The important dates in Ancient, Medieval and Modern History
Ancient India – Important dates
| Year / Period | Event |
|---|---|
| 2500–1750 BC | Indus Valley Civilization flourished. |
| 563–483 BC | Life span of Gautama Buddha. |
| 540–468 BC | Life span of Mahavira. |
| 327–326 BC | Alexander’s invasion of India; opened the land route between India and Europe. |
| 322 BC | Chandragupta Maurya ascended the throne. |
| 305 BC | Seleucus Nicator defeated by Chandragupta Maurya. |
| 273–232 BC | Reign of Emperor Ashoka. |
| 261 BC | Kalinga War. |
| 145–101 BC | Elara, the Chola ruler, ruled Sri Lanka. |
| 58 BC | Beginning of the Vikram Samvat Era. |
| 78 AD | Beginning of the Saka Era. |
| 78–101 AD | Reign of Kanishka. |
| 319–320 AD | Commencement of the Gupta Era. |
| 380 AD | Chandragupta II (Vikramaditya) became ruler. |
| 405–411 AD | Visit of Chinese traveller Fa-Hien. |
| 415 AD | Kumaragupta I ascended the throne. |
| 455 AD | Skandagupta became ruler. |
| 606–647 AD | Reign of Harshavardhana. |
Medieval India – Important Dates
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 712 | Muhammad-bin-Qasim invaded Sindh. |
| 836 | King Bhoja ascended the throne of Kannauj. |
| 985 | Rajaraja Chola I became ruler. |
| 998 | Mahmud of Ghazni became Sultan. |
| 1001 | Mahmud Ghazni invaded India and defeated Jaipal of Punjab. |
| 1025 | Somnath Temple attacked by Mahmud Ghazni. |
| 1191 | First Battle of Tarain. |
| 1192 | Second Battle of Tarain. |
| 1206 | Qutbuddin Aibak founded the Delhi Sultanate. |
| 1210 | Death of Qutbuddin Aibak. |
| 1221 | Genghis Khan invaded north-western India. |
| 1236 | Razia Sultan ascended the throne. |
| 1240 | Death of Razia Sultan. |
| 1296 | Alauddin Khalji became Sultan. |
| 1316 | Death of Alauddin Khalji. |
| 1325 | Muhammad-bin-Tughlaq became Sultan. |
| 1327 | Capital shifted from Delhi to Daulatabad (Devagiri). |
| 1336 | Foundation of the Vijayanagara Empire. |
| 1351 | Firoz Shah Tughlaq ascended the throne. |
| 1398 | Timur invaded India. |
| 1469 | Birth of Guru Nanak Dev. |
| 1494 | Babur became ruler of Farghana. |
| 1497–98 | Vasco da Gama reached India via the Cape of Good Hope. |
| 1526 | First Battle of Panipat; Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi and established the Mughal Empire. |
| 1527 | Battle of Khanwa; Babur defeated Rana Sanga. |
| 1530 | Death of Babur; Humayun succeeded him. |
| 1539 | Sher Shah Suri defeated Humayun in the Battle of Chausa. |
| 1555 | Humayun recaptured Delhi. |
| 1556 | Second Battle of Panipat; Akbar defeated Hemu. |
| 1565 | Battle of Talikota (Rakshasa-Tangadi). |
| 1576 | Battle of Haldighati between Akbar and Maharana Pratap. |
| 1582 | Din-i-Ilahi introduced by Akbar. |
| 1600 | English East India Company established. |
| 1605 | Death of Akbar; Jahangir became Emperor. |
| 1606 | Execution of Guru Arjan Dev, the 5th Sikh Guru. |
| 1611 | Jahangir married Nur Jahan. |
| 1615 | Sir Thomas Roe visited Jahangir’s court. |
| 1627 | Birth of Shivaji; death of Jahangir. |
| 1628 | Shah Jahan became Emperor. |
| 1631 | Death of Mumtaz Mahal. |
| 1634 | English received permission to trade in Bengal. |
| 1658 | Aurangzeb became Emperor; Shah Jahan imprisoned. |
| 1666 | Death of Shah Jahan; Shivaji escaped from Aurangzeb’s custody. |
