High Middle Ages · East Asia · Exploration
1275
Marco Polo reaches Kublai Khan's court
1275
After four years crossing deserts and mountains, the Polos arrived at Kublai's summer capital Shangdu. The khan reportedly took a liking to the young Marco and kept him in service for nearly two decades, sending him on missions across his empire. Polo's later descriptions of Shangdu, with its marble palace and cane pavilion surrounded by gardens, inspired Coleridge's famous vision of Xanadu.
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Also in 1275 (5 other events on record)
- Mechanical clocks begin appearing in European churches · Europe · Technology
- Edward I's first Statute of Westminster · Europe · Politics
- Kanem empire expands under Mai Dunama · Africa · Politics
- Shajar al-Durr's tomb completed in Cairo · Middle East · Culture
- Eihei-ji monastery flourishes under Dogen's heirs · East Asia · Religion
Before and after in East Asia
Before and after in Exploration
Era
High Middle Ages (1000–1300), one of 1,306 events from that era on Saeculum.