text:
899

Year 899 (DCCCXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.

Europe

 * Summer – King Arnulf of Carinthia enlists the support of the Magyars, to raid northern Italy. They overrun the Lombard plain all the way to Pavia. King Berengar I assembles a large army against the Magyars, and confronts them near the Adda River. Daunted at the strong force, Árpád (head of the confederation of the Hungarian tribes) offers to make peace and restore much of what they've taken, if they are permitted to leave Italy unmolested. Berengar refuses, and the Magyars withdraw to the Brenta River. Árpád renews his offer, offering to leave all his booty and even some hostages. Again Berengar refuses, and awaits their crossing of the Brenta River for a final battle.
 * September 24 – Battle of the Brenta: The Magyar forces, consisting of 5,000 men, take a circuitous route through the mountains, crossing the Brenta River and proceed south to fall upon the encamped Lombard army (15,000 men) at Cartigliano. The Magyars massacre much of Berengar's unprepared army. He himself manages to escape to Pavia, changing his dress with the clothing of one of his soldiers. Árpád renews the offensive and heads across Lombardy, pillaging the countryside around Treviso, Vicenza, Bergamo and other towns all the way to Vercelli. He turns south and heads down the Aemilian Road, sacking Reggio Emilia, Modena and Bologna.
 * December 8 – Arnulf of Carinthia dies from paralysis following a stroke and is entombed in St. Emmeram's Abbey at Regensburg (Bavaria). He is succeeded by his 6-year-old son Louis III (the Child) as ruler of the East Frankish Kingdom. Arnulf's counselor Hatto I, archbishop of Mainz, becomes regent and guardian of the young king. Louis (possibly at the instigation of Hatto) claims Lotharingia from his half-brother Zwentibold and with the support of the East Frankish nobles he provokes a civil war. The Lombard throne is left temporarily vacant.
 * Winter – The Magyars turn back north towards the shores of the Venetian Lagoon. They pillage Chioggia and Pellestrina, and advance towards Malamocco. Their advance into the lagoon is checked by the assembly of the Venetian fleet under doge Pietro Tribuno, which defeats the Magyar's river crossing vessels at Albiola, causing them to pull back. This close call with the Magyars prompts the Venetians to initiate the fortification of the Rialto and the building of protective chains over the Grand Canal.

Britain

 * October 26 – King Alfred the Great dies after a 28-year reign in which he has forced invading Danish Vikings to withdraw, consolidated England around Wessex, divided parts of Mercia into shires, compiled the best laws of earlier kings, encouraged learning by bringing famous scholars to Wessex and made his own translations of Latin works. He is succeeded by his eldest son, Edward the Elder as king of Wessex.
 * Winter – Æthelwold's Revolt: Following the death of Alfred the Great, Æthelwold (youngest son of the late king Æthelred I) disputes the succession of Edward the Elder. He seizes the royal estates at Wimborne, the ancient symbolic burial place of West Saxon kings, and Christchurch. Edward set up his army camp at Badbury Rings. Æthelwold first declares that he will 'live or die' at Wimborne, but then flees to Northumbria.

Arabian Empire

 * Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Shaybani, Muslim ruler of Diyar Bakr, surrenders at the besieged capital of Amid (modern Turkey) to Caliph Al-Mu'tadid in exchange for clemency. Al-Muktafi, the son of Al-Mu'tadid, is installed as governor of the Jazira (Upper Mesopotamia), ending the semi-independent Shaybanid Dynasty, which has ruled in Diyar Bakr since the 870s.
 * The Qarmatians, led by Abu Sa'id al-Jannabi, capture Bahrain's capital of Hajr and Al-Hasa (Eastern Arabia). Abu Sa'id makes it his residence and establishes a religious utopian republic.

Religion

 * Regino of Prüm, a Benedictine churchman, is expelled from Prüm and becomes abbot of St. Maximin's Abbey (which is destroyed by the Vikings) in Trier.

Births

 * Al-Qahir, Abbasid caliph (d. 950)
 * Gonzalo Fernández, count of Castile (d. 915)
 * Ma Xifan, king of Chu (d. 947)
 * Ma Xisheng, king of Chu (d. 932)
 * Wang Zongyan, emperor of Former Shu (d. 926)
 * Werner V, Frankish nobleman (approximate date)
 * Yelü Bei, prince of the Liao Dynasty (d. 937)

Deaths

 * July 26 – Li Hanzhi, Chinese warlord (b. 842)
 * October 26 – Alfred the Great, king of Wessex (b. 849)
 * December 8 – Arnulf of Carinthia, king of the East Frankish Kingdom
 * Ahmad ibn al-Tayyib al-Sarakhsi, Persian traveler and historian
 * Stylianos Zaoutzes, Byzantine official and minister
 * Sumbat I of Klarjeti, Georgian prince
 * Wang Gong, Chinese warlord
 * Zheng Qi, chancellor of the Tang Dynasty
 * Zoe Zaoutzaina, Byzantine empress consort of Leo VI

title: 899


text:
534

Year 534 (DXXXIV) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Iustinianus and Paulinus (or, less frequently, year 1287 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 534 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * January 1 – Decimus Theodorius Paulinus is appointed consul (the last to hold this office in the West).
 * March – King Gelimer surrenders to Belisarius, after spending a winter in the mountains of Numidia. He and large numbers of captured Vandals are transported to Constantinople. The Vandal Kingdom ends, and the African provinces return to the Byzantine Empire.
 * April – Belisarius leaves a small force in Africa under the Byzantine general Solomon, to continue the subjugation of the province. He is appointed governor (Exarch) and pacifies the Moorish tribes with success. Malta becomes a Byzantine province (until 870).
 * Summer – Belisarius arrives in Constantinople and is permitted by Emperor Justinian I to celebrate a triumph, the first non-imperial triumph for over 500 years. In the procession the spoils of the Temple of Jerusalem and the Vandal treasure are paraded.
 * Justinian I commemorates the victory against the Vandals by stamping medals in his honor with the inscription "Gloria Romanorum" (approximate date).
 * November 16 – A second and final revision of the Codex Justinianus is published.

Europe

 * Toledo becomes the capital of the Visigothic Kingdom that controls the Iberian Peninsula. King Theudis expands Visigoth rule in the southern regions (Hispania Baetica).
 * The Frankish kings Childebert I and Chlothar I overthrow Godomar, king of the Burgundians, and end the Kingdom of Burgundy.
 * Cynric becomes king of Wessex (according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle).
 * October 2 – King Athalaric dies of tuberculosis, age 18, having dissipated his youth in drink and debauchery. His mother, Amalasuntha, proposes to her cousin Theodahad, the kingdom's largest landowner and her father's last male heir, that he share the throne with her but that he will be king of the Ostrogoths in name only. Theodahad has secret conversations with the Byzantine ambassador, and promises to turn over Tuscany in exchange for a large sum of money, the rank of senator, and permission to live at Constantinople.

Births

 * Leander, bishop of Seville (approximate date)
 * Liu Jingyan, empress of the Chen dynasty (d. 616)
 * Ming Di, emperor of the Northern Zhou (d. 560)
 * Taliesin, Welsh poet (approximate date)

Deaths

 * October 2 – Athalaric, king of the Ostrogoths
 * Anthemius of Tralles, architect and mathematician (approximate date)
 * Cerdic, first king of Wessex
 * Godomar, king of Burgundy
 * Marcellinus Comes, Latin chronicler (approximate date)
 * Theuderic I, king of Austrasia (or 533)

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: 534


text:
885

Year 885 (DCCCLXXXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.

Europe

 * Summer – Emperor Charles the Fat summons a meeting of officials at Lobith (modern Netherlands), and accuses Hugh, an illegitimate son of former king Lothair II, and his vassal Godfrid, Duke of Frisia, of plotting against him. Hugh is blinded, and exiled to the Abbey of Saint Gall (modern Switzerland). Godfrid is killed by a group of Frisian and Saxon nobles, at the connivance of Henry of Franconia. The local count, Gerolf, takes over the West Frisian coastline from the Danish, after the murder.
 * Summer – Charles the Fat designates his illegitimate son Bernard as his heir, ignoring the claims of his nephew, Arnulf of Carinthia (illegitimate son of Carloman of Bavaria), and Charles the Simple (5-year-old son of King Louis the Stammerer). The Frankish bishops protest, so Charles summons Pope Adrian III to an assembly in Worms, to resolve the issue. Adrian leaves Rome in the hands of Bishop John of Pavia and heads to Germany, but dies on the way, just after crossing the River Po.
 * November 25 – Siege of Paris: Viking forces, under the Norse chieftains Sigfred and Sinric, sail up the River Seine for eastern France, with a fleet of 300 longships (10,000 men). They appear before Paris, and offer to spare the city if they are allowed free passage, by paying them tribute (Danegeld). Their request is denied.
 * November 27 – The Vikings begin the Siege of Paris by attacking the northeast tower with ballistae, mangonels and catapults. All Viking attacks are repulsed by Odo, Count of Paris, who defends the city with a small garrison (about 200 men). Sigfred decides to withdraw, and builds a camp on the right bank of the river. Meanwhile he mines the city, and scours the countryside for provisions.

Britain

 * King Alfred the Great summons Asser, a relative of Bishop Nobis of St. David's, to the English court. He agrees to spend six months of the year in the king's service. Asser helps to negotiate the recognition of Alfred, as overlord of the Welsh kings.
 * Danish Vikings land in Kent and besiege Rochester. Town defences having been improved, the city holds out long enough for Alfred the Great to organize an army. He forces the Vikings to flee back across the Channel, to the Continent.
 * Kings Hyfaidd of Dyfed, Elisedd of Brycheiniog and Hywel of Glywysing, being harassed by the armies of King Anarawd in Wales, seek the protection of Alfred the Great, and submit to his overlordship. Anarawd seeks an alliance with King Guthred of York.

Arabian Empire

 * Battle of Tawahin: Muslim forces (4,000 men) of the Abbasid Caliphate, under Al-Mu'tadid, are defeated near Ramlah (modern Israel) by Khumarawayh, ruler of the Tulunid dynasty. This ends the Abbasid attempt to recover Syria from the Tulunids. A large part of the Abbasid army is captured, and transported to Egypt. Khumarawayh aims for reconciliation with the caliphal government, and allows the soldiers who want to return to modern-day Iraq to depart without ransom, while offering the rest the opportunity to settle in Egypt.

