Timeline of Rome

6th Century AD – Into the Byzantine

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Throughout the 6th century AD, the Italian Peninsula was a battleground where Byzantine ambitions under Emperor Justinian collided with the Ostrogothic Kingdom. Famous generals like Belisarius and Narses reconquered swaths of territory, bringing temporary renewal of Roman (Byzantine) authority. Yet devastation—through siege, plague, famine, and new invasions by Lombards—persistently reshaped Italy’s political and social structures. Meanwhile, the role of the papacy grew in strength as popes like Gregory the Great took on civic leadership, organizing defenses against Lombard forces and extending the Church’s reach. Monasticism thrived under figures like St. Benedict, and new dioceses emerged in places such as Amalfi, Salerno, and Taranto—signifying the profound transformation of southern and central Italy during this unsettled era.

Full Chronological Summary (6th Century AD)

New or Promoted Dioceses (6th Century)

  • Amalfi, Chieti, Crotone, Nicastro, Salerno, Sulmona, Taranto, Trani
  • Bari-Canosa elevated to Metropolitan Archdiocese

501 AD

  • (Oct 23) Theodoric I convenes the Synodus Palmaris to examine charges against Pope Symmachus. The pope is ultimately cleared.

503 AD

  • Gratianus becomes bishop of Panormus (Palermo).

504 AD

  • Theodoric I defeats the Gepids in a campaign to reinforce Ostrogothic strength.

505 AD

  • Birth of Belisarius, future Byzantine general.
  • (Nov 9) Vesuvius erupts.

507–511 AD

  • Cassiodorus serves as Quaestor in Italy, advising Theodoric and building a reputation for administrative brilliance.

508 AD

  • An earthquake in central Italy damages the Colosseum.

510 AD

  • Boethius is appointed Consul by Theodoric I. He becomes famed for his philosophical works.

511 AD

  • Gesalec, Visigothic king, dies; Theodoric I acts as regent for Gesalec’s younger brother Amalaric.
  • Literary evidence hints that Romulus Augustus, last Western Emperor deposed in 476, might still be alive (about 48 years old), though his whereabouts are unknown.

512 AD

  • (July 8) Vesuvius erupts again; earthquake affects Campania.

514 AD

  • (July 19) Pope Symmachus dies; succeeded by St. Hormisdas.
  • Cassiodorus is appointed Consul.
  • St. Sabinus becomes bishop of Canusium (to 566).

517 AD

  • Aquilonia (mod. Lacedonia) in Campania is granted to Benedictine monks by Byzantine authorities.

518 AD

  • (July 9) Emperor Anastasius I dies. Succeeded by Justin I (the uncle of Justinian I).

519 AD

  • Cassiodorus compiles the Chronicon, a history from Adam to 519.

522 AD

  • Boethius is arrested, accused of conspiring with Byzantium against Theodoric I.

523 AD

  • Justinian I marries Theodora.
  • (Apr 6) Pope Hormisdas dies, succeeded (Aug 13) by John I.
  • Thrasamund, Vandal king, dies. His cousin Hilderic succeeds him.
  • Boethius writes The Consolation of Philosophy while imprisoned.
  • Capri is given to the Benedictines.

524 AD

  • Boethius is executed (alt. 525 or 526).

526 AD

  • (Aug 30) Theodoric I dies; succeeded by minor heir Athalaric, with Amalasontha (Theodoric’s daughter) as regent.
  • (May 18) Pope John I dies; Felix IV (III) of Samnium becomes pope after a delay of nearly two months.
  • Severus, governor of Lucania and Bruttium, receives a letter complaining that local elites are abandoning their civic posts for rural estates.
  • Church bans the Lupercalia festival, replacing it with the Festival of the Purification of the Virgin Mary.
  • Possible eruption on Vulcano Island.

527 AD

  • (Apr 1) Emperor Justin I names nephew Justinian I as co-Emperor. Justin dies (Aug 1), leaving Justinian sole ruler.
  • Justinian’s plan: reconquer lost western provinces.

528 AD

  • (Feb 13) Justinian appoints a commission to codify Roman law, culminating in the Corpus Juris Civilis.
  • Justinian decrees all pagans must be baptized within 3 months.

529 AD

  • St. Benedict of Norcia founds the Benedictine monastery at Monte Cassino.
  • (Apr 7) First edition of the Corpus Juris Civilis is issued.
  • Justinian closes the Platonist Academy in Athens, ending 9 centuries of operation.

530 AD

  • Hilderic, Vandal king, is deposed by cousin Gelimer.
  • Peter serves as Metropolitan of Bari.
  • (Sept 22) Pope Felix IV (III) dies; Boniface II succeeds him.

