slug: sultanate-of-rum

label: Sultanate of Rum

description: former sultanate in Anatolia

section: Geopolitics & Diplomacy

text: Suleiman ibn Qutulmish, a cousin of late Sultan Alp Arslan, consolidates his leadership over the Oghuz Turks and founds the Sultanate of Rum (modern Turkey).

title: 1077

section: Events › By place › Seljuk Empire

text: Kilij Arslan I, sultan of the Sultanate of Rum (d. 1107)

title: 1079

text: Summer – Suleiman ibn Qutulmish, ruler of the Turks in Rum, is killed by Emir Tutush I in the battle of Ain Salm near Antioch. Suleiman's 7-year-old son Kilij Arslan I is captured and transferred as hostage to Isfahan (modern Iran).

title: 1086

text: Summer – Emperor Alexios I Komnenos bribes one of Kilij Arslan's (sultan of the Sultanate of Rum) officials to recover Sinope (the capital of Paphlagonia), and neighbouring coastal regions. He uses the Byzantine fleet to defeat the Seljuk navy off the coast of Cius in Bithynia.

title: 1092

section: Events › By place › Byzantine Empire

date: May 14

text: May 14 – Siege of Nicaea: The Crusaders begin their campaign with the siege of Nicaea (the capital of the Sultanate of Rum), assigning their forces to different sections of the walls, which are well-defended with 200 towers. Towards the end, an advance party of the Seljuk Turks is defeated by troops of Raymond IV of Toulouse ("Saint-Gilles") and Robert II.

title: 1097

section: Events › By place › First Crusade

text: Sultan Kilij Arslan I of the Sultanate of Rum starts a war with the Danishmendids.

title: 1104

section: Events › By place › Europe

text: Autumn – Kilij Arslan I, sultan of the Sultanate of Rum, leads a Seljuk expedition to take over Melitene (modern Turkey). He attempts to capture Edessa, but the Crusader fortress is too strongly defended by its garrison. Kilij Arslan then moves on to Harran, which surrenders to him.

title: 1105

section: Deaths

text: Kilij Arslan I, sultan of the Sultanate of Rum (b. 1079)

title: 1107

date: June

text: June – Kilij Arslan I, sultan of Sultanate of Rum, conquers Mosul (during the Battle of Mosul). But he is defeated and killed by Seljuk forces under Muhammad I Tapar supported by the Ortoqids and Fakhr al-Mulk Radwan.

title: 1107

section: Events › By place › Levant

text: Spring – Malik Shah, Seljuk ruler of the Sultanate of Rum, begins incursions into Anatolia. He marches on Philadelphia with his army, but is halted by the Byzantines under Gabras, governor of the Theme of Chaldia.

title: 1112

text: Spring – Siege of Nicaea: Malik Shah, Seljuk ruler of the Sultanate of Rum, sends an expedition through Bithynia to the very walls of Nicaea. Seljuk forces raid Abydos on the Hellespont, with its rich custom-houses. Malik Shah attacks and captures Pergamum. Emperor Alexios I Komnenos sets out to meet the Seljuk invaders. He lifts the siege at Nicaea and wins a complete victory near Cotyaeum (modern Turkey).

title: 1113

title: 1116

text: The Byzantine general Philocales captures Sardis, from the Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm.

title: 1118

section: Events › By place › Western Asia

text: Siege of Sozopolis: Byzantine forces under Emperor John II Komnenos conquer Sozopolis in Pisidia, from the Sultanate of Rum. The Seljuk garrison is defeated while they are trapped between the Byzantine cavalry and the army (which is besieging the fortress).

title: 1120

text: Kilij Arslan II, Seljuk ruler of the Sultanate of Rum, rounds off his conquest of the Danishmend Turks in Eastern Anatolia. He allies with the Zangid rulers against Mosul.

title: 1174

section: Events › By place › Asia

text: Summer – Emperor Manuel I (Komnenos) assembles a Byzantine expeditionary force, and marches towards Iconium, the Seljuk capital. Meanwhile, hordes of Seljuk Turks destroy crops and poison water supplies, to make Manuel's march more difficult, and harass the Byzantine army, in order to force it into the Meander Valley. Kilij Arslan II, ruler of the Sultanate of Rum, hears of the expedition, and sends envoys to ask for peace.

title: 1176

text: Saladin intervenes in a conflict between the Zengids of Mosul and the Artuqids. He persuades the Seljuk sultanate of Rum not to become involved and proceeds to raid Cilician Armenia.

title: 1180

text: Caliph al-Nasir marries Princess Seljuki. Right after her betrothal to him, he brings her to live with him. He then sends an escort to bring her to Baghdad from Rum, consummates the marriage, and gives her priceless jewels and lavish gifts.

