slug: valentinian-i

label: Valentinian I

description: Roman emperor from 364 to 375

section: Births

text: Valentinian I ("the Great"), Roman emperor (d. 375)

title: 321

date: February 26

text: February 26 – Valentinian I is proclaimed Emperor by officers of the Roman army at Nicaea in Bithynia. He addresses the soldiers (who threaten to riot) in a speech. He founds the Valentinianic dynasty and rules the Western portion of the Roman Empire, from Caledonia (Scotland) to the Rhine frontier, ensuring it a few years of relative security. He settles in Lutetia (Paris) and establishes a militia to defend the region.

title: 364

date: November 1

text: November 1 – The Alamanni cross the Rhine and invade Gaul. Emperor Valentinian I moves to Paris to command the army and defend the Gallic cities.

title: AD 365

text: Winter – Emperor Valentinian I appoints Jovinus, his Master of the Horse (Magister Equitum), general of the army. He defeats the Alamanni in three successive battles, and pushes them out of Gaul.

title: 366

text: Battle of Solicinium: Emperor Valentinian I launches a punitive expedition against the Alamanni, due to the crises in Britannia and Gaul. The Alamanni re-cross the Rhine and plunder Moguntiacum (modern Mainz).

title: 367

text: Spring – Emperor Valentinian I and his 8-year-old son, Gratian, cross the Rhine with an army into Alamannic territory. He defeats the Alemanni and burns food stores along the border. A temporary peace is signed with Macrian, king of the Bucinobantes, and Valentinian returns to his capital Augusta Treverorum (modern Trier).

title: 368

title: 370

text: Emperor Valentinian I is engaged in operations against the Alamanni, Quadi and Sarmatians, while his subordinates are dealing with the Roman usurper Firmus in Africa and the Picts in Britain.

title: 372

date: November 17

text: November 17 – Valentinian I, Roman emperor (b. 321)

title: 375

text: November 17 – Emperor Valentinian I concludes an enduring peace with the Alamanni in Germany, then marches into Illyricum to repel an invasion of the Quadi and the Sarmatians on the Danube frontier. While negotiating with the Quadi, Valentinian, age 54, becomes so enraged that he dies in a fit of apoplexy at Brigetio (Hungary). Extreme cruelty has marked his 11-year reign, but he has also founded schools and provided physicians to serve the poor of Constantinople.

title: 375


slug: valentinian-ii

label: Valentinian II

description: Roman emperor from 375 to 392

text: Valentinian II, Roman consul and emperor (d. 392)

title: 371

section: Geopolitics & Diplomacy

text: Gratian, age 16, takes over the government at Augusta Treverorum (modern Trier), but ministers wishing to retain the loyalty of the Illyrian army fear a usurper. They proclaim Valentinian's 4-year-old son Valentinian II co-emperor with his mother, Justina, as regent. Gratian reserves for himself the administration of the Gallic provinces, and hands over Italy, Illyrium, Hispania and Africa to his stepmother, who makes Mediolanum (Milan) her residence.

title: 375

section: Events › By place › Roman Empire

section: Religion & Belief

date: February 27

text: February 27 – Edict of Thessalonica: Theodosius I, with co-emperors Gratian and Valentinian II, declare their wish that all Roman citizens convert to trinitarian Christianity, in accordance with the patriarchs of Rome and Alexandria, implicitly rejecting the Arianism of the patriarch of Constantinople as heretical.

title: 380

section: Conflict & Security

date: August 25

text: August 25 – Emperor Gratian, age 24, is assassinated at Lugdunum (modern-day Lyon), leaving a young widow Laeta. Pannonia and Africa maintain their allegiance to co-emperor Valentinian II, now 12, whose mother, Justina, rules in his name.

title: AD 383

text: Magnus Maximus invades Italy; he destroys Novara for supporting his rival Valentinian II.

title: 386

text: Magnus Maximus, usurping emperor of the West, invades Italy. Emperor Valentinian II, age 16, is forced out of Rome. He flees with his mother Justina and sisters to Thessaloniki (Thrace).

title: 387

text: Battle of the Save: Emperor Theodosius I defeats Magnus Maximus near Emona (modern Slovenia). Theodosius is in command of an army including Goths, Huns and Alans. Valentinian II, now 17, is restored as Roman Emperor.

title: 388

section: Deaths

date: May 15

text: May 15 – Emperor Valentinian II, age 21, dies while advancing into Gaul against the Frankish usurper Arbogast. He is found hanging in his residence at Vienne under unknown circumstances.

title: 392

text: May 15 – Valentinian II, Roman Emperor (b. 371)

title: 392


slug: valentinian-iii

label: Valentinian III

description: emperor of the Western Roman Empire (419-455)

date: July 2

text: July 2 – Valentinian III, emperor of the Western Roman Empire (d. 455)

title: 419

section: Culture & Society

text: Early spring – Roman empress Galla Placidia departs with her children Grata Honoria and Valentinian to the court of Constantinople.

title: 423

date: October 23

text: October 23 – Emperor Theodosius II nominates his cousin Valentinian, age 5, the imperial title nobilissimus Caesar ("most noble") of the Western Roman Empire. Valentinian is betrothed to Theodosius's own daughter Licinia Eudoxia, who is only 2 years old.

title: 424

text: October 23 – Valentinian III, six-year-old son of Galla Placidia, is installed as emperor (Augustus) of the Western Roman Empire. Real power is in the hands of his mother who becomes a regent.

title: 425

section: Crime & Justice

text: Bonifacius, Roman governor (Last of the Romans), revolts in Africa against Emperor Valentinian III. Under the influence of Aetius, he is convicted of treason by empress-mother Galla Placidia.

title: 427

text: Flavius Aetius returns to Italy with the support of the Huns. He gains control over the young emperor Valentinian III, and becomes his "protector".

title: 433

text: Flavius Aetius, Roman general (magister militum) in the service of Emperor Valentinian III, begins to hold power in Rome (this will continue for 20 years). He allows the Huns to settle in Pannonia, along the Sava River.

title: 434

text: July 2 – Valentinian III, age 18, rules as emperor over the Western Roman Empire. His mother Galla Placidia ends her regency, but continues to exercise political influence until her death in 450.

title: 437

section: Events › By place › Europe

text: Licinia Eudoxia, wife of emperor Valentinian III, is granted the title of Augusta following the birth of their daughter Eudocia.

title: 439

title: 439

text: Flavius Aetius, Roman general (magister militum), returns as triumphator back to Rome, after several years' fighting the Burgundians and Visigoths in Gaul. He is honoured by a statue erected by the Senate, and by order of Emperor Valentinian III.

title: 440

text: End of the Vandal War (439-442): Emperor Valentinian III signs a peace treaty with King Genseric, and recognises the Vandal Kingdom. He grants him sovereignty over most of Africa. Genseric gives back Sicily and Mauretania (Algeria and Morocco). This marks the end of the Vandal migrations; they settle in North Africa, with Carthage as their capital.

title: AD 442

section: Events › By place › Africa

text: Placidia, Roman empress and daughter of Valentinian III (approximate date)

title: AD 442

text: Eudocia, eldest daughter of Emperor Valentinian III, is betrothed to Huneric, son of Vandal King Genseric (hostage in Italy).

title: 444

text: Roman emperor Valentinian III issues Novel 18 (Novella XVIII) on June 19, an imperial edict against Manichaeism. Heavy penalties are decreed against those who do not denounce the religion, and retain Manichaean books.

title: 445

text: Emperor Valentinian III sends an emissary to Attila the Hun. The purpose of the meeting is a long-running dispute over spoils of war during the Danube offensive (441–442). Attila claims his lost property, but Valentinian and Flavius Aetius (magister militum) refuse this request.

title: 449

text: Eudocia, daughter of Emperor Valentinian III, marries Huneric in Ravenna. The engagement serves to strengthen the alliance between the Western Roman Empire and the Vandal Kingdom.

title: 451

text: The Huns under Attila invade Northern Italy. Emperor Valentinian III flees from Ravenna to Rome, and sends Pope Leo I to persuade Attila to return to the Hungarian Plain. The cities of Aquileia, Padua and Verona are destroyed by the Huns. Milan is saved because Attila is offered a huge amount of gold. Flavius Aetius (magister militum) is unable to raise a new army against him.

title: 452

text: Justa Grata Honoria, sister of Valentinian III (approximate date)

title: 454

date: September 21

text: September 21 – Emperor Valentinian III stabs his commander-in-chief Flavius Aetius to death, during a meeting of the imperial council at Ravenna. He has accused Aetius of plotting against him to seize power. After his assassination, the Western Roman Empire has no effective defender against its hostile barbarian neighbors (Alans, Franks, Ostrogoths, Vandals and Visigoths).

title: 454

date: March 16

text: March 16 – Emperor Valentinian III, age 35, is assassinated by two Hunnic retainers of the late Flavius Aetius, while training with the bow on the Campus Martius (Rome), ending the Theodosian dynasty. His primicerius sacri cubiculi, Heraclius, is also murdered.

title: 455

text: March 16 – Valentinian III, emperor of the Western Roman Empire (b. 419)

title: 455

text: Eudocia, Vandal queen and daughter of Valentinian III (approximate date)

title: 471


slug: valerian-emperor

label: Valerian (emperor)

description: Roman emperor

text: Valerian I, Roman emperor (d. 260/264)

title: AD 200

text: Future Emperor Valerian becomes princeps senatus.

title: 238

text: Valerian reforms Legio III Augusta to fight the "five peoples", a dangerous coalition of Berber tribes in Africa.

title: 253

text: Aemilianus is murdered at Spoletium and Publius Valerianus, age 60, is recognised as the new emperor by the Rhine legions. He gives his son Publius Licinius Egnatius Gallienus the title Augustus. Valerianus I dispatches him to the Danube where the Goths have violated the treaty signed with Rome and invaded Moesia.

title: 253

text: Emperor Valerian persecutes Christians.

title: 256

section: Events › By topic › Religion

text: Valerian II, eldest son of Gallienus, dies, possibly murdered by Pannonia's governor Ingenuus; Emperor Valerian bestows on another one of Gallienus's sons, Saloninus, the title of Caesar.

title: 258

section: Health & Medicine

text: Emperor Valerian leads an army (70,000 men) to relieve Edessa, besieged by the forces of Persian King Shapur I. An outbreak of a plague kills many legionaries, weakening the Roman position in Syria.

title: 259

text: Battle of Edessa: With a large army, said to number 70,000 men, Valerian attempts to drive the Persians back from Edessa. The Roman army is surrounded and most of its troops are killed or captured. Valerian is taken prisoner for the remainder of his life.

