1000s (decade)

Events

1000

Japan

• Palace Scandal: Princess Consort Yasuko has an affair. Michinaga (her half-brother) investigates it secretly and finds out the truth about her pregnancy. Yasuko cries and repents. Yasuko leaves the palace under the patronage of Empress Dowager Senshi and Michinaga (moved to his residence).
• Murasaki Shikibu starts to write The Tale of Genji.
• Ichimonjiya Wasuke, the oldest surviving wagashi store, is established as a teahouse adjacent to Imamiya Shrine.
• January 10: Death of Empress Dowager Masako (empress consort of the late Emperor Reizei)
• April 8: Fujiwara no Shoshi is promoted to Empress (Chugu), while there is another empress, Fujiwara no Teishi (kogo) - this is the first time that there are two empresses

Americas

• The Taíno have become the dominant culture of modern day Puerto Rico.

Christendom

• In continental Europe, the Holy Roman Empire established itself as the most powerful state. The Holy Roman Emperor Otto III made a pilgrimage from Rome to Aachen and Gniezno (Gnesen), stopping at Regensburg, Meissen, Magdeburg, and Gniezno. The Congress of Gniezno (with Bolesław I the Brave) was part of his pilgrimage. In Rome, he built the basilica of San Bartolomeo all'Isola, to host the relics of St. Bartholomew.
• In the Kingdom of France, Robert II, the son of Hugh Capet, was the first King of the Capetian royal dynasty.
• The Byzantine Empire under the Macedonian dynasty was engaged in a long and hard war with the First Bulgarian Empire. The Byzantine generals, Theodorokanos and Nikephoros Xiphias captured the former Bulgarian capitals of Pliska and Great Preslav, along with Little Preslav, extending Byzantine control over the northeastern portion of the Bulgarian state (Mysia and Scythia Minor). At the same time, Byzantium was instrumental in the Christianization of Kievan Rus' and of other medieval confederations of Slavic states.
• In Great Britain, a unified Kingdom of England had developed out of the various Anglo-Saxon kingdoms.
• In Scandinavia, Christianization was in its early stages, with the Althing of the Icelandic Commonwealth embracing Christianity in the year 1000. On September 9, the King of Norway, Olaf Tryggvason, was defeated by the Scandinavian kingdoms of Denmark and Sweden in the Battle of Svolder. Sweyn Forkbeard established Danish control over part of Norway. The city of Oslo was founded in Norway (the exact year is debatable, but the 1,000 year anniversary was held in the year 2000). It is known that in or around this year, Norse explorer Leif Erikson became the first European to land in the Americas, at L'Anse aux Meadows in modern-day Newfoundland.
• The papacy during this time was in a period of decline, in retrospect known as the saeculum obscurum ("Dark Age") or "pornocracy" ("rule of harlots"), a state of affairs that would result in the Great Schism between Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy later in the 11th century.
• The Kingdom of Hungary was established in 1000 as a Christian state. In the next centuries, the Kingdom of Hungary became the pre-eminent cultural power in the Central European region. On December 25, Stephen I was crowned as the first King of Hungary in Esztergom.
• Sancho III of Pamplona became King of Aragon and Navarre. The Reconquista was gaining some ground, but the southern Iberian peninsula would still be dominated by Islam for centuries to come; Córdoba at this time was the world's largest city with 450,000 inhabitants.
• In the Kingdom of Croatia the army of the Republic of Venice led by Doge Pietro II Orseolo conquered the island of Lastovo.
• The Château de Goulaine vineyard was founded in France.
• The archdiocese in Gniezno was founded; the first archbishop was Radim Gaudentius, from Slavník dynasty, and dioceses in Kołobrzeg, Kraków and Wrocław.
• The Bell foundry was founded in Italy by Pontificia Fonderia Marinelli.

Islamic world

The Muslim world was in its Golden Age; still organised in caliphates, it continued to be dominated by the Abbasid Caliphate, with the Caliphate of Córdoba to the west, the Fatimid Caliphate in North Africa, and experienced ongoing campaigns in Africa and in India. At the time, Persia was in a period of instability, with various polities seceding from Abbasid rule, among whom the Ghaznavids would emerge as the most powerful.

