text: Dioscorus the Great, patriarch of Alexandria


section: Deaths

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

source_section: Deaths


section: Geopolitics & Diplomacy

text: Maximus appoints Avitus, most trusted general, to the rank of magister militum and sends him on an embassy to Toulouse, to gain the support of the Visigoths. He elevates his son Palladius to Caesar and has him marry Eudocia, eldest daughter of Valentinian III.

source_section: Events › By place › Roman Empire


text: The Ostrogoths conquer Pannonia and Dalmatia.


date: September 21

section: Conflict & Security

text: September 21 – Avitus enters Rome with a Gallic army. He restores the imperial authority in Noricum (modern Austria) and leaves a Gothic force under Remistus, Visigoth general (magister militum), at Ravenna.


text: Battle of Aylesford: At a place named Agaelesthrep (often identified as Aylesford (Kent), Hengist fight the native Britons. His brother Horsa is killed and his son Oisc takes his place. According to the account preserved in Nennius, they were opposed by Vortimer.

source_section: Events › By place › Britannia


text: Skandagupta succeeds Kumaragupta I as ruler of the Gupta Empire (India). During his reign he crushes the Hun invasion; however, the expense of the wars drains the empire's resources and contributes to its decline.

source_section: Events › By place › Asia


text: Gaero becomes king of the Korean kingdom of Baekje.


section: Exploration & Expansion

text: Barter economy replaces organized trade as Romans and other citizens desert their towns for the countryside, where they will be less vulnerable to barbarian raids (approximate date).

source_section: Events › By topic › Commerce


date: June 2

section: Religion & Belief

text: June 2 – Sack of Rome: King Genseric leads the Vandals into Rome, after he has promised Pope Leo I not to burn and plunder the city. Genseric sacks the city for a period of two weeks. Eudoxia and her daughters, Eudocia and Placidia, are taken hostage. The loot is sent to the harbour of Ostia and loaded into ships, from whence the Vandals depart and return to Carthage.


date: July 9

text: July 9 – Avitus is proclaimed Roman emperor at Toulouse, and later recognised by the Gallic chiefs in Viernum (near Arles).


section: Science & Discovery

text: Earliest recorded date at Chichen Itza on the Yucatán Peninsula (Mexico) (approximate date).

source_section: Events › By place › Mesoamerica


section: Health & Medicine

text: The city of Vindobona (Vienna) is struck by an epidemic that spreads through the Roman provinces. The disease is probably streptococcus or a form of scarlet fever with streptococcus pneumoniae (approximate date).

source_section: Events › By topic › Medicine


date: March 16

section: Crime & Justice

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.


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.


date: March 17

section: Culture & Society

text: March 17 – Petronius Maximus, former domesticus ("elite bodyguard") of Aetius, becomes (with support of the Roman Senate) emperor of the Western Roman Empire. He secures the throne by bribing officials of the imperial palace. Maximus consolidates his power by a forced marriage with Licinia Eudoxia, widow of Valentinian III.


section: Births

text: Rusticus, archbishop of Lyon (approximate date)

source_section: Births


text: Wang Baoming, empress of the Southern Qi (d. 512)


text: March 16 – Heraclius, Roman courtier (primicerius sacri cubiculi )


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


text: May 31 – Petronius Maximus, emperor of the Western Roman Empire


text: Prosper of Aquitaine, disciple and Christian writer (approximate date)


text: Niall Noigiallach, High King of Ireland (approximate date)


text: Kumaragupta I, ruler of the Gupta Empire (India)


text: Horsa, leader of the Anglo-Saxons (approximate date)


text: Biyu of Baekje, king of Baekje


text: Palladius, son of Petronius Maximus (approximate date)


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.


date: October 5

text: October 5 – The Visigoths under King Theodoric II, acting on orders of Avitus, invade Spain with an army of Burgundians, Franks and Goths, led by their kings Chilperic I and Gondioc. They defeat the Suebi under King Rechiar on the Urbicus River, near Astorga (Gallaecia); this shatters the power of the Suebi.


date: October 17

text: October 17 – Battle of Placentia: Ricimer, supported by Majorian (comes domesticorum), defeats the usurper Avitus near Piacenza (northern Italy). They compel him to renounce the purple, and Avitus is obliged to become bishop of Piacenza.


text: The Anglo-Saxons call the British nobles to a peace conference at Stonehenge, but turn on them and massacre almost everyone (approximate date).


text: After a 10-year reign, Emperor Ankō is assassinated by the 10-year-old Mayowa no Ōkimi (prince Mayowa), in retaliation for the execution of his father. He is succeeded by his brother Yūryaku who becomes the 21st emperor of Japan.


text: Emperor Avitus sends a Germanic naval expedition under command of Ricimer, to defend Sicily. They defeat the Vandals twice: on land at the Battle of Agrigentum, and in a sea battle off Corsica.


text: Summer – Capua is destroyed by the Vandals. Ricimer is unable to end piracy in the western Mediterranean. Backed by his popularity, he gains the consent of the Senate for an expedition against Avitus.


date: December

text: December - Rechiar, first Germanic king to convert to Nicene Christianity, is captured at Oporto and executed.


text: Saint Patrick leaves Britain once more to evangelise Ireland as a missionary bishop.


date: September 17

text: September 17 – Remistus, Roman general (magister militum), is besieged with a Gothic force at Ravenna and later executed in the Palace in Classis, outside the city.


date: October 28

section: Disasters & Accidents

text: October 28 – The Visigoths brutally sack the Suebi's capital of Braga (modern Portugal); churches are burnt to the ground. Rechiar flees wounded from the battlefield.


text: Liu Zixun, prince and pretender of Liu Song (d. 466)


text: September 17 – Remistus, Roman general (magister militum)


text: Emperor Ankō of Japan (approximate date)


text: Eutyches, presbyter and archimandrite (approximate date)


text: Talorc I, king of the Picts (approximate date)


text: Rechiar, king of the Suebi (captured and executed)


date: April 1

text: April 1 – Majorian is acclaimed emperor by the Roman army, after defeating 900 Alemanni near Lake Maggiore (Italy).


text: According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, 4,000 Britons are slain at Crecganford in battle against Hengist and his son Oisc of Kent.

source_section: Events › By place › Europe


text: Egyptian people rose in revolt and assassinate Proterius of Alexandria, and dragged his body through the streets of Alexandria and burned it. Timothy II Aelurus anti-Chalcedonian pope becomes elected by Egyptians.

source_section: Events › By place › Egypt


date: February 7

text: February 7 – Leo I, a Thraco-Roman (or Dacian) high-ranking officer, becomes the new emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire, reigning for nearly 20 years. He is first to accept the Byzantine crown from the hands of the patriarch of Constantinople.


date: December 28

text: December 28 – Majorian is crowned emperor of the Western Roman Empire and recognized by Pope Leo I. His rule is accepted in Italy, Dalmatia and some territories in Northern Gaul.


text: Victorius of Aquitaine computes new tables for celebrating Easter.

source_section: Events › By topic › Religion


text: Leontia, Roman empress and wife of Anthemius (d. 479)


text: Medardus, bishop of Vermandois (approximate date)


date: January 27

text: January 27 – Flavius Marcian, Roman emperor (b. 392)


text: January 27 – Emperor Marcian dies at Constantinople, possibly of foot gangrene, an infection contracted during a long religious journey. He is buried in the Church of the Holy Apostles, together with his late wife Pulcheria.


text: October 28 – Ibas, bishop of Edessa (modern Turkey)


text: Yazdegerd II dies after a 19-year reign. He is succeeded by his son Hormizd III who seizes the Persian throne. His elder brother Peroz I rebels against him in Sistan (Iran). After months of civil war he defeats Hormizd and becomes the seventeenth Sasanian king of the Persian Empire.

source_section: Events › By place › Persia


text: Palladius, first bishop of Ireland (approximate date)


text: Merovech, king of the Salian Franks (approximate date)


text: Yazdegerd II, king of the Persian Empire


text: Saint Proterius, Patriarch of Alexandria


text: Valerian of Abbenza, bishop and saint (b. 377)


text: Theodoret of Cyrrhus, bishop and theologian


text: Avitus, emperor of the Western Roman Empire


text: Jabi becomes the king of the Korean kingdom of Silla.


text: Childeric I succeeds his father Merovech as king of the Salian Franks. He establishes his capital at Tournai (modern Belgium) and becomes a foederatus (pl. foederati) of the Western Roman Empire.


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.


text: Battle of Arelate: Majorian defeats the Visigoths under King Theodoric II at Arles (Southern Gaul), near the Rhone River. Theodoric is forced to sign a peace treaty and becomes a foederatus (pl. foederati) of the Western Roman Empire.


text: Emperor Majorian builds a Roman fleet at Miseno and Ravenna. He strengthens the army, by recruiting a large number of barbarian mercenaries (Bastarnae, Burgundians, Huns, Ostrogoths, Rugii, Scythians and Suebi).


text: Winter – Majorian enters the Rhone Valley, and defeats the Burgundians under King Gondioc at Lugdunum. He forces the Bagaudae to join the western coalition against the Suebi in Spain.


text: The city of Tbilisi (Georgia) on the Kura River is founded by King Vakhtang I of Iberia. Its location gives it control of the trade routes between western and eastern Transcaucasia.

source_section: Events › By topic › Exploration and Colonization


date: July 3

text: July 3 – Gennadius I becomes patriarch of Constantinople.


text: Damascius, Syrian neoplatonist (approximate date)


text: Xiao Zhangmao, crown prince of Southern Qi (d. 493)


text: July 3 – Anatolius, patriarch of Constantinople


text: Emperor Leo I signs a peace treaty with the Ostrogoths. King Theodemir sends his son, the future Theodoric the Great, age 5, as a child hostage to Constantinople. He learns at court about Latin, military tactics and religion (until 469).


text: The Franks conquer the city of Trier. The Frankish Kingdom becomes a military power and gets involved in Roman politics.


text: Remigius, age 22, is elected bishop of Reims (approximate date).


text: King Vortigern is burnt to death, while being besieged by a Romano-British force under Ambrosius Aurelianus at Ganarew (Herefordshire).


section: Climate & Environment

text: King Dhatusena of Anuradhapura of the Moriyan dynasty rules over Sri Lanka. During his reign the Avukana Buddha statue is built.


date: November 15

text: November 15 – Bʼutz Aj Sak Chiik, king of Palenque (Mexico).


date: September 2

text: September 2 – Simeon Stylites, Christian pillar-saint.


text: Vortigern, king of the Britons (approximate date)


text: Hormizd III, king of the Sasanian Empire (approximate date)


year_label: 46 CE

text: The settlement at Celje gets municipal rights, and is named municipium Claudia Celeia.

source_section: Timeline › AD 46


text: Dobruja is annexed into Roman Moesia.


text: Rome and its northeast border are reunited by the Danube Road.


text: A census shows that there are more than 6,000,000 Roman citizens.


text: A large famine occurred across Syria, recorded by Orosius, Suetonius, Tacitus and Josephus, due to bad harvests.


text: A drought and an invasion of locusts hit the Mongolian steppes, causing a famine and a revolt at Xiongnu.


text: Plutarch, Greek historian and biographer (approximate date)

source_section: Births › AD 46


text: Servius Asinius Celer, Roman politician (executed)

source_section: Deaths › AD 46


text: Marcus Vinicius, Roman consul and governor (b. c. 5 BC)


text: Rhoemetalces III, Roman client king of Thrace (murdered)


text: After the death of its king, Thracia becomes a Roman province.


text: The Hepthalites (White Huns) conquer the remnants of the Kushan Empire and enter India.


date: March 27

text: March 27 (night) – Swabians invade the Gallic city of Lugo. The governor is killed.


