c600 In China Yang Di, a Sui emperor, extended the Grand Canal.
He reportedly assumed power by poisoning his father. Ma Shu-mou, aka Mahu,
was one of the canal overseers and was said to have eaten a steamed 2-year-old
child each day he worked on the canal. On completion the canal extended
for 1,100 miles.
(WSJ, 10/25/99, p.A50)
c600 Small porkers came to Hawaii with the Polynesians some 1400
years ago, and big pigs arrived with the Europeans.
(WSJ, 7/25/95, p.A-6)
c600 Early settlers from the Marquesas built the Alakoko fishpond
and taro fields on Kauai, Hawaii.
(SFEC, 8/29/99, p.T6)
c600 The Joya de Ceren Maya site in El Salvador was buried beneath
16 feet of ash from nearby Loma Caldera.
(AM, May/Jun 97 suppl. p.D)
c600 "The Navigatio Sancti Brendani Abbatis" (Voyage of St. Brendan
the Abbott) recounts a 7-year trip to a land across the sea by the Irish
saint and a band of acolytes about this time.
(SFEM, 11/15/98, p.24)
600-700 The Tantras, Buddhist texts for generating deep religious experiences,
were produced in India.
(SFEC,12/14/97, p.T5)
c600-700 King Songstan Gampo reigned over Tibet in the 7th century.
He introduced Buddhism and started construction of the Potala Palace and
Jokhang Temple. He married the Chinese princess Wen Cheng.
(WSJ, 8/2/01, p.A12)
600-700 The library at Alexandria, Egypt, disappeared in the 7th century.
(WSJ, 6/1/00, p.A1)
600-700 In the seventh century the Frisians clashed with the Franks
and resisted Christianity, but succumbed to Frankish rule and accepted
Christianity a century later. Citizens of the Netherlands’s province of
Friesland are still called Frisians and the Frisian language is still spoken
there.
(HNQ, 3/5/00)
c600-700 The Nihon Shoki, the oldest recorded Japanese document, was
published in the 7th century.
(WSJ, 1/11/99, p.R46)
c600-700 St. Willibrord, an Irish missionary, spread Christianity in
the region of Luxembourg.
(SFC, 9/1/96, T3)
600-700 Calinicus (Callinicus), an engineer from Heliopolis, Syria,
is thought to have brought "Greek fire," (flammable petrochemicals) to
Constantinople. The incendiary liquid could be fired from siphons toward
enemy ships or troops. The weapon helped save the Byzantine Empire from
Islamic conquest for several centuries.
(AM, Mar/Apr 97 p.57)(NH, 10/98, p.24)
600-700 The Caracol Maya site in Belize was one of the most prosperous
cities in the pre-Columbian world with some 120,000 people in a 65-square-mile
metropolis. It has the 140-foot-high platform Caana, or "Sky-Place. "
(SFC, 4/26/97, p.E4)
600-700 The martial art of "tie-kwan-doe" (kick-strike-art) was developed
as part of the military training for young noblemen charged with protecting
the kingdoms of what became Korea.
(WSJ, 10/3/97, p.A1)
600-700 In Vietnam Hoi An was a port site of the Cham kingdoms of central
Vietnam. It may date back to the 2nd century BC.
(AM, Mar/Apr 97 p.H)
600-800 In 2003 evidence of an Indian village was found at an Illinois
site some 35 miles east of St. Louis, that dated to the Late Woodland period.
(SFC, 4/21/03, p.A6)
c600-800 Irish monks began to seek solace in Iceland.
(NH, 6/96, p.53)
600-800 Polynesian seafarers 1st landed on Easter Island, 1400 miles
from the coast of South America. They later carved nearly 900 colossi of
compressed volcanic ash: the moai. In 1722 A Dutch explorer stopped by
on Easter Sunday. It later became a possession of Chile.
(WSJ, 2/8/02, p.W11C)
c600-850 Late Classic Mayan paintings were found at a site in eastern
Chiapas, Mexico, named "Bonampak," (painted walls).
(AM, May/Jun 97 p.35)
600-900 Late classic period of the Maya. The San Andres site in El Salvador
flourished during the late classic. The El Tajin civilization thrived
on the central coast of what became Mexico.
(AM, May/Jun 97 suppl. p.BC)(SFC, 9/14/00, p.C8)
600-900 A three hundred year dynasty ruled over Palenque. In the Pyramid
of Inscriptions is the tomb of Pakal, the greatest king of the dynasty.
(SFC, 5/19/96, T-9)
600-1200 In Malaysia ceramic shards at Kampong Sungai Mas in the Bujang
Valley date to this time. Brick foundations and a block of shale with a
Buddhist mantra inscribed in Sanskrit was also found.
(AM, Mar/Apr 97 p.F)
600-1600 Pagan was the seat of Burma’s greatest dynasty and the site
shows the remains of more than 7,000 temples and monuments of this period.
(AM, Mar/Apr 97 p.F)
604 Mar 12, Gregory I the Great (64), Pope (590-604), died.
(MC, 3/12/02)
607 Mar 13, The 12th recorded passage of Halley's Comet occurred.
(HN, 3/13/98)
607 The first envoy from Japan was sent to China.
(Jap. Enc., BLDM, p. 214)
609 May 13, Pope Boniface I turned Roman Pantheon into Catholic
church.
(MC, 5/13/02)
610 Apr 6, Lailat-ul Qadar: The night that the Koran descended
to Earth. Muhammad is believed by his followers to have had a vision of
Gabriel. The angel told him to recite in the name of God. Other visions
are supposed to have Gabriel lead Muhammad to heaven to meet God, and to
Jerusalem to meet Abraham, Moses and Jesus. These visions convinced Mohammad
that he was a messenger of God.
(ATC, p.59)(MC, 4/6/02)
610 Oct 5, Heraclitus' fleet took Constantinople.
(MC, 10/5/01)
610-632 A Muslim tradition has it that Mohammed one day found that his
favorite wife, Aisha, had purchased some cushions decorated with birds
and animals. The prophet proclaimed that only God could bestow life and
that pale imitations should be avoided. Thus the hadith, or tradition of
the prophet, holds that: The house which contains pictures will not be
entered by the angels."
(WSJ, 7/22/96, p.A12)
610-632 During Mohammed’s ministry in Mecca and Medina the definition
of jihad moved from persuasive proselytism to Muslim war against all infidels.
(WSJ, 10/10/01, p.A10)
610-641 Heracles ruled the Byzantine Empire.
(ATC, p.69)
611 In Cambodia at Angkor Borei the earliest known Khmer inscription
dates to this time.
(AM, Mar/Apr 97 p.D)
614 Croats settled in the area between the Adriatic Sea and the
rivers Sava and Drava.
(WSJ, 7/14/99, p.A23)
614 Christian Palestine was invaded by the Persians. The 5th century
monastery of St. Theodosius east of Beit Sahour near Bethlehem was destroyed
by the Persians.
(SFEC, 12/22/96, p.T3)(WSJ, 4/5/02, p.W12)
615 May 8, St. Boniface IV ended his reign as Catholic Pope.
(MC, 5/8/02)
615 May 25, Boniface IV, Pope (608-15), died.
(SC, 5/25/02)
615 Nov 23, Columbanus, Irish explorer, monastery founder, poet
and saint (Poenitentiale), died (aka St. Columba).
(MC, 11/23/01)
617-1279 The Tang Dynasty unified China.
(ATC, p.69)
618-907 The Tang Dynasty was in China. The marble head of Eleven-headed
Avalokiteshvara dates to the Tang period. Porcelain was invented during
the T’ang dynasty.
(Jap. Enc., BLDM, p. 214)(NH, 7/96, p.32)(WSJ, 2/19/98, p.A20)(WSJ,
8/28/98, p.W10)
618-907 The area of Tiananmen Square was first cleared.
(SFC, 6/25/98, p.A8)
620 Mohammad gained about a hundred converts including some wealthy
Meccan families. This made other Meccans hostile. Mohammad in this year
dreamed of being transported from Mecca to the Rock of Mariah in Jerusalem,
from which he ascended into heaven and received instructions from God for
himself and his followers.
(ATC, p.59)(ON, 7/03, p.6)
622 Jul 16, Islamic Era began. Mahomet began his flight from Mecca
to Medina (Hegira).
(MC, 7/16/02)
622 Sep 20, Prophet Mohammed Abu Bakr arrived in Jathrib (Medina).
(MC, 9/20/01)
622 Sep 24, In the Hegira Muhammed left Mecca for Medina (aka
Yathrib) with 75 followers. This event marked the beginning of the Islamic
lunar calendar. The new faith was called "Islam," which means submission
to Allah. Believers in Islam are called Muslims-- "Those who submit to
Allah’s will." In Medina Mohammad tried to unite the Jews and Arabs and
initially faced Jerusalem to pray. The Jewish leaders did not accept Mohammad
as a prophet and so Mohammad expelled from the city the Jews who opposed
him. From then on he commanded the Muslims to face the Kaaba in Mecca when
praying.
(V.D.-H.K.p.19)(ATC, p.60)
627 Byzantine Emperor Heraclius defeated the Persian army and
regained Asia Minor, Syria, Jerusalem and Egypt.
(ATC, p.45)
628 Apr 3, In Persia Kavadh sued for peace with the Byzantines.
He handed back Armenia, Byzantine Mesopotamia, Syria, Palestine and Egypt.
(HN, 4/3/99)(AP, 4/3/99)
628 Apr 3, Chosroes II, emperor of Persia (579-628), was murdered
by his son.
(MC, 4/3/02)
629-645 Hsuang-Tsang, Chinese pilgrim, journeys over 5,000 miles from
China to India and back to collect Buddhist teachings. He recorded fantastic
tales of his adventures.
(ATC, p.13)
630 Mar 21, Heraclius restored the True Cross, which he had recaptured
from the Persians.
(HN, 3/21/99)
630 Mohammad raised an army of 10,000 and took over Mecca (Makkah).
He immediately set out to destroy all the idols at Kaaba. The black stone
remained embedded in the corner. The area around became the first mosque,
or Muslim house of worship. Mohammad returned from Medina and began the
Islamic conquest of Arabia.
(ATC, p.60)(WSJ, 11/15/01, p.A16)
632 Jun 8, Mohammed, the founder of Islam and unifier of Arabia,
died. His companions compiled his words and deeds in a work called the
Sunna. Here are contained the rules for Islam. The most basic are The Five
Pillars of Islam. These are: 1) profession of faith 2) daily prayer 3)
giving alms 4) ritual fast during Ramadan 5) Hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca.
