Chronology of Important Events in Indian History

Ancient India
Year Event Importance

2 Million BC to 10,00 BC Fire was discovered

Paleolithic Period
Tools made of limestones
2 Million BC to 50,000 BC Lower Palaeolithic
were used. They are found in
50,000 BC to 40,000 BC Middle Palaeolithic
Chotanagpur plateau and
40,000 BC to 10,000 BC Upper Palaeolithic Kurnool district
Hunters and Herders
From 10,000 BC The Mesolithic Age
Microlith tools were used
Food producers
7000 BC The Neolithic age
Use of polished tools
Pre-Harappan Phase – 3000
Chalcolithic Age Use of Copper – first metal
BC
Bronze age civilization,
2500 BC Harappan Phase
development of Urban culture
1500 BC-1000 BC Early Vedic period Rig Veda period
Growth of 2nd Urban phase
1000BC-500BC Later Vedic period with the establishment of
Mahajanapadhas
16 kingdoms with certain
600 BC – 325 BC Mahajanapadhas
republics established
Bimbisara, Ajatshatru and
544 BC – 412 BC Haryanka Dynasty
Udayin
412 BC – 342 BC Shisunga Dynasty Shisunga and Kalashoka
344BC – 323 BC Nanda Dynasty Mahapadmananda
563 BC Birth of Gautama Buddha Buddhism established
540 BC Birth of Mahavira 24th Tirthankara of Jainism
518 BC Persian Invasion Darius
st
483 BC 1 Buddhist council Rajgir
383 BC 2nd Buddhist Council Vaishali
Direct contact between Greek
326 BC Macedonian Invasion
and India
250 BC 3rd Buddhist council Pataliputra

1
322 BC – 185 BC Mauryan Period
Political unification of India,
322 BC – 298 BC Chandragupta Maurya
Dhamma policy of Ashoka,
298 BC – 273 BC Bindusara
the growth of Art and
273 BC – 232 BC Ashoka
architecture
232 BC – 185 BC Later Mauryans
185 BC – 73 BC Sunga Dynasty Pushyamitra Sunga
Vasudeva founded the
73 BC – 28 BC Kanva dynasty
dynasty
Capital at Paithan, MH
60 BC – 225 AD Sathavahana dynasty

2nd BC Indo-Greeks Menander (165-145AD)

Rudradaman (130 AD – 150
1st BC – 4th AD The Shakas
AD)
St Thomas arrived in India
1st BC – 1st AD The Parthians during the reign of
Gondophernes
1st AD -4th AD The Kushans Kanishka (78 AD – 101 AD)
72 AD 4th Buddhist Council Kashmir
Convene of Sangam
3rd BC – 3rd AD Sangam age Commune, Rule of Cheras,
Cholas and Pandyas
319 AD – 540 AD The Gupta Age 319 AD – Gupta Age
319 – 334 AD Chandragupta I The golden age of India
335 – 380 AD Samudragupta Development of numerous art
380 – 414 AD Chandragupta II and literature.
415 – 455 AD Kumaragupta Nagara style of Temple
455 – 467 AD Skandagupta Building

Harsha (606-647 AD)

Kannauj assembly and Prayag
550 AD – 647 AD Vardhana Dynasty assembly held
Huan-Tsang visited Harsha’s
assembly
543 – 755 AD Chalukyas of Vatapi Development of Vesera style
Structural temples in Dravida
575 - 897 AD Pallavas of Kanchi
style started to develop

Medieval India

2
 Early Medieval Period (650 – 1206 AD)

Year Event Importance

750 – 1150 AD Rule of the Palas Capital at Munger, Bihar
752 – 973 AD The Rasthrakutas Capital at Malkhed
730 – 1036 AD The Pratiharas Ruled western India
Mahmud Bin Qasim invaded
712 AD First Muslim Invasion
India
Capital at Tanjore, epitome
850 – 1279 AD The Cholas moment for Dravidian
Architecture
998 – 1030 AD First Turk invasion Mahmud of Ghazni
1175 – 1206 AD Second Turk invasion Mahmud of Ghori
First battle of Tarain in 1191
between Prithviraj and
1178 – 1192 AD Prithviraj Chauhan
Mahmud of Ghori
1192, Second battle of Tarain

The Sultanate Period (1206 – 1526 AD)

The Slave Dynasty
Year Event Importance
Known as Lal Bakhsh, began
1206 – 1210 AD Qutbuddin Aibak the construction of Qutb
Minar
Real founder of Delhi
1211 – 1236 AD Shamsuddin Iltumish
Sultanate
First and only muslim lady
1236 – 1240 AD Razia Sultana
who ever ruled India
1240 – 1266 AD Weak successors
1266 – 1287 AD Ghiyasuddin Balban Established Diwan-i-Arz