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.


text: Majorian invades Hispania; his generals Nepotianus and Sunieric lead a Visigoth army into Gallaecia. The Suebi are defeated and Lusitania (modern Portugal) is conquered.


text: Emperor Leo I founds the Excubitors (imperial guard) at Constantinople; this elite tagmatic unit (300 men) is recruited from among the warlike Isaurians (approximate date).


text: Majorian assembles a large fleet in Nova Carthago (Cartagena) in preparation for an invasion of the Vandal Kingdom in Africa. However, King Genseric organizes an attack on the fleet, using individuals sympathetic to the Vandals to conduct the raid. The fleet is destroyed and the expedition is abandoned.


text: Emperor Majorian gathers an expeditionary force (Alans and other barbarians) in Liguria, and enters Aquitaine after a long march, where he visits King Theodoric II at Toulouse.


text: Gennadius I, patriarch of Constantinople, banishes Timothy II, patriarch of Alexandria.


text: The Coptic Orthodox Church (Egypt) splits from the Chalcedonian Orthodox Church of Alexandria.


section: Technology & Infrastructure

text: The remodeling of the dome of Baptistry of Neon at Ravenna (Italy) is finished.

source_section: Events › By topic › Art


text: The seated Buddha in the Yungang Grottoes, Datong (Shanxi), is made (approximate date).


text: The Ajanta Caves (India) are completed (cut into the volcanic rock and elaborately painted).


text: A famine that will last for several years begins in the Persian Empire (approximate date).


text: Sanghapala, Mon-Khmer monk (d. 524)


text: Romulus Augustulus, last emperor of the Western Roman Empire (approximate date)


text: Saint Kessog in Cashel, an Irish missionary


text: Budic II, king of Brittany (approximate date)


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


date: October 20

text: October 20 – Aelia Eudocia, Roman empress and wife of Theodosius II

source_section: Deaths


text: Ardaric, king of the Gepids (approximate date)


text: Juqu Anzhou, prince of the Chinese Xiongnu states Northern Liang


text: Isaac of Antioch, Syriac theologian


text: Aegidius becomes ruler over the Domain of Soissons (Gaul). He has friendly relations with the Romano-British (in Brittany).


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

source_section: Events › By place › Roman Empire


text: The Visigoths under king Theodoric II recapture Septimania (Southern Gaul) after the assassination of Majorian, and invade Hispania again.


text: Mamertus is elected bishop of Vienne (Gaul).


date: August 2

text: August 2 – Majorian is arrested near Tortona (Northern Italy), and deposed by Ricimer (magister militum) as puppet emperor.


date: August 7

text: August 7 – Majorian, having been beaten and tortured for five days, is beheaded near the Iria River (Lombardy).


text: 461 Apahunik' earthquake. It affected the province of Apahunik', located to the north of Lake Van, in Anatolia.

source_section: Events › By place › Anatolia


date: November 19

text: November 19 – Libius Severus, Roman senator from Lucania, is declared emperor of the Western Roman Empire.


text: Olybrius becomes the second candidate for the western throne. He is the husband of Placidia, who is being held in Vandal captivity.


text: Romulus Augustulus, emperor of the Western Roman Empire


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


text: August 7 – Majorian, emperor of the Western Roman Empire


date: November 10

text: November 10 – Pope Leo I dies at Rome, age 61 (approximate), after a 21-year reign in which he has resisted Manichaeism and defended the Church against Nestorianism. He is succeeded by Hilarius as the 46th pope.


text: Palladius, first bishop of Ireland (approximate date)


text: Vandal War (461-468): After negotiations, Emperor Leo I pays a large ransom for Licinia Eudoxia and Placidia. They return after seven years of captivity in Carthage.


text: The Monastery of Stoudios is founded in Constantinople.


text: The Daming calendar is introduced in China by mathematician Zu Chongzhi (approximate date).

source_section: Events › By place › Asia


date: September 1

text: September 1 – Possible start of the first Byzantine indiction cycle.


text: Muryeong, king of Baekje (Korea)


text: Anicia Juliana, daughter of Olybrius


text: Yu Zhong, official and regent of Northern Wei (d. 518)


text: Lóegaire mac Néill, High King of Ireland


text: The Kibi Clan Rebellion against the Yamato state (Japan) in the Korean Peninsula begins.


text: The Suebi live under a diarchy, and fight a civil war over the kingship in Galicia (Northern Spain).


text: In the Gothic war against Aegidius, Childeric I, king of the Salian Franks, allies with the Roman general Aegidius. This war is ended by the battle near Orléans, where the Visigoths under King Theodoric II are defeated by the Franks, while crossing the Loire River.


text: Houfei Di, emperor of the Liu Song dynasty (d. 477)


text: Richimund, Suevic king of Galicia (approximate date)


text: Frumar, Suevic king of Galicia (approximate date)


text: Romanus of Condat, hermit and saint (approximate date)


text: The Suevic nation in Galicia (Northern Spain) is unified under King Remismund.


text: Olybrius is elected Roman consul by the Eastern court in Constantinople.


text: King Theodoric II sends Remismund gifts (for recognizing his kingship), including weapons, and a Gothic princess for a wife.


text: Hashim ibn 'Abd Manaf, great-grandfather of Mohammed (approximate date)


text: Wu Di, Chinese emperor of the Liang dynasty (d. 549)


text: Conall Gulban, king of Tir Chonaill (approximate date)


text: Aegidius dies (possibly poisoned) and is succeeded by his son Syagrius, who becomes ruler of the Domain of Soissons (Gaul).


text: Aegidius, Roman general (magister militum) (approximate date)


text: Wang Xianyuan, empress and wife of Xiao Wu Di (b. 427)


text: Xiao Wu Di, emperor of the Liu Song dynasty (b. 430)


text: Ricimer, de facto ruler, establishes political control for 2 years from his residence in Rome.


text: King Remismund establishes a policy of friendship with the Visigoths, and promotes the conversion of the Suebi into Arianism in Galicia (Northern Spain).


text: Battle of Wippedesfleot: The Saxons under command of Hengist and Aesc are defeated by the Britons near Ebbsfleet (Kent). During the battle 12 Welsh leaders are killed (according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle).

source_section: Events › By place › Britannia


text: Qian Fei Di, then Ming Di, becomes ruler of the Liu Song dynasty after his nephew is assassinated.

source_section: Events › By place › China


text: November 19 – Pope Hilarius convokes a synod at Rome's Church of Santa Maria Maggiore.


text: Peter the Fuller becomes patriarch of Antioch (approximate date).


text: Basiliscus, with the help of his sister Verina (wife of emperor Leo I), becomes a consul in the Eastern Roman Empire.


text: September 2 – A fire begins in Constantinople and, over the next six days, destroys the buildings in eight of the 14 sections into which the Eastern Roman Imperial capital had been divided.


date: July 5

text: July 5 – Ahkal Moʼ Nahb I, Maya ruler of Palenque (d. 524)


text: Zacharias Rhetor, bishop and ecclesiastic historian (approximate date)


text: Dubricius, bishop and saint (approximate date)


text: Liberius, Roman aristocrat (approximate date)


text: Severus, patriarch of Antioch (approximate date)


text: Procopius of Gaza, Christian sophist and rhetorician (approximate date)


date: May 5

text: May 5 – Gerontius, Archbishop of Milan


date: June 20

text: June 20 – Wen Cheng Di, emperor of Northern Wei (b. 440)


date: August 15

text: August 15 – Libius Severus, emperor of the Western Roman Empire


text: August 15 – Libius Severus, puppet emperor of the Western Roman Empire, dies after a 4-year reign.


text: Liu Chuyu, princess of the Liu Song dynasty


text: Buliugu Li, official of the Northern Wei dynasty


text: Eógan mac Néill, king of Tír Eoghain (Ireland)


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.


text: Emperor Leo I repels the Hun invasion of Dacia (modern Romania). They ravage the Balkans but are unable to take Constantinople thanks to the city walls, which are rebuilt and reinforced.


text: King Mehama of the Alkhans was victorious in a battle against the Kidarites.


text: Peter the Fuller is deposed as patriarch of Antioch; Julian is elected as his successor.


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


text: Tarasicodissa, an Isaurian officer, comes with evidence that Ardabur (magister militum) is forming a conspiracy against Leo I. Ardabur is arrested for treason.


text: King Theodoric II is killed by his younger brother Euric, who succeeds him on the throne. He conquers Hispania and the harbor city of Marseille (Southern Gaul), adding them to the existing Visigothic Kingdom.


text: Tarasicodissa adopts the Greek name of Zeno and marries Ariadne, eldest daughter of Leo I (approximate date).


text: Xu Mian, high official of the Liang dynasty (d. 535)


text: Clovis I, first king of the Franks (approximate date)


text: Arthur, king of the Britons (approximate date according to legend)


date: January 1

text: January 1 – Emperor Qianfei, emperor of the Liu Song dynasty (b. 449)


text: Lu Huinan, empress dowager of Liu Song (b. 412)


text: Yifu Hun, high official of Northern Wei


text: Theodoret of Cyprus, theologian


text: Theodoric II, king of the Visigoths


text: Liu Zixun, prince and pretender of Liu Song (b. 456)


date: April 12

text: April 12 – Emperor Leo I has his general Anthemius elected emperor of the Western Roman Empire. He allies himself with Ricimer, de facto ruler of Rome, and marries Anthemius's daughter Alypia to him, to strengthen the relationship and end the hostilities between the Eastern and Western Empire.


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.


text: Ancient Hillforts in Britain are re-fortified, and the Wansdyke is built (approximate date).


date: October 13

text: October 13 – Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei (d. 499)


text: Leo II, Byzantine emperor (d. 474)


text: Cerdic, first king of Anglo-Saxon Wessex (approximate date)


text: Emperor Skandagupta dies after a 12-year reign, as the Huns consolidate their conquests in western India. He is succeeded by his half-brother Purugupta.


text: Benignus of Armagh, Irish bishop (approximate date)


text: Skandagupta, ruler of the Gupta Empire (India)


date: November

text: November – Lý Trường Nhân sends an envoy to make peace with the Liu Song, and requests the title of "Hành Châu sự", a position with less authority than that of the Governor of Jiaozhou. Emperor Ming approves Trường Nhân's request, granting him the authority to govern Jiaozhou until 479.

source_section: Events › By place › Jiaozhou (Vietnam)


text: Revolt of Euric: The Goths in Aquitania revolts. Their king Euric occupies the south of Gaul.


text: Dengizich, son of Attila the Hun, sends an embassy to Constantinople to demand money. Leo I offers the Huns settlement in Thrace in exchange for recognition of his authority. Dengizich refuses and crosses the Danube.


text: Roman forces under Anagast defeat the Huns at the river Utus (Vit, Bulgaria). Dengizich is killed and his head is paraded through the streets of Constantinople. Stuck on the end of a wooden pole, it is displayed above the Xylokerkos Gate.


text: The Vandals reconquer Sicily, administering a decisive defeat to the Western forces.


text: Battle of Cape Bon: The Vandals defeat the Roman navy under Basiliscus, anchored at Promontorium Mercurii, 45 miles from Carthage (Tunisia). During peace negotiations Genseric uses fire ships, filling them with brushwood and pots of oil, destroying 700 imperial galleys. Basiliscus escapes with his surviving fleet to Sicily, harassed all the way by Moorish pirates.


text: Basiliscus returns to Constantinople after a disastrous expedition against the Vandals. He is forced to seek sanctuary in the church of Hagia Sophia to escape the wrath of the people. Leo I gives him imperial pardon, but banishes him for 3 years to Heraclea Sintica (Thrace).


text: Emperor Anthemius sends a Roman expedition under command of Marcellinus. He expels the Vandals from Sicily and retakes Sardinia. The Eastern general Heraclius of Edessa lands with a force on the Libyan coast, east of Carthage, and advances from Tripolitania.


