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603 CE

This year falls in the Early Middle Ages (c. 500–1000 CE). In western Europe new kingdoms replace the western Roman Empire, while the Byzantine Empire continues in the east. Islam begins in Arabia in the seventh century and its caliphates soon reach from Spain to Central Asia, and China is reunited under the Sui and Tang dynasties.

Within fifteen years

Ruler · Early Middle Ages · ChinaTang Taizong598–649Second emperor of Tang China, reigning from 626 to 649, born Li Shimin in 598. He took the throne after forcing his father's abdication and then presided over the Zhenguan era, remembered as a golden age of good government. Tang China under him was the richest and most cosmopolitan state in the world.

Civilization · Early Middle Ages · Tang dynastyTang dynasty618–907The Tang dynasty was China's cosmopolitan golden age. Its capital Chang'an was the largest city in the world, full of Persian merchants and Buddhist monks. Poetry, painting, and printing flourished before rebellion broke it.