1000 Chinese perfect gunpowder and begin to use it in warfare 1008-1020 Japanese court lady Murasaki Shikibu writes the famous novel, Tale of Genji 1014 Rajendra I becomes ruler of the Cholas, who dominate much of India 1044 Anawrata takes power in Burma; he builds a large empire, strengthens his army, and founds a dynasty of able rulers 1065 Muslim Seljuk Turks invade Asia Minor 1071 Seljuks defeat Byzantine army at Battle of Manzikert; they capture Jerusalem in 1076 1090 Mechanical clock, driven by water, built in Kaifeng (China¹s capital city) 1096 Christian rulers from Europe go on First Crusade to retake Palestine from Seljuks 1099 Crusaders capture Jerusalem, in Palestine 1113-1150 Reign of Suryavarman II of Cambodia; he starts building temple complex of Angkor Wat 1120 Chinese play with painted playing cards 1147-1149 Christian armies of Second Crusade defeated by Turks in Asia Minor and abandon siege of Damascus 1163 Birth of Genghis Khan, creator of Mongol empire 1173-1193 Saladin overcomes Palestine and Syria, taking Damascus 1180 Decline of Chola kingdom 1186-1187 Last Ghaznavid ruler deposed by Mohammed of Ghur, Muslim founder of an empire in North India 1187 Saladin defeats Christians at Hattin and takes Jerusalem 1192 Truce between Christian Richard I of England and Muslim Saladin ends Third Crusade 1192 In Japan, Minamoto Yoritomo becomes shogun after long civil war ends with his victory 1203 Hojo family rules Japan after Minamoto Yoritomo¹s death 1206 Former Turkestan slave Aibak founds new sultanate of Delhi in north India 1206 Mongol empire founded by Genghis Khan 1229 Christians regain Jerusalem, but lose it in 1244 1256 Hulagu, grandson of Genghis Khan, founds Mongol kingdom of Persia 1260 Khubilai, grandson of Genghis, becomes Great Khan 1260 Battle of Ain Jalut - Mongols, under Hulagu, halted by Mamluks in Palestine 1271 Venetian explorer Marco Polo sets out for China 1281 Mongols driven away from Japan by kamikaze, the divine wind 1300 Osman I founds Ottoman dynasty in Turkey 1321 Tughluq dynasty founded in Delhi 1335-1338 Ashikaga Takauji, Japanese general, rebels against emperor and becomes first of the Ashikaga shoguns 1336 Hindu empire of Vijayanagar in India founded by Harihara I becomes centre of resistance to Islam 1350 Last Hindu Javanese kingdom of Majapahit begins to spread in southeast Asia 1368 Mongols driven out of China; Zhu Yuanzhang founds Ming dynasty 1390 Ottoman Turks complete conquest of Asia Minor 1398 Tamerlane sacks Delhi 1402 Tamerlane, Mongol conqueror from central Asia, defeats Ottomans at battle of Ankyra in Turkey 1403-1409 Encyclopaedia of over 20,000 chapters, the Yongle dadian, compiled in China 1405-1433 Chinese Muslim, Zheng He, makes seven voyages westwards to collect tribute for Ming emperors 1411-1442 Reign of Indian sultan Ahmad Shah of Gujarat, who builds splendid capital city of Ahmadabad 1419-1450 Korea prospers under King Sejong; he introduces official Korean script 1420-1421 Chinese Ming capital moves from Nanjing to Beijing 1430 Collapse of Khmer empire in southeast Asia; Angkor Wat abandoned after being sacked by Thai army in 1431 1431-1433 Zheng He makes his seventh and final voyage; he sails as far as the east coast of Africa 1448-1488 Thailand expands under King Trailok; he brings about major administrative and legal reforms 1449-1474 Rule of shogun Ashikaga Yoshimasa in Japan 1460 Imperial porcelain works at Jingdezhen in China successfully import Ming pottery abroad 1463-1479 War between Ottoman Turks and Venetians; Turks eventually triumphant 1467-1477 Onin War in Japan, a civil war beginning as a conflict over shogunal succession, ends Ashikaga shogunate¹s authority 1483 Ashikaga Yoshimasa completes building of the Silver Pavilion Temple, or Ginkakuji, at Kyoto in Japan 1488 First major Ikko-ikki, or Uprising of Ikko Buddhists, in Japan 1488 Ming emperors order rebuilding of Great Wall to defend China from northern invaders 1492 Sikander Lodi, sultan of Delhi (1489-1517), annexes Bihar and moves his capital to Agra to facilitate conquest of Rajasthan 1501-1524 Reign of Ismail, first Safavid shah of Persia 1520-1566 Reign of Sulayman the Magnificent; Ottoman empire at its peak 1526 Babur (descendant of Mongol ruler Genghis Khan and of Tamerlane), first Moghul emperor, invades India 1546 Tabinshwehti conquers