Year 1344 ( MCCCXLIV) was a

leap year starting on Thursday A leap year starting on Thursday is any year with 366 days (i.e. it includes 29 February) that begins on Thursday 1 January, and ends on Friday 31 December. Its dominical letters hence are DC. The most recent year of such kind was 2004 and the next ...

(link will display the full calendar) of the

Julian calendar The Julian calendar, proposed by Roman consul Julius Caesar in 46 BC, was a reform of the Roman calendar. It took effect on , by edict. It was designed with the aid of Greek mathematicians and astronomers such as Sosigenes of Alexandri ...

Events

January–December

March 26 Events Pre-1600 * 590 – Emperor Maurice proclaims his son Theodosius as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire. *1021 – On the feast of Eid al-Adha, the death of the Fatimid caliph al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, kept secret for six weeks, ...

– ''

Reconquista The ' ( Spanish, Portuguese and Galician for "reconquest") is a historiographical construction describing the 781-year period in the history of the Iberian Peninsula between the Umayyad conquest of Hispania in 711 and the fall of the N ...

'': The

Siege of Algeciras (1342–44) The Battle of Algeciras or Siege of Algeciras may refer to: * Siege of Algeciras (1278) * Battle of Algeciras (1278) * Siege of Algeciras (1309) * Siege of Algeciras (1342-1344) * Siege of Algeciras (1369) * Battle of Algeciras (1801) or the ...

, one of the first European military engagements where gunpowder is used, ends with the Muslim city of Algeciras surrendering and being incorporated into the

Kingdom of Castile The Kingdom of Castile (; es, Reino de Castilla, la, Regnum Castellae) was a large and powerful state on the Iberian Peninsula during the Middle Ages. Its name comes from the host of castles constructed in the region. It began in the 9th ce ...

. *

April 17 Events Pre-1600 *1080 – Harald III of Denmark dies and is succeeded by Canute IV, who would later be the first Dane to be canonized. * 1349 – The rule of the Bavand dynasty in Mazandaran is brought to an end by the murder of Has ...

–

Constantine II, King of Armenia Constantine II ( hy, Կոստանդին Բ), (also Constantine IV; Western Armenian transliteration: ''Gosdantin'' or ''Kostantine''; died 17 April 1344), born Guy de Lusignan, was elected the first Latin King of Armenian Cilicia of the Poit ...

, is killed in an uprising and succeeded by a distant cousin,

Constantine III Constantine III may refer to: * Constantine III (Western Roman Emperor), self-proclaimed western Roman Emperor 407–411 * Heraclius Constantine, Byzantine Emperor in 641 * Constans II, Byzantine emperor 641–668, sometimes referred to under this ...

. *

April 23 Events Pre-1600 *215 BC – A temple is built on the Capitoline Hill dedicated to Venus Erycina to commemorate the Roman defeat at Lake Trasimene. * 599 – Maya king Uneh Chan of Calakmul attacks rival city-state Palenque in sout ...

– The

St. George's Night Uprising Saint George's Night Uprising in 1343–1345 ( et, Jüriöö ülestõus, ) was an unsuccessful attempt by the indigenous Estonian population in the Duchy of Estonia, the Bishopric of Ösel-Wiek, and the insular territories of the State of the T ...

: The

Livonian Order The Livonian Order was an autonomous branch of the Teutonic Order, formed in 1237. From 1435 to 1561 it was a member of the Livonian Confederation. History The order was formed from the remnants of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword after th ...

hangs Vesse, the rebel

Estonian Estonian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Estonia, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe * Estonians, people from Estonia, or of Estonian descent * Estonian language * Estonian cuisine * Estonian culture See also * ...

Elder of

Saaremaa Saaremaa is the largest island in Estonia, measuring . The main island of Saare County, it is located in the Baltic Sea, south of Hiiumaa island and west of Muhu island, and belongs to the West Estonian Archipelago. The capital of the isla ...

Island. * May 13 –

Battle of Pallene The Battle of Pallene occurred in 1344 between the fleets of a Latin Christian league and Turkish raiders, at the Pallene Peninsula in northern Greece. Battle The battle is known through the chronicle of the Paduan jurist Guglielmo Cortusi, and ...

