Editing 8th century

{{Short description|One hundred years, from 701 to 800}}
{{Centurybox|8}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2024}}
[[File:East-Hem 700ad.jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|Eastern Hemisphere at the beginning of the 8th century]]

The '''8th century''' is the period from [[701]] (represented by the [[Roman numerals]] DCCI) through [[800]] (DCCC) in accordance with the [[Julian Calendar]]. 

In the [[historiography]] of Europe the phrase '''the long 8th century''' is sometimes used to refer to the period of circa AD 660–820.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Kershaw |first1=Jane |last2=Merkel |first2=Stephen W. |last3=D'Imporzano |first3=Paolo |last4=Naismith |first4=Rory |title=Byzantine plate and Frankish mines: the provenance of silver in north-west European coinage during the Long Eighth Century (c. 660–820) |journal=Antiquity |date=April 2024 |volume=98 |issue=398 |pages=502–517 |doi=10.15184/aqy.2024.33 |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/antiquity/article/byzantine-plate-and-frankish-mines-the-provenance-of-silver-in-northwest-european-coinage-during-the-long-eighth-century-c-660820/EE2DE1D7955D055FA4225257755BF340 |access-date=19 May 2024 |language=en |issn=0003-598X}}</ref>

The coast of [[North Africa]] and the [[Iberian Peninsula]] quickly came under [[Islamic]] [[Arab]] domination. The westward expansion of the [[Umayyad Caliphate|Umayyad Empire]] was famously halted at the [[Siege of Constantinople (718)|siege of Constantinople]] by the [[Byzantine Empire]] and the [[Battle of Tours]] by the [[Franks]]. The tide of Arab conquest came to an end in the middle of the 8th century.<ref name="Roberts">Roberts, J., ''[[History of the World (book)|History of the World]]'', Penguin, 1994.</ref>

In Europe, late in the century, the [[Vikings]], seafaring peoples from [[Scandinavia]], begin raiding the coasts of [[Europe]] and the [[Mediterranean]], and go on to found several important [[Monarchy|kingdom]]s.

In Asia, the [[Pala Empire]] is founded in [[Bengal]].  The [[Tang dynasty]] reaches its pinnacle under [[China|Chinese]] [[Emperor Xuanzong of Tang|Emperor Xuanzong]].  The [[Nara period]] begins in [[Japan]].