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.


date: August

text: August – Marcellinus is murdered in Sicily, probably at the instigation of his political rival, Ricimer. Heraclius is left to fight alone against the Vandals; after a 2-year campaign in the desert he returns to Constantinople.


text: Nectan of Hartland, Welsh prince and saint (approximate date)

source_section: Births


date: February 29

text: February 29 – Pope Hilarius dies at Rome after a 6½-year reign, and is succeeded by Simplicius as the 47th pope.


date: March

text: March – Jiaozhou governor Lưu Mục dies of illness. Lý Trường Nhân, a nobleman, launches a coup d'état against the Jiaozhou government, kills the Liu Song officials in Jiaozhou, seizes control of the citadel, then declares himself the governor.


text: August – Emperor Ming of Song grants Lưu Bột the title of Jiaozhou governor, along with an army to retake Jiaozhou from Lý Trường Nhân. After landing in Jiaozhou, Lưu Bột is quickly defeated by Lý Trường Nhân, and dies shortly afterward.


text: Marcellinus, Roman general (magister militum)


text: Gunabhadra, Indian Buddhist scholar-monk (b. 394)


text: Ostrogoth prince Theodoric, age 15, returns to Pannonia, after living as a child hostage at the court of Emperor Leo I in Constantinople (see 459).


text: King Euric defeated the Romano-Breton army of Riothamus at Déols (modern Châteauroux).


text: Roman lord Lusidius surrenders Lisbon to the Suevi.


text: Adovacrius defeats Paulus in the Battle of Angers


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.

source_section: Events › By place › Europe


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.


text: Emperor Shun of Liu Song, Chinese emperor of Liu Song (d. 479)


text: Zhou She, high official of the Liang dynasty (d. 524)


text: Dengizich, king of the Huns (approximate date)


text: Hydatius, bishop of Aquae Flaviae (approximate date)


year_label: 47 CE

text: Publius Ostorius Scapula replaces Aulus Plautius as governor of Britain. The south-east of the island is now a Roman province, while certain states on the south coast are ruled as a nominally independent client kingdom by Tiberius Claudius Cogidubnus, whose seat is probably at Fishbourne near Chichester. Ostorius immediately faces incursions from unconquered areas, which he puts down.

source_section: Timeline › AD 47


text: Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo is made commander of the Roman army in Germania Inferior. He conquers the Chauci and fights against the Cherusci and Frisians.


text: Paul starts his evangelistic work (first missionary journey), accompanied by Barnabas and Mark (possible date).


text: Claudius founds the city Forum Claudii Vallensium (modern Martigny) in the Alpes Poeninae (Switzerland).


text: Cauci pirates led by the Roman deserter Gannascus ravage the Gallic coast; Corbulo uses the Rhine fleet against them. The Frisian revolt is suppressed.


text: Claudius revives the censorship and ludi saeculares, and organises the order of the Haruspices, with 60 members.


text: Ananias becomes high priest in Judaea.


text: Corbulo orders the construction of the canal Fossa Corbulonis, between the Rhine and Meuse in the Netherlands, which connects the city Forum Hadriani (Voorburg).


text: Romans build the Traiectum fortification near the mouth of the Rhine, which will later grow to be the city of Utrecht.


text: Taejodae, Korean ruler of Goguryeo (d. 165)

source_section: Births › AD 47


text: Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, Roman nobleman

source_section: Deaths › AD 47


text: Vardanes I, king of the Parthian Empire


text: Decimus Valerius Asiaticus, Roman politician and consul


text: Gaius Sallustius Crispus Passienus, Roman consul


text: Quintus Sanquinius Maximus, Roman politician


text: Odoacer becomes the leader of the Germanic tribes (Herulic – Scirian foederati) in Northern Italy (approximate date).


text: The Roman general Paulus is killed shortly afterwards at Angers.


text: Mamertus, bishop of Vienne, introduces the Rogation days (a three days' procession involving prayer to invoke God's mercy).

source_section: Events › By topic › Religion


text: The church of Santo Stefano Rotondo at Rome is consecrated (approximate date).


text: Revolt of Euric: Roman forces under Paulus and Childeric I stop the Aquitanian Goths at Bourges and briefly recaptured Tours in 470. All the loot they had stolen fell into the hands of Paul.


text: approximate date – Pope John I


text: Finnian of Clonard, Irish monastic saint (d. 549)


text: Endelienta, Welsh princess and saint (approximate date)


text: Ferreolus of Rodez, Roman senator (approximate date)


text: Caesarius, bishop of Arles (or 469; d. 542)


text: Dionysius Exiguus, inventor of the Anno Domini era (approximate date)


text: Buddhapālita, Indian Madhyamaka scholar (d. 550)


text: Romanus, Roman usurper in the West Roman Empire (executed)


text: K'inich Popol Hol, king of the Maya city of Copán


text: Northern Wei ruler Xianwen officially goes into retirement. His son, Xiao Wen Di, aged 4, becomes the new emperor, initially under the regency of Emperor Xianwen's stepmother Empress Dowager Feng.


text: Theodoric the Great, age 17, succeeds his father Theodemir as king of the Ostrogoths, settling his people in lower Moesia (Balkans).


text: Revolt of Euric: The Aquitanian Goths under Euric defeat a Roman army that was sent by Emperor Anthemius near Arles and conquer a large part of the Provence (Southern Gaul). The city of Clermont-Ferrand in Auvergne is besieged.


text: The army of King Ceretic of Strathclyde raids the Irish coast, carries off some of Saint Patrick's followers, and sells them into slavery (approximate date).


text: The Goths, led by Theodoric Strabo, revolt in Thrace after the assassination of Aspar. Leo I sends Basiliscus to suppress the uprising.


text: Acacius becomes patriarch of Constantinople, succeeding Gennadius I.


text: Basiliscus, brother-in-law of Emperor Leo I, returns from exile (see 468) and leads an imperial conspiracy against Aspar (magister militum), helping in his murder at Constantinople.


date: August 25

text: August 25 – Gennadius I, patriarch of Constantinople


text: Ardabur, Roman general and son of Aspar


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


text: Aspar, Alan patrician and general (magister militum)


text: Julius Patricius, Roman general and son of Aspar (approximate date)


date: July 11

text: July 11 – Anthemius, besieged in the part of Rome he controls until his troops are defeated, is caught while fleeing the city disguised as a supplicant in the Old St. Peter's Basilica (or at the church of Santa Maria in Trastevere), and later beheaded by Gundobad or Ricimer. Ricimer proclaims Olybrius emperor. Ricimer's nephew, the Burgundian general Gundobad, assumes command of the Western army and holds de facto power in the Empire.


text: The Western Roman Empire enters a period of unrest. Relations between Ricimer, de facto ruler, and Emperor Anthemius deteriorate completely. Epiphanius, bishop of Pavia, negotiates a peace agreement.


text: Mount Vesuvius erupts. During the volcanic eruption the whole of southern Europe is blanketed by ash.


text: Emilian of Cogolla, Iberic abbot and saint (approximate date)


text: July 11 – Anthemius, emperor of the Western Roman Empire


date: August 18

text: August 18 – Ricimer dies at his palace of malignant fever, vomiting blood.


text: August 18 – Ricimer, de facto ruler of the Western Roman Empire


date: November 2

text: November 2 – Olybrius dies of dropsy. During his four months' rule he has been mainly interested in religion.


text: Olybrius, emperor of the Western Roman Empire


text: Ming Di, Chinese emperor of the Liu Song dynasty (b. 439)


text: Theodoric Strabo signs a peace treaty with Leo I, and according to the terms the Goths are paid with an annual tribute of 2,000 pounds of gold. Leo gives him an independent state in Thrace and he obtains the rank of magister militum.

source_section: Events › By place › Balkans


text: King Euric orders the invasion of Italy, but is defeated by Glycerius. The Visigoths withdraw to Gaul, and conquer the cities of Arles and Marseille.


date: March 3

text: March 3 – Gundobad (nephew of Ricimer) nominates Glycerius as emperor of the Western Roman Empire. Emperor Leo I refuses to recognize him, and chooses Julius Nepos as candidate to the Western throne.


date: October 25

text: October 25 – Leo I grants his grandson Leo II, age 6, the title of Caesar (approximate date).


text: The Ostrogoths leave Pannonia, and migrate to Macedonia and Moesia, from whence they ravage the Balkans.


text: Kavad I, king (shah) of the Sasanian Empire from 488 to 531, with an interruption of two years


text: Xiao Zhaoye, Chinese emperor of Southern Qi (known as the Prince of Yulin) (d. 494)


text: Gundobad returns to Burgundy, where his father Gondioc has died, and becomes king of the Burgundians.


text: Euthymius the Great, abbot and bishop (b. 377)


text: Gondioc, king of Burgundy (approximate date)


date: February 9

text: February 9 – Zeno, father of Leo II, is crowned as co-emperor (Augustus). He rules the empire together with his son, and stabilises the Eastern frontier.


date: June 24

text: June 24 – Julius Nepos arrives at Portus, and marches on Ravenna. He forces Glycerius to abdicate the throne, and proclaims himself emperor of the Western Roman Empire.


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.


text: Glycerius is exiled to Dalmatia (Balkans) and becomes bishop of Salona. Neither the Senate nor the Gallo-Roman aristocracy decide to resist, and Nepos accepts the imperial purple.


text: A statue of a Standing Buddha from Sarnath, Uttar Pradesh, (during the Gupta period) is made. It is now kept at the Sarnath Museum in India (source states the creation date as 1st to 2nd century BCE).


text: Anthemius of Tralles, Greek architect, mathematician (approximate date)


text: Magnus Felix Ennodius, bishop, Latin poet (approximate date)


text: Abraham of Kratia, Christian monk, saint (approximate date)


text: Clotilde, Christian wife of Clovis I, ancestress of the succeeding Merovingian kings (Approximate date) (d.545)


date: January 18

text: January 18 – Emperor Leo I dies of dysentery at Constantinople, after a 17-year reign. He is succeeded by his 7-year-old grandson Leo II, who briefly becomes ruler of the Byzantine Empire.


text: January 18 – Leo I, Byzantine emperor (b. 401)


date: November 17

text: November 17 – Leo II, Byzantine emperor (b. 467)


text: November 17 – Leo II dies of an unknown disease (possibly poisoned by his mother Ariadne), after a reign of 10 months. Zeno becomes sole Eastern Emperor.


text: Summer – Emperor Julius Nepos grants the Visigoth King Euric legal tenure of his conquests, which include Provence (region of Gaul), in exchange for full independence.


date: January 9

text: January 9 – Emperor Zeno abdicates under pressure, as his wife's uncle Basiliscus stages a coup d'état at Constantinople, with support from Zeno's trusted adviser and fellow Isaurian Illus. Basiliscus usurps the throne and is proclaimed new emperor (Augustus) of the Eastern Roman Empire. He begins a 20-month reign; Zeno and his supporters flee to Isauria.


date: August 28

text: August 28 – Magister Militum Orestes takes control of the government in Ravenna, and forces Julius Nepos to flee to Dalmatia.


text: Gongju becomes the capital of Baekje, and is threatened by Goguryeo, who conquers the Han River valley (Korea).


