Charlemagne's elephant

Name: Charlemagne's elephant
Start: 0802
End: 0810
Location: Aachen

802–810 · Aachen · Europe · Culture

A caliph's gift walks over the Alps to Aachen

Charlemagne's elephant — Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Caliph Harun al-Rashid sent Charlemagne an Asian elephant named Abul-Abbas. It was shipped to Italy, crossed the Alps in spring and reached Aachen on 20 July 802, living there until 810.

State: Kingdom of the Franks, Carolingian Empire, Kingdom of the Franks

Wikipedia (Russian) · Wikipedia (English) · 9th century

Did you know

Charlemagne had an elephant. Abul-Abbas was a gift from Caliph Harun al-Rashid of Baghdad: shipped to Italy, he crossed the Alps, reached Aachen in 802 and lived at court for eight years. Share →

Meanwhile around the world (±25 years)

Asia

802 Founding of the Khmer Empire — same year

Americas

c. 800–950 Drought and the Classic Maya collapse — 2 years earlier

Alive at the time

Charlemagne (aged 54)
Emperor Kanmu (aged 65)
Harun al-Rashid (aged 36)
Louis the Pious (aged 24)
Al-Khwarizmi (aged 22)