title: 260

text: Valerianus I, Roman consul and emperor (approximate date)

title: 260

text: Valerian, Roman consul and emperor (approximate date)

title: 262


slug: valladolid

label: Valladolid

description: municipality of the Province of Valladolid in Spain

date: April 25

text: April 25 – King Sancho IV of Castile ("the Brave") dies of a fatal illness (possibly tuberculosis), after a 11-year reign at Toledo. He is succeeded by his 9-year-old son Ferdinand IV ("the Summoned") as ruler of Castile and León. In the Cortes at Valladolid, Henry of Castile the Senator is appointed guardian of Ferdinand, while Queen María de Molina becomes his regent. During the summer, Ferdinand is betrothed to the 5-year-old Princess Constance of Portugal. Hostilities between Castile and King Denis of Portugal ("the Poet King") are ended by a peace agreement.

title: 1295

date: January 23

text: January 23 – King Ferdinand IV of the Spanish Kingdom of Castile, having recently reached the age of majority at age 16, marries 12-year-old Princess Constance, the only daughter of King Dinis of Portugal, in a ceremony at Valladolid.

title: 1302

section: Events › January–March

date: March 20

text: March 20 – King Ferdinand IV, known as "Ferdinand the Summoned", grants new privileges to the Catholic Church within the Kingdom of Castile during an assembly at Palencia. In April, Ferdinand becomes seriously ill and is transferred to Valladolid, despite the opposition of his wife, Queen Constance, who wishes to transfer him to Carrión de los Condes (northern Spain).

title: 1311

section: Events › January – March

date: August 11

text: August 11 – At Valladolid, Alfonso XI reaches the age of 14 and is proclaimed by the Cortes to have full power as the King of Castile.

title: 1325

section: Events › July – September

text: John II of Castile declares the Valladolid laws, that restrict the social rights of Jews. Among many other restrictions, the laws force Jews to wear distinctive clothes, and deny them administrative positions.

title: 1412

section: Events › Date unknown

date: July 21

text: July 21 – At Valladolid, Enrique IV is proclaimed as the new King of Castile on the day after the death of his father, King Juan II.

title: 1454

section: Events › July–September

date: October 19

text: October 19 – Ferdinand II of Aragon marries Isabella I of Castile in Valladolid, bringing about a dynastic union.

title: 1469

section: Events › October–December

date: April 3

text: April 3 – While in Valladolid, capital of the Kingdom of Castile and León, to celebrate a tournament in their honor, the joint rulers of Castile, Queen Isabella and King Fernando II are interrupted by a messenger sent by King Afonso V of Portugal. King Afonso announces a declaration of war against the crown of Castile and León.

title: 1475

section: Events › April–June

date: February 2

text: February 2 – In Valladolid in Spain, Frenchman Jean Sauvage, Chancellor of Burgundy is appointed by Spain's Prince Charles as the Chief Judge of the Cortes of Valladolid. The choice of a foreigner is resented by the members of the court and Sauvage is replaced at the Cortes by the Spanish Bishop Pedro Ruiz de la Mota.

title: 1518

date: April 16

text: April 16 – The Valladolid debate on the rights and treatment of indigenous peoples of the Americas by their Spanish conquerors opens at the Colegio de San Gregorio in Valladolid, Castile.

title: 1550

date: August 22

text: August 22 – In Spain, Bartolomé Carranza, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Toledo, is arrested at Torrelaguna on orders of the Grand Inquisitor, Fernando de Valdés y Salas. Carranza is brought a prisoner to Valladolid to face accusations of heresy. He remains in prison for eight years before being transferred to Rome for the Pope to hear his appeal.

title: 1558

date: January 11

text: January 11 – Valladolid is briefly the capital of Habsburg Spain under Philip III, before returning indefinitely to Madrid in 1606.

title: 1601

text: Ambrose Barlow, recently graduated from the College of Saint Gregory, Douai, France, and the Royal College of Saint Alban in Valladolid, Spain, enters the Order of Saint Benedict. In 1641 he will be martyred in England.

title: 1616


slug: vancouver

label: Vancouver

description: largest city in the province of British Columbia, Canada

date: May 10

text: May 10 – George Vancouver, British Royal Navy officer, explorer (Vancouver, Canada is named after him) (b. 1757)

title: 1798

date: April 6

text: April 6 – The settlement of Vancouver, British Columbia, is incorporated.

title: 1886

section: Events › April

section: Disasters & Accidents

date: June 13

text: June 13 – The Great Vancouver Fire devastates much of Vancouver, British Columbia.

title: 1886

section: Events › June

section: Technology & Infrastructure

date: September 27

text: September 27 – Stanley Park is officially opened by Vancouver (B.C.) mayor David Oppenheimer.

title: 1888

section: Events › September

date: October 15

text: October 15 – In Canada, the "9 O'Clock Gun" is fired for the first time at Stanley Park in Vancouver, and goes on to become a daily tradition to serve as a time signal for ships in port and for local residents to set their timepieces at exactly 9:00 p.m. local time.

title: 1898

section: Events › October

text: The Oakridge Transit Centre opens in Vancouver, British Columbia.

title: 1948

date: November 26

text: November 26 – In the Canadian Football League, the Saskatchewan Roughriders defeat the Ottawa Rough Riders to win the 54th Grey Cup at Vancouver's Empire Stadium 29–14. Saskatchewan are led by quarterback Ron Lancaster.

title: 1966

section: Events › November

section: Science & Discovery

date: March 1

text: March 1 – The first Starbucks outside of the US is opened in Vancouver, Canada.

title: 1987

section: Events › March

date: February 12

text: February 12–28 – The 2010 Winter Olympics are held in Vancouver and Whistler, Canada.

title: 2010

section: Events › February

date: June 15

text: June 15 – A riot broke out in Vancouver, British Columbia in the aftermath of the Boston Bruins' win over the Vancouver Canucks in game seven of the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals.

title: 2011

date: April 26

text: April 26 – At least 11 people are killed and at least 32 others are injured in a vehicle-ramming attack at the annual Lapu Lapu Day festival in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

title: 2025


slug: vandals

label: Vandals

description: East Germanic tribe

section: Conflict & Security

text: The Vandals (Astingi and Lacringi) and the Sarmatian Iazyges invade Dacia. To counter them, Legio V Macedonica, returning from the Parthian War, moves its headquarters from Troesmis in Moesia Inferior to Potaissa in Dacia Porolissensis.

title: AD 167

section: Events › By place › Roman Empire

section: Geopolitics & Diplomacy

text: Marcus Aurelius signs a peace treaty with the Quadi and the Sarmatian Iazyges. The Germanic tribes of the Hasdingi (Vandals) and the Lacringi become Roman allies.

title: AD 171

section: Exploration & Expansion

text: Claudius II travels to Sirmium and prepares a war against the Vandals, who raid Pannonia.

title: 269

section: Deaths

text: Claudius dies of plague in Sirmium while preparing to fight the Vandals and Sarmatians, who have invaded Pannonia. He is succeeded by his brother Quintillus, who briefly holds power over the Roman Empire.

title: 270

text: After an indecisive battle, Emperor Aurelian defeats the Vandals, and forces them from Pannonia, and across the Danube.

title: 271

text: Emperor Probus returns to Rome, where he celebrates his triumph over the Vandals and the usurpers (Bonosus, Julius Saturninus and Proculus).

title: 281

text: The Tervingian Goths and Taifali fight the Vandals and Gepids.

title: 291

section: Events › By place › Northern Europe

text: German and Sarmatian campaigns of Constantine: Emperor Constantine I personally assures the security of the Danube frontier by defeating the Goths, the Vandals and the Sarmatians.

title: 325

text: The Goths protect the Danube frontier against an invasion by the Vandals.

title: 334

section: Births

text: Godigisel, king of the Vandals (d. 406)

title: 359

text: Gunderic, king of the Vandals and Alans (d. 428)

title: 379

text: Geiseric, king of the Vandals and Alans (approximate date)

title: 389

text: The Visigoths and Huns, led by Alaric, invade Thrace. Stilicho, high-ranking general (magister militum) of Vandal origin, raises an army and begins a campaign against the Goths.

title: 390

text: Late Roman army: The Notitia Dignitatum shows the development of forces in the Roman Empire. By now 200,000 soldiers guard the borders, and a reserve force of 50,000 is available for deployment. Many non-Roman soldiers are from Germanic tribes: Alamanni, Franks, Goths, Saxons and Vandals.

title: 394

text: Stilicho, Roman general (magister militum), leads his army in an extensive campaign against the Vandals in Rhaetia (Switzerland).

title: 401

text: Emperor Honorius and Stilicho are honored with a triumphal march, for the victories against the Goths and Vandals. This becomes the last victory celebrated in Rome.

title: 403

text: War of Radagaisus: King Radagaisus leads an invasion with a force of 20,000 men and crosses the Alps. He spends the winter in the Po Valley and is observed by Stilicho, who lacks sufficient strength to prepare an offensive against the invading German tribes. The exact numbers of the migration are unknown, probably nearly 100,000, including Alans, Burgundians, Goths, Vandals, and other smaller tribes.

title: 405

text: Vandal-Frankish war: The Vandals, led by Godigisel, are intercepted and defeated by the Franks under Marcomir. Godigisel is killed in battle and succeeded by his son Gunderic.

title: 406

text: Godigisel, king of the Vandals

title: 406

section: Crime & Justice

text: August 22 – Stilicho is accused of treason against Honorius and is decapitated at Ravenna. His Hun bodyguard is killed; mass murders of Vandal soldiers follow.

title: 408

section: Climate & Environment

text: Following the invasions by the Vandals, Alans, and Suebi in 409, chroniclers report severe disruption to food supplies in Hispania and nearby regions, leading to famine and hardship.

title: 409

date: October 13

text: October 13 – The Vandals, led by King Gunderic, cross the Pyrenees into the Iberian Peninsula. They receive land from the Romans, as foederati, in Baetica (Southern Spain). The Alans occupy lands in Lusitania and the Suebi control parts of Gallaecia.

title: 409

text: The Visigoths invade the Iberian Peninsula and begin to conquer territory taken previously by the Vandals. King Athaulf and his pregnant wife Galla Placidia leave Gallia Narbonensis; they relocate at Barcelona. Their infant son, Theodosius, dies in infancy, eliminating an opportunity for a Roman-Visigothic line. Athaulf is assassinated in the palace while taking a bath. Sigeric succeeds him, but after a reign of seven days he is also murdered.

title: 415

text: Emperor Honorius bribes Wallia, king of the Visigoths, into regaining Hispania for the Roman Empire. His victory over the Vandals in 416 forces them to retire to Baetica. The Visigothic territory in Gaul now extends from the Garonne to the Loire, and becomes known as the Visigothic Kingdom.

