9th Century CE 🛡️

Image depicting the 9th Century CE, such as the Abbasid Caliphate or Viking Longship

The 9th century CE was defined by the peak of the Islamic Golden Age in the Middle East, the extensive Viking raids across Europe, and the political fragmentation following the death of Charlemagne.

  • Major Events
    1. Treaty of Verdun (843 CE): Divided the Carolingian Empire among Charlemagne's grandsons, laying the foundation for modern France and Germany.
    2. Great Viking Raids escalate across Europe, leading to the settlement of Norsemen in England (Danelaw), Ireland, and Normandy.
    3. Arab-Byzantine Wars: Continued conflicts between the Abbasid Caliphate and the Byzantine Empire.
    4. An Lushan Rebellion is fully suppressed in China (early 9th century), though the Tang Dynasty begins its terminal decline.
  • Major Empires
    1. Abbasid Caliphate (Islamic Golden Age)
    2. Byzantine Empire (Macedonian Dynasty beginning)
    3. Carolingian Empire (Fragmented into West, Middle, and East Francia)
    4. Tang Dynasty (China, in decline)
  • Major Conflicts
    1. Viking Siege of Paris (885–886 CE)
    2. Arab Conquest of Sicily begins (827 CE)
    3. Internal conflicts and civil wars within the fragmented Carolingian realms.
  • Population Trends
    1. Population growth and prosperity in the Islamic world due to trade and urbanization.
    2. Disruption and localized decline in parts of Western Europe due to Viking, Magyar, and Saracen raids.
  • Key Leaders
    1. Harun al-Rashid / Al-Ma'mun (Abbasid Caliphs, oversaw the Golden Age's height)
    2. Alfred the Great (King of Wessex, resisted the Vikings in England)
    3. Charlemagne's Successors (Louis the Pious, Charles the Bald, etc.)
  • Key Intellectuals
    1. Al-Khwarizmi (Islamic mathematician, gave us "algebra" and "algorithm")
    2. Photios I of Constantinople (Byzantine Patriarch and scholar)
    3. Rabanus Maurus (Frankish Benedictine monk and encyclopedist)
  • Major Religions
    1. Islam (Period of major intellectual and cultural flourishing under the Abbasids)
    2. Christianity (East-West schisms begin to emerge; Cyril and Methodius convert Slavs)
    3. Buddhism (Flourishes in Korea, begins a decline in China following persecution in 845 CE)
  • Key Developments
    1. The House of Wisdom in Baghdad reaches its zenith (translation movement).
    2. Development of the Glagolitic alphabet by Cyril and Methodius.
    3. Widespread adoption of the stirrup in Europe, impacting warfare.