Religion

 * July 8 – Pope Adrian III dies after a 1½ reign near Modena (Lombardy), while en route to an Imperial Diet, summoned by Charles the Fat at Worms. He is succeeded by Stephen V, as the 110th pope of the Catholic Church.

Births

 * Hyogong, king of Silla (Korea) (d. 912)
 * February 6 – Daigo, emperor of Japan (d. 930)
 * February 11 – Li Congke, emperor of Later Tang (d. 937)
 * December 2 – Zhuang Zong, emperor of Later Tang (d. 926)
 * Atto of Vercelli, Lombard bishop (d. 961)
 * Eberhard III, duke of Franconia (d. 939)
 * Eric Bloodaxe, Norwegian Viking ruler (d. 954)
 * Fujiwara no Onshi, empress of Japan (d. 954)
 * Gao Xingzhou, Chinese general (d. 952)
 * Ibn Muqla, Muslim official and vizier (or 886)
 * Reccared, Galician clergyman (d. 923)
 * Zhao Ying, Chinese chancellor (d. 951)

Deaths

 * April 6 – Methodius, Byzantine missionary and bishop (b. 815)
 * June – Godfrid, Duke of Frisia, 'the Sea King', murdered
 * July 8 – Adrian III, pope of the Catholic Church
 * July 25 – Ragenold, margrave of Neustria, killed
 * July/August – Sulayman ibn Wahb, Muslim official and vizier
 * November 17 – Liutgard of Saxony, Frankish queen
 * Chen Ru, Chinese warlord and governor, killed
 * Gerebald, bishop of Chalon-sur-Saône
 * Mihira Bhoja, king of the Gurjara-Pratihara dynasty (b. 836)
 * Muiredach mac Brain, king of Leinster (Ireland)
 * Zhu Jingmei, Chinese eunuch and military leader, assassinated

title: 885


text:
536

Year 536 (Roman numerals: DXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year after the Consulship of Belisarius.

In 2018, medieval scholar Michael McCormick nominated 536 as "the worst year to be alive" because of the volcanic winter of 536 caused by a volcanic eruption early in the year, causing average temperatures in Europe and China to decline and resulting in crop failures and famine for well over a year.

Eastern Roman ("Byzantine") Empire

 * Spring – Emperor Justinian I appoints his cousin Germanus as magister militum to deal with the crisis in Africa. He sends a mobile force of comitatenses (mostly cavalry) and an elite guard. Solomon, the previous magister militum, returns to Constantinople.
 * Summer – Gothic War (535–554): Belisarius crosses the Strait of Messina and invades Italy. He conquers the city of Rhegium and advances to Naples.
 * November – Siege of Naples: Belisarius captures Naples after a month's siege, by sending troops into the city through an abandoned Roman aqueduct.
 * December 9 – Belisarius enters Rome through the Porta Asinaria, and the Gothic garrison of 4,000 men flees the city. He sends an urgent request for reinforcements to Justinian I, meanwhile preparing Rome for a siege, by bringing in great quantities of food and other supplies.
 * Winter – Belisarius sets up his headquarters on the Pincian Hill, and repairs the neglected city walls of Rome. He stations a 5,000-man garrison, of whom half are his personal bodyguard (bucellarii). To hold parts of the city, he recruits 20,000 young Romans to man the walls.

Europe

 * Early in 536 (possible) – Volcanic winter of 536: Famine is described in the Annals of Ulster.
 * March – Ostrogothic King Theodahad cedes Provence and upper Alamannia to the Franks, gaining their support in the war. He sends a large Gothic army into Dalmatia. They defeat the Byzantines, Mundus is killed during the fighting at Salona, and the Byzantine army withdraws.
 * Summer – Constantinianus, magister militum per Illyricum, retakes Dalmatia. The Goths abandon Salona and withdraw to the north. The Byzantines rebuild its walls and reclaim the province.
 * December – Vitiges deposes his rival Theodahad at Ravenna, and marries Matasuntha (daughter of queen Amalasuntha). He becomes king of the Ostrogoths and assembles an army to fight against Belisarius.

Africa

 * March–April – Belisarius sails to Carthage with 1,000 men, to suppress a mutiny against Solomon. Meanwhile, Carthage is besieged by 9,000 rebels, including many Vandals, under Stotzas.
 * Battle of the River Bagradas: Belisarius defeats the mutineers, and hurries back to Sicily.

Asia

 * January 26 – Senka succeeds his brother Ankan, as the 28th emperor of Japan.
 * August – Volcanic winter of 536: Snow falls in China, which causes the harvest to be delayed.

Religion

 * Before March 13 – Anthimus I is deposed as patriarch of Constantinople in favour of Menas.
 * April 22 – Pope Agapetus I dies in Constantinople, after a reign of just ten months. He is succeeded by Silverius as the 58th pope.
 * May 2–June 4 – Council of Constantinople.
 * September 19 – Council of Jerusalem.
 * The Little Hagia Sophia in Constantinople (begun in 527) is completed as the Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus.

Climate

 * The volcanic winter of 536, thought to have been caused by an extensive veil of dust in the atmosphere, began in the Northern Hemisphere. It continued until the following year, causing unseasonal weather and crop failure worldwide.

Births

 * unknown date – Li Ezi, Chinese empress dowager of Northern Zhou (d. 588)
 * probable
 * Evagrius Scholasticus, Syrian church historian (or 537) (d. 594)
 * Venantius Fortunatus, Merovingian bishop and poet (d. c. 600/609)

Deaths

 * January 25 – Ankan, emperor of Japan (b. c. 466)
 * April 22 – Pope Agapetus I
 * December – Theodahad, king of the Ostrogoths (assassinated) (b. c. 480)
 * unknown date – Mundus, Gepid Byzantine general (killed in action)

title: 536


text:
537

Year 537 (DXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Second year after the Consulship of Belisarius (or, less frequently, year 1290 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 537 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * March 2 – Siege of Rome: The Ostrogothic army (45,000 men) under King Vitiges begins the siege of the city. Belisarius conducts a delaying action outside the Flaminian Gate; he and a detachment of his bucellarii are almost cut off.
 * Vitiges sets up seven camps, overlooking the main gates and access routes to the city, in order to starve it out. He blocks the Roman aqueducts that are supplying Rome with water, necessary both for drinking and for operating the corn mills.
 * March 21 – Vitiges attempts to assault the northern and eastern city walls with four siege towers, but is repulsed at the Praenestine Gate, known as the Vivarium, by the defenders under the Byzantine generals Bessas and Peranius.
 * April – The Goths capture the Portus Claudii at Ostia; the harbor is left unguarded by the Romans. Belisarius is forced to unload his supplies at Antium; he sends urgent messages for reinforcements to Constantinople.
 * April 9 – Belisarius receives his promised reinforcements: 1,600 cavalry, mostly of Hunnic or Slavic origin and expert bowmen. Despite shortages, he starts raids against the Gothic camps and Vitiges is forced into a stalemate.
 * June – In Rome, famine brings the city to despair; Belisarius sends his secretary Procopius to Naples for more reinforcements and supplies. Vitiges arranges a three-month armistice for Gothic envoys to travel to Constantinople.
 * November – Belisarius brings his long-awaited reinforcements, namely 3,000 Isaurians and 1,800 cavalry embarked in Ostia, along with a supply convoy, safely to Rome. The Goths are forced to abandon the Portus Claudii.
 * December – Belisarius sends John "the Sanguinary" with a force of 2,000 men towards Picenum, to plunder the east coast of Italy. He arrives at Ariminum (Rimini), where he is welcomed by the local Roman population.
 * December 27 – The construction of the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople (begun in 532) is completed.

Britain

 * Battle of Camlann: King Arthur fights his last battle against the forces of his rebellious son (or nephew) Mordred, and is mortally wounded (according to the 10th-century Annales Cambriae).

Africa

 * Spring – Battle of Scalas Veteres (6 km south of Carthage, in the Praetorian prefecture of Africa): Byzantine troops under Germanus crush a large-scale mutiny. Stotzas, leader of the rebellion, flees with a handful of followers to Mauretania.

Asia

 * Eastern Wei sends an advance guard of three army columns through the Tong Pass, to attack Western Wei. The Western army under Yu-Wen Tai defeats one of the columns while the others retreat. Yu-Wen follows up, but runs into the main Eastern army (200,000 men). The Westerners are pushed back through the pass, and the Eastern army emerges from the mountains. Unexpectedly they are charged in the flank by 10,000 Western cavalry, and 6,000 Easterners are killed and 70,000 captured.
 * John Cottistis starts a short-lived rebellion against Justinian I. He is declared emperor at Dara, but is killed four days later by conspiring soldiers.

America

 * Yaxchilan captures the ajaws of Bonampak, Lakamtuun, and Calakmul, at the outset of the First Tikal-Calakmul War.

Construction

 * The Aqua Virgo aqueduct is destroyed by the Goths; they try to use the underground channel as a secret route to invade Rome.

Religion

 * March 29 – Pope Vigilius succeeds Silverius as the 59th pope, when the latter is deposed by Belisarius at the order of Justinian I.

Society

 * Second year of worldwide famine, a consequence of the extreme weather events of 535–536.

Births

 * Agilulf, bishop of Metz (approximate date)
 * Chen Chang, prince of the Chen dynasty (d. 560)
 * Gong Di, emperor of Western Wei (d. 557)
 * Wu Cheng Di, emperor of Northern Qi (d. 569)

Deaths

 * December 2 – Pope Silverius
 * King Arthur, King of the Britons, in the Battle of Camlann (historicity debated)
 * Mordred, son (or nephew) of King Arthur, also in the Battle of Camlann
 * Fortunatus, Bishop of Todi
 * Gartnait I, King of the Picts
 * Husi Chun, general of Northern Wei (b. 495)
 * Isidore of Miletus, Byzantine architect
 * John Cottistis, Byzantine usurper
 * Maine mac Cearbhall, king of Uí Maine (or 531)
 * Vigor, Bishop of Bayeux

title: 537


text:
540

Year 540 (DXL) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. In the Roman Empire, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Iustinus without colleague (or, less frequently, year 1293 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 540 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * Emperor Justinian I offers to make peace with Vitiges, but Belisarius refuses to transmit the message. The Ostrogoths then offer to support Belisarius as emperor of the West.
 * May – Gothic War: Belisarius conquers Mediolanum (modern Milan) and the Gothic capital Ravenna. Vitiges and his wife Matasuntha are taken as captives to Constantinople.
 * Belisarius consolidates Italy and begins mopping-up operations, capturing the Gothic fortifications. The cities Ticinum and Verona north of River Po remain in Gothic hands.
 * Ildibad succeeds Vitiges as king of the Ostrogoths, and installs his nephew Totila as commander of the Gothic army. He recaptures Venetia and Liguria in Northern Italy.