==Events==
* Estimated century in which the poem [[Beowulf]] is composed.
* Classical [[Maya civilization]] begins to decline.
* The [[Broadbeach Aboriginal burial ground|Kombumerri burial grounds]] are founded.
* The first [[Serbs|Serbian]] state is formed at the beginning of the century.
* Buddhist [[Jataka]] stories are translated into [[Syriac language|Syriac]] and [[Arabic language|Arabic]] as [[Kalilag and Damnag]].
* An account of [[Gautama Buddha|Buddha]]'s life is translated into [[Greek language|Greek]] by Saint [[John of Damascus]], and widely circulated to [[Christianity|Christians]] as the story of [[Barlaam and Josaphat]].
* Height of the [[Mesoamerican chronology|Classic period]] in [[pre-Columbian]] [[Maya civilization]] history.
* Śāntideva, a Buddhist monk at Nalanda Monastery in India, composes the famous Bodhicharyāvatāra, or ''Guide to the Bodhisattva's Way of Life''.
* The height of the [[Giant Wild Goose Pagoda]] in [[Xi'an]], China is extended by 5 stories.
* [[701]]: The [[Taihō Code]] is enacted in late [[Asuka period]] Japan.
* [[705]]: Death of Arab caliph [[Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan|Abd al-Malik]], his succession by his nominated heir and elder son [[Al-Walid I|al-Walid]].
* 705: Overthrow of Empress [[Wu Zetian]], the reign of [[China]]'s first and only sole-ruling empress ends.
* [[705]]: [[Justinian II]] is forced to give the title Caesar of Byzantium to the Bulgarian Emperor [[Tervel]]. The Byzantine Empire begins to pay annual tributes to Bulgaria. 
* [[708]]–[[AD 711|711]]: The Bulgarians defeat Justinian II at the [[Battle of Anchialus (708)|Battle of Anchialus]]. An Arab Umayyad army under [[Muhammad ibn al-Qasim]] invades [[Sindh]] in northern India.<ref name="roberts">Roberts, J., ''History of the World'', Penguin, 1994.</ref>
* [[710]]: [[Empress Genmei]] moves the capital to [[Heijō Palace|Heijō-kyū]] (present day [[Nara, Nara|Nara]]), initiating the Nara period of Japan.
* [[AD 711|711]]: [[Palenque]] is conquered by [[Toniná]].
[[File:Toniná 6.jpg|thumbnail|A prisoner from [[Palenque]] in [[Toniná]]]]
* [[AD 711|711]]: [[Tariq ibn Ziyad]] crosses the Straits of Gibraltar.<ref name="roberts"/> With the creation of [[Al-Andalus]], most of the [[Iberian Peninsula]] is conquered by [[Arab]] and [[Berber people|Berber]] [[Muslims]], thus ending the [[Visigoths|Visigothic]] rule, and beginning almost eight centuries of Muslim rule.
* [[712]]: [[Liutprand, King of the Lombards]] begins his reign (until [[744]]).
* c. [[712]]: Metropolitan episcopal see is established by the [[Church of the East]] in Chinese capital of [[Chang'an]].
* [[712]]–[[756]]: [[Emperor Xuanzong of Tang|Emperor Xuanzong]] reigned, the time was considered one of [[China]]'s high points.
* [[712]]–[[776]]:  [[Caliphate campaigns in India]] Arab Expansions Halted.
* [[713]]: Death of [[Dajian Huineng]], sixth and last Patriarch of [[Chán Buddhism]].
* [[713]]: [[Treaty of Tudmir]], signed between Abd al-'Aziz, the commander of Muslim troops invaiding Spain and Theodemir, the Christian king of a southern region is Spain. 
* [[715]]: Death of [[al-Walid I]] and he was succeeded by his brother [[Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik]].
* [[716]]: [[Sanjaya of Mataram|Sanjaya]] ascends the throne to be the first king of the [[Mataram Kingdom]].<ref name="Coedes">{{cite book |last=Coedès |first=George |title=The Indianized States of Southeast Asia |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |others=trans.Susan Brown Cowing |year=1968 |isbn=978-0-8248-0368-1 |editor=Walter F. Vella |author-link=George Coedès}}</ref> 
* [[717]]: Death of caliph [[Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik]] and his succession by his cousin and nominated heir [[Umar II|Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz]].
* [[717]]–[[718]]: [[Siege of Constantinople (718)|Siege of Constantinople]]. The [[Bulgarians]] and the [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantines]] decisively defeat the invading Arabs, thus halting the Arab advance toward Europe. 
* [[718]]: [[Sri Indravarman]] King of [[Srivijaya]] send a letter to the Caliph [[Umar bin Abdul Aziz]] of the [[Umayyad Caliphate]] in [[Damascus]], signing early ancient Indonesian official contact with Islamic world in the Middle East.<ref name="Azra">{{cite book |last=Azra|first=Azyumardi|author-link=Azyumardi Azra|title=Islam in the Indonesian world: an account of institutional formation|publisher=Mizan Pustaka|year=2006|isbn=979-433-430-8}}</ref>
* [[720]]: Death of caliph [[Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz]] and succession of his cousin [[Yazid II]] on 4 February 720.
* [[724]]: Death of caliph [[Yazid II]] and he was succeeded by his brother and nominated heir [[Hisham]].