The Khalji Dynasty

Year Events Importance
1290 – 1296 AD Jalaluddin Khalji Founder of Khalji dynasty
Did many administrative
1296 – 1316 AD Allaudin Khalji reforms, introduced the Dagh
and Chehra system

The Tuglaq dynasty

3
 Year Events Importance
1320 – 1325 AD Ghiyasuddin Tuglaq Founder
Introduction of administrative
1325 – 1351 AD Mohammed-Bin-Tuglaq reforms and certain ambitious
projects
1351 – 1388 AD Firoz Shah Tuglaq Built great cities
Taimur, the descendant of
Chengiz Khan, invaded during
1398 – 1399 AD Taimur Invasion
the reign of Muhammad Shah
Tuglaq

The Sayyid dynasty 1414 – 1451 AD

The Lodhi Dynasty (1451 – 1526 AD)

Year Events Importance
1451 – 1488 AD Bahlol Lodhi Founder of Lodhi dynasty
1489 – 1517 AD Sikander Lodhi Founded the city of Agra
Babur defeated Lodhi in the
1517 – 1526 AD Ibrahim Lodhi
first battle of Panipat

Vijaynagar and Bahmani Kingdoms

Vijaynagar Kingdom
Year Events Importance
Founded by Harihara and
1336 – 1485 AD Sangama Dynasty
Bukka
1485 – 1505 AD Saluva Dynasty Saluva Narasgima
1505 – 1570 AD Tuluva Dynasty Veer Narashima
A gifted Scholar,
1509 – 1529 AD Krishna Deva Raya
contemporary of Babur
1570 – 1650 AD Aravidu Dynasty Founded by Tirumala

Bahmani Kingdom
Year Events Importance
Founded the Bahmani
1347 – 1358 AD Alaudin Hasan Bahman Shah
Kingdom at Gulbarga
1397 – 1422 AD Tajuddin Firoz Shah
1422 – 1435 AD Ahmad Shah Wali

Mughal Empire

4
 Founder of Mughal empire after the 1st
1526 – 1530 AD Babur
Battle of Panipat
1530 – 1540 AD
Humayun He was defeated by Sher Shah
1555 – 1556 AD
Sher Shah defeated Humayun and ruled
1540 – 1555 AD Sur Empire
from 1540-45 AD
1556 2nd Battle of Panipat Akbar Vs. Hemu
Established Din-i-illahi, expanded
1556 – 1605 AD Akbar
Mughal empire
Captain William Hawkins and Sir
1605 – 1627 AD Jehangir
Thomas Roe visited the Mughal court
The pinnacle of Mughal empire and art
1628 -1658 AD Shahjahan
and architecture
Beginning of the decline of Mughal
1658 – 1707 AD Aurangazeb
empire
Decline and disintegration of Mughal
1707 – 1857 AD Later Mughals empire with gaining strength of the
British

Maratha State and Maratha Confederacy

Maratha state 1674 – 1720 AD
Year Events Importance
Contemporary of Aurangazeb and
1674 – 1680 AD Shivaji the biggest challenge for the
Mughals in Deccan
1680 – 1689 AD Sambhaji
1689 – 1700 AD Rajaram
1700 – 1707 AD Tarabai
1707 – 1749 AD Shahu The rise of Peshwas
1713 – 1720 AD Balaji Vishwanath The first Peshwa

Maratha Confederacy 1720 – 1818 AD

1720 – 1740 AD Baji Rao I
1740 – 1761 AD Balaji Baji Rao
Defeat of Marathas by Ahmad
1761 AD Third battle of Panipat
Shah Abdali
1761 – 1818 AD Later successors

Anglo Maratha Wars

5
1775 – 1782 AD 1st Anglo Maratha War British were defeated
Marathas were defeated and
1803 – 1806 AD 2nd War they signed the Subsidiary
Alliance
Marathas were decisively
1817 – 1818 AD 3rd War
defeated

Modern India
Bengal
Year Events Importance
Capital of Bengal transferred
1717 – 1727 AD Murshid Quli Khan
to Murshidabad
1727 – 1739 AD Shujauddin
1739 – 1740 AD Sarfaraj khan
1740 – 1756 AD Alivardi Khan
1756 – 1757 AD Sirajuddaulah Battle of Plassey
1757 – 1760 AD Mir Jafar
1760 – 1764 AD Mir Qasim Battle of Buxar