title: 418

text: Rex Flavius Gundericus of the Vandals accepts the request of the Alans in Hispania to become their ruler (approximate date).

title: 426

section: Events › By place › Europe

text: Gunderic, king of the Vandals and Alans (b. 379)

title: 428

text: Spring – The Vandals, led by Genseric ("Caesar King"), invade North Africa. They land with a force of 80,000 men including Alans, and Germanic tribesmen with their families from the Iberian Peninsula, across the narrow Strait of Gibraltar. The Vandal fleet raids the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea, and blockades the grain and oil supply to Italy.

title: 429

section: Religion & Belief

text: Spring – The Vandals under King Genseric extend their power in North Africa along the Mediterranean Sea, and lay siege to Hippo Regius (where Augustine has recently been bishop).

title: 430

text: Hippo Regius becomes the capital of the Vandal Kingdom. After 14 months of hunger and disease, the Vandals ravage the city. Emperor Theodosius II sends an imperial fleet with an army under command of Aspar, and lands at Carthage.

title: 431

section: Events › By place › Africa

text: The Vandals in North Africa defeat the Roman general Aspar and force him to withdraw. He serves as consul at Constantinople.

title: 434

text: King Genseric concludes a peace treaty with the Romans, under which the Vandals retain Mauretania and a part of Numidia as foederati (allies under a special treaty) of Rome.

title: 435

title: 439

text: October 19 – Carthage falls to the Vandals. Genseric makes it his capital and establishes the Vandal Kingdom.

title: 439

text: A Vandal fleet and their allies (Alans, Goths and Moors) set out from Carthage for Sicily, the principal supplier of oil and grain to Italy after the loss of North Africa. They loot all the coastal towns and besiege Palermo. Heavily laden ships return to the court of King Genseric.

title: 440

text: Theodosius II sends the Eastern imperial fleet, under the command of the Romano-Goth Areobindus, into Sicilian waters, taking the Vandals by surprise.

title: 441

section: Events › By place › Byzantium

text: End of the Vandal War (439-442): Emperor Valentinian III signs a peace treaty with King Genseric, and recognises the Vandal Kingdom. He grants him sovereignty over most of Africa. Genseric gives back Sicily and Mauretania (Algeria and Morocco). This marks the end of the Vandal migrations; they settle in North Africa, with Carthage as their capital.

title: AD 442

section: Culture & Society

text: Eudocia, eldest daughter of Emperor Valentinian III, is betrothed to Huneric, son of Vandal King Genseric (hostage in Italy).

title: 444

text: Gunthamund, king of the Vandals (d. 496)

title: 450

date: September 21

text: September 21 – Emperor Valentinian III stabs his commander-in-chief Flavius Aetius to death, during a meeting of the imperial council at Ravenna. He has accused Aetius of plotting against him to seize power. After his assassination, the Western Roman Empire has no effective defender against its hostile barbarian neighbors (Alans, Franks, Ostrogoths, Vandals and Visigoths).

title: 454

date: May 31

text: May 31 – Maximus is stoned to death by an angry mob while fleeing Rome. A widespread panic occurs when many citizens hear the news that the Vandals are plundering the Italian mainland.

title: 455

date: March

text: March – Emperor Marcian sends an embassy to Carthage, to end the Vandal raids in the Mediterranean from their strongholds in North Africa, and quells disturbances on the Armenian frontier.

title: 456

text: Summer – The Vandals land in Campania, at the mouth of the Liri or the Garigliano River, and devastate the region. Majorian personally leads the Roman army and defeats the invaders near Sinuessa, destroying their ships on the seashore, loaded with booty.

title: 458

text: King Genseric, fearing a Roman invasion, tries to negotiate peace with Majorian, who refuses. The Vandals devastate Mauretania and Moorish warriors poison the wells.

title: 460

text: Hilderic, king of the Vandals and Alans (approximate date)

title: 460

text: Vandal War (461-468): King Genseric continues the Vandal raids on the coast of Sicily and Italy. Ricimer sends an embassy to Carthage.

title: 461

text: Hilderic, king of the Vandals (approximate date)

title: 461

text: Euric sends an embassy to the Eastern Roman Empire for recognition of the Visigoth sovereignty. He forms an alliance with the Suebi and the Vandals.

title: 466

text: Summer – Vandal War (461-468): King Genseric extends his pirate raids in the Mediterranean Sea; the Vandals sack and enslave the people living in Illyricum, the Peloponnese and other parts of Greece. Leo I joins forces with the Western Empire.

title: 467

text: Emperor Leo I assembles a massive naval expedition at Constantinople, which costs 64,000 pounds of gold (more than a year's revenue) and consists of over 1,100 ships carrying 100,000 men. It is the greatest fleet ever sent against the Vandals and brings Leo near to bankruptcy.

title: 468

text: The Vandals invade Epirus (modern Greece). They are expelled from the Peloponnese (Greece) and in retaliation, the Vandals take 500 hostages at Zakynthos. On the way back to Carthage they are slaughtered.

title: 469

text: Eudocia, Vandal queen and daughter of Valentinian III (approximate date)

title: 471

text: Winter – Zeno sends an embassy, to conclude a peace with King Genseric. He succeeds in an agreement with the Vandals, to secure the commercial routes in the Mediterranean.

title: 474

text: January 25 – Genseric, king of the Vandals and Alans

title: 477

text: 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.

title: 477

text: Gelimer, king of the Vandals and Alans (d. 553)

title: 480

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

title: 487

text: Theodoric the Great allies with the Franks and marries Audofleda, sister of Clovis I. He also marries his own female relatives to princes or kings of the Burgundians, Vandals and Visigoths, establishing a political alliance with the Germanic kingdoms in the West.

title: 493

text: Thrasamund succeeds his brother Gunthamund after his death, and becomes king of the Vandals. Under his rule, he resumes the persecution of the Catholics.

title: 496

text: Gunthamund, king of the Vandals and Alans

title: 496

text: Thrasamund, king of the Vandals, marries Amalafrida (widowed sister of Theodoric the Great). She brings with her a large dowry and an elite Gothic force of 5,000 soldiers.

title: AD 500

text: Hilderic succeeds his uncle Thrasamund after a 27-year reign, and becomes king of the Vandals and Alans. He favours Catholicism and grants the inhabitants religious freedom.

title: 523

text: Thrasamund, king of the Vandals (b. 450)

title: 523

text: King Hilderic is deposed by his cousin Gelimer after a seven-year reign. Gelimer restores Arianism as the official religion of the Vandal Kingdom and puts Hilderic in prison along with other supporters.

title: 530

text: Spring – Vandalic War: Anti-Vandal revolt in Tripolitania and Sardinia; Gelimer, king of the Vandals, dispatches the bulk of the Vandal fleet (120 ships and 5,000 men) under his brother Tzazo to Sardinia. Byzantine forces from Cyrenaica occupy Leptis Magna and Tripolis.

title: 533

text: Hilderic, king of the Vandals and Alans

title: 533

text: 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.

title: 534

text: 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.

title: 536

text: Gelimer, king of the Vandals and Alans (b. 480)

title: 553


slug: varangian-guard

label: Varangian Guard

description: elite unit of the Byzantine Army from the 10th to 14th century

date: August 17

text: August 17 – Battle of the Gates of Trajan: Emperor Basil II leads a Byzantine expeditionary force (30,000 men) against the Bulgarians to capture the fortress city of Sredets. After a siege of 20 days, Basil is forced to retreat from the Sofia Valley towards the town of Ihtiman (through a passage known as the Gate of Trajan). The Bulgarians under Tsar Samuel ambush and defeat the Byzantine forces. Only the elite Varangian Guard escapes with heavy casualties and leads Basil to safety through secondary routes.

title: 986

section: Events › By place › Byzantine Empire

text: Fall – Emperor Basil II, supported by a contingent of 6,000 Varangians (the future Varangian Guard), organizes the defences of Constantinople to meet a threat from the insurgents, Bardas Phokas the Younger and Bardas Skleros. Basil crosses the Bosphorus, and leads a surprise attack on the rebel camp of Kalokyros Delphinas, at Chrysopolis. Delphinas is captured and executed, either by crucifixion or by impalement (approximate date).

title: 988

text: Winter – Emperor Basil II ("the Bulgar Slayer") replaces Leo Tornikios with the new catapan Basil Boioannes and sends him reinforcements (including a detachment of the elite Varangian Guard) from Constantinople.

title: 1017

section: Events › Europe

text: Winter – Battle of Ostrovo: The Byzantines, with the help of the Varangian Guard, led by Harald Hardrada (future king of Norway), defeat the Bulgarian troops, near Lake Ostrovo in Greece.

title: 1041

text: Harald Hardrada, leader of the Varangian Guard in the Byzantine Empire, returns to Norway, possibly because of his involvement in Maniakes' revolt.

title: 1042

text: Theodosius, a nephew of the former Emperor Constantine IX, tries to usurp the Byzantine throne, and liberates all the prisoners who flock to his banner. With their support, he marches through the streets of Constantinople to the Palace. There, the Varangian Guard forms outside to stop him. Theodosius loses heart and heads for Hagia Sophia. Later he is captured, and exiled to Pergamon.

title: 1056

text: Battle of Beroia: Emperor John II Komnenos transfers the Byzantine field army from Asia Minor (where it has been engaged against the Seljuk Turks) to the Balkans. The Pechenegs who have set up their camp (defended by a circular formation of wagons) near Beroia (modern Bulgaria) are defeated. John orders the Varangian Guard (some 480 men), the elite Palace Guard to hack their way through the Pecheneg circle of wagons, causing a general rout in their camp. Pecheneg survivors are taken captive and enlisted into the Byzantine army.

title: 1122

text: Battle of Tryavna: Byzantine forces under Isaac II are ambushed and defeated by the Bulgarians in a mountain pass, near Tryavna. In panic, the Byzantines break up and begin a disorganized retreat. Isaac barely escapes, his Varangian Guard has to cut a path through their own soldiers, enabling their emperor's flight from the rout. The Bulgarians capture the imperial treasure, including the golden helmet of Isaac, his crown, and the Imperial Cross which contains a wooden piece of the Holy Cross.

title: 1190

date: June 23

text: June 23 – The Crusader fleet comes within sight of Constantinople, and enters the Bosporus. The Byzantine capital is defended by a garrison of 15,000 soldiers (including 5,000 men of the Varangian Guard), and a fleet of 20 galleys. On June 26, the Byzantine troops skirmish with the Crusader forces, who attack, without success, the cities of Chalcedon and Chrysopolis.

