420s

Millennium:	1st millennium
Centuries:	4th century 5th century 6th century
Decades:	400s 410s 420s 430s 440s
Years:	420 421 422 423 424 425 426 427 428 429
Categories:	Births Deaths

Events and Trends

• Saint Augustine of Hippo publishes The City of God.
• Validity limit for the information on Western Roman Empire in the Notitia Dignitatum.

420s: Events by Year

Contents: 420 421 422 423 424 425 426 427 428 429

By Place

Europe

• Pharamond leads the Franks across the Rhine.

Asia

• The Jin Dynasty ends in China. Liu Yu (Emperor Wu of Liu Song) is the first ruler of the Song Dynasty.
• The Southern Dynasties begin in China.
• Bahram V succeeds Yazdegerd as king of Persia.

By Place

Western Roman Empire

• February 8 — Constantius III becomes Co-Emperor of the Western Empire.

Eastern Roman Empire

• June 7 — Emperor Theodosius II marries Aelia Eudocia, formerly known as Athenais.

Persia

• Theodosius declares war on Persia.

By Topic

Religion

• September 10 — Pope Celestine I succeeds Pope Boniface I as the 43rd pope.

By Place

Western Roman Empire

• On the death of Honorius, Joannes, a primicerius notariorum (senior civil servant), seizes the throne of the Western Roman Empire, and is declared emperor.

By Topic

Religion

• Theodoret becomes bishop of Cyrrhus.

By Place

Eastern Roman Empire

• Future Emperor Valentinian III is appointed Caesar.

Asia

• Song Wen Di succeeds Song Shao Di as ruler of the Chinese Song Dynasty.

By Place

Western Roman Empire

• October 23 — Valentinian III becomes Western Roman Emperor.
• Aëtius leads an army into Italy to support the self-proclaimed emperor Joannes.

Eastern Roman Empire

• The Sanhedrin is disbanded by the Roman Empire.

By Topic

Arts and Sciences

• Last known usage of Demotic.

Religion

• Buddhism begins to spread to Southeast Asia.

By Place

Europe

• King Gunderic of the Vandals becomes king of the Alans as well (approximate date).

By Topic

Religion

• Saint Augustine of Hippo publishes the De Civitate Dei, City of God.
• Sisinnius becomes Archbishop of Constantinople.

By Place

Asia

• Pyongyang is declared the capital of Goguryeo by king Jangsu.

By Place

Europe

• Geiseric becomes King of the Vandals and Alans.

Asia

• Artashes, the last king of Greater Armenia, is deposed. The kingdom becomes a province of the Sasanian Empire.

By Topic

Religion

• April 10 — Nestorius is made Patriarch of Constantinople.
• Hydatius becomes bishop of Aquae Flaviae in Gallaecia (modern Chaves in Portugal).
• John succeeds Theodotus as Patriarch of Antioch.
• Euthymius builds a monastery in Palestine, near the Dead Sea.

By Place

Western Roman Empire

• Vandals under Geiseric cross from the Iberian Peninsula into Roman North Africa.

Eastern Roman Empire

• Theodosius II starts the reform of Roman law.
• Theodosius II orders all funds raised by Jews to support schools be turned over to his treasury.

By Topic

Religion

• Pope Celestine I dispatches bishops Germanus of Auxerre and Lupus of Troyes to Britain to combat the Pelagian heresy.
• St. Hilary becomes bishop of Arles.
• Domnus II, future Patriarch of Antioch, is ordained as a deacon.