1270 – 1280s

Events in the 1270s 8

• 300 BC – 1279 Chola dynasty (South India) A great maritime and temple-building power The Cholas of the Tamil south were one of the longest-ruling dynasties in history, rising from the Sangam age to a medieval maritime empire that projected naval power across the Bay of Bengal to Southeast Asia. They built magnificent temples such as the Brihadeeswarar at Thanjavur and patronised bronze sculpture and Tamil literature.
• 907 – 1279 Five Dynasties & Song Dynasty Gunpowder, printing, compass — China leads the world in technology The Song dynasty oversaw an economic and technological revolution. Gunpowder weapons, movable type printing (Bi Sheng, 1040), and the magnetic compass were all developed or perfected during this period. China's population reached 100 million. Despite never matching the Tang's military power and eventually losing northern China to the Jurchen Jin dynasty, the Song's commercial economy and urban culture were the most sophisticated in the world.
• 1195 – 1272 Johannes de Garlandia English music theorist Johannes de Garlandia was a medieval music theorist whose treatises on rhythm and notation were foundational for the development of mensural music in the 13th century.
• 1215 – 1270 Franco of Cologne German music theorist Franco of Cologne was a 13th-century music theorist whose Ars cantus mensurabilis established the system of mensural notation that became standard throughout medieval Europe.
• 1270 Mechanical Clock Timekeeping The first device to precisely measure time, essential for modern coordination.
• 1271 – 1368 Yuan Dynasty — Mongol rule under Kublai Khan China conquered by the Mongols — Marco Polo arrives Kublai Khan, grandson of Genghis Khan, completed the Mongol conquest of China and founded the Yuan dynasty in 1271. The Mongols connected China to the largest contiguous land empire in history, facilitating trade and cultural exchange across Eurasia. Venetian merchant Marco Polo visited Kublai Khan's court around 1275 and his account introduced China's wonders to European readers. The Yuan dynasty was overthrown by Chinese peasant rebel Zhu Yuanzhang in 1368.
• 1274 – 1281 Mongol invasions repelled The "kamikaze" divine winds destroy Kublai Khan's fleets Kublai Khan launched two massive seaborne invasions of Japan, in 1274 and 1281. Both were devastated by typhoons that the Japanese called kamikaze — "divine winds" — and by determined samurai resistance. The defeats preserved Japanese independence and entered national legend.
• 1275 – 1292 Marco Polo visits China At the court of Kublai Khan — East meets West Venetian merchant Marco Polo traveled to China around 1275 and spent approximately 17 years in the service of Kublai Khan, traveling extensively across the empire. His account, The Travels of Marco Polo (c.1300), described China's cities, technologies and wealth with astonishment — paper money, coal, vast cities, efficient postal systems. Though initially disbelieved, his account inspired Christopher Columbus and shaped European imagination of the East for centuries.