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Korea. The Kingdom of Koryo is definitively defeated by the Mongols and submits completely.

The Mongols sack and destroy Baghdad

Baghdad. Caliph al-Mustafa’sim’bi’llah, the last Abbasid caliph, is beaten to death by the Mongols, wrapped in a rug to avoid spilling his noble blood. His body is thrown into the Tigris. Thus ends early Islam.

Baghdad. The city walls collapse, and the Mongol armies of Hulegu and Baiju storm into the city. The Islamic ministers are executed on the spot. Caliph al-Mustafa’sim’bi’llah surrenders and grants the Mongol request to gather the entire population in the esplanade outside the walls, where,

Baghdad. The Mongol Hulegu, brother of Khan Qubilai (ulus Yuan), and ruler of the Ilkhanid ulus in the Middle East, sends, as is their custom, a formal request for submission to the caliph al-Mustafa’sim’bi’llah, on the throne of what had been one of the greatest

Death of Batu, son of Jochi and grandson of Genghis Khan, ruler of the largest ulus (territory) of the four sons. At his death, the Golden Horde’s ulus (altan ordu) stretched from Siberia to the Black Sea.

Mission of the Dominicans and the Flemish Franciscan William of Rubruk to the Mongols. The dream is of an alliance between Westerners and Mongols that, enclosing Islam in its grip, would destroy or convert it. The story of William of Rubruk and John of Pian

Florence mints the florin, which will become widely used. Florence and Genoa are the first Western cities to mint gold coins. Venice will do so (the ducat) in 1284.

Mongolia. Three years after the death of Khan Guyug, son of Ogodei, grandson of Genghis Khan, and governor of the Yuan ulus, Mongke, son of Tolui, Ogodei’s brother, was elected.

Fossalta, a bridge between Modena and Bologna. The Bolognese, who were repairing the wooden bridge, went to gather firewood in Modena territory. The dispute sparked conflict. Modena’s defeat was complete and terrible. King Enzo himself, a native of Modena, was taken prisoner and held in

Saint Louis’s mission to the Mongols. The dream is of an alliance between Westerners and Mongols that, by enclosing Islam in its grip, would destroy or convert it. But the king will regret sending messengers and gifts, as the mission will lead to nothing.

Pope Innocent IV and King Louis IX send letters to Khan Guyug, grandson of Genghis Khan. They urge him to abandon the plans of extermination and destruction perpetrated by his predecessors and convert. He responds that, unfortunately, he cannot do so, as heaven is guiding

Anatolia. Key Khosrow’s motley forces suffer a devastating defeat in the Kose Dag ravine, near Erzinjan. The sultan is forced to flee in haste, and the Mongols conquer and sack Sivas (now Sebaste) and Qayseri (now Caesarea).

Mongol raids devastate Poland and Hungary in Europe. In Hungary, furthermore, the Cumans invade, driven by the Mongolinas. King Ladislaus IV (1272-1290) was a semi-Cuman and semi-pagan, against whom Pope Nicholas IV preached a crusade.

The Mongol Batu’s incursion into the West reaches the city of Bulghar, which is destroyed in yet another bloodbath.

Batu Khan’s Mongols spread terror and destruction in Central Europe and the Balkans, up to the Adriatic Sea

Korea. The Kingdom of Koryo is forced to become a vassal state of the Mongols. In 1232, the Mongols’ increasingly onerous demands lead to a Korean revolt, Mongol military intervention, and a civil war that will only be resolved with the definitive Mongol victory in

The Aztecs invade the Toltec (formerly Mayan) territory of Teotihuacan

Mongol Empire: the largest in the world (after the British) Mongol cavalry: the most fearsome army in history: it could cause more than 100,000 deaths in a single day of battle

Theravada Buddhism spreads in Thailand through royal imposition

Sweden. The monarchy becomes elective. The Folkungar family manages to assert itself for a time, with Magnus Ladulas, and then with Magnus Eriksson.

Death of Genghis Khan

At the height of the spread of leprosy in the West, Louis VIII left 100 sous in his will to each of the two thousand leper hospitals in the kingdom of France.

Mongolia. Jochi, son of Genghi Khan, is poisoned by his father because of his claims of independence for his share of the territories he will inherit.

Federico II University of Naples is founded

80,000 Russian soldiers killed by the Mongols in the Battle of the Kalka River (Ukraine)

Documented transit of the comet that would later be named Halley’s Comet centuries later. The first to observe it were Korean astrologers.

