Year 938 ( CMXXXVIII) was a

common year starting on Monday A common year starting on Monday is any non-leap year (i.e., a year with 365 days) that begins on Monday, 1 January, and ends on Monday, 31 December. Its dominical letter hence is G. The most recent year of such kind was 2018, and the next one ...

of the

Julian calendar The Julian calendar is a solar calendar of 365 days in every year with an additional leap day every fourth year (without exception). The Julian calendar is still used as a religious calendar in parts of the Eastern Orthodox Church and in parts ...

Events

By place

Europe

* Summer – The Hungarian army invades Northern

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

with the permission of King

Hugh of Arles Hugh of Italy ( 880/885 – April 10, 948), known as Hugh of Arles or Hugh of Provence, was the king of Italy from 926 until 947, and regent in Lower Burgundy and Provence from 911 to 933. He belonged to the Bosonid family. During his reign in ...

. They cross the

Apennines The Apennines or Apennine Mountains ( ; or Ἀπέννινον ὄρος; or – a singular with plural meaning; )Latin ''Apenninus'' (Greek or ) has the form of an adjective, which would be segmented ''Apenn-inus'', often used with nouns s ...

, and sack the Lombard lands in

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...

Lazio Lazio ( , ; ) or Latium ( , ; from Latium, the original Latin name, ) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy, administrative regions of Italy. Situated in the Central Italy, central peninsular section of the country, it has 5,714,882 inhabitants an ...

and

Campania Campania is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy located in Southern Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian Peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islan ...

. Finally, the Hungarians are defeated at

Wolfenbüttel Wolfenbüttel (; ) is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, the administrative capital of Wolfenbüttel District Wolfenbüttel (; ) is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, the administrative capital of Wolfenbüttel (district), Wolfenbüttel Distri ...

by a Saxon army. *

July July is the seventh month of the year in the Julian calendar, Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. It was named by the Roman Senate in honour of Roman general Julius Caesar in 44 B.C., being the month of his birth. Before the ...

– King

Otto I Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), known as Otto the Great ( ) or Otto of Saxony ( ), was East Francia, East Frankish (Kingdom of Germany, German) king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the eldest son o ...

besieges the fortress of

Eresburg The Eresburg is the largest, well-known (Old) Saxon refuge castle (''Volksburg'') and was located in the area of the present German village of Obermarsberg in the borough of Marsberg in the county of Hochsauerlandkreis. It was a hill castle ...

. He defeats his half-brother

Thankmar Thankmar (or Tankmaro, or Tammo) (c. 908 – 28 July 938) was the eldest (and only) son of Henry I of Germany (Henry the Fowler) by his first wife, Hatheburg of Merseburg. His mother had been previously married and widowed, after which she enter ...

and kills him as he tries to find sanctuary.

Eberhard III Eberhard III may refer to: * Eberhard III, Count of Württemberg (died 1417) * Eberhard III, Duke of Württemberg (1614–1674) See also * Eberhard I (disambiguation) * Eberhard II (disambiguation) * Eberhard IV (disambiguation) {{hndis ...

, duke of

Franconia Franconia ( ; ; ) is a geographical region of Germany, characterised by its culture and East Franconian dialect (). Franconia is made up of the three (governmental districts) of Lower Franconia, Lower, Middle Franconia, Middle and Upper Franco ...

, is banished and replaced by his uncle

Berthold Berthold may refer to: * Berthold (name), a Germanic given name and surname * Berthold Type Foundry, former German type foundry * Berthold, North Dakota, a place in the United States See also * Berthod, a surname * Berchtold Berchtold (also Bert ...

. * Fall – Otto I defeats in two campaigns a series of uprisings in

Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

, Franconia and

Lotharingia Lotharingia was a historical region and an early medieval polity that existed during the late Carolingian and early Ottonian era, from the middle of the 9th to the middle of the 10th century. It was established in 855 by the Treaty of Prüm, a ...

.Timothy Reuter (1999). ''The New Cambridge Medieval History, Volume III'', p. 245. . He signs a "friendship pact" with King Louis IV ("d'Outremer") of the

West Frankish Kingdom In medieval historiography, West Francia (Medieval Latin: ) or the Kingdom of the West Franks () constitutes the initial stage of the Kingdom of France and extends from the year 843, from the Treaty of Verdun, to 987, the beginning of the Capeti ...

