ca. 2000-ca. 1400 B.C. Minoan civilization flourishes in Crete
ca. 1400-ca. 1200 B.C. Mycenaean civilization flourishes on mainland Greece
ca. 1200 B.C. Dorians migrate to southern Greece; Greek Dark Age begins (to ca. 750 B.C.)
1183 B.C. Fall of Troy
776 B.C. First Olympic Games
753 B.C. Legendary founding of Rome by Romulus and Remus; monarchy begins in Rome (to 510 B.C.)
ca. 750 B.C. Archaic period begins in Greece (to 500 B.C.);
Greeks found colonies in other regions of the Mediterranean region
736 B.C. Messenian revolt against Sparta (to 716 B.C.)
ca. 620 B.C. Draco formulates his law code in Athens
ca. 592 B.C. Solon alters Athenian law code and reforms political system
ca. 560 B.C. Pisistratid dynasty of tyrants begins in Athens (to 510 B.C.)
550 B.C. Persian Empire is founded
510 B.C. Tarquin the Proud, the last king of Rome, is exiled
509 B.C. Roman Republic is founded (to 31 B.C.)
508/507 B.C. Cleisthenes reforms government of Athens
ca. 500 B.C. Classical period in Greece begins (to 323 B.C.)
499 B.C. Ionian Revolt by Greek cities in Asia Minor against the Persian Empire (to 493 B.C.);
Persian Wars begin (to 479 B.C.)
Homer (700s B.C.)
Hesiod (ca. 700 B.C.)
Solon (ca. 630-ca. 560 B.C.)
Thales of Miletus (ca. 625-547B.C.)
Sappho (bom ca. 612 B.C.)
Pythagoras (born ca. 580 B.C.)
Croesus (reigned ca. 560-546 B.C.)
Aeschylus (525-456 B.C.)
Themistocles (ca. 524-459 B.C.)
Pindar (ca. 518-ca. 438 B.C.)
Heraclitus (ca. 500s B.C.)
Sophocles (ca. 496-406 B.C.)
Pericles (ca. 495-429 B.C.)
490 B.C. Battle of Marathon
480 B.C. Battle of Thermopylae and Battle of Salamis; Persian king Xerxes withdraws from Greece
479 B.C. Greeks defeat Persians at Battle of Plataea
Phidias (ca. 490-ca. 430 B.C.)
Xerxes (reigned 486-465 B.C.)
Herodotus (ca. 484-ca. 420 B.C.)
Leonidas (died 480 B.C.)
Euripides (ca. 480-406 B.C.)
478 B.C. Delian League, alliance of Greek cities led by Athens, is founded
Pausanias (died 470 B.C.)
Socrates (469-399 B.C.)
460 B.C. Pericles dominates Athenian politics (to 429 B.C.)
450 B.C. The Twelve Tables, first written Roman law code, is established
Democritus (460-370 B.C.)
Hippocrates (ca. 460-ca. 380 B.C.)
Thucydides (ca. 459-399 B.C.)
Alcibiades (ca. 450-404 B.C.)
449 B.C. Peace is established between Persian Empire and Delian League
447 B.C. Construction of Parthenon begins on Athenian Acropolis (finished 438 B.C.)
431 B.C. Peloponnesian War begins (to 404 B.C.)
421 B.C. Peace of Nicias temporarily halts Peloponnesian War
Aristophanes (ca. 445-385 B.C.)
Isocrates (ca. 435-338 B.C.)
Xenophon (ca. 428-ca. 355 B.C.)
Plato (428-348 B.C.)
415 B.C. Athens sends expedition against Sicily (to 413 B.C.)
405 B.C. Sparta defeats Athens at Aegospotami in last sea battle of the Peloponnesian War
404 B.C. The “Thirty Tyrants” rule Athens (to 403 B.C.)
399 B.C. Socrates is sentenced to death for “corrupting the young”
387 B.C. Gauls invade Rome
358 B.C. Philip II becomes king of Macedonia
338 B.C. Philip defeats Athenians and Thebans at Battle of Chaeronea
Aristotle (384-322 B.C.)
Demosthenes (ca. 384-322 B.C.)
Philip II (382-336 B.C.)
Praxiteles (300s B.C.)
Theophrastus (ca. 371-287 B.C.)
Alexander the Great (356-323 B.C.)
Menander (ca. 342-ca. 291 B.C.)
