Ancient India

c.7000 BCE Settlements emerge on the western margins of River Indus floodplain.

3200–1700 BCE The Indus civilization flourishes in the Indus Valley, in the region of modern-day Pakistan and northwestern India.

1500 BCE Aryan settlers arrive in India from the north, settling on the Indo-Gangetic Plain. 

1200–900 BCE Vedic period: the four Vedas, the holiest books of the Hindu religion, are written down in the Aryan language of Sanskrit.

563–483 BCE Lifetime of Siddhartha Gautama, the first Buddha

543–413 BCE The Haryanka dynasty, founded by Bimbisara, rules Magadha, one of the 16 mahajanapadas ("Great Kingdoms") of ancient India.

522 BCE Darius I of Persian Achaemenid Empire annexes part of the northern Indus plain.

413–345 BCE The Shishunaga dynasty overthrows the Haryanka dynasty. The last Shishunaga ruler of Magadha, Kalasoka, is assassinated by Mahapadma Nanda in 345 BCE.

345–322 BCE The Nandas rule Magadha. They expand their empire to Bengal in the east, the Punjab in the west and as far south as the Vindhya Range.

326 BCE Alexander the Great of Macedonia invades Punjab and Sindh, turning back on reaching the River Beas.

322 BCE The Mauryan Empire is founded by Chandragupta Maurya in Magadha. It brings northern and central India together into one empire.

305 BCE Emperor Chandragupta defeats Seleucus I, founder of the Greek Seleucid Empire, and acquires territory west of the River Indus.

c. 300 BCE–300 CE Sangam period: Tamilakam—ancient Tamil Nadu and Kerala in southern India—is ruled by the three Tamil dynasties of Pandya, Chola and Chera.

297–273 BCE Reign of Mauryan emperor Bindusara, son of Chandragupta. According to some historians, he extends the empire into southern India

268–232 BCE Reign of Mauryan emperor Ashoka. He conquers the eastern state of Kalinga (261 BCE), and rules the whole of India. He encourages the spread of Buddhism throughout his empire.

228 BCE–224 CE The Satavahana dynasty, also known as the Andhras, break away from the Mauryans and rule large parts of the Deccan in central and southern India.

Classical period

50–320 CE The Kushan Empire expands out of what is today Afghanistan to rule areas of northern India. It reaches the peak of its power under Emperor Vima Kadphises, who rules between the years 113 and 127, and his son, Kanishka the Great (127–150).

320–550 The Gupta Empire flourishes in northern India, making many scientific and cultural advances and laying the foundations of Hindu culture. This period is known today as the Classical or Golden Age of India. The Vakataka dynasty rule in the Deccan to the south at around the same time.

606–47 Northern India unites briefly under a single ruler, Harsha of Kanuaj, but otherwise remains a a patchwork of kingdoms ruled by short-lived dynasties until the 12th century.

Early Middle Ages

543–753 Large parts of central and southern India are ruled by the Chalukya emperors, initially from their capital Badami in present-day Karnataka. Their descendants, the Western Chalukyas will rule most of the western Deccan between the 10th and 12th centuries, while the Eastern Chalukyas rule coastal regions of Andhra Pradesh between the 7th and 12th centuries.

711–13 Umayyad Caliphate forces under Muhammed bin Quasim conquer Sindh region in the northwest.

800–1200 Tripartite struggle: three dynasties, Gurjara-Pratiharas of Malwa, the Palas of Bengal and the Rashtrakutas of the Deccan, compete for supremacy over the central Gangetic Plain.

848 Vijalaya Chola founds the Chola Empire. Later kings unite southern India and extend empire to Sri Lanka and the Maldives. The empire will decline at the beginning of the 13th century.

985–1014 Reign of Chola king Rajaraja I in southern and central India.

1014–44 Reign of Chola king Rajendra I. The powerful Chola navy occupies Sri Lanka and the coasts of Southeast Asia from Myanmar to Vietnam (including Sumatra and the Malay Peninsula), overcoming the Srivijaya Empire.

1000 Persian ruler Mahmud of Ghazni, of the Ghaznavid Empire, invades and conquers a northwestern region of India, now mostly part of Pakistan.

1175–1200 Muhammad of Ghur extends the rule of his Ghurid Empire across India, beginning more than 600 years of Muslim rule in India.

