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The 510s

115 sourced entries across 10 years, inside the 6th century. Each year below opens its own page; the lines under it are that year’s highest-ranked entries.

510 CE13 entries

  • Theodoric the Great appoints his friend Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius, Roman philosopher, to the rank of consul of the Ostrogothic Kingdom.
  • Battle of Llongborth (possibly Langport or Portsmouth): King Budic II of Brittany seeks refuge at the court of Aergol Lawhir, in Dyfed (Wales) after the battle.
  • King Theodoric the Great raises the Frankish siege at Arles; the city is heroically defended by its inhabitants, assisted by the Ostrogothic general Theudis. The Ostrogoths overrun Provence (Southern Gaul), and consolidate their gains in the region.

511 CE10 entries

  • November 27 – King Clovis I dies at Paris (Lutetia) at age 45, and is buried in the Abbey of St. Genevieve. The Merovingian dynasty is continued by his four sons (Theuderic I, Chlodomer, Childebert I and Chlothar I), who divide the Frankish Kingdom and rule from the capitals at Metz, Orléans, Paris and Soissons, respectively.
  • Ostrogothic King Theodoric the Great assumes the regency over Amalaric, his grandson and future king of the Visigothic Kingdom - Theodoric now rules over territory stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to the Adriatic Sea.
  • Aryabhata, Indian astronomer and mathematician, comes up with concepts of mathematical equations, one of which explains the rotation of the Earth on its axis. This concept is far ahead of its time and he is fairly accurate in his description of it. He also comes up with a lot of other ideas about the Solar System, but many of them are flawed because he considers the Earth to be the center of the universe. Aryabhata is often given credit for coming up with the number zero and using it as a placeholder.

512 CE14 entries

  • The first written text in the Arabic alphabet is recorded at Zabad (Syria).
  • Areobindus, Byzantine general, is proclaimed emperor during a riot at Constantinople but refuses to take part in the usurpation.
  • King Theodoric the Great grants citizens on Mount Vesuvius exemption from taxes, after a severe eruption in southeastern Italy.

513 CE11 entries

  • Revolt of Vitalian: Byzantine general Vitalian revolts against Emperor Anastasius I, and conquers a large part of the Diocese of Thrace. He gains the support of the local people, and assembles an army of 50,000–60,000 men.
  • Vitalian defeats the Byzantines at Acris (Bulgaria), on the Black Sea coast. He attacks their fortified Laager in darkness, and in a crushing defeat kills a large part of the imperial army.
  • Vigor becomes bishop of Bayeux. He opposes paganism and founds a monastery later known as Saint-Vigor-le-Grand (Normandy).

514 CE7 entries

  • July 19 – Pope Symmachus dies at Rome after a tenure of 15 years, 7 months and 27 days. He is succeeded by Hormisdas.
  • Cissa of Sussex becomes king of the South Saxons after his father's death (approximate date).
  • Vitalian accepts the receipt of ransom money and gifts worth 5,000 pounds of gold for the release of Hypatius, a nephew of Anastasius I who has been a prisoner since the attack at Acris (see 513). Vitalian retreats back to Lower Moesia.

515 CE13 entries

  • As a sign of his victory, Anastasius I leads a procession to Sosthenion, and attends a service of thanks at the local church dedicated to the Archangel Michael.
  • Autumn – Revolt of Vitalian: Byzantine general (magister militum) Vitalian mobilises his army, and marches again towards Constantinople. He captures the suburb of Sycae (modern Turkey) across the Golden Horn, and encamps there.
  • Emperor Anastasius I gives Marinus, former praetorian prefect of the East, command over the Byzantine army. He defeats the rebel fleet at the harbor entrance, using a sulfur-based chemical substance, similar to the later Greek fire.

516 CE11 entries

  • November 6 – The Council of Tarragona (modern Spain) is held.
  • Hygelac, king of the Geats (Sweden), raids the Lower Rhine, and is defeated by a Frankish force led by Theudebert (according to the "History of the Franks").
  • Battle of Badon, British defeat of the Saxons, traditionally associated with King Arthur (traditional date)

517 CE9 entries

  • Council of Epaone: Bishops of southern Gaul convene near Epao (present Anneyron) in Burgundy. The synod enacts the first legislation against wooden altars, forbidding the building of any but stone altars with chrism (a mixture of oil and spice).
  • Aryabhata compiles his manual of mathematics and astronomy (approximate date).
  • Emperor Wu Di of the Liang Dynasty becomes a Buddhist, and introduces the new religion to central China. He demands that sacrifices to imperial ancestors be changed to using dried meat, instead of the traditional animals (goats, pigs and cows).

518 CE17 entries

  • July 9 – Emperor Anastasius I dies childless at Constantinople, age 88, after a 27-year reign in which he has abolished the sale of offices, reformed taxation, and perfected the empire's monetary system, but antagonized some with his heretical Monophysite religious policies. He is succeeded by Justin I (Flavius Justinus), his comes excubitorum, commander of the palace guard. After his death, he leaves the imperial treasury richer by 23,000,000 solidi or 320,000 pounds of gold.
  • September 29 – Severus, patriarch of Antioch, is deposed by a synod for his Monophysitism. Paul the Jew is appointed to replace him.
  • Justin I founds the Justinian dynasty and makes his nephew Flavius Petrus Sabbatius (later Justinian I) his trusted advisor. He becomes the emperor's close confidant and possibly acts as regent. Theocritus, candidate to the throne, is accused of a conspiracy and executed.

519 CE10 entries

  • March 28 – The Eastern and Western churches reconcile their differences, ending the Acacian Schism.
  • In Ireland, the Diocese of Kildare is erected.
  • Jacob of Serugh becomes bishop of Batnan (near modern Diyarbakir, Turkey).