Epicurus (341-270 B.C.)
336 B.C. Philip is assassinated; Alexander the Great becomes king of Macedonia
334 B.C. Alexander invades Asia
331 B.C. Alexander founds the city of Alexandria in Egypt and defeats King Darius of Persia at Battle of Gaugamela
330 B.C. Darius assassinated; Alexander expands Macedonian empire
323 B.C. Alexander dies; Hellenistic period begins (to 31 B.C.)
312 B.C. Construction of Appian Way begins finishes 244 B.C.)
305 B.C. Ptolemaic dynasty of rulers of Egypt begins (to 30 B.C.)
ca. 295 B.C. Library of Alexandria is founded
280 B.C. Pyrrhic War between Rome and Pyrrhus, king of Epirus, begins (to 275 B.C.)
264 B.C. First Punic War between Rome and Carthage begins (to 241 B.C.)
227 B.C. Sicily becomes the first Roman province
218 B.C. Hannibal marches the Carthaginian army across the Alps to Italy; Second Punic War begins (to 201 B.C.)
149 B.C. Third Punic War begins (to 146 B.C.)
146 B.C. Rome destroys Carthage and Corinth
133 B.C. Last king of Pergamum wills his kingdom to Rome; Tiberius Gracchus attempts reform of Roman government and is assassinated
123 B.C. Gaius Gracchus extends the reforms of his brother
121 B.C. Gaius Gracchus is assassinated 82 B.C. Sulla is named dictator (to 79 B.C.)
Callimachus (ca. 305-ca. 240 B.C.)
Euclid (active ca. 300 B.C.)
Theocritus (ca. 300-ca. 260 B.C.)
Archimedes (ca. 287-212 B.C.)
Eratosthenes (ca. 285-ca. 195 B.C.)
Plautus (254-184 B.C.)
Hannibal (ca. 246-182 B.C.)
Scipio Africanus (236-183 B.C.)
Cato the Elder (234-149 B.C.)
Polybius (ca. 205-125 B.C.)
Terence (ca. 185-159 B.C.)
Tiberius Gracchus (163-133 B.C.)
Marius (ca. 157-86 B.C.)
Gaius Gracchus (154-121 B.C.)
Sulla (ca. 138-78 B.C.)
Crassus (112-53 B.C.)
Pompey (106-48 B.C.)
Cicero (106-43 B.C.)
Julius Caesar (100-44 B.C.)
Cato the Younger (95-46 B.C.)
Lucretius (ca. 94-ca. 50 B.C.)
Sallust (86-35 B.C.)
Brutus (85-42 B.C.)
Catullus (84-54 B.C.)
Mark Antony (ca. 82-30 B.C.)
73 B.C. Spartacus leads slave revolt (to 71 B.C.)
63 B.C. Catiline leads conspiracy against Rome, is exposed by Cicero
60 B.C. First Triumvirate is formed by Pompey, Julius Caesar, and Crassus
58 B.C. Caesar’s conquests of Gauls (to 50 B.C.)
53 B.C. Crassus is defeated and killed by Parthians
49 B.C. Caesar enters Italy with his army, beginning a civil war with Pompey and his followers (to 45 B.C.)
44 B.C. Caesar becomes dictator for life; senators led by Brutus and Cassius assassinate Caesar
43 B.C. Second Triumvirate is formed by Mark Antony, Octavian (later Augustus), and Marcus Lepidus
42 B.C. Antony and Octavian defeat Brutus and Cassius
31 B.C. Octavian defeats Antony and Cleopatra; Roman Republic ends and Roman Empire begins
27 B.C. Octavian receives title of Augustus; Augustus becomes first Roman emperor (to A.D. 14)
A.D. 6 Judaea becomes Roman province
A.D. 14 Tiberius becomes emperor (to A.D. 37)
A.D. 37 Caligula becomes emperor (to A.D. 41)
A.D. 41 Caligula is assassinated; Claudius becomes emperor (to A.D. 54)
A.D. 43 Claudius invades Britain and makes it a Roman province (to A.D. 47)
A.D. 54 Nero becomes emperor (to A.D. 68)
Vitruvius Pollio (first century B.C.)
Herod the Great (ca. 73-4 B.C.)
Vergil (70-19 B.C.)
Cleopatra (69-30 B.C.)
Horace (65-8 B.C.)
