10th Century
901 to 924 – King Edward the Elder
English monarch.
903 – Balearic Isles
Balearic Isles fall to Islam.
904 – The Abbasids
The Abbasids take Jerusalem.
905 – End of Carolingians
The termination of the Carolingian line of emperors; the imperial throne of the West is left
vacant.
906 – Magyars
Magyars destroy the kingdom of Moravia and begin annual raids into western Europe.
909 – Fatimid Dynasty
The Arab Fatimid Dynasty, descended from the Prophet Muhammad’s Daughter Fatima
(pbuh) is established in North Africa.
Shi’a Fatamid caliphate seizes Tunisia; two rival dynasties now claim caliph status.
909 – Cluny Monastery
The monastery of Cluny is founded by Duke William the Pious of Aquitaine. From there,
religious reform promoting papal control and against secular involvement spreads throughout
the Western Church.
Charles the Simple grants the area surrounding Rouen to the Viking leader Rollo:
beginnings of the duchy of Normandy.
911 – Viking Rollo
The Viking Rollo, agreeing to convert to Christianity, is granted the overlordship of what will
become Normandy, in peace talks with French King Charles the Third (the Simple) .
Death of Ishaq Ibn Hunayn, translator of Aristotle, Euclid and Ptolemy into Arabic.
915 – River Garigliano
Arab raiders ousted from mouth of River Garigliano in Italy.
918 – Hospitals for the mentally ill
The first hospitals for the mentally ill are established in Baghdad and Cairo.
919 to 936 – King Henry “the Fowler”
Henry, Duke of Saxony, is elected King of East Francia and is placed on the throne
supported by the Franks and Saxons. His efforts against his own dukes and the Magyars form
the basis of the German Empire under his son Otto.
920 to 944 – Romanos Lecapenus
Byzantine ruler Romanos Lecapenus fends off attacks from the Bulgars, the Russians and
the Arabs.
922 – Ibn Fadlan
Ibn Fadlan, the ambassador of the caliph of Baghdad, witnesses and describes a Viking
funeral on the banks of the Volga River in Russia.
922 – Robert of Nuestria
Robert of Nuestria rebels against Charles the Simple and wins the French crown.
923 – Duke Raoul of Burgundy
On Robert of Nuestria’s death Duke Raoul of Burgundy becomes king.
927 – Athelstan, King of the English
Athelstan of Wessex becomes the first king of the English when he takes Northumbria
under his wing.
929 – Three Caliphs
Ruler of Al-Andulus assumes title of caliph; now three rival dynasties in the Islamic world.
Charles the Simple dies in captivity in the prison of Herbert the Second of Vermandois.
930 – Oldest Parliament
The world’s oldest functioning parliament, Iceland’s Athling, was founded by Vikings.
933 – Henry the First of Germany
Henry the First of Germany defeats the Magyars at Riade.
934 – Genoa
Genoa is sacked by an Islamic fleet.
935 – Ikhshidid Dynasty
A Turkish governor establishes a second dynasty in Egypt, the Ikhshid.
936 – King Otto
Otto, King of East Francia succeeds his father, Henry, as King of East Francia ruling the
Saxon lands in Germany.
937 – Battle of Brunanburh
King Athelstan of the English defeats Scottish and Norse forces at the battle of
Brunanburh.
939 – The Battle of Andernach
Otto, King of East Francia, crushes a revolt led by his brother at the battle of Andernach.
939 to 942 – Hugh the Great
Robert of Neustria’s son, Hugh the Great, and son-in-law, Herbert the Second of
Vermandois, rebel against Louis the Fourth of France.
939 – The Ikhshidid
The Ikhshidid take Jerusalem.
940 – King Edmund the Elder
English monarch.
942 – Scots King Malcolm
Malcolm becomes king of the Scots.
944 – King Igor
Igor, ruler of Kiev makes a treaty with Byzantium, leading to Christian influence in Kiev.
945 to 1055 – Buwayhid Dynasty
The Shiite Buwayhid Dynasty founded by Ahmad, ‘Mi’izz ad-Dawlah, rules from Baghdad,
transforming the Sunni caliphs into figureheads.
946 to 955 – King Edred
English monarch.
948 – Otto the First of Germany
Otto the First of Germany founds missionary bishoprics at Brandenburg, Havelburg, Ribe,
Aarhus, and Schleswig.
950 – Bishop Aelfeg’s Organ
Bishop Aelfeg installs a pipe organ in the cathedral at Winchester. The mammoth organ
had four hundred pipes and it took seventy men to operate the twenty six bellows.
