640s
The 640s decade ran from January 1, 640, to December 31, 649.
| Millennium: | 1st millennium |
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Events
640
By place
Europe
- February 27 – Pepin the Elder, Mayor of the Palace of Austrasia, dies and is succeeded by his son Grimoald. He becomes the head of the Frankish household, and the most powerful man in the Frankish Kingdom (approximate date).
- King Chintila dies of natural causes after a 3-year reign, in which he permitted the bishops wide authority in Hispania, Septimania and Galicia. He is succeeded by his son Tulga, who becomes ruler of the Visigothic Kingdom (approximate date).
- At the request of Porga of Croatia, one of the first dukes or princes (Croatian: knez) of Dalmatian Croatia, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius sends Christian missionaries to the Croatian Provinces (approximate date).
- The French city of Lille (according to the legend) is founded by Lydéric. He kills Phinaert in a duel to avenges his parents' deaths (approximate date).
Britain
- King Eadbald of Kent dies after a 24-year reign. He is succeeded by his sons, Eorcenberht and Eormenred, who jointly rule the Kingdom of Kent (now South East England).
- Hartlepool Abbey in Northumbria (Northern England) is founded. Wooden huts surrounding a church are built in Saxon style.
Africa
- May – Siege of Babylon Fortress: The Rashidun army lays siege to Babylon Fortress in the Nile Delta (near Cairo). The next two months' fighting remain inconclusive, the Byzantines having the upper hand by repulsing every Muslim assault.[1]
- July 6 – Battle of Heliopolis: The Muslim Arab army (15,000 men) under 'Amr ibn al-'As defeats the Byzantine forces near Heliopolis (Egypt). Amr divides his troops into three parts, surrounding the Byzantines.
- December 21 – Muslim Arabs capture Babylon after a seven-month siege; during a night assault Arab warriors open the city gates.[2] The Thebaid region (Upper Egypt) is annexed by the Rashidun Caliphate.
- December 22 – On orders of the Saracen leader, Amar, the Serapeum of Alexandria, containing works that had survived the destruction of the Library of Alexandria, is burned down, along with its collection of 500,000 manuscripts.[3] This story may be apocryphal.[4]
Asia
- Emperor Taizong of Tang begins the military campaigns against the Western Regions states in the Tarim Basin. General Hou Junji captures the kingdom of Gaochang, to solidify Chinese rule in Central Asia.
- Nestorian missionaries build the Daqin Pagoda in Chang'an (Shaanxi). Daqin is the name for the Roman Empire or the Near East.[5]
By topic
Religion
- Disibod, Irish monk and hermit, arrives as a missionary in Francia. He begins his religious work in the Vosges and Ardennes.
- May 28 – Pope Severinus succeeds Honorius I as the 71st pope. He dies in Rome only two months after being consecrated.
- December 24 – Pope John IV succeeds Severinus as the 72nd pope. His election is accepted by the Exarchate of Ravenna.
Economy
- A surge in atmospheric lead in ice core drilled in the Colle Gnifetti Glacier in the Swiss Alps signals an increase in silver mining because of economic recovery, after natural disasters in 530s and 540s.[6]
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Significant people
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References
- Butler, Alfred, "The Arab Conquest of Egypt and the Last Thirty years of Roman Dominion", p. 222
- Al Farooq, Umar by Muhammad Husayn Haykal, chapter nr. 21
- "Fires, Great", in The Insurance Cyclopeadia: Being an Historical Treasury of Events and Circumstances Connected with the Origin and Progress of Insurance, Cornelius Walford, ed. (C. and E. Layton, 1876) pp24
- "What happened to the Great Library at Alexandria?". Ancient History Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2020-01-09.
- Hill, John E. (2003). "The Kingdom of Da Quin". The Western Regions according to the Hou Hanshu (2nd ed.). Retrieved 2008-11-30
- Why 536 was ‘the worst year to be alive’. sciencemag.org Nov. 15, 2018