1.
December
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December is the twelfth and final month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars. It is the seventh and last month to have the length of 31 days, December got its name from the Latin word decem because it was originally the tenth month of the year in the Roman calendar, which began in March. The winter days following December were not included as part of any month, later, the months of January and February were created out of the monthless period and added to the beginning of the calendar, but December retained its name. In Ancient Rome, one of the four Agonalia, this day in honor of Sol Indiges was held on December 11 and these dates do not correspond to the modern Gregorian calendar. The Anglo-Saxons referred to December/January as Ġēolamonaþ, the French Republican Calendar contained December within the months of Frimaire and Nivôse. December contains the winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere, the day with the fewest daylight hours, and the summer solstice in the Southern Hemisphere, December in the Northern Hemisphere is the seasonal equivalent to June in the Southern Hemisphere and vice versa. In the Northern hemisphere, the beginning of the winter is traditionally 21 December or the date of the solstice. The zodiac signs for the month of December are Sagittarius and Capricorn, decembers birth flower is the narcissus. Decembers birthstones are the turquoise, zircon, and tanzanite and this list does not necessarily imply either official status or general observance. December 18, Amavasya In Catholic tradition, December is the Month of the Advent of Christ
2.
January
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January is the first month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and the first month to have the length of 31 days. The first day of the month is known as New Years Day and it is, on average, the coldest month of the year within most of the Northern Hemisphere and the warmest month of the year within most of the Southern Hemisphere. In the Southern hemisphere, January is the equivalent of July in the Northern hemisphere. Ancient Roman observances during this month include Cervula, and Juvenalia, celebrated January 1 and these dates do not correspond to the modern Gregorian calendar. January is named after the Latin word for door, since January is the door to the year, traditionally, the original Roman calendar consisted of 10 months totaling 304 days, winter being considered a month-less period. Around 713 BC, the successor of Romulus, King Numa Pompilius, is supposed to have added the months of January and February. Although March was originally the first month in the old Roman calendar, in contrast, each specific calendar year was identified by the names of the two consuls, who entered office on May 1 or March 15 until 153 BC, from when they entered office on January 1. Various Christian feast dates were used for the New Year in Europe during the Middle Ages, including March 25, however, medieval calendars were still displayed in the Roman fashion with twelve columns from January to December. Historical names for January include its original Roman designation, Ianuarius, in Slovene, it is traditionally called január. The name, associated with millet bread and the act of asking for something, was first written in 1466 in the Škofja Loka manuscript. According to Theodor Mommsen,1 January became the first day of the year in 600 AUC of the Roman calendar, a Lusitanian chief called Punicus invaded the Roman territory, defeated two Roman governors, and killed their troops. The Romans resolved to send a consul to Hispania, and in order to accelerate the dispatch of aid, januarys birthstone is the garnet, which represents constancy. Its birth flower is the cottage pink Dianthus caryophyllus or galanthus, the Chinese floral emblem of January is the Prunus mume. The Japanese floral emblem of January is the camellia, the photograph of a large tree covered with ice against a blue sky is a familiar scene during Finlands winter. The zodiac signs for the month of January are Capricorn and Aquarius, all Jewish observances begin on sundown of the day before the date listed and end on sundown of the day listed
3.
February
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February is the second month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the shortest month of the year as it is the month to have a length of less than 30 days. The month has 28 days in common years or 29 days in leap years, February is the third month of meteorological winter in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, February is the last month of summer, February may be pronounced either as. Many people pronounce it as, as if it were spelled Feb-u-ary and this comes about by analogy with January, as well as by a dissimilation effect whereby having two rs close to each other causes one to change for ease of pronunciation. The Roman month Februarius was named after the Latin term februum, January and February were the last two months to be added to the Roman calendar, since the Romans originally considered winter a monthless period. They were added by Numa Pompilius about 713 BC, February remained the last month of the calendar year until the time of the decemvirs, when it became the second month. At certain intervals February was truncated to 23 or 24 days, the Straight Dope, How come February has only 28 days
4.
