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A TIMELINE OF WORLD

HISTORY

By Tim Lambert

Part One: The Ancient World

C. 35,000 BC The Cro-Magnon people enter Europe

C. 9,000-8,000 BC Farming begins in the Middle East

C. 8,000 BC Jericho, the first walled town, is built

C. 6,500 BC

Catal Huyuk, a town in what is now Turkey flourishes

Farming begins in Northwest India

C. 6,000 BC

Farming spreads to Greece and later across Europe

Rice is cultivated in Thailand

C. 5,000 BC Farming begins in Egypt

C. 4,000 BC

Farming spreads to Northern Europe

The plough is invented in the Middle East

Bronze is used in the Middle East

C. 3,500 BC

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The sail is invented in Egypt

The potters wheel is invented in Iraq

C. 3,300 BC Writing develops in Sumer and Egypt

C. 3,000 BC Bronze is used in Thailand

C. 2,500 BC

Farming begins in Peru

The Minoan Civilisation arises on Crete

C. 2,250-1,250 BC

Stonehenge is built

Stonehenge

C. 2,000 BC

Bronze is used in Northern Europe and in China

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The Hittite Civilisation arises in what is now Turkey

C. 1.790 BC - 1,750 BC Hammurabi is king of Babylon

C. 1,700 BC The Indus Valley Civilisation arises

C. 1,600 BC The Mycenaean Civilisation in Greece arises

C. 1,200 BC

The Hittite Empire in Turkey collapses

The Olmec Civilisation in Mexico arises

C. 1,500 BC The Mycenaean Civilisation in Greece breaks down

C. 1,000 BC

King David rules Israel

C. 900 BC

The Phoenicians flourish is what is now Lebanon and go on long voyages

The Chavin civilisation arises in Peru

C. 880 BC The Assyrians of Northern Iraq begin to create a great empire

814 BC The Phoenicians found Carthage in Tunisia

C. 800 BC

A new civilisation arises in Greece

The Etruscan civilisation arises in Italy

776 BC The first Olympic Games are held in Greece

C. 750 BC Rome is founded

C. 650 BC

The Celts introduce iron tools and weapons into Britain

The Chinese begin using iron

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The Assyrian Empire is at its peak

620s BC The Assyrian Empire is split by civil war

612 BC A rebellion led by Babylon brings the Assyrian Empire to an end. TheBabylonians then create their own empire.

C. 600 BC Hindu Civilisation arises in India

C. 563 BC-483 BC Buddha lives

551-479 BC Kong-Fuzi or Confucius lives in China

559-529 BC Cyrus the Great founder of the Persian Empire reigns

550 BC Cyrus conquers Assyria

546 BC Cyrus conquers Lydia in Asia Minor

539 BC Babylon is captured by the Persians

525 BC The Persians conquer Egypt

490 BC The Greeks defeat the Persians at the Battle of Marathon

480 BC The Greeks defeat another Persian invasion

399 BC The Greek philosopher Socrates is condemned to death

391 BC The Romans defeat the Etruscans

C. 427-347 BC The Greek philosopher Plato lives

384-322 BC The Greek philosopher Aristotle lives

338 BC Philip of Macedon conquers Greece

334 BC Alexander the Great invades the Persian Empire

333 BC Alexander wins the Battle of Issus

332 BC Alexander conquers Egypt

330 BC Alexander controls all of the former Persian Empire

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323 BC Alexander dies and his general split his empire between them

C. 300 BC

The Dong Son civilisation arises in South East Asia. It is known for its stonemonuments and bronze work although the people also used iron.

273-236 BC The great Indian Emperor Asoka lives

264-241 BC The First Punic War between Rome and Carthage. Rome wins andgains Sicily.

218-201

The Second Punic War BC. The great Carthaginian general Hannibal leads anexpedition through Spain over the Alps against Rome.

217 BC Hannibal crushes the Romans at Lake Trasimene

216 BC Hannibal crushes the Romans at Cannae

214 BC Work begins on the Great Wall of China

206 BC The Romans defeat the Carthaginians in Spain. They take control ofsouthern Spain.

202 BC The Han dynasty is founded in China

200 BC The Chavin civilisation in Peru collapses

171 BC - 138 BC Mithradates is king of Parthia. He conquers an empire in Persia.

149-146 BC The Third Punic War. Rome destroys Carthage.

