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{{Year dab|1444}}
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[[File:"The death of king Wladyslaw II at Varna".jpg|thumb|250px|[[November 10]]: Outnumbered Christian crusaders overwhelmed by Ottoman Muslims at the [[Battle of Varna]] after King Wladyslaw leads attack on the camp of the Sultan Murad. (painting by Stanisław Chlebowski.)]]
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{{Year article header|1444}}

== Events ==
<onlyinclude>

=== January&ndash;March ===
* [[January 2]] &ndash; The [[Battle of Kunovica]] is fought between the Christian crusaders, led by [[John Hunyadi]], and the Muslim armies of the Ottoman Empire in what is now [[Serbia]]. After having retreated 10 days earlier following their loss in the [[Battle of Zlatitsa]], Hunyadi and [[Władysław III of Poland|King Wladyslaw III of Hungary]] defeat the Ottoman forces and take several of their commanders as prisoners of war, including Mahmud Bey, son-in-law of the Sultan Murad II.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia | article=Turakhān Beg |first=Franz |last=Babinger | author-link=Franz Babinger |encyclopedia=E.J. Brill's first encyclopaedia of Islam, 1913–1936, Volume VIII |editor-first=Martijn Theodoor |editor-last=Houtsma |publisher=BRILL |location=Leiden |year=1987 |orig-year=1936 |page=25 |isbn=90-04-09794-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ro--tXw_hxMC&pg=PA876}}</ref>
* [[February 15]] &ndash; [[Stjepan Vukčić Kosača]], the [[Grand Duke of Bosnia]], signs a treaty with the King Alfonso of Naples, agreeing to become his vassal in exchange for help against the Republic of Venice.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ćirković |first=Sima |author-link=Sima Ćirković |title=Herceg Stefan Vukčić-Kosača i njegovo doba |trans-title=Herceg Stefan Vukčić-Kosača and his time |oclc=4864621 |publisher=Naučno delo SANU |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NI8OAQAAIAAJ |year=1964a |page=289|language=sr}}</ref>
* [[March 2]] &ndash; The [[League of Lezhë]], an alliance of [[Albanian principalities]], is established in [[Lezhë]]; [[George Kastrioti Skanderbeg]] is proclaimed commander of the [[History of Ottoman Albania|Albanian resistance]].<ref>{{Citation|last=Frashëri|first=Kristo |title=Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu: jeta dhe vepra, 1405–1468|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vwR3PQAACAAJ|year=2002|publisher=Botimet Toena|page=135 |language=sq|isbn=99927-1-627-4}}</ref>

=== April&ndash;June ===
* [[April 15]] &ndash; King Wladyslaw of Hungary appears before the ''Országgyűlés'', the [[Diet of Hungary]] in [[Buda]],  and pledges to the legislators present that he will lead the attack against the Turkish Muslims in the summer.<ref>{{cite book |last=Setton |first=Kenneth Meyer |author-link=Kenneth Setton |date=1976 |title=The Papacy and the Levant, 1204-1571 |volume=2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Sz2VYI0l1IC |location=Philadelphia |publisher=American Philosophical Society |page=82 |isbn=9780871691149}}</ref> 
* [[April 18]] &ndash; In [[Sicily]], the [[University of Catania]] receives papal recognition from Pope Eugene IV, ten years after its founding on October 19, 1434.
* [[May 22]] &ndash; The [[Treaty of Tours]], signed between [[Kingdom of England|England]] and [[Kingdom of France|France]], secures a truce in the [[Hundred Years' War]] for five years.
* [[June 15]] &ndash; [[Cosimo de' Medici]] founds a public library at [[San Marco, Florence]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Foundation of the Library of the Dominican Convent of San Marco, the First "Public" Library in Renaissance Europe|first=Jeremy M.|last=Norman|url=https://www.historyofinformation.com/detail.php?id=286|website=HistoryofInformation.com|date=2022-12-20|accessdate=2023-01-18}}</ref>
* [[June 29]] &ndash; [[Battle of Torvioll]]: Skanderbeg defeats an Ottoman army.

