Important Dates

Question 1

3000 BCE

Answer 1

Large-scale sedentary ancient civilizations are thriving in Peru, Egypt, Iraq, and India.

Question 2

500 BCE

Answer 2

Hinduism, Buddhism, and Judaism have formed in Asia. Confucius and Lao Zi are defining Chinese culture and philosophy. Ancient Greece is thriving.

Question 3

0 CE

Answer 3

In or around this year. Jesus is born, creating new religion from Hebrew/Abrahamic tradition

Question 4

579 CE

Answer 4

Mohammed is born, claiming to be a prophet in the Abrahamic tradition. Islam begins to spread around Africa and Asia.

Question 5

1000 CE

Answer 5

The Song Dynasty is thriving in China, as are Benin and Ghana in Africa

Question 6

1250-1350 CE

Answer 6

Mongolian Empire, with four khanates - the Golden Horde, the Khanate of Chagatai, the Il-Khanate of Persia, and the Yuan dynasty rules the largest land-based empire.

Question 7

1300-1500 CE

Answer 7

Italian Renaissance glorifies Greco-Roman culture and Catholicism

Question 8

1324 CE

Answer 8

Mali king Mansa Musa makes pilgrimage to Mecca as trade routes knit civilizations from West Africa to Japan

Question 9

1404-1433 CE

Answer 9

Voyages of Zheng He on the Indian Ocean connect China to states on the Indian Ocean.

Question 10

1453 CE

Answer 10

The Turks conquer the Eastern Roman / Byzantine Empire and establish the Ottoman Empire. Christianity and European identities are fractured while a new Islamic empire emerges

Question 11

1492 CE

Answer 11

The Spanish expel the Muslims in the Reconquista, creating the first nation-state.They send
Columbus to search for India, but he instead initiates European contact and conquest of the Americas, home to the largest empires in the world at the time. The enslavement of indigenous peoples in the Americas and Africa accelerates. The Columbian Exchange begins to alter the diets, cultures and environments of 4 continents.

Question 12

1517 CE

Answer 12

Martin Luther published his 95 Theses to protest of the abuses of the Catholic Church leading to the creation of Protestant Christianity

Question 13

1600 CE

Answer 13

British East India Company (EIC) begin trading in India with Mughal Empire

Question 14

1644 CE

Answer 14

Fall of the Ming, Rise of the Qing dynasty in China

Question 15

1648 CE

Answer 15

Peace Westphalia signed following Thirty Years War.

Question 16

1763 CE

Answer 16

The Seven Years’ War ends. England takes colonies from France in Asia, Africa and the Americas. At the same time, it is experiencing early industrialization as James Watt developed the steam engine.

Question 17

1776 CE

Answer 17

Adam Smith publishes The Wealth of Nations and American colonies begin the era of revolutions by challenging England. Other colonies in the Americas will revolt throughout the 1800s, especially against Spain.

Question 18

1833 CE

Answer 18

Slavery abolished in Britan (1848 - France, 1865 - U.S.)

Question 19

1843 CE

Answer 19

Treaty of Nanjing ends the Opium Wars between China and Britain

Question 20

1848 CE

Answer 20

Communist Manifesto written by Karl Marx (in early years of German industrialization); the feminist movement’s Seneca Falls Conventions occurs in the United States.

Question 21

1857 CE

Answer 21

Start of direct British rule in India after the Sepoy Mutiny/First War for Indian Independence.

Question 22

1868 CE

Answer 22

Meiji Restoration in Japan ends the era of the Shogunate.

Question 23

1844-1885 CE

Answer 23

Berlin Conference to decide rules for dividing Africa. At the same time, the International Meridian Conference is held, accelerating the global acceptance of western units of measure, such as the Christian calendar, degrees of latitude and longitude, and the 24-hour clock with time zones.

Question 24

1898 CE

Answer 24

The United States victory in the Spanish-American War leads to the growth of American empire in taking the Philippines, Cuba, and Puerto Rico from Spain.

Question 25

1914-1918 CE

Answer 25

World War 1 is fought. Independence comes to many ethnic groups. However, problematic new borders are drawn, especially in the Middle East as the Ottoman Empire collapses. Simultaneous revolutions are also occurring in China, Mexico, and Russia.

Question 26

1939-1945 CE

Answer 26

World War 2 is fought. The United Nations is created, promoting human rights in response to the atrocities of the War. Decolonization accelerates. In the next few decades, nation-states become the global norm. Many countries ally with either the communist Soviet Union or the capitalist-democratic USA in the Cold War.

Question 27

1947-1949 CE

Answer 27

Indian Independence. Creation of Isreal. Start of apartheid in South Africa. Communist Revolution in China.

Question 28

1960 CE

Answer 28

“The Year of Africa” when many African nation gain independence during decolonization.

Question 29

1979 CE

Answer 29

The Iranian Revolution

Question 30

1989 CE

Answer 30

Fall of communist in Russia and East Europe. Globalized capitalism continues to spread around the globe.

Question 31

1994 CE

Answer 31

End of apartheid as Nelson Mandela elected as first black president of South Africa.

Question 32

1997 CE

Answer 32

Hong Kong becomes semi-autonomous after the British leave their former colony.

Question 33

1999 CE

Answer 33

The Euro is adopted as the official currency of the Eurozone, replacing many different currencies throughout Europe.