Grand Duke Vytautas, initially allied with Teutonic Knights, comes eventually to view the Knights as a threat to his power.

He earns their enmity by his support of a 1409 revolt in the Lithuanian territory of Samogitia, which the Knights, who rule Prussia, Pomeralia, and lands in eastern Germany, have occupied since 1398.

Vytautas allies himself with Wladyslaw II (or V), King of Poland.

The Knights seek to break the newly formed union between the two countries, who both mobilize their forces to meet the knights’ invasion.

The deposed King Wenceslas of Germany and Bohemia, down but not out, wins popular favor among Bohemians by backing anti-German religious ferment centering around Jan Hus.

Wenceslas issues his decree of Kutna Hora in 1409, giving the Czechs greater control over the University of Prague and resulting in the election of Jan Hus as rector.

Shortly afterward, Hus, having gradually lost the support of the clergy and archbishop of Prague because of his continued attacks on abuses in the church, is forbidden to preach.

Moldavia’s Prince Alexander, called Alexander the Good (Alexander cel Bun), has expanded the bureaucracy system by creating the "Council of the Voivode", the Chancellory and by adding (in 1403) the institution of Logofăt—Chancellor of the official Chancellery.

During his reign, he has introduced new fiscal laws, by adding commercial privileges to the traders of Lviv (1408) and Kraków (1409), improved the situation of the trading routes (especially the one linking the port of Cetatea Albă to Poland), strengthened the forts guarding them, and expanded the Moldavian ports of Cetatea Albă and Chilia.

Alexander’s main concern is to defend the country in wars against superior armies.

To this end, he has forged a system of alliances with Wallachia and Poland, generally against Hungary (although he had been backed to the throne by Sigismund of Hungary).

In 1402, he had become a sworn vassal of Jogaila, the King of Poland.

The treaty is renewed in 1404 and 1407.

Zadar had come under the rule of Sigmund of Luxembourg after the death of Louis I of Hungary and Croatia in 1382, and eventually comes into the possession of Ladislaus of Naples, who, witnessing his loss of influence in Dalmatia, on July 31, 1409, sells Zadar and his dynasty's rights to Dalmatia to Venice for one hundred thousand ducats.

This is part of his attempts to gain allies in the upcoming war against the Republic of Florence, caused by his expansion in central Italy and his alliance with Paolo Guinigi, lord of Lucca, a traditional enemy of the Florentines.

Venice has therefore obtained control over Zadar without a fight, but is confronted by the resistance and tensions of important Zadar families.

These attempts are met with persecution and confiscation.

Venice installs nobility to govern the area, for example, Count Filippo Stipanov in Zadar.

Zadar remains the administrative seat of Dalmatia, but this time under the rule of Venice, which will soon expand over all of Dalmatia from Istria to Albania, barring …

…the Republic of Ragusa.

This move by the Venetians had been made in response to the threatening expansion of the late Gian Galeazzo Visconti, Duke of Milan.

Control over the northeast main land routes is also a necessity for the safety of Venetian trade.

Gentile da Fabriano, born Gentile di Nicolo di Giovanni di Massio, begins painting in the International Gothic Style in northern Italy, where his reputation is well established by 1408-1409, when he receives a commission to execute the frescoes (now destroyed) in the Doge's Palace in Venice.

Francesco Bussone, born at Carmagnola, near Turin, in a humble peasant family, had begun his military career when twelve years old under Facino Cane, a condottiero then in the service of Gian Galeazzo Visconti, duke of Milan.

Carmagnola's success has been astonishingly rapid: he has subdued Bergamo, …

…Brescia, …

…Parma, …

…Genoa, and other cities.

Soon the whole duchy has been brought once more under Visconti's sway, but Filippo Maria, although he rewards Carmagnola generously, fears that he might become a danger to himself, and instead of giving him further military commands makes him governor of Genoa.