| Country | Leader | From | To | |
| England | Henry II (1133-89) | 1154 | 1189 |  |
| Scotland | William I the Lion (1143-1214) | 1165 | 1214 |  |
| France | Louis VII the Younger (1120-80) | 1137 | Sept. 18, 1180 |  |
| Germany | HRE Frederick I Barbarossa (1122-90) | 1152 | June 10, 1190 |  |
| Papacy | Alexander III (-1181) | 1159 | Aug. 30, 1181 |  |
1180 By this time there are 60K Latins (Italians) living in Constantinople, trading with Venice, Pisa, and Genoa, and competing with Greek Byzantine traders, inflaming jealousies - feeling divine, we know how to do it? In Jan. Antipope (since 1179) Innocent III dies, leaving Alexander III as the sole reigning anti-anti-equals-real pope. On Mar. 21 the Genpei (Gempei) (Jisho-Juei) War in Japan, a civil war between the Taira (Heike) and Minamoto (Genji) clans (ends 1185) begins when Japanese emperor (since 1168) Takakura (b. 1161) is forced to abdicate in favor of his eldest son Antoku (1178-85) (personal name Tokohito), who becomes Japanese Yamato emperor #81 (until 1185). On Mar. 27 caliph (since Dec. 18, 1170) Al-Mustadi (b. 1142) dies, and his son Al-Nasir li-Din Allah (1158-1225) becomes the 34th and last powerful Abbasid caliph (until Oct. 4, 1225), reviving the caliphate in Baghdad in the wake of the decline of the Seljuks and extending his domain into Mesopotamia and Persia; he gives state support to the Sufi Futuwwa (Arab. "youth and chivalry") brotherhoods of craftsmen and urbanites who practice an ideology of manly virtue and social justice - because I always feel pretty and feminine? On Sept. 18 king (since Aug. 1, 1137) Louis VII the Not So Younger (b. 1120) dies, and on Sept. 18 his really young Latin-less 14-y.-o. miserable crafty hunchbacked son (no time for education now?) Philip II Augustus (1165-1223) becomes Capetian king #7 of France (until July 14, 1223); in his long reign he strives to enlarge the French royal domain (which is why they call him Augustus, although they probably mean the Augmentor?), eventually acquiring Normandy, Maine, Anjou, and Touraine at the expense of ninny King John I of England, and creating the bailii, bureaucrats that combine the functions of the English sheriffs and itinerant judges, without their roots in the local community, replacing the corrupt prevots; Philip II goes on to become known as the Maker of Paris, paving and walling it, starting construction of the Louvre fortress on the right bank of the Seine River, and issuing a charter for the U. of Paris, which evolves into a nice place to get a traditional liberal education (like he didn't have time for) (while Oxford tries to keep up with it?); he makes a 6-year alliance with Henry II of England so that he can take on Philip of Artois and the counts of Champagne and crush the baronial league; seeing his chance, duke Hugh III of Burgundy (1142-92) gets several nobles to change allegiance to him, pissing-off Philip II and causing him to invade Burgundy and siege Chatillon until Hugh yields, pays a high ransom for his captured son, and gives up his territorial ambitions, ending up going on the Third Crusade and becoming the most trusted ally of Richard Lionheart of England. Marrying too young is a mistake? On Sept. 24 emperor (since Apr. 5, 1143) Manuel I Comnenus (b. 1118) dies, and his 11-y.-o. son Alexius II Comnenus (Alexios II Komnenos) (1169-83) becomes Roman Byzantine emperor #156 (until Sept. 24, 1183), with his mother Maria of Antioch (1145-82) as regent, who relies almost exclusively on Latins; he marries 8-y.-o. Agnes of France (1172-?), daughter of Louis VII; Stephen Nemanya of Serbia sees his chance, and begins establishing his independence from Constantinople and conquering southern territories; Kilij Arslan II of Rum also sees his chance, and allies with Saladin to take most of the S coast of Anatolia. The Assembly of Leczyca in Poland results in Casimir II the Just giving the clergy big (but just?) concessions. In this decade Stratford-born Ranulf de Glanville (Glanvil) (-1190), former sheriff of Yorkshire (1163-70) and Lancashire (1173-6), and justice of the king's court (1176-80) becomes justiciar (chief judicial officer) of Henry II, ending up ruling England during Henry II's frequent sojourns in France while reforming the English judicial system and writing Tractatus de Legibus (Treatise on Laws), the first systematic codification of English law, superimposing Norman feudal law upon Anglo-Saxon local law to create "the law and custom of the realm". Philip II Augustus imprisons all the Jews in France after accusing them of poisoning Christian wells, releasing them only after a heavy ransom is paid - I just hate waste of any kind? A massacre of Jews in Toledo, Spain is instigated by high level members of the Castilian court, aided by suspicions that they are selling Christian slaves to the Muslims, and by the Jewish legends of Rachel. For failing to aid HRE Frederick I Barbarossa against the Lombard League, the bann of the empire is proclaimed against insolent, defiant Henry III the Lion at Wurzburg, who is deposed and defeated, causing Lower Saxony to cease to exist as an independent entity. The Hungarian banate (province) of Bosnia gains independence under Ban Kulin (1163-1204). Stefan I Nemanja spends the decade crushing the pesky heretic Bogomils, while going back to warring against the Byzantines, since his vow to not attack them died with Manuel I. In 1180 the Benin Empire in S Nigeria is founded by the Edo people (ends 1897), with capital at Edo (modern-day Benin City); in 1440 Ewuare becomes king (until 1473), expanding it from a city-state to an empire. About this time Jayavarman VII (1125-1215) becomes ruler of Angkor (Cambodia) (Khmer), and expels the invading Cham, then builds the spectacular Mahayana Buddhist Bayon Temple in the center of the Angkor Thom wall enclosure. The original Begin the Beguine? About this time first Beguine (from the French word for begging) community for lay widows of Crusaders is established in Liege by Roman Catholic priest Lambert le Begue (Bègue) (the Stammerer) ( Lambert li Bègues) (-1187); the widowed babes take no vows and are free to leave and marry, and the governors are called mistresses; no wonder that after the sect spreads all over Europe they begin to be suspected of ho, er, heresy? In this decade a Nestorian metropolitan is appointed for Kashgar. The Three-Lions English Royal Coat of Arms is standardized. Inventions: Glass windows first appear in private English houses. The first windmills with vertical sails appear in Europe. Nonfiction: Jocelyn, Life of Kentigern. Rogerius Salernitanus (1139-95), The Practice of Surgery (Practica Chirurgiae); becomes a std. work in European univs.; 2nd ed. pub in 1250 by his pupil Rolandoo de Parma of the U. of Bologna; helps turn surgery from amateur butchery to a profession. Poetry: Anon., The Colloquy of the Old Men (Tales of the Elders) (Acallam na Senorach) (Agallamh na Seanorach); 8K-line poem written in Ireland about St. Patrick and his travels with pagans Cailte mac Ronain and Oison, relatives of Fionn mac Cumhaill of the Fianna (Fenians). Anon., The Nibelungenlied (Song or Lay of the Nibelungs) (1180-1210); epic poem in Middle High German, based on German legends, about dragon-slayer Siegfried at the Burgundian court, his murder, and his wife Kriemhild's revenge; the first German epic; Alberich, leader of the Nibelung dwarf race makes a ring from the Rheingold; Siegfried wins the treasure of the Nibelungs, kills a dragon, and helps King Gunther of Burgundy (brother of Kriemhild) win Brunhild, queen of Iceland for a wife using magic, causing Kriemhild to slay Gunther; not to be confused with Brunhilde, a Valkyrie whom Siegfried releases from enchantment, or Brynhild, a Valkyrie awakened from enchanted sleep by Sigurd and deceived by him into marrying Gunnar, bringing about Sigurd's death and then killing herself? Chretien de Troyes (1144-90), Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart; first story to feature Sir Lancelot as a main char., telling the story of the abduction of Queen Guinevere and her love affair with him, pioneering the concept of courtly love; it was completed by another writer, and Chretien hated its featuring of courtly love?; Yvain, the Knight of the Lion; Arthurian romance about a knight who is rejected by his lady for breaking a promise and performs a number of heroic deeds to retain her favor. Births: Japanese Yamato emperor #82 (1183-98) Go-Toba (d. 1239) on Aug. 6; 4th son of Takakura (1161-81); grandson of Go-Shirakawa (1127-92). English knight Gilbert de Clare, 5th Earl of Hertford (d. 1230) in Hertford, Hertfordshire; son of Richard de Clare, 4th earl of Hertford (1162-1218) and Amice Fitzrobert. Spanish poet (the first?) Gonzalo de Berceo (d. 1248) in Berceo; invents the quaderna via, a 4-line rhyming stanza. Deaths: Spanish Jewish scholar Abraham ibn Daud (b. 1110); leaves Emunah Ramah (Sublime Faith), introducing and reconciling Aristotle to Judaism, and Sepher Haqabala (Book of Tradition). English humanistic philosopher (bishop of Chartres) John of Salisbury (b. 1115); leaves Policraticus. Byzantine emperor (1143-80) Manuel I Komnenos (b. 1118) on Sept. 24. French king (1137-80) Louis VII (b. 1120) on Sept. 18 in Saint-Pont, Allier; buried in St. Denis Basilica. English bishop of Chartres (1176-80) John of Salisbury (b. 1120) on Oct. 25 near Chartres. Persian Muslim mathematician-astronomer Samau'al al-Maghbribi (b. 1130) in Maragha, Iran; leaves the anti-Semitic polemic Silencing the Jews. Arab Abbasid caliph (1170-80) Al-Mustadi (b. 1142) on Mar. 27.