: A Christian fleet defeats a Turkish fleet at Pallene, Chalcidice. *

October 24 Events Pre-1600 * AD 69 – In the Second Battle of Bedriacum, troops loyal to Vespasian defeat those of Emperor Vitellius. *1260 – Chartres Cathedral is dedicated in the presence of King Louis IX of France. * 1360 – The T ...

– Smyrniote Crusade: A Christian fleet succeeds in taking the port city of

Smyrna Smyrna ( ; grc, Σμύρνη, Smýrnē, or , ) was a Greek city located at a strategic point on the Aegean coast of Anatolia. Due to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence, and its good inland connections, Smyrna rose to prom ...

from the Aydinid Turks. *

December 6 Events Pre-1600 * 1060 – Béla I is crowned king of Hungary. *1240 – Mongol invasion of Rus': Kyiv, defended by Voivode Dmytro, falls to the Mongols under Batu Khan. *1492 – After exploring the island of Cuba for gold (wh ...

– Five-year-old Erik Magnusson, the eldest son of King

Magnus IV of Sweden Magnus IV (April or May 1316 – 1 December 1374; Swedish ''Magnus Eriksson'') was King of Sweden from 1319 to 1364, King of Norway as Magnus VII (including Iceland and Greenland) from 1319 to 1355, and ruler of Scania from 1332 to 1360. By ...

, is appointed heir to the Swedish throne, even though Sweden is an elective monarchy at this time.

Date unknown

* King

Edward III of England Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring ...

introduces three new gold coins, the

florin The Florentine florin was a gold coin struck from 1252 to 1533 with no significant change in its design or metal content standard during that time. It had 54 grains (3.499 grams, 0.113 troy ounce) of nominally pure or 'fine' gold with a purc ...

leopard The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant species in the genus '' Panthera'', a member of the cat family, Felidae. It occurs in a wide range in sub-Saharan Africa, in some parts of Western and Central Asia, Southern Russia, ...

, and helm. Unfortunately, the amount of gold in the coins does not match their value of 6 shillings, 3 shillings, and 1 shilling and sixpence, so they have to be withdrawn and mostly melted down, by August of this year. *

Bablake School Bablake School is a co-educational independent day school located in Coventry, England and founded in 1344 by Isabella of France, widow of Edward II, making it one of the oldest schools in the United Kingdom. It is a part of the Coventry Sch ...

is founded in

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

by the dowager Queen Isabella. * The

Compagnia dei Bardi The Compagnia dei Bardi was a Florentine banking and trading company which was started by the Bardi family, and which became one of the major medieval “super-companies” of the 14th Century. History The Bardi company was one of three major F ...

in Florence goes bankrupt, along with the

Peruzzi The Peruzzi were bankers of Florence, among the leading families of the city in the 14th century, before the rise to prominence of the Medici. Their modest antecedents stretched back to the mid 11th century, according to the family's genealogist ...

Bank and the

Acciaiuoli The Acciaioli, Acciaiuoli, Accioly, Acciajuoli or Acioli was an important family of Florence. Family name is also written Acciaioli, Acciainoli, or Accioly, Accioli, Acioli and Acyoly in Portugal and Brazil, where there are branches of it. Descen ...

Bank. * A large public dial clock is installed in the tower of the Palazzo Capitaniato,

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

, commissioned by Prince

Ubertino I da Carrara Ubertino I (or II) da Carrara (also ''Uberto'', ''Umberto'' or ''Umbertino''; died 29 March 1345), called Novello and better known as Ubertinello, was the Lord of Padua from 1338 until his death. Tomb of Ubertino da Carrara Youth Ubertinello was t ...

and supervised by

Jacopo Dondi dell'Orologio Jacopo Dondi dell'Orologio (1290–1359), also known as Jacopo de' Dondi, was a doctor, astronomer and clock-maker active in Padua, Italy. He is remembered today as a pioneer in the art of clock design and construction. He was the father of Gio ...

