond. The 1215 charter required King John to proclaim certain liberties and accept that his will was not arbitrary.

End of the Crusades

Aug 27, 1270

After two hundred years of conflict, after a vast expenditure of wealth and human lives, the Holy Land remained in Moslem hands. In the first place, there was the inability of eastern and western Europe to cooperate in supporting the holy wars. Instead of being able to go by water directly to Syria, it was necessary to follow the long, overland route from France or Germany through Hungary, Bulgaria, the territory of the Roman Empire in the East, and the deserts and mountains of Asia Minor.

The Plague

Aug 27, 1348

The Black Death 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 the Crimea by 1343. Spreading throughout the Mediterranean and Europe, the Black Death is estimated to have killed 30–60% of Europe's total population.

The First Appearance of Robin Hood in Literature

Aug 27, 1378

The first clear reference to "rhymes of Robin Hood" is from Line 5396 of the late-14th-century poem Piers Plowman, but the earliest surviving copies of the narrative ballads that tell his story date to the 15th century, or the first decade of the 16th century. In these early accounts, Robin Hood's partisanship of the lower classes, his Marianism and associated special regard for women, his outstanding skill as an archer, his anti-clericalism, and his particular animosity.

Chaucer Writes The Canterbury Tales

Aug 27, 1387

The Canterbury Tales (Middle English: Tales of Caunterbury[2]) is a collection of over 20 stories written in Middle English by Geoffrey Chaucer at the end of the 14th century, during the time of the Hundred Years' War. He uses the tales and the descriptions of its characters to paint an ironic and critical portrait of English society at the time, and particularly of the Church.

War of the Roses

Aug 27, 1455

The Wars of the Roses were a series of dynastic wars for the throne of England. They were fought between supporters of two rival branches of the royal House of Plantagenet, the houses of Lancaster and York. They were fought in several sporadic episodes between 1455 and 1487, although there was related fighting before and after this period. The conflict resulted from social and financial troubles that followed the Hundred Years' War, combined with the mental infirmity and weak rule of Henry VI.

The First Printing of Le Morte d'Arthur

Aug 27, 1485

First published in 1485 by William Caxton, Le Morte d'Arthur is today perhaps the best-known work of Arthurian literature in English. The Middle English of Le Morte D'Arthur is much closer to Early Modern English than the Middle English of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. If the spelling is modernized, it reads almost like Elizabethan English. The first printing of Malory's work was made by Caxton in 1485. Only two copies of this original printing are known to exist.

The First Tudor King, Henry VII, Is Crowned

Aug 27, 1485

Henry won the throne when his forces defeated Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of England to win his throne on the field of battle. Henry cemented his claim by marrying Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV and niece of Richard III. Henry was successful in restoring the power and stability of the English monarchy after the political upheavals of the civil wars known as the Wars of the Roses. He founded the Tudor dynasty.