User:Aditya Kabir/History of South Asia

History of South Asia

Pre-history (2,500,000-9000 BCE)

The Stone Age covered three distinct periods including the Palaeolithic, Mesolithic, and Neolithic period. The major feature of the Stone Age era is the use of stone tools. The period covers a unique era of evolution and development of human civilization linked to the discovery and use of tools. Stone Age sites such as Batadombalena and Balilena of Sri Lanka have shown evidence of Homo sapiens residence in South Asia during the period.Homo sapiens is said to have first originated from the Sri Lankan region before spreading to other areas. Early humans during this period lived in stone caves.

Madrasian Culture (2,500,000 BCE)

The Madrasian culture occurred during the Lower Palaeolithic period around 2,500,000 BCE. The culture has been identified as one of the earliest divisions of the Stone Age era characterized by tools such as flake tools, microliths, cleavers and bifacial hand axes. The tools were primarily made of quartzite. One of the Madrasian sites is Attirampakkam which is located near Chennai city (formerly Madras).

Riwatian People (1,900,000 BCE)

Like the Madrasian culture, the Riwatian culture existed during the Lower Palaeolithic period. One of the Riwatian sites was discovered in Pakistan’s Punjab region. The people of these cultures made similar tools to those of the Madrasian culture with quartzite as well. Excavations in prehistoric sites linked with the Riwatian period identify evidence of occupation by Homo erectus from Africa. Homo erectus is associated with the development of the Oldowan industry which came after the Riwatian era.

Soanian People (500,000 BCE)

The Soanian culture occurred in regions of India, Pakistan, and Nepal between 500,000 and 125,000 BC. The Soanian is also a lower Palaeolithic culture with significant sites in Adiala, Chauntra, Khasala Kalan, Khasala Khurd, and Sivalic Hill. Homo erectus man lived during this period relying heavily on the use of bifacial hand axes, and other tools made of quartzite, jasper, and Chert. The tools were characterized by increasingly wavy edges made through flaking.

Stone Age (9000-3000 BCE)

• 9000 BCE to 7000 BCE: The Rock Shelters at Bhimbetka. These are situated at the foothills of the Vindhyan Mountains. There are five groups of rock shelters that are adorned with paintings are date from the Mesolithic Period.
• 7000 BCE to 3000 BCE: Mehrgarh Culture. This dates back to the Neolithic period. Oldest site to introduce farming and herding. Situated in Baluchistan.

Bronze Age (3000-1300 BCE)

The Bronze Age period followed the Stone Age period and lasted between 3000 and 1300 BC. The Indus valley civilization is said to have evolved towards the end of this period. The period is characterized by the increased knowledge in tool,-making and other handicraft skills. The civilization during this time had a more organized urban structure with brick houses, drainage, and water supply systems, and use of metals such as bronze, copper, and lead. Sites with Bronze Age artifacts include Tamil Nadu, Indus River, and Punjab province.

Indus River Civilization (3000-1750 BCE)

• Main events: Development of urban grain-growing civilization on the Indus River. Two main cities: Harappa and Mohenjo-daro. Undeciphered proto-Dravidian script. Destroyed by climate, invasion of non-Indus peoples
• 3300 BC to 2600 BC: The Early Harappan Phase, which lasted for about 700 years, starting with the Ravi Phase.
• c. 2500 BCE 1700 BCE: Mature Harappan Phase, wherein large cities and urban areas emerged and the civilization expanded. The delicate seals of the Indus civilization are in a script as yet undeciphered. Yarns of spun cotton survive at Mohenjo-daro, one of the two great cities of the Indus civilization. Harappa becomes one of the main cities of the Indus civilization
• c. 2000 BCE: The water buffalo, domesticated somewhere in southeast Asia, features on the seals of the Indus civilization. The elephant is tamed in the Indus civilization
• 1700 BCE – 1300 BCE: The Late Harappan Phase began.
• 1700 BCE – 500 BCE: Vedic Period, when the sacred Vedic Sanskrit Texts in India were compiled. The Late Harappan and the Early Vedic Period coincide.

