Editing 556

{{short description|Calendar year}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2011}}
{{About year|556}}
{{Year nav|556}}
{{M1 year in topic}}
[[File:Meister von San Vitale in Ravenna 005.jpg|thumb|right|259px|[[Maximianus of Ravenna]] (499–556)]]
__NOTOC__
Year '''556''' ('''[[Roman numerals|DLVI]]''') was a [[leap year starting on Saturday]] of the [[Julian calendar]]. The denomination 556 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 ==
<onlyinclude>

=== By place ===

==== Europe ====
* King [[Chlothar I]] suppresses a revolt of the [[Saxons]] and [[Thuringii]] in [[Saxony]] ([[Germany]]). For some time he exacts a [[tribute]] of 500 [[Cattle|cow]]s every year.

==== Britain ====
* King [[Cynric of Wessex|Cynric]] and his son [[Ceawlin of Wessex]] fight against the [[Britons (historical)|Britons]] at Beranburh, now identified as [[Barbury Castle]] ([[Wiltshire]]) in [[South West England]].<ref>Myres, p. 162</ref>

==== Persia ====
* [[Lazic War]]: A [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] expeditionary force under [[Justin (consul 540)|Justin]] retakes [[Nokalakevi|Archaeopolis]] (modern [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]]), and routs the [[Sassanid Empire|Persian]] army.<ref>{{harvnb|Bury|1958|p=119}}; {{harvnb|Martindale|Jones|Morris|1992|pp=752, 845–846}}; {{harvnb|Greatrex|Lieu|2002|p=121}}</ref>
* [[Siege of Phasis]]: The Persians are defeated at the besieged town of [[Phasis (town)|Phasis]] in [[Lazica]], held by the [[Byzantine Greeks|Byzantines]].<ref name="PLRE">Martindale, Jones & eMorris (1992), p. 81–82</ref>
* King [[Khosrau I]] opens negotiations with [[Justinian I]], leading to the establishment of a 50 year [[Peace treaty|peace agreement]] in [[562]].

=== By topic ===

==== Religion ====
* [[April 16]] &ndash; The [[Diplomacy|diplomatic]] representative (''[[apocrisiarius]]'') to [[Constantinople]] is elected as [[Pope Pelagius I]], succeeding [[Pope Vigilius|Vigilius]] as the 60th [[pope]] of [[Rome]].</onlyinclude>

== Births ==
* [[Gao Bainian]], [[crown prince]] of [[Northern Qi]] (d. [[564]])
*[[Amr ibn Hishām|Amr Ibn Hashim]], Arab [[Religion in pre-Islamic Arabia|pagan]] chieftain, and biggest enemy to the spread of early Islam

== Deaths ==
* [[February 22]] &ndash; [[Maximianus of Ravenna|Maximianus]], [[Bishop of Ravenna]] (b. [[499]])
* [[Echu Tirmcharna]], king of [[Connacht]] ([[Ireland]])
* [[Empress Erzhu Ying'e|Erzhu Ying'e]], empress of [[Northern Wei]]
* [[Romanos the Melodist]], Syrian [[poet]] (approximate date)
* [[Xiao Yuanming]], emperor of the [[Liang Dynasty]] 
* [[Yuwen Tai]], general of [[Western Wei]] (b. [[507]])

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
*{{cite book|last=Bury|first=John Bagnell|author-link=J. B. Bury|title=History of the Later Roman Empire: From the Death of Theodosius I to the Death of Justinian, Volume 2|location=Mineola, New York|publisher=Dover Publications, Inc|year=1958|isbn=0-486-20399-9|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JxWifqqPtUcC}}
*{{cite book|last1=Greatrex|first1=Geoffrey|last2=Lieu|first2=Samuel N. C.|title=The Roman Eastern Frontier and the Persian Wars (Part II, 363–630 AD)|location=London, United Kingdom|publisher=Routledge|year=2002|isbn=0-415-14687-9|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NnLDQgAACAAJ}}
*{{cite book|editor1-last=Martindale|editor1-first=John Robert|editor2-last=Jones|editor2-first=Arnold Hugh Martin|editor3-last=Morris|editor3-first=J.|title=The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire, Volume III: A.D. 527–641|year=1992|location=Cambridge, United Kingdom|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-20160-5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=110PAQAAMAAJ}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:556}}
[[Category:556| ]]