810s

Millennium:	1st millennium
Centuries:	8th century – 9th century – 10th century
Decades:	780s 790s 800s – 810s – 820s 830s 840s
Years:	810 811 812 813 814 815 816 817 818 819
810s-related categories:	Births – Deaths – By country Establishments – Disestablishments

Events

Contents: 810 811 812 813 814 815 816 817 818 819

810

By place

Byzantine Empire

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

Europe

• King Godfred of the Danes leads 200 Viking ships to plunder the Frisian coast, and forces the merchants to pay 100 pounds of silver. He claims Northern Frisia as Danish territory.
• Godfred is killed by one of his housecarls and is succeeded by Hemming. According to Notker of Saint Gall the bodyguard who murdered Godfred is possibly one of his sons.^[1]
• Al-Andalus (modern Spain): Uprising of the city of Mérida against the Umayyad Emirate of Córdoba.^[2]

By topic

Religion

• Tikal Temple III, also known as the Temple of the Jaguar Priest,^[3] is constructed in Tikal National Park (modern Guatemala).
• Book of Kells, also known as the Book of Colomba, an illuminated manuscript, is completed by Celtic monks (approximate date).

811

By place

Byzantine Empire

• Byzantine–Bulgarian War: Emperor Nikephoros I organises a new campaign against the Bulgarian Empire, gathering a expeditionary force around 80,000 men from all parts of the empire. He is accompanied by high-ranking officials and aristocrats, including his son Stauracius and brother-in-law Michael I Rangabe^[4] (both emperors later, for a while). Krum, ruler (khan) of Bulgaria, sends envoys to sue for peace. Nikephoros refuses to accept the terms and marches through the Balkan passes towards Pliska, the Bulgarian capital.
• July 23 – Nikephoros I reaches Pliska and destroys a Bulgarian army of 12,000 elite soldiers who guard the stronghold. Another hastily assembled relief force of 50,000 soldiers has a similar fate.^[5] The Byzantines capture the defenseless capital. Nikephoros plunders the city and captures Krum's treasury.^[6] He burns the countryside, slaughters sheep and pigs, as he pursues the retreating Bulgars south-west towards Serdica (modern-day Sofia).^[7]
• July 26 – Battle of Vărbitsa Pass: Nikephoros I is trapped (probably in the Vărbitsa Pass) and defeated by the Bulgars, who use the tactics of ambush and surprise night attacks to immobilize the Byzantine forces. Nikephoros himself is killed, Krum has the emperor's head carried back in triumph on a pole where it is cleaned out, lined with silver and made into a jeweled skull cup which he allows his Slavic princes (archons) to drink from with him.^[8]
• Stauracius is installed as emperor at Adrianople (first time a Byzantine emperor is crowned outside Constantinople). Because of a sword wound near his neck (during the Battle of Pliska), Stauracius is paralyzed. The imperial court is split between the noble factions of his wife Theophano and his sister Prokopia.^[9]
• October 2 – Michael I is declared emperor of the Byzantine Empire; Stauracius is forced by senior officials to retire to a monastery.^[10]

Europe

• Treaty of Heiligen: King Hemming of Denmark concludes a peace treaty with emperor Charlemagne in present-day Rendsburg. The southern boundary of Denmark is established at the Eider River.

Abbasid Caliphate

• Fourth Fitna: Abbasid caliph al-Amin appoints Ali ibn Isa ibn Mahan as governor of Khurasan in northeast of Persia and sends him with an army of 40,000 men against his half-brother al-Ma'mun. Ibn Mahan's army is defeated by a smaller army under Tahir ibn Husayn at Rayy. During the fighthing Ali ibn Isa ibn Mahan is killed.

812

By place

Byzantine Empire

• January 11 – Ex-emperor Staurakios, a son of Nikephoros I, dies of putrefaction in his wounds (see 811) in a monastery. He has reigned only two months and eight days, before being exiled by senior officials in Constantinople.
• Emperor Michael I re-opens peace negotiations with the Franks, and recognises Charlemagne as emperor (basileus) of the Frankish Empire. In exchange for this recognition, Venice is returned to the Byzantine Empire.
• Byzantine–Bulgarian War: The Bulgars led by Krum, ruler (khan) of the Bulgarian Empire, launch an invasion against the Byzantines. They capture the fortress cities of Develt and Mesembria near the Black Sea.^[11]

Europe

• Charlemagne conquers Catalonia as far south as the River Ebro and the Balearic Islands. The counties come under the rule of Bera, count of Barcelona. He signs a three year peace treaty with the Caliphate of Córdoba.
• Charlemagne issues the Capitulare de villis, concerning the rights of a feudal landholder and the services owed by his dependants. It contains also the names of some 89 plants, of which the most are used medically.
• The Republic of Amalfi sends galleys to support the Byzantine general (strategos) of Sicily, Gregorio, against the Aghlabid invaders. It is one of the earliest evidence of the independence of the city.^[12]

Britain

• King Sigered of Essex is reduced to the rank of duke by his Mercian overlords.

