642

642 in variouscalendars
Gregorian calendar	642; DCXLII
Ab urbe condita	1395
Armenian calendar	91; ԹՎ ՂԱ
Assyrian calendar	5392
Balinese saka calendar	563–564
Bengali calendar	49
Berber calendar	1592
Buddhist calendar	1186
Burmese calendar	4
Byzantine calendar	6150–6151
Chinese calendar	Tân xấuNăm (MetalOx); 3339 or 3132; — to —; Nhâm Dần năm (WaterTiger); 3340 or 3133
Coptic calendar	358–359
Discordian calendar	1808
Ethiopian calendar	634–635
Hebrew calendar	4402–4403
Hindu calendars
-Vikram Samvat	698–699
-Shaka Samvat	563–564
-Kali Yuga	3742–3743
Holocene calendar	10642
Iranian calendar	20–21
Islamic calendar	21–22
Japanese calendar	N/A
Javanese calendar	532–533
Julian calendar	642; DCXLII
Korean calendar	2975
Minguo calendar	1270 beforeROC; Dân trước 1270 năm
Nanakshahi calendar	−826
Seleucid era	953/954AG
Thai solar calendar	1184–1185
Tibetan calendar	Âm Kim Ngưu năm; (female Iron-Ox); 768 or 387 or −385; — to —; Dương thủy hổ năm; (male Water-Tiger); 769 or 388 or −384

Millennium:	1st millennium
Centuries:	6th century; 7th century; 8th century;
Decades:	620s; 630s; 640s; 650s; 660s;
Years:	639; 640; 641; 642; 643; 644; 645;

Year642(DCXLII) was acommon year starting on Tuesday(link will display the full calendar) of theJulian calendar.The denomination 642 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when theAnno Domini calendar erabecame the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Events

April 30–Chindasuinth,aGothicwarlord (already 79 years old), commences a rebellion and deposes KingTulgainToledo, Spain.He is proclaimed king by theVisigothicnobility and anointed by thebishops.Tulga istonsuredand sent out to live his days in amonastery.
Radulf,aFrankisharistocrat, revolts against KingSigebert IIIofAustrasiaand defeats his army, taking the title ofrexor king ofThuringia.^[1]

August 5–Battle of Maserfield:KingPenda of Merciadefeats and kills KingOswald of Northumbria,age 38, atOswestry(West Midlands). He commands a unitedBritishandMercianforce, which includes the Welsh army of KingsCadafael Cadomedd of GwyneddandCynddylan of Pengwern.The Mercians become dominant in theEnglish Midlands.
Oswiusucceeds his half-brother Oswald as king ofBernicia.He strengthens his position by marryingEanflæd,daughter of KingEdwin of Northumbria,then in exile in theKingdom of Kent.^[2]This marriage takes place between 642 and644.

Battle of Nahāvand:TheRashidun army(30,000 men) underSa`d ibn Abi Waqqasdefeats the Persians atNahāvand(modernIran). The Persian cavalry, full of confidence, mounts an ill-prepared attack. TheArabsretreat to a safe area, where they outmanoeuvre and destroy the Persians in a narrow mountain valley.

Battle of Dongola:'Amr ibn al-'Assends an Arab expedition of 20,000 horsemen, under his cousinUqba ibn Nafi,toMakuria(SouthernEgypt). The Nubians strike hard against theMuslimsnearDongolawithhit-and-runattacks. The Arab incursions intoNubiaare temporarily halted.

EmperorTaizongof theTang dynastyissues adecreethroughout China, that increases the punishment for men who deliberately inflict injuries upon themselves (most commonly breaking their own legs) in order to avoid militaryconscription.This decree is an effort to eradicate this practice that has grown as a trend since the time of the rebellion against theSui dynasty.
Taizongsupports a revoltby Turkic tribes against the rebelliousTu-lu Qaghanof theWestern Turkic Khaganate.
EmpressKōgyokuascends to the throne of Japan, after her husband (and uncle) EmperorJomei's death in641.
Winter –Yeon Gaesomunseizes power overGoguryeo(Korea), and places KingBojangon the throne.

The earliest surviving dated Arabic-languagepapyrus(PERF 558), found inHeracleopolis(Egypt), and the earliest known Arabic text withdiacriticalmarks is written.

Arabs begin construction of theMosque of AmratCairo,the firstmosquebuilt in Egypt and in all of Africa.

October 12–Pope John IVdies after a 2-year reign. He is succeeded by aJerusalem-bornclericof Greek descent,Theodore I,as the 73rdpopeof Rome.
Amonasticsettlement is founded inHampshire(England) which later becomesWinchester Cathedral.

^Reuter, Timothy(1991).Germany in the Early Middle Ages 800–1056.New York: Longman. p. 55.ISBN 0-582-08156-4.
^Bede Book III,Chapter XV.
^Lynch, Michael, ed. (February 24, 2011).The Oxford companion to Scottish history.Oxford University Press. p. 5.ISBN 978-0-19-969305-4.^{[full citation needed]}