The Sunna also calls for "jihad." The term means struggle, i.e. to do one’s
best to resist temptation and overcome evil.
Four contenders stood out to succeed Mohammad. They were Abu
Bakr, his trusted father-in-law. Umar and Uthman, long-time friends and
advisers, and Ali, a cousin and blood relative. Ali was Mohammad’s son-in-law
and the father of Mohammad’s grandsons. Abu Bakr was chosen as caliph i.e.
successor.
(ATC, p.60,63)(HN, 6/8/98)(SFC, 12/15/98, p.A7)(AP, 6/8/03)
Iqra, which means read in Arabic, was reportedly the first word
that the archangel Gabriel spoke to Mohammed.
(SFC, 10/22/98, p.C5)
In 2001 Minou Reeves, Iranian-born scholar, authored "Muhammad
in Europe: A Thousand Years of Western Myth-Making "
(WSJ, 12/12/01, p.A15)
632 Jun 16, Origin of Persian [Yazdegird] Era.
(MC, 6/16/02)
632 Hiuan-tsang, an Chinese pilgrim, visited the great Buddhas
of Bamiyan, Afghanistan.
(WSJ, 12/20/01, p.A13)
633 Muhammad’s chief clerk collected Mohammad’s revelations into
one work called the Koran (Quran). Loosely translated it means "recitation."
"Whoever witnesses the crescent of the month, he must fast the month."
(Koran, al Baqarah 2:185) Ramadan begins the day after the crescent of
the new moon is sighted and confirmed by 2 witnesses. Muslims must abstain
from food and sex during daylight hours for a month to celebrate the revelation
of the Koran to Mohammed. The later Sunnah holy text reported the sayings
and deeds of Muhammad. The Muslim beard tradition is from the Sunnah.
(ATC, p.60)(WSJ, 1/7/97, p.A1)(WSJ, 11/27/01, p.A14)
633 Gen Khalid ibn al-Walid sent a letter to the Persian emperor
that said: "Submit to our authority and we shall leave you and your land
and go against others. If not, you will be conquered against your will
by men who love death as you love life."
(WSJ, 10/19/01, p.W19)
634 Sophronius (74), Christian monk, was elected patriarch and
political ruler of Jerusalem.
(ON, 7/03, p.3)
634 Abu Bakr, Mohammed’s father-in-law, died. Before his death
he appointed Umar as his successor.
(ATC, p.66)
635 Damascus was captured by the Muslims.
(ATC, p.78)
636 Summer, A Byzantine army arrived in the region of Jerusalem
and was defeated by a much smaller Muslim army at the Yarmuk River. With
Muslims at the gate Sophronius, head of Jerusalem, requested a meeting
with Caliph Omar.
(ON, 7/03, p.5)
636 Jul 23, Arabs gained control of most of Palestine from Byzantine
Empire.
(MC, 7/23/02)
636 Nov 1, Nicholas Boileau-Despreaux, French poet, was born.
He was also a critic and official royal historian and wrote "Lutrin. "
(HN, 11/1/99)
637 Ctesiphon, a center of Christianity southeast of Baghdad,
was taken by Arabs, who renamed it Madain.
(SFC, 3/31/03, p.W5)
637 Muslim armies conquered Mesopotamia.
(ATC, p.78)
638 cJan, Sophronius met with Caliph Omar and obtained a set of
guarantees and regulations that came to be known as "the Covenant of Omar."
(ON, 7/03, p.3)
638 Mar 11, Sophronius of Jerusalem, saint, patriarch of Jerusalem,
died.
(MC, 3/12/02)
640 Muslim Arabs invaded Armenia and capture Dvin, its principal
town.
(CO Enc. / Armenia)
640 The Muslim government began minting coins about this time.
(ATC, p.83)
641 Feb 11, Heraclius (~65), emperor of Byzantium (610-641), died.
(MC, 2/11/02)
642 Sep 17, Arabs conquered Alexandria and destroyed the great
library. Omar, the second caliph, successor of Mohammed, conquered Alexandria,
then the capital of world scholarship.
(V.D.-H.K.p.103)(MC, 9/17/01)
642 The Arabs conquered the Sassanids.
(ATC, p.33)
644 Nov 4, Umar of Arabia, the 2nd Caliph of Islam, was assassinated
at Medina and was succeeded as caliph by Uthman. On his deathbed Umar named
a council to choose the next caliph. The council appointed Uthman. Uthman
continued to expand the Muslim empire. [see Dec 8]
(ATC, p.67)(HN, 11/4/98)(MC, 11/4/01)
644 Dec 8, Omar I, 2nd caliph of Islam, was murdered. [see Nov
4]
(MC, 12/8/01)
645 Downfall of the Soga Clan in Japan.
(Jap. Enc., BLDM, p. 214)
649 May 14, Theodore, Greek Pope (642-49), excommunicated by Paul
II, died.
(MC, 5/14/02)
649 Jul 5, St. Martin I began his reign as Pope.
(MC, 7/5/02)
650 The Khazars’ aggressive territorial expansion drove
some Bulgars
westward. These Bulgars soon founded a kingdom in the southeastern
Balkans
that became known as Bulgaria.
(TJOK, 1999, p.16)
c650 An early Mayan classic temple in Copan was closed and covered
about this time. Ritual items of flint knives and stingray spines was later
discovered.
(Nat. Hist., 4/96, p.28)
c650 The first pyramid of the Teotihuacan culture was built in
Cholula. Over the next 800 years a nested series of 4 pyramids were constructed.
The most important and largest city of pre-Colombian central Mexico, the
Nahuatl meaning of Teotihuacan was "Where Men Become Gods" or "The City
of Gods." Just north of Mexico City, Teotihuacan was planned at about the
beginning of the Christian era and was sacked and burned by invading Toltecs
in 650 CE.
(SFEC, 11/8/98, p.T10)(HNQ, 4/24/99)
650-750 In Mexico the Teotihuacan culture began declining and was almost
abandoned by the end of this period.
(SFC, 10/22/98, p.C2)
c650-850 The alliterative epic poem Beowulf was composed at least 100
years before the manuscript was written. It was written in the 8th century.
In 1999 Seamus Heaney wrote a new translation of the old English tale of
a Scandinavian warrior who kills a trio of monsters including Grendel.
In the Anglo-Saxon epic Beowulf, the hero of the Geats people, mortally
wounds the monster Grendel--who has been terrorizing the court of the king
of Danes--by tearing off one of his arms with his bare hands. Based on
folk tales known to the Anglo-Saxons prior to their invasion of England,
the work is made up primarily of pagan myths and legends. The poem is believed
to date from the late seventh or early eighth century and the only surviving
text, now in the British Museum, dates from about 1000 A.D.
(WUD, 1994, p.140)(WSJ, 2/24/00, p.A16)(WSJ, 1/11/99, p.R53)(HNQ,
1/10/02)
651 In Persia Yazdegird III, the last Sassanian king, was murdered.
(WSJ, 2/2/00, p.A24)
652 Arabs introduced Islam to Afghanistan.
(www.afghan, 5/25/98)
654 A Saxon monk founded St. Botolph’s Town in England. The name
gradually changed to Boston.
(SFC, 8/12/00, p.B3)
656 Uthman appointed members of his own family as regional governors
and caused bitter jealousy among other families. This caused an angry mob
of 500 to murder him. This gave Ali an opportunity to claim power. Some
claim that Ali plotted Uthman’s murder. Civil war broke out. Muawija, Uthman’s
cousin and governor of Syria, challenged Ali’s right to rule. Ali prepared
for war but was murdered by an angry former supporter. The followers of
Ali became known as Shiites from the Arabic meaning "the party of Ali."
Those who believe that the election of the first three caliphs was valid
and who claim to follow the Sunna reject the Shiite idea of the Imam, and
are called the Sunnis.
(ATC, p.67-68)
c656 The Imam Ali mosque in Najaf marks the grave of Ali, the
son-in-law of Mohammed and a central figure in Shiite Islam.
(SFC, 4/23/98, p.A16)
657 Jun 2, St. Eugene I ended his reign as Catholic Pope.
(SC, 6/2/02)
657 Jul 26, Mu'awiyan defeated Caliph Ali in the Battle of Siffin
in Mesopotamia.
(HN, 7/26/98)
658 Hirafu Abe went to meet with the Ainu on Hokkaido after he
had defeated an indigenous tribe called Emishi in the northeast region
of Honshu.
(Jap. Enc., BLDM, p. 217)
661 Jan 24, Ali ibn Abu Talib, caliph of Islam (656-61), was murdered
in Kufa, Iraq. Caliph Ali, son-in-law of Mohammed, was assassinated and
his followers (Shiites) broke from the majority Muslim group.
(SFC, 3/16/02, p.A14)(MC, 1/24/02)(SSFC, 6/30/02, p.M6)
661 Muawija became caliph. He moved the capital from Medina to
Damascus. His followers were called the Umayyads. Muawija was one of the
soldiers who helped capture Damascus and for 25 years he had served as
governor of Syria. Muawija began the practice of appointing his own son
as the next caliph, and so the Umayyads ruled for the next 90 years. Muslim
forces expanded into North Africa and completely conquered Persia. The
Islamic Empire continued to expand into Afghanistan and Pakistan. After
the Omayyad Caliphs conquered Damascus, they build the palace at Qasr Al-Kharaneh
(in Jordan) as a recreational lodge.
(ATC, p.67,78)(SFEC, 4/11/99, p.9)
668 Jul 15, Constantine II (37), emperor of Byzantium, died.
(MC, 7/15/02)
668-1392 In Korea the Silla Kingdom united the peninsula and began the
Koryo Dynasty from which Korea derived its name.
(SFC, 7/26/97, p.E3)
c670 A Japanese inventor based the first design of a folding fan
on the structure of a bat’s wing.
(SFEC, 8/3/97, Z1 p.2)
c672 The Venerable Bede (d.735), Beda Venerabilis, English speaking
church historian, was born.
(WSJ, 10/22/03, p.D12)
676 Cairo was built by the Arabs only 1300 years ago. The name
comes from the Egyptian "El Qahir," the name of the planet Mars.
(Enc. of Africa, 1976, p.165)(SFEC, 8/17/97, Z1 p.2)
678 Jun 27, St. Agatho began his reign as Catholic Pope.
(SC, 6/27/02)
680 Oct 10, Imam Hussein, grandson of prophet Mohammed, was beheaded.
He was killed by rival Muslim forces on the Karbala plain in modern day
Iraq. He then became a saint to Shiite Muslims. Traditionalists and radical
guerrillas alike commemorate his martyrdom as the ceremony of Ashura. The
10-day mourning period during the holy month of Muharram commemorates the
deaths of Caliph Ali’s male relatives by Sunnis from Iraq.
