Directory

860 CE

Byzantine–Rus' War: A fleet of about 200 Rus' vessels sails into the Bosphorus, and starts pillaging the suburbs of Constantinople. The raiders set homes on fire, and drown and kill the citizens. Unable to do anything to repel the invaders, Patriarch Photios I urges his flock to implore the Theotokos to save the Byzantine capital. Having devastated the suburbs, the Rus' Vikings pass into the Sea of Marmara and attack the Isles of the Princes, plundering the local monasteries. King Æthelbald of Wessex dies after a 2½-year reign. He is succeeded by his brother, sub-king Æthelberht of Kent, who becomes sole ruler of Wessex. Lusterware tiles, that decorated the mihrab of the Mosque of Uqba at Kairouan (modern Tunisia), are made (approximate date).

Conflict & Security

  • June 18 – Byzantine–Rus' War: A fleet of about 200 Rus' vessels sails into the Bosphorus, and starts pillaging the suburbs of Constantinople. The raiders set homes on fire, and drown and kill the citizens. Unable to do anything to repel the invaders, Patriarch Photios I urges his flock to implore the Theotokos to save the Byzantine capital. Having devastated the suburbs, the Rus' Vikings pass into the Sea of Marmara and attack the Isles of the Princes, plundering the local monasteries.source
  • Muhammad I, Umayyad emir of Córdoba, invades Pamplona (Pyrenees), and captures Crown Prince Fortún Garcés in Milagro, along with his daughter Onneca Fortúnez, and takes them as hostages to Córdoba.source
  • Summer – Viking raiders led by Weland sail to England and attack Winchester (the capital of Wessex), which is set ablaze. He spreads inland, but is defeated by West Saxon forces, who deprive him of all he has gained.source
  • Summer – The Viking chieftains Hastein and Björn Ironside ravage upstream and move to Italy, sacking Luna (believing it to be Rome). They sail up the River Arno to sack the cities of Pisa and Fiesole (Tuscany).source

Exploration & Expansion

  • Byzantine missionaries Cyril and Methodius arrive in Khazaria.source

Religion & Belief

  • Michael I succeeds Sophronius I, as patriarch of Alexandria.source
  • Lusterware tiles, that decorated the mihrab of the Mosque of Uqba at Kairouan (modern Tunisia), are made (approximate date).source

Technology & Infrastructure

  • The Japanese alphabet Hiragana becomes more popular in Japan. The phonetic alphabet will be further simplified, and reduced to 51 basic characters (approximate date).source
  • King Charles the Bald gives the order to build fortified bridges across the Seine and Loire Rivers, to protect Paris and the Frankish heartland against Viking raids. He hires the services of Weland, a Viking chieftain based on the Somme, to attack the Seine Vikings at their base on the Isle of Oissel. Weland besieges the Vikings—they offer him a huge bribe (6,000 pounds of silver) to let them escape.source

Births

  • Tudwal Gloff, Welsh prince (approximate date)source
  • Sergius III, pope of the Catholic Church (approximate date)source
  • Sancho Garcés I, king of Pamplona (approximate date)source
  • Ludmila, Bohemian duchess regent and saint (approximate date)source
  • Vasugupta, Indian writer and philosopher (d. 925)source
  • John X, pope of the Catholic Church (d. 928)source
  • Donald II, king of Scotland (approximate date)source
  • Robert I, king of the West Frankish Kingdom (or 866)source
  • Odo I, king of the West Frankish Kingdom (or 859)source
  • Georgios I, king of Makuria (approximate date)source
  • Bertila of Spoleto, queen of Italy (approximate date)source
  • Ibn Abd Rabbih, Moorish writer and poet (d. 940)source

Deaths

  • December 3 – Abbo, bishop of Auxerresource
  • December 20 – Æthelbald, king of Wessexsource
  • December 20 – King Æthelbald of Wessex dies after a 2½-year reign. He is succeeded by his brother, sub-king Æthelberht of Kent, who becomes sole ruler of Wessex.source
  • Guy I, duke of Spoleto (approximate date)source
  • Sedulius Scottus, Irish grammariansource
  • 'Anbasah ibn Ishaq al-Dabbi, Muslim governorsource
  • Govindasvāmi, Indian astronomer (approximate date)source
  • Constantine Kontomytes, Byzantine generalsource
  • Al-Abbās ibn Said al-Jawharī, Muslim mathematiciansource
  • Halfdan the Black, Norwegian noblemansource
  • Athanasia of Aegina, Byzantine noblewomansource
  • Tunberht, bishop of Lichfield (approximate date)source