Gregorian calendar
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The Gregorian calendar is internationally the most widely used civil calendar. It is named after Pope Gregory XIII, who introduced it in October 1582, the calendar was a refinement to the Julian calendar involving a 0. 002% correction in the length of the year. The motivation for the reform was to stop the drift of the calendar with respect to the equinoxes and solstices—particularly the northern vernal equinox, transition to the Gregorian calendar would restore the holiday to the time of the year in which it was celebrated when introduced by the early Church. The reform was adopted initially by the Catholic countries of Europe, the last European country to adopt the reform was Greece, in 1923. Many countries that have used the Islamic and other religious calendars have come to adopt this calendar for civil purposes. The reform was a modification of a made by Aloysius Lilius. His proposal included reducing the number of years in four centuries from 100 to 97. Lilius also produced an original and practical scheme for adjusting the epacts of the moon when calculating the date of Easter. For example, the years 1700,1800, and 1900 are not leap years, but the years 1600 and 2000 are. The canonical Easter tables were devised at the end of the third century, when the vernal equinox fell either on 20 March or 21 March depending on the years position in the leap year cycle. As the rule was that the full moon preceding Easter was not to precede the equinox, the date was fixed at 21 March for computational purposes, the Gregorian calendar reproduced these conditions by removing ten days. To unambiguously specify a date, dual dating or Old Style, dual dating gives two consecutive years for a given date, because of differences in the starting date of the year, and/or to give both the Julian and the Gregorian dates. The Gregorian calendar continued to use the calendar era, which counts years from the traditional date of the nativity. This year-numbering system, also known as Dionysian era or Common Era, is the predominant international standard today, the Gregorian calendar is a solar calendar. A regular Gregorian year consists of 365 days, but as in the Julian calendar, in a leap year, in the Julian calendar a leap year occurs every 4 years, but the Gregorian calendar omits 3 leap days every 400 years. In the Julian calendar, this day was inserted by doubling 24 February. In the modern period, it has become customary to number the days from the beginning of the month, some churches, notably the Roman Catholic Church, delay February festivals after the 23rd by one day in leap years. Gregorian years are identified by consecutive year numbers, the cycles repeat completely every 146,097 days, which equals 400 years
5.
Leap year
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A leap year is a calendar year containing one additional day added to keep the calendar year synchronized with the astronomical or seasonal year. By inserting an additional day or month into the year, the drift can be corrected, a year that is not a leap year is called a common year. For example, in the Gregorian calendar, each year has 366 days instead of the usual 365. In the Bahai Calendar, a day is added when needed to ensure that the following year begins on the vernal equinox. For example, Christmas Day fell on a Tuesday in 2001, Wednesday in 2002, the length of a day is also occasionally changed by the insertion of leap seconds into Coordinated Universal Time, owing to the variability of Earths rotational period. Unlike leap days, leap seconds are not introduced on a regular schedule, in the Gregorian calendar, the standard calendar in most of the world, most years that are multiples of 4 are leap years. In each leap year, the month of February has 29 days instead of 28, adding an extra day to the calendar every four years compensates for the fact that a period of 365 days is shorter than a tropical year by almost 6 hours. Some exceptions to this rule are required since the duration of a tropical year is slightly less than 365.25 days. For example, the years 1700,1800, and 1900 were not leap years, over a period of four centuries, the accumulated error of adding a leap day every four years amounts to about three extra days. The Gregorian calendar therefore removes three leap days every 400 years, which is the length of its leap cycle and this is done by removing February 29 in the three century years that cannot be exactly divided by 400. The years 1600,2000 and 2400 are leap years, while 1700,1800,1900,2100,2200 and 2300 are common years, by this rule, the average number of days per year is 365 + 1⁄4 − 1⁄100 + 1⁄400 =365.2425. The rule can be applied to years before the Gregorian reform, the Gregorian calendar was designed to keep the vernal equinox on or close to March 21, so that the date of Easter remains close to the vernal equinox. The Accuracy section of the Gregorian calendar article discusses how well the Gregorian calendar achieves this design goal, the following pseudocode determines whether a year is a leap year or a common year in the Gregorian calendar. The year variable being tested is the representing the number of the year in the Gregorian calendar. Care should be taken in translating mathematical integer divisibility into specific programming languages, if then else if then else if then else February 29 is a date that usually occurs every four years, and is called leap day. This day is added to the calendar in leap years as a corrective measure, the Gregorian calendar is a modification of the Julian calendar first used by the Romans. The Roman calendar originated as a calendar and named many of its days after the syzygies of the moon, the new moon. The Nonae or nones was not the first quarter moon but was exactly one nundina or Roman market week of nine days before the ides and this is what we would call a period of eight days
6.
