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Date

Country | Description

502 A.D.

Syria

A treaty is made between the Roman Empire and the Ghassanids, a Christian Arab tribe settled in southern Syria and Damascus, in order to defend the eastern frontiers against the Persians.

565 A.D.

Syria

Death of Emperor Justinian I soon after his construction of the Ibn Wardan fortress in the Syrian desert. The long and intermittent Byzantine–Persian war is refuelled.

573 A.D.

Syria

The Sassanian Persian ruler Chosroe I raids Syria as far as Apamea and Antioch.

590 A.D.

Syria

Economic and religious interaction between Arabia and the Fertile Crescent as Muhammad joins his uncle on mercantile travel to Syria, where he meets the monk Bahira in Bosra.

602 A.D.

Syria

Byzantine Emperor Maurice breaks the peace treaty with the Persians and invades Syria. War continues with both sides growing weak and weary, inadvertently easing the path for the upcoming Muslim conquerers.

636 A.D.

Syria

At the Battle of Yarmuk on 15 August the Muslim army defeats the Byzantine forces. Damascus is definitively occupied and the Islamic conquest of Syria begins.

649 A.D.

Syria

First maritime conquests of the Muslims, occupying Cyprus.

657 A.D.

Syria

Battle of Siffin between Mu’awiya, governor of Damascus, and ‘Ali, the fourth caliph and cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet, resulting in a schism in the Muslim community with Kharijites (secessionists) accepting neither.

661 A.D.

Syria

Damascus becomes capital of the Umayyad Empire under Mu‘awiya (Caliph 661–81). Assassination of ‘Ali, nephew of the Prophet, by a Kharijite (secessionist).

679 A.D.

Syria

After several attempts to conquer Constantinople, the Umayyads and Byzantines agree to a truce. Frontier warfare continues under the Abbasids but Constaninople is left unconquered until the Ottomans.

697 A.D.

Syria

The first Islamic gold coin devoid of iconographic representation is struck in Damascus by Umayyad Caliph ‘Abd al-Malik, with Arabic declaration of faith. Arabisation of the administration.

705 - 715 A.D.

Syria

Building of the Great Umayyad Mosque in Damascus proclaims the imperial status of the new religion and places Islam on an equal footing with the strong Christian heritage of the region.

750 A.D.

Syria

The entire Umayyad court is massacred by the ‘Abbasids, except for ‘Abd al-Rahman bin Mu‘awiya who escapes from Syria to al-Andalus (Spain) and founds there a line continuing the Umayyad dynasty.

762 A.D.

Syria

The caliphal court moves away from Syria and Baghdad, ‘City of Peace', is founded by the Abbasid Caliph al-Mansur, designed as a perfect circle.

772 A.D.

Syria

Caliph al-Mansur builds a garrison city on the Euphrates next to al-Raqqa, called al-Rafiqa, comissioning his son, al-Mahdi, with its construction. The shape of the city is inspired by the circular plan of Baghdad.
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