The first motte and bailey ‘castles’ are built between the Loire and the Rhine. The castles
are no more than fortified mounds with log palisades.
954 – Erik Bloodaxe
Upon the death of Erik Bloodaxe, king of Northumbria, all English kingdoms are united
under the Saxons.
955 to 959 – King Edwy
English monarch.
955 – The Battle of Lechfeld
Otto the First, King of East Francia, defeats the Magyars (Huns) at the battle of Lechfeld
ending their raids.
961 – Saint Dunstan
Archbishop of Canterbury who transformed Glastonbury into a centre of religious learning
and an important force for the re-establishment of monasticism in England.
961 – 969 – Nicephorus Phocas
Byzantine Emperor and army general Nicephorus Phocas regains Crete, Aleppo, Cyprus
and Cilesia for the Byzantine Empire from Arab control.
962 – Holy Roman Emperor Otto
Otto the First is crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope John the Twelfth.
963 – Duke Mieszko of Poland
German Emperor Otto the First defeats Duke Mieszko of Poland and obliges him to pay
tribute.
Foundation of the Great Lavra monastery on Mount Athos by St Athanasius.
965 – King Harald Bluetooth of Denmark
Harald, king of Denmark, is baptized into Christianity, the first Viking ruler to do so. It is
rumored that it is part of a peace treaty after Harald’s defeat by Otto, the king of Germany.
The Volga Bulghars gain independence from the Khazars and ally with the Abbasids.
Arab conquest of Sicily from Byzantines
966 – Duke Mieszko
The baptism of Mieszko, Duke of the Poles.
967 – The Fatimid Dynasty
The Fatimid Dynasty is established in Egypt, and Islamic power stretches across North
Africa.
968 – Solar Eclipse
When Emperor Otto sent troops against the Saracens of Calabria a solar eclipse paralyzed
the army fearing the apocalyptic End of Days in the approaching millennium.
Emperor Otto founds the archbishopric of Magdeburg. The first Polish bishopric is
established at Poznan.
969 – General Jawhar al-Siqilli
General Jahwar takes Egypt from the Ikhshidids on behalf of the Shi’a Fatamid caliph and
builds a new capital – Cairo.
The Fatamids take Jerusalem under general Jawhae al-Siqilli.
Byzantine Emperor Nicephorus conquers Antioch.
The assassination of Nicephorus Phocas and his replacement as emperor by John
Tzimiskes.
970 – al-Azhar University
Formation of al-Azhar in Cairo, considered the oldest university still in existence.
971 – Palestine and Syria
The Fatamids take Palestine and Syria from the Abbasids.
972 – Theophanu
The arrival of Theophanu, John Tzimiskes’s niece, in Rome.
A council is held at Aurillac, designed to promote the Peace of God.
Saracen pirates dislodged from La Garde-Freinet.
973 – King Edgar
English Monarch. King Edgar is consecrated at Bath in the first use of the coronation
ceremony. Establishes a single currency.
The Council of Winchester issues the Regularis Concordia, a document establishing the
monastic reform movement in England driven by Archbishop Dunstan of Canterbury,
Athelwold, Oswald and King Edgar.
Death of King Otto. He is succeeded by his son Otto the Second.
975 – King Edward the Martyr
English monarch.
Death of Edgar. His son Edward takes the throne.
The Fatamids drive Carmathian Muslims from Egypt, Palestine and Syria.
Geza, ruler of the Magyars leads his people into mass conversions to the Western Church.
976 to 1025 – Emperor Basil the Second
Byzantine Emperor Basil the second, the Bulgar Slayer, conquers the Bulgars and annexes
their territory. He sees the height of Byzantine power with influence in Russia, over the
Fatimids in Syria and the Bulgarians.
978 to 1013 – King Ethelred the Unready
Murder of King Edward the Martyr at Corfe. Succeeded by his half-brother Ethelred.
Lothar the Fifth of France and Otto the Second of Germany lead campaigns against each
other.
980 to 1015 – Vladimir the Great
The rule of Vladimir the Great.
980 – Seljuk Turks
Seljuk Turks begin infiltration of the eastern Islamic territories.
Ibn Sina, (980 – 1037) Persian philosopher and medical doctor is born.
982 – Erik the Red
The Viking Erik the Red founds a colony in Greenland.
Otto the Second retreats to Rome after defeat at the Battle of Cotrone in southern Italy by
Islamic forces.