Aryan Migration (c. 1750-1000 BCE)

• Main events: Migration into northwest India of nomadic herding tribes from Iranian plateau. Indo-European language. Oral religious traditions preserved in Vedas, oldest of which, the Rig Veda, predates migration
• c. 1750 BCE: Indo-European tribes, known collectively as Aryans, enter India from the northwest. The Aryans bring into India the roots of Hinduism, with the Brahmans as a priestly caste. Sacrificial hymns of the Aryans, gathered in the Rigveda, become the earliest Sanskrit literature
• 1750 BCE – 1000 BCE: Early Vedic Period. The period of the compilation of Rig Veda. Caste system becomes rigid and families become patriarchal.

Iron Age: Vedic Period (1000-300 BCE)

During this period, iron was the primary tool making material due to the increased knowledge in the melting of iron ore. In South Asia, the period occurred towards the end of the Indus civilization period. During this period, humans would make weapons made from alloys through the use of kilns. These developments saw the increased use of steel weapons.

• Cultures existing during the South Asian Iron Age include:
  • Black and Red ware culture
  • Painted Gray Ware culture
  • Panchala and Kuru kingdoms
• 1300 BCE: The end of the Cemetary H Culture.

Brahmanism (c. 1000 BCE)

• Main events: Early Hinduism characterized by rituals belief in reincarnation, dharma, karma and division of society into four classes (varnas)
• 1000 BCE – 500 BCE: Later Vedic Period. Agriculture became the predominant economic activity. There was a change in the political organization and the involvement of people in administration.* c. 600 BCE: Hindu hermits live in groups described as ashramas Formation of the Sixteen Maha Janapadas – The Great Kingdoms.
• 599 BCE: The founder of Jainism – Mahavira was born.
• 563 BCE: The founder of Buddhism – Siddhartha Gautama was born.
• c. 550 BCE: The Sinhalese, after moving south through India, cross into Sri Lanka. The Indian physician Susruta pioneers plastic surgery of the nose. Indian medical theory maintains that the body consists of three humours - spirit, phlegm and bile
• 538 BCE: Cyrus the great conquered parts of Pakistan.
• 500 BCE: Panini standardized grammer and the morphology of Sanskrit. Converted it into classical Sanskrit. The earliest written records in Brhami exist. The end of the Vedic Period.

Buddhism and Jainism (500 BCE)

• c. 470 BCE: Vardhamana, an Indian prince, leaves home to live as a beggar - at the start of the Jain religion
• c. 430 BCE: Siddartha Gautama, a prince in Nepal, leaves home to become a wandering ascetic
• c. 424 BCE: Gautama Buddha preaches his first sermon, at Sarnath, setting out the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. Gautama, after a night of meditation under a pipal tree at Buddh Gaya, is 'enlightened' and becomes the Buddha
• c. 420 BCE: Buddha introduces a vigorous tradition of monasticism, in the order of Buddhist monks known as Sangha
• c. 400 BCE: The Upanishads, written over a long period from oral tradition, are the mystical texts of early Hinduism. The kingdom of Magadha, with its capital at Rajgir (near modern Patna), emerges as the dominant power in north India
• c. 350 BCE: The Mahabharata, India's great national epic, begins to take shape

Classical Period: Indian Kingdoms (300 BCE-1206)

South Asia experienced a period of re-urbanisation and religious, and literacy growth following the unification under the Gupta Empire. During this period, Jainism and Buddhism developed as new religions which developed new aspects and practices. Principles of morality in Buddhism led to its popularity in South Asia and later in other regions of Asia. The period was also characterized by increased artistic creativity, advancement in agriculture, scientific and technological innovations including the invention of the decimal numeral system, as well as improvements in engineering and architecture. Islam also spread in the region during this period.