Abbasid Caliphate

• Fourth Fitna: forces loyal to al-Ma'mun led by Tahir ibn Husayn blockade Baghdad, which is loyal to al-Ma'mun's brother, Caliph al-Amin, and begin the year-long Siege of Baghdad.

China

• The Chinese government takes over the issuing of paper bank drafts, the ancestor of paper money.

813

By place

Byzantine Empire

• June 22 – Battle of Versinikia: The Bulgars led by Krum, ruler (khan) of the Bulgarian Empire, defeat emperor Michael I near Edirne (modern Turkey). The Byzantine army (26,000 men) is destroyed by a counter-attack of Bulgarian heavy cavalry while trapped in the valley. Krum captures the Byzantine camp and a rich prize including gold and weaponry.
• July 11 – Michael I, under threat by conspiracies, abdicates in favor of his general Leo the Armenian and becomes a monk (under the name Athanasius). His sons are castrated to prevent them succeeding the Byzantine throne, and relegated into monasteries. One of them, Niketas (renamed Ignatius), eventually becoming a patriarch of Constantinople.
• July 17 – Krum reaches Constantinople and sets his camp outside the walls. He is given an invitation, and a promise of safe conduct to meet Leo V. Krum sets out unarmed for the capital with only a small escort, but is ambushed and manages to escape. After this unsuccessful Byzantine murder attempt, the Bulgars ravage much of Eastern Thrace.^[13]
• Autumn – Siege of Adrianople: Krum captures Adrianople—one of the most important Byzantine fortresses in Thrace—after being attacked with siege engines. The garrison is forced to surrender due to starvation. On order of Krum the population and the surrounding area (numbering about 10,000) is transferred to Bulgarian territory north of the Danube.^[14]
• Ashot I ("the Great") becomes the first Georgian Bagratid prince of Iberia under the Byzantine protection.

Europe

• Louis the Pious, king of Aquitaine (and only surviving legitimate son), is crowned co-emperor of the Franks with his father Charlemagne.
• Danish Viking raiders led by king Horik I attack Vestfold (modern Norway) due to insubordination (approximate date).

Abbasid Caliphate

• Autumn – Siege of Baghdad: Caliph al-Amin surrenders Baghdad after Tahir ibn Husayn accepts his peace terms, but he is captured and executed. His brother al-Ma'mun becomes undisputed ruler of the Abbasid Caliphate.^[15]
• The Baghdad School of Astronomy is opened by al-Ma'mun (approximate date).

By topic

Religion

• Third Council of Tours: Priests are ordered to preach in the vernacular (either Vulgar Latin or German).^[16]

814

By place

Byzantine Empire

• Byzantine–Bulgarian Wars: Krum, ruler (khan) of the Bulgarian Empire, assembles a huge army (including Slavs and Avars) for a campaign against the Byzantine Empire. He dies of a stroke before he sets out for a major attack on Constantinople. Krum is succeeded by his son Omurtag.^[17]

Europe

• January 28 – Charlemagne dies of pleurisy in Aachen after a 13-year reign as the first Holy Roman Emperor. He is embalmed and buried in Aachen Cathedral. Charlemagne is succeeded by his son Louis the Pious as king of the Frankish Empire.
• Louis I establishes himself at the imperial court of Aachen. He appoints Benedict of Aniane as his chief advisor on religious matters and makes him abbot of Kornelimünster Abbey which is founded by him.

Japan

• Shinsen Shōjiroku, a record of the genealogy of the ancient Japanese noble families, is completed during the reign of emperor Saga.

By topic

Religion

• Byzantine Iconoclasm: Conflict erupts between emperor Leo V and patriarch Nikephoros on the subject of iconoclasm. The latter is deposed and Nikephoros excommunicates Leo.

