c. 15th century – c. 1860s★★★★★
From the 16th to the 19th century, an estimated 12.5 million enslaved Africans were shipped across the Atlantic to the Americas, with profound consequences for both continents.
Economy· Ghana, Nigeria, Benin, Senegal, Angola, Brazil, United States, Portugal, United Kingdom
1639 – 1853★★★★★
The shogunate expels the Portuguese and severely restricts foreign contact, allowing only Dutch and Chinese trade at Nagasaki.
PoliticsEconomy· Japan
1799 – 1849★★★★★
Ranjit Singh captures Lahore and unites the Sikh confederacies into an empire in the Punjab.
PoliticsDynasty· Pakistan, India
1839 – 1842★★★★★
Britain wars with Qing China after it cracks down on the opium trade; the defeat opens what China calls the 'century of humiliation'.
WarEconomy· China, United Kingdom
November 3, 1839 – 1876★★★★★
The Edict of Gülhane opens the Tanzimat, a series of reforms modernising Ottoman administration, law and the army.
Politics· Turkey