Invasion of Alexander the Great (326 BCE)

• 327 BCE: Alexander took a major new step, leaving Persian territory and moving through the mountain passes into India. In the Battle of the Hydaspes River, The King of Taxila, Ambhi, surrendered to Alexander

Mauryan Empire (324-200 BCE)

• Main events: Domination of North India by Chandragupta, extended to south by grandson, Ashoka.
• 321 BCE: Chandragupta Maurya seized the throne of Magadha, in India, and establishes the Mauryan dynasty
• c. 300 BCE: Vishnu, Shiva and Brahma emerged as India's trio of main gods, with the Vedic religion of the Aryans evolving into Hinduism. The Indian epic of romance and adventure, the Ramayana, was probably the work of a single author at about this time
• 272 BCE: Asoka won the Mauryan throne and establishes India's first empire
• 266 BCE: Ashoka conquered most of South Asia, Afghanistan and Iran
• 265 BCE: Emperor Ashoka embraced Buddhism after the Battle of Kalinga

Development/Diffusion of Sanskritic culture (250 BCE)

• Main events: Major texts of Hindu tradition took shape: Mahabharata, Ramayana, codification of laws, grammar, science, arts. Gods Shiva, Vishnu major figures. Spread of Sanskritic culture to South India
• c. 250 BCE: Asoka, extending his rule over much of India, proclaimed his Buddhist faith on pillars and in rock inscriptions. The digits known now as Arabic numerals made their first tentative appearance in India. Buddhism reached Sri Lanka as a result of the missionary efforts of Asoka
• 232 BCE: Ashoka died and was succeeded by Dasaratha
• 230 BCE: Satavahana Empire was established

Invasions of North India (200 BCE)

• Main events: Invasions by Central Asian tribes: Bactrian Greeks; Sakas; Kushans established a dynasty ca.78 BCE-200 CE.
• c. 200 BCE: Indian cavalrymen rode with their big toes in loops of leather or fabric - a first step towards the stirrup
• c. 200 BCE: Tholkappiyam standardized grammar and morphology of Tamil
• 184 BCE: The assassination of Emperor Brihadrata ended the Mauryan Empire. Establishment of the Sunga dynasty.
• 180 BCE: Establishment of the Indo-Greek kingdom.
• c. 100 BCE: Hindu temple sculptors develop a sinuous and full-bodied style for the naked female form. A naturalistic style of Buddhist sculpture develops in the Gandhara region, part of modern Pakistan. Theravada Buddhism, strong in south India and Sri Lanka, travels with traders through southeast Asia.
• 80 BCE: Establishment of the Indo-Scythian kingdom
• c. 50 BCE: The Great Stupa at Sanchi is the earliest surviving Buddhist stupa. A doctrinal split emerged within Jainism over whether a devotee must go naked (sky clad) or may be allowed a simple robe (white clad)
• 10 BCE: Establishment of the Indo-Parthian kingdom
• 68: The Kushan Empire is established by Kujula Kadphises
• 78: The Satvahana Dynasty was taken over by Gautamiputra Satkarni
• c. 120: Kanishka ruled the Kushan empire of Afghanistan and northern India from his capital at Peshawar
• 240: Establishment of the Gupta Dynasty by Srigupta

Gupta Empire (320-500)

• Main events: Matured Hindu tradition expressed in poetry, drama [Kalidasa]; art, temple architecture; philosophy [Vedanta]; new fonts of devotional [bhakti] worship. Guptas dominate North India at beginning of 'classical' period.
• c. 320: Chandragupta I took over the Gupta Empire. The territory of the Gupta dynasty was extended by Chandra Gupta, to include most of the great plain of the Ganges
• 335: Samudragupta took over the Gupta Empire and started expanding it
• 350: Establishment of the Pallava Empire
• c. 380: Kalidasa, the most distinguished of India's authors in classical Sanskrit, was at the Gupta court in Patna.
• 380: Chandragupta II took over the Gupta Empire
• c. 400: Chinese scholar Fa-Hien traveled to India

Invasion of Huns (ca. 455-528)

• Main events: Successive invasions of Huns and other Central Asian tribes destroy Gupta empire.