Pegu from the Mons and assumes title of king of all Burma 1549-1551 Mission of Jesuit St. Francis Xavier to Japan 1551 Bayinnaung inherits the Burmese throne and overruns Thailand 1556-1605 Reign of Moghul emperor Akbar in India 1568-1599 Period of national unification in Japan begins when feudal lord, Oda Nobunaga, captures capital, Kyoto 1573-1620 Reign of emperor Wan Li in China: period of great paintings and porcelain-making; imperial kilns at Jingde zhen produce vast quantities of china 1587-1629 Reign of Shah Abbas I (the Great) of Persia; he consolidates and expands territories 1592-1598 Korea succeeds in beating of Japanese invasions 1590-1605 Burma breaks up into small states 1600 Abbas I (reigns from 1587 to 1629) introduces reforms in Persia and expands territory 1600 Battle of Sekigahara, Japan; Tokugawa Ieyasu defeats rivals; takes power and the Tokugawa or Edo period begins 1600-1614 English, Dutch, Danish, and French East India Companies founded 1607 Confucianism begins to be main force in Tokugawa politics and society 1612-1639 Japanese persecute Christians 1619-1624 Dutch establish virtual monopoly of spice trade in Moluccas and other Indonesian islands 1620 Beginning of Japanese national policy of restriction of contact with the outside world 1627 Manchus overrun Korea, which later becomes vassal state 1628 Kingdom of Burma breaks up into small states 1632-1648 Shah Jahan builds Taj Mahal at Agra in India 1641 Dutch capture Malacca on the Malay peninsula 1644 Quing (Manchu) dynasty takes over in China 1657 Tokugawa Mitsukuni begins compilation of History of Japan 1658-1707 Emperor Aurangzeb is the last great Moghul emperor; after 1707 empire begins to break up 1661-1722 Reign of the Kangxi emperor in China; Chinese territory extended and books and scholarship developed 1664 Dutch force king of Thailand to give them monopoly of deerskin exports and seaborne trade with China 1683 Formosa (Taiwan) becomes Chinese territory 1690 English East India Company official Job Charnock founds the city of Calcutta, on a swamp by the Hooghly river in Bengal, northeastern India 1703 In Japan, 47 ronin commit suicide 1707 Death of Moghul emperor Aurangzeb followed by break-up of empire 1709 Ghilzai people under Mir Vais defeat Persian army; Afghanistan no longer obedient province of Persian empire 1709 Death of shogun Tsunayoshi of Japan 1716-1745 Reforming shogun Tokugawa Yoshimune rules Japan 1716 Manchu emperor Kangxi sends troops to expel Junkar people from Tibet; in 1720 Kangxi enthrones seventh Dalai Lama as tributary ruler of Tibet 1722 Death of Kangxi, enlightened Manchu emperor 1722-1735 Rule of Manchu emperor Yongzheng; Treaty of Kiakhta signed with Russia; Siberian-Mongolian border defined 1724 Asaf Jah, a minister of the Moghul emperor, retires to the Deccan; he becomes an independent ruler and is declared first Nizam of Hyderabad 1725 Gujin tushu jicheng, the largest encyclopaedia ever printed, in 10,000 chapters, commissioned by Qing emperor Yongzheng 1729 Yongzheng sets up Grand Council, an informal and flexible body of military advisers 1735 Nadir Shah, chief adviser and general to last Safavid ruler in Persia, defeats Turks in great battle at Baghavand and captures Tiflis 1736-1747 Nadir Shah reigns as shah of Persia 1736-1796 Rule of Qianlong, as Qing emperor; boundaries of empire reach farthest limits; population increases greatly; frequent rebellions crushed ruthlessly 1739 Nadir Shah invades India and sacks Delhi, taking away Peacock Throne of the Moghul emperors, and vast wealth 1740 Power of Hindu Marathas of central India expands into northern India 1750 Chinese capture Lhasa and take over state of Tibet 1750-1779 Ahmad Shah Durrani (1747-73), who united Afghanistan, invades India, takes Lahore; plunders Delhi in 1755 1753 Alaungaya reunites Burma; founds last Burmese dynasty, the Kombaung (to 1885) 1756 Black Hole of Calcutta 1757 Robert Clive defeats Siraj ud daula, Nawab of Bengal, at Battle of Plassey 1758 Aoki Konyo, Japanese scholar who introduced the sweet potato into Japan, completes Dutch/Japanese dictionary 1761 Battle of Panipat between the Marathas and Ahmad Shah Durrani of Afghanistan; great Afghan victory 1762 British fleet captures Manila in Philippine Islands from Spain 1763 Britain becomes dominant power in India as a result of the Treaty