Year 1108 (MCVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.

Events

By place

Europe

• Spring – King Sigurd I sails from England, on the Norwegian Crusade to Palestine. He repels a Muslim fleet near the Tagus River, then attacks Sintra, Lisbon and Alcácer do Sal, and finally defeats a second Muslim fleet further south.^[1]
• May 29 – Battle of Uclés: Almoravid forces defeat the armies of Castile and León. The advance of the Reconquista is halted, and the Berbers re-capture the towns of Uclés, Cuenca, Huete and Ocaña. The Christians, many of nobility, are beheaded.^[2]
• July 29 – King Philip I dies at Melun, after a 48-year reign. He is succeeded by his son Louis VI, who, at the start of his rule, faces insurrections from feudal brigands and rebellious robber barons.
• September – Siege of Dyrrhachium: Italo-Norman forces under Bohemond I lift the siege due to illness and lack of supplies. Bohemond becomes a vassal of the Byzantine Empire by signing the Treaty of Devol.
• Autumn – The Principality of Nitra ceases to exist, after King Coloman of Hungary, deposes its last ruler, Álmos, duke of Croatia.
• The consuls of Bergamo are first mentioned, indicating that the city has become an independent commune in Lombardy (Northern Italy).^[3]

Levant

• Summer – Jawali Saqawa, Turkish ruler of Mosul, accepts a ransom of 30,000 dinar by Count Joscelin I and releases his cousin Baldwin II, count of Edessa, who is held as prisoner (see 1104).^[4]
• Baldwin I marches out against Sidon, with the support of a squadron of sailor-adventurers from various Italian cities. A Fatimid fleet from Egypt defeats the Italians in a sea-battle outside the harbour.^[5]

Asia

• The Taira and Minamoto clans join forces to rule Japan, after defeating the warrior monks of the Enryaku-ji temple near Kyoto. The Taira replace many Fujiwara nobles in important offices – while the Minamoto gain more military experience by bringing parts of Northern Honshu under Japanese control (approximate date).

By topic

Religion

• Chichester Cathedral is consecrated under Ralph de Luffa, bishop of Chichester, in England.
• Construction begins on the tower of Winchester Cathedral, building continues until 1120.
• Pistoia Cathedral in Italy is damaged by a severe fire.
• June 13 – Restored Ferentino Cathedral in Italy is consecrated.

Births

• Andronikos Komnenos, Byzantine prince (d. 1142)
• Baldwin IV, count of Hainaut (d. 1171)
• Bohemond II, Italo-Norman prince of Antioch (d. 1130)
• Derbforgaill, Irish princess (d. 1193)
• Ghiyath ad-Din Mas'ud, Seljuk sultan (d. 1152)
• Henry X, duke of Bavaria (d. 1139)
• Leopold IV, duke of Bavaria (d. 1141)

Deaths

• January 4 – Gertrude, Grand Princess of Kiev
• March 18 – Abe no Munetō, Japanese samurai (b. 1032)
• May 21 – Gerard, Norman archbishop of York
• May 29
  • García Ordóñez, Castilian nobleman
  • Sancho Alfónsez, Castilian nobleman
• July 5 – Guy of Hauteville, Italo-Norman diplomat
• July 29 – Philip I, king of France
• November 15 – Enrico Contarini, bishop of Castello
• García Álvarez, Castilian official and military leader
• Gonzalo, bishop of Mondoñedo (approximate date)
• Gregory III, count of Tusculum (approximate date)
• Gundulf, bishop of Rochester (approximate date)
• Guy II, French nobleman and crusader
• Mafalda of Pulla-Calabria, Norman noblewoman (b. 1060)
• Urse d'Abetot, Norman sheriff of Worcestershire
• Veera Ballala I, Indian ruler of the Hoysala Empire
• Wang, Chinese empress of the Song Dynasty (b. 1084)