531 AD

  • The Justinian Plague begins to afflict the empire (to ~599).

532 AD

  • (Jan 11) Nika riots erupt in Constantinople.
  • (Oct 17) Pope Boniface II dies.

533 AD

  • Possible founding date for Amalfi as a Byzantine port.
  • Vesuvius erupts again.
  • Cassiodorus becomes Praetorian Prefect in Italy (to 536).
  • (Jan 2) Pope John II succeeds Boniface II.
  • Belisarius invades Vandal North Africa.
    • (Sept 13) Battle of Ad Decimium: Belisarius defeats Gelimer, captures Carthage.
    • (Dec 15) Battle of Ticameron: another Vandal defeat; Gelimer flees.

534 AD

  • (Jan 1) Decimus Theodorius Paulinus is consul in Ostrogothic Italy.
  • (Oct 2) Athalaric dies; Amalasontha rules alone, sharing the throne with cousin Theodahad.
  • Gelimer surrenders to Belisarius, ending the Vandal Kingdom in Africa.

535 AD

  • (May 8) Pope John II dies; (May 13) Pope Agapetus I succeeds him.
  • Amalasontha overthrown and murdered.
  • Justinian sends Belisarius to invade Sicily and Italy, alleging retribution for Amalasontha’s murder.
  • Belisarius rapidly occupies Palermo, then Syracuse by Dec 31.
  • Possibly a massive volcanic eruption (or meteor impact) triggers worldwide climatic anomalies.

536 AD

  • (Apr 22) Pope Agapetus I dies; (June 1 or 8) St. Silverius of Campania becomes Pope.
  • (Apr) Belisarius crosses from Sicily into Bruttium and Lucania unopposed.
  • Gothic count Ebermund of Lucania defects to Belisarius.
  • Belisarius besieges Naples; the Ostrogoth King Theodahad ignores the city. Naples falls after an aqueduct infiltration; many civilians are massacred.
  • Ostrogoths depose Theodahad, enthrone Witiges. Theodahad is murdered en route to Ravenna.
  • (Dec 9) Belisarius enters Rome unopposed. Gothic garrison flees.

537 AD

  • (Mar 2) Witiges arrives with an Ostrogothic army, besieging Rome. They cut off aqueducts but fail to block southern routes, so Belisarius still receives provisions.
  • Both sides endure famine and plague.
  • (Mar 29) Belisarius, on Justinian’s orders, deposes Pope Silverius; Vigilius is installed. Silverius dies (Nov 11).
  • Eastern troops winter at Alba Fucens.

538 AD

  • Cassiodorus departs for Constantinople.
  • (Mar 12) Witiges abandons Rome, withdrawing to Ravenna as Byzantine reinforcements approach.

539 AD

  • Byzantines seize Ravenna; it becomes the seat of a Byzantine Exarch.
  • Ostrogoths (with Burgundian allies) sack Milan, killing ~300,000 and enslaving women and children.
  • Warfare, plague, famine lead to major depopulation across Italy.

540 AD

  • Witiges, wife Mathesuentha captured; they go to Constantinople. Witiges soon dies; Mathesuentha marries Justinian’s nephew Germanus Justinus.
  • Ildibad (a Visigoth) becomes Ostrogothic king.
  • Byzantines take Tarentum.
  • Belisarius is recalled to Constantinople.
  • Cassiodorus retires, founding the Vivarium monastery near Scylacium (Squillace).
  • Ischia erupts.
  • A severe famine grips Italy and beyond (to ~590); evidence of cannibalism appears.

541 AD

  • Ildibad is assassinated; nephew Totila (Baduila) is chosen Ostrogothic king.
  • Plague ravages the Mediterranean, killing ~40% in Constantinople.
  • Many senators and nobles across the empire die.

542 AD

  • Plague devastates Constantinople (100,000+ dead).
  • Totila retakes Naples, surrenders after plague thins the defenders (alt. 543).

544 AD

  • Belisarius returns to Italy.
  • Pope Vigilius is summoned to Constantinople by Justinian.

545 AD

  • Totila attacks Beneventum, destroys city walls.
  • Totila destroys Gnathia in Apulia; survivors flee to Monopoli.
  • Totila besieges Rome.

546 AD

  • (Dec 17) Totila seizes Rome at night via the Asinarian Gate after bribing defenders.
  • City sacked for 40 days, population resettled in Campania.
  • Totila moves south into Lucania.
  • Pope Vigilius arrives in Constantinople.
  • Totila sends Pelagius (future Pope) to negotiate with Justinian; no settlement is reached.