title: 1186

section: Events

date: March

text: March – Frederick I leaves Adrianople to Gallipoli at the Dardanelles to embark, with the help of Byzantine transports, to cross into Asia Minor. On April 25, he enters territory of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rum under the rule of Sultan Kilij Arslan II. Although promised to let the German Crusaders pass peaceably through his domains, Kilij Arslan harasses Frederick's forces with hit-and-run attacks. On May 7, a Turkish army (some 10,000 men) is defeated at the Battle of Philomelion, by 2,000 Crusaders.

title: 1190

section: Events › By place › Third Crusade

date: June 17

text: June 17 – Kaykhusraw I, ruler of the Sultanate of Rum

title: 1211

text: Spring – Al-Ashraf Musa, Ayyubid ruler of Damascus, assembles his allies and secures his active support of Kayqubad I, Sejuk ruler of the Sultanate of Rum. A civil war seems inevitable when Kayqubad is poisoned during a feast at Kayseri, on May 31. Meanwhile, the Seljuks strengthen the fortresses in the eastern provinces against the Mongols.

title: 1237

date: May 31

text: May 31 – Kayqubad I, Seljuk ruler of the Sultanate of Rum

title: 1237

date: June 26

text: June 26 – Battle of Köse Dağ: The Mongols under Baiju Noyan defeat the Seljuk Turks of the Sultanate of Rum and their Byzantine allies. The Seljuks and the Empire of Trebizond become vassals of the Mongols.

title: 1243

section: Events › By place › Mongol Empire

date: October

text: October – Mongol forces led by Baiju Noyan (operating under Hulagu Khan's command) win a victory over Kaykaus II, Seljuk ruler of the Sultanate of Rum, and capture Anatolia. Kaykaus flees to the Byzantine court where he seeks refuge at Constantinople. The Empire of Trebizond fearing a potential punitive Mongol expedition, becomes a vassal state and is forced to pay a tribute tax every year in gold and silk.

title: 1256

date: April 15

text: April 15 – Battle of Elbistan: A Mamluk army (some 14,000 men) under Sultan Baibars marches from Syria into the Mongol-dominated Sultanate of Rum and attacks the Mongol occupation force at Elbistan. Baibars, with at least 10,000 horsemen, defeats and overwhelms the Mongol forces. After the battle, he marches unopposed to Kayseri in the heart of Anatolia in triumph and enters the city on April 23.

title: 1277

text: c. 1280/1281 – Ertuğrul Ghazi, Turkish ruler of the Sultanate of Rum (b. 1198)

title: 1281

date: July 27

text: July 27 – Osman I (or Othman) declares the Anatolian beylik (principality) to be independent of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rum, originating the Ottoman Empire. Osman becomes the founder and the first ruler, with Söğüt as the capital, which will last until the 1920s.

title: 1299

text: Sultan Mesud II, Seljuk vassal of the Mongol Ilkhanate, is murdered after a 5-year reign. During his rule, he exercises no real authority and becomes the last ruler. Ending the Sultanate of Rum after 230 years.

title: 1308

text: The Anatolian Beylik of Teke, a frontier principality, is established by the Oghuz Turks after the decline of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rum.

title: 1321

section: Events › Undated


slug: sumatra

label: Sumatra

description: island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands

section: Climate & Environment

text: Sumatra, Java, and the surrounding islands are converted to Buddhism.

title: 600

section: Events › By topic › Religion

section: Economy & Finance

text: Srivijaya is founded by Sri Jayanasa in Sumatra

title: 683

text: Cambodia begins to break away from the Sumatra-based kingdom Srivijaya, as a 20-year-old Cambodian prince, who claims descent from the rulers of Funan, is consecrated in eastern Cambodia with the title Jayavarman II. In the next 10 years he will extend his powers north into the Mekong Valley (modern Vietnam).

title: 790

section: Conflict & Security

text: Srivijaya, a Buddhist kingdom based in Sumatra, is attacked by Emperor Rajendra I of the Chola dynasty of southern India in a dispute over trading rights in Southeast Asia. It survives but declines in importance.

title: 1025

text: A rebellion against the Majapahit Empire is quashed in Sumatra in what is now Indonesia.

title: 1377

section: Events › Date unknown

text: Prince Parameswara establishes the Malacca Sultanate, in present-day western Malaysia and northern Sumatra.

title: 1400

section: Exploration & Expansion

date: September 12

text: September 12 – The Ming Chinese expedition reaches the Samudera Pasai Sultanate on Sumatra (now part of Indonesia) and establishes trade agreements with the Sultan Zainal Abidin II, remaining at Pasai until November 2.

