AP world history timeline

750-1258 Abbasid Caliphate

An Islamic empire that led to developments in Dar Al Islam ( areas of the world where Muslim rule was prevalent). It’s capital was Baghdad and built around trade, however it’s decline led to rise of Turkic Muslim empires like the Seljuk Empire.

960-1279 Song Dynasty

Main religion- Confucianism (Focused on social order and filial piety, which later evolved into Neo Confucianism that was a blend with Buddhist and Daoist beliefs)

Women had little rights (FOOT BINDING)

Implemented an Imperial bureaucracy (Appointed officials carried out policies)

economic Development through CHAMPA RICE, GRAND CANAL, expansion & trade across Eurasia

1095-1291 Crusades

A series of religious wars initiated by European Christians to reclaim the Holy Land from Muslim rule. ( EUROPEAN CHRISTIANS TRIED TO CONVERT MUSLIMS/NON CHRISTIANS TO CHRISTIANITY)

1206-1526 Delhi Sultanate

A Muslim empire in India that marked the first time a Muslim state controlled a significant portion of India. led to the spread of Islam in Southeast Asia. Rajput Kingdom resisted Muslim intrusion, maintaining Hindu influence

1206-1227 Reign of Genghis Khan

Establishes Mongol Empire in 1206 and were great diffusers of culture

Prevented Russia from culturally developing

World trade, cultural diffusion, global awareness grew as they spread through Europe, the als East, and

(SILK ROAD- established by the Han dynasty)

1215 : Magna Carta signed

right to a fair trial for citizens ( A King + government was not above the law) Signed in England

1258 : Mongols overtook and destroyed Baghdad (end of the Abbasid Caliphate)

1279-1368 : Yuan Dynasty

The Yuan dynasty was the first foreign-ruled dynasty to commandeer all of China, led by Mongols

1299-1923 : Ottoman Empire

Founded when Mongol empire fell (ISLAMIC)

Used gunpowder weapons to expand

Devshirme → enslaved Christians from Balkans, converted them to Islam to form elite fighting force (Janissaries)

1324 Mansa Musa's pilgrimage to Mecca

this pilgrimage introduced the wealth of Mali to the the rest of the Mediterranean

1325 Tenochitlan founded

capital city of Aztec Empire → markets were established, commercialised

1325-1354 Ibn Battuta's travels

Travelled all over Dar al Aslam - > possible with trade routes

Helped his readers understand the cultures across world

1346 - 1388: Black Death aka Bubonic Plague

Emerged in North China → spread rapidly across the Silk Roads and the Indian Ocean Trade routes

Indian Ocean Trade (commonly tested)

Affected areas: Middle East, Europe

1368-1644 : Ming Dynasty

Established during the decline of Mongol rule

Established peace and order + expanded their borders with gunpowder

1405-1433 : Zheng He's voyages

Sent by the Ming Dynasty to go explore the Indian Ocean & enroll other states in China’s tributary system

(Tributary System- a means of relations between the Chinese empires of old and their smaller, weaker neighbors

1428-1521 Aztec Empire - “Trade and Sacrifice”

Tenochtitlan: capital city

Expansionist policy and professional, strict army

To secure their legitimacy as rulers → Mexica claimed heritage from older, more renowned Mesoamerican people

1438-1533 : Inca Empire - “My land is your land”

army, established bureaucracy, unified language, system of roads and tunnels

Established Mit’a System → required labor of everyone for a period of time each year to work on state projects

1440 : Swahili state-building flourishes

1440 : Printing press invented

Johannes Gutenberg → inventor

made books easy to produce and affordable, and literacy more accessible to everyone

1400s : Caravel invented in Europe

Caravel- small, fast, and highly maneuverable sailing ship developed by the Portuguese in the 15th century, primarily for exploration and trade

1441 : Start of Atlantic slave trade

• transporting between 10 and 12 million enslaved Africans across the Atlantic Ocean

• conditions were brutal, overcrowded, unsanitary

1453: Ottoman Empires conquers Constantinople

1450s-1480s: Russia breaks free from Mongol rule

1464-1591: Songhai Empire thrives (Islamic state)

