1340s in England:

Other decades

1320s 1320s in England Events from the 1320s in England.-Incumbents:Monarch - Edward II of England , Edward III of England-Events:* 1320** Walter de Stapledon appointed as Lord High Treasurer.* 1321...  | 1330s 1330s in England Events from the 1330s in England.-Events:* 1330** 19 October - King Edward III of England starts his personal reign, arresting his regent Roger Mortimer.** 29 November - Execution of Mortimer....  | 1340s | 1350s 1350s in England Events from the 1350s in England.-Events:* 1350** 29 August - An English fleet personally commanded by King Edward III defeats a Spanish fleet in the Battle of Les Espagnols sur Mer....  | 1360s 1360s in England Events from the 1360s in England.-Events:* 1360** January - Hundred Years' War: Edward III marches on Paris.** April - Hundred Years' War: English forces leave the vicinity of Paris after laying waste to the countryside....

Events

• 1340
  • 25 January - King Edward III of England
    Edward III of England
    Edward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...
    
     is declared King of France
    France
    The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
    
    .
  • 24 June - Hundred Years' War
    Hundred Years' War
    The Hundred Years' War was a series of separate wars waged from 1337 to 1453 by the House of Valois and the House of Plantagenet, also known as the House of Anjou, for the French throne, which had become vacant upon the extinction of the senior Capetian line of French kings...
    
    : The Battle of Sluys
    Battle of Sluys
    The decisive naval Battle of Sluys , also called Battle of l'Ecluse was fought on 24 June 1340 as one of the opening conflicts of the Hundred Years' War...
    
     is fought between the naval fleet
    Naval fleet
    A fleet, or naval fleet, is a large formation of warships, and the largest formation in any navy. A fleet at sea is the direct equivalent of an army on land....
    
    s of England and France. The battle ends with the almost complete destruction of the French fleet.
  • 26 July - Hundred Years' War: French victory at the Battle of Saint-Omer
    Battle of Saint-Omer
    The battle of Saint-Omer was a large action fought in 1340 as part of King Edward III's summer campaign against France launched from Flanders in the early stages of the Hundred Year's War. The campaign was launched in the aftermath of the battle of Sluys but proved far less successful for the...
    
    .
  • Hundred Years' War: Temporary Truce of Espléchin between England and France.
  • Approximate date of the anonymous Ayenbite of Inwyt
    Ayenbite of Inwyt
    The Ayenbite of Inwyt is a confessional prose work written in a Kentish dialect of Middle English...
    
    .
• 1341
  • July - Breton War of Succession
    Breton War of Succession
    The Breton War of Succession was a conflict between the Houses of Blois and Montfort for control of the Duchy of Brittany. It was fought between 1341 and 1364. It formed an integral part of the early Hundred Years War due to the involvement of the French and English governments in the conflict; the...
    
    : England and France support rival claimants to the duchy of Brittany
    Brittany
    Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
    
    .
  • The Queen's College
    The Queen's College, Oxford
    The Queen's College, founded 1341, is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Queen's is centrally situated on the High Street, and is renowned for its 18th-century architecture...
    
    , a constituent college of the University of Oxford
    University of Oxford
    The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
    
    , is founded.
• 1342
  • 18 August - Breton War of Succession
    Breton War of Succession
    The Breton War of Succession was a conflict between the Houses of Blois and Montfort for control of the Duchy of Brittany. It was fought between 1341 and 1364. It formed an integral part of the early Hundred Years War due to the involvement of the French and English governments in the conflict; the...
    
    : The English win a decisive naval battle over the Genosese
    Genoa
    Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
    
     fleet at the Battle of Brest
    Battle of Brest (1342)
    The battle of Brest, sometimes called the battle of the River Penfeld was an action in 1342 between an English squadron of converted merchant ships and that of a mercenary galley force from Genoa fighting for the Franco-Breton faction of Charles of Blois during the Breton War of Succession, a side...
    
