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476
The Fall of Rome
The invading army reached the outskirts of Rome, which had been left totally undefended. In 410 C.E., the Visigoths, led by Alaric , breached the walls of Rome and sacked te capital of the Roman Empire -
527
Justinian becomes Byzantine emperor
The reign of Justinian was an extremely significant period. It marked the final end of the Roman empire; the establishment of the new, Byzantine empire; the beginning of Western Europe's unique position within the civilizations of the Old World; and made possible the spread of Islam and the rise of the Franks. -
Jan 9, 622
Mahammed flees Makkah (Islamic year 1)
Only Muhammad was in danger at Mecca and this was after he made a treaty of war against the local residents while living among them.Muhammad eventually made an alliance with another town, Medina, that included provisions of war against the Meccans. -
Jan 9, 741
Muslim invasions halted
Along with barbarians from the north, Muslims begin to conquer lands from the south. Charles Martel, the Frank king, stops the Muslims' northward push in 732. -
Jan 9, 1000
Chinese invented gunpowder
When Chinese alchemists invented gunpowder it was a mistake. The alchemists were trying to find a potion for immortality and instead they wound up making an explosion. So the opposite effect came out of the original Idea. Gunpowder consists of potassium nitrate, common charcoal, and sulfur. -
Jan 9, 1000
City states and feudal systems
Rome, Florence, Venice, and other Italians towns become city-states. The feudal system begins. Kings give sections of land called fiefs to lords in exchange for help during wars. The lords can give land to knights. The peasants work the land in exchange for food and protection. -
Jan 9, 1095
The Crusades brgin
Christians from Western Europe responded to Pope Urban II’s plea to go to war against Muslim forces in the Holy Land. After the First Crusade achieved its goal with the capture of Jerusalem in 1099, the invading Christians set up several Latin Christian states, even as Muslims in the region vowed to wage holy war (jihad) to regain control over the region. -
Jan 9, 1135
Stained glass and gothic style
St. Denis Abbey in Paris is rebuilt in the Gothic style, the first church to use this design. The church also uses stained glass windows. By this time there are many Catholic monasteries in France. Some monks spend their days hand-copying holy books and drawing beautiful designs along the borders. -
Jan 9, 1215
King John of England signs the Magna Carta
also called Magna Carta Libertatum (Latin: "the Great Charter of the Liberties" [of England]), was a charter issued by King John of England at Runnymede, near Windsor, on 15 June 1215.[a] First drafted by the Archbishop of Canterbury to make peace between the unpopular King and a group of rebel barons, it promised the protection of church rights, protection for the barons from illegal imprisonment, access to swift justice and limitations on feudal payments to the Crown, to be implemented throug -
Jan 9, 1227
Genghis Khan dies after creating large land empire
The largest contiguous empire in history after his demise.He came to power by uniting many of the nomadic tribes of northeast Asia. After founding the Mongol Empire and being proclaimed "Genghis Khan," he started the Mongol invasions that resulted in the conquest of most of Eurasia. These included raids or invasions of the Kara-Khitan Khanate, Caucasus, Khwarezmid Empire, Western Xia and Jin dynasties. -
Jan 9, 1271
Marco Polo begins travels to China
The most famous of medieval European travelers. returned to Venice, his hometown, in 1295 after an absence of twenty-five years in the East. He claimed to have spent seventeen years in the service of Kublai Khan, ruler of the Mongols and of the largest empire in the world. He had many stories to tell. These stories were eventually written down by Rustichiello of Pisa, who heard them while sharing a Genoese prison with Polo, sometimes after 1298. -
Jan 9, 1324
Mansa musa begins pilgrimage to Makkah
Mansa Musa, fourteenth century emperor of Mali, is the medieval African ruler most known to the world outside Africa. His elaborate pilgrimage to the Muslim holy city of Mecca in 1324 introduced him to rulers in the Middle East and in Europe.His leadership of Mali, a state which stretched across two thousand miles from the Atlantic Ocean to Lake Chad, ensured decades of peace and prosperity in Western Africa. -
Jan 9, 1348
Black Death strikes Europe
Coming out of the East, the Black Death reached the shores of Italy in the spring of 1348 unleashing a rampage of death across Europe unprecedented in recorded history. By the time the epidemic played itself out three years later, anywhere between 25% and 50% of Europe's population had fallen victim to the pestilence. -
Jan 6, 1500
The Renaissance Begins
A French word that means "rebirth". The Renaissance got its name from a rebirth in interest in classical art and learning that took place from the l300s through the 1500s c.e. -
Charlemagne rules
Charles Martel's grandson, Charlemagne, becomes the new Frank king. He desires to spread Christianity. As he conquers land, he extends his faith. He is crowned "Emperor of the Romans" in 800 by Pope Leo III. Charlemagne dies in 814. The first castles are built around this time. -
Alfred the Great of England rules
Alfred the Great defeats the Danes (Vikings) in 878. In 886 he captures London. He signs a treaty, splitting England between him and the Danes. As a ruler Alfred encourages education by establishing schools. -
Arabs conquer Jerusalem
(1) The attacked region or city may fight and die; (2) they may become Muslims and pay a forced charity tax, the zakat; or (3) the Jews and Christians may keep their faith and pay a jizya tax. There was little hope for polytheists and their religious "freedom" under Islam. -
A divided kingdom
After Charlemagne's son dies, the kingdom is split into three. Raids into western Europe increase. In order to protect themselves, kingships are created. -
Teotihuacan collapses
Drought caused the collapse of Teotihuacan. Teotihuacan weathered a major dry spike in the early 400s, and then collapsed in a period of fluctuating slightly dryer episodes. -
Arabs perfect the astrolabe
Comprises the astronomical developments made in the Islamic world, particularly during the Islamic Golden Age (8th–15th centuries),[1] and mostly written in the Arabic language.It closely parallels the genesis of other Islamic sciences in its assimilation of foreign material and the amalgamation of the disparate elements of that material to create a science with Islamic characteristics. These included Greek, Sassanid, and Indian works in particular, which were translated and built upon.[2] In t
