Directory

1405 CE

A year defined by the death of Timur on the eve of his planned invasion of China, the launch of Zheng He's first great maritime expedition, and the continued struggle of Owen Glendower against English rule in Wales.

Geopolitics & Diplomacy

  • Timur died on February 18 at Otrar in modern-day Kazakhstan while marching toward China, leaving his vast empire to be divided among his descendants.
  • The Yongle Emperor of Ming China commissioned Admiral Zheng He to lead a massive maritime expedition to Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean.
  • The Timurid Empire fragmented as Timur's grandsons and great-grandsons competed for control of the various provinces of his former domain.
  • Shah Rukh, Timur's son, emerged as the leading claimant to power in the eastern Timurid lands, establishing his capital at Herat in Persia.
  • Owen Glendower formed an alliance with Edmund Mortimer and the Percy family, threatening to partition England in the Tripartite Indenture.
  • The Republic of Venice expanded its territorial holdings on the Italian mainland, acquiring cities in the Veneto and Friuli regions.
  • Pope Innocent VII struggled to maintain authority in Rome amid civil unrest, while the Western Schism continued with the Avignon antipope Benedict XIII refusing to abdicate.

Conflict & Security

  • Zheng He's fleet of over 300 ships and 27,000 men departed from Nanjing in July, representing the largest naval expedition in history to that date.
  • Owen Glendower's alliance with the Percy family and Edmund Mortimer posed a serious threat to Henry IV's hold on the English throne.
  • The succession wars within the Timurid Empire led to armed conflicts between rival claimants across Persia, Transoxiana, and Afghanistan.
  • Civil violence between the Burgundian and Orléanist factions at the French court escalated, threatening the stability of the Kingdom of France.

Economy & Finance

  • The death of Timur disrupted trade routes across Central Asia as political instability and succession conflicts affected the security of caravan traffic.
  • Zheng He's expedition carried vast quantities of Chinese silk, porcelain, and other goods intended as diplomatic gifts and trade commodities.
  • Sugar production in the eastern Mediterranean, particularly on the island of Cyprus, supplied a growing European demand for this luxury commodity.
  • The economic impact of Owen Glendower's revolt on the Welsh border counties of England was severe, with agricultural production and trade disrupted.
  • Textile manufacturing in the Flemish cities of Bruges and Ghent began to face competition from English cloth producers who exported finished goods.

Technology & Infrastructure

  • Zheng He's treasure ships, some reportedly over 100 meters long, represented the most advanced naval engineering of the era.
  • Construction of the Forbidden City in Beijing advanced under the Yongle Emperor's direction, employing hundreds of thousands of laborers and craftsmen.
  • The great mosque of Bibi-Khanym in Samarkand was largely completed, though structural problems would emerge due to its ambitious scale.
  • The use of the printing press for woodblock printing expanded in East Asia, with Korean artisans experimenting with movable metal type.

Science & Discovery

  • Zheng He's first voyage expanded Chinese knowledge of Southeast Asian geography, cultures, and maritime conditions across the Indian Ocean.
  • The death of Timur disrupted the scholarly communities he had assembled in Samarkand, though astronomical research continued under his successors.
  • The University of Leipzig was founded in the Kingdom of Saxony, becoming a new center of learning in the German-speaking lands.
  • The study of classical Greek texts accelerated in Italy as Byzantine scholars brought manuscripts westward, fueling humanist intellectual currents.

Health & Medicine

  • Timur's death at age 68 was attributed to illness contracted during his winter march toward China, compounded by his advanced age.
  • Chinese medical practitioners aboard Zheng He's fleet treated sailors for scurvy, dysentery, and other ailments common on long sea voyages.

Climate & Environment

  • Harsh winter conditions in Central Asia contributed to the illness and death of Timur during his military march toward China.
  • Monsoon patterns in the Indian Ocean were exploited by Zheng He's fleet for navigation, timing the expedition to take advantage of seasonal winds.
  • Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration was approximately 272 parts per million, as later confirmed by ice core analysis.

Culture & Society

  • The Timurid cultural legacy continued after Timur's death, with his descendants maintaining patronage of art, architecture, and literature at Herat and Samarkand.
  • Christine de Pizan completed The Book of the City of Ladies, a pioneering work defending women's contributions to civilization and learning.
  • Owen Glendower's court in Wales became a center of Welsh cultural revival, attracting poets, musicians, and scholars from across the Welsh lands.
  • The estimated world population was approximately 356 million.