Explore 23 historical events from 640–649.
Marutha of Tikrit was the Grand Metropolitan of the East and head of the Syriac Orthodox Church of the East from 628 or 629 until his death in 649. He is commemorated as a saint by…
Marutha of Tikrit, Persian theologian of the Syriac Orthodox Church (born 565)
Empress Xiao, formally Empress Min, was an empress of the Chinese Sui dynasty. Her husband was Emperor Yang of Sui.
Xiao, empress of the Sui dynasty
Richarius of Celles was a Frankish hermit, monk, and the founder of two monasteries. He is venerated as a saint in the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches.
Richarius, Frankish monk and saint (born 560)
Pope Theodore I was the bishop of Rome from 24 November 642 to his death on 14 May 649. His pontificate was dominated by the struggle with Monothelitism.
Pope Theodore I
The Battle of Maserfield, was fought on 5 August 641 or 642 between the Anglo-Saxon kings Oswald of Northumbria and Penda of Mercia allied with Welsh Kingdom of Gwynedd, ending in …
Battle of Maserfield: Penda of Mercia defeats and kills Oswald of Northumbria.
The Soga clan was one of the most powerful aristocratic kin groups (uji) of the Asuka period of the early Japanese state—the Yamato polity—and played a major role in the spread of…
In a plot to eliminate the Japanese Soga clan, Prince Naka no Ōe assassinated Soga no Iruka (depicted), beginning the…
The Battle of Heliopolis or Ayn Shams was a decisive battle in 640 between Arab Muslim armies and Byzantine Empire forces for the control of Egypt. Though there were several major …
Battle of Heliopolis: The Muslim Arab army under 'Amr ibn al-'As defeat the Byzantine forces near Heliopolis (Egypt).
Li Shiji, courtesy name Maogong, posthumously known as Duke Zhenwu of Ying, was a Chinese military general and politician who lived in the early Tang dynasty. His original family n…
Chinese forces under general Li Shiji besiege the strategic fortress city of Anshi (Liaoning) during the Goguryeo–Tang…
Li Jing, courtesy name Yaoshi (藥師), posthumous name Jingwu (景武), was a Chinese military general, strategist, and writer who lived in the early Tang dynasty and was most active duri…
Li Jing, Chinese general (born 571)
The Isshi incident was a successful plot by Nakatomi no Kamatari, Prince Naka no Ōe and others who conspired to eliminate the main branch of the Soga clan, beginning with the assa…
Isshi Incident: Prince Naka-no-Ōe and Fujiwara no Kamatari assassinate Soga no Iruka during a coup d'état at the…
Yuknoom Yichʼaak Kʼahkʼ or Yuknoom Ixquiac was a Maya king of the Kaan kingdom, which had its capital at Calakmul during the Classic Period of Mesoamerican chronology.
Yuknoom Yichʼaak Kʼahkʼ (died around 696)
Marutha of Tikrit was the Grand Metropolitan of the East and head of the Syriac Orthodox Church of the East from 628 or 629 until his death in 649. He is commemorated as a saint by…
Marutha of Tikrit, Persian theologian of the Syriac Orthodox Church (born 565)
Pope Theodore I was the bishop of Rome from 24 November 642 to his death on 14 May 649. His pontificate was dominated by the struggle with Monothelitism.
Pope Theodore I
Li Jing, courtesy name Yaoshi (藥師), posthumous name Jingwu (景武), was a Chinese military general, strategist, and writer who lived in the early Tang dynasty and was most active duri…
Li Jing, Chinese general (born 571)
Saint Goar of Aquitaine was a French priest and hermit of the seventh century. He was offered the position of Bishop of Trier, but prayed to be excused from the position. Goar is n…
Goar of Aquitaine, French bishop
Emperor Taizong of Tang, previously Prince of Qin, personal name Li Shimin, was the second emperor of the Tang dynasty of China, ruling from 626 to 649. He is traditionally regarde…
Tai Zong, Chinese emperor (born 598)
Empress Xiao, formally Empress Min, was an empress of the Chinese Sui dynasty. Her husband was Emperor Yang of Sui.