text: Spring - Spanish War of Euric: The comes Hispaniarum Vincentius capitulates against the Aquitanian Goths; Euric completes his conquest of Spain.


date: April 9

text: April 9 – Basiliscus issues a circular letter (Enkyklikon) to the bishops of his empire, promoting the Miaphysite christological position. These religious views will make him highly unpopular.


date: October 31

text: October 31 – Romulus Augustus is installed as emperor by his father Orestes, who becomes regent in effect of the Western Roman Empire. Augustus will ultimately rule for 10 months, as the last Western Emperor.


text: Bodhidharma, Buddhist monk, travels to China and, begins teaching the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra (approximate date).


text: The Church of Saint Simeon Stylites is consecrated in Syria.


text: The compilation of the Babylonian Talmud, the source of the majority of Jewish Halakha, is completed.


text: A Bodhisattva (detail of a wall painting in the Ajanta Caves) in Maharashtra (India) of the Gupta period) is made (approximate date).


text: Great fire in Constantinople with loss of Palace of Lausus and - along with it - the famous Zeus from Olympia.

source_section: Events › By place › Byzantine Empire


text: Íte of Killeedy, Irish nun (approximate date)


text: Ferreolus of Rodez, Roman senator (approximate date)


date: May 27

text: May 27 – Eutropius, bishop of Orange


text: Theodemir, king of the Ostrogoths (approximate date)


text: Tonantius Ferreolus, praetorian prefect


text: The Roman Senate petitions Zeno to recognize Nepos as deposed and take the sole emperorship himself, abolishing the 81-year-long east/west division of the empire and recognizing Odoacer's authority in Italy. Zeno declines the first request, but names Odoacer Patricius, investing his rule with Imperial legitimacy.


date: August 23

text: August 23 – Odoacer, age 43, is proclaimed rex Italiae ("king of Italy") by his troops. He leads his Ostrogoth army into the Po Valley, and advances to Ravenna while plundering the countryside.


date: September 4

text: September 4 – Romulus Augustulus, Roman usurper of the Western Roman Empire, is deposed by Odoacer at Ravenna. Odoacer spares the boy's life and gives him a pension of 6,000 solidi, but exiles him to the "Castellum Lucullanum" (Castel dell'Ovo), on the island of Megaride in the Gulf of Naples. This event will later be romanticized in Western literature and history as the Fall of Western Rome, and is traditionally used by historians to mark the beginning of the European Middle Ages.


text: The Visigoths under King Euric march into Italy, and suffer defeat against the forces of Odoacer. Emperor Zeno concludes a peace treaty between the Goths and Odoacer surrenders the newly conquered territory in Gaul. Euric pledges himself to undertake no further hostilities.


text: Winter – Zeno recognizes the full extent of the Vandal Kingdom, including all of western Africa, the Balearic Islands, Corsica, Sardinia and Sicily. King Gaiseric gives Sicily, with the exception of the city of Lilybaeum, to Odoacer in return for tribute.


text: Summer – Odoacer, chieftain of the Germanic tribes (Herulic/Scirian foederati), visits the imperial palace at Ravenna. He petitions Orestes (magister militum) to reward his mercenaries for their services and their support of his rebellion a year earlier, by making good on his promise to grant them lands to settle permanently in Italy. Orestes refuses this proposal and Odoacer leads his tribesmen in a revolt.


text: Odoacer crosses the Maritime Alps with a Gothic army and invades Provence (Southern Gaul). He conquers the cities of Arles and Marseille, after a victorious battle against the Burgundians.


text: Julius Nepos, de jure ruler, becomes legally the last "Western Roman Emperor". He governs Dalmatia (Balkans), Morocco, and Northwest Gaul until his death in 480, but has no effective power on the Italian Peninsula.


text: Peter the Fuller is restored as patriarch of Antioch.


text: The birth of Aryabhata is traditionally regarded as the beginning of the classical period of Indian mathematics and astronomy.

source_section: Events › By place › India


text: August 28 – Orestes is arrested by Odoacer near Piacenza, and swiftly executed.


text: Xian Wen Di, Retired Emperor of Northern Wei, is murdered by Empress Feng. She assumes regency over the young Xiao Wen Di.


date: December

text: December – Aryabhata, Indian mathematician and astronomer (d. 550)


text: Hilary of Galeata, Christian monk and saint (d. 558)


text: August 28 – Orestes, Roman politician and regent


date: August

text: August – Basiliscus, Roman usurper, is deposed and Zeno is restored as emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire. With the support of his adviser Illus, he besieges Constantinople, but the Senate opens the gates, allowing him to resume the throne. Basiliscus flees to sanctuary in a church, but surrenders himself and his family after extracting a solemn promise from Zeno not to shed their blood. Basiliscus is sent to a fortress in Cappadocia, where he later dies from starvation.


text: Marcus, co-Emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire


text: Xian Wen Di, Chinese Emperor of Northern Wei (b. 454)


text: Basiliscus, Emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire


text: Aelle, first king of the South Saxons, lands on the Sussex coast of England with his three sons near Cymenshore, according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. The Britons engage him upon landing, but his superior force besieges them at Pevensey and drives them into the wood called Andredes leage. Over the next nine years, Saxon coastal holdings are gradually expanded.


text: The independent Mauro-Roman Kingdom (Kingdom of the Moors and Romans) is formed by Christian Berbers in the Roman province of Mauretania Caesariensis (present-day northern Algeria), bordering the Vandal Kingdom to the east.

source_section: Events › By place › Africa


text: Samgeun becomes king of the Korean kingdom of Baekje.


text: Liu Zhun, age 10, becomes Emperor Shun of the Liu Song dynasty after his brother Houfei is assassinated by general Xiao Daocheng. He installs Shun as puppet ruler and sets himself up as regent. Xiao receives near-imperial powers, establishes Buddhism as the state religion and sets up the "Three Leaders" system, under which native hamlet, village and district officers are responsible for taxation and conscription.


text: Shaolin Monastery is founded (according to the Continued Biographies of Eminent Monks (645) by Daoxuan; the monastery is built on the north side of Shaoshi Mountain, the western peak of Mount Song, one of the four Sacred Mountains of China, by emperor Xiao Wen Di of the Northern Wei dynasty in 477. Yang Xuanzhi, in the Record of the Buddhist Monasteries of Luoyang (547), and Li Xian, in the Ming Yitongzhi (1461), concur with Daoxuan's location and attribution. For alternate founding date, see 495 or 497).


text: Armatus, Byzantine military commander (magister militum), is killed by order of emperor Zeno, being murdered by his own friend Onoulphus after supporting the rebellion of his uncle Basiliscus in 475.


text: Earliest date for the oldest known painted depiction of a horse collar, on a cave mural of Dunhuang, during the Northern Wei dynasty.


date: January 25

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

source_section: Deaths


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.


text: Houfei Di, emperor of the Liu Song Dynasty (b. 463)


text: Timothy II, Coptic Orthodox patriarch of Alexandria


text: Armatus, Byzantine general (magister militum)


text: Basina, queen of Thuringia (Germany)


text: Chinese chronicles record a memorial sent by the "King of Japan" (possibly Yūryaku), who describes himself as "Supreme Director of Military Affairs in Japan and Korea" to the Court of the Northern Wei Dynasty. The Chinese emperor responds by confirming the Japanese dynasty in those titles. This is the earliest verifiable date in Japanese history.


text: The Liu Song dynasty ends in China.


text: Verina, mother-in-law of Eastern Roman Emperor Zeno, attempts to kill Isaurian general Illus for turning against her brother Basiliscus. A major revolt is led by her son-in-law Marcian and the Ostrogoth warlord Theodoric Strabo, but Illus again proves his loyalty to Zeno by quashing the revolt in 479.


text: The first Shinto shrines are built in Japan.


text: Narses, Byzantine general (d. 573)


text: Yuan Can, high official of the Liu Song Dynasty (b. 420)


text: Liu Bing, high official of the Liu Song Dynasty (b. 433)


text: Shen Youzhi, Chinese general of Liu Song


text: Lupus of Troyes, French bishop and saint (approximate date)


text: In July, emperor Qi Gao Di granted permission for Lý Thúc Hiến to continue his rule over Jiaozhou as its state governor.


text: Soji becomes king of the Korean kingdom of Silla.


text: Dongseong becomes king of the Korean kingdom of Baekje.


text: Julius Nepos, former emperor of the Western Roman Empire, plans military campaigns in Dalmatia against Odoacer, hoping to regain control of Italy himself.


text: Ambrosius Aurelianus, war leader of the Romano-British, is proclaimed king of the Britons (according to Historia Regum Britanniae). He rules probably in the south of Britain, and continues the war against the Anglo-Saxons.


text: King Theodoric the Great starts a 4-year campaign against the Byzantine Empire. The Ostrogoths ravage the Roman provinces (Moesia and Thrace), and threaten the capital of Constantinople itself.


text: Summer – The Liu Song dynasty ends and the Southern Qi dynasty begins in southern China. Emperor Shun Di is forced to abandon the throne and Qi Gao Di becomes the first ruler of Southern Qi. Later former Emperor Shun and empress Wang Zhenfeng are killed by the imperial guard, near the vicinity of the capital Jiankang.


text: Ruan Xiaoxu, bibliography writer (d. 536)


text: Wang Zhenfeng, empress of Liu Song (b. 436)


text: Shun Di, emperor of Liu Song (b. 467)


text: Abraham of Clermont, abbot and saint (approximate date)


text: Samgeun, king of Baekje (Korea)


text: Yuan He, high official of Northern Wei (b. 403)


year_label: 48 CE

text: Mobon becomes ruler of the Korean kingdom of Goguryeo.

source_section: Timeline › AD 48


text: Gallic nobles are admitted to the Roman Senate. Claudius grants the rights of citizenship to the Aedui.


text: Emperor Guang Wu of Han, restores Chinese domination of Inner Mongolia. The Xiongnu are made confederates and guard the Northern border of the empire.


text: Publius Ostorius Scapula, governor of Britain, announces his intention to disarm all Britons south and east of the Trent and Severn. The Iceni, an independent, allied kingdom within that area, revolt but are defeated. Ostorius then moves against the Deceangli in north Wales, but is forced to abandon the campaign to deal with a revolt among the allied Brigantes.


text: Paul of Tarsus through his first mission goes to Cyprus and Asia Minor.


text: According to Christian tradition, Martha travels to Avignon.


text: Emperor Claudius invests Agrippa II with the office of superintendent of the Temple in Jerusalem.


text: After the execution of his wife Messalina, Claudius gets senatorial approval to marry his niece, Agrippina the Younger.


text: Ulpia Marciana, sister of Trajan (d. 112)

source_section: Births › AD 48


text: Cai Lun, Chinese inventor and politician (d. 121)


text: Mnester, Roman pantomime actor

source_section: Deaths › AD 48


text: Gaius Silius, Roman politician (b. AD 13)


text: Minjung, Korean ruler of Goguryeo


text: Valeria Messalina, wife of Claudius


text: Syagrius, ruler of Domain of Soissons, manages to maintain the Roman authority in northern Gaul. He defends his "kingdom" against the neighbouring Salian Franks.


text: Emperor Zeno officially dissolves the east/west co-emperorship, ruling as the first sole emperor of Rome in 85 years. The position of emperor is never again divided.


text: Budhagupta, ruler of the Gupta Empire, establishes diplomatic relations with the Kannauj Kingdom and drives the Huns out of the fertile plains of northern India.