* [[726]]: [[Byzantine Emperor]] [[Leo III the Isaurian]] destroys the icon of Christ above the [[Chalke Gate]] in the capital city of [[Constantinople]], beginning the first phase of the [[Byzantine Iconoclasm]].
* [[731]]: Bede completes his {{lang|la|[[Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum]]}} (''Ecclesiastical History of the English People'').<ref name=CBH>{{cite book|last=Palmer|first=Alan|last2=Palmer |first2=Veronica|year=1992|title=The Chronology of British History|publisher=Century Ltd|location=London|pages=34–37|isbn=0-7126-5616-2}}</ref>
* [[732]]: [[Battle of Tours]]. Near Poitiers, France, leader of the Franks Charles Martel and his men defeat a large army of Moors under the governor of Cordoba, Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi, who is killed during the battle. The Battle of Tours halts the advance of Islam into Western Europe and establishes a balance of power between Western Europe, Islam and the Byzantine Empire.
* [[732]]: The [[Sanjaya dynasty]] is founded around this time according to the [[Canggal inscription]].<ref name="Miksic 1997">[[John N. Miksic|Miksic]] (1997)</ref>
[[File:Dinastia tang, shanxi, straniero dal volto velato, 600-750 ca.JPG|thumb|297x297px|An 8th-century [[Tang dynasty]] [[Chinese ceramics|Chinese clay figurine]] of a [[Sogdia]]n man (an [[Eastern Iranian languages|Eastern Iranian person]]) wearing a distinctive cap and face veil, possibly a camel rider or even a [[Zoroastrian]] priest engaging in a ritual at a [[fire temple]], since face veils were used to avoid contaminating the holy fire with breath or saliva; [[Museum of Oriental Art (Turin)]], Italy.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Lawrence|first=Lee|title=A Mysterious Stranger in China &#124; Masterpiece by Lee Lawrence|date=3 September 2011|url=http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111904332804576540533071105892.html|access-date=2023-02-16|website=WSJ|language=en-US}}</ref>]]
* [[738]]: [[Quiriguá]] declares independence from [[Copan]]
* [[740]]: [[Battle of Akroinon]]. Byzantines win their first large-scale victory in a pitched battle against the Arabs.
* [[742]]: For the [[municipal]] [[census]] of the [[Tang dynasty|Tang-dynasty]] Chinese capital city [[Chang'an]] and its [[metropolitan area]] of Jingzhou Fu (including small towns in the vicinity), the [[New Book of Tang]] records that in this year there were 362,921 registered families with 1,960,188 persons.
* [[743]]: Death of Arab caliph [[Hisham]] and succession of his nephew and heir [[Al-Walid II]].
* [[744]]: [[Al-Walid II#Death|Assassination of Al-Walid II]], Succession of [[Yazid III]] to the [[Umayyad Caliphate|Caliphal]] throne on 17 April 744. 
*[[744]] Death of Yazid III and his succession by his brother and nominated heir [[Ibrahim ibn al-Walid]]. On 4 December Ibrahim was forced to Abdicate in favour [[Marwan II]].
* [[748]]: The Chinese [[Buddhist]] monk Jian Zhen writes in his ''Yue Jue Shu'' of the international sea traffic coming to [[Guangzhou]], ships from Borneo, Persia, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, and others bringing tons of goods.
* [[750]]: The last [[Umayyad]] [[Caliph]] [[Marwan II]] ([[744]]–750) is overthrown and executed by the first [[Abbasid]] Caliph, [[Al-Saffah|Abu al-Abbas al-Saffah]].  The [[Caliphate]] is moved to [[Baghdad]] which would later develop into a centre of trade and culture. The [[Ghana Empire]] begins in western Africa.
* mid-8th century - [[Great Wild Goose Pagoda]] at Ci'en Temple, [[Xi'an]], [[Shanxi]], is rebuilt.
* c. mid-8th century - Camel Carrying a Group of Musicians, from a tomb near [[Xi'an]], [[Shanxi]], is made. [[Tang dynasty]]. It is now kept at [[Museum of Chinese History]], [[Beijing]].
* [[751]]: Arabian armies defeat [[China|Chinese]] [[Tang dynasty]] troops in the [[Battle of Talas]], in the high [[Pamirs]] near [[Samarkand]], and conquer [[Central Asia]] completely.
* [[752]]: The Hindu [[Mataram Kingdom|Mataram]] kingdom flourishes and declines.<ref>Miksic (2003)</ref> (to 1045)
* [[754]]: Death of [[Abbasid dynasty|Abbasid]] caliph [[As-Saffah|al-Saffah]] and ascension of caliph [[al-Mansur]] to Arab [[Caliphate]]. 
* [[755]]–[[763]]: The [[An Shi Rebellion]] devastates China during the mid [[Tang dynasty]].
* [[AD 757|757]]: King [[Offa of Mercia]] becomes dominant ruler in England.
* [[758]]: [[Arab]] and [[Persian people|Persian]] [[pirate]]s and travelers burn and loot the Chinese city of [[Guangzhou]], while the Tang Dynasty authorities shut the port down for the next five decades.
* [[760]]: The construction of the famous [[Indonesia]]n [[Buddhist]] structure [[Borobudur]] began, probably as a non-Buddhist [[shrine]].<ref>Taylor (2003), p. 37.</ref>
