| 1290 |
 |
Uthman, a Turkish frontier warrior, proclaims independence from the Seljuks in Anatolia. |
|
| 1297 |
|
The death of the first Muslim leader in Sumatra (Indonesia).
|
|
| 1299 |
|
Uthman becomes the first leader of the Ottoman state. |
|
| 1326 |
|
The Chagatai Khanate officially adopts Islam. Orkhan, son of Uthman, captures Bursa (city of Anatolia). It is established as the capital of Ottoman Empire. |
|
| 1354 |
|
The Al-Hambra palace in Spain is completed. |
|
| 1361 |
|
The Ottomans capture Adrianople and establish it as their new capital. |
|
| 1369 |
|
The Turkic-Mongol, Tamburlaine, becomes the ruler of the Changatai Khanate. He conquers parts of the Middle East and Central Asia. |
|
| 1377 |
|
Ibn Khaldun completes the "Muqaddimah," which lays down the foundation for many fields of knowledge, including sociology, historiography and economics. |
|
| 1382 |
|
Tamburlaine captures Moscow.
|
| 1389 |
|
The Ottomans defeat the Serbians and conquer Kosovo. |
|
| 1399 |
|
Tamburlaine invades and sacks Delhi. |
|
| 1402 |
|
Parameswara establishes the Sultanate of Malacca (Malaysia) and later embraces Islam. |
|
| 1402-
1413
|
|
The Interregum. A period of uncertainty and struggle for the Ottomans. |
|
| 1413 |
|
Sultan Mehmed I restores the Ottoman Empire. |
|
| 1444 |
|
The Battle of Varna. Sultan Murad II defeats Polish and Hungarian armies who are unable to stop the advance of Ottoman armies. |
|
| 1453 |
|
The Byzantine capital of Constantinople falls to Sultan Mehmed II. The Ottomans change its name to Istanbul and rebuild the newly established capital of their empire. |
|
| 1492 |
|
The last Muslim kingdom in Spain, the Kingdom of Granada, is conquered by Ferdinand and Isabella. |
|
| 1502 |
|
Ismail seizes Tabriz and establishes the Safavid dynasty in Persia. Shi'ism is established as the state religion. |
|
| 1514 |
|
The Battle of Chaldiran. The Ottomans defeat the Safavids and gain eastern Anatolia, thus allowing Ottoman expansion and halting Safavid advance. |
|
| 1516-
1517 |
|
The Mamluks lose Syria and Egypt to the Ottomans. Although under Ottoman rule, the Mamluks still retain most of their power and influence. |
|
| 1520-
1566 |
|
Reign of Suleiman "the Magnificent." The Ottoman Empire becomes a world power and reaches the height of its grandeur. |
|
| 1526 |
|
First Battle of Paniput. Babur, a descendant of Tamburlaine, defeats the Delhi Sultanate and establishes the Mughal Empire. |
|
| 1543 |
|
Hungary is conquered by the Ottomans. |
|
| 1550 |
|
Construction begins on the Suleymaniye Mosque in Istanbul. The mosque is commissioned by Sultan Suleiman and designed by the architect Mimar Sinan. |
|
| 1560 |
|
Akbar becomes emperor of the Mughal Empire. His reign is the height of the Mughal Empire. Noted for his tolerance and respect for the Hindu faith, he constructs Hindu temples and supports religious discussion during his rule. |
|
| 1571 |
|
The Ottomans defeat the Venetians and conquer Cyprus. |
|
| 1588 |
|
Abbas becomes Shah of Persia and moves the capital to Isfahan. |
|
| 1602 |
|
The Dutch East India Company is established. The Dutch monopolize trade with India and Indonesia.
Bahrain falls to the Safavids.
|
|
| 1627 |
|
Shah Jahan becomes emperor of the Mughal Empire. His reign is the golden age of Mughal art and architecture. |
|
| 1631 |
|
Construction on the Taj Mahal begins. The palace was commissioned by Shah Jahan as a memorial to his wife. Constructed of white marble, it is considered one of the most remarkable architectural monuments in the world. |
|
| 1656 |
|
Mehmed Koprulu becomes grand vizier under Sultan Muhammad IV. He restores order and reforms finances and the military. |
|
| 1658-
1707 |
|
Under emperor Aurengzebe, the Mughal Empire is at its greatest reach. Sikhs and Rajputs revolt against his proposed Islamization of India. |
|
| 1669 |
|
Crete falls to the Ottomans. |
|
| 1676-
1681
|
|
First Russo-Ottoman War. The Ottomans surrender Kiev in a peace treaty with Russia. |
|
| 1683 |
|
The Ottomans recapture Iraq from the Safavids. |
|
| 1699 |
|
The Ottomans cede Hungary to Austria in the Treaty of Karlowitz. The beginning of Ottoman retreat from Europe. |
|
| 1722 |
|
Isfahan is captured by Afghan rebels. |
|
| 1723-
1725 |
|
The Ottomans and Russia exploit the chaos caused by the Afghan rebellion and seize Persian territories. |
|
| 1726-
1736
|
|
Military leader Nadir Khan defeats the Afghans in a series of battles. |
|
| 1730-
1735 |
|
The Afghans are driven out of Persia. Nadir Khan ends the Safavid dynasty and becomes Shah of Persia. He restores the territories lost to Russian and the Ottomans. |
|
| 1739 |
|
Nadir Khan raids Delhi. The break up of the Mughal Empire. |
|
| 1748 |
|
Nadir Khan is assassinated. His family is unable to continue his dynasty. |
|
| 1760 |
|
Karim Khan establishes the Zand dynasty in Persia. |
|
| 1763 |
|
Britain exploits the fragmentation of India and begins to absorb Mughal territories.
