5100 BC  The World's oldest wine found at a Neolithic village site in Iran.
3800 BC  The first bronze is smelted at Tepe Yahya (Western Iran)
2900 BC  First known use of cuneiform script.
2860 BC  Gilgamesh is crowned king of Uruk.
2334 BC  Sargon conquers Mesopotamia.
2250 BC  The development of the composite bow, it is able to penetrate leather 
          armor and has twice the range of simple bows.
2060 BC  The re-unification of Egypt making the beginning of what is now 
          called the Middle Kingdom. Ur is sacked by the Elamites.
2000 BC  Knossos is founded by the Minoans in Crete.
1975 BC  The Egyptians conquer Nubia.

1800 BC  Aryan migration from Southern Russia to Near East.
1304 BC  Ramesses II is crowned the king of Egypt.
1300 BC  Hittites first use of iron for weapons.
1285 BC  Ramesses defeats the Hittites at the battle of Kadesh.
1220 BC  Assyrians capture Babylon. 
1160 BC  Babylon falls to the Elamites. 
1100 BC  The Dorians invade and settle in mainland Greece. 
1101 BC  David is crowned king of Israel.
1000 BC  The Chaldeans take and occupy Ur.
928 BC   Hebrew kingdom splits into Israel and Judah
900 BC   Sparta is founded in Greece.
814 BC   The city of Carthage is founded by the Phoenicians
776 BC   The first Olympic games are held in Greece. 
753 BC   Founding of Rome by Romulus and Remus.
750 BC   Homer (Greek poet) composes the Iliad and the Odyssey.

750 BC   Approximate date of the widespread use of iron in Persian region. 
733 BC   Syracuse is founded by the Greeks in Sicily.
729 BC   Babylon is captured by the Assyrians.
721 BC   Israel is conquered by king Shalmaneser V of Assyria. 
700 BC   Biremes are developed with two banks of oars. 
         Coins used in Lydia (Turkey)
         Saddle - without stirrups, developed by Scythians.
 
671 BC   Egypt is conquered by king Esarhaddon of Assyria.
651 BC   The Egyptians expel the Assyrians from their country.
650 BC   First reference of triremes. -three rows of oars.
646 BC   Ashurbanipal, the Assyrian king, sacks Susa and ends Elamite supremacy.
645 BC   Psamtik recaptures Thebes from the Assyrians.

640 BC   Persia becomes a vassal state of Media. 
           The kingdom of Macedon is founded.
630 BC   The prophet Zoroaster is born.
620 BC   Greek colonies are founded in Egypt. 
612 BC   Nineveh is sacked by the Babylonians and the Medes. The 
          Assyrian empire collapses.
605 BC   The Babylonians under prince Nebuchadnezzar defeat the 
          Egyptians at the Battle of Carchemish.
604 BC   Nebuchadnezzar is crowned king of Babylon.
600 BC   The Etruscan league of cities is formed in northern Italy.
597 BC   Nebuchadnezzar captures Jerusalem.
585 BC   The "Battle of the Eclipse" which ended the inconclusive 15 year war 
          between the Median and Lydian empires. Calculated as occurring on the 
          afternoon of May 25, 585 BC.
  
580 BC   The Carthaginians defeat the settling Greeks at Lilybaeum, Sicily. 

559 BC   Cyrus II(the Great) assumes throne of Ashan (western Persia)
          and begins sunjugation of all Persia.

550 BC   Cyrus defeats the Median king Astyages at the 
          battle of Pasargadai and becomes the king of both kingdoms.
547 BC   Persians clash with the Lydians at the Battle of Pteria.
546 BC   Croesus of Lydia retires to Sardis but the Persians unexpectedly 
          followup. Croesus hastily reassembles a even larger allied army
          and meets Cyrus on the Plain of Thymbra.
          The Lydian army is routed and the city falls after a short seige. 
          Persia now rules Ionia. 
          The tyrant Peisistratus seizes power at Athens.

545 BC   Cyrus now expands eastward. He reconquers most of Parthia, Sogdiana,
         Bactria and Arachosia which were attempting to establish their
         independence.
540 BC   Cyrus defeats Bedouin sheikhs around Teima.

         Polycrates the tyrant of Samos, allies with Egypt, defies Persia 
          and builds a fleet of 100 ships.
539 BC   Cyrus II of Persia invades and conquers Babylon and Phoenicia.


538 BC   Cyrus occupies Jerusalem & allows the Jews of Babylon 
          to return home if they wish.
533 BC   Cyrus crosses the Hindu Kush and receives tribute from 
          the Indian cities of the Indus valley and establishes 
          the twentith satrapy of Gandhara.
 

