World History Timeline

Countries / Middle East

History of Iraq

24 notable historical events in Iraq, in chronological order.

War · 14Politics · 7Dynasty · 2Treaty · 1Revolution · 1Science · 2Technology · 1Religion · 1Culture · 3Economy · 2Death · 1

32nd century BCE

  1. c. 32nd century BCE★★★★★

    Cuneiform writing emerges in Sumer

    The Sumerians of Mesopotamia develop cuneiform, one of humanity's earliest writing systems, first used for economic record-keeping.

    CultureTechnology· Iraq

24th century BCE

  1. c. 2334 BCE★★★★★

    Sargon founds the Akkadian Empire

    Sargon of Akkad conquers the Sumerian city-states, creating the first known multi-ethnic empire in Mesopotamia.

    PoliticsWar· Iraq

18th century BCE

  1. c. 1754 BCE★★★★★

    Code of Hammurabi

    King Hammurabi of Babylon issues one of the oldest and most complete written legal codes known.

    Politics· Iraq

7th century BCE

  1. 612 BCE★★★★★

    Fall of Nineveh

    A Babylonian and Median coalition sacks Nineveh, the Assyrian capital, marking the collapse of the Neo-Assyrian Empire.

    War· Iraq

6th century BCE

  1. 539 BCE★★★★★

    Fall of Babylon to Persia

    Cyrus the Great takes Babylon, ending the Neo-Babylonian Empire; he later allows exiled Judeans to return to Judah.

    WarPolitics· Iraq

4th century BCE

  1. October 331 BCE★★★★★

    Battle of Gaugamela

    Alexander the Great defeats Darius III, sealing the fall of the Achaemenid Empire.

    War· Iraq
  2. 323 BCE★★★★★

    Death of Alexander the Great

    Alexander the Great dies in Babylon aged 32, leaving an empire stretching from Greece to India.

    DeathPolitics· Iraq, Greece

3rd century

  1. 224★★★★★

    Founding of the Sasanian Empire

    Ardashir I defeats the last Parthian king, founding the Sasanian Empire, the last Iranian empire before the rise of Islam.

    DynastyWar· Iran, Iraq

7th century

  1. c. 636★★★★★

    Battle of al-Qadisiyyah

    Rashidun forces defeat the Sasanian army in Iraq, opening the way to the capture of the capital Ctesiphon.

    War· Iraq
  2. October 10, 680★★★★★

    Battle of Karbala

    Husayn ibn Ali, grandson of Muhammad, is killed by Umayyad forces at Karbala, an event central to Shia Muslim memory.

    WarReligion· Iraq

8th century

  1. 747 – 750★★★★★

    Abbasid Revolution overthrows the Umayyads

    A movement rising from Khorasan defeats the Umayyads at the Battle of the Zab, establishing the Abbasid Caliphate.

    RevolutionDynasty· Iraq, Iran
  2. 762★★★★★

    Founding of Baghdad

    Caliph al-Mansur builds the 'Round City' of Baghdad as the Abbasid capital; it soon becomes one of the world's largest cities.

    PoliticsCulture· Iraq

9th century

  1. c. 820s★★★★★

    Al-Khwarizmi's treatise on algebra

    At Baghdad's House of Wisdom, al-Khwarizmi writes his treatise on completion and balancing, founding algebra as a discipline; the word "algebra" derives from its title.

    Science· Iraq
  2. c. 830s★★★★★

    House of Wisdom in Baghdad

    Under Caliph al-Ma'mun the House of Wisdom becomes a centre of translation and scholarship, preserving and extending Greek, Persian and Indian learning.

    ScienceCulture· Iraq

13th century

  1. February 10, 1258★★★★★

    Mongol sack of Baghdad

    Hulagu's Mongol army takes and devastates Baghdad, killing Caliph al-Musta'sim and ending the Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad.

    War· Iraq

20th century

  1. May 16, 1916★★★★★

    Sykes–Picot Agreement

    Britain and France secretly agree to divide the Ottoman Empire's Arab lands into post-war spheres of influence.

    TreatyPolitics· Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, Palestine
  2. May 15, 1948 – 1949★★★★★

    1948 Arab–Israeli War

    Neighbouring Arab states go to war with Israel; the war ends with the 1949 armistice agreements, and about 700,000 Palestinians flee or are expelled from their homes.

    War· Israel, Palestine, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Iraq
  3. September 14, 1960★★★★★

    OPEC founded

    Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela found the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries at the Baghdad Conference.

    Economy· Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela
  4. October 1973 – March 1974★★★★★

    1973 oil crisis

    Arab oil producers impose an embargo on countries supporting Israel, causing world oil prices to soar.

    Economy· Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, United States
  5. September 22, 1980 – August 20, 1988★★★★★

    Iran–Iraq War

    Saddam Hussein's Iraq invades Iran, beginning an eight-year war of attrition that kills hundreds of thousands.

    War· Iran, Iraq
  6. August 2, 1990★★★★★

    Iraqi invasion of Kuwait

    Iraqi forces invade and occupy Kuwait, prompting UN sanctions and the formation of a US-led coalition.

    War· Iraq, Kuwait
  7. January 17, 1991 – February 28, 1991★★★★★

    Gulf War

    A US-led coalition launches Operation Desert Storm, expelling Iraqi forces from Kuwait.

    War· Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, United States

21st century

  1. March 20, 2003 – December 2011★★★★★

    Iraq War

    A US-led coalition invades Iraq and topples Saddam Hussein, beginning a long period of occupation and conflict.

    War· Iraq, United States, United Kingdom
  2. June 29, 2014★★★★★

    ISIS proclaims a caliphate

    The Islamic State group proclaims a 'caliphate' over territory seized in Iraq and Syria; it loses nearly all of it by 2017–2019.

    WarPolitics· Iraq, Syria
History of Iraq · World History Timeline