Europe

 * In Britain various kingdoms are united by a ruler (High King) or overlord, while wars are fought between others.
 * King Custennin ap Cado is deposed, and returns to Dumnonia in the south-west of Great Britain.

Persia

 * King Khosrau I, jealous of Justinian's victories in the West, receives an embassy from the Ostrogoths at Ctesiphon, urging him to act before the Byzantines become too powerful.
 * Khosrau I breaks the Eternal Peace after eight years. The Persian army marches up the River Euphrates, and follows a path to extract tributes from towns along the way to Antioch.
 * Khosrau I captures Antioch after a fierce siege; he systematically plunders the city to the extent that marble statues and mosaics are transported to Persia.

Africa

 * Solomon captures the Aurès Mountains from the Moors and extends Byzantine authority over Numidia and Mauretania Sitifensis. The city of Theveste (Algeria) is restored and fortified.

Asia

 * Jinheung becomes king of the Korean kingdom of Silla.

Religion

 * Cassiodorus, former Roman statesman, establishes a monastery at his estate in Italy. The Vivarium "monastery school" is for highly educated and sophisticated men, who copy sacred and secular manuscripts, intending for this to be their sole occupation (approximate date).
 * Pope Vigilius rejects Monophysitism in letters to Justinian I and patriarch Menas of Constantinople.
 * Benedict of Nursia writes his monastic rules, containing precepts for his monks (approximate date).

World

 * Global environmental cooling occurs, due either to a comet impact or volcanic eruption in Central America, evidenced by global tree ring growth diminution.   Recent evidence from Swiss ice core points to volcanic eruptions in Iceland. Historical evidence records this earlier as the Extreme weather events of 535–536.

Births

 * Authari, king of the Lombards (approximate date)
 * Columbanus, Irish missionary (or 543)
 * Galswintha, Neustrian queen, married to Chilperic I (d. 568)
 * Garibald I, duke of Bavaria (d. 591)
 * Pope Gregory I (the Great) (d. 604)
 * John of Biclaro, Visigoth chronicler (approximate date)
 * Myrddin Wyllt, Welsh legend (approximate date)

Deaths

 * Dignāga, Buddhist founder of Indian logic
 * Dionysius Exiguus (approximate date)
 * Fridolin of Säckingen Irish missionary
 * Vedast, Frankish bishop
 * Vitiges, king of the Ostrogoths
 * Yifu, empress of Western Wei (b. 510)
 * Yujiulü, empress of Western Wei (b. 525)

title: 540


text:
546

Year 546 (DXLVI) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 546 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * December 17 – Sack of Rome: After almost a year's siege, the capture of a grain fleet sent by the exiled Pope Vigilius near the mouth of the Tiber, and failure of troops of the Byzantine Empire under Belisarius to relieve the city, the Ostrogoths under King Totila plunder Rome and destroy its fortifications. He then withdraws to Apulia (Southern Italy).
 * Winter – Pope Vigilius arrives in Constantinople, to meet with Emperor Justinian I. The future Pope Pelagius is sent by Totila to negotiate with Justinian.

Europe

 * Audoin murders and succeeds Walthari as king of the Lombards.
 * Audoin receives subsidies from Justinian I, to encourage him to battle the Gepids in the Carpathian Mountains.
 * Audoin leads the Lombards across the Danube into Pannonia, and becomes an ally of the Byzantines.

Central America

 * May 5 – After a victory by Calakmul during the First Tikal-Calakmul War, Aj Wosal Chan K'inich is installed as the new ruler of the Mayan city state of Naranjo in Guatemala and reigns until his death in 615.

Religion

 * The Basilica of San Vitale (Ravenna) is completed by bishop Maximianus, during the Byzantine Exarchate of Ravenna.
 * Approximate date – The Diocese of Bangor is established in the Welsh kingdom of Gwynedd, with Deiniol consecrated as first bishop.

Deaths

 * Walthari, king of the Lombards

title: 546


text:
550

Year 550 (DL) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 550 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * Emperor Justinian I appoints Bessas commander (magister militum) of Armenia, and entrusts him with the war in Lazica (Georgia).
 * Siege of Petra (550–551)
 * January 16 – Gothic War: The Ostrogoths under king Totila recapture Rome after a long siege, by bribing the Isaurian garrison.
 * Summer – Totila plunders Sicily, after he subdues Corsica and Sardinia. He sends a Gothic fleet to raid the coasts of Greece.
 * Justinian I sends two Nestorian monks on a mission to Central Asia, to spread Christianity in the East (approximate date).

Europe

 * The Vendel era begins; the name is given to a region in Uppland (an important area of the sagas' account of a Swedish kingdom).

Persia

 * The Sassanid Empire, under the reign of King Khosrow I, controls the trade of silk destined for Europe and the Byzantine Empire.

Asia

 * The Eastern Wei Dynasty ends, and Wen Xuan Di becomes emperor of Northern Qi. He forces Xiao Jing Di to yield the throne.
 * Wen Xuan Di adopts a defensive policy towards the hostile northern tribes; he builds over 1,000 miles of walls on the border.
 * The Gupta Empire falls; India is again ruled by regional kingdoms (approximate date).

Americas

 * Construction of Quiriguá (Guatemala) begins (approximate date).
 * The last known eruption of Chimborazo (modern Ecuador) occurs.

Arts and sciences

 * Hindu mathematicians give zero a numeral representation in a positional notation system.
 * Procopius writes the Secret History (approximate date).

Religion

 * The churches of Lazica (Georgia) and Armenia split. While the Armenian Church remains independent, the Georgian church unites with the Byzantine Empire. This ecclesiastical union deepens political and cultural contact between the two states. As a sign of Lazica's status vis-à-vis Byzantium, Lazic princes are vested with honorific titles of the Byzantine court, including kouropalates, or "minister of the imperial palace" (approximate date).
 * The main redaction of the Babylonian Talmud is completed under Rabbis Ravina and Ashi (approximate date).
 * Chararic, king of the Suevi, converts to Catholicism.
 * In Ireland, the Diocese of Tuam is erected.

Births

 * probable
 * Pope Boniface IV (approximate date)
 * Finbarr of Cork, Irish bishop (approximate date)
 * Gallus, Irish missionary (approximate date)
 * Gaugericus, bishop of Cambrai (approximate date)
 * John Moschus, Byzantine monk (approximate date)
 * Peter III of Callinicum, Syriac Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch (approximate date)

Deaths

 * May 8 – Desideratus, French saint
 * exact date unknown
 * Aryabhata, Indian mathematician-astronomer (b. 476)
 * Buddhapālita, Indian Madhyamaka scholar (b. 470)
 * Drest V, king of the Picts
 * Germanus, Byzantine general (magister militum)
 * probable
 * Dubricius, British bishop and saint
 * Eustathius of Mtskheta, Orthodox Christian saint

title: 550


text:
552

Year 552 (DLII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 552 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Events

 * July 11 – the Armenian calendar is introduced.

Byzantine Empire

 * July 1 – Battle of Taginae: Narses crosses the Apennines with a Byzantine army (25,000 men). He is blocked by a Gothic force under king Totila near Taginae (Central Italy). In a narrow mountain valley, Narses deploys his army in a "crescent shaped" formation. He dismounts his Lombard and Heruli cavalry mercenaries, placing them as a phalanx in the centre. On his left flank he sends out a mixed force of foot and horse archers to seize a dominant height. The Goths open the battle with a determined cavalry charge. Halted by enfilading fire from both sides, the attackers are thrown back in confusion on the infantry behind them. The Byzantine cataphracts (Clibanarii) sweep into the milling mass. More than 6,000 Goths, including Totila, are killed. The remnants flee, and Narses proceeds to Rome, where he captures the city after a brief siege.
 * Emperor Justinian I dispatches a small Byzantine force (2,000 men) under Liberius to Hispania, according to the historian Jordanes. He conquers Cartagena and other cities on the southeastern coast.
 * Justinian I receives the first silkworm eggs from two Nestorian monks at Constantinople. They were sent to Central Asia (see 550) and smuggled the precious eggs from China hidden in rods of bamboo.

Europe

 * Battle of Asfeld: The Lombards under King Audoin defeat the Gepids.
 * Cynric, king of Wessex, captures the fortress city of Old Sarum.
 * The Roman Catholic Diocese of Meath is established in Ireland.
 * Teia becomes the last king of the Ostrogoths in Italy.

Asia

 * July 11 – First year of the Armenian calendar.
 * Yuan Di succeeds Xiao Dong as emperor of the Liang dynasty.
 * Bumin Qaghan dies; the new khagan is Issik Qaghan of the Turkic Empire.
 * Buddhism in Japan is introduced, according to the Nihon Shoki.

Industry

 * Smuggling of silkworm eggs into the Byzantine Empire by monks allows development of the Byzantine silk industry in the Empire.

Religion

 * Eutychius becomes patriarch of Constantinople.

