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Period: 570 to Dec 31, 632
Muhammad
Muhammad, the prophet of Islam, was born in Mecca around the year 570. Orphaned before he had reached the age of 6, he was raised under the protection of his uncle Abu Talib. Muhammad began working as a merchant and became known for his trustworthiness. When he was about twenty-five, he married Khadija, a wealthy widow whose status elevated Muhammad's position in Meccan society. Muhammad and Khadija had four daughters and two sons, both of whom died in infancy. About 15 or 20 years ago -
Period: Jan 1, 661 to Dec 31, 750
Umayyad Dynasty
The first great Muslim dynasty to rule the empire of the Caliphate, sometimes referred to as the Arab kingdom. The Umayyads, headed by Abū Sufyān, were a largely merchant family of the Quraysh tribe centred at Mecca. They had initially resisted Islam, not converting until 627, but subsequently became prominent administrators under Muhammad and his immediate successors. In the first Muslim civil war, the struggle for the caliphate following the murder of Uthman, the third caliph. -
Period: Jan 1, 710 to
Nara Period
During the Nara period the power and influence of Buddhism grew. The Japanese constructed many temples to accommodate the growing numbers of worshippers and clergy. Much of this activity was due to the efforts of Emperor Shomu, a great patron of Buddhism. Buddhist deities in bronze, wood, clay and lacquer were commissioned to fill temples. It was during this period that the colossal bronze Buddha of Todai-ji temple was constructed to ensue the prosperity and protection of of the entire nation. -
Period: Jan 1, 750 to Dec 31, 1258
Abbasid Dynasty
The Abbasid Dynasty ruled the Arab world between 758-1258 AD, and so is considered the medieval period for Islamic civilization. Their ascendancy moved the power focus of the Arabic world from a Semitic world in Arabia and Syria with a capital in Damascus, to the Iranian or Persian world in Iraq, with the new capital in Baghdad. -
Jan 1, 1055
Seljuq Control Over Abbasid Dynasty
Nomadic people from central Asia who converted to Islam and prospered a soldiers for Abbasid caliphate. As Abbasid grew weaker, the Seljuk Turks grew stronger, moving into Iran and Armenia. -
Jan 1, 1066
Norman Invasion of England
The invasion and subsequent occupation of England by an army of Normans and French led by Duke William II of Normandy. William, who defeated King Harold II of England on 14 October 1066, at the Battle of Hastings, was crowned king at London on Christmas Day, 1066. He then consolidated his control and settled many of his followers in England, introducing a number of governmental and societal changes. -
Jan 1, 1095
The First Crusade
The First Crusade (1096–1099) was a military expedition by Roman Catholic Europe to regain the Holy Lands taken in the Muslim conquests of the Levant (632–661), ultimately resulting in the recapture of Jerusalem in 1099. It was launched on 27 November 1095 by Pope Urban II with the primary goal of responding to an appeal from Byzantine Emperor Alexios I Komnenos, who requested that western volunteers come to his aid and help to repel the invading Seljuq Turks from Anatolia. -
Period: Jan 1, 1167 to Dec 31, 1227
Reign of Chinggis Khan
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Jan 1, 1202
Fourth Crusade
The Fourth Crusade is one of the most important of all the major crusades. It is also one of the most complex and certainly one that is easily misunderstood, or at least is often understood in much too simplistic a manner. -
Period: Jan 1, 1206 to Dec 31, 1324
Mongol conquest of all of China
spanned six decades in the 13th century and involved the defeat of the Jin Dynasty, Western Xia, the Dali Kingdom and the Southern Song, which finally fell in 1279. -
Period: Jan 1, 1210 to Dec 31, 1526
Sultanate of Delhi
The Northern portion mainly Delhi was ruled by local dynasties like Tomara from 736 to 1152 and then Chauhan (Cahamana) from c. 1150 to 1192. -
Period: Jan 1, 1215 to Dec 31, 1294
Reign of Kublai Khan
Kublai Khan was the greatest of the Mongol emperors after Genghis Khan and founder of the Yüan Dynasty in China. He was a wise ruler and was able to lead a vast empire of nations by adapting different traditions to his own government. -
Period: Jan 1, 1220 to Dec 31, 1450
Kingdom of Great Zimbabwe
The civilization of Great Zimbabwe was one of the most significant civilizations in the world during the Medieval period. European travelers from Germany, Portugal, and Britain were astonished to learn of this powerful African civilization in the interior of southern Africa. -
Period: Jan 1, 1235 to Dec 31, 1490
Mali Empire
The Mali Empire was the second of three West African empires to emerge in the vast savanna grasslands located between the Sahara Desert to the north and the coastal rain forest in the south. -
Period: Jan 1, 1271 to Dec 31, 1368
Yuan Dynasty
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Period: Jan 1, 1275 to Dec 31, 1292
Marco Polo's trip to China
Headed for China along the Silk Road in the Yuan Dynasty. The Travels of Marco Polo, dictated by him, described Chinese politics, economy, and culture in detail, which greatly aroused the desire of westerner to go to China and had a great effect on the European navigation. -
Period: Jan 1, 1280 to Dec 31, 1337
Reign of Mansa Musa
