Timeline

11th century

c. 11th century – c. 1450s★★★★★
Great Zimbabwe flourishes
Great Zimbabwe, a city of mortarless stone enclosures, was the centre of a powerful state that prospered from cattle and the gold trade with the Swahili coast.
CultureEconomy· Zimbabwe

13th century

1206 – 1526★★★★★
Founding of the Delhi Sultanate
Qutb ud-Din Aibak establishes the Delhi Sultanate, which dominates much of northern India for over three centuries.
DynastyPolitics· India, Pakistan, Bangladesh
1250 – 1517★★★★★
Mamluk Sultanate established in Egypt
Mamluk slave-soldiers overthrow the Ayyubids and seize power in Egypt, ruling Egypt and Syria for over two and a half centuries.
DynastyPolitics· Egypt, Syria

14th century

1306★★★★★
Princess Huyền Trân marries the king of Champa
Princess Huyền Trân marries King Jaya Simhavarman III of Champa, who cedes the districts of Ô and Lý (around modern Quảng Trị and Huế) to Đại Việt.
PoliticsTreaty· Vietnam
1308★★★★★
Death of Trần Nhân Tông
Retired emperor Trần Nhân Tông, founder of the Trúc Lâm school of Zen Buddhism, dies on Mount Yên Tử.
DeathReligion· Vietnam
June 23, 1314 – June 24, 1314★★★★★
Battle of Bannockburn
Robert the Bruce of Scotland defeats the army of Edward II of England, a key victory in the Wars of Scottish Independence.
War· United Kingdom
1315 – 1317★★★★★
Great Famine in Europe
Successive crop failures caused by bad weather bring mass famine to northern Europe, killing a significant share of the population.
DisasterEconomy· United Kingdom, France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Poland
c. 1320★★★★★
Dante completes the Divine Comedy
Dante Alighieri completes the Divine Comedy, a masterpiece of Italian and medieval European literature.
CultureArt· Italy
September 1321★★★★★
Death of Dante Alighieri
The poet Dante, author of the Divine Comedy, dies in exile at Ravenna; his work helped shape literary Italian.
DeathCulture· Italy
1324★★★★★
Mansa Musa's pilgrimage to Mecca
Mansa Musa of Mali made the pilgrimage to Mecca with a vast retinue, spending so much gold in Cairo that its value fell, spreading Mali's fame across the Islamic world and Europe.
ReligionEconomy· Mali, Egypt, Saudi Arabia
c. 1325★★★★★
Founding of Tenochtitlan
According to tradition, the Mexica (Aztecs) found Tenochtitlan on an island in Lake Texcoco, the site of present-day Mexico City.
Politics· Mexico
1325 – 1354★★★★★
Travels of Ibn Battuta
The Moroccan scholar Ibn Battuta travels across the Islamic world and beyond, from West Africa to China, for nearly three decades.
Exploration· Morocco
1336★★★★★
Founding of the Vijayanagara Empire
The brothers Harihara and Bukka found the Vijayanagara Empire in southern India; its capital Hampi becomes one of the world's largest cities.
DynastyPolitics· India
1337 – 1453★★★★★
Hundred Years' War
A series of conflicts between England and France over the French throne ends with England losing nearly all its continental lands.
War· France, United Kingdom
August 26, 1346★★★★★
Battle of Crécy
Edward III's English army, relying on longbowmen, defeats a much larger French army in northern France.
War· France
October 1347 – 1351★★★★★
Black Death reaches Europe
Plague arrives at Messina, Sicily, on merchant ships and spreads across Europe, killing roughly a third of its population.
DiseaseDisaster· Italy
1351 – 1767★★★★★
Founding of the Ayutthaya Kingdom
King Ramathibodi I founds the capital of Ayutthaya, beginning a Siamese kingdom that lasts over four centuries.
DynastyPolitics· Thailand
1353★★★★★
Fa Ngum founds Lan Xang
Fa Ngum unites the Lao principalities into the kingdom of Lan Xang ("Million Elephants"), the forerunner of modern Laos.
DynastyPolitics· Laos
1368★★★★★
Zhu Yuanzhang founds the Ming dynasty
Rebel leader Zhu Yuanzhang becomes the Hongwu Emperor and drives the Mongols from Dadu, ending the Yuan dynasty.
DynastyPolitics· China
1370 – 1405★★★★★
Timur takes power in Samarkand
Timur becomes ruler of the Chagatai Ulus, making Samarkand his capital and launching conquests across Western and South Asia.
DynastyWar· Uzbekistan
1371★★★★★
Champa sacks Thăng Long
Cham forces under King Po Binasuor (Chế Bồng Nga) sack the Đại Việt capital Thăng Long.
War· Vietnam
1377★★★★★
Jikji printed with metal movable type
The Jikji, an anthology of Zen Buddhist teachings, is the world's oldest extant book printed with movable metal type.
TechnologyReligion· South Korea
1378 – 1417★★★★★
Western Schism
Rival claimants to the papacy in Rome and Avignon divide the Catholic Church until the Council of Constance ends the schism.
Religion· Italy, France
1380★★★★★
Birth of Nguyễn Trãi
Nguyễn Trãi, scholar, poet and strategist of the Lam Sơn uprising, is born.
Birth· Vietnam
June 1381★★★★★
Peasants' Revolt in England
Peasants led by Wat Tyler rise against the poll tax and serfdom, marching on London before being suppressed.
Revolution· United Kingdom
June 15, 1389★★★★★
Battle of Kosovo
Ottoman forces fight a Serbian-led coalition; both Sultan Murad I and Prince Lazar are killed, and the battle becomes central to Serbian national memory.
War· Kosovo, Serbia
1392★★★★★
Yi Seong-gye founds Joseon
General Yi Seong-gye overthrows Goryeo and founds the Joseon dynasty, which lasts more than five centuries.
DynastyPolitics· South Korea, North Korea
1397★★★★★
Citadel of the Hồ dynasty built
Hồ Quý Ly builds the stone citadel of Tây Đô in Thanh Hóa, later a UNESCO World Heritage Site (2011).
ArtPolitics· Vietnam
1398★★★★★
Timur sacks Delhi
Timur's army defeats the Delhi Sultanate and devastates the city, gravely weakening the sultanate.
War· India
c. 1400 – 1511★★★★★
Founding of the Malacca Sultanate
Parameswara founds Malacca, which becomes the key port on the Strait of Malacca and a centre for the spread of Islam in Southeast Asia.
DynastyEconomyReligion· Malaysia
1400★★★★★
Hồ Quý Ly founds the Hồ dynasty
Hồ Quý Ly deposes the Trần, founds the Hồ dynasty, renames the country Đại Ngu and launches sweeping reforms.
DynastyPolitics· Vietnam