History of India: The Timeline

India has one of the richest histories in the world, and therefore is also one of the very vast ones. Indian history is divided into three periods: Ancient period (25^th century BC- 7^th century AD), Medieval period (7^th C. AD- 1707) and modern period (1707-1947). There had never been a clear cut or a complete break from one period to another, but the transition was taken on account of certain vital changes in the nature of state. For example: changes that led to the medieval period from ancient can be attributed to the coming of the Muslims in India and also the change in the caste system in the post-Gupta period; change that led to the modern period from medieval can be attributed to the death of Aurangzeb and the eventual emergence of the European powers.

 In this article, I will try to provide some of the most important events of the Indian history in chronological order, and also with fair explanation on certain events. And since it takes ages to complete the entire History of India due to its vastness, I have filtered out the less important ones so you wouldn’t have to waste extra time scanning and selecting from conventional history timelines.

3000-2600 BC	Harappan Civilisation
323 BC	Alexander the Great dies.
265 BC	Kalinga war (led by Ashoka, where around 2,00,000 people were killed).
320 AD	Chandragupta I establishes the Gupta dynasty (some also attribute the establishment of the dynasty to Sri Gupta).
985 BC	The Chola dynasty established under the reign of Rajaraja.
1191	The first battle of Tarain (Prithvi Raj Chauhan defeats Md. Ghori).
1192	The second battle of Tarain (Md. Ghori defeats Prithvi Raj).
1206	Slave dynasty established by Qutab Uddin Aibak(he was a slave of Md. Ghori)- he was succeeded by son-in-law, Iltutmish.
1236-1239	Razia Sultana, daughter of Iltutmish, becomes the first and only Muslim lady to rule in the Delhi sultanate.
1290	Jalaludin Firuz Khilji establishes the Khilji dynasty in Delhi.
1298	Marco Polo visits India.
1333	Ibn Batutah arrives in India(wrote “Rehla”).
1498	May 27th: Vasco da Gama reaches Calicut.
1526	First battle of Panipat- Babur defeats Ibrahim Lodi, and establishes the Mughal dynasty.
1530	Babur dies- succeeded by Humayun.
1556	Second battle of Panipat- Akbar defeats Hemu.
1600	East India Company (EIC) constituted.
1608	Captain Hawkins visits Jahangir’s court- fails to get permission on trading rights.
1613	Sir Thomas Roe gains permission to set up factory in Surat.
1639	Fort St. George built in Madras by EIC.
1707	Death of Aurangzeb.
1739	Nadir Shah of Persia conquers Delhi- steals the Kohinoor and the Peacock Throne.
1756	June 20: the Black-Hole tragedy (Fort William attacked by Siraj-ud-daula where 123 out of 146 English prisoners died of suffocation after spending a night in a very small confinement).
1757	June 23th: Battle of Plassey(Revenge against Siraj-ud-Daula by the British led by Clive and Watson- bribed Mir Jafar sided with the British).
1760	Battle of Wandiwash- English defeats the French.
1758	Marathas ousted Timur, son of Ahmed Shah Abdali, and occupied Punjab.
1761	Third battle of Panipat- Ahmed Shah attacks and defeats the Marathas.
1764	Oct. 23: Battle of Buxar- the English defeats the allied Indian powers of Mir Qasim(Nawab of Bengal), Shuja-ud-Daula(Nawab of Awadh) and Shah Alam II(Mughal king).
1765	The English gets Diwani rights in Bengal, Bihar and Orissa.
1767-69	First Anglo- Mysore war: Hyder Ali defeats the British.
1772	Warren Hastings appointed Governor of Bengal.
1773	The Regulating Act passed by the British parliament- first time when the powers of EIC company were checked upto some extent; creation of the post of Governor General of Bengal; Supreme Court established at Calcutta.
