1278

Years: 1275 1276 1277 - 1278 - 1279 1280 1281
Decades: 1240s 1250s 1260s - 1270s - 1280s 1290s 1300s
Centuries: 12th century - 13th century - 14th century

Events

May 8 - Emperor Duanzong of Song China dies of illness and is succeeded by his brother Zhao Bing, who became Emperor Bing of Song. Meanwhile, the international armed forces under the Mongol leader Kublai Khan are drawing closer to the remnants of the Song court. A year later at the Battle of Yamen the Song Dynasty would cease to exist, incorporated into the Yuan Dynasty of China.
August 26 - Kings Rudolph I of Germany and Ladislaus IV of Hungary defeat King Otakar II of Bohemia in the Battle of Marchfield, a match of over 80,000 men and the largest battle of knights in the Middle Ages. The battle ends a power struggle between Rudolph and Otakar over the fate of central Europe, and Rudolph's Habsburg family will continue to rule Austria and other captured territories until the end of World War I in 1918.
The independence, boundaries, and political structure of Andorra are agreed to by the Spanish Bishop of Urgell and the French Count of Foix.
The earliest known written copy of the Avesta, a collection of ancient sacred Persian Zoroastrian texts previously passed down orally, is produced.
An edict by Pope Nicholas III requires all Jews to attend conversion sermons.
The Japanese era Kenji ends, and the Koan era begins.