Rajput Dynasties in North India, Regional Dynasties in South India (ca. 650-1335)

• Main events: Warlike clans appeared in Rajasthan
• c. 550: Chess was first played at about this time, in India, before spreading west to Persia
• c. 600: The walls of caves at Ajanta were profusely decorated with Buddhist murals
• 606: Harshavardhana became a king
• 630: Hiuen Tsiang traveled to India

Arabs take Sind (711)

• Main events: Pallava dynasty dominated south.
• Pallava continued conflicts with:
  • Cholas
  • Cheras
  • Pandyas
• 712: Mohammed Bin Qasim, the first Muslim invader invaded. Muslims, arriving from Persia through Baluchistan, occupied the region of Sind in western India
• c. 900: A Tamil kingdom, established by the Cholas, controls the whole of south India and will last for two centuries. Zoroastrians migrated from Muslim Persia to India, where they became known as Parsees.
• 800: The birth of Shankaracharya
• 814: Nripatunga Amoghavarsha I became Rashtrakuta king

Raids of Mahmud of Ghazni (997-1027)

• Main events: Invasions of Muslims from Central Asia lead to political dominance of Muslims in North India and introduction of Persian culture, Islamic religion into South Asia.
• c. 1000: Buddhist, Hindu and Jain shrines were carved from the rock in the cave temples of Ellora, in India. Turks from Ghazni, raiding into northwest India, renewed the pressure of Islam on the subcontinent. Warlike tribal groups, calling themselves Rajput and claiming descent from the Aryan warrior caste, are now in Rajasthan. Invasion by Mahmud of Ghazni
• 1017: Alberuni traveled to India
• 1025: Mahmud of Ghazni marched an army across an Indian desert to destroy a great temple at Somnath, killing - it is said - some 50,000 Hindus.
• 1100s: Majority of India was ruled by the Rashtrakutas, Chandelas, Cholas, Kadambas.
• 1120: Kalyani Chalukya Empire attained peak, Vikramaditya VI introduced Vikrama Chalukya Era
• c. 1150: After centuries of raiding the northern part of Sri Lanka, the Tamils established a settled Hindu presence in the island
• 1191: Mohammed Ghori and Prithivi Raj Chauhan III fought the First battle of Tarain
• 1192: Second battle of Tarain between Ghauri and Prithivi Raj Chauhan III
• 1194: The Battle of Chandawar took place between Ghauri and Jayachandra
• 1288: Marco Polo came to India

Early Medieval Period: Early Islamic dynasties (1206-1526)

The early medieval period began in 1206 and ended in 1526. The region during this period lacked a definite paramount leader with several rulers existing during the late medieval period. The period was succeeded by the more organized and powerful Mughal empire. This period included various rules and dynasties in the Indian subcontinent including:

• Mamluk Dynasty
• Khilji Dynasty
• Tughlaq Dynasty
• Lodi Sultanate
• Vijayanagara Empire
• Deva Kingdom
• Ahom Kingdom
• Chitradurga Kingdom
• Reddy Kingdom

Delhi Sultanates in north (1192-1526)

• Main events: Turko-Afghan chieftains establish sultanate at Delhi; dominate North India.
• 1211: The leader of a Turkish army establishes an independent sultanate in Delhi, beginning many centuries of Muslim rule in north India
• 1300: Establishment of the Khilji Dynasty

Vijaynagara Empire in south (1336-1565)

• Main events: Rise of Hindu kingdom in South India independent of Muslim rulers until destruction of capital city in 1565.
• c. 1336: A Hindu empire in southern India is established with its capital at Vijayanagara, meaning 'city of victory'
• 1346: Udiana Deva, the last Hindu ruler of Kashmir, is murdered by his Muslim prime minister
• 1398: Timur devastates Delhi and loots treasure to take back to Samarkand on 120 elephants
• 1498: Vasco da Gama reaches the southern coast of India, at Calicut, after sailing across the Indian Ocean from east Africa
• c. 1500: Nanak, the first of the Sikh gurus, takes to the road as a wandering teacher
• 1502: Vasco da Gama wins a trading treaty for Portuguese merchants after bombarding the Indian port of Calicut into submission
• 1505: The Portuguese establish a presence in Sri Lanka, trading in the island's crop of cinnamon
• 1510: The Portuguese seize Goa and make it their colonial capital in India

Late Medieval Period: Mughal Empire (1526-1800)

The late medieval period in South Asia was marked by the rise of the Mughal Empire in 1526 and ended after the decline of the empire in 1800. In this period, the empire enjoyed high levels of expansion from conquests in Samarkand, Punjab, and Kabul. The empire was one of the most powerful with seven generations of rulers, who had a remarkable talent in leadership and established highly organized administrative systems. Despite the leaders being of Islamic origins, they had a tolerance for Hinduism which was important in prolonging the empire. The empire was annexed by colonial powers in the 19th century.

