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Jan 1, 1348
Black Death
Makes one third of the European population die, shakes the faith in the Catholic Church and leads to working class to demand more. 1348-1351 -
Period: Jan 1, 1350 to Jan 1, 1550
Renaissance
The Renaissance brings forth the ideas of humanism and secularization. It is an explosion of art and culture. -
Jan 1, 1415
Council of Constance Burns Hus and Ends Great Schism
The End of the Great Schism finally stablilizes the Catholic Church but leads to decreased faith in the Catholic Church. They do this by deposing the other popes or make them resign and then elect another one. -
Period: Jan 1, 1450 to
Age of Exploration
The discovery of the New Worlds leads to rapid colonization of the Americas and an era of European dominance. -
Jan 1, 1453
Fall Of Constantinople; End of 100 Years War
The fall of Consatntinople marks the end of the Byzantine Empire and the start of the Ottoman Empire; the end of the 100 Years War signifies the end of British rule in France. -
Jan 1, 1455
Invention of Printing Press
The invention of the printing press allows books to become cheap and widespread, increasing access to knowledge. -
Jan 1, 1492
Columbus Encounters America; Completion of Reconquista in Spain
Columbus's discovery of the Americas leads to European colonization of the Americas; the conquest of the Iberian Peninsula marks the end of Muslim influence in the peninsula. -
Period: Jan 1, 1500 to
Protestant and Catholic Reformations
The increasing corruption of the Catholic Church leads to the formation of new religions. The Catholic Church reforms itself as a way to retain its power. -
Period: Jan 1, 1500 to
Early Modern Society
The "Revolutions" that occured in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries change the morals and views of the modern citizen that closely resembles that of modern day society. -
Period: Jan 1, 1500 to
Price Revolution
The price revolution saw a drastic increase in the price of everything. -
Jan 1, 1517
Luther Publishes "95 Theses"
The publication of Luther's "95 Theses" starts the Protestant Reformation. -
Jan 1, 1519
Cortez Conquers the Aztecs
When Cortez conquers the Azteccs it signals the fall of Native American Empires and is the start of European Imperial Empires. -
Period: Jan 1, 1520 to
Religious Wars
Were a series of unconnected wars strongly influenced by the Protestant Reforaation. -
Jan 1, 1534
Act of Supremacy in England Creates Anglican Church
The Anglican Church is only made to allow King Henry VIII to divorce, end of Catholic power in England. -
Jan 1, 1536
Calvin Establishes Reformed Faith in Geneva
Marks the start of Calvinism and further adds to the Protestant Reformation. -
Jan 1, 1543
Copernicus Publishes Heliocentric Theory
Opens up the field of astronomy and helps start the Scientific Revolution. -
Period: Jan 1, 1543 to
Scientific Revolution
The Scientific Revolution was a period in which many scientists rejected the ideas and theories of earlier philosophers and scientists and instead set out to question everything due to skepticism. -
Jan 1, 1545
Council of Trent Opens
The Council of Trent met from 1545 to 1563 due to the Protestant Reformation, the Council of Trent was the spirit and heart of the Counter-Reformation. -
Period: Jan 1, 1550 to
Dutch Commercial Dominance
The Dutch established the first sustained commercial empire overseas and became the financial capital of the world. This era is also referred to the Dutch Golden Age. -
Period: Jan 1, 1550 to
Age of Crisis
The Age of Crisis refers to an era in which there was many changes and reforms, economically, politically, environmentally, and scientifically. -
Jan 1, 1555
Peace of Augsbrug Ends Religious War in Germany
The Peace of Augsburg acknowledges Lutheranism as an official religion and allows Lutherans to be treated as equals. -
Jan 1, 1555
Charles V Abdicates
The abdication of the throne of the Holy Roman Empire by Charles V results in Spain and the Netherlands becoming soverign states yet being ruled by Hapsburgs. -
Period: Jan 1, 1580 to
Witchcraft Scare
The rise of new medical practices along with gender discrimination and climate changes lead to a massive amount of cases of withcraft and sorcery. -
Defeat of the Spanish Armada
The defeat of the Spanish Arnada establishes England as a world-class power and introduces the use of cannons as an integral part of warfare. -
Edict of Nantes Ends French Religious Wars
The Edict of Nantes gives civil rights to Huguenots and leads to secularization and is the start of religious toleration. -
Dutch East India Company Founded
