To the people of Europe, it is Anno Domini 1230--the 13th Christian century is reaching its midway point. Although it is a time of relative quiet among mortal rulers, the 13th century is still one of strife and unrest. The century started with the bloody and mismanaged Fourth Crusade (1202-1204), redirected by Venetian interests in sacking and destroying Constantinople, the greatest of Christian cities. In England, King John Lackland (1199-1216) signs the Magna Carta shortly before his death, establishing the duties and responsibilities of the king to his subjects. His heir, Henry III (1216-1272), finds his power challenged through out his troubled reign by the powerful English barons, making him a weak king and drawing his attention away from France. Using this to his advantage, Philip II Augustus of France (1180-1223) reclaims most of the territories in France that the English crown holds. He goes on to establish France as one of the premiere powers in the 13th century with the Battle of Bouvines in 1214. To the east, in the lands of Flanders and Germany, Frederick II (1212-1250) unifies the nobles of the Holy Roman Empire, the last vestige of Rome, but becomes embroiled in the conflicts and intrigues of the investiture controversy, pitting emperor against pope. In the arid Iberian Peninsula, the kingdoms of Castile and Aragon are encroaching on the Moorish stronghold of al-Andalus. Majorca falls in 1229, Cordoba in 1236, and Seville in 1248, leaving Granada as the sole Moorish city until 1492. Until then, it remains one of Europe's most learned cities, a center of knowledge and scholarship, surrounded and besieged by those who are jealous of its wealth and treasure.
By Night
The century is also one of heresy, and it witnessess the birth of the Papal Inquisition. While the most gruesome excesses and witch-hunts are still centuries away, the Church prepares itself to deal with its enemies--both mundane and supernatural. The Albigensians of Southern France, who believe the world to be evil and preach a life of poverty, become the victims of the first crusade called on Christian lands. Soon after, the Teutonic Knights march across Poland, Hungary, Livonia, and into Russia under the banner of their black cross, fighting pagans and other infidels in the name of God. In the Holy Land, the century sees four different crusades head for various points along the Mediterranean. For the most part, Christian forces suffer the familiar setbacks of previous centuries, but these setbacks fail to deter one pope after another from calling for renewed efforts.
This is also a time when the east rides into the west. The great Ghengis Khan dies in 1227, but his successors push into Europe. They overrun Persia in 1231, southern Russia 5 years later, and they reach as far west as Poland and Hungary in 1241. However, the khans and their horsemen are not the only travelers. In 1271, the explorer Marco Polo leaves for the mysterious East, traveling over lands that no westerner will see again for another five centuries. When he returns, Europe is forever changed.
Superstition rules the Dark Medieval just as much as monarchs and popes do. It is an age when religion and faith provide hope and salvation, but they also preach that the Devil and his minions lurk in the night. To the populace of Europe, this is not dogma but reality. The people know dark that the dark forests hide more than just shadows, and they believe, just as they believe in God, that specters, demons and vampires exist. In this age, farmers attend Mass, praying for forgiveness and salvation, then gather in fields to pay tribute and placate the Old Gods--not because they have no faith, but because they absolutely and completely believe. They believe that evil witches and warlocks can command spirits of the dead, calling them from their resting-places to torment the living. When returning from their pilgrimages, commoners and nobles alike have seen strange glyphs carved on stones and heard ethereal music when the moon was full. They know that the Devil waits to tempt the faithful with sin, dooming them to an eternity of carnal torment and grief.
