The world in 40 AD — what happened that year

10 events the sources record for this year, grouped by region.

What happened

Trưng Trắc raised troops with his sister Trưng Nhị and attacked Chu Diên. Second month of the first year of Queen Trưng. (Đại Việt sử ký toàn thư 外紀卷之三「庚子元年〔漢建武十六年〕春二月，」)
Zheng Ce, a woman of Jiaozhi, rebelled and took control of several towns. (Book of the Later Han (Hou Hanshu), Annals 後漢書卷1下光武帝紀下建武16年)
In the second month, the sisters Zheng Ce and Zheng Yi rebelled, and the Man peoples of Jiuzhen, Rinan, and Hepu joined them, attacking sixty-five cities. They made themselves kings and set their capital at Mi-ling. The governor and magistrate of Jiaozhi barely escaped by surrendering. (Zizhi Tongjian (Comprehensive Mirror) 資治通鑑卷043 (원문 단락 #3236, 40년))

On the order to set up Gaius's statue in the Temple, the Jews gather with wives and children on the plain of Ptolemais to petition Petronius (Josephus, Jewish War and Antiquities of the Jews BJ 2.192–194)
Gaius sends Petronius to Syria to set up his statue in the Temple, and troops gather at Ptolemais (Josephus, Jewish War and Antiquities of the Jews 18.262)
At Tiberias Petronius gathers tens of thousands of Jews, announces the emperor's order and postpones setting up the statue (Josephus, Jewish War and Antiquities of the Jews 18.269)

At Alexandria Jews and Greeks clash and both sides send embassies to Gaius (Josephus, Jewish War and Antiquities of the Jews 18.257)

He lined up the army on the shore of the Ocean with catapults set up, making it look as if a real war was being fought. (Suetonius, Lives of the Caesars Caligula 46)
On the return journey, when Senate envoys urged him to hurry back, he gave up or postponed the triumph and entered with an ovation on his birthday; within four months he was killed. (Suetonius, Lives of the Caesars Caligula 49)

He staged performances in Sicily, Greek games at Syracuse, and theatrical and oratorical contests at Lugdunum in Gaul. (Suetonius, Lives of the Caesars Caligula 20)