Timeline of Kings and Queens, page 7
1195
Byzantine Empire While he is absent on a hunting expedition, Isaac II’s older brother, Alexios Angelos, proclaims himself emperor as Alexios III; Isaac is blinded and imprisoned.
1196
Aragón Pedro II becomes king, the first king of Aragón to be crowned by the pope. Norway Inge Magnusson, another illegitimate son of Magnus Erlingsson, becomes Bagler pretender to the throne. Germany Frederick II is elected king of Germany, disputed by Philip of Swabia and Otto of Brunswick. Sweden Canute I dies, leaving children too young to become rulers; Sverker II the Younger, son of Karl VII, is elected king. Hungary and Croatia Emeric becomes king. Serbia Grand Prince Stefan Namanja abdicates in favour of his son Stefan, and retires to a monastery; his other son, Vukan II Nemanjić, rules over Zeta until 1208. Bulgaria Following the assassinations of his older brothers, Peter IV and Ivan Asen I, Kaloyan, younger brother of the Asen brothers, becomes tsar.
1197
Holy Roman Empire Henry VI dies of malaria while preparing for a crusade.
1198
Germany Philip of Swabia is elected king; disputed by Otto IV of Brunswick, duke of Swabia, who is a grandson of English king Henry II, and fifth and youngest son of Frederick I; he is elected as rival king and crowned by the archbishop of Cologne; civil war ensues. Rome Cardinal Deacon Lotario de’ Conti di Segni is elected pope, as Innocent III; he reasserts papal power and becomes the most prominent political figure in Europe. Sicily Frederick I becomes the first king of the Hohenstaufen dynasty; he is known as ‘Stupor Mundi’ (Wonder of the World), is a patron of the arts and science and can speak six languages. Bohemia Following a period of anarchy, Ottokar I, of the Premyslid dynasty, becomes king. Bulgaria King Peter is murdered by his own nobles, probably with the encouragement of his younger brother Kalojan, who becomes king. Poland Leszek I the White is replaced as high duke by Mieszko III the Old, who returns to power for the third time. Albania Gjin Progon becomes sovereign prince.
1199
England King Richard I is killed at the siege of Châlus and John ‘Lackland’ becomes king; his reign is disastrous, but he does sign the Magna Carta in 1215. Poland Leszek I the White ousts Mieszko the Old, and is restored as high duke. Belarus Boris II becomes prince of Polotsk.
1202
Denmark Canute VI’s brother, Valdemar II the Conqueror, becomes king; he extends his kingdom to Estonia, but, captured by the Germans, gives up his conquests in return for freedom. Norway King Sverre dies; his son, Haakon III, is pronounced king; he makes a settlement with the Church; Inge Magnusson, Bagler pretender to the throne, dies; the Bagler party is dissolved. Poland Mieszko the Old replaces Leszek the White as high duke; it is the fourth time he has been ruler; his return is shortlived, as he dies and is succeeded by Władysław III Spindleshanks. Kievan Rus’ Ingvar I briefly rules as grand prince before Rurik regains the throne for the fourth time; Roman II the Great is a powerful rival.
1203
France Philippe II of France enters Rouen, leading to the eventual unification of Normandy and France. Sweden The late Canute I’s four sons claim the throne, but Sverker II exiles them. Byzantine Empire Alexios III flees, following the arrival of the armies of the Fourth Crusade; Isaac II returns to the throne after eight years of imprisonment; his son, Alexios IV, is co-emperor, but he actually rules. Thessalonica Boniface of Montferrat, a leader of the Fourth Crusade, founds the Kingdom of Thessalonica.
1204
Norway Haakon III dies, unmarried and without a legitimate heir; his 4-year-old nephew, grandson of King Sverre, Guttrum Sigurdsson, is named king; the second Bagler war begins when pretender Erling Steinvegg arrives in Viken, supported by King Valdemar II of Denmark; on the death of King Guttrum, Inge II Baardsson, grandson of Sigurd II, is chosen by the Birkebeiner as king; intense fighting begins with the Baglers. Hungary and Croatia Ladislaus III is crowned king, aged 5. Bulgaria Kalojan proclaims himself tsar. Byzantine Empire Emperor Alexios IV is overthrown in a revolution; Nicolas Canabus is elected emperor by an assembly of the senate and priests, but refuses to accept the throne; influential court official Alexios Doukas Murzuphlus has Canabus and Alexios IV strangled on the same day, and is proclaimed emperor as Alexios V; he loses in battle to the Crusaders and flees to Thrace; Constantine Laskaris is proclaimed emperor, but remains uncrowned; Constantinople comes under the control of what, for the next 57 years, would be the Latin Empire. Latin Empire Baldwin, count of Flanders, is crowned emperor of the Latin Empire, a Crusader state founded by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade, on lands captured from the Byzantine Empire. Kievan Rus’ Rostislav II becomes grand prince.