title: 1203

section: Events › By place › Fourth Crusade


slug: varangians

label: Varangians

description: Slavic and Greek designation of Vikings

text: The Varangians (called Rus'), under the leadership of Rurik, a Viking chieftain, arrive (with his brothers, Sineus and Truvor) at Staraya Ladoga. He builds a trade settlement near Novgorod (modern Russia), and founds the Rurik Dynasty.

title: 862

section: Events › By place › Eastern Europe

section: Conflict & Security

text: Oleg, brother-in-law of the Varangian ruler Rurik, is entrusted to take care of his kingdom Novgorod after his death. He becomes regent of his son Igor.

title: 879

text: Rus'–Byzantine War: Varangian prince Oleg of Novgorod leads the Kievan Rus' in a campaign against Constantinople, concluded by the Rus'–Byzantine Treaty (in which the city of Chernihiv in Ukraine is first mentioned). He lays siege to the Byzantine capital with some 2,000 ships (dugout boats), and secures trading rights from the world's leading center of commerce.

title: 907

text: Caspian expeditions of the Rus': The Rus' under the Varangian prince Igor I of Kiev sail up the Kura River, deep into the Caucasus, and defeat the forces of the Sallarid ruler Marzuban ibn Muhammad. They capture the fortress city of Barda (modern Azerbaijan).

title: 943

text: Winter – Vladimir I (the Great), grand prince of Kiev, returns from Norway with a Varangian mercenary army and re-captures Novgorod. On his way to Kiev, he marches against the forces of his brother Yaropolk I.

title: 978

date: February 7

text: February 7 – Bardas Phokas (the Younger) and Bardas Skleros, two members of the military elite, begin a wide-scale rebellion against Emperor Basil II. They overrun Anatolia, and Phokas declares himself Emperor. Basil applies for military assistance from Prince Vladimir the Great, ruler of Kievan Rus', who agrees to help him and sends a Varangian army (6,000 men).

title: 987

title: 988

text: Emperor Basil II uses his contingent of 6,000 Varangians to help him defeat Bardas Phokas (the Younger), who suffers a seizure during the siege of Abydos (threatening to blockade the Dardanelles). Phokas dies, ending the revolt and threat to Constantinople. Upon Phokas' death, the other rebel leader Bardas Skleros (who is captured and blinded) yields to Basil's superior forces.

title: 989

text: Sviatopolk I dies, and is succeeded by his brother Yaroslav I (the Wise). He becomes the Grand Prince of Kiev with the support of the Novgorodians and the help of Varangian (Viking) mercenaries. Yaroslav consolidates the Kievan state, through both cultural and administrative improvements, and military campaigns.

title: 1019

text: Spring – Nikephoros Dokeianos, Byzantine governor of the Catepanate of Italy, is murdered by Lombard rebels at Ascoli. He is replaced by Michael Dokeianos, who arrives in November with a Varangian army.

title: 1040


slug: vasily-ii-of-moscow

label: Vasily II of Moscow

description: Grand Prince of Moscow (1415-1462)

date: March 10

text: March 10 – Vasily II of Moscow, Grand Prince (d. 1462)

title: 1415

date: February 27

text: February 27 – 11 days shy of his tenth birthday, Vasily II becomes the new Grand Prince of Moscow upon the death of his father, Vasily I of Moscow. Vasily II's mother, Sophia of Lithuania, serves as his regent.

title: 1425

section: Events › January – March

date: February 8

text: February 8 – Vasily II, Grand Prince of Moscow, is married to Maria Yaroslavna of Borovsk, but at the wedding banquet, he enters a quarrel with his uncle, Yury Dmitrievich. The argument leads to the Battle on the River Klyazma on April 25.

title: 1433

section: Events › January–March

date: March 16

text: March 16 – Muscovite War of Succession: Yury of Zvenigorod defeats his nephew, Vasily II, Grand Prince of Moscow, in a battle at Rostov, about 125 mi from Moscow.

title: 1434

date: March 19

text: March 19 – Isidore of Kiev, the Russian Orthodox Church Metropolitan of Kiev and all Russia, returns to his home in Moscow after having attended the Council of Florence, where he agreed to unify the Russian Church with the Roman Catholic Church. When he arrives, he is arrested on the order of Grand Prince Vasily II and imprisoned under minimum security.

title: 1441

date: July 7

text: July 7 – The Battle of Suzdal takes place 120 mi from Moscow when Ulugh Muhammad of the Khanate of Kazan attacks Nizhny Novgorod, part of the Grand Principality of Moscow. The Grand Prince Vasily II of Moscow is captured in battle as a prisoner of war and held for ransom until the payment of 200,000 rubles is completed in November.

title: 1445

section: Events › July–September

text: February 12 – Vasily II, the Grand Prince of Moscow and ruler of much of Russia, is kidnapped from Trinity Monastery the Kremlin by allies of his cousin, Dmitry Shemyaka. Four days later (February 16), the conspirators tear out the eyes of Grand Prince Vasily and send him into exile at Uglich with his wife.

title: 1446

date: May 3

text: May 3 – Theodosius Byvaltsev is installed as the new leader of the Russian Orthodox Church as Metropolitan of Moscow and all the Russias by order of Vasily II Vasilyevich, Grand Prince of Moscow.

title: 1461

section: Events › April–June

date: March 27

text: March 27 – Vasily II of Moscow, Grand Prince of Moscow (b. 1415)

title: 1462


slug: vatican-city

label: Vatican City

description: Holy See's independent state, an enclave within Rome, Italy

text: The Vatican makes a pact with the Salian Frankish king Childeric I, agreeing to call him "the new Constantine" on condition that he accept conversion to Christianity.

title: 469

section: Events › By topic › Religion

date: January 22

text: January 22 – The Swiss Guard arrives at the Vatican, to serve as permanent ceremonial and palace guards under Pope Julius II.

title: 1506

date: November 18

text: November 18 – The new St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican is consecrated, on the 1,300th anniversary of the previous church in 326.

title: 1626

section: Events › October–December

date: July 1

text: July 1 – The first issue of the Vatican's newspaper L'Osservatore Romano is published.

title: 1861

section: Events › July

section: Geopolitics & Diplomacy

date: February 11

text: February 11 – The Kingdom of Italy and the Holy See of the Catholic Church sign the Lateran Treaty, to establish the Vatican City as an independent sovereign enclave within Rome, resolving the "Roman Question".

title: 1929

section: Events › February

date: June 7

text: June 7 – The Lateran Treaty, making Vatican City a sovereign state, is ratified.

title: 1929

section: Events › June

text: February 11 – Pope Pius XI meets Benito Mussolini in Vatican City.

title: 1932

section: Technology & Infrastructure

date: November

text: First Bombing of the Vatican – Four bombs are dropped on the neutral Vatican City; the aircraft responsible is never certainly identified.

title: 1943

section: Events › November

date: August 21

text: August 21 – The Vatican announces that bones uncovered in its catacombs could be those of the apostle Peter; 19 years later, Pope Paul VI announces confirmation that the bones belong to this first pope.

title: 1949

section: Events › August

date: November 1

text: November 1 – Pope Pius XII witnesses the "Miracle of the Sun" at the Vatican and defines a new dogma of Roman Catholicism, the Munificentissimus Deus, which says that God took Mary's body into Heaven after her death (the "Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary").

title: 1950

date: April 27

text: April 27 – Pope Paul VI and Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko meet in the Vatican (the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic Church and the Soviet Union).

title: 1966

section: Events › April

section: Disasters & Accidents

date: May 21

text: May 21 – In St. Peter's Basilica (Vatican City), Laszlo Toth attacks Michelangelo's Pietà statue with a geologist's hammer, shouting that he is Jesus Christ.

title: 1972

section: Events › May

date: January 15

text: January 15 – Pope John Paul II receives a delegation led by Polish Solidarity leader Lech Wałęsa at the Vatican.

title: 1981

section: Events › January

date: May 13

text: May 13 – Pope John Paul II assassination attempt: Pope John Paul II is shot by Mehmet Ali Ağca, a Turkish gunman, as he enters St. Peter's Square in Vatican City to address a general audience. The Pope recovers.

title: 1981

date: January 6

text: January 6 – Pope John Paul II appoints a bishop over the Czechoslovak exile community, which the Rudé právo newspaper calls a "provocation." This begins a year-long disagreement between the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic and the Vatican, leading to the eventual restoration of diplomatic relations between the two states.

title: 1983

date: June 22

text: June 22 – Emanuela Orlandi, a 15-year-old Vatican girl, mysteriously disappears in Rome while returning home from a music lesson. The disappearance of the girl led to many speculations involving international terrorism, Italian organized crime, and even a plot inside the Vatican to cover a sexual scandal inside the Holy See. Because of all these theories, the Orlandi case would later become Italy's most famous mystery.

title: 1983

date: March 25

text: March 25 – Sweden re-establishes diplomatic ties with the Vatican after a 450-year interruption. Sweden broke off relations in 1534 in keeping with the rise of Lutheranism.

title: 1983

section: Events › March

date: January 10

text: January 10 – The United States and the Vatican (Holy See) restore full diplomatic relations.

title: 1984

date: May 22

text: May 22 – Pope John Paul II issues the Apostolic Letter Ordinatio sacerdotalis from the Vatican, expounding the Catholic Church's position requiring "the reservation of priestly ordination to men alone".

title: 1994

date: January 5

text: January 5 – The funeral of Pope Benedict XVI is held at St. Peter's Square in the Vatican City. The funeral was attended by an estimated 50,000 people.

title: 2023


slug: veii

label: Veii

description: Etruscan city

year_label: 509 BCE

section: Conflict & Security

text: Forces of Veii and Tarquinii, led by the deposed king Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, are defeated in the Battle of Silva Arsia by the Roman army. Consul Publius Valerius Publicola celebrates the first republican triumph on March 1.

title: 509 BC

section: Events › By place › Roman Republic

year_label: 482 BCE

text: Continuation of hostilities with Veii. The Veientine army enters Roman territory and ravages the countryside.

title: 482 BC

section: Events › By place › Rome

year_label: 481 BCE

text: Continuation of hostilities with Veii. The Veientine army threatens to besiege Rome but nothing notable occurs.

title: 481 BC

year_label: 480 BCE

text: The Romans achieve a significant victory against Veii after a close-fought battle. Tensions between the Roman classes flare during the battle. Quintus Fabius and the consul Manlius perish in the fighting.

title: 480 BC

section: Deaths

text: Gnaeus Manlius Cincinnatus, Roman consul, dies in battle against Veii.

title: 480 BC

text: Quintus Fabius Vibulanus, a former consul (twice) of Rome, dies in battle against Veii.

