718-712 BC--Reign of Pharaoh Wahkare (Bocchoris), of the Saite 24th Dynasty. Wahkare abolishes debt slavery, and grants to the tenants who farm the royal lands title to the lands they farm, establishing a class of land-owning bourgeoisie called the "nemhu" which will eventually exert profound influence on Egypt's future history.
712 BC--King Shabaka of Kush invades Egypt and conquers the country. Pharaoh Wahkare is killed. Beginning of the Kushite 25th Dynasty.
700 BC--Death of Pharaoh Shabaka of Egypt. He is succeeded by Sabataka.
c. 700 BC--Hellenic (Greek) colonization spreads to southern Italy, Asia Minor, Black Sea. Greek colonies have existed on the Aegean coast of Asia Minor for a couple of centuries.
688 BC--Death of Pharaoh Sabataka of Egypt. He is succeeded by Taharka.
671 BC--King Esarhaddon of Assyria invades Egypt and sacks the Egyptian capital at Memphis. Pharaoh Taharka, of the Kushite 25th Dynasty, is forced to flee from Egypt. Esarhaddon, in contrast to usual Assyrian practice, is moderate in the implementation of the occupation of Egypt compared to past policies in other provinces, respecting local traditions as far as possible. The Assyrians show special interest for Egyptian experts, such as physicians, artisans and military specialists who are often deported to Assyria. The acquisition of horses from Egypt is of major importance to the Assyrians. Esarhaddon appoints various native noblemen as governors, functionaries and scribes in the provinces of Egypt.
670 BC--Prince Necho I of Sais, a descendant of Pharaoh Wahkare, is appointed governor over the regions of Sais and Memphis in Egypt.
c. 670 BC--Miletus (Greek city on the Aegean Coast of Asia Minor) begins founding colonies both in the Black Sea and in the Mediterranean Sea.
669 BC--Death of Esarhaddon of Assyria. Ashurbanipal takes the throne. Taharka of Kush (former Pharaoh of Egypt who was forced to flee by Esarhaddon) returns to Egypt with a Kushite army and tries to reconquer the land. Prince Necho, along with many other Egyptian governors appointed by Esarhaddon, ally themselves with Taharka.
668 BC--Ashurbanipal of Assyria invades Egypt, defeats Taharka, and drives the Kushites from Egypt for the final time. Necho I of Sais is captured by Ashurbanipal and taken, with his sons, to Assyria. His son Psamtik thus spends several years at the Assyrian court, and his observations while there will influence all later Egyptian history. Meanwhile, at Thebes, Mentuemhet, Governor of the South and Prince of Thebes, restores Thebes and continues to rule the Thebaid for many years as an Assyrian vassal.
663 BC--Necho I dies in Assyria. Prince Psamtik is allowed to return to Egypt after taking an oath of loyalty to the Assyrian king. He rules over Lower Egypt from Sais.
657 BC--Megara founds Byzantium.
655 BC--Psamtik I of Sais declares independence from Assyria and proclaims himself Pharaoh of Lower Egypt. Thus begins the 26th Dynasty. Shortly afterward, Mentuemhet of Thebes declares himself Pharaoh of Upper Egypt. Ashurbanipal, caught up in troubles of his own closer to home, is unable to restore Assyrian rule in Egypt.
655 BC to 609 BC--In a long reign, Pharaoh Psamtik I establishes the pattern of kingship which will prevail in the new dynasty. Psamtik had spent much of his youth in Assyria, where the kings-while very powerful-were never considered to be divine. Therefore, the attitude of the Saite Pharaohs towards the kingship will be radically different from the Egyptian tradition. The lifestyle of the pharaohs of Sais will be much less ostentatious, to the point of being considered frugal by contemporary writers. And there will be no return to the ancient traditions under later kings (except for one notorious incident which will be described later in the timeline). Psamtik will strengthen royal power over the provincial warlords and the priesthood by abrogating feudal and clerical immunities and privileges. Another policy of Psamtik which will have profound influences on later history is his encouragement of Greek settlement within Egypt. Psamtik will make extensive use of Greek mercenaries in the army, and Psamtik will build a cities, the greatest of which is called Naukratis, where Greek scholars and merchants will be settled, and endow these Greek communities with land and rights. These Greeks will make many contributions to Egypt's development in the years to come.
654 BC--Carthage, a colony of the Phoenician city of Tyre located in OTL Tunisia on the North African coast, founds a colony in the Balearic Islands at Ibiza.
c. 650 BC--Psamtik I defeats Mentuemhet of Thebes and establishes control over Upper Egypt, reunifying the country. Psamtik begins wearing the Double Crown to signify his rulership of all Egypt.
c. 650 BC--King Gyges of Lydia introduces the world's first standardized money, in the form of electrum coins, stamped with the king's seal. The idea will eventually spread throughout the world, and replace barter economies with money economies.
650 BC--Perdiccas Temenid founds the Macedonian kingdom with capital at Aegeae (Vergina).
640 BC--Sparta adopts a militaristic form of government.
632 BC--Athens abolishes the monarchy in favor of an oligarchy.
c.630 BC--Greek settlers from Thera found the city of Cyrene, on the northern coast of Libya.
628 BC--Birth of Zoroaster, founder of the Persian national religion, Zoroastrianism.
627-626 BC--King Ashurbanipal of Assyria dies in 627 BC. He has twin sons, Ashur-etil-ilani and Sin-shar-ishkun. Ashurbanipal has named Ashur-etil-ilani as his successor, but Sin-shar-ishkun does not recognize this and so begins a civil war that lasts until the latter gains the throne. This civil war will weaken Assyria considerably and open the door to uprisings by various oppressed peoples within the Assyrian Empire.
626 BC--King Nabopolasser of Babylon revolts and successfully overthrows Assyrian rule. He makes an alliance with King Cyaxares of the Medes against Assyria.
625-612 BC--Nabopolasser of Babylon and Cyaxares of Media wage war against Assyria, and the Assyrian army gradually falls apart after repeated defeats at the hands of the allies. Pharaoh Psamtik I of Egypt, who wishes to maintain Assyria as a weakened buffer state against the rising power of Babylon, sends the Egyptian army northward, under the command of his son, Prince Necho, in 618 BC, and for a while the combined Egyptian and Assyrian forces are able to stem the Babylonian and Median advance. Indeed, in 616 BC, the combined Egyptian and Assyrian forces advance to within 300 km of Babylon itself before being forced to retreat. But in 614 BC, Cyaxares of Media captures and sacks Ashur, the original capital and spiritual center of Assyria, and two years later, in 612 BC, the Babylonians and Medes capture and sack Nineveh. King Shin-shar-ishkun of Assyria dies in his burning palace. Prince Ashur-uballit escapes to Haran, where he declares himself King Ashur-uballit II of Assyria and tries to rally the remaining Assyrian forces around him. Nabopolasser and Cyaxares divide the former Assyrian Empire among themselves.
621 BC--Draco establishes the first Athenian code of law. The code is extremely harsh (Draco's name will become synonymous with harsh...or DRACONIAN...measures in future times).
616 BC--The Etruscans conquer the small Latin town of Rome in Italy. Tarquinius I Priscus becomes King of Rome. Etruscan kings will reign there for the next 100 years.
610 BC--The Babylonian army, under the command of Crown Prince Nebuchadnezzar, besieges the remnant Assyrian forces at Haran. Pharaoh Psamtik I sends an Egyptian army, under the command of Crown Prince Necho, northward to the relief of the besieged Assyrians, but Necho is delayed by Josiah, King of Judah, who attacks Necho's army at Megiddo (and is defeated, at the cost of his own life). As a result, Haran falls to the Babylonians, Ashur-uballit II of Assyria is killed, and the Assyrians are finally defeated. End of the Assyrian Empire. Necho, learning of the defeat of his Assyrian allies, continues his advance north, captures the city of Kadesh in Syria, finally advances all the way to the Euphrates. An uneasy peace settles as the Egyptians and Babylonians watch each other across the river.ªAlso in this year, Miletus founds a trading post in Egypt.
609 BC--Pharaoh Psamtik I of Egypt dies. Crown Prince Necho returns to Egypt to assume the throne as Pharaoh Necho II. On his way back to Egypt, he stops off in Jerusalem long enough to depose Josiah's son, Jehoahaz II, taking him in chains back to Egypt, where he will die in exile. Necho installs Jehoiakim, another of Josiah's sons, as vassal King of Judah.
c. 606 BC--Pharaoh Necho II, who at this time is temporarily in control of Phoenicia, hires Phoenician shipwrights to build a fleet of ships for the purpose of exploring the coastline of the African continent.
605 BC--Crown Prince Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon defeats the Egyptian army at Carchemish, on the Euphrates. Nebuchadnezzar pursues the defeated Egyptians all the way to the borders of Egypt. Along the way he confirms Jehoiakim as vassal King of Judah.
604 BC--King Nabopolassar of Babylon dies. Crown prince Nebuchadnezzar returns to Babylon to assume the throne as King Nebuchadnezzar II.
603-600 BC--The Egyptian exploration fleet, being built at the orders of Pharaoh Necho II by Phoenician shipwrights at an Egyptian port on the Red Sea, sets sail. The fleet, manned by a mixed force of Egyptian soldiers and Phoenician sailors, sails south along the African coast. Each autumn they come ashore and plant the land in whatever part of the coast they have reached, and there await the harvest; then, having gathered the crop, they sail on. And so, in this manner, they circumnavigate the African continent. In 600 BC they pass through the Pillars of Heracles (the Straits of Gibraltar) and return to Egypt. As a result of the knowledge gained from this voyage of exploration, Necho is able to renew contacts with Ophir...what would in the OTL become Zimbabwe in Southern Africa. Ophir had been, since the days of the Old Kingdom, a source of fabulous wealth, especially gold. Necho establishes regular trading voyages to Ophir, and gold begins to flow into Egyptian coffers, greatly strengthening the Egyptian monarchy.
601 BC--King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon attempts an invasion of Egypt, but is defeated by Pharaoh Necho II at Pelusium and forced to retreat back to Babylon. The Egyptian army also suffers large casualties and is unable to exploit the victory. However, Necho does support rebellions by Babylonian vassal kings in Syria and Palestine, including Jehoiakim of Judah.
600 BC--Rome conquers the city of Alba Longa.ªAlso in this year, Carthage fails to prevent the establishment of the Phocaean Greek colony at Massilia (Marseilles).
c. 600 BC onward--Pharaoh Necho II and his successors use the gold of Ophir to finance a reorganization of the Egyptian military. Necho and his successors were, in the OTL, somewhat innovative militarily, at least for Egyptians. They used Greek mercenary troops, for example, but this was limited by the lack of a strong treasury. In this ATL, with the gold of Ophir at his disposal, they raise a large infantry force, mostly native but supplemented by mercenaries, which is armed, equipped, and trained as Greek Hoplites. This force is supplemented by a large force of Egyptian and Nubian archers. They abandon their chariots and adopt armored horse archers and lancers based on those of the Assyrians and Babylonians. They also build a large navy and merchant fleet, based on Greek and Phoenician designs. With this revamped force, Egypt is much better able to defend itself and to expand than it was at the same period in the OTL. The continuing influx of gold from Ophir will allow later Pharaohs to perform reorganizations of the military as changing tactics and military technology call for it.
c. 600 BC to c. 350 BC--Expansion of Egypt in Africa. The rediscovery of Ophir leads to a reorientation of Egyptian foreign policy and military activity which lasts for the next two centuries. During this period Necho and his successors will not attempt anymore to expand into Asia, but will remain on the defensive there, instead focusing on expansion southward into Africa, which they recognize as the source of their wealth. Necho's successors Psamtik II and Wahibre I will conquer the Kingdoms of Kush and Axum (most of modern-day Sudan and Ethiopia). This gives the Egyptians ports on the Horn of Africa (much closer to the mines of Ophir), puts them in a good position to trade with India and other exotic regions, and Egypt grows wealthier still. Over the succeeding years, Egypt establishes a network of trading posts and military garrisons along the east coast of Africa, and then expands out from these to bring the entire coast of East Africa under their control. Finally, in the reign of Pharaoh Psamtik VII, an Egyptian army invades and occupies Ophir itself, bringing the region firmly under Egyptian control, where it will remain.
598-597 BC--King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon returns to Syria and Palestine and once again brings the rebellious vassals under control. King Jehoiakim of Judah dies under mysterious circumstances shortly before the arrival of the Babylonians before the gates of Jerusalem, and his son Jehoiachin is anointed King. Jehoiachin appeals to Pharaoh Necho for aid, but none is forthcoming, and so he surrenders to the Babylonians in 597 BC, after reigning for a mere three months. Nebuchadnezzar II deposes Jehoiachin, and appoints Zedekiah as the new vassal King of Judah. Jehoiachin and 10,000 of his subjects are taken into captivity in Babylonia.
594 BC--Pharaoh Necho II, known as "Gold Finder" because of his discovery and renewal of Egyptian ties to Ophir, dies. He is succeeded by Psamtik II. Psamtik will focus on campaigns in Nubia, and thus Egypt takes no active role in the affairs of Syria-Palestine at this time. Also in this year, Solon founds the Athenian democracy. He was heavily influenced by his observations of Egyptian society and law during a visit to Egypt a few years before.
588 BC--Pharaoh Psamtik II dies, and is succeeded by Wahibre I. Wahibre disagrees with his father's policies, which have oriented Egyptian efforts at expansion to the south, and will soon begin to interfere in Syria-Palestine once again.
587 BC--Pharaoh Wahibre I forms an alliance with the King of Tyre and King Zedekiah of Jerusalem. Bolstered by promises of Egyptian aid, these kings lead a revolt against the rule of King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar calls on his loyal vassals to assail the rebels while he gathers his army. Judah is assailed by forces from Samaria, Moab, Ammon, and Edom, while Tyre is assailed by a coalition of Phoenician and Cypriot city-states lead by the King of Sidon.
586 BC--Pharaoh Wahibre I receives appeals for aid from the Kings of Tyre and Judah. He sends a fleet which which defeats the Babylonian fleet (the combined navies of the allied Phoenician and Cypriot city states) and takes Sidon. Sidon is sacked and Wahibre's fleet returns to Egypt with much booty. Meanwhile, Nebuchadnezzar had arrived at Jerusalem and laid siege to the city. Wahibre marches north from Egypt in an attempt to relieve their Judean allies, and is defeated and forced to retreat back into Egypt. Jerusalem falls, and is sacked. The Temple of Solomon is razed to the ground along with the rest of the city, King Zedekiah is blinded and lead off to Babylon in chains along with the rest of the royal household, and most of the population is carried off into captivity. The Kingdom of Judah ceases to exist, and the Babylonian Captivity begins.
585 BC--King Cyaxares of the Medes dies, and is succeeded by Astyages. Later that year, Astyges is victorious over King Alyattes of Lydia in the Battle of the Eclipse (May 25, 585 BC). The border between the Median Empire and Lydia is set at the Halys River.
582 BC: The Pythian games are established in Delphi and the Isthmian games are established in Corinth.
580 BC--First attempt by the Greeks to drive the Phoenicians out of Sicily. The attempt is unsuccessful.
574 BC--The Phoenician city of Tyre falls to Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. It's colony at Carthage is left to it's own devices.
570 BC--Pharaoh Wahibre receives an appeal for aid from the King of Libya against the Greek colony at Cyrene, which has, since it's founding in 630 BC, had strained relations with the native Libyans of the region. Wahibre leads an Egyptian army westward, but it is severely defeated by the Greeks of Cyrene. A revolt breaks out among the native Egyptian contingent of the army, where rumour has it that the Pharaoh intentionally lead them to defeat. As Herodotus would later write..."The Egyptians blamed him for this and rebelled against him; for they thought that the Pharaoh had knowingly sent his men to their doom, so that after their death his rule over the rest of the Egyptians would be strengthened. Bitterly angered by this, those who returned home and the friends of the slain rose against him." Also in this year, the first coins are minted by Athens.
569-566 BC--Civil War in Egypt. In response to the rebellion in the native Egyptian contingents of the army, Wahibre sends Ahmosi, his son and one of his most trusted generals, to negotiate with the rebels. But when Ahmosi arrives at the rebel camp, the rebels "put a helmet on his head from behind, saying it was the token of royalty," and declare him the new king. Ahmosi decides "it is good to be the king," goes over to the rebels, and leads the rebel army against Wahibre. Wahibre rallies the mercenary contingent of the army and attempts to put down the insurrection with these forces, but is defeated and forced to flee from Sais. Ahmosi is crowned Pharoah, and takes the throne as Ahmosi II. However, Wahibre I continues to claim the kingship, and gathers another mercenary army while in exile in Upper Egypt. Finally, in 566 BC, Wahibre I, at the head of his mercenary army, attempts to retake the throne of Egypt from Ahmosi II. He is defeated and killed. Wahibre will go down in history as "Wahibre the Unlucky."
569-525 BC--Reign of Ahmosi II, who will be known as "the Wise" because of the many reforms he will enact that will greatly strengthen the kingdom. Ahmosi drastically reduces proportion of mercenaries in army and reduces the term of service for native troops, ending a continual problem with army revolts. With regard to foreign policy, Ahmosi once again focuses on Africa and ceases to intrigue in Palestine and Syria. He concludes a treaty with King Amel Marduk of Babylon which recognizes Babylon's claim to these lands and establishes the border between the two empires. Ahmosi also establishes the world's first income tax. According the Herodotus, he established a law that "every year each one of the Egyptians should declare to the ruler of his district, from what source he got his livelihood, and if any man did not do this or did not make declaration of an honest way of living, he should be punished with death." Ahmosi exempts members of the Egyptian Army from this tax, thus making military service more attractive to native Egyptians. Because of the flow of gold from Ophir and the huge trade profits Egypt is raking in, the income taxes are very low, and unlike OTL, the people do not feel overburdened by taxation. Ahmosi also disposes of the goods of the temples as he sees fit. Just as the military nobles had been neutralized by absorbing many of them into the royal administration, the priests are turned into officials of the monarchy too, and their upkeep and that of their temples becomes the responsibility of the royal treasury. The threat to the monarchy posed by the power of the priestly class is broken. Thus by the end of Ahmose II’s reign the foundations have been laid for a very stable, prosperous, and secure society, which will remain so for a long, long time.
562 BC--Death of King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon. He is succeeded by Amel Marduk.
560 BC--Death of King Amel Marduk of Babylon. He is succeeded by Nergalsharusur. Also in this year, Lydian king Croesus conquers Ionia, except Miletus, and the temple of Artemis at Ephesus is built. This temple will eventually become one of the seven wonders of the world.
559 BC--Cyrus II comes to the throne of Anshan, a Persian sub-kingdom of the Median Empire. Cyrus is a vassal of the Median king, Astyages. Cyrus will establish the Persian Empire and be known to history as "Cyrus the Great."
556 BC--Death of King Nergalsharusur of Babylon. He is succeeded by Labashi Marduk. However, Labashi Marduk dies the same year, and is succeeded by Nabunaid (Nabonidus).
550 BC--Cyrus II of Anshan revolts against King Astyages of Media. Astyages is defeated and killed. Cyrus takes control of the Median Empire, which will henceforth be known as the Persian Empire. Also in this year, Carthage allies with the Etruscans against the Greeks. A Carthaginian force led by Malchus defeats the Greeks in Sicily, but is vanquished in Sardinia. Malchus is banished, and in response marches on Carthage, but is caught and executed.
c. 550 BC onward--Carthaginian presence in the islands of Sicily and Sardinia. Carthaginian colonies formed along coast of Africa, Algeria, Hadrumetum, Leptis.
547 BC--Cyrus II of Persia defeats King Croesus of Lydia at the Battle of the Halys River. Persia absorbs all of Asia Minor, and assumes Lydia's overlordship of the Greek colonies o the Aegean coastline.
546 BC--The Tyrant Peisistratus overthrows democracy in Athens, and Sparta forms the Peloponnesean League.
539 BC--King Cyrus II of Persia takes Babylon. All of Mesopotamia, Syria, and Palestine come under Persian rule.
538-Upon capturing Babylon, King Cyrus II of Persia issues an edict of religious toleration and allows the Jews (who had been deported to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar) to return to their homeland. 42,360 Jews plus 7,337 servants return to Jerusalem with Zerubbabel, Sheshbazzar, and Jeshua. In October of that year, the Jews finish building the foundation of the temple. An altar and sacrificial offering to the Lord is made on the foundation of the temple. At this time the Samaritans and other neighboring nations complain to Cyrus and such influence is brought to bear on Cyrus's court at the imperial capital that the government suspends their building permit. Because of this opposition, all further work on the building of the temple will be suspended until the 2nd year of Darius the Great, about 520 BC.
535 BC--Carthage, with the Etruscans, destroys the Phocaean colony in Corsica and closes Sardinia-Corsica off to the Greeks.
530 BC--Pythagoras founds Mathematics.
525 BC--Pharaoh Ahmosi II "The Wise" dies, and is succeeded by his son, Psamtik III. Later that same year, the Persian army, under King Cambyses, invades Egypt. The Egyptian army meets them at Pelusium, and the Persians are crushed. However, the Egyptians also take heavy casualties, and do not pursue the defeated Persians.
c. 525 BC--The first Greek Tragedies are written. Among the writers are Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides.
523 BC--Cambyses again attempts the invasion of Egypt. His army is again defeated, and Cambyses is killed.
523-522 BC--Civil War in the Persian Empire. Upon the death of King Cambyses, there is a struggle for the succession to the Persian throne. Gaumata, a pretender who claims to be a son of King Cyrus II named Smerdis who had actually been killed some years earlier, assumes the throne, but is disputed by another prince of the Achaemenid House, who finally defeats Gautama in 522 BC and assumes the throne as King Darius I.
520 BC-516 BC--Completion of the Second Temple in Jerusalem. ªIn September 520 BC, in the 2nd year of King Darius, the Prophet Haggai began to stir up the people of Judah and Jerusalem to start building on the foundation for the temple which had been laid in 538 BC, and later that month the Jewish governor Zerubbabel and the high priest Jeshua, along with the rank and file of the people, began to rebuild the 2nd temple on the foundation that was laid 16 years before. This task will take over three years, and will be completed in February 516 BC.
510 BC--Pharaoh Psamtik III invades Palestine, but is killed in battle against the Persians, leaving no heirs. He is succeeded by general in the army who is a cousin from a related family Sais and takes the throne as Pharaoh Rameses XIII. Beginning of the 27th (Saite) Dynasty.ªAlso in this year, Athens joins the Peloponesean League, and the temple of Ceres at Paestum (in Italy) is built.
509 BC--Revolution in Rome. The last Etruscan King, Tarquinius Superbus, is expelled. Founding of the Roman Republic.
509-505 BC--War between Egypt and Persia. King Darius I of Persia invades Egypt in 509 BC, but his army is defeated by that of Pharaoh Rameses XIII at Pelusium. Rameses tries an invasion of Palestine the next year, but his invasion is no more successful, and he is forced to retreat to Egypt. The war will drag on for a further two years, mainly fought between the rival fleets in the Mediterranean, until a treaty is signed, establishing the border between the two empires.
508 BC--Attack on Rome by the Etruscan general Lars Porsena. Rome is able to withstand the attack. Several Roman noblewomen, including Cloelia, swim the Tiber River to escape from Lars Porsenna and his men.ªAlso in this year, the last of the Tyrants is overthrown in Athens, and democracy is restored. Cleisthenes grants full rights to all free men of Athens.
507 BC--First treaty between Carthage and Rome.
506 BC--A planned invasion of Rome by ousted King Tarquinius Superbus and an army of Etruscans is defeated by the Latin League and Greeks lead by Aristodemos of Cumae in a battle at Aricia. Also in this year, a Roman noble named Horatius Cocles stops an invasion, when he bars the bridge into Rome. While he is defending the bridge, the consuls Sp. Lartius and T. Herminius chop it down to prevent the enemy crossing. Horatius swims, fully armored across the Tiber to safety.
505 BC--A temple to Apollo is built at Delphi.
500 BC--Death of Pharaoh Rameses XIII. He is succeeded by Necho III.
499 B.C.--Ionian Greek cities (on Aegean coast of Anatolia) rebel against the Persians. The Ionians call on their cousins on the Greek mainland for aid. Miletus also calls on Pharaoh Necho III, who sends money and troops.
498 B.C.--Athens at war with Aegina. Also in this year, Hippocrates and Theron seize control in Syracuse and attempt to throw the Phoenicians off the western part of the island. They are unsuccessful, once again
497 B.C.--Athenians responds to the Ionian request for help and attacks Sardis (former capital of Lydia, now the headquarters of the Persian Satrap who rules over Ionia). In cooperation with Ionian and Egyptian forces, Sardis is captured and burned. King Darius I of Persia gathers a large army to crush the revolt, which is clearly beyond the capability of the local satrap.
495 B.C.--Persians capture the Ionian city of Miletus, despite Athenian and Egyptian aid to that city. King Darius burns the city to the ground. Most of the population escapes and settles in Egypt. With the fall of Miletus, the Ionian revolt falls apart, and the remaining Greek cities in the region surrender to the Persians by the end of the year.
494 B.C.--The Spartans under Cleomenes, who are in favor of resistance against the Persians, defeat the Argives, who were in favor of submitting to the Persians.
494 BC--First Secession of the Plebeians in Rome. Creation of the tribunes of the plebs, two of whom are elected annually. Creation of the office of aedile for the plebeians of Rome, held by two men.
490-485 BC--Vowing revenge on those who aided the Ionian revolt, King Darius I of Persia declares war on Egypt and Athens. He sends two armies of invasion, both of which are defeated (by the Athenians at Marathon and by Egypt at Pelusium). Throughout the rest of Darius's reign, there will be continuing, low-intensity warfare between Persia on the one hand and Egypt and Athens on the other. The war is fought mainly at sea, with neither side gaining a clear advantage.
489 B.C.: Expedition of Miltiades of Athens to Paros. Death of Cleomenes of Sparta.
485 BC--Death of King Darius I of Persia. He is succeeded by his son, Xerxes I. Xerxes vows to continue the war against Egypt and Athens.
481 BC--Athens, Sparta, and other Greek cities form the Hellenic League against Persia. Egypt provides some financial support, which allows the Greeks to build their military somewhat more rapidly, but not dramatically more so.
480 BC--A Carthaginian force under Hamilcar the Magonid is defeated by Sicilian Greeks at Himera cutting off Carthaginian access to the East. Hamilcar commits suicide on the battlefield. In the wake of this defeat a revolution overthrows the Magonid dynasty and establishes the Court of 104 Magistrates. Beginning of the Carthaginian Republic.
480-479 BC--King Xerxes of Persia invades Greece, and the invasion proceeds pretty much as in OTL. The Greeks fail to hold the Persian army at the Pass of Thermopylae. Athens is captured and burned, but the Persian navy is defeated at Salamis, and the Persian army at Plataea. Xerxes retreats back to Asia, but Macedonia and Thrace remain under Persian control.
479-450 BC--Re-buffed in Sicily, Carthage focuses on Africa, conquering most of what is now Tunisia. Colonies in North Africa founded or strengthened. Mago's expedition crosses the Sahara.
478 BC--King Xerxes of Persia concludes a peace treaty with Pharaoh Necho III of Egypt, ending the war between them. An uneasy peace will reign between the two empires...with a few small exceptions...for the next century. Egypt will once again focus it's attention to the south, while Persia wars with the Greeks.
477 BC--Representatives from the Greek city-states of Asia Minor and the islands scattered throughout the Aegean Sea, meet on the island of Delos—a sacred island associated with the cult of Apollo—to discuss an alliance with the Athenians. They swear oaths of alliance to each other and to Athens; thus is born the Delian League. This new league has several purposes besides defense; one of these is to wage a military campaign against the Persians to free those Greek cities that are still under the control of the Persians. Although Athens is the leader of the League, each city-state has one vote and the League is essentially a democratic alliance between equals.
477-449 BC--Wars of the Delian League against Persia. After the decisive naval battle at Eurymedon in 467 BC, where the Persian fleet is destroyed, the League frees the Ionian Greek cities from Persian rule and these cities join the League (sometimes forcibly).
472 BC--Carystus, a town on the island of Euboea, is forced into the Delian League. This is the first time a Greek state has been forced into the League against it's will, establishing a dangerous precedent.
469 BC--The island of Naxos tries to secede from the Delian League. It is invaded and captured by League forces, who force it back into the alliance. Thus another dangerous precedent is established which will lead, eventually, to the transformation of the League into the Athenian Empire.
465 BC--Death of King Xerxes I of Persia. He is succeeded by Artaxerxes I.
461-451 BC--First Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta. The war is indecisive, and a peace is agreed to in 451 BC.
461 BC--Pericles comes to power in Athens. His rule will become know as Athens' Golden Age.
455 BC--Death of Pharaoh Necho III. He is succeeded by Psamtik IV. However, Psamtik IV also dies later this year, and is succeeded by Ahmosi III.
454 BC--The Treasury of the Delian League, which had, up to this time, been kept on the holy island of Delos, is moved to Athens, signifying the transition of the League from a voluntary association of Greek States lead by Athens, to an empire ruled by Athens.
450 BC--Pharaoh Ahmosi III dies, and is succeeded by Psamtik V. Also in this year, the Law of the Twelve Tables is established in Rome.
c. 450 BC--At around this time, Herodotus writes the first-ever non-theological history, and Hippocrates establishes the foundations of modern medicine.
449 BC--Peace of Callias. King Artaxerxes I of Persia signs a treaty of peace with the Delian League, recognizes the freedom of the Greek cities in Asia Minor. End of the Persian Wars.
438 BC--With funds taken from the treasury of the Delian League, Pericles begins construction of the Parthenon in Athens.
437-426 BC--The Fidenaean War between Rome and the city of Fidenae. Rome is victorious. This marks the beginning of Roman expansion in Italy.
431-404 BC--Second Peloponnesian War between the Peloponnesian League (Sparta and allies) and the Delian League (Athens and subject states). Sparta is heavily financed by Persia, and Athens is defeated. The democracy is replaced by an Oligarchy called The Thirty Tyrants.
430-429 BC--A great plague devastates Athens. Among the dead is Pericles, who dies in 429 BC. No leader of his caliber will arise to replace him, and this is a major factor in the final defeat of Athens in the war with Sparta.
425 BC--Pharaoh Psamtik V dies, and is succeeded by Psamtik VI.
424 BC--Death of King Artaxerxes I. He is succeeded by Xerxes II.
415 BC--Pharaoh Psamtik VI dies, and is succeeded by Necho IV. Also in this year, Athens attempts to capture Syracuse in Sicily, but fails. This is the beginning of the long road to final defeat in the Peloponnesian Wars.
413 BC--Pharaoh Necho IV dies, and is succeeded by Psamtik VII.
410 BC--Phoenicians in Hispania join with Celtiberians to secede from Carthage, denying the state important silver and copper revenues. Overland tin trade is cut off. Also at this time, Himilco's expeditions in the Atlantic and Hanno's expeditions to Morocco and Senegal take place.
409 BC--Carthage initiates attempts to conquer Sicily. Hannibal, grandson of Hamilcar, takes the fortified towns of Selinus and Himera by use of siege towers.
406-396 BC--Rome conquers the Etruscan city of Veii.
405 BC--Hannibal Mago and hundreds of troops die in epidemic outside the fortified town of Acragas. Himilco, his relative, takes over command, but is defeated by a force out of Syracuse, and has his route of supply disrupted in naval action. Syracusan forces strengthen the garrison. A Carthaginian squadron breaks through Greek blockade. The besieged escape under cover of night, Punic forces collect spoils. Later that year, Himilco takes town of Gela, defeating a Syracusan force, and then takes town of Camarina. Finally, Himilco marches on Syracuse itself, but his army is laid low by epidemic, and Himilco seeks peace. By the terms of the treaty, Syracuse grants control of most of Sicily and must pay tribute to Carthage. The treaty confirms Dionysius I as dictator (tyrannos) of Syracuse. First Sicilian War concluded.
404 BC--Death of King Xerxes II of Persia. He is succeeded by Darius II. His brother, Artaxerxes, revolts against him, however, and Darius is overthrown later that same year. His brother takes the throne as Artaxerxes II.
403 BC--The Thirty Tyrants are overthrown in Athens. Restoration of the democracy.
401 BC--Cyrus, younger brother of King Artaxerxes II of Persia, revolts and attempts to usurp the throne. Among his army is a force of 10,000 Greek mercenaries lead by Xenophon. The Persian forces under Cyrus is defeated, and the Greek mercenaries are left stranded deep inside Persia, surrounded by enemies. They make an epic march to the sea, from Babylon to the Hellespont, defeating several Persian forces along the way. They demonstrate that the Persian Empire is weak and ready to be plucked, like a ripe fruit, by any reasonably competent conqueror who comes along. Fortunately for Persia, there are none to be found at this time.
c. 400 BC--Aristophanes is writing the world's first comedic plays.
399 BC--Trial of Socrates, who is sentenced to death by taking poison. Also in this year, the catapault is invented in Syracuse by Dionysius I.
398 BC--Dionysius I of Syracuse sacks Motya (Carthaginian town in Sicily), and the Carthaginians permanently relocate their main Sicilian base to the fortified town of Lilybaeum.
397 BC--Himilco drives Dionysius back to Syracuse and resumes siege. In naval action, the Carthaginians sink or board 100 Syracusan naval vessels and take 20,000 prisoners.
396 BC--Yet another epidemic lays Punic forces low for a third time in Sicily. Dionysius capitalizes on this and defeats Himilco in pitched battle. Himilco survives, but upon returning to Carthage, starves himself to death. Fighting continues. Also in this year, Sparta becomes involved in a war against Persia in Asia Minor.
395-386 BC: Corinthian War. Angered by Sparta's tyrannical overlordship in Greece after the Peloponnesian War, several Greek states take advantage of Sparta's involvement in war with Persia to challenge Spartan supremacy. Unable to fight a war on two fronts, the Spartans negotiate a peace with King Artaxerxes of Persia. This treaty, known as the King's Peace, or Peace of Antalcidas, is very favorable to Persia. Cyprus and the Greek city-states in Asia Minor are returned to Persia; the Athenians are forced to give up their conquests except Lemnos, Imbros, and Scyros; and the Greek city-states (except those in Asia Minor) are to be independent, thus eliminating combinations such as the Theban-dominated Boeotian League, which had fought against Sparta. Sparta interprets the terms of peace to justify interference in the Greek states.
393 BC--Carthaginian force under Mago, nephew of Himilco, defeated trying to re-take Messana.
392 BC--Mago of Carthage is defeated a second time. Truce signed with Syracuse.
390 BC--The Gauls (Celtic tribes) under Brennus sack Rome. Also in this year, Pharaoh Psamtik VII dies, and is succeeded by Ahmosi IV.
388-375 BC--As a defensive measure, Pharaoh Ahmosi IV orders the construction of a canal linking the Mediterranean with the Red Sea, with the Egyptian side to be fortified, thus severing the direct route of invasion from Asia. This is completed in 375 BC. In so doing he also opens up a new trade route, and Egypt profits mightily by charging tolls on foreign ships which wish to use the new canal. Ahmosi will gain the sobriquet "Canal Builder" as a result of this tremendous feat of engineering.
388 BC--Plato, a pupil of Socrates, founds his philosophical Academy, the first university in the world.
384 BC--Carthage renews it's war with Syracuse.
375 BC--Carthage is defeated at Cabala. Mago and 10,000 soldiers killed. Mago's son Himilco defeats Dionysius near Himera. A truce favorable to Carthage is concluded. Also in this year, Plato writes the "Republic."
373 BC--The Temple of Apollo at Delphi is destroyed by an earthquake. It will be rebuilt.
371 BC--Athens, Thebes, Chios, Mytilene, Byzantium, Rhodes and others revolt against Sparta which loses its supremacy. Especially critical is the defeat of the Spartan army at Leuctra by Epaminondas of Thebes.
367 BC--Dionysius of Syracuse attacks the Carthaginian base at Lilybaeum but is stopped when his fleet defeated by Carthaginian warships under Hanno the Great. Also in this year, Aristotle enters the Academia of Plato.
366 BC--Dionysius I of Syracuse dies, still at war with Carthage.
365 BC--Pharaoh Ahmosi IV dies, and is succeeded by Psamtik VIII.
360 BC--Hanno the Great tries to usurp power in Carthage. He is captured and crucified.
359 BC--Death of Artaxerxes II. He is succeeded by Artaxerxes III. Also in this year, Phillip II comes to the throne of Macedonia. Phillip had spent much of his youth as a hostage in Thebes, where he studied under the great general, Epaminondas. With what he learned there, he will reform the Macedonian army. He replaces the old Greek-style hoplite phalanx with a new formation, the Macedonian Phalanx. Phillip's Macedonian Phalangites are professional soldiers, and are among the first troops ever to be drilled, thereby allowing them to execute complex maneuvers well beyond the reach of most other armies. They fight packed in a close rectangular formation, typically eight men deep, with a leader at the head of each column and a secondary leader in the middle, so that the back rows can move off to the sides if more frontage is needed. Unlike earlier hoplites, phalangites are mostly unarmored except possibly those of the first row, and carried only small shields. No enemies are expected to get close enough for them to need any armor, however, since each phalangite carries as his primary weapon a sarissa, a double-pointed pike over four metres in length. At close range such large weapons are useless, but an intact phalanx can easily keep its enemies at a distance; the weapons of the first five rows of men all project beyond the front of the formation, so that there are more spearpoints than available targets at any given time. Phillip doesn't use the Phalanx as his primary striking force. Instead, the Phalanx is used to hold the enemy in place for a decisive charge by the cavalry. With this new army, Phillip will conquer Greece.