Rashidun Caliphate
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The Rashidun Caliphate was the Islamic caliphate in the earliest period of Islam, comprising the first five caliphs—the Rightly Guided or Rashidun caliphs. It was founded after Muhammads death in 632 CE, after Muhammads death in 632 CE, the Medinan Ansar debated which of them should succeed him in running the affairs of the Muslims while Muhammads household was busy with his burial. Umar and Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah pledged their loyalty to Abu Bakr, with the Ansar, Abu Bakr thus became the first Khalīfatu Rasūli l-Lāh successor of the Messenger of God, or caliph, and embarked on campaigns to propagate Islam. First he would have to subdue the Arabian tribes which had claimed that although they pledged allegiance to Muhammad and accepted Islam, as a caliph, Abu Bakr was not a monarch and never claimed such a title, nor did any of his three successors. Rather, their election and leadership were based upon merit, as for the fifth Caliph, ‘Alis son Al-Hasan, as a son of Fatimah, he was a grandson of Muhammad. Furthermore, according to other hadiths in Sunan Abu Dawood and Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal, towards the end times, Abu Bakr, the oldest companion of Muhammad, was caliph for only 2 years before he died. When Muhammad died, Abu Bakr and Umar, his two companions, were in the Saqifah meeting to select his successor while the family of Muhammad was busy with his funeral, controversy among the Muslims emerged about whom to name as Caliph. There was disagreement between the Meccan followers of Muhammad who had emigrated with him in 622 and the Medinans who had become followers, the Ansar, considering themselves being the hosts and loyal companions of Muhammad, nominated Sad bin Ubadah as their candidate for the Caliphate. In the end, however, Muhammads closest friend, Abu Bakr, was named the khalifa or Successor of Muhammad, a new circumstance had formed a new, untried political formation, the caliphate. Troubles emerged soon after Muhammads death, threatening the unity and stability of the new community, Apostasy spread to every tribe in the Arabian Peninsula with the exception of the people in Mecca and Medina, the Banu Thaqif in Taif and the Bani Abdul Qais of Oman. In some cases, entire tribes apostatised, others merely withheld zakat, the alms tax, without formally challenging Islam. Many tribal leaders made claims to prophethood, some made it during the lifetime of Muhammad, the news of his death reached Medina shortly after the death of Muhammad. The apostasy of al-Yamama was led by another supposed prophet, Musaylimah, many tribes claimed that they had submitted to Muhammad and that with Muhammads death, their allegiance was ended. Caliph Abu Bakr insisted that they had not just submitted to a leader, the result of this situation was the Ridda wars. Abu Bakr planned his strategy accordingly and he divided the Muslim army into several corps. The strongest corps, and the force of the Muslims, was the corps of Khalid ibn al-Walid. This corps was used to fight the most powerful of the rebel forces, other corps were given areas of secondary importance in which to bring the less dangerous apostate tribes to submission. After a series of successful campaigns Khalid ibn Walid defeated Musaylimah in the Battle of Yamama, the Campaign on the Apostasy was fought and completed during the eleventh year of the Hijri
7.