(SFC, 5/28/96, p.A8)(MC, 10/10/01)(SFC, 3/16/02, p.A14)
680-720 Palenque in Mexico was ruled by Pacal. His sarcophagus has the
intricately carved lid later suggested to represent an extra-terrestrial
visitor.
(AM, May/Jun 97 suppl. p.G)
682-721 Ah Cacaw (Lord of Cocoa) ruled over Tikal (later Guatemala)
during this period. His burial tomb was later found deep inside the 145-foot
high Temple of the Great Jaguar.
(SFEM, 6/13/99, p.8)
683-685 Khazars invaded Transcaucasia and inflicted much damage
and stole
much booty. The Khazar invaders killed the rulers of Armenia and
Georgia. (TJOK, p.159)
685 May 8, St. Benedict II ended his reign as Catholic Pope.
(MC, 5/8/02)
685 May 21, Battle at Nechtansmere: Picts trounced the Northumbrians.
(MC, 5/21/02)
685 In China a manual on calligraphy was made. It summarized the
aesthetic ideals and theories of Chinese writing.
(SFEC, 10/6/96, DB p.37)
685-705 Abd al Malik, Umayyad caliph, influenced the shaping of Islamic
culture. He declared Arabic as the official language of the empire and
established a common coinage system that was purely Arabic. They had no
images but were inscribed with quotations from the Koran.
(ATC, p.83)
687-714 Pepin II united and ruled the Franks.
(ATC, p.51)
688 North Africa was conquered by the Muslims under Abd al Malik.
(ATC, p.83)
691 The Dome of the Rock mosque was built in Jerusalem. It contained
inscriptions that later were held as the 1st evidence of the Koran.
(SFC, 3/2/02, p.A15)
694 Nov 9, Spanish King Egica accused Jews of aiding Moslems and
sentenced them to slavery.
(MC, 11/9/01)
c696 Feng Du, a 1,300-year-old Tang dynasty city near the Yangtze
River gorges, known as the city of ghosts.
(WSJ, 10/8/96, p.A20)
c697 The last major earthquake occurred in the Salt Lake City
region of Utah about this time. A major quake hits the region about every
1300 years.
(SFEC, 4/6/97, p.C13)
697 In Ireland an assembly was called at the hill of Tara to put
an end to the participation of Irish women in battle.
(AM, Mar/Apr 97 p.11)
699 Li Po (d.762), classical Chinese poet, was born. His poems
included "Drinking Alone With the Moon."
(SFC, 10/30/03, p.A26)
c700 The mound building Caddo culture began flourishing in the
Texas and Oklahoma area. It lasted to the mid-18th cent.
(AM, Vol. 48, No. 3)
c700 Nov 1, The Celts of Ireland, Great Britain and northern France
celebrated Oct. 31 to Nov 2 as their New Year from around 1000-500BC. The
pagan harvest event incorporated masks to ward off evil ones, as dead relatives
were believed to visit families on the first evening. The Catholic holiday
of All Saints' Day, set for Nov. 1, was instituted around 700 CE to supplant
the Druid holiday and Pope Gregory (731-741) made it official. Halloween
was transplanted to the US in the 1840s. [see 835]
(WSJ, 10/28/99, p.A24)(WSJ, 10/29/99, p.W17)
c700 Abd al Malik issued the first pure Islamic coins.
(ATC, p.83)
c700 The Chinese gained control over Manchuria from the Koreans
about this time.
(WSJ, 10/9/95, p.A-1)
c700 Trade along the coast of East Africa expanded and promoted
the founding of such settlements as Kismayu, Mogadiscio, Gedi, Malindi,
Mombasa, Kilwas and others.
(Enc. of Africa, 1976, p.169)
c700 In Mexico the Zapotec city of Monte Alban was abandoned about
this time.
(SFEC, 10/3/99, p.A24)
c700 The Potala Palace in Lhasa, Tibet, was constructed. It became
the traditional home of the Dalai Lama.
(SSFC, 10/5/03, p.D2)
700-800 King Offa decreed that an earthen barrier be built along the
border between Wales and his kingdom of Mercia. Llwybr Clawdd Offa opened
as a hiking trail in 1971.
(SSFC, 4/7/02, p.C10)
700-800 In Bulgaria the Madara Horseman in Kaspichan was carved into
a sandstone cliff.
(SFEC, 8/28/98, p.T4)
700-800 The Catholic Church changed its rules on fasting and allowed
fish to be eaten on Fridays and during Lent.
(NH, 5/96, p.58)
c700-800 Dionysus Exiguus (Dennis the Short), a Catholic monk, created
a chronology for Pope St. John I with a calendar that began in the year
CE 1.
(SFEC,11/16/97, BR p.5)
700-800 In Bhutan the Taksang monastery was founded by tantric master
Padmasambhava, often described as "another Buddha."
(SFEC, 2/23/96, p.T5)
700-800 According to Iraqis Muslim forces "liberated" Iraq from the
Persians in the 8th century qadissiyah battle.
(SFC, 2/1/02, p.A18)
700-800 The village site of Galu, Kenya, produced the world’s oldest
crucible steel.
(NH, 6/97, p.44)
700-800 The Bonampak site in Chiapas, Mexico, has frescoes painted on
the stucco walls of Structure I from this time. They depict war, sacrifice
and celebration. The name glyph for Shield Jaguar II, king of nearby Yaxchilan,
was recognized.
(AM, May/Jun 97 suppl. p.F)(AM, May/Jun 97 p.37)
700-800 Slav tribes settle into the territories of present-day Slovenia,
Bosnia, Croatia, Montenegro and Serbia, and assimilated the Illyrian populations
of these regions. The Illyrians in the south averted assimilation.
(www, Albania, 1998)
700-800 Vikings began arriving to the Orkney Islands.
(SFEC, 3/23/97, p.T3)
701 Sep 8, Sergius I, Syrian and Italian Pope (687-701), died.
(MC, 9/8/01)
702 Japan's first Constitution was promulgated.
(Jap. Enc., BLDM, p. 214)
705 Mar 1, John VII began his reign as Catholic Pope.
(SC, 3/1/02)
705 Oct 8, Abd al-Malik, caliph of Damascus, died.
(MC, 10/8/01)
708 Mar 25, Constantine began his reign as Catholic Pope.
(HN, 3/24/98)
709 Apr 24, Wilfried (~76), bishop of York, died.
(MC, 4/24/02)
709 May 25, Aldhelmus (~69) of Ealdhelm, England, abbot, bishop,
poet, saint, died.
(SC, 5/25/02)
710-784 The Nara Period of Japan.
(Jap. Enc., BLDM, p. 214)
711 Apr 14, Childebert III (~27), king of the French, died.
(MC, 4/14/02)
711 Jul 9, Berbers under Tarik-ibn Ziyad occupied Northern Spain.
The Umayyads with the help of the Berbers in North Africa moved across
the Strait of Gibraltar and began the conquest of Spain and Portugal. The
Berber leader Tarik crossed the Strait of Gibraltar and began the Muslim
conquest of Spain. The word Gibraltar comes from the term Jabal-al-Tarik,
which means the hill of Tarik. Gebel-al-Tarik means "Rock of Tarik."
(ATC, p.79)(Enc. of Africa, 1976, p.170)(SFEC, 9/29/96, Z1 p.2)(MC,
7/9/02)
711 Dec 11, Justitianus II (~42), emperor of Byzantium, died.
(MC, 12/11/01)
712 The publication of Kojiki in Japan, the Record of Ancient
Matters. The work was compiled by the court to strengthen its control over
various noble lineages. Fictitious rulers were inserted to project the
nation’s founding back to 660BC
(Jap. Enc., BLDM, p. 214)(AM, Mar/Apr 97 p.34)
715 Apr 9, Constantine I, Greek-Syrian Catholic Pope (708-15),
died.
(HN, 4/9/98)(MC, 4/9/02)
715 May 19, St. Gregory II began his reign as Catholic Pope.
(HN, 5/19/98)
720 The publication of Nihon Shoki, the Chronicle of Japan. The
work was compiled by the court to strengthen its control over various noble
lineages.
(Jap. Enc., BLDM, p. 214)(AM, Mar/Apr 97 p.34)
721-764 Kinich Ahkal Mo' Nab ruled Palenque.
(AM, Jul-Aug/99, p.16)
c722 In China a 233-foot Buddha was built in Sichuan province.
In 2002 a $30 million restoration project was undertaken.
(SFC, 7/4/02, p.A12)
727 May 30, Hubertus (72), bishop of Tongeren-Maastricht, saint,
died.
(MC, 5/30/02)
727 Houei-tch’ao, a Korean pilgrim, visited the great Buddhas
of Bamiyan, Afghanistan.
(WSJ, 12/20/01, p.A13)
729 Apr 24, Egbertus (89), English bishop, St. Egbert, died in
Iona.
(MC, 4/24/02)
729 Emperor Leo the Isaurian ordered the destruction of an icon
of Christ set in the great Bronze Gate in Constantinople. Theodosia led
a group of enraged women who killed the officer removing the image. Theodosia
was killed in the forum and became a martyr-saint. Her saint’s day was
May 29.
(Ot, 1993, p.3)
730 Khazar commander Barjik led Khazar troops through the
Darial Pass
to invade Azerbaijan. At the Battle of Ardabil, the Khazars defeated
an entire Arab army. The Battle of Ardabil lasted three days, and
resulted in the death of a major Arab general named Jarrah. The Khazars
then conquered Azerbaijan and Armenia and northern Iraq for a brief
time.
(TJOK, pages 160-161)
731 Feb 11, Gregory II, Greek-Syrian Pope, died.
(MC, 2/11/02)
731-741 Gregory III served as Pope.
(WUD, 1994, p.621)
732 Oct 10, At Tours, France, Charles Martel killed Abd el-Rahman
and halted the Muslim invasion of Europe. Islam's westward spread was stopped
by the Franks at Poitiers. [see Oct 11]
(V.D.-H.K.p.103)(HN, 10/10/98)
732 Oct 11, The French under Charles Martel beat the Moors at
the Battle at Tours. Abd ar-Rahman, Yemenite general strategist (Bordeaux
occupier), died. [see Oct 10]
(MC, 10/11/01)
732 Pope Gregory III banned horseflesh from Christian tables after
he learned that pagans of northern Europe ate it in their religious rites.