1181 On Mar. 17 Henry I the Liberal of Champagne (b. 1127), broken by his trip to the Holy Land dies in Troyes, and his eldest son (by Marie of France, daughter of Louis VII and Eleanor of Aquitaine) Henry II (1166-97) becomes count of Champagne (until 1197). On Apr. 5 Ramon Berenguer III (b. 1158) is assassinated near Montpellier, France by orders of Adhemar of Murviel, and his younger brother Sancho (Sanche) (1161-1223) becomes count of Provence (until 1185). In July after his daddy demands it for past help to her daddy Duke Conan IV, Geoffrey (II) Plantagenet of Richmond (1158-86), 4th son of Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine marries heiress Constance of Brittany (1161-1201), becoming duke of Brittany and 3rd earl of Richmond (until 1186), founding the Plantagenet Dynasty in Brittany (ends 1203). On Aug. 30 Pope (since 1159) Alexander III dies, and on Sept. 1 Ubaldo Allucingoli is elected Pope (#170) Lucius III (-1185). Henry the Tamed Lion's duchy of Saxony (founded 858) is cut up at the Diet of Gelnhausen into many small portions and given to various princes and bishops; Bernhard of Ascania (1134-1212), son of a former duke of Saxony receives the title of duke of Saxony and a small district between the Elbe and Weser Rivers; the greater share of its W portion is given (as the Duchy of Westphalia) to the archbishop of Cologne; the Saxon bishops who had before this possessed sovereign authority in their territories, though under the suzerainty of the Duke of Saxony, are now subject only to the imperial govt.; Germany is now forever plagued by division into petty quarreling states. Henry the Lion having fallen, HRE Frederick I Barbarossa bestows the Duchy of Bavaria on Bavarian Count Otto V (1340-79), son of Otto IV (-1156) (ancestor of Otto II, who acquired Wittelsbach Castle near Aichach in 1119), founding the Wittelsbach Dynasty in Bavaria (ends 1918), ruling first as dukes, then from 1806 as kings, plus two dudes who make it to HRE, Louis IV (1314-17) and Charles VII (1742-5), and one dude who becomes German king, Rupert of the Palatinate (1400-10); along the way they acquire the Palatinate in 1214, and split into two branches in 1329, the Bavarian and Palatinate. Philip II Augustus of France combats a coalition of barons in Burgundy, Champagne and Flanders (until 1185). Henry II of England proclaims the Assize of Arms of 1181, requiring every freeman to supply himself with arms and armor proportional to his personal property, the value of which is determined by a local jury, all on pain of "vengeance, not merely on their lands or chattels, but on their limbs", restoring the old Anglo-Saxon fyrd duty to counterbalance the feudal baronage; restrictions are placed on Jews. The town of Vyatka (modern-day Kirov) in Russia on the left bank of the Vyatka River 265 mi. NE of Nizhni Novgorod is founded as a colony of Novgorod. Architecture: Nicolo Barattiere builds the first Rialto (It. "rio alto" = deep river) Bridge in Venice, connecting Rialto and Mercerie; a pontoon bridge, it is later replaced by a wooden bridge with shops. St. Peter le Poer Church in London on Old Broad St. is first mentioned. Nonfiction: Ranulf de Glanville (-1190), Tractatus de Legibus et Consuetudinibus Regni Angliae; first printed in 1554. Deaths: French count of Champagne (1152-81) Henry I the Liberal (b. 1127) on Mar. 27 in Troyes. Spanish count of Provence (1173-81) Ramon Berenguer III (b. 1158) on Apr. 5 near Montpellier, France (assassinated). Japanese Yamato emperor #80 (1168-80) Takakura (b. 1161) on Jan. 30.
1182 On May 12 Valdemar I (b. 1131) dies, and his son Canute VI (1163-1202) becomes king of Denmark (until Nov. 12, 1202); an unsuccessful peasant revolt in Scania (S Sweden) is led by an alleged illegitimate son of Olaf II, who ruled Scania from 1139-41. That's how it begins-uh? After anti-Latin sentiment causes a popular revolt in Constantinople, Andronicus I Comnenus (Andronikos I Komnenos) (1118-85) (an uncle of Alexius II) leaves retirement, obtains backing from the army and marches on Constantinople, overthrowing the regents and massacring the Latin pop., mainly Venetian and Genoese merchants, and waging war with Patriarch Theodosius I (who is arrested), and porphyrogenita Maria Komnene (eldest child of Manuel I) and her hubby (Caesar) Renier of Montferrat, who are poisoned; remaining nuisance Empress Maria of Antioch is imprisoned and strangled by eunuch Pterygeonites and Constantine Tripsychos; Alexius II's marriage to Agnes is annulled, and he is married to his own daughter Irene, with Andronicus acknowledged as co-emperor. Kilij Arslan II of Rum captures the city of Cotyaeum (Kutahya) in NW Anatolia from the Byzantines. With umpteen-zillion up for grabs, no wonder they're in a rush? Spurred on by Christian businessmen who resent competition in the practice of usury, French king (1180-1223) Philip II Augustus (1165-1223) expels all Jews from France after confiscating their real estate and giving their synagogues to the Church, and annuls all loans made by Christians to Jews in France, taking 20% for himself; in 1198 he changes his mind and lets them return. About this time the Lauda Spirituale (Italian vernacular hymns of praise) are born, becoming the first Christmas carols; after Savonarola prohibits all other sacred music in 1480, they become super-popular in Florence. Architecture: La Madeleine Church in Paris, France is founded after Bishop Maurice de Sully (-1196) seizes a synagogue from the Jews and consecrates it to Mary Magdalene. Births: Greek Byzantine emperor (1203-4) Alexius IV Angelus (Alexios IV Angelos) (d. 1204). Italian Roman Catholic monk and Franciscan Order founder (St.) Francis of Assisi (Giovanni Francesco Bernardone) (d. 1226) (b. 1181?) on Sept. 26 in Assisi; son of rich cloth merchants Pedro Bernardone and Donna Pica; given name John, but gains the nickname Francis after his father teaches him French; feast day: Oct. 4; patron saint of animals, the environment, and Italy. Deaths: Arab Muslim Rifa'iyya Sufi order founder Ahmad al-Rifa'i (b. 1118) in Tal Afar. Danish king (1157-82) Valdemar I (b. 1131) on May 12. Byzantine empress Maria of Antioch (b. 1145) (executed by strangulation).
