Timeline of the 14th Century
The 14th Century 1300 - 1399, was a period of great human suffering as the Black Death crept its way across Europe. It decimated the population of Britain which in turn left the survivors in a new world, one in which the power of the Church had undertaken a seismic shift. Explore the 14th Century using the timeline and read the synopsis below to better understand the period or if you don't find what you are looking for here, then jump into our Historic themes and Historic Periods timelines where you will discover a plethora of intriguing connections to the 14th century.
| Year | Event | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| 1300 | Decorated style of architecture | The English phase of Gothic style gives way to the Decorated. |
| 1301 | Small group of English merchants start to appear importing and exporting goods in Europe. | |
| 1301 | Prince of Wales | King Edward I bestows the title of Prince of Wales on his son. |
| 1302 | Edward II came to throne and recalled Piers Gaveston, his boyhood friend whom his father had exiled and made him his chief counsellor. | |
| 1303 | Church power in decline. | Pope Boniface VIII has issued a papal decree, Unam Sanctam, to maintain Church authority over kings. |
| 1305 | William Wallace killed | William Wallace of Scotland is captured, taken to London, convicted of treason, hanged and his corpse drawn and quartered. |
| 1306 | Robert de Bruce | After the murder of his rival Robert de Bruce is crowned King of Scotland. |
| 1307 | Divine Comedy | Dante begins work on the Divine Comedy. |
| 1309 | Papacy moves to Avignon | Pope Clement moves the papacy to Avignon. |
| 1310 | The barons who had resented the advancement of Gaveston demanded he should be re-banished. Edward consented and then revoked his decision. Edward was forced to agree to the appointment of a commission of reform calling themselves Lords Ordainers. | |
| 1310 | Attempt to destroy the Knights Templar | Fifty-four Knights Templars are burned at the stake, during the campaign of the French king to destroy the order |
| 1311 | Parliament passed the Ordinances. | |
| 1312 | Murder of Gaveston | Gaveston was brought before an informal and illegal tribunal and condemned to death on the authority of the Ordinances and executed Gaveston on Blacklow Hill. Edward never forgave the murderers of Gaveston. |
| 1313 | Barons divided | The leader of the victorious barons was the King's cousin Thomas Earl of Lancaster and he led the barons who were divided by his authority. There followed years during which Edward built a new coterie of supporters namely the Despensers, father and son |
| 1314 | Battle of Bannockburn. | Edwards army was routed at Bannockburn which secured the independence of Scotland. |
| 1315 | Anatomical dissection | An Italian surgeon, Mondino de Luzzi, oversees dissection of a corpse. His manual on anatomy will be the first that is founded on practical dissection. |
| 1316 | Death of Pope Clement V | The papacy is still in turmoil and the new Pope John XII places heavy taxes on Europe's Christians in an attempt to regain the Church's independence and prestige. |
| 1319 | Paper production | The process of producing paper begins in Germany, this will herald in a surge of developments in printing and then literacy. |
| 1321 | ||
| 1322 | Execution of Thomas Lancaster | Execution of Thomas Lancaster after his defeat at Boroughbridge. Repeal of the Ordinances. |
| 1323 | The Despensers enjoyed the monopoly of patronage Edward offered them. They and the King enjoyed 5 years of rule. | |
| 1326 | Capture of King Edward II by his wife and her lover Mortimer. | Mortimer and Isabella landed in England and were joined by a large section of the baronage. The Despensers were caught and hanged and King Edward fled but was captured and brought to Kenilworth Castle. |
| 1327 | Deposition of King Edward II. | He resigns his crown in favour of his 13 year old son. Isabella and Mortimer ruled in the name of the young king. Edward was taken from Kenilworth to Berkeley Castle where he was probably murdered. |
| 1328 | Treaty agreeing Scotland is independent of England. | The English accept a treaty that Scotland is free and independent of England. |
| 1330 | Bad harvests in Europe | A run of poor harvests in Europe leads to many deaths and difficult economic situation across Europe. |
| 1340 | John of Gaunt born in Ghent | Son of King Edward III he and his heirs would be pivotal in the future history of England. |
| 1345 | Florentine bankers bankrupt | The families Bardi and Peruzzi are driven to bankruptcy due to the debt of the English King Edward. |
| 1347 | Calais surrenders to the English | After a long siege Calais gives up its arms to the English. |
| 1347 | Order of the Garter | Edward III establishes a new kind of knighthood with the Order of the Garter, conferred purely as an honour |
| 1348 | Black Death | The Black Death sweeps across Europe and kills between 1/3 and 1/2 of the English population. |
| 1348 | Massacre of the Jews across Europe | Accused of poisoning the wells and causing the Black Death the massacre began in southern France and spread throughout Europe. |
| 1350 | Perpendicular architecture | The Perpendicular style took over from the Decorated in European church architecture. |
| 1350 | Water power used in fulling mills in England | This would be the forerunner to the Industrial Revolution. |
| 1351 | The game of tennis is played in England | This is played as an outdoor game. |
| 1356 | Battle of Poitiers | At the Battle of Poitiers, the English capture and hold for ransom the French king and many French nobles. |
| 1359 | Marriage of John of Gaunt | John of Gaunt marries his cousin, Blanche of Lancaster, heiress to vast estates in the north of England |