1205
Sweden Canute I’s four sons, supported by the Norwegians, lose to Sverker II at the Battle of Älgarås; three of them die. Venice Pietro Ziani is elected doge. Latin Empire Henry of Flanders is crowned emperor. Hungary and Croatia Five-year-old Ladislaus III dies, probably murdered by his uncle, Andrew, after just six months on the throne; Andrew, brother of King Emeric, becomes king as Andrew II.
1206
Poland Władysław III is deposed; Leszek I the White is restored to the throne. Kievan Rus’ Rurik briefly seizes power for the fifth time; Vsevolod IV deposes him to become grand prince.
1207
Norway Bagler pretender Erling Steinvegg dies; they name Philip Simonsson as new Bagler pretender. Germany King Philip’s triumphant entry into Cologne brings the civil war to an end. Bulgaria Tsar Kaloyan is murdered by his own military commander, in a plot possibly engineered by his wife; his nephew Boril becomes tsar. Albania Gjin Progoni’s brother, Dhimitër Progoni, becomes the third and last sovereign prince of Albania from the Progon dynasty.
1208
Sweden The only surviving son of Canute I defeats Sverker II at the Battle of Lena, and drives him into exile in Denmark; he takes the throne as Erik X, and is the first Swedish king to be crowned. Germany Philip of Swabia is murdered by Otto of Wittelsbach; Philip had refused to let him marry one of his daughters; Otto IV becomes sole, undisputed ruler, gaining the support of all the electoral princes. Kievan Rus’ Rurik briefly seizes power, for the sixth time.
1209
Holy Roman Empire Otto IV is crowned emperor.
1210
Poland Mieszko I Tanglefoot, second son of Władysław II, becomes high duke. Kievan Rus’ Vsevolod IV concludes an alliance with Vsevolod the Big Nest, grand prince of Vladimir, and seizes Kiev.
1211
Portugal Afonso II becomes king. Germany While Otto IV is campaigning in southern Italy, Frederick Roger, king of Sicily and son of Henry VI, becomes king as Frederick II. Poland Mieszko II dies; Leszek I the White is restored for the fourth and final time.
1212
Sicily Henry, son of Frederick II, becomes king. Russia Yuri III becomes grand prince of Vladimir-Suzdal.
1213
Aragón Pedro II dies fighting the Crusader army of Simon de Montfort, at the Battle of Muret; James I the Conqueror becomes king and expands Aragón as far south as Valencia and into Languedoc in the north; he makes Catalan the official language of his territories.
1214
Scotland William the Lion dies after the second-longest reign – 49 years – of a Scottish monarch before the Act of Union in 1707; Alexander II succeeds him; he supports the English barons against King John, invading England. France Philippe II defeats John of England. Kievan Rus’ Mstislav III the Bold expels Vsevolod IV from Kiev to succeed him as grand prince.
1215
England King John seals the Magna Carta, giving more power to the barons.
Spain Henry I, son of Alfonso VIII, becomes king of Castile; Pedro II of Aragón, helping the Albigensians, is killed in battle against Simon de Montfort’s Crusaders; James the Conqueror becomes king; he conquers Valencia, Murcia and the Balearics.
The Magna Carta
1215
The Magna Carta is one of the most celebrated documents in English history, but its real significance is often misunderstood.
In January 1215, a group of barons demanded a charter of liberties to safeguard against the king’s despotic behaviour. They took up arms against King John and captured London in May 1215. Both parties met to negotiate on 10 June at a place called Runnymede — a meadow by the River Thames. The concessions made by John were outlined in a document known as ‘The Articles of the Barons’, to which the king attached his great seal. At the same time the royal chancery also produced a formal royal grant, which was based on the agreements reached at Runnymede. This later became known as Magna Carta (Latin for ‘Great Charter’). Four copies of the original grant still survive. Two are held at the British Library, while others can be seen in the archives at Lincoln and Salisbury cathedrals.