356 BC--The temple of Artemis at Ephesus is rebuilt. The new temple will be considered one of the seven wonders of the world.
354 BC--A tomb for King Mausolus...the Mausoleum...is built at Halicarnassus in Asia Minor. This, too, will be accounted one of the seven wonders of the world.
c. 350 BC--By this date, Carthage has established itself as the leading power in the West.
348 BC--Second treaty between Carthage and Rome.
344 BC--Philip II of Macedonia conquers Thessaly, Illyria, Epirus.
343 BC--Mago sails to Syracuse to drive out the usurper, but fails and commits suicide in order to avoid court martial upon his return. Hasdrubal and Hamilcar make a second attempt, losing a battle at Segesta. Hasdrubal executed. Gisco, son of Hanno the Great, is authorized to make peace. Sicily is divided along the Halycus River. 2nd Sicilian War ends.
343-341 BC--First Samnite War between Rome and the Samnites, a hill tribe from the central Apennines. War inconclusive.
342 BC--Aristotle tutors Alexander, son of Phillip II of Macedonia.
341-338 BC--Revolt of the Latin League against Rome. Rome is victorious. The Latin League is dissolved. Some communities closest to Rome are fully absorbed into the Roman state. Some Latin communities continue as technically independent states with Latin rights, but they sign treaties that subordinate their foreign policy to that of Rome. These states provide contingents for the Roman army. The least Romanized communities receive a special form of second-rate citizenship. Citizens of these communities have the obligations of Roman citizens (in particular military service) but are not allowed to vote at Rome.
340 BC--Pharaoh Psamtik VIII dies, and is succeeded by Psamtik IX. Pharaoh Psamtik, in response to reports from military observers which have spent time with Phillip II's Macedonian army, reorganizes and re-equips the Egyptian army based on the Macedonian model, but with some differences. Psamtik keeps a large force of Egyptian and Nubian foot archers, the armored cavalry armed with lance and bow, and the light horse archers, all of which have been such a successful part of the Egyptian military for so long. The army thus created is truly formidable. Also in this year, a power struggle in Syracuse ends with Timoleon of Corinth victorious.
338 BC--Death of King Artaxerxes III of Persia. He is succeeded by Arses. Also in this year, Philip II of Macedonia defeats Athens and Thebes at the battle of Chaeronea and unites most of the Greek cities under his control (League of Corinth).
336 BC--Death of King Arses of Persia. He is succeeded by Darius III. Also in this year, Phillip II of Macedonia is assassinated and is succeeded by his son Alexander. Pharaoh Psamtik IX of Egypt concludes a treaty of alliance with Alexander against Persia.
334-331 BC--The combined armies of Alexander of Macedon and Psamtik IX of Egypt invade and conquer the Persian Empire. Alexander advances across the Hellespont and overland through Asia Minor, while Psamtik sweeps north through Palestine and Syria. The two armies link up on the Euphrates, near the city of Carchemish. The combined armies destroy the Persian army at Arbela in 331 BC, and then move on to take Persepolis (capital of the empire). Despite protests by Psamtik, Alexander orders the Persian capital burned in retaliation for the burning of Athens in 480 BC. King Darius III of Persia is murdered by his own men later that year, and the Achaemenid Dynasty comes to an end.
329 BC--Pharaoh Psamtik IX "the Great," dies, and is succeeded by Necho V. The Egyptian army returns to it's own territory. Alexander of Macedonia continues the process of subduing the eastern provinces of the Persian Empire.
326-304 BC--The Great Samnite War. The Romans suffer a major and humiliating defeat at the Battle of the Caudine Forks in 321 BC, and another at Lautulae in 315 BC, but they persevere and finally emerge victorious. The Samnites and many other tribes allied to them are subdued and forced into alliance with Rome.
324 BC--Alexander of Macedonia invades the Punjab region of India. He defeats the Indian king Porus, but a mutiny by his army forces him to abandon the campaign without advancing further into India. Alexander returns to Babylon.
323 BC--Alexander of Macedonia dies in Babylon.
323-300 BC--Wars of the Diadochi. After Alexander's death, a civil war broke out as his generals squabbled over the division of the Empire between them. Four of Alexander's generals emerge victorious, with their own realms. Antipater and his son Cassander end up in control of Macedonia and it's European possessions. Ptolemy (who in OTL held Egypt) ends up with Asia Minor. Lysimachus ends up as King of Armenia. Seleucus ends up in control of everything from the Euphrates eastward. Egypt maintains control over Palestine and Syria up to the Euphrates (it's ancient sphere of influence in Asia, which it has reclaimed).
320 BC--Pharaoh Necho V dies, and is succeeded by Rameses XIV.
315 BC--Agathocles of Syracuse takes Messana from Carthage.
311 BC--Agathocles of Syracuse lays siege to Acragas and crosses the Halcyus, violating the peace treaty with Carthage.
311-302 BC--Roman wars against the Etruscans, who had joined Samnites in their war on Rome. By 302 BC, all Etruscan cities and towns are forced into alliance with Rome.
310 BC--Carthaginian force under Hamilcar, grandson of Hanno the Great, defeats a Greek force at Himera. Siege of Syracuse begins.
309 BC--Agathocles sails with a force of 14,000 to Africa. Carthage meets him in battle with 40,000 foot, 1000 cavalry and 2000 chariots under Bomilcar and Hanno. The Greeks are victorious, Carthage losing 3000 on the battlefield, but the city itself is impregnable. The Siege of Syracuse continues.
308 BC--Bomilcar tries to make himself dictator in Carthage, but is defeated and tortured to death. Continued fighting between Greek and Carthaginian forces in Tunisia.
307 BC--Greek victory outside Syracuse. Hamilcar is captured and killed. While Agathocles oversees events in Syracuse, however, Carthage defeats the Greek and allied forces in Africa. Despite Syracusan reinforcement, the Greek cause in Africa is doomed. Greeks desert to Carthaginian commanders Hanno and Himilco in vast numbers. A treaty favorable to Carthage is concluded.
306 BC--Third treaty between Carthage and Rome.
305 BC--Pharaoh Rameses XIV dies, and is succeeded by Necho VI. However, Necho VI dies later that same year, and is succeeded by Thutmoses V.
303 BC--Pharaoh Thutmoses V dies and is succeeded by Necho VII.
300 BC--The Olgunian Law in Rome ends the monopoly of the patrician class on constructing law and procedure, greatly increasing the rights of the plebeian class.
300 BC onward--Religious developments in the Egyptian Empire. The conquest of Palestine by the Egyptians will have significant effects on the future development of world religion. The Saite Pharaohs are, of course, believers in the old gods of Egypt, especially promoting the cults of Osiris and Isis. However, they are very lenient with the peoples in the lands they rule, they are sensitive to the religious feelings of their subject peoples, and they do not attempt to enforce any sort of religious conformity. One place where this has significant effects is in the tiny province of Yehud, where the Jews have rebuilt their temple. The lenient Egyptian administration allows the Jews complete freedom of worship, and the Jews are loyal subjects of their Egyptian overlords. Thus, there is no Maccabean revolt in this timeline and no independent Jewish state. However, as in OTL, the main religious life in the province is dominated by the Sadducees (the Temple Priests) and Pharisees (the rabbis). The Sadducees, as in OTL, are involved in politics, and are allowing commercial business to take place in the Temple (i.e. the moneychangers), which offends many of the more pious people. The Pharisees, who might have served as an alternative, however, are obsessed with petty dietary laws and other minutia, and are seen as hypocrites, observing the form, but not the spirit, of the Law. As a result, by the end of the 1st Century BC, many Jews have become dissatisfied with their religion and start to follow various cults which look to the arrival of a promised "Messiah" who will restore the Jewish faith to purity.
300 BC onward--Wars of the Successors. The various kingdoms which had arisen from the ruins of the empire of Alexander the Great struggle for supremacy, with none achieving it. Egypt fights several wars with the Ptolemies and the Seleucids for control of Syria and Palestine, but manages to hold onto it's Asian possessions, largely because, unlike the Hellenistic successor kingdoms, Egypt maintains a large cavalry force of armored lancers, armored horse archers, and light horse archers to go along with it's phalanx.
298-290 BC--Third Samnite War. The Samnites abrogate their treaty with Rome and once again declare war. They are joined by the Etruscans, Gauls, and Umbrians. The allies are decisively defeated at the Battle of Sentinum in 295 BC, and never recover. By 290 BC, the Romans have forced all of the allies to make alliances with Rome.
289 BC--Agathocles of Syracuse dies. Pre-war division of Sicily resumes. 3rd Sicilian War ends.
287 BC: Last secession of the plebeians in Rome. As a result, the Lex Hortensia makes plebiscites binding in Rome.
281-272 BC: Tarentine Wars. Rome has been pressuring the Greek city of Tarentum in Southern Italy, and in 281, Tarentum pleas for assistance from King Pyrrhus of Epirus. Pyrrhus is a relative of Alexander the Great, and wishes to engage in some adventure comparable to that of his famous relative. He agrees to the Tarentine offer, and in 280 arrives in south Italy with 35,000 men and 20 elephants. The Romans promptly lead an army against him and are heavily defeated at Heraclea. Though victorious Pyrrhus loses 4,000 men, and when congratulated for his victory, he comments bitterly that "another such victory will ruin me" (hence the expression "Pyrrhic victory"). After this victory, the south Italian Greeks (Italiotes), Lucanians and Samnites go over to Pyrrhus. He marches on Rome, perhaps expecting to cow them into submission. He finds, however, that even if some of the outlying Italian peoples are willing to desert the Romans, they can rely on the hardcore support of the Latins and various other communities. In the absence of large-scale defections, Pyrrhus can achieve nothing and withdraws to the south. In 279 he again wins a costly victory against the Romans, losing another 3500 men. At this point he offers to make peace if the Romans agreed to guarantee the independence of the Italiotes and the Samnites. Rome rejects the offer. In the meanwhile the Carthaginians are close to conquering the Greek communities of Sicily, and Pyrrhus crosses over to Sicily in 278 to aid the Greeks there. Pyrrhus defeats the Carthaginians and forces them off the island, leaving Lilybaeum as their only remaining stronghold. After throwing back the Carthaginians, he returns to Italy in late 276. In 275 two Roman armies guard against his attack to the north. His surprise attack on one army fails and he withdraws to Tarentum to avoid being encircled. At this point he goes back to Greece with most of his army, leaving the Italiotes to their fate. The Greek cities, without military support from Pyrrhus, are subdued by Rome and forced to sign treaties of alliance. Rome is now in effective control of all of Italy.
275 BC--Pharaoh Necho VII dies without heirs. The throne passes to a nephew of the queen, who takes the throne as Pharaoh Seti III. Beginning of the 28th Dynasty.
270-266 BC: Rome at war with Umbrians and Etruscans. Rome is victorious.
264-241 BC--First Punic War. Rome and Carthage support opposite sides in a war between the Greek cities of Sicily, leading Rome to invade the island. Carthage declares war on Rome, and a vicious struggle lasting over 20 years is the result. Rome is victorious, largely because of it's invention of the corvus...which allows Roman marines to board enemy ships and capture them. Carthage's naval power is broken, and it's armies are forced to surrender through lack of re-supply. In a humiliating treaty, Carthage is forced to surrender all of it's territories in Sicily and Sardinia to Rome.
250 BC--Pharaoh Seti III dies, and is succeeded by Rameses XV.
245 BC--Pharaoh Rameses XV dies, and is succeeded by Necho VIII.ªªNecho has watched the developments in the First Punic War with concern. Carthage is a major trading partner of Egypt, and militarily, the Carthaginian and Egyptian fleets have, in cooperation (but not formal alliance), dominated the Mediterranean. Pharaoh Necho recognizes the threat posed by the upstart republic of Rome. He has especially noted the Roman invention which gave them naval supremacy over the Carthaginians...the corvus. In response he has large complements of marines and archers added to the crews of his warships. He also has chest-high railings installed around the decks of his ships (to prevent the corvus from being dropped directly onto the deck, where it's iron spike can fasten the ships together). When war comes, as Necho knows it will, Egypt's ships will be ready.
245-238 BC--Parthia, a region of northeastern Iran inhabited by the Parni tribe, which up until now has been under the rule of the Seleucids, revolts and establishes it's independence. King Tiridates I assumes the throne.
241-237 BC--Civil War in Carthage. Hamilcar Barca, a brilliant general and statesman, emerges as virtual dictator in Carthage.
236 BC onward--Carthage invades and conquers most of the Iberian Peninsula. Hamilcar Barca does this to provide Carthage with an empire to compensate it for the one lost in the first Punic War, as well as to gain a base from which to eventually launch a war of revenge against Rome.
235 BC--Hamilcar Barca of Carthage secretly approaches Egypt, seeking a formal military alliance against Rome. Pharaoh Necho VIII accepts.
228 BC--Hamilcar Barca dies in battle in Hispania, and is succeeded by his son, Hannibal Barca. Hannibal continues his father's policies in Hispania and vis-a-vis Rome. Egypt renews it's alliance with Hannibal.
223 BC--Pharaoh Necho VIII dies, and is succeeded by Necho IX.
218-215 BC--The Second Punic War. In 218 BC, Hannibal precipitates the Second Punic War when he attacks the Roman client city of Saguntum. As in OTL, Hannibal leads his army across the Alps and invades Italy. The Egyptians honour their treaty commitments and send an invasion force by sea to Italy. The Egyptian fleet escorting the invasion force is intercepted by that of Rome off Tarentum, and a naval battle occurs. Egyptian archers rain flaming arrows on the opposing Roman warships, setting many of them ablaze, and those which manage to get close enough to drop their corvuses find that they do not work due to the new railings installed on the Egyptian vessels. The Romans suffer a bloody defeat, and the Egyptians are able to land on Italian soil. Over the next three years, as Egypt controls the seas, the combined Egyptian and Carthaginian armies establish control over most of Italy. The Egyptians transport over a siege train in 216 BC, and Rome surrenders the following year. Hannibal wants to raze Rome to the ground, kill all the males and sell the women and children into slavery. However, his Egyptian allies persuade him to be more lenient...Pharaoh Necho has no desire to see Carthage's only rival in the west eliminated. Rome is stripped of all her overseas territories (which are given to Carthage), and a crushing indemnity is imposed (shared by Egypt and Carthage). Carthage and Egypt are now the two most powerful states in the civilized world.
215-150 BC--Rome rebuilds it's power. In the succeeding decades, of course, Rome nurses it's hatred of Carthage and Egypt. Hannibal's successors in Carthage are not vigilant, and Egypt's eyes are turned eastward as it is again involved in border wars with the Seleucids and Ptolemies. And so, Rome is able to once again rebuild it's military power, and it casts about for allies. It will eventually find them, too.
190 BC--Pharaoh Necho IX "Roman Slayer" dies, and is succeeded by Seti IV.
165 BC--Pharaoh Seti IV dies, and is succeeded by Rameses XVI.
150 BC--Rome signs treaties with Ptolemy VI of Asia Minor and Antiochus VI of the Seleucid Kingdom.
149-141 BC--The Third Punic War. Shortly after concluding their treaty of alliance, Rome, the Ptolemies and the Seleucids declare war on Egypt and Carthage. Since Egypt has it's hands full defending against the combined Ptolemaic and Seleucid armies, it is not able to send much help to Carthage. And unfortunately, Carthage has, at this time, no leader of the caliber of Hamilcar or Hannibal Barca to lead it's war effort. Roman armies land in Sicily, Sardinia, and Spain, and over the course of five years defeat the Carthaginian forces there. Rome's fleet defeats the Carthaginian navy off Sicily in 144 BC, and the Romans land an invasion force near Carthage later that year. Carthage is placed under siege, and falls in 143 BC. The Romans are not disposed to be merciful, and they raze Carthage to the ground. The men are killed and the women and children sold into slavery. Carthage ceases to exist.
Meanwhile, Egypt has managed to hold off the Ptolemies and Seleucids. But it sees the war going ill for it's ally, and realizes Carthage may not be in the game much longer. So in 144 BC it does two things. Pharaoh Rameses XVI makes an alliance with King Mithridates I of Parthia, bribing him to attack the Seleucids. He also bribes Ptolemy VII, who has just succeeded to the kingship and who was never in favor of the alliance with Rome anyway, to make peace with Egypt in exchange for a large payment in gold and some minor land concessions along their mutual border. The Parthians sweep into Iran, and seize most of it as Egyptian armies press into Mesopotamia. Antiochus, desperate to protect his remaining lands from the Parthians, sues for peace with Egypt in 142 BC. A treaty is quickly signed, and Egypt redeploys to meet the Roman threat.
But the Romans do not come. Their attention is fully taken up with the problems of integrating their newly conquered territories into their empire, and when in 141 BC Pharaoh Rameses offers peace, Rome accepts. An uneasy quiet settles on the region. As a result of his success in delivering Egypt from what could have been a fatal crisis, Pharaoh Rameses will go down in history as "Rameses the Crafty."
140 BC to 90 BC--Roman expansion in Europe. It fights wars in Gaul, and against Epirus and Macedon, incorporating these areas into it's Empire by the year 100 BC. Greece loses it's independence soon after Rome takes Macedon.
138 BC--Death of Pharaoh Rameses XVI "The Crafty." He is succeeded by Psamtik X.
129-126 BC--King Artabanus II of Parthia invades and conquers the weakened Seleucid realm in Mesopotamia, killing King Demetrius II in the process and ending the Seleucid Dynasty.
124 BC--King Artabanus II of Parthia dies and is succeeded by Mithradates II, who will go down in history as Mithradates "the Great."
123 BC-100 BC--Wars of Mithradates II "The Great" of Parthia. Shortly after assuming the throne, Mithridates II threatens to attack Egypt's Asian possessions, but (after being bought off by a substantial bribe) decides to attack Armenia and the Ptolemaic kingdom instead. He invades and conquers Armenia in 120 BC, and then begins a series of wars with the Ptolemies. The Ptolemies appeal to Rome for aid, which is given. Roman legions join the Ptolemaic forces against the Parthians, but although they delay the fall of the the Ptolemaic kingdom, they do not prevent it. The Ptolemaic capital of Ephesus finally falls in 100 BC, and with it, the kingdom. It's last king, Ptolemy X, is taken to Babylon, where he is flayed alive. But Queen Cleopatra Berenice and most of the rest of the Ptolemaic royal family escape to Rome, and this gives Rome an excuse to continue the war with Parthia. The conflict will go on, at various levels of intensity, for the next 300 years. Egypt will sit on the fence throughout the conflict, supporting first one side and then the other (and sometimes both at once!)...it's Pharaohs reason that as long as Rome and Parthia are at each other's throats, they won't have much time or energy to think about attacking Egypt! And the strategy will work well for a long time.
95 BC: Pharaoh Psamtik X dies. Succeeded by Thutmoses VI.
90 BC-75 BC--First Parthian War between Rome and Parthia. Egypt neutral,
secretly provides funding to both sides. War is inconclusive, both sides
exhausted, agree to peace brokered by Egypt.
70 BC--Pharaoh Thutmoses VI dies, succeeded by Seti V.
70 BC-62 BC--First Roman Civil War. During this period, Roman exiles flee to
Egypt, and Pharaoh Seti V reorganizes his infantry on the Roman model, using
their technical expertise. Phalanx abandoned, legion adopted. Unlike the
Romans, however, Egypt retains it’s strong cavalry and archer
contingents...army composition is Legionary Infantry (pilum, short sword)--40%, Foot Archers--20%, Armored Cataphract Cavalry (lance and bow)--30%, Light Horse Archers--10%.
62 BC-40 BC--In the aftermath of the First Roman Civil War, a Triumverate of
powerful Roman Generals has emerged, and in alliance, rule the Republic.
These are Gaius Julius Caesar, Gnaius Pompeius Magnus (“Pompey”), and
Marcus Licinius Crassus. Period of Roman expansion. An uneasy peace
between Rome and Parthia in the east allows Rome to expand at the expense of it’s barbarian neighbors to the north, east, and south. In 60 BC, Julius Caesar is elected Consul. Under his leadership Germany is conquered to the line of the Oder River. Meanwhile Pompey conquers the Dacians in what is OTL Romania, and Crassus invades and conquers Britain up to the line of the Firth of Forth.
40 BC-34 BC--Second Roman Civil War. Crassus is killed in battle in Britain in
40 BC. The Triumverate breaks up and war breaks out between Caesar and
Pompey. Caesar is eventually victorious, but is assassinated soon after. Power now lies in the hands of one of Caesar’s generals, Mark Antony, and his nephew and adopted heir, Octavian. The two form an uneasy alliance, and for a few brief years, peace reigns in the Roman lands.
40 BC-35 BC--Egypt at war with Parthia. King Phraates IV of Parthia invades
Egypt’s Syrian provinces in 40 BC. The newly reorganized Egyptian army meets the Parthian host in battle and inflicts a sharp defeat on it, forcing it to retreat from Egyptian territory. The Parthians try again for each of the next five years, but with the same results. Egypt, which has no interest in further expansion in Asia, is finally able to bring the Parthians to the negotiating table after a particularly bloody defeat of the Parthian army at Damascus in 35 BC. However, periodic border raids by the Parthians will continue for the next few decades, despite the “official” peace between the two empires.
33 BC--Pharaoh Seti V dies, succeeded by Psamtik XI.
30-27 BC--Third Roman Civil War, when the uneasy alliance between
Octavian and Antony finally breaks down. Fall of the Republic. Antony is
defeated and killed, Octavian Caesar declared the first Roman Emperor, takes
the name Caesar Augustus.
10 BC--Pharaoh Psamtik XI dies, succeeded by Necho X.
2 BC-31 AD--Second Parthian War between Rome and Parthia. After sitting on the fence for most of the war, in 29 AD Egypt allies itself with Rome. This
decisively tips the balance, and Parthia loses Asia Minor to Rome. Egypt
reclaims it’s lands taken from it by the Ptolemies in the Third Punic War, putting the border of the Egyptian Empire back on the Euphrates.
4 BC--Yeshua born in Bethlehem, province of Yehud.
1 AD-1450 AD---Bantu migrations in Africa. The Bantu, iron-working
cattle-herders who originated in the forests of west Africa, began migrating south
and east beginning in about 1 AD. By 200 AD, the first wave of Bantu had
reached the area of Natal, in what is OTL South Africa. Other Bantu groups
moved into East Africa during this period as well. All of these early groups came
under the influence of Egyptian culture, and later, when the Egyptians expanded
their holdings into the interior regions of east Africa beginning in 280 AD, under
the political control of Egypt as well. Successive waves of Bantu migration
encountered the Egyptians, and were either repulsed or assimilated. In the
years after 320 AD, Egyptian cultural influence has continued to creep inland,
and as a result, by 1450 AD, most of the interior of Africa consists of small city
states which are, to one degree or another, Egyptianized culturally (the farther
away from Egypt’s borders, obviously, the less cultural affinity of the native
city-state cultures). The last wave of Bantu migration reaches southern Africa
about 1450 AD, where they will settle and assimilate to Egyptian culture. The
exception is on the west coast of Africa, where Ghanaese cultural influence
(itself heavily influenced by Rome) competes with that of Egypt in places like the
Kingdom of Kongo.
12 AD--Pharaoh Necho X dies, succeeded by Ahmosi V.
30 AD--Yeshua called to ministry. 12 Disciples join him.
33 AD--Yeshua attacks vendors in Temple at Jerusalem during Passover
celebration. Accused of Blasphemy by Sanhedrin, tried, convicted and
executed. Body disappears from tomb 3 days later. Disciples claim to have
seen Yeshua, risen from the dead, begin making converts.
40 AD--Pharaoh Ahmosi V dies childless. The next in line to the throne is
second cousin who lives in Sais, but the throne is usurped by an army general
from Thebes who is also a cousin (but more distantly) of the deceased Pharaoh. This general takes the royal name of Wahibre II, founding the 29th Dynasty. Also in this year, most of the “Maschiachim” (Christians) are driven out of Yehud by the Jewish authorities. Communities are formed in Syria, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, Egypt, Athens, Arabia and Rome over the next few years. The new religion begins to spread.
50 AD-75 AD--Third Parthian War between Rome and Parthia. King Vologeses
I of Parthia invades Asia Minor. Rome seeks an alliance with Egypt, but is
turned down by Pharaoh Wahibre II, who has plenty to keep him busy at home
as he consolidates his rule and stamps out rebellions by supporters of the
legitimate heirs to the throne. After a quarter century of war, Parthia retakes Asia Minor. Both sides are exhausted, and an uneasy peace will reign over the region for the next 75 years.
64 AD--A great fire burns much of Rome to the ground. The Emperor Nero, who is widely suspected of starting the blaze himself so as to clear land for his new palace, accuses the Christians and begins a bloody persecution. However, the bravery of the Christians as they face martyrdom merely strengthens the new religion, and it continues to grow despite Nero’s brutality. The persecutions end when Nero commits suicide in 68 AD, but will recur under later emperors.
60-100 AD--Christian Gospels composed and set down in writing.
90 AD--The grandson of the legitimate heir to the throne of Egypt, whose place was usurped by Wahibre II in 40 AD, leads a revolt. After a short civil war lasting less than a year, Wahibre is overthrown and the 28th Dynasty is restored. The new king takes the royal name of Rameses XVII.
100-300 AD--Christianity continues to spread, despite persecutions, in both the Roman and Parthian Empires. In the Egyptian Empire, the policy of religious tolerance continues to be practiced, so no persecutions take place there. Christianity makes it's greatest inroads in the Roman Empire, where, by 300 AD, it has nearly a million adherents. In both the Parthian and Egyptian Empires, however, strong competitor religions offering the same promise of eternal life and spiritual resurrection, Zoroastrianism/Mithraism in Parthia and the cult of Osiris and Isis in Egypt, prevent Christianity from making much headway in those lands. Indeed, in Egypt, a strange hybrid develops, as the Egyptians gradually absorb Yeshua and Mary into their religion as new incarnations of Osiris and Isis. A bizarre version of the Christian Trinity will finally emerge in Egypt...with Yeshua identified with both Osiris AND his son, Horus (similar to "The Father and the Son" portion of the OTL Christian Trinity) and Mary (identified as Isis) forming the third part of the Trinity. One effect all this does have on the Egyptian religion is to elevate Osirus, Isis, and Horus to the supreme position in the Egyptian pantheon. The other Egyptian deities come to be regarded as more akin to angels than as actual deities, and the importance of their cults declines accordingly. Of course, the version of "Christianity" which thus takes root in Egypt has very little in common with Christianity practiced elsewhere.
100-105 AD: Border war between Rome and Egypt flares up, but ends
inconclusively.
128 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XVII dies, succeeded by Rameses XVIII.
142 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XVIII dies, succeeded by Necho XI.
150 AD--Pharaoh Necho XI dies, succeeded by Seti VI.
150 AD-160 AD--Fourth Parthian War between Rome and Parthia. Egypt
secretly finances both sides, and the war finally peters out inconclusively after ten years of fighting.
155-159 AD--Kushite Revolt. Prince Taharka briefly throws out the Egyptian
garrisons and establishes independent Kushite kingdom, but Pharaoh Seti’s
armies succeed in re-establishing Egyptian control within four years. Egypt
discovers that the Kushite rebels were financed by Parthia, chilling relations
between the two empires.
191 AD--Pharaoh Seti VI dies, succeeded by Thutmoses VII.
197 AD--Pharaoh Thutmoses VII secretly forms an alliance with Rome against
Parthia.
199 AD-220 AD--Fifth Parthian War between Rome and Parthia. Egypt is allied
with Rome, and Parthia, despite fanatical resistance, is inexorably beaten back. Finally, severely weakened, King Artavasdes of Parthia sues for peace in 220 AD. In a humiliating peace treaty, Parthia cedes Asia Minor and Armenia to Rome, while Egypt takes Mesopotamia. Parthia falls into political turmoil shortly afterward.
203 AD--Pharaoh Thutmoses VII dies, succeeded by Psamtik XII. Psamtik XII
continues the policies of his predecessor, and the war with Parthia continues.
224 AD--Ardashir I, chieftain of the Sassanid dynasty in the province of Persis, overthrows the King Artavasdes of Parthia. Sassanid Persian Empire
established. The new dynasty is very aggressive, and holds dreams of
re-establishing control over the full extent of the lands held by the old Achmaenid Persian empire. This does not bode well for peace in the region.
227--Mani, a Persian mystic born near Babylon in 215 AD, and who has
remained in Mesopotamia after the region passed into the control of Egypt, has the first of two visions which will lead him to found the religion of Manichaeism.
229-238 AD--King Ardashir I of Persia declares war on Rome in 229 AD. Egypt
remains neutral, but secretly finances both sides, which results in a protracted war which is exhausting for both empires, but inconclusive.
230 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XII dies, succeeded by Ahmosi VI.
240-260 AD--During the period of peace between Rome and Persia, Rome
expands it’s holdings in Europe at the expense of it’s barbarian neighbors.
Roman armies push the borders of the empire to the line of the Vistula and Bug rivers, and also take the Crimea and the region north of it in the southern
Ukraine.
241 AD--Mani has his second vision and begins preaching in Mesopotamia. Over the next few decades Mani will travel throughout both the Egyptian and Persian Empires, and his new religion will gain many followers. In Egypt it becomes simply one among many competing faiths, all tolerated by the Empire, and never becomes a threat to the established State religion. However, in Persia, Mani comes into conflict with the priesthood of the official Zoroastrian state religion.
241-250 AD--War between Persia and Egypt. King Shapur I invades
Mesopotamia in 241. Egyptian forces are defeated in 242 outside Babylon, and Mesopotamia falls to Persia. Shapur follows up with yearly invasions of the Egyptian holdings in Syria and Palestine, but the Egyptians are successful in holding these areas. A treaty of peace is finally signed in 250 AD.
258-260 AD--Shapur I of Persia invades Armenia, sparking war with Rome.
Roman Emperor Valerian is defeated and captured in battle in 260 AD, and
Armenia falls to the Sassanids. Egypt is still recovering from it’s recent war with Persia, and remains neutral.
271 AD--King Shapur I of Persia dies, the Sassanid Empire experiences a period of dynastic struggle and is thus self-absorbed for a while . Relative peace reignsin the rest of the Middle East. Also in this year, Mani, who with the death of Shapur I has lost his protector, is crucified in Persia. The new King, Bahram I, severely persecutes Mani’s followers.
275 AD--Pharaoh Ahmosi VI dies, succeeded by Ahmosi VII.
280-320 AD--Expansion of Egyptian holdings in Africa. Over the previous
centuries, Egyptian settlers had gradually drifted west from Egypt’s coastal
holdings, and a large area of the African interior had come under the cultural, if not the political, domination of Egypt. Ahmosi VII decides to make that
domination political as well, and his policy is continued by his successors, Necho XII and Thutmoses VII. Egyptian armies push westward from the coast. The various petty kingdoms of the interior fall to the might of Egyptian arms, and a force of Egyptian marines conquers Madagascar. Thus, by 320 AD, the Pharaohs have added significantly to their realm. With these new conquests come new resources, such as diamonds and exotic woods, spices, animals, ivory, and many others. Egypt’s wealth reaches unprecedented levels.
290 AD--Pharaoh Ahmosi VII dies, succeeded by Necho XII.
GENERAL RELIGIOUS DEVELOPMENTS, 300-600 AD: Christianity continues to grow, especially in the Roman Empire, where it is gradually besting it’s main rivals, the cults of Mithra and of Isis, and will eventually become the state religion. In Egypt, it continues to be integrated into the native Egyptian religion, and by 400 AD is virtually unrecognizable by Christians in other lands. Indeed, various synods and councils over the course of the next few centuries will declare the Church of Egypt to be heretical, effectively casting Egyptian Christians out of the fold of Christianity. Meanwhile, Manichaeism also continues to grow, spreading to India, China, and the Roman Empire. In Rome, it is at first tolerated, but eventually will be persecuted (especially after Christianity becomes the State religion) with such severity that it will eventually be exterminated. The rulers of Persia continue to persecute the Manichaens, and as a result the religion does not flourish there, either. Egypt, with it’s tolerant policies, is another matter. Large Manichaean communities arise, but as with Christianity, they never become large enough a factor to threaten the state religion. However, it is in Egypt where Manichaeism survives to the present day, having been exterminated in all other places where it once took root.
304 AD--Pharaoh Necho XII dies, succeeded by Thutmoses VIII.
311 AD--Constantine I defeats his rivals and becomes Emperor of Rome. He
converts to Christianity soon afterward, and makes it the official religion of the Roman Empire.
333 AD--Pharaoh Thutmoses VIII is overthrown by a descendant of Wahibre II
(“the Usurper”), who takes the throne as Wahibre III, restoring the 29th Dynasty. Wahibre III ruthlessly hunts down and slays all the remaining members of the family of the 28th Dynasty who he can find, earning the name “Bloody Hand.”
337-370--Period of intermittent warfare between Sassanid Persia, Rome and
Egypt. Wars are inconclusive, but exhausting for all powers concerned.
340-363--The Great Persecution of the Christian church by King Shapur II of the Sassanid Persian Empire, who is a devout and evangelical Zoroastrian.
350 AD--Pharaoh Wahibre III dies, succeeded by Ahmosi VIII. Ahmosi VIII,
however, is killed in battle against the Persians later that same year, and is
succeeded by Wahibre IV.
360 AD--Julian “the Apostate” becomes Emperor of Rome, revokes Christianity’s official status within the Empire and attempts to revive paganism. Christians are persecuted.
363 AD--Roman Emperor Julian “the Apostate” is killed in battle with Persia. His successor, Jovian, continues the persecution of Christians.
364 AD--Emperor Jovian is overthrown by Valentinian, who becomes Emperor
Valentinian I. Christianity is restored as the official religion of Rome.
Persecutions of Christians end.
376AD--Huns, led by Uldin, reach the Black Sea and the Danube, conquering the eastern Goths. They also eject the Romans from their lands north of the Black Sea.
380-399--Persecution of Christians in the Sassanid Persian Empire by Kings
Ardashir II, Shapur II, and Bahram IV.
395AD--the Huns raid Armenia.
396 AD--Wahibre II’s attempt to eradicate the old dynasty was not totally
successful, and a line descended from a distant cousin of Thutmoses VIII still
lives in Sais. This family rises in revolt against Wahibre III, and overthrows him. Wahibre and his entire family are put to death. The new family takes power as the 30th Dynasty. The new king takes the royal name of Necho XII.
399 AD--King Yazdagird I of Sassanid Persia ascends the throne. Persecutions of Christians end.
408 AD--Pharaoh Necho XII dies, succeeded by Necho XIII. Also in this year,
King Uldin and the Huns raid into Roman Territory. They cross the Danube but
are defeated by Rome. However, Rome is forced back to it’s fortifications on the lines of the Vistula and the Danube. All territories east of the Vistula and north of the Danube are lost to the Huns.
409--Yazdagird I of Persia issues an Edict of Toleration for Christians, permitting them to publicly worship and build churches.
412AD--the new Hun leader Donatus is murdered by the Romans and is
succeeded by Charato (Karaton), who unifies all Western Huns.
416-420---Yazdagird I of Persia revokes his Edict of Toleration, persecutions of Christians begin again. Many Christians flee to Egyptian and Roman territories.
420 AD--Pharaoh Necho XIII dies, succeeded by Necho XIV.
420-427--The White Huns (an Indo-Iranian tribe from Central Asia not related to the Mongolian Huns which are at this time troubling Europe) raid Persia as far west as modern Tehran. They are severely defeated and forced to retreat from Persia by King Bahram V in 427 AD. Beginning of a long period of struggle between Sassanid Persia and these nomads from central Asia.
425AD--Huns are hired by a western Roman general (Aetius) to fight in Italy
during a political crisis.
430AD--The new Hun leader Rugida (Rua) signs a peace treaty with the eastern Roman empire (annual salary in return for peace). The Huns permanently establish themselves in Dacia (OTL Romania).
434 AD--Rugida (Rua) dies and is succeeded by Attila (a friend of Aetius) and
his brother Bleda.
437 AD--Pharaoh Necho XIV dies, succeeded by Seti VII.
441AD--The Huns raid Roman outposts along the Danube. Later that year, the Huns sign a peace treaty with the Roman Empire
445AD--By murdering his brother, Attila becomes sole leader of the Huns.
447AD--The Huns and their vassals, the Goths, attack the Roman empire in the Balkans. They break through the Danube defenses and cause extensive
damage.
448 AD onward---Christianity is again persecuted in the Sassanid Persian
Empire.
449AD--Attila signs a new treaty with the Roman Empire.
450AD--The new Roman Emperor Marcian reneges on the Hun-Roman treaty.
451AD--Huns attack the Danube fortifications but are held at the frontier by
Aetius. A new treaty is signed, and the Huns retreat to Dacia, where they collect a yearly tribute from Rome.
453AD--Attila dies. After his death, the Huns are never again much of a threat. By 500 AD they have basically amalgamated with the Goths and settled down in Dacia to stay.
454--Sassanid Persians are defeated by the White Huns. However, the White
Huns are not able to make any significant territorial gains.
457-459--Civil War in the Sassanid Empire. King Yazdagird II faces rebellion by Prince Peroz, who has allied himself with the White Huns. Peroz overthrows Yazdagird and takes the throne in 459.
464-475--White Huns attempt to overthrow King Peroz of Persia, but after a
decade of exhausting war, are finally persuaded to withdraw from Persia in
exchange for a large tribute. An uneasy peace will reign for the next few years.