Ali
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‘Ali ibn Abi Talib was the cousin and son-in-law of the Islamic Nabi Muhammad, ruling over the Caliphate from 656 to 661 ACE, and was Imam of Shi‘ite from 632 to 661 ACE. ‘Ali was the first young male who accepted Islam, after migrating to Medina, he married Muhammads daughter Fatimah. Ali took part in the early caravan raids from Mecca and later in almost all the battles fought by the nascent Muslim community and he was appointed caliph by Muhammads Companions in 656, after Caliph Uthman ibn Affan was assassinated. ‘Alis reign saw wars and in 661, he was attacked and assassinated by a Kharijite while praying in the Great Mosque of Kufa. ‘Ali is important to various Sunni and Shi‘ite denominations politically, legislatively and spiritually, while Sunnis consider Ali the fourth and final of the Rashidun caliphs, Shi‘ites regard ‘Ali as the first Imam after Muhammad due to their interpretation of the events at Ghadir Khumm. Shias also believe that ‘Ali and the other Shi‘ite Imams are the successors to Muhammad. This disagreement split the Ummah into the Sunni and Shia branches, ‘Alis father, Abu Talib, was the custodian of the Kabah and a sheikh of the Banu Hashim, an important branch of the powerful Quraysh tribe. He was also an uncle of Muhammad, Alis mother, Fatima bint Asad, also belonged to Banu Hashim, making Ali a descendant of Ismail, the son of Ibrahim. Many sources, especially Shii ones, attest that Ali was born inside the Kaaba in the city of Mecca, according to a tradition, Muhammad was the first person whom Ali saw as he took the newborn in his hands. Muhammad named him Ali, meaning the exalted one, Muhammad had a close relationship with Alis parents. When Muhammad was orphaned and later lost his grandfather Abdul Muttalib, Ali was born two or three years after Muhammad married Khadijah bint Khuwaylid. When Ali was five or six years old, a famine occurred in and around Mecca, affecting the economic conditions of Alis father, Muhammad took Ali into his home to raise him. The second period of life began in 610 when he declared Islam at the age of 10. When Muhammad reported that he had received a revelation, Ali, then only about ten years old, believed him. According to Ibn Ishaq and some authorities, Ali was the first male to embrace Islam. Tabari adds other traditions making the claim of being the first Muslim in relation to Zayd ibn Harithah or Abu Bakr. Some historians and scholars believe Alis conversion is not worthy enough to him the first male Muslim because he was a child at the time. Hence the Shia say of Ali that his face is honoured, the Sunnis also use the honorific Karam Allahu Wajhahu, which means Gods Favour upon his Face
8.
Imamah
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Imamate is a word derived from imam and meaning leadership. Its use in theology is confined to Shia, while the caliph cannot change the religious laws and their jurisprudence, an imam can change the religious laws as per need. The term caliphate, a romanization of the Arabic word khalifah succession, is used interchangeably with the term imamate. Both terms, not always but most often, refer to the position of succeeding and leading the Muslim community after the death of Muhammad, imamah – A divine institution which succeeded the institution of prophethood. Its appointees are appointed, e. g. prophethood. Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to Hafizi Ismailism, Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to Taiyabi Ismailism. Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to Nizari Ismailism, Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to Hassan-i Sabbah-era Ismailism. Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to Nizari Ismaili state Ismailism, Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to Satpanth Ismailism. Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to the Twelver, Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to the Bektashi Order-Twelver. Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to Jafari jurisprudence-Twelver, Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to the Akhbari-Twelver. Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to the Usuli-Twelver, Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to the Shaykhism-Twelver. Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to the Qizilbash-Safaviyya, Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to Buyruks. Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to Bektashism and folk religion in Balkans, Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to Alians in Demir Baba Teke. Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to the Harabatians in Arabati Baba Teḱe, Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to the Nimatullāhī-Twelver. Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to the Qalandariyya-Twelver, Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to Babai Batiniyya. Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to Batiniyya-Alevism, imamah - The Zaidiyyah have a distinct theory of the Imamate. Imamate - The doctrine of the Imamate according to Ghulāt, Caliphate - A non-divine institution which succeeded the institution of Prophethood. Its appointees are not divinely appointed, e. g. the ulama, Ahmadiyya Caliphate - Successor of the Messiah - A divine institution of the Ahmadiyya which succeeded the institution of Prophethood
9.