(SFC, 5/30/98, p.E4)
733 Oct 17, Battle at Poitiers: Charles Martel beat Abd al-Rachmans.
(MC, 10/17/01)
735 May 26, The Venerable Bede (~62), Beda Venerabilis, English
speaking church historian, died.
(MC, 5/26/02)(WSJ, 10/22/03, p.D12)
737 Marwan, an Arab general, captured the Khazar khagan
and forced him to pledge support to the Caliphate and convert to Islam.
(TJOK, pages 162-163)
738 The great Lord 18 Rabbit built a ball court at the Mayan city
of Copan. In a surprise attack he was captured and decapitated by Cauac
Sky from the city of Quirigia, some 60 km. to the east. In 1998 Michael
D. Coe and Justin Kerr published "The Art of the Maya Scribe," a look at
the progress made in decoding the Mayan writing system.
(Hem, Dec. 94, p.123)(SFEC, 7/5/98, BR p.10)
738 Butz Tiliw’ or Cauac Sky defeated his overlord, Copan’s 13th
ruler, 18 Rabbit. Monuments to this event are at the Quirigua Maya site
in Guatemala.
(AM, May/Jun 97 suppl. p.F)
739 Nov 7, Willibrord (81), [Clemens], 1st bishop of Utrecht (695-739)
and saint , died.
(MC, 11/7/01)
740 Tah ak Chaan began a 50 year rule over the city of Cancuen
in what later became Guatemala.
(SFC, 9/9/00, p.A2)
741 Jun 18, Leo III de Isaurier, Byzantine Emperor (717-41), died.
(MC, 6/18/02)
741 Oct 22, Charles Martel of Gaul died at Quiezy. His mayoral
power was divided between his two sons, Pepin III and Carloman.
(HN, 10/22/98)
742 Apr 2, Charlemagne (d.814), Charles I the Great, King of the
Franks and first Holy Roman emperor (800-14), was born. His capital was
at Aachen (Acquisgrana in Latin).
(V.D.-H.K.p.105)(SFEM, 10/12/97, p.46)(HN, 4/2/98)
743 Mar 1, Slave export by Christians to heathen areas was prohibited.
(SC, 3/1/02)
743-1194 In France five cathedrals were built on the site of Chartres
cathedral over this period.
(Hem., 10/97, p.83)
744 Lords of the Lowland Maya city of Caracol conducted a burning
ritual in the cave at Naj Tunich, in the Peten of Guatemala.
(AM, 7/97, p.51)
745 Some 200,000 Slovenians, settled in a pocket of the eastern
slopes of the Alps, were threatened by the Avars and the Bavarians. For
safety they adopted Christianity and accepted the protection of the Frankish
emperor
(SFC, 5/26/96, T-5)
745-840 The Uighur of eastern Turkestan formed an empire in the north
that was ended by an invasion of the Kyrgyz peoples.
(www.gobiexpeditions.com)
746 Jun 12, The estimated date for the dedication of the Mayan
Temple 22 in Copan.
(Nat. Hist., 4/96, p.31)
749 An earthquake cause great damage in the area of the Sea of
Galilee.
(SFC, 6/18/02, p.A2)
c750 The Anasazi built entire cities into cliffs around the West since
at least this time. Before that they were digging pit houses and even earlier,
about 350 B.C., were probably living in Colorado caves. Their present name
comes from a Navajo word meaning "the ancient ones" or "the ancient enemy."
(HNQ, 7/1/01)
750 Constantinople, as the center of eastern rule used the Greek
language for communication.
(V.D.-H.K.p.65)
c750 Arab immigrants settled upstream from Soba, the capital of
Alwa, and developed a strong new state called Funj.
(Enc. of Africa, 1976, p.170)
c750 Teotihuacan, the 1st major urban center of Mesoamerica, fell
about this time. It was burned, deserted and its people scattered. It contained
the Pyramid of the Moon and the Pyramid of the Sun.
(SSFC, 5/6/01, p.T8)
c750-850 The Maya city of La Milpa reached its peak with about 50,000
people.
(SFC, 6/23/96, p.A10)
750-1258 Muslim power in Persia was held by the Abbassid caliphs, who
claimed lands that stretched from Central Asia to North Africa and Spain.
One Abbasid general, Abdullah, invited 80 Umayyad leaders to a banquet
where they were killed by Abdullah’s men. Only one Umayyad, Abd al Rahman,
was able to escape. He fled all the way to Spain where he united the warring
Muslin groups there and built a new Umayyad government. So now the Muslims
were split in two groups. The Abbassid dynasty of the Moslem Empire ruled
Arabia and the eastern empire. All of the caliphs of this era claim descended
from Abbas, the uncle of Mohammed.
(AHD, 1971, p.2)(ATC, p.84)(SFC, 4/12/03, p.A14)
751 During a raid into central Asia, the Abbasids captured some
Chinese artisans skilled in paper making.
(ATC, p.89)
751- 987 The Frankish dynasty of Pepin the Short began the Carolingian
period.
(AHD, 1971, p.205)
752 Mar 23, Pope Stephen II was elected to succeed Pope Zacharias;
however, Stephen died 4 days later.
(AP, 3/23/97)(PTA, 1980, p.184)
752 Mar 26, Pope Stephen II died 4 days after his election.
(SS, 3/26/02)(PTA, 1980, p.184)
752 Abu Jafar al Mansur, the second Abbasid caliph, moved the
capital to Baghdad.
(ATC, p.85)
c752 Emperor Shomu built a great Buddhist temple and started a
collection from the gifts that were brought to its dedication. Rulers for
the next 12 centuries added to the collection.
(WSJ, 1/13/98, p.A20)
752 The dedication of the Great Buddha of Todai Temple in Nara.
(Jap. Enc., BLDM, p. 214)
754 Jun 5, Friezen murdered bishop Boniface [Winfrid], English
saint, archbishop of Dokkum, and over 50 companions.
(MC, 6/5/02)
754 The Iconoclasts (image smashers) prevailed and religious art
was banned in churches by an edict that remained in effect for a century.
(WSJ, 3/10/97, p.A16)
756 May 15, Abd-al-Rahman was proclaimed the emir of Cordoba,
Spain. Abd al Rahman united the Umayyad forces in Spain and made the ancient
Roman city of Cordoba his new capital.
(ATC, p.95)(HN, 5/15/98)
757 Apr 26, Stephen II ended his reign as Catholic Pope.
(HN, 4/26/98)
757 May 29, St. Paul I (d.767) began his reign as Catholic Pope.
(PTA, 1980, p.188)(SC, 5/29/02)
760 May 22, The 14th recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet
occurred.
(MC, 5/22/02)
763 Tibetan armies occupied the capital of China.
(SFEM, 1/24/99, p.6)
763 In later Honduras altar Q depicts Yax Pasah, Copan’s last
dynastic ruler, receiving the symbolic baton of office from founder K’inich
Yax K’uk’ Mo’ in this year.
(NG, 12/97, p.80)
764-770 In Japan Empress Shotoku had a million miniature pagodas made
in thanks for regaining control of the throne. Sacred text was placed in
each one and distributed to the 10 most important temples.
(WSJ, 7/27/00, p.A20)
765 Dec 31, The coffin of Ho-tse Shen-hui was interred in a stupa
built in China.
(MC, 12/31/01)
766-787 The Chinese poet Du Fu arrived in Baidi Cheng and was given
the means to write poetry by the local warlord. He wrote a third of his
life’s work with many poems in the regulated style called lushi.
(NH, 7/96, p.32)
768 Sep 24, Pippin III, the short, King of France, died at 53.
(MC, 9/24/01)
768-814 Charlemagne becomes king of the Franks and emperor of the former
Western Roman Empire.
(V.D.-H.K.p.105)(ATC, p.72)
771 Dec 4, With the death of his brother Carloman, Charlemagne
became sole ruler of the Frankish Empire.
(HN, 12/4/98)
771-814 Reign of Charlemagne.
(Jap. Enc., BLDM, p. 214)
772 Mar 1, Po Tjiu-I (Bai Juyi), Chinese poet (d.846), Governor
of Hang-tsjow, was born. His work included the narrative poem "Song of
the Pipa," which protested the social evils of his day.
(WSJ, 3/17/00, p.W2)(SC, 3/1/02)
774-814 Charlemagne became king of the Lombards.
(V.D.-H.K.p.68)
776-795 Chan Muan (Sky Screech Owl) reigned over the Bonampak site in
what is now eastern Chiapas, Mexico. The site was abandoned at the end
of his reign.
(AM, May/Jun 97 p.35)
779 King Trisong Detsen led Tibet. Under his rule the first Buddhist
monastery, Samye, was built. It was built under the influence of Padmasambhava
(Guru Rimpoche), Tibet’s greatest saint. Padmasambhava was an 8th century
sorcerer and saint who converted Tibet to Buddhism. Legend has it that
he dictated "sacred geography" texts to his queen consort and then hid
them for future discovery. The texts were discovered by 17th century charismatic
lamas.
(Hem., 4/97, p.72,75)(SFEC,12/14/97, p.T5)(WSJ, 3/11/99, p.A20)
780 A group of West Africans called the Soninke took control of
Ghana and developed it into a major trading empire.
(ATC, p. 113)
781 Yakib ben Laith, a Saffarid prince from an eastern Iranian
dynasty, stripped the sanctuaries of Bamiyan, Afghanistan, of their metal
idols.
(WSJ, 12/20/01, p.A13)
783 Jul 12, Bertha "with the great feet", wife of French king
Pippin III, died.
(MC, 7/12/02)
786 Feb 4, Harun al-Rashid succeeded his older brother the Abbasid
Caliph al-Hadi as Caliph of Baghdad.
(HN, 2/4/99)
786 Feb 24, Pepin the Short of Gaul died. His dominions were divided
between his sons Charles (Charlemagne) and Carloman.
(HN, 2/24/99)
0786 Sep 24, Al-Hadi, Arabic caliph of Islam (185-86), died.
(MC, 9/24/01)
786 Abd al Rahman began construction of the Great Mosque of Cordoba.
It was under construction for 200 years.
(ATC, p.95)
787 Sep 24, 2nd Council of Nicaea (7th ecumenical council) opened
in Asia Minor.
(MC, 9/24/01)
787 Oct 23, Byzantine Empress Irene recovered an Iconoclastic
cult at Nicaea.
(MC, 10/23/01)
787 The 2nd Council of Nicaea abandoned iconoclasm and ordered
the worship of icon images.
(PCh, 1992, p.68)
c791 Croats established the principalities of Primortska Hrvatska
on the Adriatic coast and Posavska Hrvatska in inland Croatia.
