970s

The **970s** was a decade that began on 1 January 970, and ended on 31 December 979. It is distinct from the decade known as the ***98th decade*** which began on January 1, 971 and ended on December 31, 980.

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## 970
* A major volcano erupts in Mashu, Japan.
* A terrible famine begins in France.
* Eric the Victorious becomes the first king of Sweden.

### Births 
* Leif Ericson, Norse explorer
* Seyyed Razi, important Muslim scholar and writer
* Sitt al-Mulk
* Xu Daoning, Chinese artist 

### Deaths 
* 30 January &ndash; Peter I of Bulgaria
* Magyar leader, Taksány
* Ferdinand II of Castile
* Fujiwara no Saneyori
* García III of Pamplona
* Hatto II, Archbishop of Mainz
* Menahem ben Saruq
* Patriarch Polyeuctus of Constantinople
* Taksony of Hungary

## 971
* Kenneth II of Scotland succeeds Culen as King

### Births 
* Kushyar ibn Labban
* Mahmud of Ghazni
* Emperor Shengzong of Liao
* Prince Shaif

### Deaths 
* Abu Jafar Khazeni
* Culen of Scotland
* Ziri ibn Manad

## 972
* Otto II marries Theophanu, Byzantine princess
* Battle of Cedynia – Polish duke Mieszko I defeats Germans
* Pope Benedict VI succeeds Pope John XIII as pope
* Boleslaus II the Pious succeeds Boleslav I of Bohemia in Bohemia
* Yaropolk of Kiev succeeds Sviatoslav I in Kiev
* Fatimids enter Egypt, establish the Al-Azhar mosque in Cairo
* Buluggin ibn Ziri appointed viceroy in Ifriqiya, start of the Zirid dynasty
* The monastery at the site of Peterborough Cathedral is rebuilt
* Saint Eadburga is canonized
* Emperor John Tzoimisces makes eastern Bulgaria a Byzantine subject
* The city of Satu Mare, Romania is founded

### Births 
* March 27 &ndash; King Robert II of France (d. 1031)
* Al-Mawardi
* Ermesinde of Carcassonne, countess and regent of Barcelona (d. 1057)
* Fujiwara no Yukinari
* Fulk III of Anjou
* Pope Gregory V
* Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor
* Renauld I, Count of Nevers

### Deaths 
* July 15 &ndash; Boleslav I of Bohemia
* September 6 &ndash; Pope John XIII
* Liutprand, bishop of Cremona and historian
* Sviatoslav I, Prince of Kiev
* Kuya, Japanese monk of Pure Land Buddhism (b. 903)

## 973
* The Fatimids move their capital to Cairo
* Edgar of England is crowned king by Saint Dunstan
* Otto II becomes Holy Roman Emperor and King of Germany
* January 19 &ndash; Pope Benedict VI succeeds Pope John XIII as the 134th pope

### Births 
* September 15 &ndash; Al-Biruni, mathematician (d. 1048)
* December 26 &ndash; Abu al-Ala al-Ma'ar;ri, poet

### Deaths 
* May 7 &ndash; Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 912)
* July 4 &ndash; Saint Ulrich of Augsburg (b. 890)

## 974
* A great earthquake in England.
* The Carmathians are defeated in Egypt by Jawhar as-Siqilli
* The Byzantine Empire retakes Syria
* Fuzhou builds new city walls
* October &ndash; Pope Benedict VII succeeds Pope Benedict VI as the 135th pope
* Antipope Boniface VII is declared pope

### Deaths 
* Pope Benedict VI
* Ratherius of Verona
* Shi Chonggui

## 975
* Coronation of King Edward the Martyr
* Emperor Taizu of Song China conquers Hunan province
* Al-Aziz becomes Fatimid Caliph

### Births 
* Stephen I of Hungary (d.1038)
* Thietmar of Merseburg
* Andre Bertelli Araujo

### Deaths 
* Alp Tigin, Turkic general
* July 8 &ndash; King Edgar of England
* al-Muizz, Fatimid Caliph
* Gwangjong of Goryeo
* Turketel, abbot of Crowland
* Gu Hongzhong

## 976
* January 10 &ndash; Basil II becomes Eastern Roman Emperor
* Brian Boru is inaugurated as King of Munster
* Samuil of Bulgaria becomes Tsar
* Yuelu Academy is founded in China

### Births 
* Emperor Sanjō of Japan

### Deaths 
* January 10 &ndash; John I Tzimiskes, Byzantine Emperor
* October 8 &ndash; Jelena of Zadar, Queen of Croatia
* November 14 &ndash; Emperor Taizu of Song
* Harald Greyhide, King of Norway
* Al-Hakam II, Caliph of Cordoba

## 977
* Imam Ali Mosque is built at Najaf

### Births 
* Kōkei, Japanese Buddhist monk
* Saint Poppo of Deinze

### Deaths 
* Hunain ibn Ishaq, Egyptian physician
* Dubrawka, daughter of Duke Boleslav I of Bohemia

## 978
* The revolt of Henry II, Duke of Bavaria against Otto II ends
* England's royal mint is located at Guildford

### Births 
* Princess Zoe of Byzantium, later Empress of the Eastern Roman Empire
* Yaroslav I the Wise, prince of Novgorod and Kiev

### Deaths 
* March 18 &ndash; King Edward the Martyr of England
* Abraham of Alexandria, Coptic pope
* Li Houzhu, last Chinese emperor of the Southern Tang

## 979
* March 24 &ndash; The Battle of Pankalia

### Births 
* August 29 &ndash; Abu Taghlib, Emir of Mosul
* Estrid of the Obotrites, future wife of king Olof Skötkonung of Sweden
* Otto, Count of Vermandois

### Deaths 
* Iago ab Idwal, King of Gwynedd
* 'Imran

## References