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The 1010s

314 sourced entries across 10 years, inside the 11th century. Each year below opens its own page; the lines under it are that year’s highest-ranked entries.

1010 CE42 entries

  • March 8 – Persian poet Ferdowsi finishes writing the Shahnameh (Book of Kings), which will be regarded as the national epic of the greater Iranian culture.
  • June 2 – Fitna of al-Andalus – Battle of Aqbat al-Bakr: The Caliphate of Córdoba is defeated. Allied to Muslim rebels, Ramon Borrell, Count of Barcelona sacks Córdoba, and Hisham II the Nephast is restored as Umayyad caliph of Córdoba, succeeding Muhammad II al-Mahdi.
  • Song Zhun of Song dynasty China completes the work of the earlier geographer Lu Duosun, an enormous atlas of China that is written and illustrated in 1,556 chapters, showing maps of each region, city, town, and village (the atlas took 39 years to complete).

1011 CE27 entries

  • September 29 – Siege of Canterbury: Danish Viking raiders led by Thorkell the Tall pillage Canterbury after a siege, taking Ælfheah, archbishop of Canterbury, as a prisoner.
  • Ibn al-Haytham (Alhazen), an Arab scientist working in Egypt, feigns madness for fear of angering Caliph Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, and is kept under house arrest. During this time he begins writing his influential Book of Optics.
  • Byrhtferth, Benedictine monk of Ramsey Abbey, writes his Manual (Enchiridion) on the divine order of the universe and time.

1012 CE34 entries

  • April 12 – Oldřich, Duke of Bohemia, deposes his brother Jaromír, who flees to Poland. Oldřich recognises the suzerainty of King Henry II of Germany over Bohemia. He secures his rule by suppressing the Vršovci insurgents.
  • August 12 – Death of Ōe no Masahira, husband of poet and former palace lady-in-waiting Akazome Emon, who writes a number of mourning poems to him.
  • Summer – The climax of the Bedouin anti-Fatimid rebellion in Palestine is reached. Abu'l-Futuh al-Hasan ibn Ja'far is acclaimed as anti-Caliph with the title of al-Rashid bi-llah ("Righteous with God").

1013 CE24 entries

  • September – Emperor Sanjō of Japan visits the home of influential statesman Fujiwara no Michinaga.
  • December – Fujiwara no Masanobu, an officer of the guard of empress consort Kenshi of Japan, is killed by Fujiwara no Korekane and Michinaga orders the assassin imprisoned.
  • Æthelred II appoints Lyfing as archbishop of Canterbury in England. He restores Canterbury Cathedral, adding porticus towers and a massive westwork.

1014 CE27 entries

  • February 3 – King Sweyn Forkbeard dies at Gainsborough after a reign of five weeks. He is succeeded by Harald II who becomes king of Denmark, while Cnut is elected by the Vikings of the Danelaw as king of England.
  • February 14 – King Henry II arrives at Rome and is crowned Holy Roman Emperor together with his wife Cunigunde by Pope Benedict VIII in St. Peter's Basilica. Henry establishes the Diocese of Bobbio (Northern Italy) and returns to Germany.
  • April 23 – Battle of Clontarf: Brian Boru, High King of Ireland, defeats a Norse-Irish alliance, although himself killed.

1015 CE34 entries

  • July 15 – Vladimir the Great dies at Berestove after a 35-year reign. He is succeeded by his son Sviatopolk I as Grand Prince of Kiev.
  • Earl Eric Haakonsson outlaws berserkers in Norway.
  • Peacocks arrive from the Chinese Song Empire to Fujiwara's mansion in Japan.

1016 CE35 entries

  • January 7 – Fath al-Qal'i, governor of the Citadel of Aleppo, revolts against Emir Mansur ibn Lu'lu', forcing him to flee. Fath accepts an agreement with Salih ibn Mirdas and takes control of Aleppo.
  • October 18 – Battle of Assandun: Cnut defeats Edmund Ironside, leaving the latter as king of Wessex.
  • Georgius Tzul, ruler of Khazaria, is captured by a combined Byzantine Empire–Kievan Rus' force, which effectively ends Khazaria's existence.

1017 CE33 entries

  • January 6 – Cnut ("the Great") is crowned king of England. In July he marries Emma of Normandy, the widow of Æthelred the Unready, securing his ties with Normandy.
  • Construction of Saint Sophia Cathedral, Kyiv is started (approximate date).
  • Summer – Hamza ibn-'Ali ibn-Ahmad publicly declares the founding of the Druze religion, during the reign of the Fatimid Caliph Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah.

1018 CE36 entries

  • July 29 – Battle of Vlaardingen: Henry II sends an army towards Holland to subdue the rebellious Count Dirk III. The Imperial forces are defeated near Vlaardingen.
  • August 15 – Ivats, Bulgarian nobleman and rebel leader, is treacherously blinded and captured by strategos Eustathios Daphnomeles, ending the last resistance to the Byzantine conquest of Bulgaria by Basil II.
  • October 1 – Battle of Carham: King Malcolm II of Scotland and Owain Foel ("the Bald") of Strathclyde are victorious over either Uhtred the Bold or Eadwulf Cudel, rulers of Bamburgh. The battle confirms Scottish dominance over Lothian.

1019 CE22 entries

  • March 10 – Battle of Gwiju: Korean forces, led by General Kang Kam-ch'an, gain a decisive victory over the Khitan Liao Dynasty at modern-day Kusong, ending the Third Goryeo-Khitan War.
  • The Azdâji conquest puts an end to the Kingdom of Nekor, in Morocco.
  • Toi invasion: Jurchen pirates, from the Khitan Liao Dynasty in modern-day Manchuria, sail with about 50 ships to invade Kyūshū in Japan. They assault the islands Tsushima and Iki. In April the pirates raid Matsuura but are defeated by the Japanese army.