1183 On June 2 after gen. Minatomo no Yoshinaka (1154-84) AKA Lord Kiso enters the Japanese capital Heian, causing the Taira clan to flee along with 7-y.-o. Japanese Yamato emperor (since 1180) Antoku to avoid abdication, the Taira clan loses the Battle of Kurikara Pass (Tonamiyama) and flees W; on Sept. 8 in Antoku's absence retired emperor Go-Shirakawa elevates his 3-y.-o. brother Go-Toba (1180-1239), who becomes Japanese Yamato emperor #82 (until Feb. 18, 1198). On June 11 after the Gascons revolt against the harsh treatment of Richard I and call on English titular king (since June 14, 1170) Henry the Young King (b. 1155), who rebels against his father Henry II again, he dies suddenly just as English forces arrive on the Continent; this leaves Richard Lionheart as heir to England, Normandy and Anjou, but Henry II wishes to give Aquitaine to John Lackland (so he won't lack land anymore?), turning Richard against him; on Dec. 25 Henry and Eleanor have some verbal fireworks about hanging from the nipples and riding bare-breasted :) (James Goldman's 1968 film The Lion in Winter). You got to treat her like a lady and she'll give in to you? On Sept. 24 14-.y.-o. emperor (since Sept. 24, 1180) Alexius II (b. 1169) is strangled with a bow string at Andronicus I's orders, and he becomes the sole emperor, Roman Byzantine emperor #157 Andronicus I Comnenus (Andronikos I Komnenos) (1118-85) (until Sept. 12, 1185); he then marries Alexius' 11-y.-o. widow Agnes, cleans the court of the hated Latins, massacring them, then reforms the govt. and lessens taxes; Stefan I Nemanja allies with Bela III of Hungary and Kulin of Bosnia and uses all this as an excute to invade Byzantine soil, advancing through the Morava Valley to Sophia, after which the Hungarians drop out, and they go on to raid W Bulgaria; the AIMA Prophecy is reset? In Sept. the week-long Battle of Al-Fule (La Feve) (Castrum Fabe) near Merhavia in the Jezreeel Valley 5 mi. SE of modern-day Afula, Israel is a push between the Crusader army of Guy de Lusignan and the Ayyubid army of Saladin, who is forced to retreat without capturing any strongholds after destroying many farms and villages. On Nov. 20 leprous king (since July 11, 1174) Baldwin IV (d. 1185) has his 6-y.-o. nephew (son of his sister Sibylla) crowned as Baldwin V (1177-86), Latin king #7 of Jerusalem after rejecting the idea of appointing pilgrim-ambusher Guy de Lusignan as regent (until Mar. 16, 1885); meanwhile Isabella I and Humphrey IV of Toron wed, keeping Guy's main backers Raynald of Chatillon and Joscelin of Courtney away from Jerusalem. Ibn Jubair tours Christian Syria, which has a larged mixed Euro-Syrian pop. after the Crusaders failed to bring their wives, and describes his fellow Muslims as well-treated by the Franks and prosperous, but complains of Acre "swarming with pigs and crosses", with a vile Euro Christian smell, wishing that one day the infidel polytheists will rise to the level of his superior Muslim civilization; meanwhile after swearing to never pardon him for his attacks on Muslim caravans, Saladin sieges Kerak Castle in Oultrejordain (Transjordan) 75 mi. S of Amman, stronghold of Raynald (Reynald) (Reginald) of Chatillon (1125-87); since he does it during the marriage of Humphrey IV of Toron and Isabella I of Jerusalem, he chivalrously agrees not to target their wedding chamber with his siege machines; the siege is quickly relieved by Raymond III of Tripoli, former (1174-6) regent of Baldwin IV of Jerusalem, who arrives carried on a stretcher; Saladin tries it again next year, with the same result, becoming the last major Muslim siege of a Crusader stronghold until Jerusalem in 1187. The Peace of Constance recognizes the autonomy of the Lombard League of cities under imperial overlordship, allowing Venice to establish a near-monopoly in the trading of gold and silver until the 1290s. Saladin captures Aleppo from the Zengids, who held it since 1128; it is ruled by the Ayyubids until 1260. Alaeddin Takish invades Khorasan. Somesvara IV, son of Taila III regains control of Kalyani in E India (until 1189). Milan extends its walls, triggering rapid growth, becoming a center of the wool trade and armor manufacture; the govt. consists of the parlamento (consiglio grande) (2K-800 members), the credenza (committee of 12) (for urgent business), and the consuls (execs), elected for one year and responsible to the parlamento. Rory O'Connor retires to an abbey; meanwhile Henry II petitions the pope to crown his son John king of Ireland, which proves unpopular with the Irish. Deaths: English titular king (1170-85) Henry the Young King (b. 1155) on June 11 in the Castel of Martel, Lot, France. Byzantine emperor #156 (1180-3) Alexius II (b. 1169) on Sept. 24 (strangled).