| 1675 | Execution of Guru Tegh Bahadur, the 9th Sikh Guru. |
| 1680 | Death of Shivaji. |
| 1707 | Death of Aurangzeb. |
| 1708 | Death of Guru Gobind Singh, the 10th Sikh Guru. |
| 1739 | Nadir Shah invaded India. |
Modern India – Important dates
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1757 | Battle of Plassey – Foundation of British political dominance in India under Lord Clive. |
| 1761 | Third Battle of Panipat. |
| 1764 | Battle of Buxar. |
| 1765 | Robert Clive became Governor of the East India Company in India. |
| 1767–69 | First Anglo-Mysore War. |
| 1780 | Birth of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. |
| 1780–84 | Second Anglo-Mysore War. |
| 1784 | Pitt’s India Act enacted. |
| 1790–92 | Third Anglo-Mysore War. |
| 1793 | Introduction of the Permanent Settlement of Bengal. |
| 1799 | Fourth Anglo-Mysore War; Tipu Sultan died. |
| 1802 | Treaty of Bassein signed. |
| 1809 | Treaty of Amritsar. |
| 1829 | Sati abolished by Lord William Bentinck. |
| 1830 | Raja Rammohan Roy visited England. |
| 1833 | Death of Raja Rammohan Roy at Bristol (England). |
| 1839 | Death of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. |
| 1839–42 | First Anglo-Afghan War. |
| 1845–46 | First Anglo-Sikh War. |
| 1852 | Second Anglo-Burmese War. |
| 1853 | First Railway Line opened between Bombay and Thane; first Telegraph Line established between Calcutta and other centres. |
| 1857 | Revolt of 1857 / First War of Independence / Sepoy Mutiny. |
| 1861 | Birth of Rabindranath Tagore. |
| 1869 | Birth of Mahatma Gandhi. |
| 1885 | Formation of the Indian National Congress (INC). |
| 1889 | Birth of Jawaharlal Nehru. |
| 1897 | Birth of Subhas Chandra Bose. |
| 1903 | Younghusband Expedition to Tibet. |
| 1905 | Partition of Bengal by Lord Curzon. |
| 1906 | Formation of the All India Muslim League at Dhaka by Nawab Salimullah. |
| 1911 | Delhi Durbar; King George V visited India; Capital shifted from Calcutta to Delhi. |
| 1914 | First World War began. |
| 1916 | Lucknow Pact between Congress and Muslim League. |
| 1918 | First World War ended. |
| 1919 | Montagu–Chelmsford Reforms; Jallianwala Bagh Massacre at Amritsar. |
| 1920 | Khilafat Movement launched. |
| 1927 | Simon Commission Boycott; Radio Broadcasting began in India. |
| 1928 | Death of Lala Lajpat Rai. |
| 1929 | Poorna Swaraj Resolution adopted at the Lahore Session of the INC. |
| 1930 | Civil Disobedience Movement launched; Dandi March by Mahatma Gandhi. |
| 1931 | Gandhi–Irwin Pact signed. |
| 1935 | Government of India Act, 1935 enacted. |
| 1937 | Provincial Autonomy introduced; Congress Ministries formed in several provinces. |
| 1939 | Second World War began (3 September). |
| 1941 | Subhas Chandra Bose escaped from India; death of Rabindranath Tagore. |
| 1942 | Cripps Mission arrived in India; Quit India Movement launched (8 August). |
| 1943–45 | Subhas Chandra Bose established the Provisional Government of Free India (Azad Hind Government) and reorganised the Indian National Army (INA) at Singapore; Bengal Famine. |
| 1945 | INA Trials at the Red Fort; Shimla Conference; Second World War ended. |
| 1946 | Cabinet Mission arrived in India; Interim Government formed at the Centre. |
| 1947 | Partition of India; India and Pakistan became two independent Dominions. |