The founding of the Dutch East India Company marks the transfer of the financial capital of the world to the Netherlands. The Dutch East India Company is also the first multinational corporation and the first comapny to issue stocks. -
Period: to
Baroque Art
A period in which many artists made works of art which expressed feelings of power, control, and victory. -
Period: to
Commercial Revolution
Because of their desire for more wealth, European countries implemented new economic practices and developed and improved financial practices such as banking, investing, and insuring. -
Stuart Monarchy Begins In England
The rise of the Stuart family leads to a civil war and the rise of Oliver Crommwell in England. -
Period: to
Conflict Between Parliament and King of England
A period in which rulers like Oliver Cromwell and Charles the I did not cooperate with Parliament which lead to civil war and civil unrest. -
Period: to
Age of Louis XIV
Loius XIV greatly expands France's power during his reign. Not only does he reform much of France and create Versailles but he also makes French culture the most popular in Europe, -
Peace of Westphalia Ends Thirty Years' War
The Peace of Westphalia breaks up the Holy Roman Empire into hundreds of soveriegn states and, gave money and territory to France and Sweden, and stamped out any hope for a fully Catholic Europe. -
Charles I Executed In England
The execution of Charles the First ends the idea of a divine right monarch in England and also results in the dictatorship of Oliver Cromwell. -
Period: to
Absolutism
Many monarchs during this time period wielded absolute power and were able to do whatever they pleased without having to listen to the nobility. -
Period: to
Commercial Wars Between the Dutch and English
A period in which three non-consecutive wars were fought between the Great Britain and The Netherlands. The result was that the British Navy further solidified itself as the best Navy in Europe and also marked the end of the Netherlands as a world power. -
Period: to
Rise of Prussia
During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries saw Prussia become a world power due to their many victories when it came to war. -
Peter the Great's Reign In Russia Begins
Peter reformed the Russian government and centralized it. He established St. Petersburg and made Russia's first standing army and formed the Russian Navy. He made education reforms and traded and interacted heavily with European countries. -
Newton Publishes Principia Mathematica
The Principia is regarded as the most important scientific work in history and is considered the turning point in scientific thought. -
Glorious Revolution
Replaced James II with a joint monarchy of William of Orange and Mary, this makred the Whig history of Britain. -
Period: to
Rise of Russia
Due to the successes of Tsars such as Ivan the Great and peter the Great, Russia rose to become one of the most powerful countries in Europe. -
Bank of England Founded
The Bank Of England controls all of the economic aspects of England, from printing currency to collecting taxes, the Bank of England was is meant to keep the English economy stable. -
Period: to
Rise of the Middle Class
Due to the Enlghtenment and education reforms the middle class ibecame educated and realized that the current monarchies were unfair and wanted a say in their government. -
Period: to
Enlightenment
A period in which various writers questioned the current monarchies and proposed new groundbreaking politial ideas. -
Period: to
Agricultural Revolution
Inventions such as the reaper and haarvester increased the dramatically output of food while decreasing amount of workers need it. Resulting in a much more abundant food supply around the world. -
Peace of Utrecht
The Treaty of Utrecht ended the War of the Spanish Succession. It made sure France couldn't expand anymore and gave rise to the English Empire. 1713-1715 -
Death of Loius XIV
The death of the Sun King left France in much debt. Yet he also made France the most powerful state in Europe during his reign. -
Period: to
Rococo Art
An artistic movement in which emphasis was placed on emotions like happiness instead of power and victory. -
War for Austrian Succession Begins
The War for Austrian Succession leads to the Diplomatic Revolution and signifies Prussia as a great power. -
Period: to
Industrial Revolution
A period in which new manufacturing proccesses were introduced, such as mass production, assembly lines, and the use of technology and machines instead of doing everything by hand. Introduced steam power and increased efficiency in every industry. -
Treaty of Paris Ends Seven Years' War
The end of the Seven Years' War makes France give up almost all of its possessions in North America. It also leads to France and England in horrible debt and more hostile relations towards their colonies due to levied taxes in an attempt to solve their debts. -