The Islamic world was reaching the peak of its historical scientific achievements. Important scholars and scientists who flourished in AD 1000 include Al-Zahrawi (Abcasis), Ibn Yunus (publishes his astronomical treatise Al-Zij al-Hakimi al-Kabir in Cairo in c. 1000), Abu Sahl al-Quhi (Kuhi), Abu-Mahmud Khujandi, Abu Nasr Mansur, Abu al-Wafa' al-Buzjani, Ahmad ibn Fadlan, Ali Ibn Isa, Al-Karaji (al-Karkhi), Ibn al-Haytham (Book of Optics), Avicenna, Averroes, and Al-Biruni.

By this time, the Turkic migration from the Eurasian Steppe had reached Eastern Europe, and most of the Turkic tribes (Khazars, Bulgars, Pechenegs etc.) had been Islamized.

Babylon abandoned

Babylon was abandoned around this year.

1001

By place

Africa

• Khazrun ben Falful, from the Maghrawa family Banu Khazrun, begins ruling Tripoli, on the African continent.

Asia

• March 17 – The Buddhist ruler of Butuan, in the Philippines (P’u-tuan in the Sung Dynasty records), Sari Bata Shaja, makes the first tributary mission to China.
• The Tao/Tayk region is annexed by the Byzantines, as the Theme of Iberia.
• Mahmud of Ghazni, Muslim leader of Ghazni, begins a series of raids into northern India, establishing the Ghaznavid Empire across most of today's Afghanistan, eastern Iran, and Pakistan.
  • Battle of Peshawar: Jayapala suffers defeat from the Ghaznavid Empire.
• Former emperor Đinh Phế Đế dies, while suppressing the Cửu Long Rebellion in Thanh Hóa province.
• Khmer King Jayavarman V is succeeded by Udayadityavarman I, and/or Suryavarman I.
• Construction begins on the Liaodi Pagoda, the tallest pagoda in Chinese history (completed in 1055).
• Japan
  • January 13 – Empress consort Fujiwara no Teishi dies in childbirth.
  • November – The imperial palace is destroyed by fire.
  • 70th birthday and longevity ceremony of Fujiwara no Bokushi (mother-in-law of Fujiwara no Michinaga, grandmother of Empress Shōshi).
  • 40th birthday of Empress dowager Senshi (mother of Emperor Ichijō).

Europe

• February 6 – After leading the revolt against Emperor Otto III and expelling the Crescentii, Gregory I, Count of Tusculum is named "Head of the Republic".
• July 31 – Emperor Otto III confirms the possessions of Ulric Manfred II of Turin, and grants him privileges.
• July – Sergius II becomes Patriarch of Constantinople.
• Byzantine Emperor Basil II attempts to reconquer Bulgaria.
• Robert II, King of France, marries for the third time, with Constance Taillefer d'Arles.
• Otto III, Holy Roman Emperor has Charlemagne's vault opened at Aachen Cathedral.
• The First Battle of Alton: Danish invaders defeat the English.
• Battle of Pinhoe: Vikings defeat the Anglo-Saxons in Devon.
• Bolesław I the Brave begins ruling parts of Slovakia.
• Bryachislav of Polotsk begins ruling Polotsk.
• Werner I, Bishop of Strasbourg begins ruling the Prince-Bishopric of Strasbourg.
• Ermengol I, Count of Urgell makes his second voyage to Rome.
• Thorgeir Ljosvetningagodi ends being a lawspeaker in Iceland's Althing.
• Ælfgar, bishop of Elmham, is consecrated.
• Æthelred becomes bishop of Cornwall, but dies shortly afterwards.
• The town of Lloret de Mar is founded in Catalonia.
• The first reference is made to Khotyn, Ukrainian town, and to Nyalka, Hungarian village, as to Chimudi.
• Brian Boru attacks the Uí Néill in Ireland.