1216
England On the death of King John, Prince Louis of France is offered the crown by English barons; he invades England and the First Barons’ War begins; 9-year-old Henry III becomes king under the regency of William Marshal and then Hubert de Burgh. Rome Cardinal Priest Cencio, former Camerlengo and treasurer of the Catholic Church, as well as tutor of future Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick II, is elected pope as Honorius III; he endorses the Fifth Crusade. Sweden Johan I Sverkersson, son of Sverker II, becomes king, aged 15. Albania Dhimitër Progoni dies without issue; his wife Komnena marries nobleman Grigor Kamona, who becomes sovereign prince. Latin Empire Pierre II de Courtenay, younger son of Louis VI of France and brother-in-law of previous emperor Henry, becomes emperor; he leaves France and is consecrated as emperor in Rome; he is kidnapped by the despot of Epirus en route to claim his empire. Russia Yuri II’s brother, Konstantin I, defeats him and other brothers to seize the Grand-Principality of Vladimir-Suzdal; Yuri is sent into exile.
1217
England Prince Louis of France renounces his claim to the English throne in the Treaty of Lambeth, which ends the First Barons’ War. Castile Henry I of Castile is killed by a falling roof tile; his cousin, Ferdinand III, succeeds him. Norway Inge Baardsson dies, having failed to achieve overall control of his kingdom; 13-year-old Haakon IV, illegitimate son of King Sverre, succeeds him as king. Serbia The Kingdom of Serbia is founded; Stefan II becomes its first king. Latin Empire Pierre II de Courtenay dies while being held prisoner; he never governs his empire; his wife Yolanda takes power.
1218
Bulgaria Ivan Asen I’s son, also Ivan Asen, captures and blinds Tsar Boril, who is sent into exile; Ivan Asen II becomes tsar, and adds Macedonia, Epirus and much of Albania to his kingdom. Russia On the death of his brother Konstantin, Yuri II returns to the throne.
1219
Latin Empire Robert de Courtenay, son of Pierre de Courtenay and his wife Yolanda, becomes emperor after his brother Philip renounces the succession.
1220
Holy Roman Empire Frederick II is crowned emperor.
1222
Sweden Johan I is deposed; Erik XI, 5-year-old son of Erik X, becomes king. Germany Henry (VII) is crowned co-king with his father, Frederick II.
1223
France Louis VIII the Lion becomes king. Portugal Afonso II dies, leaving his country embroiled in a diplomatic conflict with the Catholic Church; he had been excommunicated by Pope Honorius III for trying to reduce the Church’s power; Sancho II the Pious becomes king. Kievan Rus’ Vladimir III, son of Rurik, becomes grand prince.
1226
France Louis IX the Saint becomes king; France enjoys something of a golden age during his reign.
1227
England Henry III comes of age and assumes government. Rome Cardinal bishop of Ostia, Ugolino di Conti, is elected pope as Gregory IX; he excommunicates Emperor Frederick II for not carrying out the Sixth Crusade. Poland Leszek I the White is assassinated; Władysław III Spindleshanks returns to power. Serbia Stefan Radoslav becomes king of Serbia.
1228
Latin Empire Emperor Robert de Courtenay dies, having been driven from Constantinople; 11-year-old Baldwin II becomes the last emperor of the Latin Empire; the empire consists of little more than Constantinople, which has a population of only around 35,000; John of Brienne rules as regent.
1229
Sweden Canute II, who has been acting as regent for Erik XI and then joint ruler, exiles Erik to Denmark and seizes the throne. Poland Konrad I of Masovia, son of Casimir II and brother of Leszek I the White, becomes high duke. Venice Jacopo Tiepolo is elected doge.
1230
León-Castile-Galicia Ferdinand III, already king of Castile, becomes king of León, permanently uniting the two kingdoms; he will spend much of his reign fighting the Moors, reconquering all Andalusia except Granada, and expanding his power over the Iberian Peninsula; he is later canonized. Bohemia Wenceslaus I, son of Ottokar I, becomes king. Bulgaria becomes the dominant power in the Balkans, when Ivan Asen II captures land from the Black Sea in the east to the Adriatic in the west.
1231
Majorca King James I the Conqueror of Aragón conquers Majorca and becomes king.
1232
Poland Henry I the Bearded, duke of Silesia, becomes ruler.
1233
Serbia Stefan Radoslav is deposed by his brother, Stefan Vladislav I, with the support of his father-in-law, Ivan Asen II, king of Bulgaria.
1234
Sweden On the death of Canute II, Erik XI returns from exile to take the throne. Navarre Sancho VII’s will names James I of Aragón as his heir, but the Navarrese elect, instead, Theobald I the Posthumous, count of Champagne and nephew of Sancho VII, as king; in previous years, he has tried to poison French king, Louis VIII, and has had an affair with his wife, Queen Blanche, regent for Louis IX. Germany Frederick II outlaws his son, Prince Henry.