title: 480 BC

year_label: 479 BCE

text: Ongoing hostilities between Rome and Veii. The family of the Fabii requests and is granted sole responsibility for the war, and the Fabii march from Rome, establishing a fortified camp at the Cremera.

title: 479 BC

year_label: 477 BCE

text: Roman forces in a stronghold on the Cremera River are defeated by an army of Veientes from the Etruscan city of Veii in the Battle of the Cremera.

title: 477 BC

year_label: 406 BCE

text: The Roman forces begin a decade-long siege against Veii.

title: 406 BC

year_label: 396 BCE

text: Marcus Furius Camillus is made dictator by the Romans. Camillus finally destroys the Etruscan city of Veii in southern Etruria as the town falls to Roman forces after what is said to be a 10 year siege. The capture of Veii and its surrounding territories marks the first major expansion of Rome which doubles its territory after this victory.

title: 396 BC

year_label: 391 BCE

section: Climate & Environment

text: The Roman dictator Marcus Furius Camillus is accused of making an unfair distribution of the spoils of his victory at Veii. He goes into voluntary exile.

title: 391 BC


slug: veliky-novgorod

label: Veliky Novgorod

description: city in Novgorod Oblast, Russia

section: Births

text: Rurik, prince of Novgorod (approximate date)

title: 830

section: Exploration & Expansion

text: The Russian city of Novgorod is first mentioned in the Sofia Chronicles.

title: 859

section: Events › By place › Europe

text: The Varangians (called Rus'), under the leadership of Rurik, a Viking chieftain, arrive (with his brothers, Sineus and Truvor) at Staraya Ladoga. He builds a trade settlement near Novgorod (modern Russia), and founds the Rurik Dynasty.

title: 862

section: Events › By place › Eastern Europe

text: Oleg, brother-in-law of the Varangian ruler Rurik, is entrusted to take care of his kingdom Novgorod after his death. He becomes regent of his son Igor.

title: 879

text: Winter – Vladimir I (the Great), grand prince of Kiev, returns from Norway with a Varangian mercenary army and re-captures Novgorod. On his way to Kiev, he marches against the forces of his brother Yaropolk I.

title: 978

date: July 22

text: July 22–23 – Battle of the River Bug: Polish forces under Bolesław I defeat Yaroslav the Wise near the River Bug. Yaroslav retreats to Novgorod, abandoning Kiev.

title: 1018

text: Sviatopolk I dies, and is succeeded by his brother Yaroslav I (the Wise). He becomes the Grand Prince of Kiev with the support of the Novgorodians and the help of Varangian (Viking) mercenaries. Yaroslav consolidates the Kievan state, through both cultural and administrative improvements, and military campaigns.

title: 1019

text: The first mention is made of Tartu, Estonia, as Grand Prince Yaroslav I (the Wise) of Novgorod and Kiev defeats the Estonians and finds a fort named Yuryev (modern-day Tartu). The Rus' will hold the fortress for 30 or 31 years.

title: 1030

date: October 15

text: October 15 – Luka Zhidiata, bishop of Novgorod

title: 1060

date: May 28

text: May 28 – In Russia, the people of Novgorod depose and imprison Prince Vsevolod of Pskov. Novgorod asserts its independence from Kiev, but accepts protection from neighboring Kievan princes. In July, Vsevolod along with his wife and family are released (they are exiled to an uncle in Kiev).

title: 1136

section: Religion & Belief

date: August 15

text: August 15 – The cave monastery of Vardzia is consecrated by Queen Tamar I of Georgia. She marries Yury Bogolyubsky, Grand Prince of Novgorod.

title: 1185

section: Culture & Society

date: June

text: June – The 16-year-old Alexander Nevsky is elected by the Novgorodians as prince (knyaz) of Novgorod, beseeching the young noble to take charge of the city's military affairs.

title: 1236

date: July 15

text: July 15 – Battle of the Neva: A Swedish army under Bishop Thomas sails up the Gulf of Finland in their longboats. They proceed into the Neva River with the aim of seizing control over Lake Ladoga and from there, striking at the city of Novgorod. Prince Alexander rallies his druzhina comparable to the 'household' of western European countries, and decisively routs the Swedish forces, saving the Novgorod Republic from a full-scale enemy invasion from the North. As a result, Alexander wins his first military victory at the age of 19 and receives the title of 'Nevsky'.

title: 1240

text: Spring – Prince Alexander Nevsky is joined by his brother Andrey II (Yaroslavich) at Novgorod, supported with his elite druzhina (or 'household') from Suzdal. They head southwest across the frozen marshes, which cover much of the land between Novgorod and Pskov. On March 5, Alexander retakes the city almost without a struggle, before the larger Crusader garrison in nearby Izborsk can intervene.

title: 1242

date: November 14

text: November 14 – Alexander Nevsky, Grand Prince of Novgorod

title: 1263

text: January 10 – Gustavus Adolphus replies to Metropolitan Isidor, Odoevskij and the estates of Novgorod, stating that he himself wishes to assume responsibility for the government of Novgorod and also of all Russians. A number of land grants signed the same day show that the Swedish king has assumed the title of Tsar.

title: 1612

section: Events › January–March


slug: venetian-republic

label: Venetian Republic

date: November 22

text: November 22 – The War of Padua in Italy comes to an end as Padua and Ferrara surrender to the armies of the Venetian Republic, commanded by General Malatesta IV. The Republic of Venice then annexes the territory of the defeated lordships.

title: 1405

section: Events › October–December

section: Geopolitics & Diplomacy

date: October 26

text: October 26 – Representatives of the Venetian Republic (in modern-day Italy) and the Principality of Zeta (part of modern-day Serbia) sign a peace treaty to halt the First Scutari War for one year.

title: 1409

date: January 30

text: January 30 – The First Scutari War between the Kingdom of Zeta (part of modern-day Albania and Montenegro) and the Venetian Republic comes to an end.

title: 1413

date: August 12

text: August 12 – The Treaty of Sveti Srdj ends the Second Scutari War, waged between the Serbian Despotate and the Venetian Republic, over Scutari, and other former possessions of Zeta, captured by the Venetians.

title: 1423

section: Events › July–September

date: January 13

text: January 13 – The Venetian Republic's Great Council authorizes spending to equip 25 galleys for use as warships.

title: 1425

section: Events › January – March

date: April 19

text: April 19 – A truce is reached to halt the Wars in Lombardy six months after the Venetian Army destroyed the Milanese town of Maclodio on October 11. The Duchy of Milan cedes the city of Bergamo to the Republic of Venice and the war halts for two years.

title: 1428

section: Events › April–June

date: March 20

text: March 20 – Constantine XI Palaiologos, Emperor of Byzantium, begins the siege of the Greek port of Patras, which is controlled by the Venetian Republic. The city surrenders to the Byzantines on June 1.

title: 1429

text: May 13 – The Venetian Republic signs a treaty with the Kingdom of Hungary and Pope Alexander VI for troops to protect Venetian Dalmatia during the Ottoman–Venetian War (1499–1503).

title: 1501

date: October 2

text: October 2 – Leonardo Loredan is elected 75th doge of the Venetian Republic, taking office on October 13, and serves for almost 20 years.

title: 1501

date: February 27

text: February 27 – In Italy, on "Fat Thursday", a Christian celebration marking the last days of feasting before the period of fasting during the Roman Catholic Lent, discontented citizens of Friuli stage a revolt against their Venetian occupiers and attack the city of Udine and invade the palaces of several members of nobility, murdering the wealthy families and plundering the palace contents. Special troops arrive from Gradisca d'Isonzo on March 1 and suppress the rebellion.

title: 1511

date: June 14

text: June 14 – Lorenzo Priuli becomes the new Doge of the Venetian Republic.

title: 1556

date: March 28

text: March 28 – The ambassador of the Ottoman Sultan Selim II goes before the governing Council of the Venetian Republic and requests that Venice surrender the island of Cyprus. The Council rejects the demand and prepares to go to war with the Ottoman Empire.

title: 1570


slug: venezuela

label: Venezuela

description: country in South America

year_label: 500 BCE

section: Health & Medicine

text: The world population reaches 100,000,000—85,000,000 in the Eastern Hemisphere and 15,000,000 in the Western Hemisphere, primarily Mesoamerica and northern South America (Mexico, Central America, Colombia, Peru, Venezuela).

title: 500 BC

section: Events › By topic › Demographics

date: August 5

text: August 5 – Columbus lands on the Paria Peninsula, in what is now Venezuela in the first definitely recorded landing of Europeans on the mainland Americas.

title: 1498

text: Rodrigo de Bastidas, sailing westward from Venezuela in search of gold, becomes the first European to explore the Isthmus of Panama.

title: 1501

section: Events › Date unknown

date: September 8

text: September 8 – The city of Maracaibo, Venezuela is founded by Ambrosius Ehinger.

title: 1529

date: March 8

text: March 8 – Chipatá, now in the Santander Department of the Republic of Colombia, is founded by the Spanish conquistadors Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada and his brother Hernán Pérez de Quesada as the first settlement in what will become the Spanish colony of Nueva Granada, which will later be divided into the nations of Colombia and Venezuela.

title: 1537

section: Conflict & Security

text: Miguel de Buría leads the first African rebellion in South America's history. This may be because Buría has more slaves than other regions in Venezuela, of which most join Miguel, and is still being contested between the Europeans and the natives, who also join his side. During this insurrection he takes over the Gold mines de San Felipe de Buría, established within the area with the consent of the Spanish Crown, to pull out the ore that was discovered in the Buria river, a task that heavily depends on slave work.

title: 1552

text: The Welser banking families of Augsburg lose colonial control of Venezuela.

title: 1556

text: Construction of the original Catedral Nuestra Señora de La Asunción, the oldest church in Venezuela, begins.

title: 1570

date: November 30

text: November 30 – A fleet of 43 Dutch ships from Suriname attacks the Araya Peninsula in Venezuela in an attempt to halt construction of a Spanish fortress. The Spanish drive the Dutch away after six weeks of fighting, ending January 13, 1623.

title: 1622

date: June 10

text: June 10 – French buccaneer Michel de Grammont arrives at Spanish-held Venezuela with six pirate ships, 13 smaller craft, and 2,000 men in a daring raid on the South American territory, then leads half of his force inward toward Maracaibo, which he takes on June 14. During the rest of the month, he and his soldiers march inland as far as Trujillo. Grammont and his pirates finally depart on December 3.

title: 1678

date: May 27

text: May 27 – Spain creates the Viceroyalty of New Granada in South America from the northern section of the Viceroyalty of Peru. The viceroyalty, with a capital at Bogotá, later declares independence and splits up into what become the nations of Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela.

