|
1250 BC |
The Trojan war and the fall of
Troy |
|
1200-700 BC |
Migration of Greeks to Aegean
coastal regions. Establishment of the Phrygian, Ionian, Lycian,
Lydian, Carian and Pamphylian Kingdoms. The East of Turkey is the
home of the Urartians |
|
700 BC |
Homer is born in Izmir (Smyrna).
Aegean Hellenism begins |
|
546 BC |
Cyrus the Great leads the Persians
into Anatolia |
|
334 BC |
Alexander the Great drives out the
Persians |
|
130 BC |
The Romans incorporate Anatolia as
the province of Asia, controlled from Ephesus (Efes) |
|
40 BC |
Antioch sees the marriage of
Antony and Cleopatra |
|
47-57 AD |
St. Paul spreads Christianity and
a community at Antioch is established |
|
313 |
Roman Empire adopts Christianity |
|
330 |
Constantine lays out the
boundaries of his new capital, Constantinople |
|
527-65 |
Glory of Byzantium under Justinian |
|
638-718 |
Muslim Arabs besiege
Constantinople |
|
1054 |
Greek and Roman Churches split
over theology |
|
1071-1243 |
Rise and rule of the Selcuk Turks
in Anatolia, Konya is their capital |
|
1096-1204 |
The Crusades, marking the
beginning of the end for Byzantium, a fascinating period in
Byzantine history |
|
1288 |
Ottoman Empire appears in Bursa |
|
1453 |
The fall of Constantinople - the
birth of Istanbul |
|
1520-66 |
Suleyman the Magnificent sits on
the Ottoman throne controlling a huge and powerful empire |
|
1682-1725 |
Peter the Great initiates Russo-Turkish
rivalry |
|
1854 |
Crimean war |
|
1909 |
Abdul Hamid, the last of an
unbroken line of Ottoman sultans is deposed |
|
1914 |
Turkey allies with Germany in the
first world war |
|
1915 |
Gallipoli |
|
1919 |
Ataturk leads resistance to the
allied plan to carve up Turkey |
|
1923 |
Foundation of the modern Republic
of Turkey by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. Many things happen all at once |
|
1938 |
Ataturk dies in Istanbul's
Dolmabahce palace |
|
1939-45 |
Turkey manages to remain neutral
during the second world war |
|
1946 |
Charter membership of the UN |
|
1952 |
Turkey joins NATO |
|
1960 |
Military coup, successive
governments ineffective |
|
1964 |
Associate member status of EU |
|
1974 |
Cyprus crisis |
|
1980 |
Kanan Evren leads military coup. 3
years of military government |
|
1983 |
Turgut Ozal elected prime Minister |
|
1985-90 |
Full EU membership for Turkey
impeded by Cypriot issue and questions over human rights record |
|
1991-93 |
Suleyman Demirel elected Prime
Minister, inflation at 70% |
|
1993-96 |
Demirel President, Tansu Ciller
Prime Minister, Turkey joins EU Customs Union |
