son Ferdinand III, on August 31. The young king begins his reign (supported by his mother as adviser and regent) by a war against his father, King Alfonso IX of León, and the Castilian nobles. June – The 13-year-old Haakon IV becomes king of Norway, following the death of Inge II (Bårdsson) – this largely ends the civil war era in Norway. During his minority, Earl Skule Bårdsson becomes Haakon's regent. September 21 – Livonian Crusade: The Livonian Brothers of the Sword and allied Livs and Letts defeat the Estonian army in the Battle of St. Matthew's Day, and kill their leader Lembitu. October 18 – Reconquista: The city of Alcácer do Sal, located along the Sado River, is conquered from the Moors by troops of King Afonso II of Portugal. November – In the Kingdom of Castile, former regent and Castilian nobleman, Álvaro Núñez de Lara, is captured and forced to relinquish all his castles. Stefan Nemanjić is elevated to be the first King of the Serbian lands by Pope Honorius III and crowned by Stefan's brother, Archimandrite Sava, in Žiča. Asia The Mongol army under Muqali (or Mukhali) attacks Hebei Province, as well as Shandong Province and Shaanxi Province (controlled by the Jin Dynasty). He returns to Genghis Khan's camp in Mongolia, and receives the hereditary of prince with the title "Grand Preceptor of the Empire", a golden seal, and a white standard with nine tails and a black crescent in the middle. He is appointed as commander-in-chief of operations in North China. By topic Literature Alexander Neckam, English scholar and theologian, writes De naturis rerum ("On the Nature of Things"), a scientific encyclopedia. Births May 3 – Henry I (the Fat), king of Cyprus (d. 1253) August 19 – Ninshō, Japanese priest (d. 1303) Baldwin II of Courtenay, Latin emperor (d. 1273) Baldwin de Redvers, English nobleman (d. 1245) Boniface of Savoy, English archbishop (d. 1270) Ferdinand, Portuguese prince (infante) (d. 1246) George Akropolites, Byzantine statesman (d. 1282) Guillaume III, French nobleman and knight (d. 1288) Guo Kan, Chinese general and governor (d. 1277) Henry of Antioch, co-ruler of Jerusalem (d. 1276) Henry of Ghent, Flemish philosopher (d. 1293) Ibn Sab'in, Andalusian Sufi philosopher (d. 1271) Izz al-Din ibn Shaddad, Arab historian (d. 1285) John I (the Red), English nobleman (d. 1286) Kangan Giin, Japanese Zen Master (d. 1300) Deaths February 9 – Raynald of Nocera, Italian