Early Mughal Empire: European colonists in India (1526-1600)

The colonial period in South Asia began during the 16th century with the arrival of the Europeans in Asia and ended in the 20th century. The first European to arrive in the region was Vasco da Gama in the 15th century which attracted more Portuguese traders.

• Main events: Mughal empire unifies North and parts of South India under its rule. Amalgam of Persian and Indian culture created in its courts and territories.
• 1526: Sultan of Delhi, Ibrahim Lodi was defeated by Babur, the Mughal ruler of Kabul. In a battle at Panipat Babur defeats the sultan of Delhi, launching the Mughal empire in India
• 1527: Battle of Khanwa, in which Babur annexed Mewar. Victory at Khanua, over a Hindu confederation of Rajput rulers, brings Babur a tenuous control over most of northwest India
• 1530: The first Mughal emperor, Babur, dies in India and is succeeded by his son, Humayun
• 1534: The Portuguese force the local ruler to cede to them the island of Bombay
• 1542: Francis Xavier reaches Goa, at the start of the great mission to the east that will last the nine years until his death
• 1543: Humayun, driven west into Afghanistan by Sher Shah, loses his family's new inheritance in India
• 1555: Civil war within India enables Humayun to win a battle at Sirhind and recover the Mughal throne
• 1556: Humayun dies and Akbar, the greatest of the Mughal emperors, inherits the throne at the age of thirteen
• 1565: Vijayanagar Empire ends
• 1571: Akbar builds his new palace of Fatehpur Sikri close to the shrine of a Sufi saint
• 1573: The tomb in Delhi of the Mughal emperor Humayun introduces the shape of dome which characterizes his dynasty's architecture
• c. 1590: Arjan, the fifth Sikh guru, builds many gurdwaras and commences the holy city of Amritsar

Later Mighal Empire: Rise of European traders (1600-1757)

The Dutch arrived shortly after the Portuguese and ruled the Ceylon (currently Sri Lanka) for 137 years. The British later occupied the Calcutta and Madras regions in the 17th century. The arrival of the French in 1674 led to competition between the British and French which was also influenced by their wars in Europe.

• Establishment of trading outposts in India:
  • Dutch (1609)
  • English (1612)
  • French (1674)
• 1600: The formation of The East India company in England
• 1605: On the death of Akbar, his son Jahangir succeeds to the Mughal throne
• 1613: The British East India establishes a 'factory' (a secure warehouse for the storing of Indian goods) at Surat, on the west coast
• 1615: Sir Thomas Roe, the first British ambassador to India, arrives at the court of the Mughal emperor Jahangir. The Mughal school of painting reaches a peak of perfection in the reign of Jahangir
• 1628: Jehangir died and was succeeded by Shah Jahan
• 1630: Shivaji was born
• 1632: Shah Jahan orders that all recently built Hindu temples shall be destroyed, ending the Mughal tradition of religious tolerance. Shah Jahan begins building the Taj Mahal as a memorial for his wife, Mumtaz Mahal. Shah Jahan went on to build Jamia Masjid and Red Fort.
• 1644: The British East India Company completes the construction of Fort St George in Madras
• 1646: A young Hindu prince, Shivaji, captures Bijapur in a campaign against Muslim rulers that will result in his establishing a Maratha empire
• 1656: After a six-month siege, the Dutch capture Colombo from the Portuguese in Sri Lanka
• 1658: For the final years of his life Shah Jahan is held a prisoner, by his son Aurangzeb, in Agra's Red Fort. The Dutch expel the Portuguese from the last of their trading posts in Sri Lanka
• 1659: Shivaji defeated Adilshahi troops at the Battle of Pratapgarh
• 1668: England's East India Company is granted a lease on Bombay by Charles II, who has received it from his Portuguese bride
• 1673: The Mughal emperor Aurangzeb begins building the great Badshahi Mosque in Lahore
• 1674: Maratha Empire was established
• c. 1690: France by now has six fortified trading settlements around the coast of India, of which Pondicherry is the most important
• 1696: Fort St William is built by the East India Company in the Ganges delta, and subsequently develops into Calcutta
• 1699: The tenth Sikh guru, Gobind Rai, commits his people to the five Ks, which become the outward signs of their group identity
• 1707: The death of Aurangzeb introduces the long period of decline of the Mughal empire
• 1739: The Persian ruler Nadir Shah enters Delhi and removes much of the accumulated treasure of the Mughal empire
• 1746: French forces capture the British East India Company's fort of Madras
• 1751: Robert Clive prevails over the French after holding out during the seven-week siege of Arcot in southern India
• 1680: Shivaji died
• 1707: Aurangzeb died and was succeeded by Bahadur Shah I

