The Spice Route Time Chart
Includes China, India, Arabia, Europe
Best viewed on a wider screen.
| Date | Europe | Arabia | India, Ceylon, Central Asia | China and the Far East |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3000 BC - 0 BC | 3000 BC Minoan civilization the earliest in Europe, develops in Crete. Around 1900 BC Mycenaean civilization established on mainland Greece. 336-323 BC Empire of Alexander the Great. 323 Alexander the Great dies. 146 BC Greece comes under Roman control. 27 BC End of the Roman Republic, Octavian becomes Emperor. |
1000 BC Incense Road to Arabia in use. 586 BC Nebuchadnezzar captures Jerusalem. 552 BC Nabonidus (Persian) removes Edomite monarchy. 332 BC Alexander the Great conquers Syria and Palestine. 312 BC Antigonus fails to take Selah. 120-96 BC Aretas II rules. 96 - 76 B.C. Siege of Gaza. 93 BC Obodas defeats Alex. Jannaeus. 87 BC Rabbel I dies in battle. 87 BC Aretas III conquers southern Syria. 85 B.C Aretas II becomes ruler of Damascus. The Nabataeans now control both the maritime and land routes to Asia. 64 BC Syria becomes a Roman province. 62 B.C. Roman army general Scaurus fails to take Petra. Malichus I becomes ruler. 30 BC Obodas III becomes ruler. 26 BC Roman Army fails to take Yemen. 30 BC Egypt made a Roman province. 9 BC Aretas IV. Nabataean Kingdom reached its zenith. |
About 2000 - 1500 BC Indus Valley civilization flourishes in what is now Pakistan. About 15000 - 600 BC Vedic Period in India. Hindu religion established. About 500 BC Buddhism founded in India. 550 - 330 BC The Persian Empire. 247 BC Parthians established in Iran. |
About 2250 - 1766 BC Hsia Dynasty in China. 1766 - 1027 BC Shang Dynasty in China. 1027 - 221 BC Chou Dynasty in China. 660 Legendary date for founding of Japan under Emperor Jimmu. 202 BC Han Dynasty takes over China. 150 BC - 50 AD Dong Son culture in North Vietnam. About 100 BC Silk Land Route fully open from China to the West. |
| AD 1 - 500 AD |
AD 117 Roman Empire at its largest. Around 200 AD Barbarians begin attacking frontiers of the Roman Empire. 330 AD Constantinople established as the new Capital of the Roman Empire. 395 AD Roman Empire splits into two. 476 AD Western Roman Empire collapses. 486 Frankish kingdom formed, with land in Germany and France. |
30 AD Death of Jesus Christ. Christianity started as a new religion within the Roman Empire. 70 AD Rabbel II becomes Nabataean ruler. 106 AD The Romans annexed Nabataea. 114 AD Via Nova Traiana road completed. 130 AD Emperor Hadrian visits Nabataea 272 AD Fall of Palmyra. 363 AD Earthquake levels much of Petra. 390 - 423 AD Many Nabataeans convert to Christianity. Petra remains mostly pagan |
224 AD Sasanians oust Parthians and establish empire through western Asia. About 250 AD Sasanians control much of the land spice trade. 320 AD Gupta Empire founded in India. |
AD 73 - 91 Chinese defeat Xiongnu in Tarim region. 220 AD Hand Dynasty collapses, China breaks into three. About 300 AD Yamato government established in Japan. 316 AD Japan invades Korea. 316 - 598 Rival dynasties in north and south China. |
| 501 AD - 1000 AD | 610 Rinab Empire now focused around eastern Mediterranean, known as Byzantine
Empire. 711 Arabs conquer Spain. 732 Arab advance into Europe halted at the Battle of Poitiers. 768 - 814 Charlemagne reigns over the Franks. 793-794 Vikings begin raiding northern Europe. |
632 Death of Muhammad. Muslim Arab expansion begins. 651 Muslims control Mesopotamia and Persian, and East-West trade. 661 - 750 Umayyad Dynasty rules Muslim Empire from Damascus. 750 - 1258 Abbasid Dynasty rules from Baghdad. Mid 900’s Muslim Empire fragments. |
535 AD Gupta Empire collapses. |
552 AD Buddhism introuduced into Japan. 581 Yang Chien founds the Sui Dynasty. China united in 589. 618 - 907 T’ang Dynasty rules in China. 794-1185 Heian Period in Japan. 802 - 1431 Kingdom of Angkor in Cambodia under Khmer Dynasty. 907 - 976 End of T’ang Dynasty. China divided by civil wars. 976 Sung Dynasty reunites China. |
| 1001 AD - 1500 AD |
Around 1001 AD Start of the Middle Ages. 1204 AD Fourth Crusade led by the Venetians, sacks Constantinople. 1236 AD Mongols invade Russia. 1271 Marco Polo sets out for the East. 1348 Black Death ravages Europe. Around 1400 AD Renaissance begins. 1453 Byzantine Empire Collapses. 1488 Bartholomeu Dia sails around the Cape of Good Hope. 1487-1499 Vasco da Gama’s journey. |
1096 First Crusade, Christians capture Jerusalem. 1187 Muslims regain Jerusalem. 1281-1326 Reign of Osman I, founder of Turkish Ottoman Empire. 1325 Ibn Battutah’s travels begin. |
1206 - 1368 Mongols control Central ASia. Overland trade prospers. 1405 Final collapse of Mongol power. Spice Routes now remain the only effective channel for East-West trade. |
1126 AD China divided in two. 1156 - 1185 Civil wars in Japan. 1196 Genghis Khan unites Mongols. 1264 Mongol (Yuan) Dynasty founded in China. 1368 Yuan Dynasty overthrown and replaced by Chinese Ming Dynasty. 1405 - 1433 Chinese explore Spice Routes. About 1450 China adopts isolationist foreign policy. 1477 - 1568 Provincial wars in Japan. |
| 1501 AD - 1700 AD |
1521 Silk manufacture begins in France. 1529 Turks besiege Vienna. 1571 Battle of Lepanto, Turks are defeated by Spanish and Venetians. 1600 English East India Company founded. 1652-1674 Ango-Dutch Trade Wars. 1689 - 1725 Reign of Peter the Great of Russia. Russia becomes a major European power. |
1513, Turkish Admiral Piri Ibn Haji Memmed creates a map of the world. 1566 Ottoman Empire at its largest. 1571 Battle of Lepanto, Turks are defeated by Spanish and Venetians. This marks end of Turkish sea power in Mediterranean. |
1502 Safavid Dynasty established in Iran. 1510 Portuguese capture Goa. 1526 Mughuls defeat Sultan of Delhi and are established in India. 1556 - 1605 Reign of third Mughul Emperor, Akbar the Great. 1594 English begin trading in India. 1605 - 1627 Reign of Mughul Emperor Jahangir. 1611 English East India Company estblishes a trading post in India. 1696 English establish a trading base at Calcutta. |
1511 Portuguese take Malacca. 1514 Portuguese reach China. 1521 Portuguese realce Moluccas. 1570 Nagasaki, Japan, opened to foreign traders. 1596 Dutch in East Indies. 1619 Dutch establish base at Batavaria in Java. 1623 Ambon Massacre, Dutch destroy English base in East Indies. 1637 Foreigners forbidden in Japan. 1641 Dutch seize Malacca. 1644 Chinese Ming Dynasty ends Ch’ing (Manzbou) Dynasty starts. 1685 China open to foreign trade. |
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