Mansa Musa came to power, Mali already had firm control of the trade routes to the southern lands of gold and the northern lands of salt. Now Musa brought the lands of the Middle Niger under Mali's rule. -
Period: Apr 8, 1336 to Feb 18, 1405
Tamerlane
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Period: Jan 1, 1337 to Dec 31, 1453
Hundred Years War
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Jan 1, 1347
First Bubonic Plague Pandemic
A familiar nursery rhyme that children have recited as a harmless play song for generations ironically refers to one of Europe's most devastating diseases. The bubonic plague, better known as the has existed for thousands of years. The first recorded case of the plague was in China in 224 B.C.E. But the most significant outbreak was in Europe in the mid-fourteenth century. Over a five-year period from 1347 to 1352, 25 million people died. One-third to one-half of the European population. -
Period: Jan 1, 1368 to
Ming Dynasty
Ming dynasty provided an interval of native Chinese rule between eras of Mongol and Manchu dominance. During the reign of the Ming dynasty, China exerted immense cultural and political influence on East Asia and the Turks to the west, as well as on Vietnam and Myanmar to the south. -
Jan 1, 1394
Ibn Battuta
A Muslim Moroccan explorer, known for his extensive travels, accounts of which were published in the Rihla. -
Period: Jan 1, 1405 to Dec 31, 1433
Zheng He's Expeditions
Born into a Muslim family just beyond the borders of China in 1371. His ancestors were the Arabian immigrated into China during the Tang and Song dynasties. When he was still young the Ming Dynasty conquered his province in 1378, and he was taken to the imperial Chinese capital to serve as a court eunuch. -
Period: Jan 1, 1438 to Dec 31, 1532
Inca Empire
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Jan 1, 1453
Fall of Constantinople
The Fall of Constantinople occured on May 29, 1453 after a siege which began on April 6. The battle was part of the Byzantine-Ottoman Wars. -
Period: to
Silla Dynasty
Dynasty that unified the three kingdoms of the Korean peninsula Silla, Paekche, and Koguryo. The old Silla kingdom had forged an alliance with T’ang China and had conquered the kingdom of Paekche to the southeast in 660 and the northern Korean kingdom of Koguryo in 668. -
Period: to Dec 31, 1276
Song Dynasty
Starting in 960 and ending in 1279, the Song Dynasty consisted of the Northern Song and the Southern Song. With a prosperous economy and radiant culture, the Song Dynasty was considered as another period of 'golden age' after the glorious Tang Dynasty. -
Period: to Dec 31, 1400
Kingdom of Angkor
The largest and most powerful Golden Age state was the Khmer kingdom of Angkor in Cambodia, established by King Jayavarman II in 802. The name Angkor derives from the Sanskrit term for “holy city,” and Jayavarman considered himself a reincarnation of Shiva, the Hindu god of destruction and fertility. Jayavarman himself had lived many years at a Hindu court in Java before returning to Cambodia, indicating the widespread contacts among Southeast Asian states. -
Period: to
Reign of Charlemagne
In his government Charlemagne continued and systematized the administrative machinery of his predecessors. He permitted conquered peoples to retain their own laws, which he codified when possible, and he issued many capitularies. A noteworthy achievement was the creation of a system by which he could supervise his administrators in even the most distant lands. -
Period: to Dec 31, 1235
Kingdom of Ghana
The Kingdom of Ghana was so rich that its dogs wore golden collars, and its horses, which were adorned with silken rope halters, slept on plush carpets. Based on animal luxuries alone, it is no wonder that foreigners touted Ghana's kings as the richest men in the world. -
Period: to Dec 31, 1200
Schism Between Eastern and Western Christian Church
Long-standing differences between Western and Eastern Christians finally caused a definitive break, and Roman Catholics and Eastern Orthodox still remain separate. -
Period: to
Sui Dynasty
First ruled by a progressive leader and then by his ne'er-do-well son, this brief period closed with the arrival of a third emperor, one who would usher in the T'ang dynasty, another Chinese golden age. But first, Sui potters took preliminary steps toward inventing porcelain by molding white clay into simple forms and applying a clear glaze. A strong Indian influence is evident in both the abundant sculpture and the numerous Buddhist temples and meditation caves dating from the Sui. -
Period: to
Tang Dynasty
The Tang Dynasty was the most glistening historic period in China's history. Founded in 618 and ending in 907, the state, under the ruling of the Tang Emperors, became the most powerful and prosperous country in the world. Particularly, in this glorious period, the economy, politics, culture and military strength reached an unparalleled advanced level. -
Period: to Dec 31, 1185
Heian Period
The Heian period was one of those amazing periods in Japanese history. During this period, there was a gradual decline of Chinese influence. In politics, the Fujiwara family controlled the political scene over several centuries through strategic intermarriages with the imperial family and by occupying all the important political offices in Kyoto and the major provinces.