Timeline May 685

Events in May 685 4

• 623 – 685 Marwan I (623-685) Died May 685, aged about 62 Marwan ibn al-Hakam seized the Umayyad caliphate in 684 after the brief reign of Mu'awiya II, defeating rival claimants at the Battle of Marj Rahit. He died within a year of taking power and was succeeded by his son Abd al-Malik, founding the Marwanid line that ruled the caliphate for the next six decades.
• 645 – 685 Ecgfrith of Northumbria (645-685) Died 20 May 685, aged 40 Ecgfrith became king of Northumbria in 670 and pursued aggressive campaigns against the Picts and the Irish. He was killed leading his army deep into Pictish territory at the Battle of Dun Nechtain. His death broke Northumbrian military dominance in northern Britain.
• 685 Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan becomes Umayyad Caliph Succession after the death of Marwan I Following the death of his father Marwan I in May 685, Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan was proclaimed Umayyad Caliph. He inherited a caliphate still contested during the Second Fitna and went on to reunify it, later reforming its coinage and administration.
• 685 Battle of Dun Nechtain Picts under Bridei III crush a Northumbrian invasion Pictish forces led by King Bridei III ambushed and annihilated a Northumbrian army at Dun Nechtain (Nechtansmere) on 20 May 685. King Ecgfrith of Northumbria was killed along with most of his bodyguard. The defeat ended Northumbrian overlordship of the Picts and halted its northward expansion for good.