712
Year 712 AD (DCCXII) was marked by significant expansions of Islamic influence into South Asia through the Umayyad Caliphate's military campaigns. Muhammad bin Qasim, a young Arab general dispatched by Governor Al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf, led the invasion of Sindh, defeating the local ruler Raja Dahir and capturing key cities including Debal, Sehwan, and Alor.[1][2][3] This conquest, initiated in response to appeals from oppressed Muslim traders and culminating in the subjugation of the region by 713 AD, established the first enduring Muslim governance in the Indian subcontinent and facilitated the spread of Islam among local populations through relatively tolerant policies toward non-Muslims.[4][5] In Europe, the Lombard Kingdom saw the ascension of Liutprand to the throne amid internal strife following the death of King Aripert II, beginning a reign noted for legal codifications and conflicts with the Papacy and Byzantines.[6] Additionally, Bulgar forces under Khan Tervel raided the suburbs of Constantinople, pressuring the Byzantine Empire.[7] These events underscored a period of dynamic geopolitical shifts across Eurasia, driven by imperial ambitions and military innovations.Events
Byzantine Empire
In 712, Byzantine Emperor Philippikos Bardanes (r. 711–713), who had ascended following the assassination of Justinian II in late 711, pursued policies favoring Monothelitism, the doctrine of a single will in Christ condemned by the Sixth Ecumenical Council of 680–681. He publicly endorsed this position, anathematized the council's decisions, and ordered the removal of its commemorative images from the imperial palace, actions that alienated orthodox clergy and laity. Philippikos deposed the orthodox Patriarch Cyrus of Constantinople, replacing him with the Monothelite John VI, thereby reviving a heresy that had been officially suppressed for decades.[8] Militarily, the year witnessed a Bulgarian incursion led by Khan Tervel, who exploited Byzantine instability to raid Thrace, advancing through the Thracian Bosporus to the outskirts of Constantinople and inflicting significant damage before being repelled by imperial forces redeployed from Anatolia. In response, Philippikos transferred troops from the Opsikion Theme to bolster defenses, though the raid highlighted vulnerabilities in the empire's European frontiers. Byzantine armies also achieved success against Armenian insurgents operating within imperial territories in Asia Minor, suppressing the revolt effectively.[8][9] Concurrently, Umayyad Arab forces under commanders like Maslama ibn Abd al-Malik intensified raids into Byzantine Anatolia, penetrating regions such as Pontus and Pisidia; these incursions foreshadowed the capture of key sites like Pisidian Antioch in 713 and signaled a weakening of frontier defenses after 712, amid ongoing resource strains from multiple fronts. Philippikos's perceived ineffectiveness in stemming these threats contributed to growing discontent within the military and aristocracy.[8]Europe
In the Iberian Peninsula, the Umayyad Caliphate's conquest of Visigothic Hispania advanced significantly in 712, following Tariq ibn Ziyad's initial invasion in 711; by this year, Muslim forces under Musa ibn Nusayr had subjugated most of the region, excluding pockets of resistance in Asturias and among the Basques.[10][11] Musa reinforced Tariq with an army of 18,000 troops from North Africa, consolidating control over Andalusia and establishing Islamic administration amid the collapse of Visigothic royal authority after the death of King Roderic.[10]In Italy, the Lombard Kingdom saw a dynastic transition on June 13, 712, with the death of King Ansprand and the accession of his son Liutprand, who would rule until 744 and expand Lombard territory through campaigns against Byzantine exarchates and neighboring duchies.[12] Liutprand's reign marked a period of legislative reforms, including edicts emphasizing restitution over capital punishment, reflecting gradual Romanization of Lombard customs. In Francia, the Merovingian dynasty under child-king Dagobert III maintained nominal rule, with real power held by Pepin of Herstal as mayor of the palace until his death in 714; no major military or political upheavals are recorded for 712, though internal stability allowed consolidation against external threats.[13] In Britain, King Ine of Wessex sponsored the construction of a stone church at Glastonbury Abbey around 712, signifying ongoing Christian institutional development amid Anglo-Saxon fragmentation.[14]