Births

 * Æthelberht, king (bretwalda) of Kent (approximate date)
 * John the Merciful, patriarch of Alexandria (approximate date)

Deaths

 * February 5 – Dacius, archbishop of Milan
 * July 1 – Totila, king of the Ostrogoths
 * December 13 – Columba of Terryglass, Irish abbot and saint
 * Aba I, patriarch of the Church of the East
 * Anicius Maximus, Roman patrician
 * Aratius, Armenian general
 * Bumin Qaghan, ruler of the Göktürks
 * Hou Jing, regent of the Liang dynasty
 * Menas, patriarch of Constantinople
 * Turismod, prince of the Lombards
 * Wang Wei, chief strategist of the Liang dynasty
 * Xiao Dong, emperor of the Liang dynasty
 * Xiaojing, emperor of Eastern Wei (b. 524)

title: 552


text:
554

Year 554 (DLIV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 554 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * August 13 – Byzantine Emperor Justinian I issues a pragmatic sanction reorganizing Italy, and rewards the praetorian prefect Liberius for over 60 years of distinguished service, granting him extensive estates in Italy.
 * August 15 – The 554 Anatolia earthquake takes place in the southwest coasts of Anatolia (Asia Minor). It affects the Güllük Gulf (Mandalya Gulf), and the island of Kos.
 * October – Battle of the Volturnus: In the spring Butilinus (Buccelin) has marched north; the Frankish army (infected by an epidemic of dysentery which kills their leader Leutharis (Lothair)) is reduced to about 30,000 men. The Byzantine army, with 18,000 men (including a contingent of Goths under Aligern), marches south to meet them at Casilinum (on the banks of the River Volturno). Byzantine eunuch general Narses sends a cavalry force under Chanaranges to destroy the supply wagons of the Franks. Outmanoeuvring Butilinus, he chooses a disposition similar to that at Taginae. After a frontal assault on the Byzantine centre, the Franks and the Alamanni are annihilated, thus effectively ending the Gothic War (535–554). Narses garrisons an army of 16,000 men in Italy. The recovery of the Italian Peninsula has cost the empire about 300,000 pounds of gold.

Europe

 * Byzantine forces under Liberius seize Granada (Andalusia) and occupy the old province of Baetica. Justinian I calls Belisarius out of retirement, to complete the consolidation of reconquered regions of Southern Spain.
 * Athanagild is crowned as king of the Visigoths and succeeds Agila I. He acknowledges the suzerainty of the Byzantine Empire.

Asia

 * Al-Mundhir III ibn al-Nu'man is defeated and killed by the Ghassanids under al-Harith ibn Jabalah, at the battle of Yawm Halima; 'Amr III ibn al-Mundhir succeeds as king of the Lakhmids.
 * Gong Di succeeds his brother Fei Di as emperor of Western Wei. He is deposed by general Yuwen Tai who puts him to death.
 * The province of Jiangling (Central China) is captured; 100,000 inhabitants are enslaved and distributed to generals and officials.
 * Wei Shou completes compilation of the Book of Wei.
 * Baekje and the Gaya Confederacy wage war upon Silla, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, but are defeated.
 * Wideok becomes king of the Korean kingdom of Baekje.
 * Muqan Qaghan succeeds his brother Issik Qaghan as emperor (khagan) of the Göktürks.
 * The second and larger of the two Buddhas of Bamyan is erected in central Afghanistan.

Religion

 * Cassiodorus, Roman statesman, founds the Monastery at Vivarium (approximate date).

Births

 * exact date unknown
 * Fei (Chen Bozong), emperor of the Chen dynasty (d. 570)
 * Suiko, empress of Japan (d. 628)
 * probable Wendelin of Trier, Germanic hermit and abbot

Deaths

 * March - Agila I, king of the Visigoths
 * exact date unknown
 * Al-Mundhir III ibn al-Nu'man, king of the Lakhmids (Iraq)
 * Fei Di (Yuan Qin), emperor of Western Wei
 * Mermeroes, Persian general
 * Seong, king of Baekje (Korea)
 * probable
 * Liberius, Roman aristocrat
 * Yuwen, empress of Western Wei

title: 554


text:
558

Year 558 (DLVIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 558 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * May 7 – In Constantinople, the dome of the Hagia Sophia collapses due to an earthquake. Emperor Justinian I orders the dome to be rebuilt.

Europe

 * The Avars and the Slavs occupy the Hungarian Plain on the Balkans. The threat of Avar domination prompts the Lombards to migrate to Italy.
 * December 13 – King Chlothar I reunites the Frankish Kingdom after his brother Childebert I dies, becoming sole ruler of the Franks.
 * December 23 – Chlothar I is crowned King of the Franks.
 * Conall mac Comgaill becomes king of Dál Riata, a Gaelic overkingdom on the western coast of Scotland.

Asia

 * Istämi, ruler of the Western Turkic Khaganate, establishes diplomatic relations with the Byzantine Empire.

Religion

 * December 23 – The Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés is dedicated by Germain, bishop of Paris.
 * The Bangor Abbey is founded by the Irish abbot Comgall in Northern Ireland (approximate date).

Births

 * Gao Yan, prince of Northern Qi (d. 571)
 * Yu Shinan, calligrapher and official (d. 638)

Deaths

 * May 1 – Marcouf, missionary and saint
 * May 13 – John the Silent, bishop and saint
 * May 15 – Hilary of Galeata, Christian monk
 * December 13 – Childebert I, king of the Franks
 * Abraham of Kratia, Christian monk (approximate date)
 * Empress Dugu, Northern Zhou consort
 * Gabrán mac Domangairt, king of Dál Riata
 * Jing Di, emperor of the Liang Dynasty (b. 543)

title: 558


text:
559

Year 559 was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 559 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * Winter – The Kutrigurs and Huns under Zabergan cross the frozen Danube River, and invade the Balkans. They raid Thracia and Macedonia, but are driven back near Constantinople by a Byzantine force under Belisarius.
 * Battle of Melantias: Outside the city walls of Constantinople, Belisarius defeats the combined "barbarians" with his veteran cavalry (bucellarii), and a few thousand hastily raised levies.

Britain

 * Glappa succeeds his father Ida as king of Bernicia (North East England). During his rule, Anglian settlers expand their territory in what is now southeastern Scotland.

Asia

 * First successful human flight: a kite carrying Yuan Huangtou lands in the proximity of Ye, China. Emperor Wen Xuan Di sponsors the flight; Yuan is taken prisoner; other imprisoned kite flyers also fly, but those die and Yuan survives. Yuan is executed afterwards.
 * Wen Di, age 37, succeeds his uncle Chen Wu Di as emperor of the Chen dynasty. During his reign, he consolidates the state against the rebellious warlords.
 * The city-state Ara Gaya, a member of the Gaya confederacy, surrenders to Silla in the Korean peninsula.
 * Pyeongwon becomes ruler of the Korean kingdom of Goguryeo.

Births

 * Reccared I, king of the Visigoths (d. 601)
 * Wu Shihuo, father of Wu Zetian (d. 635)
 * Xuan Di, emperor of Northern Zhou (d. 580)

Deaths

 * Chen Wu Di, emperor of the Chen dynasty (b. 503)
 * Ida, king of Bernicia (approximate date)
 * Leonard of Noblac, Frankish abbot and saint
 * Wen Xuan Di, emperor of Northern Qi (b. 529)

title: 559


text:
560

Year 560 (DLX) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 560 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Europe

 * Alboin succeeds his father Audoin after his death, as king of the Lombards.

Britain

 * Adda succeeds his brother Glappa as king of Bernicia (approximate date).
 * Ælla becomes king of Deira (this according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle).
 * Ceawlin succeeds his father Cynric as king of Wessex (approximate date).
 * Custennin ap Cado abdicates as king of Dumnonia (South West England).
 * Elidyr of Strathclyde invades Gwynedd (Wales) and tries to expel his brother-in-law, king Rhun Hir ap Maelgwn.

Religion

 * Columba quarrels with Finnian of Moville over authorship of a psalter, leading to a pitched battle the next year.

Births

 * Abu Sufyan ibn Harb, Arabic leader (d. 652)
 * Constantina, Byzantine empress (approximate date)
 * Eustace of Luxeuil, abbot (approximate date)
 * Isidore of Seville, archbishop and scholar
 * Richarius, Frankish hermit and monk (approximate date)
 * Sophronius, patriarch of Jerusalem (d. 638)
 * Tassilo I, duke of Bavaria (d. 610)

Deaths

 * Aspasius of Auch, bishop of Éauze
 * Audoin, king of the Lombards (approximate date)
 * Chen Chang, prince of the Chen dynasty (b. 537)
 * Clodoald, Merovingian prince (approximate date) (b. 522)
 * Cynric, king of Wessex
 * Domitian of Huy, Frankish bishop and saint
 * Glappa, king of Bernicia (approximate date)
 * Ming Di, emperor of Northern Zhou (b. 534)
 * Thurisind, king of the Gepids (approximate date)
 * Yang Yin, official of Northern Qi (b. 511)

title: 560


text:
561

Year 561 (DLXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 561 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Europe

 * November 29 – King Chlothar I ("the Old") dies at Compiègne at age 64. The Merovingian dynasty is continued by his four sons (Charibert I, Guntram, Sigebert I and Chilperic I), who divide the Frankish Kingdom and rule from the capitals at Paris, Orléans, Reims and Soissons, respectively.

Britain

 * The Battle of Cúl Drebene (modern Ireland) is fought between the Northern and Southern Uí Néill (approximate date).

Asia

 * Winter – Wu Cheng Di succeeds his brother Xiao Zhao Di, who dies from injuries suffered while hunting, as Chinese emperor of Northern Qi.

Americas

 * Sky Witness is crowned as leader of Calakmul.

Religion

 * March 4 – Pope Pelagius I dies in Rome after a five-year reign, and is succeeded by John III as the 61st pope.
 * Jnanagupta, a Buddhist monk from Gandhara (Pakistan), begins translating Buddhist texts into Chinese.
 * The First Council of Braga is held. The council condemns the doctrine of Priscillianism.

Births

 * Yang Lihua, empress of Northern Zhou (d. 609)

Deaths

 * March 4 – Pope Pelagius I
 * November 29 – Chlothar I, king of the Franks
 * Chram, Frankish prince and son of Chlothar I
 * Fei Di, emperor of Northern Qi (b. 545)
 * Xiao Zhao Di, emperor of Northern Qi (b. 535)

title: 561


text:
563

Year 563 (DLXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 563 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * Emperor Justinian I pardons Belisarius; he orders his release from prison, and restores his properties and honours. He permits the general to live in obscurity, and gives him a veterans' pension.
 * The new Hagia Sophia (cost: 20,000 pounds of gold ), with its numerous chapels and shrines, octagonal dome and mosaics, becomes the centre and most visible monument of Eastern Orthodoxy.

Europe

 * Tauredunum event: A mountain landslide into the Rhone river destroys a fort and two villages, and creates a tsunami in Lake Geneva. The wave which reaches Lausanne is thirteen metres high, and eight metres high by the time it hits Geneva. Describing the event, Marius Aventicensis writes that the tsunami "devastated very old villages with their men and cattle, it even destroyed many sacred places", and swept away "the bridge in Geneva, windmills and men".