(WSJ, 7/14/99, p.A23)
792 The first paper making factory in the Islamic Empire was built
in Baghdad.
(ATC, p.89)
793 Jun 8, Vikings raided the Northumbrian coast in England. Corfe
served as a center of West Saxon resistance to Viking invaders. Vikings
plundered the monastery and St. Cuthbert convent at Lindsfarne
(HN, 6/8/98)(AM, 7/00, p.64)(MC, 6/8/02)
794 Jan 8, Vikings attacked Lindsfarne Island.
(MC, 1/8/02)
794 The capital of Japan was moved from Nara to Kyoto and the
new Imperial Palace was built there.
(Hem., 2/96, p.57)
794-1185 The Heian Period in Japan. The kimono originated in this period.
Prof. Helen McCullough (d.1998) of UC Berkeley and her husband translated
"A Tale of Flowering Fortunes," whose notes and appendixes made it an encyclopedia
of Heian court life. She published 11 volumes of studies and translations
of classical Japanese poetry that included: "The Tale of the Heike" and
"The Great Mirror."
(Jap. Enc., BLDM, p. 214)(SFC, 2/7/97, p.D1)(SFC, 4/23/98, p.B4)
795 Vikings first raided Ireland.
(SFEC, 8/1/99, p.T8)
795-1185 The Heian period was a time of elegant and refined rice papers.
(SFC, 5/17/97, p.A20)
796 Jul 26, Offa, king of Mercia (in central England), died.
(MC, 7/26/02)
796 Frankfurt, Germany. This 1200 year old city of 650,000 is
the hub of Germany’s banking and business community.
(SFC, 5/5/96, p.T-7)
796 A 600-pound limestone altar was carved to honor a treaty in
the Mayan city of Cancuen (Guatemala). It was uncovered in 2001 and soon
stolen. It was retrieved in 2003.
(USAT, 10/30/03, p.12D)(SFC, 10/30/03, p.A11)
c797 The 1,200 year-old Book of Kells, an illuminated manuscript
of the Gospels, was made by Irish monks. It is kept in the library of Dublin’s
Trinity College. The Book of Kells is a richly decorated copy of the four
gospels--Matthew, Mark, Luke and John--produced by Christian monks, possibly
in the late 700s on the Scottish isle of Iona or in the Irish town of Kells.
Joyce later used it as a model for Ulysses.
(SFC, 3/17/97, p.A20) (HNQ, 1/13/99)(SFEM, 5/16/99, p.7)
799 Nov 29, Pope Leo III, aided by Charlemagne, returned to Rome.
(MC, 11/29/01)
c799-878 St. Ignatius Nicetas. He served as the Patriarch of Constantinople
from 846-858 and 867-878.
(WUD, 1994 p.708)
800 Dec 25, Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne emperor at the basilica
of St. Peter's at Rome.
(V.D.-H.K.p.105)(HN, 12/25/98)
c800 The inhabitants of the British Isles did not comb their hair until
they were taught by the Danes about this time.
(SFC, 6/30/96, Z1 p.5)
c800 In Egypt an earthquake sent the Nile port cities of Herakleion,
Canopus and Menouthis into the Mediterranean Sea.
(SFC, 6/8/01, p.A1)
c800 The stone image of Fudo Myo-o, a fierce Japanese deity of
fire and thunder was carved by a revered priest in Kyoto about this time.
It was transferred to Narita about 940.
(Hem, 8/95, p.56)
c800 The height of the Mayan city of Copan. Some 20,000 people
lived in the Copan pocket, a fertile section of the Copan River valley
in what is now Honduras.
(Nat. Hist., 4/96, p.29)
800 The city of Jenne-jeno on the Niger (Mali) grew to a bustling
trade center of about 10,000 people. By 1400 the city was abandoned.
(ATC, p.111)
c800 The first Polynesians come from somewhere in the central Pacific
to New Zealand. These people are called the tangata whenua, which means
"people of the land," but are more commonly called in English the moa-hunters,
for hunting the large grass-eating, ostrich-like bird.
(NG, Aug., 1974, C. McCarry, p.196)
c800-900 The Alawi faith was founded in the 9th century by a Muslim,
who declared himself the "gateway" to the divine truth and abandoned Islam.
(WSJ, 6/12/00, p.A30)
800-900 Buran, the wife of the Caliph of Baghdad, had a lavish wedding.
The groom was led to a carpet of woven gold and 1,000 pearls were poured
over his head in honor of a poet who had described the surface of a glass
of white wine as: "pearls scattered like pebbles on a plain of gold."
(SFC, 12/18/96, zz-1 p.8)
800-900 In northern Bangladesh the Buddhist monastic complex at Paharpur
was built by the Pala dynasty.
(AM, Mar/Apr 97 p.B)
800-900 In China the 9th cent. poet Chu Chen Pu wrote about the hedgehog.
(NH, 7/98, p.54)
c800-900 "The Diamond Sutra,’ a 9th century Chinese work, was found
in 1900 in a cave in Duhuang by Sir Airel Stein, a British scholar-explorer,
and handed over to the British Library.
(SFEC, 6/11/00, p.A30)
c800-900 In England Nennius wrote a history in the early 9th century
and mentioned King Arthur as a fabulous figure.
(WSJ, 3/27/98, p.W10)
800-900 Ninth century monks called Bhutan "the hidden world."
(WSJ, 3/6/97, p.A8)
800-900 In France monks moved inland from the Loire valley to escape
the depredations of the Vikings and revived the making of Chablis wine
with Chardonnay grapes.
(SFC, 7/16/97, Z1 p.4)
c800-900 In Germany Archbishop Hatto of Mainz supposedly hoarded grain
during a time of famine and said that starving masses were nothing more
than mice. He was beleaguered by rodents and took refuge on his island
in the Rhine where legend has it that mice devoured him.
(SFEC, 3/15/98, p.T4)
800-900 The first Khmer or king, know as Kambu, founded Kambujadesa,
which means "The Sons of Kambu" or Kambuja for short. Construction of the
city and temple complex known as Angkor Wat was begun.
(SFEC, 10/20/96, T5)
800-900 Muhammed ibn-Musa al-Khwarizmi, Arab mathematician and astronomer,
wrote his "ab al-jabr w’ al muqabalah" (the science of reduction and comparison).
The work dealt with solving equations. It was the first time that algebra
was discussed as a separate branch of mathematics. In the 12th century
it was translated into Latin as "Ludus algebrae et almucgrabalaeque."
(Alg, 1990, p.87)
800-900 The Buddhist temple of Borobudur on the island of Java was completed.
The site was abandoned after 100 years and was discovered by a British
expedition in 1815.
(SFEC, 3/28/99, p.T9)
800-900 The Vikings brought ponies to Iceland.
(SFC, 3/21/98, p.A9)
800-900 A timber mosque was built at Shanga, Kenya.
(NH, 6/97, p.43)
c800-900 In Southern Korea peasant uprisings led to the establishment
of 2 rival states.
(SFEM, 6/20/99, p.6)
800-900 In Thailand Sadokkokthom was a Khmer sanctuary on the Thai-Cambodian
border in the Aranyaphrathet region.
(AM, Mar/Apr 97 p.H)
800-1050 Ghana controlled West Africa’s rich trade, yet villagers continued
to use cowry shells for money. Koumbi, Ghana’s capital, became the busiest
and wealthiest marketplace in West Africa.
(ATC, p.107,115)
c800-1200 Wat Phu (mountain temple) in southern Laos was a religious
complex patronized by the Khmer of Cambodia.
(AM, Mar/Apr 97 p.E)
802 Oct 31, Empress Irene was driven out of Byzantium.
(MC, 10/31/01)
802 In Cambodia Jayavarman II proclaimed himself a "universal
monarch" in a ritual that united religion and politics and gave rise to
the cult of the Devaraja (deified king).
(WSJ, 7/3/97, p.A9)
802 Vikings stage their 1st raid of Iona (Scotland).
(AM, 7/01, p.50)
804 Vikings returned to Iona and killed 68 of the monastic community.
(AM, 7/01, p.50)
809 Mar 24, Harun al-Rashid (44), caliph of the Abbasid empire
(786-809), died.
(MC, 3/24/02)
810 Jul 8, Pepin, son of Charlemagne and King of Italy, died.
(MC, 7/8/02)
811 Jul 26, Nicephorus I, Byzantine Emperor (802-11), died in
the Battle at Pliska. The Bulgarian under monarch Krum beat the Byzantines.
(MC, 7/26/02)
813 Sep 25, Al-Amin, Arabic Caliph of Islam (809-813), was murdered.
(MC, 9/25/01)
813-833 Caliph al Ma’mun founded a school in Baghdad called the House
of Wisdom. In this school scholars translated Greek philosophy classics
into Arabic.
(ATC, p.89)
814 Jan 28, Charlemagne (71), German emperor, Holy Roman Emperor
(800-814), died.
(MC, 1/28/02)
816 Fatima, sister of the eighth Imam, lies buried in a sanctuary
at Qum, one of the sacred cities of the Shia faith.
(NG, 9/1939, p.320)
820 Jan 20, Abu Abdallah Mibn Idris al-Sjafi'i, Islamic author
of Book of Mother, died.
(MC, 1/20/02)
820 Dec 25, Leo V, the Armenian, Byzantine gen and Emperor (813-20),
was murdered.
(MC, 12/25/01)
c820 The collapse of the Mayan ruling Classic period dynasty in
Copan.
(Nat. Hist., 4/96, p.25)
828 Apr 5, Nicephorus (~77), patriarch of Constantinople (806-815),
died.
(MC, 4/5/02)
833 Jul 20, Ansegis (Ansegius, 63), French abbot of Fontenelle,
author, died.
(MC, 7/20/02)
834 Oct 31, This evening became All Hallow’s Eve with the establishment
of Nov 1 as Feast of All Saints by Pope Gregory IV.
(PTA, 1980, p.204)(SFC, 10/31/01, p.C2)
834 Nov 1, This day was declared to be All Saints’ Day by the
Catholic Church. [see 835CE]
(SFC, 10/31/01, p.C2)
835 Nov 1, After the spread of Christianity through the
west, the Roman Catholic Church in 835 A.D. made November 1 a church holiday
to honor all the saints. This celebration was called All Saint's Day or
All Hallows and the day before it--October 31--was called All Hallow's
Eve (later Halloween). Pope Gregory extended the Feast of All Saints on
Nov 1 to France and Germany. [see 834CE]
(PTA, 1980, p.204)(HNPD, 10/31/99)
837 Apr 13, Best view of Halley's Comet in 2000 years.
(MC, 4/13/02)
838 Jan 4, Babak, Persian social and religious reformer, was martyred.
(MC, 1/4/02)
839 Charles III the Fat, sometimes called Charles II of France,
was born. He was the son of Louis the German and grandson of Charlemagne.
