A CHRONOLOGY OF THE COMMON ERA
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Compiled from sources on the internet and edited by Dimitris Sivyllis
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The mission of this website is to provide a comprehensive and accurate way to research and cross-reference information about the events, people and epochs which have shaped the Common Era. History is presented in a linear, timeline, format to emphasize the causality and interdependability of historical events and figures. The information in this website is shown in columns. You can select a variety of combination of columns to view depending on your research needs or screen size. Please wait for each page to load, then scroll down to find a Year, and scroll left and right to see all columns of info. To find a specific event or person use the "Find" function of your browser: type in a particular year, event, or name. |
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1. MILESTONES & EVENTS | ROME: POPES & EMPERORS | CONSTANTINOPLE: PATRIARCHS & EMPERORS | BRITAIN | FRANCE | WORLD
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INFORMATION IN THIS SITE UPDATED: 01:19 EST (6:19 GMT) 1/26/04
| OF THE COMMON ERA |
in ROME
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in ROME
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in CONSTANTINOPLE
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in CONSTANTINOPLE
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PRIME MINISTERS in BRITAIN
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PRESIDENTS of FRANCE
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WORLD |
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Birth of Jesus of Nazareth placed at 4 BCE |
||||||||
| 1 |
Common Era Begins | Anno Domini (AD) years begin to be counted |
1 | ||||||
| 14 |
Augustus dies. | Tiberius | 14 | ||||||
| 26 |
26-36 Pontius Pilate governor of Judea. John the Baptist is executed on orders from Herod Antipas. c. 26-29: Jesus of Nazareth travels around Judea and Galilee attracting discliples and crowds to his message of love and care for one another. Accounts of his disciples and followers, his parables and miracles, the opposition to his teaching, and his prophecies about his own fate, are collected by his disciples according to the oral tradition of the time. |
26 | |||||||
| 29 |
Jesus of Nazareth crucified in Jerusalem![]() Jesus' birth is estimated at 4 BCE; If the date for the death of John the Baptist is accurate at 26 CE, the crucifixion of Jesus must have taken place at 29 CE and he must have been 33 years of age. After the crucifiction, the Apostles begin spreading the teachings of Jesus, first in Judea and Galillee, then to the gentiles in Greece, Rome and elsewhere. The Apostle Paul (Saul) first uses the Greek word "Hristos" (Christ) to describe Jesus as the "Messiah" (Christ means Messiah in Greek) while preaching to the gentiles in Antioch. During the first decade after Jesus' crucifixion the church that grows in His name is split between those who follow James, brother of Jesus, and Peter, His favoprite disciple, who maintain that followers should abide by the Laws of Moses and be circumcised, and, the followers of Paul, mainly gentiles. Paul makes a passionate case at the First Apostolic Counsel for accepting gentiles into the faith but without forcing the Law of Moses to the letter upon them. Paul, arguably, is solely responsible for the fact that the teachings of Jesus, as told by Paul, reached the gentiles in Greece and Rome. Christianity, as it becomes known after the first decades, is seeded and will flourish within Judaism until the execution of James, brother of Jesus, and then among gentiles in Antioch, Athens, Ephesus, Corinth, Rome, Byzantium and elsewhere until the Third Century and subsequently evolve into a new religion in 325 CE with the establishment of The Creed of Faith. During the first two centuries of the Common Era Christian communities are established around the Mediterranean basin. The first Christians celebrate family suppers in memory of Jesus' Last Supper with the disciples before his crucifiction. This practice gives birth to the traditions which will eventually evolve into the Holy Litourgy (Mass) and the sharing of wine and bread to represent the Blood and Body of Christ. A tradition which culminates in the mystery of Eucharist (Communion) during litourgy, where it is believed that the offerings of wine and bread are transformed into the Blood and Body of Christ After the death of the Apostles Christian communities gradually develop their own separate theology, dogma and tradition, spreading the teachings of Christianity to all parts of the known world, throughout the Roman Empire. These rising variations on dogma and tradition will necessitate the First Oecumenical council which will be called by Emperor Constantine the Great, St. Constantine, in Nicea, near Constantinople, in 325 C.E. in order to proclaim one Creed of the Christian Faith. |
29 | |||||||
| 36 |
Stephen the "deacon" is martyred; the Church scatters | 36 | |||||||
| 37 |
Head of Christian Church at Byzantium (later Constantinople) named:
BISHOP of BYZANTIUM Jonathon, a son of Annas (High Priest from AD6-15), replaces Annas' son-in-law Caiaphas as High Priest in Jerusalem. Paul makes his first visit as a Christian to Jerusalem. This follows his journey to Arabia and return to Damascus to preach (Galatians 1:17). Paul is forced to leave Jerusalem and goes to his home town of Tarsus (Acts 9:30) |
Gaius (Caligula) | St. Andrew the Apostle | 37 | |||||
| 38 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM The conversion of Saul (later Paul) on the road to Damascus |
Stachys the Apostle | 38 | ||||||
| 39 |
Herod Antipas, tetrarch of Galilee and Perea, and his wife Herodias, are forced into exile in Gaul (France) by Caligula. Galilee and Perea are granted to King Herod Agrippa I to add to the territories already held since AD37 | 39 | |||||||
| 40 |
40-65 Missions of Paul and associates, especially to Gentiles The word Christians first used by Paul (Saul) to describe believers in Antioch AD40-50 - According to tradition, Matthew wrote the GOSPEL OF MATTHEW, originally in Aramaic. |
40 | |||||||
| 41 |
King Herod Agrippa I is now granted Judea and Samaria by Claudius. The line of Roman procurators temporarily comes to an end. After just four years, Agrippa I's kingdom equals that of his grandfather, Herod the Great (37-4BC). | Claudius | 41 | ||||||
| 42 |
Head of Christian Church at Rome named:
BISHOP OF ROME Paul joins Barnabas to work with the established church in Syrian Antioch |
1 St. Peter | 42 | ||||||
| 43 |
Under Claudius, the Roman conquest of Britannia (Britain) begins | 43 | |||||||
| 44 |
Herod Agrippa I, grandson of Herod the Great and son of the murdered Aristobulus is made king and granted Iturea and Trachonitis by his friend, the emperor Caligula. The territories were previously ruled by his deceased uncle, Philip. He is also granted Abilene, once ruled by Lysanias The apostle James, brother of John and son of Zebedee, is beheaded, and Peter imprisoned on the orders of King Herod Agrippa I (Acts 12:1-3) King Herod Agrippa I dies suddenly in Caesarea (Acts 12:23). His son, Agrippa II, is too young to rule, and all the Jewish provinces return to direct Roman control. Roman procurators are again appointed over Judea. Of Agrippa I's daughters, Drusilla later marries Felix, a Roman procurator of Judea (Acts 24:24), and Bernice becomes a close companion of her brother Agrippa II (Acts 25:13) |
44 | |||||||
| 45 |
AD45-50 - The LETTER OF JAMES is written, probably by James, brother of Jesus, sometime before the Council held at Jerusalem in c AD49 | 45 | |||||||
| 46 |
Paul's first missionary journey c AD46-48 | 46 | |||||||
| 47 |
47-48 Paul and Barnabas on Cyprus [Acts 13, 4-12] | 47 | |||||||
| 48 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM AD48 or 49 - Paul may have written his LETTER TO THE GALATIANS around this time from Syrian Antioch, or on the way to the Council of Jerusalem; otherwise c AD56 or 57 |
48 | |||||||
| 49 |
Apostolic Council held at Jerusalem Paul's second Missionary journey c AD49-52 |
49 | |||||||
| 50 |
50-95 Books of New Testament written Emperor Claudius expels the Jews from Rome Herod Agrippa II is old enough to be appointed king of Chalcis by emperor Claudius |
50 | |||||||
| 51 |
AD49-52 (range, 2 to 4 years between AD48-54) - Paul and Silas leave Syrian Antioch for the SECOND MISSIONARY JOURNEY. They travel through Asia Minor (present day Turkey), before crossing to Macedonia (northern Greece). Paul then sails south to Corinth in Achaia (southern Greece) and stays for 18 months. Here he appears before the proconsul Gallio, and writes his FIRST and SECOND LETTERS TO THE THESSALONIANS. Sailing for Palestine, he calls in at Ephesus (western Turkey), before returning to Syrian Antioch via Jerusalem | 51 | |||||||
| 52 |
AD50-60 - Oral traditions about the life and ministry of Jesus continue to be committed to writing, and collections assembled | 52 | |||||||
| 53 |
Paul's third Missionary journey c AD53-58 From AD53, King Herod Agrippa II, exchanges Chalcis for parts of Iturea and Trachonitis, Galilee and Perea. |
53 | |||||||
| 54 |
Claudius, Roman emperor, is poisoned, succeeded by Nero | Nero | Onesimus | 54 | |||||
| 58 |
c AD58-60 Paul's arrest in Jerusalem and imprisonment in Caesaria for trial before the procurator Felix. He is also seen by Drusilla, Felix's wife. Paul is kept in prison for two years | 58 | |||||||
| 60 |
In Britannia, Boadicea, queen of the Iceni, revolts against Roman rule but is defeated and killed by the Roman governor Suetonius Paulinus Paul's journey to Rome and continued imprisonment c AD60-63. Paul sails for Rome, is shipwrecked on Malta where he stays for three months and meets Publius, the chief official. He continues on to Rome via Sicily. Paul under house arrest in Rome for two years. During these years, he writes his Letters to the Colossians, to philemon, to the Ephesians, and to the Philippians |
60 | |||||||
| 63 |
Joseph of Arimathea came to Glastonbury on the first Christian mission to Britain | 63 | |||||||
| 64 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Paul's possible release from imprisonment in Rome c AD64-67 Paul may have been released from house arrest in Rome, and travelled to Spain?, Macedonia, Achaia, Crete, and Asia Minor (Turkey) c AD64-67 - The apostle Peter wrote the First Letter of Peter, and possibly the Second letter during this period c AD64 - During the persecutions that follow the fire, the apostles Peter and Paul may have been martyred. According to tradition Peter was crucified head downwards, and Paul beheaded, both in Rome. Paul, however, may have been on his further travels at this time, following his earlier release from house arrest, and Peter executed later Roman emperor Nero (37-68) accuses the Christians of having started the fire which destroyed large sections of Rome, thus initiating widespread persecution. |
64 | |||||||
| 65 |
The Letter to Hebrews addressed to Jewish Christians may have been written about this time c AD65-70 - The Gospel Of Mark may have been written, traditionally in Rome, around the time of Peter's execution |
65 | |||||||
| 66 |
If Paul was released, he would have written his First Letter to Timothy and his Letter to Titus around now, perhaps from the Macedonia area AD66-73 - Jewish war against Roman rule. The campaign in Judea is initially led by the Roman general Vespasian. Many Jews, and probably Christians leave Jerusalem |