Mysore
Year Events Importance
Establishment of Modern
1761 – 1782 AD Haider Ali
Mysore state
1766 – 1769 AD 1st Anglo – Mysore war Haider ali defeated the British
Haider ali was defeated by Sir
1780 – 1784 AD 2nd Anglo – Mysore war
Eyrecoot
1782 – 1799 AD Tippu Sultan Continued the 2nd war
rd
1790 – 1792 AD 3 Anglo – Mysore war Tipu ceded half of his territory
1799 4th Anglo – Mysore war Tipu sultan died

Punjab
1792 – 1839 AD Maharaja Ranjit Singh Founder of Sikh rule
1845 – 1846 AD 1st Anglo – Sikh war Sikhs were defeated
1848 – 1849 AD 2nd Anglo – Sikh war Dalhousie annexed Punjab

Advent of Europeans in India

6
 Portuguese East India Headquarters at Cochin and
1498
company Goa
1600 English East India company Madras, Calcutta and Bombay
1602 Dutch East India company Pulicat, Nagapattinam
1616 Danish East India company Serampore
1664 French East India company Pondicherry

Carnatic wars
1746-48 1st Anglo-French war Treaty of Aix-la-chapelle
1749-54 2nd Anglo-French war Treaty of Pondicherry
1758-63 3rd Anglo-French war Treaty of Paris

Freedom Struggle

First war of Indian Revolt due to socio-religious

1857
independence and economic causes
1885 Formation of Congress A O Hume
Dominated by Dadabai
1885 – 1905 Moderate phase Naoroji, Surendranath
Banerjea
Dominated by Lal-Bal-Pal and
1905 – 1917 Extremists Phase
Aurobindo Ghosh
Curzon announced the
1905 Bengal Partition
partition
1905 – 1908 Swadeshi movement Boycott of foreign products
1906 Muslim league formation
1906 Calcutta Session of INC Swaraj as the goal
Question on extending the
1907 Surat split
movement to the rest of India
Separate electorate for
1909 Morley – Minto reforms
Muslims
1915 – 1916 Home rule movement BG Tilak and Annie Besant
Pact between Congress and
1916 Lucknow pact
League
Extremists admitted in
1916 Lucknow session
Congress

Gandhian Era

7
 Early life
Foundation of Natal Indian
1893 – 1914 Gandhi in South Africa Congress, Sathyagraha and CDM
against British excesses
1915 – 1948 Gandhi in India
Arrived in Bombay. First two years
1915 to tour India and not to participate
in any political movement
1917 Champaran Campaign Against the Indigo cultivators
1918 Ahmedabad First hunger strike
1918 Kheda First non-cooperation movement
Against the Rowlatt act and
1919 Rowlatt Sathyagraha
Jallianwala massacre
Non-cooperation and Khilafat
1920-22
movement
Gandhi elected as Congress
1924 Belgaum session
president
Dandi March
Gandhi – Irwin Pact
1930 -34 Civil disobedience movement 2nd Roundtable conference
Resuming the Civil disobedience
movement
1940-41 Individual satyagraha
1942 Quit India movement Do or die

Important Events during this period

Gandhi gave a call for Rowlatt

1919 Rowlatt act
satyagraha
1919 Jallianwala Massacre
Khilafat and Non-cooperation
1920-22 Hindu Muslim unity
movement
1922 Chauri Chaura incident Gandhi called off NCM
Congress Khilafat Swaraj
1923 Enter legislative councils
Party
All white commission to
1927 Simon commission
review the 1919 act
To determine the principles of
1928 Nehru committee report
the constitution
1929 Jinnah’s 14 points
1929 Lahore session Purna Swaraj

8
 1930 Civil disobedience movement Dandi March
To ask Gandhi participate in
1931 Gandhi Irwin Pact
the 2nd RTC
1931 2nd RTC held in London
1932 Communal award
1932 Poona Pact
1935 Government of India act Provisional autonomy
18 months rule of Congress
1937
begins
1939-45 World War II begins
1939 Congress ministries resign
Linlithgow proposed to seek
1940 August offer India’s cooperation in the
World War
1941 Individual Satyagraha
1942 Cripps mission
1942 Quit India movement
1943 Gandhi’s 21 days fast
1944 C R Formula
Wavell Plan and Shimla
1945
Conference
1945 INA Trails
1946 RIN Ratings Mutiny
1946 Cabinet mission plan
Formation of Interim
1946
government
Formation of the constituent
1946
assembly
1947 Atlee’s announcement
1947 Mountbatten Plan
Indian independence act,
1947
1947

***