title: 1717

date: December 2

text: December 2 – Coronation of Napoleon I: At the cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris, Napoleon crowns himself as the first Emperor of the French in a thousand years. Witnessing this, Simón Bolívar dedicates himself to liberating Venezuela from Spanish rule.

title: 1804

text: April 19 – Venezuela achieves home rule: Vicente Emparán, Governor of the Captaincy General of Venezuela, is removed by the people of Caracas, and Supreme Junta is installed. Venezuela is the first South American state to proclaim independence from Spain.

title: 1810

date: March 26

text: March 26 – The 1812 Caracas earthquake destroys Caracas, capital of Venezuela.

title: 1812

date: October 14

text: October 14 – After a ceremony in Caracas, Venezuela, the municipality gives Simón Bolívar the title of El Libertador.

title: 1813

date: March 18

text: March 18 – Simón Bolívar, President of Colombia (and former President of Venezuela, Peru and Bolivia), departs from the capital at Bogotá in order to help his ally, General José Antonio Páez, suppress an uprising near the Venezuelan border, but is sidetracked by another rebellion in Cartagena.

title: 1828

date: November 17

text: November 17 – Ecuador and Venezuela are separated from Gran Colombia.

title: 1831

date: March 24

text: March 24 – Slavery is abolished in Venezuela.

title: 1854

date: May 5

text: May 5 – Border Treaty between Brazil and Venezuela: The two countries agree their borders should be traced at the water divide, between the Amazon and the Orinoco basins.

title: 1859

date: January 10

text: January 10 – Ezequiel Zamora, leader of the Federalist Army in Venezuela (b. 1817)

title: 1860

section: Deaths › January–June

date: September 26

text: September 26 – General Manuel Guzman Alvarez of the Venezuelan state of Sucre joins with General Cipriano Castro in a revolt against the Venezuelan government.

title: 1899

section: Events › September

section: Economy & Finance

date: December

text: December–February 1903 – Venezuelan crisis: Britain, Germany and Italy sustain a naval blockade on Venezuela, in order to enforce collection of outstanding financial claims. This prompts the development of the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine.

title: 1902

section: Events › December

date: October 18

text: October 18 – Venezuela: President Castro's army overcomes rebels in seven-day battle

title: 1902

section: Events › October

date: December 30

text: December 30 – Humberto Gómez and his mercenaries seize Arauca in Colombia and declare the Republic of Arauca. He proceeds to pillage the region before fleeing to Venezuela.

title: 1916

date: November 16

text: November 16 – American aviator Jimmie Angel becomes the first foreigner to see the Angel Falls in Venezuela (they are named after him).

title: 1933

section: Events › November

date: October 22

text: October 22 – Rómulo Betancourt is named provisional president of Venezuela.

title: 1945

section: Crime & Justice

date: April 9

text: April 9 – Santa Teresa Church tragedy: 50 people are trampled to death in the Basilica of St. Teresa, Caracas, Venezuela, after someone shouts "Fire!"; 40 people are arrested in connection with the crush.

title: 1952

section: Events › March–April

date: May 13

text: May 13 – During a visit to Caracas, Venezuela, Vice President Richard Nixon's car is attacked by anti-American demonstrators.

title: 1958

section: Events › May

text: June 14 – A 3-front invasion of the Dominican Republic by exile forces backed by Fidel Castro and Venezuela attempts to overthrow Rafael Trujillo.

title: 1959

section: Events › June

date: June 24

text: June 24 – Assassination attempt of Venezuelan President Rómulo Betancourt.

title: 1960

section: Technology & Infrastructure

date: September 14

text: September 14 – The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is founded by Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela.

title: 1960

date: July 29

text: July 29 – An earthquake in Caracas, Venezuela leaves 240 dead.

title: 1967

section: Events › July

section: Disasters & Accidents

date: December 3

text: December 3 – Air France Flight 212, a Boeing 707 registered as F-BHSZ, crashed shortly after takeoff from Venezuela killing all 62 occupants on board. The cause of the accident is not yet known since the Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety (BEA) did not publish an investigation report. It will not be released until 2029, sixty years after the accident.

title: 1969

date: March 16

text: March 16 – Viasa Flight 742 crashes into a neighborhood in Maracaibo, Venezuela, shortly after taking off for Miami; all 84 people on board the DC-9 jet are killed along with 71 people on the ground.

title: 1969

section: Events › March

text: July 21 – Maritza Sayalero of Venezuela wins the Miss Universe pageant; the stage collapses after contestants and news photographers rush to her throne.

title: 1979

text: December 4 – General elections are celebrated in Venezuela in which the opposition party, Democratic Action, wins a majority in both chambers of the Venezuelan Congress and the presidency for the 1984–1989 period under Jaime Lusinchi. Voter turnout is 87.3% and Lusinchi obtains 58.4% of the votes.

title: 1983

text: March 17 – A Colombian Boeing 727 jetliner, Avianca Flight 410, crashes into the side of the mountains near the Venezuelan border, killing 143 people.

title: 1988

text: February 4 – In Venezuela, Hugo Chávez leads an unsuccessful coup attempt against President of Venezuela Carlos Andrés Pérez.

title: 1992

text: October 22 – A fire at La Planta prison in southwest Caracas, Venezuela, kills thirty prisoners.

title: 1996

text: December 6 – Hugo Chávez, politician and former officer of the Venezuelan army, is elected President of Venezuela.

title: 1998

text: August 16 – West Caribbean Airways Flight 708 crashes into a mountain in Venezuela, killing 160 passengers and crew.

title: 2005

text: March 2 – Venezuela and Ecuador move troops to the Colombian border, following a Colombian raid against FARC guerrillas inside Ecuadorian territory, in which senior commander Raúl Reyes is killed.

title: 2008

text: January 31 – Tiféret Israel Synagogue attack, profanation of the oldest synagogue in Caracas, Venezuela.

title: 2009

text: May 20 – The 2018 Venezuelan presidential election was held with incumbent President Nicolás Maduro reelected with 67.8% of the vote and the lowest turnout in Venezuela's modern democratic history since the 1958 coup d'état. The elections were denounced as a "sham" by several Latin American countries, the United States, Canada, the Organization of American States and the European Union.

title: 2018

text: January 10 – Venezuela enters a presidential crisis as Juan Guaidó and the National Assembly declare incumbent President Nicolás Maduro "illegitimate".

title: 2019

text: February 29 – Barquisimeto shooting: During a demonstration, pro-government colectivos shoot at disputed President and Speaker of the National Assembly Juan Guaidó and his supporters in Barquisimeto, Venezuela, leaving five injured.

title: 2020

text: March 26 – Militants in the Philippines, Syria, Yemen, and Libya agree to U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres' call for a ceasefire; some accept medical aid for themselves and civilians in their communities. Colombia and Venezuela discuss a common response to the global pandemic, and the UAE airlifts aid to Iran.

title: 2020

text: August 29 – Hurricane Ida strikes New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, after having caused devastation in Venezuela.

title: 2021


slug: venice

label: Venice

description: capital city of Veneto, Italy

section: Religion & Belief

text: The Tetrarchs are probably made in Egypt. After 330 they are moved to Constantinople and in 1204 they are installed at the corner of the facade of the St Mark's Basilica, Venice (approximate date).

title: 300

section: Events › By topic › Art and Science

date: March 25

text: March 25 – Venice is founded at twelve o'clock noon (according to legend) with the dedication of the first church, San Giacomo, at the islet of Rialto (Italy).

title: 421

section: Events › By place › Roman Empire

section: Exploration & Expansion

text: The city of Venice is founded by fugitives from Attila's army who flee to small islands in the Venetian Lagoon.

title: 452

section: Events › By place › Europe

text: A council of twelve townships emerges on the islands in the Venetian lagoon, to form a basic system of governance (approximate date).

title: 466

text: Gothic War: Narses arrives in Venetia and discovers that a powerful Gothic-Frank army (50,000 men), under joint command of the kings Totila and Theudebald, has blocked the principal route to the Po Valley. Not wishing to engage such a formidable force and confident that the Franks would avoid a direct confrontation, Narses skirts the lagoons along the Adriatic shore, by using vessels to leapfrog his army from point to point along the coast. In this way he arrives at the capital Ravenna without encountering any opposition. He attacks and crushes a small Gothic force at Ariminum (modern Rimini).

title: 551

section: Events › By place › Byzantine Empire

text: Spring – The Lombards, led by King Alboin, cross the Julian Alps. Their invasion of Northern Italy is almost unopposed; withered Byzantine forces, that remain in the Po Valley and are based at Ravenna, are no match for the overwhelming Lombard incursion. Residents of the Italian countryside flee at the Lombards' approach. Some retreat to the barrier islands along the shore of the Northern Adriatic Sea, where they establish permanent settlements: the nascent city of Venice.

title: 568

text: Venice continues as an independent realm, having been built up from fishing villages and settled by fugitives.

title: 600

text: The First Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta is founded by the exarch Isaac of Ravenna on Torcello, confirming the island's importance as a centre of population in Venice at this date.

title: 639

section: Events › By topic › Religion

text: Paolo Lucio Anafesto is elected the first Doge of Venice, which begins its rise as a major power in the Mediterranean Sea. Built up from fishing villages settled by fugitives from the Huns (see 452), the city of Venice occupies some 60 marshy islands (Venetian Lagoon).

title: 697

section: Geopolitics & Diplomacy

text: Emperors Nikephoros I and Charlemagne settle their imperial boundaries in the Adriatic Sea, and sign the Pax Nicephori ("Peace of Nikephoros"). The Byzantines retain control of the coastal cities and islands in Dalmatian Croatia, while Frankish rule is accepted over Istria and the Dalmatian hinterland. Venice is recognized as independent by the Byzantine Empire.

title: 803

text: Summer – Emperor Charlemagne finishes the conquest of Saxony. The Carolingian administration in the north is restored and the diocese of Bremen is re-established. Venice, torn by infighting, switches allegiance from Constantinople to King Pepin of Italy, son of Charlemagne.

title: 804

text: Spring – The Venetian dukes change sides again, submitting to King Pepin, under the authority of his father Charlemagne, who then proceeds to take Venice. Emperor Nikephoros I sends a Byzantine fleet to Dalmatia, prompting Pepin to withdraw to the mainland. A legate is dispatched to Venice, where he deposes the turncoat dukes, before continuing on to Aachen, to negotiate a peace with Charlemagne. Charlemagne recognises Byzantine dominance over Venice and Dalmatia in the Adriatic Sea.

title: 810

text: Emperor Michael I re-opens peace negotiations with the Franks, and recognizes Charlemagne as emperor (basileus) of the Frankish Empire. In exchange for this recognition, Venice is returned to the Byzantine Empire.

