1010

Events

By place

Africa

• The Nile river in Egypt freezes over.

  Asia

• The Lý dynasty is established in Vietnam, and moves the capital to Thăng Long.
• Second conflict in the Goryeo–Khitan War: The Goryeo king is unseated in a revolt, resulting in an invasion by the Liao dynasty, and the burning of the Korean capital Gaegyeong.
• Song Zhun of Song dynasty China completes the work of the earlier geographer Lu Duosun, an enormous atlas of China that is written and illustrated in 1,556 chapters, showing maps of each region, city, town, and village.
• In the Chola dynasty of southern India, the first votes are celebrated by adding a ballot in an urn.

  Japan

• January - Fujiwara no Kenshi is married to the imperial heir Crown Prince Okisada.
• February 14 - On the death of Fujiwara no Korechika his daughter, the poet Fujiwara no Chikako, becomes a lady-in-waiting to Empress Shōshi.
• Emperor Ichijō wants to retire – the influential statesman Fujiwara no Michinaga supports Crown Prince Okisada, who will be the successor, but the emperor prefers his eldest son by the late Empress Teishi, Prince Atsuyasu, who has been raised by Empress Shōshi, who also supports her stepson, leading to conflict at court.

  American

• Viking explorer Thorfinn Karlsefni attempts to found a settlement in North America.

  Europe

• June 2 - Fitna of al-Andalus - Battle of Aqbat al-Bakr: The Caliphate of Córdoba is defeated. Allied to Muslim rebels, Ramon Borrell, Count of Barcelona sacks Córdoba, and Hisham II the Nephast is restored as Umayyad caliph of Córdoba, succeeding Muhammad II al-Mahdi.
• The Russian city of Yaroslavl is founded, as an outpost of the principality of Rostov Veliky.
• The fortified city of Fiesole in Italy is captured and destroyed by the people of nearby Florence.
• Swedish king Olof Skötkonung gives city rights to Sigtuna.

  By topic

Architecture

• The construction of 217 ft tall Brihadisvara Temple in Thanjavur is completed during the Chola dynasty, and at about this time the wall painting ''Rajaraja I and His Teacher''

  Literature

• March 8 - Persian poet Ferdowsi finishes writing the Shahnameh, which will be regarded as the national epic of the greater Iranian culture.
• Lady Murasaki writes The Tale of Genji in Japanese.
• Beowulf is written anonymously in Old English.

  Technology

• Eilmer of Malmesbury in England attempts flight in a glider of his own construction.

  Births

• May 30 - Zhao Zhen, Emperor Renzong of the Song dynasty
• Adalbero, bishop of Würzburg
• Adalbero III of Luxembourg, German nobleman
• Akkadevi, princess of the Chalukya dynasty
• Anno II, archbishop of Cologne
• Arialdo, Italian nobleman and deacon
• Benno, bishop of Meissen
• Eberhard, archbishop of Trier
• Eleanor of Normandy, countess of Flanders
• Gebhard, archbishop of Salzburg
• Gomes Echigues, Portuguese knight and governor
• Honorius II, antipope of the Catholic Church
• John V of Gaeta, Italian nobleman
• Michael IV the Paphlagonian, Byzantine emperor
• Odo, Gascon nobleman
• Otloh of Sankt Emmeram, German monk
• Siegfried I, German nobleman
• Tunka Manin, ruler of the Ghana Empire

  Deaths

• February 14 - Fujiwara no Korechika, Japanese nobleman
• Ælfric of Eynsham, English abbot and scholar
• Abu'l-Nasr Muhammad, Farighunid ruler
• Aimoin, French monk and chronicler
• Aisha, Andalusian poet and writer
• Cathal mac Conchobar mac Taidg, king of Connacht
• Ermengol I, count of Urgell
• John Kourkouas, Byzantine catepan
• Maelsuthan Ua Cerbhail, Irish advisor and chronicler
• Vijayanandi, Indian mathematician