North America

• Vikings, led by Leif Erikson, establish small settlements in and around Vinland in North America (approximate date).

By topic

Religion

• King Edward the Martyr of England is canonized.
• The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Esztergom-Budapest is established.
• Oqropiri (Ioane I), Svimeon III and Melkisedek I are Catholicoi of Iberia within one year.
• A tomb of Saint Ivo (possibly) is uncovered in Huntingdonshire, England.

1002

By place

Europe

• January 23 – Emperor Otto III dies, at the age of 22, of smallpox at Castle of Paterno (near Rome) after a 19-year reign. He leaves no son, nor a surviving brother who can succeed by hereditary right to the throne. Otto is buried in Aachen Cathedral alongside the body of Charlemagne.
• February 15 – At an assembly at Pavia of Lombard nobles and secondi milites (the minor nobles), Arduin of Ivrea (grandson of former King Berengar II) is restored to his domains and crowned as King of Italy in the Basilica of San Michele Maggiore. Arduin is supported by Arnulf II, archbishop of Milan.
• June 7 – Henry II, a cousin of Otto III, is elected and crowned as King of Germany by Archbishop Willigis at Mainz. Henry does not recognise the coronation of Arduin. Otto of Worms withdraws his nomination for the title of Holy Roman Emperor and receives the Duchy of Carinthia (modern Austria) - Henry is the first King to be elected away from the Cathedral of Aachen since the tradition was begun by Otto I in 936.
• July – Battle of Calatañazor: Christian armies led by Alfonso V of León, Sancho III of Pamplona and Sancho García of Castile, defeat the invading Saracens under Al-Mansur, the de facto ruler of Al-Andalus.
• August 8 – Al-Mansur dies after a 24-year reign and is succeeded by his son Abd al-Malik al-Muzaffar as ruler (hajib) of the Umayyad Caliphate of Córdoba (modern Spain).
• October 15 – Henry I, duke of Burgundy, dies and is succeeded by his stepson, Otto-William. He inherits the duchy; this is disputed by King Robert II of France ("the Pious").
• Fall – A revolt organized by Bohemian nobles of the rivalling Vršovci clan, forces Duke Boleslaus III ("the Red") to flee to Germany. He is succeeded by Vladivoj (until 1003).

British Isles

• November 13 – St. Brice's Day massacre: King Æthelred the Unready orders all Danes in England killed. Æthelred marries (as his second wife) Emma, daughter of Duke Richard I of Normandy.
• Winter – Æthelred pays tribute (or Danegeld) to Sweyn Forkbeard, buying him off with a massive payment of 24,000 lbs of silver to hold off further Viking raids against England.
• Brian Boru, king of Leinster and Munster, becomes High King of Ireland. After the submission of Máel Sechnaill mac Domnaill, Brian Boru makes an expedition to the North.

Arabian Empire

• Winter – Khalaf ibn Ahmad, Saffarid emir of Sistan (modern Iran), is deposed and surrenders to the Ghaznavid dynasty after a 39-year reign (approximate date).

Asia

• In Japan, court lady Sei Shōnagon completes writing The Pillow Book.

By topic

Religion

• June – Frederick, archbishop of Ravenna, is sent as an imperial legate to the Synod of Pöhlde, to mediate between the claims of Bishop Bernward of Hildesheim and Willigis, concerning the control of Gandersheim Abbey.

