10s

This is a list of events occurring in the 10s, ordered by year.

10

By place

Roman Empire

• Differentiation of localized Teutonic tribes of the Irminones.
• Publius Cornelius Dolabella is a Roman consul.
• Illyria is divided into Pannonia and Dalmatia.
• Senatus consultum Silanianum is adopted.

Elsewhere

• The Greek dynasty in Bactria is brought to an end.
• The usurper Wang Mang (who rules during a brief interregnum known as the Xin Dynasty) outlaws the private purchase and use of crossbows. Despite this, Liu Xiu, the later Emperor Guangwu of Han, buys crossbows in the winter of 22 in order to aid the rebellion of his brother Liu Yan (styled Bosheng) and Li Tong.

By topic

Arts

• Ovid completes Tristia (the "Sorrows", 5 books) and Epistulae ex Ponto (Letters from the Black Sea, 4 books) describing the sadness of banishment.

11

By Place

Roman Empire

• Germania Inferior and the Rhine are secured by Germanicus.
• Emperor Augustus abandons his plan to create a defensive border at the Elbe, in order to reinforce the Roman defenses along the Rhine and the Danube.
• An edict is issued effecting an empire-wide ban on divinatory practices especially astrology. The edict required any consultation between a customer and a practitioner to be conducted with at least one third party witness present and banned inquiry into anyone's death.^[1]

Asia

• Artabanus III of the Arsacid Dynasty becomes ruler of Parthia.
• In India, Satakarni begins his reign as Emperor of the Andhra Empire (11–29).

12

By place

Roman Empire

• Annius Rufus is appointed Prefect of Judea.
• Augustus orders a major invasion of Germany beyond the Rhine.
• Germanicus and Gaius Fonteius Capito become Roman Consuls.
• Quirinius returns from Judea to become a counselor to Tiberius.
• The Armenian Artaxiad Dynasty is overthrown by the Romans.

By topic

Arts and sciences

• Ovid stops writing Fasti because of the lack of resources (being far from the libraries of Rome). He completes 6 books that detail festivals found in the Roman Calendar.

13

By place

Roman Empire

• Abgarus of Edessa is reinstalled as king of Osroene.
• The Senate passes a senatus consultum restricting the reduced Vigintisexviri to the Ordo Equester.
• Tiberius makes his triumphant procession through Rome after the siege of Germany.

Asia

• Last year (3rd) of Shijianguo era of the Chinese Xin Dynasty.
• Considered the lucky number of those from the Chinese Xin Dynasty.

By topic

Arts and sciences

• Strabo publishes his book on the shape of the Earth.
• Ovid publishes books 1-3 of his Epistulae ex Ponto.^[2]

14

By place

Roman Empire

• August 19 – Augustus, the first Roman emperor, dies and is declared to be a god.
• September 18 – Tiberius succeeds his stepfather Augustus as Roman emperor.
• Legions on the Rhine revolt after the death of Augustus;^[3] Germanicus put down the revolt.
• Germanicus is appointed commander of the forces in Germany, beginning a campaign that will end in 16.^[4]
• Germanicus leads a brutal raid against the Marsi, a German tribe on the upper Ruhr river, who are massacred.^[5]
• The town and port of Nauportus are plundered by a mutinous Roman legion that was sent there to build roads and bridges.^[6]
• Sextus Appuleius and Sextus Pompeius serve as Roman consuls.
• A census indicates that there are 4,973,000 citizens of the Roman Empire.

Asia

• First year of tianfeng era of the Chinese Xin Dynasty.
• Famine hits China. Some citizens turn to cannibalism.

By topic

Art

• The Hellenistic period ends, according to some scholars (usual date 31 BC).

15

By place

Roman Empire

• Early (approx.) – Emona (on the site of modern-day Ljubljana) is founded by Legio XV Apollinaris.^[7]
• May – As part of his campaign against the Germanic peoples, Germanicus captures Thusnelda, wife of Arminius.^[8]
• Summer – Germanicus launches a two-pronged attack from Vetera and Moguntiacum. On his return journey, he recaptures the aquila of Legio XIX and visits the battlefield of the Teutoburg Forest. Germanicus arranges the burial for the remains of Varus' army.^[9]
• Varna (Odessus), on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast, is annexed to the Roman province of Moesia.
• In Rome, the selection of civil servants passes from the people to the Emperor and the Senate.
• The river Tiber floods parts of Rome.^[10]
• Valerius Gratus is appointed Prefect of the Roman province of Judea.