Asia

* Battle of Bach Dang:

Tĩnh Hải Quân Tĩnh Hải quân or Jinghai Circuit ( Chinese: 靜海軍, pinyin: Jìnghǎi Jūn) (literally "Peaceful Sea Army"), also known as Annan or An Nam (), was an administrative division of the Tang dynasty of China administered by Chinese governors, ...

forces under the rule of

Ngô Quyền Ngô Quyền ( vi-hantu, 吳權) (April 17, 898 – February 14, 944), often referred to as Tiền Ngô Vương (前吳王; "First King of Ngô"), was a warlord who later became the founding king of the Ngô dynasty of Vietnam. He reigned fro ...

defeated an invading force of the

Southern Han Southern Han ( zh , t = 南漢 , p = Nán Hàn , j=Naam4 Hon3; 917–971), officially Han ( zh , t = 漢 , links=no), originally Yue ( zh , c = 越 , links=no), was a dynastic state of China and one of the Ten Kingdoms that existed during the ...

state at the

Bach Dang River Johann Sebastian Bach (German: �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety of instruments and forms, including the orc ...

. This put an end to

Chinese Chinese may refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China. **'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...

imperial domination in

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

after nearly 1,000 years.

Ngô Sĩ Liên Ngô Sĩ Liên (吳士連) was a Vietnamese historian of the Lê dynasty. Biography Ngô Sĩ Liên was the main compiler of the '' Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư'', a chronicle of the history of Vietnam and a historical record of an Annamese ...

(1993),

Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư The ''Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư'' ( vi-hantu, 大越史記全書; ; ''Complete Annals of Đại Việt'') is the official national chronicle of the Đại Việt, that was originally compiled by the royal historian Ngô Sĩ Liên under ...

, page 53, Peripheral Records vol. 5, "Kỷ Nam Bắc Phân Tranh" * The

Sixteen Prefectures The Sixteen Prefectures, more precisely known as the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan- Yun () or the Sixteen Prefectures of You- Ji (), comprise a historical region in North China along the Great Wall in present-day Beijing, Tianjin, and part of no ...

, which includes the area around modern-day

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

, are absorbed in the Khitan Empire.

Births

September 14 Events Pre-1600 *AD 81 – Domitian became Emperor of the Roman Empire upon the death of his brother Titus. * 786 – "Night of the three Caliphs": Harun al-Rashid becomes the Abbasid caliph upon the death of his brother al-Hadi. Bir ...

–

Sahib ibn Abbad Abu’l-Qāsim Ismāʿīl ibn ʿAbbād ibn al-ʿAbbās (; born 938 - died 30 March 995), better known as Ṣāḥib ibn ʿAbbād (), also known as al-Ṣāḥib (), was a Persian scholar and statesman, who served as the grand vizier of the Buyid ...

, Buyid

grand vizier Grand vizier (; ; ) was the title of the effective head of government of many sovereign states in the Islamic world. It was first held by officials in the later Abbasid Caliphate. It was then held in the Ottoman Empire, the Mughal Empire, the Soko ...

(d.

995 Year 995 (Roman numerals, CMXCV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Japan * 17 May - Fujiwara no Michitaka (imperial regent) dies. * 3 June: Fujiwara no Michikane gains power and becomes Rege ...

) *

Almanzor Abu ʿĀmir Muḥammad ibn ʿAbdullāh ibn Abi ʿĀmir al-Maʿafiri (), nicknamed al-Manṣūr (, "the Victorious"), which is often Latinized as Almanzor in Spanish, Almansor in Catalan language, Catalan and Almançor in Portuguese ( 938 – 8 A ...

, Umayyad

vizier A vizier (; ; ) is a high-ranking political advisor or Minister (government), minister in the Near East. The Abbasids, Abbasid caliphs gave the title ''wazir'' to a minister formerly called ''katib'' (secretary), who was at first merely a help ...

and '' de facto'' ruler (approximate date) *

Beatrice of France Beatrice of France or Beatrice of Paris (c. 938 - 23 September 1003) was Duchess consort of Upper Lorraine by marriage to Frederick I, Duke of Upper Lorraine, and regent of Upper Lorraine in 978-980 during the minority of her son Thierry I. Lif ...

, duchess

regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

of Upper

Lorraine Lorraine, also , ; ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; ; ; is a cultural and historical region in Eastern France, now located in the administrative region of Grand Est. Its name stems from the medieval kingdom of ...

(approximate date) * García Fernández, count of Castile and

Álava Álava () or Araba (), officially Araba/Álava, is a Provinces of Spain, province of Spain and a historical territory of the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country, heir of the ancient Basque señoríos#Lords of Álava, Lordship ...

(approximate date) *

Olaf the Peacock Olaf the Peacock or Olaf Hoskuldsson (Old Norse: ; Modern Icelandic: ; c. 938–1006) was a merchant and chieftain of the early Icelandic Commonwealth, who was nicknamed "the Peacock" because of his proud bearing and magnificent wardrobe. He ...

, Icelandic

merchant A merchant is a person who trades in goods produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Merchants have been known for as long as humans have engaged in trade and commerce. Merchants and merchant networks operated i ...

and chieftain (approximate date) *

Romanos II Romanos II (; 938 – 15 March 963) was Byzantine Emperor from 959 to 963. He succeeded his father Constantine VII at the age of twenty-one and died suddenly and mysteriously four years later. His wife Theophano helped their sons Basil II ...

, Byzantine emperor (d.

963 Year 963 (Roman numerals, CMLXIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * March 15 – Emperor Romanos II dies at age 39, probably of poison administered by his wife, Emp ...

) * Sancho II, king of

Navarre Navarre ( ; ; ), officially the Chartered Community of Navarre, is a landlocked foral autonomous community and province in northern Spain, bordering the Basque Autonomous Community, La Rioja, and Aragon in Spain and New Aquitaine in France. ...

(approximate date)

Deaths

February 3 Events Pre-1600 * 1047 – Drogo of Hauteville is elected as count of the Apulian Normans during the Norman conquest of Southern Italy. * 1112 – Ramon Berenguer III, Count of Barcelona, and Douce I, Countess of Provence, marry, u ...

–

Zhou Ben Zhou Ben (; 862''Spring and Autumn Annals of the Ten Kingdoms''vol. 7 – February 3, 938''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol. 281.Academia Sinicabr>Chinese-Western Calendar Converter), formally Prince Gonglie of Xiping (), was a general of the Chinese Five ...

, general of Wu (b.

862 __NOTOC__ Year 862 ( DCCCLXII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Central Europe * King Lothair II of Lotharingia tries to divorce his wife Teutberga, on trumped-up charges of incest. With ...

) *

July 28 Events Pre-1600 *1364 – Troops of the Republic of Pisa and the Republic of Florence clash in the Battle of Cascina. *1540 – Henry VIII of England marries his fifth wife, Catherine Howard. *1571 – La Laguna encomienda, known t ...

–

, half-brother of

(during the Siege of

) *

Lady Ise , also known as , was a Japanese poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or ...

, Japanese

noblewoman A noblewoman is a female member of the nobility. Noblewomen form a disparate group, which has evolved over time. Ennoblement of women has traditionally been a rare occurrence; the majority of noblewomen were linked to the nobility by either their ...

and

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

(b.

875 __NOTOC__ Year 875 ( DCCCLXXV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * August 12 – Emperor Louis II dies in Brescia, after having named his cousin Carloman, son of King Louis th ...

) (approximate date) * Lady Peng, noblewoman of

Chu Chu or CHU may refer to: Chinese history * Chu (state) (c. 1030 BC–223 BC), a state during the Zhou dynasty * Western Chu (206 BC–202 BC), a state founded and ruled by Xiang Yu * Chu Kingdom (Han dynasty) (201 BC–70 AD), a kingdom of the H ...

( Ten Kingdoms) *

Muhammad ibn Ja'far al-Khara'iti Muhammad ibn Ja'far al-Khara'iti () (died 327 AH/938 CE) was a Muslim theologian and the author of ''I'tilal al-qulub'' (''The Malady of Hearts''), the earliest book on love in the Islamic world. He was born in Samarra, moved to live in Syria and ...

, Abbasid theologian *

Shen Song Shen Song () (863–938), courtesy name Jifu (), was a chancellor of the History of China, Chinese Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period state Wuyue. Background Shen Song was born in 863, during the reign of Emperor Yizong of Tang. He was said ...

, chancellor of

Wuyue Wuyue (; ) was a Dynasties in Chinese history, dynastic state of China and one of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period#Ten Kingdoms, Ten Kingdoms during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period of History of China, Chinese history. It wa ...

(b.

863 __NOTOC__ Year 863 ( DCCCLXIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * September 3 – Battle of Lalakaon: A Byzantine army confronts an invasion by Muslim forces, led by Um ...

)

References

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