1405

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political events

Some 1,200 elite French troops land at Milford Haven, Wales to support the rebellion of Owen Glendower (see 1403). They join Glendower's 10,000 men in an invasion of England, Henry IV meets them near Worcester with an army of equal size, neither side is willing to initiate hostilities, Henry blocks roads to cut off supplies to the invaders, and starvation forces them to withdraw (see 1408). Richard le Scrope, archbishop of York, makes his own break with the king and is beheaded for conspiracy at age 55 (approximate).

Venetian forces defeat an army fielded by the Carrara family; they seize Padua, Verona, Vicenza, and other domains of the Carraras and the Viscontis, whose leader Gian Galeazzo Visconti of Milan died in 1402.

Tamerlane dies suddenly at Atrar near Chimkent February 19 at age 68 while en route with an army to China (see 1404); the body of Amir Timur, or Timur the Great, is embalmed, returned to Samarkand in an ebony coffin, and buried beneath a six-foot-long slab of jade in a magnificent mausoleum (the Gur-e Amir). The Tatar emperor has rebuilt the cities laid waste by Genghis Khan nearly 90 years ago, and he leaves a legacy of art and architecture. His armies have killed an estimated 17 million men, women, and children in the course of conquering Persia, Mesopotamia, Afghanistan, and much of India, and he has destroyed great cities that will take a century to rebuild (some never will be rebuilt), but Tamerlane's empire quickly begins to dissolve as the sons and grandsons of his nine wives and concubines fall to quarreling among themselves over the succession.

China's third Ming dynasty emperor Yong Le (Yung-lo) orders the first Chinese sea expedition. A fleet of 63 four-decked junks carrying some 28,000 men sails for islands to the south under the command of the emperor's Muslim eunuch co-conspirator Zheng He (Cheng Ho). The largest armada ever seen, his fleet includes "treasure ships" that are 400 to 440 feet long, 160 to 184 feet wide, with balconied cabins, nine masts, and red silk sails. Warships, troop transports, and patrol boats supplement the larger ships. There are ships to carry horses, and as many as 20 tankers keep the fleet supplied with fresh water. The treasure ships carry lavish gifts for foreign rulers, and the contingent includes astrologers to forecast weather conditions, astronomers to help chart the fleet's course, ship-repair specialists, pharmacologists to collect medicinal plants, two protocol officers to help arrange official receptions, and interpreters who speak Arabic and other languages (see 1407).

education

The University of Turin has its beginnings as the wars of Lombardy interrupt lectures at Piacenza and Pavia. Some of the professors of arts, medicine, and theology at Piacenza have obtained permission from Louis of Savoy-Acaia to continue their courses at Turin, and the prince next year will obtain pontifical privilege for a studium generale from the antipope Benedict XII (see 1412).

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