547 AD

  • (Mar 21) St. Benedict of Monte Cassino dies; succeeded by Abbot Constantius.
  • Belisarius, exploiting Totila’s absence, retakes Rome.

548 AD

  • (June 28) Empress Theodora dies of cancer.

549 AD

  • Totila again besieges Rome.

550 AD

  • (Jan 16) Totila recaptures Rome for a fourth time since 536.
  • Remaining Roman Senate members exiled.
  • Ostrogoths attempt but fail to seize Croton.
  • Totila conquers Sicily for the Goths.
  • Stromboli erupts.

552 AD

  • Emperor Justinian recalls Belisarius. Narses, ~74-year-old eunuch, succeeds him as Byzantine commander in Italy.
  • (June/July) Battle of Taginae: Narses defeats and kills Totila, ending major Ostrogoth resistance. Teia becomes last Ostrogothic king.
  • (Dec) Narses retakes Rome, which is now firmly in Byzantine hands.
  • (Dec) Ostrogoths massacre 300 noble hostages; extinction of the Roman Senate is nearly complete. Survivors find refuge in Constantinople, though a feeble Senate lingers into the 7th century.

553 AD

  • Rome and Naples are formally annexed to the Byzantine Empire.
  • (Oct) Battle of Mons Lactarius near Vesuvius: Narses defeats Ostrogoths under Teia (killed).
  • Ostrogothic rule in Italy ends.
  • Olive and vine farming revives under Byzantine oversight.

554 AD

  • Byzantines seize Bari.
  • (Aug 13) Justinian proclaims formal restoration of Roman authority in Italy.
  • (Summer) Battle of the Volturnus (or Casilinum): Narses’s 18,000-strong force beats a much larger army of Franks and Alemanni.

555 AD

  • (June 7) Pope Vigilius dies in Syracuse en route to Rome.

556 AD

  • (Apr 16) Pelagius I becomes Pope.

557 AD

  • Another earthquake shakes regions from Rome to Constantinople.

558–561 AD

  • Another plague wave hits the empire (to 661, with intervals).
  • (Mar 4, 561) Pope Pelagius I dies; (July 17) John III takes the papal chair.

560 AD

  • Simplicius becomes abbot of Monte Cassino (approx. date).

563 AD

  • Plague persists in Italy.

565 AD

  • (Mar 13) Belisarius dies.
  • (Nov 13) Emperor Justinian I dies—often seen as the last “Roman” Emperor before the “Byzantine” era fully emerges.
  • (Nov 14) Justin II succeeds him.
  • Further plague and climate woes trouble Italy.

566 AD

  • St. Constans becomes bishop of Aquino.

567 AD

  • Narses is dismissed by Emperor Justin II, retires near Naples.

568 AD

  • The Lombards under King Alboin invade northern Italy, spurred by Avar pressure.
  • Some claim Narses himself invited them in out of revenge.
  • The Exarchate of Ravenna is formed.
  • Widespread famine in Italy.

569 AD

  • Lombards overrun the Venetian Plain; refugees flee into marshes, helping found Venice.
  • Pestilence ravages Italy and Gaul (to 570).

570 AD

  • Potamio becomes bishop of Agrigentum.
  • Lombard Duchy of Spoleto established under Faroald I.
  • (Events Elsewhere) Birth of Muhammad in Mecca (alt. 571).
  • (Aug) Lombards under Zotto invade Campania.

571 AD

  • Lombard Duchy of Benevento founded under Zotto (Zottone). Essentially autonomous.
  • This new Lombard state stands in the south, hampering Byzantine expansion.

572 AD

  • Lombards capture Pavia, making it their capital.
  • King Alboin is assassinated; succeeded by Cleph.
  • Severe persecution of Romans in Lombard-ruled lands.
  • Narses dies in Naples at ~95 (alt. 573). By then half of Italy is under Lombard control.

574 AD

  • (Dec) Emperor Justin II appoints Tiberius II Constantine as Caesar. Justin, mentally unfit, withdraws from active rule.
  • King Cleph is murdered, leading to a “Rule of the Dukes” (10-year interregnum) among Lombards.
  • (July 7) Pope John III dies.

575 AD

  • (June 2) Pope Benedict I succeeds John III.

576 AD

  • (c.) Vitalis becomes abbot of Monte Cassino.

578 AD

  • (Oct 5) Emperor Justin II dies; Tiberius II Constantine becomes sole ruler.

579 AD

  • Lombards besiege Rome unsuccessfully.
  • (July 30) Pope Benedict I dies; Pelagius II (of Gothic ancestry) succeeds him.