135 BC Roman slaves in Sicily rebel but are defeated

89 BC All Italians are given Roman citizenship

63 BC Roman general Pompey captures Jerusalem

58-51 BC Julius Caesar conquers Gaul

49 BC Julius Caesar crosses the Rubicon

44 BC Julius Caesar is assassinated

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31 BC Octavian's fleet defeats the fleet of his rivals Mark Anthony and Cleopatra

30 BC Egypt becomes a province of the Roman Empire

C. 4 BC Jesus is born

C. 29 AD Jesus is crucified

43 AD The Romans invade Britain

C 45 AD Paul begins his missionary journeys

64 AD Most of Rome is destroyed by fire. Nero uses Christians as a scapegoat.

98-117 AD Trajan is Emperor of Rome. The Roman Empire reaches its peak.

220 AD The Han dynasty in China ends

224 AD In Persia a member of the Sassanid family kills the last Parthian king andfounds the Sassanid Empire

284-305 AD Diocletian is emperor of Rome. In 286 he divides the empire into twohalves, East and West.

313 AD Emperor Constantine tolerates Christianity

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Portchester Castle, a Roman fort

C. 400 AD Writing is introduced into Japan

407 AD Germanic tribes overrun Gaul

410 AD Led by Alaric the Goths capture Rome

434-453 AD Attila is king of the Huns

451 Attila the Hun is defeated at Chalons in France

455 AD The Vandals capture Rome

476 AD The Western Roman Empire ends completely

To read more about the Ancient World click here

Part Two: The Middle Ages

481-511 Clovis is king of the Franks. He marries a Christian and in 1496 becomes aChristian himself.

527-565 AD Justinian rules the Byzantine Empire (the Eastern Roman Empire)

C. 570 Mohammed is born

597 Augustine arrives in England to help convert the Anglo-Saxons to Christianity

C. 600 The Maya of Mexico are at their peak

618-907 The Tang Dynasty rules China

632 Mohammed dies

642 The Arabs conquer Egypt and Persia

698 The Arabs conquer Carthage in Tunisia

C. 700 Arab merchants begin to trade with Saharan cities

711 The Moors invade Spain

732 The Franks defeat the Moors at the Battle of Tours

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793 The Vikings raid Lindisfarne monastery. It is the first of many Viking raids.

800 Charlemagne is crowned Emperor. He rules a great Empire including France,Germany and North Italy.

814 Charlemagne dies. After his death his empire splits up.

843 Scotland is united

865-870 The Danes conquer Northern and Eastern England

871 Alfred the Great become king of Wessex (Southern England)

874 The Vikings settle Iceland

878 Alfred the Great defeats the Danes

911 A Viking chief named Rollo is granted land in Normandy by the French king

C. 950 The Maoris arrive in New Zealand

955 The Germans defeat the Magyars (ancestors of today's Hungarians) at theBattle of Lechfeld

976 The Great Byzantine emperor Basil II rules. He strengthens the ByzantineEmpire.

985 The Vikings settle Greenland

1014 Brian Boru, High King of Ireland defeats the Vikings at Clontarf

1044 A Burmese state is founded

1054 The Eastern (Orthodox) Church formally splits from the Western (Catholic)Church

1055 The Seljuk Turks, a people from Central Asia take Baghdad

1066 The Normans conquer England

1071 The Seljuk Turks defeat the Byzantine Empire at Manzikert

1076 The Seljuk Turks take Damascus and Jerusalem

1086 The Domesday Book, a survey of who owns the land in England, is written

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1096-1099 The First Crusade

1099 The Crusaders capture Jerusalem

1123 Omar Khayyam the Persian poet dies

1147-49 The Second Crusade

1171 Oxford University is founded when the English king orders all English studentsto return from France

1171 The English King Henry II makes himself Lord of Ireland

Bargate in Southampton built c 1180

1182-1226 Francis of Assisi lives

1187 Saladin recaptures Jerusalem

1189-1192 The Third Crusade

1206 Genghis Khan unites the Mongols and begins to build a huge empire

1211 The Mongols invade Northern China

1215 King John seals Magna Carta

1215-1274 Thomas Aquinas the Italian theologian lives

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1221The Mongols attack Delhi