1184 Millennium Feverists pick this year as the End of Days for some reason which has been lost? - ask Brainman Daniel Tammet about them zoom zoom zoom number-colors? In Jan. while celebrating in Kyoto and deciding to split from his clan and plot with his cousin Minamoto no Yukiie to kidnap Go-Shirakawa and establish their own govt. N of Kyoto, Minatomo no Yoshinaka flip-flops before Yoshinaka razes the Hojuji Palace and seizes Go-Shirakawa, and leads a coalition of Minamoto Taira sympathizers in the Siege of Hojujiden, causing Yoshinaka to flee across the Uji Bridge, fighting the Feb. 19 Second Battle of Uji (3rd in 1228), after which Yoshinaka is defeated and KIA by Yoshitsune on Feb. 21 at the Battle of Awazu, after which on Mar. 20 the Minamoto attack and capture a primary Taira fortress in Suma (W of modern-day Kobe) in the Battle of Ichi-no-Tani, then the Minamoto chase and defeat the fleeing Taira from Ichi-no-Tani to Yashima in the Battle of Kojima, followed on Mar. 22, 1185 by the Battle of Yashima near Shikoku, which is a V for the Minamotos The original Tara in Georgia? On Mar. 27 Georgian king (since 1156) George III (b. ?) dies, and his daughter Tamar (Tamara) (Thamar) the Great (1160-1213) becomes queen of Georgia (until Jan. 18, 1213), their first woman monarch, presiding over a golden age, inspiring poets incl. Rustaveli. On June 15 Magnus V (b. 1156) dies, and pint-sized priest Sverre Sigurdsson (1145-1202), son of a comb maker from the Faroes becomes Birkebeiner king #2 of Norway (until Mar. 9, 1202). On July 29 Abu Yaqub Yusuf I dies, and his son Abu Yusuf Yaqub al-Mansur (Moulay Yacoub) (1160-99) becomes Almohad caliph #3 of Spain (until Jan. 23, 1199), banishing Averroes in 1194 to Lucena (near Cordova) after public outcry against his heresies, until 1198, when he is forgiven and recalled, and dies the same year. In Oct.-Nov. the Synod of Verona takes severe measures against heretics such as the Cathari, the Waldenses, and the Arnoldists, starting with excommunication. In Dec. Exeter-born Cistercian abbot and bishop of Worcester Baldwin of Ford(e) (1125-90) becomes archbishop of Canterbury (until Nov. 19, 1190). The Diet of Mainz shows HRE Frederick I at the height of his grate powah. Cyprus frees itself from Byzantium, only to gain a new tyrant in the form of Isaac Comnenus (1155-95), grandnephew of Manuel I Comnenus. HRE Frederick I's claim of overlordship of Denmark is haughtily rejected by Canute VI, and the emperor's attempt to stir up Duke Bogislav of Pomerania against Denmark's vassal Jaromir of Rugen (Rügen) is defeated by Lund archbishop (since 1178) Absalon, who destroys 465 of Bogislav's 500 ships in the naval Battle of Strela (Stralsund) - you're on your way to a title shot? The Christians defeat the Almohads at the Battle of Santarem. Ermengol VII (b. ?) dies, and his son Ermengol (Armengol) VIII de Sant Hilari (1158-1208) becomes count of Urgell in N Spain (until 1208). The Welsh revolt from English king Henry II; turncoat Morgan ap Hywel (-1215) succeeds his father as lord of Caerlon, guarding the castles of Glamorgan and Gwynllwg for Henry II. Ibn Jubayr visits Baghdad, marveling at the palace-like Adadi (Al-'Adudi) Hospital (Bimaristan) on the banks of the Tigris River (built in 980), which gives free food and drugs to all. The streets in front of the Louvre become the first paved streets in Paris. Architecture: The new improved 52t ft. Canterbury Cathedral in Kent, England is finished, with a 178 ft. x 71 ft. nave, complete with an expensive gold and precious stone tomb for the bones of moneymaking martyr St. Thomas of Canterbury (Becket) (in Trinity Chapel, to the rear of the altar), along with St. Augustine's chair, on which archishops are crowned (in Corona Chapel, AKA Becket's Crown, on the E end), becoming the first Gothic church in Britain, and a quantum leap in church design, based on the theme "God is Light", changing the old dark church into a cathedral of light, which wows the pilgrims and influences church design throughout Europe. Chichester Cathedral in West Sussex, England opens, becoming the only medieval cathedral in England with a separate bell tower, and the only one visible from the sea. Yusuf I begins the Giralda Mosque in Seville, Spain (finished in 1198), featuring a set of 34 ramps that the muezzin rides on a horse to the top 5x each day. Births: Polish grand duke (1194-1227) Leszek I the White (d. 1227); son of Casimir II the Just (1138-94) and Helen of Znojmo (1145-1206); cousin of Wladyslaw III Spindleshanks (1165-1231); famous for the soundbyte that his Polish knights won't go on Crusade because there's no mead available in Palestine. Deaths: Hungarian queen consort (1172-84) Agnes of Antioch (b. 1154); her intact tomb is discovered during the 1848 Hungarian Rev., becoming the object of patriotic demonstrations. Norwegian king #1 (1161-84) Magnus V Erlingsson (b. 1156) on June 15 in Fimreite. Georgian king (1156-84) George III (b. ?) on Mar. 27.
1185 Where's the underground spaceship? On Feb. 10 London's Caen-stone circular Temple (Templar) Church on Fleet St. in London is consecrated by Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem (1180-7) Heraclius (Eraclius) (1128-91) of Jerusalem; damaged by the Luftwaffe in 1940 then restored; Heraclius then consecrates Clerkenwell Priory in London, founded in 1100 by Lord Jordan Briset as the HQ for the Hospitalers; burned down by Tyler's Rebellion in 1381, and rebuilt in 1504; after Henry II holds an aulic council in it, Heraclius tries to talk him into sending troops for a new Crusade, but can't talk the barons into allowing Henry to lead them personally, even in exchange for the crown of Jerusalem, causing him to utter the soundbyte: "Here is my head.... treat me as you did my brother Thomas Becket. It doesn't matter to me whether I die by your orders or in Syria by the hands of infidels, for you are worse than Saracens." On Mar. 16 leprous king (since July 11, 1174) Baldwin IV (b. 1161) dies, and the high court (haute cour) of Jerusalem rules that a committee consisting of the pope, the HRE, and the kings of France and England have the right to choose between Sybilla and Isabella I if Baldwin V dies before reaching the age of majority, which he does next year. On Apr. 25 Henry II's son John Lackland, lord of Ireland goes on his first expedition to Ireland to finish the English conquest and organize the govt. (so he finally has some land?), but the haughty conduct of his council in Waterford incl. laughing at the big beards of Irish chieftains causes disturbances, and in Dec. he is recalled after failing to establish either task, making him even meaner; Welsh-born royal clerk Gerald of Wales (Giraldus Cambrensis) (1146-1223) accompanies Henry to Ireland and stays two years, going on to pub. Topographia Hibernica in 1188, which becomes the longest and most influential work on Ireland during the Middle Ages; too bad, it's highly xenophobic, portraying the Irish natives as barbaric savages; he also pub. Expugnatio Hibernica, an account of Henry II's conquest of Ireland. On Apr. 25 the Minamoto clan defeats the Taira clan in the decisive naval Battle of Dan-no-ura in S Honshu, and kills emperor Antoku the zoom-zoom way (hail of arrows), ending the Genpei War (begun 1180), but not before some crown jewels (sword and mirror) are tossed into