Geopolitics & Diplomacy in the 5th century

93 sourced entries, 400 CE to 497 CE, oldest first. Also see Geopolitics & Diplomacy across every century or everything else in the 5th century.

• 400The Paeonians (Illyricum) lose their identity (approximate date).source
• 402Emperors Arcadius and his younger brother Honorius become Roman consuls.source
• 403Theodosius II, age 2, becomes consul of the Eastern Roman Empire.source
• 407End of Roman rule in Britain: After 360 years of occupation, the local regional British-Roman leaders raise their own levies for defence against Saxon sea rovers. They cultivate oysters, having learned the technique from the Romans.source
• 407Liu Bobo (Xia Wuliedi) founds the state of Xia, and claims the title "Heavenly Prince" (Tian Wang).source
• 408The Roman usurper Constantine III establishes his headquarters at Arles (Southern Gaul) and elevates his eldest son, Constans, to the rank of Caesar. He sends him with an expeditionary force under Gerontius to Hispania, in order to suppress the revolt of some members of the Theodosian dynasty, who are loyal to Honorius.source
• 408King Yazdegerd I of Persia maintains cordial relations with the Roman Empire. He becomes an executor of Arcadius' will and is entrusted with the care of the young Theodosius II until he comes of age.source
• 408Alaric also demands, and obtains, the freedom of 30,000 people who had been enslaved in Rome.source
• 409Honorius agrees that sons of prominent families at court in Ravenna be sent beyond the Danube as hostages; in return, later he calls up ten thousand Hun mercenaries.source
• 410Prithivisena becomes king of the Vakataka in the Deccan (India).source
• 410According to Zosimus, this is the year when Emperor Honorius sends his Rescript (diplomatic letters) to the Romano-British magistrates, ending Roman rule in Great Britain. However this is likely an example of scribal error. Most recently, David Woods has argued that the account refers instead to Raetia, a Roman province north of Italy.source
• 411Following the defeat of Constantine III, the Burgundians and the Gallic nobility proclaim Jovinus, Gallo-Roman senator, emperor of the Western Roman Empire at Mogontiacum (modern Mainz).source
• 411The Teutonic tribes in Spain join the Roman Empire as foederati (allies with military commitments).source
• 412Emperor Jovinus elevates his brother Sebastianus as co-emperor (Augustus) and takes control of Gaul.source
• 412The forts on the west bank of the Danube, which were destroyed by the Huns, are rebuilt, and a new Danubian fleet is launched.source
• 413May 8 – Honorius signs an edict providing tax relief for the Italian provinces Tuscia, Campania, Picenum, Samnium, Apulia, Lucania and Calabria, which were plundered by the Visigoths.source
• 413Jangsu becomes ruler of the Korean kingdom of Goguryeo.source
• 414Priscus Attalus is proclaimed rival emperor by the Visigoths for a second time at Bordeaux, in order to impose their terms on Honorius, who has his residence in Ravenna.source
• 414The Southern Liang, a state of the Sixteen Kingdoms during the Jin Dynasty, comes to an end.source
• 417Nulji becomes king of the Korean kingdom of Silla.source
• 417The Visigoths are granted Aquitaine, and become allies (foederati) of the Western Roman Empire. King Wallia establishes his capital at Toulouse.source
• 418Theodoric I becomes king of the Visigoths. He completes the settlements in Gallia Aquitania and expands his military power to the south.source
• 419A law is passed, prohibiting the act of instructing barbarians on shipbuilding in the Western and Eastern Roman Empires.source
• 420The Gupta Empire reaches its peak territorial extent under Chandragupta II and his son Kumaragupta I.source
• 420The Southern Dynasties begin in China.source
• 420Comes Asterius conducts campaign in Gallaecia and ends the usurpation of Maximus.source
• 422End of the Roman–Sassanid War: Emperor Theodosius II signs a 100-year peace treaty with Persia after 2 years of war. He agrees to a status quo ante bellum ("the state in which things were before the war"), and both parties guarantee liberty of religion in their territories.source
• 424July 7 – (Jing'ping era, 2nd year, 5th month (wǔyuè), the yi'you day) Emperor Shao of the Liu Song dynasty of China, is deposed by government ministers Xu Xianzhi and Fu Liang, who install his younger brother Prince Liu Yilong as the new Emperor.source
• 424Church of the East declares itself independent, under Catholicos of the East Dadisho.source
• 426Rex Flavius Gundericus of the Vandals accepts the request of the Alans in Hispania to become their ruler (approximate date).source
• 427The Roman province of Pannonia Prima is finally assimilated into the Hunnic Empire.source
• 428Flavius Felix is elected consul for the Western Empire and issues consular diptychs during his political office.source
• 430Feng Ba abdicates as emperor of the Northern Yan, one of the states vying for control of China. He is succeeded by his brother Feng Hong.source
• 431March 10 – Kʼukʼ Bahlam I, the first known ruler of the Mayan city-state of Palenque (the modern-day state of Chiapas in southern Mexico) comes to power and reigns until his death four years later.source
• 432The Huns are united by King Rugila (also called Rua) on the Hungarian Plain. He exacts annual peace payments from the Eastern Roman Empire.source
• 433Flavius Aetius returns to Italy with the support of the Huns. He gains control over the young emperor Valentinian III, and becomes his "protector".source
• 433Petronius Maximus is appointed consul of the Western Roman Empire.source
• 439The Vandals establish a North African granary that enables them to enforce their will on other nations, who are dependent on North Africa for grain and other food staples.source