484--Peroz attacks the White Huns, and is killed in battle. Sassanid Persia is
invaded by the White Huns in the aftermath of this defeat, and most of it is
conquered. The White Huns will rule Persia through puppet Sassanian Kings for the next 40 years.
500 AD--Pharaoh Seti VII dies, succeeded by Thutmoses IX.
c. 500 AD onward--A couple of centuries after the arrival of the Egyptians in
Madagascar, which they found to be virtually uninhabited, a new people calling
themselves the Malagasy began arriving on the island. The Egyptians allow
them to settle, so long as they acknowledge the Pharaoh as their overlord, and
through them learn of a vast island archipelago to the east, beyond India with
lush forests and fields of spices. The Egyptians have been trading with India for
centuries, but now they know where many of the exotic spices which they have
been obtaining there actually originate. The Pharaohs consider the area to be
too far away to make military conquest practicable, but they begin sending
trading ships to the “Spice Islands,” as they come to be called, before 600 AD.
Egypt’s profits and prosperity increase accordingly.
520-531 AD--King Khusro I of Persia, in alliance with Turkish tribes from Central Asia, makes war on the White Huns, finally defeating them and re-establishing full independence.
533 AD--Pharaoh Thutmoses IX dies, succeeded by Rameses XIX.
540-562--War between Rome and Sassanid Persia.
552 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XIX dies, succeeded by Psamtik XIII
558 AD: the Avars (another Hunnic tribe from Central Asia) invade the Russian
steppes and push the Slavs to the west. Within a few years, these Slavic
refugees begin attacking the Roman fortifications on the Vistula and Danube.
Most settle in Dacia, where they amalgamate with the Huns and Goths currently living there.
560 AD: the Roman Emperor Justinian hires the Avars to fight the Huns and
Slavs. The Avars conquer Dacia, and like the Huns before them, settle there.
568 AD: the Avars attempt an invasion of Roman Territory, but are unable to get past the strong fortifications and naval patrols on the Danube. 590 AD: the empire of the Avars extends from the Volga to the Danube to the Baltic Sea.
570 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XIII dies, succeeded by Psamtik XIV.
571 AD--Mohammed born in Arabia. Also in this year, the Roman Empire signs
a treaty with the Avars. The Avars now control an area extending from the
Roman frontier on the Danube and Vistula lines to the Volga and the Black Sea.
584: Kubrat unifies the Bulgars (a Turkic vassal tribe of the Avars, living in the
region of the southern Ukraine and Crimea). They revolt and establish their
independence from the Avars.
596 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XIV dies, succeeded by Rameses XX.
599--The Avars defeat a Roman army in battle, capturing 12,000 prisoners,
which they execute. The Avars get past the Danube fortifications and into the Balkans, where they cause extensive damage before they are finally defeated and forced to retreat back to Dacia.
603-630 AD--Period of warfare between Rome, Persia, and Egypt. Wars are
inconclusive, but severely deplete the resources of all three powers. They are thus ill-prepared for the onslaught of the new enemy which is rising to the south, in Arabia.
626 AD--War between Rome and the Avars. The Avars are unable to breach the Danube lines, and accept a Roman peace offer. This will prove to be the last major incursion by the Avars against Roman Territory.
610-634 AD--Mohammed founds the new religion of Islam. The Muslims (as
Mohammed’s followers are called) gradually, through a series of wars, bring the entire Arabian peninsula under their control.
615 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XX dies, succeeded by Ahmosi IX.
632 AD--Death of Mohammed. Hadrat Abu Bakr becomes Caliph.
634---Omar ibn l-Khattab becomes Caliph, founding the Ommayad dynasty.
Also in this year, a Greek scientist working in the city of Naukratis (Greek colony city in Egypt), while experimenting with petroleum, sulfur, and other
inflammables, discovers a liquid substance that adheres to surfaces, ignites
upon contact, burns fiercely, and cannot be extinguished by water alone. The scientist has also invented a pumping machine, which enables the mixture to be projected in streams nearly 100 feet long. He demonstrates his discovery to Pharaoh Ahmosi, who recognizes it’s potential as a weapon. He orders Egyptian navy vessels and fortifications to be equipped with projectors for the new substance, which will come to be called “Egyptian Fire.”
634-700--Period of Muslim expansion. Muslim invasions of Syria, Mesopotamia,
Palestine, and other surrounding regions. Egypt loses it’s Asian possessions to
the Muslims, but in 642 AD the Arabs are stopped at the Suez fortifications
(where the Egyptian Fire makes its first dramatic appearance in warfare) and are unable to advance into Africa via land, while the Egyptian navy (also equipped with Egyptian Fire) keeps them from crossing by sea, either. Rome is able, with great difficulty, to hold them out of most of Asia Minor. Thwarted in the west by Rome and Egypt, the Arabs move east, where the Sassanid Persians are not so lucky, their empire falling to a wave of Arab invaders by 650 AD. The Muslims continue to move East, expanding into central Asia and over-running most of the Indian subcontinent by 700 AD. They also move north, taking most of the Caucasus region.
650--The Bulgars are driven westward by the Khazars. They will eventually end up in Dacia, where they overcome the now weakened Avars and establish their own kingdom.
651 AD--Pharaoh Ahmosi IX dies, succeeded by Necho XV.
677 AD--Pharaoh Necho XV dies childless. As there are no male heirs in any
closely related branch of the royal family, the throne passes to the family of
Necho’s Queen, Neferhari, whose family comes from Thebes. The new ruler is
Neferhari’s nephew, a general in the Army. The new King is determined to
restore Thebes to its old imperial glory, and decides to take a royal name from
the Middle Kingdom period of Egypt (which was also ruled by a dynasty from
Thebes and whose literature he especially admires). Thus Sesostris IV ascends the throne as the first Pharaoh of Egypt’s 31st Dynasty.
681 AD--The Bulgars under Kubrat's son Asparuch attempt to cross the Danube but are defeated by the Romans.
c. 700 AD--Over the previous millennium, the Norse peoples of Scandinavia
have been slowly developing sleek, double-ended boats. These are oar
powered, and carry only small crews, and are capable of only short coastal
voyages in sight of land. Even in these limited craft, the Norse have made
themselves a nuisance with raids on Rome’s northern frontiers. However, about
700 AD, two innovations (the T-shaped keel, which strengthens the vessel
against heavy seas as well as allowing a mast and sail to be mounted, and the
sideboard rudder) are made by Norse shipbuilders in Norway which will enable
the Norse to leave their home waters and become not merely a nuisance, but a
plague. However, it will be a few decades still before these designs are
perfected, and the fearsome Viking longship makes it’s appearance on the world
scene.
700-730 AD--period of relative peace in the Middle East as the Omayyad
Caliphs, now based in Damascus, Syria, consolidate their gains. Conquered
peoples are treated somewhat tolerantly, being allowed to continue to practice
their own religions if they pay a special tax. Most people in the conquered
regions convert to Islam rather than pay the tax. The Jews in the province of
Yehud and elsewhere are a major exception, however, and there are other
groups scattered through the Caliphate who do not convert, as well (some
Christians, Zoroastrians and Manichaeans in Persia and Mesopotamia, for
example). North of the Caucasus, however, a new power is rising...the Khazar
Kaganate. The Khazars had already made their presence felt a few years earlier,
when they forced the Bulgars westward against the Roman defenses on the
Vistula and the Danube. They also are a very tolerant people, and many Jews
and Christians who do not wish to pay the Muslim tax on their faiths will flee to
the Khazar lands over the succeeding decades. The Khazars will become a
major player in world affairs in the centuries to come.
702 AD--Pharaoh Sesostris IV dies, succeeded by Amenemhet V.
729 AD--Pharaoh Amenemhet V dies, succeeded by Rameses XXI.
730-731AD--Khazar troops commanded by Barjik destroy an Arab army at the
Battle of Ardabil, then conquer Azerbaijan, Armenia and northern Iraq for a brief
time. However, Caliph Hisham I rallies his forces and drives the Khazars back
north of the Caucasus the next year.
731-740 AD--War between Egypt and the Caliphate. Taking advantage of the
temporary weakness of the Arabs following their defeat by the Khazars, Pharaoh
Rameses XXI decides to attempt to retake Egypt’s lost possessions in Asia, and
invades Palestine. The local Jews rise against their Muslim overlords when the
Pharaoh’s armies cross the border, and with their support, Rameses is able to
clear the Muslims out in short order. He follows up with an invasion of Syria, and
by 733 AD, has pushed the frontiers of the empire back to the Euphrates.
Caliph Hisham I, forced from his capital at Damascus, attempts to reconquer the
areas by invasion every year, but finally, in 740 AD, signs a peace treaty
recognizing the new frontiers. The Omayyad Caliphate re-establishes it’s capital
at Mecca.
737--The Arabs defeat the Khazars. The Khazars are forced to convert to Islam.
However, both the conquest and the conversion are short-lived.
740-753 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XXI orders construction of new fortifications to
defend the Asian possessions of the Egyptian Empire. Many new fortresses are
built, and old ones re-vamped. Egyptian Fire projectors are installed in all
fortifications.
740-780 AD--Muslim expansion in India and central Asia. By 780 AD, the
Caliphate has taken the entire Indian subcontinent, and has pushed its borders
to the line of the Jaxartes River, Hindu Kush Mountains, and the Himalayas. The
island of Ceylon is also taken. This will mark the furthest extent of the
Caliphate’s borders in the east, as the formidable terrain barriers in the south
and the formidable tribes of nomadic horse archers in the north halt the Arab
drive eastward.
747 AD--A bad earthquake causes much destruction and loss of life in Judaea and Transjordan. The Jewish temple is so badly damaged that its site must be cleared and rebuilt from scratch.
749-750 AD--Abbasid Revolution topples the Ommayad Caliphate. The
revolution arose from several factors. One major impetus was the secularism of
the Omayyad caliphs. The Omayyads had always been outsiders—as a wealthy
clan in Mecca, they had opposed Muhammad—and the secularism and
sometime degeneracy that accompanied their caliphate delegitimized their rule
for many devout Muslims. The Abassids took their name from al-'Abbas, a
paternal uncle of Muhammad and early supporter of the Prophet, and their close
kinship to Muhammad and the position of al-'Abbas as a Companion of the
Prophet served them well in gaining support. A final impetus was the exclusion
of non-Arabs from the highest levels of Islamic society under the Ommayads,
which lead many non-Arab converts to Islam, especially in Mespotamia and Iran,
to support the rebels. In a bloody uprising, the Abbasids massacre almost all of
the Omayyad House and sieze power, their leader, Abu al Abbas, being declared
Caliph in 750 AD. A few surviving Omayyads flee westward to Egypt, where they
are given sanctuary and maintain a sort of “Caliphate in Exile,” with the support
of the Pharaohs (who see the potential to use them to forment instability in the
Caliphate, thus weakening a dangerous enemy).
c. 750 AD--In west Africa south of the Sahara, various petty kingdoms and city
states have arisen, influenced by trade with the empires to the north and east.
The area is rich in gold, and supplies other exotic goods obtained from the
coastal forests to the south. In about 750 AD, the king of the city of Kumbi Saleh
unites the various city states in the region, forming the Kingdom of Ghana. Over
the next few centuries the Ghanaites expand their holdings until they have a
substantial empire in western Africa.
750 AD--Muslim armies attempt to move north from the Caucasus onto the
plains of what will one day become Russia, but are defeated by the Khazars.
751 AD--Arab armies meet the armies of the T’ang Chinese Empire at the Talas
River, in central Asia southwest of Lake Balkhash. The Chinese are defeated,
halting their expansion into central Asia. However, the Arabs do not pursue the
retreating Chinese, and their empire will expand no further eastward, either.
Chinese prisoners taken at the battle introduce the art of paper making to the
Arab world. It will spread quickly along the trade routes, reaching Egypt (where it
fails to make much of an impression in a culture where papyrus-making has
been an art for over 3,000 years by this point) and Rome (where it becomes very
popular as an alternative to imported Egyptian papyrus) by the end of the
century.
753 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XXI dies, succeeded by Sesostris V. Sesostris
continues his father’s policy of building fortifications in Palestine and Syria.
755-757 AD--War between Rome and the Caliphate. The Romans are pushed
back in Asia Minor to the line of the Halys River. However, the Muslims are not
able to make any further gains, and a treaty is signed.
760 AD--Pro-Omayyad rebellions in Arabia, formented by the Omayyad exiles in
Egypt, with Egyptian support. The Abbasids brutally crush these rebellions. The
sacred Kabaa in Mecca is burned to the ground, creating much shock and
resentment among the Arabs.
762 AD--War between the Caliphate and the Khazars. The Khazars invade the
Caucasus regions under control of the Caliphate, but are forced to retreat.
764 AD--Recognizing that the base of support for the new Abbasid regime is not
in Arabia (which is still quite pro-Omayyad) but in Mesopotamia and Iran, Caliph
Abu Jafar al Mansur founds a new city on the Tigris river in Mesopotamia, called
Baghdad, and established a new capital there.
777 AD--Pharaoh Sesostris V dies, succeeded by Sesostris VI.
c. 790 onward--Persecutions of Jews in the Roman Empire. Many Jews flee to
the Khazar lands, where the Kagans grant religious freedom to everyone.
Others flee to the Egyptian Empire, which follows similarly tolerant policies.
795 AD--Norse raiders begin ravaging the coasts of Roman Britannia and
Ireland.
795 AD--Pharaoh Sesostris VI dies, succeeded by Seti VIII.
c. 800 AD--The first Norse settlements are made on the islands off the coast of
Pictland and Scottia (the region north of the Firth of Forth on the island of
Britannia which is not held by Rome). Also at about the same time, Norse
traders begin moving down the rivers which penetrate the interior of the continent
from the Baltic coast. They meet and trade with the native Slavic people who
live along major rivers such as the Don, Dneiper, and others, and many of them
settle down. Beginnings of Norse settlement in the region.
c. 800-1200 AD--In the aftermath of the Muslim conquest of the Indian
subcontinent, there is a large migration of Hindu and Buddhist Indians into the
Indonesian Archipelago. Hinduism had been introduced into the region several
centuries ago, so these people are absorbed by the various city and island states
in the region with no major disruption of historical developments there from OTL.
The main change will be that the Hindu kingdoms there, already richer than in
OTL due to Egyptian trade, will with this boost in population be better able to
resist Muslim encroachment, and Islam will never get a foothold in the region.
801 AD--Pharaoh Seti VIII dies, succeeded by Rameses XXII.
805 AD--Norse raiders attack the coasts of Gaul and Hispania for the first time.
807 AD: In the years after their arrival in the region north south of the
Carpathians and north of the Danube, the Bulgars have mixed with the Huns,
Avars, Goths, and Slavs who live in the region, and by 800 AD have even
adopted the local Slavic language as their own. However, they have not proven
to be much of a threat to Rome, living peacefully most of the time. However, this
is about to change. In 807, Krum becomes king of the Bulgars. Krum is very
aggressive, and the plunder available in the Roman lands south of the Danube
looks very tempting...
810 AD: Bulgars, under King Krum, attack the Roman Danube defenses. They
are repulsed. Also in this year, the Roman navy clashes with the Norse in the
Oceanus Britannicus (OTL English Channel) off the coast of Cantia (OTL Kent).
The Romans have never established a true ocean-going navy, using poorly
adapted Mediterranean warship designs, and the swift, agile Norse vessels
decimate the Roman fleet. From this time onward, the Norse will control the
western seas. Communication between Roman Britain and the portions of the
continental Roman Empire becomes very problematic.
811 AD: The Roman Emperor Honorius III decides to punish the Bulgars for
their raiding, and leads an army across the Danube. Krum's Bulgars defeat the
Romans and kill the Emperor in battle. Less than two thousand of the
70,000-man Roman army escape across the Danube.
813 AD: Krum of the Bulgars again assaults the now-weakened Danube
defenses. He breaks through and sacks Hadrianopolis. Other cities in the
region pay tribute to avoid a similar fate.
814 AD: While on his way to storm the important trading city of Byzantium, which
has refused to pay tribute, Bulgar King Krum dies and is succeeded by his son
Omurtag. Omurtag’s army is severely defeated by a Roman army outside of
Byzantium and forced to retreat north of the Danube. The Bulgars will pose no
threat to Rome for quite some time to come.
820 AD--The Norse begin settling on the coast of Pictland and Scottia. They
quickly overcome the Picts and Scots in battle, and establish control over large
areas. Within 50 years, they will (by conquest and intermarriage with Scottish
and Pictish ruling houses, who, like the Norse, are pagans) bring all of Scottia
and Pictland under their control. Also in this year, pro-Omayyad rebellions again
break out in Arabia. Once again, they are brutally suppressed by Persian troops
loyal to the Abbasid Caliph.
825 AD: the Arab mathematician Al Khwarizmi of Baghdad writes a book on
"Hindu numerals" that spreads the use of "Arabic" numerals
830 AD--The Norse begin settling in Ireland and in Roman Britannia. In Ireland,
they establish towns at Cork, Dublin, and other places on the coast, and quickly
subjugate the Irish tribes living nearby. In Britain, Roman power initially limits the
Norse to small coastal enclaves, and the Romans are able to maintain control
over most of the island. This situation will continue for many years.
840 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XXII dies, succeeded by Amenemhet VI.
849 AD: Caliph al-Mutawakkil deposes the patriarch of the Christian Church and
persecutes Christians.
c. 850 AD--Driven by the Turkic Pechenegs, the Magyars (a Finno-Ugrian
nomadic tribe living in the region north and east of the Black Sea and allied to
the Khazars) migrate west. They reach the plains east of the Roman defenses
on the Vistula by 860 AD. These lands are inhabited by a Slavic tribe called the
Polanie, who call the area Polska. The Magyars settle among the Polanie and
establish themselves as a ruling class in the region. Also at about this time,
Roman missionaries convert the King of Ghana to Christianity. Ghana thus
becomes the first Christian state outside of Rome.
850 AD-The Persian mathematician Khwarazmi invents Algebra.
860 AD--The Norse discover Iceland.
861 AD--Pharaoh Amenemhet VI dies, succeeded by Amenemhet VII. Also in
this year, the Khazar Kagan, Bulan, converts to Judaism.
862 AD--The Magyars raid Roman territory, breaching Roman defenses on the
Vistula and causing much damage before they are finally forced to retreat by
pursuing Roman armies. Over the next 30 years, the Magyars will continue to
periodically raid into Roman territory, but they are not interested in territorial gain,
just plunder...for now. The Romans are able to buy relative peace most of the
time by making large payments in gold to the Magyar. Also in this year, the
Norseman Rurik becomes ruler of Novgorod, founding the State of Rus. Rurik
becomes the first Prince of Rus.
863 AD--Boris, King of the Bulgars, converts to Christianity and allies his
kingdom to Rome.
869 AD--Pharaoh Amenemhet VII dies, succeeded by Seti IX.
870 AD--All of Ireland has been brought under the control of the Norse.
However, the control is somewhat tenuous. Irish kinglets still reign over most
areas of the island, but swear allegiance to Norse overlords in Dublin. This
situation, of course, could change at any time. However, as in Scottia and
Pictland, the pagan Irish (who had no St. Patrick to convert them to Christianity
in this TL) and the pagan Norse actually have a great deal in common, culturally,
and the two groups get along quite well most of the time. Gradually over time,
intermarriage will erase the few differences that exist between them.
872 AD--The Norse kingdoms in Scandinavia are united by a chieftain from
Norway named Harald Fairhair, who takes the throne as King Harald I. Harald
asserts his claim to rule over all the Norse lands, and his claim is accepted by
Norse in Britain, Scottia, Pictland, and Ireland. The Norse in the land of the Rus
do not, however.
874 AD--Iceland is settled by the Norse.
875-880 AD--In 875 King Harald I of the Norse leads a large army to Roman
Britain with the aim of conquering the island. The Norse establish a large
enclave on the island, centered on the city of Eboracum (York). The Romans are at this time very pre-occupied with the Magyars on their eastern border,
and over the course of the next 5 years, the Norse continue to expand their
enclave. By 880 AD, they have overcome the last Roman resistance, and the
entire island is under their control.
877-879 AD--War between Egypt and the Caliphate. In 877, Muslim armies
invade Syria, but are unable to take the Egyptian fortresses in the region.
Frustrated, the Muslims lay siege to Damascus. An Egyptian army arrives in 888
to confront them, and in a bloody battle, the Muslims are defeated and forced to
leave Syria. A peace treaty is signed the next year.
879 AD--Prince Rurik of the Rus dies, succeeded by Oleg.
882 AD--The Rus, under Oleg, conquer Kiev, siezing it from the Khazars. Oleg
moves his capital there from Novgorod.
888 AD--Pharaoh Seti IX dies, succeeded by Rameses XXIII.
889 AD--The Magyars, under King Arpad, have migrated from the plains east of
the Vistula to the lands south of the Carpathians, in the Danube basin. They are
met by the armies of the Boris, King of the Bulgars, and soundly defeated. The
Magyars retreat back to Polska.
897-899 AD--In 897 King Arpad of the Magyars breaches Rome’s Vistula
defenses, and this time the Magyars sweep all the way to the Oder River before
they are finally stopped at the old Roman defenses on said River (which the
Romans have kept in repair as a second line of defense ever since the frontier
was pushed east to the Vistula). These the Magyars are unable to breach, and
the front stabilizes. The Romans counterattack the next year, and two Roman
armies are defeated and severely mauled as a result. Accepting the fait
accompli, the Romans sign a treaty with the Magyars in 899, ceding the area
between the Oder and the Vistula to the Magyars.
875-1000 AD--Slow disintegration of the Abbasid Caliphate. Various areas,
including Persia, Afghanistan, and the Indian subcontinent, establish themselves
as virtually independent of the Caliphate, while still officially acknowledging the
hegemony of the Abbasid Caliph in name, if not in fact. The Caliphs, who have
over the years fallen into degeneracy and weakness, allow this to happen with
little protest.
907 AD--Oleg of the Rus leads a fleet across the Black Sea and attacks the city
of Byzantium. With the help of a Roman fleet, the city withstands the assault.
Oleg signs a treaty with Rome later that year.
910-915 AD--War between Rome and the Norse. In 910 AD , a Roman fleet
crosses from the Jutland peninsula and lands an army in southern Norway while
King Harald and the main Norse fleet are off raiding the Gallic coast. Before a
messenger ship can reach Harald, the Romans have established control over
most of the Scandinavian portions of Harald’s kingdom. Harald’s response is to
rally the Norse of Britannia and Ireland, raise a huge army and fleet, and then
invade Norway himself in 912 AD. Harald defeats the Roman general Maximus
Aurelius and utterly destroys his army, and Scandinavia is once again safely
Norse. The war sputters on for another three years, mostly consisting of
inconclusive clashes between the rival fleets in the Baltic and North Seas.
Finally, a treaty is signed in 915 in which Rome recognizes Harald’s claim to his
conquered territory in Britain and elsewhere, in exchange for a guarantee of an
end to Norse raiding on Roman territories. Harald will keep his agreement until
his death. His successors will not.
913 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XXIII dies, succeeded by Sesostris VII.
918-920 AD--War flares up between Rome and Egypt. For centuries, there has
been ongoing tension between the two powers in the disputed lands separating
their respective holdings on the northern coast of Africa. In 918 AD, Pharaoh
Sesostris VII decides to resolve the simmering conflict by siezing the disputed
lands. However, Sesostris is killed in battle against the Romans in 920 AD,
leaving no heirs. There are several legitimate and not-so-legitimate contenders
for the throne, however, and Egypt falls into civil war for three years, during
which time Rome siezes not only the disputed lands but the city of Cyrene on the
Libyan coast as well. Brief Interregnum in the line of Pharaohs.
922 AD--The Magyars under King Zoltan break through the Danube defenses
and raid into Italy, causing much damage. They are finally beaten by a Roman
army and forced to retreat back across the Danube.
923 AD--The Royal Vizier of Sesostris VII has emerged victorious in the
three-year civil war following the death of the Pharaoh in battle. The Vizier is a
commoner with no links to the old royal family, and needs to legitimize his rule.
He comes from Memphis, former capital of Egypt under the Old Kingdom, and
he declares his descent, in long line, from the great Pharaohs of the Old
Kingdom (using a fabricated genealogy, of course). He takes as his
own the name of the Pharaoh who built the Great Pyramid, and thus, Khufu II
comes to the throne of Egypt, beginning the 32nd Dynasty. The new Pharaoh
moves the capital to Memphis later that year. He also signs a treaty with Rome,
recognizing Roman title to the disputed North African lands, and purchasing
Cyrene back with a hefty payment in gold.
925 AD--Pharaoh Khufu II enacts laws to dramatically raise taxes. This is to pay
for the huge construction project Khufu has started in Memphis, as he rebuilds
the city to match his own ideas of imperial splendor. The nemhu (land-owning
bourgeosie), who are most dramatically impacted by these laws, are very
resentful. Their resentment grows even more when Khufu starts arresting
recalcitrant nemhu who refuse to pay the new levy and feeding them to the
crocodiles. Khufu also resurrects the ancient practice of marrying one’s sister
and forbidding royal princes to marry outside of the royal house. This causes
widespread consternation in Egypt, where the practice had been largely
abandoned for almost 1000 years.
930 AD--King Harald I Fairhair of the Norse dies. His son Erik, known as “Blood
Axe,” takes the throne as King Erik I. Erik abrogates the treaty with Rome, which
he opposed at the time it was adopted. Norse raids against Roman Territory
resume with full force.
935 AD--King Erik Bloodaxe is killed by the Romans during a raid on the Gallic
coast. His cousin, Haakon, asends the throne. Haakon is a Christian, one of a
growing number of Norse Christians converted by Roman missionaries who have
been travelling north for the past several decades. However, King Haakon does
not force his subjects to embrace the new faith, and when he dies, the
succeeding Norse ruler will be a pagan.
939 AD--War between the Khazar and the Rus. The Rus armies under Prince
Igor are defeated by the Khazars, and a treaty is signed shortly afterward.
948 AD--Roman missionaries convert King Bulcsu of the Magyars to Christianity.
Bulcsu signs a new peace treaty with Rome later that year. However, the
conversion and the treaty will be short lived. When Bulcsu dies two years later,
the new Magyar King Tacsony will be a pagan, and will resume warring against
Rome.
955 AD--Pharaoh Khufu II dies, succeeded by Khafre II. Khafre II will continue
the oppressive policies of his father, causing further resentment among the
nemhu, who had hoped for some relief from the new Pharaoh. Also in this year,
the Magyars under King Tascony suffer a major defeat at the hands of a Roman
army while raiding in Germania. So badly decimated are the Magyars that they
will no longer pose a threat to Rome after this date.
965 AD--Pharaoh Khafre II dies, succeeded by Pepi III. Also in this year, the
Rus under Prince Sviatoslav defeat the Khazars at Sarkel. The Khazar fortress
at that location is captured.
970 AD--Pharaoh Pepi III is slightly mad, probably due to the inbreeding going
on in the royal house since the reign of his grandfather, Khufu II. Pepi claims a
right which is unheard of in Egypt (but which would be called droit du seigneur in
OTL Europe)...the right to demand the favors of the daughters of any of his
subjects on their wedding nights, or payment of a large fine by the bride’s
husband in lieu of said favors. Pepi rarely partakes of the favors of his subject
brides, using the law as a way to squeeze money out of wealthy nemhu without
having to formally raise taxes. However, the few times he does partake are
enough, and lurid rumors spread throughout the land of the depravity of the mad
king. This touches off rebellions in different parts of the kingdom, but the army
for the most part remains loyal, and the rebellions are put down. Pepi will
remain uneasily on his throne, mad as ever, until his death 28 years later.
975 AD--King Geza of the Magyars accepts Christianity. This time it will be a
permanent conversion for the Magyars.
982-985 AD--Erik the Red explores and names Greenland, after being outlawed
for three years on account of manslaughter in Iceland.
986 AD--Southern Greenland is settled by Erik the Red as he leads the first
settlers from Iceland. Erik the Red settles in Brattahlid (today's Qassiarsuk)
which becomes the center of the Eastern Settlement.
988 AD--Prince Vladimir of the Rus converts to Christianity. The first church is
built in Kiev.
990 AD--Bjarne Herjulfson is blown off course while sailing from Iceland to
Greenland, discovers land to the west of Greenland, but does not investigate
further. He instead proceeds to Greenland, where he relates his story to Leif,
son of Erik the Red.
992 AD--The Seljuk Turks invade Transoxania (Ilkhan) and convert to Islam.
995 AD--King Olaf I Tryggvason, who converted to Christianity before ascending
the Norse throne, declares that his kingdom shall be Christian. By a combination
of force and persuasion, Olaf sets about converting his pagan subjects. There is
of course much resistance, but Olaf is ultimately successful, and the Norse
Empire becomes a Christian realm.
998 AD--Pharaoh Pepi III dies, succeeded by Khufu III. However, Khufu will
reign for less than a year before being toppled in a coup by an army general who
claims descent from a house related to the Saite 26th Dynasty. The people of
Egypt, who have always considered the Memphite kings of the 32nd Dynasty as
usurpers and have groaned under their oppression for decades, support the
rebellion wholeheartedly, especially the nemhu, or land-owning bourgeosie. The
new Pharaoh takes the throne as Psamtik XV, and thus begins the 33rd Dynasty.
The new Pharaoh moves the capital back to Sais.
1000 AD--The Quiet Revolution in Egypt. For centuries, the nemhu, or
land-owning bourgeosie, have been quietly gaining influence in Egypt. Their
sons make up the majority of the rank and file of the military, and they
themselves serve in all sorts of posts in the royal administration. But they crave
a larger voice in the affairs of the empire, and the new Pharaoh owes them, in
part, for his own place on the throne. So, when a council of the leading nemhu
demands to be heard, Psamtik listens. The council bemoans the abuses of
power which took place under the Memphite Dynasty, and demands that a
written constitution be drawn up to clearly delineate the powers of the Pharaoh
and to protect the rights of the Egyptian people (especially the nemhu, of
course). Psamtik agrees, and a committee, composed of the Pharaoh and
representatives from the nemhu, meets to craft the document. After several
months of hard negotiating, a document is crafted which is acceptable to all
sides. The Pharaoh retains his powers as head of state and chief High Priest of
the state religion, including complete control of how state revenues are spent.
However, he is to be advised by a Council of the 100 Elders, who will be elected
from among the nemhu once every four years. The Council has the power to
approve or disapprove new taxes and other measures which may imfringe on the
rights of the people, such as changes to criminal law, property siezures, etc. It
also must approve of any decision by the Pharaoh to declare war on a foreign
power. Psamtik XV signs the document, and the first Council of the 100 Elders is
elected shortly thereafter. What emerges is the world’s first constitutional
monarchy. It is not a democracy, or anything close to it. But Egypt has taken
it’s first steps in that direction. Also in this year, Leif Eriksson leads an
expedition from Greenland to explore the lands sighted by Bjarne Herjulfson ten years before. His expedition discovers what is in OTL the regions of Labrador(which they call Helluland--Stone Land), Newfoundland (which they name
Markland--Forest Land), and Nova Scotia (which they name Vinland). They
winter in Vinland, then return to Greenland.
1000-1200 AD--In the New World, the Norse settlements have become firmly
established, and Norse control has been gradually extended inland. But, due
mainly to the relatively small population in the Norse settlements, they have not
moved very far by 1200 AD. The Norse settlements initially thrive by shipping
wheat, furs, and timber home. They have, of course, had much contact, mostly
peaceful, with the Skraelings (native inhabitants), and within a few years are
introduced to two new crops...maize and tobacco. Both of these items become
very profitable trade items, especially tobacco, and thus smoking is introduced
into Europe. It’s popularity quickly grows, and the immense profits which the
Norse earn by being the sole supplier of tobacco into Europe enable them to give
up their old piratical habits and to concentrate on the more peaceful pursuit of
trading. The Skraelings have also profited from the trade, gaining wheat, horses,
pigs and cattle, and knowledge of iron-working, all of which diffuse along the
native trade routes throughout the lands east of the Mississippi. By 1200 AD
knowledge of iron-working has crossed the Mississippi, and is being practiced
as far west as OTL eastern New Mexico. Wheat has also reached those areas
by that date. The new livestock (horses, cattle, and pigs) take longer to
disseminate, and will not cross the Mississippi for another century. However, the
Norse have also introduced two things to the Skraelings which are much less
beneficial to them...alcohol and smallpox. Beginning shortly before 1100 AD,
epidemics spread like wildfire southward and westward along the native trade
routes, devastating the Skraeling populations east of the Mississippi River.
Whole settlements have been depopulated, and even the vast city at Cahokia is
nearly a ghost town by 1200 AD. The “Mississippian Culture,” which never
politically unified the region east of the Mississippi River but has become a
common culture through most of the region, collapses as smallpox ravages the
towns, and priest kings are overthrown by people who have lost faith in their
power to intercede for them with the gods. The spread of alcohol is less rapid,
but as the Skraelings learn to brew rotgut liquor from their native maize, it
becomes a plague on their culture whose only virtue is to make them forget,
temporarily, the devastation wrought by the smallpox epidemics raging around
them.
1003 AD--Thorfin Karlsefni leads an expedition to Vinland from Greenland,
where they found a settlement. His wife, Gudrid, will give birth later that year to
the first European child born in the new land, a boy named Snorri.
1006 AD--After conflicts with the Skraelings (the native inhabitants of
Vinland...either Amerindians or Eskimos) and internal dissentions among
themselves, the Norse abandon their settlement in Vinland and return to
Greenland. However, they will return...
1010 AD--Word of the discovery of new lands west of Greenland has reached
the court of Norse King Olaf Tryggvason. King Olaf orders a colonization
expedition to be fitted out and sent to Vinland. Olaf will send successive fleets
to Vinland each year for the next ten years with new settlers and fresh supplies,
and his effort will ensure that the Norse settlement in the new lands are a
permanent one.
1011 AD onward--The first Norse colonization fleet reaches Vinland in 1011 AD.
They found the town of New Oslo, which will prove to be the first permanent
European city in the New World. Later that year, another settlement is made in
Markland, where it is planned to exploit the timber available there. Successive
expeditions sent by King Olaf Tryggvason will establish other towns in Vinland
and Markland, as well as farther south along the coast, all the way down to Cape
Cod. By the end of the century, the Norse are firmly established in the coastal
regions of the new lands, and are gradually pushing inland as well. However,
news of these settlements does not filter out to the rest of the world for a long
time.
1012 AD--Over the preceding years, trade with Ghana has significantly increased
the gold reserves available to the Roman Empire. In 1012 AD, the Emperor
Trajan II assumes the throne of the Roman Empire, vowing to restore Rome to
it’s old greatness. Trajan initiates many reforms in the Empire aimed at
rebuilding Roman military power. Trajan enacts a law which allows any slave to
gain his freedom by joining the army, with the imperial treasury to compensate
the owners of said slaves (the number of slave manumissions, however, is
limited by the available places in the ranks of the legions). He also makes
changes to the tax laws which encourage Roman citizens to consider a military
career. He also reforms the army, reducing the term of service from 25 years to
7, with bonuses for those soldiers who re-enlist for a second term, and a land
grant for those who complete at least 2 terms of service. Taken together, these
measures provide a huge surge of new recruits for the army, which Trajan
nearly doubles in size. Trajan also reorganizes the army, changing many
infantry legions into cavalry units. The composition of Trajan’s new army is now
50% armored legionary cavalry (armed with lance and bow), 20% light cavalry
archers, and 30% armored legionary infantry (mainly used in defense of
fortifications). The Roman army is now very mobile, highly disciplined, and
packs a signicant missile punch as well as great shock power. It is a truly
formidable force. Trajan also reorganizes the Roman navy, particularly the
Atlantic and Baltic Sea fleets. Roman naval vessels in these areas are now
incorporating many features of Norse design, and Roman fleets are fully capable
of taking on a Norse fleet and winning.
1016-1020 AD--War between the Rus and the Khazars. The Rus push the
Khazars out of the Crimea and establish their southern border on the Black Sea.
1020-1030 AD--War between Rome, the Magyars, and the Bulgars. Emperor
Trajan II, in a series of brutal campaigns, conquers the Magyars and Bulgars and
pushes the eastern frontier of the Roman Empire to the line of the Nieman and
Bug Rivers and the Carpathian Mountains. Trajan orders construction of a
series of strong fortifications to defend the new frontier.
1020-1039 AD--The Great Rebellion in the Egyptian Empire. One of the
compromises which allowed the new constitution to be adopted in Egypt was that
the new constitution only applies within the borders of Egypt proper, as it was
the nemhu of Egypt itself who supported the rebellion which brought Psamtik XV
to power. In the imperial provinces, direct rule by the Pharaoh still persists, and
Psamtik has taken advantage of his free hand in these areas to keep taxes high.
He is not quite as brutal about it as the Memphite Pharaohs were, but
nevertheless the nemhu in the imperial provinces, both those who are ethnically
Egyptian and those who are Egyptianized natives, consider this situation a gross
injustice. Therefore, dis-satisfaction is seething in many of the provinces, and in
1020 AD rebellion breaks out spontaneously (or not so spontaneously...although
it is not known at the time, it will be later discovered that agents of Rome and the
Caliphate had a significant hand in formenting many of these rebellions) in many
places. The rebellions are not coordinated, however, and the Pharaoh’s armies
are able to deal with them individually as they occur. But economic life in the
empire is severely disrupted, and there is large loss of life as a result of the
revolts. Further revolts will flare up intermittently over the two decades, taxing
the military resources of the empire.