the water (only the mirror is recovered); the spirits of the Taira warriors end up in the Heike Crabs of the Straits of Shimonoseki; the Taira clan is kaput, and the Minamoto Clan controls Japan; in 1192 Minamoto no Yoritomo (1147-99) is designated the first shogun ("barbarian-subduing general") (generalissimo), beginning a dual govt. system (shogun and emperor), which lasts until 1867, marking the rise of the Samurai knights (who wear a protective helmet and armor, and carry two curved swords, one long and one short), who follow the unwritten Bushido (Jap. "warrior way") code of ethics, with the forfeiture of honor compelling hara-kiri (Jap. "stomach cutting") (seppuku), ritual self-disembowelment; the Kamakura Era in Japan begins (ends 1333), marked by a powerless imperial court and a dominant military govt.; emperor Go-Shirakawa uses Yoritomo's half-brother Minamoto Yoshitsune (1159-89) in a doomed rebellion. In Aug. Constance of Sicily (1154-98), heiress of the kingdom of the Two Sicilies (daughter of Roger II of Sicily), who is betrothed to HRE Frederick I's son Henry arrives in N Italy, but Pope Lucius III refuses to recognize Henry as heir to the imperial throne, and a breach is opened. The Normans renew their war with the Byzantines, taking Durazzo, then sending a fleet to storm Salonika and massacre the pop., which pisses-off the Greek landed aristocracy (which he is trying to curtail anyway?) against emperor (since Sept. 24, 1183) Andronicus I (b. 1118), and on Sept. 12 they depose, torture, and execute him; his great-nephew (son of Andronicus, who is the son of Andronicus I's father Isaac's sister Theodora and her hubby Constantine Angelus) Isaac II Angelus (Isaaco II Angelos) (1155-1204) (not the same one as the tyrant of Cyprus?) becomes Roman Byzantine emperor #158 (until 1195), and marries Margaret (Margit) (Maria) of Hungary (Antioch) (1175-1223), daughter of royally fertile Bela III of Hungary and his 1st wife Anne of Chatillon-Antioche, founding the Angelos Dynasty (ends 1204); after making peace with the sultanate of Rum, the Byzantines under Gen. Alexius Branas (Alexios Vranas) (-1187) score a V over the Normans at the Battle of Demetritsa, driving them out of the Balkans by 1191; too bad that Angelis is no angel, the old corruption is back, and the empire starts coming apart while powerful families begin going independent (the Sguros in Greece, the Gabras in Trebizond). On Oct. 25 Pope (since 1181) Lucius III dies, and on Nov. 25 Milan-born cardinal (since 1181) and Milan archbishop (since 1185) Umberto Crivelli is elected Pope (#171) Urban III (-1187), inheriting the Barbarossa feud, and continuing the refusal to crown Henry. On Nov. 6 Alfonso I Henriques (b. 1107) dies of old age, and his son Sancho I (1154-1211) succeeds him as king of #2 of Portugal, carrying on the fight against the Moors with the help of the Knights Templar. Philip II Augustus wins his baron war (begun 1181), increasing the royal domain at their expense. The House of Toulouse talks Alfonso II of Aragon into dispossessing his brother Sancho, who receives the title of count of Roussillon (until 1223). First you are the light then you are the darkness, will you ever win? Speaking of the Byzantine emperor coming apart? Pissed off by all the Byzantine extortion, Bulgarian lords Ivan Asen I (-1196) and Peter IV (-1197) from Tirnovo (Trnova) in N Bulgaria visit emperor Isaac II Angelos at Kypsela to request a land grant, only to be refused and Ivan to be slapped in the ensuing argument, pissing them off and causing them to start a revolt against the Byzantines, calling off a planned counterattack against the Serbs and conquering the Timok frontier, sacking Nis, Svrljig, Ravno and Kozelj, then using Nis as a base to prepare an attack on Doclea (near modern-day Podgorica). Reuben III dies, and his brother Levon (Leon) (Leon) (Leo) I/II (the Magnificent) (1150-1219) becomes prince of Lesser (Cicilian) Armenia, followed by king in 1199 (until 1219) after shifting his allegiance from the Byzantine emperors to the HREs - and his name is Levon? Duke Bogislav does homage to Canute VI on the deck of his long ship off Jomsborg in Pomerania. The revolt in Galloway, Scotland (begun in 1175) is ended by Roland, son of Uhtred O'Fergus. Serbia conquers the coastal city of Kotor in Montenegro. After turning down the request of William I of Scotland to marry his granddaughter Matilda (daughter of Duke Henry the Lion of Saxony), Henry II offers him the lower-price spread of Ermengarde de Beaumont (-1234), daughter of Richard, Vicomte of Beaumont sur Sarte in Maine, and the wedding takes place next Sept. 5, Henry returning two forfeited castles and paying for the wedding, but William knows he's considered a 2nd rate vassal by now for sure? Guelph Hartwig of Uthlede (-1207) becomes prince-archbishop of Bremen (until 1190, then 1192-1207). Limoges, France-born Berthold of Calabria (-1195) (a former Crusader who made a vow on the eve of a battle) founds the Carmelite Order (Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel) along with 10 companions on 1,728-ft. Mount Carmel in Israel (with the Mediterranean to the NW, the legendary Plain of Sharon to the SW, and the Plain of Esdraelon to the E), becoming known for its mystical theology; in 1208 Jerusalem Patriarch Albert gives them their first definite rule; the Muslims force them out in 1240. The first written record of Beaconsfield ("clearing in the beech trees") 25 mi. NW of London, later the home constituency of British PM Benjamin Disraeli. Nonfiction: Herrad of Landsberg (1130-95), Hortus deliciarum (Lat. "Garden of Delights); illuminated ms. compiled at the Hohenburg Abbey in Alsace (modern-day Mont Sainte-Odile) 15 mi. from Strasbourg; begun in 1167; first encyclopedia written by a woman, a compendium of 12th cent. knowledge. Architecture: The Romanesque Basilica of Notre Dame-du Port in Clermont-Ferrand, France is built. Births: Portuguese king (1211-23) Afonso II (the Fat) (Gordo) (d. 1223) on Apr. 23 in Coimbra; 2nd surviving son of Sancho I and Dulce of Aragon; brother of Count Peter I of Urgell (1187-1258), Mafalda (1195-1256), Sancha (1181-1229), and Theresa (1178-1250); father of Sancho II (1209-48). Norwegian king (1204-17) (Roman Catholic) Inge II Bardsson (d. 1217); son of Bard Guttormsson and Cecilia Sigurdsdatter. Italian Franciscan diplomat-explorer archbishop John of Pian de Carpini (Giovanni da Piano Carpini) (d. 1252 in Umbria; disciple of St. Francis of Asisi. Deaths: Portuguese king #1 (1139-85) Afonso I Henriques (b. 1106) on Dec. 6 in Coimbra. Arab physician-philosopher-poet Abubacer (b. 1107); leaves Hayy ibn Yaqzan ("Alive, Son of Vigilant"), a philosophical romance about an infant castaway on an uninhabited island who teaches himself science, philosophy, and theology until he reaches age 49, when mystic Asal arrives and convinces him to return to civilization and preach, after which he becomes a dud and returns, and "thus they continued serving God until they died"; a 1708 English trans. by Simon Ockley gives Daniel Defoe the idea for "Robinson Crusoe"? Indian mathematician Bhaskara II (b. 1114). Latin king of Jerusalem (1174-85) Baldwin IV the Leper (b. 1161) on Mar. 16 in Jerusalem - in his shiny silver mask? Byzantine emperor (1183-5) Adronicus I Comnenus (b. 1118) on Sept. 12 in Constantinople.