    .
  • September - Breton War of Succession: Indecisive Battle of Morlaix
    Battle of Morlaix
    The Battle of Morlaix was a battle fought in Morlaix on 30 September 1342 between England and France. The English besieged the town, but a French relief force arrived, forcing the English to flee into the woods. The French force then withdrew...
    
     fought between the French and the English.
  • October - Breton War of Succession: England conquers most of Brittany.
• 1344
  • 19 June - Three-day "Round Table" tournament
    Tournament (medieval)
    A tournament, or tourney is the name popularly given to chivalrous competitions or mock fights of the Middle Ages and Renaissance . It is one of various types of hastiludes....
    
     held at Windsor Castle
    Windsor Castle
    Windsor Castle is a medieval castle and royal residence in Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, notable for its long association with the British royal family and its architecture. The original castle was built after the Norman invasion by William the Conqueror. Since the time of Henry I it...
    
    .
  • Edward III
    Edward III of England
    Edward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...
    
     introduces three new gold coins, the florin, leopard, and helm. Unfortunately the amount of gold in the coins does not match their value of six shillings, three shillings, and one shilling and sixpence, so they have to be withdrawn and mostly melted down by August of this year.
  • Hundred Years' War: Peace talks, sponsored by the Avignon
    Avignon
    Avignon is a French commune in southeastern France in the départment of the Vaucluse bordered by the left bank of the Rhône river. Of the 94,787 inhabitants of the city on 1 January 2010, 12 000 live in the ancient town centre surrounded by its medieval ramparts.Often referred to as the...
    
     Pope
    Pope
    The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
    
    , fail.
• 1345
  • 21 October - Hundred Years' War: English victory over the French at the Battle of Auberoche
    Battle of Auberoche
    The Battle of Auberoche was a significant action between English and French forces during the early stages of the Hundred Years War. It was fought at the village of Auberoche near Périgueux in Gascony. At the time, Gascony was territory of the English crown and the English army was largely made up...
    
    .
• 1346
  • April - Hundred Years' War: French invade Gascony
    Gascony
    Gascony is an area of southwest France that was part of the "Province of Guyenne and Gascony" prior to the French Revolution. The region is vaguely defined and the distinction between Guyenne and Gascony is unclear; sometimes they are considered to overlap, and sometimes Gascony is considered a...
    
    .
  • 9 June - Breton War of Succession: At the Battle of St Pol de Leon
    Battle of St Pol de Leon
    The Battle of Saint-Pol-de-Léon was a minor action during the Breton War of Succession and thus part of the larger Hundred Years War. The battle was fought in June 1346 and marked a minor turning point in the fortunes of the Montfortists and their English allies in Brittany following several...
    
    , Thomas Dagworth
    Thomas Dagworth
    Sir Thomas Dagworth was an English knight and soldier, who led English armies in Brittany during the Hundred Years' War....
    
    's army defeats that of Charles, Duke of Brittany
    Charles, Duke of Brittany
    Charles of Blois , claimed the title Duke of Brittany, from 1341 to his death.Charles is the son of Guy I of Blois-Châtillon, count of Blois, by Margaret of Valois, a sister of king Philip VI of France. He was a devout man, who took piety to the extreme of mortifying his own flesh...
    
    .
  • 26 July - Hundred Years' War: English victory over the French at the Battle of Caen
    Battle of Caen (1346)
    The Battle of Caen in 1346 was a running battle through the streets of the Norman city during the English invasion of Normandy under King Edward III in July of that year...
    
    .
  • 24 August - Hundred Years' War: English victory over the French at the Battle of Blanchetaque
    Battle of Blanchetaque
    The Battle of Blanchetaque in 1346 was the second of the three battles which made up what became the Crecy campaign of King Edward III of England during the early stages of the Hundred Years War...
    
    .
  • 26 August - Hundred Years' War: The English under Edward III and Edward, the Black Prince
    Edward, the Black Prince
    Edward of Woodstock, Prince of Wales, Duke of Cornwall, Prince of Aquitaine, KG was the eldest son of King Edward III of England and his wife Philippa of Hainault as well as father to King Richard II of England....
    
     win a decisive victory over the French at the Battle of Crécy
    Battle of Crécy
    The Battle of Crécy took place on 26 August 1346 near Crécy in northern France, and was one of the most important battles of the Hundred Years' War...
    
    .
  • 4 September - Hundred Years' War: English besiege Calais
    Calais
    Calais is a town in Northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's capital is its third-largest city of Arras....
    