66 | |||||||
| 67 |
Paul is possibly re-arrested, taken to Rome, and sometime before execution, wrote his Second Letter to Timothy. The Letter to Jude, brother of James and thus Jesus, may have been written around this time, possibly in Palestine |
2 St. Linus | 67 | ||||||
| 68 |
Emperor Nero commits suicide cAD68-70 - The Book of Revelation may have been written at this time, following the persecutions of Nero, but before the Fall of Jerusalem. Otherwise Revelation was written towards the end of the 1st century. Qumran (Essenes?) community destroyed by Rome, site of Dead Sea Scrolls found in 1949 |
68 | |||||||
| 69 |
After Nero's suicide, Galba, Otho and Vitellius are emperors of Rome in quick succession | Polycarpus I | 69 | ||||||
| 70 |
Jewish revolt, Sacking of Jerusalem by the Romans: Jerusalem is captured by Titus and the Temple destroyed Destruction of the Temple Diaspora begins Separation of Christianity from Judaism widens after capture of Jerusalem |
Vespasian | 70 | ||||||
| 73 |
Jewish resistance ends with the fall of the fortress of Masada, last remaining stronghold of Jewish Zealots | 73 | |||||||
| 75 |
75-77 The Roman conquest of Britain is complete as Wales is finally subdued; Julius Agricola is imperial governor (to 84) | 75 | |||||||
| 76 |
3 St. Anacletus | 76 | |||||||
| 79 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Mount Vesuvius catastrophic eruption. The Roman resort towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum are burried in the ashes, preserving a snapshot of Roman life for the millenia to come. |
79 | |||||||
| 80 |
c. 80-100 Gospel of Matthew is composed. | 80 | |||||||
| 81 |
Titus Domitian |
81 | |||||||
| 88 |
4 St. Clement I | 88 | |||||||
| 89 |
L. Antonius Saturninus | Plutarch | 89 | ||||||
| 90 |
cAD90-100 - The First, Second and Third Letters of John are written by the apostle John from Ephesus | 90 | |||||||
| 96 |
Nerva | 96 | |||||||
| 97 |
5 St. Evaristus | 97 | |||||||
| 98 |
Trajan | 98 | |||||||
| 100 |
The apostle John, according to tradition, dies a natural death at Ephesus c. 100-125 Gospel of John is composed. 100-150 Writings of apostolic fathers show a concern with unity and good order of churches First London Bridge is built across the Thames by the Romans. |
100 | |||||||
| 105 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
6 St. Alexander I | Sedecion | 105 | |||||
| 112 |
Pliny, governor of Bithynia, consults Emperor Trajan on how to deal with those accused as Christians | 112 | |||||||
| 114 |
Diogenes | 114 | |||||||
| 115 |
7 St. Sixtus I | 115 | |||||||
| 117 |
117-138: Hadrian emperor of Rome, improves defenses and codifies law. | Hadrian | 117 | ||||||
| 122 |
Construction of Hadrian's Wall in Britain begins, to mark the northernmost border of the empire separating the areas that are today England and Scotland. | 122 | |||||||
| 125 |
8 St. Telesphorus | 125 | |||||||
| 129 |
Eleutherius | 129 | |||||||
| 132 |
Shimeon Bar-Kokhba and Rabbi Akiba Ben-Joseph lead Jews in a revolt against Roman rule. They capture Jerusalem and create an independent state of Israel. | 132 | |||||||
| 133 |
Julius Severus governor of Britain is sent to Palestine to crush the revolt | 133 | |||||||
| 135 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Julius Severus, formerly governor of Britain, crushes the revolt in Palestine. Final Diaspora (dispersion) of the Jews occurs. |
135 | |||||||
| 136 |
The bishop of Rome, Hyginus, assumes the title of "pope" | 9 St. Hyginus | Felix | 136 | |||||
| 138 |
Antoninus Pius | 138 | |||||||
| 140 |
Justin founds school of Christian philosophy at Rome Shepherd of Hermas is written, presenting a highly developed system of bishops, deacons, and priests. |
10 St. Pius I | 140 | ||||||
| 141 |
Polycarpus II | 141 | |||||||
| 144 |
Athendodorus | 144 | |||||||
| 148 |
Euzois | 148 | |||||||
| 150 |
Four "canonical" gospels are collected together. School of Alexandria is founded in Egypt, quickly becoming a major center for both Christian theology and Greek philosophy. Among its prominent teachers are the theologians Clement (died c. 215) and Origen (c. 185 - 254). |
150 | |||||||
| 154 |
Laurence | 154 | |||||||
| 155 |
11 St. Anicetus | 155 | |||||||
| 161 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
Marcus Aurelius | 161 | ||||||
| 165 |
Justin's martyrdom | 165 | |||||||
| 166 |
Roman Emporer Marcus Aurelius sends gifts to Chinese Emperor Huan Ti. | Alypius | 166 | ||||||
| 167 |
At the request of King Lucius the missionaries Phagan and Deruvian were said to have been sent by Pope Eleutherius to convert the Britons to Christianity. This is perhaps the most widely believed of the legends of the founding of Christianity in Britain. | 167 | |||||||
| 168 |
12 St. Soterus | 168 | |||||||
| 169 |
Pertinax | 169 | |||||||
| 170 |
Celsus writes True Word, the first book opposing Christianity | 170 | |||||||
| 175 |
13 St. Eleutherius | Avidius Cassius | 175 | ||||||
| 180 |
180-200 Irenaeus of Lyons preaches to Celts in Gaul, refuting gnosticism Clement heads school of "true gnosticism" in Alexandria Irenaeus (125 - c. 202), Catholic theologian, writes Against Heresies in an attempt to fight the spread of Gnosticism. He claimed that "every church must agree" with the church of Rome because of its apostolic authority. First African Christians are martyred at Scillium. |
Commodus | 180 | ||||||
| 184 |
Lucius Artorius Castus commander of a detachment of Sarmatian conscripts stationed in Britain led his troops to Gaul to quell a rebellion. This is the first appearance of the name Artorius in history and some believe that this Roman military man is the original or basis for the Arthurian legend. The theory says that Castus' exploits in Gaul at the head of a contingent of mounted troops are the basis for later similar traditions about "King Arthur and, further, that the name Artorius" became a title or honorific which was ascribed to a famous warrior in the fifth century. | 184 | |||||||
| 187 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
Olympians | 187 | ||||||
| 189 |
14 St. Victor I | 189 | |||||||
| 190 |
Christian council determine "official" date of Easter. | 190 | |||||||
| 192 |
Pertinax | 192 | |||||||
| 193 |
Didius Julianus | 193 | |||||||
| 197 |
Tertullian begins writing apologetics in Carthage, Afica First recorded usage of the term "catholic" appears in the writings of Apollonius; used in reference to 1 John. The word ³catholic² in Greek means ³all encompassing² (uniqueness, no variation). |
197 | |||||||
| 198 |
Mark I | 198 | |||||||
| 199 |
5 St. Zephirinus | 199 | |||||||
| 200 |
First mention of Christians in Britain New Testament canon is mostly fixed in currently known form. |
200 | |||||||
| 203 |
Martyrdom of Perpetua and Felicitas in Carthage | 203 | |||||||
| 208 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Severus goes to defend Britain and repairs Hadrian's Wall |
208 | |||||||
| 209 |
St. Alban first British martyr was killed for his faith in one of the few persecutions of Christians ever to take place on the island during the governorship of Gaius Junius Faustinus Postumianus | 209 | |||||||
| 211 |
Antoninus (Caracalla) | Philadelphus | 211 | ||||||
| 212 |
Origen begins traveling, commending Christianity to high ranking officials throughout the empire | 212 | |||||||
| 215 |
Hippolytus of Rome compiles the Apostolic Tradition, describing how converts are to be discipled | 215 | |||||||
| 217 |
16 St. Calixtus I | Macrinus | Ciriacus I | 217 | |||||
| 218 |
Diadumenianus | 218 | |||||||
| 220 |
Goths invade Asia Minor | 220 | |||||||
| 221 |
[Hippolytus] | 221 | |||||||
| 222 |
17 St. Urban I | Severus Alexander | 222 | ||||||
| 225 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
L. Seius Sallustius | 225 | ||||||
| 230 |
Pope Urban I justifies the ownership of property by the Church, the elevation of bishops and the excommunication of heretics | 18 St. Pontianus | Castinus | 230 | |||||
| 231 |
Origen founds school at Caesarea (Palestine) | 231 | |||||||
| 235 |
19 St. Anterius | Maximinus Thrax | 235 | ||||||
| 236 |
20 St. Fabianus | 236 | |||||||
| 237 |
Eugenius I | 237 | |||||||
| 238 |
Gordian I | 238 | |||||||
| 240 |
Gregory "the Wonder Worker" appointed bishop of Pontus (in north Asia Minor) | Sabinianus | 240 | ||||||
| 242 |
Titus | 242 | |||||||
| 244 |
Philip the Arab | 244 | |||||||
| 246 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Paul of Thebes retreats to the Egyptian desert and becomes the first Christian hermit |
246 | |||||||
| 247 |
Philip Iunior | 247 | |||||||
| 248 |
Cyprian appointed bishop of Carthage, the largest church in Africa, only two years after his conversion Origen defends Christianity in Against Celsus |
Pacatianus | 248 | ||||||
| 249 |
Decius | 249 | |||||||
| 250 |
250-300: Increasing invasions of Rome by the Franks and the Goths Emperor Decius begins the first, though short-lived, general persecution of Christians |
250 | |||||||
| 251 |
21 St. Cornelius | 251 | |||||||
| 252 |
[Novatianus] | 252 | |||||||
| 253 |
22 St. Lucius I | 253 | |||||||
| 254 |
23 St. Stephen I | 254 | |||||||
| 256 |
Gaul overrun by the Germans from the Rhine | 256 | |||||||
| 257 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
24 St. Sixtus II | 257 | ||||||
| 259 |
25 St. Dionysius | 259 | |||||||
| 260 |
260-305 Porphyry, a Neoplatonist philosopher, writes multivolume Against the Christians | 260 | |||||||
| 264 |
A council excommunicates Paul of Samosata | 264 | |||||||
| 268 |
Goths sack Athens, Corinth, and Sparta. Lucianus of Antioch (born in Samosata) preaches that Jesus was only a man |
Claudius II Gothicus | 268 | ||||||
| 269 |
26 St. Felix I | Laelianus | 269 | ||||||
| 270 |
Monasticism begins to spread in Egypt and Syria, promoting Christianity in rural areas Anthony becomes a hermit in Egypt |
Quintillus | 270 | ||||||
| 271 |
Domitianus | 271 | |||||||
| 272 |
Vaballathus | Dometius | 272 | ||||||
| 273 |
Firmus | 273 | |||||||
| 274 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
Faustinus | 274 | ||||||
| 275 |
27 St. Eutychianus | Tacitus | 275 | ||||||
| 276 |
Mani is crucified by the Sassanids for tring to incorporate Judaism Christianity and Zoroastrianism into one religion ("manicheism") | Florianus | 276 | ||||||
| 280 |
Bonosus | 280 | |||||||
| 281 |
Saturninus | 281 | |||||||
| 282 |
Carus | 282 | |||||||
| 283 |
28 St. Caius | Numerianus | 283 | ||||||
| 284 |
Diocletian | Rufinus I | 284 | ||||||
| 285 |
Papa is ordained first bishop of Seleucia-Ctesiphon (the first "catholico | Maximianus Herculius | 285 | ||||||
| 286 |
Emperor Diocletian divides the empire - he rules the east and Maximilian rules the west. Diocletian instigates the Tetrarchy, Consisting of one Augustus and one Ceasar in each of the two partitions. The empire will be ruled by the two sets of rulers (one higher placed tha his second in command) for only twelve years before the seconds in command attack their superiors and then each other. This is the path followed by Constantine, starting as Ceasar in York, south through Gaul, across the Milvian Bridge and into Rome in 312 C.E. |
286 | |||||||
| 293 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
Allectus | Probus | 293 | |||||
| 296 |
29 St. Marcellinus | 296 | |||||||
| 297 |
L. Domitius Domitianus | 297 | |||||||
| 301 |
Armenia becomes the first country to make Christianity its state religion.
