Timeline July 649

Events in July 649 3

• 598 – 649 Emperor Taizong of Tang (598-649) Died 10 July 649, aged 51 Li Shimin, the second emperor of China's Tang dynasty, died at his palace in Chang'an after a long illness, possibly worsened by alchemical elixirs taken in search of immortality. His 23-year reign expanded Tang territory deep into Central Asia and is remembered as the Zhenguan era, a model of effective governance for later Chinese rulers. He was succeeded by his ninth son, Li Zhi, who became Emperor Gaozong.
• 649 Martin I consecrated pope without imperial approval Defies Byzantine authority over papal elections Martin I was consecrated Bishop of Rome without waiting for the customary confirmation of the Byzantine exarch of Ravenna, asserting papal independence from imperial control. His defiance of Constantinople, combined with his opposition to Monothelitism, would lead to his arrest and exile a few years later.
• 649 Gaozong ascends the Tang throne Third emperor of the Tang dynasty begins his reign Li Zhi, the ninth son of Emperor Taizong, was enthroned five days after his father's death as Emperor Gaozong of Tang. His 34-year reign saw Tang China reach its greatest territorial extent, though effective power increasingly passed to his empress, Wu Zetian.