title: 812

text: Relics of Mark the Evangelist are stolen from Alexandria (controlled by the Abbasid Caliphate) by two Venetian merchants, and brought to Venice.

title: 828

section: Deaths

text: Siege of Syracuse: The Muslims under Asad ibn al-Furat defeat a Byzantine relief army sent from Palermo, and backed by a Venetian fleet led by Giustiniano Participazio. Al-Furat decides to break off the siege at Syracuse, as his forces suffer greatly from lack of food. Later he dies during an outbreak of an epidemic.

title: 828

text: The second St. Mark's Basilica in Venice (replacing an older church at a different location) is built, and becomes one of the best known examples of Italo-Byzantine architecture.

title: 832

text: Pietro II Orseolo becomes the 26th Doge of Venice. Venice establishes a protectorate on the coast of the Dalmatian Islands.

title: 991

section: Events › Unknown dates

text: Doge Domenico I orders the construction of the present building of St Mark's Basilica at Venice (approximate date).

title: 1063

section: Events › By topic › Architecture

date: October 8

text: October 8 – Doge Vitale Faliero consecrates the new Basilica of San Marco in Venice.

title: 1094

text: Genoa, Venice and Pisa gain trading privileges from the Crusader states, in return for their service during the conquest of the coastal cities.

title: 1100

section: Events › By place › Levant

section: Culture & Society

text: The Venetian Arsenal is founded in Venice.

title: 1104

date: August 8

text: August 8 – A Venetian fleet under Doge Domenico Michiel with well over a hundred ships sets sail from Venice, carrying an army of around 15,000 men and siege-material on the Venetian Crusade. The fleet departs for Palestine – but the Venetians pause to attack Corfu (this in retaliation for the refusal of John II to renew exclusive trading privileges). For six months, throughout the winter of 1122–23, the Venetians lay siege to the Byzantine island.

title: 1122

section: Health & Medicine

date: September

text: September – Doge Vitale II Michiel leads a Venetian fleet (120 ships) against the Byzantines, conquering the cities of Trogir and Dubrovnik. But the plague takes a heavy toll among the fleet's crewmen; half the ships have to be burned to keep them from falling into enemy hands. A plague also breaks out in Venice, when the remaining ships return.

title: 1171

date: May 28

text: May 28 – Doge Vitale II Michiel, accused at a General Assembly at the Ducal Palace, for the destruction of the Venetian fleet, is stabbed to death by an angry mob at Venice.

title: 1172

text: The Rialto Bridge in Venice (in modern-day Italy) is converted from a pontoon bridge to a permanent, raised wooden structure.

title: 1250

text: Doge Reniero Zeno sends the Horses of Saint Mark, looted from Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade, to Venice, where they are installed on the terrace of the façade of St. Mark's Basilica.

title: 1254

date: June 23

text: June 23 – Battle of Trapani: The Venetian fleet (24 galleys) led by Admiral Jacopo Dondulo moves to Marsala and attacks the larger Genoese fleet anchored at Trapani, capturing all its ships. Some 1,200 Genoese drown and many are killed. Dondulo is acclaimed a hero on his return to Venice in July and elected as Captain General of the Sea, Venice's highest naval command position.

title: 1266

text: The carnival in Venice is first recorded.

title: 1268

section: Events › By topic › Culture

text: The 17-year-old Marco Polo departs from Venice with his father and uncle Niccolò and Maffeo Polo, to set off for Asia to meet the Mongolian emperor Kublai Khan (the grandson of Genghis Khan) at his court in Beijing, China. They sail across the Mediterranean Sea and travel overland, crossing Armenia, Persia and the Pamir Mountains.

title: 1271

text: Venetian glass manufacture is concentrated on the island of Murano (located in the Venetian Lagoon), to prevent fires in Venice itself.

title: 1291

section: Events › By topic › Economy

text: Marco Polo returns to Venice after 24 years of travel in China. When the Polos arrive, Venice is engaged in a naval war with the rival city of Genoa. Marco joins the war and arms a galley equipped with a trebuchet.

title: 1295

date: May 12

text: May 12 – Antipope Nicholas V is consecrated at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome by the bishop of Venice.

title: 1328

section: Events

date: April 18

text: April 18 – In Venice, the Council of Ten beheads Doge Marin Falier, for conspiring to kill them.

title: 1355

text: Venice repels a Hungarian invasion.

title: 1369

section: Events › Dates unknown

date: January 1

text: January 1 – The Republic of Venice's Admiral Carlo Zeno returns to Venice with 18 ships, after the city is on the verge of falling to conquest by the Republic of Genoa.

title: 1380

section: Events › January–March

text: On the Italian Peninsula, Venice has a population of 84,000, of which 200 men rule the city, while Florence has a population of 40,000, of which 600 men rule the city.

title: 1422

section: Events › Undated

date: October 4

text: October 4 – Peace between Albania and Venice is established, bringing an end to the Albanian–Venetian War.

title: 1448

section: Events › October–December

date: August 30

text: August 30 – The Italic League is concluded in Venice as an alliance between the Republic of Venice, the Papal States, the Duchy of Milan, the Republic of Florence, and the Kingdom of Naples.

title: 1454

section: Events › July–September

date: March

text: March – Sigismund, Archduke of Austria, largely on the poor advice of his counselors, declares war on Venice, and seizes silver mines in and around the Sugana Valley.

title: 1487

text: Aldus Manutius moves to Venice.

title: 1490

date: November 10

text: November 10 – Fra Luca Pacioli's Summa de arithmetica, geometria, proportioni et proportionalità is published in Venice, containing the first printed account of algebra in the vernacular, and the first published description of the double-entry accounting system.

title: 1494

date: February

text: February – Pietro Bembo's Petri Bembi de Aetna Angelum Chalabrilem liber, a description of a journey to Mount Etna, is published in Venice by Aldus Manutius, the first book printed in the old-style serif or humanist typeface cut by Francesco Griffo (known from the 20th century as Bembo) and with early adoption of the semicolon (dated 1495 according to the more veneto).

title: 1496

text: February 24 – King Henry VII of England signs the commercial treaty Intercursus Magnus with Venice, Florence, and the cities of the Hanseatic League and the Netherlands.

title: 1496

text: January 1 – In Venice, historian Marino Sanuto begins the first volume of I Diarii, a diary of the events in his own life and, more importantly, a daily record of events in the Republic of Venice and those reported to him by Venetian representatives in other parts of Europe. What is now described as "probably the largest, most comprehensive, and valuable ever written by one man",he continues his daily work for more than 37 years, ending in June 30, 1533.

title: 1496

text: October 26 – King Louis XII of France and his troops seize Milan, driving out Duke Ludovico Sforza, and Leonardo da Vinci flees to Venice.

title: 1499

text: Italic type (cut by Francesco Griffo) is first used by Aldus Manutius at the Aldine Press in Venice, in an edition of Virgil.

title: 1501

text: May 15 – Harmonice Musices Odhecaton, the first printed collection of polyphonic music, is published by Ottaviano Petrucci in Venice.

title: 1501

text: October 26 – Alvise I Mocenigo, Doge of Venice (d. 1577)

title: 1507

text: April 17 – In Venice, the envoy of the French king Louis XII delivers the declaration of war to the Venetian doge Leonardo Loredan, thus marking the official beginning of the War of the League of Cambrai.

title: 1509

text: January 10 – A great fire breaks out, in the Rialto of Venice.

title: 1514

text: May 19 – In Venice, Renaissance artist Tiziano Vecellio, known as "Titian", unveils his painting Assumption of the Virgin, to the public.

title: 1518

text: Andrea Palladio publishes I quattro libri dell'architettura in Venice.

title: 1570

text: The bubonic plague decimates Venice.

title: 1575

text: The Rialto Bridge in Venice, designed by Antonio da Ponte, is completed.

title: 1591

text: November 16 – Marco Antonio de Dominis, Roman Catholic Archbishop of the See of Spalato and Primate of Dalmatia, having run afoul of Pope Paul V over secular matters relating to Venice, submits to King James I of England and later becomes Dean of Windsor.

title: 1616

text: November 17 – A naval battle between the Sicilians and Venetians ends inconclusively.

title: 1617

text: February 7 – France, Savoy and Venice sign the Treaty of Paris, agreeing to cooperate in removing Spanish forces from the strategic Alpine pass of Valtelline.

title: 1623

text: July – The Italian plague of 1629–31 reaches Venice.

title: 1630

text: November 21 – In Venice, a special mass celebrates the end of the two years of bubonic plague that had killed thousands of people.

title: 1631

text: March 6 – The world's first opera house, Teatro San Cassiano, opens in Venice with the premiere of L'Andromeda, with music by Francesco Manelli and libretto by Benedetto Ferrari.

title: 1637

text: The first known European coffeehouse perhaps opens in Venice.

title: 1640

text: The basilica of Santa Maria della Salute in Venice, designed by Baldassare Longhena in 1631, is dedicated.

title: 1681

text: February 7 – The opera Giustino by Giovanni Legrenzi and about the life of the Byzantine Emperor Justin, premieres in Venice.

title: 1683

text: March 5 – Pope Innocent XI forms a Holy League with the Habsburg Empire, Venice and Poland, to end Ottoman Turkish rule in Europe.

title: 1684

text: December 26 – The first performance of the opera Agrippina by George Frideric Handel takes place at the Teatro San Giovanni Grisostomo in Venice.

title: 1709

text: January 24 – The first performance of Francesco Gasparini's most famous opera Tamerlano takes place at the Teatro San Cassiano in Venice.

title: 1711

text: October 16 – Antonio Vivaldi's opera Tieteberga is performed for the first time, premiering at the Teatro San Moisè in Venice

title: 1717

text: Il teatro alla moda, a satirical pamphlet by Benedetto Marcello, is published anonymously in Venice.

title: 1720

text: March 18 – The electors of the Republic of Venice (which includes not only a large part of northern Italy around the city of Venice, but portions of Eastern Europe along the Adriatic Sea) elect Francesco Loredan as their new executive, the Doge. Loredan's election comes 11 days after the death of the previous Doge, Pietro Grimani, but is not announced until after Easter Sunday.

title: 1752

text: May 12 – War of the First Coalition: Napoleon Bonaparte conquers Venice, ending the city and Republic of Venice's 1,100 years of independence. The last doge of Venice, Ludovico Manin, steps down. The Venetian Ghetto is thrown open.

title: 1797

text: November 30 – 1799–1800 Papal conclave opens in Venice at San Giorgio Monastery.

title: 1799

text: January 13 – The Milan–Venice railway's 3.2 km mi bridge, over the Venetian Lagoon between Mestre and Venice in Italy, opens, the world's longest since 1151.