580 AD

  • Another wave of plague (to 582).
  • (c.) Bonitus is abbot of Monte Cassino.
  • Final recorded act of the Roman Senate: an embassy to Constantinople. This assembly is now a mere relic of the past.

581 AD

  • Duke Zotto of Benevento fails to capture Naples.

582 AD

  • (Aug 14) Emperor Tiberius II dies, succeeded by Maurice.

583 AD

  • Constantinople faces a devastating fire, then a major earthquake a few weeks later.

584 AD

  • Autharis (son of Cleph) becomes Lombard king.
  • Duke Zotto sacks Monte Cassino. Monastic life there is abandoned until ~717.

585 AD

  • Smaragdus becomes Exarch of Ravenna.

588 AD

  • Byzantines grant Ischia to Naples.
  • Lombards convert to Christianity (Arian or Catholic forms).
  • Another plague outbreak (to 591) spreads west to east.

589 AD

  • Duke Zotto of Benevento acknowledges Lombard King Autharis.
  • Exarch Smaragdus deposed for alleged cruelty/insanity. Succeeded by Romanus, who regains some northern cities (Modena, Parma, etc.).
  • Late in year: plague hits Rome.

590 AD

  • Rome’s population ~30,000.
  • (Feb 7/12) Pope Pelagius II dies of plague; (Sept 3) Gregory I the Great becomes pope, assertively leading defense and administration.
  • (Sept 5) King Autharis dies, likely poisoned. Agilulf (Duke of Turin) marries Autharis’s widow Theodelinda, succeeding him in 591.
  • Plague continues; “God bless you” after sneezing arises.

591 AD

  • King Agilulf names Arichis I Duke of Benevento. Arichis extends Lombard territory in Campania and southern Abruzzi.
  • Duke Zotto dies; nephew Arichis succeeds. (alt. 592).
  • Harvest devastations by locusts in Italy.

592 AD

  • Duke Arechis (Arichis) marches on Naples; Pope Gregory intervenes in its defense.
  • Gregory negotiates peace with the Lombards, conflicting with Exarch Romanus’s attempts to reassert imperial authority.
  • Diocese of Atella founded.

593 AD

  • Exarch Romanus departs Rome, leaving it exposed.
  • (June) King Agilulf of the Lombards briefly besieges Rome, then withdraws.

595 AD

  • Lombards sack Terracina.

596 AD

  • First mention of Amalfi as a Byzantine port. Some sources say Primenus is its first bishop; Pope Gregory complains about Primenus’s travel habits.
  • Petrus is bishop of Otranto, mentioned by Gregory.
  • Exarch Romanus dies (late in year).

597 AD

  • Lombards destroy Aternum (Pescara).
  • Callinicus becomes Exarch of Ravenna.
  • A Christian basilica is erected over the Temple of Concordia at Agrigentum (Sicily).

598 AD

  • An armistice between Byzantines and Lombards is reached in Italy.

599 AD

  • A 2-year peace treaty recognizes Lombard holdings.
  • Plague flares up again in the Empire (possibly smallpox), including Rome.

600 AD

  • (Elsewhere) Cotton textiles used in China around this time.

Key Takeaways

  1. Byzantine Reconquest & Collapse
    • Justinian’s generals (Belisarius, Narses) temporarily restore Rome’s rule in Italy, ending the Ostrogothic Kingdom by 553.
    • The fierce wars, coupled with plague and famine, devastate cities like Naples, Rome, and Milan.
  2. Religious & Monastic Growth
    • St. Benedict founds Monte Cassino (529), laying the foundation for Western monasticism.
    • New dioceses appear (e.g., Amalfi, Salerno), and Bari-Canosa is raised to a metropolitan archdiocese.
  3. Rise of the Lombards
    • Post-Gothic Italy sees Lombard invasions (~568 onward). They form duchies (Spoleto, Benevento) and eventually hold most of the peninsula north of Ravenna.
  4. Papacy as Civic Authority
    • Popes like Gregory the Great step into secular roles—negotiating with Lombard dukes, appointing city commanders, and securing local defenses—foreshadowing the papal states.
  5. Demographic & Cultural Shifts
    • Repeated outbreaks of Justinianic Plague, plus ongoing warfare, drastically reduce populations.
    • Old Roman institutions (the Senate) fade, replaced by new Byzantine and Lombard structures.

By the century’s end, Italy remains divided between Byzantine enclaves (Ravenna, Rome, parts of the south) and burgeoning Lombard duchies, setting the stage for medieval Italy’s patchwork of powers. The Church emerges as a central unifying institution amid political fragmentation.