Xiao, empress of the Sui dynasty
The Isshi incident was a successful plot by Nakatomi no Kamatari, Prince Naka no Ōe and others who conspired to eliminate the main branch of the Soga clan, beginning with the assa…
Isshi Incident: Prince Naka-no-Ōe and Fujiwara no Kamatari assassinate Soga no Iruka during a coup d'état at the…
Richarius of Celles was a Frankish hermit, monk, and the founder of two monasteries. He is venerated as a saint in the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches.
Richarius, Frankish monk and saint (born 560)
Soga no Iruka was the son of Soga no Emishi, a statesman in the Asuka Period of Japan.
Soga no Iruka, Japanese politician
Zhenzhu Khan was a khan of the Xueyantuo, under whom the Xueyantuo rose from being a vassal of the Eastern Turkic Khaganate to a khanate ruling over northern and central Asia. His …
Zhenzhu Khan, khan of Xueyantuo
Li Shiji, courtesy name Maogong, posthumously known as Duke Zhenwu of Ying, was a Chinese military general and politician who lived in the early Tang dynasty. His original family n…
Chinese forces under general Li Shiji besiege the strategic fortress city of Anshi (Liaoning) during the Goguryeo–Tang…
The Soga clan was one of the most powerful aristocratic kin groups (uji) of the Asuka period of the early Japanese state—the Yamato polity—and played a major role in the spread of…
In a plot to eliminate the Japanese Soga clan, Prince Naka no Ōe assassinated Soga no Iruka (depicted), beginning the…
The Goguryeo–Tang War occurred from 645 to 668 and was fought between Goguryeo and the Tang dynasty. During the course of the war, the two sides allied with various other states. G…
Goguryeo–Tang War: Led by Emperor Taizong, the Tang army was forced to abandon a siege of Ansi Fortress.
Paulinus was a Roman missionary and the first Bishop of York. A member of the Gregorian mission sent in 601 by Pope Gregory I to Christianize the Anglo-Saxons from their native Ang…
Paulinus of York, English bishop and missionary
Goeric of Metz, also known as Abbo I of Metz, Goericus of Metz, and Gury of Metz, was a bishop of Metz. He is venerated as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic Church…
Goeric of Metz, Frankish bishop and saint
The Battle of Maserfield, was fought on 5 August 641 or 642 between the Anglo-Saxon kings Oswald of Northumbria and Penda of Mercia allied with Welsh Kingdom of Gwynedd, ending in …
Battle of Maserfield: Penda of Mercia defeats and kills Oswald of Northumbria.
Eowa was a son of the Mercian king Pybba and a brother of the Mercian king Penda; he was possibly King of Northern Mercia, as the 8th-century Historia Brittonum reports that he was…
Eowa, king of Mercia
Oswald was King of Northumbria from 634 until his death, and is venerated as a saint, of whom there was a particular cult in the Middle Ages.
Oswald, king of Northumbria
Pope John IV was the bishop of Rome from 24 December 640 to his death on 12 October 642. His election followed a four-month vacancy. He wrote to the clergy of Ireland and Scotland …
John IV, pope of the Catholic Church
The Battle of Heliopolis or Ayn Shams was a decisive battle in 640 between Arab Muslim armies and Byzantine Empire forces for the control of Egypt. Though there were several major …
Battle of Heliopolis: The Muslim Arab army under 'Amr ibn al-'As defeat the Byzantine forces near Heliopolis (Egypt).
Pope Severinus was the bishop of Rome elected in October 638. He was caught up in a power struggle with Byzantine Emperor Heraclius, who pressured him to accept Monothelitism. Seve…
Pope Severinus
Sak Kʼukʼ also known as Muwaan Mat, Lady Sak Kʼukʼ and Lady Beastie, was queen of the Maya city-state of Palenque. She acceded to the throne in October, 612 and ruled until 615.
Sak Kʼukʼ, Mayan queen