1221 1222 1223 1224 1225 1226 1227 1228 1229 1230
Portugal's Afonso II (Afonso o Gordo) dies of leprosy at Coimbra in March at age 36 after a 12-year reign. His eldest son is now barely 12 and will reign until he is disposed in 1245 as Sancho II.
Pope Honorius III settles the Barons' War in England by threatening to excommunicate those who support the claims of the French prince Louis against those of the 9-year-old papal vassal Henry III, son of the late King John.
France's Philippe II Augustus dies of fever at Mantes July 14 at age 57 after a splendid 43-year reign in which he has strengthened his Capetian realm, standing up to the papacy and quarreling feudal barons. His weak but headstrong 36-year-old son will rule as Louis VIII, but only for 3 years.
The Nicaean emperor John III Vatatzes defeats the late Theodore Lascaris's brothers in battle, imprisons them, and has them blinded (see 1222; 1225).
Heinrich, count of Schwerin, captures Denmark's Valdemar II, who has brought his country to the height of her power (see 1219). His vassal will not release Valdemar until 1225 and then only on condition that he give up most of his conquests (see 1225).
The Battle of the Kalka River near the mouth of the Dnieper in southern Ukraine shows Europe the power of the Mongols. Their general Ughedei (Ogödei, or Subutai) is outnumbered two to one, but he has each of his men light five fires to make it look like he has 500,000 men instead of just 100,000, mounts dummies and sometimes women on some of the horses in his rear ranks, and defeats Prince Mstislav of Kiev's Russian army and its Cuman allies; he and his brother Juchi (Jöchi) attack the Volga Bulgars, but the Mongols do not press their victory and withdraw back into Asia (see 1235).