1469: Birth of Sikhism

held onto significant doctrines from Islam & Hinduism

1492: Columbus voyages to the "New World"

marks start of Spanish colonization and the Columbian Exchange

1497: Portugal starts colonization of the Americas

1498 → Vasco da Gama reaches India

1501-1722: Safavid Empire emerges as the largest Shia empire

in conflict with the Sunni Ottoman Empire

• 1534: First enslaved Africans arrive in Americas

• 1517: Protestant Reformation starts

• 95 Theses, MLK ( Critisizing the Roman Catholic Church) (shows up commonly)

1526-1748: Mughal Empire rises

Notable rules : Akbar and Aurangzeb

Akbar → religious tolerance and supports the arts (1556-1605)

• Aurangzeb → persecution of Hindus and Sikhs

  ended when last ruler Bahadur Shah II was sent into exile

  Increasing Bhakti Movement & Sufism → commonly tested

1545: Discovery of silver at Potosi mine

Silver was KING

1550-1700: Scientific Revolution

A period of profound changes in scientific thought and practice, primarily occurring in Europe between the mid-16th and early 18th centuries

• 1552: Russian Empire emerge

Ivan the Terrible→ shows up often

expanded his power in 1400s and became czar - Ivan the Terrible became a ruthless ruler utilizing secret police in 1500s

1600: British East India Company established

Created to serve as a trading body for English merchants, specifically to participate in the East Indian spice trade

British Virginia company → role in funding exploration projects

established the first permanent English settlement in North America at Jamestown in 1607, marking England's entry into the New World competition

1688-1911: Qing Dynasty governs China → shows up commonly!

Manchu Empire → commonly tested

the Qing Dynasty was the last imperial dynasty of China, established by the Manchus, and lasted from 1644 to 1912.

China's population grew rapidly, but there was significant internal strife, including uprisings like the TAIPING REBELLION and external pressures from Western powers during the OPIUM WARS.

1715-1789: The Enlightenment flourishes

was a cultural and intellectual movement in the 17th and 18th centuries that emphasized reason, individual liberty, and empirical evidence. This era challenged traditional sources of authority—such as monarchy and religion—and reshaped how people understood politics, society, and human rights.

effects : major revolutions, expansion of suffrage, abolition of slavery, end of serfdom, calls for women’s suffrage

1760-1789 : First Industrial Revolution

industrialization transformed societies by concentrating production, introducing new technologies, and fundamentally altering the relationship between humans and the environment. (Britain had loads of natural resources which allowed them to create new machinery) This process led to more urbanization (Living in cities) and increased production

Important figures: Charles Darwin, Adam Smith, Karl Marx

Charles Darwin- Also major developments in medicine and science, theory of natural selection

Adam Smith- an 18th-century Scottish economist and philosopher, best known for his book 'The Wealth of Nations,' which laid the foundations for modern economics and capitalism. His ideas on free markets, self-interest, influenced economic thought and practice during the Enlightenment and the Industrial Age.

Karl Max- influential critique of capitalism and his role in developing socialist and communist theory

1765-1783: American Revolution

A successful revolution for America (France helped the Americas) against the British (provided a template for other nations) Enlightenment ideas

1789-1795: French Revolution

France was running out of money from monarch spending, wars, and droughts - Louis XVI proposed raising taxes to the Estates-General. Inequality, increase in enlightenment ideologies, financial issues, and anger of the absolute monarchy of King Louis XVI, led to the revolt.

causes : Social Inequality between the estates, economic hardships, enlightenment, weak leadership, food shortages

Resulted in the first French republic. (Republic- supreme power is held by the people and their elected representatives, elected president)

1792: Beginning of feminism

Vindication of the Rights of Woman by Mary Wollstonecraft published

became a symbol for the feminist movements

1839-1860: Opium Wars

Wars between Qing dynasty and Britain. (Britain was the largest producer of Opium, (An addictive drug) China refused to trade with them which led to the wars.

Treaty of Nanjing: China forced to sign unequal treaty that gave Britain considerable rights to expand trade with China. China lost twice and weakened the Qing.