Religion

 * Columba, Irish missionary monk, travels to Scotland with twelve companions. He lands on the Kintyre Peninsula, near Southend, and begins his evangelising mission to the Picts. On the island of Iona, he founds a monastery (Iona Abbey) on the west coast in the Inner Hebrides.

Births

 * Andreas of Caesarea, bishop and writer (d. 637)
 * Chindasuinth, king of the Visigoths (d. 653)

Deaths

 * January –Cutzinas, Berber chieftain
 * Hou Andu, general of the Chen dynasty (b. 520)
 * Wang, empress of the Liang dynasty

title: 563


text:
573

Year 573 (DLXXIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 573 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * Byzantine–Sassanid War: Persian forces under the command of King Khosrau I capture the Byzantine stronghold of Dara, after a six-month siege. Meanwhile, a smaller Persian army under Adarmahan advances from Babylon through the desert, crosses the Euphrates River and ravages Syria. The cities of Apamea and Antiochia are plundered.

Europe

 * King Sigibert I goes to war against his half brother Chilperic I of Neustria at the urging of his wife, Brunhilda. He appeals to the Germans on the right bank of the Rhine for help, and they obligingly attack the environs of Paris and Chartres.
 * The Lombards again raid Southern Gaul, but are defeated by the Franks under Mummolus, patricius and son of the Gallo-Roman count of Auxerre, and are driven out.
 * King Cleph completes the Lombard conquest of Tuscany (Central Italy) and extends his dominion to the gates of Ravenna.
 * Sigibert I appoints Gregory to succeed his mother's cousin, Eufronius, as bishop of Tours (approximate date).

Britain

 * The Battle of Arfderydd is fought between Gwenddoleu ap Ceidio and the sons of Eliffer, Gwrgi and Peredur. The forces of Gwenddoleu are killed, and Myrddin Wyllt goes mad watching this defeat (according to the Annales Cambriae).

Religion

 * Pope John III is forced by the Lombards to retire from Rome, and takes up residence at the Catacombs along the Via Appia (approximate date).

Births

 * Abu Bakr, Muslim Caliph (approximate date)
 * Chen Yin, crown prince of the Chen dynasty
 * Dou Jiande, general of the Sui dynasty (d. 621)
 * Jing Di, emperor of Northern Zhou (d. 581)
 * Lupus of Sens, French bishop (approximate date)

Deaths

 * June 11 – Emilian of Cogolla, Iberic saint (b. 472)
 * Brendan of Birr, Irish abbot (approximate date)
 * Gwenddoleu ap Ceidio, Brythonic king
 * Narses, Byzantine general (b. 478)
 * Wang Lin, Chinese general (b. 526)

title: 573


text:
577

Year 577 (DLXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 577 for this year has been used since early medieval times, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * Byzantine–Sassanid War: A Byzantine expeditionary force under command of Justinian (magister militum) invades Caucasian Albania, launching raids across the Caspian Sea against the Persians.
 * Summer – Tiberius, Byzantine co-ruler (Caesar), establishes a naval base at Derbent on the Caspian Sea to construct a Byzantine fleet (approximate date).
 * Winter – Maurice is appointed commander-in-chief of the Byzantine army in the East. He succeeds Justinian, despite complete lack of military experience.

Europe

 * Battle of Deorham: The Anglo-Saxons under Ceawlin of Wessex invade the lower Severn Valley, and defeat the British Celts at Dyrham (South West England). After the battle, the Saxons occupy the three cities: Cirencester, Gloucester and Bath, bringing their advance to the Bristol Channel (according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle).
 * Reccopolis (modern Zorita de los Canes) in Hispania is founded by King Liuvigild, in honour of his son Reccared.

Asia

 * Winter – Northern Qi, one of the Northern Dynasties, is conquered by Northern Zhou under Emperor Wu Di. He orders the last ruler (Gao Wei) and other members of the Gao clan to commit suicide. Northern China, above the Yangtze River, is once again brought under the control of a single power.

Religion

 * The Temple of Dendur, dedicated to the Egyptian gods Isis, Harpocrates (Horus) and Osiris, is converted for use as a Christian church (approximate date).
 * Eutychius is restored as patriarch of Constantinople, after an exile of 12 years at Amasia (modern Turkey).
 * Muhammad, age 6, returns to his immediate family, but within a year his mother Aminah bint Wahb dies.

Science and Invention

 * A predecessor of the modern match, small sticks of pinewood impregnated with sulfur, are first used in China. Besieged by military forces of Northern Zhou and Chen, Northern Qi court ladies use the "lighting sticks" to start fires for cooking and heating.

Births

 * Pope Agatho (approximate date)
 * Princess Ningyuan, Chinese princess
 * Uthman ibn Affan, Muslim Caliph (d. 656)

Deaths

 * August 31 – John Scholasticus, patriarch of Constantinople
 * Aldate, bishop and saint
 * Aminah bint Wahb, mother of Muhammad
 * Brendan, Irish abbot (approximate date)
 * Gao Heng, emperor of Northern Qi (b. 570)
 * Gao Wei, emperor of Northern Qi (b. 557)
 * Gao Yanzong, prince of Northern Qi
 * Lu Lingxuan, noblewoman of Northern Qi
 * Mu Tipo, high official of Northern Qi
 * Xiao Zhuang, prince of the Southern Dynasties (b. 548)

title: 577


text:
581

Year 581 (DLXXXI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 581 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * Byzantine–Sasanian War: A Byzantine army commanded by Maurice, and supported by Ghassanid forces under King Al-Mundhir III, fails to capture the Persian capital, Ctesiphon, along the Euphrates.
 * Maurice accuses Mundhir III of treason, and brings him to Constantinople to face trial. Emperor Tiberius II Constantine treats him well, and allows Mundhir with his family a comfortable residence.
 * Al-Nu'man VI, son (de facto) of Mundhir III, revolts with the Ghassanids against the Byzantine Empire, after his father is treacherously arrested.

Europe

 * Palace coup in Austrasia: New advisors break the peace treaty with King Guntram, and make a new alliance with his half brother Chilperic I, in which Childebert II, age 11, is recognized as Chilperic's heir.
 * The Lombards under Zotto, Duke of Benevento, sack the abbey of Monte Cassino near Naples. The Benedictine monks who survive flee to Rome, but they return to the site, and rebuild the monastery.
 * The Göktürks under Taspar Qaghan besiege the city of Chersonesos Taurica (modern Ukraine), located at the Black Sea; their cavalry keep plundering the steppes of the Crimean Peninsula until 590.

Britain

 * The Anglo-Saxons under Ælla conquer Deira (Northern England) from the Britons. He becomes the first king of Deira (according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle).

Asia

 * The Northern Zhou dynasty ends: Yáng Jiān executes the last ruler, 8-year-old Jing Di, along with 58 royal relatives at Chang'an. He proclaims himself emperor, and establishes the Sui dynasty in China.
 * The "Great City of Helu", situated on the shores of Taihu Lake, is renamed Suzhou during the Sui dynasty (approximate date).
 * In the Turkic Empire an interregnum begins, since there are several candidates to the throne: Talopien (late khagan's candidate), Ishbara (Kurultai's choice) and Tardu (western yabghu).
 * Ishbara Qaghan, grandson of Bumin Qaghan, becomes the new ruler (khagan) of the Turkic Khaganate (Central Asia).
 * The Sui dynasty begins.

Literature

 * Maurice writes an encyclopedic work on the science of war (the Strategikon), which exercises a major influence on the military system.

Religion

 * Second Council of Mâcon: In a council of Christian bishops in Mâcon (Burgundy), Jews are prohibited from serving as judges or customs officers.

Births

 * Sun Simiao, Chinese medicine doctor (approximate date)
 * Yan Shigu, Chinese author of the Tang dynasty (d. 645)

Deaths

 * Feng Xiaolian, concubine of Gao Wei (approximate date)
 * Jing Di, Chinese emperor of Northern Zhou (b. 573)
 * Taspar Qaghan, ruler (khagan) of the Göktürks

title: 581


text:
584

Year 584 (DLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 584 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Europe

 * September – King Chilperic I is stabbed to death while returning from a hunt near Chelles, after a 23-year reign over a territory extending from Aquitaine, to the northern seacoast of what later will be France. His wife Fredegund, who has paid for his assassination, seizes his wealth, flees to Paris with her son Chlothar II, and persuades the nobles to accept him as legitimate heir while she serves as regent, continuing her power struggles with Guntram, king of Burgundy, and her sister Brunhilda, queen mother of Austrasia.
 * The Lombards re-establish a unified monarchy after a 10-year interregnum (Rule of the Dukes). Threatened by a Frankish invasion that the dukes have provoked, they elect Authari (son of Cleph) as their king and give him the capital of Pavia (Northern Italy).
 * The Visigoths under King Liuvigild capture the city of Seville, after a siege of nearly 2 years. His rebellious son Hermenegild seeks refuge in a church at Córdoba, but is arrested and banished to Tarragona. His wife Inguld flees with her son to Africa.
 * The Exarchate of Ravenna is founded, and organised into a group of duchies, mainly coastal cities on the Italian Peninsula. The civil and military head of these Byzantine territories is the exarch (governor) in Ravenna.
 * The Slavs push south on the Balkan Peninsula – partly in conjunction with the Avars under their ruler (khagan) Bayan I – ravaging the cities Athens and Corinth, and threatening the Long Walls of Constantinople.
 * King Eboric is deposed by his mother (second husband Andeca) who becomes the new ruler of the Kingdom of Galicia (Northern Spain) and the Suevi.
 * Gundoald, illegitimate son of Chlothar I, tries to expend his territory from Brive-la-Gaillarde (Burgundy) and proclaims himself king (approximate date).

Britain

 * Battle of Fethanleigh: King Ceawlin of Wessex is defeated by the Britons. He ravages the surrounding countryside in revenge (approximate date).

Asia

 * Emperor Wéndi of the Sui dynasty organises the Grand Canal. He builds ships for transportation and grain stores are located at strategic points.

