1315 CE
A year defined by the onset of the Great Famine across northern Europe, caused by catastrophic rainfall and crop failures that would kill millions over the following years, and the Swiss victory at the Battle of Morgarten.
Conflict & Security
- The Battle of Morgarten was fought on November 15, when Swiss confederates ambushed and decisively defeated a Habsburg army led by Duke Leopold I of Austria in a mountain pass.
- The Swiss victory at Morgarten secured the independence of the forest cantons and became a founding event in Swiss national identity.
- Edward Bruce, brother of Robert the Bruce, invaded Ireland with a Scottish army, seeking to open a second front against English power and establish himself as High King of Ireland.
Health & Medicine
- The Great Famine of 1315 to 1317 began across northern Europe as torrential spring and summer rains destroyed crops, causing widespread food shortages from Ireland to Poland.
- Grain prices soared as harvests failed across England, France, the Low Countries, and the German lands, with the poor suffering most acutely from starvation and malnutrition.
- The famine led to outbreaks of disease among weakened populations, with dysentery, pneumonia, and other illnesses spreading through overcrowded towns and villages.
Climate & Environment
- Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration was approximately 272 parts per million, as later confirmed by ice core analysis.
- Exceptional rainfall and cold temperatures across northern Europe in the spring and summer of 1315 caused catastrophic crop failures, marking the beginning of a climatic downturn associated with the onset of the Little Ice Age.
Culture & Society
- The Great Famine caused widespread social disruption, with reports of crime, abandonment of children, and in some cases cannibalism across the worst-affected regions of northern Europe.
- The estimated world population was approximately 390 million, though it would decline significantly over the following years due to famine and disease in Europe.