I cannot stress enough that I received the lion's share of my knowledge from my father-in-law, John's, Western Civilization and Survey of English History classes. He teaches at Maple Woods Community College in Kansas City, MO. Enroll in one of his courses, if you ever get the chance--he's the best!! Or at the very least, visit his Western Civilization sites (they include "Student Notes" and everything!!).
THESE TIMELINES WERE BEGUN FOR MY OWN PERSONAL USE. THESE TIMELINES SHOULD NOT BE USED AS RESOURCES FOR ANY KIND OF RESEARCH PAPER. THESE TIMELINES SHOULD ONLY BE USED AS AN AID TO GIVE A "JUMPING OFF POINT." THESE TIMELINES ARE NOT PEER-REVIEWED; THEREFORE, THEY ARE SUBJECT TO ANY NUMBER OF UNINTENTIONAL AUTHORIAL TYPING ERRORS AND/OR MISUNDERSTANDINGS. REMEMBER, INTERNET SOURCES (WITH FEW EXCEPTIONS) CANNOT BE RELIED UPON AS DEFINITIVE SOURCES!!
Because I did these timelines initially only for my own personal use, I have paraphrased and quoted without citing as one should for a research paper; therefore, anyone using these timelines should consult the sources listed on the Historical Timelines Page.
DO NOT QUOTE FROM THESE TIMELINES!! ALWAYS DOUBLE-CHECK MY WORK!!!!
Ancient Roman Civilization:
1st Millennium BC-Etruscans, Sabines, and Latins in Italy
8th Century BC-Etruscans take Palatine
753 BC-Legend says that Romulus founds Rome
510 BC-Tarquin (Etruscan) Ruler Deposed
Roman Republic (formed @500 BC)
390 BC-Gauls sack Rome
Pyrrhus (319-272 BC), King of Epirus-Fought many battles against Rome-Won at Heraclea (280 BC) and Asculum (279 BC), but suffered great losses in the process (where we get the phrase "Pyrrhic Victory")-Killed at Battle in Argos, Greece
1st Punic War (264-261 BC) Carthage vs. Rome
2nd Punic War (218-201 BC) pits Carthage's Hannibal vs. Rome's Scipio Africanus Major
1st Macedonian War (215-205 BC) Macedon (under Philip V) vs. Rome
2nd Macedonian War (200-197 BC) Macedon vs. Rome
3rd Macedonian War (171-168 BC) Macedon (under Philip V's son Perseus) vs. Rome
Tiberius (163-133 BC) and Gaius (153-121 BC) Gracchus (Brothers known as "the Gracchi") Roman Statesman who tried to get agrarian reforms passed
Gaius Marius (157-86 BC)General/Politician
3rd Punic War (149-146 BC) Carthage vs. Rome-Cato the Elder demanded Carthage be destroyed
Lucius Licinius Crassus (140-91 BC) Financier/Member of 1st Triumvirate
Lucius Cornelius Sulla (138-78 BC), Dictator of Rome (82-79 BC)
1st Servile War (Slave Uprising in Sicily) (135-133 or 134-132 BC)
Sertorius (123?-72 BC) Roman General/Politician, Ruler of most of Spain (80-72 BC), Allies himself with others and goes against Rome
Pompey the Great (Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus) (106-48 BC) General/Member of 1st Triumvirate, Breaks with Julius Caesar and brings on Civil War (@51-48 BC)
Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 BC) Orator
2nd Servile War (Slave Uprising in Sicily) (105-102 BC or 104-101 BC)
3rd Servile War (Slave Uprising in Campania) (73-71 BC) led by Spartacus, quashed by Crassus and Pompey
Gaius Julius Caesar (100-44 BC), Dictator of Rome (49-44 BC)-Aids Cleopatra in 49 BC
Social War (90-88 BC) Sulla vs. Marius
Marcus Junius Brutus (85-42 BC) Politician/Conspirator against Julius Caesar
Marcus Antonius (82 or 81-30 BC) Member of 2nd Triumvirate-Hooks up with Cleopatra in 41 BC
Marcus Aemilius Lepidus (?-77? BC) Politician
Herod the Great (Herod I) (73-4 BC), King of Judea (37-4 BC)
