istoryworld
All Events
Thespis, traditionally considered the first actor, wins the drama competition in Athens
Cyrus the Great is buried in an austerely impressive tomb at Pasagardae, in Persia
The Greek colonists of Paestum, in southern Italy, build the first of their three superb temples
The Greek mathematician Pythagoras establishes himself, along with his followers, in southern Italy
The Phoenician cities, liberated from Babylonian rule, willingly accept inclusion in the Persian empire
The Athenian ruler Peisistratos dies and is peacefully succeeded by his son, Hippias
The Persians defeat an Egyptian army at Pelusium and then capture Memphis
Darius I wins the Persian throne and ushers in the heyday of the Achaemenid empire
Darius starts to build a spectacular new palace and capital at Persepolis
The Persian emperor Darius I constructs a canal linking the Nile to the Red Sea
The Chinese become the first people to cast iron, after developing a furnace which can reach a very high temperature
The Athenian ruler Hippias is toppled by the nobles of Attica, with the help of Sparta
Hecateus, a geographer in Miletus, produces a map showing the Greek idea of the known world
According to legend, the Etruscans are driven from Rome by popular outrage after the rape of Lucretia by Sextus Tarquinius
The Roman senate becomes an executive body with two of its members elected annually as consuls, or joint heads of state
Cleisthenes gives every Athenian citizen a voice in the demos, the local council at village or town level
A Persian rug, woven with a knotted pile, is placed in the tomb of a Scythian chieftain and survives to this day
The rulers of Aksum, the first Ethiopian kingdom, claim descent from Solomon and the Queen of Sheba
The 10,000 elite troops of the Persian empire, known as the Immortals, demonstrate the power of a professional standing army
The Greeks are intrigued by the iron-attracting property of a mineral which they find in the district of Magnesia
The secret of lacquer, the sap of a tree which can be hardened by moisture, is discovered in China
The great network of roads built by Darius I has at its centre the 2000-mile royal road from Susa to Sardis
The Isthmian games at Corinth are by now a regular event, as are the Pythian games and the Nemean games
The Chinese I Jing, or 'Classic of Changes', is compiled as a book of divination