. * A famine occurs in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

. * King

Peter IV of Aragon Peter IV, ; an, Pero, ; es, Pedro, . In Catalan, he may also be nicknamed ''el del punyalet'': "he of the little dagger". (Catalan: ''Pere IV''; 5 September 1319 – 6 January 1387), called the Ceremonious (Catalan: ''el Cerimoniós''), w ...

defeats and deposes his

cousin Most generally, in the lineal kinship system used in the English-speaking world, a cousin is a type of familial relationship in which two relatives are two or more familial generations away from their most recent common ancestor. Commonly, ...

, James III of Majorca, thereby absorbing the Balearic

Kingdom of Majorca The Kingdom of Majorca ( ca, Regne de Mallorca, ; es, Reino de Mallorca; la, Regnum Maioricae; french: Royaume de Majorque) was a realm on the east coast of Spain, which included certain Mediterranean islands, and which was founded by James I ...

into the

Crown of Aragon The Crown of Aragon ( , ) an, Corona d'Aragón ; ca, Corona d'Aragó, , , ; es, Corona de Aragón ; la, Corona Aragonum . was a composite monarchy ruled by one king, originated by the dynastic union of the Kingdom of Aragon and the County of ...

Births

February 9 Events Pre-1600 * 474 – Zeno is crowned as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire. * 1003 – Boleslaus III is restored to authority with armed support from Bolesław I the Brave of Poland. *1539 – The first recorded race is held ...

– Meinhard III, Count of Tyrol (d. 1363) *

September 18 Events Pre-1600 * 96 – Domitian, who has been conducting a reign of terror for the past three years, is assassinated as a result of a plot by his wife Domitia and two Praetorian prefects. * 96 – Nerva is proclaimed Roman emperor a ...

– Marie Valois, French princess, daughter of King

John II of France John II (french: Jean II; 26 April 1319 – 8 April 1364), called John the Good (French: ''Jean le Bon''), was King of France from 1350 until his death in 1364. When he came to power, France faced several disasters: the Black Death, which kill ...

(d.

1404 Year 1404 (Roman numerals, MCDIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events January–December * April or May – Battle of Blackpool Sands: Local English forces defea ...

) *

October 10 Events Pre-1600 * 680 – The Battle of Karbala marks the Martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali. * 732 – Charles Martel's forces defeat an Umayyad army near Tours, France. *1471 – Sten Sture the Elder, the Regent of Sweden, with ...

– Mary Plantagenet, duchess consort of Brittany, daughter of King

(d. 1362) * ''date unknown'' **

Beatrix of Bavaria Beatrice of Bavaria (1344 – 25 December 1359); Swedish: ''Beatrix''; was Queen of Sweden as the consort of King Eric XII of Sweden (1339–1359) who co-ruled Sweden with his father King Magnus IV. Biography Beatrice was the daughter of the L ...

, queen consort of Sweden (d. 1359) **

Azzo X d'Este Azzo X d'Este (1344–1415) was an Italian condottiero, a member of the House of Este. Born into a cadet branch of the family, he contested the seigniory of Ferrara to the young Niccolò III, an illegitimate son of marquess Alberto d'Este who was ...

, Italian condottiero (d. 1415) **

John I, Count of La Marche John of Bourbon (John I/VII, Count of La Marche and of Vendôme), (1344 – 11 June 1393, Vendôme) was French '' prince du sang'' as the second son of James I, Count of La Marche and Jeanne of Châtillon. Life John was captured as a young ma ...

(d. 1393) ** Parameswara, Malay Srivijayan prince (d. 1424)

Deaths

January 4 Events Pre-1600 *46 BC – Julius Caesar fights Titus Labienus in the Battle of Ruspina. * 871 – Battle of Reading: Æthelred of Wessex and his brother Alfred are defeated by a Danish invasion army. 1601–1900 *1649 – Engli ...

–

Robert de Lisle, 1st Baron Lisle Robert de Lisle, 1st Baron Lisle (20 January 1288 – 4 January 1344) was an English peer. He saw military service in Scotland, and fought at the Battle of Boroughbridge. After his wife's death, he joined the Franciscan order. He was the owner of ...