1186 The Letter to Toledo, laying down a timetable for the imminent return of Christ and a "New World Order" emerges in England, urging people to flee to caves and remote areas to avoid coming storms, earthquakes, and famine, from which only a few true blues will be spared, causing mass hysteria. On Jan. 4 Constance of Sicily and HRE Frederick's son Henry VI are married, threatening the independence of the papal states, and losing Norman support for the papacy; Henry VI assumes the title of Caesar and ravages the papal states; William II of Sicily welcomes the marriage as fitting in with his plans for a Mediterranean empire. On July 25 Hugh de Lacy, Lord of Meath (b. 1134) is assassinated, and after rejoicing that he doesn't have to send his half-wit son back for another try, Henry II has Meath put under administrators while rushing to close his grasp by arranging the marriage of Strongbow's daughter-heir Isabel de Clare, 4th Countess of Pembroke and Striguil (1172-1220) in Aug. 1189 to William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke (1146-1219), who succeeds to the lordship of Leinster (Henry II's last executive decision), turning the Marshal from a a landless knight into one of the richest men in England. On Aug. 19 Geoffrey Plantagenet (b. 1158) is killed in Paris, and his wife Duchess Constance takes over the duchy of Brittany (until 1196). In late Aug. king (since Mar. 16, 1185) Baldwin V (b. 1177) dies, and in mid-Sept. despite opposition from Raymond III of Tripoli and Balian of Ibelin, who want Isabella I, Patriarch Heraclius annoints (did I mention pilgrim ambusher?) Guy de Lusignan (1150-94) as Latin king #9 of Jerusalem (until May 1192) after Sibylla places a crown on his head. On Sept. 29 after being passed over for Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem in 1880 for his rival Heraclius, Jerusalem-born archbishop of Tyre (since June 6, 1175) dies, and Joscius (Josce) (Josias) (-1202) becomes archbishop of Tyre; too bad, after Jerusalem falls on Oct. 2, 1187, he is sent W in a black-sailed ship to appeal for aid from William II of Sicily, then to Rome, where he gives the bad new to Pope Urban II, causing him to you know what, then to France to appeal for aid from Philip II of France, Count Philip of Flanders, and Henry II of England; after the Third Crusade (1189-92) he becomes chancellor of Jerusalem for Henry II of Champagne. The Byzantines defeat Asen and Peter, causing them to flee to the Cumans and return with an army, raiding into Thrace then devastating the Balkan region, annihilating much of the Greek pop. Stefan I Nemanja of Serbia conquers Doclear and Bar, and appoints his eldest son Vukan of Nemanja (Nemanjic) (1164-1208) as ruler of the new Serbian province of Zeta (Montenetro) (Dioclea and Dalmatia), and names his 2nd son Stephen II as his successor; the Greek nobility in Montenegro is persecuted for cents. of abuse of Serbs, and finally exterminated. Sultan Kilij Arslan II of Rum transfers his power to his nine sons, who begin a catfight for control. The Byzantines defeat the Bulgarian rebels, but Isaac II Angelos returns to Constantinople without exploiting the V, allowing them to regroup and raid Thrace. After an earthquake that struck the church in Lincoln, England late in 1185 spooks Henry II, he decides to quit appropriating the incomes from the diocese (largest in Europe, from the Humber River to the Thames River), and appoint Carthusian monk (St.) Hugh of Lincoln (Avalon) (Burgundy) (1135-1200), bishop of Whitby as the new bishop of Lincoln, and put him in charge of rebldg. the church in a magnificent fashion. The Heian (Fujiwara) Period in Japanese Art (begun in 794) ends, and the Kamakura Period in Japanese Art begins (ends 1333). Architecture: The motte-and-bailey Clitheroe Castle is built in Lanarkshire, England by Robert de Lacy on the site of the Norman English defeat to the pesky Scots in 1138; the avg. room size is 20 sq. ft. Births: Portuguese king #3 (1211-23) Afonso (Alfonso) II (d. 1223); son of Sancho I (1154-1211); father of Sancho II (1210-48). Mongol great khan #2 (1229-41) Ogedei (Ogodei) (Ogadai) (Ughetai) (d. 1241); 3rd son of Genghis Khan Deaths: Norman abbot-chronicler Robert of Torigni (b. 1110); leaves an addition to Gesta Normannorum Ducum through the reign of Henry I. Jerusalem born archbishop (since 1175) William of Tyre (b. 1127) on Sept. 29 in Tyre; leaves History of Jerusalem (Deeds Done Beyond the Sea) (23 vols.), covering from the conquest of Syria by Caliph Umar through the First Crusade, and the Kingdom of Jerusalem up till this year, making him the #1 chronicler of the Crusades. Anglo-Norman landowner Hugh de Lacy, Lord of Meath (b. 1134) on July 25 (assassinated). French duke of Brittany (1181-6) Geoffrey Plantagenet (b. 1158) on Aug. 19 in Paris; trampled by a horse in a jousting tournament; was really in Paris to plot a plot a rebellion against his father?; grieving Philip II Augustus tries to jump into his coffin?; buried in Notre Dame Cathedral.
1187 On May 1 the Battle of Cresson sees the Knights Templar and Hospitalers defeated by the Ayyubids led by Saladin's son al-Afdal. Beating me, beating me down, into the ground, falling away from me? Crusaders from the Kingdom of Jerusalem break the truce and attack a caravan carrying the sister of cool all-black-wearing Kurdish Ayyubid sultan of Egypt and Syria (since 1171) Saladin (Salah ad-Din Yusuf ibn Ayyub) (1138-93), causing him to begin a holy war (jihad) against the Crusaders, invading the Kingdom of Jerusalem with his nephew Taqi al-Din and Gok-Bori and 200K Saracen troops (aided by Yaqub al-Mansur of Spain), then sieging the city of Tiberias; Byzantine Emperor Isaac I'm-No-Angelus allies with Saladin to avoid messing up his hair, and a relief army is organized by the Latins, led by Jerusalem king Guy de Lusignan, Count Raymond III of Tripoli (1140-1187), and Balian of Ibelin (1141-93) (not a blacksmith like Orlando Bloom in the 2006 Ridley Scott film "Kingdom of Heaven"?), but it gets trapped on July 4 at the Battle of the Horns of Hattin (Karnehatin) near the Sea of Galilee 6 mi. from Tiberias, and the heat-stroked Latin army is wiped out, with only 3K of 20K Christians escaping Saladin's 30K troops; after personally beheading Raynald of Chatillon, Saladin spares Guy de Lusignan with the soundbyte "Real kings don't kill each other"; the True Cross is fixed upside down on a lance and sent to Damascus, and several of Saladin's men leave his army to take their Frankish POWS with them; on July 5 Saladin captures Tiberias, allowing Countess Eschiva, Princess of Galilee (1118-87) safe passage to Tripoli with her family, followers, and possessions; on July 6 Saladin gives the Templar and Hospitaler POWs the chance to convert to Islam, and some become devout Muslims, while the rest choose martyrdom, incl. Hospitaler St. Nicasius (1135-87); Guy de Lusignan is taken as a POW to Damascus and held for ransom for a year; after Maimonides of Cairo talks him into it, Saladin permits Jews as well as Muslims to return and settle; on July 29 Saladin takes Sidon; plug-ugly Crusader Reginald of Sidon (-1202) (who speaks Arabic and grooves on Arabic lit., causing the other Crusaders to distrust him) bugs out of the rear of the Battle of Hattin and flees to Tyre, attempting to negotiate its surrender to Saladin until Conrad of Montferrat arrives and kicks him out, causing him to flee to the Crusader stronghold of Beaufort after finding that Saladin has captured Sidon, where he holes-up until 1190. On Sept. 20 after conquering Acre, Ibelin, Nablus, Toron, Sidon, Beirut, Ramla, and Ascalon, giving Balian time to organize the city defenses and create 60 new knights from the burgesses to supplement the 2-14 he had, Saladin begins the Siege of Jerusalem, and after knocking down some walls but finding the Christian diehards prepared to destroy the city and kill each other rather than surrender, he shows why he's a wise and honorable sport and permits the fashion model Queen Sibylla, the Christian defenders, and most of the Christian pop. to leave with safe passage, ransoming 18K people (incl. 7K men) for 30K bezants (with two women or 10 children being equal to one man for the same price), the remaining 15K being forced into slavery after a 40-day payment period lapses; on Oct. 2 Balian of Ibelin hands over the keys to the Tower of