1214 CE
Upon the death of their father, King Alfonso VIII of Castile ("the Noble"), and of their mother, Eleanor of England, Queen of Castile on October 31, Berenguela becomes regent of her 10-year-old brother, Henry I. Siege of Sinope: The Seljuk Turks under Sultan Kaykaus I capture the strategic Black Sea port city of Sinope – at the time held by the Empire of Trebizond (one of the Byzantine successor states formed after the Fourth Crusade). Emperor Alexios I of Trebizond leads an army to break the siege, but he is defeated and captured. His capture forces the Byzantines to accept tributary status to Kaykaus. A group of English nobles, after finding a copy of the Charter of Liberties, swear an oath at the altar of Bury St Edmunds, to force King John to acknowledge their rights.
In the 1210s, the 13th century.
Geopolitics & Diplomacy
- September 18 – Treaty of Chinon: John of England makes a truce with Philip II at the Castle of Chinon, and recognizes the Capetian (French) territorial gains at the expense of the Angevin Empire.source
- September 18 – Treaty of Chinon: John of England and Philip II of France agree to a truce at the Castle of Chinon, in which John of England recognises the Capetian (French) territorial gains at the expense of the Angevin Empire formally ending the Anglo-French war of 1213–14.Francesource
Conflict & Security
- February 15 – John, King of England ("Lackland") lands with an invasion force (accompanied by mercenaries) at La Rochelle; many barons of England refuse to join him in the campaign. John sends his half-brother William Longespée ("Long Sword") to Flanders, with money to assemble a mercenary army there. John pushes the French forces northeast from Poitou towards Paris, while Emperor Otto IV marches southwest from Flanders. King Philip II of France (Augustus) decides to defend his territories by leaving a third of his army under his son, Prince Louis to confront John in the Loire Valley – while Philip heads for Flanders to raid the region. On July 2, John's forces are confronted by a French relief force while they besiege the castle of Roche-au-Moine. John retreats to La Rochelle, but his rearguard suffers immensely by the French army.source
- February 15 – John, King of England lands with an invasion force at La Rochelle in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France. He sends his half-brother William Longespée to Flanders, with money to assemble a mercenary army there. John pushes the French forces northeast from Poitou towards Paris, while Emperor Otto IV marches southwest from Flanders.Francesource
- June 19 – Roche-au-Moine is besieged by the English.Francesource
- June – Otto IV arrives in Flanders with a small army; four German nobles have joined him, but he is soon reinforced by troops of Renaud I, duke of Boulogne, Ferdinand, (jure uxoris) count of Flanders and the mercenaries under William Longespée. On July 26, Philip II arrives at the Flemish town of Tournai with his army (some 7,000 men), while the allied forces encamp 12 kilometers south at the Castle of Mortagne (France).source
- July 2 – John of Englands forces are confronted by a French relief force while they besiege the castle of Roche-au-Moine. John retreats to La Rochelle ending the siege, but his rearguard suffers immensely by the French army.Francesource
- July 26 – Philip II arrives at the Flemish town of Tournai with his army (some 7,000 men), while the rest of his allied forces encamp 12 kilometres south at the Castle of Mortagne (France).Francesource
- July 27 – Battle of Bouvines: Philip II defeats an army (some 9,000 men) of German, English and Flemish soldiers led by Otto IV near Bouvines, ending the Anglo-French War. The French forces have taken a considerable number of soldiers prisoner, including 131 knights and five counts with Ferdinand, Renaud I and William Longespée among them.source
- July 27 – Battle of Bouvines: Philip II defeats an army of 25,000 German, English and Flemish soldiers led by Otto IV near Bouvines. The French forces take 9000 soldiers prisoner, including 131 knights and five counts with Count Ferdinand of Flanders, Count Renaud I of Boulogne and William Longespée among them.Francesource