=== July&ndash;September ===
* [[July 22]] &ndash; [[Oddantonio da Montefeltro]], the [[Duchy of Urbino|Duke of Urbino]], an independent duchy in what is now the [[Marche|Le Marche]] region of Italy, is assassinated at [[Ducal Palace, Urbino|his palace]] by conspirators, who also murder his counsellors Manfredo dei Pio da Carpi and Tommaso di Guido dell'Agnello.<ref>Giovanni Scatena, ''Oddantonio da Montefeltro primo duca di Urbino'' (Rome: Ernesto Paleani Editore, 1989)</ref> He is succeeded by his half-brother, [[Federico da Montefeltro]].
* [[August 6]] &ndash; A Portuguese fleet of [[caravel]]s, led by [[Lançarote de Freitas]], lands 235 slaves at [[Algarve]], Portugal.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Slave Trade: The Story of the Atlantic Slave Trade: 1440 - 1870|last=Thomas|first=Hugh|publisher=Simon and Schuster|year=1999|isbn=9780684835655|pages=[https://archive.org/details/slavetradestoryo00thom/page/22 22]|url=https://archive.org/details/slavetradestoryo00thom/page/22}}</ref> 
* [[August 15]] &ndash; The [[Peace of Szeged]] is signed between the Turkish [[Ottoman Empire]] and [[Kingdom of Hungary|Hungary]].<ref name=Aldershot>{{cite book |last = Imber |first = Colin |title = The Crusade of Varna, 1443–45 |date = July 2006 |location = Aldershot, England; Burlington, VT |publisher = Ashgate Publishing |isbn = 978-0-7546-0144-9 |pages =9 [https://archive.org/details/crusadeofvarna140000imbe/page/9 9–31] | chapter = Introduction | chapter-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070628084856/http://www.ashgate.com/subject_area/downloads/sample_chapters/Crusade_of_Varna_Intro.pdf |access-date = 2007-04-19 |url =https://archive.org/details/crusadeofvarna140000imbe/page/9 }}</ref>
* [[August 22]] &ndash; [[Đurađ Branković]] reclaims [[Serbia]] from Ottoman control after the signing of the peace of Szeged, and Wladyslaw of Hungary offers the throne of [[Bulgaria]] to John Hunyadi.<ref name=Aldershot/>
* [[August 26]] &ndash; [[Old Zürich War]] &ndash; [[Battle of St. Jakob an der Birs]]: [[Charles VII of France]], seeking to send away troublesome troops made idle by the truce with England, sends his son (the [[Louis XI|Dauphin Louis]]) with a large army into Switzerland, to support the claims of [[Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor]]. The massively outnumbered Swiss force is destroyed in this battle, but inflict such casualties on the French that they withdraw.
* [[August]] &ndash; After making peace with the [[Karamanids]], Ottoman Sultan [[Murad II]] abdicates in favor of his son [[Mehmed II]].<ref>{{DBI | last = Gulino | first = Giuseppe | title = LOREDAN, Alvise | url = http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/alvise-loredan_(Dizionario-Biografico)/ | volume = 65 }}</ref>
* [[September 9]] &ndash; General [[Alvise Loredan]], commander of the Venetian and Papal States squadrons in the Crusade of Varna, receives instructions from the  [[Republic of Venice]] to open secret negotiations with the Ottoman Sultan and to abstain from offensive actions until further notice. Loredan is soon faced with defending an Ottoman invasion of Europe.
* [[September 18]] &ndash; As the Crusade of Varna resumes, the 16,000 Christian soldiers under the command of Wladyslaw and Hunyadi begin crossing over the [[Danube]] river near [[Belgrade]] and complete their crossing into Ottoman Muslim territory in Bulgaria.<ref name=Inalcik>"The Ottoman Turks and the Crusades, 1329-1451", by Halil Inalcik, in ''A History of the Crusades, Volume 6: The Impact of the Crusades on Europe'', ed. by Kenneth M. Setton (University of Wisconsin Press, 1969) pp.271-274</ref>

=== October&ndash;December ===
* [[October 20]] &ndash; As the Christian crusaders begin their approach to the Black Sea, the former Ottoman Sultan Murad II comes out of retirement at [[Bursa]] to assume command of the Ottoman troops.<ref name=Inalcik/>
* [[November 10]] &ndash; [[Battle of Varna]]: The crusading forces of King [[Władysław III of Poland]] and Hungary are defeated by the Turks, under Sultan [[Murad II]]. Władysław is killed, ending the Jagiellonian [[Union of Hungary and Poland]].
* [[December 24]] &ndash; Ottoman General [[Kasım Pasha]] is defeated in the Battle of Melštica near [[Sofia]] by Christian troops who had survived the Battle of Varna.<ref>{{cite book|author=Skopsko naučno društvo|title=Glasnik Skopskog naučnog društva|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P0YoAQAAMAAJ|year=1925}}
</ref>

