Saint Benedict of Nursia is a Christian saint, honored by the Roman Catholic Church as the patron saint of Europe and students. Benedict founded twelve communities for monks at Subiaco, about 40 miles (64 km) to the east of Rome, before mov...

Justinian I, commonly known as Justinian the Great, was East Roman (Byzantine) Emperor from 527 to 565. During his reign, Justinian sought to revive the empire's greatness and reconquer the lost western half of the classical Roman Empire. O...

Theuderic I was the Merovingian king of Metz, Rheims, or Austrasia — as it is variously called—from 511 to 533 or 534. He was the son of Clovis I and one of his earlier wives or concubines. He inherited Metz in 511 at his father's death. In...

Cassiodorus was a Roman statesman, great writer and (later) monk, serving in the administration of Theodoric the Great, king of the Ostrogoths. He spent his career trying to bridge the cultural divides that were fragmenting the 6th century,...

King Arthur was a legendary British leader of the late fifth and early sixth centuries, who, according to Medieval histories and romances, led the defence of Britain against Saxon invaders in the early sixth century. The details of Arthur's...

Thiruvalluvar, commonly known as Valluvar, was a celebrated Tamil poet and philosopher. He is best known as the author of Thirukkural, a collection of couplets on ethics, political and economical matters, and love. The text is considered an...

Theodora was empress of the Byzantine Empire and the wife of Emperor Justinian I. Like her husband, she is a saint in the Orthodox Church, commemorated on the 14th of November. Theodora was perhaps the most influential and powerful woman in...

Totila was king of the Ostrogoths from 541 until his death. He waged the Gothic War against the Byzantine Empire for the mastery of Italy. Most of the historical evidence for Totila consists of chronicles by the Byzantine historian Procopiu...

Procopius of Caesarea was a prominent Byzantine scholar from Palestine. Accompanying the general Belisarius in the wars of the Emperor Justinian I, he became the principal historian of the 6th century, writing the Wars of Justinian, the Bui...

Flavius Belisarius was one of the greatest generals of the Byzantine Empire. He was instrumental to Emperor Justinian I's ambitious project of reconquering much of the old Western Roman Empire, which had been lost just under a century previ...

Saint Columba, sometimes referred to as Columba of Iona, or, in Old Irish, as Colm Cille, Columbkill, Columbkille or Columcille (meaning "Dove of the church") was an outstanding figure among the Gaelic missionary monks who, some of his advo...

After the repression of the frightful revolt, Justinian conceived the grandiose project of rebuilding the Great Church from its foundations. This time it was to be built on plans well in advance of the times, using new daring vaulting techn...

Saint Gregory of Tours was a Gallo-Roman historian and Bishop of Tours, which made him a leading prelate of Gaul. He was born Georgius Florentius, later adding the name Gregorius in honour of his maternal great-grandfather. He wrote in form...

Pope Saint Gregory the Great not only saved the Church, in times so frightful that the men who lived in them were sure that the end of the world was come, but he founded the great civilization which has lasted down to our day and of which...

Emperor Wen of Sui (581-604), personal name Yang Jian, was the founder and first emperor of China's Sui Dynasty. He was a hard-working administrator and a micromanager. As a Buddhist, he encouraged the spread of Buddhism through the state;...