Marv, Central Asia. Tolui, Genghis Khan’s youngest son, occupies the city and, using a procedure learned from his father, forces all citizens to gather immediately outside the walls and exterminates them all. Each soldier must kill at least four people, and Muslims are also used,

Khwarezm, Central Asia. The ruler Ala’oddin Mohammad must flee to Nishapur, pursued by the Mongols.

Kazakhstan. The city of Otrar is sacked and destroyed by Mongol hordes. Its library, with over one hundred thousand volumes, second only to that of Alexandria, is burned.

Venice. The auditors prohibit unilateral price fixing and boycotts of the tailors’ guild. Other guilds present in Venice include those of doublets, goldsmiths and jewelers, dyers, coopers, rope makers, barbers and surgeons, and doctors.

The Mongols invaded Khwarezm, an Islamic state, and devastated it: Samarkand, Bukhara, Harat, and Nishapur never recovered; in total, the Mongol victims in Asia would be around 30 million dead, between invasions and repressions.

Khwarezm, Central Asia. A caravan of Mongol merchant ambassadors, having reached the border with Khwarezm, ruled by Ala’oddin Mohammad, were executed. This was a casus belli.

The works of Aristotle, which the Arabs had saved and amalgamated into their own culture, were rediscovered by Europeans and translated into Latin

Jalal Al-Din Rumi: Persian poet, who saw God as beauty, wrote poems, remembered as ‘the Persian Quran’

Repression of heresy. The defense of orthodoxy was a delicate task, and for this reason Pope Gregory IX removed the role of Inquisition judges from the secular power, and in 1233 entrusted it to the Dominicans, whose theological training and presence in the cities made

The trade of the Republic of Venice was based on goods such as salt (taxation of which provided the bulk of state revenue), grain (Venetian ships served as the hub of the grain trade, transporting it from where it was abundantly produced to where it

The Republic of Venice dominated the eastern Mediterranean, with influences extending to the western Mediterranean and as far as England, Bruges in Belgium, and Germany. It was a model for trade (the true soul of Venice), diplomacy (the Republic’s legendary cunning), politics (the Republic’s celebrated

The most urbanized areas of Europe are Flanders, Germany, Northern and Central Italy.

Twelve million people live in France. By 1340, there were 21 million.

Mongolia. After another victory against the Tatars, To’oril of the Kerait clan is proclaimed Wang (King) and Temujin Zhaotao (Peace Commissioner), a title of “second” to the Kerait chief.

The Japanese monk Eisai returns to Japan from China and imports the philosophy that will become Zen (meditation: Ch’an in Chinese, Dhyana in Sanskrit)

Modena Cathedral: in the presence of Pope Lucius III, the sarcophagus of Saint Geminiano is opened for the second time in seven centuries. The Pope is on his way to Verona to meet with the Emperor. Only the year before, the Battle of Legnano had

Peace of Constance, Southern Swabia: Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa recognizes the municipal liberties of Italian cities. Formally, it is not a bilateral treaty, but a series of privileges granted by Frederick to Italian cities: citizens can freely elect their own governors, who must swear loyalty

Francis of Assisi

Frederick’s Teutonic Knights, joining forces with the army of Pavia, finally laid siege to hated Alessandria, which, newly founded, was protected only by a large moat, no walls. As usual, the Germans lacked the technical expertise and craftsmen to build siege engines, so Frederick appealed

Second siege of Aleppo, Syria by Saladin, the Crusaders resist

Christian of Mainz (Rainald of Dassel’s successor at Frederick’s side) arrives in Genoa, greeted with jubilation by the population. Christian must reaffirm imperial rights to the Kingdom of Italy. The leaders of the League, hostile to the imperial legate’s visit, place an embargo on Genoa.

Oath of alliance: the Association of Lombardy and the March of Verona, known as the Lombard League, is officially born. The treaty stipulates that no city may cede more to the Empire than had been granted until the accession of Frederick (upon the death of

The imperial army of Frederick Barbarossa appears before Pavia ready once again to turn the tide of the conflict in Northern Italy.

Even Trezzo, an ally of the Empire, surrenders to the League after a two-month siege. The defenders manage to save their lives, but must abandon everything in the fortress. Ruino and the German and Lombard fighters are taken to prison in Milan, and then the

Rome. The remaining intact part of the imperial army marches toward Germany. From stage to stage, it leaves behind a trail of sick and dead.

Rome. The imperial army, after entering through what is now Porta Angelica, sacked the Vatican district and then attacked St. Peter’s, fortified by supporters of Alexander III. The Romans managed to repel the attacks for several days. The exasperated imperials set fire to the small

The siege of Trezzo by the League troops begins.

