603

Millennium:	1st millennium
Centuries:	6th century – 7th century – 8th century
Decades:	570s  580s  590s  – 600s –  610s  620s  630s
Years:	600 601 602 – 603 – 604 605 606

603 by topic

Politics

State leaders – Sovereign states

Birth and death categories

Births – Deaths

Establishment and disestablishment categories

Establishments – Disestablishments

603 in other calendars

Gregorian calendar	603 DCIII
Ab urbe condita	1356
Armenian calendar	52 ԹՎ ԾԲ
Assyrian calendar	5353
Bengali calendar	10
Berber calendar	1553
Buddhist calendar	1147
Burmese calendar	−35
Byzantine calendar	6111–6112
Chinese calendar	壬戌年 (Water Dog) 3299 or 3239     — to — 癸亥年 (Water Pig) 3300 or 3240
Coptic calendar	319–320
Discordian calendar	1769
Ethiopian calendar	595–596
Hebrew calendar	4363–4364
Hindu calendars
- Vikram Samvat	659–660
- Shaka Samvat	525–526
- Kali Yuga	3704–3705
Holocene calendar	10603
Iranian calendar	19 BP – 18 BP
Islamic calendar	20 BH – 19 BH
Japanese calendar	N/A
Julian calendar	603 DCIII
Korean calendar	2936
Minguo calendar	1309 before ROC 民前1309年
Seleucid era	914/915 AG
Thai solar calendar	1145–1146

King Witteric (c. 565–610)

Year 603 (DCIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 603 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Events

By place

Europe

• Spring – Witteric, counting on the support of the nobles, attacks the royal palace in Toledo and overthrows king Liuva II. He cut off his right hand and has him executed. Witteric becomes new king of the Visigoths.^[1]
• King Agilulf besieges Cremona and with assistance of the Slavs the city is destroyed. He captures Padua and Mantua (Northern Italy), its territory is divided between the Lombard duchies of Brescia and Bergamo.
• Agilulf under the influence of his wife Theodelinda abandons Arianism for Catholicism, and is with his son Adaloald baptised in the Cathedral of Monza where later the Iron Crown of Lombardy is installed.
• Last mention of the Roman Senate (according to the Gregorian register). It mentions that the Senate acclaimed new statues of emperor Phocas and empress Leontia.^[2]

Britain

• Battle of Degsastan: King Æthelfrith of Northumbria defeats the combined forces of Strathclyde Britons and Scots under Áedán mac Gabráin, establishing the supremacy of the Angles in the northern part of what will become known as the British Isles.

Asia

• Emperor Wéndi stabilises the Chinese Empire; the agricultural acreage increase greatly and shipbuilding technology reaching a new high level.
• Prince Shōtoku of Japan establishes a twelve level cap and rank system and is said to have authored a seventeen-article constitution.
• Rebellious Göktürks depose and kill the ambitious ruler (khagan) Tardu of the Western Turkic Khaganate (Central Asia).
• Heshana Khan succeeds his father Tardu as ruler of the Göktürks and levies heavy taxes on the Tiele people.

By topic

Religion

• Schuttern Abbey (Germany) is founded by the wandering Irish monk Offo.
• The future Pope Boniface III is appointed papal legate to Constantinople.

Births

• Abu al-Aswad al-Du'ali, Muslim scholar (approximate date)
• Dagobert I, king of the Franks (d. 639)
• Li Daozong, prince of the Tang Dynasty (approximate date)
• Li Yuanji, prince of the Tang Dynasty (d. 626)
• Pacal the Great, ruler (ajaw) of Palenque (d. 683)
• Yeon Gaesomun, dictator of Goguryeo (d. 666)

Deaths

• Fintan of Clonenagh, Irish abbot
• Liuva II, king of the Visigoths (b. 583)
• Mungo, Brythonic bishop (or 614)
• Tardu, ruler (khagan) of the Göktürks

References

1. Roger Collins, "Visigothic Spain 409–711", p. 73
2. Jeffrey Richards. The Popes and the Papacy in the Early Middle Ages, 476–752, p. 246