c. 260s BCE – c. 230s BCE★★★★★
Edicts of Ashoka
Emperor Ashoka has edicts inscribed on rocks and pillars across his empire, promoting Buddhist ethics and tolerance.
ReligionPolitics· India, Pakistan, Nepal, Afghanistan
Timeline
8 events3rd century BCE
13th century
- 1206 – 1526★★★★★
Founding of the Delhi Sultanate
Qutb ud-Din Aibak establishes the Delhi Sultanate, which dominates much of northern India for over three centuries.
DynastyPolitics· India, Pakistan, Bangladesh
18th century
- 1799 – 1849★★★★★
Ranjit Singh takes Lahore, founding the Sikh Empire
Ranjit Singh captures Lahore and unites the Sikh confederacies into an empire in the Punjab.
PoliticsDynasty· Pakistan, India
19th century
- 1858 – 1947★★★★★
Beginning of the British Raj
After the 1857 rebellion, the Government of India Act transfers rule from the East India Company to the British Crown; the Mughal Empire formally ends.
Politics· India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, United Kingdom
20th century
- March 23, 1940★★★★★
Lahore Resolution
The All-India Muslim League adopts a resolution calling for independent states in Muslim-majority areas, a step towards the creation of Pakistan.
Politics· Pakistan, India - August 15, 1947★★★★★
Independence of India
British India is partitioned into the independent dominions of India and Pakistan, accompanied by mass migration and violence.
Politics· India, Pakistan, United Kingdom - May 11, 1998★★★★★
India's Pokhran-II nuclear tests
India conducts a series of nuclear weapons tests at Pokhran; Pakistan responds with its own tests later that month.
TechnologyPolitics· India, Pakistan
21st century
- December 27, 2007★★★★★
Assassination of Benazir Bhutto
Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, the first woman to lead a Muslim-majority country, is killed in an attack in Rawalpindi.
DeathPolitics· Pakistan