title: 1846

text: March 22 – The Republic of San Marco comes into existence in Venice.

title: 1848

text: July 15 – The first airstrike in history: Austria launches pilotless balloons against the city of Venice.

title: 1849

text: March 11 – Giuseppe Verdi's opera Rigoletto is first performed at La Fenice in Venice.

title: 1851

text: July 14 – St Mark's Campanile in Venice collapses.

title: 1902

text: September 14 – English composer Benjamin Britten's chamber opera version of The Turn of the Screw receives its world premiere, at the Teatro La Fenice in Venice, Italy.

title: 1954

text: November 13 – Flooding in the Po Valley of Italy leads to flooding also in Venice.

title: 1957

text: November 4 – 1966 flood of the Arno river in Italy hits Florence, flooding it to a maximum depth of 6.7 m ft, leaving thousands homeless and destroying millions of masterpieces of art and rare books. In addition, a severe tidal flood hits Venice.

title: 1966

text: November 11 – The first annual Vogalonga rowing "race" is held in Venice, Italy.

title: 1975

text: November 14 – Italy declares a state of emergency in Venice following record flooding.

title: 2019


slug: venus

label: Venus

description: second planet from the Solar System, tellurian and very similar to Earth

section: Science & Discovery

date: April 20

text: April 20 – The planet Venus occults the planet Jupiter.

title: 363

section: Events › By topic › Astronomy

date: October 26

text: October 26 – The planet Venus occults the planet Jupiter.

title: 428

date: January 7

text: January 7 – Venus occults Jupiter.

title: 1192

section: Climate & Environment

date: September 24

text: September 24 – Venus occults Jupiter (the last such occurrence until 1570).

title: 1210

date: February 5

text: February 5 – Venus occults Jupiter; this will next happen in 1818.

title: 1570

date: October 13

text: October 13 – German astronomer Michael Maestlin becomes the first person to record an observation of the occultation of the planet Mars by the planet Venus.

title: 1590

text: May 28 – The planet Venus passes in front of Mercury. The event is witnessed during the evening hours, by the amateur astronomer John Bevis, at the Royal Greenwich Observatory. As of 2006, it is still the only such planet/planet occultation that has been directly observed.

title: 1737

section: Events › April–June

date: January 3

text: January 3 (21:52 UTC) – Venus occults Jupiter. It is the last occultation of one planet by another before November 22, 2065.

title: 1818

date: December 2

text: December 2 – During the new moon, a near-grand conjunction of the classical planets and several binocular Solar System bodies occur. The Sun, Moon, Mercury, Mars and Saturn are all within 15° of each other, with Venus 5° ahead of this conjunction and Jupiter 15° behind.

title: 1899

section: Events › December

date: July 7

text: July 7 – At 14:28 UT Venus occults the star Regulus. The rare event (which will next occur on October 1, 2044) is used to determine the diameter of Venus and the structure of Venus' atmosphere.

title: 1959

section: Events › July

date: February 12

text: February 12 – The USSR launches Venera 1 towards Venus.

title: 1961

section: Events › February

date: May 19

text: May 19 – Venera 1 becomes the first man-made object to fly-by another planet by passing Venus (however, the probe lost contact with Earth a month earlier, and does not send back any data).

title: 1961

section: Events › May

date: December 14

text: December 14 – U.S. spacecraft Mariner 2 passes by Venus, becoming the first spacecraft to transmit data from another planet.

title: 1962

date: November 16

text: November 16 – Venera program: The Soviet Union launches the Venera 3 space probe from Baikonur, Kazakhstan toward Venus (on March 1, 1966, it becomes the first spacecraft to reach the surface of another planet).

title: 1965

section: Events › November–December

date: March 1

text: March 1 – Soviet space probe Venera 3 crashes on Venus, becoming the first spacecraft to land on another planet's surface.

title: 1966

section: Events › March

date: June 14

text: June 14 – Mariner program: Mariner 5 is launched toward Venus.

title: 1967

section: Events › June

date: October 18

text: October 18 – The Venera 4 probe descends through the Venusian atmosphere.

title: 1967

section: Events › October

date: October 19

text: October 19 – The Mariner 5 probe flies by Venus.

title: 1967

date: May 16

text: May 16 – Venera program: Soviet space probe Venera 5 lands on Venus.

title: 1969

date: May 17

text: May 17 – Venera program: Soviet space probe Venera 6 begins to descend into Venus's atmosphere, sending back atmospheric data before being crushed by pressure.

title: 1969

date: August 17

text: August 17 – Venera program: Venera 7 is launched from the Soviet Union toward Venus. It later becomes the first spacecraft to transmit data from the surface of another planet successfully.

title: 1970

section: Events › August

date: November 4

text: November 4 – Venera program: Venera 14 is launched to Venus.

title: 1981

section: Events › November

date: October 30

text: October 30 – Venera program: Venera 13 is launched to Venus.

title: 1981

date: April 11

text: April 11 – The European Space Agency's Venus Express space probe enters Venus' orbit.

title: 2006

section: Events › April

date: June 5

text: June 5 – NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft makes its second fly-by of Venus on route to Mercury.

title: 2007

date: April 10

text: April 10 – The ESA/JAXA space probe BepiColombo makes its final gravity assist around Earth and begins to depart for Venus, where it will make several gravity assist maneuvers before finally arriving at Mercury in 2025.

title: 2020

date: September 14

text: September 14 – The Royal Astronomical Society announces the detection of phosphine in Venus' atmosphere, which is known to be a strong predictor for the presence of microbial life.

title: 2020

section: Events › September


slug: vermandois

label: Vermandois

description: traditional county of Picardy

section: Births

text: Medardus, bishop of Vermandois (approximate date)

title: 457

section: Deaths

text: Medardus, bishop of Vermandois

title: 545

section: Religion & Belief

text: Eligius succeeds Acarius as bishop of Doornik and Noyon. He becomes constituted guardian of the towns of Vermandois, which also include Ghent and Kortrijk (Flanders).

title: 639

section: Events › By topic › Religion

text: Pepin, count of Vermandois (approximate date)

title: 817

text: Herbert I, count of Vermandois (approximate date)

title: 850

title: 855

section: Conflict & Security

text: King Rudolph I loses the support of Herbert II, count of Vermandois, who controls the prison at Péronne in which former King Charles III (the Simple) is imprisoned. Herbert brings him before William I (Longsword), count of Rouen, for homage and then to Rheims as leverage to blackmail Rudolph to make him cede sovereignty over Laon (Northern France).

title: 928

section: Events › By place › Europe

text: Hugh the Great, count of Paris, rebels against King Louis IV ("d'Outremer") and gains support from William I, duke of Normandy. Hugh, along with Herbert II, count of Vermandois, Arnulf I, count of Flanders and William pay homage to King Otto I (ruler of the East Frankish Kingdom), and support him in his struggle against Louis.

title: 939

text: Herbert III, count of Vermandois (d. 1015)

title: 953

text: Ralph I (or Raoul), count of Vermandois (approximate date)

title: 1085

section: Exploration & Expansion

date: August

text: August – Hugh ("the Great"), count of Vermandois (a brother of King Philip I), departs to join the First Crusade. He travels with a small army via the Alps to Rome. While sailing the Adriatic Sea from Bari to Dyrrachium his fleet is reduced by shipwreck. Hugh's own ship is stranded on the shore near Epirus.

title: 1096

section: Events › By place › First Crusade

text: Adelaide, countess of Vermandois and Valois (or 1124)

title: 1120

text: Philip II begins a war against Philip of Alsace, count of Flanders, over the Vermandois. He claims the territory for his wife Isabella of Hainault as her dowry. Philip is unwilling to give it up.

title: 1181

section: Events › Europe


slug: vermont

label: Vermont

description: state of the United States of America

date: July 4

text: July 4 – French explorer Samuel de Champlain and his entourage of 60 men in 24 canoes become the first Europeans to enter Lake Champlain, located between the modern-day U.S. states of Vermont and New York.

title: 1609

section: Events › July–September

section: Geopolitics & Diplomacy

date: December 20

text: December 20 – Edmund Andros arrives in Boston to become the British Governor of the newly created Dominion of New England, which includes most of the what are now the U.S. states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Vermont and much of the eastern portion of New York. The unpopular Andros, who reigns as a dictator after being appointed by King James II, is driven out of office in 1689 after the overthrow of James, and the Dominion of New England is broken up into its constituent colonies.

title: 1686

section: Events › October–December

date: January 3

text: January 3 – Benning Wentworth issues the first of the New Hampshire Grants, leading to the establishment of Vermont.

title: 1749

section: Events › January–March

date: January 15

text: January 15 – Vermont declares its independence from New York, becoming the Vermont Republic, an independent country, a status it retains until it joins the United States as the 14th state in 1791.

title: 1777

date: July 8

text: July 8 – The 1777 Constitution of Vermont is signed, officially abolishing slavery.

title: 1777

section: Events › July–December

date: March 6

text: March 6 – The New York legislature consents to the admission to the Union of a new state, Vermont, formed within the boundaries of New York, contingent upon the successful conclusion of negotiations concerning disputed real-estate claims, and the boundary between the two states.

title: 1790

date: October 7

text: October 7 – Commissioners appointed by the New York legislature announce the successful conclusion of negotiations between New York and Vermont, concerning disputed real-estate claims, and the consent of New York's legislature to the admission to the Union of the state of Vermont as the 14th State (which was formed within what New York claimed as its territory, under an Order in Council, that King George III issued on July 20, 1764).

title: 1790

date: March 4

text: March 4 – Vermont is admitted as the 14th U.S. state.

title: 1791

date: January 13

text: January 13 – The U.S. Congress enacts a law providing for, effective May 1, 1795, a United States flag of 15 stars and 15 stripes, in recognition of the recent admission of Vermont and Kentucky as the 14th and 15th states. A subsequent act restores the number of stripes to 13, but provides for additional stars upon the admission of each additional state.

title: 1794

date: January 7

text: January 7 – Ira Allen, founder of Vermont, leader of the Green Mountain Boys (b. 1751)

title: 1814

section: Deaths › January–June

section: Culture & Society

date: August 6

text: August 6 – Norwich University is founded by Captain Alden Partridge in Vermont as the first private military school in the United States.

title: 1819

section: Technology & Infrastructure

date: September 13

text: September 13 – Vermont railroad worker Phineas Gage survives a 3-foot-plus iron rod being driven through his head.

title: 1848

date: September 8

text: September 8 – Bernie Sanders, American politician, U.S. Senator (D-Vt.) and 2016 presidential candidate

title: 1941

section: Births › September