1003

By place

Europe

• February 9 – Boleslaus III is restored to authority with armed support from Duke Bolesław I (the Brave) of Poland. The following months, Boleslaus' brothers Jaromír and Oldřich flee to Germany and place themselves under the protection of King Henry II, while Boleslaus orders the massacre of his Bohemian leading nobles at Vyšehrad.
• German–Polish War: Bolesław I annexes Bohemia and parts of Moravia (modern Slovakia). German nobles under Henry of Schweinfurt revolt against Henry II (who has been promised the Duchy of Bavaria).
• Count Oliba (Taillefer) Ripoll. Oliba takes up the Benedictine habit at the Monastery of Santa Maria de Ripoll.
• King Robert II (the Pious) invades Burgundy, but fails. After this fiasco Robert repudiates his second wife, Bertha of Burgundy, and marries Constance of Arles who becomes queen consort of France.
• King Rudolph III of Burgundy invests Humbert I (the White-Handed) with the domains of the Duchy of Aosta. He becomes the first count of the House of Savoy.
• King Stephen I of Hungary invades Transylvania (modern Romania) and establishes the Diocese of Transylvania (approximate date).
• Battle of Albesa: Muslim forces of the Caliphate of Cordoba defeat the northern Christian armies of León, Pamplona and Castile.

England

• King Sweyn I (Forkbeard) lands with a Danish Viking fleet in East Anglia, ravaging the countryside. Northumbria surrenders to him (approximate date).

Asia

• Emperor Sheng Zong of the Khitan-led Liao Dynasty leads an expedition into Mongolia and subdues the Zubu tribe who are forced to pay an annual tribute.

By topic

Art

• Construction of the Brihadisvara Temple in Tamil Nadu (modern India), during the Chola Dynasty (Early Medieval period).

Religion

• May 12 – Pope Sylvester II dies after a 4-year pontificate. He is succeeded by John XVII as the 140th pope of the Catholic Church.
• November 6 – John XVII dies after a pontificate of about 7 months and is buried in the Lateran Basilica at Rome.
• Heribert, archbishop of Cologne, founds Deutz Abbey at Deutz (Germany).

1004

By place

Byzantine Empire

• Battle of Skopje: Emperor Basil II defeats the Bulgarian forces near Skopje (modern North Macedonia). Leaving his army behind, Samuel of Bulgaria manages to escape. Basil continues his campaign and besieges the fortress of Pernik. By the end of the year Basil has reconquered about half of the Bulgarian Empire.

Europe

• Spring – King Henry II crosses with an expeditionary force through the Brenner Pass to Trento. After initial military successes against Arduin of Ivrea, he receives the homage of the Italian clergy and Lombard noble families.
• May 14 – Henry II is crowned King of Italy by Archbishop Arnulf II in Pavia. A quarrel ensues between the German troops and the Pavese citizens. Henry orders a massacre of the population in response, destroying the city.
• Fall – Venetian-Byzantine forces defeat the Saracens at Bari. The citadel is on the brink of capitulation after a 3 day siege. Giovanni, a son of Doge Pietro Orseolo II, is married to the Byzantine princess Maria Argyra.
• German–Polish War: Duke Bolesław I of Poland loses Bohemia. With German support, Jaromír occupies Prague and proclaims himself the new duke. At Merseburg, he promises to hold Bohemia as a vassal of Henry II.
• Moorish forces under vizier Abd al-Malik al-Muzaffar sack the Catalan city of Manresa (modern Spain).
• Saracen pirates under the Balearic emir Mugahid sack Pisa, destroying nearly one-quarter of the city.
• Sancho III becomes king of Pamplona, Aragon and Castille (until 1035).

England

• A Danish Viking fleet under Sweyn Forkbeard lands in Norfolk. Ealdorman Ulfcytel orders his Anglo-Saxon troops to burn the raiding ships. The plan fails and Ulfcytel's small army is defeated by the Vikings.

Africa

• An episode of plague and famine breaks out in North Africa.

China

• Summer – Emperor Sheng Zong of Liao launches a major offensive against the Song dynasty. He invades Shanyang and threatens the Song capital of Kaifeng (approximate date).
• Jingdezhen porcelain enters a period of significant production during the Song dynasty.

Japan

• December – Fujiwara no Kenshi, the future empress consort, enters the palace as lady-in-waiting to her sister, Empress Shōshi.

By topic

Religion

• Spring – Pope John XVIII begins his reign as the 141st pope of the Catholic Church at Rome (until 1009).