Late Middle Ages

1206 After Muhammad's death, the Delhi Sultanate is founded by Mamluk dynasty. By 1330s the Sultanate has extended its rule across India.

1228 The Ahom Kingdom is established in the Brahmaputra Valley (present-day Assam). It will remain independent for nearly 600 years.

1279 The Chola Empire is conquered by the Pandya dynasty. Under Jatavarman Sundara Pandyan I and Maravarman Kulasekara Pandyan I, the Pandyas rule present-day south India and northern Sri Lanka from their capital Madurai. It comes under the rule of the Delhi Sultanate from 1308, and, later, the Vijayanagara Empire.

1296–1316 Reign of Alauddin Khalji, ruler of the Delhi Sultanate. He successfully repels several Mongol invasions of India.

1336 The Vijayanagara Empire, a Hindu empire, is founded by the Sangama dynasty, ruling from their capital city of Vijayanagara (modern-day Hampi, Karnataka). During the rule of Krishnadevaraya (1509–29), the empire will expand to rule the Deccan Plateau in southern India.

1347 The Bahmani Sultanate is founded in Gulbarga by Zafar Khan. His successors fight many battles against a Vijayanagara Empire.

1398 Weakened by the invasion of Tamerlane, the Delhi Sultanate is reduced to ruling just the city of Delhi and its surroundings.

1417–68 Reign of Maharana Kumbha, ruler of the Hindu kingdom of Mewar, which becomes the most powerful Rajput kingdom of northern India under his rule. Despite several defeats, his descendants will resist the Mughal advance.

1451–1526 Lodi dynasty, an Afghan royal family from the Punjab, rule the Delhi Sultanate. They annex Jaunpur (present-day Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and southern Nepal).

1498 Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama arrives on the Malabar Coast (present-day Kerala). He is the first European to reach India by sea, opening up an important trade route between India and Europe,

1505 Portuguese begin establishing forts and settlements around the west coast of India, including Velha Goa, Damaon, Dio island and Bombay.

1490–1528 The Bahmani Sultanate breaks up into five states, known as the Deccan Sultanates: Nizam Shahi of Ahmednagar, Adil Shahi of Bijapur, Imad Shahi of Berar (1490), Qutb Shahi of Golconda (1518) and Barid Shahi of Bidar (1528).

Early modern period

1526 Babur, an Afghan ruler, is victorious over the Delhi Sultanate under Ibrahim Lodi at the Battle of Panipat, and becomes the first Mughal ruler of an empire that will eventually cover most of the Indian subcontinent

1556–1605 Reign of Mughal emperor Akbar the Great. He conquers large areas of northern India as well as what are today parts of Pakistan and Afghanistan. He founds his capital at Fatehpur Sikri, southwest of Agra.

1565 Combined forces of the Deccan Sultanates defeat the army of the Vijayanagara Empire at the Battle of Talikota.

1600s England, Netherlands and France set up trading posts in India and begin to trade spices, tea, silk and jewels. English East India Company establishes trading posts in Masulipatnam (1611), Surat (1619), Madras (now Chennai, 1639), Bombay (now Mumbai, 1668) and Calcutta (now Kolkata, 1690)

1628–58 Reign of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. He extends the Mughal Empire southwards into the territories of the Deccan Sultanates. He defeats the Nizam Shahi dynasty and forces the Adil Shahis and Qutb Shahis to pay tribute.

1646 Vijayanagara Empire empire finally collapses after defeat in a series of wars with the Bijapur Sultanate. A number of new kingdoms emerge, including the Mysore Kingdom.

1653 Taj Mahal, built by Shah Jahan to house the tomb of his wife Mumtaz Mahal, is finally completed.

1659 Rise of the Maratha Empire under Shivaji Bhosale, who leads a revolt against the Bijapur Sultanate. Shivaji is crowned Chhatrapati in 1674.

1661 The English crown takes possession of the islands of Bombay from Portugal. It leases them to the English East India Company in 1668.

1674 French establish a trading post at Pondicherry on the southeastern coast.

1680–1707 Deccan Wars fought between Marathas and Mughals under Emperor Aurangzeb.

1686–87 Aurangzeb completes conquest of the Deccan Sultanates by defeating Golconda and Bijapur.

