In a treaty agreed at Shrewsbury, the English king Henry III acknowledges Llewellyn ap Gruffydd as the prince of Wales

The first mention of a lens occurs in a manuscript by Roger Bacon, to be soon followed by the invention of spectacles

Edward I is in Sicily when he becomes king of England, on the death of his father, Henry III

An uprising by Llewellyn ap Gruffydd, the prince of Wales, ends with his own death and the subjugation of Wales by the king of England, Edward I

Edward I begins a series of powerful castles - Harlech, Caernarfon and Conwy in this year alone - to subdue the Welsh

The Jews in England are driven out of the country, soon to be followed by those in France

The parliament summoned by Edward I in Westminster Hall is later seen as a 'model' for the breadth of its representation

Edward I invades Scotland, massacres the people of Berwick, captures John de Balliol and brings to Westminster the Stone of Scone

William Wallace's victory over the English at Stirling Bridge enables him to rule Scotland on behalf of John de Balliol

The English longbow, in one of its early appearances, proves too much for the Scots at Falkirk

Edward I's victory at Falkirk ends the career of William Wallace, of whom nothing more is heard until his capture and execution in 1305

Southampton boasts the earliest known bowling green, mentioned in a document of this year

Duns Scotus, known as the Subtle Doctor in medieval times, later provides humanists with the name Dunsman or dunce

Edward I, conqueror of Wales, bestows the cherished title 'prince of Wales' on his own heir, the future Edward II

After the murder of his rival, in a church in Dumfries, Robert de Bruce is crowned king of Scots at Scone

On the death of his father, Edward I, Edward II becomes king of England

After years of guerilla warfare, Robert de Bruce defeats the English conclusively at Bannockburn - and becomes at last secure in his kingdom

Edward II is captured and imprisoned by his queen, Isabella, and her lover, Mortimer

Isabella forces Edward II to renounce the English throne in favour of their 15-year-old son, Edward III

Edward II, imprisoned by his wife and her lover, dies in Berkeley castle - almost certainly the victim of murder

The English finally accept a treaty, in Edinburgh, declaring that Robert de Bruce is king of a Scotland 'free and divided from the kingdom of England'

On the death of his father, Robert the Bruce, David II becomes king of Scotland

Philip VI of France confiscates Guienne, a fief belonging to Edward III of England - whose response begins the Hundred Years' War

Edward III, in Ghent, publicly assumes the title and the arms of the king of France

William of Ockham advocates paring down arguments to their essentials, an approach later known as Ockham's Razor