The Milanese refugees see columns of soldiers arriving with waving flags. They are the army of Bergamo, followed by that of Brescia and then Cremona, to protect the citizens returning to a destroyed and abandoned Milan. Neither the Pavia nor the imperial forces dare challenge

Frederick’s imperial army is marching towards Rome, and is spending the night near Reggio Emilia.

Lodi and Pavia. Frederick’s imperial army moves south toward Rome. Frederick believes he’s leaving behind a region that has been tamed and pacified. But that’s not quite how it turns out…

Year of the Horse. Temujin (later better known as Genghis Khan) is born in Mongolia; he holds a blood clot in his fist, a sign that Mongolian tradition holds that he will become a great warrior.

Milan rises up against the Empire and is destroyed.

Milan. The city is systematically destroyed, razed to the ground, with the exception of the churches. Destroying the largest metropolis in the West is no easy feat. Fire is used, but even then it takes eight days to achieve noticeable results. Finally, Frederick tenaciously tries

Milan. The entire population is ordered to leave the city within eight days.

Bologna. Riots against the empire lead Frederick to march on the city and then destroy its walls. He then installs the jurist Bezo as podestà. Bezo is later killed during the subsequent popular uprising of 1164.

Frederick Barbarossa sends a delegation to Milan, led by Reinaldo of Dassel, to appoint a German podestà to replace the consuls. This act is in direct violation of the peace treaty signed by Frederick himself with the consuls of Milan. The Milanese population refuses to

Modena. The Imperial Chancellor and Count Palatine Otto of Wittelsbach are guests in the city.

Melegnano. The Milanese are not standing idly by, and attack a strong Imperial contingent composed of 1,000 Teutonic knights led by Erchempert, Count of Putten and Formbach. The battle is open, and the Teutons should be the favorites, practically undefeated in these conditions. The crush

Frederick Barbarossa deals with the problems on the northeastern border of the Holy Roman Empire. There, King Władysław, Barbarossa’s ally, has been ousted by his brothers and replaced by Bolesław IV, who refuses to pay the annual tribute of 500 silver marks. The Teutonic Knights,

The extraordinary openness of the urban world of the Northern Italian communes in the 12th century allowed the birth of a cavalry made up of anyone who wanted to join and could buy a horse. In the rest of Europe, it was a hereditary affair.

Byzantine Emperor Manuel Comnenus assembled an expedition that, departing from allied Ancona, headed south. The column of heavily armored cavalry, supported by the battle fleet, was led by Michael Palaiologos and his deputy John Doukas. They crossed the Abruzzi, took Pescara without a fight, and

England. The House of Plantagenet reigns, with 9 sovereigns: Henry II Curtmantle, Henry the Young, Richard I the Lionheart (Richard the Lionheart), John Lackland (John without land), Henry III of Winchester, Edward I Longhanks, Edward II, Edward III, Richard II.

Frankfurt. The great assembly (“Diet”) of German princes elevates the thirty-year-old Duke of Swabia, Frederick, later known as Barbarossa, to the rank of King of the Romans. Frederick is the ideal candidate to end 25 years of internecine warfare between the Hohenstaufen dynasty of Swabia

London. The Weavers’ Guild is founded.

Gherardo da Cremona translates Euclid’s Elements from Arabic to Latin for the first time.

In his Dictatus Papae, Pope Gregory VII reiterated the superiority of the Pope and much of the clergy over the Emperor and lay officials. This was evidently a warning to Henry IV. To “demonstrate” the clergy’s superiority, he recalled that the Emperor, unable to cast

The Lateran Synod condemns simony and reserves the election of the pope to cardinals alone.

China. During the Song Dynasty, the government printed paper money. This was the world’s first paper money with a physical counterpart. These were certificates similar to bonds, with a fixed term, after which they expired and were withdrawn. The paper money experiment ended during the

Soon after the year 1000, Venetian merchants, taking advantage of the abundance of timber, became the main maritime operators in the eastern Mediterranean. They felled oak, larch, pine, and fir trees and transported the wood to the East, which was already suffering from centuries of

“Miyake event,” a very strong solar storm that directly impacts Earth, occurs. The event is recorded in the rings of ancient trees, which will be analyzed in 2022 in a paper published in Royal Society Publishing. Annually resolved measurements of the radiocarbon content of tree

Kiev. “Kiev Russia” is born in the Dnieper River basin. In 988, the Slavic lands were Christianized and evangelized by the brothers Cyril and Methodius, and Grand Prince Vladimir of Kiev was baptized. The reference point was Byzantium, the Patriarchate of Constantinople, and the Eastern

France, Hugh Capet founds the Capetian dynasty

Basil II, Byzantine Emperor, defeated by Samuel’s Bulgarians