* [[761]]: Marriage of Abbasid princess [[Rayta bint al-Saffah|Raytah]] and Muhammad (future [[al-Mahdi]]).
* [[768]]: Pepin dies; Charles becomes king at Noyan and his brother Carloman becomes king at Soissons.
* [[770]]'s–[[780]]'s: Java launched series of naval raids on ports of Dai Viet, Champa and Cambodia; Sontay in Tonkin (767); Nha Trang (774); captured Indrapura in Cambodia (770); Phan Rang (787). The naval raids was probably launched by [[Sailendra]]n-[[Srivijaya]]n Maharaja [[Dharmasetu]] or Dharanindra.<ref name="end">{{cite book |last=Munoz|first=Paul Michel|title=Early Kingdoms of the Indonesian Archipelago and the Malay Peninsula|publisher=Editions Didier Millet|year=2006|location=Singapore|pages=171|isbn= 981-4155-67-5}}</ref>
* [[772]]–[[804]]: [[Charlemagne]] invades what is now northwestern Germany, battling the [[Saxons]] for more than thirty years and finally crushing their [[Saxon Wars|rebellion]], incorporating [[Duchy of Saxony|Saxony]] into the [[Frankish Empire]] and the Christian world.
* [[775]]: Death of caliph [[al-Mansur]] and he was succeeded by [[al-Mahdi]].
[[File:Abu Ja'far al-Mansur, Sayr mulhimah min al-Sharq wa-al-Gharb.png|thumb|[[Abbasid]] caliph [[al-Mansur]] was succeeded by his [[Heir apparent|heir]] and son [[Al-Mahdi]], on 6th October 775.]]
* [[778]]: [[Candi Kalasan|Kalasan temple]] constructed, according to the [[Kalasan inscription]].
* [[781]]: Marriage of [[Abbasid dynasty|Abbasid]] princess [[Zubaidah bint Ja'far|Zubaidah]] and [[Harun al-Rashid]]. The [[Xi'an Stele]] is erected in China.
* [[782]]: Buddhist monk [[Prajna (Buddhist monk)|Prajna]] reaches Chang'an and translates the sutras into Chinese.[[File:Seventh ecumenical council (Icon).jpg|thumb|The Second Council of Nicaea was set up to restore the use and [[veneration]] of [[Icon|icons]] (or holy images), which had previously been suppressed<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gibbon |first=Edward |title=The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire |publisher=Random House |year=1995 |location=New York |pages=1693}}</ref>]]
* [[785]]: Death of [[Abbasid dynasty|Abbasid]] caliph [[al-Mahdi]] and succession of [[al-Hadi]] on 24 July 785. The [[Tang dynasty]] begins landing regular [[Sailing|maritime]] missions on the coast of [[East Africa]], cutting out middlemen Arab sea merchants.
* [[785]]–[[805]]: Chinese geographer [[Jia Dan]] describes large [[lighthouse]] pillars built in the [[Persian Gulf]], which is confirmed a century later by [[al-Mas'udi]] and [[al-Muqaddasi]].
* [[AD 787|787]]: The Empress [[Irene of Athens]] convenes the [[Seventh Ecumenical Council]], ending the first phase of Byzantine Iconoclasm.
* [[786]]: Death of [[Abbasid dynasty|Abbasid]] caliph [[al-Hadi]] and ascension of caliph [[Harun al-Rashid]].
* [[792]]: [[Battle of Marcelae]]. The Bulgarian victory over the Byzantines marks the end of the half-century political instability in [[Bulgaria]].
* [[792]]: The Manjusrigrha ([[Sewu]]) temple is completed according to [[Manjusrigrha inscription]].
* [[793]]: The first written account of a [[Viking]] raid carried out on the abbey of [[Lindisfarne]] in northern [[England]].
* [[793]]: The [[Frisian–Frankish wars]] come to an end with the last uprising of the [[Frisians]].
* [[794]]: [[Emperor Kanmu]] moves the capital to [[Heian-kyō]] (present day [[Kyoto]]), initiating the [[Heian period]] of Japan.
* [[800]]: An Arab fleet sails up the [[Tiber]].
* [[800]]–[[909]]: Rule of [[Aghlabids]] as an autonomous province of Caliphate in North Africa, with their capital at [[Tunis]].
* [[800]]: Beginning of the ancient West African state of [[Takrur]] or Tekrour, which flourished roughly parallel to the Ghana Empire.
* [[800]]: On Christmas Day, Charlemagne is crowned the first Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Leo III.
* [[800]]: The agriculturally based Buddhist [[Sailendra]] kingdom flourishes and declines.<ref name="Miksic 1997"/> (to 832)

==Inventions, discoveries, introductions==
[[File:8th c. Silk fragment, central Asia.jpg|thumb|8th century silk fragment, central Asia]]
* [[Plough#History|Heavy plow]] in use in the [[Rhine]] valley.
* [[Horse collar]] in use in [[Northern Europe]] in 8th or 9th century — perhaps introduced from [[Asia]].
* Mid 8th century – [[paper]]making introduced from [[China]] to [[Arabs]].
* [[Iron (material)|Iron]] [[horseshoe]]s came into common use around [[770]].
* [[Pattadakal]], Chalukya [[architecture]].
* The Chinese [[Buddhist]] [[monk]] [[Yi Xing]] applies a clockwork [[escapement]] mechanism to operate and rotate his astronomical [[celestial globe]].
* The  first European triangular [[harp]] designed by the [[Picts]] of [[Scotland]].

==References==
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