    .
  • 17 October - Second War of Scottish Independence
    Second War of Scottish Independence
    The Second War of Scottish Independence was the second cluster of a series of military campaigns fought between the independent Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England in the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries....
    
    : England wins a decisive victory over the Scots
    Scotland
    Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
    
     at the Battle of Neville's Cross
    Battle of Neville's Cross
    The Battle of Neville's Cross took place to the west of Durham, England on 17 October 1346.-Background:In 1346, England was embroiled in the Hundred Years' War with France. In order to divert his enemy Philip VI of France appealed to David II of Scotland to attack the English from the north in...
    
    .
  • Foundation of Pembroke College
    Pembroke College, Cambridge
    Pembroke College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.The college has over seven hundred students and fellows, and is the third oldest college of the university. Physically, it is one of the university's larger colleges, with buildings from almost every century since its...
    
    , University of Cambridge
    University of Cambridge
    The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
    
    .
• 1347
  • June - Hundred Years' War: English defeat a French claimant to the duchy of Brittany.
  • 4 August - Hundred Years' War: English capture Calais following the Siege of Calais. The town remains an English possession until 1558.
  • 28 September - Hundred Years' War: Temporary truce with France.
• 1348
  • 23 April - Edward III creates the first English order of chivalry, the Order of the Garter
    Order of the Garter
    The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...
    
    .
  • 28 September - John de Ufford
    John de Ufford
    John de Ufford, sometimes John de Offord or John Offord was chancellor and head of the royal administration to Edward III as well as being appointed to the Archbishopric of Canterbury.-Early life:...
    
     nominated to the Archbishopric of Canterbury by papal bull.
  • 14 December - John de Ufford becomes Archbishop of Canterbury
    Archbishop of Canterbury
    The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
    
    .
  • Summer - The Black Death
    Black Death
    The Black Death was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, peaking in Europe between 1348 and 1350. Of several competing theories, the dominant explanation for the Black Death is the plague theory, which attributes the outbreak to the bacterium Yersinia pestis. Thought to have...
    
     reaches England from France.
  • November - Black Death reaches London.
  • Gonville Hall, the forerunner of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge
    Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge
    Gonville and Caius College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college is often referred to simply as "Caius" , after its second founder, John Keys, who fashionably latinised the spelling of his name after studying in Italy.- Outline :Gonville and...
    
     was founded.
• 1349
  • Black Death reaches northern England. Over 20% of the population have died.
  • 18 June - The Ordinance of Labourers
    Ordinance of Labourers
    The Ordinance of Labourers 1349 is often considered to be the start of English labour law. Along with the Statute of Labourers , it made the employment contract different from other contracts and made illegal any attempt on the part of workers to bargain collectively...
    
     issued due to the large number of agricultural workers killed by the Black Death.
  • 19 June - Thomas Bradwardine
    Thomas Bradwardine
    Thomas Bradwardine was an English scholar, scientist, courtier and, very briefly, Archbishop of Canterbury. As a celebrated scholastic philosopher and doctor of theology, he is often called Doctor Profundus, .-Life:He was born either at Hartfield in Sussex or at Chichester, where his family were...
    
     elected to the Archbishopric of Canterbury.
  • 25 August - Thomas Bradwardine dies of the Plague.
  • October - Hundred Years' War: Small royal force enters Calais
    Calais
    Calais is a town in Northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's capital is its third-largest city of Arras....
    
     to protect the town against capture by France.
  • 20 December - Simon Islip
    Simon Islip
    Simon Islip was an English prelate. He served as Archbishop of Canterbury between 1349 and 1366.-Lord Privy Seal:In 1347, possibly in September, Simon was appointed keeper of the Privy Seal. Previously he had held the seal of Lionel, who was the regent in England...
    
     enthroned as Archbishop of Canterbury
    Archbishop of Canterbury
    The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
    
    .
  • Pope Clement VI annuls the marriage of William Montacute, 2nd Earl of Salisbury
    William Montacute, 2nd Earl of Salisbury
    Sir William II Montague, alias de Montacute, 2nd Earl of Salisbury, 4th Baron Montacute, King of Mann, KG was an English nobleman and commander in the English army during King Edward III's French campaigns in the Hundred Years War.He was born in Donyatt in Somerset, the eldest son of William...
    