Births

 * Amand, bishop and saint (approximate date)
 * Chlothar II, king of the Franks (d. 629)
 * Yang Zhao, prince of the Sui dynasty (d. 606)

Deaths

 * April 15 – Ruadhán of Lorrha, Irish abbot and saint
 * Chilperic I, king of Neustria (or Soissons)
 * Deiniol, bishop of Bangor (Wales)
 * Ingund, wife of Visigoth prince Hermenegild
 * Maurus, Roman abbot and saint (b. 512)
 * Approximate date – Bridei I, king of the Picts

title: 584


text:
585

Year 585 (DLXXXV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 585 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Europe

 * King Childebert II, age 15, takes up his sole rule of Austrasia. A Frankish army under King Guntram marches to Comminges (Pyrenees), and besieges the citadel of Saint-Bertrand.
 * July – Gundoald, Merovingian usurper king, and his followers are defeated during the siege of Saint-Bertrand. He is executed and Guntram stages a triumphal entry into Orléans.
 * The Visigoths under King Liuvigild devastate the Suevic Kingdom in Gallaecia (northwest Spain). After the conquest, Liuvigild reintroduces the Arian Church among the Sueves.
 * Winter – Famine strikes Gaul (according to Gregory of Tours). Traders plunder the people by selling scarcely a peck of grain or half measure of wine for the third of a gold piece.

Persia

 * The Persian commander, Kardarigan ("black hawk"), begins an unsuccessful siege of Monokarton (modern Turkey).

Britain

 * Hussa succeeds his brother Frithuwald as king of Bernicia (approximate date).
 * Creoda becomes king of Mercia (according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle).

Asia

 * September 15 – Emperor Bidatsu, age 47, dies of smallpox after a 13-year reign, and is succeeded by his brother Yōmei as the 31st emperor of Japan.
 * Emperor Xiao Jing Di succeeds his father Xiao Ming Di as ruler of the Liang dynasty (China).

Religion

 * King Wideok of Baekje (Korea) sends an official escort (bearing tribute), along with a master of Buddhist meditation, a reciter of Buddhist magic spells, a temple architect, and a sculptor of Buddhist images, to the Chinese court of the Sui dynasty (approximate date).
 * The Armenian bishop Kardutsat goes with 7 priests, on a missionary trip to the steppes north of the Caucasus. He succeeds in baptizing many Huns and in translating books into their language.
 * Columbanus, Irish missionary, gathers 12 companions for his journey to Britain, probably to the Scottish coast. After a short time, he crosses the English Channel and lands in Brittany (France).
 * Zhiyi, Chinese monk, returns to the city of Jinling, where he completes his commentarial works on the Lotus Sutra.

Births

 * Du Ruhui, chancellor of the Tang dynasty (d. 630)
 * Edwin of Northumbria, king of Deira and Bernicia (d. 633)
 * Goar of Aquitaine, priest and hermit (approximate date)
 * Yang Jian, imperial prince of the Sui dynasty (d. 618)
 * Yuchi Gong, general of the Tang dynasty (d. 658)
 * Khalid Ibn Al-Walid, general of the rashidun Caliphate (d. 642)

Deaths

 * April 13 – Hermenegild, Visigothic prince (or 586)
 * September 14 – Bidatsu, emperor of Japan (b. 538)
 * Cassiodorus, Roman statesman and writer (approximate date)
 * Frithuwald, king of Bernicia (approximate date)
 * Gundoald, Merovingian usurper king (approximate date)
 * John of Ephesus, Armenian bishop (approximate date)
 * Rigunth, daughter of Chilperic I (b. 570)
 * Xiao Ming Di, emperor of the Liang dynasty (b. 542)

title: 585


text:
586

Year 586 (DLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 586 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * Spring – Emperor Maurice rejects a peace proposal of the Persians, in exchange for renewed payments in gold.
 * Battle of Solachon: A Byzantine army under command of Philippicus defeats the Sassanid Persians, near Dara.
 * The Avars besiege Thessalonica (Central Macedonia), the second city of the Byzantine Empire.
 * The Vlachs are first mentioned in a Byzantine chronicle (approximate date).

Europe

 * April 21 – King Liuvigild dies at Toledo after an 18-year reign, and is succeeded by his second son Reccared I.
 * Slavs advance to the gates of Thessaloniki and the Peloponnese.
 * Avars destroy a lien of Roman camps along the Danubian Limes, including Oescus and Ratiaria.

Art

 * The Page with the Crucifixion, from the "Rabbula Gospels", at the Monastery of St. John in Beth Zagba (Syria), is completed. It is now kept at the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, Florence, Italy.

Religion

 * Japanese Buddhism comes under attack as a "foreign" religion.
 * Saint Comgall founds an abbey in Bangor, Northern Ireland.
 * King Custennin of Dumnonia is converted to Christianity.

Births

 * Theudebert II, king of Austrasia (d. 612)
 * Yang Hao, prince of the Sui dynasty (approximate date)

Deaths

 * April 21 – Liuvigild, king of the Visigoths
 * Hermenegild, Visigothic prince (or 585)
 * Prætextatus, bishop of Rouen (or 589)
 * Rhun Hir ap Maelgwn, king of Gwynedd
 * Zhu Manyue, empress of Northern Zhou (b. 547)

title: 586


text:
587

Year 587 (DLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 587 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Eastern Roman Empire

 * Emperor Maurice builds more fortifications along the Danube frontier, separating the Byzantine Empire from the realm of the Avars and Slavs (approximate date).
 * Comentiolus, Byzantine general (magister militum), assembles an army of 10,000 men at Anchialus (modern Bulgaria). He prepares an ambush for the Avars in the Haemus Mountains.

Europe

 * King Guntram sends envoys to Brittany, to stop the raiding on Frankish territory. He compels obedience from Waroch II and demands 1,000 solidus for looting Nantes.
 * King Reccared I renounces Arianism and adopts Catholicism. Many Visigothic nobles follow his example, but in Septimania (Southern Gaul) there are Arian uprisings.
 * November 28 – Treaty of Andelot: Guntram recognizes King Childebert II of Austrasia as heir. He signs a treaty with Queen Brunhilda at Andelot-Blancheville.
 * Winter – Childebert II appoints Uncelen as the Duke of Alemannia (approximate date).

Britain

 * Sledd succeeds his father Æscwine as king of Essex (approximate date).

Asia

 * Battle of Shigisan: The Soga clan, which has intermarried with the royal Yamato clan, fights the Mononobe and Nakatomi clans over influence in selecting a new successor for the Japanese throne, after Emperor Yōmei dies. The Soga favor importing Buddhism from the Asian mainland, described there as the religion of the most civilized. The Mononobe and Nakatomi hold that Buddhism would be an affront to the gods. The Soga win the civil war and Sushun, age 66, becomes the 32nd emperor of Japan.
 * Fall – The Liang dynasty ends: Emperor Wéndi of the Sui dynasty abolishes Western Liang and expands his territory into the lower valley of the Yangtze River. He sends his official Gao Jiong to the capital Jiangling, to pacify the citizens. The former emperor Xiao Jing Di becomes a vassal and is named the Duke of Liang.
 * Bagha Qaghan becomes the seventh ruler (khagan) of the Turkic Kaganate.

Religion

 * The filioque clause is first used in the Nicene Creed, against the Arians in Visigothic Spain (approximate date).

Births

 * Soga no Emishi, statesman of Japan (d. 645)
 * Theuderic II, king of Austrasia (d. 613)
 * Zhang Xingcheng, chancellor of the Tang dynasty (d. 653)

Deaths

 * April – Yōmei, emperor of Japan (b. 518)
 * August 13 – Radegund, Frankish princess
 * Æscwine, king of Essex (approximate date)
 * Ishbara Qaghan, ruler (khagan) of the Göktürks
 * Mononobe no Moriya, clan leader (Ō-muraji)
 * Varāhamihira, Indian astronomer (b. 505)

title: 587


text:
588

Year 588 (DLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 588 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * Byzantine-Sassanid War: Unpaid Byzantine troops mutiny against Priscus (magister militum per Orientem). King Hormizd IV begins a Persian offensive, but is defeated at Martyropolis (modern Turkey).
 * Summer – Guaram I of Iberia, Georgian prince in exile, is sent by Emperor Maurice to the city of Mtskheta (Georgia). He restores the monarchy and is bestowed with the Byzantine court title of curopalates.

Europe

 * The Franks and Burgundians under King Guntram and his nephew Childebert II invade Northern Italy, but suffer a disastrous defeat against the Lombards.
 * The Lombard Kingdom (Italy) is converted to Roman Catholicism under the rule of King Authari (approximate date).

Britain

 * Æthelric succeeds his father Ælla as king of Deira in Northern England (according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle).

Persia

 * First Perso-Turkic War: A Persian army (12,000 men) under Bahrām Chobin, supported by Cataphracts (heavy cavalry), ambush the invading Turks, and win a great victory at the Battle of the Hyrcanian Rock.

Asia

 * Emperor Wéndi of the Sui dynasty prepares a campaign against the Chen dynasty. He amasses 518,000 troops along the northern bank of the Yangtze River, stretching from Sichuan to the Pacific Ocean.

Religion

 * The Skellig Michael monastery is founded on a steep rocky island off the coast of Ireland (approximate date).
 * The Guanghua Temple in Putian (China) is built during the Chen dynasty, under Emperor Chen Wu Di.

Births

 * Eligius, bishop and saint (approximate date)
 * Suintila, king of the Visigoths (approximate date)
 * Yu Zhining, chancellor of the Tang dynasty (d. 665)

Deaths

 * Áed mac Bricc, Irish bishop and saint
 * Ælla, king of Deira (approximate date)
 * Agericus, bishop of Verdun
 * Fridianus, Irish prince and saint
 * Li Ezi, empress of Northern Zhou (b. 536)
 * Monulph, bishop of Maastricht

title: 588


text:
482

Year 482 (CDLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severinus and Illus (or, less frequently, year 1235 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 482 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * Emperor Zeno promulgates an Edict of Union (Henotikon), in an unsuccessful effort to soften the decision made at the Council of Chalcedon (451), and resolve differences between the Eastern and Western Churches. Zeno wishes to placate the Monophysite churches of Egypt, Palestine and Syria for political reasons.

Eastern Europe

 * Kyiv is founded, on the banks of the Dnieper River.

China

 * Prince Qi Wudi succeeds his father Qi Gaodi, and becomes emperor of Southern Qi.

