Medieval Europeans and Spanish Conquistadors

Fall of the Western Roman Empire

476 BCE

The Fall of the Western Roman Empire was the process of decline in the Roman Empire in which the it failed to enforce the law and the territory was divided into several groups. The Roman Empire fell and therefore the armies weakened, health grew poor and Roman population diminished.

The Dark Ages

Jan 1, 1000

The Dark Ages refers to the time between the fall of the Roman Empire at the Beginning of the Italian Resistance and the age of discovery. It was during this time where a religious movement called monasticism developed and the feudalism was the dominant political system, where peasents and serfs had very little ability to improve their living conditions. This time was referred to as "Dark" because of the supposed lack of scientific and cultural advancements.

High Middle Ages

Jan 1, 1001

The key historical trend in the High Middle Ages was the rapid population growth in Europe. This brought about great political and social change to this era; the renaissance of the 12th Century and the development of rural exodus and urbanisation.

Battle of Stamford Bridge

Sep 25, 1066

The Battle of Stamford Bridge took place at the village of Stamford Bridge in England between an English Army, an invading Norwegian force and the English King's brother. After a slaughterous battle, although most of the Norwegians were killed, the Normans defeated the English at Hastings three weeks later.
The death of King Edward the Confessor of England in had triggered a succession struggle in which a variety of contenders from across north-western Europe fought for the English throne.

Battle of Hastings

Oct 14, 1066

The Battle Of Hastings was between the Norman-French Army of William, the Duke of Normandy and English Army under the Anglo Saxon King Godwinson, beginning the Norman Conquest of England. The battle took place approximately 11km from Hastings. The reason to the battle was the death of Edward The Confessor, which set several struggles in his throne. The size of Armies was around 7,00 to 10,000. William was crowned king on Christmas Day 1066.

Domesday Book

Oct 12, 1086

The Domesday book is one of Medieval England's greatest treasures. It was to give William I huge authority of England.He ordered the book to be made containing the rules of who owned what in the country, it would also tell him who owed him tax because the book was on record and could not be questioned or interfered with. This system brought gloom to the people of England.

Pope Urban II Speech calling for the First Crusade

Jan 1, 1094

In 1094 or 1095, Alexios I Komnenos, the Byzantine emperor, sent to the pope, Urban II, and asked for aid from the west against the Seljuq Turks, who taken nearly all of Asia Minor from him. At the council of Clermont, Urban addressed a great crowd and urged all to go to the aid of the Greeks and to recover Palestine from the rule of the Muslims.

The First Crusade

Aug 27, 1096

The First Crusade was the first of the number of crusaders in attempt to recapture the holy land in order of Pope Urban II in 1905. Knights, peasents and serfs travelled over land and sea to first Constantinople, then Jerusalem. They arrived and captured the city, massacring many of the Jewish and Muslim citizens.

The Second Crusade

Oct 12, 1147

The Second Crusade was the second major Crusade launched by the Europeans as a holy war against Islam. This battle was announced by Pope Eugene III and was the first Crusade to be lead by European Kings. The success of the Christian Crusade came to be a combined force of around 13,000 people.

Building of the Notre Dame

Jan 1, 1163

The Notre Dame is a building in de la Cite in Paris. It took around 87 years to build and is an important representation of classic french gothic agriculture, sculpture and stained glass. This building is the most famous building in all of France and is still used as a Catholic church.

The Third Crusade

Jan 1, 1189

Upon hearing of the defeat of the battle of Hattin, a new call for help was sent. By March 1188, Henry II of England, Richard (Henry's son), Philip II of France, and the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I had sworn crusade vows. Richard and Philip arrived in the Holy Land by the summer of 1191. The two then worked out a compromise for who should control Jerusalem between the feuding parties from the dispute after Baldwin V's death.

Signing of the Magna Carta

Jun 15, 1215

The Magna Carta, meaning "The Great Charter", is one of the most important documents which established the principal of everyone being subject to the law and guaranteed the rights of individuals. It was signed by King John after an uprising of a group of rebel barons in England. Once the Barons captured London, the King was forced to sign the document for peace between the rebels and Kings. The signing of the Magna Carta established the idea of trial by jury and is still a source of liberty.

Edward I Model Parliament

Jan 1, 1275

The parliament called in 1295, known as the Model Parliament and widely regarded as the first representative parliament, included the lower clergy for the first time as well as two knights from each county, two burgesses from each borough, and two citizens from each city. Edward I made the meeting of Parliament a more frequent event and over the course of his reign of 35 years (1272-1307) he summoned it on 46 occasions.

The Late Middle Ages

Jan 1, 1301

Around 1300, centuries of population growth and prosperity came to a halt. A series of plagues and famines including the great famine and the black death decreased the population of Europe around half. This time brought social unrest and endemic warfare. France and England experienced many peasents revolts. Despite these problems, there was great advancement in the arts and sciences. There was a renewed interest in Ancient Greek and Roman texts and the Italian Renaissance begun.

The Black Death

Oct 1, 1347

The Black Death arrived in Europe when 12 Genoese trading ships docked at the Sicilian port of Messina after an arduous journey through the Black Sea. Most of the sailors aboard the ships were dead, and those who were still alive were extremely sick. The disease spread through the common cough or sneeze and soon took over Europe and other countries. In the middle of the 14th century, however, there seemed to be no rational explanation for it.

Peasents' Revolt

May 30, 1381

The most serious of the England's revolts was the Peasants' revolt. An army of peasants from Kent and Essex came from England and captured the tower of London. The Archbishop of Canterbury and the Kings Treasurer were killed. Why did this happen? There had been a long war with France and wars cost money which came from the peasants taxes. Many peasents had to work for free on church land and after the Black Death many manors were left without workers. The revolt ended by the next summer.

Columbus Reaches America

Oct 12, 1492

Columbus arrives in the Bahamas. Europeans are in the Americas to stay. Columbus eventually makes four voyages to the New World, but dies dejected and forgotten in Valladolid, Spain in 1506.

America Named

Jan 1, 1507

Geographer Martin Waldseemüler is first to use the name "America" to refer to newly-discovered continents, after Italian merchant, explorer, and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci. Columbus loses out on lucrative naming rights.

Spanish Conquest of the Aztecs

Feb 1, 1519

Following Christopher Columbus' establishment of permanent European settlement in the Caribbean, the Spanish authorized expeditions or entradas for the discovery, conquest, and colonization of new territory, using existing Spanish settlements as a base. Many of those on the Cortés expedition of 1519 had never seen combat before. In fact, Cortés had never commanded men in battle before. The Spanish Campaign was declared victorious in 1521.

First African Slaves

Jan 1, 1521

The Spanish import the first African slaves to the territory that will later become the United States.