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| | | | World History timeline |
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| c. 550 BC |
| | | The city-states of the Peloponnese unite in a defensive league under Spartan leadership | |
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| c. 550 BC |
| | | Croesus builds a spectacular temple at Ephesus in honour of Artemis, or Diana | |
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| c. 550 BC |
| | | The murals of Etruscan tombs, such as the Tomb of the Lionesses in Tarquinia, give a lively glimpse of an earlier tradition in Greek art | |
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| c. 550 BC |
| | | Polo originates in the Persian empire, probably as part of the training of the imperial cavalry | |
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| c. 550 BC |
| | | An Etruscan dynasty rules in Rome and Etruscan influence is now dominant throughout central Italy | |
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| c. 550 BC |
| | | Indian medical theory maintains that the body consists of three humours - spirit, phlegm and bile | |
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| c. 550 BC |
| | | The hoplite - a Greek citizen, heavily armed in bronze and leather - proves a formidable fighting man | |
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| c. 550 BC |
| | | The phalanx, though not originally devised in Greece, is a devastating formation on the battlefield when composed of hoplites | |
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| c. 550 BC |
| | | K'ung-fu-tzu, or Confucius, teaches a practical philosophy which will profoundly influence Chinese history | |
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| c. 550 BC |
| | | Larache is founded as a Carthaginian colony on the Atlantic coast of Africa | |
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| c. 550 BC |
| | | Aramaic, a Semitic language from Syria, becomes the lingua franca of the Middle East | |
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| c. 550 BC |
| | | The Greek city states pioneer the use of citizen armies, made up of free men who bring their own fighting equipment | |
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| 546 BC |
| | | Sardis, the capital city of the Lydian ruler Croesus, is taken by the Persians | |
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| c. 545 BC |
| | | Cyrus annexes the Greek territory of Ionia as part of his empire, giving Persia a presence on the Aegean | |
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| 539 BC |
| | | A Persian army captures Babylon and brings it into the empire of Cyrus the Great | |
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| 539 BC |
| | | Returning to Jerusalem, the Jews begin to rebuild the Temple | |
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| 534 BC |
| | | Thespis, traditionally considered the first actor, wins the drama competition in Athens | |
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| 530 BC |
| | | Cyrus the Great is buried in an austerely impressive tomb at Pasagardae, in Persia | |
|  | Pasagardae, Tomb of Cyrus
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| c. 530 BC |
| | | The Greek colonists of Paestum, in southern Italy, build the first of their three superb temples | |
|  | Paestum, Basilica
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| c. 529 BC |
| | | The Greek mathematician Pythagoras establishes himself, along with his followers, in southern Italy | |
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| 528 BC |
| | | The Phoenician cities, liberated from Babylonian rule, willingly accept inclusion in the Persian empire | |
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| 525 BC |
| | | The Persians defeat an Egyptian army at Pelusium and then capture Memphis | |
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| 522 BC |
| | | Darius I wins the Persian throne and ushers in the heyday of the Achaemenid empire | |
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| 518 BC |
| | | Darius starts to build a spectacular new palace and capital at Persepolis | |
|  | Persepolis, relief of guards
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| c. 515 BC |
| | | The Persian emperor Darius I constructs a canal linking the Nile to the Red Sea | |
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| 513 BC |
| | | The Chinese become the first people to cast iron, after developing a furnace which can reach a very high temperature | |
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| c. 510 BC |
| | | Hecateus, a geographer in Miletus, produces a map showing the Greek idea of the known world | |
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| 510 BC |
| | | According to legend, the Etruscans are driven from Rome by popular outrage after the rape of Lucretia by Sextus Tarquinius | |
|  | Etruscan sarcophagus
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| 510 BC |
| | | The Roman senate becomes an executive body with two of its members elected annually as consuls, or joint heads of state | |
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| 508 BC |
| | | Cleisthenes, brought to power by popular support, puts into effect a major programme of political reform in Athens | |
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| c. 500 BC |
| | | A Persian rug, woven with a knotted pile, is placed in the tomb of a Scythian chieftain and survives to this day | |
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| c. 500 BC |
| | | The rulers of Aksum, the first Ethiopian kingdom, claim descent from Solomon and the Queen of Sheba | |
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| c. 500 BC |
| | | The 10,000 elite troops of the Persian empire, known as the Immortals, demonstrate the power of a professional standing army | |
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| c. 500 BC |
| | | The Greeks are intrigued by the iron-attracting property of a mineral which they find in the district of Magnesia | |
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| c. 500 BC |
| | | The secret of lacquer, the sap of a tree which can be hardened by moisture, is discovered in China | |
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| c. 500 BC |
| | | The great network of roads built by Darius I has at its centre the 2000-mile royal road from Susa to Sardis | |
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