source_section: Events › By place › Asia


text: Prince Seinei succeeds his father Yūryaku and becomes the 22nd emperor of Japan.


text: The Visigoths under King Euric extend their rule from the Loire to Gibraltar (approximate date).


date: December 9

text: December 9 – Odoacer occupies Dalmatia and prosecutes Nepos's killers. He later establishes his political power with the co-operation of the Roman Senate.


text: Ireland: The Diocese of Connor is erected.


text: Constantius of Lyon begins his research for his book Vita sancta Germani ("on the Life of Germanus"). He also writes a hagiography of Germanus of Auxerre (approximate date).


text: Boethius, Roman philosopher and writer (d. 524)


text: Eutharic, Visigothic prince (approximate date)


text: Benedict of Nursia, monasticist (approximate date)


text: Scholastica, Christian nun (approximate date)


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


text: Zu Gengzhi, Chinese mathematician (d. 525)


text: Xiao Zhaowen, emperor of Southern Qi (d. 494)


text: Dignāga, Buddhist founder of Indian logic (d. 540)


text: Baderic, king of the Thuringi (approximate date)


text: Conall Cremthainne, king of Uisneach (Ireland)


text: Julius Nepos, former emperor of the Western Roman Empire, dies in exile in Dalmatia (he is murdered by his own soldiers, in his villa, near Salona).


text: Julius Nepos, Western Roman Emperor


text: Erbin of Dumnonia, Brythonic king (approximate date)


text: King Chilperic I dies and is succeeded by his nephew Gundobad, whose realm covers much of eastern Gaul and has two capitals, at Lyon and Geneva. He rules the Kingdom of Burgundy with his brothers Chilperic II, Gundomar and Godegisel.


text: Tydfil, female saint (approximate date)


text: The Armenians revolt against Persian rule, in an uprising that continues until 484. Led by Vahan Mamikonian, nephew of the late Vartan, they obtain religious and political freedom in return for military aid. Vahan is installed as governor (marzban).

source_section: Events › By place › Persia


text: Jangsu of Goguryeo invades Silla with the Mohe. Baekje and Gaya come to Silla's aid and defeats the Goguryeo troops.


text: King Childeric I dies at Tournai after a 24-year reign. He is succeeded by his 15-year-old son Clovis, who becomes ruler of the Salian Franks in the province Gallia Belgica (modern Belgium) until his death in 511.


text: Theodoric Strabo, Ostrogothic chieftain


text: Childeric I, king of the Salian Franks (or 482)


text: Theodoric Strabo defeats the Bulgars in Thrace, and moves with an army (13,000 men) towards Constantinople. After logistical problems, he is forced to return to Greece. In an encampment at Stabulum Diomedis, near Philippi, he falls from an unruly horse onto a spear and dies.


text: Sabinianus Magnus, Roman general


text: Timothy III, patriarch of Alexandria


text: Legendary founding of Kyiv, on the banks of the Dnieper River.

source_section: Events › By place › Eastern Europe


text: Prince Qi Wudi succeeds his father Qi Gaodi, and becomes emperor of Southern Qi.

source_section: Events › By place › China


text: Emperor Zeno promulgates an Edict of Union (Henotikon), in an unsuccessful effort to soften the decision made at the Council of Chalcedon (451), and resolve differences between the Eastern and Western Churches. Zeno wishes to placate the Monophysite churches of Egypt, Palestine and Syria for political reasons.


text: Justinian I, emperor of the Byzantine Empire (d. 565)

source_section: Births


date: January 8

text: January 8 – Severinus of Noricum, monk and saint


text: Ailill Molt, High King of Ireland (approximate date)


text: Qi Gaodi, Chinese emperor of Southern Qi (b. 427)


text: The Ostrogoths are given status as foederati; they control a large part of Macedonia and Thrace (Balkans).

source_section: Events › By place › Europe


text: Byzantine general Illus (magister officiorum), and Verina (widow of the late emperor Leo I), attempt to overthrow Emperor Zeno and place another general named Leontius on the throne.


text: Yuan Xun, crown prince of Northern Wei (d. 497)


text: Xuan Wu Di, emperor of Northern Wei (d. 515)


text: Xiao Baojuan, emperor of Southern Qi (d. 501)


text: Zhu Yi, high official of Southern Liang (d. 549)


date: March 10

text: March 10 – Pope Simplicius dies at Rome after a 15-year reign, and is succeeded by Felix III as the 48th pope; Rome is without a pope for 10 days in the interim. Felix III is a widower with two children.


text: Crimthann mac Énnai, king of Leinster (Ireland)


date: July 19

text: July 19 – Leontius, Roman usurper, is crowned emperor at Tarsus (modern Turkey). Empress dowager Verina sends a letter to the governors of the Diocese of the East and the Diocese of Egypt for support. He is recognized in Antioch and makes it his capital.


text: Zeno signs a peace treaty with Theodoric the Great. He appoints him to magister militum and becomes a consul. The Eastern Empire is saved by diplomatic negotiations, and the imperial army is strengthened behind the walls of Constantinople.


text: The Nvarsak Treaty is concluded between the Persians and Armenians.


text: The Hephthalites (White Huns) invade Persia. King Peroz I gathers an army of 50,000-100,000 men, and places his brother Balash at the head of the government in Ctesiphon. At the Battle of Herat, the Persians are ambushed and defeated. Peroz I is killed, whose body is not found. Balash is crowned and becomes king of Persia.


text: Leontius raises a rebellion against emperor Zeno, who also faces a revolt from the Ostrogoth king Theodoric the Great. He sends an army to Syria, but is defeated by the Byzantine general Illus.


date: February 24

text: February 24 – King Huneric passes the Edict of 484, a law banning Catholicism within the Vandal Kingdom. A few weeks later, King Huneric removes Catholic bishops from their offices and banishes some to Corsica. A few are martyred, including former proconsul Victorian along with Frumentius and other merchants. They are killed at Hadrumetum after refusing to become Arians.


text: Pope Felix III excommunicates Acacius of Constantinople and Peter III of Alexandria, for their role in having Zeno issue his Edict of Union (Henotikon) 2 years ago. He considers the edict to be heretical and the schism between the Church of Rome and the Church of Constantinople widens. The Acacian Schism will not be resolved until 519.


text: King Gundobad proclaims the Lex Burgundionum, a law code of the Burgundians concerning marriage and inheritance, as well as regulating weregild and other penalties (approximate date).


text: Brendan, Irish abbot and saint (approximate date)


text: Antonina, Byzantine patrikia and wife of Belisarius (approximate date)


date: December 23

text: December 23 – Huneric dies and is succeeded by his nephew Gunthamund, who becomes king of the Vandals. During his reign the Catholics are free from persecutions and he stabilises the kingdom's economy.


text: December 23 – Huneric, king of the Vandals


date: December 28

text: December 28 – The Visigoth king Euric dies and is succeeded by his son Alaric II. Euric has built a rampart to protect the city of Carcassonne southeast of Toulouse, on a bend of the Aude River.


text: Verina, wife of former emperor Leo I


text: Peroz I, king of the Persian Empire


text: Fearing of a war with the Southern Qi, Jiaozhou governor Lý Thúc Hiến surrendered, officially marking the end of nearly 20 years of Lý clan rule in the region.


text: Prince Kenzō succeeds his adoptive father Seinei, and becomes the 23rd emperor of Japan.


text: Period of Arthur's "twelve battles", during which he gains reputation for invincibility (approximate date).

source_section: Events › By place › Britannia


text: Aelle of Sussex, king of the South Saxons, fights the Britons at the stream of Mercredesburne. The battle ends in a draw (according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle).


text: Peter the Fuller, patriarch of Antioch, is condemned and excommunicated by a synod of Western bishops at Rome.


text: Samson of Dol, bishop and saint (approximate date)


text: Cassiodorus, Roman statesman and writer (approximate date)


date: April 17

text: April 17 – Proclus, Greek Neoplatonist philosopher (b. 412)


text: Asclepigenia, Athenian philosopher and mystic (b. 430)


text: Emperor Xiaowen institutes an "equal-field" system of agriculture (juntian), assigning each peasant family about 19 acres (140 mu) of land. The land will be part minority divided by the farmer to be kept indefinitely and rest will revert to the state if the farmer dies or retires. The population is then divided by each other with the role of supervising one another. The result of this reform is that farmers mostly did not sell their holdings to large landowners. This provided the fiscal basis for the formation of the Sui and Tang dynasties.


text: Fincath mac Garrchu, king of Leinster


text: Clovis I establishes his new residence at Soissons. He appoints Ragnachar, Frankish petty king (regulus), as his deputy ruler.


text: Franco-Roman War of 486 – Battle of Soissons (Gaul): Frankish forces under King Clovis I defeat the Roman army of Syagrius. Roman rule under Syagrius ends. The land between the Somme and the Loire becomes a part of the Frankish Empire. Syagrius flees to the Visigoths (under King Alaric II), but Clovis threatens war, and he is handed over for execution.


text: Persian Christians who follow Nestorianism gather in the second Council of Seleucia (modern Turkey).


text: Syagrius, Roman official in Gaul (approximate date)


date: July 28

text: July 28 – Bʼutz Aj Sak Chiik becomes the new ruler of the Mayan city-state of Palenque, in what is now the state of Chiapas in southern Mexico, and reigns until his death in 501.

source_section: Events › By place › Central America


text: King Odoacer leads an army to victory against the Rugians in Noricum (modern Austria).


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.

source_section: Events › By topic › Religion


text: Theuderic I, king of the Franks (approximate date) (d. 534)


text: Xiao Baoyin, prince of Southern Qi (d. 530)


text: Sacerdos of Lyon, French archbishop (d. 551)


text: Gao Yun, duke of Northern Wei (b. 390)


text: Kenzō, emperor of Japan (approximate date)


text: Emperor Kenzō of Japan, age 38, dies after a reign of only three years.


text: Syagrius, "king of the Romans" (approximate date)


text: Ninken, adopted heir of Seinei, succeeds his brother Kenzō and becomes new emperor of Japan.


text: Zeno orders Theodoric the Great to overthrow his rival Odoacer, who has established himself as king of Italy (see 476). He marches with an Ostrogoth army to the West.


text: Emperor Zeno regains power from the usurper Leontius and the Isaurian patrician Illus, who are captured and executed, ending a 4-year rebellion (see 484).


text: Fravitta becomes patriarch of Constantinople.


text: Peter the Fuller is succeeded by Palladius as patriarch of Antioch.


text: Kavadh I is crowned by the nobles, and succeeds his blind uncle Balash as the 19th king of Persia.


text: Yu, empress of Northern Wei (d. 507)


text: Senán mac Geirrcinn, Irish saint


text: He Di, emperor of Southern Qi (d. 502)


text: Peter the Fuller, patriarch of Antioch


text: According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Hengist dies and is succeeded by his son Oisc as king of Kent.


text: Balash, king of the Persian Empire


date: August 28

text: August 28 – After crossing the Julian Alps, the Ostrogoths defeat the overwhelming forces of Odoacer at the Battle of Isonzo (near Roman Aquileia or modern Soča) and enter Italy. This date is subsequently used by Theodoric to establish a 30-year statute of limitations (tricennium) ending on 28 August 519, after which any unlawful seizure of land during this period can no longer be contested.


text: August – Battle of Sirmium in Pannonia: The Ostrogoths under Theodoric the Great, moving to invade Northern Italy at the behest of Eastern Roman Emperor Zeno, defeat the Gepids attempting to stop their advance.


date: September 30

text: September 30 – Battle of Verona: Odoacer is defeated again by Theodoric for a second time. He retreats to the impregnable capital of Ravenna.