the Armenian king Tiridates I converted by Gregory the Illuminator |
301 | |||||||
| 303 |
Diocletian implements a Great Persecution of the Christians emperor Diocletian orders a general persecution of the Christians |
303 | |||||||
| 304 |
Vacant, | 304 | |||||||
| 305 |
Maximinus Daia | 305 | |||||||
| 306 |
Constantine proclaimed Emperor at York , Western Empire The first bishop of Nisibis is ordained |
Maxentius Constantine I |
Metrophanes | 306 | |||||
| 308 |
Constantine takes Gaul | 30 St. Marcellus I | L. Domitius Alexander | 308 | |||||
| 309 |
31 St. Eusebius | 309 | |||||||
| 311 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Donatus and others rebel against the appointment of the bishop of Carthage claiming independence of Church and state and claiming that the people could determine how worthy of administering sacraments a priest is |
32 St. Melchiades | 311 | ||||||
| 312 |
312-337: Constantine the Great reunites Roman Empire with new capital at Byzantion called Constantinople Roman emperor Constantine converts to Christianity |
312 | |||||||
| 313 |
Edict of Milan: After a victorius entry in Rome, following the battle of Milvian Bridge where Constantine defeated and killed Maxentius, Emperor Constantine issues the Edict of Milan, legalizing Christianity in the Roman Empire. ![]() Constantine ends the persecution of the Christians. A cathedral is built in Edessa |
313 | |||||||
| 314 |
Head of Church at Rome named: POPE Gregory the Illuminator founds Armenian church Donatism is condemned as a heresy |
33 St. Sylvester I | Valens | Alexander | 314 | ||||
| 315 |
Eusebius, the first church historian and later eulogist of Constantine, appointed bishop of Caesarea | 315 | |||||||
| 316 |
Donatism splits from Catholicism and spreads throughout Africa | 316 | |||||||
| 318 |
Pachomius a disciple of Anthony organizes a community of ascetics at Tabennis in Egypt (birth of Christian monasticism) | 318 | |||||||
| 320 |
Arius is expelled by the patriarch Alexander and during his travels through the eastern Roman empire converts more bishops | 320 | |||||||
| 323 |
Constantine builds a church to the apostle Peter on the Roman cemetery where the martyr is buried | 323 | |||||||
| 324 |
Head of Church at Constantinople named: ARCHBISHOP of CONSTANTINOPLE Constantine I achieves full control of Roman Empire. Constantine finally achieves full control over an undivided empire. He was a skillful politician who is popularly believed to have made Christianity the official religion of the empire because of his personal convictions. In actuality that act was merely an expedient intended to harness the power of its "God" for the benefit of the state. He re-located the imperial headquarters to Byzantium whose name he then changed to Constantinople. Despite his outward enthusiasm for Christianity and its powerful God he didn't close many pagan temples during his reign. He did however strip them of their former wealth which was then shifted to various Christian churches. This produced the result that many of the fledgling churches were put on a very firm financial footing and many of their members enjoyed great prosperity. The persecution of Christianity had stopped perhaps but its co-opting had just begun. Early Christianity had no official hierarchies and functioned best as a series of small church groups worshipping with and caring for their own members while spreading Christ's Gospel in their local areas. Constantine's move created a top-heavy structure that would quickly depart from its original purity; a church beholden to the state out of touch with the needs of its adherents and concerned only with its own comfort. Eusebius the early Christian historian has given us some additional insights into the motivations of the Emperor Constantine in his "Ecclesiastical History". |
Constantine I | 324 | ||||||
| 325 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Constantine calls the First Ecumenical Council at Nicea to condemn the Arian heresy, which had taught that the Son was inferior to the Father. The Nicene Creed, the Creed of Christian faith is established and will remain intact until the Schism of 1054. Council of Nicaea discusses the divine/human nature of Jesus and approves the Christian canon (the New Testament) against "heretic" books THE NICENE CREED I believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all ages. Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten, not created, of one essence with the Father, through whom all things were made. For us and for our salvation, He came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became man. He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and He suffered and was buried. On the third day He rose according to the Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead. His kingdom will have no end. And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Giver of Life, who proceeds from the Father, who together with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who spoke through the prophets. In one, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. I expect the resurrection of the dead. And the life of the age to come. Amen. |
325 | |||||||
| 330 |
Eastern Roman Empire
Constantine dedicates the city of Byzantium as the eastern capital of the Empire or "New Rome," renaming it Constantinople after himself. Byzantine Empire; Romiosine 330-1453 Nino converts Georgian royal family Amoun and Macarius found monasteries in the Egyptian desert Hilarion organizes a monastery at Gaza in Palestine Mar Augin founds a monastery in Syria near Nisibis |
330 | |||||||
| 334 |
the first bishop is ordained for Merv in Transoxania | 334 | |||||||
| 336 |
Arius, priest at Alexandria and founder of Arianism, dies. Arianism was one of the most widespread and divisive heresies in the history of Christianity. | 34 St. Marcus I | 336 | ||||||
| 337 |
Constantine received "Christian" baptism on his deathbed. Joint rule of Constantine's three sons: Constantine II (to 340); Constans (to 350); Constantius (to 361) | 35 St. Julius I | Paul I | Constantine II | 337 | ||||
| 339 |
Athanasius of Alexandria visits Rome accompanied by the two Egyptian monks Ammon and Isidore disciples of Anthony who export the idea of monasticism | Eusebius | 339 | ||||||
| 340 |
Roman legislation begins to favor Christianity and penalize paganism Christianization and literalization of the Goths (Ulfila and the "Gothic bible The first monastery of Persia is founded by Aphrahat near Mosul |
340 | |||||||
| 342 |
Macedonius I | 342 | |||||||
| 344 |
catholics are massacred in Persia | 344 | |||||||
| 345 |
Pachomius dies and his institution already counts eight monasteries and hundreds of monks organized in a hierarchy | 345 | |||||||
| 346 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
Paul I | 346 | ||||||
| 350 |
Christianity first reaches Ethiopia. Frumentius converts the royalty of Axum, Ethiopia. the missionary Ninian establishes the church Candida Casa at Whithorn in Galloway Scotland |
Magnentius | 350 | ||||||
| 351 |
Emperor Julian attempts to reintroduce paganism in the place of Christianity. | 351 | |||||||
| 352 |
36 Liberius | 352 | |||||||
| 355 |
Silvanus | 355 | |||||||
| 356 |
[Felix II] | 356 | |||||||
| 358 |
Basil founds the monastery of Annesos in Pontus the model for eastern monasticism (perfect Christian life and constant penance meditation + poverty + humility) | 358 | |||||||
| 360 |
Huns invade Europe Martin future bishop of Tours founds the first French monastery at Liguge the Vandals convert to christianity |
Eudoxius of Antioch | 360 | ||||||
| 361 |
Julian | 361 | |||||||
| 362 |
Marius Victorinus, one of Rome's most famous rhetors, converts, causing much public excitement | 362 | |||||||
| 363 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Persia recaptures Nisibis from the Romans and the school of Nisibis moves to Edessa |
Jovian | 363 | ||||||
| 364 |
Valentinian I | 364 | |||||||
| 365 |
Procopius | 365 | |||||||
| 366 |
37 St. Damasus I | Marcellus | 366 | ||||||
| 367 |
Festal Epistle of St. Athanasius (c. 293 - 373) offers earliest known list of the New Testament canon in its current form. | Gratian | 367 | ||||||
| 369 |
Roman general Theodosius drives the Picts and Scots out of Roman Britain | 369 | |||||||
| 370 |
Demophilus | 370 | |||||||
| 371 |
The Hunns cross the river Volga into Europe having left Mongolia in the 2nd century leadin a nomadic life in their trek west. They are defeated in the battle of the field of Nations and depart Europe returning East beyond the Ural Mountains. Martin, evangelist to the pagans of central Gaul, is elected bishop of Tours Martin of Tours converts pagans |
371 | |||||||
| 372 |
Buddhism introduced into Korea. | Firmus | 372 | ||||||
| 374 |
Ambrose is elected bishop of Milan which has become the main Christian center in Italy | 374 | |||||||
| 375 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM the Jerusalem Talmud (manual of lifestyle) is compiled by western Jews |
Valentinian II | 375 | ||||||
| 376 |
Huns conquer Russia Visigoths convert to Arian christianity |
376 | |||||||
| 378 |
Theodosius I The Great |
378 | |||||||
| 379 |
the Roman empire bans Arianism | [Evagrius] | 379 | ||||||
| 380 |
Emperor Theodosius makes orthodox Christianity the official religion of the empire Ulphilas, Arian missionary bishop among Goths and translator of Gothic Bible, dies Theodosius I proclaims Christianity as the sole religion of the Roman Empire Ambrose preaches virginity |
[Maximus] | 380 | ||||||
| 381 |
Council II, Constantinople I, Arianism condemned; regarded as definitively establishing Roman Catholic orthodoxy Head of Church at Constantinople named: PATRIARCH of CONSTANTINOPLE Second Ecumenical Council convoked by Theodosius I in Constantinople |
Nectarius | 381 | ||||||
| 383 |
Magnus Maximus (Macsen Wledig a Spaniard was proclaimed Emperor in Britain by the island's Roman garrison. With an army of British volunteers he quickly conquered Gaul Spain and Italy. | [Ursinus] | Magnus Maximus | 383 | |||||
| 384 |
38 St. Siricius | Flavius Victor | 384 | ||||||
| 386 |
Jerome founds monasteries in Bethlehem | 386 | |||||||
| 388 |
Maximus occupied Rome itself. Theodosius the eastern Emperor defeated him in battle and beheaded him in July 388 with many of the remnant of Maximus' troops settling in Armorica. The net result to Britain was the loss of many valuable troops needed for the island's defense (the "first migration"). | 388 | |||||||
| 392 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM 392-395:Theodosius the Great, last united Roman emperor |
Eugenius | 392 | ||||||
| 393 |
Honorius | 393 | |||||||
| 395 |
PARTITION : WESTERN ROMAN EMPIRE |
Arcadius | 395 | ||||||
| 397 |
the eight council (at Carthage) defines the Christian canon (the "New Testament") as comprised of four official gospels (all others are declared heretic) and the letters of the apostles | 397 | |||||||
| 398 |
Maximus of Turin preaches against pagans | John I | 398 | ||||||
| 399 |
9 St. Anastasius I | 399 | |||||||
| 400 |
Jerome (Eusebius Hieronymus) translates the Bible into Latin (the "Vulgate | 400 | |||||||
| 401 |
Innocent I becomes Pope (until 417) and claims universal jurisdiction over the Roman Church. | 40 St. Innocent I | 401 | ||||||
| 404 |
Arsacius | 404 | |||||||
| 405 |
c. 405 St. Jerome (c. 347 - 419) completes the Vulgate - a Latin translation of both the Old and New Testaments. This remains the Latin Bible of the Roman Catholic Church. | 405 | |||||||
| 406 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
Marcus | Atticus | 406 | |||||
| 407 |
Gratian | 407 | |||||||
| 408 |
Theodosius II | 408 | |||||||
| 409 |
Constans II | 409 | |||||||
| 410 |
The Goths led by Alarik sack Rome At the council of Seleucia the Persian church declares its independence from Antioch and Rome The ascetic monk Maron sounds the Christian Maronite religion in Syria |
410 | |||||||
| 411 |
Thanks to Augustine Donatism begins to decline | Jovinus | 411 | ||||||
| 412 |
Sebastianus | 412 | |||||||
| 414 |
Priscus Attalus | 414 | |||||||
| 415 |
Roman emperor Theodosius II expels the Jews from Alexandria | 415 | |||||||