1021 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XV dies in battle while leading one of the armies
suppressing a revolt in Nubia, and is succeeded by Psamtik XVI. Also in this
year, King Olaf Tryggvason of the Norse Empire dies, and is succeeded by his
nephew, Olaf Haraldson, who takes the throne as King Olaf II. The new king
continues the policies of his great precedessor.
1021-1023 AD--War between Egypt and Rome. Taking advantage of the chaos
in the Egyptian Empire caused by the Great Rebellion, which they are partially
responsible for formenting, Roman Emperor Trajan II declares war on Egypt.
Roman armies invade Cyrenacia and Syria. In Cyrenacia, Rome once again
takes the city of Cyrene and the surrounding region. In Syria, the system of
Egyptian fortifications stymies them, as it has earlier attempts at conquest.
Pharaoh Psamtik XVI sues for peace, and Rome agrees. Rome’s terms are
severe...she is to keep Cyrenacia, and Egypt is to pay a yearly indemnity of
10,000 talents of gold each year for 20 years. Egypt is also to lower it’s tolls on
Roman shipping passing through the Suez canal. After much hand-wringing,
Psamtik agrees.
1031-1032--War between Rome and the Norse. Emperor Trajan II leads a
Roman army across the Oceanus Britannicus in an attempted reconquest of
Britain. However, the Norse prove to be a tougher opponent than the Magyars
and Bulgars, and Trajan is killed in battle in early 1032 AD outside Londinium.
The Roman army in Britain is withdrawn shortly after. Britain remains in Norse
hands.
1032-1072 AD--The Time of Troubles in the Roman Empire. Unfortunately, one
thing Trajan did not reform was the Roman system of succession, and upon his
death, civil war breaks out in the empire. No less than 25 weak emperors will
claw their way to the throne over the next 40 years, only to be overthrown by the
next, no less weak, successor.
1038 AD--The Seljuks, led by Toghrul Beg, invade Persia, moving their capital to
Isfahan.
1039 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XVI dies, succeeded by Psamtik XVII. The new
Pharaoh declares that the Constitution of 1000 AD will apply to nemhu in the
imperial provinces, as it does to the nemhu in Egypt proper. The Constitution is
amended, and the Council of the 100 Elders becomes the Council of the 400
Elders, with 200 Elders representing nemhu in Egypt proper, and the remaining
200 representing nemhu in the rest of the empire. The Great Rebellion finally
ends, and normality begins to return to the Egyptian Empire.
1055 AD--The Seljuks invade Mesopotamia and install themselves in Baghdad
under the suzerainty of the Abbasids.
1064 AD--The Seljuks invade Asia Minor but are defeated by the Romans.
1071 AD--The Seljuks defeat the Roman army in Asia Minor, killing Emperor
Romulus Augustus III, and establish a Sultanate in Anatolia. The Romans
manage to hold on to most of the coast, but lose the interior.
1072 AD--Revolution in Rome. Following the death of the Emperor Romulus
Augustus III in battle with the Seljuk Turks, a Roman Senator, Septimus Cato,
siezes power in Rome. Cato is allied with a Roman general of Magyar descent,
one Stephanus Flavius, and together they form a potent combination. Cato is a
student of the old Roman Republic, and in cooperation with Flavius, decides to
take the extraordinary step of reviving it. The office of Emperor is declared
permanently null and void, and a new constitution is drawn up which gives
legislative power to the Senate (now expanded to include representatives from
all provinces of the empire), which will be elected by the people. Executive
power will be exercised by two Consuls, who, as in the old Republic, will hold
power on alternate days. The Consuls will be elected by the Senate. The
franchise is extended to all male Roman citizens who are property owners, as
well as to all Roman soldiers, regardless of whether they are property holders or
not. Cato and Flavius are elected as the first Consuls of the new Republic.
One of the first laws enacted by the new Senate is that all Roman soldiers, from
the highest general to the lowliest legionary, must take a holy oath swearing
allegiance to the Roman state. The new law also specifies that pay for Roman
soldiers will come directly from a new civilian department created by the
Republican government, rather than from army paymasters under the control of
the army generals. This will serve to create loyalty to the new regime, rather to
their generals, among the rank and file of the army, making it more difficult for
army generals with imperial aspirations to engineer revolts in the future. The
new Republic will be the most stable government Rome has enjoyed in
centuries.
1076 AD--The Seljuks invade Syria and Palestine, sparking war with Egypt. The
Egyptian field army is crushed near Damascus, but the Seljuks are unable to
take the many Egyptian fortresses and walled cities. The Seljuks lay waste to
the land and then retreat back to Asia Minor. It will take many years for these
regions to recover their former prosperity.
1080 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XVII dies, succeeded by Necho XV.
1080-1100 AD--Expansion of the Norse Empire in the Baltic. The Norse conquer
the pagan proto-Latvians, Lithuanians, Estonians, and Finns along the Baltic
coast and in Finland and convert them to Christianity.
1091--The Seljuks move their capital to Baghdad and depose the Abbasid Caliph
installing one of his younger sons as a puppet ruler. The Caliph’s eldest son,
Ahmad, manages to escape and takes ship to India. There he finds support
among the virtually independent Muslim rulers there, who are opposed to the
upstart Seljuks, and establishes a rival Caliphate in India.
1092-1095--The people of Arabia never liked being ruled by the Abbasid Caliphs,
who they view as usurpers and whose pro-Persian policies have irked them.
They like even less being ruled over by an Abbasid puppet controlled by the
upstart Turks. The Omayyad “Caliphate in Exile” takes advantage of this to
forment another revolt in Arabia, with significant Egyptian help, and this time, the
rebellion is successful. Omar ibn Yazzid, the head of the Omayyad house living
in Egypt, comes to Arabia to assume his throne as Caliph Omar III. The new
Omayyad Caliph declares his intention to purify Islam of the degeneracy which
has arisen under the effete Abbasid Caliphs and to restore Arabs to their rightful
position as the chosen people of Islam. He gains almost fanatical support from
Arabs in Arabia and elsewhere.
c. 1100 AD--In the region around Lake Chad, various city states are united by
the king of the city of Bornu to form the Bornu Kingdom. Like Ghana, it prospers
by the trans-Sahara trade in salt, gold, and other exotic goods from the African
interior which are readily marketable in the cities of the Roman and Egyptian
empires. It also will periodically clash militarily with Ghana along their mutual
border. Also around this time, small city states begin forming in the forests south
of Ghana. Over the succeeding years, these will begin to combine into larger
states.
1100-1105 AD--War between Rome and the Rus. The conflict is inconclusive,
and a treaty is signed establishing the borders and basically re-affirming the
status quo antebellum.
1104 AD--Pharaoh Necho XV dies, succeeded by Ahmosi X. Ahmosi is a
conservative who deeply disapproves of the power-sharing with the nemhu which
the Pharaohs must now endure, and with the backing of certain army generals,
declares martial law, dissolves the Council of the 400 Elders and reinstates
direct rule by the Pharaohs. The nemhu throughout the empire are very
resentful and begin plotting his downfall.
1105-1107 AD--Pro-Omayyad revolts among the Arab population in the Seljuk
empire. The Seljuks brutally repress the revolts. Thousands of Arabs flee to the
Neo-Omayyad Caliphate.
1109 AD--Revolt in Egypt and elsewhere in the Egyptian Empire. The nemhu,
with support from most of the army, revolt and overthrow Pharaoh Ahmosi X.
The Pharaoh dies in mysterious circumstances while in army custody shortly
afterward, and is succeeded by his son, Psamtik XVIII. Psamtik, who never
approved of his father’s actions, reinstates the Constitution of 1000 AD, and a
new Council of the 400 Elders is elected. The new Council demands, and
receives, amendments to the Constitution which make it impossible for the
Pharaoh to dissolve the Council and to declare martial law without the approval
of the Council. To show his commitment to the new Constitution, Psamtik has
the full text of it engraved on a wall of the great temple at Karnak, one the holiest
sites in all Egypt.
1110-1115 AD--War between the Seljuks and the Neo-Omayyads. The war is
inconclusive.
1118 AD--Arabs import gunpowder from China, but they do not learn the formula
at this time. It is used in magic tricks and fireworks, but has no military
applications as yet.
1120-1130 AD--War between Rome and the Norse Empire. The war is mainly
fought at sea, with several large naval battles being fought in the Oceanus
Britannicus, the Baltic Sea, and the North Sea. No advantage is gained by either
side, although Norse and Roman raids on each other’s coastlines cause much
destruction. Finally, a treaty is signed in 1130 AD.
1141 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XVIII dies, succeeded by Necho XVI.
1150 AD--The Seljuks attack the Khazars in the Caucasus. The Khazars defeat
the Turks and a treaty is signed shortly afterward.
1152-1160 AD--War between the Rus and the Norse Empire. The Khazars ally
themselves with the Norse and re-capture the Crimean region. The Norse gain a
strip of territory connecting their Baltic Sea territories (in OTL Latvia, Lithuania,
and Estonia) with their territories in Finland.
1157 AD--Pharaoh Necho XVI dies childless, leaving no heirs. Not wishing the
land to fall into civil war again, Necho has left a will, bequeathing the throne to a
boyhood friend from Sais who is also a distant cousin (descended from a bastard
son of Psamtik XVII), who takes the throne as Rameses XXIV. Thus begins the
34th Dynasty.
1160-1165 AD--War between the Seljuks and the Abbasid Caliphate in India.
The Seljuks invade India in an attempt to oust the rival Abbasid Caliph, but are
defeated by the Caliph’s army near Delhi. The Caliph responds with an invasion
of his own, and reaches almost to the eastern Seljuk capital at Isfahan before his
army is finally defeated and forced to retreat back across the Indus. A treaty is
signed in 1165, establishing the border between the two empires.
1170-1179 AD--Rome allies itself with Egypt, and together, the two powers push
the Seljuks out of Anatolia. Rome and Egypt divide the newly conquered lands
between them, setting the border at the Taurus Mountains and the Euphrates.
This begins a period of cooperation between the two empires which will prove
very profitable for both over the next couple of centuries.
1190 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XXIV dies, succeeded by Seti X. Seti will gain
fame as “The Builder” due to his many large construction projects throughout the
empire, which exceed in scope even those of his famous predecessor, Rameses
II “The Great.”
c. 1200 AD--Arabs learn the formula of gunpowder from the Chinese, but it’s
military potential is not immediately recognized. Within five years, Egyptian
scientists also learn the formula, and it passes from there to Rome.
c. 1200 AD--The Incas in Peru emerge from obscurity, and establish their capital
at the growing settlement of Cuzco. Also, at about this time the Aztecs, a small
tribe originally native to the plains of what is OTL Texas, arrive in the Valley of
Mexico from the north. While in the north, the Aztecs had learned the art of
ironworking, which gives them a decided military advantage over the native
inhabitants of the region. They become eagerly sought by the local city-states as
mercenary warriors.
1200-1300 AD--Norse expansion in the new world. Norse settlements are
founded all the way down the coast southward to Cape Hatteras. Also, Norse
settlements now extend all the way down the St. Lawrence River to Lake
Ontario, and Norse explorers are by 1300 discovering the outlines of the other
Great Lakes. Due to the ravages of smallpox, the Skraeling populations in the
newly acquired areas are quite small, and the Norse conquer the interior areas in
back of their coastal and river settlements easily. Also during this time period in Africa, the Ghana Empire and the Kingdom of Bornu expand southward into the forests on the African coast, conquering the various city states which have arisen there. They are now positioned to engage in sea trade with Rome and Egypt, which they do.
1201 AD--Ala al-Din Tekesh, a former Seljuk slave who had been appointed
governor of the province of Khwarazm (south of the Aral Sea, centered on the
city of Urgench) in 1193 AD, rebels against the Seljuks. He establishes the
independence of Khwarazm and installs himself as Emir. He is killed in battle
against the Seljuks later that year and is succeeded by his son, Ala ad Deen
Muhammed. Also in this year, Pharaoh Seti X dies, and is succeeded by
Psamtik XIX.
1205-1212 AD--The Emirate of Khwarazm rapidly expands its rule. In 1210 it
takes Samarkand from the Qara Khitai and this becomes the capital. By 1212 it
rules from the Caspian Sea to Bukhara and Samarkand, and controlling all of
modern Iran and Afghanistan.
1208-1212 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XIX, learning of the trouble the Seljuk Turks
are having with the Khwarazm Emirate, declares war on the Seljuks. Egyptian
armies advance into Mesopotamia, where they capture Baghdad in 1210 AD. By
1212 AD, Egypt is in control of all of Mesoptamia. Rome enters the war in 1210
AD, and gobbles up Armenia and the Seljuk possesions in the Caucasus. The
Seljuks are eliminated as a power in the region, and the border between the
three empires (Rome, Egypt, and Khwarazm) now runs along the Zagros
mountains.
1206 AD--Temujin (Genghis Khan) unifies all Mongol and Tatar tribes. Over the
next few years, he welds them into a devastating military machine.
c. 1210 AD--Smallpox crosses the Mississippi and begins spreading across the
Great Plains.
1210 AD--Temujin (Genghis Khan) conquers the Tangut kingdom of Hsi Hsia.
1215 AD--Temujin (Genghis Khan) conquers the Jurchen Khanate and the Chin
Empire in northern China.
1215-1219 AD--War between Egypt and Khwarazm. In 1215, Emir Ala ad-Deen
Muhammed of Khwarazm declares war on Egypt and invades Mesopotamia.
His army is defeated and forced to retreat to Iran. However, no treaty is signed,
and the Khwarazm will invade the new Egyptian province each year for the next
four years. The war finally ends when Khwarazm faces a new threat from the
east...
1216 AD--Temujin (Genghis Khan) builds a new citadel, Karakorum.
1218 AD--the Mongols conquer the kingdom of Qara-Khitai ( Western Liao
Dynasty).
1219 AD--Temujin (Genghis Khan) defeats the the Khwarazm empire. Emir Ala
ad Deen Muhammed flees into exile.
1220 AD--the Mongols conquer the Khwarazm province of Merv (Turkmenistan).
1221 AD--the Mongols conquer the Khwarazm province of Herat (Afghanistan).
Also in this year, Ken Angrok (Rajasa) founds the Singhasari kingdom in Java
(Indonesia) with capital in Kediri.
1221-1231 AD--Khwarazm is reduced to its western part (northern Mesopotamia
and western Persia) in the Mongol campaigns of 1220 and 1221. After that,
Mongol attention is focused elsewhere, and under a new Emir, Jalal al-Din
Mingburnu, Khwarazm reflourishes for a decade. It even briefly conquers
Georgia and Azerbaijan in the Caucasus.
1223 AD--a Mongol horde defeats a coalition of Russian princes on the Kalka
river, then withdraws eastward.
1225 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XIX dies, succeeded by Necho XVII.
1226 AD--Genghis Khan attacks the Sung Chinese Empire, but is defeated and
forced to retreat northward.
1227 AD--Genghis Khan dies and is succeeded as Great Khan by Ogodai. For
ease of administration, the empire is split among khanates which, although
locally ruled, acknowledge the supremacy of the Great Khan (Batu's Blue Horde,
Orda's White Horde, Chaghatay's khanate in Mughulistan). Ogodai moves the
imperial capital to Karakorum.
1231 AD--the Mongols invade Korea and bring it under their control. Also in this
year, the Khwarazm Emirate is finally conquered by the Mongols under Batu.
1237 AD--the Mongols, led by Batu, invade the Rus Principality.
1238 AD--The kingdom of Sukhothai is founded in Thailand.
1240 AD--Batu's Mongols ("blue horde") destroy the Khazar Kaganate. They
move on to take Kiev, capital of the Rus Principality. The Rurikid princes
becomes subjects of the Mongols. Meanwhile, in the north, the Norse are also
invading Rus, but are defeated by Alexander Nevsky, Prince of Novgorod, at the
Battle of the Neva River.
1241 AD--Batu's "Blue Horde" attacks the eastern frontier of the Roman Empire.
The Mongols breach the Roman defenses and pour into the province of Polania
(as the region formerly known as Polska is now called). Once in Polania, they
defeat a Roman army near the city of Warsaw and penetrate the Vistula defense
line, but are halted by the second line of Roman defenses on the Oder River. It
is then that news arrives of the death of the Mongol Great Khan Ogodai. In the
wake of that news, Batu’s Mongol horde retreats from Europe.
1248 AD--The Mongols install Alexander Nevsky as Prince of Vladimir.
c. 1250s AD--Kingdom of Chimor (Chimu people) expand their empire along
northern coast of Peru. Also at about this time, in Chile, metalworkers discover
the formula for bronze. Also about this time in Mexico, the Aztecs accept the
overlordship of the King of the Tepanecs. Using Aztec shock troops, the
Tepanecs establish a large realm in central Mexico. Meanwhile, in southern
Mexico, there is a Maya revival; following collapse of Chichen Itza, a new capital
is built at Mayapan.
1251 AD--Hulegu leads the Mongol invasion of Persia and establishes the
Ilkhanate.
1255 AD--Hulegu, the Ilkhan, invades the Middle East and captures Bagdhad,
which becomes the capital of the Ilkhanate. He completes the conquest of
Mesopotamia over the next two years.
1257 AD--Mongols led by Kublai conquer the Sung Chinese Empire and push
the frontier of the Mongol Empire all the way to Hanoi. Also in this year, Pharaoh
Necho XVII brokers a treaty of alliance with the Neo-Omayyad Caliphate against
the Mongols, who are seen as a threat by both empires.
1258 AD--Mongols led by Hulegu invades Syria. They are met near Damascus
by a combined Egyptian and Neo-Omayyad army and severely defeated.
Hulegu is killed in the fighting, and for a while, the Mongols in the middle east are
thrown into chaos. Meanwhile, in China, Kublai becomes the Great Khan of the
Mongol Empire and declares Buddhism the state religion.
1259-1261 AD-- In 1259, taking advantage of the temporary confusion among
the Mongols of the Ilkhanate following the death of Hulegu, Egyptian and
Neo-Omayyad forces invade Mesopotamia. They recapture Baghdad in 1260,
and by 1261 have pushed the Mongols back beyond the Zagros Mountains.
Finally, a treaty is agreed with the new Ilkhan Abaqa which establishes the
frontier at the Zagros Mountains. An uneasy peace will reign in the region for a
few years. The Egyptians and the Neo Omayyads divide the conquered region between them.
1261-1262 AD--Meanwhile, the Roman Republic, at the urging of the Bishop of
Rome, who is the acknowledged leader of the Christian Church, is negotiating
it’s own treaty of alliance with Grand Prince Alexander Nevsky of the Rus
Principality (who has been chafing under Mongol domination for the past
decade) and with King Haakon IV “The Old” of the Norse. The Grand Alliance
of Christendom, as the treaty will be called, takes the field in 1262. However, the
Christian coalition does not do as well against the Mongols of the Golden Horde
(formerly Batu’s Blue Horde). In battle near Kiev, the Roman contingent under
Consul Varus Paulinius Gracchus, being mostly armored cavalry archers and
light cavalry archers, proves well suited to fighting the Mongols on their own
terms, and the right flank held by the Romans initially does well. But the Rus
and Norse contingents which hold the Christian center and left are mostly
infantry, and the Mongols cut them to pieces. Both King Haakon and Prince
Alexander are cut down in the fighting. The Mongols then outflank and surround
the Roman cavalry (who are a bit slower moving than the more lightly armored
Mongols). But the disciplined Roman legionaries cut their way out of the trap,
and most of the Roman force makes it back to the Roman frontier. The Mongols
do not attempt an assault of the Roman defense lines, but instead turn east to
punish their traitorous vassals, the Rus.
1262-1275 AD--The Golden Horde ravages the land of the Rus in punishment for
their part in the Grand Alliance of Christendom. The great cities of Kiev, Suzdal,
Vladimir, Novgorod, and Moscow are all razed to the ground, the people within
them slaughtered, man, woman, and child. Most of the lesser towns and
villages meet the same fate. Large areas of the land are completely
depopulated, and the Principality of the Rus ceases to exist. Their allies, the
Romans and the Norse, can do nothing but watch in horror.
1263 AD onward--Norse King Magnus VI imports Roman officers to teach
cavalry tactics to his army, and begins to build a force of armored horse archers
with which to oppose the Mongols.
1267 AD--Kublai Khan moves the Mongol capital to Dadu (Beijing) and founds
the Yuan dynasty.
1274 AD--Kublai Khan invades Japan, but is defeated.
1277-1287 AD--the Mongols invade Burma and finally conquer it.
1279 AD--Sukothai king Ramkamhaeng extends the kingdom to Vientiane (Laos)
in the east and to Pegu (Burma) in the west.
1280-1285 AD--War between the Ilkhanate and Rome. The Mongols push the
Roman frontier in Asia Minor back to the Halys River. Armenia falls to the
Ilkhanate.
1282 AD--the new Shaybanid khan Uzbek (a vassal of the Chagatay Khanate)
converts the Shaybanid horde to Islam and his horde becomes known as the
Uzbeks.
1288 AD--the Vietnamese army of Tran Hung Dao defeats the Mongols.
1290 AD--Pharaoh Necho XVII dies, succeeded by Ahmosi XI. Also in this year,
Singhasari king Kertanegara conquers Bali, Java and Sumatra (Indonesia).
1293 AD--Kublai Khan’s Mongols attack Singhasari with help from warlord
Wijaya, but Wijaya (Kertarajasa Jayawardhana) betrays Kublai, defeats both the
Mongols and the Singhasari, and founds the kingdom of Majapahit with capital at
Trowulan in Java (Indonesia).
1294 AD--Kublai Khan dies and the empire fragments in khanates: Sarai in the
west (descendants of Batu, the "golden horde"), Beijing in the east (the Yuan),
Sultaniyeh in Persia (the Ilkhan Sultanate, descendants of Hulegu) and the
Chaghatai Khanate in the center.
1295 AD--Ghazan, the Ilkhan, converts to Islam.
c. 1300 AD--The Incas begin to expand their empire throughout the central
Andes. Also, at about this time, horses, cattle, and pigs are introduced to the
tribes west of the Mississippi River. The new domesticated animals will spread
rapidly over the next century. Horses will prove especially useful for the nomadic
tribes who live by following the buffalo herds as they migrate over the Great
Plains, while pigs and cattle will join wheat to revolutionize the agriculture of the
settled Pueblo tribes of the southwest. Also, at about this time, smallpox
reaches the Valley of Mexico, devastating many of the city states there.
1300-1350 AD--Continuing expansion of the Norse colonies in Vinland. By 1350
Norse settlements have spread throughout the entire Great Lakes region and
the Norse have also discovered and settled the southern shore of what in OTL
would be Hudson Bay (called Thorfin’s Bay in this TL). The Norse do no expand
further southward than Cape Hatteras, however, as the hot, semi-tropical
Southern climate is not congenial to them, and the iron-using Skraeling tribes in
this region were less devastated by the smallpox epidemic, and thus better able
to resist Norse encroachment.
1300 AD--Beginning of Roman exploration in the New World. In the previous
decades, much speculation has been going on in the Roman Empire (and
elsewhere) as to the source of the tobacco which the Norse are peddling all over
Europe and the near east. The Norse have, so far, managed to keep their new
colonies in Vinland pretty much secret. This has been helped by the nature of
the Norse trade route, which goes north up the coast of North America to
Greenland, then to Iceland, then to Britain or Norway. Most of the trade route is
thus deep within Norse territory, and only Norse ships are allowed to make the
transatlantic journey (the Norse fleet makes sure of this). However, it is
impossible to keep such a secret indefinately, and tavern stories from indiscreet
Norse merchants eventually alert the Romans that there are lands to the west,
far across the sea, which the Norse are exploiting. The Norse fleet, of course,
prevents Rome from attempting a voyage along the established trade route, but
in 1300 AD, they begin sending yearly expeditions westward across the Oceanus
Atlanticus. Most of these early expeditions find nothing noteworthy, and some
of them will never return. But the Romans will persevere.
c. 1300-1400 AD--In the region between the Congo and Loje Rivers in south
western Africa, the city states of Kongo, Luba, Kuba, Lunda have arisen by
1300 AD. By 1400 AD these will be consolidated into a state by the king of the
city of Kongo, whose king becomes known as the Manikongo. The new
Kingdom of Kongo has rich copper deposits, and a strategic position in between
the Egyptian lands to the south and the kingdoms of Ghana and Bornu to the
north. So the Manikongos will live by trade, and grow rich over the succeeding
decades.
1301-1305 AD--War Between the Golden Horde and the Norse. In 1301, the
Mongols, under Khan Toqta, invade the Norse lands along the Baltic Sea (OTL
Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia), causing much devastation, and then move north
into the Norse province of Finland. They are brought to battle by the main Norse
army, under King Haakon V, near Helsinki. The Roman training and
reorganization of the Norse army initiated by King Magnus VI and continued by
his successors has not been in vain, and the Norse defeat the Mongols, forcing
them to retreat from Norse territory. The Norse follow up with an invasion of their
own the next year, but they run into a problem. The Mongols, they find, have so
thoroughly devastated the Rus lands during their punishment of the Rus two
decades earlier that the Norse are unable to find food or forage as they advance
through the enemy country. They penetrate as far as the ruins of Novgorod
(which, being the home city of the traitorous Grand Prince Alexander Nevsky, the
Mongols have not permitted to be rebuilt as an example to those who might think
of rebellion in the future) before they are forced to turn back, harassed all the
way by the Mongols. The war continues for another three years, with small scale
raiding by both sides, before a treaty is finally signed in 1305.
1304 AD--Mongols under Ali Beg invade India but are repelled by the Abbasid
Caliphate. Also in this year, an Arab scientist working in Baghdad, in the
Neo-Omayyad Caliphate, invents a cannon, consisting of a bamboo tube,
reinforced with iron bands. Knowledge of the invention soon spreads to Egypt
and Rome.
c. 1315 AD--The first iron and bronze cannon are invented almost
simultaneously in Egypt and Rome. Experiments with hand-held gunpowder
firearms begins shortly afterward in both empires.
1315 AD--Pharaoh Ahmosi XI dies, succeeded by Ahmosi XII. Also in this year,
the Shans found the kingdom of Sagaing in Burma.
1315-1325 AD--The Great Famine in Europe. The relative stability and
prosperity of the Roman and Norse Empires have resulted in a steady increase
in population, to the point where harvest shortfalls can have severe
consequences. This has been mitigated to some extent by the availability of
wheat, barley, oats and maize from the Norse colonies in Vinland and wheat
and barley from Egypt, but it still remains a problem because by 1300 AD,
populations in Europe are half again as large as in OTL. However, the weather in
Western Europe has been gradually been getting colder and wetter for the past
few years, and in 1315 particularly wet Spring makes it impossible to plow all of
the fields that were ready for cultivation, and heavy summer rains rot much of the
seed grain before it can germinate. The harvest is far smaller than usual as a
result, and many people starve. The pattern continues in 1316, leading to yet
more starvation and misery. The Spring and summer of 1317 saw the return of
good weather, but in the meantime, much of the grain set aside for seed had
been eaten by starving people, so harvests remain below normal even so. Then
the cool, wet weather returns, and grain production plummets even further, and
indeed, will not reach pre-1315 levels again until 1325. As much as 1/10 of the
Roman and Norse population (less than in OTL, but still a huge number) will die
of starvation and disease exacerbated by malnutrition during that single decade.
c. 1320 AD--The Black Death first appears among rats in the Gobi Desert region.
1320 AD--The Romans discover the Azores and the Canary Islands. They return
the next year and occupy the islands, establishing permanent outposts there
which will form vital waypoints for their future exploration of the western seas.
c. 1325 AD--The Aztecs found city of Tenochtitlan on an island in Lake Texcoco.
Because of their knowledge of ironworking (which they have jealously guarded),
they are able to establish themselves despite having a lower population (due to
the ravages of smallpox) than in OTL.
1326 AD--A Roman expedition sights the shores of the island which would, in
OTL, be called Hispaniola, which they explore. They land, meet the native
Carib Indians, and take some of the natives back to Rome with them. The
Caribs tell the Romans of other lands to the north and west of Hispaniola.
1327 AD--Chagatay Khan Tarmashirin converts to Islam.
1328 AD--the Mongols invade India but are repelled by the Abbasid Caliphate.
1330 AD--A Roman expedition explores the coast of southern Florida. They find
nothing of interest.
1330-1332 AD--War of the Second Grand Alliance. The new Bishop of Rome
has, like his predecessor, urged a “Crusade” against the heathen Mongols to
liberate the oppressed Christians of Rus, and the Roman Republic has
concluded a new alliance with King Magnus VII of the Norse. The Romans and
Norse negotiate with the rulers of various recently rebuilt Rus city-states, but
most are not eager to incur the wrath of the Mongols a second time. The one
exception is Ivan, Grand Duke of the the city-state of Moscow. This Second
Grand Alliance of Christendom takes the field in 1330 AD, and heads for
Moscow, hoping to link up with Grand Duke Ivan’s forces. It’s army is much
better suited to fighting the Mongols than the army of the first Grand Alliance had
been, and the Norse experience in their recent war teaches them to bring along
a supply train to enable them to fight deep inside enemy territory. The Roman
army also includes a small force equipped with the new cannon as well as a few
cohorts of hand-gunners, both of which will be primarily used to defend the
supply train. The Mongols are brought to battle about 60 miles west of Moscow.
The Mongols are still somewhat more mobile than the armored Roman and
Norse cavalry, and a force manages to slip around the Christian flank and fall on
the wagon train (which, for defense, had been formed in a lager, with the
cannoneers and handgunners inside). They charge the seemingly defenseless
wagon lager, and get a rude surprise when Roman cannon give them a dose of
gravel, nails, and lengths of broken chain at close range. The handgunners then
open up, and the slaughter is terrible to behold. The Mongols retreat in disorder,
and the wagon lager is saved. Meanwhile, the Roman and Norse armored horse
archers have put the rest of the more lightly equipped Mongols to flight, and the
battle is won. The Romans and Norse enter Moscow and link up with Grand
Duke Ivan’s forces 2 days later. In the wake of this victory, the princes of the
various Rus city states rise up in revolt in support of the Grand Alliance, and the
Christian armies follow up with campaigns to liberate the southern regions of the
former Rus principality. Finally, Khan Muhammed Ozbeg of the Golden Horde
sues for peace in 1332 AD. A treaty is made in which the Golden Horde agrees
to withdraw from Rus. The frontiers of Rus are set by this treaty at the North
Dvina, Kama, and Ural Rivers (farther east than the original Rus Principality...but
the Mongols, being defeated, have little choice but to agree). Grand Duke Ivan
of the city-state of Moscow, with Roman and Norse support, proclaims himself
the first Grand Prince of the newly re-established Principality of Rus. His rule is
not universally accepted by the other Rus rulers, however.
1331 AD--A Roman expedition discovers Cuba. The expedition finds not only
tobacco, but gold.
1331-1353 AD--The Black Death devastates China. Up to two-thirds of the
population dies or is severely incapacitated, and social order in the country
breaks down. The Mongol Empire in China is severely weakened.
1333 AD--The Roman Senate votes to send a colonization expedition to secure
the newly discovered regions in the New World for Rome, and a fleet is sent out.
1335 AD--The Roman colonization fleet arrives in the Caribbean. The fleet lands
in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and the settlement of Nova Palatina is founded.
Another settlement is founded on Hispaniola, and named Nova Capitolina.
Successive yearly expeditions will strengthen the new settlements.
1338 AD--Pharaoh Ahmosi XII dies, succeeded by Seti XI.
1340 AD--The first major shipments of tobacco and gold from the new colonies
reach Rome. The Norse monopoly on the tobacco trade is broken.
1343 AD--The Kingdom of Majapahit conquers Bali (Indonesia).
c. 1345 AD--The Black Death is in India. Again, huge death tolls result. Worse
still, plague-carrying rats board trade ships in Indian ports, to be carried back to
their home ports by the traders.
c. 1347-1352 AD--In 1347, trade ships carrying plague infested rats from India
arrive in various ports in the Egyptian and Roman Empires. Both empires suffer
less from the plague than did the OTL nations occupying these regions. Roman
and Egyptian habits of cleanliness and advanced civil engineering and sanitation
systems limit the spread of the disease. And Egypt, as it turns out, has a secret
weapon which results in even lower death rates than those suffered by
Rome...the cult of Bast, the cat goddess of Egypt, remains alive and well in
Egypt, and cats are considered sacred there. So there are several million of the
felines available in the empire to keep rat populations low, thus preventing the
plague from spreading to the same extent it does in other regions. Nevertheless,
both Rome (which loses 1/4 of its people) and Egypt (which loses 1/6 of it’s
population) suffer greatly.
c. 1350 AD--Smallpox devastates the Maya states in central America. The
epidemic finally peters out in the sparsely inhabited jungles of what is OTL Costa
Rica, and thus the disease does not penetrate into South America at this time.
Meanwhile, in the Andes, the formula for bronze has spread north from Chile to
Peru, and it is being worked in the Chimu capital of Chan Chan by 1350 AD.
Chimu and Inca armies are gradually re-equipping themselves with bronze
weapons.
1350 AD--Majapahit under prime minister Gajah Mada conquers northern
Sumatra (Indonesia) and most of Borneo. Also in this year, the Black Death
reaches the European portions of the Norse Kingdom and the Rus Principality.
Huge death tolls (exceeding 1/3 of the population of both states) result.
1350 onward--The large death tolls from the Great Famine and from the Black
Death in the lands of Europe have profound effects on the economic and social
structures of those regions. In Rome, a very large proportion of the deaths was
among the slave population of the Republic, who are generally less well fed and
have less medical attention than the citizenry of the Republic and are thus more
susceptible to food shortages and disease. As a result, more and more work
has to be done by free labor, and job opportunities and wages for freemen
increase throughout the Republic. This, along with the continuous drain of
slaves into the military (the laws enacted by Emperor Trajan II are still in force),
reduces the importance of slavery in Roman society ever further, and by the
middle of the next century, the Republic will abolish slavery altogether. In the
Norse Kingdom and Rus Principality, where slavery does not formally exist, the
institution of serfdom is likewise weakened, and peasants gain many more rights
and privileges over the succeeding century. The Black Death will also deal a
death blow to slavery in Egypt, where it was never a large institution to begin
with, and where, like in other regions, slaves are disproportionately affected by
the Plague. Egypt will abolish slavery not many years after the Roman Senate
does so.
1351: King Rama Thibodi I founds the Siam kingdom in Thailand with capital at
Ayutthaya. Also in this year, trade ships carry the Black death to the Roman
colonies in the Caribbean, as well as the Ghana Empire and Bornu Kingdom in
Africa. The Roman colonies are only moderately affected (about 5% mortality),
but Ghana and Bornu are devastated with nearly half the population succumbing
to the disease within three years.
1352 AD--Trading ships carrying the Black Death reach the Norse colonies in
Vinland. The more widely scattered nature and less concentrated population of
the Norse settlements in Vinland limits the spread of the disease, but even so,
before the epidemic burns itself out two years later, over 1/5 of the population of
the colonies will be dead. Norse expansion in Vinland is greatly slowed as a
result. The disease does not affect native Skraeling populations to any great
extent. These populations, devastated by smallpox, are still relatively small and
scattered (although recovering by this time), so the disease does not spread well
and quickly burns itself out when it leaves the borders of Norse-held lands.
1353 AD--the kingdom of Lan Xang is founded in Laos by Fa Ngoun, who
introduces Theravada Buddhism into Laos.
1365 AD--The Turkic-speaking chieftain Timur the Lame overthrows the
Chaghatai khanate and conquers Persia, establishing his capital in Samarkand.
1368 AD--In the chaos following the Black Death in China, the Ming dynasty is
founded by a Chinese peasant and former Buddhist monk turned rebel, Chu
Yuanchang, under whose leadership China regains independence from the
Mongols. Shortly after, the Kingdom of Koryu (Korea) does likewise.
c. 1370 AD--The Aztecs have recovered from the smallpox epidemic, and
Acampitchtli is chosen king of Aztecs. Acampitchtli defeats and overthrows the
Tepanec overlords of the Aztecs, and the Aztec Empire is founded.
1370 AD--A scientist in Egypt discovers the secret of producing granulated
gunpowder. A scientist working in Rome will make the discovery independently
two years later. In both empires, imperial powder and firearm factories are set
up at about this time (prior to this, production of both powder and firearms had
been primarily done in small, privately owned shops).
1375 AD--Pharaoh Seti XI dies, succeeded by Rameses XXV.
1384 AD--Timur the Lame conquers the Ilkhanate.
1385 AD--Timur the Lame invades Mesopotamia. He is met by a combined
Egyptian and Neo-Omayyad army near Baghdad and defeated. Timur is killed in
the fighting (decapitated by an Egyptian cannonball), and his empire will fall into
chaos on his death while his relatives fight over the succession.
1388 AD--The Ming defeat the Yuan (Mongols) and destroy Karakorum. Also in
this year, Umar Shayk, son of Timur, establishes himself as the sole ruler of the
Timurid Empire. Umar, being more interested in art and architecture than in
warfare, is content to rule the empire inherited from his father, and a relative
peace settles on the region for a few years.
c. 1390s AD--Viracocha becomes eighth Inca ruler; an Inca myth tells how he
travelled to the Pacific and never returned.
1392 AD--General Yi Song-gye overthrows the King of Koryu and usurps the
throne. The capital is moved from Kaesong to Seoul, and the kingdom is
renamed the Kingdom of Choson.
1394 AD--Umar Shayk of the Timurid Empire dies, and is succeeded by his
brother, Miran Shah.
1395 AD--the Khazak horde seizes Khazakstan from the Golden horde.
1396 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XXV dies, succeeded by Rameses XXVI.
