Directory

1290 CE

The University of Coimbra is founded in Lisbon by Denis I ("the Poet King"). He decrees that Portuguese is the official language of Portugal, replacing classical Latin in that capacity. Shamsuddin Kayumars, Mamluk ruler of the Delhi Sultanate, is murdered and succeeded by Jalal-ud-din Khalji (or Firuz Shah I), founder of the Khalji dynasty, ending Mamluk rule and instigating the Khalji Revolution. Edward I travels with the body of Queen Eleanor from Lincoln to London. Remembering his wife, Edward erects a series of crosses at each location that the body rests overnight. These are known as the twelve Eleanor crosses.

Geopolitics & Diplomacy

  • Quia Emptores, a statute passed by Edward I, puts an end to the practice of subinfeudations. The statute allows land to be sold according to royal approval, as long as the new owner answers directly to his lord or the king.source

Conflict & Security

  • August 30 – Survivors and relatives of the massacre at Acre take bloodstained clothing to Sultan Qalawun ("the Victorious") in Cairo, who demands that the leaders of the riot be handed over for trial, but the nobles refuse to send them and Qalawun now obtains legal clearance from the religious authorities in Cairo to break the truce with Crusader states.source
  • August – Italian Crusaders massacre Muslim merchants and peasants, and some local Christians in Acre. Some claim it began at a drunken party – others that a European husband found his wife making love to a Muslim. The barons and local knights try to rescue a few Muslims and take them to the safety of the castle, while some ringleaders are arrested.source
  • October – Qalawun orders a general mobilization of the Mamluk forces. In a council, it is decided that a peace delegation be sent to Cairo under Guillaume de Beaujeu, Grand Master of the Knights Templar. However, Qalawun demands huge compensation for those killed in Acre, and sends a Syrian army to the coast of Palestine, near Caesarea.source

Religion & Belief

  • June – Genoa concludes a new commercial treaty with the Mamluks; five galleys sent by King James II of Aragon ("the Just") join the Venetian Crusader fleet (some 20 ships) on its way to Acre. On board the fleet are Italian urban militias and mercenary forces under Seneschal Jean I de Grailly, who have fought for the Papal States in the so-called Italian Crusades.source
  • July 10 – King Ladislaus IV of Hungary ("the Cuman") is assassinated at the castle of Körösszeg (modern Romania). He is succeeded by Andrew III ("the Venetian"), after an election by Hungarian nobles, who is crowned by Archbishop Lodomer as new ruler of Hungary and Croatia in Székesfehérvár on July 23.source
  • The Dnyaneshwari is written in India. This holy book is a commentary on the Bhagvad Gita and is narrated by Dnyaneshwar.source

Health & Medicine

  • July 18 – Edict of Expulsion: King Edward I of England ("Longshanks") orders all Jews (at this time probably numbering around 2,000) to leave the country by November 1 (All Saints' Day). The edict was decreed on Tisha B'Av on the Hebrew calendar, a day that commemorates many calamities. They are eventually allowed back in 1656.source

Crime & Justice

  • June 13 – Shamsuddin Kayumars, Mamluk ruler of the Delhi Sultanate, is murdered and succeeded by Jalal-ud-din Khalji (or Firuz Shah I), founder of the Khalji dynasty, ending Mamluk rule and instigating the Khalji Revolution.source

Climate & Environment

  • September 27 – The 6.8 Zhili earthquake affects the province of Zhili in China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), killing 7,270–100,000 people.source
  • Winter – The second of the Statutes of Mortmain passed during the reign of Edward I prevents land from passing into the possession of the Church.source
  • "Year without winter" – An exceptionally rare instance of uninterrupted transition, from autumn to the following spring, in England and the mainland of Western Europe.source

Culture & Society

  • March 1 – The University of Coimbra is founded in Lisbon by Denis I ("the Poet King"). He decrees that Portuguese is the official language of Portugal, replacing classical Latin in that capacity.source
  • December – Edward I travels with the body of Queen Eleanor from Lincoln to London. Remembering his wife, Edward erects a series of crosses at each location that the body rests overnight. These are known as the twelve Eleanor crosses.source

Births

  • January 3 – Constance of Portugal, queen consort of Castile (d. 1313)source
  • January 6 – Otto Bodrugan, English landowner and politician (d. 1331)source
  • June 23 – Jakushitsu Genkō, Japanese Rinzai master and poet (d. 1367)source
  • August 4 – Leopold I, Duke of Austria ("the Glorious"), German nobleman (d. 1326)source
  • October 15 – Anne of Bohemia, queen consort of Bohemia (d. 1313)source
  • December 24 – Khwaju Kermani, Persian poet and mystic (d. 1349)source
  • Rabbenu Yerucham, French rabbi and scholar (posek) (d. 1350)source
  • Giovanni Visconti, Italian cardinal, archbishop and co-ruler (d. 1354)source
  • Beatrice of Silesia, queen of Germany (House of Piast) (d. 1322)source
  • Buton Rinchen Drub, Tibetan Buddhist religious leader (d. 1364)source
  • Hugues Quiéret, French nobleman, admiral and advisor (d. 1340)source
  • Theodore I, Marquis of Montferrat ("Palaiologos"), Byzantine nobleman and writer (d. 1338)source
  • Andrea Pisano (or Pontedera), Italian sculptor and architect (d. 1348)source
  • Barlaam of Seminara, Italian cleric, scholar and theologian (d. 1348)source

Deaths

  • April 26 – Gaston VII, Viscount of Béarn ("Froissard"), French nobleman and knight (b. 1225)source
  • June 8 – Beatrice Portinari, muse of the Italian poet Dante Alighieri, dies in Florence. In his Divine Comedy (La Divina Commedia), he transforms his memory of Beatrice into an allegory of divine love.source
  • June 8 – Beatrice Portinari, Italian muse of Dante (b. 1266)source
  • June 13 – Shamsuddin II, Mamluk ruler of the Delhi Sultanate (b. 1285)source
  • June 23 – Henryk IV Probus ("the Righteous"), High Duke of Poland (b. 1258)source
  • September 26 – Margaret, Maid of Norway, queen of Scotland (b. 1283)source
  • September – The 7-year-old Margaret, Maid of Norway, queen-designate and heir to the crown of Scotland, dies en route to the British Isles in Orkney, leading to thirteen competitors for the crown of Scotland, a succession crisis.source
  • November 10 – Qalawun ("the Victorious") dies as the Egyptian Mamluk army sets out for Acre. He is succeeded by his eldest son Al-Ashraf Khalil as ruler of the Mamluk Sultanate. Khalil orders his allies and tributaries in Syria to prepare for a campaign next spring. Governors and castle commanders are ordered to assemble siege equipment and armor.source
  • November 28 – Eleanor of Castile, wife of Edward I, dies while traveling in the North. She has been suffering from illness for some time, and the cold and dampness of the winter months probably aggravate her condition.source
  • November 28 – Eleanor of Castile, queen consort of England (b. 1241)source
  • December 18 – Magnus Birgersson, king of Sweden (b. 1240)source
  • December 18 – King Magnus Birgersson of Sweden dies after a 15-year reign. He is succeeded by his 10-year-old son Birger Magnusson.source
  • December 18 – Herman I, German nobleman (House of Henneberg) (b. 1224)source
  • December 21 – Gerhard I, Count of Holstein-Itzehoe, German nobleman, knight and regent (b. 1232)source