708day.year
Pope Constantine becomes the 88th pope. He would be the last pope to visit Constantinople until 1967.
Pope Constantine was elected in 708 as the 88th pope, later noted as the last pontiff to visit Constantinople until the 20th century.
After a contested election, Constantine was elevated as Pope in 708, taking the name of the early martyr. During his short pontificate, he pursued diplomatic relations with the Byzantine Empire. He traveled to Constantinople to negotiate ecclesiastical and political matters at the imperial court. This unprecedented visit would not be repeated by a Pope until 1967 when Paul VI toured the city. Constantine also addressed internal church disputes and reinforced papal authority. His reign ended in 715, and he was later venerated for his devotion to church unity and diplomacy.
708
Pope Constantine
717day.year
Theodosius III resigns the throne to the Byzantine Empire to enter the clergy allowing Leo III to take the throne and begin the Isaurian dynasty.
Emperor Theodosius III abdicated the Byzantine throne in 717 to join the clergy, paving the way for Leo III and the rise of the Isaurian dynasty.
Facing military pressures and political unrest, Theodosius III voluntarily stepped down in March 717. He chose monastic life, a rare voluntary abdication in Byzantine history. His departure opened the path for Leo III, a seasoned general, to assume the purple. Leo III’s accession marked the start of the Isaurian dynasty, later known for iconoclasm and imperial stabilization. The transition occurred on the eve of the second Arab siege of Constantinople, testing Leo’s leadership from the outset. Theodosius spent his remaining years in peaceful religious seclusion.
717
Theodosius III
Byzantine Empire
Leo III
919day.year
Romanos Lekapenos seizes the Boukoleon Palace in Constantinople and becomes regent of the Byzantine emperor Constantine VII.
In 919, Romanos Lekapenos seized the Boukoleon Palace in Constantinople and established himself as regent for young Emperor Constantine VII.
After the death of Emperor Constantine VII's father, the empire was in regency turmoil under various court factions. In March 919, Admiral Romanos Lekapenos leveraged military support to capture the strategic Boukoleon Palace. He married his daughter Helena to Constantine VII, solidifying his position. Declaring himself co-emperor, Romanos effectively controlled imperial governance and military affairs. His rule brought stability and defensive reforms, fortifying the empire against external threats. In 944, he abdicated voluntarily and retired, remembered as a shrewd architect of power behind the throne.
919
Romanos Lekapenos
Boukoleon Palace
Constantinople
regent
Constantine VII
1000day.year
Fatimid caliph al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah assassinates the eunuch chief minister Barjawan and assumes control of the government.
Caliph al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah assassinated his chief minister Barjawan in 1000, seizing direct control of the Fatimid government.
Having ascended to power as a youth, al-Hakim found his authority overshadowed by powerful ministers like the eunuch Barjawan. In March 1000, he orchestrated Barjawan's assassination, eliminating a key rival. This bold move allowed the caliph to centralize decision-making and assert autocratic control. The purge unsettled the Fatimid court and alarmed regional governors. Al-Hakim's later years would be marked by controversial religious policies and architectural patronage in Cairo. His dramatic early actions set the tone for one of the most enigmatic reigns in medieval Islamic history.
1000
Fatimid
al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah
Barjawan
1306day.year
Robert the Bruce becomes King of Scots (Scotland).
Robert the Bruce was crowned King of Scots in 1306, leading Scotland's fight for independence from England.
On March 25, 1306, at Scone, Robert de Brus was crowned King of Scots amid rising tensions with England. His ascent followed the deadly dispute with John Comyn in a chapel, which ignited a national struggle for sovereignty. Bruce then waged guerrilla warfare against English garrisons, uniting Scottish clans in resistance. Despite early setbacks, his leadership culminated in the decisive victory at Bannockburn in 1314. This triumph secured Scotland’s de facto independence and elevated Bruce as a national hero. During his reign, Bruce also restructured royal administration and strengthened cultural identity across the kingdom.
1306
Robert the Bruce
1409day.year
The Council of Pisa convenes, in an attempt to heal the Western Schism.
In 1409, the Council of Pisa was convened to end the Western Schism by deposing rival popes and restoring church unity.
With three competing papal claimants dividing Christendom, church leaders gathered in Pisa in March 1409. Delegates from major European powers aimed to resolve the schism that began in 1378. The Council deposed Pope Gregory XII and Antipope Benedict XIII for defiance and elected Alexander V as a compromise candidate. Instead of restoring unity, the decision added a third papal claimant, prolonging the crisis. Debates at Pisa fueled the growing movement for conciliar authority over papal absolutism. Although inconclusive, the council set the stage for the later Council of Constance. Its legacy highlighted the complex interplay of religion and politics in medieval Europe.