- November 1 – Siege of Sinope: The Seljuk Turks under Sultan Kaykaus I capture the strategic Black Sea port city of Sinope – at the time held by the Empire of Trebizond (one of the Byzantine successor states formed after the Fourth Crusade). Emperor Alexios I of Trebizond leads an army to break the siege, but he is defeated and captured. His capture forces the Byzantines to accept tributary status to Kaykaus.source
- In his campaigns in Liaodong, the Mongol general Muqali (or Mukhali) forms a newly Khitan-Chinese army and a special corps of some 12,000 Chinese auxiliary troops.source
- Spring – Emperor Xuan Zong of the Jurchen-led Chinese Jin dynasty surrenders to the Mongols under Genghis khan – who have besieged the capital of Zhongdu (modern-day Beijing) for a year. He is forced to pay tribute (including some 3,000 horses, 10,000 'bolts' of silk and his daughter), along with subjugation to the Mongol Khan. Xuan Zong abandons northern China and moves his court to Kaifeng.source
- After securing all Jin lands north of the Yellow River, Genghis Khan receives a message that Xuan Zong has moved his capital to Kaifeng. He returns to Zhongdu and precedes the city with the help of thousands of Chinese engineers. The Mongols starve the city out (the inhabitants are forced to eat the dead). The garrison, with a short supply of ammunition for the cannons holds out for the winter.source
- Aodh Méith, King of Tír Eoghain, defeated an Anglo-Norman force in eastern Ulster and burned its encampment at Carrlongport.Irelandsource
Exploration & Expansion
Religion & Belief
- April 13 – Simon of Apulia is elected bishop of Exeter in England (approximate date).source
- July 2 – The Papal Interdict of 1208, laid against the Kingdom of England, is lifted.source
- Thomas MacUchtraigh plundered Derry for the second time, carrying away the treasures of the monastery and the church of St Columba.Irelandsource
Culture & Society
- June 20 – A papal ordinance defines the rights of the scholars at the University of Oxford in England.source
- October 5 – Upon the death of their father, King Alfonso VIII of Castile ("the Noble"), and of their mother, Eleanor of England, Queen of Castile on October 31, Berenguela becomes regent of her 10-year-old brother, Henry I.source
- November 20 – A group of English nobles, after finding a copy of the Charter of Liberties, swear an oath at the altar of Bury St Edmunds, to force King John to acknowledge their rights.source
Births
- April 25 – Louis IX ("the Saint"), king of France (died 1270)source
- July 29 – Sturla Þórðarson, Icelandic chieftain (died 1284)source
- Ugolino della Gherardesca, Italian nobleman (approximate date) (died 1289)source
- Isabella of England, Holy Roman Empress (died 1241)source
- Alberto da Bergamo, Italian Dominican tertiary (died 1279)source
- Ottaviano degli Ubaldini, Italian cardinal (died 1273)source
- Al-Qurtubi, Moorish scholar, jurist and writer (died 1273)source
Deaths
- January 25 – Taira no Tokuko, Japanese empress (born 1155)source
- February 13 – Theobald I, Count of Bar (or Thibauld), French noblemansource
- February 13 – Theobald I, Count of Bar (or Thibauld), French nobleman ( c. 1158)Francesource
- April 16 or 26 – Henry VI, Count Palatine of the Rhine ("the Younger"), German nobleman (born 1196)source
- June 24 – Gilbert Glanvill (or Glanville), bishop of Rochestersource
- August 18 – Pedro Fernández de Castro, Spanish noblemansource
- August 30 – Peter of Capua the Elder, Italian cardinal and papal legatesource
- September 14 – Albert of Vercelli, Latin patriarch of Jerusalemsource
- September 16 – Diego López II de Haro, Spanish nobleman (born 1152)source
- October 5 – Alfonso VIII ("the Noble"), king of Castile (born 1155)source
- October 18 – John de Gray (or de Grey), bishop of Norwichsource
- October 31 – Eleanor of England, queen of Castile (born 1161)source
- December 4 – King William the Lion of Scotland dies after a 49-year reign at Stirling. He is succeeded by his son, Alexander II, who is crowned at Scone (until 1249).source
- December 4 – William the Lion, king of Scotland (born 1142)source
- December 8 – Sasaki Takatsuna, Japanese samurai (born 1160)source
- Baldwin of Toulouse, Occitan noble (born 1165)Francesource
- During fighting between the Ua Catháin and the sons of Mac Lochlainn, the great manciple of the monastery at Derry was killed.Irelandsource
- Ainmire Ua Cobhthaigh, abbot of Derry.Irelandsource