1005

By place

Europe

• Spring – The Republic of Pisa conducts a military offensive against the Saracen strongholds in Southern Italy. The Pisan fleet sacks the city of Reggio Calabria. Pisa becomes one of the four commercial Maritime Republics (the other three are Genoa, Venice and Amalfi), which fight each other for control of the Mediterranean Sea.

British Isles

• March 25 – King Kenneth III of Scotland is killed in the battle of Monzievaird in Strathearn. He is succeeded by his cousin Malcolm II ("Forranach, the Destroyer", son of the late King Kenneth II) as ruler of Scotland.
• Summer – Danish Viking raiders under Sweyn Forkbeard continue to ravage the cities (mostly poorly defended) in southern England. A famine strikes Sweyn's army, which has to live off the land.
• November 16 – Ælfric of Abingdon, archbishop of Canterbury, leaves ships to the people of Wiltshire and Kent in his will, leaving the best, equipped for 60 men, to King Æthelred the Unready.
• High King of Ireland Brian Boru makes a second expedition to the north, to take hostages from the northern kingdoms. During this campaign he visits Armagh – making an offering of 20 ounces of gold to the church and confirming to the apostolic see of Saint Patrick, ecclesiastical supremacy over the whole of Ireland.

Asia

• January 13–18 – The Shanyuan Treaty is negotiated between the Liao dynasty and the Song dynasty. The Song government agrees to pay an annual tribute of 200,000 bolts of raw silk and 100,000 taels of silver, ending the northern border clashes against Liao.
• May 13 – The Japanese court permits Fujiwara no Korechika to enter the palace.
• Lê Trung Tông succeeds his father Lê Hoàn as emperor of the early Lê dynasty (modern Vietnam), preceding anarchy and 8 months succession war with other princes. Lê Ngoạ Triều succeeds his brother Lê Trung Tông, killing him after just a 3 day reign.

By topic

Arts and literature

• The Shūi Wakashū ("Collection of Gleanings"), an anthology of waka (poetry), is compiled by ex-Emperor Kazan of Japan (approximate date).

1006

By place

Europe

• Summer – An Arab Saracen fleet appears before Pisa, but departs again. The Pisans take their fleet to sea and chase the Arabs down to Southern Italy where, in the Battle of Reggio Calabria, the Pisan fleet defeats the Arabs.
• Summer–Autumn – Danish Viking raiders led by Sweyn Forkbeard raid south-eastern England from the Isle of Wight to Reading in the Thames Valley where they overwinter at the Wallingford river crossing.
• Brian Boru visits Ulster, and remains unchallenged.

Oceania

• A major eruption of the Mount Merapi volcano on Java causes devastation throughout the centre of the island (which it covers with volcanic ash) and to the Javanese Hindu Mataram Kingdom.

By topic

Astronomy

• April 30 – The brightest supernova ever recorded, SN 1006, occurs in the constellation of Lupus. It is observed and described in China, Japan, Iraq, Egypt, and Europe and possibly depicted in North American rock art. Modern astronomers now consider its distance at about 7,200 light-years. The supernova provides enough light to read by on a night with a dark moon.

1007

By place

England

• King Æthelred the Unready pays the Danish Vikings a sum of 36,000 pounds of silver (Danegeld) to stop further invasions.

Ireland

• The Book of Kells is stolen from the Abbey of Kells.

Japan

• January 1 (New Year’s Day) – Imperial Princess Shushi is granted the title Ippon Shinno (first rank princess).
• January 29 – Ranking ceremony of Murasaki Shikibu – as a renowned writer and lady-in-waiting, tutor of Empress Shōshi, she is elevated to the highest position in the palace below the empress.
• April – Imperial Prince Tomohira receives the title nihon (second rank prince).

By topic

Religion

• November 1 – King Henry II of Germany founds the Diocese of Bamberg during a synod held in Frankfurt.
• Ælfheah of Canterbury travels to Rome to receive his pallium – symbol of his status as an archbishop – from Pope John XVIII.
• The Keraites, a Turco-Mongolian tribe, are converted to Nestorianism (a sect of Christianity).