1774	Warren Hastings becomes the first Gov.Gen of Bengal(appointed by the EIC).
1775-82	First Anglo-Maratha war- ends with the Treaty of Salbai(20 year peace treaty).
1780-84	The second Anglo-Mysore War- Hyder Ali dies and is succeeded by son Tipu Sultan- ends with the Treaty of Mangalore.
1784	Pitt’s India Act passed- council members of Governor General reduced to 3 from 4; Asiatic Society founded by Sir William Jones.
1790-92	The third Mysore war- ends with Treaty of Seringapatam.
1799	Fourth Mysore war- the English defeats Tipu sultan- partition of Mysore.
1803-05	Second Anglo-Maratha war- ends with the Treaty of Bassien.
1813	Charter Act passed-Trade monopoly of EIC restricted, except tea trade and trade with China.
1818	Third Anglo-Maratha war- Marathas get defeated and sign the Subsidiary alliance.
1828	Lord William Bentinck becomes Governor General of India.
1829	Bhramo Samaj founded by Raja Ram Mohan Roy; prohibition of Sati and child infanticide.
1833	Charter Act of 1833 passed- Gov.Gen of Bengal renamed as Gov.Gen of India; trade monopoly of EIC ends.
1848	Lord Dalhousie becomes the Gov.Gen of India; Satara annexed under the Doctrine of Lapse.
1853	First Indian Railway from Bombay to Thane; first Telegraph from Calcutta to Agra.
1857	Sepoy Mutiny or the Revolt of 1857; Universities of Calcutta, Bombay and Madras set up; end of Mughal dynasty.
1858	EIC withdraws from India- administration comes directly under the control of the British Crown; Gov.Gen. of India from here on was known as Viceroy.
1859	Indigo revolt in Bengal (“Nil Darpan”, book written on the revolt by Dinabandhu Mitra).
1875	Arya Samaj founded by Swami Dayanand Saraswati in Bombay.
1877	Delhi Durbar- the Queen of England proclaimed as the Empress of India.
1879	Vernacular Press Act and Arms Act passed; duties on cotton abolished.
1885	Indian National Congress(INC) founded by Allan Octavian Hume- W.C. bannerji was the first president of INC.
1899	Lord Curzon becomes the Viceroy(till 1905).
1905	Oct 16th: Partition of Bengal on religious ground; INC declares Swadeshi Movement.
1906	31st Dec: Muslim League established by Salimullah Khan at Decca; Servants of India Society founded by G.K. Gokhale.
1907	INC session at Surat presided by Rashbihari Ghosh- split within INC between moderates and extremists, known as Surat split.
1909	Gandhi writes Hind Swaraj; Morley-Minto Reforms Bill of Indian Councils Act passed- granted separate electorate for the Muslims.
1911	Delhi Durbar- King George V declared Emperor of India.
1912	Rabindranath Tagore publishes “Gitanjali”
1913	Gadar Party formed by Lala Hardayal at San Francisco.
1915	9th Jan: Gandhi returns to India(thus, this day is celebrated as NRI day.
1916	Lucknow Pact signed between INC and Muslim League; Annie Besant starts Home Rule Movement on 25th Sept.
1917	INC gets its first woman President- Annie Besant.
1919	Jallianwala Bagh massacre at Amritsar Rowlatt Act; Jallianwala Bagh massacre at Amritsar(13th April) where General O. Dyer kills around 400 people- Rabindranath Tagore renounced his Knighthood title(30th May); Montague-Chelmsford Reforms.
1920	10th Sept: INC approves Gandhi’s Non-cooperation movement.
1921	Harappan civilisation discovered by Dayaram Sahani; Moplah rebellion in Malabar(Kerala).
1922	5th Feb: Chauri Chaura incident where 22 policemen were killed; 12th Feb: Gandhiji suspends Non-cooperation movement; R.D. Banerjee excavates Mohenjo-Daro.
1923	Swaraj party formed by Motilal  Nehru and C.R. Das; Indian party started by Madan Mohan Malviya.
1924	21st Aug: Gandhiji elected as President of INC in Belgaum.
1925	K.B. Hedgewar establishes RSS in Nagpur; E.V. Ramaswamy Naicker launches Self-respect movement for the people of lower caste; Kakori train conspiracy.
1927	Indian Navy Act; Simon commission constituted in Britain.