1235
Germany Prince Henry is tried by his father, Frederick II, and dethroned. Hungary and Croatia Andrew II dies, having weakened the throne; Béla IV becomes king; he becomes known as the country’s ‘second founder’, after his programme of reconstruction following the invasion by Mongol troops, during which half the population of Hungary has perishes. Lithuania Mindaugas is the first-known grand duke of Lithuania. Kievan Rus’ Iziaslav IV becomes grand prince.
1237
England and Scotland The Treaty of York defines the boundary between the two kingdoms as running between the Solway Firth in the west, and the mouth of the river Tweed in the east. Germany Conrad IV, son of Frederick II, is elected king. Kievan Rus’ Iaroslav II, fourth son of Vsevolod the Big Nest, becomes grand prince; he restores the territory after the Mongol invasion.
1238
Poland Henry II the Pious becomes high duke. Russia Iaroslav II, grand prince of Novgorod and Kiev, becomes grand prince of Vladimir. Kievan Rus’ Mikhail II, son of Vsevolod IV, becomes grand prince.
1239
Norway Skule Baardson, half-brother of King Inge II, is declared king by his supporters, and raises an army to fight King Haakon IV. Kievan Rus’ Rostislav III becomes grand prince.
1240
Norway Skule Baardson is defeated and killed by Haakon IV; the civil war era in Norway comes to an end. Kievan Rus’ Around this time, the Mongols destroy Kiev because of its princes’ refusal to submit to them; the state is controlled, for the next 142 years, by the Mongol Horde.
1241
Rome Cardinal bishop of Sabina, Goffredo da Castiglione, reigns as Pope Celestine IV for just 17 days. Denmark Eric IV, son of Valdemar II, becomes king. Bulgaria Aged 7, Kaliman Asen I becomes tsar; Bulgaria loses much of its power during his reign. Poland High Duke Henry I dies fighting the Mongols at the Battle of Legnica; the thousands of dead are beheaded and mutilated, but he is identified because of his 11 toes; Konrad of Masovia becomes high duke for the second time.
1243
Rome Cardinal priest Sinibaldo Fieschi is elected pope as Innocent IV. Poland Bolesław V the Chaste, son of Leszek the White, becomes high duke of a fragmented country. Serbia Stefan Uroš overthrows his brother, Stefan Vladislav, to become king; during his reign, Serbia becomes a prosperous and influential power in the area.
1245
Russia Iaroslav II, grand prince of Vladimir, is poisoned by the khan’s wife while visiting him in Karakorum, and dies a week after returning home; Sviatoslav III, sixth son of Vsevolod the Big Nest, becomes grand prince of Vladimir.
1246
Germany Henry Raspe is elected antiking (until 1247), following Pope Innocent IV’s excommunication of Frederick II and his declaration that Conrad IV is deposed; he defeats Conrad in battle at Nidda, but dies a few months later; William of Holland is elected antiking. Bulgaria Kaliman I dies, aged 12, possibly of poisoning; his brother, Michael Asen I, also a child, becomes tsar, with his mother Eirene as regent; with a second successive underage tsar, a great deal of territory is lost.
1248
León Fernando III of León takes Seville from the Moors. Portugal Following a formal complaint from the archbishop of Porto, the pope orders the Portuguese to select a new king; increasingly discontented nobles invite Sancho II’s brother, Afonso, then count of Boulogne, to usurp the throne; he marches into Portugal, and Sancho II is removed from the throne; Sancho goes into exile and Afonso III becomes king. Russia Mikhail Khorobrit of Moscow, nephew of Sviatoslav III, defies the traditional succession system when he seizes the city of Vladimir and ousts the grand prince; Mikhail Khorobrit is killed several months later, in battle with the Lithuanians.
1249
Scotland Aged 8, Alexander III becomes king of Scots. Venice Marino Morosini is elected 44th doge. Russia Mikhail Khorobrit’s brother, Andrei II, third son of Iaroslav II, becomes grand prince of Vladimir.
1250
Sweden Eric XI dies without issue, and the crown passes to his 12-year-old nephew, Valdemar I Birgersson; his father, the great statesman and founder of Stockholm, Birger Jarl, acts as regent. Denmark Abel, third son of Valdemar II, kills his brother, King Eric IV, and assumes the throne. Germany Frederick II defeats William of Holland and his supporters, but dies shortly after; Conrad IV becomes sole ruler. Sicily Conrad of Germany becomes king as Conrad I; he wages war with the Papal States.
