580s BC
Encyclopedia
Events and trends
- 589 BC—ApriesApriesApries is the name by which Herodotus and Diodorus designate Wahibre Haaibre, Ουαφρης , a pharaoh of Egypt , the fourth king of the Twenty-sixth dynasty of Egypt. He was equated with the Waphres of Manetho, who correctly records that he reigned for 19 years...
succeeds Psamtik II as king of EgyptHistory of Ancient EgyptThe History of Ancient Egypt spans the period from the early predynastic settlements of the northern Nile Valley to the Roman conquest in 30 BC...
. - 588 BC—Nebuchadrezzar II of Babylon begins siege of JerusalemSiege of Jerusalem (587 BC)In 589 BC, Nebuchadnezzar II laid siege to Jerusalem, culminating in the destruction of the city and its temple in 587 BC.-Siege:Following the siege of 597 BC, Nebuchadnezzar installed Zedekiah as tributary king of Judah at the age of twenty-one. However, Zedekiah revolted against Babylon, and...
; the operaOperaOpera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
NabuccoNabuccoNabucco is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Temistocle Solera, based on the Biblical story and the 1836 play by Auguste Anicet-Bourgeois and Francis Cornue...
sets the date at 587 BC. - 587 BC—Jerusalem falls to the BabyloniaBabyloniaBabylonia was an ancient cultural region in central-southern Mesopotamia , with Babylon as its capital. Babylonia emerged as a major power when Hammurabi Babylonia was an ancient cultural region in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq), with Babylon as its capital. Babylonia emerged as...
ns, ending the Kingdom of JudahKingdom of JudahThe Kingdom of Judah was a Jewish state established in the Southern Levant during the Iron Age. It is often referred to as the "Southern Kingdom" to distinguish it from the northern Kingdom of Israel....
. The conquerors destroy the JewishJudaismJudaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
TempleSolomon's TempleSolomon's Temple, also known as the First Temple, was the main temple in ancient Jerusalem, on the Temple Mount , before its destruction by Nebuchadnezzar II after the Siege of Jerusalem of 587 BCE....
of Jerusalem and exile some of the land's inhabitants. - 586 BC—Death of Zhou ding wang, King of the Zhou DynastyZhou DynastyThe Zhou Dynasty was a Chinese dynasty that followed the Shang Dynasty and preceded the Qin Dynasty. Although the Zhou Dynasty lasted longer than any other dynasty in Chinese history, the actual political and military control of China by the Ji family lasted only until 771 BC, a period known as...
of ChinaChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. - 28 May 585 BC—A solar eclipseSolar eclipseAs seen from the Earth, a solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth, and the Moon fully or partially blocks the Sun as viewed from a location on Earth. This can happen only during a new moon, when the Sun and the Moon are in conjunction as seen from Earth. At least...
occurs as predicted by ThalesThalesThales of Miletus was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher from Miletus in Asia Minor, and one of the Seven Sages of Greece. Many, most notably Aristotle, regard him as the first philosopher in the Greek tradition...
, while Alyattes IIAlyattes IIAlyattes, king of Lydia , considered to be the founder of the Lydian empire, was the son of Sadyattes, of the house of the Mermnadae....
is battling CyaxaresCyaxaresCyaxares, Cyaxares the Great or Hvakhshathra , the son of King Phraortes, was the first king of Media. According to Herodotus, Cyaxares, grandson of Deioces, had a far greater military reputation than his father or grandfather, therefore he is often being described as the first official Median...
. This leads to a truceCeasefireA ceasefire is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions. Ceasefires may be declared as part of a formal treaty, but they have also been called as part of an informal understanding between opposing forces...
. This is one of the cardinal dates from which other dates can be calculated. - 585 BC—Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, king of RomeAncient RomeAncient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
, defeats the Sabines in war, takes the town of CollatiaCollatiaCollatia was an ancient town of central Italy, c. 15 km northeast of Rome by the Via Collatina.It appears in the legendary history of Rome as captured by Tarquinius Priscus. Virgil speaks of it as a Latin colony of Alba Longa...
, and celebrates a triumphRoman triumphThe Roman triumph was a civil ceremony and religious rite of ancient Rome, held to publicly celebrate and sanctify the military achievement of an army commander who had won great military successes, or originally and traditionally, one who had successfully completed a foreign war. In Republican...
for his victories on 13th September. - 585/584 BC—AstyagesAstyagesAstyages Astyages Astyages (spelled by Herodotus as Ἀστυάγης - Astyages; by Ctesias as Astyigas; by Diodorus as Aspadas; Akkadian: Ištumegu, was the last king of the Median Empire, r...
succeeds CyaxaresCyaxaresCyaxares, Cyaxares the Great or Hvakhshathra , the son of King Phraortes, was the first king of Media. According to Herodotus, Cyaxares, grandson of Deioces, had a far greater military reputation than his father or grandfather, therefore he is often being described as the first official Median...
as King of the MedesMedesThe MedesThe Medes...
. - 585 BC—Zhou jian wang becomes King of the Zhou DynastyZhou DynastyThe Zhou Dynasty was a Chinese dynasty that followed the Shang Dynasty and preceded the Qin Dynasty. Although the Zhou Dynasty lasted longer than any other dynasty in Chinese history, the actual political and military control of China by the Ji family lasted only until 771 BC, a period known as...
of ChinaChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. - 585 BC—Fall of the Kingdom of Urartu following a Median invasion.