Colonial Period (1757-1947)

• Main events: Victory over Nawab of Bengal gives East India company control of Bengal and begins expansion of British power in India.
• 1757: Robert Clive defeats the nawab of Bengal at the Battle of Plassey, and places his own man on the throne
• 1799: A Sikh maharajah, Ranjit Singh, captures Lahore and makes it his capital in his campaign to unify the Punjab. Tipu Sultan, ruler of Mysore, is killed fighting the British at Seringapatam

Company Raj (1757-1858)

After the defeat of French in 1757 in Bengal, British became the dominant power in the Indian peninsula. The colonial period ended in the mid-20th century during which India was partitioned.

• 1809: Ranjit Singh, maharaja of the Punjab, agrees an eastern boundary between himself and the British in the Treaty of Amritsar
• 1817: British officers, hoping to shoot a tiger, come across the forgotten Buddhist caves of Ajanta
• 1819: The Sikh maharajah of the Punjab, Ranjit Singh, conquers Kashmir, beginning a century and a half of Sikh dominance in the region
• 1845: The first Anglo-Sikh war breaks out between Sikh forces in the Punjab and encroaching forces of Britain's East India Company
• 1846: The first Anglo-Sikh war ends with the Treaty of Lahore, by which Jammu and Kashmir are ceded to the British
• 1848: The second Anglo-Sikh war begins when a British army invades the Punjab to suppress a local uprising
• 1849: A British victory at the Battle of Gujarat effectively ends the second Anglo-Sikh war, and is followed by annexation of the Punjab
• 1857: Animal fat on a new issue of cartridges sparks off the Indian Mutiny, also know as the First War of Indian Independence. After being besieged for five months in Lucknow, the remnants of the British garrison finally escape
• 1858: Lucknow is retaken by the British, nearly a year after it fell to the rebels. The end of the Indian Mutiny is followed by brutal British retaliation. The India Act places India under the direct control of the British government, ending the rule of the East India Company. The last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah II, is deposed by the British and exiled to Rangoon, in Burma

British Indian Empire (1858-1947)

• Main events: Political dominance of British introduces Western culture, language, methods of government, technology into urban administrative centers.
• 1903: Edward VII, the first British monarch to travel to India, holds a great coronation durbar in Delhi
• 1906: The All-India Muslim League is set up at a meeting of the Muhammadan Educational Conference in Dhaka
• 1909: Mahatma Gandhi, on a visit to India, publishes a pamphlet entitled Hind Swaraj ("Indian Home Rule")
• 1911: The British monarch George V holds a great durbar in Delhi to celebrate his coronation as emperor of India
• 1912: Rabindranath Tagore publishes a collection of his Bengali poems in Gitanjali
• 1913: Construction begins on the government buildings in New Delhi, designed by Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker
• 1914: From August the German cruiser Emden carries out successful raids on British shipping in the seas around India. On November 9 the German cruiser Emden is sunk off the Cocos-Keeling islands by an Australian cruiser, the Sydney
• 1915: Mahatma Gandhi returns to India after more than twenty years in South Africa
• 1919: More than 300 die when British troops fire on a peaceful demonstration in Amritsar
• c. 1921: The first traces are found of a major but entirely forgotten civilization in the Indus valley
• 1922: Mahatma Gandhi is arrested by the British in India as an agitator and is sentenced to six years in prison
• 1925: The RSS party, from which the present Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) derives, is established in India by Keshava Baliram Hedgewar
• 1930: Mahatma Gandhi leads a 240-mile march from Ahmedabad to the sea to defy the British salt tax, thus launching a campaign of civil disobedience
• c. 1931: Sectarian hostilities increase in Kashmir, with the Muslim majority resenting the favours shown by the British to the Sikh and Hindu elite
• 1934: Mohammed Ali Jinnah becomes president of the Muslim League in India
• 1935: R.K. Narayan's novel Swami and Friends is the first set in his fictional town of Malgudi
• 1940: Mohammed Ali Jinnah puts forward the concept of independent Muslim states within India
• 1942: Mahatma Gandhi launches the Quit India Movement, calling on a large crowd in Bombay to 'do or die' in the struggle to expel the British. Mahatma Gandhi and nearly all the leaders of India's Congress party are arrested and will remain in prison until the end of the war