1227 Genghis Khan dies

1236 The Mongols invade Russia

1241 The Mongols invade Poland and Hungary but they retreat after the death ofOgedei, Genghis Khan's son

1250 The Mamelukes take power in Egypt

1258 The Mongols capture Baghdad

1260 The Mamelukes of Egypt defeat the Mongols

1279 The Mongols capture Southern China

1281 A Mongol invasion of Japan fails

1283 The English complete the conquest of Wales

1290 Jews are expelled from England

A Merchant's House in Southampton

1300 Statues are erected on Easter Island

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1306 Jews are expelled from France

1314 The Battle of Bannockburn is fought. The Scots crush the English.

1324 Mansa Musa the great king of Mali goes on a pilgrimage to Mecca andimpresses everyone with his wealth

C. 1325 The Aztecs found their capital at Tenochtitlan

1337 The Hundred Years War begins between England and France

1340

The English win a naval battle at Sluys

The first recorded use of a gun in battle

C. 1340-1400 Geoffrey Chaucer lives

1347-1353 Europe is ravaged by the Black Death

1353 Ibn Battuta a Moroccan traveller reaches Timbuktu. He writes an account of histravels in West Africa.

1368 The Ming dynasty begins in China

1373 Treaty of friendship between England and Portugal

1381 In England the Peasants Revolt takes place

1369-1404

Tamerlane king of Samarkand builds up a great empire in Asia. He conquers Herat in1381 and destroys Delhi in 1398. In 1401 he takes Baghdad and in 1402 he defeatsthe Ottoman empire in Turkey.

1415

The English win another great victory at Agincourt

The Czech religious reformer Jan Hus is martyred

1429 The French win a victory at Orleans

1439 The Russian and Greek Orthodox Churches are formally separated

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1445 The printing press is invented

1453

The Hundred Years War ends with English defeat. The English lose all of theirterritory in France except Calais.

The Ottoman Turks capture Constantinople and bring the Byzantine Empire to anend

1476 Caxton introduces the printing press into England

1480 The Spanish Inquisition is formed

1485 Henry VII begins the Tudor dynasty in England

1488 Portuguese sailors reach the Cape of Good Hope

1492

Christopher Columbus sails across the Atlantic

Ferdinand and Isabella conquer Granada, the last Muslim stronghold in Spain

Part Three: The Modern World

1498 Portuguese sailors reach India

1514 Portuguese sailors reach Canton in China

C. 1500 Guru Nanak (1469-1539) founds the Sikh religion

1516 The Portuguese reach Vietnam by sea

1517 Martin Luther begins the Reformation. The Ottoman Turks conquer Egypt.

1521

Cortes conquers the Aztecs in Mexico

Ferdinand Magellan is killed in the Philippines

1522 The Ottoman Turks capture Belgrade

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1526 In India Babar founds the Mogul Empire

1530 The Portuguese settle in Brazil

1533 Pizarro conquers the Incas

1534 King Henry VIII becomes head of the Church of England

1536 The Bible translator William Tyndale is martyred

1541

John Knox begins the Reformation in Scotland

The Turks conquer Hungary

1543

Copernicus publishes his theory that the Earth orbits the Sun

Portuguese sailors reach Japan

Southsea Castle built 1544

1545 The English ship The MaryRose sinks near Portsmouth

1547-1584 Ivan the Terrible rules Russia

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1564 Christopher Marlowe is born. William Shakespeare is born. Galileo is born.

1556-1605 Akbar the Great rules over the Mogul Empire

1565 The Turks fail to capture Malta

1568 The Dutch rebel against Spanish rule

1571 The Turkish fleet is badly defeated by Spanish and Venetian ships

1572 The St Bartholomew's Day massacre takes place. Thousands of FrenchProtestants are murdered.

1580 Spain annexes Portugal

1587

Mary Queen of Scots is executed

Akbar takes Kashmir

1588 The Spanish Armada is defeated

1592

In India Akbar the Great conquers Sind

An Englishman named John Davis discovers the Falkland Islands

1603 Queen Elizabeth I of England dies, ending the Tudor dynasty. The Scottishking inherits the English throne. He is now King James VI of Scotland and KingJames I of England.