- 582 BC—Military clash of the major Classical antiquityClassical antiquityClassical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ancient Greece and ancient Rome, collectively known as the Greco-Roman world...
powers EgyptAncient EgyptAncient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
and BabylonBabylonBabylon was an Akkadian city-state of ancient Mesopotamia, the remains of which are found in present-day Al Hillah, Babil Province, Iraq, about 85 kilometers south of Baghdad...
. - 582 BC—Pythian GamesPythian GamesThe Pythian Games were one of the four Panhellenic Games of Ancient Greece, a forerunner of the modern Olympic Games, held every four years at the sanctuary of Apollo at Delphi....
reorganised at DelphiDelphiDelphi is both an archaeological site and a modern town in Greece on the south-western spur of Mount Parnassus in the valley of Phocis.In Greek mythology, Delphi was the site of the Delphic oracle, the most important oracle in the classical Greek world, and a major site for the worship of the god...
. (This is the traditional date.) - 581 BC—Isthmian GamesIsthmian GamesThe Isthmian Games or Isthmia were one of the Panhellenic Games of Ancient Greece, and were named after the isthmus of Corinth, where they were held...
founded at Corinth. - 580 BC—Cambyses ICambyses I of AnshanCambyses I or Cambyses the Elder was king of Anshan in Iran from c. 580 to 559 BC and the father of Cyrus the Great . He should not be confused with his better-known grandson Cambyses II.Cambyses was an early member of the Achaemenid dynasty...
succeeds Cyrus ICyrus I of AnshanCyrus I or Cyrus I of Anshan, was King of Anshan in Persia from c. 600 to 580 BC or, according to others, from c. 652 to 600 BC. He should not be confused with his famous grandson Cyrus the Great, also known as Cyrus II. His name in Modern Persian is کوروش, while in Greek he was called Κῦρος,...
as king of AnshanAnshan (Persia)Anshan - History :Before 1973, when it was identified as Tall-i Malyan, Anshan had been assumed by scholars to be somewhere in the central Zagros mountain range....
and head of the Achaemenid dynasty. (approximate date) - c. 580 BC—Gorgon Medusa, detail of sculpture from the west pediment of the Temple of Artemis, KorkyraTemple of Artemis (Corfu)The Temple of Artemis is an ancient edifice in Corfu, Greece, built in archaic-style around 580 BC in the ancient city of Korkyra, in what is known today as the suburb of Garitsa. The temple was dedicated to Artemis and functioned as a sanctuary. It is known as the first Doric temple exclusively...
, is made. It is now at the Archaeological Museum of CorfuArchaeological Museum of CorfuThe Archaeological Museum of Corfu in Corfu, Greece was built between 1962 - 1965. The museum land was donated by the city of Corfu. Its initial purpose was to house the archaeological finds from the Temple of Artemis in Corfu. In 1994 it was expanded with the addition of two more exhibit halls...
. - c. 580 BC—Standing Youth (KourosKourosA kouros is the modern term given to those representations of male youths which first appear in the Archaic period in Greece. The term kouros, meaning youth, was first proposed for what were previously thought to be depictions of Apollo by V. I...
) is made. It is now at The Metropolitan Museum of ArtMetropolitan Museum of ArtThe Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
, New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
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Significant people
- Nebuchadnezzar II, King of BabylonBabylonBabylon was an Akkadian city-state of ancient Mesopotamia, the remains of which are found in present-day Al Hillah, Babil Province, Iraq, about 85 kilometers south of Baghdad...
- 585 BC—Birth of Anaximenes of MiletusAnaximenes of MiletusAnaximenes of Miletus was an Archaic Greek Pre-Socratic philosopher active in the latter half of the 6th century BC. One of the three Milesian philosophers, he is identified as a younger friend or student of Anaximander. Anaximenes, like others in his school of thought, practiced material monism...
, GreekGreeksThe Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
philosopher (d. 525 BC) - 585 BC—Death of Emperor JimmuEmperor Jimmuwas the first Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. He is also known as Kamuyamato Iwarebiko and personally as Wakamikenu no Mikoto or Sano no Mikoto....
of JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south... - 582 BC—Birth of PythagorasPythagorasPythagoras of Samos was an Ionian Greek philosopher, mathematician, and founder of the religious movement called Pythagoreanism. Most of the information about Pythagoras was written down centuries after he lived, so very little reliable information is known about him...
in SamosSamos IslandSamos is a Greek island in the eastern Aegean Sea, south of Chios, north of Patmos and the Dodecanese, and off the coast of Asia Minor, from which it is separated by the -wide Mycale Strait. It is also a separate regional unit of the North Aegean region, and the only municipality of the regional...
, GreekGreeksThe Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
philosopher and mathematicianMathematicianA mathematician is a person whose primary area of study is the field of mathematics. Mathematicians are concerned with quantity, structure, space, and change....
(d. 496 BC496 BCYear 496 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Albus and Tricostus...
) - 580 BC—Death of Cyrus I of AnshanCyrus I of AnshanCyrus I or Cyrus I of Anshan, was King of Anshan in Persia from c. 600 to 580 BC or, according to others, from c. 652 to 600 BC. He should not be confused with his famous grandson Cyrus the Great, also known as Cyrus II. His name in Modern Persian is کوروش, while in Greek he was called Κῦρος,...
(approximate date)