| 417 |
41 St. Zosimus | 417 | |||||||
| 418 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM British monk Pelagius (c. 354 - 420) is excommunicated. Pelagius denied original sin and the need for baptism, asserting that if God asked men to do good, then they must be capable of doing good on their own. He was condemned by Augustine. |
42 St. Boniface I | 418 | ||||||
| 421 |
[Eulatius] | Constantius III | 421 | ||||||
| 422 |
43 St. Celestine I | 422 | |||||||
| 423 |
Johannes | 423 | |||||||
| 424 |
At the synod of Dadyeshu the "catholico" of the Eastern Church proclaims himself as a patriarch on equal footing with Antioch and Rome | 424 | |||||||
| 425 |
The first bishops are ordained for Herat and Samarkand | Valentinian III | 425 | ||||||
| 426 |
Sisinius I | 426 | |||||||
| 428 |
Nestorius a monk in the Syrian monastery of Euprepius is appointed by the eastern Roman emperor Theodosius II as patriarch of Constantinople and preaches the doctrine of two natures of Jesus | Nestorius | 428 | ||||||
| 431 |
Council III, Ephesus, The Third Ecumenical Council at Ephesus condemns the Nestorian heresy and approves the veneration of the Virgin Mary as Theotokos (God-Bearer or Mother of God). The Nestorians go into exile in the Persian Empire and become the Assyrian Orthodox Church of the East. Palladius is sent by the Pope as first bishop of Ireland the third Ecumenical Council convened in Ephesus declares that there is only one nature in Jesus (divine condemns Nestorius (who is then banned by Theodosius II) and affirms that Mary was the "mother of God" |
Maximianus | 431 | ||||||
| 432 |
The Roman missionary Patrick is taken prisoner to Ireland | 44St. Sixtus III | 432 | ||||||
| 433 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Attila becomes ruler of the Huns (until 453). He attacks Roman provinces |
433 | |||||||
| 434 |
Proclus | 434 | |||||||
| 440 |
The hermit Symeon the Stylite lives on top of a column (monastery of Telanissos in Syria | 45 St. Leo I | 440 | ||||||
| 445 |
The emperor Valentinian III decrees that all western bishops must obey the pope | 445 | |||||||
| 446 |
Flavian | 446 | |||||||
| 449 |
Anatolius | 449 | |||||||
| 450 |
Angles, Saxons and Jutes begin conquest of Britain after Romans leave the first British monasteries are established in Wales Theodosius II dies and Marcian succeeds him the first Roman emperor to be crowned by a religious leader (the patriarch of Constantinople) |
Marcian (m. Pulcheria, gnddghtr Theod I) | 450 | ||||||
| 451 |
Council IV, Chalcedon, The Fourth Ecumenical Council at Chalcedon condemns the Monophysite heresy and affirms that Christ had both a divine and a human nature. The Armenian, Coptic, Ethiopian, and Syrian Orthodox Churches would remain Monophysite; the Greek Orthodox church and the Western church adopted the Chalcedonian or Dyophysite position. Fatal disaffection of Syria & Egypt. This Council also gives Constantinople equal standing with "Old" Rome. Attila invades Gaul but is repulsed by joint forces of Franks, Alemanni and Romans at battle of Chalons. Invades Italy the next year. the fourth Ecumenical Council convened in Chalcedon condemns Dioscurus of Alexandria for monophysitism (Jesus is of one nature only divine) and affirms that Jesus was one person of two natures (both human and divine) which causes the schism of the Coptic Orthodox church from the Churches of Rome and Constantinople |
451 | |||||||
| 455 |
Vandals destroy Rome | Petronius Maximus | 455 | ||||||
| 457 |
The eastern Roman emperor is crowned by the patriarch of Constantinople instead of the Pope | Majorian | Dynasty of Leo | 457 | |||||
| 458 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM 458-751: Merovingian Dynasty rules in France |
Gennadius I | 458 | ||||||
| 460 |
Persian king Firuz persecutes Jews who emigrate to Arabia | 460 | |||||||
| 461 |
46 St. Hilarus (Hilary) | Libius Severus | 461 | ||||||
| 467 |
Anthemius | 467 | |||||||
| 468 |
47 St. Simplicius | Arvandus | 468 | ||||||
| 470 |
Romanus | 470 | |||||||
| 471 |
Acacius | 471 | |||||||
| 472 |
Olybrius | 472 | |||||||
| 473 |
Glycerius | 473 | |||||||
| 474 |
Julius Nepos | Leo II | 474 | ||||||
| 475 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
Romulus Augustulus | 475 | ||||||
| 476 |
End of the Western Roman Empire Odoacer, German cheiftan, ends Western Roman Empire when he overthrows the last emperor, Romulus Augustulus and becomes King of Italy |
476 | |||||||
| 481 |
Emperor Zeno shuts down the Nestorian school of Edessa causing Nestorian scholars to flee to Persia (Nisibis) | 481 | |||||||
| 483 |
48 St. Felix III | 483 | |||||||
| 484 |
The Synod of Beth Papat in Persia declares the Nestorian docrine (two natures of Jesus) as the official theology of the East Syrian Church centered in Edessa | 484 | |||||||
| 488 |
Phrabitas | 488 | |||||||
| 489 |
Euphemius | 489 | |||||||
| 490 |
Vandals take part of Spain and make Toledo their capital Brigid founds the monastery of Kildare in Ireland |
490 | |||||||
| 491 |
Anastasius | 491 | |||||||
| 492 |
49 St. Gelasius I | 492 | |||||||
| 493 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Theodoric the Great establishes Ostrogothic Kingdom in Italy |
493 | |||||||
| 495 |
Macedonus II | 495 | |||||||
| 496 |
Clovis, ruler of the Franks, converts to Christianity Clovis converts Franks to catholicism |
50 St. Anastasius II | 496 | ||||||
| 498 |
51 St. Symmachus [Laurentius] |
498 | |||||||
| 499 |
The Babylonian Talmud is compiled for eastern Jews a much more orthodox manual of lifestyle than the western Talmud | 499 | |||||||
| 500 |
The legend of Arthur, King of the Britons and his knights of the Round table is usually assumed to refer to a time between the 6th and 8th centuries. Although no evidence has ever been found of Camelot, the round table or of the existence of Arthur himself, his legend may be a composite of several personages from the eras preceding the establishment of the first kings and the House of Wessex. Pseudo-Dionysius writes mystical works c.500-50 - Spread of Celtic monasticism throughout Europe |
500 | |||||||
| 511 |
Timothy | 511 | |||||||
| 514 |
52 St. Hormisdas | 514 | |||||||
| 518 |
John II | Justin | 518 | ||||||
| 520 |
Epiphanius | 520 | |||||||
| 523 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
53 St. John I | 523 | ||||||
| 526 |
54 St. Felix IV | 526 | |||||||
| 527 |
Reign of Justinian I begins Arguably the most important of Byzantine Emperors and the one who marked the final transition from the latin past and paganism to a purely Christian, Greek Empire.
Justin was advised that he should work with Justinian as co-emperor. When Justin died, Justinian became the sole ruler of the Eastern Roman Empire. Justinian began making harsh rules against the pagans and their religion, and forced people to accept Christianity. It can be seen as the first forceful action of Christianity. He destroyed synagogues and Jewish temples all over his empire. Justinian built vast structures of Byzantine, not Roman, art. He is seen as one of the founders of the "Byzantine Empire", as opposed to the East Roman Empire. His reign was filled with military success through his two great generals, Belisarius and Narsus. At the end of his reign, he controlled a part of Spain, Africa, Italy, Turkey and much of the east. Justinian created the Justinian code, which replaced the old Roman laws and set the foundation for subsequent western legal systems. Byzantium enforces anti-Jewish laws and the Jews all but disappear from the eastern Roman Empire |
Justinian I | 527 | ||||||
| 529 |
Emperor Justinian I issues the Code of Laws Justinian closes the pagan Philosophical Academy in Athens. Benedetto of Nursia founds the monastery of Monte Cassino and codifies western monasticism (absolute power of the abbot The council of Orange condemns the Pelagian heresy and accepts Augustine's doctrine of salvation. |
529 | |||||||
| 530 |
The Benedictine monk Cassiodorus encourages monks to copy manuscripts of the classics | 55 Boniface II | 530 | ||||||
| 532 |
532-537: Aghia Sofia, the new cathedral of Constantinople, is built by order of Justinian, on the site of the earlier Church of Aghia Sofia which was consumed by fire. Legend has it that a beekeeper noticed that bees in one of the beehives had fashioned what appeared to be the model of a magnificent church out of wax. He took the miraculous find to the palace and presented it to Empress Theodora who then prompted her husband to commission the building of the most magnificent Church in Christiandom. |
532 | |||||||
| 533 |
Mercurius is elected pope and takes the name of John II the first pope to change name upon election | 56 John II | 533 | ||||||
| 534 |
The Roman empire destroys the Arian kingdom of the Vandals | 534 | |||||||
| 535 |
57 St. Agapetus I | Anthimus I | 535 | ||||||
| 536 |
58 St. Sylverius | Menas | 536 | ||||||
| 537 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM
The church of Aghia Sofia (Holy Wisdom) commissioned in Constantinople by Emperor Justinian and his wife Theodora is completed by architects Isidoros and Anthemios ![]() |
59 Vigilius | 537 | ||||||
| 541 |
Jacob Bardaeus bishop of Edessa organizes the Monophysite Church in western Syria (the "Jacobites") | 541 | |||||||
| 544 |
Ciaran founds the monastery of Clonmacnoise in Ireland | 544 | |||||||
| 546 |
Columbanus founds the monastery of Derry in Ireland | 546 | |||||||
| 552 |
Eutychius | 552 | |||||||
| 553 |
Council V, Constantinople II, Monophysitism condemned again. The Ecumenical Council condemns the heresy of the Three Chapters |
553 | |||||||
| 556 |
Columbanus founds the monastery of Durrow in Ireland | 60 Pelagius I | 556 | ||||||
| 561 |
61 John III | 561 | |||||||
| 563 |
Columbanus founds the monastery of Iona off the coast of Scotland soon to become the main center of the Columban school | 563 | |||||||
| 565 |
John III | Justin II | 565 | ||||||
| 570 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam, born during the reign of Khusro Anosharwan. His father was of the Quraysh tribe (the name means ' shark ' and may have been derived from an ancient tribal emblem.) This tribe gained much power and influence, both because of their commercial activity in their hub at the city of Mecca, and because of their importation and custody of important idols at Mecca. |
570 | |||||||
| 573 |
Gregory is appointed bishop of Tours | 573 | |||||||
| 575 |
62 Benedict I | 575 | |||||||
| 578 |
Tiberius II (I) Constantine | 578 | |||||||
| 579 |
63 Pelagius II | 579 | |||||||
| 580 |
Monte Cassino is sacked by the Lombards and the monks flee to Rome | 580 | |||||||
| 582 |
John IVBR>Nesteutes, the Faster | Maurice | 582 | ||||||
| 587 |
The Visigothic king Recared converts to catholicism | 587 | |||||||
| 588 |
The Visigoths abandon Aryanism and convert to catholicism | 588 | |||||||
| 590 |
For the first time a monk is elected Pope Gregory I | 64 St. Gregory I | 590 | ||||||
| 596 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
Cyriacus | 596 | ||||||
| 597 |
The Roman brand of Christianity is brought to Britain for the first time by St. Augustine the missionary sent with forty monks by Pope Gregory to convert the Saxons. Augustine founded a monastery and the first church at Canterbury and was proclaimed its first Archbishop. | 597 | |||||||
| 600 |
Pope Gregory I promulgates the doctrine of salvation through confession and penance | 600 | |||||||
| 601 |
Augustine converts king Ethelbert of Kent and establishes the see of Canterbury with himself as its first archbishop | 601 | |||||||
| 602 |
Phocas | 602 | |||||||
| 603 |
The Lombards convert to Christianity and move their capital to Pavia | 603 | |||||||
| 604 |
Gregory I dies | 65 Sabinianus | 604 | ||||||
| 607 |
66 Boniface III | Thomas I | 607 | ||||||
| 608 |
67 St. Boniface IV | 608 | |||||||
| 609 |
The Irish monk Colombanus founds the monastery at Bobbio | 609 | |||||||
| 610 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Muhammad and his followers go to Mecca, where they are not accepted |
Sergius I | Heraclius | 610 | |||||
| 612 |
The Visigothic king Sisebut forces the Jews of Spain to release all slaves and convert to Christianity | 612 | |||||||