, English peer (b. 1288) *

January 11 Events Pre-1600 * 532 – Nika riots in Constantinople: A quarrel between supporters of different chariot teams—the Blues and the Greens—in the Hippodrome escalates into violence. * 630 – Conquest of Mecca: The prophet Muhamma ...

– Thomas Charlton, Bishop of Hereford, Lord High Treasurer of England, Lord Privy Seal, and Lord Chancellor of Ireland *

January 30 Events Pre-1600 *1018 – Poland and the Holy Roman Empire conclude the Peace of Bautzen. *1287 – King Wareru founds the Hanthawaddy Kingdom, and proclaims independence from the Pagan Kingdom. 1601–1900 *1607 – An estimated ...

–

William Montacute, 1st Earl of Salisbury William Montagu, alias de Montacute, 1st Earl of Salisbury, 3rd Baron Montagu, King of Man (1301 – 30 January 1344) was an English nobleman and loyal servant of King Edward III. The son of William Montagu, 2nd Baron Montagu, he entered the r ...

(b.

1301 Year 1301 ( MCCCI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * January 14 – With the death of King Andrew III (the Venetian) (probably poisoned), ...

) *

–

(Gosdantin, Կոստանդին Բ) *

June 29 Events Pre-1600 * 226 – Cao Rui succeeds his father as emperor of the Kingdom of Wei. *1149 – Raymond of Poitiers is defeated and killed at the Battle of Inab by Nur ad-Din Zangi. * 1194 – Sverre is crowned King of Norway, ...

– Joan of Savoy, duchess consort of Brittany, throne claimant of Savoy (b. 1310) *

July 11 Events Pre-1600 * 472 – After being besieged in Rome by his own generals, Western Roman Emperor Anthemius is captured in St. Peter's Basilica and put to death. * 813 – Byzantine emperor Michael I, under threat by conspiracies, abd ...

–

Ulrich III, Count of Württemberg Ulrich III (after 1286 – 11 July 1344) Count of Württemberg from 1325 until 1344. Career Ulrich was already strongly involved in politics during the reign of his father Eberhard I. In 1319 he handled a treaty with King Frederick I, the ...

(b. c. 1286) *

July 16 Events Pre-1600 * 622 – The beginning of the Islamic calendar. * 997 – Battle of Spercheios: Bulgarian forces of Tsar Samuel are defeated by a Byzantine army under general Nikephoros Ouranos at the Spercheios River in Greece. * 1 ...

– An-Nasir Ahmad, deposed Bahri Mamluk sultan of Egypt (b. 1316) * ''date unknown'' **

Gersonides Levi ben Gershon (1288 – 20 April 1344), better known by his Graecized name as Gersonides, or by his Latinized name Magister Leo Hebraeus, or in Hebrew by the abbreviation of first letters as ''RaLBaG'', was a medieval French Jewish philosoph ...

, French rabbi and mathematician (b. 1288) **

Raoul I of Brienne, Count of Eu Raoul I of Brienne (died 19 January 1344, Paris) was the son of John II of Brienne, Count of Eu and Jeanne, Countess of Guînes. He succeeded his father as Count of Eu in 1302, and his mother as Count of Guînes in 1332. In 1329, he was named Cons ...

Wajih ad-Din Mas'ud Wajih ad-Din Mas'ud (died 1344) was the leader of the Sarbadars of Sabzewar from 1338-1343 until his death. Under his rule, the Sarbadar state developed its characteristic dual nature as both a secular and radical Shi'i state. Early Reign Mas'ud ...

, leader of the Sarbadars of Sabzewar ** Prince Narinaga, Japanese

Shōgun , officially , was the title of the military dictators of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, though during part of the Kamakur ...

(b. 1326, d. either 1337 or 1344, the sources are contradictory). * ''probable'' –

Simone Martini Simone Martini ( – 1344) was an Italian painter born in Siena. He was a major figure in the development of early Italian painting and greatly influenced the development of the International Gothic style. It is thought that Martini was a pupil ...

, Sienese painter (b.

1284 Year 1284 ( MCCLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Aragonese Crusade: The first French armies under King Philip III ( the Bold) and his ...

)

References

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