1409
Council of Pisa
Western Schism
1584day.year
Sir Walter Raleigh is granted a patent to colonize Virginia.
Queen Elizabeth I grants Sir Walter Raleigh a patent to establish a colony in Virginia, marking early English colonial ambition.
On March 25, 1584, Sir Walter Raleigh received a royal patent from Queen Elizabeth I authorizing him to establish colonies in the region now known as Virginia. The patent allowed Raleigh and his investors to explore, occupy, and govern the land, laying the foundation for future English settlement. Raleigh's expeditions predated the founding of Jamestown by nearly two decades, but they provided valuable reconnaissance of the North American coast. Although the initial Roanoke Colony ultimately failed, the venture highlighted English interest in overseas expansion. This patent represents an early and significant step in England's colonization of the New World.
1584
Walter Raleigh
Virginia
1802day.year
The Treaty of Amiens is signed as a "Definitive Treaty of Peace" between France and the United Kingdom.
France and Britain sign the Treaty of Amiens, temporarily halting hostilities in the Napoleonic Wars.
On March 25, 1802, representatives of France and the United Kingdom signed the Treaty of Amiens, officially ending the War of the Second Coalition. The agreement, hailed as a 'Definitive Treaty of Peace,' restored boundaries and colonies that had changed hands during the conflict. It marked the first time since the French Revolution that Britain and France had agreed to peace terms. The respite lasted only until 1803, when tensions reignited into renewed warfare. Nevertheless, the Treaty of Amiens illustrates the complex diplomacy of the Napoleonic era and its fleeting moments of conciliation.
1802
Treaty of Amiens
1845day.year
New Zealand Legislative Council pass the first Militia Act constituting the New Zealand Army.
The New Zealand Legislative Council passed the first Militia Act in 1845, laying the foundations of the New Zealand Army.
In March 1845, the colonial legislature enacted the Militia Act to establish volunteer defense forces in New Zealand.
The act empowered the government to raise, arm, and train local militias in response to tensions with Māori communities.
It marked the first statutory creation of a military body on New Zealand soil.
Militia units were formed in Auckland, Wellington, and other settlements to protect colonists' lives and property.
This legislation served as the precursor to a formal national military and influenced later Defence Acts.
1845
New Zealand Army
1911day.year
Andrey Yushchinsky is murdered in Kiev, leading to the Beilis affair.
The murder of Andrey Yushchinsky in Kiev in 1911 sparked the infamous Beilis affair.
In March 1911, the body of 11-year-old Andrey Yushchinsky was found mutilated in Kiev.
Imperial authorities falsely accused several Jewish residents of ritual murder in a case steeped in antisemitism.
The subsequent trial of Mendel Beilis became a focal point for international outrage and media attention.
Beilis’s eventual acquittal exposed deep-rooted prejudices within the Russian legal system.
The Beilis affair galvanized Jewish communities and human rights activists around the world.
Kiev
Beilis affair
1917day.year
The Georgian Orthodox Church restores its autocephaly abolished by Imperial Russia in 1811.
The Georgian Orthodox Church had its autocephaly restored on 25 March 1917 after over a century.
On March 25, 1917, the Georgian Orthodox Church regained its independence at a council in Tbilisi.
The autocephaly revoked by Imperial Russia in 1811 was formally reinstated following the February Revolution.
Georgian bishops and clergy convened to re-establish national ecclesiastical governance.
This restoration strengthened Georgian cultural identity during the upheaval of World War I.
It marked a major step in separating church authority from Russian control after more than a century.
1917
Georgian Orthodox Church
autocephaly
Imperial Russia
1918day.year
The Belarusian People's Republic is established.
A historic proclamation marking the establishment of the first independent Belarusian state following the collapse of the Russian Empire.
In the wake of World War I and the Russian Revolution, Belarusian national leaders seized the moment to declare autonomy from Bolshevik Russia.
The Rada (council) of the newly proclaimed Republic adopted a constitution, asserting Minsk as its capital and Belarusian as its official language.
Despite a brief period of de facto independence, the Republic faced military pressure from both German and Soviet forces.
Within months, Soviet troops occupied Minsk, and the People’s Republic was absorbed into the emerging Soviet sphere.
Although short-lived, this founding moment remains a cornerstone of modern Belarusian national identity, celebrated by diaspora communities and historians.
1918
Belarusian People's Republic