Adam Smith Publishes "Wealth of Nations"
"Wealth of Nations" opposed mercantilism and first proposed the idea of a Free Market Economy. -
American Revolution
The American Revolution leads to the formation of the United States of America and ignites other revolutions in other colonies and countries i.e. France. -
French Revolution Begins
The French Revolution signifies the victory of democracy over absolutism, the Bourgeoisie over the elite and the will of the many over the will of the few. -
Period: to
Age of Revolution
A period in which revolutions occurred all over the Americas and Europe. The result were the governments changing from absolute monarchies to constitutional states and republics. -
Period: to
Feminism Movement
A period in which women rallied and protested and demanded equal rights for both men and women. -
Period: to
Rise of Nationalism
A romantic movement in Europe and the Americas that had citizens strongly identifying with their country that transformed Europe and the Americas, leading to revolutions and the formation of new countires. -
Wallstonecraft Begins Feminist Movement With "Vindication of the Rights of Women"
Invents Feminism. -
Napoleon Comes to Power in France
Marks the start of the Napoleonic Empire -
Period: to
Romanticism
An artistic, literary, and intellectual movement in the first half of the 19th century that criticized the social norms of the Enlightenment that focused on nature with a heavy emphasis on emotion. -
Napoleon Abdicates
The second abdication of Napoleon marks the end of the Napoleonic Empire. -
Congress of Vienna
Formed to prevent imperialism and maintain peace between the countries. The main goal during its formation was to redraw political borders of all countries. -
Period: to
Second Industrial Revolution
The first Industrial Revolution diffuses to the rest of the developed world and industrialize their countries as well. -
Belgian and Greek Independence
Belgium and Greece gain their independence but upset the status quo of Europe at the time. -
Period: to
Rise of Liberalism
The Enlightenment proposed the idea of liberalism and due to the previous European wars of religion and the absolute monarchies, many of the working and lower class revolted and wanted individual rights along with an increased voice in the government. -
July Revolution
resulted in the House of Orleans coming into power and changed the principle from popular soveriegnty to hereditary rule. -
Revolutions of 1848
Revolutions sweeped Europe during this year, most notably in France, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Italy, and the Austrian Empire. Resulted in little political change but there was much social and cultural change. -
Marx and Engels Publish "Communist Manifesto"
The "Communist Manifesto" proposes the idea of a totalitarian government that completely is run by the people for the people. Many countries adopt this form of goverment in the 20th century. -
Period: to
Unificiation and Nation Building
A period in which many small, fragmented counties such as the broken up Holy Roman Empire and Italy, united to create new powerful countries. -
Period: to
Realism and Materialism
Due to increased secularization, the Scientific Revolution, and the Enlightenment, many people are becoming more attached to physical possessions and more skeptical, which forms the ideas of realism and materialism. -
Period: to
Imperialism
Many European countries were trying to become the most powerful by trying to gain the most territory. -
Period: to
Modern Ideas and Science
During this period many revolutionary ideas emerged, such as the theory of relativity, the theory of the atom, and the signficance of dreams. -
Period: to
Rise of Modern Society
With the second Indusrial Revolution and the discovery of new sciences, the society is changing and is the basis of which we build our modern society off of. -
Crystal Palace Exhibition in Britain
Showcased the most revolutionary and famous inventions and artifacts of the time, such as the Koh-i-Noor diamond, firearms, the precursor to the fax machine, and the combine. Also used the first public toilets. -
Britain Establishes Direct Rule of India
The British Empire ruling India resulted in Britain gaining massive presitge, an increse of trade to India, a huge amount of labor, and a massive army to fight their wars. -
Darwin Publishes "Origin of Species"
Proposes the revolutionary ideas of natural selection and evolution. Greatly influences the field of biology. -
Italy Unified
The unification of Italy signifies the that Italians shared a common culture and united because they were tired of being controlled by others. -