Post Colonial Period (1947-)

Partition: India and Pakistan (1947)

• Independence from British rule and Partition of British India into modern countries of India and Pakistan (East and West)
• 1947: In granting independence to India, Britain partitioned the subcontinent along sectarian lines into Pakistan and the republic of India. Louis Mountbatten, the last viceroy of India, became the first governor-general of post-colonial India. Jawaharlal Nehru became prime minister of the newly independent Republic of India. Muslim leader Mohammed Ali Jinnah became the first governor-general of the new state of Pakistan. Muslims proclaimed an independent state in west Kashmir, defying the wishes of the maharaja. Violent sectarian division in Kashmir resulted in war between India and Pakistan in support of the rival sides.
• 1948: Mahatma Gandhi is assassinated at a Delhi prayer meeting by a Hindu extremist, Nathuram Godse
• 1949: The first Indo-Pakistani war ended with a Kashmir demarcation line approved by the UN but acceptable to neither states.
• 1950: Le Corbusier began a 15-year project designing Chandigarh as a new joint capital for Punjab and Hariyana.
• 1952: Albanian missionary Mother Teresa opened the Nirmal Hriday, or Kalighat Home for Dying Destitutes, in Calcutta.
• 1953: New Zealander Edmund Hillary and the Sherpa Tenzing Norgay stood together on the top of Everest.
• 1955: Indian director Satyajit Ray made his first film, Pather Panchali.
• 1958: Ayub Khan, commander-in-chief of the Pakistani army, replaced Iskander Mirza as president in a bloodless coup.
• 1959: The Dalai Lama escaped from Tibet to India after the Chinese suppression of an armed uprising costing thousands of lives. Solomon Bandaranaike was assassinated by a Buddhist monk after only three years as prime minister of Sri Lanka.
• 1960: Sirimavo Bandaranaike, widow of the assassinated Solomon Bandaranaike, began the first of three long spells as prime minister of Sri Lanka.

Indo-Chinese War (1962)

• 1962: China prevailed in a five-week war with India over disputed boundaries.
• 1965: After a summer of border skirmishes in Pakistan, an Indian advance towards Lahore initiated full-scale war between the two countries. A UN-sponsored cease-fire brought the second Indo-Pakistan war to an end after less than three weeks.
• 1966: Nehru's daughter, Indira Gandhi, became India's prime minister as leader of the Congress party. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, leader of the Awami League, demanded full autonomy for East Pakistan (Bangladesh)
• 1969: Pakistan's president Ayub Khan handed over power to another general, Yahya Khan, who introduced martial law
• 1970: Mujibur Rahman and his Awami League won on an independence platform in the election in East Pakistan. In the Pakistan election, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto won a clear majority in West Pakistan. The outgoing Pakistan government, led by Yahya Khan, rejected the election result and sent troops to East Pakistan.