1398 AD--Miran Shah of the Timurid Empire invades India and sacks Delhi,
causing demise of the Abbasid Caliphate. India breaks up into a collection of
small, warring states.
712 BC--King Shabaka of Kush invades Egypt and conquers the country. Pharaoh Wahkare is killed. Beginning of the Kushite 25th Dynasty.
700 BC--Death of Pharaoh Shabaka of Egypt. He is succeeded by Sabataka.
c. 700 BC--Hellenic (Greek) colonization spreads to southern Italy, Asia Minor, Black Sea. Greek colonies have existed on the Aegean coast of Asia Minor for a couple of centuries.
688 BC--Death of Pharaoh Sabataka of Egypt. He is succeeded by Taharka.
671 BC--King Esarhaddon of Assyria invades Egypt and sacks the Egyptian capital at Memphis. Pharaoh Taharka, of the Kushite 25th Dynasty, is forced to flee from Egypt. Esarhaddon, in contrast to usual Assyrian practice, is moderate in the implementation of the occupation of Egypt compared to past policies in other provinces, respecting local traditions as far as possible. The Assyrians show special interest for Egyptian experts, such as physicians, artisans and military specialists who are often deported to Assyria. The acquisition of horses from Egypt is of major importance to the Assyrians. Esarhaddon appoints various native noblemen as governors, functionaries and scribes in the provinces of Egypt.
670 BC--Prince Necho I of Sais, a descendant of Pharaoh Wahkare, is appointed governor over the regions of Sais and Memphis in Egypt.
c. 670 BC--Miletus (Greek city on the Aegean Coast of Asia Minor) begins founding colonies both in the Black Sea and in the Mediterranean Sea.
669 BC--Death of Esarhaddon of Assyria. Ashurbanipal takes the throne. Taharka of Kush (former Pharaoh of Egypt who was forced to flee by Esarhaddon) returns to Egypt with a Kushite army and tries to reconquer the land. Prince Necho, along with many other Egyptian governors appointed by Esarhaddon, ally themselves with Taharka.
668 BC--Ashurbanipal of Assyria invades Egypt, defeats Taharka, and drives the Kushites from Egypt for the final time. Necho I of Sais is captured by Ashurbanipal and taken, with his sons, to Assyria. His son Psamtik thus spends several years at the Assyrian court, and his observations while there will influence all later Egyptian history. Meanwhile, at Thebes, Mentuemhet, Governor of the South and Prince of Thebes, restores Thebes and continues to rule the Thebaid for many years as an Assyrian vassal.
663 BC--Necho I dies in Assyria. Prince Psamtik is allowed to return to Egypt after taking an oath of loyalty to the Assyrian king. He rules over Lower Egypt from Sais.
657 BC--Megara founds Byzantium.
655 BC--Psamtik I of Sais declares independence from Assyria and proclaims himself Pharaoh of Lower Egypt. Thus begins the 26th Dynasty. Shortly afterward, Mentuemhet of Thebes declares himself Pharaoh of Upper Egypt. Ashurbanipal, caught up in troubles of his own closer to home, is unable to restore Assyrian rule in Egypt.
655 BC to 609 BC--In a long reign, Pharaoh Psamtik I establishes the pattern of kingship which will prevail in the new dynasty. Psamtik had spent much of his youth in Assyria, where the kings-while very powerful-were never considered to be divine. Therefore, the attitude of the Saite Pharaohs towards the kingship will be radically different from the Egyptian tradition. The lifestyle of the pharaohs of Sais will be much less ostentatious, to the point of being considered frugal by contemporary writers. And there will be no return to the ancient traditions under later kings (except for one notorious incident which will be described later in the timeline). Psamtik will strengthen royal power over the provincial warlords and the priesthood by abrogating feudal and clerical immunities and privileges. Another policy of Psamtik which will have profound influences on later history is his encouragement of Greek settlement within Egypt. Psamtik will make extensive use of Greek mercenaries in the army, and Psamtik will build a cities, the greatest of which is called Naukratis, where Greek scholars and merchants will be settled, and endow these Greek communities with land and rights. These Greeks will make many contributions to Egypt's development in the years to come.
654 BC--Carthage, a colony of the Phoenician city of Tyre located in OTL Tunisia on the North African coast, founds a colony in the Balearic Islands at Ibiza.
c. 650 BC--Psamtik I defeats Mentuemhet of Thebes and establishes control over Upper Egypt, reunifying the country. Psamtik begins wearing the Double Crown to signify his rulership of all Egypt.
c. 650 BC--King Gyges of Lydia introduces the world's first standardized money, in the form of electrum coins, stamped with the king's seal. The idea will eventually spread throughout the world, and replace barter economies with money economies.
650 BC--Perdiccas Temenid founds the Macedonian kingdom with capital at Aegeae (Vergina).
640 BC--Sparta adopts a militaristic form of government.
632 BC--Athens abolishes the monarchy in favor of an oligarchy.
c.630 BC--Greek settlers from Thera found the city of Cyrene, on the northern coast of Libya.
628 BC--Birth of Zoroaster, founder of the Persian national religion, Zoroastrianism.
627-626 BC--King Ashurbanipal of Assyria dies in 627 BC. He has twin sons, Ashur-etil-ilani and Sin-shar-ishkun. Ashurbanipal has named Ashur-etil-ilani as his successor, but Sin-shar-ishkun does not recognize this and so begins a civil war that lasts until the latter gains the throne. This civil war will weaken Assyria considerably and open the door to uprisings by various oppressed peoples within the Assyrian Empire.
626 BC--King Nabopolasser of Babylon revolts and successfully overthrows Assyrian rule. He makes an alliance with King Cyaxares of the Medes against Assyria.
625-612 BC--Nabopolasser of Babylon and Cyaxares of Media wage war against Assyria, and the Assyrian army gradually falls apart after repeated defeats at the hands of the allies. Pharaoh Psamtik I of Egypt, who wishes to maintain Assyria as a weakened buffer state against the rising power of Babylon, sends the Egyptian army northward, under the command of his son, Prince Necho, in 618 BC, and for a while the combined Egyptian and Assyrian forces are able to stem the Babylonian and Median advance. Indeed, in 616 BC, the combined Egyptian and Assyrian forces advance to within 300 km of Babylon itself before being forced to retreat. But in 614 BC, Cyaxares of Media captures and sacks Ashur, the original capital and spiritual center of Assyria, and two years later, in 612 BC, the Babylonians and Medes capture and sack Nineveh. King Shin-shar-ishkun of Assyria dies in his burning palace. Prince Ashur-uballit escapes to Haran, where he declares himself King Ashur-uballit II of Assyria and tries to rally the remaining Assyrian forces around him. Nabopolasser and Cyaxares divide the former Assyrian Empire among themselves.
621 BC--Draco establishes the first Athenian code of law. The code is extremely harsh (Draco's name will become synonymous with harsh...or DRACONIAN...measures in future times).
616 BC--The Etruscans conquer the small Latin town of Rome in Italy. Tarquinius I Priscus becomes King of Rome. Etruscan kings will reign there for the next 100 years.
610 BC--The Babylonian army, under the command of Crown Prince Nebuchadnezzar, besieges the remnant Assyrian forces at Haran. Pharaoh Psamtik I sends an Egyptian army, under the command of Crown Prince Necho, northward to the relief of the besieged Assyrians, but Necho is delayed by Josiah, King of Judah, who attacks Necho's army at Megiddo (and is defeated, at the cost of his own life). As a result, Haran falls to the Babylonians, Ashur-uballit II of Assyria is killed, and the Assyrians are finally defeated. End of the Assyrian Empire. Necho, learning of the defeat of his Assyrian allies, continues his advance north, captures the city of Kadesh in Syria, finally advances all the way to the Euphrates. An uneasy peace settles as the Egyptians and Babylonians watch each other across the river.ªAlso in this year, Miletus founds a trading post in Egypt.
609 BC--Pharaoh Psamtik I of Egypt dies. Crown Prince Necho returns to Egypt to assume the throne as Pharaoh Necho II. On his way back to Egypt, he stops off in Jerusalem long enough to depose Josiah's son, Jehoahaz II, taking him in chains back to Egypt, where he will die in exile. Necho installs Jehoiakim, another of Josiah's sons, as vassal King of Judah.
c. 606 BC--Pharaoh Necho II, who at this time is temporarily in control of Phoenicia, hires Phoenician shipwrights to build a fleet of ships for the purpose of exploring the coastline of the African continent.
605 BC--Crown Prince Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon defeats the Egyptian army at Carchemish, on the Euphrates. Nebuchadnezzar pursues the defeated Egyptians all the way to the borders of Egypt. Along the way he confirms Jehoiakim as vassal King of Judah.
604 BC--King Nabopolassar of Babylon dies. Crown prince Nebuchadnezzar returns to Babylon to assume the throne as King Nebuchadnezzar II.
603-600 BC--The Egyptian exploration fleet, being built at the orders of Pharaoh Necho II by Phoenician shipwrights at an Egyptian port on the Red Sea, sets sail. The fleet, manned by a mixed force of Egyptian soldiers and Phoenician sailors, sails south along the African coast. Each autumn they come ashore and plant the land in whatever part of the coast they have reached, and there await the harvest; then, having gathered the crop, they sail on. And so, in this manner, they circumnavigate the African continent. In 600 BC they pass through the Pillars of Heracles (the Straits of Gibraltar) and return to Egypt. As a result of the knowledge gained from this voyage of exploration, Necho is able to renew contacts with Ophir...what would in the OTL become Zimbabwe in Southern Africa. Ophir had been, since the days of the Old Kingdom, a source of fabulous wealth, especially gold. Necho establishes regular trading voyages to Ophir, and gold begins to flow into Egyptian coffers, greatly strengthening the Egyptian monarchy.
601 BC--King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon attempts an invasion of Egypt, but is defeated by Pharaoh Necho II at Pelusium and forced to retreat back to Babylon. The Egyptian army also suffers large casualties and is unable to exploit the victory. However, Necho does support rebellions by Babylonian vassal kings in Syria and Palestine, including Jehoiakim of Judah.
600 BC--Rome conquers the city of Alba Longa.ªAlso in this year, Carthage fails to prevent the establishment of the Phocaean Greek colony at Massilia (Marseilles).
c. 600 BC onward--Pharaoh Necho II and his successors use the gold of Ophir to finance a reorganization of the Egyptian military. Necho and his successors were, in the OTL, somewhat innovative militarily, at least for Egyptians. They used Greek mercenary troops, for example, but this was limited by the lack of a strong treasury. In this ATL, with the gold of Ophir at his disposal, they raise a large infantry force, mostly native but supplemented by mercenaries, which is armed, equipped, and trained as Greek Hoplites. This force is supplemented by a large force of Egyptian and Nubian archers. They abandon their chariots and adopt armored horse archers and lancers based on those of the Assyrians and Babylonians. They also build a large navy and merchant fleet, based on Greek and Phoenician designs. With this revamped force, Egypt is much better able to defend itself and to expand than it was at the same period in the OTL. The continuing influx of gold from Ophir will allow later Pharaohs to perform reorganizations of the military as changing tactics and military technology call for it.
c. 600 BC to c. 350 BC--Expansion of Egypt in Africa. The rediscovery of Ophir leads to a reorientation of Egyptian foreign policy and military activity which lasts for the next two centuries. During this period Necho and his successors will not attempt anymore to expand into Asia, but will remain on the defensive there, instead focusing on expansion southward into Africa, which they recognize as the source of their wealth. Necho's successors Psamtik II and Wahibre I will conquer the Kingdoms of Kush and Axum (most of modern-day Sudan and Ethiopia). This gives the Egyptians ports on the Horn of Africa (much closer to the mines of Ophir), puts them in a good position to trade with India and other exotic regions, and Egypt grows wealthier still. Over the succeeding years, Egypt establishes a network of trading posts and military garrisons along the east coast of Africa, and then expands out from these to bring the entire coast of East Africa under their control. Finally, in the reign of Pharaoh Psamtik VII, an Egyptian army invades and occupies Ophir itself, bringing the region firmly under Egyptian control, where it will remain.
598-597 BC--King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon returns to Syria and Palestine and once again brings the rebellious vassals under control. King Jehoiakim of Judah dies under mysterious circumstances shortly before the arrival of the Babylonians before the gates of Jerusalem, and his son Jehoiachin is anointed King. Jehoiachin appeals to Pharaoh Necho for aid, but none is forthcoming, and so he surrenders to the Babylonians in 597 BC, after reigning for a mere three months. Nebuchadnezzar II deposes Jehoiachin, and appoints Zedekiah as the new vassal King of Judah. Jehoiachin and 10,000 of his subjects are taken into captivity in Babylonia.
594 BC--Pharaoh Necho II, known as "Gold Finder" because of his discovery and renewal of Egyptian ties to Ophir, dies. He is succeeded by Psamtik II. Psamtik will focus on campaigns in Nubia, and thus Egypt takes no active role in the affairs of Syria-Palestine at this time. Also in this year, Solon founds the Athenian democracy. He was heavily influenced by his observations of Egyptian society and law during a visit to Egypt a few years before.
588 BC--Pharaoh Psamtik II dies, and is succeeded by Wahibre I. Wahibre disagrees with his father's policies, which have oriented Egyptian efforts at expansion to the south, and will soon begin to interfere in Syria-Palestine once again.
587 BC--Pharaoh Wahibre I forms an alliance with the King of Tyre and King Zedekiah of Jerusalem. Bolstered by promises of Egyptian aid, these kings lead a revolt against the rule of King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar calls on his loyal vassals to assail the rebels while he gathers his army. Judah is assailed by forces from Samaria, Moab, Ammon, and Edom, while Tyre is assailed by a coalition of Phoenician and Cypriot city-states lead by the King of Sidon.
586 BC--Pharaoh Wahibre I receives appeals for aid from the Kings of Tyre and Judah. He sends a fleet which which defeats the Babylonian fleet (the combined navies of the allied Phoenician and Cypriot city states) and takes Sidon. Sidon is sacked and Wahibre's fleet returns to Egypt with much booty. Meanwhile, Nebuchadnezzar had arrived at Jerusalem and laid siege to the city. Wahibre marches north from Egypt in an attempt to relieve their Judean allies, and is defeated and forced to retreat back into Egypt. Jerusalem falls, and is sacked. The Temple of Solomon is razed to the ground along with the rest of the city, King Zedekiah is blinded and lead off to Babylon in chains along with the rest of the royal household, and most of the population is carried off into captivity. The Kingdom of Judah ceases to exist, and the Babylonian Captivity begins.
585 BC--King Cyaxares of the Medes dies, and is succeeded by Astyages. Later that year, Astyges is victorious over King Alyattes of Lydia in the Battle of the Eclipse (May 25, 585 BC). The border between the Median Empire and Lydia is set at the Halys River.
582 BC: The Pythian games are established in Delphi and the Isthmian games are established in Corinth.
580 BC--First attempt by the Greeks to drive the Phoenicians out of Sicily. The attempt is unsuccessful.
574 BC--The Phoenician city of Tyre falls to Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. It's colony at Carthage is left to it's own devices.
570 BC--Pharaoh Wahibre receives an appeal for aid from the King of Libya against the Greek colony at Cyrene, which has, since it's founding in 630 BC, had strained relations with the native Libyans of the region. Wahibre leads an Egyptian army westward, but it is severely defeated by the Greeks of Cyrene. A revolt breaks out among the native Egyptian contingent of the army, where rumour has it that the Pharaoh intentionally lead them to defeat. As Herodotus would later write..."The Egyptians blamed him for this and rebelled against him; for they thought that the Pharaoh had knowingly sent his men to their doom, so that after their death his rule over the rest of the Egyptians would be strengthened. Bitterly angered by this, those who returned home and the friends of the slain rose against him." Also in this year, the first coins are minted by Athens.
569-566 BC--Civil War in Egypt. In response to the rebellion in the native Egyptian contingents of the army, Wahibre sends Ahmosi, his son and one of his most trusted generals, to negotiate with the rebels. But when Ahmosi arrives at the rebel camp, the rebels "put a helmet on his head from behind, saying it was the token of royalty," and declare him the new king. Ahmosi decides "it is good to be the king," goes over to the rebels, and leads the rebel army against Wahibre. Wahibre rallies the mercenary contingent of the army and attempts to put down the insurrection with these forces, but is defeated and forced to flee from Sais. Ahmosi is crowned Pharoah, and takes the throne as Ahmosi II. However, Wahibre I continues to claim the kingship, and gathers another mercenary army while in exile in Upper Egypt. Finally, in 566 BC, Wahibre I, at the head of his mercenary army, attempts to retake the throne of Egypt from Ahmosi II. He is defeated and killed. Wahibre will go down in history as "Wahibre the Unlucky."
569-525 BC--Reign of Ahmosi II, who will be known as "the Wise" because of the many reforms he will enact that will greatly strengthen the kingdom. Ahmosi drastically reduces proportion of mercenaries in army and reduces the term of service for native troops, ending a continual problem with army revolts. With regard to foreign policy, Ahmosi once again focuses on Africa and ceases to intrigue in Palestine and Syria. He concludes a treaty with King Amel Marduk of Babylon which recognizes Babylon's claim to these lands and establishes the border between the two empires. Ahmosi also establishes the world's first income tax. According the Herodotus, he established a law that "every year each one of the Egyptians should declare to the ruler of his district, from what source he got his livelihood, and if any man did not do this or did not make declaration of an honest way of living, he should be punished with death." Ahmosi exempts members of the Egyptian Army from this tax, thus making military service more attractive to native Egyptians. Because of the flow of gold from Ophir and the huge trade profits Egypt is raking in, the income taxes are very low, and unlike OTL, the people do not feel overburdened by taxation. Ahmosi also disposes of the goods of the temples as he sees fit. Just as the military nobles had been neutralized by absorbing many of them into the royal administration, the priests are turned into officials of the monarchy too, and their upkeep and that of their temples becomes the responsibility of the royal treasury. The threat to the monarchy posed by the power of the priestly class is broken. Thus by the end of Ahmose II’s reign the foundations have been laid for a very stable, prosperous, and secure society, which will remain so for a long, long time.
562 BC--Death of King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon. He is succeeded by Amel Marduk.
560 BC--Death of King Amel Marduk of Babylon. He is succeeded by Nergalsharusur. Also in this year, Lydian king Croesus conquers Ionia, except Miletus, and the temple of Artemis at Ephesus is built. This temple will eventually become one of the seven wonders of the world.
559 BC--Cyrus II comes to the throne of Anshan, a Persian sub-kingdom of the Median Empire. Cyrus is a vassal of the Median king, Astyages. Cyrus will establish the Persian Empire and be known to history as "Cyrus the Great."
556 BC--Death of King Nergalsharusur of Babylon. He is succeeded by Labashi Marduk. However, Labashi Marduk dies the same year, and is succeeded by Nabunaid (Nabonidus).
550 BC--Cyrus II of Anshan revolts against King Astyages of Media. Astyages is defeated and killed. Cyrus takes control of the Median Empire, which will henceforth be known as the Persian Empire. Also in this year, Carthage allies with the Etruscans against the Greeks. A Carthaginian force led by Malchus defeats the Greeks in Sicily, but is vanquished in Sardinia. Malchus is banished, and in response marches on Carthage, but is caught and executed.
c. 550 BC onward--Carthaginian presence in the islands of Sicily and Sardinia. Carthaginian colonies formed along coast of Africa, Algeria, Hadrumetum, Leptis.
547 BC--Cyrus II of Persia defeats King Croesus of Lydia at the Battle of the Halys River. Persia absorbs all of Asia Minor, and assumes Lydia's overlordship of the Greek colonies o the Aegean coastline.
546 BC--The Tyrant Peisistratus overthrows democracy in Athens, and Sparta forms the Peloponnesean League.
539 BC--King Cyrus II of Persia takes Babylon. All of Mesopotamia, Syria, and Palestine come under Persian rule.
538-Upon capturing Babylon, King Cyrus II of Persia issues an edict of religious toleration and allows the Jews (who had been deported to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar) to return to their homeland. 42,360 Jews plus 7,337 servants return to Jerusalem with Zerubbabel, Sheshbazzar, and Jeshua. In October of that year, the Jews finish building the foundation of the temple. An altar and sacrificial offering to the Lord is made on the foundation of the temple. At this time the Samaritans and other neighboring nations complain to Cyrus and such influence is brought to bear on Cyrus's court at the imperial capital that the government suspends their building permit. Because of this opposition, all further work on the building of the temple will be suspended until the 2nd year of Darius the Great, about 520 BC.
535 BC--Carthage, with the Etruscans, destroys the Phocaean colony in Corsica and closes Sardinia-Corsica off to the Greeks.
530 BC--Pythagoras founds Mathematics.
525 BC--Pharaoh Ahmosi II "The Wise" dies, and is succeeded by his son, Psamtik III. Later that same year, the Persian army, under King Cambyses, invades Egypt. The Egyptian army meets them at Pelusium, and the Persians are crushed. However, the Egyptians also take heavy casualties, and do not pursue the defeated Persians.
c. 525 BC--The first Greek Tragedies are written. Among the writers are Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides.
523 BC--Cambyses again attempts the invasion of Egypt. His army is again defeated, and Cambyses is killed.
523-522 BC--Civil War in the Persian Empire. Upon the death of King Cambyses, there is a struggle for the succession to the Persian throne. Gaumata, a pretender who claims to be a son of King Cyrus II named Smerdis who had actually been killed some years earlier, assumes the throne, but is disputed by another prince of the Achaemenid House, who finally defeats Gautama in 522 BC and assumes the throne as King Darius I.
520 BC-516 BC--Completion of the Second Temple in Jerusalem. ªIn September 520 BC, in the 2nd year of King Darius, the Prophet Haggai began to stir up the people of Judah and Jerusalem to start building on the foundation for the temple which had been laid in 538 BC, and later that month the Jewish governor Zerubbabel and the high priest Jeshua, along with the rank and file of the people, began to rebuild the 2nd temple on the foundation that was laid 16 years before. This task will take over three years, and will be completed in February 516 BC.
510 BC--Pharaoh Psamtik III invades Palestine, but is killed in battle against the Persians, leaving no heirs. He is succeeded by general in the army who is a cousin from a related family Sais and takes the throne as Pharaoh Rameses XIII. Beginning of the 27th (Saite) Dynasty.ªAlso in this year, Athens joins the Peloponesean League, and the temple of Ceres at Paestum (in Italy) is built.
509 BC--Revolution in Rome. The last Etruscan King, Tarquinius Superbus, is expelled. Founding of the Roman Republic.
509-505 BC--War between Egypt and Persia. King Darius I of Persia invades Egypt in 509 BC, but his army is defeated by that of Pharaoh Rameses XIII at Pelusium. Rameses tries an invasion of Palestine the next year, but his invasion is no more successful, and he is forced to retreat to Egypt. The war will drag on for a further two years, mainly fought between the rival fleets in the Mediterranean, until a treaty is signed, establishing the border between the two empires.
508 BC--Attack on Rome by the Etruscan general Lars Porsena. Rome is able to withstand the attack. Several Roman noblewomen, including Cloelia, swim the Tiber River to escape from Lars Porsenna and his men.ªAlso in this year, the last of the Tyrants is overthrown in Athens, and democracy is restored. Cleisthenes grants full rights to all free men of Athens.
507 BC--First treaty between Carthage and Rome.
506 BC--A planned invasion of Rome by ousted King Tarquinius Superbus and an army of Etruscans is defeated by the Latin League and Greeks lead by Aristodemos of Cumae in a battle at Aricia. Also in this year, a Roman noble named Horatius Cocles stops an invasion, when he bars the bridge into Rome. While he is defending the bridge, the consuls Sp. Lartius and T. Herminius chop it down to prevent the enemy crossing. Horatius swims, fully armored across the Tiber to safety.
505 BC--A temple to Apollo is built at Delphi.
500 BC--Death of Pharaoh Rameses XIII. He is succeeded by Necho III.
499 B.C.--Ionian Greek cities (on Aegean coast of Anatolia) rebel against the Persians. The Ionians call on their cousins on the Greek mainland for aid. Miletus also calls on Pharaoh Necho III, who sends money and troops.
498 B.C.--Athens at war with Aegina. Also in this year, Hippocrates and Theron seize control in Syracuse and attempt to throw the Phoenicians off the western part of the island. They are unsuccessful, once again
497 B.C.--Athenians responds to the Ionian request for help and attacks Sardis (former capital of Lydia, now the headquarters of the Persian Satrap who rules over Ionia). In cooperation with Ionian and Egyptian forces, Sardis is captured and burned. King Darius I of Persia gathers a large army to crush the revolt, which is clearly beyond the capability of the local satrap.
495 B.C.--Persians capture the Ionian city of Miletus, despite Athenian and Egyptian aid to that city. King Darius burns the city to the ground. Most of the population escapes and settles in Egypt. With the fall of Miletus, the Ionian revolt falls apart, and the remaining Greek cities in the region surrender to the Persians by the end of the year.
494 B.C.--The Spartans under Cleomenes, who are in favor of resistance against the Persians, defeat the Argives, who were in favor of submitting to the Persians.
494 BC--First Secession of the Plebeians in Rome. Creation of the tribunes of the plebs, two of whom are elected annually. Creation of the office of aedile for the plebeians of Rome, held by two men.
490-485 BC--Vowing revenge on those who aided the Ionian revolt, King Darius I of Persia declares war on Egypt and Athens. He sends two armies of invasion, both of which are defeated (by the Athenians at Marathon and by Egypt at Pelusium). Throughout the rest of Darius's reign, there will be continuing, low-intensity warfare between Persia on the one hand and Egypt and Athens on the other. The war is fought mainly at sea, with neither side gaining a clear advantage.
489 B.C.: Expedition of Miltiades of Athens to Paros. Death of Cleomenes of Sparta.
485 BC--Death of King Darius I of Persia. He is succeeded by his son, Xerxes I. Xerxes vows to continue the war against Egypt and Athens.
481 BC--Athens, Sparta, and other Greek cities form the Hellenic League against Persia. Egypt provides some financial support, which allows the Greeks to build their military somewhat more rapidly, but not dramatically more so.
480 BC--A Carthaginian force under Hamilcar the Magonid is defeated by Sicilian Greeks at Himera cutting off Carthaginian access to the East. Hamilcar commits suicide on the battlefield. In the wake of this defeat a revolution overthrows the Magonid dynasty and establishes the Court of 104 Magistrates. Beginning of the Carthaginian Republic.
480-479 BC--King Xerxes of Persia invades Greece, and the invasion proceeds pretty much as in OTL. The Greeks fail to hold the Persian army at the Pass of Thermopylae. Athens is captured and burned, but the Persian navy is defeated at Salamis, and the Persian army at Plataea. Xerxes retreats back to Asia, but Macedonia and Thrace remain under Persian control.
479-450 BC--Re-buffed in Sicily, Carthage focuses on Africa, conquering most of what is now Tunisia. Colonies in North Africa founded or strengthened. Mago's expedition crosses the Sahara.
478 BC--King Xerxes of Persia concludes a peace treaty with Pharaoh Necho III of Egypt, ending the war between them. An uneasy peace will reign between the two empires...with a few small exceptions...for the next century. Egypt will once again focus it's attention to the south, while Persia wars with the Greeks.
477 BC--Representatives from the Greek city-states of Asia Minor and the islands scattered throughout the Aegean Sea, meet on the island of Delos—a sacred island associated with the cult of Apollo—to discuss an alliance with the Athenians. They swear oaths of alliance to each other and to Athens; thus is born the Delian League. This new league has several purposes besides defense; one of these is to wage a military campaign against the Persians to free those Greek cities that are still under the control of the Persians. Although Athens is the leader of the League, each city-state has one vote and the League is essentially a democratic alliance between equals.
477-449 BC--Wars of the Delian League against Persia. After the decisive naval battle at Eurymedon in 467 BC, where the Persian fleet is destroyed, the League frees the Ionian Greek cities from Persian rule and these cities join the League (sometimes forcibly).
472 BC--Carystus, a town on the island of Euboea, is forced into the Delian League. This is the first time a Greek state has been forced into the League against it's will, establishing a dangerous precedent.
469 BC--The island of Naxos tries to secede from the Delian League. It is invaded and captured by League forces, who force it back into the alliance. Thus another dangerous precedent is established which will lead, eventually, to the transformation of the League into the Athenian Empire.
465 BC--Death of King Xerxes I of Persia. He is succeeded by Artaxerxes I.
461-451 BC--First Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta. The war is indecisive, and a peace is agreed to in 451 BC.
461 BC--Pericles comes to power in Athens. His rule will become know as Athens' Golden Age.
455 BC--Death of Pharaoh Necho III. He is succeeded by Psamtik IV. However, Psamtik IV also dies later this year, and is succeeded by Ahmosi III.
454 BC--The Treasury of the Delian League, which had, up to this time, been kept on the holy island of Delos, is moved to Athens, signifying the transition of the League from a voluntary association of Greek States lead by Athens, to an empire ruled by Athens.
450 BC--Pharaoh Ahmosi III dies, and is succeeded by Psamtik V. Also in this year, the Law of the Twelve Tables is established in Rome.
c. 450 BC--At around this time, Herodotus writes the first-ever non-theological history, and Hippocrates establishes the foundations of modern medicine.
449 BC--Peace of Callias. King Artaxerxes I of Persia signs a treaty of peace with the Delian League, recognizes the freedom of the Greek cities in Asia Minor. End of the Persian Wars.
438 BC--With funds taken from the treasury of the Delian League, Pericles begins construction of the Parthenon in Athens.
437-426 BC--The Fidenaean War between Rome and the city of Fidenae. Rome is victorious. This marks the beginning of Roman expansion in Italy.
431-404 BC--Second Peloponnesian War between the Peloponnesian League (Sparta and allies) and the Delian League (Athens and subject states). Sparta is heavily financed by Persia, and Athens is defeated. The democracy is replaced by an Oligarchy called The Thirty Tyrants.
430-429 BC--A great plague devastates Athens. Among the dead is Pericles, who dies in 429 BC. No leader of his caliber will arise to replace him, and this is a major factor in the final defeat of Athens in the war with Sparta.
425 BC--Pharaoh Psamtik V dies, and is succeeded by Psamtik VI.
424 BC--Death of King Artaxerxes I. He is succeeded by Xerxes II.
415 BC--Pharaoh Psamtik VI dies, and is succeeded by Necho IV. Also in this year, Athens attempts to capture Syracuse in Sicily, but fails. This is the beginning of the long road to final defeat in the Peloponnesian Wars.
413 BC--Pharaoh Necho IV dies, and is succeeded by Psamtik VII.
410 BC--Phoenicians in Hispania join with Celtiberians to secede from Carthage, denying the state important silver and copper revenues. Overland tin trade is cut off. Also at this time, Himilco's expeditions in the Atlantic and Hanno's expeditions to Morocco and Senegal take place.
409 BC--Carthage initiates attempts to conquer Sicily. Hannibal, grandson of Hamilcar, takes the fortified towns of Selinus and Himera by use of siege towers.
406-396 BC--Rome conquers the Etruscan city of Veii.
405 BC--Hannibal Mago and hundreds of troops die in epidemic outside the fortified town of Acragas. Himilco, his relative, takes over command, but is defeated by a force out of Syracuse, and has his route of supply disrupted in naval action. Syracusan forces strengthen the garrison. A Carthaginian squadron breaks through Greek blockade. The besieged escape under cover of night, Punic forces collect spoils. Later that year, Himilco takes town of Gela, defeating a Syracusan force, and then takes town of Camarina. Finally, Himilco marches on Syracuse itself, but his army is laid low by epidemic, and Himilco seeks peace. By the terms of the treaty, Syracuse grants control of most of Sicily and must pay tribute to Carthage. The treaty confirms Dionysius I as dictator (tyrannos) of Syracuse. First Sicilian War concluded.
404 BC--Death of King Xerxes II of Persia. He is succeeded by Darius II. His brother, Artaxerxes, revolts against him, however, and Darius is overthrown later that same year. His brother takes the throne as Artaxerxes II.
403 BC--The Thirty Tyrants are overthrown in Athens. Restoration of the democracy.
401 BC--Cyrus, younger brother of King Artaxerxes II of Persia, revolts and attempts to usurp the throne. Among his army is a force of 10,000 Greek mercenaries lead by Xenophon. The Persian forces under Cyrus is defeated, and the Greek mercenaries are left stranded deep inside Persia, surrounded by enemies. They make an epic march to the sea, from Babylon to the Hellespont, defeating several Persian forces along the way. They demonstrate that the Persian Empire is weak and ready to be plucked, like a ripe fruit, by any reasonably competent conqueror who comes along. Fortunately for Persia, there are none to be found at this time.
c. 400 BC--Aristophanes is writing the world's first comedic plays.
399 BC--Trial of Socrates, who is sentenced to death by taking poison. Also in this year, the catapault is invented in Syracuse by Dionysius I.
398 BC--Dionysius I of Syracuse sacks Motya (Carthaginian town in Sicily), and the Carthaginians permanently relocate their main Sicilian base to the fortified town of Lilybaeum.
397 BC--Himilco drives Dionysius back to Syracuse and resumes siege. In naval action, the Carthaginians sink or board 100 Syracusan naval vessels and take 20,000 prisoners.
396 BC--Yet another epidemic lays Punic forces low for a third time in Sicily. Dionysius capitalizes on this and defeats Himilco in pitched battle. Himilco survives, but upon returning to Carthage, starves himself to death. Fighting continues. Also in this year, Sparta becomes involved in a war against Persia in Asia Minor.
395-386 BC: Corinthian War. Angered by Sparta's tyrannical overlordship in Greece after the Peloponnesian War, several Greek states take advantage of Sparta's involvement in war with Persia to challenge Spartan supremacy. Unable to fight a war on two fronts, the Spartans negotiate a peace with King Artaxerxes of Persia. This treaty, known as the King's Peace, or Peace of Antalcidas, is very favorable to Persia. Cyprus and the Greek city-states in Asia Minor are returned to Persia; the Athenians are forced to give up their conquests except Lemnos, Imbros, and Scyros; and the Greek city-states (except those in Asia Minor) are to be independent, thus eliminating combinations such as the Theban-dominated Boeotian League, which had fought against Sparta. Sparta interprets the terms of peace to justify interference in the Greek states.
393 BC--Carthaginian force under Mago, nephew of Himilco, defeated trying to re-take Messana.
392 BC--Mago of Carthage is defeated a second time. Truce signed with Syracuse.
390 BC--The Gauls (Celtic tribes) under Brennus sack Rome. Also in this year, Pharaoh Psamtik VII dies, and is succeeded by Ahmosi IV.
388-375 BC--As a defensive measure, Pharaoh Ahmosi IV orders the construction of a canal linking the Mediterranean with the Red Sea, with the Egyptian side to be fortified, thus severing the direct route of invasion from Asia. This is completed in 375 BC. In so doing he also opens up a new trade route, and Egypt profits mightily by charging tolls on foreign ships which wish to use the new canal. Ahmosi will gain the sobriquet "Canal Builder" as a result of this tremendous feat of engineering.
388 BC--Plato, a pupil of Socrates, founds his philosophical Academy, the first university in the world.
384 BC--Carthage renews it's war with Syracuse.
375 BC--Carthage is defeated at Cabala. Mago and 10,000 soldiers killed. Mago's son Himilco defeats Dionysius near Himera. A truce favorable to Carthage is concluded. Also in this year, Plato writes the "Republic."
373 BC--The Temple of Apollo at Delphi is destroyed by an earthquake. It will be rebuilt.
371 BC--Athens, Thebes, Chios, Mytilene, Byzantium, Rhodes and others revolt against Sparta which loses its supremacy. Especially critical is the defeat of the Spartan army at Leuctra by Epaminondas of Thebes.
367 BC--Dionysius of Syracuse attacks the Carthaginian base at Lilybaeum but is stopped when his fleet defeated by Carthaginian warships under Hanno the Great. Also in this year, Aristotle enters the Academia of Plato.
366 BC--Dionysius I of Syracuse dies, still at war with Carthage.
365 BC--Pharaoh Ahmosi IV dies, and is succeeded by Psamtik VIII.
360 BC--Hanno the Great tries to usurp power in Carthage. He is captured and crucified.
359 BC--Death of Artaxerxes II. He is succeeded by Artaxerxes III. Also in this year, Phillip II comes to the throne of Macedonia. Phillip had spent much of his youth as a hostage in Thebes, where he studied under the great general, Epaminondas. With what he learned there, he will reform the Macedonian army. He replaces the old Greek-style hoplite phalanx with a new formation, the Macedonian Phalanx. Phillip's Macedonian Phalangites are professional soldiers, and are among the first troops ever to be drilled, thereby allowing them to execute complex maneuvers well beyond the reach of most other armies. They fight packed in a close rectangular formation, typically eight men deep, with a leader at the head of each column and a secondary leader in the middle, so that the back rows can move off to the sides if more frontage is needed. Unlike earlier hoplites, phalangites are mostly unarmored except possibly those of the first row, and carried only small shields. No enemies are expected to get close enough for them to need any armor, however, since each phalangite carries as his primary weapon a sarissa, a double-pointed pike over four metres in length. At close range such large weapons are useless, but an intact phalanx can easily keep its enemies at a distance; the weapons of the first five rows of men all project beyond the front of the formation, so that there are more spearpoints than available targets at any given time. Phillip doesn't use the Phalanx as his primary striking force. Instead, the Phalanx is used to hold the enemy in place for a decisive charge by the cavalry. With this new army, Phillip will conquer Greece.
356 BC--The temple of Artemis at Ephesus is rebuilt. The new temple will be considered one of the seven wonders of the world.