1707 The death of Emperor Aurangzeb. The Mughal dynasty will now go into long decline.

1720–72 Under Peshwa Bajirao I and his successors, the Maratha Empire (or Confederacy) conquers Mughal lands in northern and central India, including the capital, Delhi in 1737.

1744–63 Following victory in the three Carnatic Wars, fought between British East India Company and independent rulers of kingdoms in southern India (assisted by French forces), the British become dominant there, also removing their French rivals.

1757 British troops under Robert Clive defeat forces of Nawab of Bengal at the Battle of Plassey. Bengal comes under the control of the East India Company.

1761 The Third Battle of Panipat is fought between the Marathas and the invading army of the Afghan Durrani Empire, resulting in a Durrani victory and the loss of Maratha territory in northern India.

1761–99 The kingdom of Mysore, a sultanate under the rule of Hyder Ali and, later, his son Tipu, fights wars with the Maratha Confederacy, the Nizam of Hyderabad, the Kingdom of Travancore and the British.

1764 British East India Company forces defeat the combined armies of Banaras, Bengal, Awadh and the Mughal emperor Shah Alam II at the Battle of Buxar. At the Treaty of Allahabad in 1765, the defeated Indian rulers are forced to grant the East India Company diwani rights, which allow them to collect tax revenues on behalf of the Mughal emperor.

1770 Great Bengal Famine, resulting in the deaths of up to 10 million people.

1771 Marathas under Peshwa Madhavrao I recapture Delhi from Durrani control.

1775–82 First Anglo-Maratha War, in which British East India Company forces are defeated by the Marathas.

1799 Ranjit Singh captures Lahore from its Afghan Durrani rulers, ending the Afghan-Sikh Wars and establishing the Sikh Empire, centred on the Punjab. The empire expands to include Multan, Kashmir and the Peshawar Valley.

1799 Tipu, the "Tiger of Mysore", is defeated In the last of four Anglo-Mysore wars (1766–99). Mysore is annexed by the British.

1803–05 Second Anglo-Maratha War: Marathas suffer major losses to the British, including the region around Delhi and present-day Gujarat

1817–19 Third Anglo-Maratha War: decisive victory of the British East India Company over Maratha Empire leaving the Company in control of most of India.

1826 Ahom Kingdom of northeastern India (present-day Assam) falls to the British.

1849 Sikh Empire, including the Punjab, the Northwest Frontier Province and Kashmir, falls to the forces of the British East India Company. Kashmir is sold under the Treaty of Amritsar (1850) to the Dogra dynasty of Jammu and thereby becomes a princely state.

1857–58 Indian Rebellion: beginning as a mutiny of sepoys (soldiers in the British Indian Army), it quickly leads to revolts against East India Company rule across India. British forces come under siege in Delhi, Kanpur and Lucknow before they finally overcome the rebels at Gwalior in June 1858.

British Raj

1858 Rule of India, called the Raj, is transferred to the British government.

1876 Queen Victoria gains the title of Empress of India

1876–78 Great Famine, in which between 5 and 10 million people lose their lives

1885 The Indian National Congress political party is formed, calling at first for better representation of Indians in government and later for Indian independence.

1905 The British Viceroy of India, Lord Curzon,separates the mostly Muslim eastern areas of Bengal from the largely Hindu western areas, provoking local outrage. Bengal is reunified in 1911.

1906 The All-India Muslim League (AIML) is founded in Dhaka with the goal of securing Muslim interests in South Asia.

1914–18 During World War I more than 1,200,000 Indians volunteer for the British army.

1919 Amritsar Massacre: troops of the British Indian Army under the command of Colonel Reginald Dyer fire on a crowd of pilgrims in a public garden, killing hundreds.

1920 Mahatma Gandhi launches a non-violent campaign calling for Indian independence.

1939–45 British Raj, as part of the Allies, sends over 2.5 million volunteer soldiers to fight under British command against the Axis powers in World War II.

1940 Lahore Resolution: Muslim League under the leadership of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, calls for a separate Muslim homeland after the British leave India, marking the beginning of the Pakistan Movement.

1943 Bengal famine, in which more than 3 million people perish.

1944 The Indian National Army (INA), a Japanese-allied force led by Indian anti-colonial nationalist Subhas Chandra Bose, advances as far as Kohima in Nagaland before being driven back at Imphal.

