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Period: Jan 1, 1425 to
India from 1450 to 1900
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Jan 1, 1440
Guru Kabir is born
Kabir was a blind weaver who was one of the most famous Bhakti teachers. He went as far as to teach that Shiva, Vishnu, and Allah were all manifestations of a single, universal deity. The Bhakti movement was a cult of love and devotion that ultimately sought to erase the distinction of Hinduism and Islam. The Bhkati movement greatly influenced religion in India until the 17th century. -
May 20, 1498
Vasco da Gama Reaches India
Vasco da Gama was the first person to make a voyage directly from Europe to India. He did so in hopes of establishing trade partners with India, and when he first arrived to Calicut, India on May 20, 1498, he was celebrated by the people of India. However, the Zamorin (Hindu ruler) became offended because Da Gama's gifts were not valuable to him, and he refused to trade with Europe. Da Gama returned to India in 1502, killing many Indian people, until the Zamorin agreed to sign a treaty. -
Mar 7, 1500
Christianity was introduced to India by the Europeans and in the early 1500s Sikhism was founded by Nana
Although Thomas, the disciple of Jesus is said to have originally brought Christianity to India, it never had any influence until the 16th century CE. This is when Christian missionaries entered India and began to spread the religion. This is significant because today there are 27 million Christians living in India. Although this is a fairly large number, it only makes up about 3% of India's population, and Christians are treated as minorities, finding it difficult to find education and work. -
Mar 7, 1526
Babur establishes the Mughal Empire
Babur fought in the Battle of Panipat and defeat Lodhi, so he established the Mughal Empire. He soon became king of Central India. He became known as the "Master of Hindustan" because of all his victories that followed the Battle of Panipat. -
Jan 1, 1556
Akbar starts his rule over Mughal Empire
Akbar was the grandson of Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire. The mughal Empire reached its height under Akbar because he was a brilliant and charismatic ruler. He led successful military campaigns, pursued a policy of religious toleration, and encouraged the "divine faith", which focused attention on the emperor as a ruler common to all religions. Akbar ruled until 1605. -
Queen Elizabeth I granted a charter to the East India Company established trading posts in Bombay, Calcutta, and Madras
Queen Elizabeth I of England granted a charter to the London merchants trading to the East Indies, in hopes of breaking the Dutch monopoly of the spice trade in present-day Indonesia. This is significant because it greatly increased the power of the East India Company and allowed them to become a dominant force in India's trade network. -
Shah Jahan, the ruler of the Mughal Empire, builds the Taj Mahal
The Taj Mahal was built in 1632-48 on the orders of Shah Jahan as a mausoleum monumental tomb for his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal. This is important because today the Taj Mahal is regarded as one of the finest architectural works of India. It is also one of the Eight Wonders of the World. -
The Strict Muslim, Aurangzeb, ruled India and tried to force Hindus to convert to Islam
Unlike his predecessors, Aurangzeb was not religiously tolerant. He was, in fact, a very strict Muslim and established Sharia (Islamic law) as one of his first official orders. He was also very concerned with morals, and banned the usage and practices of: alcoholism, gambling, prostitution, sati, castration, servitude, eunuchs, music, nautch and narcotics in the Mughal Empire. It is also documented that he destroyed many Hindu temples during his reign. -
Battle of Plassey is fought
The British began ruling India in 1757. On June 23rd, the Battle of Plassey took place at a small village near Calcutta. East India Company was fighting the Siraj-ud-daluah (Bengal) army. The East India Company was fighting under the rule of Robert Clive, and were successful within a few hours. It was a very small and short battle. -
Indian law bans sati
With India under the control of Great Britain, Great Britain began suppressing Indian customs that conflicted with European laws or values. Most prominent of these customs was sati, the practice of widows burning themselves on their husbands' funeral pyres. Under the presure of the East India Company, India banned sati in 1829, but did not effectively enforce the ban until much later. -
The Sepoy Rebellion takes place
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Suez Canal opens
The Suez Canal opened in 1869. This canal is just to the east of Egypt and connects the Red Sea and Mediterranean Sea. This event is important for the history of India because British steamships could then travel to their colony of India in less than two weeks through the Suez Canal. Previously, in the 1830's it took about a year for ships to travel from Great Britain to India around the southern tip of Africa. -
Mahatma Ghandi was born
Mohandas Karamchand Ghandi, often referred to as Mahatma meaning "Great Soul", was born in 1869. He was the biggest leader in India's independence movement from Great Britain, and he used non-violent tactics of mass civil disobedience. Originally a lawyer, Ghandi assumed leadership of the Indian National Congress in 1921. Ghandi spent many years in prison, but ultimately all of his hard work paid off, for India won its independence. Ghandi was assassinated on January 30, 1948. -
The Indian National Congress was founded
The INC is a democratic political party that formed in India. It is one of the oldest democratic parties in the world. At this time in history, the party struggled for independence. It wouldn't really gain its independence until 1947, when it would be much more prominent in Indian politics. -
Burma becomes an Indian province
Burma, today known as Myanmar, became an Indian province. Many Indians came at first and tried to dominate life in Burma by influencing their culture and controlling their work and trade. The British held direct rule over Burma, even though it was a province of India. This was important because it gave India more control and helped them to expand their army and cultural influence over different areas.