David, and the Christian losers march away in three columns, with Balian and Patriarch (since 1180) Heraclius (Eraclius) (1128-91) leading the last one on Nov. 20, ending the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem (founded 1099); although he does not sack the city, Saladin ravages the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and turns it into a mosque, stripping the gold reliquaries and carrying away cartloads of treasure, later returning it to the Christians after an agreement with Byzantine emperor Isaac II Angelus; the hostages end up in Tripoli; Heraclius and Sybilla take refuge in Antioch; Saladin goes on to capture all Crusader territory except the seaport of Tyre, which remains in the hands of the Franks, and the cities of Antioch and Tripoli. In summer the Pillage of Sigtuna on Lake Malaren (Mälaren) by the Karelians causes Birger Jarl to found the city of Stockholm, Sweden (Swedish "stock" + "holm" = log or fort + islet) (modern-day pop. 940K/2.2M); it is first mentioned in 1252. On Sept. 27 after Stefan I Nemanja of Serbia attacks the Repub. of Dubrovnik, and Norman reinforcements arrive to help them, he signs a peace treaty declaring eternal peace, with nominal rule by Serbian kings, and the statehood of the repub. guaranteed. On Oct. 20 Pope (since 1185) Urban III allegedly dies of a broken heart after hearing the bad news from the Holy Land at Ferrara while en route to excommunicate HRE Frederick I Barbarossa for his antics, and on Oct. 21 Cardinal Alberto de Morra is elected Pope (#172) Gregory VIII (-1187), but he dies on Dec. 17 after only 1 mo. 27 days after proclaiming the Third Crusade and making overtures to reconcile Frederick I with the Church so he can be free to kick Muslim butt and get the Holy Sepulchre back, and on Dec. 19 Roman-born Paolo Scolari is elected Pope (#173) Clement III (-1191), immediately seeking to heal the old rift between the papacy and the Roman pop. On Nov. 10 Godred V dies, and his younger son Ragnald (Reginald) IV (Rognvald Guthredssonn) (-1229) usurps the throne from eldest son and intended heir Olaf II, and becomes Norse king of the Isle of Man (until 1229). After being put up to it by satirical songs by French troubador Bertrand de Born, Vicomte de Haute-Fort (1140-1215), Richard I decides to kill his father Henry II, but forgets his weapons, and ends up facing the greatest knight of all time William the Marshal (Marshall) (1146-1219), who decides to spare his life by slaying his horse instead of him; Henry II rewards him with the hand of fair Isabel de Clare (1174-), daughter of Richard of Clare, earl of Pembroke, eventually making him William Marshall, 1st Earl of Pembroke; Richard flees to France, where Philip II Augustus welcomes him; Dante's "Divine Comedy" (Inferno XXVIII, 134) refers to the Born affair. The Byzantines invade Moesia, but fail to capture Tarnovo or Lovec. The Ghaznavid lands in the Punjab are conquered by Mohammed of Ghor (1173-1206) in C Afghanistan, ending the Ghaznavid Dynasty (begun 962). The Zangid principality of Mosul becomes a dependence of the Ayyubids. The revolt of Donald MacWilliam in N Scotland (begun 1175) is quashed in the Battle of Mam Garvia near Garbh in Ross, and Donald's head is brought to William I at Inverness. Duke Hugh III moves the capital of Burgundy from Chatillon to Dijon, turning it into a major condiment, er, commercial center. The first written inscription of the Konkani Language in Goa, W India. Hearing that he posed as a Muslim in Fez, Maimonides is indicted by a Muslim judge for apostasy from Islam, demanding execution, but the vizier al-Qadi al-Fadil al-Baisan rules that a man forced to convert cannot rightly be considered a Muslim. Births: Portuguese Count of Urgell (1229-31) Peter (Pedro) I (d. 1258) on Feb. 23 in Coimbra; 2nd son of Sancho I and Dulce; husband (1229-31) of Countess Aurembiaix of Urgell (1196-1231); brother of Afonso II (1185-1223). French duke of Brittany (1196-1203) Arthur I (d. 1203) on Mar. 29 in Nantes; posthumous son of Geoffrey II (1158-86) by wife Constance of Brittany (1161-1201). French Capetian king (1223-6) Louis VIII (the Lion) (Coeur de Lion) (d. 1226) on Sept. 5 in Paris; son of Philip II Augustus (1165-1223) and Isabelle of Hainaut (1170-90); grandson of Louis VII (1120-80); father of Louis IX (1214-70). French queen consort (1200-16) Isabella of Angouleme (d. 1246); daughter of Count Aymer Taillifer of Angouleme and Alix de Courtenay; maternal granddaughter of Louis VI. French duke of Brittany (1213-21) Peter (Pierre) I Mauclerc ("bad cleric") (d. 1250); 2nd son of Count Robert II of reux and Yolande de Coucy; 2nd cousin of Louis VIII; husband (1203-21) of Alix of Thouars (1200-21); gains the epithet Mauclerc for renouncing a career in the clergy to rule then putting the ermine on his paternal arms, which is reserved for the clergy. Deaths: Chinese Song emperor #10 (1127-62) Gaozong (b. 1107) on Nov. 9. French Crusader Baldwin of Ibelin (b. 1131) in Antioch; dies in self-imposed exile after refusing to assist Guy de Lusignan in Jerusalem.
1188 In Jan. after hearing of the bad news from Jerusalem from the archbishop of Tyre, France and England make a truce on the battlefield, and the archbishop persuades Philip II Augustus of France, Henry II of England, and his son Richard I Lionheart to pledge themselves to a crusade on the spot, declining the crown of Jerusalem but levying the Saladin Tithe (Aid of 1188) (a tenth of the value of incomes and chattels, subject to adjudication by a local jury) in aid of the Holy Land, becoming Henry II's 2nd taxation of personal property; in Feb. Pope Clement III triumphantly returns to Rome, and begins massing Christian soldiers against the Muslims for his delightful blood-drenched Third Crusade (ends 1192), the first to feature personal insignia on shields; Guy de Lusginan is released by Saladin, gains naval reinforcements from Pisa and sieges Acre in Aug., but is unsuccessful after Saladin's troops siege them; Saladin uses Damascus as his HQ during the Crusade; during the negotiations in the Champ Sacre (Sacré) (Sacred Field) of Gisors in Normandy, Henry II and his men (incl. Richard I Lionheart) hunker down under the 800-y.-o. Elm of Gisors, leaving Philip II and his men in the sun, ending in a battle in which the French take the elm and cut it down; after this incident, the Order of Sion splits ranks with its child the Templars, with Jean de Gisors (1133-1220) (vassal of Henry II and Richard I until 1193, who owns Titchfield Manor in Hampshire, England, and allegedly met Thomas Becket at Gisors in 1169) becoming the first Grandmaster (Nautonnier) (Pilot) of the Order of Sion (until 1220), which changes its name to the Priory of Sion, and makes every grandmaster assume the name Jean or Jeanne to indicate an esoteric successor to St. John, with Jean de Gisors calling himself Jean II; the Priory of Sion adopts the subtitle Ormus (Ours is Fr. for bear, Orme is Fr. for elm, Or is Fr. for gold), and begins calling itself the Order of the True Red Cross (Rose-Croix Veritas) (Rosicrucians?). The Byzantines accept a truce leaving Peter IV and Ivan Asen I in possession of a new Bulgarian state N of the Balkans; the Second Bulgarian Empire is founded (ends 1396); Isaac II Angelus recognizes Peter IV as tsar of Bulgaria, and he crowns Asen as co-emperor. Canterbury archbishop (1184-90) Baldwin of Forde(e) (1125-90) and Welsh-born Gerald of Wales (Giraldus Cambrensis) (1146-1223) preach the Third Ccrusade in Wales; Gerald of Wales pub. Itinerarium Cambriae in 1191, followed in 1194 by Description Cambriae. Architecture: The Bridge of Avignon in France (begun 1177) is finished. The Saladin Tithe in place, Newgate Prison in London at the corner of Newgate St. and Old Bailey just inside the city walls is built at the site of a gate of the Roman London Wall by orders of Henry II, going on to be extended and rebuilt many times until it is closed in 1902 and demolished in 1904 after becoming infamous for its unhealthy conditions. Nonfiction: Shen Kuo (1031-95), Dream Pool Essays (Meng Xi Bi Tan); collection of scientific essays incl. the first description of the magnetic needle compass and its use in navigation; it takes Europe four cents. to catch up with China's #1 scientist. Deaths: Spanish king of Leon and Galicia (1157-88) Ferdinand II (b. 1137) on Jan. 22 in Benavente.
