Year 1140 (MCXL) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Levant Spring – King Fulk of Jerusalem confronts Imad al-Din Zengi, Seljuk ruler (atabeg) of Mosul, near Dara'a in southern Syria. Turkish forces under Mu'in al-Din (supported by the Crusaders) besiege Banias. Europe Spring – King Conrad III enfeoffs Henry II (Jasomirgott), a member of the House of Babenberg, with the County Palatine of the Rhine (belonging to the Holy Roman Empire). Summer – King Roger II promulgates the Assizes of Ariano (a series of laws to rule the Norman Kingdom of Sicily) after the pacification of southern Italy. December 21 – Siege of Weinsberg: Conrad III captures the castle at Weinsberg during the civil war between the Staufers and the Welfs in Germany. England Summer – King Stephen appoints Geoffrey de Mandeville as Earl of Essex for his support during the civil war against Matilda (Stephen's cousin). The town of Lanark in Scotland is made a Royal Burgh by King David I, giving it merchant privileges relating to government and taxation. Asia August 21 – Battle of Yancheng: Chinese forces under the command of Yue Fei defeat a numerically superior Jin army led by Wuzhu during the Jin–Song Wars. By topic Religion June 3 – Pierre Abelard, a French theologian, is condemned for heresy by the Council of Sens. He sets out for Rome to present his defense to Pope Innocent II. September 8 – Sephardi Jewish philosopher Judah Halevi, having completed the Kuzari, arrives in Alexandria on a pilgrimage to Palestine. The first Cistercian monastery in Spain is founded in Fitero. The order enjoys a rapid expansion in the region in the following 15 years. Literature Gratian, an Italian monk and canon lawyer, founds the science of Canon law with the publication of the Decretum Gratiani (approximate date). Births May 28 – Xin Qiji, Chinese military leader (d. 1207) Adela of Champagne, queen of France (d. 1206) Alan Fitz Walter, Scottish High Steward (d. 1204) Cadfan ap Cadwaladr, Welsh nobleman (d. 1215) Davyd Rostislavich, Kievan Grand Prince (d. 1197) Domhnall Caomhánach, king of Leinster (d. 1175) Eliezer ben Joel HaLevi, German rabbi (d. 1225) Fujiwara no Tashi, Japanese empress (d. 1202) Gerard de Ridefort, Flemish Grand Master (d. 1189) Hedwig, margravine of Meissen (approximate date) Hugh de Paduinan, Norman nobleman (d. 1189) John I, archbishop