Bulgarians defeat the Byzantines at Anchialos

__NOTOC__ Year 917 ( CMXVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.

Events

By place

Byzantine Empire

* August 20 – Battle of Achelous: A Byzantine expeditionary force (62,000 men) under General Leo Phokas (the Elder) is routed by the Bulgarians at the

Achelous River The Achelous ( el, Αχελώος, grc, Ἀχελῷος ''Akhelôios''), also Acheloos, is a river in western Greece. It is long. It formed the boundary between Acarnania and Aetolia of antiquity. It empties into the Ionian Sea. In ancient ...

near the fortress of Anchialos (modern Pomorie) on the Black Sea coast. Phokas flees to Mesembria (modern Nesebar) and escapes by boarding a ship. Tsar Simeon I (the Great) becomes '' de facto'' ruler of the whole

Balkan Peninsula The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

, except the well-protected Byzantine capital of Constantinople and the

Peloponnese The Peloponnese (), Peloponnesus (; el, Πελοπόννησος, Pelopónnēsos,(), or Morea is a peninsula and geographic regions of Greece, geographic region in southern Greece. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmu ...

. * Fall – Battle of Katasyrtai: The Bulgarian army under Simeon I marches southwards to Constantinople. Leo Phokas, who survived at Anchelous, gathers the last Byzantine troops to intercept the Bulgarians before they reach the capital. The two armies meet near the village of Katasyrtai, just outside Constantinople. After a surprise night attack, the Byzantines are completely routed from the battlefield.

Europe

* Bulgarian–Serbian War: Simeon I sends a Bulgarian expeditionary force under

Theodore Sigritsa Theodore Sigritsa ( bg, Теодор Сигрица) or Sigritzes (died 924) was a Bulgarian military commander and noble, ''kavkhan'' (first minister) of Emperor Simeon I (r. 893–927). In 895 he headed a delegation in Constantinople for exchan ...

and

Marmais Marmais ( bg, Мармаис; died 924) was a Bulgarian military commander, nobleman and ''komita'' (duke) of a western Bulgarian region ( Sredets or Macedonia) during the reign of Emperor Simeon I (893–927). He was a descendant of an ancient B ...

to Serbia. The two persuade

Petar Gojniković Petar Gojniković or Peter of Serbia ( sr-cyr, Петар Гојниковић, gr, Πέτρος; ca. 870 – 917) was List of Serbian monarchs, Prince of the Serbs from 892 to 917. He ruled and expanded the Principality of Serbia (early m ...

, a Serbian prince who formed an anti-Bulgarian coalition, to meet for a peace agreement. They seize him and send the rebellious prince to the Bulgarian capital of Preslav, where he dies in prison. Simeon replaces Petar with

Pavle Branović Pavle Branovic ( sr, Павле Брановић, gr, Παῦλος; 870–921) was the Prince of the Serbs from 917 to 921. He was put on the throne by the Bulgarian Tsar Symeon I of Bulgaria, who had imprisoned the previous prince, Petar a ...

, a grandson of prince Mutimir, who lives in Preslav. Serbia becomes a puppet state until 921. * The Hungarians, after attacking

Swabia Swabia ; german: Schwaben , colloquially ''Schwabenland'' or ''Ländle''; archaic English also Suabia or Svebia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany. The name is ultimately derived from the medieval Duchy of ...

, sack and burn Basel (modern

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

). They invade Lorraine in Lotharingia, destroying Verdun and Moyenmoutier, and many monasteries in Alsace. Duke Arnulf I (the Bad) with Hungarian military aid, reconquers his land from King Conrad I of the East Frankish Kingdom. After this event, Bavaria and Swabia agree to pay tribute to the Hungarians. *

Battle of Confey The Battle of Confey or Cenn Fuait was a battle fought in Ireland in 917 between the Vikings of Dublin and the Irish King of Leinster, Augaire mac Ailella. It led to the recapture of Dublin by the Norse dynasty that had been expelled from the ci ...

: The Norse Vikings under Sigtrygg Caech defeat and kill King

Augaire mac Ailella Augaire mac Ailella (with similar spellings like Ugaire and Aililla) was the King of Laigin (Leinster), Ireland, who is said to have led the Irish forces at the Battle of Confey c. 915-917. The Irish were defeated by Vikings under King Sigtrygg ...

of Leinster in battle. Sigtrygg re-captures Dublin and establishes himself as king, while his kinsman Ragnall ua Ímair returns to England to become King of Northumbria.

Britain

* Summer – Lady Æthelflæd of Mercia cements an alliance with King

Constantine II of Scotland Causantín mac Áeda ( Modern Gaelic: , anglicised Constantine II; born no later than 879; died 952) was an early King of Scotland, known then by the Gaelic name ''Alba''. The Kingdom of Alba, a name which first appears in Constantine's lifeti ...

against Norse York. She captures the fortress at Derby (belonging to the Five Boroughs of the Danelaw), while her brother, King Edward the Elder, takes Towcester.Walker, Ian W (2000). ''Mercia and the Making of England Sutton''. . Æthelflæd's armies also ravage Brycheiniog ( Wales) in revenge for killing the Mercian abbot Ecbryht (see

916 __NOTOC__ Year 916 ( CMXVI) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Sicilian Berbers in Agrigento revolt and depose the independent Emir Ahmed ibn Khor ...

