14th Century CE

Image depicting the 14th Century CE, such as the Black Death or the Hundred Years' War

The 14th century was a time of devastating crisis across Eurasia, characterized by the Black Death pandemic, the Great Famine, the Hundred Years' War, and a major schism in the Catholic Church.

  • Major Events
    1. The Great Famine (1315–1317 CE), triggered by the Little Ice Age, causes widespread death.
    2. The Hundred Years' War between England and France begins (1337 CE).
    3. The Black Death (Bubonic Plague) pandemic sweeps across Eurasia (1347–1351 CE), killing an estimated 75–200 million people.
    4. The Ming Dynasty is founded in China (1368 CE), overthrowing the Yuan (Mongol) Dynasty.
  • Major Empires
    1. Ming Dynasty (China)
    2. Ottoman Empire (Rises in Anatolia and the Balkans)
    3. Delhi Sultanate (India)
    4. Timurid Empire (Founded by Timur, late century)
  • Major Conflicts
    1. Hundred Years' War (Battle of Crécy, 1346 CE)
    2. Timur's military campaigns across Central Asia and Persia.
    3. Peasants' Revolt in England (1381 CE) and similar uprisings across Europe.
  • Population Trends
    1. Catastrophic population decline across Europe, Middle East, and parts of Asia due to the Black Death.
    2. Severe labor shortages lead to higher wages and social changes in post-plague Europe.
  • Key Leaders
    1. Zhu Yuanzhang (Hongwu Emperor, founder of the Ming Dynasty)
    2. Timur (Tamerlane, founder of the Timurid Empire)
    3. Charles V (King of France)
  • Key Intellectuals
    1. Ibn Khaldun (Arab historian and sociologist, wrote the Muqaddimah)
    2. Geoffrey Chaucer (English poet, wrote The Canterbury Tales)
    3. Petrarch (Italian scholar, often considered the founder of Humanism)
  • Major Religions
    1. Christianity (The Western Schism 1378–1417 CE, with multiple rival popes).
    2. Islam (Sufism gains prominence; spread continues in Africa and Southeast Asia).
    3. Ming Dynasty re-establishes Confucianism as the dominant ideology in China.
  • Key Developments
    1. Start of the Italian Renaissance (pre-Black Death).
    2. The rise of centralized, bureaucratic states (e.g., France and England).
    3. Cannons and gunpowder become significantly more prominent in warfare.