1946 Direct Action Day: Muslim League call for general strikes to demand a separate Muslim homeland. It leads to large-scale violence between Muslims and Hindus in Calcutta (now Kolkata).

Modern India

1947 India becomes independent from Britain. An agreement is made to partition India into two countries: the mainly Muslim Pakistan, and mainly Hindu India. As people move from one state to another, violence erupts and somewhere between 200,000 and 1 million die.

1947–48 War breaks out with Pakistan over control of the northern region of Kashmir.

1948 Gandhi is assassinated by Nathuram Godse, a Hindu fanatic, on 30th January

1949–50 Constitution of India is adopted by the Constituent Assembly. Dominion of India becomes the Republic of India, effective from 26th January 1950. Jawaharlal Nehru becomes India’s first prime minister.

1956 States Reorganization Act is passed, dissolving old states and creating new ones according to language and ethnicity. In 1960, Maharashtra and Gujarat are created out of Bombay State, and the Punjab State is divided into Punjabi-speaking Punjab and Haryanvi-speaking Haryana states.

1961 Indian Armed Forces invade and annex Goa, ending 451 years of rule by Portugal.

1962 (October–November) Sino-Indian War: fighting between India and China in India's North-East Frontier Agency (now Arunachal Pradesh) east of Bhutan and in Aksai Chin west of Nepal. Chinese troops push Indian forces back before declaring a ceasefire.

1965 Indo-Pakistani war breaks out following Pakistan's unsuccessful attempt to infiltrate forces into Jammu and Kashmir to start an uprising against Indian rule. The 17-day war causes thousands of casualties on both sides.

1966 Indira Gandhi, daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru, becomes prime minister, the only woman to hold the office.

1967 Sino-Indian War: clashes between China and India along the border of Sikkim, then an Indian protectorate, results in a Chinese retreat.

1971 India supports East Pakistan in a war over the separation of East and West Pakistan. East Pakistan becomes Bangladesh.

1974 India tests its first nuclear weapon in the desert of Rajasthan.

1975 Sikkim becomes a state India and its monarchy was abolished.

1975–77 The Emergency: Indira Gandhi declares a state of emergency across India, citing "internal and external threats" to the country. Gandhi imprisons political activists, postpones elections and introduces a programme of compulsory birth control.

1984 (June) Gandhi orders the Indian Armed Forces to remove Sikh militants from the Golden Temple (Harmandir Sahib), a holy site of Sikhism, in Amritsar, and scores of other Sikh temples across Punjab. While successful, the operation results in hundreds of civilian deaths, and sparks a Sikh separatist insurgency, which lasts until 1995.

1984 (October) Indira Gandhi is assassinated by her Sikh bodyguards. Her son Rajiv takes over as prime minister.

1984 (December) A gas leak at the Union Carbide pesticides plant in Bhopal: thousands are killed immediately, while many more die later or are left permanently disabled

1999 (May) Tension in Kashmir leads to brief war between Indian and Pakistan-backed forces around Kargil.

1999 (October) Cyclone causes devastation in the eastern state of Orissa (present-day Odisha).

2000 India’s billionth citizen is born.

2001 (January) Major earthquake kills 30,000 people in the western state of Gujarat.

2002 Violence breaks out after Hindu pilgrims returning from Ayodhya are killed in a train fire in Godhra, Gujarat.

2003 India and Pakistan agree to a ceasefire in the conflict over Kashmir.

2004 Thousands perish when the Indian Ocean tsunami devastates coastal towns and villages on the southeastern coast and in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

2005 More than 1000 people are killed in floods and landslides caused by monsoon rains in Mumbai and surrounding region. (October) Earthquake in Kashmir kills 79,000 people.

2014 Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) wins parliamentary elections by a landslide; Narendra Modi becomes prime minister.

2017 Separatist fighters in Srinagar, Indian-administered Kashmir, protest against human rights abuses allegedly committed by Indian security forces (April).

2020–21 Indian farmers' protest in Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh against three farm acts passed by the Parliament of India. The government of India decides to repeal the bills in November 2021, ending the protests.

2023 (April) India overtakes China to become the world's most populous country. (August) Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft’s Vikram lander successfully touches down on the surface of the Moon on 23rd August, marking India’s emergence as a space power.