Births

 * Justinian I, emperor of the Byzantine Empire (d. 565)

Deaths

 * January 8 – Severinus of Noricum, monk and saint
 * Ailill Molt, High King of Ireland (approximate date)
 * Qi Gaodi, Chinese emperor of Southern Qi (b. 427)

title: 482


text:
483

Year 483 (CDLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Aginantius without colleague (or, less frequently, year 1236 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 483 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * Byzantine general Illus (magister officiorum), and Verina (widow of the late emperor Leo I), attempt to overthrow Emperor Zeno and place another general named Leontius on the throne.

Europe

 * The Ostrogoths are given status as foederati; they control a large part of Macedonia and Thrace (Balkans).

Religion

 * March 10 – Pope Simplicius dies at Rome after a 15-year reign, and is succeeded by Felix III as the 48th pope; Rome is without a pope for 10 days in the interim. Felix III is a widower with two children.

Births

 * Xiao Baojuan, emperor of Southern Qi (d. 501)
 * Xuan Wu Di, emperor of Northern Wei (d. 515)
 * Yuan Xun, crown prince of Northern Wei (d. 497)
 * Zhu Yi, high official of Southern Liang (d. 549)

Deaths

 * March 10 – Pope Simplicius
 * Crimthann mac Énnai, king of Leinster (Ireland)

title: 483


text:
484

Year 484 (CDLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Venantius and Theodoricus (or, less frequently, year 1237 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 484 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * July 19 – Leontius, Roman usurper, is crowned emperor at Tarsus (modern Turkey). Empress dowager Verina sends a letter to the governors of the Diocese of the East and the Diocese of Egypt for support. He is recognized in Antioch and makes it his capital.
 * Leontius raises a rebellion against emperor Zeno, who also faces a revolt from the Ostrogoth king Theodoric the Great. He sends an army to Syria, but is defeated by the Byzantine general Illus.
 * Zeno signs a peace treaty with Theodoric the Great. He appoints him to magister militum and becomes a consul. The Eastern Empire is saved by diplomatic negotiations, and the imperial army is strengthened behind the walls of Constantinople.

Europe

 * King Gundobad proclaims the Lex Burgundionum, a law code of the Burgundians concerning marriage and inheritance, as well as regulating weregild and other penalties (approximate date).
 * December 28 – The Visigoth king Euric dies and is succeeded by his son Alaric II. Euric has built a rampart to protect the city of Carcassonne southeast of Toulouse, on a bend of the Aude River.

Africa

 * February 24 – King Huneric passes the Edict of 484, a law banning Catholicism within the Vandal Kingdom. A few weeks later, King Huneric removes Catholic bishops from their offices and banishes some to Corsica. A few are martyred, including former proconsul Victorian along with Frumentius and other merchants. They are killed at Hadrumetum after refusing to become Arians.
 * December 23 – Huneric dies and is succeeded by his nephew Gunthamund, who becomes king of the Vandals. During his reign the Catholics are free from persecutions and he stabilises the kingdom's economy.

Asia

 * The Hephthalites (White Huns) invade Persia. King Peroz I gathers an army of 50,000-100,000 men, and places his brother Balash at the head of the government in Ctesiphon. At the Battle of Herat, the Persians are ambushed and defeated. Peroz I is killed, his body is with dignity returned and buried with full honors. Balash is crowned and becomes king of Persia.
 * The Nvarsak Treaty is concluded between the Persians and Armenians.

Religion

 * Pope Felix III excommunicates Acacius of Constantinople and Peter III of Alexandria, for their role in having Zeno issue his Edict of Union (Henotikon) 2 years ago. He considers the edict to be heretical and the schism between the Church of Rome and the Church of Constantinople widens. The Acacian Schism will not be resolved until 519.

Births

 * Antonina, Byzantine patrikia and wife of Belisarius (approximate date)
 * Brendan, Irish abbot and saint (approximate date)

Deaths

 * December 23 – Huneric, king of the Vandals
 * Euric, king of the Visigoths
 * Peroz I, king of the Persian Empire
 * Seinei, emperor of Japan
 * Verina, wife of former emperor Leo I

title: 484


text:
485

Year 485 (CDLXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Memmius without colleague (or, less frequently, year 1238 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 485 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Britannia

 * Aelle of Sussex, king of the South Saxons, fights the Britons at the stream of Mercredesburne. The battle ends in a draw (according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle).
 * Period of Arthur's "twelve battles", during which he gains reputation for invincibility (approximate date).

Asia

 * Emperor Xiaowen institutes an "equal-field" system of agriculture (juntian), assigning each peasant family about 19 acres (140 mu) of land. The land will be part minority divided by the farmer to be kept indefinitely and rest will revert to the state if the farmer dies or retires. The population is then divided by each other with the role of supervising one another. The result of this reform is that farmers mostly did not sell their holdings to large landowners. This provided the fiscal basis for the formation of the Sui and Tang dynasties.
 * Prince Kenzō succeeds his adoptive father Seinei, and becomes the 23rd emperor of Japan.

Religion

 * Peter the Fuller, patriarch of Antioch, is condemned and excommunicated by a synod of Western bishops at Rome.

Births

 * Cassiodorus, Roman statesman and writer (approximate date)
 * Samson of Dol, bishop and saint (approximate date)

Deaths

 * April 17 – Proclus, Greek Neoplatonist philosopher (b. 412)
 * Abraham of Clermont, abbot and saint (approximate date)
 * Asclepigenia, Athenian philosopher and mystic (b. 430)
 * Fincath mac Garrchu, king of Leinster

title: 485


text:
486

Year 486 (CDLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Basilius and Longinus (or, less frequently, year 1239 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 486 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Europe

 * Battle of Soissons: Frankish forces under King Clovis I defeat the Gallo-Roman kingdom of Soissons (Gaul). Roman rule under Syagrius ends. The land between the Somme and the Loire becomes a part of the Frankish Empire. Syagrius flees to the Visigoths (under King Alaric II), but Clovis threatens war, and he is handed over for execution.
 * Clovis I establishes his new residence at Soissons. He appoints Ragnachar, Frankish petty king (regulus), as his deputy ruler.

Religion

 * Persian Christians who follow Nestorianism gather in the second Council of Seleucia (modern Turkey).

Deaths

 * Syagrius, Roman official in Gaul (approximate date)

title: 486


text:
487

Year 487 (CDLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Boethius without colleague (or, less frequently, year 1240 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 487 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Europe

 * King Odoacer leads an army to victory against the Rugians in Noricum (modern Austria).

Asia

 * Emperor Kenzō of Japan, age 38, dies after a reign of only three years.

Central America

 * July 28 – Bʼutz Aj Sak Chiik becomes the new ruler of the Mayan city-state of Palenque what is now the state of Chiapas in southern Mexico and reigns until his death in 501.

Religion

 * The Lateran Council, convened by Pope Felix III, establishes conditions for readmitting to the Church those Christians who have been rebaptized by the Vandals.

Births

 * Sacerdos of Lyon, French archbishop (d. 551)
 * Theuderic I, king of the Franks (approximate date) (d. 534)
 * Xiao Baoyin, prince of Southern Qi (d. 530)

Deaths

 * Gao Yun, duke of Northern Wei (b. 390)
 * Kenzō, emperor of Japan (approximate date)
 * Syagrius, "king of the Romans" (approximate date)

title: 487


text:
488

Year 488 (CDLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Ecclesius and Sividius (or, less frequently, year 1241 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 488 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * Emperor Zeno regains power from the usurper Leontius and the Isaurian patrician Illus, who are captured and executed, ending a 4-year rebellion (see 484).
 * Zeno orders Theodoric the Great to overthrow his rival Odoacer, who has established himself as king of Italy (see 476). He marches with an Ostrogoth army to the West.

Europe

 * According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Hengist dies and is succeeded by his son Oisc as king of Kent.
 * Among the peoples who live on the south bank of the Danube in Noricum ripense and who are de facto ruled by the Rugii, whose empire has its centre near Krems on the north bank, are Romii who had been evacuated earlier from Danube settlements above the River Enns. They include members of the Severin convent. Because some of the Rugii want to fight for East Rome against Odoacer, they destroy the Rugian Empire and allow the Romii to be evacuated to Italy by his brother, Hunulf, in order to prevent the re-establishment of the Rugian Empire by a surviving prince. The northern Danubian Limes of the Roman Empire are effectively abandoned. Even the relics of Severinus of Noricum are carried with them.
 * The Gepids capture Belgrade.

Persia

 * Kavadh I is crowned by the nobles, and succeeds his blind uncle Balash as the 19th king of Persia.

Asia

 * Ninken, adopted heir of Seinei, succeeds his brother Kenzō and becomes new emperor of Japan.

Religion

 * Peter the Fuller is succeeded by Palladius as patriarch of Antioch.
 * Fravitta becomes patriarch of Constantinople.

Births

 * He Di, emperor of Southern Qi (d. 502)
 * Senán mac Geirrcinn, Irish saint
 * Yu, empress of Northern Wei (d. 507)

Deaths

 * Balash, king of the Persian Empire
 * Hengest, leader of Kent
 * Illus, Byzantine general
 * Leontius, Byzantine usurper
 * Peter the Fuller, patriarch of Antioch

title: 488


text:
499

Year 499 (CDXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Iohannes without colleague (or, less frequently, year 1252 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 499 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

China

 * April 26 – Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei dies of starvation in his capital at Luoyang, after a 27-year reign in which he has Sinicized his tribal relatives (Tuoba clan), created a Chinese-style government and instituted a land-reform program.
 * Crown prince Xuan Wu Di, age 16, succeeds his father Xiaowen and becomes emperor of Northern Wei. He appoints his uncle Yuan Xie provincial governor, who serves temporarily as regent to form a new government.

Middle East

 * September – The 499 Nicopolis earthquake takes place in the borders between the regions of Mesopotamia, Pontus, and Roman Armenia. It affects the cities of Nicopolis, Neocaesarea (modern Niksar), Arsamosata, and Abarne, as well as the cultural areas of Anatolia (Asia Minor) and Mesopotamia.

Religion

 * March 1 – During a synod in Rome, which is attended by 72 bishops and all of the Roman clergy, Pope Symmachus makes Antipope Laurentius bishop of the diocese of Nocera in Campania.