1857: Sepoy Mutiny in India

A major uprising against the British East India Company's rule in India due to Hindu and Muslim offense

1860s-1870s : Social Darwinism begins to take shape

A 19th-century theory that applied Darwin's concept of natural selection and "survival of the fittest" to human societies, arguing that the wealthy and powerful were naturally superior and deserving of their success, while the poor and weak were inherently less fit.

1868: Meiji Restoratio

era of Japanese westernization - Japan became a world power

cause → after Matthew Perry demanded Japan open to trade with the US, Japan realized its technological inferiority and adopted Western technology for self-protection.

1882 : Chinese Exclusion Act

to restrict Chinese immigration to the United States, particularly Chinese laborers, and to prevent them from becoming naturalized citizens

1890s: European spheres of influence in China

effectively carving up the country into areas where they held exclusive trading rights, mining privileges, and other economic advantages

1914-1918: World War 1

causes : militarism, alliances, imperialism, nationalism, assassination of Gavrilo Princip who assasinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife Sophie in Sarajevo . (Nationalism- advocacy of or support for the political independence of a particular nation or people.)

“total war”, propaganda, trench warfare, Indian infantry

end → Paris peace conference, treaty of versailles. (Paris peace conference- an international meeting held in 1919 to establish the terms of peace after World War I. It was attended by representatives from nearly 30 nations)

Imperialism- a policy of extending a country's power and influence through diplomacy or military force

1917: Russian revolution of 1917

The violent revolution marked the end of the Romanov dynasty and centuries of Russian Imperial rule. Economic hardship, food shortages and government corruption all contributed to disillusionment with Czar Nicholas II.

1929-1933: Great Depression

A severe global economic downturn that lasted from 1929 to the early 1940s. It was marked by widespread unemployment, falling prices, and declining economic activity. 

Causes: the Stock Market Crash of 1929, bank failures, overproduction, droughts, and the gold standard. (WW1 also contributed)

1939-1945: World War 2

Causes: aggressive expansionist policies of Nazi Germany and Japan, the failure of the Treaty of Versailles, unresolved issues from World War I, and weak foreign policies.

Axis powers- Germany, Italy, and Japan

Allied powers- Great Britain, the United States, the Soviet Union, and the Republic of China

1941-1945: The Holocaust (tested often)

desire to create a pure race

numerberg law, Auschwitz

Result: An estimated 60 to 80 million people died, including up to 55 million civilians and 6 million Jews murdered in the Holocaust. The war resulted in a global shift in power, with Europe weakened and the United States and the Soviet Union emerging as rival superpowers.

1941-1953: Stalin in power

Industrialisation of UUSR → Five Year Plan

Nationalism and it’s role in facism-fascism is a political philosophy that prioritizes the nation above all else, often with a strong emphasis on nationalism, militarism, and authoritarianism

1943-1978: Green Revolution (tested often

New disease-resistant and high-yielding varieties of crops were being developed

Green revolution- a period of significant technological advancements in agriculture, primarily during the 1960s and 1970s, that led to a substantial increase in food production

1947-1991: Cold War

Resulted from the US and Soviet Union rising in power after WW2. Resulted due to the ideological clash between capitalism and communism, tensions arising from post-World War II arrangements, and the emergence of nuclear weapons

1955-1975: Vietnam War (commonly tested)

Between North and South Vietnam

North Vietnam: A communist state supported by the Soviet Union and China.

South Vietnam: A non-communist state backed by the United States and its allies. The United States eventually backed out due to casualties.

North Vietnam won and its communist allies, leading to the reunification of Vietnam under a communist government. 

Globalization

Age of Exploration helped to make the world a smaller place. Explorers like Christopher Columbus opened Asia, Europe, and Africa to a new era of interaction with the New World. This included the introduction of foodstuffs like the potato into Old World diets and the exploitation of African enslaved labor in New World Plantations.

Inventions like these have been on the rise since the Industrial Revolution. As industry and technology keep bringing new forms of communication, travel, and exchange, globalization extends its reach.