| 613 |
Clotaire II and Dagobert I unify France after years of continual disunity | 613 | |||||||
| 615 |
Colombanus dies in Italy | 68 St. Deusdedit | 615 | ||||||
| 619 |
69 Boniface V | 619 | |||||||
| 620 |
The Visigoths in Spain persecute the Jews | 620 | |||||||
| 622 |
Muhammad and his followers flee Mecca to Medina. The year of that flight, or Hijrah, became the first year of the Islamic calendar, and the beginning the Muslim era. | 622 | |||||||
| 625 |
70 Honorius I | 625 | |||||||
| 627 |
Pope Gregory I sends Paulinus to found the see of York and convert king Edwin of Northumbria | 627 | |||||||
| 632 |
Muhammad in Mecca pronounced the perfection of the new religion. Muhammad dies |
Muhammed flees Mecca, beginning the Muslim era. | 632 | ||||||
| 634 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Muslim (Arab) Empire grows |
634 | |||||||
| 635 |
Cynegils king of Wessex converts to christianity | 635 | |||||||
| 636 |
Arabs capture Jerusalem | 636 | |||||||
| 637 |
Arabs conquer Jerusalem | 637 | |||||||
| 638 |
Omar defeats the Byzantine army the Arabs allow the Jews to return to Jerusalem |
Vacant | Pyrrhus | 638 | |||||
| 639 |
The Arabs conquer Syria (mainly Nestorian) from Byzantium | 639 | |||||||
| 640 |
71 Severinus | 640 | |||||||
| 641 |
Muslims conquer Persia | Paul II | Heraclonas | 641 | |||||
| 642 |
the Arabs conquer Egypt (mainly monophysite) from Byzantium | 73 Theodore I | 642 | ||||||
| 647 |
Amadeus bishop of Maastricht carries out missionary work in Frisia (Holland) and among the Slavs | 647 | |||||||
| 649 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
74 St. Martin I
Arrested and died in exile in Crimea |
649 | ||||||
| 650 |
Arianism disappears after the Lombards convert to catholicism | 650 | |||||||
| 654 |
75 St. Eugenius I | Peter | 654 | ||||||
| 657 |
King Oswy of Northumberland founds the Benedictine monastery of Whitby in Yorkshire | 76 St. Vitalianus | 657 | ||||||
| 663 |
Constans II is the last eastern Roman emperor to set foot in Rome | 663 | |||||||
| 664 |
Iona monk Wilfrid is appointed bishop of York | 664 | |||||||
| 667 |
Thomas II | 667 | |||||||
| 668 |
The monk Theodore of Tarsus is appointed as archbishop of Canterbury | Constantine IV | 668 | ||||||
| 669 |
John V | 669 | |||||||
| 670 |
Arabs attack N. Africa Whitby monk Caedmon translates the gothic Bible into Germanic vernacular (ancient english |
670 | |||||||
| 672 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
77 Adeodatus | 672 | ||||||
| 674 |
Benedict Biscop founds the monastery of Wearmouth in Northumbria | 674 | |||||||
| 675 |
Constantine I | 675 | |||||||
| 676 |
78 Domnus (I) | 676 | |||||||
| 677 |
Theodore I | 677 | |||||||
| 678 |
Wilfrid evangelizes in Frisia (Holland | 79 St. Agathon | 678 | ||||||
| 679 |
George I | 679 | |||||||
| 680 |
680-681 Council VI,Constantinople III, Monotheletism condemned |
680 | |||||||
| 681 |
Benedict founds the monastery of Jarrow in Northumbria | 681 | |||||||
| 682 |
80 St. Leo II | 682 | |||||||
| 684 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
81 St. Benedict II | 684 | ||||||
| 685 |
John V is the first of a series of Greek and Syriac Popes under the influence of Constantinople | 82 John V | Justinian II (banished) | 685 | |||||
| 686 |
83 Conon | 686 | |||||||
| 687 |
The Danes destroy the monastery of Whitbey | 84 St. Sergius I
Ordered arrested but Italian garrison refuses [Paschal] [Theodorus] |
687 | ||||||
| 690 |
English missionary Willibrord evangelizes in Holland and Denmark | 690 | |||||||
| 693 |
Callinicus I | 693 | |||||||
| 694 |
The Visigothic king Egica orders all Jews enslaved | 694 | |||||||
| 695 |
Leontius | 695 | |||||||
| 698 |
Arabs capture Carthage | Tiberius III(II) | 698 | ||||||
| 700 |
Babylonian Jews extend their influence as the Arab conquest spreads west | 700 | |||||||
| 701 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
85 John VI | 701 | ||||||
| 705 |
86 John VII | Cyrus | Justinian II (restored) | 705 | |||||
| 708 |
87 Sisinnius
88 Constantine I Last Pope to visit Constantinople |
708 | |||||||
| 711 |
Tariq ibn-Ziyad and a Berber army cross the Strait of Gibraltar into Iberia (Spain) The Arabs conquer southern Spain from the Visigoths (with help from the Jews) |
Bardanes | 711 | ||||||
| 712 |
John VI | 712 | |||||||
| 713 |
Anastasius II | 713 | |||||||
| 715 |
89 St. Gregory II | Germanus I | 715 | ||||||
| 716 |
Arab empire extends from Lisbon, Spain to China Iona conforms to Roman usage |
Theodosius III | 716 | ||||||
| 717 |
Leo III | 717 | |||||||
| 719 |
Arabs complete their conquest in Spain | 719 | |||||||
| 722 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM the Anglosaxon Benedectine monk Boniface (Wynfrid) evangelizes in Saxony |
722 | |||||||
| 726 |
During the iconoclasm Constantinople orders all images to be destroyed | 726 | |||||||
| 730 |
Byzantine Emperor Leo III bans the veneration of images and relics, inaugurating the first period of Iconoclasm. | Anastasius | 730 | ||||||
| 731 |
Bede writes the "Ecclesiastical History of the English People | 90 St. Gregory III Appeals to Franks for help against Lombards |
731 | ||||||
| 732 |
Charles Martel halts Arabian advance in France The Muslim invasion of Europe is stopped by the Franks at the battle of Tours |
732 | |||||||
| 739 |
Boniface reforms the Frankish church | 739 | |||||||
| 741 |
91 St. Zachary | Constantine V Copronymus | 741 | ||||||
| 744 |
Boniface founds the monastery of Fulda in Germany | 744 | |||||||
| 751 |
Pepin the Short, Martel's son, becomes King of the Franks Pepin sends help to the Pope in Italy The Lombards under king Aistulf conquer Ravenna from the Byzantines and indirectly release Rome from the influence of Constantinople |
751 | |||||||
| 752 |
Stephen II is Pope for only one day | 92 Stephen II
93 Stephen III |
752 | ||||||
| 754 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Donation of Pepin, Byzantine Exarchate of Ravennabecomes Papal States Although the Pope had been the de facto governor of Rome for a few years, the Donation of Pepin in 754 begins the formal history of the Papacy as a territorial power. This would last until 1870, giving the Papal States a run of 1116 years. The origin terms of the grant were for the "Exarchate of Ravenna," i.e. the Roman Imperial territory that was preserved across central Italy after the invasion of Lombards in 568. The most important parts of this were, of course, Rome itself and the area of Romagna around Ravenna in the north, with a narrow salient connecting them. Boniface is killed by Frisians pope Stephen II anoints Pepin III king of the Franks |
Constantine II | 754 | ||||||
| 756 |
The Caliphrate of Cordoba is founded by Abd-ar-Rahma in Spain Pepin again fights for the Pope in Italy, Papal States formed Pepin III defeats the Lombards and conquers Ravenna but leaves the conquered territories to the Pope thereby founding the Papal State and establishing a temporal power for the Pope |
756 | |||||||
| 757 |
94 St. Paul I | 757 | |||||||
| 766 |
Nicetas I | 766 | |||||||
| 767 |
[Constantine II]
[Philip] |
767 | |||||||
| 768 |
The Frankish kindom is divided among Pepin's sons: Carloman and Charlemagne (Charles | 95 Stephen IV | 768 | ||||||
| 769 |
At the Lateran council the cardinals decide that only cardinals can become popes | 769 | |||||||
| 771 |
771-814: Charlemagne rules in France, conquers Lombards, part of Spain, Bavarians, Avars, and the Saxons
![]() |
771 | |||||||
| 772 |
96 Adrian I | 772 | |||||||
| 775 |
The Eastern patriarchate moves from Seleucia-Ctesiphon to Baghdad | Leo IV | 775 | ||||||
| 780 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
Paul IV, | Constantine VI | 780 | |||||
| 782 |
Charlemagne summons the monk and scholar Alcuin of York to head the palace school at Aachen: revival of learning in Europe | 782 | |||||||
| 784 |
Tarasius | 784 | |||||||
| 787 |
The Seventh Ecumenical Council, Nicea II, condemns iconoclasm and restores the veneration of images underguidance of Empress Irene. | 787 | |||||||
| 790 |
Vikings begin to attack the British Isles | 790 | |||||||
| 793 |
Vikings invade Britain for the first time in a surprise attack on the monastic community at Lindisfarne (Holy Island) | 793 | |||||||
| 795 |
97 St. Leo III | 795 | |||||||
| 797 |
Irene | 797 | |||||||
| 800 |
St. Leo III crowns Charlemagne Roman Emperor; gives Papacy basis for claiming sovereign rights over later Holy Roman Emperors Pope Leo III crowns Charles emperor of the Holy Roman Empire and therefore introduces theocratic monarchy in Europe |
800 | |||||||
| 802 |
Nicephorus I | House of Wessex Egbert |
802 | ||||||
| 806 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
Nicephorus I | 806 | ||||||
| 811 |
Strauracius | 811 | |||||||
| 813 |
Charlemagne's son, Louis the Pious, is crowned by his father | Leo V | 813 | ||||||
| 814 |
Charlemagne dies, succeeded by his son Louis the Pious | Later Carolingian Transition Louis I (not a king of 'France') |
814 | ||||||
| 815 |
A council called by Emperor Leo V again bans images, inaugurating the second period of Iconoclasm. | Theodotus I, | 815 | ||||||
| 816 |
98 Stephen V | 816 | |||||||
| 817 |
Louis the Pious decides to divide his empire between his sons Lothair (emperor) and his other two sons as kings of two other subordinate kingdoms Benedict of Ariane draws up the monastic constitution of Benedectine monasteries (monks as a political entity that mediates between laity and deity |
99 St. Paschal I | 817 | ||||||
| 820 |
Phrygian Dynasty | 820 | |||||||
| 821 |
Anthony I | 821 | |||||||
| 822 |
Mojmir prince of Morava converts to christianity | 822 | |||||||
| 824 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
100 Eugenius II | 824 | ||||||
| 826 |
826-27: Arabs conquer Crete, Sicily and Sardinia the Frankish missionary Angkar bishop of Hamburg evangelizes in Denmark and Sweden Harald Klak of Denmark converts to Christianity |
826 | |||||||
| 827 |
101 Valentinus
102 Gregory IV |
827 | |||||||
| 828 |
Egbert of Wessex is recognized as overlord of other English kings | 828 | |||||||
| 829 |
Theophilus | 829 | |||||||
| 830 |
The Kirghiz drive the Uighurs west to the Tarim Basin | 830 | |||||||
| 836 |
John VII | 836 | |||||||
| 839 |
Aethelwulf | 839 | |||||||
| 840 |
Charles II (the Bald) |
840 | |||||||
| 842 |
Michael III | 842 | |||||||
| 843 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Empress Theodora restores the veneration of images on the First Sunday of Lent, which became known as the Sunday of Orthodoxy. End of the Iconoclastic struggle Triumph of Orthodoxy the "Restoration of the images" in Constantinople solves the iconoclastic controversy |
Methodius I | 843 | ||||||
| 844 |
Kenneth MacAlpine King of the Scots conquers the Picts; founds a unified Scotland | 103 Sergius II | 844 | ||||||
| 845 |
the Irish theologian Johannes Scotus Erigena (John the Scot) takes over the Palatine Academy in France | 845 | |||||||
| 847 |
104 St. Leo IV | Ignatius | 847 | ||||||
| 849 |
caliph al-Mutawakkil deposes the patriarch of the Eastern Christian Church and persecutes Christians | 849 | |||||||
| 852 |
Ansgar founds the churches at Hedeby and Ribe in Denmark | 852 | |||||||
| 855 |
855-79: Russian nation founded by the Vikings under Prince Rurik | 105 Benedict III
[Anastasius] |
Aethelbald | 855 | |||||
| 858 |
Emperor Michael III deposes Patriarch Ignatius and installs Photius, a learned layman. Nicholas I becomes pope and asserts the independence of the Church from local authorities and from Constantinople |
106 St. Nicholas I | Photius | 858 | |||||
| 859 |
Vikings repulsed in the Mediterranean | 859 | |||||||
| 860 |
Aethelbert | 860 | |||||||
| 861 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Vikings discover Iceland the Khazars convert to Judaism |
861 | |||||||
| 862 |
Byzantine Emperor Michael III ("the Drunkard") sends Constantine (later Cyril, died 869) and his brother Methodius (died 885) to Moravia to teach Christianity to the Slavs. They translated the Bible and other religious writings into Old Church Slavonic. These "Apostles to the Slavs" also had the support of the Popes of Rome, Hadrian II and John VIII.
