Unit 5 Timeline

Peony Pavilion: Ming Dynasty

1598 BCE

The 'Peony Pavilion' was written and staged for the first time in 1598, and it was performed at the Pavilion of Prince Teng, one of the great Chinese towers in southern China.

Fall of Tenochtitlan: Aztec

1521 BCE

The Fall of Tenochtitlan, a combination of superior weaponry and a devastating smallpox outbreak enabled the Spanish to conquer the city

Battle of Tenochtitlán

1521 BCE

Battle of Tenochtitlán, a military engagement between the Aztecs and a coalition of Spanish and indigenous combatants. Spanish conquistadores commanded by Hernán Cortés allied with local tribes to conquer the Aztec capital city of Tenochtitlán

The Battle of Cempoala: Aztec

1520 BCE

The two conquistador armies met in battle on the night of May 28, 1520, at the native town of Cempoala, and Cortes handed Narvaez a decisive defeat. Cortes gleefully jailed Narvaez and added his men and supplies to his own.

Abandon: Inca

1510 BCE

The rapid expansion of the Inca Empire demanded an immense amount of resources for construction and sustenance. Over-exploitation of resources, particularly agricultural land and water, might have rendered Machu Picchu unsustainable for its population, compelling them to abandon the city.

Tupac: Inca

1471 BCE

In 1471, Pachacuti died and Tupac inherited the throne as the tenth Sapa Inca. During his reign, he defeated the Chimor Empire along the Peruvian coast.

Capital Moved: Ming Dynasty

1421 BCE

Chinese Emperor Yongle moved the capital of China to Beijing. Emperor Yongle switched the capital from Nanjing to Beijing to fortify the northern frontier of his empire against potential threats and to exhibit the might and power of his reign.

Construction of Forbidden city: Ming Dynasty

1406 BCE

The Imperial Palace of the Ming and Qing Dynasties in Beijing known as the Forbidden City was constructed1406 by the Ming emperor Zhu Di and witnessed the enthronement of 14 Ming and 10 Qing emperors over the following 505 years.

Death of Zhu: Ming Dynasty

1398 BCE

The Hongwu Emperor, also known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizu of Ming, personal name Zhu Yuanzhang, courtesy name Guorui, was the founding emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigning from 1368 to 1398. He died in 1398.

Yuan Dynasty Falls.

1368 BCE

The Yuan Dynasty fell in 1368, and it was overthrown by a Chinese rebel leader who established a new dynasty, the Ming. The Mongols are driven out of Beijing, and the last Yuan emperor, Togon-temür, flees into the steppes, where he died in 1370.

Mongol Invasions: Yuan Dynasty

1281 BCE

Although unsuccessful, the invasion attempts are of macro-historical importance because they set a limit on Mongol expansion and rank as nation-defining events in Japan's history.

Unifying China: Yuan Dynasty

1279 BCE

Mongol ruler Kublai Khan formally established the Yuan dynasty in the Chinese tradition, having crushed the last Song resistance, marking the reunification of China under Mongol rule, the first time that non-Han people had ruled the entire country.

Song Dynasty Falling

1279 BCE

The rule of the Song ended in 1279 when Mongol leader Khubilai Khan, having conquered the Jurchen regime in northern China, swept through southern China and brought the Song territories entirely within the fold of the newly proclaimed Yuan dynasty

Paper Money: Song Dynasty

1100 BCE

In the 1100s, Song authorities decided to take direct control of this system, issuing the world's first proper, government-produced paper money

Fire Arrow: Song Dynasty

967 BCE

Fire arrows were one of the earliest forms of weaponized gunpowder used from the 9th century onward. The fire arrow was a gunpowder weapon which receives its name from the translated Chinese term huǒjiàn

Zhao Kuangyin: Song Dynasty

960 BCE

Zhao Kuangyin declares himself Emperor Taizu of Song, replacing Later Zhou. The throne from the Zhou with the support of military commanders in 960, initiated the Song dynasty.

Tang Forces Defeat

621 BCE

The Tang victory at Hulao spelled the end for Luoyang too: bereft of any hope of rescue, Wang Shichong surrendered on 4 June, after Li Shimin displayed the captured Dou Jiande and his generals before the city walls.

Sui Dynasty Falling

618 BCE

The Sui Dynasty was one of the shortest, yet most impactful, dynasties in Chinese history. It started in 581 C.E. when the four kingdoms of China were united and fell in 618 C.E. following civil unrest and many military losses to foreign lands.

Grand Canal: Sui Dynasty

609 BCE

The Grand Canal was built in sections starting in the 5th century BC and completed during the Sui dynasty in 609 CE. The Sui dynasty lasted from 581–618 CE

Chang'an: Capital of Sui Dynasty

605 BCE

The Sui capital was initially based in Daxing (Chang'an, modern Xi'an), but later moved to Luoyang in 605, which had been re-founded as a planned city.