text: The Ostrogoths capture the cities Pavia and Milan. The majority of Odoacer's army, including his magister militum Tufa, surrenders to Theodoric.


text: The first Temple of Confucius is constructed in Northern China (outside the ancestral temple at Qufu).


text: Emperor Zeno closes the School of Edessa (modern Turkey) for their teaching of Nestorian doctrine, whereupon the scholars seek refuge at the Syriac Church of the East.


text: Acacius, patriarch of Constantinople


text: Sidonius Apollinaris, bishop and diplomat


text: Wang Jian, official of Liu Song and Southern Qi (b. 452)


year_label: 49 CE

text: Likely date for the expulsion of the Jews from Rome.

source_section: Timeline › AD 49


text: In Britain, governor Publius Ostorius Scapula founds a colonia for Roman veterans at Camulodunum (Colchester). Verulamium (St Albans) is probably established as a municipium the same year. A legion is stationed on the borders of the Silures of South Wales in preparation for invasion.


text: The Apostle Paul begins his second missionary journey with Silas while Barnabas goes to Cyprus with Mark.


text: First apostolic council in Jerusalem (approximate date).


text: Christianity spreads into Europe, especially at Rome and at Philippi (probable date according to chronology derived from the Acts of the Apostles).


text: The New Testament book Paul's Epistle to the Galatians is probably written.


text: Seneca the Younger becomes Nero's tutor.


text: Agrippina the Younger charges Octavia's first fiancé, Lucius Junius Silanus Torquatus, with incest. He is brought before the Senate, and sentenced to death.


text: Melankomas is the boxing champion, at the 207th Olympic Games.


text: Emperor Claudius marries his niece Agrippina the Younger (approximate date), and most of the real power falls to Agrippina.


text: Nero becomes engaged to Claudia Octavia, daughter of Claudius.


text: Ma Yuan, Chinese general of the Han Dynasty(b. 14 BC)

source_section: Deaths › AD 49


text: Lollia Paulina, Roman noblewoman and empress (b. AD 15)


date: August 11

text: August 11 – Battle of the Adda River: Theodoric and his ally Alaric II defeat the forces of Odoacer, on the Adda River, near Milan.


text: In Jiaozhou, a state official Phục Đăng Chi launched a coup d'etat against the governor Phòng Pháp Thặng and captured him. In November, emperor Wu appointed Phục Đăng Chi as the new Jiaozhou's governor.


text: King Theodoric the Great retreats to Ticinum (modern Pavia), where he constructs a fortified camp, which is blockaded.


text: Spring – Odoacer receives reinforcements from the south and leaves Ravenna. He defeats the Ostrogoths near Faenza.


text: King Alaric II supports Theodoric in his conquest of Italy, by dispatching a Visigoth army to raise Odoacer's siege of Pavia.


text: Theodoric and his Ostrogoths lay siege to Ravenna. The cities of Cesena and Rimini retain their allegiance to Odoacer.


text: Euphemius becomes patriarch of Constantinople.


text: Summer – The Burgundians, under King Gundobad, cross the Alps and plunder Liguria. Many Romans are taken into captivity.


date: May 3

text: May 3 – Kʼan Joy Chitam I, ruler of Palenque (d. 565)


text: Vigilantia, Byzantine princess (approximate date)


text: Romanos the Melodist, Syrian poet (approximate date)


text: John Philoponus, Aristotelian commentator and philosopher (d. 570)


text: Empress Feng of the Chinese Northern Wei Dynasty dies. She is buried with magnificent honors, in the Wenming Tomb.


text: Theodora of Alexandria, Desert Mother


text: Peter III Mongus, patriarch of Alexandria


text: Feng, Chinese empress and regent of Northern Wei (b. 442)


text: Munjamyeong becomes ruler of the Korean kingdom of Goguryeo.


date: July 9

text: July 9 – Odoacer makes a night assault with his Heruli guardsmen, engaging Theodoric the Great in Ad Pinetam. Both sides suffer heavy losses, but in the end Theodoric repulses the attack, forcing Odoacer back into Ravenna.


text: Anti-Isaurian riots break out in the Hippodrome at Constantinople. Longinus and several other Isaurians, including general Longinus of Cardala, are exiled to Thebaid (Egypt).

source_section: Events › By place › Byzantine Empire


text: Aelle of Sussex besieges and conquers the fortified town Anderitum in southern Britain. He massacres the population, apparently sub-Roman Brythons (according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle).


text: Lupicinus becomes bishop of Lyon. He is the founder of the abbeys of Saint Claude (Jura Mountains).


date: May 20

text: May 20 – Anastasius I marries Ariadne shortly after his accession. His reign is disturbed by religious distractions and a civil war started by Longinus, brother of late emperor Zeno.


text: Approximate date – John Malalas, Byzantine chronicler (d. c. 578)


date: April 9

text: April 9 – Zeno, Byzantine Emperor


text: April 9 – Emperor Zeno, age 66, dies of dysentery (or of epilepsy) after a 17-year reign. He has no sons to succeed him and Anastasius, palace official (silentiarius) and favoured friend of empress Ariadne, is elevated to the throne.


text: Peter the Iberian, Georgian theologian and saint


text: Isaurian War: The Isaurians begin a revolt against Emperor Anastasius I in southern Central Anatolia.


text: King Theoderic the Great conquers Rimini, and brings his Ostrogoth fleet to blockade the harbours 6 miles from the capital of Ravenna. Important provisions, food and supplies are cut off, and the inhabitants are starved to death.


text: Battle of Cotyaeum: The Isaurian rebels are defeated by the Eastern Roman army, under John the Scythian and John the Hunchback (subordinate commanders include the future Justin I). They retreat to their mountain fortresses, and continue guerrilla warfare against the Roman forces until 497.


date: March 1

text: March 1 – Pope Felix III dies after a 9-year reign in which he has excommunicated Patriarch Acacius of Constantinople, thus dividing the Western Church and Eastern Church (Acacian schism). He is succeeded by Gelasius I as the 49th pope.


text: Xiao Ni, prince of Southern Qi (b. 444)


date: February 25

text: February 25 – Odoacer surrenders Ravenna after a 3-year siege, and agrees to a mediated peace with Theodoric the Great, who steadily consolidates his rule and provides security for the local population. His achievement is to manage the transformation of Italy from being the center of a fractured Roman Empire to a successful and independent Ostrogothic Kingdom.


date: March

text: March – Battle for the Body of St. Patrick: The Uí Néill Dynasty fights over the body of Saint Patrick with the Airgialla Kingdom (according to the Annals of the Four Masters).

source_section: Events › By place › Ireland


text: Onoulphus, brother of Odoacer, is killed during the siege of Ravenna by archers while seeking refuge in a church.


text: Isaurian War: Claudiopolis, ancient city of Cappadocia, is besieged and captured by the Romans. The Isaurians blockade the mountain passes, but John the Hunchback (John Gibbo) wins an overwhelming victory against the rebels.


text: Mor Hananyo Monastery is established by Mor Shlemon, converting a former Roman fortress (ex temple) in the Tur Abdin region on the Turkish/Syrian border.


date: March 15

text: March 15 – Odoacer is invited to a banquet organised in order to celebrate the peace treaty. During the festivities, Odoacer is killed by Theodoric the Great. His body is skillfully sliced in half in full view of his guests. A massacre of Odoacer's soldiers and supporters follows.


text: Clovis I marries the Burgundian princess Clotilde, age 18; she is brought up in the Catholic faith and is the daughter of King Chilperic II. Her father is murdered in the same year by his brother Gundobad.


text: Emperor Xiao Wen Di starts adopting a sinicization policy as well as various reforms. He marries Feng Qing, who becomes empress of the Northern Wei Dynasty.


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.


text: Erzhu Rong, general of Northern Wei (d. 530)


text: Cerbonius, bishop of Populonia (approximate date)


text: March 15 – Odoacer, first "barbarian" king of Italy (b. 433)

source_section: Deaths


date: March 17

text: March 17 (approximate date) – Saint Patrick, Romano-British Christian missionary, patron saint of Ireland


text: Onoulphus, general and brother of Odoacer


text: Xiao Zhangmao, crown prince of Southern Qi (b. 458)


text: Emperor Wu of Southern Qi (b. 440)


text: Daniel the Stylite, Christian saint


text: Chilperic II, king of Burgundy


text: Emperor Xiao Wen Di moves the capital of Northern Wei from Datong to Luoyang. He makes Chinese the official language of his court, and orders his nobility to adopt Chinese names.


text: Gelasius I delineates the relationship between church and state (Doctrine of the two swords, formulated in his letter Famuli vestrae pietatis to the East Roman Emperor Anastasius I.)


text: The Decretum Gelasianum is attributed.


text: Gelasius I canonizes Saint George.


text: An earthquake devastates the port town of Latakia (modern Syria).


text: Gildas, British historian and priest (approximate date)


text: Xiao Zhaowen, emperor of Southern Qi (b. 480)


text: Xiao Zhaoye, emperor of Southern Qi (known as the Prince of Yulin) (b. 473)


text: Cerdic of Wessex and his son, Cynric, land somewhere on the south coast, probably near the Hampshire-Dorset border. Their followers establish the beginnings of the Kingdom of Wessex.


text: Pope Gelasius I gains support from Italian bishops, in his assertion that the spiritual power of the papacy is superior to the emperor's temporal authority. Like his predecessors, the pope opposes the Byzantine emperor Anastasius I's efforts to establish Miaphysite doctrine.


text: Emperor Xiao Wen Di of Northern Wei builds the Shaolin Monastery in Henan for the monk Batuo (for alternate founding date see 477 or 497).


text: King Theudebert I of Austrasia (approximate date)


text: King Chlodomer of the Franks (d. 524)


text: Finnian of Movilla, Irish bishop (d. 589)


text: Queen Amalasuintha of the Ostrogoths (approximate date)


text: Husi Chun, general of Northern Wei (d. 537)


text: Guntheuc, queen of Burgundy and the Franks (d. c. 532)


text: Fráech mac Finchada, king of Leinster


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.

source_section: Events › By place › Africa


text: Battle of Tolbiac: King Clovis I defeats the Alamanni at Zülpich (Germany). Gibuld, last king of the Alamanni, is killed in battle and the territory is incorporated into the Frankish Kingdom.


text: King Kavadh I of Persia is deposed and exiled to Susiana by his younger brother Djamasp. He is installed by the nobles to the Sassanid throne.


date: December 25

text: December 25 – Clovis I is baptized into the Catholic faith at Rheims, by Saint Remigius. The conversion strengthens the bonds between his Gallo-Roman subjects, led by their Catholic bishops.


text: Emperor Anastasius I has Euphemius, patriarch of Constantinople, deposed and excommunicated. He appoints Macedonius II as his successor. Euphemius is sent into exile.


section: Economy & Finance

text: Emperor Xiao Wen Di of Northern Wei starts the Sinicization process, by changing his clan name to the Han Chinese surname Yuan.


text: Germain, bishop of Paris (d. 576)


text: Imru' al-Qais, was a pre-Islamic Arabian poet and last King of Kinda (d. 565)


text: Erzhu Tianguang, general of Northern Wei (d. 532)


text: Gao Huan, general of Northern Wei (d. 547)


text: Childebert I, king of the Franks (d. 558)


date: November 21

text: November 21 – Gelasius I dies after a 4-year reign, and is succeeded by the Rome-born Anastasius II as the 50th pope.


text: Gunthamund, king of the Vandals and Alans


text: Athanasius, Coptic Orthodox patriarch of Alexandria


text: Epiphanius, bishop of Pavia (b. 438).