). *

Battle of Tempsford In 917, the group of Danes who had previously been based in Huntingdon relocated to Tempsford in Bedfordshire, together with other Danes from East Anglia. They built and fortified a new ''burh'' there, to serve as a forward base for attacks on ...

: The English army led by Edward the Elder defeats the Danish Vikings at

Tempsford Tempsford is a village and civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of the county of Bedfordshire, England, about east north-east of the county town of Bedford. The village is split by the A1 Great North Road and is located just befo ...

. They storm the fortified '' burh'' and kill King

Guthrum II Guthrum II was, according to some reconstructions, a King of East Anglia in the early tenth century. He should not be confused with the earlier and better-known Guthrum, who fought against Alfred the Great. Background The only Viking ruler of the ...

East Anglia East Anglia is an area in the East of England, often defined as including the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, a people whose name originated in Anglia, in ...

, along with the Danish Jarls Toglos and Manna.

Arabian Empire

* Battle of San Esteban de Gormaz: Umayyad forces under Abi-Abda besiege the ''

repoblación The ''Repoblación'' (, ; pt, Repovoação, ) was the ninth-century repopulating of a large region between the River Duero and the Cantabrian Mountains, which had been depopulated in the early years of the Reconquista. In the reign of Alfonso ...

'' of San Esteban de Gormaz (Northern Spain). King

Ordoño II of León Ordoño II (c. 873 – June 924, León) was a king of Galicia from 910, and king of Galicia and León from 914 until his death. He was an energetic ruler who submitted the kingdom of Leon to his control and fought successfully against the Mus ...

(supported by his brother Fruela II of Asturias) allies himself with Sancho I, king of Pamplona, and defeats the Moors. Abi-Abda is captured and executed by

decapitation Decapitation or beheading is the total separation of the head from the body. Such an injury is invariably fatal to humans and most other animals, since it deprives the brain of oxygenated blood, while all other organs are deprived of the i ...

Asia

* September 5 – The

Great Yue Southern Han (; 917–971), officially Han (), originally Yue (), was one of the ten kingdoms that existed during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. It was located on China's southern coast, controlling modern Guangdong and Guangxi. The ...

Kingdom, later renamed Southern Han, is founded by Liu Yan, former governor and military advisor, in Panyu (modern Guangdong) and

Guangxi Guangxi (; ; Chinese postal romanization, alternately romanized as Kwanghsi; ; za, Gvangjsih, italics=yes), officially the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region (GZAR), is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the People's Republic ...

. Liu Yan declares himself emperor, and gives his niece Liu Hua in marriage to

Wang Yanjun Wang Yanjun () (died November 17, 935), known as Wang Lin (王鏻 or 王璘) from 933 to 935, formally Emperor Huizong of Min (), used the name of Xuanxi () while briefly being a Taoist monk, was the third ruler of the Chinese Five Dynasties and T ...

, a son of his rival Wang Shenzhi (Prince of Min), to cement a relationship between the two states.

Births

* September 20 –

Kyunyeo Gyunyeo or Kyun Yeo (; 923–973) was a Korean Buddhist monk and poet. He came from the Hwangju Byeon clan. Among his works are "Songs of the Ten Vows Samantabhara." These songs are set out in 1075 in the biography ''The Life of Kuehne''. This is ...

, Korean poet (d. 973) *

Ibn Battah al-Ukbari Abu Abdullah `Ubaidullah bin Muhammad bin Battah al-`Ukbari al-Hanbali, known as Ibn Battah was a Hanbali theologian and jurisconsult born at 'Ukbara in 304/c. 917. He learned from a number of Hanbali scholars of his time and also personally knew ...

, Arab theologian (d. 997) * Kamo no Yasunori, Japanese spiritual advisor (d.

977 Year 977 ( CMLXXVII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * May – Boris II, dethroned emperor (''tsar'') of Bulgaria, and his brother Roman ma ...

) * Theophylactus, patriarch of Constantinople (d.

956 Year 956 ( CMLVI) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Summer – Emperor Constantine VII appoints Nikephoros Phokas to commander of the ...

)

Deaths

* January 21 – Erchanger, East Frankish nobleman *

August 5 Events Pre-1600 *AD 25 – Guangwu claims the throne as Emperor of China, restoring the Han dynasty after the collapse of the short-lived Xin dynasty. * 70 – Fires resulting from the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem are ...

– Euthymius I, patriarch of Constantinople * August 20 –

Constantine Lips Constantine Lips ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Λίψ) (died 20 August 917) was a Byzantine aristocrat and admiral who lived in the later 9th and early 10th centuries. He was killed in 917 at the Battle of Acheloos against Bulgaria. Constantine Lip ...

, Byzantine admiral * Al-'Abbas ibn 'Amr al-Ghanawi, Abbasid governor *

, king of Leinster ( Ireland) *

Frederuna Frederuna (or Frederonne, Fridarun; french: Frédérune or ; 887–917) was the Queen consort of France by marriage to king Charles III of France. She was born in Goslar, Hanover to Dietrich Theodorich von Ringelheim, Duke of Saxony and his wife ...

, West Frankish queen (b.

887 __NOTOC__ Year 887 (Roman numerals, DCCCLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * November 17 – East Frankish magnates revolt against the ...

) *

, king of

( England) * Hasan al-Utrush, emir of Tabaristan ( Iran) * Nicholas Picingli, Byzantine general *

, Serbian prince * Radboud, archbishop of Utrecht * Sindeok, king of Silla ( Korea) * Yahya IV, sultan of Morocco

References

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