Russian Serfs Emancipated
The act of freeing the serfs allow Russia to advance socially, economically, culturally, and politically. -
Period: to
Modern Art
A period in which artists experiemented with new ideas and materials. Many artists had more abstract features to their art, a stark contrast to the realism of past artsists. -
Unification of Germany
The unification of Germany marks the emergence of another huge power in Europe and ends Austrian dominance in the German region. -
Paris Commune and Third Republic of France
The Third Republic of France is the structure of the French government up until Hitler conquers France in WWII. -
Berlin Conference Over Imperialism In Africa
Ushers in a period of increased colonial activity by European powers and results in the elimination of almost all African governments. 1884-1885 -
Sigmun Freud Publishes "Interpretation of Dreams"
Freud is the first to recognize the signifigance of dreams. -
Einstein Publishes Relativity Theory
The theory of relativity is the backbone of science and is still major in science today. -
WWI Begins
Results in the defeat of the Axis Powers and the impoverishmaent of Germany and leads to the rise of Nazi Germany and WWII. -
Period: to
World Wars
The horror of the World Wars spurs Europe toward peace, results in America And the USSR becoming world superpowers, the prohibition of nuclear weapons and the Cold War. -
Bolshevik Revolutions in Russia
Resulted in the creation of Soviet Russia, starts the Russian Civil War and utulizes Communism. -
Treaty of Versailles Ends WWI
TheTreaty of Versailles ends WWI but puts Germany into considerable debt and and makes it easy for someone to seize power in Germany, i.e. Adolf Hitler. -
Period: to
Totalitarianism
During this period quite a few countries turned into totalitarian governments, wielding absolute power and controlling the people in every way possible. -
Facists and Mussolini Come To Power IN Germany
With Mussolini ruling facist Italy he invades Africa and allies with Nazi Germany, becoming one of the key countries to defeat in WWII. -
Great Depression Begins
Following WWI there was a severe economic crash started in the US but impacted the whole world. -
Hitler Comes to Power in Germany
When Hitler takes power not only does he try to take over the whole world and start the biggest war in human history but he also led a mass genocide against the Jews. -
Munich Conference- Height of Appeasement
A conference that was held in Munich that consised of Italy, Germny, Britain and France that resulted in Hitler annexing part of Czechoslovakia, however this did little to stop Hitler from setting his sights on conquering the world. -
WWII Begins
The single bloodiest war in human history, results in the formation of the United Nations, the EU, the emergence of America and Russia as world superpowers, the end of colonial empire, and the European countries losing much power and influence on the world stage. -
WWII Ends: United Nations Founded
With the amount of death and destruction due to WWII, the world forms the UN in order to prevent another World War. The end of WWII sees the European nations weakened, colonial empire ends, and the US and Soviet Russia come out on top as global superpowers. -
Period: to
Cold War
The US and USSR were competing and trying to spread their ideologies to the world. Each nation tried to one-up the other, in terms of nuclear power, influence, culture, military might, or accomplishments in space. The Cold War was the closest humanity has come to armageddon. -
Period: to
European Unity
For the first time in human history all the countries of Europe have set aside their differences and have worked towards peace and unity so that they will not have to experience the horrors of another world war. -
NATO Formed
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is an alliance of the US, Canada, and other countries from Western Europe and the Atlantic Ocean meant to combat the ever-increasing Soviet Union. -
European Coal and Steel Community Formed
The ECSC was created after WWII as a way for the European countries to help each other recover from the war, it also served as a way to make sure no European country can ever start a World War again. -
Stalin Dies
The death of Stalin results in a decreased Soviet military, a sovereign Austria, a ease in tensions between the US and America and starts the process of de-Stalinization but the Soviet Union lived on for another 40 years. -
Kruschev's de-Stalinization Speech
This starts the process of de-Stalinization, which was the process of removing all traces of Stalin from all traces of Russain history. -
Hungary Revolts
A spontaneous revolution across Hungary that ultimately failed but further contributed to the fall of the Soviet Union. -
