Ancient World
Division of the Roman Empire (395): East and West Split
The empire was permanently governed by two separate courts, in Constantinople and in the West; the two halves were never again ruled by a single resident emperor.
Region
Middle East
Middle Ages
Plague of Justinian (541): The First Recorded Plague Pandemic
The first known pandemic of bubonic plague killed a large but disputed share of the Mediterranean population and recurred in waves for about two centuries.
Middle Ages
Byzantine-Sasanian War of 602-628: Heraclius Against Persia
Byzantine victory after near-collapse; Persia returned its conquests, but both empires were exhausted on the eve of the Arab conquests.
Middle Ages
Rise of Islam (610): Muhammad and the First Revelations
Muhammad began preaching a strict monotheism in Mecca, forming a small, persecuted community that would leave for Medina in 622.
Middle Ages
Hijra (622): Muhammad's Migration from Mecca to Medina
Muhammad settled in Medina as leader of a new community; the year of the Hijra later became year one of the Islamic calendar.
Middle Ages
Battle of Badr (624): First Victory of the Early Muslims
Decisive Muslim victory; several leading men of the Quraysh, including Abu Jahl, were killed and Muhammad's standing in Arabia rose sharply.
Middle Ages
Battle of Uhud (625): Defeat Near Medina and Its Lessons
Tactical Meccan victory; the Muslims lost about 70 men including Hamza, but the Quraysh withdrew without attacking Medina itself.
Middle Ages
Battle of the Trench (627): The Siege of Medina Repelled
The confederate siege failed and the besiegers withdrew; Mecca never again attacked Medina.
Middle Ages
Treaty of Hudaybiyyah (628): Truce Between Medina and Mecca
A ten-year truce was agreed; the Muslims turned back that year but won the right to make the pilgrimage in 629.
Middle Ages
Conquest of Mecca (630): Muhammad Returns to His Home City
Mecca surrendered almost without resistance, the idols of the Kaaba were destroyed and the Quraysh accepted Islam and Muhammad's authority.
Middle Ages
Rashidun Caliphate (632-661): The First Four Caliphs
The early Muslim state expanded from Arabia to an empire from Libya to eastern Iran, then fell into civil war, ending with the rise of the Umayyads in 661.
Middle Ages
Battle of al-Qadisiyyah (636): The Fall of Sasanian Iraq
Decisive Arab Muslim victory; the Sasanian army in Iraq was broken and the capital Ctesiphon fell soon afterwards.