636 CE
A year defined by the Battle of Yarmouk, one of the most consequential battles in history, which shattered Byzantine power in the Levant and opened the region to Arab conquest.
Conflict & Security
- Arab Muslim forces under Khalid ibn al-Walid decisively defeated the Byzantine army at the Battle of Yarmouk in August, fought over six days near the Yarmouk River in modern-day Jordan and Syria.
- The Byzantine defeat at Yarmouk was catastrophic, with Emperor Heraclius losing the bulk of his eastern field army, effectively ending Byzantine control over Syria and Palestine.
- Arab forces also won the Battle of al-Qadisiyyah against the Sassanid Persians, opening Mesopotamia to Muslim conquest and beginning the rapid disintegration of the Sassanid Empire.
Geopolitics & Diplomacy
- The twin Arab victories at Yarmouk and al-Qadisiyyah demonstrated the remarkable military effectiveness of the early Muslim armies and fundamentally altered the balance of power in the Middle East.
- Emperor Heraclius withdrew from Syria, reportedly bidding farewell to the province he had fought so hard to recover from the Sassanids only a decade earlier.
Climate & Environment
- Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration was approximately 277 parts per million, as later confirmed by ice core analysis.
Culture & Society
- The estimated world population was approximately 210 million.