Bangladesh (1971)

• War between East and West Pakistan resulted in separation of Pakistan into two states: Pakistan and Bangladesh
• 1971: Indian sitar-player Ravi Shankar composed the first of his two concertos for sitar and orchestra. Awami League leader Mujibur Rahman declared unilaterally that Bangladesh (East Pakistan) is an independent state. The arrest of Mujibur Rahman, together with brutal attempts at repression, turned resistance in East Pakistan into full-scale civil war. India intervened in the Pakistan civil war on the side of East Pakistan, the future Bangladesh. Pakistan surrendered to India within a month of Indian intervention in the war to suppress East Pakistan. With the end of the war between Pakistan and India, East Pakistan became independent as Bangladesh. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto took over as president of Pakistan, then consisting only of its western half.
• 1972: Sheikh Mujibur Rahman returned from prison in West Pakistan to become prime minister of the newly independent state of Bangladesh.
• 1975: Mujibur Rahman, with most of his family, was assassinated by junior officers in a coup in Bangladesh.
• 1977: Zia ul-Haq, the Chief of Army Staff, took power in a bloodless coup against the government of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.
• 1979: Ex-president Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was executed in Pakistan for allegedly authorizing the murder of a political opponent.
• 1980: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged in India from previous Hindu nationalist groups and soon acquired a large following.
• 1981: Salman Rushdie's novel Midnight's Children used the moment of India's independence to launch an adventure in magic realism.

Sri Lankan Civil War (1983-2009)

• 1983: The Tamil Tigers launched a civil war against the Sinhalese majority in Sri Lanka.
• 1984: Sikh rebels, demanding an independent Punjab, seized the Golden Temple in Amritsar. Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi used the army to dislodge militant Sikhs occupying the Golden Temple in Amritsar. Indira Gandhi was assassinated in Delhi by members of her Sikh bodyguard, in retaliation for the desecration of the Golden Temple. Rajiv Gandhi succeeded his mother as leader of the Congress party and prime minister of India. More than 2000 died in the Indian city of Bhopal when toxic gas escapes from a Union Carbide plant.
• 1988: 35-year-old Benazir Bhutto, daughter of the executed president, led a coalition government in Pakistan.
• 1990: Benazir Bhutto's government was dismissed on corruption charges and her party loses the resulting elections.
• 1991: Rajiv Gandhi was killed near Chennai, during an election campaign, by a suicide bomber on behalf of Tamil militants.
• 1993: Vikram Seth published his novel A Suitable Boy, a family saga in post-independence India. After only three years in opposition, Benazir Bhutto won a second term as prime minister of Pakistan
• 1996: Benazir Bhutto was dismissed from government in Pakistan for a second time, again on corruption charges.
• 1997: Indian author Arundhati Roy published her first novel, The God of Small Things.
• 1999: A Pakistani general, Pervez Musharraf, took power in a military coup.
• 2001: An earthquake killed about 20,000 people in the region of Bhuj in the Indian state of Gujarat. Crown Prince Dipendra killed nine members of his own royal family at the court of Nepal.
• 2004: A massive earthquake under the Indian Ocean triggered a tsunami that killed nearly 200,000 people.
• 2005: An earthquake killed more than 70,000 people in inaccessible regions near Muzaffarabad in the Pakistan part of Kashmir.
• 2006: A series of coordinated terrorist bombs exploded on trains during the crowded evening rush hour in Mumbai (Bombay).
• 2009: The long civil war in Sri Lanka ended with the conclusive defeat of the Tamil Tigers by government forces

Contemporary time

• 2010: Disastrous monsoon floods struck northwest Pakistan, killing more than 1600 people, displacing as many as 20 million and ruining crops.
• 2011: At 1.a.m. Osama bin Laden was killed in his house in Abbottabad, in Pakistan, by a special forces team of US Navy SEALs.

Further reading

• South Asia: South, 1000–1400 A.D., Met Museum
• South Asia, 1–500 A.D., Met Museum
• Oxford Art Online, Oxford University Press
• 5 Historic Moments That Transformed Asia In The Last Century, Forbes
• Abhijit Rajadhyaksha, A Brief History of India: Prehistory, History Files
• Piero Scaruffi, A timeline of the Indian Subcontinent/ I
• Piero Scaruffi, A timeline of the Indian Subcontinent/ III
• History of South Asia, Essential Humanities

__________

• Adil Najam, Moeed Yusuf, South Asia 2060: Envisioning Regional Futures
• Michael Mann, South Asia's Modern History: Thematic Perspectives
• Partha Sarathy Ghosh, Cooperation and Conflict in South Asia

__________

• South Asia Religions photos
• Politics book