354 BC--A tomb for King Mausolus...the Mausoleum...is built at Halicarnassus in Asia Minor. This, too, will be accounted one of the seven wonders of the world.
c. 350 BC--By this date, Carthage has established itself as the leading power in the West.
348 BC--Second treaty between Carthage and Rome.
344 BC--Philip II of Macedonia conquers Thessaly, Illyria, Epirus.
343 BC--Mago sails to Syracuse to drive out the usurper, but fails and commits suicide in order to avoid court martial upon his return. Hasdrubal and Hamilcar make a second attempt, losing a battle at Segesta. Hasdrubal executed. Gisco, son of Hanno the Great, is authorized to make peace. Sicily is divided along the Halycus River. 2nd Sicilian War ends.
343-341 BC--First Samnite War between Rome and the Samnites, a hill tribe from the central Apennines. War inconclusive.
342 BC--Aristotle tutors Alexander, son of Phillip II of Macedonia.
341-338 BC--Revolt of the Latin League against Rome. Rome is victorious. The Latin League is dissolved. Some communities closest to Rome are fully absorbed into the Roman state. Some Latin communities continue as technically independent states with Latin rights, but they sign treaties that subordinate their foreign policy to that of Rome. These states provide contingents for the Roman army. The least Romanized communities receive a special form of second-rate citizenship. Citizens of these communities have the obligations of Roman citizens (in particular military service) but are not allowed to vote at Rome.
340 BC--Pharaoh Psamtik VIII dies, and is succeeded by Psamtik IX. Pharaoh Psamtik, in response to reports from military observers which have spent time with Phillip II's Macedonian army, reorganizes and re-equips the Egyptian army based on the Macedonian model, but with some differences. Psamtik keeps a large force of Egyptian and Nubian foot archers, the armored cavalry armed with lance and bow, and the light horse archers, all of which have been such a successful part of the Egyptian military for so long. The army thus created is truly formidable. Also in this year, a power struggle in Syracuse ends with Timoleon of Corinth victorious.
338 BC--Death of King Artaxerxes III of Persia. He is succeeded by Arses. Also in this year, Philip II of Macedonia defeats Athens and Thebes at the battle of Chaeronea and unites most of the Greek cities under his control (League of Corinth).
336 BC--Death of King Arses of Persia. He is succeeded by Darius III. Also in this year, Phillip II of Macedonia is assassinated and is succeeded by his son Alexander. Pharaoh Psamtik IX of Egypt concludes a treaty of alliance with Alexander against Persia.
334-331 BC--The combined armies of Alexander of Macedon and Psamtik IX of Egypt invade and conquer the Persian Empire. Alexander advances across the Hellespont and overland through Asia Minor, while Psamtik sweeps north through Palestine and Syria. The two armies link up on the Euphrates, near the city of Carchemish. The combined armies destroy the Persian army at Arbela in 331 BC, and then move on to take Persepolis (capital of the empire). Despite protests by Psamtik, Alexander orders the Persian capital burned in retaliation for the burning of Athens in 480 BC. King Darius III of Persia is murdered by his own men later that year, and the Achaemenid Dynasty comes to an end.
329 BC--Pharaoh Psamtik IX "the Great," dies, and is succeeded by Necho V. The Egyptian army returns to it's own territory. Alexander of Macedonia continues the process of subduing the eastern provinces of the Persian Empire.
326-304 BC--The Great Samnite War. The Romans suffer a major and humiliating defeat at the Battle of the Caudine Forks in 321 BC, and another at Lautulae in 315 BC, but they persevere and finally emerge victorious. The Samnites and many other tribes allied to them are subdued and forced into alliance with Rome.
324 BC--Alexander of Macedonia invades the Punjab region of India. He defeats the Indian king Porus, but a mutiny by his army forces him to abandon the campaign without advancing further into India. Alexander returns to Babylon.
323 BC--Alexander of Macedonia dies in Babylon.
323-300 BC--Wars of the Diadochi. After Alexander's death, a civil war broke out as his generals squabbled over the division of the Empire between them. Four of Alexander's generals emerge victorious, with their own realms. Antipater and his son Cassander end up in control of Macedonia and it's European possessions. Ptolemy (who in OTL held Egypt) ends up with Asia Minor. Lysimachus ends up as King of Armenia. Seleucus ends up in control of everything from the Euphrates eastward. Egypt maintains control over Palestine and Syria up to the Euphrates (it's ancient sphere of influence in Asia, which it has reclaimed).
320 BC--Pharaoh Necho V dies, and is succeeded by Rameses XIV.
315 BC--Agathocles of Syracuse takes Messana from Carthage.
311 BC--Agathocles of Syracuse lays siege to Acragas and crosses the Halcyus, violating the peace treaty with Carthage.
311-302 BC--Roman wars against the Etruscans, who had joined Samnites in their war on Rome. By 302 BC, all Etruscan cities and towns are forced into alliance with Rome.
310 BC--Carthaginian force under Hamilcar, grandson of Hanno the Great, defeats a Greek force at Himera. Siege of Syracuse begins.
309 BC--Agathocles sails with a force of 14,000 to Africa. Carthage meets him in battle with 40,000 foot, 1000 cavalry and 2000 chariots under Bomilcar and Hanno. The Greeks are victorious, Carthage losing 3000 on the battlefield, but the city itself is impregnable. The Siege of Syracuse continues.
308 BC--Bomilcar tries to make himself dictator in Carthage, but is defeated and tortured to death. Continued fighting between Greek and Carthaginian forces in Tunisia.
307 BC--Greek victory outside Syracuse. Hamilcar is captured and killed. While Agathocles oversees events in Syracuse, however, Carthage defeats the Greek and allied forces in Africa. Despite Syracusan reinforcement, the Greek cause in Africa is doomed. Greeks desert to Carthaginian commanders Hanno and Himilco in vast numbers. A treaty favorable to Carthage is concluded.
306 BC--Third treaty between Carthage and Rome.
305 BC--Pharaoh Rameses XIV dies, and is succeeded by Necho VI. However, Necho VI dies later that same year, and is succeeded by Thutmoses V.
303 BC--Pharaoh Thutmoses V dies and is succeeded by Necho VII.
300 BC--The Olgunian Law in Rome ends the monopoly of the patrician class on constructing law and procedure, greatly increasing the rights of the plebeian class.
300 BC onward--Religious developments in the Egyptian Empire. The conquest of Palestine by the Egyptians will have significant effects on the future development of world religion. The Saite Pharaohs are, of course, believers in the old gods of Egypt, especially promoting the cults of Osiris and Isis. However, they are very lenient with the peoples in the lands they rule, they are sensitive to the religious feelings of their subject peoples, and they do not attempt to enforce any sort of religious conformity. One place where this has significant effects is in the tiny province of Yehud, where the Jews have rebuilt their temple. The lenient Egyptian administration allows the Jews complete freedom of worship, and the Jews are loyal subjects of their Egyptian overlords. Thus, there is no Maccabean revolt in this timeline and no independent Jewish state. However, as in OTL, the main religious life in the province is dominated by the Sadducees (the Temple Priests) and Pharisees (the rabbis). The Sadducees, as in OTL, are involved in politics, and are allowing commercial business to take place in the Temple (i.e. the moneychangers), which offends many of the more pious people. The Pharisees, who might have served as an alternative, however, are obsessed with petty dietary laws and other minutia, and are seen as hypocrites, observing the form, but not the spirit, of the Law. As a result, by the end of the 1st Century BC, many Jews have become dissatisfied with their religion and start to follow various cults which look to the arrival of a promised "Messiah" who will restore the Jewish faith to purity.
300 BC onward--Wars of the Successors. The various kingdoms which had arisen from the ruins of the empire of Alexander the Great struggle for supremacy, with none achieving it. Egypt fights several wars with the Ptolemies and the Seleucids for control of Syria and Palestine, but manages to hold onto it's Asian possessions, largely because, unlike the Hellenistic successor kingdoms, Egypt maintains a large cavalry force of armored lancers, armored horse archers, and light horse archers to go along with it's phalanx.
298-290 BC--Third Samnite War. The Samnites abrogate their treaty with Rome and once again declare war. They are joined by the Etruscans, Gauls, and Umbrians. The allies are decisively defeated at the Battle of Sentinum in 295 BC, and never recover. By 290 BC, the Romans have forced all of the allies to make alliances with Rome.
289 BC--Agathocles of Syracuse dies. Pre-war division of Sicily resumes. 3rd Sicilian War ends.
287 BC: Last secession of the plebeians in Rome. As a result, the Lex Hortensia makes plebiscites binding in Rome.
281-272 BC: Tarentine Wars. Rome has been pressuring the Greek city of Tarentum in Southern Italy, and in 281, Tarentum pleas for assistance from King Pyrrhus of Epirus. Pyrrhus is a relative of Alexander the Great, and wishes to engage in some adventure comparable to that of his famous relative. He agrees to the Tarentine offer, and in 280 arrives in south Italy with 35,000 men and 20 elephants. The Romans promptly lead an army against him and are heavily defeated at Heraclea. Though victorious Pyrrhus loses 4,000 men, and when congratulated for his victory, he comments bitterly that "another such victory will ruin me" (hence the expression "Pyrrhic victory"). After this victory, the south Italian Greeks (Italiotes), Lucanians and Samnites go over to Pyrrhus. He marches on Rome, perhaps expecting to cow them into submission. He finds, however, that even if some of the outlying Italian peoples are willing to desert the Romans, they can rely on the hardcore support of the Latins and various other communities. In the absence of large-scale defections, Pyrrhus can achieve nothing and withdraws to the south. In 279 he again wins a costly victory against the Romans, losing another 3500 men. At this point he offers to make peace if the Romans agreed to guarantee the independence of the Italiotes and the Samnites. Rome rejects the offer. In the meanwhile the Carthaginians are close to conquering the Greek communities of Sicily, and Pyrrhus crosses over to Sicily in 278 to aid the Greeks there. Pyrrhus defeats the Carthaginians and forces them off the island, leaving Lilybaeum as their only remaining stronghold. After throwing back the Carthaginians, he returns to Italy in late 276. In 275 two Roman armies guard against his attack to the north. His surprise attack on one army fails and he withdraws to Tarentum to avoid being encircled. At this point he goes back to Greece with most of his army, leaving the Italiotes to their fate. The Greek cities, without military support from Pyrrhus, are subdued by Rome and forced to sign treaties of alliance. Rome is now in effective control of all of Italy.
275 BC--Pharaoh Necho VII dies without heirs. The throne passes to a nephew of the queen, who takes the throne as Pharaoh Seti III. Beginning of the 28th Dynasty.
270-266 BC: Rome at war with Umbrians and Etruscans. Rome is victorious.
264-241 BC--First Punic War. Rome and Carthage support opposite sides in a war between the Greek cities of Sicily, leading Rome to invade the island. Carthage declares war on Rome, and a vicious struggle lasting over 20 years is the result. Rome is victorious, largely because of it's invention of the corvus...which allows Roman marines to board enemy ships and capture them. Carthage's naval power is broken, and it's armies are forced to surrender through lack of re-supply. In a humiliating treaty, Carthage is forced to surrender all of it's territories in Sicily and Sardinia to Rome.
250 BC--Pharaoh Seti III dies, and is succeeded by Rameses XV.
245 BC--Pharaoh Rameses XV dies, and is succeeded by Necho VIII.ªªNecho has watched the developments in the First Punic War with concern. Carthage is a major trading partner of Egypt, and militarily, the Carthaginian and Egyptian fleets have, in cooperation (but not formal alliance), dominated the Mediterranean. Pharaoh Necho recognizes the threat posed by the upstart republic of Rome. He has especially noted the Roman invention which gave them naval supremacy over the Carthaginians...the corvus. In response he has large complements of marines and archers added to the crews of his warships. He also has chest-high railings installed around the decks of his ships (to prevent the corvus from being dropped directly onto the deck, where it's iron spike can fasten the ships together). When war comes, as Necho knows it will, Egypt's ships will be ready.
245-238 BC--Parthia, a region of northeastern Iran inhabited by the Parni tribe, which up until now has been under the rule of the Seleucids, revolts and establishes it's independence. King Tiridates I assumes the throne.
241-237 BC--Civil War in Carthage. Hamilcar Barca, a brilliant general and statesman, emerges as virtual dictator in Carthage.
236 BC onward--Carthage invades and conquers most of the Iberian Peninsula. Hamilcar Barca does this to provide Carthage with an empire to compensate it for the one lost in the first Punic War, as well as to gain a base from which to eventually launch a war of revenge against Rome.
235 BC--Hamilcar Barca of Carthage secretly approaches Egypt, seeking a formal military alliance against Rome. Pharaoh Necho VIII accepts.
228 BC--Hamilcar Barca dies in battle in Hispania, and is succeeded by his son, Hannibal Barca. Hannibal continues his father's policies in Hispania and vis-a-vis Rome. Egypt renews it's alliance with Hannibal.
223 BC--Pharaoh Necho VIII dies, and is succeeded by Necho IX.
218-215 BC--The Second Punic War. In 218 BC, Hannibal precipitates the Second Punic War when he attacks the Roman client city of Saguntum. As in OTL, Hannibal leads his army across the Alps and invades Italy. The Egyptians honour their treaty commitments and send an invasion force by sea to Italy. The Egyptian fleet escorting the invasion force is intercepted by that of Rome off Tarentum, and a naval battle occurs. Egyptian archers rain flaming arrows on the opposing Roman warships, setting many of them ablaze, and those which manage to get close enough to drop their corvuses find that they do not work due to the new railings installed on the Egyptian vessels. The Romans suffer a bloody defeat, and the Egyptians are able to land on Italian soil. Over the next three years, as Egypt controls the seas, the combined Egyptian and Carthaginian armies establish control over most of Italy. The Egyptians transport over a siege train in 216 BC, and Rome surrenders the following year. Hannibal wants to raze Rome to the ground, kill all the males and sell the women and children into slavery. However, his Egyptian allies persuade him to be more lenient...Pharaoh Necho has no desire to see Carthage's only rival in the west eliminated. Rome is stripped of all her overseas territories (which are given to Carthage), and a crushing indemnity is imposed (shared by Egypt and Carthage). Carthage and Egypt are now the two most powerful states in the civilized world.
215-150 BC--Rome rebuilds it's power. In the succeeding decades, of course, Rome nurses it's hatred of Carthage and Egypt. Hannibal's successors in Carthage are not vigilant, and Egypt's eyes are turned eastward as it is again involved in border wars with the Seleucids and Ptolemies. And so, Rome is able to once again rebuild it's military power, and it casts about for allies. It will eventually find them, too.
190 BC--Pharaoh Necho IX "Roman Slayer" dies, and is succeeded by Seti IV.
165 BC--Pharaoh Seti IV dies, and is succeeded by Rameses XVI.
150 BC--Rome signs treaties with Ptolemy VI of Asia Minor and Antiochus VI of the Seleucid Kingdom.
149-141 BC--The Third Punic War. Shortly after concluding their treaty of alliance, Rome, the Ptolemies and the Seleucids declare war on Egypt and Carthage. Since Egypt has it's hands full defending against the combined Ptolemaic and Seleucid armies, it is not able to send much help to Carthage. And unfortunately, Carthage has, at this time, no leader of the caliber of Hamilcar or Hannibal Barca to lead it's war effort. Roman armies land in Sicily, Sardinia, and Spain, and over the course of five years defeat the Carthaginian forces there. Rome's fleet defeats the Carthaginian navy off Sicily in 144 BC, and the Romans land an invasion force near Carthage later that year. Carthage is placed under siege, and falls in 143 BC. The Romans are not disposed to be merciful, and they raze Carthage to the ground. The men are killed and the women and children sold into slavery. Carthage ceases to exist.
Meanwhile, Egypt has managed to hold off the Ptolemies and Seleucids. But it sees the war going ill for it's ally, and realizes Carthage may not be in the game much longer. So in 144 BC it does two things. Pharaoh Rameses XVI makes an alliance with King Mithridates I of Parthia, bribing him to attack the Seleucids. He also bribes Ptolemy VII, who has just succeeded to the kingship and who was never in favor of the alliance with Rome anyway, to make peace with Egypt in exchange for a large payment in gold and some minor land concessions along their mutual border. The Parthians sweep into Iran, and seize most of it as Egyptian armies press into Mesopotamia. Antiochus, desperate to protect his remaining lands from the Parthians, sues for peace with Egypt in 142 BC. A treaty is quickly signed, and Egypt redeploys to meet the Roman threat.
But the Romans do not come. Their attention is fully taken up with the problems of integrating their newly conquered territories into their empire, and when in 141 BC Pharaoh Rameses offers peace, Rome accepts. An uneasy quiet settles on the region. As a result of his success in delivering Egypt from what could have been a fatal crisis, Pharaoh Rameses will go down in history as "Rameses the Crafty."
140 BC to 90 BC--Roman expansion in Europe. It fights wars in Gaul, and against Epirus and Macedon, incorporating these areas into it's Empire by the year 100 BC. Greece loses it's independence soon after Rome takes Macedon.
138 BC--Death of Pharaoh Rameses XVI "The Crafty." He is succeeded by Psamtik X.
129-126 BC--King Artabanus II of Parthia invades and conquers the weakened Seleucid realm in Mesopotamia, killing King Demetrius II in the process and ending the Seleucid Dynasty.
124 BC--King Artabanus II of Parthia dies and is succeeded by Mithradates II, who will go down in history as Mithradates "the Great."
123 BC-100 BC--Wars of Mithradates II "The Great" of Parthia. Shortly after assuming the throne, Mithridates II threatens to attack Egypt's Asian possessions, but (after being bought off by a substantial bribe) decides to attack Armenia and the Ptolemaic kingdom instead. He invades and conquers Armenia in 120 BC, and then begins a series of wars with the Ptolemies. The Ptolemies appeal to Rome for aid, which is given. Roman legions join the Ptolemaic forces against the Parthians, but although they delay the fall of the the Ptolemaic kingdom, they do not prevent it. The Ptolemaic capital of Ephesus finally falls in 100 BC, and with it, the kingdom. It's last king, Ptolemy X, is taken to Babylon, where he is flayed alive. But Queen Cleopatra Berenice and most of the rest of the Ptolemaic royal family escape to Rome, and this gives Rome an excuse to continue the war with Parthia. The conflict will go on, at various levels of intensity, for the next 300 years. Egypt will sit on the fence throughout the conflict, supporting first one side and then the other (and sometimes both at once!)...it's Pharaohs reason that as long as Rome and Parthia are at each other's throats, they won't have much time or energy to think about attacking Egypt! And the strategy will work well for a long time.
95 BC: Pharaoh Psamtik X dies. Succeeded by Thutmoses VI.
90 BC-75 BC--First Parthian War between Rome and Parthia. Egypt neutral,
secretly provides funding to both sides. War is inconclusive, both sides
exhausted, agree to peace brokered by Egypt.
70 BC--Pharaoh Thutmoses VI dies, succeeded by Seti V.
70 BC-62 BC--First Roman Civil War. During this period, Roman exiles flee to
Egypt, and Pharaoh Seti V reorganizes his infantry on the Roman model, using
their technical expertise. Phalanx abandoned, legion adopted. Unlike the
Romans, however, Egypt retains it’s strong cavalry and archer
contingents...army composition is Legionary Infantry (pilum, short sword)--40%, Foot Archers--20%, Armored Cataphract Cavalry (lance and bow)--30%, Light Horse Archers--10%.
62 BC-40 BC--In the aftermath of the First Roman Civil War, a Triumverate of
powerful Roman Generals has emerged, and in alliance, rule the Republic.
These are Gaius Julius Caesar, Gnaius Pompeius Magnus (“Pompey”), and
Marcus Licinius Crassus. Period of Roman expansion. An uneasy peace
between Rome and Parthia in the east allows Rome to expand at the expense of it’s barbarian neighbors to the north, east, and south. In 60 BC, Julius Caesar is elected Consul. Under his leadership Germany is conquered to the line of the Oder River. Meanwhile Pompey conquers the Dacians in what is OTL Romania, and Crassus invades and conquers Britain up to the line of the Firth of Forth.
40 BC-34 BC--Second Roman Civil War. Crassus is killed in battle in Britain in
40 BC. The Triumverate breaks up and war breaks out between Caesar and
Pompey. Caesar is eventually victorious, but is assassinated soon after. Power now lies in the hands of one of Caesar’s generals, Mark Antony, and his nephew and adopted heir, Octavian. The two form an uneasy alliance, and for a few brief years, peace reigns in the Roman lands.
40 BC-35 BC--Egypt at war with Parthia. King Phraates IV of Parthia invades
Egypt’s Syrian provinces in 40 BC. The newly reorganized Egyptian army meets the Parthian host in battle and inflicts a sharp defeat on it, forcing it to retreat from Egyptian territory. The Parthians try again for each of the next five years, but with the same results. Egypt, which has no interest in further expansion in Asia, is finally able to bring the Parthians to the negotiating table after a particularly bloody defeat of the Parthian army at Damascus in 35 BC. However, periodic border raids by the Parthians will continue for the next few decades, despite the “official” peace between the two empires.
33 BC--Pharaoh Seti V dies, succeeded by Psamtik XI.
30-27 BC--Third Roman Civil War, when the uneasy alliance between
Octavian and Antony finally breaks down. Fall of the Republic. Antony is
defeated and killed, Octavian Caesar declared the first Roman Emperor, takes
the name Caesar Augustus.
10 BC--Pharaoh Psamtik XI dies, succeeded by Necho X.
2 BC-31 AD--Second Parthian War between Rome and Parthia. After sitting on the fence for most of the war, in 29 AD Egypt allies itself with Rome. This
decisively tips the balance, and Parthia loses Asia Minor to Rome. Egypt
reclaims it’s lands taken from it by the Ptolemies in the Third Punic War, putting the border of the Egyptian Empire back on the Euphrates.
4 BC--Yeshua born in Bethlehem, province of Yehud.
1 AD-1450 AD---Bantu migrations in Africa. The Bantu, iron-working
cattle-herders who originated in the forests of west Africa, began migrating south
and east beginning in about 1 AD. By 200 AD, the first wave of Bantu had
reached the area of Natal, in what is OTL South Africa. Other Bantu groups
moved into East Africa during this period as well. All of these early groups came
under the influence of Egyptian culture, and later, when the Egyptians expanded
their holdings into the interior regions of east Africa beginning in 280 AD, under
the political control of Egypt as well. Successive waves of Bantu migration
encountered the Egyptians, and were either repulsed or assimilated. In the
years after 320 AD, Egyptian cultural influence has continued to creep inland,
and as a result, by 1450 AD, most of the interior of Africa consists of small city
states which are, to one degree or another, Egyptianized culturally (the farther
away from Egypt’s borders, obviously, the less cultural affinity of the native
city-state cultures). The last wave of Bantu migration reaches southern Africa
about 1450 AD, where they will settle and assimilate to Egyptian culture. The
exception is on the west coast of Africa, where Ghanaese cultural influence
(itself heavily influenced by Rome) competes with that of Egypt in places like the
Kingdom of Kongo.
12 AD--Pharaoh Necho X dies, succeeded by Ahmosi V.
30 AD--Yeshua called to ministry. 12 Disciples join him.
33 AD--Yeshua attacks vendors in Temple at Jerusalem during Passover
celebration. Accused of Blasphemy by Sanhedrin, tried, convicted and
executed. Body disappears from tomb 3 days later. Disciples claim to have
seen Yeshua, risen from the dead, begin making converts.
40 AD--Pharaoh Ahmosi V dies childless. The next in line to the throne is
second cousin who lives in Sais, but the throne is usurped by an army general
from Thebes who is also a cousin (but more distantly) of the deceased Pharaoh. This general takes the royal name of Wahibre II, founding the 29th Dynasty. Also in this year, most of the “Maschiachim” (Christians) are driven out of Yehud by the Jewish authorities. Communities are formed in Syria, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, Egypt, Athens, Arabia and Rome over the next few years. The new religion begins to spread.
50 AD-75 AD--Third Parthian War between Rome and Parthia. King Vologeses
I of Parthia invades Asia Minor. Rome seeks an alliance with Egypt, but is
turned down by Pharaoh Wahibre II, who has plenty to keep him busy at home
as he consolidates his rule and stamps out rebellions by supporters of the
legitimate heirs to the throne. After a quarter century of war, Parthia retakes Asia Minor. Both sides are exhausted, and an uneasy peace will reign over the region for the next 75 years.
64 AD--A great fire burns much of Rome to the ground. The Emperor Nero, who is widely suspected of starting the blaze himself so as to clear land for his new palace, accuses the Christians and begins a bloody persecution. However, the bravery of the Christians as they face martyrdom merely strengthens the new religion, and it continues to grow despite Nero’s brutality. The persecutions end when Nero commits suicide in 68 AD, but will recur under later emperors.
60-100 AD--Christian Gospels composed and set down in writing.
90 AD--The grandson of the legitimate heir to the throne of Egypt, whose place was usurped by Wahibre II in 40 AD, leads a revolt. After a short civil war lasting less than a year, Wahibre is overthrown and the 28th Dynasty is restored. The new king takes the royal name of Rameses XVII.
100-300 AD--Christianity continues to spread, despite persecutions, in both the Roman and Parthian Empires. In the Egyptian Empire, the policy of religious tolerance continues to be practiced, so no persecutions take place there. Christianity makes it's greatest inroads in the Roman Empire, where, by 300 AD, it has nearly a million adherents. In both the Parthian and Egyptian Empires, however, strong competitor religions offering the same promise of eternal life and spiritual resurrection, Zoroastrianism/Mithraism in Parthia and the cult of Osiris and Isis in Egypt, prevent Christianity from making much headway in those lands. Indeed, in Egypt, a strange hybrid develops, as the Egyptians gradually absorb Yeshua and Mary into their religion as new incarnations of Osiris and Isis. A bizarre version of the Christian Trinity will finally emerge in Egypt...with Yeshua identified with both Osiris AND his son, Horus (similar to "The Father and the Son" portion of the OTL Christian Trinity) and Mary (identified as Isis) forming the third part of the Trinity. One effect all this does have on the Egyptian religion is to elevate Osirus, Isis, and Horus to the supreme position in the Egyptian pantheon. The other Egyptian deities come to be regarded as more akin to angels than as actual deities, and the importance of their cults declines accordingly. Of course, the version of "Christianity" which thus takes root in Egypt has very little in common with Christianity practiced elsewhere.
100-105 AD: Border war between Rome and Egypt flares up, but ends
inconclusively.
128 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XVII dies, succeeded by Rameses XVIII.
142 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XVIII dies, succeeded by Necho XI.
150 AD--Pharaoh Necho XI dies, succeeded by Seti VI.
150 AD-160 AD--Fourth Parthian War between Rome and Parthia. Egypt
secretly finances both sides, and the war finally peters out inconclusively after ten years of fighting.
155-159 AD--Kushite Revolt. Prince Taharka briefly throws out the Egyptian
garrisons and establishes independent Kushite kingdom, but Pharaoh Seti’s
armies succeed in re-establishing Egyptian control within four years. Egypt
discovers that the Kushite rebels were financed by Parthia, chilling relations
between the two empires.
191 AD--Pharaoh Seti VI dies, succeeded by Thutmoses VII.
197 AD--Pharaoh Thutmoses VII secretly forms an alliance with Rome against
Parthia.
199 AD-220 AD--Fifth Parthian War between Rome and Parthia. Egypt is allied
with Rome, and Parthia, despite fanatical resistance, is inexorably beaten back. Finally, severely weakened, King Artavasdes of Parthia sues for peace in 220 AD. In a humiliating peace treaty, Parthia cedes Asia Minor and Armenia to Rome, while Egypt takes Mesopotamia. Parthia falls into political turmoil shortly afterward.
203 AD--Pharaoh Thutmoses VII dies, succeeded by Psamtik XII. Psamtik XII
continues the policies of his predecessor, and the war with Parthia continues.
224 AD--Ardashir I, chieftain of the Sassanid dynasty in the province of Persis, overthrows the King Artavasdes of Parthia. Sassanid Persian Empire
established. The new dynasty is very aggressive, and holds dreams of
re-establishing control over the full extent of the lands held by the old Achmaenid Persian empire. This does not bode well for peace in the region.
227--Mani, a Persian mystic born near Babylon in 215 AD, and who has
remained in Mesopotamia after the region passed into the control of Egypt, has the first of two visions which will lead him to found the religion of Manichaeism.
229-238 AD--King Ardashir I of Persia declares war on Rome in 229 AD. Egypt
remains neutral, but secretly finances both sides, which results in a protracted war which is exhausting for both empires, but inconclusive.
230 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XII dies, succeeded by Ahmosi VI.
240-260 AD--During the period of peace between Rome and Persia, Rome
expands it’s holdings in Europe at the expense of it’s barbarian neighbors.
Roman armies push the borders of the empire to the line of the Vistula and Bug rivers, and also take the Crimea and the region north of it in the southern
Ukraine.
241 AD--Mani has his second vision and begins preaching in Mesopotamia. Over the next few decades Mani will travel throughout both the Egyptian and Persian Empires, and his new religion will gain many followers. In Egypt it becomes simply one among many competing faiths, all tolerated by the Empire, and never becomes a threat to the established State religion. However, in Persia, Mani comes into conflict with the priesthood of the official Zoroastrian state religion.
241-250 AD--War between Persia and Egypt. King Shapur I invades
Mesopotamia in 241. Egyptian forces are defeated in 242 outside Babylon, and Mesopotamia falls to Persia. Shapur follows up with yearly invasions of the Egyptian holdings in Syria and Palestine, but the Egyptians are successful in holding these areas. A treaty of peace is finally signed in 250 AD.
258-260 AD--Shapur I of Persia invades Armenia, sparking war with Rome.
Roman Emperor Valerian is defeated and captured in battle in 260 AD, and
Armenia falls to the Sassanids. Egypt is still recovering from it’s recent war with Persia, and remains neutral.
271 AD--King Shapur I of Persia dies, the Sassanid Empire experiences a period of dynastic struggle and is thus self-absorbed for a while . Relative peace reignsin the rest of the Middle East. Also in this year, Mani, who with the death of Shapur I has lost his protector, is crucified in Persia. The new King, Bahram I, severely persecutes Mani’s followers.
275 AD--Pharaoh Ahmosi VI dies, succeeded by Ahmosi VII.
280-320 AD--Expansion of Egyptian holdings in Africa. Over the previous
centuries, Egyptian settlers had gradually drifted west from Egypt’s coastal
holdings, and a large area of the African interior had come under the cultural, if not the political, domination of Egypt. Ahmosi VII decides to make that
domination political as well, and his policy is continued by his successors, Necho XII and Thutmoses VII. Egyptian armies push westward from the coast. The various petty kingdoms of the interior fall to the might of Egyptian arms, and a force of Egyptian marines conquers Madagascar. Thus, by 320 AD, the Pharaohs have added significantly to their realm. With these new conquests come new resources, such as diamonds and exotic woods, spices, animals, ivory, and many others. Egypt’s wealth reaches unprecedented levels.
290 AD--Pharaoh Ahmosi VII dies, succeeded by Necho XII.
GENERAL RELIGIOUS DEVELOPMENTS, 300-600 AD: Christianity continues to grow, especially in the Roman Empire, where it is gradually besting it’s main rivals, the cults of Mithra and of Isis, and will eventually become the state religion. In Egypt, it continues to be integrated into the native Egyptian religion, and by 400 AD is virtually unrecognizable by Christians in other lands. Indeed, various synods and councils over the course of the next few centuries will declare the Church of Egypt to be heretical, effectively casting Egyptian Christians out of the fold of Christianity. Meanwhile, Manichaeism also continues to grow, spreading to India, China, and the Roman Empire. In Rome, it is at first tolerated, but eventually will be persecuted (especially after Christianity becomes the State religion) with such severity that it will eventually be exterminated. The rulers of Persia continue to persecute the Manichaens, and as a result the religion does not flourish there, either. Egypt, with it’s tolerant policies, is another matter. Large Manichaean communities arise, but as with Christianity, they never become large enough a factor to threaten the state religion. However, it is in Egypt where Manichaeism survives to the present day, having been exterminated in all other places where it once took root.
304 AD--Pharaoh Necho XII dies, succeeded by Thutmoses VIII.
311 AD--Constantine I defeats his rivals and becomes Emperor of Rome. He
converts to Christianity soon afterward, and makes it the official religion of the Roman Empire.
333 AD--Pharaoh Thutmoses VIII is overthrown by a descendant of Wahibre II
(“the Usurper”), who takes the throne as Wahibre III, restoring the 29th Dynasty. Wahibre III ruthlessly hunts down and slays all the remaining members of the family of the 28th Dynasty who he can find, earning the name “Bloody Hand.”
337-370--Period of intermittent warfare between Sassanid Persia, Rome and
Egypt. Wars are inconclusive, but exhausting for all powers concerned.
340-363--The Great Persecution of the Christian church by King Shapur II of the Sassanid Persian Empire, who is a devout and evangelical Zoroastrian.
350 AD--Pharaoh Wahibre III dies, succeeded by Ahmosi VIII. Ahmosi VIII,
however, is killed in battle against the Persians later that same year, and is
succeeded by Wahibre IV.
360 AD--Julian “the Apostate” becomes Emperor of Rome, revokes Christianity’s official status within the Empire and attempts to revive paganism. Christians are persecuted.
363 AD--Roman Emperor Julian “the Apostate” is killed in battle with Persia. His successor, Jovian, continues the persecution of Christians.
364 AD--Emperor Jovian is overthrown by Valentinian, who becomes Emperor
Valentinian I. Christianity is restored as the official religion of Rome.
Persecutions of Christians end.
376AD--Huns, led by Uldin, reach the Black Sea and the Danube, conquering the eastern Goths. They also eject the Romans from their lands north of the Black Sea.
380-399--Persecution of Christians in the Sassanid Persian Empire by Kings
Ardashir II, Shapur II, and Bahram IV.
395AD--the Huns raid Armenia.
396 AD--Wahibre II’s attempt to eradicate the old dynasty was not totally
successful, and a line descended from a distant cousin of Thutmoses VIII still
lives in Sais. This family rises in revolt against Wahibre III, and overthrows him. Wahibre and his entire family are put to death. The new family takes power as the 30th Dynasty. The new king takes the royal name of Necho XII.
399 AD--King Yazdagird I of Sassanid Persia ascends the throne. Persecutions of Christians end.
408 AD--Pharaoh Necho XII dies, succeeded by Necho XIII. Also in this year,
King Uldin and the Huns raid into Roman Territory. They cross the Danube but
are defeated by Rome. However, Rome is forced back to it’s fortifications on the lines of the Vistula and the Danube. All territories east of the Vistula and north of the Danube are lost to the Huns.
409--Yazdagird I of Persia issues an Edict of Toleration for Christians, permitting them to publicly worship and build churches.
412AD--the new Hun leader Donatus is murdered by the Romans and is
succeeded by Charato (Karaton), who unifies all Western Huns.
416-420---Yazdagird I of Persia revokes his Edict of Toleration, persecutions of Christians begin again. Many Christians flee to Egyptian and Roman territories.
420 AD--Pharaoh Necho XIII dies, succeeded by Necho XIV.
420-427--The White Huns (an Indo-Iranian tribe from Central Asia not related to the Mongolian Huns which are at this time troubling Europe) raid Persia as far west as modern Tehran. They are severely defeated and forced to retreat from Persia by King Bahram V in 427 AD. Beginning of a long period of struggle between Sassanid Persia and these nomads from central Asia.
425AD--Huns are hired by a western Roman general (Aetius) to fight in Italy
during a political crisis.
430AD--The new Hun leader Rugida (Rua) signs a peace treaty with the eastern Roman empire (annual salary in return for peace). The Huns permanently establish themselves in Dacia (OTL Romania).
434 AD--Rugida (Rua) dies and is succeeded by Attila (a friend of Aetius) and
his brother Bleda.
437 AD--Pharaoh Necho XIV dies, succeeded by Seti VII.
441AD--The Huns raid Roman outposts along the Danube. Later that year, the Huns sign a peace treaty with the Roman Empire
445AD--By murdering his brother, Attila becomes sole leader of the Huns.
447AD--The Huns and their vassals, the Goths, attack the Roman empire in the Balkans. They break through the Danube defenses and cause extensive
damage.
448 AD onward---Christianity is again persecuted in the Sassanid Persian
Empire.
449AD--Attila signs a new treaty with the Roman Empire.
450AD--The new Roman Emperor Marcian reneges on the Hun-Roman treaty.
451AD--Huns attack the Danube fortifications but are held at the frontier by
Aetius. A new treaty is signed, and the Huns retreat to Dacia, where they collect a yearly tribute from Rome.
453AD--Attila dies. After his death, the Huns are never again much of a threat. By 500 AD they have basically amalgamated with the Goths and settled down in Dacia to stay.
454--Sassanid Persians are defeated by the White Huns. However, the White
Huns are not able to make any significant territorial gains.
457-459--Civil War in the Sassanid Empire. King Yazdagird II faces rebellion by Prince Peroz, who has allied himself with the White Huns. Peroz overthrows Yazdagird and takes the throne in 459.
464-475--White Huns attempt to overthrow King Peroz of Persia, but after a
decade of exhausting war, are finally persuaded to withdraw from Persia in
exchange for a large tribute. An uneasy peace will reign for the next few years.
484--Peroz attacks the White Huns, and is killed in battle. Sassanid Persia is
invaded by the White Huns in the aftermath of this defeat, and most of it is
conquered. The White Huns will rule Persia through puppet Sassanian Kings for the next 40 years.