Charles III the Fat was a Frankish king and emperor. His fall in
887 marked the final disintegration of the empire of Charlemagne. He was
the youngest son of Louis the German and was crowned emperor by Pope John
VIII in 881 and became king of all the East Franks in 882, succeeding his
brother Louis the Younger. Charles III the Fat died on January 13, 888.
(HNQ, 8/30/99)
839 The Stone of Scone was first believed to be used in the coronation
of a Scottish king at the village of Scone in southeast Scotland.
(SFC, 11/16/96, p.A11)
839 The first official mention of Andorra was recorded in the
records of the cathedral at Seu d’Urgell in Spain.
(Hem., 3/97, p.74)
840 Mar 14, Eginhard (69), French nobleman, biographer (Vita Karoli
Magni), died.
(MC, 3/14/02)
840 Jun 6, Agobard, archbishop of Lyon (anti-Semite), died.
(MC, 6/6/02)
840 Vikings settled in Ireland.
(SFEC, 8/1/99, p.T8)
841 Jun 25, Charles the Bald and Louis the German defeated Lothar
at Fontenay.
(HN, 6/25/98)
842 Feb 19, The Medieval Iconoclastic Controversy ended as a council
in Constantinople formally reinstated the veneration of icons in the churches.
(MC, 2/19/02)
842 Mar 20, Alfonso II the Chaste, king of Asturia (791-842),
died. Asturias was a kingdom in NW Spain.
(MC, 3/20/02)(WUD, 1994 p.92)
842 Vikings attacked the Irish monastery at Clonmacnoise from
bases in Ireland.
(SFEC, 8/1/99, p.T8)
843 Mar 11, Icon worship was officially reinstated in Aya Sofia,
Constantinople.
(MC, 3/12/02)
843 Apr 19, Judith, French empress, 2nd wife of Louis de Vrome,
died.
(MC, 4/19/02)
843 Jun 24, Vikings destroyed Nantes.
(MC, 6/24/02)
844 In Scotland the Scotti and Picts united under Cinaed (Kenneth)
Mac Ailpin. The Pict language disappeared following the union.
(AM, 7/01, p.46)
846 Nov 1, Louis II, the Stutterer, King of France (877-79), was
born.
(MC, 11/1/01)
849 Alfred the Great (d.899) was said to have been born near Uffington.
He became King of the West Saxons in 871.
(AHD, 1971, p.32)(AM, 9/01, p.42)
c850 Outsiders found coffee in the region of Ethiopia called Kaffa,
hence the name.
(SFEC, 10/6/96, Z1 p.4)(http://www.koffeekorner.com/koffeehistory.htm)
850-930 Hucbaldus Elnonensis, was a French monk and composer, who became
known for writing poetry about the hairless. He wrote "Ecloga de Calvis,"
(In Praise of Bald Men) for Hatto, a bald archbishop. All 150 lines of
the Latin verse begin with the letter c (calvus means bald in Latin).
(WSJ, 11/23/98, p.B1)
850-933 Harold the Fairhaired. Princess Gyda is said to have incited
Harold to gather the whole of Norway under his scepter. The name Gyda was
later corrupted to Gjøe, the name of Amdunsen’s Northwest Passage
sloop (1903-1905).
(Ind, 4/27/02, 5A)
c850-1100 Native Indians in Chaco Canyon [New Mexico] built multistory
buildings and roads. Evidence was later discovered that they designed a
vast map of the yearly sun cycle and the 19-year cycle of the moon.
(WSJ, 6/16/00, p.W2)
c853 The Baltic shoreline
Curonians repulsed Danish Viking attempts at subjugation. King Olaf led
Swedish Vikings in retaliation and overcame the towns of Seeburg and Apuole
(Apulia).
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/anskar.html#lifeans
(TB-Com, 10/11/00)
853 Olaf, King of Sweden, led his forces across the Baltic Sea
and into western Lithuania. They attacked the castle at Apuole near the
town of Skuodas on the Luba River. A truce was declared after 8 days of
fighting. King Olaf took home much gold, silver and amber, 30 (Kursiu)
local inhabitants and destroyed the castle.
(H of L, 1931, p.14)
855 Sep 28, The Emperor Lothar died in Gaul, and his kingdom was
divided between his three sons.
(HN, 9/28/98)
855 A version of "Cinderella" came from China about this time.
(SFEC, 5/25/97, Z1 p.7)
858 Apr 17, Benedict III ended his reign as Catholic Pope.
(HN, 4/17/98)
858 Apr 24, Nicholas I succeeded Benedict III as the Catholic
Pope.
(HN, 4/24/98)(MC, 4/24/02)
860 Jun 18, Swedish Vikings attacked Constantinople.
(MC, 6/18/02)
860 Aug 1, Peace of Koblenz involved Charles the Bare, Louis the
German & Lotharius II.
(MC, 8/1/02)
c860 Novgorod, Russia, was founded about this time.
(AM, 11/00, p.32)
861 The Khazar kings converted to Judaism. A Jewish
dynasty of kings presided over the Khazar kingdom until the 960s.
(TJOK, chap. 6)
866 Sep 19, Leo VI Sophos, Byzantine Emperor (886-912) and writer
(Problematica), was born.
(MC, 9/19/01)
867 Feb 11, Theodora, the Saint, beauty queen, Byzantine Empress,
died.
(MC, 2/11/02)
867 Nov 13, Pope Nicholas I (the Great) died at age 67. He served
from 858-867.
(MC, 11/13/01)
867-1057 The Byzantine Empire expanded.
(ATC, p.24)
869 Feb 14, Cyrillus, Greek apostle of Slavs, died.
(MC, 2/14/02)
870 Dec 31, Skirmish at Englefield. Ethelred of Wessex beat back
a Danish invasion army.
(MC, 12/31/01)
871 Jan 4, Ethelred of Wessex was defeated by Danish forces at
Reading.
(PCh, 1992, p.72)
871 Jan 8, Ethelred of Wessex defeated the Danish forces at Ashdown.
(PCh, 1992, p.72)
871 Mar 2, Battle at Marton: Ethelred van Wessex (d.871) beat
the Danish invasion army. Ethelred died in April and his brother Alfred
(22) took over. Alfred became Alfred the Great and ruled until 899.
(PCh, 1992, p.72)(SC, 3/2/02)
871 Apr 23, Ethelred I, king of Wessex, brother of Alfred the
Great, died.
(MC, 4/23/02)
871-899 Saxon reign under Alfred the Great.
(AHD, 1971, p.32)
872 Dec 14, Adrian II (~80), Italian Pope (867-72), the last married
pope, died.
(MC, 12/14/01)
872-882 Pope John VIII (b.1814). A novel by Donna Cross in 1996 is based
on historical documents that indicate that he was actually female.
(WUD, 1994, p.769)(SFEC, 11/17/96, BR p.8)
874 Vikings from Norway began to survey Iceland. The monks withdrew
to Ireland. The 40,000-square-mile island situated 500 miles northwest
of Scotland was first settled by Norwegians.
(NH, 6/96, p.53)(HNQ, 4/28/00)
c875-925 Lord Chaak ruled over the Mayan city of Uxmal in Mexico.
(AM, May/Jun 97 suppl. p.H)
876 Oct 8, Charles the Bald was defeated at the Battle of Andernach.
Louis the Young beat Charles the Bare.
(HN, 10/8/98)(MC, 10/8/01)
876 Charles the Bald donated a relic, the Sancta Camisia, to the
city of Chartres. The relic was believed to the childbirth tunic of the
Virgin Mary.
(Hem., 10/97, p.86)
877 Oct 6, Charles II the Kale, King of France and Roman emperor
(875-77), died at 54.
(MC, 10/6/01)
879 Apr 10, Louis II, the Stutterer, King of France (877-79),
died and Louis III was crowned King of France.
(MC, 4/10/02)
879 Sep 17, Charles III, [The Simple], king of France (893-923),
was born.
(MC, 9/17/01)
883 Mar 8, Albumasar [Ahmad Aboe M Gafar al-Balkhi], Arabic astronomer,
died.
(MC, 3/8/02)
884 May 17, St. Adrian III began his reign as Catholic Pope.
(MC, 5/17/02)
885 Apr 6, Methodius, Greek apostle to the Slavs, archbishop of
Sirmium, died.
(MC, 4/6/02)
886 Aug 29, Basilius I, the Macedonian, Byzantine emperor
(867-886), died.
(MC, 8/29/01)
886 Under Muslim Arabs the Bagratid family rose to prominence
in Armenia and established a line of kings from this time to the 10th century.
(CO Enc. / Armenia)
889 Bhaktapur, Nepal, was founded under the Malla dynasty.
(SSFC, 9/21/03, p.C8)
889-1324 The Khmer Empire‘s dominions roughly correspond to present-day
Laos and Cambodia and reached its height during the Angkor period (889-1434
CE). The kingdom flourished from the 6th to 15th centuries CE and then
declined with invasions from neighboring Thailand.
(HNQ, 8/7/00)
891 Feb 6, Photius, Byzantine theologist, patriarch of Constantinople,
saint, died.
(MC, 2/6/02)
891 Sep 1, Norse defeated near Louvaine, France.
(MC, 9/1/02)
891-896 Formosus served as Pope following Stephen VI.
(PTA, 1980, p.224)(WSJ, 6/27/01, p.A14)
894 Japan abolished the sending of envoys to China.
(Jap. Enc., BLDM, p. 214)
896 Feb 22, Pope Formosa was crowned king Arnulf of Carinthia,
French emperor.
(MC, 2/22/02)
896 Apr 4, Pope Formosus died. His body was exhumed by his successor
in the Cadaver Synod. He was then put on trial for perjury, found guilty
and dumped in the Tiber River.
(PTA, 1980, p.224)(WSJ, 6/27/01, p.A14)
896 The founding date of Hungary. Seven tribes of Magyars settled
in the Carpathian Basin. Kingdom of Hungary was formed by seven Magyar
and three Khazar tribes.
(WSJ, 12/26/96, p.4)(SFEC, 8/8/99, p.T5)(TJOK, p. 206)
899 Oct 26, Alfred the Great (b.849), writer and king of Wessex
(871-99), died.
(MC, 10/26/01)
899 Dec 8, Arnulf of Carinthia, last emperor of Austria-France,
died.