    , and Joan of Kent
    Joan of Kent
    Joan, Countess of Kent , known to history as The Fair Maid of Kent, was the first English Princess of Wales...
    
    , on the grounds of her prior marriage to Thomas Holland, 1st Earl of Kent
    Thomas Holland, 1st Earl of Kent
    Thomas Holland, 1st Earl of Kent, 2nd Baron Holand, KG was an English nobleman and military commander during the Hundred Years' War.-Early Life:...
    
    .

Births

• 1340
  • 6 March - John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster
    John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster
    John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster , KG was a member of the House of Plantagenet, the third surviving son of King Edward III of England and Philippa of Hainault...
    
     (died 1399)
• 1341
  • 5 June - Edmund of Langley, son of King Edward III of England
    Edward III of England
    Edward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...
    
     (died 1402)
  • 10 November - Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland
    Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland
    Henry Percy, 1st Earl of Northumberland, 4th Baron Percy, titular King of Mann, KG, Lord Marshal was the son of Henry de Percy, 3rd Baron Percy and a descendent of Henry III of England. His mother was Mary of Lancaster, daughter of Henry, 3rd Earl of Lancaster, son of Edmund, Earl of Leicester and...
    
     (died 1408)
• 1342
  • Humphrey de Bohun, 7th Earl of Hereford
    Humphrey de Bohun, 7th Earl of Hereford
    Humphrey de Bohun, 7th Earl of Hereford, 6th Earl of Essex, 2nd Earl of Northampton, KG was an important medieval English noble during the reign of King Edward III of England.- Lineage :...
    
     (died 1373)
  • Julian of Norwich
    Julian of Norwich
    Julian of Norwich is regarded as one of the most important English mystics. She is venerated in the Anglican and Lutheran churches, but has never been canonized, or officially beatified, by the Catholic Church, probably because so little is known of her life aside from her writings, including the...
    
    , mystic (died 1413)
• 1343
  • Thomas Percy, 1st Earl of Worcester
    Thomas Percy, 1st Earl of Worcester
    Thomas Percy, 1st Earl of Worcester, KG was an English medieval nobleman best known for taking part in the rebellion with his nephew Henry Percy, known as 'Harry Hotspur', and brother Northumberland .-Lineage:...
    
    , rebel (died 1403)
• 1345
  • 25 March - Blanche of Lancaster
    Blanche of Lancaster
    Blanche of Lancaster, Duchess of Lancaster was an English noblewoman and heiress, daughter of England's wealthiest and most powerful peer, Henry of Grosmont, 1st Duke of Lancaster...
    
    , wife of John of Gaunt (d. 1369)
  • Eleanor Maltravers
    Eleanor Maltravers
    Eleanor Maltravers, 2nd Baroness Maltravers suo jure was an English noblewoman and heiress during the reigns of King Edward III of England and his successors....
    
    , noblewoman (died 1405)
• 1346
  • Richard FitzAlan, 11th Earl of Arundel
    Richard FitzAlan, 11th Earl of Arundel
    Richard FitzAlan, 11th Earl of Arundel and 9th Earl of Surrey KG was an English medieval nobleman and military commander.-Lineage:...
    
     (died 1397)
• 1348
  • John FitzAlan, 1st Baron Arundel
    John FitzAlan, 1st Baron Arundel
    John FitzAlan , 1st Baron Arundel was a Lord Marshal or Marshal of England.- Lineage :He was born in Etchingham, Sussex, England to Richard Fitzalan, 10th Earl of Arundel and his second wife Eleanor of Lancaster...
    
     (died 1379)

Deaths

• 1340
  • 4 December - Henry Burghersh
    Henry Burghersh
    Henry Burghersh , English bishop and chancellor, was a younger son of Robert de Burghersh, 1st Baron Burghersh , and a nephew of Bartholomew, Lord Badlesmere, and was educated in France....
    
    , bishop and chancellor (born 1292)
  • William Melton
    William Melton
    -Life:Melton was the son of Henry of Melton, and the brother of Henry de Melton. He was born in Melton in the parish of Welton, about nine miles from Kingston upon Hull. He was a contemporary of John Hotham, Chancellor of England and Bishop of Ely...
    