530 BC   Cyrus is killed in a campaign against the Massagatae 
          of central Asia and so his son Cambyses is crowned king of Persia.
529 BC   Cyrus' tomb is erected at Pasargadae the capital city 
          of Persia.
525 BC   Cambyses defeats the Egyptian king Psamtik III 
          at Pelusium.
521 BC   Cambyses dies or is murdered, and is succeeded by his 
          brother Smerdis. Smerdis is then overthrown, Darius I 
          takes the throne.

520 BC   Darius begins a campaign against the Scythians. 
         Darius commissions the completetion of the canal joining 
          the Nile to the Red Sea began by Necho II 610 BC.
519 BC   Darius has the great rock-face of Behistan constructed, 
          on the Ecbatana - Babylon Road, to give an account of 
          his early successes. The cuneiform inscritions in 3 
          langauages lead Sir Henry Rawlinson to decipher 
          cuneiform writing.

         Darius puts down a second revolt in Babylon.

518 BC   Darius sends Scylax, a Carian, on a voyage of discovery 
         into the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea.
517 BC   Darius visits Egypt, which he lists as a rebel country, 
         and puts its satrap, Aryandes to death. He sets priests 
         and wisemen the task of codification of Egyptian laws. 
         The task takes 15 years.
 
515 BC   Darius completes the canal from the Nile to the Red Sea began by 
          the Egyptian King Necho II in 610 BC. 
         Darius sends Scylax, a Carian, on a voyage of discovery into 
          the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea. He established a sea route 
          between India and Persia. 
513 BC   Darius leads a campaign into southeast Europe, 
          by building a bridge of boats across the Bosporus river.
510 BC   The tyranny at Athens comes to an end.
509 BC   A democratic constitution is proposed by Kleisthenes, and is    
          adopted at Athens.

501 BC   Megabates with a Persian naval fleet of 200 tiremes attack Naxos
          with the support of the Ionians under Aristagoras.
  
500 BC   Darius I completes or expands the Royal Road of Persians.
         
499 BC   The Ionian revolt. The Greek cities of the Ionian coast under 
          the leadership of Aristagoras, ruler of Miletus, plus the island 
          of Cyprus, led by Onesilus, - revolt against the Persians.
498 BC   Sparta does not respond, but Athens and Eretria support the 
          Ionians by sending troops & ships to attack Sardis. 
          The city captured without opposition and burnt, but the Persians 
          still hold the central stronghold.

496 BC   Darius soon recaptures Cyprus with the help of the Phoenician navy.
 

494 BC   A Persian fleet destroys the Greek fleet at the Battle of Lade.

493 BC   Ionian revolt ends when Miletos is sacked by Persians.
492 BC   Mardonius leads a naval expedition against Greece. Thrace and Macedon 
          are subjugated but Mardonius is injured in a night attack by the
          Thracians. The Persian fleet is destroyed by a storm while trying to 
          round Mount Athos.

490 BC   Persians under the command of Artaphernes and Datis sack Eretria. 
          Persians are defeated at the Battle of Marathon
          by an Athenian army led by Miltiades.
          
486 BC   Egypt revolts from Persian rule.  
          The death of Darius I, (the Great), he is succeeded by his son Xerxes.

484 BC   Xerxes subdues the revolt in Egypt.
 

483 BC   Xerxes resumes preparations for the invasion of Greece.
          He orders a canal to be cut through the promontory at Mt Athos.
          Begins the construction of two floating pontoon bridges across
          the Hellespont.              

482 BC   Xerxes reconquers Babylon after the city revolts. Its walls & temples are 
          razed and the statue of its patron god Marduk is melted down.

481 BC   Athens and Sparta found the Hellenic League against
          the Persians.

480 BC   Start of the second Persian war: Xerxes leads a huge combined land and 
          invasion against Greece. At the Battle of Thermopylae, 
          the Persian advance is delayed by the Spartans under King Leonidas I. 
         The Greek and Persian fleets battle inconclusively for two consecative 
          days off Cape Artemisium. The Persians march south to capture Athens.
         In the Bay of Salamis, Themistocles with an armada of 483 Greek ships; 
          with "Greek fire" ships ram into the larger Persian vessels, 
          setting them on fire and winning the battle.

479 BC   Xerxes returns to Sardis leaving Mardonius in change of the army. 
          Mardonius conquers central Greece but is unsuccessful in gaining an 
          alliance with Athens. He is killed and his army defeated at the 
          Battle of Plataea.
         The Greeks defeat the Persians again at Mycale, destroying the last 
          of the Persian fleet.
         A Greek fleet under Pausanias captures Cyprus, then sails to 
          the Hellespont to seize Byzantium.