Shia Islam
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Shia is a branch of Islam which holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib as his successor. Shia Islam primarily contrasts with Sunni Islam, whose adherents believe that Muhammad did not appoint a successor, instead they consider Abu Bakr to be the correct Caliph. Adherents of Shia Islam are called Shias of Ali, Shias or the Shia as a collective or Shii individually, Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam, in 2009, Shia Muslims constituted 10–13% of the worlds Muslim population. Twelver Shia is the largest branch of Shia Islam, in 2012 it was estimated that perhaps 85 percent of Shias were Twelvers. Shia Islam is based on the Quran and the message of Muhammad attested in hadith, Shia consider Ali to have been divinely appointed as the successor to Muhammad, and as the first Imam. The word Shia means follower and is the form of the historic phrase shīʻatu ʻAlī, meaning followers of Ali, faction of Ali. Shia and Shiism are forms used in English, while Shiite or Shiite, as well as Shia, the term for the first time was used at the time of Muhammad. At present, the word refers to the Muslims who believe that the leadership of the community after Muhammad belongs to Ali, nawbakhti states that the term Shia refers to a group of Muslims that at the time of Muhammad and after him regarded Ali as the Imam and Caliph. Al-Shahrastani expresses that the term Shia refers to those who believe that Ali is designated as the Heir, Imam and caliph by Muhammad, for the Shia, this conviction is implicit in the Quran and history of Islam. And Allah is Hearing and Knowing, Shia search for the true meaning of the revelation to get the purpose of the life blood and the human destiny. Shia Muslims believe that just as a prophet is appointed by God alone and they believe God chose Ali to be Muhammads successor, infallible, the first caliph of Islam. The Shias believe that Muhammad designated Ali as his successor by Gods command, Ali was Muhammads first cousin and closest living male relative as well as his son-in-law, having married Muhammads daughter Fatimah. Ali would eventually become the fourth Muslim caliph, after the Farewell Pilgrimage, Muhammad ordered the gathering of Muslims at the pond of Khumm and it was there that Shia Muslims believe Muhammad nominated Ali to be his successor. The hadith of the pond of Khumm was narrated on 18th of Dhu al-Hijjah of 10 AH in the Islamic calendar at a place called Ghadir Khumm, located near the city of al-Juhfah, Saudi Arabia. Muhammad there stated, Shia Muslims believe this to be Muhammads appointment of Ali as his successor, when Muhammad died in 632 CE, Ali and Muhammads closest relatives made the funeral arrangements. While they were preparing his body, Abu Bakr, Umar, Ali and his family accepted the appointment for the sake of unity in the early Muslim community. Alis rule over the early Muslim community was often contested, as a result, he had to struggle to maintain his power against the groups who betrayed him after giving allegiance to his succession, or those who wished to take his position. This dispute eventually led to the First Fitna, which was the first major civil war within the Islamic Caliphate, the Fitna began as a series of revolts fought against Ali ibn Abi Talib, caused by the assassination of his political predecessor, Uthman ibn Affan
10.