Major wars and battles in Europe
In 499, the Bulgars crossed Danube and reached Thrace where on the banks of the river Tzurta (considered a tributary of Maritsa) they defeated 15,000 men strong Roman army led by magister militum Aristus. Often overlooked due to the Battle of Ongal (180 years later), the 499-500 AD events demonstrate not only the strength and ambition of the Bulgars to rule over the lower Danube and South-East European lands, but also that their origins historically date back to the late antiquity and not the early medieval ages as is often considered.

Mathematics

 * Indian mathematician Aryabhata writes his magnum opus, the Āryabhaṭīya.

Births

 * Ingund, queen of the Franks (approximate date)
 * Ly Thien Bao, emperor of Vietnam (d. 555)
 * Maximianus, bishop of Ravenna (d. 556)

Deaths

 * April 26 – Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei, emperor of Northern Wei (b. 467)
 * Feng Run, Chinese empress of Northern Wei

title: 499


text:
491

Year 491 (CDXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Olybrius without colleague (or, less frequently, year 1244 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 491 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * April 9 – Emperor Zeno, age 66, dies of dysentery (or of epilepsy) after a 17-year reign. He has no sons to succeed him and Anastasius, palace official (silentiarius) and favoured friend of empress Ariadne, is elevated to the throne.
 * May 20 – Anastasius I marries Ariadne shortly after his accession. His reign is disturbed by religious distractions and a civil war started by Longinus, brother of late emperor Zeno.
 * Anti-Isaurian riots break out in the Hippodrome at Constantinople. Longinus and several other Isaurians, including general Longinus of Cardala, are exiled to Thebaid (Egypt).

Britannia

 * Aelle of Sussex besieges and conquers the fortified town Anderitum in southern Britain. He massacres the population, apparently sub-Roman Brythons (according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle).

Europe

 * July 9 – Odoacer makes a night assault with his Heruli guardsmen, engaging Theodoric the Great in Ad Pinetam. Both sides suffer heavy losses, but in the end Theodoric repulses the attack, forcing Odoacer back into Ravenna.

Asia

 * Munjamyeong becomes ruler of the Korean kingdom of Goguryeo.

Religion

 * Lupicinus becomes bishop of Lyon. He is the founder of the abbeys of Saint Claude (Jura Mountains).

Births

 * Approximate date - John Malalas, Byzantine chronicler (d. c. 578)

Deaths

 * April 9 – Zeno, Byzantine Emperor
 * Peter the Iberian, Georgian theologian and saint

title: 491


text:
492

Year 492 (CDXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Anastasius and Rufus (or, less frequently, year 1245 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 492 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * Isaurian War: The Isaurians begin a revolt against Emperor Anastasius I in southern Central Anatolia.
 * Battle of Cotyaeum: The Isaurian rebels are defeated by the Eastern Roman army, under John the Scythian and John the Hunchback (subordinate commanders include the future Justin I). They retreat to their mountain fortresses, and continue guerrilla warfare against the Roman forces until 497.

Europe

 * King Theoderic the Great conquers Rimini, and brings his Ostrogoth fleet to blockade the harbours 6 miles from the capital of Ravenna. Important provisions, food and supplies are cut off, and the inhabitants are starved to death.

Religion

 * March 1 – Pope Felix III dies after a 9-year reign in which he has excommunicated Patriarch Acacius of Constantinople, thus dividing the Western Church and Eastern Church (Acacian schism). He is succeeded by Gelasius I as the 49th pope.

Deaths

 * March 1 – Pope Felix III
 * Xiao Ni, prince of Southern Qi (b. 444)

title: 492


text:
495

Year 495 (CDXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Viator without colleague (or, less frequently, year 1248 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 495 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Britannia

 * Cerdic of Wessex and his son, Cynric, land somewhere on the south coast, probably near the Hampshire-Dorset border. Their followers establish the beginnings of the Kingdom of Wessex.

China

 * Emperor Xiao Wen Di of Northern Wei builds the Shaolin Monastery in Henan for the monk Batuo (for alternate founding date see 477 or 497).

Religion

 * Pope Gelasius I gains support from Italian bishops, in his assertion that the spiritual power of the papacy is superior to the emperor's temporal authority. Like his predecessors, the pope opposes the Byzantine emperor Anastasius I's efforts to establish Miaphysite doctrine.

Births

 * Queen Amalasuintha of the Ostrogoths (approximate date)
 * King Chlodomer of the Franks (d. 524)
 * Finnian of Movilla, Irish bishop (d. 589)
 * Guntheuc, queen of Burgundy and the Franks (d. c. 532)
 * Husi Chun, general of Northern Wei (d. 537)
 * King Theudebert I of Austrasia (approximate date)

Deaths

 * Fráech mac Finchada, king of Leinster

title: 495


text:
497

Year 497 (CDXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Anastasius without colleague (or, less frequently, year 1250 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 497 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * Emperor Anastasius I gives formal recognition to the Ostrogoth king Theodoric the Great, as his representative (viceroy) in Italy. He sends the imperial standard to Ravenna. Theodoric respects the agreement and allows Roman citizens within the Ostrogothic Kingdom to be subject to Roman law.
 * Isaurian War: Anastasius I regains control of the Isauria region (Asia Minor) and has the rebel leaders executed. Anastasius I pacifies the mountain strongholds of the Isaurians, ending the revolt that they began upon his ascension to the throne 6 years ago.

China

 * The Shaolin Temple (Henan) is founded (according to the Jiaqing Chongxiu Yitongzhi). (For alternate founding date, see 477 or 495).

Arts and sciences

 * Aryabhata, Indian astronomer and mathematician, calculates pi (π) as ≈ 62832/20000 = 3.1416, correct to four rounded-off decimal places.

Literature

 * The Ambrosian Iliad, an Illuminated manuscript on vellum, of the Iliad of Homer, is produced in Constantinople (approximate date).

Births

 * Abdul Mutallib, grandfather of Islamic prophet Mohammed (d. 578)
 * Cadoc, Welsh abbot, saint (approximate date)
 * Chlothar I, king of the Franks (d. 561)

Deaths

 * Hashim ibn 'Abd Manaf, great-grandfather of Mohammed
 * Longinus of Cardala, Isaurian official, rebel leader
 * Crown Prince Yuan Xun of Northern Wei (b. 483)

title: 497


text:
498

Year 498 (CDXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Paulinus and Scytha (or, less frequently, year 1251 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 498 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Byzantine Empire

 * Emperor Anastasius I abolishes the chrysargyron tax throughout the Eastern Roman Empire, before reforming the monetary system, using Greek numerals instead of Roman.

Persia

 * Kavadh I returns from exile with support of 30,000 Hephthalites (White Huns), and again assumes the Sassanid throne. He punishes his opponents and probably his brother Djamasp, who usurped the throne from him.

Japan

 * Prince Buretsu, age 9, succeeds his father Ninken and becomes the 25th emperor.

Religion

 * November 19 – Pope Anastasius II dies after a 2-year reign in which he has tried to conciliate followers of Acacius, late patriarch of Constantinople, who was excommunicated by Felix III.
 * November 22 – Anastasius is succeeded by Symmachus as the 51st pope, in the official papal selection in the Lateran Palace (Rome). Meanwhile, Antipope Laurentius is elected "pope" in the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, causing a schism.
 * Flavian II succeeds Palladius as patriarch of Antioch.

Births

 * Jie Min Di, emperor of Northern Wei (d. 532)
 * Kevin of Glendalough, Irish abbot and saint (d. 618)

Deaths

 * November 19 – Pope Anastasius II
 * Ninken, emperor of Japan
 * Qi Mingdi, emperor of Southern Qi (b. 452)

title: 498


text:
477

Year 477 (CDLXXVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year after the Consulship of Basiliscus and Armatus (or, less frequently, year 1230 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 477 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Africa

 * January 25 – Genseric, ruler of the Vandal Kingdom, dies a natural death at Carthage, and is succeeded by his eldest son Huneric. He maintains control over the islands in the western Mediterranean Sea with his Vandal fleet, and rescinds his father's policy of persecuting the Roman Catholics in Africa.

 * The independent Mauro-Roman Kingdom (Kingdom of the Moors and Romans) is formed by Christian Berbers in the Roman province of Mauretania Caesariensis (present-day northern Algeria), bordering the Vandal Kingdom to the east.

Europe

 * Aelle, first king of the South Saxons, lands on the Sussex coast of England with his three sons near Cymenshore, according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. The Britons engage him upon landing, but his superior force besieges them at Pevensey and drives them into the Weald. Over the next nine years, Saxon coastal holdings are gradually expanded.

Byzantine Empire

 * Armatus, Byzantine military commander (magister militum), is killed by order of emperor Zeno, being murdered by his own friend Onoulphus after supporting the rebellion of his uncle Basiliscus in 475.

China

 * Liu Zhun, age 10, becomes Emperor Shun of the Liu Song dynasty after his brother Houfei is assassinated by general Xiao Daocheng. He installs Shun as puppet ruler and sets himself up as regent. Xiao receives near-imperial powers, establishes Buddhism as the state religion and sets up the "Three Leaders" system, under which native hamlet, village and district officers are responsible for taxation and conscription.
 * Shaolin Monastery is founded (according to the Continued Biographies of Eminent Monks (645) by Daoxuan; the monastery is built on the north side of Shaoshi Mountain, the western peak of Mount Song, one of the four Sacred Mountains of China, by emperor Xiao Wen Di of the Northern Wei dynasty in 477. Yang Xuanzhi, in the Record of the Buddhist Monasteries of Luoyang (547), and Li Xian, in the Ming Yitongzhi (1461), concur with Daoxuan's location and attribution. For alternate founding date, see 495 or 497).
 * Earliest date for the oldest known painted depiction of a horse collar, on a cave mural of Dunhuang, during the Northern Wei dynasty.

Asia

 * Samgeun becomes king of the Korean kingdom of Baekje.

Deaths

 * January 25 – Genseric, king of the Vandals and Alans
 * Armatus, Byzantine general (magister militum)
 * Basina, queen of Thuringia (Germany)
 * Houfei Di, emperor of the Liu Song Dynasty (b. 463)
 * Liu Bing, high official of the Liu Song Dynasty (b. 433)
 * Munju, king of Baekje (Korea)
 * Timothy II, Coptic Orthodox patriarch of Alexandria
 * Yuan Can, high official of the Liu Song Dynasty (b. 420)

title: 477