of Paris 1767 Burmese invade Thailand, destroying its capital, Ayudhya, and forcing Thais to accept Burmese overlordship, but have to withdraw to repulse Chinese invasion of Burma 1774-1785 Warren Hastings is governor-general of British India 1777 Christianity introduced to Korea by Chinese Jesuits 1782-1819 Rama I reigns in Thailand; founds Chakri dynasty 1783-1788 Severe famine in Japan 1784 United States begins to trade with China 1792 Chinese army marches into neighbouring Nepal 1792 Sheikh Mohammed Ibn Abdul Wahhab, founder of Saudi Arabia, dies 1794 Aga Mohammed founds Kajar dynasty and unites all Persia 1796 Emperor Qianlong of China relinquishes power, but still directs government (to 1799) 1799 Ranjit Singh founds Sikh kingdom in Punjab, India 1802-1820 Emperor Gia-Long unites Vietnam 1803-1805 Second Maratha War disrupts central India 1804 Russian envoy visits Nagasaki in Japan and tries to get commercial treaty, but fails 1811-1818 Mohammed Ali overruns much of Arabian peninsula; ends first Saudi empire 1815 Java restored to Dutch by British 1817-1819 Last Maratha War; Maratha defeat; British rule India except Punjab, Sind, Kashmir 1819 Singapore founded by Stamford Raffles 1820 Peace treaty ends piracy and leads to 150 years of British supremacy in the Persian Gulf 1820-1841 Minh Mang, emperor of Vietnam, reverses Gia-Long¹s policies and expels Christians 1820 Development of North Pacific whaling industry; Japanese authorities clash with ships¹ crews 1824-1826 First Burmese War with Britain 1825-1828 Persian-Russian War; Russia captures Tabriz 1825-1830 Javanese revolt against Dutch 1828 Indian Hindu Raja Ram Mohan Roy founds reforming Hindu society, Brahmo Samaj 1829 Practice of suttee (widow burning) made illegal in India 1831 Mohammed Ali of Egypt seizes Syria; he rules it until 1840 1835-1863 Dost Mohammed rules in Afghanistan 1837-1853 Shogunate of Tokugawa Ieyoshi in Japan 1838 Nakayama Miki founds faith-healing Tenri sect in Japan 1839 Ottoman sultan Abdul Majid starts the ³Tanzimat², a programme of modernisation 1839-1842 First Afghan War with British; a British army annihilated 1839-1842 Opium War in China 1844 Cambodia becomes a Thai protectorate 1845-1929 Sikh Wars with Britain; Britain annexes Punjab 1848 Accession of Nasir ud-din, ablest of the Kajar dynasty of Persia 1850-1864 Taiping rebellion in China; Nanking falls, 1853 1851-1868 King Rama IV rules Thailand; opens the country to foreign trade 1852 Nasir-ud-Din (1848-96) takes personal power in Persia; major reforms of administration by Vizier Mirza Taki 1853-1878 Able king Mindon Min reigns in Burma 1854 Treaty of Kanagawa; United States and Japan agree their first modern trade treaty 1857-1858 Indian Mutiny shakes British rule in India; East India Company abolished in 1858 1860 In China, British and French forces loot and burn down the emperor¹s summer palace on the outskirts of Beijing 1862 French begin to occupy Indo-China (southeast Asia) 1865-1870 King Kojong persecutes Christians in Korea; reform of traditional institutions 1868-1910 Reign of Rama V, founder of modern Thailand 1868-1912 Meiji period in Japan: great leap forwards in industrialization; 1868, capital moves to Edo (renamed Tokyo), shogunate abolished; 1875-88, civil legal code drawn up 1872 First Japanese railway opens (Tokyo to Yokohama) 1876 Queen Victoria of Britain is proclaimed empress of India 1876 Japanese pressure forces Korea to open ports to trade 1876-1878 Famine in the Deccan, southern India; over five million die 1877 Satsuma rebellion in Japan; last stand of traditional samurai class is defeated 1878-1879 Second Afghan War: British invade Afghanistan to counter Russian influence 1884 Dowager Empress Cixi sacks grand council of China 1885 Foundation of Indian National Congress; campaign for home rule 1885-1886 Third Burmese War; Britain annexes Burma 1889 New Meiji constitution for Japan; first general election in 1890` 1894-1895 War between Japan and China; Japanese win, occupy Korea 1896 British persuade Malay states to form federation 1898 In China Dowager Empress Cixi crushes attempts at reform 1899 France proclaims protectorate in Laos, southeast Asia 1900 Boxer rebellion in China 1900 Russia annexes Manchuria 1902 Anglo-Japanese Alliance agreed 1902 Series of commercial treaties between China and Britain, United