    , archbishop (year of birth unknown)
• 1341
  • Richard Folville
    Richard Folville
    Richard Folville was a member of the infamous robber band captained by his older brother Eustace.-Biography:Richard was the fourth of seven sons born to Sir John Folville of Ashby Folville, Leicestershire. In 1321 he was created rector to the small country parish of Teigh, about 12 km east of...
    
    , outlaw and parson, dies resisting arrest (year of birth unknown)
• 1344
  • William Montacute, 1st Earl of Salisbury
    William Montacute, 1st Earl of Salisbury
    William I Montagu, alias de Montacute, 1st Earl of Salisbury, 3rd Baron Montacute, King of Mann was an English nobleman and loyal servant of King Edward III....
    
     (born 1301)
• 1345
  • 14 April - Richard Aungerville
    Richard Aungerville
    Richard de Bury , also known as Richard Aungerville , was an English writer, bibliophile, Benedictine monk and bishop. He was a patron of learning, and one of the first English collectors of books. He is chiefly remembered for his Philobiblon, written to inculcate in the clergy the pursuit of...
    
    , writer and bishop (born 1287)
  • 22 September - Henry, 3rd Earl of Lancaster
    Henry, 3rd Earl of Lancaster
    Henry , 3rd Earl of Leicester and Lancaster was an English nobleman, one of the principals behind the deposition of Edward II of England.-Family and lineage:...
    
     (born 1281)
  • Richard De Bury, scholar (born 1281)
• 1346
  • Eustace Folville
    Eustace Folville
    ]Eustace Folville was the leader of a robber band active in Leicestershire and Derbyshire in the first half of the 14th century. With four of his younger brothers, he was responsible for two of the most notorious crimes of early 14th century England: no mean achievement, considering the same...
    
    , outlaw (year of birth unknown)
• 1347
  • Adam Murimuth
    Adam Murimuth
    Adam Murimuth was an English ecclesiastic and chronicler.-Life:He was born in 1274 or 1275 and studied civil law at the University of Oxford. Between 1312 and 1318 he practised in the papal curia at Avignon...
    
    , ecclesiastic and chronicler (born 1274)
  • John de Warenne, 7th Earl of Surrey
    John de Warenne, 7th Earl of Surrey
    John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey was a prominent English nobleman and military commander during the reigns of Henry III of England and Edward I of England. During the Second Barons' War he switched sides twice, ending up in support of the king, for whose capture he was present at Lewes in 1264...
    
     (born 1286)
• 1348
  • John de Stratford
    John de Stratford
    John de Stratford was Archbishop of Canterbury and Treasurer and Chancellor of England.-Life:John was born at Stratford-on-Avon and educated at Merton College, Oxford, afterwards entering the service of Edward II....
    
    , Archbishop of Canterbury
    Archbishop of Canterbury
    The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
    
     (year of birth unknown)
• 1349
  • 10 April - William of Ockham
    William of Ockham
    William of Ockham was an English Franciscan friar and scholastic philosopher, who is believed to have been born in Ockham, a small village in Surrey. He is considered to be one of the major figures of medieval thought and was at the centre of the major intellectual and political controversies of...
    
    , philosopher (born 1285)
  • 31 May - Thomas Wake, politician (born 1297)
  • 26 August - Thomas Bradwardine
    Thomas Bradwardine
    Thomas Bradwardine was an English scholar, scientist, courtier and, very briefly, Archbishop of Canterbury. As a celebrated scholastic philosopher and doctor of theology, he is often called Doctor Profundus, .-Life:He was born either at Hartfield in Sussex or at Chichester, where his family were...
    
    , Archbishop of Canterbury
    Archbishop of Canterbury
    The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
    
    
  • 29 September - Richard Rolle
    Richard Rolle
    Rolle is honored in the Church of England on January 20 and in the Episcopal Church together with Walter Hilton and Margery Kempe on September 28.-Works in print:*English Prose Treatises of Richard Rolle of Hampole, Edited by George Perry...
    
    , religious writer (born 1300)