(MC, 12/8/01)
c900 By this time the Fatimids broke away from the Abbasids and migrated
to North Africa. They were descendants of Mohammad’s daughter, Fatima.
(ATC, p.91)
c900 The east coast of Africa was impacted by trade and Arab, Persian
and Indian traders mixed with the indigenous Bantu. Many of the coastal
Bantu adopted Islam and the Arabic word Swahili, meaning "people of the
shore," to describe themselves. By this time they had reached as far south
as Sofala in Mozambique.
(ATC, p.142)(Enc. of Africa, 1976, p.169)
c900 The Mayan city-state of Palenque [in later Mexico] was abandoned
(SFC, 5/19/96, T-10)
c900 The Mayan city-state of Copan [in later Honduras] was abandoned
(NG, 12/97, p.80)
900-999 http://www.btinternet.com/~timeref/hsttime0.htm
c900-950 The 7-foot hanging scroll, ink-on-silk masterpiece "Riverbank"
by Dong Yuan was created. It is the earliest surviving example of monumental
Chinese landscape painting. The work was also thought to be a forgery by
Chang Da-chien (1899-1983) through whom it passed to the New York Met.
(WSJ, 7/2/97, p.A12)(WSJ, 7/24/97, p.A16)(WSJ, 12/13/99, p.A32)
900-1000 Alsace became part of Germany in the 10th century.
(SFEC, 1/31/99, p.T4)
900-1000 The French village of Prelenfrey dates back to the 10th Century.
(SFC, 6/23/96, p.T8)
900-1000 Viking longships entered the Douro River mouth in Portugal.
Their ships are believed to be the design form from which the wine carrying
boats "barcos rabelos" were designed.
(SFEC, 1/12/97, p.T7)
900-1000 The Tresco Abbey was a Benedictine monastery on the Isles of
Sicily off the southwest coast of England.
(Hem., 7/96, p.66)
900-1000 The terminal classic period of the Maya.
(AM, May/Jun 97 suppl. p.B)
c900-1000 The Japanese discovered the wasabe root growing near mountain
streams and began incorporating it into their cuisine.
(SFC, 6/3/98, Z1 p.6)
900-1000 In Thailand the site of Prasat Hin Phanom Wan was an important
Khmer sanctuary in the Upper Mun River Valley of northeastern Thailand.
(AM, Mar/Apr 97 p.G)
902 Aug 1, The Aghlabid rulers of Ifriqiyah (modern day Tunisia)
captured Taormina, Sicily.
(HN, 8/1/98)
902-970 In China Tao Gu lived. He wrote "Qing yi lu," (An Examination
of Strange Accounts). He mentioned the Chinese use of cormorants for fishing.
(NH, 10/98, p.69)
c903-935 Good King Wenceslaus, saint, duke of Bohemia (928-935). [see
929]
(WUD, 1994 p.1622)
904 Jul 31, Arabs captured Thessalonica of the Byzantine Empire.
(HN, 7/31/98)
905 Persian astronomer Al Sufi referred to the Andromeda galaxy
as the "Little Cloud."
(NH, 11/96, p.78)
907 Fall of the T’ang dynasty in China.
(V.D.-H.K.p.169)
907-1279 "The Five Dynasties and the Song Period" by Richard M. Barnhart
is the first section of Wu Hung’s 1997 "The Origins of Chinese Painting."
(WSJ, 1/2/98, p.6)
910 The French abbey at Cluny was founded.
(SFEC, 11/21/99, p.T4)
910 Rhazes, an Arab physician, wrote the 1st account of smallpox
and proposed the earliest theory of immunity.
(NW, 10/14/02, p.46)
911 Sep 2, Viking monarch Oleg of Kiev, Russia, signed a treaty
with the Byzantines.
(MC, 9/2/01)
911 The Carolingian period of Frankish rule ended in Germany.
(AHD, 1971, p.205)
911 A relic donated by Charles the Bald, the Sancta Camisia, was
displayed above the city walls of Chartres and seemed to repel a Viking
attack. The relic was believed to be the Virgin Mary’s childbirth tunic.
(Hem., 10/97, p.86)
912 Nov 23, Otto I, the Great (d.973), German king and Holy Roman
emperor (962-73), was born. Otto the Great became King of Germany in 936.
(AHD, 1971, p.931)(MC, 11/23/01)
912-961 Abd al Rahman III, Umayyad caliph in Spain, purchased Scandinavian,
African and German slaves to serve in his forces. At this time Cordoba
was western Europe's largest city with a population of 200,000 people.
(ATC, p.96)
917 Aug 20, A Byzantine counter-offensive was routed by Syeon
at Anchialus, Bulgaria.
(HN, 8/20/98)
917 In Italy the Castle Torre d’Orlando was built between Paciano
and Panicale in Umbria.
(SFEM, 10/12/97, p.49)
918 Mar 1, Balderik became bishop of Utrecht.
(SC, 3/1/02)
918 In Ireland there was a great flood in the region of Clonmacnoise.
(SFEC, 8/1/99, p.T8)
918-1392 During Korea's Age of Enlightenment, the period of the Goryeo
Dynasty, the Buddhist aristocracy commissioned many works of art to further
the Buddhist ideal.
(SFC, 10/14/03, p.D1)
919 May 12, Duke Henry of Saxon became King Henry I of Eastern
Europe.
(MC, 5/12/02)
919 Pueblo Bonito, Chaco Canyon Nat'l Monument in Northern New
Mexico had its ceremonial room completed. Occupancy lasted till c1130.
(K.I.-365D, p.159)
921 Nov 7, Treaty of Bonn: East France and West France recognized
each other.
(MC, 11/7/01)
922 Mar 27, Al-Hallaj al-Mughith-al-Hsayn Mansur (64), Persian
mystic, was beheaded.
(MC, 3/27/02)
922 Jun 9, French republic chose Robert I as King of France.
(MC, 6/9/02)
923 Feb 16, Abu Dja'far Mohammed Djarir al-Tabari (83), Islamic
historian, died.
(MC, 2/16/02)
924 Apr 7, Berengarius I, Emperor of Italy, was murdered.
(MC, 4/7/02)
924 Jul 17, Edward the Older, English king (899-924) and son of
Alfred the Great, died. He was succeeded by his son Athelston.
(PC, 1992, p.75)
925 The Croatian kingdom was established.
(WSJ, 7/14/99, p.A23)
927 May 27, Symeon, czar of Bulgaria, died.
(MC, 5/27/02)
929 Sep 28, Wenceslaus I, duke of Bohemia, was murdered. [see
903-935]
(MC, 9/28/01)
930 Jun 23, Icelanders established the Althing, an open-air national
parliament and the world‘s oldest surviving parliamentary body. This was
later credited as the first example of representative government.
(NH, 6/96, p.53)(DrEE, 1/4/97, p.4)(SFC, 1/1/00, p.C3)(MC, 6/23/02)
933 Mar 15, Henry the Fowler routed the raiding Magyars at Merseburg,
Germany. The Wagner opera Lohengrin is about King Henry and how he united
the people of Brabant with the Saxons against the Hungarian foe.
(HN, 3/15/99)(WSJ, 7/28/99, p.A21)
935 In the Icelandic
"Egils-saga" there is an account of how Thorolf and Egil harried in Curonia
(along the eastern Baltic shore) about this time.
(DrEE, 11/23/96, p.3)(TB-Com, 10/11/00)
935 In southern Korea the last Shilla king surrendered his throne.
(SFEM, 6/20/99, p.6)
late 930s Khazar baliqchi Pesakh defeated the Rus. According
to an anonymous letter written by a Khazarian Jew in the 940s, the Rus
prince Oleg captured the Khazar-held city Tmutorokan one night. Pesakh,
a prominent Khazar baliqchi (governor), learned of Oleg’s actions and conquered
several Crimean cities belonging to the Byzantines and also did away with
many Rus. Oleg was badly defeated, and was forced to surrender to
Governor-General Pesakh. This was a major Khazar victory over the
Rus.
(TJOK, pages 191-192)
936-973 Otto the Great became King of Germany and later the first Holy
Roman Emp.
(AHD, 1971, p.931)
936-1531 Aachen in West Germany was the coronation city for German kings
over this period.
(WUD, 1994, p.1)
938-1002 Al-Mansur (the Conqueror), Moorish leader. He was born Abu'Amir
al-Ma'asiri and rose to power by wooing the caliph's favorite concubine.
He raided Christian Spain and hauled his booty back to Cordoba and built
a palace called Madinat al-Zahira, the Shining City.
(WSJ, 1/11/99, p.R4,6)
940 The stone image of Fudo Myo-o, a fierce Japanese deity of
fire and thunder, was carved by a revered priest in Kyoto about 800 CE
and transferred to Narita about 940.
(Hem, 8/95, p.56)
942 May 16, Saadiah Gaon, head of Talmudic Academy of Sura, died.
(MC, 5/16/02)
945 In England monks settled along the Thames riverbank at Bablock
Hythe.
(SFEC, 8/20/00, p.T9)
946 May 25, Edmund the Older, king of Wessex, England, (939-46),
died.
(SC, 5/25/02)
950 Nov 22, Lotharius, King of Italy (947-50), died.
(MC, 11/22/01)
c950 The Anasazi first came to Keet Seel, Arizona.
(Hem., 5/97, p.75)
951 Sep 23, Otto I, the Great, became king of Italy.
(MC, 9/23/01)
953 Apr 21, Otto I, the Great, granted Utrecht fishing rights.
(MC, 4/21/02)
954 Nov 12, Lotharius became king of France.
(MC, 11/12/01)
954 The Count of Ventimiglia ceded Seborga (in northwest Italy,
twenty minutes from the Mediterranean north of Bordighera) to the monks
who elected their abbot as sovereign prince.
(SFEC, 3/30/97, p.T5)
955 May 16, Alberich II, (bastard?) son of Octavianus, was elected
pope.
(MC, 5/16/02)
955 Aug 10, Otto organized his nobles and defeated the invading
Magyars at the Battle of Lechfeld in Germany.
(HN, 8/10/98)
955 In England King Eadwig failed to appear at his coronation
feast. Dunstan, chronicler of the event, found him cavorting with a young
lady and her mother.
(WSJ, 1/29/99, p.W7)
956 Jun 16, Hugo the Great, duke of France, died.
(MC, 6/16/02)
956-1015 Vladimir I, Prince of Kiev and the first Christian grand prince
of Russia (980-1015). He married the sister of the Byzantine emperor and
thus brought in Orthodox Christianity to Russia.
(WUD, 1994, p.1598)(WSJ, 3/28/97, p.A16)
958-1025 Basil II, Byzantine emperor. His empire held a monopoly on
royal purple silk and he flourished by manufacturing and trading silk.
