1388

1388 (MCCCXXXVIII) was a leap year in the Julian calendar. The year occurred during the late 14th century, a period characterized by ongoing political and military conflicts in the British Isles and continental Europe.

In England, the Merciless Parliament sat in 1388, led by the Lords Appellant who sought accountability for the king’s closest advisers. Ministers and favorites of King Richard II were attainted, and many were removed from power or faced exile and execution. The proceedings significantly shifted the balance of power away from the crown and toward a more assertive parliamentary authority, contributing to the continuing destabilization of Richard II’s reign and shaping the phi losophy of royal governance in late medieval England.

On the British Isles’ northeastern frontier, the Battle of Otterburn occurred on 14 August 1388 near Otterburn, Northumberland. The Scots, under the command of James Douglas, achieved a costly victory over England, and the English commander Henry Percy, Earl of Northumberland (Hotspur), was killed. The battle intensified the long-running border conflicts between England and Scotland and influenced military and political developments in both kingdoms.

Across Europe, 1388 stood within a broader context of late medieval power struggles and ongoing conflicts associated with the Hundred Years’ War, as monarchies navigated internal pressures while contending with neighboring realms.