Boris of Bulgary converts to christianity Ratislav of Moravia converts to christianity |
862 | |||||||
| 863 |
Cyril and Methodius from Constantinople write the Slavic bible in the first Slavic alphabet glagolitic | 863 | |||||||
| 866 |
Aethelred | 866 | |||||||
| 867 |
Rivalry between Greek and Latin missionaries to Bulgaria prompts Photius to convene a council that deposes Pope Nicholas III, and attacks Western notions of papal primacy and many Western practices, including the insertion of the word "filioque" into the Nicene Creed. The Eastern church now dates the East-West split from this event (the Photian Schism). Also see 1054 CE |
107 Adrian II | Basil I | 867 | |||||
| 869 |
869-870 Council VIII,Constantinople IV, patched up filioque and other differences, later repudiated by East, last Oecumenical Council recognized by West which included Eastern Church Emperor Basil I "the Macedonian," who had murdered Michael III, seeks papal support by deposing Photius and restoring Ignatius. The Eighth Council held in support of Ignatius is considered by the West only to be the Eighth Ecumenical Council (Constantinople IV). |
869 | |||||||
| 870 |
The Serbs convert to christianity | 870 | |||||||
| 871 |
Alfred the Great becomes King of a united England | Alfred the Great | 871 | ||||||
| 872 |
108 John VIII | 872 | |||||||
| 877 |
877-80: Ignatius dies, Photius restored as Patriarch, legates of Pope John VIII accept him on condition that Bulgaria be returned to the Latin church, without really settling the theological issues. | Louis II (the Stammerer) |
877 | ||||||
| 878 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Alfred defeats Danish invaders |
878 | |||||||
| 879 |
Louis III Carloman (joint with Louis III above, until 882) |
879 | |||||||
| 882 |
109 Martin II | 882 | |||||||
| 884 |
110 St. Adrian III | Charles the Fat | 884 | ||||||
| 885 |
Mt Athos is granted independence as a religious retreat by emperor Basil I | 111 Stephen VI | 885 | ||||||
| 886 |
Alfred captures London from the Danes | Stephanus I | 886 | ||||||
| 887 |
Leo VI | 887 | |||||||
| 888 |
French crown offered to Count Odo | Eudes (also Odo) of Paris (non-Carolingian) |
888 | ||||||
| 891 |
112 Fromosus | 891 | |||||||
| 893 |
Anthony II | 893 | |||||||
| 896 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
113 Boniface VI | 896 | ||||||
| 897 |
115 Romanus 116 Theodore II |
897 | |||||||
| 898 |
117 John IX | Charles III (the Simple) |
898 | ||||||
| 899 |
Edward the Elder | 899 | |||||||
| 900 |
118 Benedict IV | 900 | |||||||
| 901 |
Nicholas I | 901 | |||||||
| 903 |
19 Leo V 120 Christopher |
903 | |||||||
| 904 |
Sergius III is elected pope thanks to a powerful Roman noblewoman the first of a series of popes appointed by the Roman aristocracy | 212 Sergius III | 904 | ||||||
| 907 |
Euthymius I | 907 | |||||||
| 909 |
Berno founds the monastery of Cluny in Burgundy | 909 | |||||||
| 911 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Vikings under Rollo found settlement in Normandy, a vassal state of France |
122 Anastasius III | 911 | ||||||
| 912 |
912-61: Arabian Spain becomes the centre of learning the Normans become Christian |
Alexander | 912 | ||||||
| 913 |
123 Lando | Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus | 913 | ||||||
| 914 |
134 John X | 914 | |||||||
| 922 |
The Viking ruler Dirk I founds the Egmont Benedictine monastery in Haarlem (Holland | Robert I (non-Carolingian) |
922 | ||||||
| 923 |
Raoul (also Rudolf, non-Carolingian) |
923 | |||||||
| 925 |
Stephanus II | Athelstan | 925 | ||||||
| 927 |
Tryphon | 927 | |||||||
| 928 |
125 Leo VI 126 Stephen VIII |
928 | |||||||
| 931 |
127 John XI | 931 | |||||||
| 932 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Castile becomes independent of Leon |
932 | |||||||
| 933 |
Theophylactus | 933 | |||||||
| 936 |
128 Leo VII | Louis IV (d'Outremer or The Foreigner) |
936 | ||||||
| 939 |
129 Stephen IX | 939 | |||||||
| 940 |
Edmund the Magnificent | 940 | |||||||
| 942 |
130 Martin III | 942 | |||||||
| 946 |
131 Agapetus II | Eadred | 946 | ||||||
| 948 |
The leader of the Magyars converts to christianity | 948 | |||||||
| 950 |
The church of Hosios Loukas (Holy Luke) is founded in Stiris Greece | 950 | |||||||
| 954 |
Lothar (also Lothaire) |
954 | |||||||
| 955 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
132 John XII | Eadwig (Edwy) All-Fair | 955 | |||||
| 956 |
Polyeuctus | 956 | |||||||
| 959 |
Romanus II | Edgar the Peaceable | 959 | ||||||
| 960 |
Mieczyslaw I becomes first ruler of Poland | 960 | |||||||
| 962 |
East Frankish Otto crowned Emperor after he defeats Magyars, founds new Holy Roman Empire in Germany | 962 | |||||||
| 963 |
{Leo VIII} | Nicephorus II Phocas | 963 | ||||||
| 964 |
133 Benedict V | 964 | |||||||
| 965 |
Harald Bluetooth (Harold I) converts the Danes to christianity | 134 John XIII | 965 | ||||||
| 969 |
Athanasios of Trebizond founds the Great Lavra (Great Monastery) on Mount Athos in Greece | 969 | |||||||
| 970 |
Basil I | 970 | |||||||
| 973 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
135 Benedict VI | Anthony III | 973 | |||||
| 974 |
[Boniface VII] {Domnus II} |
974 | |||||||
| 975 |
Edward the Martyr | 975 | |||||||
| 976 |
Basil II | 976 | |||||||
| 978 |
Aethelred the Unready | 978 | |||||||
| 980 |
The Danes renew their raids on England attacking Chester and Southampton | Nicholas II | 980 | ||||||
| 983 |
137 John XIV | 983 | |||||||
| 985 |
138 John XV | 985 | |||||||
| 986 |
Louis V (the Do-Nothing) |
986 | |||||||
| 987 |
Hugh Capet takes the French throne and the Capetian dynasty of France is founded | Capetian Dynasty Hugh Capet |
987 | ||||||
| 988 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Prince Vladimir is baptized and marries a Byzantine princess. Russia becomes a Christian nation. Vladimir of Kiev converts to Christianity |
988 | |||||||
| 989 |
989-99: Viking Danes attack Britain again | 989 | |||||||
| 995 |
Olav I conquers Norway and proclaims it a Christian kingdom | 995 | |||||||
| 996 |
Robert II succeeds Hugh Capet a German is elected pope Gregory V |
139 GregoryV [John XVI] |
Robert II (the Pious) |
996 | |||||
| 999 |
German emperor Otto III appoints Gerbert d'Aurillac pope who becomes the first French pope and assumes the name Sylvester II | 140 Sylvester II | Sergius II | 999 | |||||
| 1000 |
Europe sees the new millenium in with the construction of magnificent cathedrals between the 10th and 12th centuries Greenland and Iceland are christianized |
1000 | |||||||
| 1001 |
cathedral of Ani in Armenia | 1001 | |||||||
| 1003 |
the Egyptian ruler Hakim persecutes Christianity | 141 John XVII | 1003 | ||||||
| 1004 |
142 John XVIII | 1004 | |||||||
| 1008 |
AD: Sweden is christianized | 1008 | |||||||
| 1009 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Arabs destroy the church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem |
143 Sergius IV | 1009 | ||||||
| 1012 |
Romualdo founds the Camaldolese order in Italy (Anthony's monasticism and hermits appears in Italy | 144 Benedict VIII | 1012 | ||||||
| 1014 |
Danish Line Svein Forkbeard |
1014 | |||||||
| 1016 |
Edmund Ironside | 1016 | |||||||
| 1017 |
The Danish king Canute converts to christianity | 1017 | |||||||
| 1018 |
Bishop Hildebrand founds the monastery of San Miniato is founded near Florence in Italy | 1018 | |||||||
| 1019 |
Eustathius | 1019 | |||||||
| 1022 |
1022: the Catharist/Albigenian heresy a neo-manichaean sect believing that matter is evil spreads in Languedoc (southern France) | 1022 | |||||||
| 1024 |
145 John XIX | 1024 | |||||||
| 1025 |
Alexius I | Constantine VIII (IX) alone | 1025 | ||||||
| 1028 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
Romanus III Argyrus | 1028 | ||||||
| 1031 |
Henry I | 1031 | |||||||
| 1032 |
A teenager is elected pope Benedict IX the youngest pope ever and the last of the "dynastic" popes | 146 Benedict IX | 1032 | ||||||
| 1033 |
Ferdinand I of Castile becomes King of Castile, Leon and Navarre | 1033 | |||||||
| 1034 |
Michael IV the Paphlagonian | 1034 | |||||||
| 1035 |
Harald Harefoot | 1035 | |||||||
| 1036 |
Muslim Umayyad dynasty in Spain ends with the death of Hisham III and the caliphrate splits into 8 other kingdoms San Miniato monk Giovanni Gualberto founds the monastery of Vallombrosa near Florence in Italy |
1036 | |||||||
| 1039 |
Cluny's abbot Odilo turns his monastery into the head of a monastic feudal system whose influence spread all over Europe | 1039 | |||||||
| 1040 |
Hardicanute | 1040 | |||||||
| 1041 |
Michael V Calaphates | 1041 | |||||||
| 1042 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM |
Zoe and Theodora | Edward the Confessor | 1042 | |||||
| 1043 |
Michael I | 1043 | |||||||
| 1044 |
[Sylvester III] | 1044 | |||||||
| 1045 |
After Benedict IX gets married and sells the papacy to his godfather Gregory VI the emperor Heinrich III calls for the synod of Sutri to reform the corrupt papacy | 147 Gregory VI 146 Benedict IX |
1045 | ||||||
| 1046 |
148 Clement II | 1046 | |||||||
| 1047 |
146 Benedict IX | 1047 | |||||||
| 1048 |
149 Damasus II | 1048 | |||||||
| 1049 |
Heinrich III appoints Pope Leo IX a German reformer | 150 St. Leo IX | 1049 | ||||||
| 1050 |
The ascetics Anthony and Theodosius found the Monastery of the Caves (Pecherska Lavra) in Kiev | 1050 | |||||||
| 1054 |