By topic

Arts and sciences

• Nicolaus of Damascus writes a biography of the Emperor Augustus (Bios Kaisaros).

16

By place

Roman Empire

• A Roman army of 50,000 men commanded by Germanicus gains a great victory at Idistaviso, defeating the German war chief Arminius and recovering the lost eagles of Varus' legions.^[11]
• Germanicus employs North Sea fleet to avoid dangerous rivers, embarking an army in the Rhine delta aboard circa 1,000 ships. He defeats the Germans at Amisius river estuary and the Weser, but during its return the Roman fleet is partially destroyed by storms.^[12]
• Noricans having joined with the Pannonians in invading Histria, are defeated by Publius Silius, proconsul of Illyricum.

• Vonones, the beleaguered king of Armenia is summoned to Syria by Roman governor, Creticus Silanus.^[13]

By topic

Arts and sciences

• Ovid's "Epistulae ex Ponto" appears.

17

By place

Roman Empire

• May 26 – Germanicus returns to Rome as conquering hero, he celebrates a triumph for his victories over the Cherusci, Chatti and other Germanic tribes west of the Elbe.^[14]
• Emperor Tiberius sends Germanicus to the east in order to lead a military campaign against Parthia.
• Cappadocia (Asia Minor) becomes a Roman province.
• Lucius Aelius Sejanus becomes Praetorian prefect.

Europe

• Beginning of a civil war in Germania.
• Maroboduus, king of the Marcomanni, is defeated by Arminius and his Germanic tribes.

Africa

• Tacfarinas, Numidian deserter from the Roman army,^[15] begins a guerrilla war against the Romans. He leads his own Musulamii tribe and a coalition of Berbers, attacking the Limes Tripolitanus a fortified zone (Limes) of the Roman Empire in Africa.

Israel

• Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great, builds on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee, the city Tiberias in honor of Tiberius.

Asia Minor

• An earthquake in Anatolia destroys the city of Sardis and damages several other cities.^[16]

By topic

Arts and sciences

• Publication of the Ab Urbe condita ("History of Rome Since its Foundation") in 142 volumes by Livy.

18

By place

Roman Empire

• Emperor Tiberius and Germanicus are Roman Consuls.
• A vexillatio (sub-unit or detachment) of Legio III Augusta is destroyed by an ambush in Africa.
• The German chieftain Arminius destroys the kingdom of the Marcomanni.

Syria

• Winter – Germanicus Caesar arrived in Syria, as new commander in chief for the Roman East.
• Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso, governor of Syria, ignored the order of Germanicus to send Syrian-based legions, including Legio VI Ferrata and Legio X Fretensis, to Armenia to back him in his planned coronation of Artaxias III.

Parthia

• Germanicus conclude a peace treaty with Artabanus II of Parthia, in which he is recognized as king and friend of Rome.

China

• After a flooding of the Yellow River farmers are forced to rebel. Emperor Wang Mang reacts by sending an army (some 100,000 men) against the agrarian rebels. The rebel leaders, concerned that during battle it would become impossible to tell friend from foe, order that their men color their eyebrows red – and this is where the name Chimei ("The Red Eyebrows") comes from.

India

• In India, the Indo-Parthians control Taxila.

19

By place

Roman Empire

• Maroboduus, king of the Marcomanni, is deposed by Catualda. This ends the threat to the Romans from Germanic tribes until the reign of Marcus Aurelius. Rome places them under its protection.
• Germanicus Julius Caesar, commander in chief of the Roman legions in the East and beloved by the legionaries, dies of poisoning. On his deathbed he accuses Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso, the governor of Syria, of poisoning him.
• Emperor Tiberius expels the Egyptians from Rome, and deports 4,000 Jews from Sicily.
• Agrippina the Elder accuses Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso of having assassinated her husband Germanicus Julius Caesar in Antioch.
• A triumphal arch is built for Germanicus Julius Caesar in Saintes.

Syria

• Vonones I of Parthia is removed to Cilicia and kept under house arrest. He escapes, but is caught and killed by a retired legion veteran.

Asia

• Last year (6th) of Tianfeng era of the Chinese Xin Dynasty.
• First flying machine, according to the Hanshu.
• Gondophares becomes king of the Saces.

Significant people

• Caesar Augustus, Roman Emperor (27 BC–14 AD)
• Tiberius, Roman Emperor (14–37)
• Germanicus, Roman General

Births

Deaths

References