585

By place

Europe

• King Childebert II, age 15, takes up his sole rule of Austrasia. A Frankish army under King Guntram marches to Comminges, and besieges the citadel of Saint-Bertrand.
• July - Gundoald, Merovingian usurper king, and his followers are defeated during the siege of Saint-Bertrand. He is executed and Guntram stages a triumphal entry into Orléans.
• The Visigoths under King Liuvigild devastate the Suevic Kingdom in Gallaecia. After the conquest, Liuvigild reintroduces the Arian Church among the Sueves.
• Winter - Famine strikes Gaul. Traders plunder the people by selling scarcely a peck of grain or half measure of wine for the third of a gold piece.

  Persia

• The Persian commander, Kardarigan, begins an unsuccessful siege of Monokarton.

  Britain

• Hussa succeeds his brother Frithuwald as king of Bernicia.
• Creoda becomes king of Mercia.

  Asia

• September 15 - Emperor Bidatsu, age 47, dies of smallpox after a 13-year reign, and is succeeded by his brother Yōmei as the 31st emperor of Japan.
• Emperor Xiao Jing Di succeeds his father Xiao Ming Di as ruler of the Liang Dynasty.

  By topic

Religion

• King Wideok of Baekje sends an official escort, along with a master of Buddhist meditation, a reciter of Buddhist magic spells, a temple architect, and a sculptor of Buddhist images, to the Chinese court of the Sui Dynasty.
• The Armenian bishop Kardutsat goes with 7 priests, on a missionary trip to the steppes north of the Caucasus. He succeeds in baptizing many Huns and in translating books into their language.
• Columbanus, Irish missionary, gathers 12 companions for his journey to Britain, probably to the Scottish coast. After a short time, he crosses the English Channel and lands in Brittany.
• Zhiyi, Chinese monk, returns to the city of Jinling, where he completes his commentarial works on the Lotus Sutra.