Year 1227 (MCCXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe Spring – Livonian Crusade: The Livonian Brothers of the Sword and their Crusader allies (some 20,000 men) cross the sea ice from mainland Estonia, and defeat the last Estonian strongholds in the Battle of Muhu and the siege of the Valjala Stronghold in the Saaremaa islands. This marks the end of the Estonian campaign in the Livonian Crusade. The Sword Brothers conquer Danish Estonia, and Tallinn is given town rights under Riga law. July 22 – Battle of Bornhöved: Count Adolf IV of Holstein – leading a coalition army from the cities of Lübeck and Hamburg, defeats the Danish-German forces of King Valdemar II, and the Welf nobleman Otto I (the Child). Adolf shakes off Danish supremacy and accepts an overlordship by the Archbishopric of Bremen under Archbishop Gerhard II of Lippe. Adolf expands his power and establishes new frontiers within the Holy Roman Empire. July 28 – Battle of Ane: Forces of the Bishopric of Utrecht are defeated by the rebellious Drenths led by Rudolph van Coevorden near Ane (modern Netherlands). The Drenths lure the Bishop's forces, supported by heavily armoured knights, in an ambush into a swampy area and kill Bishop Otto II of Lippe. After the battle, Otto's successor, Wilbrand van Oldenburg, rouses the Frisian people into supporting the war against the Drenths. August – Emperor Frederick II musters a German expeditionary force in Apulia. The crowded conditions and high heat contribute to discontent and disease among the assembled troops. On September 24, an epidemic of malaria enfeebles the army at Brindisi. Several thousand Crusaders led by Henry IV, duke of Limburg, and French and English mercenaries under the bishops Peter des Roches and William Briwere, arrive at Acre. September – A second contingent joined by Frederick II, departs from Brindisi to the Levant. On September 11, during the second day of the voyage, one of Fredericks' companions, Louis IV of Thuringia, dies of an illness (possibly cholera) at Otranto. Frederick also becomes sick and decides to return home, while sending the rest of the Crusader fleet (20 galleys) to Acre. There, they fortify the coastal towns of Caesarea and Jaffa. October 10 – Frederick II recovering at Pozzuoli, receives a letter from Pope Gregory IX, announcing his ex-communication. Frederick is branded a