Schism between Eastern and Western Churches also see 867 CE Western Cluniac monks take over Greek monasteries in southern Italy, Byzantine patriarch Michael Caerularius responds by closing Latin churches in Constantinople. Pope Leo IX sends Cardinal Humbert (considered an expert on Eastern Christianity) to Constantinople to work things out. Not knowing Leo IX had died, Humbert excommunicates Patriarch Michael in Leo's name, asserting that the Eastern church had removed "filioque" from the Creed. The Western church traditionally dates the East-West split from this event (the Great Schism). The Church of the Pope refers to itself as the "Holy Roman Catholic and Apostolic Church". This is contrasted, with Protestant churches and with the Orthodox Churches of the East: Greek, Coptic, Syriac, Armenian, Russian, Romanian, Serbian, etc., as an usurpation. The "Holy Roman Catholic and Apostolic Church" was the Universal (katholiki) Church of the Roman Empire. The Pope, then Bishop of Rome, was not the ruler of that Church, but one of the Ecumenical Patriarchs, along with the Patriarchs of Constantinople, Jerusalem, Antioch, and Alexandria. The Pope was allowed to be primus inter pares as a courtesy towards the ancient seat of St. Peter. Governance of the Church was also shared among the five heads of the Church and with the Emperor, who was regarded as the "Equal of the Apostles," and who had the authority to call Church Councils. After the fall of the western Empire in 476, that meant only the Emperor in Constantinople. As it happened, only that Emperor had ever called Councils. After various disputes, the Latin and Greek Churches finally broke in 1054. Each thus claimed to be the proper "Holy Roman Catholic and Apostolic Church," but over time and aided by the enslavement of the Eastern Orhodox peoples by the Turks, the Papal use of the terminology has gained more widespread recognition of the term. The actual reason that was used to instigate and justify the legality of the Schism was the addition, by the Pope, of one word to the Creed of Faith which had united Christianity since Constantine had called the Council at Nicea to establish it: The paragraph which refers to the Holy Spirit decrees that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and is glorified together with the Father and the Son. The pope added the word filioque which now reads that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father AND the Son. The addition of this one word had extremely serious rumifications as to the nature of the Son and reverted to considerations of heresies past, as Arianism, Monothelitism and others. The Pope declared the other four heads of the church in error and assumed the position that his church, in the altered Creed carried the correct interpretation of Christianity. The Schism between Greek and Latin Churches came at a very bad time for the Greeks. Defeat by the Turks and the loss of Asia Minor deprived Romania (Romiosini: a reference in Greek to the Christian roman Empire) of more than half its territory. This was a catastrophe, and actually the Empire never recovered. The Emperor Alexius Comnenos appealed to the West for help. Pope Urban II called for a "Crusade," a great Christian army, not just to help the Christians in the east, but to go on and reconquer Jerusalem. The First Crusade defeated the Turks badly enough that Romania was able to recover considerable territory, but then it went on and obtained the great goal of Jerusalem, which had been in Islamic hands for 463 years. the Crusades continued and the Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade instead of proceeding to Jerusalem stopped at Constantinople, laid siege, took the City and enslaved the Christians of the east for almost 60 years. 911 years after the Schism, in 1965, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras I of Constantinople mutually nullify the excommunications of 1054. Some 3o years later, Pope John Paul II visited Athens and recited the Nicene Creed in its original form standing in holy liturgy together with the Archbishop of the Church of Greece THE NICENE CREED I believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all ages. Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten, not created, of one essence with the Father, through whom all things were made. For us and for our salvation, He came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became man. He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and He suffered and was buried. On the third day He rose according to the Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead. His kingdom will have no end. And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Giver of Life, who proceeds from the Father, who together with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who spoke through the prophets. In one, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. I expect the resurrection of the dead. And the life of the age to come. Amen. the patriarch of Constantinople and the pope in Rome excommunicate each other (the Great Schism |
1054 | |||||||
| 1055 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Seljuk Turks take Baghdad |
151 Victor II | Theodora alone | 1055 | |||||
| 1056 |
Ferdinand I of Castile makes himself Emperor and initiates a period of reconquest of the Moors | Michael VI Stratioticus | 1056 | ||||||
| 1057 |
152 Stephen X | Isaac I Comnenos | 1057 | ||||||
| 1058 |
153 Benedict X | 1058 | |||||||
| 1059 |
Humbert della Silva Candida publishes the rules by which popes should be elected restricting the electors to the cardinals and forbidding interference from the Roman nobility or the Holy Roman emperor and resumes the Donatist heresy (the morality of a priest determines whether he is worthy of administering sacraments) | 154 Nicholas II | Constantine III | Constantine X (1X) Ducas | 1059 | ||||
| 1060 |
Decree for election of Popes by a college of Cardinals; beginning of Papal heyday Svend Estridsen (Svend II) organizes the Danish church |
Philip I | 1060 | ||||||
| 1061 |
155 Alexander II | 1061 | |||||||
| 1064 |
John VIII | 1064 | |||||||
| 1066 |
The Norman Conquests On 28 September 1066, with a favourable wind, William I The Conqueror landed unopposed at Pevensey and, within a few days, raised fortifications at Hastings. Having defeated an earlier invasion by the King of Norway at the Battle of Stamford Bridge near York in late September, Harold undertook a forced march south, covering 250 miles in some nine days to meet the new threat, gathering inexperienced reinforcements to replenish his exhausted veterans as he marched. At the Battle of Senlac (near Hastings) on 14 October, Harold's weary and under-strength army faced William's cavalry (part of the forces brought across the Channel) supported by archers. Despite their exhaustion, Harold's troops were equal in number (they included the best infantry in Europe equipped with their terrible two-handled battle axes) and they had the battlefield advantage of being based on a ridge above the Norman positions. The first uphill assaults by the Normans failed and a rumour spread that William had been killed; William rode among the ranks raising his helmet to show he was still alive. The battle was close-fought: a chronicler described the Norman counter-attacks and the Saxon defence as 'one side attacking with all mobility, the other withstanding as though rooted to the soil'. Three of William's horses were killed under him. William skilfully co-ordinated his archers and cavalry, both of which the English forces lacked. During a Norman assault, Harold was killed - hit by an arrow and then mowed down by the sword of a mounted knight. Two of his brothers were also killed. The demoralised English forces fled. (In 1070, as penance, William had an abbey built on the site of the battle, with the high altar occupying the spot where Harold fell. The ruins of Battle Abbey, and the town of Battle, which grew up around it, remain.) William was crowned on Christmas Day 1066 in Westminster Abbey. |
Norman Line William I the Conqueror |
1066 | ||||||
| 1067 |
Work is begun on building the Tower of London | 1067 | |||||||
| 1068 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM The Norman Conquest continues until 1069: William subdues the north of England (the "Harrying of the North" ): the region is laid waste |
Romanus IV Diogenes | 1068 | ||||||
| 1070 |
The Hospital of Saint John is founded in Jerusalem by Amalfi merchants | 1070 | |||||||
| 1071 |
Turkish Muslims defeat the Christian army of the Byzantine Empire at the Battle of Manzikert, Turkey. The Muslims go on to conquer Palestine (now Israel). Turkish Muslims begin to attack Christians on pilgrimages to holy places the Turks capture Jerusalem |
Michael VII Ducas | 1071 | ||||||
| 1072 |
William invades Scotland and also receives the submission of Hereward the Wake. | 1072 | |||||||
| 1073 |
Hildebrand becomes pope Gregory VII and launches the "Gregorian" reform (celibacy of the clergy primacy of the papacy over the empire infallibility of the Church | 156 St. Gregory VII | 1073 | ||||||
| 1075 |
The Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela is built the third most popoular pilgrimage site after Jerusalem and Rome | Cosmas I | 1075 | ||||||
| 1076 |
1076-1122 Investiture Controversy Heinrich IV refuses and Gregory VII excommunicates and deposes him but then forgives him at Canossa (abbot Hugh of Cluny acts as mediator) |
1076 | |||||||
| 1078 |
Nicephorus III Botaniates | 1078 | |||||||
| 1080 |
William in a letter reminds the bishop of Rome that the King of England owes him no allegiance | [Clement (III)] | Nicephorus Melissenus | 1080 | |||||
| 1081 |
EustathiusGaridas | Alexius I Comnenus | 1081 | ||||||
| 1084 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Bruno founds the Carthusian order at the Grande Chartreuse near Grenoble |
Nicholas III | 1084 | ||||||
| 1085 |
Heinrich IV invades Italy and drives Pope Gregory VII out of Rome and the Pope dies in exile prisoner of the Normans who have repelled the Germans but also sacked Rome | Vacant, | 1085 | ||||||
| 1086 |
Alfonso I of Castile conquers Toledo | 157 Victor III | 1086 | ||||||
| 1087 |
William II Rufus | 1087 | |||||||
| 1088 |
A monk of Cluny is elected Pope Urban II | 158 Urban II | 1088 | ||||||
| 1093 |
Henry of Burgundy (Bourgogne) comes to the aid of Castile (Spain) when it is invaded by Moors and becomes Count of Portugal Anselm becomes Archbishop of Canterbury |
1093 | |||||||
| 1095 |
1095-1291: Holy Wars - The 7 Crusades Pope Urban II responding to an appeal from the Byzantine emperor Alexios Komnenos calls for a Crusade against the Muslims |
1095 | |||||||
| 1096 |
1096-1099 First Crusade,defeats Seljuks,recaptures Jerusalem Jews are persecuted by the Crusaders |
1096 | |||||||
| 1098 |
The Crusaders capture Antioch | 1098 | |||||||
| 1099 |
(June): After a perilous overland journey that takes nearly three years, the Crusaders reach the outskirts of Jerusalem Fall of Jerusalem Crusaders under Godfrey of Bouillon capture Jerusalem Vallombrosa monk Raniero becomes Pope Paschal II |
159 Paschal II | 1099 | ||||||
| 1100 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM 1100-1300: Construction of the Chartres Cathedral in France England's king Henry I fights with Pope Pasquale II on the issue of lay investiture (the king elects the bishops |
Henry I Beauclerc | 1100 | ||||||
| 1102 |
[Albert] | 1102 | |||||||
| 1103 |
The Danish king Erik Ejegod (Erik I) obtains that Lund become the archiepiscopal see for the whole of Scandinavia | 1103 | |||||||
| 1105 |
[Sylvester] | 1105 | |||||||
| 1107 |
The Concordat of London finds a compromise between England's king Henry I and Pope Pasquale II on the issue of lay investiture (the king elects the bishops | 1107 | |||||||
