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The 590s

204 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.

590 CE42 entries

  • March 26 – Theodosius, eldest son of Maurice, is proclaimed as co-emperor. He becomes his father's heir to the Byzantine throne.
  • September – Bahrām Chobin defeats the inferior forces of Khosrau II near Ctesiphon. He seizes the throne and proclaims himself as king Bahrām IV of Persia.
  • Owain mab Urien succeeds his father Urien, as Brythonic king of Rheged in Northern England (approximate date).

591 CE22 entries

  • May 21 – A Mesoamerican ballgame court is dedicated at the Mayan city of Chinkultic (Mexico).
  • Battle of Blarathon: A Persian army of about 40,000 men under King Bahrām VI is defeated, in the lowlands near Ganzak (northwestern Iran), by the Byzantines. Bahrām flees to seek refuge with the Turks in Central Asia, and settles in Fergana. However, after some time, he is murdered by a hired assassin of Khosrau II.
  • Jnanagupta, Afghan Buddhist monk, translates the Vimalakirti Sutra into Chinese.

592 CE16 entries

  • January 28 – King Guntram, age 59, dies after a 31-year reign, and is succeeded by his nephew Childebert II, who becomes ruler of Burgundy. He is buried at Saint Marcellus of Chalons Church, in Chalon-sur-Saône (Eastern France).
  • December 8 – Emperor Sushun of Japan is murdered after 5 years on the throne by agents of his rival Umako Soga, who is jealous of the emperor's power. He is succeeded by Suiko, widow of the late emperor Bidatsu.
  • Summer – Emperor Wéndi reduces taxes, due to an overflowing abundance of food and silk in the governmental stores. He sends messengers around central China, redistributing land to give the poor farming land.

593 CE19 entries

  • Empress Suiko begins a long reign during a pivotal period, in which Buddhism influences the development and culture of Japan. She is the first female ruler and the first to receive official recognition from China.
  • Autumn – Emperor Maurice orders Priscus to spend the winter with his troops on the northern Danube bank, but he disobeys the emperor's order and retreats to the port city of Odessus (Varna) on the Black Sea Coast.
  • Spring – Priscus, commander-in-chief in Thrace, defeats the Slavic tribes and Gepids on Byzantine territory south of the Danube. He crosses the river to fight in the uncharted swamps and forests of modern-day Wallachia.

594 CE14 entries

  • Autumn – Emperor Maurice replaces general Priscus for disobeying orders. He installs his inexperienced brother Peter, as commander-in-chief in charge of the war against the Avars.
  • Balkan Campaign: The Slavs invade the Byzantine provinces of Moesia and Macedonia again; during their pillaging the towns of Aquis, Scupi and Zaldapa in Dobruja are destroyed.
  • Empress Suiko issues the "Flourishing Three Treasures Edict", officially recognizing the practice of Buddhism in Japan. She begins diplomatic relations with the Sui dynasty (China).

595 CE25 entries

  • June – Pope Gregory I the Great sends a group of Benedictine monks under Augustine of Canterbury on a mission to Britain, to Christianize King Æthelberht, and convert the Kingdom of Kent from native Anglo-Saxon paganism. He carries letters of commendation to bishops, and is accompanied by Frankish interpreters.
  • September 2 – John IV ("the Faster"), patriarch of Constantinople, dies after a 13-year reign in which he has mediated disputes between the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Monophysites.
  • Supratisthitavarman succeeds his father Susthitavarman, as king of the Varman dynasty in Assam (Northeast India).

596 CE11 entries

  • Battle of Raith: An invading force of Angles lands on the Fife coast near Raith (Kirkcaldy) and defeats an alliance of Scots, Britons and Picts, under King Áedán mac Gabráin of Dál Riata (Scotland).
  • Gregorian Mission: Augustine of Canterbury lands with a group of missionaries on the Isle of Thanet (South East England). He is welcomed by King Æthelberht of Kent, who accepts baptism along with the rest of his court at the behest of his Christian Frankish wife, Bertha. Æthelbert assigns Augustine and his 40 monks a residence at Canterbury (Kent), where they found a Benedictine monastery that will make the town a centre of Christianity (or 597).
  • Emperor Wéndi sends diplomatic letters to the royal court of Goguryeo (Korea). He demands the cancellation of the military alliance with the Eastern Turk Khanate, and the raiding of Sui border regions.

597 CE19 entries

  • June 9 – Columba, Irish missionary, dies in Iona (Inner Hebrides) and is buried by his monks in the abbey he has created. He works successfully towards the conversion of northern Britain.
  • Mangalesha becomes king of the Chalukya dynasty, after his brother Kirtivarman I dies. He rules as regent of Kirtivarman's son Pulakeshin II, and invades the territory of Khandesh and Gujarat (northwestern India).
  • Autumn – Balkan Campaign: The Avars, strengthened by the tribute of the Franks, resume their campaign along the Danube River, and besiege the Byzantine fortress city of Tomis (modern Romania) on the Black Sea coast.

598 CE20 entries

  • March 30 – Balkan Campaign: The Avars lift the siege of the fortress city of Tomis (modern Romania). A Byzantine army under Comentiolus crosses the Balkan Mountains, and marches along the Danube River to Zikidiba.
  • August 4 – Goguryeo War: Emperor Wéndi orders his youngest son, Yang Liang (assisted by the co-prime minister Gao Jiong), to conquer Goguryeo (Korea) during the rainy season, with a Chinese army (300,000 men).
  • Maurice makes peace with King Agilulf, conceding northern Italy. Pope Gregory I the Great negotiates a truce, ending 30 years of Lombard terror. Agilulf expands the Lombard Kingdom by occupying Sutri and Perugia.

599 CE16 entries

  • Summer – Balkan Campaign: The Byzantine generals Priscus and Comentiolus join their forces at Singidunum (modern Belgrade), and move downstream to the fortress city of Viminacium (Serbia). The Byzantines cross the Danube River and invade Upper Moesia, where they defeat the Avars in open battle.
  • Venantius Fortunatus, Latin poet and hymnodist in the Merovingian court, is appointed bishop of Poitiers.
  • Rædwald becomes king (bretwalda) of East Anglia (East of England), under the overlordship of Æthelberht of Kent (according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle).