Justinian I was born on 11 May 482 CE in Taurision (Serbia). An Eastern Roman emperor, Justinian ruled from Constantinople and sought to restore the Roman Empire to its former glory. His generals, Belisarius and Narses, reconquered North Africa from the Vandals, Italy from the Ostrogoths and part of Spain, though the wars drained the treasury. He commissioned the Corpus Juris Civilis, a codification of Roman law that shaped European legal systems, and he built the great church of Hagia Sophia. His reign also saw the Nika riots, which nearly toppled him, and the outbreak of the plague that bears his name. His wife Theodora was an influential co-ruler.
Before and after
- 480 CEBirth of Boethius
- 3 March 480 CEBirth of Benedict of Nursia
- from 481 CE to 843 CEFranciaf
- c. 482 CEOrigins of Kyiv
- 11 May 482 CEBirth of Justinian I
- 495 CEConstruction of Shaolin Monastery
- 5th centuryOrigins of Chufut-Kale
- 5th centurySalic law
- c. 500sRise of medieval music
More in Wars, politics & history
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- from June 68 CE to December 69 CEYear of the Four Emperors
- 293 CEDiocletian establishes the Tetrarchy
The era
This moment belongs to the Ancient civilizations (3,200 BCE to 500 CE), writing, cities and empires. You can also browse everything in the 5th century.