| 1108 |
1108-37: Louis VI, King of France, consolidates royal power | Louis VI (the Fat) |
1108 | ||||||
| 1111 |
Paschal II resolves the conflict between Church and Empire by renouncing all of the Church's earthly possessions and by embracing apostolic poverty | John IX | 1111 | ||||||
| 1113 |
The Pope recognizes the Hospital of Saint John as separate monastic order (the Hospitallers) with headquarters in Acre | 1113 | |||||||
| 1115 |
Bernard of Clairvaux founds a Cistercian monastery at Clairvaux and begins a campaign against Cluny | 1115 | |||||||
| 1118 |
Paschal II dies | 160 Gelasius II | John II Comenus | 1118 | |||||
| 1119 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM The Crusaders set up new Christian states in the Holy land. The new orders of knights, Templars and the Hospitalers, are founded. These knights are also monks. They defend the Crusaders' states against Muslim attacks and protect Christian pilgrims to the Holy Land |
161 Calixtus II | 1119 | ||||||
| 1122 |
Pope Calixtus II and German emperor Heinrich V sign the Concordat of Worms that resolves the "investiture controversy" by granting the emperor veto power over the German Church | 1122 | |||||||
| 1123 |
Lateran Council I | 1123 | |||||||
| 1124 |
162 Honorius II | 1124 | |||||||
| 1130 |
163 Innocent II | 1130 | |||||||
| 1134 |
Stypiotes | 1134 | |||||||
| 1135 |
Stephen | 1135 | |||||||
| 1137 |
Benedictine monk Suger builds the cathedral of Saint-Denis in a new style the gothic style | Louis VII (the Young) |
1137 | ||||||
| 1138 |
[Victor IV] | 1138 | |||||||
| 1139 |
Alfonso of Portugal declares Portugal independent from Leon and Castile | 1139 | |||||||
| 1141 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM The philospher Pierre Abelard is condemned as heretic and is books are burned for his views on the Trinity and his love for Heloise |
Empress Matilda | 1141 | ||||||
| 1142 |
Some Crusaders settle in the Holy Land. They begin constructing Krak des Chevaliers (Castle of the Knights) in Syria. The underground storerooms of this magnificent castle contain enough supplies of food and arms to withstand a five-year siege | 1142 | |||||||
| 1143 |
Treat of Zamora, Leon recognizes Portugal's independence | 164 Celestine II | Michael II Curcuas | Manuel I | 1143 | ||||
| 1144 |
Later Crusades were the result of setbacks, like the fall of Edessa in 1144 and, much worse, the loss of Jerusalem in 1187. The Popes began to labor constantly to put together forces that could recover the Christian position in Outremer. The Third Crusade was the most powerful and direct, but it fell short. Much, much worse was the Fourth Crusade, which was redirected by the Doge of Venice, Enrico Dandolo, to the purposes of Venice. Pope Innocent III first had to excommunicate everyone for the use of the army in Dalmatia, and then the Venicians took it, not to Palestine, but to Constantinople. This could be seen as undoing the Schism between the Chruches, since now there was a Latin Emperor and Latin Patriarch in Romania, but it didn't accomplish the real purpose. Nor did it last long. Bernard of Clairvaux calls for a second Crusade to rescue the besieged Latin kingdom of Jerusalem and Louis VII of France and Konrad III of Germany join the crusaders but they are defeated by the Muslims |
165 Lucius II | 1144 | ||||||
| 1145 |
Almohads take over Muslim Spain | 166 Eugenius III | 1145 | ||||||
| 1146 |
1146-48: Second Crusade, Louis VII on the crusade | Cosmas II Atticus | 1146 | ||||||
| 1147 |
1147-1149 Second Crusade
![]() Jews are persecuted by the Crusaders |
Nicholas IV Muzalon | 1147 | ||||||
| 1151 |
Theodotus II | 1151 | |||||||
| 1152 |
Pope annuls marriage between Louis VII and Eleanor of Aquitaine | 1152 | |||||||
| 1153 |
167 Anastasius IV | [Neophytus I] | 1153 | ||||||
| 1154 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Henry II of Anjou marries Eleanor of Aquitaine and England begins to form the Angevin Empire in France |
168 Adrian IV | Constantine IV Chiliarenus | Henry II Curtmantle | 1154 | ||||
| 1156 |
Lucas Chrysoberges | 1156 | |||||||
| 1159 |
French theologian John of Salisbury publishes the "Policraticus first doctrine of the separation of church and state but with the state subordinate to the church | 169 Alexander III | 1159 | ||||||
| 1160 |
Alexander III excommunicates Friedrich I "Barbarossa | 1160 | |||||||
| 1162 |
Friedrich I "Barbarossa" raids Rome and Milan | 1162 | |||||||
| 1164 |
Sweden obtains an archbishop | [Paschal III] | 1164 | ||||||
| 1165 |
Thomas Becket named Archbishop of Centerbury Cathedral, head of the church of England | 1165 | |||||||
| 1168 |
A Spaniard is elected pope Calixtus III | [Calixtus (III)] | 1168 | ||||||
| 1170 |
Henry II's men murder Thomas Becket | Michael III of Anchialus | 1170 | ||||||
| 1177 |
Barbarossa recognizes Alexander III as Pope and is forgiven | Chariton Eugeniotes | 1177 | ||||||
| 1179 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Lateran Council III Pope recognizes Portugal's independence |
Theodosius I Boradiotes | 1179 | ||||||
| 1180 |
1180-1223: Philip II Augustus reigns in France the Jewish philosopher Maimonides attempts to bridge the Talmud and Aristotle in the "Guide for the Perplexed |
Alexius II | Philip II Augustus | 1180 | |||||
| 1181 |
The Muslim warrior Saladin becomes Sultan of Egypt. He is a brilliant military commander who unites the Muslim army | 170 Lucius III | 1181 | ||||||
| 1183 |
Basil II Camaterus | Andronicus I | 1183 | ||||||
| 1184 |
Pope Lucius III excommunicates Peter Waldo founder of the anti-Cluniac ascetic Waldensians ("poor men of Lyons") | 1184 | |||||||
| 1185 |
1185-1211: Sancho I reigns in Portugal | 171 Urban III | Isaac II | 1185 | |||||
| 1186 |
The Vlachs rebel against the Byzantine Empire. Foundation of the Bulgaro-Vlach Empire | Nicetas II Muntanes | 1186 | ||||||
| 1187 |
Saladin crushes the crusaders armies at Hittin Jerusalem falls to the Muslims Saladdin retakes Jerusalem |
172 Gregory VIII | 1187 | ||||||
| 1189 |
1189-1192 Third Crusade![]() the third Crusade is led by King Richard the Lion-Hearted of England king Philip Augustus II of France and emperor Frederick Barbarossa |
Dositheus of Jerusalem | Richard I The Lionheart ![]() |
1189 | |||||
| 1190 |
The Teutonic Knights are founded by German lords to fight in the crusade establish their capital at Acre and adopt the Templars' white mantle and the Hospitallers' rule | 1190 | |||||||
| 1191 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Richard I conquers Cyprus and captures the city of Acre |
174 Celestine III | Dositheus of Jerusalem | 1191 | |||||
| 1192 |
Richard I captures Jaffa makes peace with Saladin; on the way home he is captured by his enemy Duke Leopold of Austria | 1192 | |||||||
| 1194 |
Richard is ransomed and returned to England | 1194 | |||||||
| 1195 |
The Tale of Robin Hood is said to have taken place during these times when Richard was imprisoned after having left on the Third Crusade and John ruled in his stead. | Alexius III | 1195 | ||||||
| 1198 |
Cardinal Lothario Conti is elected pope Innocent III | 175 Innocent III | John X Camaterus | 1198 | |||||
| 1199 |
1199-1204: Fourth Crusade Philip II of France begins military conquest of British Normandy and Anjou |
John Lackland | 1199 | ||||||
| 1200 |
The Jews are expelled from England | 1200 | |||||||
| 1202 |
1202-1204 Fourth Crusade; Constantinople taken by Crusaders in employ of Venice, first break in line of Roman (Rhomaic/Byzantine) Emperors |
1202 | |||||||
| 1203 |
Isaac II (restored) with Alexius IV | 1203 | |||||||
| 1204 |
Fourth Crusade Fall of Constantinople to the Latins. The armies of the Fourth Crusade never reach the Holy Land. Instead, they raid Constantinople, capital of the Christian Byzantine Empire. The Crusaders pillage the city and put its inhabitants to the sword the Crusaders led by Venezia sack Constantinople |
Alexius V Ducas Murtzuphlus | 1204 | ||||||
| 1206 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM Francis of Assisi gives up his wealth and adopts a life of absolute poverty |
1206 | |||||||
| 1207 |
Michael IV Autorianus | 1207 | |||||||
| 1208 |
1208-1261 Patriarchate at Nicaea pope Innocent III launches a crusade against the Catharist/Albigensian and the Waldensian heretics |
1208 | |||||||
| 1209 |
London Bridge built: Peace between England and Scotland 1209-1229 Albigensian Crusade Cambridge University is founded in England; Innocent III excommunicates John for attacks on Church property |
1209 | |||||||
| 1210 |
The Pope recognizes the Franciscan order of mendicant friars | 1210 | |||||||
| 1212 |
Christians defeat Almohad Muslims at Las Navas de Tolosa, Almohads expelled from Spain shortly after and Christian reconquest continues the Jews of Toledo are massacred by the Crusaders |
1212 | |||||||
| 1213 |
Theodore II Irenicus | 1213 | |||||||
| 1214 |
Philip II of France defeats the combined armies of the Holy Roman Empire and England at the Battle of Bouvines | 1214 | |||||||
| 1215 |
King John forced to sign the Magna Carta Lateran Council IV the Dominican order of mendicant friars is founded in Languedoc the fourth Lateran council defines the seven sacraments (in particular marriage and confession) and prescribes that Jews be confined in ghettos |
Maximus II | 1215 | ||||||
| 1216 |
Innocent III dies | 176 Honorius III | Henry III | 1216 | |||||
| 1217 |
JUMP TO TOP | MIDDLE | BOTTOM 1217-1221: The Fifth Crusade Emperor Friederich II grants lands to the Teutonic Knights in Sicily |
1217 | |||||||
| 1219 |
Francis of Assisi preaches to the sultan of Egypt | 1219 | |||||||
| 1222 |
Germanus II | John III Ducas Vatatzes | 1222 | ||||||
| 1223 |
Genghis Khan invades Russia | Louis VIII (the Lion) |
1223 | ||||||
| 1226 |
Emperor Friederich II grants the Teutonic Knights authority to restore order name in Prussia | Louis IX (St. Louis) |
1226 | ||||||
| 1227 |
Count Ugolino is elected pope Gregory IX | 177 Gregory IX | 1227 | ||||||
| 1228 |
1228-29: The Sixth Crusade, led by the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, reoccupies Jerusalem as part of a temporary peace treaty with the Muslims. | 1228 | |||||||
| 1233 |
Spanish Inquisition begins Gregory IX institutes the Inquisition whose courts are mainly run by the Dominican monks pope Gregory IX issues a mandate for Inquisition against the heretics |
1233 | |||||||
| 1238 |
Valencia is reconquered | 1238 | |||||||
| 1240 |
Mongols take Kiev | Methodius II | & |