(WSJ, 1/11/99, p.R6)
959 The Viking ruler Gorm the Old, the father of Harald Bluetooth,
died.
(AM, 11/00, p.21)
959-987 Harald Bluetooth, or Harald Blatand, 10th-century king of Denmark,
attributed to himself the unification of Denmark and the Christianization
of the Danes. He also conquered Norway and raided Normandy. He was later
invaded and defeated by German emperor Otto II.
(HNQ, 9/3/98)(AM, 11/00, p.21)
960 Denmark's King Harald Bluetooth was baptized.
(Econ, 6/28/03, p.55)
960-1127 The period of the Northern Song Dynasty. Most artistic representations
of nature during this period carried auspicious meanings, e.g. bamboo signified
resilience in the face of diversity, and the cicada bespoke immortality.
(NH, 7/00, p.59)(SFC, 5/14/03, p.D3)
960-1279 The Sung (Song) dynasty ruled over China. It was from this
period that the Japanese tea ceremony originated; the ritual was developed
for a tranquility of mind. Since this period mountainous looking rocks
have been prized as objects of contemplation. Porcelain from this period
is particularly beautiful.
(Hem, Dec. 94, p.64)(SFC, 6/4/96, p.E5)(WSJ, 9/27/96, p.B14)
962 Feb 2, Otto I (912-973) invaded Italy and was crowned Holy
Roman Emperor by Pope John XII.
(AHD, 1971, p.931)(HN, 2/2/99)(MC, 2/2/02)
962-1030 An Islamic era in Afghanistan was established with the
Ghaznavid Dynasty.
(www.afghan, 5/25/98)
962-1140 Under the Ghaznavid Dynasty Afghanistan became the center of
Islamic power and civilization.
(www.afghan, 5/25/98)
963 Mar 15, Romanus II (25), Byzantine emperor (959-63), died.
(MC, 3/15/02)
964 Arab astronomers described the Great Nebula in Andromeda,
our closest galaxy.
(V.D.-H.K.p.333)
965 Mar 1, Leo VIII, Italian (anti-)Pope (963-65), died.
(SC, 3/1/02)
965 Part of Khazaria was conquered by the Kievan Rus prince
Svyatoslav.
(TJOK, pp. 193-194)
967 Nov 20, Aboe al-Faradj al-Isfahani, Arabic author (Book of
liederen), died.
(MC, 11/20/01)
969 Oct 28, After a prolonged siege, the Byzantines ended 300
years of Arab rule in Antioch.
(HN, 10/28/98)
967 Dec 7, Abu Sa'id ibn Aboa al-Chair, Persian mystic, was born.
(MC, 12/7/01)
969 Dec 10, Nicephorus II Phocas, Byzantine co-Emperor (963-69),
was murdered.
(MC, 12/10/01)
969 Named El Qahira -"the victorious," Cairo gained power from
its position beside the Nile.
(NG, May 1985, R. Caputo, p.603)
969 By this time the Fatimids had conquered most of North Africa
and claimed Cairo as their capital.
(ATC, p.91)
969-1000 Olaf Tryggvesson, Olav I, King of Norway from 995-1000.
(WUD, 1994, p.1002)
971-1030 Machmud of Ghazni, ruler of Afghanistan. He made annual invasions
to northern India where he pillaged temples, captured slaves, and transported
his goods back by elephant. His library had a large collection of erotic
manuscripts and he shared his palace with 400 poets.
(WSJ, 1/11/99, p.R6)
973 May 6, Henry II, German King (1002) and Holy Roman Emperor
(1014-1024), was born.
(HN, 5/6/98)(MC, 5/6/02)
973 Otto I, the Great (b.912), German king and Holy Roman emperor
(962-73), died.
(AHD, 1971, p.931)(MC, 11/23/01)
975 Jul 25, Thietmar bishop of Merseburg, German chronicler, was
born.
(SC, 7/25/02)
975-1038 St. Stephen of Hungary. His crown was a fusion of Greek and
Latin elements.
(WSJ, 11/18/96, p.A10)
0976 Oct 1, Al-Hakam II, the caliph of Cordoba, died.
(MC, 10/1/01)
976 Nov 14, T'ai tsu, emperor of China and founder of Sung-dynasty,
died.
(MC, 11/14/01)
976 The Great Mosque of Cordoba (Spain) was completed and served
as a religious, social and educational center. The largest of the 70 libraries
in Cordoba contained 500,000 volumes. 70,000 books a year were hand-copied
to satisfy the citizen’s literary appetites.
(ATC, p.95,98)
976-1025 The reign of Basil the Bulgar-Slayer, ruler of Byzantium. [see
330CE]
(WSJ, 10/14/95, p.A-12)
977 The shrine of Imam Ali, a gold-domed mosque, was built in
Najaf, Iraq, on the burial site of Imam Ali, son-in-law of the prophet
Mohammed.
(SFC, 8/30/03, p.A1)
978 Mar 18, Edward the Martyr (15), King of Anglo-Saxons (975-78),
was murdered.
(MC, 3/18/02)
979 Apr 14, There was a challenge to throne of King Aethelred
II, the Unrede (Unready), of England (979-1016). He attempted to buy peace
with from Scandinavian invaders and called for England’s 1st general tax,
the Danegeld. Some 140,000 pounds of silver was paid in tribute.
(WSJ, 5/24/01, p.A20)(MC, 4/14/02)
980-983 Eric the Red was banished from Iceland for a murder. He sailed
west and for 3 years explored the rocky land that he named Greenland.
(HT, 5/97, p.31)
980-1037 Avicenna (Ibn Sina, Afghan scientist), the Muslim philosopher-scientist,
was born in Bukhara (Balkh). He wrote "The Book of Healing," a vast philosophical
and scientific encyclopedia, and "The Canon of Medicine," an encyclopedia
of the medical knowledge of his time. Both works were translated to Latin
and exerted great influence on Scholastics in the West.
(www.afghan, 5/25/98)(V.D.-H.K.p.115)
982 Eric the Red (Eiric Rauthornpi), father of Leif Ericson, discovered
Greenland.
(SFEM, 11/15/98, p.24)
983 Dec 7, Otto II the Red (~28), German king and emperor (973-83),
died in Italy. Otto III [aged 3] took the throne after his father's
death.
(HN, 12/7/98)(MC, 12/7/01)
c985 Montpellier, France, was founded at the intersection of 3
trade and pilgrimage routes.
(WSJ, 1/11/99, p.R22)
985-1200 The Chola Kingdom prospered in southern India. Arts flourished
and the economy prospered under expanding trade and military conquests.
Ganesha, son of Shiva, was the first god invoked at the beginning of a
new enterprise.
(WSJ, 10/8/99, p.W14)(WSJ, 10/8/99, p.W14)
986 Mar 2, Lotharius (44), King of France (954-86), died.
(SC, 3/2/02)
986 Eric the Red and his followers began to settle Greenland.
(SFEM, 11/15/98, p.24)
986 Bjarni Herjolfsson sailed to Labrador and described it as
"worthless country."
(NG, V184, No. 4, Oct. 1993, p.4)
987 May 21, Louis V, last Carolingian King of France (966-987),
died. The Carolingian period of Frankish rule from the dynasty of Pepin
the Short ended in France with the death of Louis V (20). [see May 22]
(PCh, 1992, p.78)(AHD, 1971, p.205)(MC, 5/21/02)
987 May 22, Louis V le Faineant (20), the Lazy, king of France
(986-87), was allegedly poisoned by his mother. [see May 21]
(MC, 5/22/02)
987 Jul 3, The count of Paris, Hugh Capet (49), became king of
France. Paris soon emerged as the center of French political, cultural
and religious life, once again becoming the capital.
(PCh, 1992, p.78)(HNQ, 4/18/02)(MC, 7/3/02)
987 Dec 30, French King Hugh Capet crowned his son Robert the
Compassionate.
(MC, 12/30/01)
988 May 6, Dirk II, West Frisian count of Holland, died.
(MC, 5/6/02)
988 May 19, Dunstanus, English archbishop of Canterbury, died.
(MC, 5/19/02)
988 Prince Vladimir was converted to Christianity in Kiev.
(SSFC, 6/24/01, p.A14)
991 Aug 11, Danes under Olaf Tryggvason killed Ealdorman Brihtnoth
and defeated the Saxons at Maldon.
(HN, 8/10/98)
992 Constantinople granted Venetian goods lower tariffs than other
merchandise.
(WSJ, 1/11/99, p.R50)
992 Ghana captured its chief trading rival, the Berber town of
Audoghast.
(Enc. of Africa, 1976, p.172)
994 Nov 7, Muhammad ibn Hazm, historian, jurist, author of Islamic
Spain, was born.
(MC, 11/7/01)
994-1035 Life of Canute, later King of England, Denmark and Norway.
(AHD,1971, p.198)
995-1000 In Norway Olaf I was king.
(WUD, 1994, p.1002)
995-1027 Heydey of the Fujiwara Clan in Japan.
(Jap. Enc., BLDM, p. 214)
995-1030 Olaf Haraldsson, aka Saint Olaf, the patron saint of Norway.
He was king from 1016-1029. He and a crew of Vikings attacked London and
pulled down the London Bridge with ropes. This is remembered in the nursery
rhyme "London Bridge is falling down..."
(WUD, 1994, p.1002)(SFC, 8/23/97, p.E3)
995-1049? Guido d’Arezzo, Italian monk and musical theorist. He is generally
credited with developing current musical notation.
(WUD, 1994, p.629)(WSJ, 5/27/97, pB1)
996 May 21, Otto III (16) was crowned the Roman Emperor by his
cousin Pope Gregory V.
(HN, 5/21/98)(MC, 5/21/02)
996 Oct 24, Hugh Capet, king of France (987-96), died at 58.
(MC, 10/24/01)
c996 In Iran the Astan Ghods Ravazi religious foundation was started.
(WSJ, 7/11/96, p.A4)
997 St. Adalbert was martyred. He brought Christianity to Bohemia.
(SFC, 4/26/97, p.A12)
997 The name "Austria" first appeared in a medieval manuscript.
(WSJ, 4/16/97, p.A16)
c997 The Isle of Man parliament, the Tynwald, was established.
(SFEC, 9/28/97, p.T3)
999 Feb 18, Gregory V, [Bruno] 1st German Pope, died.
(MC, 2/18/02)
999 Turkish dynasties became the rulers of Transoxania, and area
that covered much of what later became Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan.
(Econ, 7/26/03, p.46-4)