Military history by era

Medieval Era

500 – 1500

Development collection · Historical summaries await reference checking. Portrait artwork is illustrative, not an authentic likeness.

Knights, castles and feudal levies. This collection considers command structures, the organisation of armies, and the relationship between political authority and military leadership. Period boundaries are editorial guides rather than universal historical divisions.

Important events

533 AD
Byzantine Empire · Medieval Era
Belisarius lands in North Africa
Belisarius opens the campaign that destroys the Vandal kingdom by 534 AD.
535 AD
Byzantine Empire · Medieval Era
Belisarius begins the Italian campaign
Belisarius opens the long war to recover Italy from the Ostrogoths.
630 AD
Tang China · Medieval Era
Taizong breaks the Eastern Turks
Campaigns directed by Emperor Taizong (Li Shimin) defeat the Eastern Turkic Khaganate.
636 AD
Rashidun Caliphate · Medieval Era
Battle of Yarmouk
Khalid ibn al-Walid plays a decisive role in the victory over the Byzantine army in Syria.
786 AD
Abbasid Caliphate · Medieval Era
Harun al-Rashid becomes caliph
Harun al-Rashid succeeds to the caliphate after earlier campaigning against Byzantium.
800 AD
Carolingian Empire (Francia) · Medieval Era
Charlemagne crowned emperor
Charlemagne is crowned emperor in Rome after decades of campaigns in Italy, Saxony and beyond.
878 AD
Wessex (England) · Medieval Era
Alfred the Great wins at Edington
Alfred the Great defeats the Viking army of Guthrum, securing the survival of Wessex.
1066
Normandy and England · Medieval Era
Battle of Hastings
William the Conqueror defeats King Harold and takes the English throne.
1187
Ayyubid Sultanate · Medieval Era
Saladin wins at Hattin
Saladin defeats the Crusader field army at Hattin and recovers Jerusalem later that year.
1206
Mongol Empire · Medieval Era
Temüjin proclaimed Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan is proclaimed ruler of the unified Mongol tribes.
1241
Mongol Empire · Medieval Era
Subutai’s Central European campaign
Subutai coordinates the Mongol invasion of Central Europe, including the victory at Mohi.
1429
France · Medieval Era
Relief of Orléans
Joan of Arc’s campaign activity becomes a defining episode of the Hundred Years’ War.