1189 In Jan. Saladin utters the soundbyte: "I shall cross this sea to their islands to pursue them until there remains no one on the face of the earth who does not acknowledge Allah" - he proved to be right, 1900 years later? On Feb. 18 emperor (since 1162) Song Xiao Zong is forced to abdicate by Zhao Dun, who becomes Southern (Nan) Song emperor #3 Song Guang Zong (1147-1200) (until July 24, 1194). On July 6 after Richard Lionheart delays his trip to the Holy Land immediately and joins his father Henry II (b. 1133) of England on an attack on Raymond of Toulouse, and Philip II comes to Raymond's aid, and Richard in a fit of anger at hearing that his brother John is now daddy's favorite switches sides, invading Henry's heartland of Anjou with Philip II and taking NW Touraine, after which Henry II is driven from Le Mans (his birth town, dear to his heart) to Saumur, defeated, forced to pay homage to Philip II for all his French possessions and acknowledge Richard as his heir, he is harried to his death in Chinon, cursing his sons with his last breath, after which Richard pays respects to his corpse as it is taken to Fontrevaud Abbey, upon which "blood flowed from the nostrils of the deceased, as if... indignant at the presence of the one who was believed to have caused his death" (Roger of Wendover); he gets the last laugh with pesky martyr Thomas Becket when secular courts begin taking jurisdiction from clerical courts, liberating English law from feudal and ecclesiastical constraints and making it as supreme as in imperial Rome; on Sept. 3 French-speaking eldest remaining son Richard I Lionheart (Coeur de Lion) Plantagenet (1157-99), a military adventurer and leading trouvere (not much of an administrator type, infected with the skeptical culture of Provence and the gay science of the troubadours, making him English in name only?), who owns the Cognac region in W France is crowned the 26th monarch and Plantagenet king #2 of England (until Apr. 6, 1199), releasing his mommy Eleanor of Aquitaine from imprisonment (since 1173); he spends the next 5 mo. raising money to go on Crusade, appropriating the royal treasury, removing thousands of officials and selling them their offices back, and selling charters of freedom to cities; in his 10-year reign he only visits England twice, for a few mo. at a time, and only to obtain money for going on Crusade; he plays the part of a good Crusader and bans Christ-killing Jews from the coronation, after which the London pop. gets it mixed up and thinks he ordered their extermination, massacring them for Christ, the pogrom spreading to Lincoln, Stamford, and Linn; the London pogrom was started by nobles trying to get out of debts owed to Jews?; a mob led by Richard de Malabestia kills 300 Jews in York; 150 Jews led by Rabbi Yom Tob commit suicide; Richard I forgives William the Marshall for attemped murder, as the sonnet by Lord Dagonell Collingwood goes, "Count Richard forgave King Henry's knight, for William did only what he knew was right"; the Scottish church, which Henry II had subordinated to the English makes itself directly answerable to the pope in an attempt to retain independence; on Dec. 5 Richard I annuls the 1174 Treaty of Falaise for 15K (10K?) marks in the Quitclaim of Canterbury to help finance his war against the Sacrilegious Saracens, and the Scots avoid being permanently swallowed-up once again, with William I now at the height of his power, enjoying a golden decade and becoming known as the Lion of Justice. On Aug. 28 the Siege of Acre begins (ends July 12, 1191), with Saladin attempting to exterminate the pesky Crusader kingdom, and the Crusaders led by Guy de Lusignan of Jerusalem holding out at high cost, becoming the first time that the king of Jerusalem has to personally defend the Holy Land from the pesky Muslims; it starts with Lusignan's Crusader army of 3K men arrives and attempts a surprise-attack on the 6K-man Muslim garrison, fails, and sets up camp outside the city, causing Saladin to arrive on Oct. 4 with 20K men, meeting the reinforced Crusader army of 7K infantry and 400 cavalry, with the Templars advancing on Saladin's right wing and put them to flight, then stoop to loot and retreat, causing Saladin to send his light cavalry, which slaughters them, killing 4K-5K until Christian reinforcements arrive, causing Saladin to retreat the Crusaders to blockade Acre by land, receiving news of the imminent arrival of HRE Frederick I Barbarossa, along with the arrival of former Latin patriarch of Jerusalem Heraclius, pumping them up. On Aug. 29 Ban Kulin (1163-1204) pub. the Charter of Kulin, which is later taken as the beginning of Bosnian statehood. On Aug. 29 English king Henry II's youngest son John Lackland marries Isabella, Countess of Gloucester (1173-1217) at Malborough Castle in Wiltshire, causing John to become the earl of Glouchester; too bad, Archbishop Baldwin of Canterbury annuls their marriage by reason of consaguinity (half-second cousins and great-granchildren of Henry I), placing their lands under interdict, but Pope Clement III grants them a dispensation to marry as long as they don't have sexual relations, causing him to plan to dump her before becoming king. Don't rock the boat, baby, don't tip the boat over? German "I never learned to swim" HRE (since Jan. 2, 1155) (2nd Crusade veteran) Frederick I Barbarossa (1122-90) leads the totally lay and royal Third Crusade (ends 1192), leading an awesome 100K-man German Crusader army from Regensburg via Hungary to Bulgaria, stopping at Nis, Serbia, where Stefan I Nemanja tries unsuccessfully to talk him into changing to a war against the Byzantines, until a Byzantine force tries to block him from reaching Sofia, causing him to plan an offensive against Constantinople, for which Nemanja offers 20K men, while Bulgarian leaders Ivan Asen I and Peter IV (have some lemonade, check out all the trees?) offer him 40K more; too bad, it all falls through since Freddie wants safe passage into Anatolia; meanwhile the Latin Crusader army sieges Acre, and turns on Saladin's army as it is hindering their efforts, winning initial success, breaking into Saladin's camp using crossbows and cavalry, but the ensuing breakup of the ahem, Christian army as it turns to looting gives the Muslims the opportunity to regroup and bring in fresh reinforcements, resulting in 7K Christian soldiers KIA; Saladin captures the Crusader castles of Montreal and Kerak; meanwhile the Bulgarians defeat the Byzantines at the Battle of Berrhoe; William II of Sicily, husband of Richard I Lionheart's sister Joan dies while planning to lead the Third Crusade; Hamburg receives a charter from HRE Frederick I Barbarossa in return for services rendered during the Third Crusade, making it a free imperial city and giving it important commercial privileges. The Almohads under caliph Yaqub al-Mansur raid Lisbon and take 3K female and child captives into slavery. The town of Dundalk (Gael. "Dun Dealgan" = Dalgan's Fort) on the Castledown River in Ireland near the border with modern-day Northern Ireland halfway between Dublin and Belfast (modern-day pop. 39K/55K) is given a charter. Lost-cause champion Minamoto Yoshitsune is forced to commit hari-kari. The Hoysala Dynasty in Mysore, India conquers Kalyani. Hubert Walter (-1205) becomes bishop of Salisbury, England. The last recorded Viking voyage to North Am. takes place - but now that they're Christian and PC, the learned Catholic theologians tell the Vikings not to chance falling over the Earth's edge again, not to mention them sea monsters and that whirpool? Richard I grants a royal charter to Hereford on the Wye River "in Wales". Births: Russian grand prince of Vladimir (1212-6, 1218-38) Yuri (George) II Vsevolodovich (d. 1238); 3rd son of Vsevolod III the Big Nest (1154-1212) and Maria Shvarnovna (-1205). Deaths: English king (1154-89) Henry II (b. 1133) on July 6 in Chinon, France. Norman Sicilian king #3 (1166-89) William II the Good (b. 1155) on Nov. 11 in Palermo.