text: Gennadius of Massilia, priest and historian.


text: Emperor Anastasius I gives formal recognition to the Ostrogoth king Theodoric the Great, as his representative (viceroy) in Italy. He sends the imperial standard to Ravenna. Theodoric respects the agreement and allows Roman citizens within the Ostrogothic Kingdom to be subject to Roman law.


text: Isaurian War: Anastasius I regains control of the Isauria region (Asia Minor) and has the rebel leaders executed. Anastasius I pacifies the mountain strongholds of the Isaurians, ending the revolt that they began upon his ascension to the throne 6 years ago.


text: Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei fought several battles


text: The Ambrosian Iliad, an Illuminated manuscript on vellum, of the Iliad of Homer, is produced in Constantinople (approximate date).

source_section: Events › By topic › Literature


text: The Shaolin Temple (Henan) is founded (according to the Jiaqing Chongxiu Yitongzhi). (For alternate founding date, see 477 or 495).


text: Aryabhata, Indian astronomer and mathematician, calculates pi (π) as ≈ 62832/20000 = 3.1416, correct to four rounded-off decimal places.

source_section: Events › By topic › Arts and sciences


text: Chlothar I, king of the Franks (d. 561)


text: Cadoc, Welsh abbot, saint (approximate date)


text: Wei Jie, Chinese scholar (d. 569)


text: Abdul Mutallib, grandfather of Islamic prophet Mohammed (d. 578)


text: Longinus of Cardala, Isaurian official, rebel leader


text: Hashim ibn 'Abd Manaf, great-grandfather of Mohammed


text: Crown Prince Yuan Xun of Northern Wei (b. 483)


text: Prince Buretsu, age 9, succeeds his father Ninken and becomes the 25th emperor.

source_section: Events › By place › Japan


text: Kavadh I returns from exile with support of 30,000 Hephthalites (White Huns), and again assumes the Sassanid throne. He punishes his opponents and probably his brother Djamasp, who usurped the throne from him.

source_section: Events › By place › Persia


date: November 22

text: November 22 – Anastasius is succeeded by Symmachus as the 51st pope, in the official papal selection in the Lateran Palace (Rome). Meanwhile, Antipope Laurentius is elected "pope" in the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, causing a schism.


text: Flavian II succeeds Palladius as patriarch of Antioch.


text: Emperor Anastasius I abolishes the chrysargyron tax throughout the Eastern Roman Empire, before reforming the monetary system, using Greek numerals instead of Roman.


text: Kevin of Glendalough, Irish abbot and saint (d. 618)


text: Jie Min Di, emperor of Northern Wei (d. 532)


date: November 19

text: November 19 – Pope Anastasius II dies after a 2-year reign in which he has tried to conciliate followers of Acacius, late patriarch of Constantinople, who was excommunicated by Felix III.


text: Qi Mingdi, emperor of Southern Qi (b. 452)


text: March 1 – During a synod in Rome, which is attended by 72 bishops and all of the Roman clergy, Pope Symmachus makes Antipope Laurentius bishop of the diocese of Nocera in Campania.


text: Indian mathematician Aryabhata writes his magnum opus, the Āryabhaṭīya.

source_section: Events › By topic › Mathematics


date: September

text: September – The 499 Nicopolis earthquake takes place in the borders between the regions of Mesopotamia, Pontus, and Roman Armenia. It affects the cities of Nicopolis, Neocaesarea (modern Niksar), Arsamosata, and Abarne, as well as the cultural areas of Anatolia (Asia Minor) and Mesopotamia.

source_section: Events › By place › Middle East


text: Crown prince Xuan Wu Di, age 16, succeeds his father Xiaowen and becomes emperor of Northern Wei. He appoints his uncle Yuan Xie provincial governor, who serves temporarily as regent to form a new government.

source_section: Events › By place › China


text: Ingund, queen of the Franks (approximate date)

source_section: Births


text: Ly Thien Bao, emperor of Vietnam (d. 555)


text: Maximianus, bishop of Ravenna (d. 556)


date: April 26

text: April 26 – Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei dies of starvation in his capital at Luoyang, after a 27-year reign in which he has Sinicized his tribal relatives (Tuoba clan), created a Chinese-style government and instituted a land-reform program.


text: April 26 – Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei, emperor of Northern Wei (b. 467)


text: Feng Run, Chinese empress of Northern Wei


year_label: 5 CE

text: AD 5 – Tiberius conquers Germania Inferior.

source_section: Events › Roman Empire


text: AD 5 – The Germanic tribes of Cimbri and Charydes send ambassadors to Rome.


text: AD 5 – Rome acknowledges Cunobelinus, king of the Catuvellauni, as king of Britain.


text: AD 5 – Agrippina the Elder marries Germanicus, her second cousin.


text: AD 5 – Paul the Apostle, Jewish leader of the Christians


text: AD 5 – Ruzi Ying, great-grandson of Xuan of Han (d. AD 25)


text: AD 5 – Habib the Carpenter, Syrian disciple, martyr


text: AD 5 – Yin Lihua, empress of the Han dynasty (d. AD 64)


year_label: 50 CE

text: The Yuezhi tribes are united under the Kushan leader Kujula Kadphises, thus creating the Kushan Empire in Afghanistan and northern India (approximate date).

source_section: Events › 50 AD › South Asia


text: Utrecht is founded, and a Roman fortification (castellum) is constructed at the Rhine border in the present-day Netherlands.

source_section: Events › 50 AD › Roman Empire


text: Cologne is raised to the status of a city.


text: Paul travels to Philippi, Thessaloniki, Beroea, and Athens (second missionary journey).

source_section: Events › 50 AD › Greece


text: The Apostles hold the Council of Jerusalem (approximate date).

source_section: Events › 50 AD › Palestine


text: Pamphilus of Alexandria writes a poetic lexicon.


text: Roman emperor Claudius appoints Agrippa II governor of Chalcis.


text: The Epistle to the Romans is written (approximate date).


text: Romans build a wooden bridge across the Thames in the London area.

source_section: Events › 50 AD › Britain


text: Hero of Alexandria invents a steam turbine (possible date).


text: In Judaea, a Roman soldier seizes and burns a Torah scroll. Procurator Cumanus has the culprit beheaded, calming down local Jews and delaying for almost two decades the outbreak of their revolt.


text: Pedanius Dioscorides describes the medical applications of plants in De Materia Medica.


text: Christianity is introduced throughout Nubia by a high official of Queen Judith.

source_section: Events › 50 AD › Nubia


text: The San Bartolo pyramid is completed around this time.

source_section: Events › 50 AD › Americas


text: In Britain, governor Publius Ostorius Scapula begins his campaign against the recalcitrant Silures of south Wales, who are led by the former Catuvellaunian prince Caratacus. London (Londinium), Exeter (Isca Dumnoniorum), Tripontium (near modern Rugby) and the fort of Manduessedum (near modern Atherstone) are founded (approximate date).


text: Cai Lun, Chinese inventor of paper and the papermaking process (d. 121)

source_section: Births › 50 AD


text: Gamaliel the Elder, Jewish ruler (Nasi) in Babylonia (approximate date)

source_section: Deaths › 50 AD


text: Scribonius Largus, Roman court physician (b. c. AD 1)


text: Aulus Cornelius Celsus, Roman author of De Medicina (b. c. 25 BC)


text: Abgar V, Roman client king of Osroene (approximate date)


text: Gaius Julius Phaedrus, Roman fabulist (b. c. 15 BC)


text: Philo of Alexandria, Jewish philosopher (b. c. 20 BC)


text: The Frankish Kingdom is formed (approximate date).

source_section: Events › By place › Europe


text: Emperor Anastasius I concludes treaties with a number of nomad tribes in northern Arabia. In return for tribute to the Byzantine Empire and military defense of these eastern territories, such tribes are permitted to settle and farm agricultural lands in Arabia (approximate date).

source_section: Events › By place › Byzantine Empire


text: Possible date for the Battle of Mons Badonicus: Romano-British and Celts defeat an Anglo-Saxon army, that may have been led by the bretwalda Aelle of Sussex or possibly Cerdic of Wessex (approximate date; suggested dates range from 490 to 517). This battle may have influenced the legend of King Arthur.


text: Burgundian Civil War: Battle of Dijon: A coalition of Franks and Burgundians crush the forces under Gundobad. King Clovis I pursues him to Avignon, where he surrenders and promises to pay a yearly tribute.


text: Jijeung becomes king of the Korean kingdom of Silla.

source_section: Events › By place › Asia


text: Traders from southern Arabia settle in northern Ethiopia.

source_section: Events › By place › Africa


text: First large pit house villages at Chaco Canyon are founded (approximate date).

source_section: Events › By place › Mesoamerica


text: The Arian Baptistry is erected by Theodoric the Great, at the same time as the Basilica of Sant' Apollinare Nuovo (Ravenna).

source_section: Events › By topic › Religion


text: Roman catacomb burials end (approximate date).


text: Tikal is founded (approximate date).


text: The Codex Argenteus, Gothic manuscript of bishop Ulfilas's translation of the Bible, is written (approximate date).


text: The monument of Ale's Stones is built in Sweden (approximate date).


text: Approximate beginning of the Heptarchy period in the history of England.


text: Approximate year of the invention of the bee skep in Ireland.


text: Uxmal is founded (approximate date).


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.


text: Approximate year of the founding of the Kingdom of Essex.


text: Possible date at which Fergus Mór begins his reign – the historicity of Mór is doubtful.


text: Octa, king of Kent (approximate date)

source_section: Births


text: David, Welsh bishop (approximate date)


text: Erzhu Shilong, high-official of Northern Wei (d. 532)


text: Clotilde, daughter of Clovis I (approximate date)


text: Paul the Black, Syriac Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch (approximate date)


text: Marcouf, missionary and saint (approximate date)


text: Antalas, Berber tribal leader (approximate date)


text: Bhavyaviveka, Indian Madhyamaka scholar (approximate date)


text: Nonnosus, abbot and saint (approximate date)


text: Tribonian, Byzantine jurist (approximate date)


text: Theodora, Byzantine Empress (approximate date)


text: Kaleb of Axum, Aksumite king responsible for the destruction of Himyar


text: Xie He, Chinese writer and art historian (approximate date)


text: Aregund, queen of the Franks (approximate date)


date: March 29

text: March 29 – Gwynllyw, Welsh king and religious figure

source_section: Deaths


text: Zu Chongzhi, Chinese mathematician (b. 429)


text: Dauí Tenga Uma, king of Connacht (Ireland)


date: June 5

text: June 5 – Ahkal Moʼ Nahb I becomes the new ruler of the Mayan city-state of Palenque (in what is now the state of Chiapas in southern Mexico), and reigns until his death in 524.

source_section: Events › By place › Central America


text: Dong Hun Hou is killed during a siege of the capital Jiankang. He is succeeded by his brother Qi He Di, who becomes emperor of Southern Qi (China).


text: Muryeong becomes king of Baekje (one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea). During his reign, the kingdom remains allied with Silla and expands its relationships with China and Japan.


text: The Maya are peaking in economic prosperity. The civilization at Teotihuacan begins to decline and its people are migrating to the greatest Mayan city, Tikal, bringing with them ideas about weaponry and new ritual practices.


text: Pope Symmachus, accused of various crimes by secular authorities who support an ecclesiastical opponent, asserts that the secular ruler has no jurisdiction over him. A synod held in 502 will confirm that view.


text: The Sushruta Samhita medical book becomes a classic of medicine in India. The book contains descriptions of surgery, illnesses, medicinal plants, and a detailed study on anatomy (approximate date).

