By the eighth century, the Byzantines held the balance of power with the Lombards (a Germanic tribe), who had invaded Italy in 568 and set up their capital at Pavia four years later.
The Lombards invaded Italy in 568.
These districts on the west and north sides of Kyoto are home to most of the city's major temples, set within the surrounding greenery and mountains that prompted the Emperor Kammu to select this site for his new capital, Heian-kyo, in 794.