•
2800 BC Indus Valley Civilization begins in the northwestern region of India
•2600
BC Mohenjo-daro and Harappa phase of the Indus Valley Civilization begins, in
Punjab and Sindh. Other cities like Lothal, Mehrgarh also emerged during this
period.
•1600
BC India is invaded by the Aryans from the west
•1400
BC The Vedas, the Hindu scripture, was written
•600
BC The Upanishads written
•599
BC Mahavira, 24th Tirthankar of Jainism is born
•563
BC Gautam Buddha, founder of Buddhism is born in Lumbini
•527
BC Nirvana of Mahavira
•492
BC Bimbisara dies and is succeeded by Ajatashatru in Magadha Empire
•483
BC Death of Gautama Buddha in Kushinagar
•326
BC Alexander the Great moved into India, King Porus who ruled parts of the
Punjab, fought Alexander at the Battle of the Hydaspes River.
•321
BC Chandragupta Maurya established Mauryan dynasty defeating Dhana Nanda
•305
BC Chandragupta Maurya defeats Seleucus Nicator of the Seleucid Empire.
•300
BC Chola dynasty establishes his kingdom over southern India with capital in
Thanjavur
•269
BC Ashoka the Great, grandson of Chandragupta Maurya, becomes the emperor of
India
•261
BC Kalinga War takes place between Magadha Empire and the kingdom of Kalinga.
•232
BC Death of King Ashoka
•185
BC The Mauryan Empire, collapsed after its emperor Brihadrata was assassinated
by his general Pusyamitra Sunga who then established the Sunga dynasty
•50
AD Establishment of the Kushan empire by Kujula Kadphises, first Buddhist stupa
is constructed at Sanchi
•300
The Pallava dynasty is established in Kanchi
•320
The Gupta dynasty founded by Maharaja Sri Gupta, reunited northern India
initiating the "golden Age" of India
•335
King Samudragupta ascends the Gupta throne and expands the empire.
•380
Chandragupta II, Samudragupta's son becomes the Gupta Emperor.
•450
Invasions by the Huna.
•606
Harshavardhana crowned Monarch.
•712
First Muslim, Md. Bin Qasim defeats Raja Dahir
•1021
Mahmud Ghazni defeats Tarnochalpal and annexes Punjab
•1206
Qutb ub-din Aybak establishes the Delhi Sultanate
•1221
Genghis Khan invades Punjab
•1236
Razia Sultana, only lady ruler of Delhi
•1290
Jalal ud-Din Firuz establishes the Khilji sultanate at Delhi
•1298
Marco Polo visits India
•1336
Vijayanagara Empire established by Harihara I and his brother Bukka Raya I
•1398
Timur conquered India resulting in the decline of the Delhi Sultanate
•1469
Birth of Guru Nanak Dev
•1497
Vasco de Gama's first voyage from Europe to India and back (to 1499)
•1526
Babur established the Mughal Empire
•1555
Mughal king Humayun comes to fight Sher Shah and regains India
•1556
Humayun dies, and is succeeded by Akbar
•1600
Queen Elizabeth I granted a charter to the East India Company established
trading posts in Bombay, Calcutta, and Madras
•1605
Akbar dies, and is succeeded by his son Jehangir.
•1612
British arrives India
•1632
Taj Mahal construction initiated by Mughal ruler Shah Jahan
•1653
Shah Jahan completes Taj Mahal. Shah Jahan dies, and is succeeded by his son
Aurangzeb.
•1675
Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth Guru of Sikhs is executed in Delhi. Guru Gobind
Singh becomes tenth Guru of Sikhs.
•1680
Shivaji dies at Raigad, Sambhaji became 2nd Chhatrapati of the Maratha Empire
•1707
Death of Aurangzeb the Mughal emperor.
•1757
In Battle of Plassey, Robert Clive, leads British forces which defeated the
Mughal governor of Bengal Mir Jafar
•1774
Warren Hastings appointed the first governor general of India by the East India
Company
•1775
First Anglo-Maratha War
•1799
Death of Tipu Sultan
•1853
Started Post Service
•1853
First Railway established between Bombay and Thane
•1857
Indian Mutiny Rebellion of 1857(10th May)
•1857
Establishment of University of Mumbai,
University of Madras and University of Calcutta in India
•1858
The British government ruled India, Lord Dalhousie becomes the Governor-General
of India
•1862
Death of Bahadur Shah Zafar
•1869
"Arya Samaj" Established
•1876
Queen Victoria was given the title Empress of India by the British Parliament
•1885
Burma became an Indian province
•1885
The Indian National Congress was formed (28th December)
•1905
The British government divided Bengal into separate Hindu and Muslim sections
•1909
Morley-Minto Reforms
•1914
World War 1
•1915
Mahatma Gandhi returns back to India
•1919
Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (13th April)
•1920
Mahatma Gandhi became president of Indian National Congress, Non-cooperation
movement Khilafat Movement
•1927
Simon Commission
•1929
Central Assembly Bombed by Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt.
•1930
Purna Swaraj resolution in Lahore, Salt Satyagraha started
•1931
Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev Martyred (23rd March)
•1935
Government of India Act
•1939
World War 2 began
•1940
Muhammad Ali Jinnah demanded that a new country be formed from India for the
Muslims, which would be called Pakistan
•1942
Quit India Movement
•1942
Indian National Army Established by Subhas Chandra Bose
•1945
World War II ended when United States dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and
Nagasaki (August)
•1946
Royal Indian Navy Mutiny
•1946
The British government agreed to grant India independence
•1947
British and Indian leaders agreed to divide the country into India and Pakistan
•1947
India became independent (15th August)
•1948
Mahatma Gandhi assassinated Nathuram Godse (30th January)
•1950
Constitution of India came into effect and Jawaharlal Nehru became the Indian
first prime minister (26th January)