478 BC   The Delian League is founded to drive the Persians from previously 
         Greek holdings in Asia Minor.
         A Greek fleet under the command of the Spartan general Pausanias, the
         winner of Platæa, takes Cyprus, then Byzantium.
475 BC   The city of Eion falls. Its Persian garrison were besieged since the 
	  previous year by the Athenians led by Cimon.
 
 
466 BC   Battle of Eurymedon. The Persians are defeated by Cimon of Athen in a 
         naval battle off the Eurymedon River in Asia Minor.
 
465 BC   Artaxerxes becomes king of Persia after his father, Xerxes, 
          is assassinated.
          Themistocles accused of 'Medising' is given asylum in Persia.
460 BC   Athens supports a rebellion that captures Memphis, the capital of Egypt. 
          The Persian Garrison however holds out for 4 years until an army 
          arrives from Persia. The Athenians withdraw to an island in the Nile 
          and held out for two years.
  
         Pericles becomes head of the Athenian State. 
         Pericles preferred to make peace with Persians and oppose Spartans.

454 BC   Artaxerxes I reconquered Egypt.

450 BC   Cimon leads 200 ships against Persians in Egypt and Cyprus. 
         Cimon dies in battle, no further large scale battles between 
         Delian League and Persians. 

448 BC   The Greco-Persian War came to end with the "Peace of Callias".
431 BC   War begins between Sparta and Athens.


424 BC   Death of Artaxerxes. Palace intrigues lead to the successive 
         assassinations of two of his sons, Xerxes II and Sogdianos. 
         Eventually a third of his sons takes hold under the name of Darius II.
 
407 BC   Cyrus, younger son of Darius II, king of Persia, is named Satrap of 
          Asia Minor in replacement of Tissaphernes. Cyrus is instructed to 
          support Sparta and helps finance Lysander's fleet, eventually 
          contributing to the victory of Sparta.

404 BC   Death of Darius II, king of Persia. He is succeeded by his son 
          Artaxerxes II. 
         Sparta conclusively defeats Athens, and takes control of the Athenian
          State.

401 BC   Cyrus is killed by his elder brother Artaxerxes II at the 
          Battle of Cunaxa near Babylon.
	  Last mention of gerhon or spara shielded infantry in Persian army.

399 BC   Sparta sends forces to Ionia to protect them from Persians.
         Trial and death of Socrates.
395 BC   Start of Corinthian War. Persians stir up Athens, Argos, 
          Corinth & Thebes to revolt against Sparta.

394 BC   Persian fleet defeats the Spartan fleet off Cnidus and
          begin to overthrow Greeks from the Aegean.

390 BC   Rome is captured and burned by the Gauls under the leadership of the
          chieftain Brennius.

387 BC   Artaxerxes II mediates between Athens & Sparta, leading
          to the "King's Peace".
385 BC   Pelopidas leads an uprising in Thebes against the Spartans, supported
          by Athens.
382 BC   Sparta invades Thebes.
371 BC   The Thebans, led by Epaminondas, conclusively defeat the Spartans,
          ending their domination of the Aegean altogether. 
          Thebes becomes the leading Greek state.
369 BC   Athens becomes an ally of Sparta against Thebes.
362 BC   The Theban general Epaminondas is killed at Battle of Mantinea.
359 BC   Phillip II is crowned king of Macedonia.
356 BC   Alexander III (the Great) is born in Macedonia, to Phillip II and
          Olympias. 


359 BC   Death of Artaxerxes II, king of Persia at more than 90. After more 
          palace struggle and assassinations, one of his sons, succeeds him under
          the name Artaxerxes III.

343 BC   Artaxerxes III reconquers Egypt

338 BC   Death of Artaxerxes III, poisoned by the eunuch Bagoas. He is succeeded 
          by his son Oarses. 
          Phillip II of Macedonia decisively beats a comnbined force of
          Athenians and Thebens at the Battle of Chaironeia.
336 BC   Phillip II is assassinated. His son Alexander assumes the throne.


          Death of Oarses, poisoned, like his father, by the eunuch Bagoas. 
          He is succeeded by his cousin, a great-grandson of Darius II, 
          who becomes king under the name Darius III.

334 BC   Alexander crosses into Asia at Gallipoli and defeats a Persian army
          at the river Granikos.
333 BC   Darius III of Persia is beaten decisively by Alexander at 
          the Battle of Issus.
332 BC   Alexander besieges and then captures both Tyre and Gaza.
         Alexander defeats Darius III army at the Battle of Gaugamela. 
         He goes on to conquer Babylon.

327 BC   Alexander captures and burns the Persian capital
         of Persepolis.