istoryworld
All Events
The Black Death, making its way through Europe, is described in vivid detail by Boccaccio who sees its devastating effect in Florence
Massacres of Jews, rumoured to have caused the Black Death by poisoning wells, begin in southern France and spread through much of Europe
Boccaccio begins his Decameron, supposedly the stories told by young Florentine men and women sheltering from the Black Death
The Perpendicular style develops from the Decorated phase in English Gothic architecture
Water power is used in England for the heavy work of fulling cloth, in mills which can be seen as a first step towards the Industrial Revolution
William Tell, a figure of legend, epitomizes the struggle of the Swiss farmers against their feudal overlords, the Habsburgs
Armies of mercenaries, led by condottieri, conduct Italian warfare at an often extortionate rate
Humanism, or the study of classical literature as a living tradition, develops into one of the main strands of the Renaissance
Boccaccio, visiting Petrarch in Florence, is inspired to devote himself to the pursuit of classical studies
The classic Chinese underglaze blue is perfected in the imperial ceramic factory at Jingdezhen
Gallipoli is taken by the Ottoman Turks, giving them their first foothold in Europe
Chu Yüan-chang, leader of a peasant band, makes his headquarters in a town which he renames Nanking - 'southern capital'
Charles IV establishes a permanent group of seven electors - four hereditary German rulers and the archbishops of Mainz, Cologne and Trier
The battle of Poitiers ends, on the third day, with victory for the English and the capture of the French king, John II
Zhu Yuanzhang, a one-time Buddhist novice now leading a major rebellion against the Yuan dynasty, captures Nanjing and makes it his capital
Edward III begins to transform a royal manor by the Thames at Richmond into a building that can for the first time be called a palace
John of Gaunt marries his cousin, Blanche of Lancaster, heiress to vast estates in the north of England
After four years of captivity in Bordeaux and London, the French king John II is released for a promised ransom of 3 million gold crowns
Edward III gives his son, John of Gaunt, the title duke of Lancaster
A great clock is completed in Padua, regulated mechanically by foliot and escapement
Portable guns are introduced not long after artillery, being mentioned in several European texts of the second half of the fourteenth century
Henry, son of John of Gaunt, is born in Bolingbroke castle and so becomes known as Henry of Bolingbroke
A narrator who calls himself Will, and whose name may be Langland, begins the epic poem of Piers Plowman
One of four new yeomen of the chamber in Edward III's household is Geoffrey Chaucer
Chu Yüan-chang drives the Mongols out of Beijing and declares a new dynasty - the Ming (meaning 'brilliant')