815

By place

Byzantine Empire

• Byzantine–Bulgarian Treaty: Emperor Leo V the Armenian signs a 30-year peace agreement in Constantinople with Omurtag, ruler (khan) of the Bulgarian Empire. The Rhodope Mountains become the Byzantine border again and Leo regains its lost Black Sea cities, after the Bulgars have them demolished.^[18]

Europe

• Hrafna-Flóki Vilgerðarson sets out from the Faroe Islands and discovers Iceland. Documented later in the Landnámabók (approximate date).

Britain

• King Egbert of Wessex ravages the territories of the remaining British kingdom Dumnonia, known as the West Welsh (Cornwall).^[19]

Asia

• Emperor Saga of Japan is the first sovereign to drink tea (according to legend), imported from China by monks. The upper classes adopt this beverage for medicinal use.
• July 13 – Wu Yuanheng, Chinese chancellor of the Tang Dynasty, is murdered by assassin's of warlord Wu Yuanji in Chang'an.

By topic

Religion

• Synod of Constantinople: A council led by patriarch Theodotus I in the Hagia Sophia reinstitutes iconoclasm.^[20]

816

By place

Europe

• October 5 – King Louis the Pious (son of Charlemagne) is crowned emperor of the Holy Roman Empire by pope Stephen IV at Reims. He also crowns the emperor's wife Ermengarde as Holy Roman Empress. The ceremony in Reims re-establishes the principle of papal supremacy by recognising the importance of the pope in imperial coronations. Louis gives the pope many gifts, including the estate tax Vendeuvre, near Troyes (Northern France).^[21]
• Battle of Pancorbo: An Moorish army from the Emirate of Córdoba is sent by emir Al-Hakam I to take control of the pass at Pancorbo. They defeat the army of Asturian-Basque Frankish vassals.^[22]
• Winter – The Basques, supported by the Moors, cross the Garonne River and revolt against the Franks in Gascony (north of the Pyrenees).^[23]

Britain

• King Hywel of Gwynedd is attacked by his brother Cynan on Anglesey (modern Wales) who is killed during the fighting (approximate date).

Abbasid Caliphate

• Babak Khorramdin, Persian military leader, revolts against the Abbasid Caliphate in Azerbaijan (approximate date).

By topic

Religion

• Synod of Aachen: Louis the Pious calls for a council about the regulations (Institutio canonicorum Aquisgranensis) for monastic life in the Frankish Empire.
• Synod of Chelsea: King Coenwulf of Mercia calls for a council about his right to appoint abbots and monasteries in England.
• June 12 – Pope Leo III dies after a 20-year reign and is succeeded by Stephen IV as the 97th pope of Rome.

817

By place

Europe

• Summer – Emperor Louis I issues an Ordinatio Imperii, an imperial decree that lays out plans for an ordely succession. He divides the Frankish Empire among his three sons: Lothair is proclaimed co-emperor in Aachen and becomes the overlord of his brothers. He receives the dominion of Burgundy (including German and Gallic parts). Pepin is proclaimed king of Aquitaine and receives Gascony (including the marche around Toulouse and parts of Septimania), and Louis (the youngest son) is proclaimed king of Bavaria and receives the dominions of East Francia.
• Prince Grimoald IV is assassinated by a complot of Lombard nobles vying for his throne.^[24] He is succeeded by Sico as ruler of Benevento (Southern Italy) and forced to pay an annual tribute of 7,000 solidi to Louis I.

North Africa

• Ziyadat Allah I becomes the third Aghlabid emir of Ifriqiya (modern Tunisia). During his rule the relationship between the Aghlabid Dynasty and the Arab troops remains strained.

By topic

Religion

• January 24 – Pope Stephen IV dies at Rome after a 7-month reign and is succeeded by Paschal I as the 98th pope of the Catholic Church.
• Synod of Aachen: The council adopts a capitulare monasticum, containing the Benedictine rules of the monastic life in the Frankish realm.

818

By place

Byzantine Empire

• Vikings known as Rus' (Norsemen) plunder the north coast of Anatolia (modern Turkey), marking the first recorded raid of Rus' people or Russians, on territory in the Byzantine Empire.^[25]

Europe

• April 17 – King Bernard of Italy, illegitimate son of Pepin of Italy, is tried and condemned to death by emperor Louis I. The kingdom of Italy is reabsorbed into the Frankish Empire.
• The Slavs on the Timok River break their alliance with the Bulgars. Duke Ljudevit of Pannonian Croatia sends emissaries to Louis I to assert his independence from the Franks.^[26]
• Al-Andalus: Grave rebellion in the suburbs of Cordoba against the Umayyad Caliphate. Andalucian Arab refugees arrive in Fez (modern Morocco).^[27]

Britain

• The Anglo-Saxons led by king Coenwulf of Mercia raid Dyfed in Wales (approximate date).