Hasan ibn Ali
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Al-Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib, commonly called Hasan, was the second Shi‘ite Imam, succeeding his father Ali, and preceding his younger brother Al-Husayn. He was the son of ‘Ali and Muhammads daughter, Fatimah. Sunni Muslims respect him as a grandson of the Islamic Nabi Muhammad, and he abdicated after six or seven months, and Mu‘awiyah succeeded him to become the first Umayyad Caliph. For the rest of his life, al-Hasan lived in al-Medinah, in seclusion, until he died at the age of 45 or 46 and his wife, Jada bint al-Ashat, is commonly accused of having poisoned him. Al-Hasan was known for donating to the poor, and being kind to them and bondmen, when Al-Hasan was born in the year 624 CE, Muhammad slaughtered a ram for the poor on the occasion of his birth, and chose the name Al-Ḥasan for him. Fatimah shaved his head and gave the weight of his hair in silver as alms, according to Shiite belief, theirs was the only house that archangel Gabriel allowed to have a door to the courtyard of al-Masjid an-Nabawi. Both Shi‘ite and Sunni Muslims consider Al-Hasan to belong to the Bayt of Muhammad, Ahl al-Kisa’ and he also reportedly predicted that Al-Hasan would make peace between two factions of Muslims. In the year 10 AH a Christian envoy from Najran came to Muhammad to argue which of the two parties erred in its doctrine concerning ‘Isa. Accordingly, in the Shiite perspective, in the verse of Mubahalah, the phrase our sons would refer to Al-Hasan and Al-Husayn, our women refers to Fatimah, and ourselves refers to ‘Ali. In response al-Kadhim recited the verses Quran,6,84 and Quran,6,85 and then asked Who is Jesus father, Jesus had no father, said Harun. It is related that Harun asked Musa to give him more evidence, so in the verse, Our sons refers to Al-Hasan and Al-Husayn. Al-Hasan was one of the guards defending ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan when the attackers went round the latter, during the reign of ‘Ali, he was a participant in the Battles of Siffin and Nahrawan. According to Donaldson there was not a significant difference between the idea of Imamate, or divine right, expressed by each Imam designating his successor and other ideas of succession at first. This is why Muhammad did not nominate a successor, as he wanted to leave the succession to be resolved by the Muslim Community on the basis of the Qur’anic principle of consultation. The question Madelung proposes here is why the family members of Muhammad should not inherit other aspects of Muhammads character such as Hukm, Hikmah, after ‘Ali was assassinated, Al-Hasan became the Caliph of the Ummah, in a manner which followed the custom established by Abu Bakr. Performing a good act is love for us, the family of the Prophet, Qays ibn Sad was the first to give allegiance to him. Qays then stipulated the condition that the Bayah should be based on, on the Qur’an, the Sunnah of Muhammad, and on the condition of a Jihad against those who declared Halal that which was Haram. As soon as the news of Al-Hasans selection reached Mu‘awiyah, who had been fighting ‘Ali for the caliphate, he condemned the selection, letters exchanged between Al-Hasan and Mu‘awiyah before their troops faced each other were to no avail
11.
An Lushan
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An Lushan was a general in the Tang dynasty and is primarily known for instigating the An Lushan Rebellion. An Lushan was of Sogdian and Göktürk origin, at least by adoption and he rose to military prominence by defending the northeastern Tang frontier from the Khitans and other threats. He was summoned to Changan, the Tang capital, several times and managed to gain favor with Chancellor Li Linfu and this allowed An Lushan to amass significant military power in northeast China. After the death of Li Linfu, his rivalry with General Geshu Han, in 755, An Lushan, following 8 or 9 years of preparation, instigated the An Lushan Rebellion, proclaiming himself the ruler of a new dynasty, Yan. In 757 An Lushan was assassinated by his own son, An Qingxu, the state of Yan fell into turmoil and eventually collapsed in 763. An Lushans mother was a Göktürk of the Ashide clan and served as a sorceress and his original name might have been Aluoshan or Galuoshan, which meant war in Old Turkic. His father died early, and his mother Lady Ashide married a Turkic general An Yanyan, an Lushan therefore took the name of An. He later settled in Ying Prefecture, the An are not to be confused with Anxi, which had been established as a prefecture by the Chinese in 661. His name has also transcribed as Āluòshān or Yàluòshān. Serving with him was Shi Sugan, who was one day older than he was, in 732, when the general Zhang Shougui was governing You Prefecture, An was discovered to have stolen sheep. Zhang was set to execute An by caning, when An yelled out, Is it that you, Lord, why do you want to cane An Lushan to death. Zhang, seeing that he had a body and impressed by his plea, released him and had him serve as a police officer, along with Shi. Later, Zhang promoted him to be a military officer, as Zhang believed that he was obese, he did not dare to eat too much while in Zhangs presence, and this drew Zhangs favor. Zhang took him in and treated him like a son. At a time that was not recorded in history, he married a Lady Kang as his first wife, and she bore him at least one son, An Qingxu, who, however, was not his oldest son. By 736, An Lushan carried a title and was serving under Zhang Shougui as an officer of the Pinglu Army. In 736, after An disobeyed Zhangs orders and made an aggressive attack against the Khitan. In 740, An became the Bingmashi of Pinglu Army, in 741, when the deputy chief imperial censor Zhang Lizhen was sent to survey the Hebei and visited Pinglu Army, An ingratiated himself with Zhang, so much so that he even bribed Zhangs servants
12.