1928	3rd Feb: Simon Commission reaches India.
1929	8th April: Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwari Dutt throw bomb in the Central Legislative Assembly where031st Dec: Jawaharlal Nehru, President of INC at Lahore session, hoists the tricolour flag and also demands Purna Swaraj(total independence)
1930	Gyara Murti: Dandi march 1st Jan: Gandhi launches the civil disobedience movement; 26 Jan: the first independence day of India; 12th March: Gandhi begins Dandi march(salt satyagraha), and was followed by 78 people; 30th Nov: first round table conference at London(Muslim League and Hindu Mahasabha attends it, but not INC).
1931	5th March: Gandhi-Irwin pact(many political leaders released from prison through the pact); 23rd March: Bhagat Singh, Sukh Dev and Rajguru were executed; 7th Sept: Gandhi represents INC in the second round table conference.
1932	16th Aug: British PM Ramsay McDonald announces the “Communal Award”(which would lead the creation of separate electorates for each minority in India; 7th Nov: Third round table conference.
1935	4th Aug: Government of India Act 1935 passed(under which the federal structure of administration was created, and general elections to be held).
1936	All India Radio formed.
1937	First elections held under the GOI Act 1935- results declared in Feb 1937 where INC won 8(6 and 2 more by coalition) out of 11 provinces, Muslim League could not win a single province.
1938	20th Feb: Subhas Chandra Bose elected as INC president.
1939	March: SC Bose re-elected as INC president after defeating Pattabhi Sitaramayya(candidate supported by Gandhi). Bose later resigned and in April started Forward Bloc; Sept: Viceroy Linlithgow declares that India is also a part of WW-II; Oct-Nov: INC ministers resign from provinces in protest against the suo motu decision of the British.
1940	At the Lahore session, Muslim League passed the “Two-nation Theory” of Md. Ali Jinnah; 10th Aug: August Offer announced by Viceroy(rejected by INC).
1942	22nd March: Cripps Mission arrives in India(both Congress and Muslim League rejects Cripps mission); 7th Aug: Quit India Movement begins (Gandhiji gives the famous slogan “Do or Die”).
1943	Bengal Famine
1945	31st Dec: Indian National Army(INA) trials, ‘aka’ Red Fort Trials(Bhulabhai Desai, Tej Bahadur Sapru and JL Nehru stood for defence of INA); Wavell Plan.
1946	12th Jan: 1st demonetisation of Indian currency; day of Aug 16 fixed as “Direct Action Day” by Muslim League; 2nd Sept: interim government formed(it had 14 members- 5 from Muslim League).
1947	6th Jan: AICC accepts partition of India by a majority vote of 99 out of 151 votes. 2nd June: Lord Mountbatten declares the decision of the British on partition of India on June 3(known as the June 3rd Plan); 15th Aug: Independence day(except 3 out of 565, all states incorporated into the union of India).
1948	30th Jan: Gandhi is assassinated by Nathuram Godse in Birla House, New Delhi; 21st June: C Rajagopalachari becomes the first and only Indian Gov.Gen. of India.
1949	Preamble of the Indian Constitution 26th Nov: Constitution of India adopted by the Constituent Assembly headed by B.R. Ambedkar, after 2 years, 11 months and 18 days of preparation.
1950	26th Jan: Constitution comes into force with Universal adult franchise; Dr. Rajendra Prasad becomes the first President of free India; 28th Feb: formation of the Planning Commission; 7th Oct: Missionaries of Charity founded by Mother Teresa in Calcutta.

                “The more you know about the past, the better prepared you are for the future”

                                                                                                         ~Theodore Roosevelt   

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