Asia

• Beginning of the Lemro period: The Sambawa and Pyinsa Kingdoms are founded.

By topic

Religion

• Theodulf, bishop of Orléans, is deposed and imprisoned, after becoming involved in a conspiracy of Bernard of Italy.

819

By place

Europe

• Spring – Emperor Louis I marries Judith of Bavaria in Aachen.^[28] She becomes his second wife and empress of the Franks. Like many of the royal marriages of the time Judith is selected through a bridal show.
• Ljudevit, duke of Pannonian Croatia, allying himself with the Slavs and raises a rebellion against the Frankish Empire. Louis I sends an army led by Cadolah of Friuli but is defeated by the Pannonian Slavs.
• Battle of Kupa: Ljudevit defeats the Frankish forces led by Borna, a vassal of Louis I. He escapes with the help of his elite bodyguard. Ljudevit uses the momentum and invades the Duchy of Croatia.
• Nominoe, a noble Briton, is appointed by Louis I as count of Vannes in Brittany (approximate date).

Abbasid Caliphate

• August 11 – Caliph Al-Ma'mun returns to Baghdad, securing the city's place as the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate.

Significant people

• Charlemagne
• Louis the Pious
• Leo V of Byzantium
• Ma'moon, Abbasid khalif

References

1. Notker the Stammerer, De Carolo Magno, Book II, Chapter 13.
2. Rucquoi, Adeline (1993). Histoire médiévale de la Péninsule ibérique (in French). Paris: Seuil. pp. 443, 86. ISBN 2-02-012935-3.
3. Coe 1967, 1988, p. 76.
4. Anonymus Vaticanus, p. 148.
5. Anonymus Vaticanus, pp. 148-149.
6. Anastasius Bibliothecarius. Chronographia tripertita, p. 329.
7. Anonymus Vaticanus, p. 150.
8. John V.A. Fine, Jr. (1991). The early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century, p. 97. ISBN 978-0-472-08149-3.
9. Treadgold, p. 429; Bury, p. 17.
10. Treadgold, p. 429; Finlay, p. 128.
11. John V.A. Fine, Jr. (1991). The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century, pp. 97-98. ISBN 978-0-472-08149-3.
12. Benvenuti, Gino (1985). Le Repubbliche Marinare. Amalfi, Pisa, Genova e Venezia. Rome: Newton & Compton Editori. p. 13. ISBN 88-8289-529-7.
13. John V.A. Fine, Jr. (1991). The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century, pp. 98–99.
14. Runciman, pp. 64–65.
15. Fishbein (1992), pp. 197–202.
16. Nadeau, Jean-Benoît and Barlow, Julie, The Story of French (Alfred A. Knopf 2006), p. 25.
17. John V.A. Fine, Jr. (1991). The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century, p. 99. ISBN 978-0-472-08149-3.
18. John V.A. Fine, Jr. (1991). The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century, p. 106. ISBN 978-0-472-08149-3.
19. Swanton, Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, pp. 58–59.
20. Kazhdan, Alexander, ed. (1991), Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium. Oxford University Press, pp. 513–514. ISBN 978-0-19-504652-6.
21. Salvador Miranda (1998). The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church: Pope Stefano IV (815–817).
22. Sánchez Albornoz, Claudio; Claudio Sánchez Albornoz. Problems del Reino de Navarra del siglo IX. p. 16.
23. Islam and Europe Timeline (355–1291 AD).
24. Wickham, p. 154. In 818 according to the Annales Beneventani.
25. Dr. Kathryn Tsai. A Timeline of Eastern Church History. Divine Ascent Press, Point Reyes Station, CA, 2004, p. 153.
26. John V.A. Fine, Jr. (1991). The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century, p. 107. ISBN 978-0-472-08149-3.
27. Picard, Christophe (2000). Le Portugal musulman (VIIIe-XIIIe siècle. L'Occident d'al-Andalus sous domination islamique. Paris: Maisonneuve & Larose. p. 40. ISBN 2-7068-1398-9.
28. Rogers, Barbara, Bernhard W. Scholz, and Nithardus. Carolingian Chronicles, Royal Frankish Annals Nithard's Histories. Ann Arbor: Univ. of Michigan, 1972. Print.