1423 CE
A year defined by English victories in France under the Duke of Bedford, the continuing Hussite crusades in Bohemia, and the expansion of Ottoman power under Murad II.
Geopolitics & Diplomacy
- Philip the Good of Burgundy strengthened his alliance with Bedford through the marriage of Bedford to Philip's sister Anne of Burgundy.
Conflict & Security
- The English won a decisive victory at the Battle of Cravant on July 31, where an Anglo-Burgundian force defeated a Franco-Scottish army on the banks of the Yonne River.
Economy & Finance
- The Bohemian economy continued to suffer from the Hussite Wars, with disrupted trade routes and damaged agricultural lands reducing output.
Technology & Infrastructure
- Brunelleschi's dome for the Florence Cathedral continued to rise, with its innovative self-supporting construction technique attracting admiration across Italy.
- Hussite forces further refined their tactics, using chains to link war wagons into defensive formations and deploying early handguns with increasing effectiveness.
Science & Discovery
- Ulugh Beg's astronomical observatory in Samarkand progressed toward completion, with instruments designed for precise celestial measurements.
Health & Medicine
- Military campaigns in France and Bohemia spread disease through armies and civilian populations, with camp fever and dysentery causing heavy casualties.
- The medical faculty at the University of Bologna contributed to advances in surgical knowledge, with Italian physicians beginning to practice more systematic anatomical study.
Climate & Environment
- Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration was approximately 272 parts per million, as later confirmed by ice core analysis.
Culture & Society
- The early Italian Renaissance flourished in Florence, with humanist scholars such as Leonardo Bruni producing historical and philosophical works.
- The estimated global population was approximately 378 million, with the largest populations in China and the Indian subcontinent.