__NOTOC__ Year 796 ( DCCXCVI) was a leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 796 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Events

By place

North America

* The Three Fires Confederacy is formed at Michilimackinac.

Europe

* King Charlemagne organizes an invasion of the Avar Khaganate, with one army under his son

Pepin of Italy Pepin or Pippin (or ''Pepin Carloman'', ''Pepinno'', April 777 – 8 July 810), born Carloman, was the son of Charlemagne and King of the Lombards (781–810) under the authority of his father. Pepin was the second son of Charlemagne by his th ...

and another army under one of his vassals, the Croat Duke Vojnomir. The two armies launch a successful two-pronged invasion of the

Avar Khaganate The Pannonian Avars () were an alliance of several groups of Eurasian nomads of various origins. The peoples were also known as the Obri in chronicles of Rus, the Abaroi or Varchonitai ( el, Βαρχονίτες, Varchonítes), or Pseudo-Avars ...

(modern Hungary). They seize the Avar "ring" (the nomadic tent capital), destroying Avar power before returning with so much booty in gold and jewels that 15 wagons, each drawn by four oxen, are needed to bring it back to Frankish territory. Charlemagne wins a major victory (in which the Lower Pannonian duke Vojnomir aids him), and the Franks make themselves overlords over the Croatians of northern

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is one of the four historical region, historical regions of Croatia, alongside Croatia proper, Slavonia, and Istria. Dalmatia is a narrow belt of the east shore of ...

, Slavonia, and

Pannonia Pannonia (, ) was a province of the Roman Empire bounded on the north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia. Pannonia was located in the territory that is now wes ...

. Frankish

missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

are sent to the area to convert the

pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...

population to Christianity.

Britain

* April 18 – King Æthelred I of Northumbria is murdered, probably at Corbridge, by his ealdormen, Ealdred and Wada. Another rival, Torhtmund, slays Ealdred in revenge. Northumbria is plunged into chaos. The ''patrician'' Osbald is placed on the throne, but is deserted by his supporters after only 27 days. He flees from

Lindisfarne Lindisfarne, also called Holy Island, is a tidal island off the northeast coast of England, which constitutes the civil parish of Holy Island in Northumberland. Holy Island has a recorded history from the 6th century AD; it was an important ...

to Pictland. Another faction brings back Æthelred I's old back-from-the-dead rival, Eardwulf, as the new king. He dismisses his wife and publicly takes a concubine. Eardwulf is alienated from Archbishop Eanbald of York. * King

Offa of Mercia Offa (died 29 July 796 AD) was List of monarchs of Mercia, King of Mercia, a kingdom of History of Anglo-Saxon England, Anglo-Saxon England, from 757 until his death. The son of Thingfrith and a descendant of Eowa of Mercia, Eowa, Offa came to ...

and Charlemagne seal a trading agreement, and a marriage alliance is proposed. However, Offa dies after a 39-year reign, that has incorporated Kent, Essex,

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

, and

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 ...

into the Mercian realm. Offa is buried at Bedford, and succeeded for a short time by his son Ecgfrith, and then a distant cousin,

Coenwulf Coenwulf (; also spelled Cenwulf, Kenulf, or Kenwulph; la, Coenulfus) was the King of Mercia from December 796 until his death in 821. He was a descendant of King Pybba, who ruled Mercia in the early 7th century. He succeeded Ecgfrith, the son ...

. * The Kingdom of Sussex again becomes independent from the Kingdom of Mercia following the death of King Offa. * Prince Eadberht Præn leaves the Church, returns to Kent and claims his throne. Eadwald proclaims himself king of East Anglia, but is later ousted by Coenwulf. Direct rule from Mercia is re-established.

By topic

Religion

* Alcuin, Anglo-Saxon monk and scholar, is appointed as abbot by Charlemagne, who puts him in charge of leading Marmoutier Abbey in Tours. * Tō-ji, a Buddhist temple of the

Shingon sect Shingon monks at Mount Koya is one of the major schools of Buddhism in Japan and one of the few surviving Vajrayana lineages in East Asia, originally spread from India to China through traveling monks such as Vajrabodhi and Amoghavajra. Kn ...

, is established in Kyoto,

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

Births

* Al-Mu'tasim, Muslim caliph (d. 842) * Dhul-Nun al-Misri, Egyptian scholar and

Sufi Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, ...

(d. 859) * Ibrahim ibn Ya'qub al-Juzajani, Muslim hadith scholar * Liu Zhuan,

chancellor of the Tang Dynasty The chancellor () was a semi-formally designated office position for a number of high-level officials at one time during the Tang dynasty of China. This list also includes chancellors of the short-lived Wu Zhou dynasty, which is typically tre ...

(d. 858) * Lü Dongbin, Chinese scholar and poet *

Xiao Fang Xiao Fang (; 796–875), courtesy name Sidao (思道), formally the Marquess of Lanling (蘭陵侯), was a Chinese politician during the Tang dynasty, serving as a chancellor during the reign of Emperor Xizong. Background Xiao Fang was born in ...

, chancellor of the Tang Dynasty (d. 875)

Deaths

* April 18 – Æthelred I, king of Northumbria * June 12 – Hisham I, Muslim emir (b. 757) * July 29 –

Offa Offa (died 29 July 796 AD) was King of Mercia, a kingdom of Anglo-Saxon England, from 757 until his death. The son of Thingfrith and a descendant of Eowa, Offa came to the throne after a period of civil war following the assassination of Æt ...

, king of Mercia (b. 730) * August 10 – Eanbald, archbishop of York *

Colla mac Fergusso Colla mac Fergusso (or Colla mac Forgusso, died 796) was a possible King of Connacht from the Uí Briúin branch of the Connachta. He was the son of Forggus mac Cellaig (died 756), a previous king. The sept of Uí Briúin he belonged to was the S� ...

, king of Connacht ( Ireland) * Ecgfrith, king of Mercia *

Fujiwara no Tsuginawa , also known as Fujiwara no Tsugutada and Monozomo no Udajin, was a Japanese statesman, courtier and politician during the Nara period.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Fujiwara no Tsuginawa" in ; Brinkley, Frank ''et al.'' (1915). Career I ...

, Japanese statesman (b. 727) * Muhammad ibn Ibrahim al-Fazari, Muslim

philosopher A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...

(or

806 __NOTOC__ Year 806 ( DCCCVI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Asia * February 5 – Emperor Kanmu dies after a 25-year reign, that has seen Korea ...

) * Sibawayh, Persian linguist and grammarian (b. 760) * Tassilo III, duke of Bavaria (approximate date)

References

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