527

By place

Byzantine Empire

• April 1 - Emperor Justin I names his nephew Justinian I as co-ruler, as an incurable wound saps his strength.
• August 1 - Justin I, age 77, dies at Constantinople and is succeeded by Justinian I, who becomes sole emperor.
• Justinian I reorganises the command structure of the Byzantine army, and fields a small but highly trained army.
• Justinian I appoints Belisarius to command the Eastern army in Armenia and on the Byzantine-Persian frontier.

  Britannia

• King Cerdic of Wessex and his son Cynric defeat the Britons at Cerdicesleah.
• The Kingdom of Essex is founded by the Saxons, who land north of the Thames. They take control of the land between what is now London and St Albans.
• Æscwine becomes the first king of Essex.

  Japan

• Iwai Rebellion: A revolt against the Yamato court breaks out in Tsukushi Province.

  By topic

Religion

• Justinian I outlaws pagan religious practices in Egypt, and dispatches Byzantine missionaries to southern territories.
• The Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem is rebuilt until 565, restoring the architectural tone of the basilica.
• Silla, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, formally adopts Buddhism as a state religion.