=== Date unknown ===
* [[Constantine XI Palaiologos]], as ruler of the [[Despotate of the Morea]], invades the [[Duchy of Athens]] (at this time under Florentine control), and forces it to pay tribute and return [[Thebes, Greece|Thebes]] to the [[Byzantine Empire]].
* Forces of the Sultan of Egypt fail to take [[Rhodes]] from the [[Knights of Rhodes]].
* Portuguese explorers reach the mouth of the rivers [[Senegal River|Senegal]] and [[Gambia River|Gambia]].
* The first European [[slavery|slave market]] for the sale of African slaves, the ''[[Mercado de Escravos]]'', opens in [[Lagos, Portugal]].
* A serious fire occurs at [[Old St Paul's Cathedral]] in London.
* The [[Iguvine Tablets]] are discovered at [[Gubbio]], Italy.
* [[Stephen II of Moldavia]] takes as co-ruler his step brother [[Petru III of Moldavia|Petru]], also brother-in-law to [[John Hunyadi]].</onlyinclude>

== Births ==
* [[January 24]] &ndash; [[Galeazzo Maria Sforza]], Duke of Milan (d. [[1476]])
* [[March 15]] &ndash; [[Francesco Gonzaga (1444–1483)|Francesco Gonzaga]], Catholic cardinal (d. [[1483]])
* [[April 22]] &ndash; [[Elizabeth of York, Duchess of Suffolk]] (d. [[1503]])
* [[May 29]] &ndash; [[Otto III, Duke of Pomerania]]-Stettin (1460–1464) (d. [[1464]])
* [[June 14]] &ndash; [[Nilakantha Somayaji]], Indian astronomer-mathematician (d. [[1544]])
* [[June 28]] &ndash; [[Charlotte, Queen of Cyprus]] (d. [[1487]])
* [[October 18]] &ndash; [[John de Mowbray, 4th Duke of Norfolk]] (d. [[1476]])

* ''date unknown'' &ndash; [[Donato Bramante]], Italian architect (d. [[1514]])<ref name="DrawingsFisher1886">{{cite book|author1=British Museum. Department of Prints and Drawings|author2=Richard Fisher|title=Introduction to a Catalogue of the Early Italian Prints in the British Museum|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FVwVAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA348|year=1886|publisher=Chiswick Press|pages=348–}}</ref>

== Deaths ==
* [[January 8]] &ndash; [[Wilhelm II, Count of Henneberg-Schleusingen]] (b. [[1415]])
* [[February 14]] &ndash; [[Henriette, Countess of Montbéliard]], regent of Württemberg (b. [[1387]])
* [[March 9]] &ndash; [[Leonardo Bruni]], Italian humanist (b. [[1374]])
* [[April 26]] &ndash; [[Robert Campin]], Flemish painter (b. [[1378]])
* [[May 20]] &ndash; Saint [[Bernardino of Siena]], Italian Franciscan missionary (b. [[1380]])
* [[May 27]] &ndash; [[John Beaufort, 1st Duke of Somerset]], English military leader (b. [[1404]])<ref>{{cite book|author=Raphael Holinshed|title=Shakespeare's Holinshed: The Chronicle and the Historical Plays Compared|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pZBlAAAAMAAJ|year=1907|publisher=Chatto and Windus|page=218}}</ref>
* [[October 15]] &ndash; [[Niccolò Piccinino]], Italian mercenary (b. [[1386]])<ref>{{cite book|author1=Aeneas Silvius Piccolomini|author2=Pope Pius II|title=Europe (c.1400-1458)|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z4lvAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA220|date=November 2013|publisher=CUA Press|isbn=978-0-8132-2182-3|pages=220}}</ref>
* [[November 10]] &ndash; King [[Władysław III of Poland]] (in battle) (b. [[1424]])<ref>{{cite book|author1=Jerzy Lukowski|author2=Hubert Zawadzki|title=A Concise History of Poland|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NpMxTvBuWHYC&pg=PA41|date=20 September 2001|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-55917-1|pages=41|language=en}}</ref>
* [[November 25]] &ndash; [[Martin Gouge]], French chancellor
* ''date unknown'' &ndash; [[Pier Paolo Vergerio the Elder]], Italian humanist, statesman, and canon lawyer

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

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