Spartacus (?-71 BC) Gladiator/Slave who led 3rd Servile War
Virgil (Publius Vergilius Maro) (70-19 BC) Poet (Author of Eclogues/Bucolics, Georgics, and The Aeneid)
Cleopatra VII (69-30 BC), Queen of Egypt (51-30 BC)-Mistress of Julius Caesar and Marc Antony
1st Triumvirate (60 BC) Julius Caesar, Crassus, and Pompey
Livy (Titus Livius) (59 BC-17 AD) Historian
Gallic Wars (58-50 BC)
Parthian War (53 BC)
Julian Calendar adopted (46 BC)
2nd Triumvirate (@44 BC) Octavius Caesar, Lepidus, and Marc Antony)
Ovid (Publius Ovidius Naso) (43 BC-17 AD) Poet (Author of Art of Love and Metamorphoses)
Gaius Cassius Longinus (?-42 BC) General/Conspirator against Julius Caesar
Marcus Aemilius Lepidus (?-13 or 12 BC) Member of 2nd Triumvirate
Battle of Actium (31 BC) Antony vs. Octavius-Cleopatra's ship leaves and Antony follows
Roman Empire
Augustus Caesar (Octavian Caesar) (63 BC-14 AD), Roman Emperor (@27BC-14 AD)
Pax Romana (Roman Peace) (27 BC-180 AD)
Herod Archelaus (22 BC-18? AD), Ethnarch of Judea, Idumaea, and Samaria (4 BC-6 AD)
Jesus Christ (Jesus of Nazareth) (6 BC?-30 AD?), Founder of Christianity
St. John the Baptist (1st century AD), Jewish prophet, baptized Jesus, executed by Herod Antipas before 35-36 AD
Pontius Pilate (?-after 36 AD), Roman procurator (26-36? AD)
Herod Antipas (21 BC-39 AD), Tetrarch of Galilee (4 BC-39 AD)
Tiberius (42 BC-37 AD), Roman Emperor (14 AD-37 AD)
Pliny the Elder (Gaius Plinius Secundus) (23-79 AD) Scholar/Historian
Caligula (means "Little Boots") (12 AD-41 AD), Roman Emperor (37-41 AD)
Claudius I (10 BC-54 AD), Roman Emperor (41-54 AD)
Nero (37 AD-68 AD), Roman Emperor (54-68 AD)-ends Julio-Claudian line which leads to struggle
Vespasian (9 AD-79 AD), Roman Emperor (69-79 AD)
Titus destroys Jerusalem (70 Ad)
Titus (39 AD-81 AD), Roman Emperor (79-81 AD)
Domitian (51 AD-96 AD), Roman Emperor (81-96 AD)
Agricola conquers most of England
The Five Good Emperors
Nerva (30 AD-98 AD), Roman Emperor (96-98 AD)
Trajan (53 AD-117 AD), Roman Emperor (98-117 AD)
Hadrian (76 AD-138 AD), Roman Emperor (117-138 AD)
Hadrian's Wall built between England and Scotland (Picts) (@122 AD)
Claudius Ptolemaeus (Ptolemy) (2nd Century AD) Astronomer/Mathematician/Geographer of Alexandria
Antoninus Pius (86 AD-161 AD), Roman Emperor (138-161 AD)
Marcus Aurelius (121 AD-180 AD), Roman Emperor (161-180 AD)
Decline of Roman Empire Begins
Commodus (161-192), Roman Emperor (180-192)
Lucius Septimius Severus (146-211), Roman Emperor (193-211)
Caracalla (188-217), Roman Emperor (211-217)
Heliogabalus (204-222), Roman Emperor (218-222)
Severus Alexander (208-235), Roman Emperor (222-235)
Philip the Arabian (?-249), Roman Emperor (244-249)
Decius (201?-251), Roman Emperor (249-251)
Valerian (?-260), Roman Emperor (253-260)
Captured by Persians in 260
Claudius II (214-270), Roman Emperor (268-270)
Aurelian (215?-275), Roman Emperor (270-275)
Diocletian (245 or 248-313 or 316), Roman Emperor (284-305)-made emperor by the army
Constantine (?-337), Roman Emperor (306-337)
Moved capital from Rome to Byzantium (which is renamed Constantinople)
Adopts Christianity (@312)
Edict of Milan (313)-Universal Religious Tolerance which puts Christianity on equal footing with other religions
Divides Roman Empire (330 AD) into East, which will become the Byzantine Empire (Byzantium/Constantinople as capital) and West (Rome as capital)
Byzantine Empire is the eastern empire and Roman Empire is the western empire from Constantine on.
