Year 1218 (MCCXVIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.

Millennium: 2nd millennium
Centuries:
Decades:
Years:
1218 in various calendars
Gregorian calendar1218
MCCXVIII
Ab urbe condita1971
Armenian calendar667
ԹՎ ՈԿԷ
Assyrian calendar5968
Balinese saka calendar1139–1140
Bengali calendar625
Berber calendar2168
English Regnal yearHen. 3 – 3 Hen. 3
Buddhist calendar1762
Burmese calendar580
Byzantine calendar6726–6727
Chinese calendar丁丑年 (Fire Ox)
3915 or 3708
    — to —
戊寅年 (Earth Tiger)
3916 or 3709
Coptic calendar934–935
Discordian calendar2384
Ethiopian calendar1210–1211
Hebrew calendar4978–4979
Hindu calendars
 - Vikram Samvat1274–1275
 - Shaka Samvat1139–1140
 - Kali Yuga4318–4319
Holocene calendar11218
Igbo calendar218–219
Iranian calendar596–597
Islamic calendar614–615
Japanese calendarKenpō 6
(建保6年)
Javanese calendar1126–1127
Julian calendar1218
MCCXVIII
Korean calendar3551
Minguo calendar694 before ROC
民前694年
Nanakshahi calendar−250
Thai solar calendar1760–1761
Tibetan calendar阴火牛年
(female Fire-Ox)
1344 or 963 or 191
    — to —
阳土虎年
(male Earth-Tiger)
1345 or 964 or 192
Crusaders attack the tower of Damietta, by Cornelis Claesz van Wieringen (1627)

Events

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By place

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Fifth Crusade

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  • May 24 – A Crusader expeditionary force, (some 30,000 men) under King John I of Jerusalem, embarks at Acre (supported by Frisian ships), and sails for Egypt. They arrive at the harbour of Damietta, on the right bank of the Nile, on May 27. Sultan Al-Adil, surprised by the invasion, recruits an army in Syria, while his son Al-Kamil marches an Egyptian force northwards from Cairo, and encamps at Al-Adiliya, a few miles south of Damietta.[1]
  • June 24Siege of Damietta: The Crusader army assaults the fortified city of Damietta, but they repeatedly fail. As a result, the Crusaders create a new type of naval siege weaponry, attributed by the German chronicler Oliver of Paderborn: two ships are bound together, with a siege tower and ladder constructed on top.
  • August 24 – After a fierce fight, the Crusaders manage to establish themselves on the ramparts of Damietta, and capture the fort.[2]
  • September – Cardinal Pelagius arrives with reinforcements at the Crusader camp, and proceeds to challenge the command of John I, claiming that the Church holds greater authority than a secular leader. Meanwhile, the Crusaders spend time clearing out an old canal, so that their ships can surround Damietta. Pelagius also brings news that King Frederick II has promised to follow soon, with a German expeditionary force.[3]
  • Al-Kamil decides to offer the Crusaders a deal, Jerusalem in exchange for their departure from Egypt. John I favored accepting this offer but Pelagius refuses, unless it also includes Kerak Castle and other former castles of Jerusalem, to the east of the Jordan River. Al-Kamil refuses these strategically important sites, and Pelagius rejects the offer. This angers the Crusaders – who consider Jerusalem their important goal.[4]
  • October 9 – Al-Kamil conducts a surprise attack on the Crusader camp. Discovering their movements, John I and his retinue counter-attack and annihilates the Egyptian advance guard. On October 26, Al-Kamil attacks by using a bridge across the Nile, after a fierce onslaught the Egyptians are driven back into the river. The Crusaders strengthen their siege lines and receive French and English reinforcements at Damietta.[5]
  • November 29 – A storm, lasting for 3 days, floods the Crusader camp – devastating the Crusaders' supplies and transportation. To prevent a recurrence Pelagius orders a dyke to be constructed. After the camp is repaired, a serious epidemic strikes the Crusader forces. The victims suffer from a high fever, and at least a sixth of the soldiers die. During the severe winter, the survivors are left enfeebled and depressed.[6]

Mongol Empire

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  • Spring – Genghis Khan dispatches a Mongolian army (some 20,000 cavalry) under Jebe, to deal with the Qara Khitai (or Western Liao) threat. Meanwhile, he sends Subutai with another army on a simultaneous campaign against the Merkits. Jebe defeats a force of 30,000 men led by Prince Kuchlug at the Khitan capital Balasagun. Kuchlug flees south to modern Afghanistan, but is captured by hunters – who hands him over to the Mongols. After Kuchlug is beheaded and paraded through the cities of his new domains, Genghis annexes the entire Khitai empire under Mongol rule.[7]
  • Jochi, eldest son of Genghis Khan, leads a successful campaign against the Kyrgyz. Meanwhile, Genghis sends a caravan with precious gifts to Muhammad II, ruler (shah) of the Khwarazmian Empire, hoping to establish trade relations. However, Inalchuq, Khwarazmian governor of Otrar, attacks the caravan, claiming that the caravan contains spies. Genghis then sends a second group of three ambassadors to Muhammad to demand the merchants be set free. Muhammad refuses, and the merchants along with one of the ambassadors are executed.[8]

Britain

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Europe

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Levant

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Asia

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By topic

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Education

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Markets

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Religion

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Births

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Deaths

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References

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  1. ^ Steven Runciman (1952). A History of The Crusades. Vol III: The Kingdom of Acre, pp. 127–128. ISBN 978-0-241-29877-0.
  2. ^ Steven Runciman (1952). A History of The Crusades. Vol III: The Kingdom of Acre, pp. 128–129. ISBN 978-0-241-29877-0.
  3. ^ Steven Runciman (1952). A History of The Crusades. Vol III: The Kingdom of Acre, p. 131. ISBN 978-0-241-29877-0.
  4. ^ Oliver of Paderborn, The Capture of Damietta, Translated by John J. Gavigan. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1948.
  5. ^ Steven Runciman (1952). A History of The Crusades. Vol III: The Kingdom of Acre, pp. 131–132. ISBN 978-0-241-29877-0.
  6. ^ Steven Runciman (1952). A History of The Crusades. Vol III: The Kingdom of Acre, p. 132. ISBN 978-0-241-29877-0.
  7. ^ John Man (2011). Genghis Khan: Life, Death and Resurrection, pp. 179–180. ISBN 978-0-553-81498-9.
  8. ^ John Man (2011). Genghis Khan: Life, Death and Resurrection, p. 184. ISBN 978-0-553-81498-9.
  9. ^ "BBC Wales History". Archived from the original on November 25, 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-10.
  10. ^ a b c Hywel Williams (2011). Cassell's Chronology of World History, p. 135. ISBN 0-304-35730-8.
  11. ^ Linehan, Peter (1999). "Chapter 21: Castile, Portugal and Navarre". In David Abulafia (ed.). The New Cambridge Medieval History c.1198-c.1300. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 668–671. ISBN 0-521-36289-X.
  12. ^ Steven Runciman (1952). A History of The Crusades. Vol III: The Kingdom of Acre, p. 129. ISBN 978-0-241-29877-0.
  13. ^ Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric (2005). "Minamoto no Sanetomo" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 633. ISBN 0-674-00770-0.
  14. ^ Zuijderduijn, Jaco (2009). Medieval Capital Markets. Markets for rent, state formation and private investment in Holland (1300-1550). Leiden; Boston: Brill. ISBN 978-9-00417565-5.