Strabo (ca. 64 B.C.-after A.D. 21)
Augustus, Caesar Octavianus
(63 B.C.—A.D. 14)
Livy (ca. 59 B.C.-ca. A.D. 17)
Tibullus (ca. 54B.C.-A.D. 18)
Propertius (ca. 50 B.C.-ca. A.D. 16)
Ovid (43 B.C.-A.D. 18)
Tiberius (42 B.C.-A.D. 37)
Claudius (10 B.C.-A.D. 54)
Seneca the Younger (ca. 4 B.C.-A.D. 65)
Vespasian (A.D. 9-79)
Caligula (A.D. 12-41)
Pliny the Elder (ca. A.D. 23-79)
Persius (A.D. 34-62)
Nero (A.D. 37-68)
Josephus (ca. A.D. 37-100)
Lucan (A.D. 39-65)
Titus (A.D. 39-81)
Quintilian (ca. A.D. 40-ca. 96)
Martial (ca. A.D. 40-ca. 104)
Plutarch (ca. A.D. 40-ca. 120)
Statius (ca. A.D. 45-ca. 96)
Epictetus (ca. A.D. 50-ca. 120)
Domitian (A.D. 51-96)
Tacitus (ca. A.D. 55-ca. 120)
Trajan (A.D. 57-117)
Juvenal (ca. A.D. 60-130)
Pliny the Younger (ca. A.D. 61-ca. 112)
A.D. 66 Jewish Revolt begins (to A.D. 70)
A.D. 68 Nero commits suicide
A.D. 69 Vespasian becomes emperor (to A.D. 79)
A.D. 79 Titus becomes emperor (to A.D. 81)
A.D. 79 Mt. Vesuvius erupts and destroys the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum
A.D. 80 Colosseum opens for public entertainments
A.D. 81 Domitian becomes emperor (to A.D. 96)
A.D. 98 Trajan becomes emperor (to A.D. 117)
A.D. 101 Trajan wages war against Dacia (to A.D. 106)
A.D. 117 Hadrian becomes emperor following the death of Trajan (to A.D. 138)
A.D. 122 Construction of Hadrian’s Wall begins
A.D. 161 Marcus Aurelius becomes emperor (to A.D. 180)
A.D. 193 Septimius Severus becomes emperor (to A.D. 211)
A.D. 200s Germans raid Roman Empire
A.D. 212 Emperor Caracalla grants citizenship to all free persons of the Roman Empire
A.D. 284 Diocletian becomes emperor (to A.D. 305)
A.D. 303 Persecution of Christians begins (to A.D. 311)
A.D. 312 Constantine I becomes emperor (to A.D. 337)
A.D. 313 Constantine issues edict granting tolerance to Christianity
A.D. 330 Constantinople is founded
Petronius Arbiter (dies A.D. 66)
Suetonius (ca. A.D. 69-after 122)
Longinus first century A.D.) Hadrian (A.D. 76-138)
Ptolemy (ca. A.D. 100-ca. 170)
Lucian (bom ca. A.D. 120)
Apuleius (bom ca. A.D. 120)
Marcus Aurelius (A.D. 121-180)
Galen (A.D. 129-ca. 200)
Septimius Severus (ca. A.D. 145-211)
Tertullian (ca. A.D. 160-ca. 240)
Plotinus (A.D. 205-269/270)
Diocletian (ca. A.D. 240-313)
Constantine I (A.D. 272-337)
Ammianus Marcellinus (ca. A.D. 330-ca. 395)
A.D. 361 Julian the Apostate becomes emperor (to A.D. 363) and attempts to reinstate pagan religion
A.D. 376 Visigoths settle within Roman Empire
A.D. 379 Theodosius becomes emperor (to A.D. 395)
A.D. 410 Visigoths sack Rome
ca. A.D. 450 Huns reach the height of their power in Europe
A.D. 476 Romulus Augustulus, last emperor of Western Roman Empire, is overthrown
A.D. 493 Theodoric forms kingdom of Ostrogoths in Italy
A.D. 527 Justinian becomes Eastern Roman emperor (to A.D. 565)
A.D. 529 Justinian closes pagan philosophical schools
Julian the Apostate (ca. A.D. 331-363)
Theodosius (ca. A.D. 346-395)
St. Augustine (A.D. 354-430)
Boethius (ca. A.D. 480-524) Justinian I (ca. A.D. 482-565)