Alaric I takes Rome (410)
Gaiseric (Vandals) takes Rome (455)
Pope Leo I begs Attila the Hun to leave Rome unsacked
Romulus Augustulus deposed by Goths (led by Odoacer) thus ending the Roman Empire in 476
Dark Ages-no real rulers, only popes
1054-Church split into Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic
Inquisition--1233 until 1800s (mostly in Southern France, Northern Italy, Papal States, and Germany)
Renaissance (@1300-1500s)
Boniface VIII (1235 or 1240-1303), Pope (1294-1303)
Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) Author of Divine Comedy, Beatrice poems
Petrarch (Francesco Petrarca) (1304-1374) Laura poems, Petrarchan/Italian Sonnets named for him (abbaabba cdecde-one octet and one sestet as opposed to Shakespearean/English Sonnets which has an abab cdcd efef gg-three quatrains and one couplet-rhyme scheme)
Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375) Author of Decameron
Great Schism (1378-1417)-Division in Roman Catholic Church
Medici (Ruling Family of Florence from 15th Century to 1737)
Donato Bramante (1444-1514) Architect
Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) Artist (Last Supper, Mona Lisa)
Lorenzo the Magnificent Medici (1449-1492), Florentine Ruler (1469-1492)-co-reigned with brother Giuliano from 1469-1478
Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1527) Author of The Prince
Sixtus IV (1414-1484), Pope (1471-1484)
Sistine Chapel built 1473 (Michelangelo's Ceiling 1508-1512)
Ludovico Ariosto (1474-1533) Italian poet
Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564) Painter/Sculptor (David, Sistine Chapel Ceiling)
Baldassare Castiglione (1478-1506) Italian writer
Raphael Santi (or Sanzio) (1483-1520) Painter
Innocent VIII (1432-1492), Pope (1484-1492)
Alexander VI (1431-1503), Pope (1492-1503)
Italian Wars-1494-1559
Treaty of Cambrai (1529)
Treaty of Crepy (1547)
Treaty of Cateau-Cambresis (1559)
Amerigo Vespucci (1454-1512) Italian navigator
Amerigo discovers American mainland in 1499-1500
Julius II (1443-1513), Pope (1503-1513)
St. Peter's Church (Present Structure built 1506-1626) adjoins Vatican. Originally built under Constantine (@4th Century)
Leo X (1475-1521), Pope (1513-1521)-son of Lorenzo the Magnificent of the Medici family
Luther's 95 Theses 1517
Clement VII (1478-1534), Pope (1523-1534)
Paul III (1468-1549), Pope (1534-1549)
Institutes reforms which begins Counter-Reformation
Torquato Tasso (1544-1595) Author of Jerusalem Delivered
Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) Italian physicist/astronomer
Modern
Amedeo Avogadro (1776-1856) Italian Chemist/Physicist
Guiseppe Mazzini (1805-1872) Italian Patriot-joined Carbonari and founded Young Italy
Guiseppe Garibaldi (1807-1882) Italian Military and Political Leader
Camillo Benso, Conte di Cavour (1810-1861) Italian statesman, unifies Italy under VEII
Italian Unification (@1815-1861)
Victor Emmanuel II (1820-1878), King of Sardinia-Piedmont (1849-1861), King of Italy (1861-1878)
Pius IX (1792-1878), Pope (1846-1878)
Revolutions of 1848 (Revolutions overtook most of Europe excepting England and Russia)
Italian War of 1859-1860 (Austria loses Lombardy)
Austro-Prussian War (Seven Weeks War) (June 15th-August 23rd 1866)
Prussians and Italians vs. Austrians and various German States (Bavaria, Wurtenberg, Saxony, Hanover, and Baden)
Luigi Pirandello (1867-1936) Italian playwright
World War I (1914-1918)
Franco-Prussian War almost makes this inevitable. Begins with the Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary by Serbian nationalist in Sarajevo.
Central Powers: Austria-Hungary, Germany, Bulgaria, and OttomanEmpire/Turks vs. Allies: Great Britain, Russia, Italy, France, Belgium, Serbia, Montenegro, and Japan; U.S. enters in 1917. Benito Mussolini (1883-1945) Italian dictator (@1925-1945)
Spanish Civil War (1936-1939)
General Franco's Nationalist forces (with aid from Italy and Germany) versus Spanish Republic/Communist International Brigade.
Umberto Eco (1932- ) Italian Novelist
World War II (1939-1945)
Axis Powers: Germany, Italy, Japan, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Croatia, Finland, Spain, Denmark, Manchukao, and Nanking vs. Allied Powers: England (except Ireland), France, Russia, Netherlands, and United States.
Allies takes Sicily in July-August 1943-invade Italy, which surrenders in September of 1943.
Kosovo War (Yugoslavian Serbs vs. NATO, mostly U.S.) (1999)
Serbs invaded Kosovo and began to massacre ethnic Albanians (much as they did to the Bosnians in the Bosnian War a few years earlier). NATO (mostly U.S.) Forces bombed several sites (including a Chinese Embassy by accident). Serbian president Slobodan Milosevic eventually agreed to our terms.