536

This article is about the year 536. For the number, see 536 (number).

Millennium:	1st millennium
Centuries:	5th century – 6th century – 7th century
Decades:	500s  510s  520s  – 530s –  540s  550s  560s
Years:	533 534 535 – 536 – 537 538 539

536 by topic

Politics

State leaders – Sovereign states

Birth and death categories

Births – Deaths

Establishment and disestablishment categories

Establishments – Disestablishments

536 in other calendars

Gregorian calendar	536 DXXXVI
Ab urbe condita	1289
Assyrian calendar	5286
Bengali calendar	−57
Berber calendar	1486
Buddhist calendar	1080
Burmese calendar	−102
Byzantine calendar	6044–6045
Chinese calendar	乙卯年 (Wood Rabbit) 3232 or 3172     — to — 丙辰年 (Fire Dragon) 3233 or 3173
Coptic calendar	252–253
Discordian calendar	1702
Ethiopian calendar	528–529
Hebrew calendar	4296–4297
Hindu calendars
- Vikram Samvat	592–593
- Shaka Samvat	458–459
- Kali Yuga	3637–3638
Holocene calendar	10536
Iranian calendar	86 BP – 85 BP
Islamic calendar	89 BH – 88 BH
Julian calendar	536 DXXXVI
Korean calendar	2869
Minguo calendar	1376 before ROC 民前1376年
Seleucid era	847/848 AG
Thai solar calendar	1078–1079

Pope Agapetus I (535–536)

Year 536 (DXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year after the Consulship of Belisarius (or, less frequently, year 1289 Ab urbe condita). The denomination 536 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Events

By place

Byzantine Empire

• Spring – Emperor Justinian I appoints his cousin Germanus as magister militum to deal with the crisis in Africa. He sends a mobile force of comitatenses (mostly cavalry) and an elite guard. Solomon returns to Constantinople.
• Summer – Gothic War: Belisarius crosses the Strait of Messina and invades Italy. He conquers the city of Rhegium and advances to Naples.
• October – Siege of Naples: Belisarius captures Naples after a month's siege by sending troops into the city through an abandoned Roman aqueduct.
• December 9 – Belisarius enters Rome through the Asinarian Gate; the Gothic garrison (4,000 men) flee the capital. He sends an urgent request for reinforcements to Justinian I, meanwhile preparing Rome for a siege by bringing in great quantities of food and other supplies.
• Winter – Belisarius sets up his headquarters on the Pincian Hill and repairs the neglected city walls of Rome. He stations a 5,000-man garrison, of whom half are his personal bodyguard (bucellarii). To hold parts of the city, he recruits 20,000 young Romans to man the walls.

Europe

• March – King Theodahad cedes Provence and upper Alamannia to the Franks gaining their support in the war. He sends a large Gothic army into Dalmatia. They defeat the Byzantines, Mundus is killed during the fightings at Salona, and the Byzantine army withdraws.
• Summer – Constantinianus, magister militum per Illyricum, retakes Dalmatia. The Goths abandon Salona and withdraw to the north. The Byzantines rebuild its walls and reclaim the province.
• Vitiges deposes his rival Theodahad at Ravenna and marries Matasuntha (daughter of queen Amalasuntha). He becomes king of the Ostrogoths and assembles an army to fight against Belisarius.

Africa

• March – Belisarius sails to Carthage with 1,000 men to suppress a mutiny against Solomon. Meanwhile the capital is besieged by 9,000 rebels, including many Vandals, under Stotzas. Belisarius defeats the mutineers and hurries back to Sicily.

Asia

• Senka succeeds his brother Ankan as the 28th emperor of Japan.

By topic

Religion

• April 22 – Pope Agapetus I dies in Constantinople after a reign of just ten months. He is succeeded by Silverius as the 58th pope.
• Anthimus I is deposed as patriarch of Constantinople in favour of Menas.
• The Little Hagia Sophia in Constantinople (begun in 527) is completed.

Meteorology

• Extreme weather events, thought to have been caused by an extensive veil of dust in the atmosphere, begin in the Northern Hemisphere. They continue until the following year, causing unseasonal weather and crop failure worldwide.

Births

• Evagrius Scholasticus, Syrian church historian (or 537)
• Li Ezi, Chinese empress of Northern Zhou (d. 588)
• Venantius Fortunatus, Merovingian bishop (approximate date)

Deaths

• April 22 – Pope Agapetus I
• Ankan, emperor of Japan
• Theodahad, king of the Ostrogoths (assassinated)
• Mundus, Byzantine general (killed in battle)