===The Byzantine Empire===
Heraclius became emperor in 610. The Persians were attacking. A pious man, Heraclius acted when Jerusalem fell and the True Cross was placed in the Persian capital of Ctesphion. His armies reconquer the area and even invade Persia. But the Muslims came in only six years later and took Israel, Syria, Egypt, and North Africa, plus the Persian Empire. Constantinople was besieged in 717, but Emperor Leo III drove them away. He reformed the empire and restored it to prosperity. At the time, many almost worshipped icons. So an iconoclasm (smashing of icons) began. Asians, who favored it, were settled in Europe to get rid of Greeks, who opposed it. But the most violent parts of iconoclasm were under succeeding emperors. Yet it was ended in 787 to appease the Pope, who opposed it. Starting about eighty years and continued until 1071, wealth reigned. Learning flourished. The empire reconquered southern Italy.
===Anglo-Saxon England and Britain===