| 1360 | Muslim rule in Spain | The Muslim rule in Spain is reduced to just the Emirate of Granada. |
| 1361 | Black death returns | Another plague of Black Death sweeps Europe. |
| 1367 | Geoffrey Chaucer at the King's court | Chaucer joins the court of King Edward III as yeoman of the chamber. |
| 1372 | John Gaunt held undisputed power for 5 years. | |
| 1376 | John Wycliffe writing in Oxford | John Wycliffe, writing mainly in Oxford, is critical of the contemporary church and can find no basis for the pope's authority |
| 1377 | 100 years war | War between France and England begins as Edward III lays claim to the French throne. |
| 1378 | The Great Schism begins and continues until 1415. | |
| 1379 | ||
| 1380 | Wycliffe translates the Bible. At the end of this year parliament voted a poll tax to be levied at the heavy rate of 1s in order to finance the military campaigns planned. | |
| 1380 | Fixing the hour | With the development of clocks, the hour becomes a fixed period of time - one twenty-fourth part of the day |
| 1381 | Peasants revolt | Sparked by the imposition of a poll tax their is an uprising among the serfs of England led by Wat Tyler. |
| 1382 | Expulsion of Lollards from Oxford. | John Wyclif, has begun translating the Vulgate Bible from Latin into English. He is also vocal in criticism of the Catholic Church. Unwilling to modify his rhetoric, he is forced to leave Oxford, and his works are to be banned by the university. |
| 1384 | Wycliffe died | |
| 1386 | Striking clock at Salisbury Cathedral | A clock to strike only hours is installed at Salisbury, it still strikes today. |
| 1387 | Lords Appellant. Gloucesters rebellion battle at Radcot Bridge | |
| 1397 | Medici Bank founded | |
| 1398 | Feud breaks out between barons Henry Bolingbroke and Thomas Mowbray | Richard II banishes Thomas de Mowbray for life and Henry of Bolingbroke for ten years |
| 1399 | John of Gaunt died | |
| 1366 | Geoffrey Chaucer married Phillipa de Roet | |
| 1380 | Canterbury Tales | Geoffrey Chaucer started to write the Canterbury Tales. |
| 1327 | Richard of Wallingford designed an astronomical clock. | The clock was destroyed during the Reformation. |
The start of the 14th Century brings a seismic shift in power in the church in Europe.
Church power is in decline.
Concerned about kings taxing church property, Pope Boniface VIII has issued a papal decree, Unam Sanctam, to maintain Church authority over kings. King Philip IV of France fears that he will be excommunicated and sent men to seize the Pope from one of his palaces. Boniface was rescued but shaken, and he died soon afterwards.
The Crusades are at an end.
Muslims drove out "Crusaders" from the Middle East, including the Knights Templars, who arrived in France. They were a wealthy group of soldiers, and King Philip IV of France coveted their land and their possessions. He accused them of magic and heresy in order to seize their assets. Philip had the Knights Templars arrested on Friday the 13th and up to 60 are tortured and executed, a possible origin of the superstition of Friday the 13th being an unlucky day.
One of the most important writers in European literature, Dante, wrote the Divine Comedy and Florence became home to artists such as Giotto di Bondone, who would point the way to the Italian Renaissance.
The crown of England hung in the balance as King Edward II took his turn to upset the powerful barons as well as the rest of his family.
The conflict between the Scottish and the English continued. The English have been driven from Scotland by Robert the Bruce and the Treaty of Edinburgh-Northhampton recognized Scotland's independence.
The beginning of the Hundred Years War
King Philip VI of France intervened in a dispute in Flanders over wool exports. King Edward III of England owned property in Flanders, the merchants and nobles there were unhappy with his interference in their trade affairs. King Edward retaliated by declaring himself King of France. King Philip responded by declaring Edward's fiefs in France forfeited. This was the start of one hundred years of petty feuds and squabbles after which there was no overall resolution and yet there were huge costs to the nations supporting the antics of their royal leaders and their advisers.
The 14th Century will leave a terrible mark on humanity as the Black Death is unleashed on Europe. The consequences of the epidemic has a profound impact on society, it's economy, it's culture and it's social structure.
In England, the peasants were in angry mood, they revolted against taxes that had been raised to pay for the Hundred Years' War and against having to labour on Church lands. Th hundred years war was costing more than £170k a year to England alone, representing more than six times the normal annual royal revenues. The Peasants Revolt saw up to 100,000 men marching on London, seizing the Tower of London and murdering the Archbishop. These were times of revolution and as such placed England in a cradle that was being severely rocked by all and sundry.
Wave after wave of Black Death epidemics brought to the 14th Century the end to feudalism and the peasants wanted their demands met. This was the start of organised labour and the start of the end of the overlords.
The 14th Century, a brief chronology and timeline of British History will evolve here
Our 14th century chronology and timelines are being created and curated but already via each century page you can quickly locate our collections for each 100 years of history. These evolve as we explore topical themes, but if you are looking for something you can't see here then please feel free to contact us and request, Thanks for taking a look.