982 – King Otto the Third of Germany
Otto the Second dies in Rome. His infant son, Otto the Third, is crowned king.
The Slavs revolt against German rule and recover most of their territories to the east of the
Elbe.
985 – The Great Mosque of Cordoba
Precursor of the ribbed vaulted ceilings of the great cathedrals of Chartres and Lincoln.
Antioch falls to Turks by treachery.
986 – The Alhambra of Granada
The greatest Moslem palace in Al Andulay
987 – Hugh Capet
Death of Louis the Fifth, last Carolingian king of France, and accession of King Robert’s
grandson, Hugh Capet. The Capetian Dynasty is established.
Fulk Nerra becomes Count of Anjou.
Sweyn Forkbeard deposes his father, Harald Bluetooth, to become King of Denmark.
Prince Vladimir of Kiev converts to Christianity and fosters Byzantine learning in Russia.
988 – Charles of Lorraine
Charles of Lorraine contests Hugh’s succession and seizes Laon, then Rheims. In 991
Charles is betrayed and dies in captivity in 992.
988 – Prince Vladimir of Kiev
Grand Prince of Kiev, Vladimir, marries Anna, sister of Byzantine emperor Basil and is
converted to Christianity. He forces all his people to convert to Christianity, leading them in a
mass baptism in the Dnieper River.
The Eastern Church spreads to Russia.
989 – Truce of God
Truce of God first proclaimed, at Charroux.
990 – Italian Merchants in Egypt
First record of Italian merchants in Egypt.
991 – Battle of Maldon
The Battle of Maldon. Fire in Rome almost destroys St Peter’s basilica.
992 – The Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice secures trading rights at Constantinople, beginning its rise to
dominance of trade between Europe, Asia Minor and Egypt.
Death of Adso of Montier- en-Der while on pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
994 – Odilo, Abbot of Cluny
Odilo becomes Abbot of Cluny. The relics of St Martial are displayed on a hill above
Limoges in a successful attempt to arrest a pestilence.
996 – Robert the Second, King of France
Robert the Second ‘the Pious’ becomes King of France.
Otto the Third appoints his cousin as the first German pope, and is crowned as emperor.
996 – Al-Hakim, Caliph of Egypt
Al-Hakim becomes the Fatimid Caliph of Egypt ruling over Jerusalem.
997 – Al-Mansur
Islamic army commanded by al-Mansur, the effective ruler of al-Andalus sacks Santiago.
997 – St Adalbert
Martyrdom of Polish saint Adalbert in Pomerania.
The suppression of a peasant insurrection in Normandy.
998 – Otto the Third
Otto the Third suppresses an insurrection in Rome.
998 – Afghanistan
Ghaznavid territory expands into Afghanistan and Persia.
999 to 1003 – Pope Sylvester the Second
Otto the Third appoints Gerbert of Aurillac as Pope Sylvester the Second.
999 – Meteor
Meteor appears in the skies above England casting a brilliant light turning night into day
999 – The Viking Empire
The Vikings continue to explore and colonize ruling Normandy and parts of Britain.
The Byzantine Empire expands under Emperor Basil the second.
Venetians merchants are granted trading privileges in Constantinople.
Cairo becomes the Fatimid capital of Egypt.
A caliphate is established in Cordoba, Spain.
Following the collapse of the Carolingian Empire, the German Ottonian Empire grows in
power and size
The Anglo-Saxon kingdoms become united as England under the West Saxon Dynasty.
1000 – The Feudal System
The estimated population of Europe reaches 36 million.
The feudal system becomes established throughout most of Europe, including more parts
of the Byzantine Empire.
Germans begin their Drang nach Osten (drive to the East) in Central Europe. The system
involved the granting by kings or princes of parcels of land (fiefs) to nobles and knights, in
return for their loyalty; and the farming of those lands by tenants and/or serfs, in return for
protection.
1000 – Leif Eriksson
Leif Eriksson, Erik the Red’s son, reaches Vinland (Newfoundland, Canada).
1000 – King Olaf of Sweeden
King Olaf introduces Christianity to Sweden.
Death of Olaf Trygvasson following his defeat by Sweyn Forkbeard.
The conversion of Iceland to Christianity.
Otto the Third visits the shrine of St Adalbert in Poland and the tomb of Charlemagne in
Aachen.
Al-Mansur is virtual dictator of al-Andulas. The caliph of Cordoba becomes a puppet ruler.