1605 In England a group of Catholics attempt to blow up parliament in theGunpowder Plot

1607 The English found Jamestown, Virginia the first permanent English colony in

North America

1608 John Milton is born. The French found Quebec.

1610

Henry Hudson discovers Hudson Bay.

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Galileo writes his book The Sidereal Messenger in which he describes hisobservations of the heavens with a telescope.

1611 The King James Bible is published

1614 John Napier invents logarithms

1618-1648 The Thirty Years War is fought in Germany

1611-1632 Gustavus Adolphus king of Sweden and a brilliant general reigns

1620 English Puritans sail to New England in The Mayflower

1622 England sends its first ambassador to Turkey

1626 The Dutch found New Amsterdam, which later becomes New York

1627-1658 Shah Jahn, Mogul Emperor expands his empire

1628 William Harvey publishes his book about the circulation of the blood

17th century houses in Portsmouth

1636 Harvard College is founded

1639 Japan isolates itself from the outside world

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1640 Portugal rebels against Spanish rule

1642-1646 In England Civil War between King and Parliament

1642 Abel Tasman discovers Tasmania

1644 In China the Ming dynasty is overthrown. The Manchu dynasty takes over.

1648 Spain recognises Dutch independence

1649 Charles I is executed

1652 The Dutch found a colony in South Africa

1653 Oliver Cromwell makes himself Lord Protector of England. He rules until hisdeath in 1658.

1655 England takes Jamaica from Spain

1661 Robert Boyle publishes his book the Sceptical Chemist

1664 The English capture New Amsterdam, which is renamed New York

1666 The Great Fire of London devastates the English capital

1683 The Ottoman Turks besiege Vienna but fail to capture the city

1687

The Austrians defeat the Turks at the Battle of Mohacs. The Turkish Ottoman Empirebegins a long, slow decline.

Isaac Newton publishes a book describing his theory of gravity and his laws ofmotion

1688

The Glorious Revolution in England. King James II flees abroad and parliamentinvites a Dutchman, William of Orange to take his place.

1689 Peter the Great becomes Tsar of Russia

C 1690 In India the Mogul Empire is at its height

1692 In New England the Salem Witch Trials take place

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1699 William Dampier sails along the Northwest coast of Australia

1707

England and Scotland are united

The Mogul Empire in India begins to break down

1700-1721 The Great Northern War between Sweden and Russia is fought

1701-1714 The War of the Spanish Succession is fought

1704

The British capture Gibraltar from Spain

Forces led by the Duke of Marlborough defeat the French at the Battle of Blenheim

1709

The Russians defeat the Swedes at the Battle of Poltava

Abraham Darby begins using coke to smelt iron

1718 The French found New Orleans

1722 Jacob Roggeveen discovers Samoa and Easter Island

1721-1742 Robert Walpole is the first British prime minister

1728 Vitus Bering explores the Bering Straits

1733 Georgia, the last of the original 13 colonies is founded

1739 John Wesley founds the Methodist Movement in England

1740-1786 Frederick the Great rules Prussia

1740-1748 The War of the Austrian Succession

1752 Benjamin Franklin shows that lightning is a form of electricity

1755 Lisbon is devastated by an earthquake

1756-1763 The Seven Years War is fought

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1757 The British defeat the French at Plassey in India ensuring that India willbecome a British colony

1759 The British defeat the French at Quebec ensuring Canada becomes British

1762-1796 Catherine the Great rules Russia

1769

Captain Cook sails to New Zealand

James Watt patents an efficient steam engine

Franciscan friars found a mission at Los Angeles

1770 The Boston massacre

1772 The first Partition of Poland takes place. Russia, Prussia and Austria helpthemselves to Polish territory.

1773 The Boston Tea Party

1775-1783 The American War of Independence

1780 The Industrial Revolution begins to transform life in Britain

1781 William Herschel discovers Uranus

1788

The first settlers arrive in Australia from Britain

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A Monument to the first fleet to Australia

1789

The French Revolution begins

George Washington becomes the first president of the USA

1793

King Louis XVI is executed.