States, and Japan 1902 Ibn Saud captures Riyadh, beginning the creation of Saudi Arabia 1903 British viceroy of India (Lord Curzon) sends an expedition into Tibet 1905 Japan presses Korea to sign a treaty whereby Japan ³protects² Korea 1905 Japanese navy fights and defeats Russian fleet in Tsushima strait 1907 Emperor Kojong of Korea abdicates; he is succeeded by his son Sujong 1908 Death of Chinese empress dowager Cixi and of the Guangxu emperor 1911-1912 Chinese rebellion against Manchus; republic is established, Sun Yat-sen first president, but warlords gain power 1912-1926 Taisho period in Japan 1912 Japan constructs its first dreadnought battleship 1913 China recognizes Outer Mongolia as independent 1913 Indian poet, Rabindranath Tagore, awarded Nobel Prize for Literature 1916 Beginning of Arab revolt against Ottoman Turks in Hijaz 1916 Hussein proclaims himself King of the Arabs 1917 Balfour Declaration promises homeland for Jews in Palestine 1917 British troops capture Baghdad and Jerusalem 1917-1925 Sun Yat-sen struggles for leadership of Chinese republic 1918 Emir Faisal proclaims Syrian state; becomes king in 1920 1919 British troops massacre over 300 Indian civilians at Amritsar 1920 Palestine becomes British mandate 1920 Indian leader Gandhi launches peaceful non-cooperation movement against British rule 1923 Mustafa Kemal becomes president of new republic, Turkey 1924 Chinese nationalist party, Kuomintang, holds first national congress 1927 Kuomintang leader Chiang Kai-shek establishes government at Nanking; Communists challenge his rule 1928 Japanese troops murder military ruler of Manchuria 1930 First Round Table Conference between British government and Indian parties 1931 Japanese occupy Chinese province of Manchuria 1932 Absolute rule of Thai king ends; he agrees to new constitution 1934 Communists go on Long March through China, led by Mao Zedong and Zhu De 1934 Opening of British oil pipeline from Kirkuk (Iraq) to Tripoli (Syria) 1935 Government of India Act passed; provinces of British India granted autonomy and self-government from 1937 1936 General strike in Syria; French grant Syria home rule 1937-1938 Conflict between Jews and Arabs in Palestine 1937-1945 Undeclared war breaks out between China and Japan 1941-1942 Japanese overrun much of southeast Asia 1945 World Zionist Conference calls for Jewish state in Palestine 1945 United States drops atomic bombs on Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki 1947 India gains independence 1947 Japan¹s new democratic constitution comes into effect 1948 Israeli independence leads to the first Arab-Israeli war 1949 Mao Zedong proclaims People¹s Republic of China 1950-1953 Korean War 1951 United States and 48 other countries sign peace treaty with Japan in San Francisco 1953 Mao Zedong introduces first five-year plan in China 1954 Vietminh defeat French troops at Dien Bien Phu 1955 Start of period of fast economic growth in Japan 1961 Troops from Saudi Arabia and other Arab states take over defence of Kuwait from British in face of Iraqi threat 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games; first Olympic Games in Asia 1964 Arab leaders set up Palestine Liberation Organization to unite Palestinian refugees 1965-1973 Vietnam War 1966 Indira Gandhi becomes prime minister of India 1967 Six Day War between Israel and neighbouring Arab states 1970 Communist Khmer Rouge forces take over Cambodia 1971 After a brief Indo-Pakistani war, East Pakistan declared independent as Bangladesh 1973 Yom Kippur War between Arabs and Israelis begins 1973 Cut in Arab oil production and increased prices cause oil crisis in United States and Europe 1976 Zhou Enlai and Mao Zedong die; fall of ³Gang of Four² 1978 Vietnam invades Cambodia and forces out Khmer Rouge 1979 Ayatollah Khomeini adopts Islamic constitution for Iran 1980 Iran-Iraq War breaks out 1982 Israeli forces invade Lebanon 1984 Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi assassinated by Sikhs 1988 Ceasefire in Iran-Iraq War 1989 Mass demonstrations for democracy in Tian¹anmen Square, Beijing, China, end in massacre 1989 Vietnamese troops withdraw from Cambodia 1990 Iraq invades Kuwait; United States and allies send forces to the Gulf region; Gulf War begins 1991 Allied forces liberate Kuwait 1995 Itzhak Rabin, prime minister of Israel, assassinated