Treaty of Rome Creates European Economic Community
The creation of the European Communtiy further leads to European Unity and is one of the main organizations that merged to create the European Union. -
Sputnik Launches
The kaunch of Sputnik results in many things, it results in increased tensions between the US and the USSR due to it damaging America's prestige. It also proved that entering space was possible and proved that the USSR was more technologically advanced than America at the time. -
Fifth Republic of France Under DeGaulle
The Fifth Republic of France still exists today and is important because it introduces direct democracy and the idea of a stronger and more centralizing President of France. -
Berlin Wall Erected
The Berlin wall not only signified the inner political conflict of Germany but also represented the clash between the US and the USSR and their clashing ideologies. -
Cuban Missle Crisis
The Cuban Missle Crises represents the point in which tensions were the highest in the Cold War, it was the closes humanity has come to nuclear war and armageddon. -
Second Vatican Council Begins
The result of the second Vatican Council was that the Catholic Church was reformed to resemble the modern Catholic Church. Some reforms had an emphasis on reconciliation, cooperation and the use of other languages besides Latin during Mass. -
May 1968 Events in France
The protest of almost a quarter of the French population about the economy brought the economy to a halt and could have easily started revolution, but the protests thankfully died down. -
Czech "Prague Spring" Revolt
A brief revolution that was crushed quickly and proved that the Soviet Union would not give up any ountry and that they were oppressing those countries. It alos proved that there could be no reform for the Soviet Russian government under Communism. -
Helsinki Accords- Height of Detente
The Helsinki Accords was intended to ease relations between NATO and the Warsaw Pact, it said that all signing countries have religious freedoms and freedom of travel between those countriies and had basic human rights. Even though it was nonbinding and was largely ignored, it played a big role in ending the Cold War. -
John Paul II Elected Pope
Pope John Paul II changed the way of how papacy was viewed, he inspired younger Catholics, made the role of pope a celebrity, he helped end Communism and reformed the Church by not denouncing other religions and instead embracing them. -
Soviet Union Invades Afghanistan
The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan results in a decade war that leaves Afghanistan in ruins that becomes a breeding ground for terrorism and leaves Soviet Russia at a loss of money that leads to its collapse. -
Thatcher Elected Prime Minister In England
Margaret Thacther, as a prime minister, helped make the Soviet Union collapse and singel-handedly saved Great Britain from becoming a socialistic state. -
Solidarity Founded In Poland
Solidarity starts the chain reaction that results in the collapse of the USSR. It actually made Poland not communist and gave hope to other countries in the Iron Curtain that they can do the same. -
Gorbachev Comes to Power in the Soviet Union
Gorbachev massively reforms the Soviet Union, he gave the Soveits freedom of speech pkus other rights, he ended the Arms Race, he reformed the economy and helped liberalize the Soviet Union. He ended the Cold War but this led to the downfall of the USSR. -
Berlin Wall Falls and Collapse of Communism
The fall of the Berlin Wall signals the true end of the Cold War and Communism, the collpase of the Soviet Union signifies that communism has failed. -
Break-up of Soviet Union
The breakup of the Soviet Union marks the end of Soviet oppression and finally allows each nation to regain their soverignty and freedom again. -
Balkan Conflicts Begin of Yugoslavia
Leads up to the breakup of Yugoslavia and to many conflicts between the ethnic groups. -
Maastricht Treaty Creates European Union
The European Union finally establihed strong relations between almost every country in Europe for the first time in history. It also creates one of the biggest markets in the global economy, finally gets rid of the prospect of war between European countries, it unifies Europe and allows ease of travel between countries. -
Euro Currency Introduced
Makes a universal European currency that helps out the European market immensly by making commerce much easier. -
Terrorist Attacks on the United States
Leads to worldwide invlolvement in ithe Middle East and also leads to discrimination of Arabs and Muslims. Spurs America and other countries tp amping up their airport and immigration security.