War begins between Britain and France

Eli Whitney invents the cotton gin

The second Partition of Poland

1795 The third and final Partition of Poland

1799 Napoleon Bonaparte seizes power in France

1804 Hobart the capital of Tasmania is founded. Haiti becomes independent.

1805 The French defeat the Austrians at Austerlitz but are defeated by the British atTrafalgar

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HMS Victory a ship that fought at Trafalgar

1806

The British take the Dutch colony of South Africa

The French crush the Prussians at the Battle of Jena

1807 Britain abolishes the slave trade

1812 Napoleon's invasion of Russia ends in disaster

1812-1870 Charles Dickens lives

1813 Napoleon is defeated at Leipzig

1814 Napoleon abdicates

1815 Napoleon escapes from exile and becomes emperor of France again but he isdefeated at Waterloo

1816 Argentina becomes independent

1818 Chile becomes independent

1818 Shaka founds the Zulu Empire in southern Africa

1820 The Spanish Inquisition is abolished

1821 Mexico, Peru and Guatemala become independent

1825 Bolivia becomes independent

1828 Shaka the Zulu emperor is murdered

1829

The Swan River Colony in Western Australia is founded. It develops into the city ofPerth.

Following 7 years of fighting Greece becomes independent of Turkey

C. 1830 The Industrial Revolution spreads to France, Germany and the USA

1834 The British settle Port Phillip Bay. It grows into the city of Melbourne.

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1839-1842 The Opium War between Britain and China is fought. China leases HongKong to Britain.

1840 Britain annexes New Zealand

1845-1851 Potato famine in Ireland

1846-1848 War between Mexico and the USA. Mexico is forced to surrender much ofher territory.

1848 Revolutions break out across Europe

1852-1870 Napoleon III, nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte is dictator of France

1853 The USA forces Japan to allow foreign trade

1854-1856 The Crimean War is fought. Britain, France and Turkey versus Russia.

1855 David Livingstone discovers the Victoria Falls

1857-1858 The Indian Mutiny

HMS Warrior launched 1860

1861

Italy is united

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Russian serfs are made free

1861-1865 The American Civil War is fought

1865 Abraham Lincoln is assassinated

1867 Canada becomes a dominion

1868 In Japan a period of rapid economic growth and change begins

1870-1871 The Franco-Prussian War is fought. Napoleon III falls from power andFrance surrenders.

Germany becomes a united country.

1876 Alexander Graham Bell invents the telephone

1879

Edison invents an electric light bulb

The War of the Pacific is fought. Chile fights Bolivia and Peru.

1885 The car is invented

1890 The massacre of Wounded Knee ends the Indian Wars in the USA

The industrial revolution spreads to Sweden and Russia

1893 Women in New Zealand are given the vote

1894 In France Alfred Dreyfus is convicted of treason

1898 War between the USA and Spain. The USA takes the Philippines.

1899-1902 The Boer War in South Africa

1900 The Boxer Rebellion in China

1901 The Australian colonies are united to form the Commonwealth of Australia

1903

The first aeroplane flies

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Panama becomes independent

1904-1905 War between Russia and Japan

1905

Revolution in Russia

Norway becomes independent from Sweden

1906 An earthquake strikes San Francisco

1907 New Zealand becomes a dominion

1908 Bulgaria becomes independent of Turkey

1910 Revolution takes place in Portugal

1911

Revolution takes place in China

Amundsen reaches the South Pole

1912 The Titanic sinks

1914

The First World War begins

The Panama Canal opens

1916

Tanks are used for the first time

In Ireland the Easter Rising takes place

Rasputin is murdered

1917

The USA joins the war

Communists seize power in Russia

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1918 Germany surrenders

1919 Germany is forced to sign the Treaty of Versailles, which causes muchresentment in that country

1921 Southern Ireland becomes independent

1922 Mussolini seizes power in Italy

1927 Canberra becomes the federal capital of Australia

1928

Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin

Stalin gains complete power in Russia. He introduces the first Five Year Plan

1929 The Wall Street Crash in the USA begins a world-wide depression

1933

Adolf Hitler becomes ruler of Germany

Franklin D. Roosevelt becomes president of the USA

1936 The German army occupies the Rhineland (breaking the Treaty of Versailles)

1936-1939 The Spanish Civil War is fought. Franco becomes dictator of Spain.