• 441King Yazdegerd II of Persia signs a peace treaty after a short war with the Eastern Roman Empire. Theodosius II sends his commander, Anatolius, to conclude his terms and promise not to build any new fortifications along the border territories.source
• 443The Burgundians sign a peace treaty with Rome, agreeing to serve as foederati in the Roman army. They begin to move from the Upper Rhine and Flavius Aetius, commander-in-chief (magister militum), gives them land in the Geneva area (Maxima Sequanorum).source
• 447Theodosius II sends an embassy to Attila; Priscus of Panium, envoy for the Eastern Roman Empire. Priscus records one of the few eyewitness accounts of the Hun kingdom.source
• 448Emperor Theodosius II sends an embassy to Attila the Hun; Anatolius, an Eastern Roman general (magister militum) responsible for the security of the Eastern frontier, achieves a peace treaty with the Huns, in exchange for an annual tribute of 2100 lb kg of gold per year.source
• 448Rechiar succeeds his father Rechila as king of the Suebi in Galicia (Northern Spain). He marries a daughter of the Visigoth king Theodoric I and converts to Catholicism.source
• 451Thorismund succeeds his father Theodoric I as king of the Visigoths. He is crowned in the capital at Toulouse, and extends the Visigothic Kingdom in Hispania.source
• 453Anthemius marries Marcia Euphemia, daughter of Marcian, and is elevated to the rank of comes. He is sent to the Danubian frontier to rebuild the border defences.source
• 454Ardaric unites the Gepids with other Germanic tribes, and founds the Kingdom of the Gepids in the Pannonian Basin.source
• 455Maximus 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
• 455The Ostrogoths conquer Pannonia and Dalmatia.source
• 458Jabi becomes the king of the Korean kingdom of Silla.source
• 458Childeric 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.source
• 459Emperor 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).source
• 460The Hepthalites (White Huns) conquer the remnants of the Kushan Empire and enter India.source
• 461Aegidius becomes ruler over the Domain of Soissons (Gaul). He has friendly relations with the Romano-British (in Brittany).source
• 464The Suevic nation in Galicia (Northern Spain) is unified under King Remismund.source
• 465Ricimer, de facto ruler, establishes political control for 2 years from his residence in Rome.source
• 465King Remismund establishes a policy of friendship with the Visigoths, and promotes the conversion of the Suebi into Arianism in Galicia (Northern Spain).source
• 466Euric sends an embassy to the Eastern Roman Empire for recognition of the Visigoth sovereignty. He forms an alliance with the Suebi and the Vandals.source
• 467April 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.source
• 468November – 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
• 468Revolt of Euric: The Goths in Aquitania revolts. Their king Euric occupies the south of Gaul.source
• 468Dengizich, 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.source
• 469Ostrogoth prince Theodoric, age 15, returns to Pannonia, after living as a child hostage at the court of Emperor Leo I in Constantinople (see 459).source
• 470Odoacer becomes the leader of the Germanic tribes (Herulic – Scirian foederati) in Northern Italy (approximate date).source
• 471Northern 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.source
• 471Theodoric the Great, age 17, succeeds his father Theodemir as king of the Ostrogoths, settling his people in lower Moesia (Balkans).source
• 473Theodoric 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
• 474February 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.source
• 474June 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.source
• 475Summer – Emperor Julius Nepos grants the Visigoth King Euric legal tenure of his conquests, which include Provence (region of Gaul), in exchange for full independence.source
• 476The 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.source
• 477Aelle, 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.source
• 477The 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
• 478Chinese 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.source
• 479In July, emperor Qi Gao Di granted permission for Lý Thúc Hiến to continue his rule over Jiaozhou as its state governor.source
• 479Soji becomes king of the Korean kingdom of Silla.source
• 480Syagrius, ruler of Domain of Soissons, manages to maintain the Roman authority in northern Gaul. He defends his "kingdom" against the neighbouring Salian Franks.source
• 480Emperor 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.source
• 480Budhagupta, 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
• 482Legendary founding of Kyiv, on the banks of the Dnieper River.source
• 482Prince Qi Wudi succeeds his father Qi Gaodi, and becomes emperor of Southern Qi.source
• 483The Ostrogoths are given status as foederati; they control a large part of Macedonia and Thrace (Balkans).source
• 484July 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.source
• 484Zeno 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.source
• 484The Nvarsak Treaty is concluded between the Persians and Armenians.source
• 485Fearing 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.source
• 485Prince Kenzō succeeds his adoptive father Seinei, and becomes the 23rd emperor of Japan.source
• 486Clovis I establishes his new residence at Soissons. He appoints Ragnachar, Frankish petty king (regulus), as his deputy ruler.source
• 487July 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
• 491Munjamyeong becomes ruler of the Korean kingdom of Goguryeo.source
• 494Emperor 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.source
• 494Gelasius 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.)source
• 495Cerdic 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.source
• 497Emperor 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.source