500 AD--Pharaoh Seti VII dies, succeeded by Thutmoses IX.
c. 500 AD onward--A couple of centuries after the arrival of the Egyptians in
Madagascar, which they found to be virtually uninhabited, a new people calling
themselves the Malagasy began arriving on the island. The Egyptians allow
them to settle, so long as they acknowledge the Pharaoh as their overlord, and
through them learn of a vast island archipelago to the east, beyond India with
lush forests and fields of spices. The Egyptians have been trading with India for
centuries, but now they know where many of the exotic spices which they have
been obtaining there actually originate. The Pharaohs consider the area to be
too far away to make military conquest practicable, but they begin sending
trading ships to the “Spice Islands,” as they come to be called, before 600 AD.
Egypt’s profits and prosperity increase accordingly.
520-531 AD--King Khusro I of Persia, in alliance with Turkish tribes from Central Asia, makes war on the White Huns, finally defeating them and re-establishing full independence.
533 AD--Pharaoh Thutmoses IX dies, succeeded by Rameses XIX.
540-562--War between Rome and Sassanid Persia.
552 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XIX dies, succeeded by Psamtik XIII
558 AD: the Avars (another Hunnic tribe from Central Asia) invade the Russian
steppes and push the Slavs to the west. Within a few years, these Slavic
refugees begin attacking the Roman fortifications on the Vistula and Danube.
Most settle in Dacia, where they amalgamate with the Huns and Goths currently living there.
560 AD: the Roman Emperor Justinian hires the Avars to fight the Huns and
Slavs. The Avars conquer Dacia, and like the Huns before them, settle there.
568 AD: the Avars attempt an invasion of Roman Territory, but are unable to get past the strong fortifications and naval patrols on the Danube. 590 AD: the empire of the Avars extends from the Volga to the Danube to the Baltic Sea.
570 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XIII dies, succeeded by Psamtik XIV.
571 AD--Mohammed born in Arabia. Also in this year, the Roman Empire signs
a treaty with the Avars. The Avars now control an area extending from the
Roman frontier on the Danube and Vistula lines to the Volga and the Black Sea.
584: Kubrat unifies the Bulgars (a Turkic vassal tribe of the Avars, living in the
region of the southern Ukraine and Crimea). They revolt and establish their
independence from the Avars.
596 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XIV dies, succeeded by Rameses XX.
599--The Avars defeat a Roman army in battle, capturing 12,000 prisoners,
which they execute. The Avars get past the Danube fortifications and into the Balkans, where they cause extensive damage before they are finally defeated and forced to retreat back to Dacia.
603-630 AD--Period of warfare between Rome, Persia, and Egypt. Wars are
inconclusive, but severely deplete the resources of all three powers. They are thus ill-prepared for the onslaught of the new enemy which is rising to the south, in Arabia.
626 AD--War between Rome and the Avars. The Avars are unable to breach the Danube lines, and accept a Roman peace offer. This will prove to be the last major incursion by the Avars against Roman Territory.
610-634 AD--Mohammed founds the new religion of Islam. The Muslims (as
Mohammed’s followers are called) gradually, through a series of wars, bring the entire Arabian peninsula under their control.
615 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XX dies, succeeded by Ahmosi IX.
632 AD--Death of Mohammed. Hadrat Abu Bakr becomes Caliph.
634---Omar ibn l-Khattab becomes Caliph, founding the Ommayad dynasty.
Also in this year, a Greek scientist working in the city of Naukratis (Greek colony city in Egypt), while experimenting with petroleum, sulfur, and other
inflammables, discovers a liquid substance that adheres to surfaces, ignites
upon contact, burns fiercely, and cannot be extinguished by water alone. The scientist has also invented a pumping machine, which enables the mixture to be projected in streams nearly 100 feet long. He demonstrates his discovery to Pharaoh Ahmosi, who recognizes it’s potential as a weapon. He orders Egyptian navy vessels and fortifications to be equipped with projectors for the new substance, which will come to be called “Egyptian Fire.”
634-700--Period of Muslim expansion. Muslim invasions of Syria, Mesopotamia,
Palestine, and other surrounding regions. Egypt loses it’s Asian possessions to
the Muslims, but in 642 AD the Arabs are stopped at the Suez fortifications
(where the Egyptian Fire makes its first dramatic appearance in warfare) and are unable to advance into Africa via land, while the Egyptian navy (also equipped with Egyptian Fire) keeps them from crossing by sea, either. Rome is able, with great difficulty, to hold them out of most of Asia Minor. Thwarted in the west by Rome and Egypt, the Arabs move east, where the Sassanid Persians are not so lucky, their empire falling to a wave of Arab invaders by 650 AD. The Muslims continue to move East, expanding into central Asia and over-running most of the Indian subcontinent by 700 AD. They also move north, taking most of the Caucasus region.
650--The Bulgars are driven westward by the Khazars. They will eventually end up in Dacia, where they overcome the now weakened Avars and establish their own kingdom.
651 AD--Pharaoh Ahmosi IX dies, succeeded by Necho XV.
677 AD--Pharaoh Necho XV dies childless. As there are no male heirs in any
closely related branch of the royal family, the throne passes to the family of
Necho’s Queen, Neferhari, whose family comes from Thebes. The new ruler is
Neferhari’s nephew, a general in the Army. The new King is determined to
restore Thebes to its old imperial glory, and decides to take a royal name from
the Middle Kingdom period of Egypt (which was also ruled by a dynasty from
Thebes and whose literature he especially admires). Thus Sesostris IV ascends the throne as the first Pharaoh of Egypt’s 31st Dynasty.
681 AD--The Bulgars under Kubrat's son Asparuch attempt to cross the Danube but are defeated by the Romans.
c. 700 AD--Over the previous millennium, the Norse peoples of Scandinavia
have been slowly developing sleek, double-ended boats. These are oar
powered, and carry only small crews, and are capable of only short coastal
voyages in sight of land. Even in these limited craft, the Norse have made
themselves a nuisance with raids on Rome’s northern frontiers. However, about
700 AD, two innovations (the T-shaped keel, which strengthens the vessel
against heavy seas as well as allowing a mast and sail to be mounted, and the
sideboard rudder) are made by Norse shipbuilders in Norway which will enable
the Norse to leave their home waters and become not merely a nuisance, but a
plague. However, it will be a few decades still before these designs are
perfected, and the fearsome Viking longship makes it’s appearance on the world
scene.
700-730 AD--period of relative peace in the Middle East as the Omayyad
Caliphs, now based in Damascus, Syria, consolidate their gains. Conquered
peoples are treated somewhat tolerantly, being allowed to continue to practice
their own religions if they pay a special tax. Most people in the conquered
regions convert to Islam rather than pay the tax. The Jews in the province of
Yehud and elsewhere are a major exception, however, and there are other
groups scattered through the Caliphate who do not convert, as well (some
Christians, Zoroastrians and Manichaeans in Persia and Mesopotamia, for
example). North of the Caucasus, however, a new power is rising...the Khazar
Kaganate. The Khazars had already made their presence felt a few years earlier,
when they forced the Bulgars westward against the Roman defenses on the
Vistula and the Danube. They also are a very tolerant people, and many Jews
and Christians who do not wish to pay the Muslim tax on their faiths will flee to
the Khazar lands over the succeeding decades. The Khazars will become a
major player in world affairs in the centuries to come.
702 AD--Pharaoh Sesostris IV dies, succeeded by Amenemhet V.
729 AD--Pharaoh Amenemhet V dies, succeeded by Rameses XXI.
730-731AD--Khazar troops commanded by Barjik destroy an Arab army at the
Battle of Ardabil, then conquer Azerbaijan, Armenia and northern Iraq for a brief
time. However, Caliph Hisham I rallies his forces and drives the Khazars back
north of the Caucasus the next year.
731-740 AD--War between Egypt and the Caliphate. Taking advantage of the
temporary weakness of the Arabs following their defeat by the Khazars, Pharaoh
Rameses XXI decides to attempt to retake Egypt’s lost possessions in Asia, and
invades Palestine. The local Jews rise against their Muslim overlords when the
Pharaoh’s armies cross the border, and with their support, Rameses is able to
clear the Muslims out in short order. He follows up with an invasion of Syria, and
by 733 AD, has pushed the frontiers of the empire back to the Euphrates.
Caliph Hisham I, forced from his capital at Damascus, attempts to reconquer the
areas by invasion every year, but finally, in 740 AD, signs a peace treaty
recognizing the new frontiers. The Omayyad Caliphate re-establishes it’s capital
at Mecca.
737--The Arabs defeat the Khazars. The Khazars are forced to convert to Islam.
However, both the conquest and the conversion are short-lived.
740-753 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XXI orders construction of new fortifications to
defend the Asian possessions of the Egyptian Empire. Many new fortresses are
built, and old ones re-vamped. Egyptian Fire projectors are installed in all
fortifications.
740-780 AD--Muslim expansion in India and central Asia. By 780 AD, the
Caliphate has taken the entire Indian subcontinent, and has pushed its borders
to the line of the Jaxartes River, Hindu Kush Mountains, and the Himalayas. The
island of Ceylon is also taken. This will mark the furthest extent of the
Caliphate’s borders in the east, as the formidable terrain barriers in the south
and the formidable tribes of nomadic horse archers in the north halt the Arab
drive eastward.
747 AD--A bad earthquake causes much destruction and loss of life in Judaea and Transjordan. The Jewish temple is so badly damaged that its site must be cleared and rebuilt from scratch.
749-750 AD--Abbasid Revolution topples the Ommayad Caliphate. The
revolution arose from several factors. One major impetus was the secularism of
the Omayyad caliphs. The Omayyads had always been outsiders—as a wealthy
clan in Mecca, they had opposed Muhammad—and the secularism and
sometime degeneracy that accompanied their caliphate delegitimized their rule
for many devout Muslims. The Abassids took their name from al-'Abbas, a
paternal uncle of Muhammad and early supporter of the Prophet, and their close
kinship to Muhammad and the position of al-'Abbas as a Companion of the
Prophet served them well in gaining support. A final impetus was the exclusion
of non-Arabs from the highest levels of Islamic society under the Ommayads,
which lead many non-Arab converts to Islam, especially in Mespotamia and Iran,
to support the rebels. In a bloody uprising, the Abbasids massacre almost all of
the Omayyad House and sieze power, their leader, Abu al Abbas, being declared
Caliph in 750 AD. A few surviving Omayyads flee westward to Egypt, where they
are given sanctuary and maintain a sort of “Caliphate in Exile,” with the support
of the Pharaohs (who see the potential to use them to forment instability in the
Caliphate, thus weakening a dangerous enemy).
c. 750 AD--In west Africa south of the Sahara, various petty kingdoms and city
states have arisen, influenced by trade with the empires to the north and east.
The area is rich in gold, and supplies other exotic goods obtained from the
coastal forests to the south. In about 750 AD, the king of the city of Kumbi Saleh
unites the various city states in the region, forming the Kingdom of Ghana. Over
the next few centuries the Ghanaites expand their holdings until they have a
substantial empire in western Africa.
750 AD--Muslim armies attempt to move north from the Caucasus onto the
plains of what will one day become Russia, but are defeated by the Khazars.
751 AD--Arab armies meet the armies of the T’ang Chinese Empire at the Talas
River, in central Asia southwest of Lake Balkhash. The Chinese are defeated,
halting their expansion into central Asia. However, the Arabs do not pursue the
retreating Chinese, and their empire will expand no further eastward, either.
Chinese prisoners taken at the battle introduce the art of paper making to the
Arab world. It will spread quickly along the trade routes, reaching Egypt (where it
fails to make much of an impression in a culture where papyrus-making has
been an art for over 3,000 years by this point) and Rome (where it becomes very
popular as an alternative to imported Egyptian papyrus) by the end of the
century.
753 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XXI dies, succeeded by Sesostris V. Sesostris
continues his father’s policy of building fortifications in Palestine and Syria.
755-757 AD--War between Rome and the Caliphate. The Romans are pushed
back in Asia Minor to the line of the Halys River. However, the Muslims are not
able to make any further gains, and a treaty is signed.
760 AD--Pro-Omayyad rebellions in Arabia, formented by the Omayyad exiles in
Egypt, with Egyptian support. The Abbasids brutally crush these rebellions. The
sacred Kabaa in Mecca is burned to the ground, creating much shock and
resentment among the Arabs.
762 AD--War between the Caliphate and the Khazars. The Khazars invade the
Caucasus regions under control of the Caliphate, but are forced to retreat.
764 AD--Recognizing that the base of support for the new Abbasid regime is not
in Arabia (which is still quite pro-Omayyad) but in Mesopotamia and Iran, Caliph
Abu Jafar al Mansur founds a new city on the Tigris river in Mesopotamia, called
Baghdad, and established a new capital there.
777 AD--Pharaoh Sesostris V dies, succeeded by Sesostris VI.
c. 790 onward--Persecutions of Jews in the Roman Empire. Many Jews flee to
the Khazar lands, where the Kagans grant religious freedom to everyone.
Others flee to the Egyptian Empire, which follows similarly tolerant policies.
795 AD--Norse raiders begin ravaging the coasts of Roman Britannia and
Ireland.
795 AD--Pharaoh Sesostris VI dies, succeeded by Seti VIII.
c. 800 AD--The first Norse settlements are made on the islands off the coast of
Pictland and Scottia (the region north of the Firth of Forth on the island of
Britannia which is not held by Rome). Also at about the same time, Norse
traders begin moving down the rivers which penetrate the interior of the continent
from the Baltic coast. They meet and trade with the native Slavic people who
live along major rivers such as the Don, Dneiper, and others, and many of them
settle down. Beginnings of Norse settlement in the region.
c. 800-1200 AD--In the aftermath of the Muslim conquest of the Indian
subcontinent, there is a large migration of Hindu and Buddhist Indians into the
Indonesian Archipelago. Hinduism had been introduced into the region several
centuries ago, so these people are absorbed by the various city and island states
in the region with no major disruption of historical developments there from OTL.
The main change will be that the Hindu kingdoms there, already richer than in
OTL due to Egyptian trade, will with this boost in population be better able to
resist Muslim encroachment, and Islam will never get a foothold in the region.
801 AD--Pharaoh Seti VIII dies, succeeded by Rameses XXII.
805 AD--Norse raiders attack the coasts of Gaul and Hispania for the first time.
807 AD: In the years after their arrival in the region north south of the
Carpathians and north of the Danube, the Bulgars have mixed with the Huns,
Avars, Goths, and Slavs who live in the region, and by 800 AD have even
adopted the local Slavic language as their own. However, they have not proven
to be much of a threat to Rome, living peacefully most of the time. However, this
is about to change. In 807, Krum becomes king of the Bulgars. Krum is very
aggressive, and the plunder available in the Roman lands south of the Danube
looks very tempting...
810 AD: Bulgars, under King Krum, attack the Roman Danube defenses. They
are repulsed. Also in this year, the Roman navy clashes with the Norse in the
Oceanus Britannicus (OTL English Channel) off the coast of Cantia (OTL Kent).
The Romans have never established a true ocean-going navy, using poorly
adapted Mediterranean warship designs, and the swift, agile Norse vessels
decimate the Roman fleet. From this time onward, the Norse will control the
western seas. Communication between Roman Britain and the portions of the
continental Roman Empire becomes very problematic.
811 AD: The Roman Emperor Honorius III decides to punish the Bulgars for
their raiding, and leads an army across the Danube. Krum's Bulgars defeat the
Romans and kill the Emperor in battle. Less than two thousand of the
70,000-man Roman army escape across the Danube.
813 AD: Krum of the Bulgars again assaults the now-weakened Danube
defenses. He breaks through and sacks Hadrianopolis. Other cities in the
region pay tribute to avoid a similar fate.
814 AD: While on his way to storm the important trading city of Byzantium, which
has refused to pay tribute, Bulgar King Krum dies and is succeeded by his son
Omurtag. Omurtag’s army is severely defeated by a Roman army outside of
Byzantium and forced to retreat north of the Danube. The Bulgars will pose no
threat to Rome for quite some time to come.
820 AD--The Norse begin settling on the coast of Pictland and Scottia. They
quickly overcome the Picts and Scots in battle, and establish control over large
areas. Within 50 years, they will (by conquest and intermarriage with Scottish
and Pictish ruling houses, who, like the Norse, are pagans) bring all of Scottia
and Pictland under their control. Also in this year, pro-Omayyad rebellions again
break out in Arabia. Once again, they are brutally suppressed by Persian troops
loyal to the Abbasid Caliph.
825 AD: the Arab mathematician Al Khwarizmi of Baghdad writes a book on
"Hindu numerals" that spreads the use of "Arabic" numerals
830 AD--The Norse begin settling in Ireland and in Roman Britannia. In Ireland,
they establish towns at Cork, Dublin, and other places on the coast, and quickly
subjugate the Irish tribes living nearby. In Britain, Roman power initially limits the
Norse to small coastal enclaves, and the Romans are able to maintain control
over most of the island. This situation will continue for many years.
840 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XXII dies, succeeded by Amenemhet VI.
849 AD: Caliph al-Mutawakkil deposes the patriarch of the Christian Church and
persecutes Christians.
c. 850 AD--Driven by the Turkic Pechenegs, the Magyars (a Finno-Ugrian
nomadic tribe living in the region north and east of the Black Sea and allied to
the Khazars) migrate west. They reach the plains east of the Roman defenses
on the Vistula by 860 AD. These lands are inhabited by a Slavic tribe called the
Polanie, who call the area Polska. The Magyars settle among the Polanie and
establish themselves as a ruling class in the region. Also at about this time,
Roman missionaries convert the King of Ghana to Christianity. Ghana thus
becomes the first Christian state outside of Rome.
850 AD-The Persian mathematician Khwarazmi invents Algebra.
860 AD--The Norse discover Iceland.
861 AD--Pharaoh Amenemhet VI dies, succeeded by Amenemhet VII. Also in
this year, the Khazar Kagan, Bulan, converts to Judaism.
862 AD--The Magyars raid Roman territory, breaching Roman defenses on the
Vistula and causing much damage before they are finally forced to retreat by
pursuing Roman armies. Over the next 30 years, the Magyars will continue to
periodically raid into Roman territory, but they are not interested in territorial gain,
just plunder...for now. The Romans are able to buy relative peace most of the
time by making large payments in gold to the Magyar. Also in this year, the
Norseman Rurik becomes ruler of Novgorod, founding the State of Rus. Rurik
becomes the first Prince of Rus.
863 AD--Boris, King of the Bulgars, converts to Christianity and allies his
kingdom to Rome.
869 AD--Pharaoh Amenemhet VII dies, succeeded by Seti IX.
870 AD--All of Ireland has been brought under the control of the Norse.
However, the control is somewhat tenuous. Irish kinglets still reign over most
areas of the island, but swear allegiance to Norse overlords in Dublin. This
situation, of course, could change at any time. However, as in Scottia and
Pictland, the pagan Irish (who had no St. Patrick to convert them to Christianity
in this TL) and the pagan Norse actually have a great deal in common, culturally,
and the two groups get along quite well most of the time. Gradually over time,
intermarriage will erase the few differences that exist between them.
872 AD--The Norse kingdoms in Scandinavia are united by a chieftain from
Norway named Harald Fairhair, who takes the throne as King Harald I. Harald
asserts his claim to rule over all the Norse lands, and his claim is accepted by
Norse in Britain, Scottia, Pictland, and Ireland. The Norse in the land of the Rus
do not, however.
874 AD--Iceland is settled by the Norse.
875-880 AD--In 875 King Harald I of the Norse leads a large army to Roman
Britain with the aim of conquering the island. The Norse establish a large
enclave on the island, centered on the city of Eboracum (York). The Romans are at this time very pre-occupied with the Magyars on their eastern border,
and over the course of the next 5 years, the Norse continue to expand their
enclave. By 880 AD, they have overcome the last Roman resistance, and the
entire island is under their control.
877-879 AD--War between Egypt and the Caliphate. In 877, Muslim armies
invade Syria, but are unable to take the Egyptian fortresses in the region.
Frustrated, the Muslims lay siege to Damascus. An Egyptian army arrives in 888
to confront them, and in a bloody battle, the Muslims are defeated and forced to
leave Syria. A peace treaty is signed the next year.
879 AD--Prince Rurik of the Rus dies, succeeded by Oleg.
882 AD--The Rus, under Oleg, conquer Kiev, siezing it from the Khazars. Oleg
moves his capital there from Novgorod.
888 AD--Pharaoh Seti IX dies, succeeded by Rameses XXIII.
889 AD--The Magyars, under King Arpad, have migrated from the plains east of
the Vistula to the lands south of the Carpathians, in the Danube basin. They are
met by the armies of the Boris, King of the Bulgars, and soundly defeated. The
Magyars retreat back to Polska.
897-899 AD--In 897 King Arpad of the Magyars breaches Rome’s Vistula
defenses, and this time the Magyars sweep all the way to the Oder River before
they are finally stopped at the old Roman defenses on said River (which the
Romans have kept in repair as a second line of defense ever since the frontier
was pushed east to the Vistula). These the Magyars are unable to breach, and
the front stabilizes. The Romans counterattack the next year, and two Roman
armies are defeated and severely mauled as a result. Accepting the fait
accompli, the Romans sign a treaty with the Magyars in 899, ceding the area
between the Oder and the Vistula to the Magyars.
875-1000 AD--Slow disintegration of the Abbasid Caliphate. Various areas,
including Persia, Afghanistan, and the Indian subcontinent, establish themselves
as virtually independent of the Caliphate, while still officially acknowledging the
hegemony of the Abbasid Caliph in name, if not in fact. The Caliphs, who have
over the years fallen into degeneracy and weakness, allow this to happen with
little protest.
907 AD--Oleg of the Rus leads a fleet across the Black Sea and attacks the city
of Byzantium. With the help of a Roman fleet, the city withstands the assault.
Oleg signs a treaty with Rome later that year.
910-915 AD--War between Rome and the Norse. In 910 AD , a Roman fleet
crosses from the Jutland peninsula and lands an army in southern Norway while
King Harald and the main Norse fleet are off raiding the Gallic coast. Before a
messenger ship can reach Harald, the Romans have established control over
most of the Scandinavian portions of Harald’s kingdom. Harald’s response is to
rally the Norse of Britannia and Ireland, raise a huge army and fleet, and then
invade Norway himself in 912 AD. Harald defeats the Roman general Maximus
Aurelius and utterly destroys his army, and Scandinavia is once again safely
Norse. The war sputters on for another three years, mostly consisting of
inconclusive clashes between the rival fleets in the Baltic and North Seas.
Finally, a treaty is signed in 915 in which Rome recognizes Harald’s claim to his
conquered territory in Britain and elsewhere, in exchange for a guarantee of an
end to Norse raiding on Roman territories. Harald will keep his agreement until
his death. His successors will not.
913 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XXIII dies, succeeded by Sesostris VII.
918-920 AD--War flares up between Rome and Egypt. For centuries, there has
been ongoing tension between the two powers in the disputed lands separating
their respective holdings on the northern coast of Africa. In 918 AD, Pharaoh
Sesostris VII decides to resolve the simmering conflict by siezing the disputed
lands. However, Sesostris is killed in battle against the Romans in 920 AD,
leaving no heirs. There are several legitimate and not-so-legitimate contenders
for the throne, however, and Egypt falls into civil war for three years, during
which time Rome siezes not only the disputed lands but the city of Cyrene on the
Libyan coast as well. Brief Interregnum in the line of Pharaohs.
922 AD--The Magyars under King Zoltan break through the Danube defenses
and raid into Italy, causing much damage. They are finally beaten by a Roman
army and forced to retreat back across the Danube.
923 AD--The Royal Vizier of Sesostris VII has emerged victorious in the
three-year civil war following the death of the Pharaoh in battle. The Vizier is a
commoner with no links to the old royal family, and needs to legitimize his rule.
He comes from Memphis, former capital of Egypt under the Old Kingdom, and
he declares his descent, in long line, from the great Pharaohs of the Old
Kingdom (using a fabricated genealogy, of course). He takes as his
own the name of the Pharaoh who built the Great Pyramid, and thus, Khufu II
comes to the throne of Egypt, beginning the 32nd Dynasty. The new Pharaoh
moves the capital to Memphis later that year. He also signs a treaty with Rome,
recognizing Roman title to the disputed North African lands, and purchasing
Cyrene back with a hefty payment in gold.
925 AD--Pharaoh Khufu II enacts laws to dramatically raise taxes. This is to pay
for the huge construction project Khufu has started in Memphis, as he rebuilds
the city to match his own ideas of imperial splendor. The nemhu (land-owning
bourgeosie), who are most dramatically impacted by these laws, are very
resentful. Their resentment grows even more when Khufu starts arresting
recalcitrant nemhu who refuse to pay the new levy and feeding them to the
crocodiles. Khufu also resurrects the ancient practice of marrying one’s sister
and forbidding royal princes to marry outside of the royal house. This causes
widespread consternation in Egypt, where the practice had been largely
abandoned for almost 1000 years.
930 AD--King Harald I Fairhair of the Norse dies. His son Erik, known as “Blood
Axe,” takes the throne as King Erik I. Erik abrogates the treaty with Rome, which
he opposed at the time it was adopted. Norse raids against Roman Territory
resume with full force.
935 AD--King Erik Bloodaxe is killed by the Romans during a raid on the Gallic
coast. His cousin, Haakon, asends the throne. Haakon is a Christian, one of a
growing number of Norse Christians converted by Roman missionaries who have
been travelling north for the past several decades. However, King Haakon does
not force his subjects to embrace the new faith, and when he dies, the
succeeding Norse ruler will be a pagan.
939 AD--War between the Khazar and the Rus. The Rus armies under Prince
Igor are defeated by the Khazars, and a treaty is signed shortly afterward.
948 AD--Roman missionaries convert King Bulcsu of the Magyars to Christianity.
Bulcsu signs a new peace treaty with Rome later that year. However, the
conversion and the treaty will be short lived. When Bulcsu dies two years later,
the new Magyar King Tacsony will be a pagan, and will resume warring against
Rome.
955 AD--Pharaoh Khufu II dies, succeeded by Khafre II. Khafre II will continue
the oppressive policies of his father, causing further resentment among the
nemhu, who had hoped for some relief from the new Pharaoh. Also in this year,
the Magyars under King Tascony suffer a major defeat at the hands of a Roman
army while raiding in Germania. So badly decimated are the Magyars that they
will no longer pose a threat to Rome after this date.
965 AD--Pharaoh Khafre II dies, succeeded by Pepi III. Also in this year, the
Rus under Prince Sviatoslav defeat the Khazars at Sarkel. The Khazar fortress
at that location is captured.
970 AD--Pharaoh Pepi III is slightly mad, probably due to the inbreeding going
on in the royal house since the reign of his grandfather, Khufu II. Pepi claims a
right which is unheard of in Egypt (but which would be called droit du seigneur in
OTL Europe)...the right to demand the favors of the daughters of any of his
subjects on their wedding nights, or payment of a large fine by the bride’s
husband in lieu of said favors. Pepi rarely partakes of the favors of his subject
brides, using the law as a way to squeeze money out of wealthy nemhu without
having to formally raise taxes. However, the few times he does partake are
enough, and lurid rumors spread throughout the land of the depravity of the mad
king. This touches off rebellions in different parts of the kingdom, but the army
for the most part remains loyal, and the rebellions are put down. Pepi will
remain uneasily on his throne, mad as ever, until his death 28 years later.
975 AD--King Geza of the Magyars accepts Christianity. This time it will be a
permanent conversion for the Magyars.
982-985 AD--Erik the Red explores and names Greenland, after being outlawed
for three years on account of manslaughter in Iceland.
986 AD--Southern Greenland is settled by Erik the Red as he leads the first
settlers from Iceland. Erik the Red settles in Brattahlid (today's Qassiarsuk)
which becomes the center of the Eastern Settlement.
988 AD--Prince Vladimir of the Rus converts to Christianity. The first church is
built in Kiev.
990 AD--Bjarne Herjulfson is blown off course while sailing from Iceland to
Greenland, discovers land to the west of Greenland, but does not investigate
further. He instead proceeds to Greenland, where he relates his story to Leif,
son of Erik the Red.
992 AD--The Seljuk Turks invade Transoxania (Ilkhan) and convert to Islam.
995 AD--King Olaf I Tryggvason, who converted to Christianity before ascending
the Norse throne, declares that his kingdom shall be Christian. By a combination
of force and persuasion, Olaf sets about converting his pagan subjects. There is
of course much resistance, but Olaf is ultimately successful, and the Norse
Empire becomes a Christian realm.
998 AD--Pharaoh Pepi III dies, succeeded by Khufu III. However, Khufu will
reign for less than a year before being toppled in a coup by an army general who
claims descent from a house related to the Saite 26th Dynasty. The people of
Egypt, who have always considered the Memphite kings of the 32nd Dynasty as
usurpers and have groaned under their oppression for decades, support the
rebellion wholeheartedly, especially the nemhu, or land-owning bourgeosie. The
new Pharaoh takes the throne as Psamtik XV, and thus begins the 33rd Dynasty.
The new Pharaoh moves the capital back to Sais.
1000 AD--The Quiet Revolution in Egypt. For centuries, the nemhu, or
land-owning bourgeosie, have been quietly gaining influence in Egypt. Their
sons make up the majority of the rank and file of the military, and they
themselves serve in all sorts of posts in the royal administration. But they crave
a larger voice in the affairs of the empire, and the new Pharaoh owes them, in
part, for his own place on the throne. So, when a council of the leading nemhu
demands to be heard, Psamtik listens. The council bemoans the abuses of
power which took place under the Memphite Dynasty, and demands that a
written constitution be drawn up to clearly delineate the powers of the Pharaoh
and to protect the rights of the Egyptian people (especially the nemhu, of
course). Psamtik agrees, and a committee, composed of the Pharaoh and
representatives from the nemhu, meets to craft the document. After several
months of hard negotiating, a document is crafted which is acceptable to all
sides. The Pharaoh retains his powers as head of state and chief High Priest of
the state religion, including complete control of how state revenues are spent.
However, he is to be advised by a Council of the 100 Elders, who will be elected
from among the nemhu once every four years. The Council has the power to
approve or disapprove new taxes and other measures which may imfringe on the
rights of the people, such as changes to criminal law, property siezures, etc. It
also must approve of any decision by the Pharaoh to declare war on a foreign
power. Psamtik XV signs the document, and the first Council of the 100 Elders is
elected shortly thereafter. What emerges is the world’s first constitutional
monarchy. It is not a democracy, or anything close to it. But Egypt has taken
it’s first steps in that direction. Also in this year, Leif Eriksson leads an
expedition from Greenland to explore the lands sighted by Bjarne Herjulfson ten years before. His expedition discovers what is in OTL the regions of Labrador(which they call Helluland--Stone Land), Newfoundland (which they name
Markland--Forest Land), and Nova Scotia (which they name Vinland). They
winter in Vinland, then return to Greenland.
1000-1200 AD--In the New World, the Norse settlements have become firmly
established, and Norse control has been gradually extended inland. But, due
mainly to the relatively small population in the Norse settlements, they have not
moved very far by 1200 AD. The Norse settlements initially thrive by shipping
wheat, furs, and timber home. They have, of course, had much contact, mostly
peaceful, with the Skraelings (native inhabitants), and within a few years are
introduced to two new crops...maize and tobacco. Both of these items become
very profitable trade items, especially tobacco, and thus smoking is introduced
into Europe. It’s popularity quickly grows, and the immense profits which the
Norse earn by being the sole supplier of tobacco into Europe enable them to give
up their old piratical habits and to concentrate on the more peaceful pursuit of
trading. The Skraelings have also profited from the trade, gaining wheat, horses,
pigs and cattle, and knowledge of iron-working, all of which diffuse along the
native trade routes throughout the lands east of the Mississippi. By 1200 AD
knowledge of iron-working has crossed the Mississippi, and is being practiced
as far west as OTL eastern New Mexico. Wheat has also reached those areas
by that date. The new livestock (horses, cattle, and pigs) take longer to
disseminate, and will not cross the Mississippi for another century. However, the
Norse have also introduced two things to the Skraelings which are much less
beneficial to them...alcohol and smallpox. Beginning shortly before 1100 AD,
epidemics spread like wildfire southward and westward along the native trade
routes, devastating the Skraeling populations east of the Mississippi River.
Whole settlements have been depopulated, and even the vast city at Cahokia is
nearly a ghost town by 1200 AD. The “Mississippian Culture,” which never
politically unified the region east of the Mississippi River but has become a
common culture through most of the region, collapses as smallpox ravages the
towns, and priest kings are overthrown by people who have lost faith in their
power to intercede for them with the gods. The spread of alcohol is less rapid,
but as the Skraelings learn to brew rotgut liquor from their native maize, it
becomes a plague on their culture whose only virtue is to make them forget,
temporarily, the devastation wrought by the smallpox epidemics raging around
them.
1003 AD--Thorfin Karlsefni leads an expedition to Vinland from Greenland,
where they found a settlement. His wife, Gudrid, will give birth later that year to
the first European child born in the new land, a boy named Snorri.
1006 AD--After conflicts with the Skraelings (the native inhabitants of
Vinland...either Amerindians or Eskimos) and internal dissentions among
themselves, the Norse abandon their settlement in Vinland and return to
Greenland. However, they will return...
1010 AD--Word of the discovery of new lands west of Greenland has reached
the court of Norse King Olaf Tryggvason. King Olaf orders a colonization
expedition to be fitted out and sent to Vinland. Olaf will send successive fleets
to Vinland each year for the next ten years with new settlers and fresh supplies,
and his effort will ensure that the Norse settlement in the new lands are a
permanent one.
1011 AD onward--The first Norse colonization fleet reaches Vinland in 1011 AD.
They found the town of New Oslo, which will prove to be the first permanent
European city in the New World. Later that year, another settlement is made in
Markland, where it is planned to exploit the timber available there. Successive
expeditions sent by King Olaf Tryggvason will establish other towns in Vinland
and Markland, as well as farther south along the coast, all the way down to Cape
Cod. By the end of the century, the Norse are firmly established in the coastal
regions of the new lands, and are gradually pushing inland as well. However,
news of these settlements does not filter out to the rest of the world for a long
time.
1012 AD--Over the preceding years, trade with Ghana has significantly increased
the gold reserves available to the Roman Empire. In 1012 AD, the Emperor
Trajan II assumes the throne of the Roman Empire, vowing to restore Rome to
it’s old greatness. Trajan initiates many reforms in the Empire aimed at
rebuilding Roman military power. Trajan enacts a law which allows any slave to
gain his freedom by joining the army, with the imperial treasury to compensate
the owners of said slaves (the number of slave manumissions, however, is
limited by the available places in the ranks of the legions). He also makes
changes to the tax laws which encourage Roman citizens to consider a military
career. He also reforms the army, reducing the term of service from 25 years to
7, with bonuses for those soldiers who re-enlist for a second term, and a land
grant for those who complete at least 2 terms of service. Taken together, these
measures provide a huge surge of new recruits for the army, which Trajan
nearly doubles in size. Trajan also reorganizes the army, changing many
infantry legions into cavalry units. The composition of Trajan’s new army is now
50% armored legionary cavalry (armed with lance and bow), 20% light cavalry
archers, and 30% armored legionary infantry (mainly used in defense of
fortifications). The Roman army is now very mobile, highly disciplined, and
packs a signicant missile punch as well as great shock power. It is a truly
formidable force. Trajan also reorganizes the Roman navy, particularly the
Atlantic and Baltic Sea fleets. Roman naval vessels in these areas are now
incorporating many features of Norse design, and Roman fleets are fully capable
of taking on a Norse fleet and winning.
1016-1020 AD--War between the Rus and the Khazars. The Rus push the
Khazars out of the Crimea and establish their southern border on the Black Sea.
1020-1030 AD--War between Rome, the Magyars, and the Bulgars. Emperor
Trajan II, in a series of brutal campaigns, conquers the Magyars and Bulgars and
pushes the eastern frontier of the Roman Empire to the line of the Nieman and
Bug Rivers and the Carpathian Mountains. Trajan orders construction of a
series of strong fortifications to defend the new frontier.
1020-1039 AD--The Great Rebellion in the Egyptian Empire. One of the
compromises which allowed the new constitution to be adopted in Egypt was that
the new constitution only applies within the borders of Egypt proper, as it was
the nemhu of Egypt itself who supported the rebellion which brought Psamtik XV
to power. In the imperial provinces, direct rule by the Pharaoh still persists, and
Psamtik has taken advantage of his free hand in these areas to keep taxes high.
He is not quite as brutal about it as the Memphite Pharaohs were, but
nevertheless the nemhu in the imperial provinces, both those who are ethnically
Egyptian and those who are Egyptianized natives, consider this situation a gross
injustice. Therefore, dis-satisfaction is seething in many of the provinces, and in
1020 AD rebellion breaks out spontaneously (or not so spontaneously...although
it is not known at the time, it will be later discovered that agents of Rome and the
Caliphate had a significant hand in formenting many of these rebellions) in many
places. The rebellions are not coordinated, however, and the Pharaoh’s armies
are able to deal with them individually as they occur. But economic life in the
empire is severely disrupted, and there is large loss of life as a result of the
revolts. Further revolts will flare up intermittently over the two decades, taxing
the military resources of the empire.
1021 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XV dies in battle while leading one of the armies
suppressing a revolt in Nubia, and is succeeded by Psamtik XVI. Also in this
year, King Olaf Tryggvason of the Norse Empire dies, and is succeeded by his
nephew, Olaf Haraldson, who takes the throne as King Olaf II. The new king
continues the policies of his great precedessor.