1008

By place

Europe

• Olaf Haraldsson, future king of Norway, makes raids in the Baltic Sea. He lands on the Estonian island of Saaremaa, wins a battle there, and forces the inhabitants to pay tribute.
• Battle at Herdaler: Olaf Haraldsson sails to the southern coast of Finland to plunder, where he and his men are ambushed and defeated in the woods.
• The oldest known mention is made of the city of Gundelfingen (Southern Germany).
• Unification of the Georgian realm.

England

• King Æthelred the Unready orders a new fleet of warships built, organised on a national scale. It is a huge undertaking, but is completed the following year.

Arabian Empire

• Caliph Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah sends a tributary mission to Emperor Zhenzong of the Song dynasty in order to reestablish trade relations between the Fatimid Caliphate and China (approximate date).

Japan

• November 13 – Kamo Special Festival: The poet Murasaki Shikibu is given her name from a famous court poet, Fujiwara no Kinto; this year she probably starts to write The Diary of Lady Murasaki.
• 42nd Birthday of Fujiwara no Michinaga, father-in-law of the emperor, is celebrated.

By topic

Religion

• Autumn – Bruno of Querfurt, a missionary bishop, and 18 companions sets out on a mission to spread Christianity among the Prussians.
• Olof Skötkonung, king of Sweden, is baptized in Husaby (Västergötland) by missionary Sigfrid, and makes generous donations on the spot.

1009

By place

Europe

• February 14 or March 9 – The first known mention is made of the name of Lithuania, in connection with the murder of Bruno of Querfurt. He is beheaded and his 18 companions are hanged the same day during a mission among the Prussians in the Baltic region.
• May 9 – Lombard Revolt: Lombard forces led by Melus, an Italian nobleman, revolt in Bari against the Catepanate of Italy (a province of the Byzantine Empire). He and his brother-in-law Dattus (or Datto) mobilise a large army and invade southern Italy.
• November 1 – Berber forces led by Sulayman ibn al-Hakam defeat the Umayyad caliph Muhammad II in the battle of Alcolea. He enters the city of Córdoba, which is sacked by Berbers and Castillans. Sulayman is elected as caliph of the Caliphate of Córdoba.
• Doge Pietro II Orseolo dies after an 18-year reign in which he has started the expansion of Venetia by conquering the islands of Lastovo and Korčula along the Dalmatian coast. Pietro is succeeded by his 16-year-old son Otto Orseolo as sole ruler of Venice.
• Law on planning and building passed in Serbia during the reign of Prince Jovan Vladimir.

England

• Danish Viking raiders led by Sweyn Forkbeard repeatedly attack southern England, destroying the land to avenge the St. Brice's Day massacre of 1002.
• August – A large Viking army led by Thorkell the Tall lands on Kent and proceeds to terrorize most of Southern England.

Asia

• Spring – General Kang Cho leads a coup against King Mokjong. He is deposed and sent into exile in Chungju. After murdering Mokjong, Kang Cho places Hyeonjong on the throne as ruler of Goryeo.
• November – The Lý Dynasty in Vietnam is proclaimed by Emperor Lý Thái Tổ (former commander of the palace guard) after the death of Lê Long Đĩnh, the last monarch of the Lê Dynasty.

Japan

• Princess Takahime (daughter of Imperial Prince Tomohira, cousin of emperor Ichijo) is married to Fujiwara no Yorimichi, first son of Fujiwara no Michinaga, enlarging the latter’s power.
• Takashina no Mitsuko is imprisoned for cursing the empress; Fujiwara no Korechika is also implicated but later pardoned.
• Murasaki Shikibu teaches the Chinese written language to Empress Shoshi in secret because this is usually a male accomplishment.

By topic

Religion

• Summer – Pope John XVIII dies after a pontificate of 5-years. He is succeeded by Sergius IV as the 142nd pope of the Catholic Church.
• August 29 – Mainz Cathedral suffers extensive damage from a fire, which destroys the building on the day of its inauguration.
• October 18 – The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem is destroyed by the Fatimid caliph Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah.