July 10 – The
Great Fire: The most severe of several
early fires of London burns most of the city to the ground; over 3,000 people die, many of them by drowning in the
River Thames. According to a contemporary account: "An awful fire broke out on the
Southwark side of
London Bridge; while it was raging, a fire broke out at the other end also and so hemmed in the numerous crowds who had assembled to help the distressed. The sufferers, to avoid the flames, threw themselves over the bridge into boats and barges; but many of these sunk, the people crowding into them.".[1]
King
John (Lackland) impounds the revenue of all prelates appointed by bishops, who have deserted him at his excommunication. He remains on good terms, however, with churchmen who stood by him, including Abbot Sampson, who this year bequeaths John his jewels.[2]
Europe
Spring – After the fall of
Argos the Crusaders complete their conquest of the
Morea in southern
Greece. The city, along with
Nauplia, is given to
Otho de la Roche, a Burgundian nobleman, as a fief, along with an income of 400 hyperpyron from
Corinth.[3] Meanwhile, the Venetians conquer
Crete and evict
Enrico Pescatore, a Genoese adventurer and pirate, active in the
Mediterranean.
The
Children's Crusade is organized. There are probably two separate movements of young people, both led by shepherd boys, neither of which embark for the
Holy Land – but both of which suffer considerable hardship.[5]
Early Spring – Nicholas leads a group from the
Rhineland and crosses the
alps into
Italy. In August, he arrives with some 7,000 children in
Genoa. Nicholas travels to the
Papal States where he meets Pope
Innocent III.
June – The 12-year-old Stephen of Cloyes leads a group across
France to
Vendôme. Attracting a following of over 30,000 adults and children. After arriving in
Marseilles the vast majority return home to their families.
The
Teutonic Order builds
Bran Castle (or Dietrichstein) in the
Burzenland (modern
Romania) as a fortified position at the entrance of a mountain pass through which traders can travel. The Teutonic Knights built another five castles, some of them made of stone. Their rapid expansion in
Hungary makes the nobility and clergy, who are previously uninterested in those regions, jealous and suspicious.
December 9 – The 18-year-old
Frederick II is crowned
King of the Germans at
Mainz. Frederick's authority in
Germany remains tenuous, and he is recognized only in southern Germany. In the region of northern Germany, the center of
Guelph power, his rival
Otto IV continues to hold the imperial power despite his excommunication.[6]
Asia
Autumn –
Genghis Khan invades Jin territory and besieges
Datong. During the assault, he is wounded by an arrow in his knee and orders a withdrawal for rest and relaxation.[7]
By topic
Literature
Kamo no Chōmei, a Japanese poet and
essayist, writes the Hōjōki, one of the great works of classical Japanese prose.
^ "Fires, Great", in The Insurance Cyclopeadia: Being an Historical Treasury of Events and Circumstances Connected with the Origin and Progress of Insurance, Cornelius Walford, ed. (C. and E. Layton, 1876) p26
^Warren, W. L. (1961). King John. Berkeley: University of California Press. pp. 169–172.
^Fine, John Van Antwerp (1994). The Late Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century to the Ottoman Conquest, p. 90. Ann Arbor, Michigan: University of Michigan Press.
ISBN0-472-08260-4.
^Linehan, Peter (1999). "Chapter 21: Castile, Portugal and Navarre". In
David Abulafia (ed.). The New Cambridge Medieval History c.1198-c.1300. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 668–671.
ISBN0-521-36289-X.
^Toch, Michael (1999). "Welffs, Hohenstaufen and Habsburgs". In Abulafia, David; McKitterick, Rosamond (eds.). The New Cambridge Medieval History: c. 1198– c. 1300. Cambridge University Press. p. 381.
^Man, John (2011). Genghis Khan: Life, Death and Resurrection, p. 166.
ISBN978-0-553-81498-9.