source_section: Events › By topic › Medicine


text: Burgundian Civil War: King Gundobad breaks his promise of tribute and regains his military power. He besieges his brother Godegisel at the city of Vienne (Burgundy), and murders him in an Arian church along with the bishop.


text: Lou Zhaojun, empress dowager of Northern Qi (d. 562)


text: Xiao Tong, crown prince of the Liang Dynasty (d. 531)


date: April 25

text: April 25 – Rusticus, archbishop of Lyon


text: Domangart Réti succeeds his father Fergus Mór, after he dies during a campaign against the Picts. He becomes the new king of Dál Riata (modern Scotland) (according to the Annals of Tigernach).

source_section: Events › By place › Britannia


text: Dongseong, king of Baekje (Korea)


text: Fergus Mór, king of Dál Riata (Scotland)


text: Godegisel, king of the Burgundians


text: Pan Yunu, concubine of Xiao Baojuan


text: Su Xiaoxiao, Chinese Gējì and poet


text: Xiao Baojuan, emperor of Southern Qi (b. 483)


text: Ravina II, Jewish Talmudist and rabbi


text: Teudelinda, Burgundian queen consort


text: March 29 – King Gundobad issues a new legal code (Lex Burgundionum) at Lyon, that makes Gallo-Romans and Burgundians subject to the same laws (approximate date).


text: War with Sassanid Persia: Emperor Anastasius I refuses to pay a share of the cost of defending the Caucasian Gates, through which nomadic tribes have come for raids on Persia and the Byzantine Empire. King Kavadh I invades Armenia and captures Theodosiopolis.


text: The Bulgars ravage Thrace. A semi-nomadic people, they have absorbed the surviving Huns and meet no opposition from Byzantine forces.


text: Winter – Kavadh I besieges the fortress-city of Amida (modern Turkey). The defenders, although unsupported by Byzantine troops, repel the Persian assaults for three months before they are finally beaten.


text: The Liang Dynasty is founded by Xiao Yan, who marches on Jiankang (later Nanjing). Emperor He Di, age 14, is put to death. The Southern Qi Dynasty ends and Wu Di becomes ruler of the Liang Dynasty.

source_section: Events › By place › China


date: October 23

text: October 23 – The Synodus Palmaris, called by Gothic king Theodoric the Great, clears Pope Symmachus of all charges, thus ending the schism of Antipope Laurentius.


date: December 24

text: December 24 - Xiao Yan names Xiao Tong his heir designate.


text: Caesarius becomes bishop of Arles. His episcopal see, near the mouth of the Rhone River and close to Marseille, retains its ancient importance in the social and commercial life of Gaul for forty years.


text: The Nanhua Temple, located southeast of Shaoguan, is founded by the Indian monk Zhiyao Sanzang. The temple covers an area of 42.5 ha acre and consists of a set of historical Buddhist buildings.


text: The Persian philosopher Mazdak declares private property to be the source of all evil.

source_section: Events › By topic › Arts and sciences


text: The Chinese Book of Song is finished. The text is one of the Twenty-Four Histories, a traditional collection of historical records during the Southern and Northern Dynasties.

source_section: Events › By topic › Literature


text: Amalaric, king of the Visigoths (d. 531)


text: He Di, Chinese emperor of Southern Qi (b. 488)


text: Vakhtang I, Georgian king (approximate date)


text: Genevieve, patron saint of Paris (approximate date)


text: Narsai, Syrian poet and theologian (approximate date)


date: May

text: May – Areobindus, Byzantine general (magister militum), is stationed as commander at Dara, with an army of 12,000 men to keep watch at the Persian stronghold of Nisibis (modern Turkey).

source_section: Events › Byzantine Empire


text: War with Sassanid Persia: Emperor Anastasius I sends a Byzantine army (52,000 men) to Armenia, but is defeated. The Romans attempt an unsuccessful siege of the Persian-held city Amida, on the Tigris. King Kavadh I invades Osroene, and lays siege to the city of Edessa (Northern Mesopotamia).


text: Mundhir III, king of the Lakhmids (Arab Christians), raids Palaestina Salutaris and Arabia Petraea. He captures a large number of Romans.

source_section: Events › Palestine


date: October 17

text: October 17 – Lý Nam Đế, first emperor of Vietnam (d. 548)


date: December 2

text: December 2 – Xiao Gang, later Emperor Jianwen of Liang, emperor of the Chinese Liang dynasty (killed 551)


text: Chen Baxian, later Emperor Wu of Chen, first emperor of the Chinese Chen dynasty (d. 559)


text: King Ernakh, third son of Attila the Hun, dies after a 34-year reign. He is succeeded by his two sons (Utigur and Kutrigur), who share the power with the unified Bulgars.

source_section: Events › Europe


text: King Theodoric the Great defeats the Gepids, and drives them out of their homeland (Pannonia).

source_section: Events › By place › Europe


text: War with Sassanid Persia: Emperor Anastasius I gains the upper hand in Armenia, with the renewed investment of Amida.

source_section: Events › By place › Byzantine Empire


text: King Kavadh I hands over the fortress-city of Amida, and agrees to an armistice with the Byzantine Empire.


text: The Ostrogoths sack Belgrade, on the Danube and Sava rivers (modern Serbia).


text: Theodoric the Great builds the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo, originally dedicated to Christ the Redeemer.


text: A major expansion of Copán's ceremonial center, the Acropolis complex, is undertaken by B'alam Nehn (Waterlily Jaguar), the seventh ruler (ajaw) of the southeastern Maya city (approximate date).


text: Anastasius I decides to rebuild the village of Dara (Northern Mesopotamia). He constructs a new strategic fortress to guard the frontier.


text: Emperor Anastasius I agrees to pay his share of the cost of defending the Caucasian Gates, against nomadic invasions from East Asia.


text: Lý Nguyên Khải, Jiaozhou's governor, rebels against the Liang dynasty, but is suppressed by Lý Tắc, a state official, and subsequently prosecuted.

source_section: Events › By place › Vietnam


text: The white Huns (Hephthalites) from the Caucasus invade the Persian Empire.


text: Dorotheus of Gaza, Christian monk and abbot (approximate date)


text: Varāhamihira, Indian astronomer and mathematician (d. 587)


text: Saint Yared, Axumite composer (d. 571)


text: Belisarius, Byzantine general (d. 565)


text: Dynod Bwr, king of Hen Ogledd (approximate date)


text: John I, Coptic Orthodox patriarch of Alexandria


date: November

text: November – Emperor Anastasius I accepts a peace agreement with the Sasanian Empire (Persia), based on the status quo. He upgrades the fortifications at Batnae, Edessa and Amida (Northern Mesopotamia).


text: The Visigoths capture the city of Dertosa in Catalonia. They arrest and execute the Roman usurper Peter, sending his head as a trophy to Zaragoza (Spain).


date: February 2

text: February 2 – King Alaric II issues the "Lex Romana Visigothorum" or Breviary of Alaric, an abstract of Roman laws and imperial decrees, compiled by a commission appointed to provide a law code for Alaric's Roman subjects. The "Lex Romana" will be the standard for justice in the Visigothic realm.


date: September 10

text: September 10 – Council of Agde: The bishops of Visigothic Gaul under the presidency of Caesarius of Arles meet.


text: Antipope Laurentius is persuaded by Theodoric the Great to resign his claim to the throne of Pope Symmachus, ending a schism in the Catholic Church; Laurentius then fasts until his death.


text: Wei Shou, Chinese author (d. 572)


text: Soga no Iname, leader of the Soga clan (d. 570)


text: Zhang Yao'er, empress of Chen dynasty China (d. 570)


text: Keitai becomes the 26th emperor of Japan (according to the Nihon Shoki).

source_section: Events › By place › Asia


text: Battle of Zhongli: army of Liang dynasty led by Wei Rui decisively defeated army of Northern Wei


text: Gesalec succeeds his father Alaric II as king of the Visigoths. He establishes his residence at Narbonne and is supported by an alliance with the Ostrogothic king Theodoric the Great.


text: Battle of Vouillé: A Frankish army under command of Clovis I invades the Visigothic Kingdom, and defeats King Alaric II near Poitiers. The Visigoths refuse to be enslaved, and retreat to Septimania (Southern Gaul). Clovis annexes Aquitania, and captures Toulouse.


text: Hermanafrid, king of the Thuringi, marries Amalaberga. He begins his rule, shared with his brothers Baderic and Bertachar.


text: A Mayan altar with the head of the death god is built in Copán, Honduras.

source_section: Events › By place › Mesoamerica


text: Clovis I dictates the Salic Law (Code of the Barbaric Laws) to the Franks (a written codification of civil law for citizens of the Frankish Kingdom).


text: The first and smaller of the two Buddhas of Bamyan is erected in central Afghanistan.


text: Emperor Anastasius I completes the strategic fortress at Dara (Northern Mesopotamia). He raises the city walls to 30 feet (10 m), disregarding Persian protests. Alarmed by the depredations of Slavs and Bulgars in Thrace, he builds the Anastasian Wall from the Black Sea to Propontis, across the narrow peninsula near Constantinople (modern Turkey).


text: The town of Guilin, China, is renamed Guizhou.


text: Wooden coffins and wooden tools are used in the burial places of the Alemanni.


text: Xiao Zhuang Di, emperor of Northern Wei (d. 531)


text: John of Ephesus, Armenian bishop (approximate date)


text: Wen Di, emperor of Western Wei (d. 551)


text: Yuwen Tai, general of Western Wei (d. 556)


text: Yu, empress of Northern Wei (b. 488)


text: Domangart Réti, king of Dál Riata (modern Scotland)


text: Alaric II, king of the Visigoths


text: King Theodoric the Great sends an Ostrogoth army, led by his sword-bearer Theudis, drives the Franks out of Provence, and recovers Septimania (Languedoc) from the Visigoths.


text: Battle of Netley: King Cerdic of Wessex moves with an Anglo-Saxon army inland, and defeats the British king, Nudd-Lludd (according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle).


text: Emperor Anastasius I formally recognizes Clovis I of the Salian Franks as ruler of Gaul. He sends a Byzantine fleet of 100 warships to raid the coasts of Italy.


text: King Clovis I fails in an effort to take the walled city of Carcassonne (Southern Gaul). He establishes Paris (Lutetia) as his capital and gets baptized, making Roman Catholicism the official religion of the Kingdom of the Franks.


text: Winter – All the rivers in England are frozen for more than two months.


date: September 16

text: September 16 – Yuan Di, emperor of the Liang Dynasty (d. 555)


text: Xiao Ji, prince of the Liang Dynasty (d. 553)


text: Geraint, king of Dumnonia (approximate date)


text: Yujiulü Futu, ruler (khan) of the Rouran (Mongolia)


text: Yuan Xie, prince of the Northern Wei Dynasty


text: Clovis I (Chlodowech) becomes the first Catholic king of the Franks, uniting all the Frankish tribes under his rule. He controls an immense territory in Gaul (modern France), and delivers a major blow for the Church against the Arian heresy.


text: Wei Xiaokuan, general of Western Wei (d. 580)


text: Kinmei, emperor of Japan (d. 571)


text: Chlodoric, king of the Ripuarian Franks


text: Sigobert the Lame, king of the Ripuarian Franks


year_label: 51 CE

text: Emperor Claudius and future emperor Titus Flavius Vespasianus become Roman Consuls.

source_section: Events › 51 AD › Roman Empire


text: Burrus, praetorian prefect (51–62 AD), charges Seneca with the education of Nero.