An Lushan Rebellion
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The An Lushan Rebellion was a devastating rebellion against the Tang dynasty of China. The rebellion overtly began on 16 December 755, when general An Lushan declared himself emperor in Northern China, thus establishing a rival Yan Dynasty, the rebellion and subsequent disorder resulted in a huge loss of life and large-scale destruction. It significantly weakened the Tang dynasty, and led to the loss of the Western Regions, beginning in 742, Eurasia entered a 13-year period of major political turmoil, with the regional empires generally suffering a major rebellion, revolution, or dynastic change. In this year the Türk dynasty of the eastern Eurasian Steppe was overthrown, in 747, the Abbasids began their rebellion against the Umayyad Caliphate in Merv, Khurasan, resulting in the proclamation of a new Abbasid Caliph in about 750. This rebellion also seems to have been organized by merchants and persons identifying themselves as merchants, however, the Arabs did not proceed any further after the battle, and the Tang retained their Central Asian territories until the An Lushan rebellion. Further, southern expansion of the empire was limited by the ineffective, however, the concurrent Tang campaign against the Tibetan Empire was proceeding more successfully, with the campaign to capture the Tibetans Central Asian territories appearing near success. With the assassination of the Tibetan emperor Me Agtsom in 755 in the midst of a rebellion within the Tibetan polity, final Tang victory over the Tibetan Empire seemed all. An Lushan was a general of uncertain origin, but thought to have been adopted by a Sogdian father. Eventually he managed to become a favorite of the emperor of China. His success in this regard is shown, for example, by the luxurious house Emperor Xuanzong built for him in 751, the house was furnished with luxuries such as gold and silver objects and a pair of ten-foot-long by six-foot-wide couches appliqued with rare and expensive sandalwood. He was appointed by Emperor Xuanzong to be commander of three garrisons in the north—Pinglu, Fanyang and Hedong, in effect, An was given control over the entire area north of the lower reaches of the Yellow River, including garrisons about 164,000 strong. He was a favorite in the Tang court, even calling himself the son of Yang Guifei. He was thus protected from criticism, even when her relative, Chief Minister Yang Guozhong, at the end of 755 An Lushan revolted. His army surged down from Fanyang, along the way, An Lushan treated surrendered local Tang officials with respect. As a result, more and more of them joined his ranks and he moved rapidly along the Grand Canal and captured the Eastern Capital city of Luoyang within the year, defeating the poorly supplied General Feng Changqing. There, An Lushan declared himself Emperor of the new Great Yan dynasty and his next steps would be to capture the Tang western capital of Changan and then to attempt to continue into southern China to complete his conquest. However, the horrific Battle of Yongqiu, in the spring of 756 and this prevented the Yan forces from conquering southern China, before the Tang were able to recover. The Yan army did not take control of the Suiyang District until after the Siege of Suiyang, almost two years after their initial capture of Luoyang
13.