|
|
| 1774 |
|
Ottoman war with Russia ends in the Treaty of Kuchuk Kaynarja. The Ottomans cede the Crimea. |
|
| 1798-
1801
|
|
Egypt is conquered by Napoleon. |
|
| 1803-
1811 |
|
Followers of the puritanical Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, the Wahhabis, occupy Mecca and Medina. |
|
| 1805 |
|
Governor of Egypt, Muhammad Ali, institutes reform and begins the modernization of Egypt. |
|
| 1812 |
|
Islamic teacher Usumanu dan Fodio establishes the Sokoto Caliphate in Nigeria. |
|
| 1813 |
|
The Russo-Persian War ends with the Treaty of Gulistan. Persia cedes Azerbaijan to Russia. |
|
| 1817 |
|
The Ottomans allow Serbians limited self-government after revolt. |
|
| 1818 |
|
Ibrahim Pasha, son of Muhammad Ali, leads campaign against Wahhabis. |
|
| 1821-
1830 |
|
The Greek War of Independence. Greece, France and Britain from alliance against Turkey. The Ottomans are defeated and Greece gains full independence. |
|
| 1830 |
|
Algeria is occupied by France. |
|
| 1831-
1841
|
|
Ottoman Syria is conquered by Muhammad Ali. |
|
| 1835 |
|
Abd al-Qadir revolts against French occupation and defeats them at Macta River in Algeria. |
|
| 1839-
1842
|
|
The Afghans defeat the British in the first Anglo-Afghan War. |
|
| 1839 |
|
The port city of Aden, Yemen is occupied by the British. |
|
| 1839-
1861
|
|
Sultan Abdulhamid reforms and modernizes the institutions of the Ottoman Empire. |
|
| 1853-
1856 |
|
The Crimean War. European powers fear Russian expansion. The allied forces of England, France, the Ottomans and Sardinia defeat Russia. |
|
| 1859-
1869
|
|
The Suez Canal, connecting the Mediterranean and Red Sea, is constructed in Egypt. |
|
| 1857 |
|
The first railroad in Africa, the Alexandria-Cairo railroad, is completed. |
|
| 1857-
1858
|
|
Indian Mutiny. The harsh policies of British rule lead to Indian revolt. The British crush the rebellion and the last Mughal emperor is exiled.
|
|
| 1860-
1861 |
|
Civil war between the Christians and Druze in Lebanon. Lebanon becomes autonomous province governed by France. |
|
| 1861-
1867 |
|
The rule of Sultan Abdul-Aziz. He depletes the finances of the Ottoman Empire and contracts foreign loans. The Empire is then under European control due to bankruptcy. |
|
| 1871-
1879 |
|
The political activist al-Afghani establishes a group of Egyptian reformers while residing in Egypt. |
|
| 1873 |
|
The Dutch invasion of the Muslim kingdom of Aceh in northern Sumatra. |
|
| 1875 |
|
The sale of the Suez Canal to the British, resulting in the foreign control over the finances of Egypt. |
|
| 1876 |
|
Abdul Hamid II becomes Sultan of the Ottoman Empire. He institutes major reforms and improvements, including the proclamation of the Ottoman Constitution, but it is later deferred. |
|
| 1878-
1879
|
|
The Second Anglo Afghan War. Afghanistan's foreign affairs are under the authority of the British.
|
|
| 1879 |
|
Ismail Pasha, governor of Egypt, is deposed by France and Britain. |
|
| 1881 |
|
The invasion and occupation of Tunisia by France. |
|
| 1882 |
|
The British occupation of Egypt.
Eastern-European Jewish immigrants begin to arrive in Palestine.
|
|
| 1889 |
|
The British occupation of Sudan. |
|
| 1897 |
|
The first World Zionist Conference at Basel. Its main objective is to create a Jewish state in Palestine. |
|
| 1901 |
|
The British are granted the rights to drill for oil in Persia.
Abdul-Aziz al-Saud captures Riyadh.
|
|
| 1904-
1914 |
|
The second wave of Jewish immigrants, Zionists aspiring to establish a Jewish state, arrive in Palestine. |
|
| 1906 |
|
The Muslim League, a political party representing the minority of Muslims in India, is established. |
|
| 1908 |
|
The nationalist group, the Young Turks, revolt. Sultan Abdul Hamid II is forced to reinstate the Ottoman Constitution of 1876.
|
 NEXT |