1938 The Germans take Austria

1939

Germany invades Poland so Britain and France declare war on Germany

Russia attacks Finland

1940

The Katyn Massacre takes place

Germany conquers Norway, Holland, Belgium and France

Winston Churchill becomes prime minister of Britain

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1941

Germany conquers Yugoslavia and Greece and invades Russia

Japan attacks the USA at Pearl Harbor

1942

The USA defeats Japan at Midway Island

The British defeat the Germans at El Alamein

1943

The Russians defeat the Germans at Stalingrad and Kursk

German forces in North Africa surrender and allied forces invade Italy

1944 Allied forces invade France

1945 Germany and Japan surrender

1947 India becomes independent

1947-1948 Communists gain power in Eastern Europe

1948

Israel is created

Burma becomes independent

The transistor is invented

A civil war is fought in Costa Rica

1949

Communists gain power in China

Indonesia becomes independent

1950 China invades Tibet

1951 Libya becomes independent

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1953 Stalin dies

1956 Morocco becomes independent

1957 The EEC (forerunner of the EU) is created

1958 Charles de Gaulle becomes president of France

1960

Echo, the first communications satellite is launched

Senegal becomes independent

1961-1973 The USA becomes involved in the Vietnam War

1961

Tanzania becomes independent

Communists build the Berlin Wall

1962

The Cuban Missile Crisis takes place

Uganda becomes independent

Jamaica becomes independent

1963 President John Kennedy is assassinated

1964

Malawi and Zambia become independent

In the USA The Civil Rights Act is passed in the USA

1965 Gambia becomes independent

1966 Botswana becomes independent

1967

War between the Arab states and Israel

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The first heart transplant is performed

1969

Charles de Gaulle resigns as president of France

Neil Armstrong becomes the first person to set foot on the Moon

1971 Women in Switzerland are allowed to vote

1972 Ceylon changes its name to Sri Lanka

1973

Britain, Denmark and Ireland join the EU

Sydney Opera House is opened.

1974 President Richard Nixon resigns after the Watergate Scandal

1975

General Franco, dictator of Spain dies. Spain becomes a monarchy again.

Communists capture South Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.

Mozambique becomes independent.

1977 King Juan Carlos restores democracy in Spain

1979 The Shah of Iran is overthrown

1980 Solidarity, an independent trade union is formed in Poland

1981

The space shuttle is launched

Belize becomes independent

1983 Democracy is restored in Argentina

1985 Democracy is restored in Brazil

1986 President Marcos is removed from power in the Philippine. Corazon Aquino

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takes over.

1989

The Chinese army crushes a mass demonstration in Tiananmen Square, Beijing

Communism collapses in East Germany, Hungary, Poland, Czechoslovakia andRomania

1990

Germany is reunited

Lech Walesa become President of Poland

1991

Communism collapses in the Soviet Union. It then breaks up into separate states

The Gulf War is fought in Iraq

Elections are held in Albania

1992

The EU nations recognise Croatia and Slovenia as independent nations

Rioting takes place in Los Angeles when white policemen are acquitted of assaultinga black driver, Rodney King

1993 Czechoslovakia splits into the Czech Republic and Slovakia

1994 Nelson Mandela becomes president of South Africa

1995 Sweden, Finland and Austria join the EU

1997 Hong Kong is returned to China

2001

A terrorist attack on New York takes place

Greece unwisely joins the Euro

2004 Czech Republic, Hungary, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia,

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Slovenia and Cyprus all join the EU

2007 Bulgaria and Romania join the EU

2008

A cyclone strikes Burma.

An earthquake strikes China.

2010 Haiti is devastated by an earthquake

2011 Dictators flee from Tunisia and Egypt. A revolution also takes place in Libya.The dictator is killed.

A timeline of World Empires

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