Tang dynasty
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The Tang dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. It is generally regarded as a point in Chinese civilization. Its territory, acquired through the campaigns of its early rulers, rivaled that of the Han dynasty. The dynasty was founded by the Lǐ family, who seized power during the decline, the dynasty was briefly interrupted when Empress Wu Zetian seized the throne, proclaiming the Second Zhou dynasty and becoming the only Chinese empress regnant. In two censuses of the 7th and 8th centuries, the Tang records estimated the population by number of registered households at about 50 million people. Various kingdoms and states paid tribute to the Tang court, while the Tang also conquered or subdued several regions which it controlled through a protectorate system. Besides political hegemony, the Tang also exerted a powerful influence over neighboring states such as those in Korea, Japan. Like the previous Sui dynasty, the Tang dynasty maintained a service system by recruiting scholar-officials through standardized examinations and recommendations to office. This civil order was undermined by the rise of military governors known as jiedushi during the 9th century. Chinese culture flourished and further matured during the Tang era, it is considered the greatest age for Chinese poetry. Two of Chinas most famous poets, Li Bai and Du Fu, belonged to this age, as did many famous painters such as Han Gan, Zhang Xuan, there was a rich variety of historical literature compiled by scholars, as well as encyclopedias and geographical works. The adoption of the title Tängri Qaghan by the Tang Emperor Taizong in addition to his title as emperor was eastern Asias first simultaneous kingship, there were many notable innovations during the Tang, including the development of woodblock printing. Buddhism became an influence in Chinese culture, with native Chinese sects gaining prominence. However, Buddhism would later be persecuted by the state, subsequently declining in influence, although the dynasty and central government were in decline by the 9th century, art and culture continued to flourish. This family was known as the Longxi Li lineage, which includes the Tang poet Li Bai, the Tang Emperors also had Xianbei maternal ancestry, from Emperor Gaozu of Tangs Xianbei mother Duchess Dugu. He had prestige and military experience, and was a first cousin of Emperor Yang of Sui, Li Yuan rose in rebellion in 617, along with his son and his equally militant daughter Princess Pingyang, who raised and commanded her own troops. In winter 617, Li Yuan occupied Changan, relegated Emperor Yang to the position of Taishang Huang or retired emperor, and acted as regent to the puppet child-emperor, Emperor Gong of Sui. On the news of Emperor Yangs murder by General Yuwen Huaji on June 18,618, Li Yuan declared himself the emperor of a new dynasty, the Tang
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Pope Sergius III
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Pope Sergius III was Pope from 29 January 904 to his death in 911. He was pope during a period of violence and disorder in central Italy. He also actively participated in the farcical Cadaver synod that condemned the pontificate of Formosus, although Sergius was actually elected, a rival candidate, Pope John IX, was also elected. With Lambert’s support, John was successfully installed as pope, and one of his first acts was to convene a synod which excommunicated Sergius and his followers. Sergius was then exiled by Lambert, fleeing to his see at Caere. Putting himself at the head of a faction of the nobility, Theophylact revolted against Christopher, Sergius accepted, and with the armed backing of Adalbert II, he entered Rome, by which stage Christopher had already been cast into prison by Theophylact. Sergius was then consecrated Pope on 29 January 904, all real power now devolved onto Theophylact, and Sergius essentially became his puppet. Perhaps the first clear sign of shift in power was the fate of Sergius’ two predecessors, Pope Leo V and the Antipope Christopher. According to the pro-Formosan Eugenius Vulgarius, Sergius ordered both men to be strangled in prison sometime in early 904 and that both men were murdered during Sergius’ pontificate appears probable, although other accounts state that Christopher at least was allowed to retire to a monastery. Given where the power lay, it seems more likely that either Theophylact gave the orders directly. For the remainder of his pontificate, Sergius promoted his family and members of his party to positions of authority. Pope Sergius III convoked a synod which annulled all the ordinations of Formosus and it was alleged that Sergius managed to get the consent of the Roman clergy at the synod by threatening them with exile, violence or through the use of bribery. The ruling was reversed again after his death. For centuries it was believed that Sergius then had the corpse of Formosus exhumed once more, tried, found guilty again. However, the source for this was Liutprand of Cremona, who placed the cadaver synod in the pontificate of Sergius III, instead of Stephen VI. ”Sergius rebuilt the Lateran Palace, which had been shattered by an earthquake in 896. Sergius refurbished it with objects, images and crucifixes, and decorated its newly built walls with frescos, in 905 he provided funds to the Church of Silva Candida, which had been devastated by a Saracen raid. He also helped with the rebuilding of Nonantola Abbey, which had suffered attacks from the Magyars, Sergius, like his predecessors, continued to defend the Filioque clause of the Nicene Creed, which was at odds with the position of the eastern church. Almost a century later, this led to the removal of Sergius’s name from the Diptychs by Patriarch Sergius II of Constantinople