1021-1023 AD--War between Egypt and Rome. Taking advantage of the chaos
in the Egyptian Empire caused by the Great Rebellion, which they are partially
responsible for formenting, Roman Emperor Trajan II declares war on Egypt.
Roman armies invade Cyrenacia and Syria. In Cyrenacia, Rome once again
takes the city of Cyrene and the surrounding region. In Syria, the system of
Egyptian fortifications stymies them, as it has earlier attempts at conquest.
Pharaoh Psamtik XVI sues for peace, and Rome agrees. Rome’s terms are
severe...she is to keep Cyrenacia, and Egypt is to pay a yearly indemnity of
10,000 talents of gold each year for 20 years. Egypt is also to lower it’s tolls on
Roman shipping passing through the Suez canal. After much hand-wringing,
Psamtik agrees.
1031-1032--War between Rome and the Norse. Emperor Trajan II leads a
Roman army across the Oceanus Britannicus in an attempted reconquest of
Britain. However, the Norse prove to be a tougher opponent than the Magyars
and Bulgars, and Trajan is killed in battle in early 1032 AD outside Londinium.
The Roman army in Britain is withdrawn shortly after. Britain remains in Norse
hands.
1032-1072 AD--The Time of Troubles in the Roman Empire. Unfortunately, one
thing Trajan did not reform was the Roman system of succession, and upon his
death, civil war breaks out in the empire. No less than 25 weak emperors will
claw their way to the throne over the next 40 years, only to be overthrown by the
next, no less weak, successor.
1038 AD--The Seljuks, led by Toghrul Beg, invade Persia, moving their capital to
Isfahan.
1039 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XVI dies, succeeded by Psamtik XVII. The new
Pharaoh declares that the Constitution of 1000 AD will apply to nemhu in the
imperial provinces, as it does to the nemhu in Egypt proper. The Constitution is
amended, and the Council of the 100 Elders becomes the Council of the 400
Elders, with 200 Elders representing nemhu in Egypt proper, and the remaining
200 representing nemhu in the rest of the empire. The Great Rebellion finally
ends, and normality begins to return to the Egyptian Empire.
1055 AD--The Seljuks invade Mesopotamia and install themselves in Baghdad
under the suzerainty of the Abbasids.
1064 AD--The Seljuks invade Asia Minor but are defeated by the Romans.
1071 AD--The Seljuks defeat the Roman army in Asia Minor, killing Emperor
Romulus Augustus III, and establish a Sultanate in Anatolia. The Romans
manage to hold on to most of the coast, but lose the interior.
1072 AD--Revolution in Rome. Following the death of the Emperor Romulus
Augustus III in battle with the Seljuk Turks, a Roman Senator, Septimus Cato,
siezes power in Rome. Cato is allied with a Roman general of Magyar descent,
one Stephanus Flavius, and together they form a potent combination. Cato is a
student of the old Roman Republic, and in cooperation with Flavius, decides to
take the extraordinary step of reviving it. The office of Emperor is declared
permanently null and void, and a new constitution is drawn up which gives
legislative power to the Senate (now expanded to include representatives from
all provinces of the empire), which will be elected by the people. Executive
power will be exercised by two Consuls, who, as in the old Republic, will hold
power on alternate days. The Consuls will be elected by the Senate. The
franchise is extended to all male Roman citizens who are property owners, as
well as to all Roman soldiers, regardless of whether they are property holders or
not. Cato and Flavius are elected as the first Consuls of the new Republic.
One of the first laws enacted by the new Senate is that all Roman soldiers, from
the highest general to the lowliest legionary, must take a holy oath swearing
allegiance to the Roman state. The new law also specifies that pay for Roman
soldiers will come directly from a new civilian department created by the
Republican government, rather than from army paymasters under the control of
the army generals. This will serve to create loyalty to the new regime, rather to
their generals, among the rank and file of the army, making it more difficult for
army generals with imperial aspirations to engineer revolts in the future. The
new Republic will be the most stable government Rome has enjoyed in
centuries.
1076 AD--The Seljuks invade Syria and Palestine, sparking war with Egypt. The
Egyptian field army is crushed near Damascus, but the Seljuks are unable to
take the many Egyptian fortresses and walled cities. The Seljuks lay waste to
the land and then retreat back to Asia Minor. It will take many years for these
regions to recover their former prosperity.
1080 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XVII dies, succeeded by Necho XV.
1080-1100 AD--Expansion of the Norse Empire in the Baltic. The Norse conquer
the pagan proto-Latvians, Lithuanians, Estonians, and Finns along the Baltic
coast and in Finland and convert them to Christianity.
1091--The Seljuks move their capital to Baghdad and depose the Abbasid Caliph
installing one of his younger sons as a puppet ruler. The Caliph’s eldest son,
Ahmad, manages to escape and takes ship to India. There he finds support
among the virtually independent Muslim rulers there, who are opposed to the
upstart Seljuks, and establishes a rival Caliphate in India.
1092-1095--The people of Arabia never liked being ruled by the Abbasid Caliphs,
who they view as usurpers and whose pro-Persian policies have irked them.
They like even less being ruled over by an Abbasid puppet controlled by the
upstart Turks. The Omayyad “Caliphate in Exile” takes advantage of this to
forment another revolt in Arabia, with significant Egyptian help, and this time, the
rebellion is successful. Omar ibn Yazzid, the head of the Omayyad house living
in Egypt, comes to Arabia to assume his throne as Caliph Omar III. The new
Omayyad Caliph declares his intention to purify Islam of the degeneracy which
has arisen under the effete Abbasid Caliphs and to restore Arabs to their rightful
position as the chosen people of Islam. He gains almost fanatical support from
Arabs in Arabia and elsewhere.
c. 1100 AD--In the region around Lake Chad, various city states are united by
the king of the city of Bornu to form the Bornu Kingdom. Like Ghana, it prospers
by the trans-Sahara trade in salt, gold, and other exotic goods from the African
interior which are readily marketable in the cities of the Roman and Egyptian
empires. It also will periodically clash militarily with Ghana along their mutual
border. Also around this time, small city states begin forming in the forests south
of Ghana. Over the succeeding years, these will begin to combine into larger
states.
1100-1105 AD--War between Rome and the Rus. The conflict is inconclusive,
and a treaty is signed establishing the borders and basically re-affirming the
status quo antebellum.
1104 AD--Pharaoh Necho XV dies, succeeded by Ahmosi X. Ahmosi is a
conservative who deeply disapproves of the power-sharing with the nemhu which
the Pharaohs must now endure, and with the backing of certain army generals,
declares martial law, dissolves the Council of the 400 Elders and reinstates
direct rule by the Pharaohs. The nemhu throughout the empire are very
resentful and begin plotting his downfall.
1105-1107 AD--Pro-Omayyad revolts among the Arab population in the Seljuk
empire. The Seljuks brutally repress the revolts. Thousands of Arabs flee to the
Neo-Omayyad Caliphate.
1109 AD--Revolt in Egypt and elsewhere in the Egyptian Empire. The nemhu,
with support from most of the army, revolt and overthrow Pharaoh Ahmosi X.
The Pharaoh dies in mysterious circumstances while in army custody shortly
afterward, and is succeeded by his son, Psamtik XVIII. Psamtik, who never
approved of his father’s actions, reinstates the Constitution of 1000 AD, and a
new Council of the 400 Elders is elected. The new Council demands, and
receives, amendments to the Constitution which make it impossible for the
Pharaoh to dissolve the Council and to declare martial law without the approval
of the Council. To show his commitment to the new Constitution, Psamtik has
the full text of it engraved on a wall of the great temple at Karnak, one the holiest
sites in all Egypt.
1110-1115 AD--War between the Seljuks and the Neo-Omayyads. The war is
inconclusive.
1118 AD--Arabs import gunpowder from China, but they do not learn the formula
at this time. It is used in magic tricks and fireworks, but has no military
applications as yet.
1120-1130 AD--War between Rome and the Norse Empire. The war is mainly
fought at sea, with several large naval battles being fought in the Oceanus
Britannicus, the Baltic Sea, and the North Sea. No advantage is gained by either
side, although Norse and Roman raids on each other’s coastlines cause much
destruction. Finally, a treaty is signed in 1130 AD.
1141 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XVIII dies, succeeded by Necho XVI.
1150 AD--The Seljuks attack the Khazars in the Caucasus. The Khazars defeat
the Turks and a treaty is signed shortly afterward.
1152-1160 AD--War between the Rus and the Norse Empire. The Khazars ally
themselves with the Norse and re-capture the Crimean region. The Norse gain a
strip of territory connecting their Baltic Sea territories (in OTL Latvia, Lithuania,
and Estonia) with their territories in Finland.
1157 AD--Pharaoh Necho XVI dies childless, leaving no heirs. Not wishing the
land to fall into civil war again, Necho has left a will, bequeathing the throne to a
boyhood friend from Sais who is also a distant cousin (descended from a bastard
son of Psamtik XVII), who takes the throne as Rameses XXIV. Thus begins the
34th Dynasty.
1160-1165 AD--War between the Seljuks and the Abbasid Caliphate in India.
The Seljuks invade India in an attempt to oust the rival Abbasid Caliph, but are
defeated by the Caliph’s army near Delhi. The Caliph responds with an invasion
of his own, and reaches almost to the eastern Seljuk capital at Isfahan before his
army is finally defeated and forced to retreat back across the Indus. A treaty is
signed in 1165, establishing the border between the two empires.
1170-1179 AD--Rome allies itself with Egypt, and together, the two powers push
the Seljuks out of Anatolia. Rome and Egypt divide the newly conquered lands
between them, setting the border at the Taurus Mountains and the Euphrates.
This begins a period of cooperation between the two empires which will prove
very profitable for both over the next couple of centuries.
1190 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XXIV dies, succeeded by Seti X. Seti will gain
fame as “The Builder” due to his many large construction projects throughout the
empire, which exceed in scope even those of his famous predecessor, Rameses
II “The Great.”
c. 1200 AD--Arabs learn the formula of gunpowder from the Chinese, but it’s
military potential is not immediately recognized. Within five years, Egyptian
scientists also learn the formula, and it passes from there to Rome.
c. 1200 AD--The Incas in Peru emerge from obscurity, and establish their capital
at the growing settlement of Cuzco. Also, at about this time the Aztecs, a small
tribe originally native to the plains of what is OTL Texas, arrive in the Valley of
Mexico from the north. While in the north, the Aztecs had learned the art of
ironworking, which gives them a decided military advantage over the native
inhabitants of the region. They become eagerly sought by the local city-states as
mercenary warriors.
1200-1300 AD--Norse expansion in the new world. Norse settlements are
founded all the way down the coast southward to Cape Hatteras. Also, Norse
settlements now extend all the way down the St. Lawrence River to Lake
Ontario, and Norse explorers are by 1300 discovering the outlines of the other
Great Lakes. Due to the ravages of smallpox, the Skraeling populations in the
newly acquired areas are quite small, and the Norse conquer the interior areas in
back of their coastal and river settlements easily. Also during this time period in Africa, the Ghana Empire and the Kingdom of Bornu expand southward into the forests on the African coast, conquering the various city states which have arisen there. They are now positioned to engage in sea trade with Rome and Egypt, which they do.
1201 AD--Ala al-Din Tekesh, a former Seljuk slave who had been appointed
governor of the province of Khwarazm (south of the Aral Sea, centered on the
city of Urgench) in 1193 AD, rebels against the Seljuks. He establishes the
independence of Khwarazm and installs himself as Emir. He is killed in battle
against the Seljuks later that year and is succeeded by his son, Ala ad Deen
Muhammed. Also in this year, Pharaoh Seti X dies, and is succeeded by
Psamtik XIX.
1205-1212 AD--The Emirate of Khwarazm rapidly expands its rule. In 1210 it
takes Samarkand from the Qara Khitai and this becomes the capital. By 1212 it
rules from the Caspian Sea to Bukhara and Samarkand, and controlling all of
modern Iran and Afghanistan.
1208-1212 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XIX, learning of the trouble the Seljuk Turks
are having with the Khwarazm Emirate, declares war on the Seljuks. Egyptian
armies advance into Mesopotamia, where they capture Baghdad in 1210 AD. By
1212 AD, Egypt is in control of all of Mesoptamia. Rome enters the war in 1210
AD, and gobbles up Armenia and the Seljuk possesions in the Caucasus. The
Seljuks are eliminated as a power in the region, and the border between the
three empires (Rome, Egypt, and Khwarazm) now runs along the Zagros
mountains.
1206 AD--Temujin (Genghis Khan) unifies all Mongol and Tatar tribes. Over the
next few years, he welds them into a devastating military machine.
c. 1210 AD--Smallpox crosses the Mississippi and begins spreading across the
Great Plains.
1210 AD--Temujin (Genghis Khan) conquers the Tangut kingdom of Hsi Hsia.
1215 AD--Temujin (Genghis Khan) conquers the Jurchen Khanate and the Chin
Empire in northern China.
1215-1219 AD--War between Egypt and Khwarazm. In 1215, Emir Ala ad-Deen
Muhammed of Khwarazm declares war on Egypt and invades Mesopotamia.
His army is defeated and forced to retreat to Iran. However, no treaty is signed,
and the Khwarazm will invade the new Egyptian province each year for the next
four years. The war finally ends when Khwarazm faces a new threat from the
east...
1216 AD--Temujin (Genghis Khan) builds a new citadel, Karakorum.
1218 AD--the Mongols conquer the kingdom of Qara-Khitai ( Western Liao
Dynasty).
1219 AD--Temujin (Genghis Khan) defeats the the Khwarazm empire. Emir Ala
ad Deen Muhammed flees into exile.
1220 AD--the Mongols conquer the Khwarazm province of Merv (Turkmenistan).
1221 AD--the Mongols conquer the Khwarazm province of Herat (Afghanistan).
Also in this year, Ken Angrok (Rajasa) founds the Singhasari kingdom in Java
(Indonesia) with capital in Kediri.
1221-1231 AD--Khwarazm is reduced to its western part (northern Mesopotamia
and western Persia) in the Mongol campaigns of 1220 and 1221. After that,
Mongol attention is focused elsewhere, and under a new Emir, Jalal al-Din
Mingburnu, Khwarazm reflourishes for a decade. It even briefly conquers
Georgia and Azerbaijan in the Caucasus.
1223 AD--a Mongol horde defeats a coalition of Russian princes on the Kalka
river, then withdraws eastward.
1225 AD--Pharaoh Psamtik XIX dies, succeeded by Necho XVII.
1226 AD--Genghis Khan attacks the Sung Chinese Empire, but is defeated and
forced to retreat northward.
1227 AD--Genghis Khan dies and is succeeded as Great Khan by Ogodai. For
ease of administration, the empire is split among khanates which, although
locally ruled, acknowledge the supremacy of the Great Khan (Batu's Blue Horde,
Orda's White Horde, Chaghatay's khanate in Mughulistan). Ogodai moves the
imperial capital to Karakorum.
1231 AD--the Mongols invade Korea and bring it under their control. Also in this
year, the Khwarazm Emirate is finally conquered by the Mongols under Batu.
1237 AD--the Mongols, led by Batu, invade the Rus Principality.
1238 AD--The kingdom of Sukhothai is founded in Thailand.
1240 AD--Batu's Mongols ("blue horde") destroy the Khazar Kaganate. They
move on to take Kiev, capital of the Rus Principality. The Rurikid princes
becomes subjects of the Mongols. Meanwhile, in the north, the Norse are also
invading Rus, but are defeated by Alexander Nevsky, Prince of Novgorod, at the
Battle of the Neva River.
1241 AD--Batu's "Blue Horde" attacks the eastern frontier of the Roman Empire.
The Mongols breach the Roman defenses and pour into the province of Polania
(as the region formerly known as Polska is now called). Once in Polania, they
defeat a Roman army near the city of Warsaw and penetrate the Vistula defense
line, but are halted by the second line of Roman defenses on the Oder River. It
is then that news arrives of the death of the Mongol Great Khan Ogodai. In the
wake of that news, Batu’s Mongol horde retreats from Europe.
1248 AD--The Mongols install Alexander Nevsky as Prince of Vladimir.
c. 1250s AD--Kingdom of Chimor (Chimu people) expand their empire along
northern coast of Peru. Also at about this time, in Chile, metalworkers discover
the formula for bronze. Also about this time in Mexico, the Aztecs accept the
overlordship of the King of the Tepanecs. Using Aztec shock troops, the
Tepanecs establish a large realm in central Mexico. Meanwhile, in southern
Mexico, there is a Maya revival; following collapse of Chichen Itza, a new capital
is built at Mayapan.
1251 AD--Hulegu leads the Mongol invasion of Persia and establishes the
Ilkhanate.
1255 AD--Hulegu, the Ilkhan, invades the Middle East and captures Bagdhad,
which becomes the capital of the Ilkhanate. He completes the conquest of
Mesopotamia over the next two years.
1257 AD--Mongols led by Kublai conquer the Sung Chinese Empire and push
the frontier of the Mongol Empire all the way to Hanoi. Also in this year, Pharaoh
Necho XVII brokers a treaty of alliance with the Neo-Omayyad Caliphate against
the Mongols, who are seen as a threat by both empires.
1258 AD--Mongols led by Hulegu invades Syria. They are met near Damascus
by a combined Egyptian and Neo-Omayyad army and severely defeated.
Hulegu is killed in the fighting, and for a while, the Mongols in the middle east are
thrown into chaos. Meanwhile, in China, Kublai becomes the Great Khan of the
Mongol Empire and declares Buddhism the state religion.
1259-1261 AD-- In 1259, taking advantage of the temporary confusion among
the Mongols of the Ilkhanate following the death of Hulegu, Egyptian and
Neo-Omayyad forces invade Mesopotamia. They recapture Baghdad in 1260,
and by 1261 have pushed the Mongols back beyond the Zagros Mountains.
Finally, a treaty is agreed with the new Ilkhan Abaqa which establishes the
frontier at the Zagros Mountains. An uneasy peace will reign in the region for a
few years. The Egyptians and the Neo Omayyads divide the conquered region between them.
1261-1262 AD--Meanwhile, the Roman Republic, at the urging of the Bishop of
Rome, who is the acknowledged leader of the Christian Church, is negotiating
it’s own treaty of alliance with Grand Prince Alexander Nevsky of the Rus
Principality (who has been chafing under Mongol domination for the past
decade) and with King Haakon IV “The Old” of the Norse. The Grand Alliance
of Christendom, as the treaty will be called, takes the field in 1262. However, the
Christian coalition does not do as well against the Mongols of the Golden Horde
(formerly Batu’s Blue Horde). In battle near Kiev, the Roman contingent under
Consul Varus Paulinius Gracchus, being mostly armored cavalry archers and
light cavalry archers, proves well suited to fighting the Mongols on their own
terms, and the right flank held by the Romans initially does well. But the Rus
and Norse contingents which hold the Christian center and left are mostly
infantry, and the Mongols cut them to pieces. Both King Haakon and Prince
Alexander are cut down in the fighting. The Mongols then outflank and surround
the Roman cavalry (who are a bit slower moving than the more lightly armored
Mongols). But the disciplined Roman legionaries cut their way out of the trap,
and most of the Roman force makes it back to the Roman frontier. The Mongols
do not attempt an assault of the Roman defense lines, but instead turn east to
punish their traitorous vassals, the Rus.
1262-1275 AD--The Golden Horde ravages the land of the Rus in punishment for
their part in the Grand Alliance of Christendom. The great cities of Kiev, Suzdal,
Vladimir, Novgorod, and Moscow are all razed to the ground, the people within
them slaughtered, man, woman, and child. Most of the lesser towns and
villages meet the same fate. Large areas of the land are completely
depopulated, and the Principality of the Rus ceases to exist. Their allies, the
Romans and the Norse, can do nothing but watch in horror.
1263 AD onward--Norse King Magnus VI imports Roman officers to teach
cavalry tactics to his army, and begins to build a force of armored horse archers
with which to oppose the Mongols.
1267 AD--Kublai Khan moves the Mongol capital to Dadu (Beijing) and founds
the Yuan dynasty.
1274 AD--Kublai Khan invades Japan, but is defeated.
1277-1287 AD--the Mongols invade Burma and finally conquer it.
1279 AD--Sukothai king Ramkamhaeng extends the kingdom to Vientiane (Laos)
in the east and to Pegu (Burma) in the west.
1280-1285 AD--War between the Ilkhanate and Rome. The Mongols push the
Roman frontier in Asia Minor back to the Halys River. Armenia falls to the
Ilkhanate.
1282 AD--the new Shaybanid khan Uzbek (a vassal of the Chagatay Khanate)
converts the Shaybanid horde to Islam and his horde becomes known as the
Uzbeks.
1288 AD--the Vietnamese army of Tran Hung Dao defeats the Mongols.
1290 AD--Pharaoh Necho XVII dies, succeeded by Ahmosi XI. Also in this year,
Singhasari king Kertanegara conquers Bali, Java and Sumatra (Indonesia).
1293 AD--Kublai Khan’s Mongols attack Singhasari with help from warlord
Wijaya, but Wijaya (Kertarajasa Jayawardhana) betrays Kublai, defeats both the
Mongols and the Singhasari, and founds the kingdom of Majapahit with capital at
Trowulan in Java (Indonesia).
1294 AD--Kublai Khan dies and the empire fragments in khanates: Sarai in the
west (descendants of Batu, the "golden horde"), Beijing in the east (the Yuan),
Sultaniyeh in Persia (the Ilkhan Sultanate, descendants of Hulegu) and the
Chaghatai Khanate in the center.
1295 AD--Ghazan, the Ilkhan, converts to Islam.
c. 1300 AD--The Incas begin to expand their empire throughout the central
Andes. Also, at about this time, horses, cattle, and pigs are introduced to the
tribes west of the Mississippi River. The new domesticated animals will spread
rapidly over the next century. Horses will prove especially useful for the nomadic
tribes who live by following the buffalo herds as they migrate over the Great
Plains, while pigs and cattle will join wheat to revolutionize the agriculture of the
settled Pueblo tribes of the southwest. Also, at about this time, smallpox
reaches the Valley of Mexico, devastating many of the city states there.
1300-1350 AD--Continuing expansion of the Norse colonies in Vinland. By 1350
Norse settlements have spread throughout the entire Great Lakes region and
the Norse have also discovered and settled the southern shore of what in OTL
would be Hudson Bay (called Thorfin’s Bay in this TL). The Norse do no expand
further southward than Cape Hatteras, however, as the hot, semi-tropical
Southern climate is not congenial to them, and the iron-using Skraeling tribes in
this region were less devastated by the smallpox epidemic, and thus better able
to resist Norse encroachment.
1300 AD--Beginning of Roman exploration in the New World. In the previous
decades, much speculation has been going on in the Roman Empire (and
elsewhere) as to the source of the tobacco which the Norse are peddling all over
Europe and the near east. The Norse have, so far, managed to keep their new
colonies in Vinland pretty much secret. This has been helped by the nature of
the Norse trade route, which goes north up the coast of North America to
Greenland, then to Iceland, then to Britain or Norway. Most of the trade route is
thus deep within Norse territory, and only Norse ships are allowed to make the
transatlantic journey (the Norse fleet makes sure of this). However, it is
impossible to keep such a secret indefinately, and tavern stories from indiscreet
Norse merchants eventually alert the Romans that there are lands to the west,
far across the sea, which the Norse are exploiting. The Norse fleet, of course,
prevents Rome from attempting a voyage along the established trade route, but
in 1300 AD, they begin sending yearly expeditions westward across the Oceanus
Atlanticus. Most of these early expeditions find nothing noteworthy, and some
of them will never return. But the Romans will persevere.
c. 1300-1400 AD--In the region between the Congo and Loje Rivers in south
western Africa, the city states of Kongo, Luba, Kuba, Lunda have arisen by
1300 AD. By 1400 AD these will be consolidated into a state by the king of the
city of Kongo, whose king becomes known as the Manikongo. The new
Kingdom of Kongo has rich copper deposits, and a strategic position in between
the Egyptian lands to the south and the kingdoms of Ghana and Bornu to the
north. So the Manikongos will live by trade, and grow rich over the succeeding
decades.
1301-1305 AD--War Between the Golden Horde and the Norse. In 1301, the
Mongols, under Khan Toqta, invade the Norse lands along the Baltic Sea (OTL
Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia), causing much devastation, and then move north
into the Norse province of Finland. They are brought to battle by the main Norse
army, under King Haakon V, near Helsinki. The Roman training and
reorganization of the Norse army initiated by King Magnus VI and continued by
his successors has not been in vain, and the Norse defeat the Mongols, forcing
them to retreat from Norse territory. The Norse follow up with an invasion of their
own the next year, but they run into a problem. The Mongols, they find, have so
thoroughly devastated the Rus lands during their punishment of the Rus two
decades earlier that the Norse are unable to find food or forage as they advance
through the enemy country. They penetrate as far as the ruins of Novgorod
(which, being the home city of the traitorous Grand Prince Alexander Nevsky, the
Mongols have not permitted to be rebuilt as an example to those who might think
of rebellion in the future) before they are forced to turn back, harassed all the
way by the Mongols. The war continues for another three years, with small scale
raiding by both sides, before a treaty is finally signed in 1305.
1304 AD--Mongols under Ali Beg invade India but are repelled by the Abbasid
Caliphate. Also in this year, an Arab scientist working in Baghdad, in the
Neo-Omayyad Caliphate, invents a cannon, consisting of a bamboo tube,
reinforced with iron bands. Knowledge of the invention soon spreads to Egypt
and Rome.
c. 1315 AD--The first iron and bronze cannon are invented almost
simultaneously in Egypt and Rome. Experiments with hand-held gunpowder
firearms begins shortly afterward in both empires.
1315 AD--Pharaoh Ahmosi XI dies, succeeded by Ahmosi XII. Also in this year,
the Shans found the kingdom of Sagaing in Burma.
1315-1325 AD--The Great Famine in Europe. The relative stability and
prosperity of the Roman and Norse Empires have resulted in a steady increase
in population, to the point where harvest shortfalls can have severe
consequences. This has been mitigated to some extent by the availability of
wheat, barley, oats and maize from the Norse colonies in Vinland and wheat
and barley from Egypt, but it still remains a problem because by 1300 AD,
populations in Europe are half again as large as in OTL. However, the weather in
Western Europe has been gradually been getting colder and wetter for the past
few years, and in 1315 particularly wet Spring makes it impossible to plow all of
the fields that were ready for cultivation, and heavy summer rains rot much of the
seed grain before it can germinate. The harvest is far smaller than usual as a
result, and many people starve. The pattern continues in 1316, leading to yet
more starvation and misery. The Spring and summer of 1317 saw the return of
good weather, but in the meantime, much of the grain set aside for seed had
been eaten by starving people, so harvests remain below normal even so. Then
the cool, wet weather returns, and grain production plummets even further, and
indeed, will not reach pre-1315 levels again until 1325. As much as 1/10 of the
Roman and Norse population (less than in OTL, but still a huge number) will die
of starvation and disease exacerbated by malnutrition during that single decade.
c. 1320 AD--The Black Death first appears among rats in the Gobi Desert region.
1320 AD--The Romans discover the Azores and the Canary Islands. They return
the next year and occupy the islands, establishing permanent outposts there
which will form vital waypoints for their future exploration of the western seas.
c. 1325 AD--The Aztecs found city of Tenochtitlan on an island in Lake Texcoco.
Because of their knowledge of ironworking (which they have jealously guarded),
they are able to establish themselves despite having a lower population (due to
the ravages of smallpox) than in OTL.
1326 AD--A Roman expedition sights the shores of the island which would, in
OTL, be called Hispaniola, which they explore. They land, meet the native
Carib Indians, and take some of the natives back to Rome with them. The
Caribs tell the Romans of other lands to the north and west of Hispaniola.
1327 AD--Chagatay Khan Tarmashirin converts to Islam.
1328 AD--the Mongols invade India but are repelled by the Abbasid Caliphate.
1330 AD--A Roman expedition explores the coast of southern Florida. They find
nothing of interest.
1330-1332 AD--War of the Second Grand Alliance. The new Bishop of Rome
has, like his predecessor, urged a “Crusade” against the heathen Mongols to
liberate the oppressed Christians of Rus, and the Roman Republic has
concluded a new alliance with King Magnus VII of the Norse. The Romans and
Norse negotiate with the rulers of various recently rebuilt Rus city-states, but
most are not eager to incur the wrath of the Mongols a second time. The one
exception is Ivan, Grand Duke of the the city-state of Moscow. This Second
Grand Alliance of Christendom takes the field in 1330 AD, and heads for
Moscow, hoping to link up with Grand Duke Ivan’s forces. It’s army is much
better suited to fighting the Mongols than the army of the first Grand Alliance had
been, and the Norse experience in their recent war teaches them to bring along
a supply train to enable them to fight deep inside enemy territory. The Roman
army also includes a small force equipped with the new cannon as well as a few
cohorts of hand-gunners, both of which will be primarily used to defend the
supply train. The Mongols are brought to battle about 60 miles west of Moscow.
The Mongols are still somewhat more mobile than the armored Roman and
Norse cavalry, and a force manages to slip around the Christian flank and fall on
the wagon train (which, for defense, had been formed in a lager, with the
cannoneers and handgunners inside). They charge the seemingly defenseless
wagon lager, and get a rude surprise when Roman cannon give them a dose of
gravel, nails, and lengths of broken chain at close range. The handgunners then
open up, and the slaughter is terrible to behold. The Mongols retreat in disorder,
and the wagon lager is saved. Meanwhile, the Roman and Norse armored horse
archers have put the rest of the more lightly equipped Mongols to flight, and the
battle is won. The Romans and Norse enter Moscow and link up with Grand
Duke Ivan’s forces 2 days later. In the wake of this victory, the princes of the
various Rus city states rise up in revolt in support of the Grand Alliance, and the
Christian armies follow up with campaigns to liberate the southern regions of the
former Rus principality. Finally, Khan Muhammed Ozbeg of the Golden Horde
sues for peace in 1332 AD. A treaty is made in which the Golden Horde agrees
to withdraw from Rus. The frontiers of Rus are set by this treaty at the North
Dvina, Kama, and Ural Rivers (farther east than the original Rus Principality...but
the Mongols, being defeated, have little choice but to agree). Grand Duke Ivan
of the city-state of Moscow, with Roman and Norse support, proclaims himself
the first Grand Prince of the newly re-established Principality of Rus. His rule is
not universally accepted by the other Rus rulers, however.
1331 AD--A Roman expedition discovers Cuba. The expedition finds not only
tobacco, but gold.
1331-1353 AD--The Black Death devastates China. Up to two-thirds of the
population dies or is severely incapacitated, and social order in the country
breaks down. The Mongol Empire in China is severely weakened.
1333 AD--The Roman Senate votes to send a colonization expedition to secure
the newly discovered regions in the New World for Rome, and a fleet is sent out.
1335 AD--The Roman colonization fleet arrives in the Caribbean. The fleet lands
in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and the settlement of Nova Palatina is founded.
Another settlement is founded on Hispaniola, and named Nova Capitolina.
Successive yearly expeditions will strengthen the new settlements.
1338 AD--Pharaoh Ahmosi XII dies, succeeded by Seti XI.
1340 AD--The first major shipments of tobacco and gold from the new colonies
reach Rome. The Norse monopoly on the tobacco trade is broken.
1343 AD--The Kingdom of Majapahit conquers Bali (Indonesia).
c. 1345 AD--The Black Death is in India. Again, huge death tolls result. Worse
still, plague-carrying rats board trade ships in Indian ports, to be carried back to
their home ports by the traders.
c. 1347-1352 AD--In 1347, trade ships carrying plague infested rats from India
arrive in various ports in the Egyptian and Roman Empires. Both empires suffer
less from the plague than did the OTL nations occupying these regions. Roman
and Egyptian habits of cleanliness and advanced civil engineering and sanitation
systems limit the spread of the disease. And Egypt, as it turns out, has a secret
weapon which results in even lower death rates than those suffered by
Rome...the cult of Bast, the cat goddess of Egypt, remains alive and well in
Egypt, and cats are considered sacred there. So there are several million of the
felines available in the empire to keep rat populations low, thus preventing the
plague from spreading to the same extent it does in other regions. Nevertheless,
both Rome (which loses 1/4 of its people) and Egypt (which loses 1/6 of it’s
population) suffer greatly.
c. 1350 AD--Smallpox devastates the Maya states in central America. The
epidemic finally peters out in the sparsely inhabited jungles of what is OTL Costa
Rica, and thus the disease does not penetrate into South America at this time.
Meanwhile, in the Andes, the formula for bronze has spread north from Chile to
Peru, and it is being worked in the Chimu capital of Chan Chan by 1350 AD.
Chimu and Inca armies are gradually re-equipping themselves with bronze
weapons.
1350 AD--Majapahit under prime minister Gajah Mada conquers northern
Sumatra (Indonesia) and most of Borneo. Also in this year, the Black Death
reaches the European portions of the Norse Kingdom and the Rus Principality.
Huge death tolls (exceeding 1/3 of the population of both states) result.
1350 onward--The large death tolls from the Great Famine and from the Black
Death in the lands of Europe have profound effects on the economic and social
structures of those regions. In Rome, a very large proportion of the deaths was
among the slave population of the Republic, who are generally less well fed and
have less medical attention than the citizenry of the Republic and are thus more
susceptible to food shortages and disease. As a result, more and more work
has to be done by free labor, and job opportunities and wages for freemen
increase throughout the Republic. This, along with the continuous drain of
slaves into the military (the laws enacted by Emperor Trajan II are still in force),
reduces the importance of slavery in Roman society ever further, and by the
middle of the next century, the Republic will abolish slavery altogether. In the
Norse Kingdom and Rus Principality, where slavery does not formally exist, the
institution of serfdom is likewise weakened, and peasants gain many more rights
and privileges over the succeeding century. The Black Death will also deal a
death blow to slavery in Egypt, where it was never a large institution to begin
with, and where, like in other regions, slaves are disproportionately affected by
the Plague. Egypt will abolish slavery not many years after the Roman Senate
does so.
1351: King Rama Thibodi I founds the Siam kingdom in Thailand with capital at
Ayutthaya. Also in this year, trade ships carry the Black death to the Roman
colonies in the Caribbean, as well as the Ghana Empire and Bornu Kingdom in
Africa. The Roman colonies are only moderately affected (about 5% mortality),
but Ghana and Bornu are devastated with nearly half the population succumbing
to the disease within three years.
1352 AD--Trading ships carrying the Black Death reach the Norse colonies in
Vinland. The more widely scattered nature and less concentrated population of
the Norse settlements in Vinland limits the spread of the disease, but even so,
before the epidemic burns itself out two years later, over 1/5 of the population of
the colonies will be dead. Norse expansion in Vinland is greatly slowed as a
result. The disease does not affect native Skraeling populations to any great
extent. These populations, devastated by smallpox, are still relatively small and
scattered (although recovering by this time), so the disease does not spread well
and quickly burns itself out when it leaves the borders of Norse-held lands.
1353 AD--the kingdom of Lan Xang is founded in Laos by Fa Ngoun, who
introduces Theravada Buddhism into Laos.
1365 AD--The Turkic-speaking chieftain Timur the Lame overthrows the
Chaghatai khanate and conquers Persia, establishing his capital in Samarkand.
1368 AD--In the chaos following the Black Death in China, the Ming dynasty is
founded by a Chinese peasant and former Buddhist monk turned rebel, Chu
Yuanchang, under whose leadership China regains independence from the
Mongols. Shortly after, the Kingdom of Koryu (Korea) does likewise.
c. 1370 AD--The Aztecs have recovered from the smallpox epidemic, and
Acampitchtli is chosen king of Aztecs. Acampitchtli defeats and overthrows the
Tepanec overlords of the Aztecs, and the Aztec Empire is founded.
1370 AD--A scientist in Egypt discovers the secret of producing granulated
gunpowder. A scientist working in Rome will make the discovery independently
two years later. In both empires, imperial powder and firearm factories are set
up at about this time (prior to this, production of both powder and firearms had
been primarily done in small, privately owned shops).
1375 AD--Pharaoh Seti XI dies, succeeded by Rameses XXV.
1384 AD--Timur the Lame conquers the Ilkhanate.
1385 AD--Timur the Lame invades Mesopotamia. He is met by a combined
Egyptian and Neo-Omayyad army near Baghdad and defeated. Timur is killed in
the fighting (decapitated by an Egyptian cannonball), and his empire will fall into
chaos on his death while his relatives fight over the succession.
1388 AD--The Ming defeat the Yuan (Mongols) and destroy Karakorum. Also in
this year, Umar Shayk, son of Timur, establishes himself as the sole ruler of the
Timurid Empire. Umar, being more interested in art and architecture than in
warfare, is content to rule the empire inherited from his father, and a relative
peace settles on the region for a few years.
c. 1390s AD--Viracocha becomes eighth Inca ruler; an Inca myth tells how he
travelled to the Pacific and never returned.
1392 AD--General Yi Song-gye overthrows the King of Koryu and usurps the
throne. The capital is moved from Kaesong to Seoul, and the kingdom is
renamed the Kingdom of Choson.
1394 AD--Umar Shayk of the Timurid Empire dies, and is succeeded by his
brother, Miran Shah.
1395 AD--the Khazak horde seizes Khazakstan from the Golden horde.
1396 AD--Pharaoh Rameses XXV dies, succeeded by Rameses XXVI.
1398 AD--Miran Shah of the Timurid Empire invades India and sacks Delhi,
causing demise of the Abbasid Caliphate. India breaks up into a collection of
small, warring states.