title: 1432

section: Events › July–September

date: October 5

text: October 5 – At Banda Aceh, on the island of Sumatra in what is now Indonesia, Alauddin Mansur Syah becomes the new Sultan of Aceh upon the death of Sultan Zainul Abidin.

title: 1579

section: Events › October–December

date: June 28

text: June 28 – On the island of Sumatra in what is now Indonesia, the Sultan of Aceh Darussalam, Ali Ri'ayat Syah II, is assassinated by a group of nobles dissatisfied with his rule. He becomes the fourth Sultan in a row to be murdered. Sayyid al-Mukammal is approved by the nobles as the new Sultan of Aceh.

title: 1589

section: Events › April–June

date: June 5

text: June 5 – James Lancaster's East India Company fleet arrives at Achin (modern-day Aceh), Sumatra to deal with the local ruler. Having defeated Portugal's ally, the ruler is happy to do business, and Lancaster seizes a large Portuguese galleon and loots it.

title: 1602

section: Culture & Society

text: June 17 – The Indonesian city of Bandar Lampung is founded on the island of Sumatra.

title: 1682

date: September 9

text: September 9 – French Revolutionary Wars: Action of 9 September 1796 – A naval engagement between French and British squadrons off Sumatra ends inconclusively.

title: 1796

date: August 13

text: August 13 – The Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814 is signed in London, returning most possessions of the Dutch Empire acquired by the United Kingdom since 1803 to the Netherlands, although Britain retains the Cape of Good Hope and the South American settlements of Demerara, Essequibo and Berbice (later consolidated as British Guiana). In addition, the British cede the island of Banca off the island of Sumatra, in exchange for the settlement of Cochin, India.

title: 1814

date: November 25

text: November 25 – An 8.7 magnitude earthquake strikes Sumatra in what is now Indonesia.

title: 1833

text: The Dutch conquer southern Sumatra.

title: 1864

date: June 4

text: June 4 – The 7.9 Enggano earthquake shakes southwestern Sumatra, killing 103 people and injuring at least 2,174.

title: 2000

section: Events › June

date: December 26

text: December 26 – The 9.1–9.3 Indian Ocean earthquake shakes northern Sumatra with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). One of the largest observed tsunamis follows, affecting coastal areas of Thailand, India, Sri Lanka, Somalia, the Maldives, Malaysia, Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Indonesia, killing 227,000 people.

title: 2004

section: Events › December

date: March 28

text: March 28 – The 8.6 Nias–Simeulue earthquake shakes northern Sumatra with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VI (Strong), leaving 915–1,314 people dead and 340–1,146 injured.

title: 2005

section: Events › March

date: October 25

text: October 25 – An earthquake and consequent tsunami off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia, kills over 400 people and leaves hundreds missing.

title: 2010

section: Events › October

section: Disasters & Accidents

date: December 23

text: December 23 – 28 people are killed and 13 others injured after a bus plunges into a ravine on a winding road in South Sumatra.

title: 2019


slug: sun-quan

label: Sun Quan

description: Emperor of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period

section: Births

text: Sun Yu, Chinese warlord and cousin of Sun Quan (d. 215)

title: AD 177

date: July 5

text: July 5 – Sun Quan, Chinese emperor of the Eastern Wu state (d. 252)

title: AD 182

text: Battle of Xiakou: Warlord Sun Quan battles his rival Huang Zu along the Yangtze River near Wuhan.

title: 203

section: Events › By place › China

text: Spring – Battle of Jiangxia: Sun Quan defeats Huang Zu.

title: 208

text: Battle of Ruxu: Cao Cao clashes against Sun Quan.

title: 213

section: Events › By place › China (Han dynasty)

text: Battle of Xiaoyao Ford: General Zhang Liao under the command of Cao Cao beats back Sun Quan at Hefei.

title: 214

text: Zhang Liao holds off Sun Quan's invasion force at the Battle of Xiaoyao Ford in Hefei, China.

title: 215

section: Deaths

text: Chen Wu, Chinese general serving under Sun Quan

title: 215

text: Battle of Ruxu: Warlord Cao Cao once again clashes with his rival Sun Quan in Yang Province.

title: 217

text: Cao Cao controls the Yellow River basin and northern China. Sun Quan rules southern China. Liu Bei controls Yi Province (covering present-day Sichuan and Chongqing).

title: 219

text: Guan Yu floods the fortress at Fan (present-day Fancheng District, Xiangyang, Hubei) in the Battle of Fancheng, while Lü Meng captures his base in Jing Province. Guan Yu retreats to Maicheng, falls into an ambush, and gets captured by Sun Quan's forces.

title: 219

text: Jiang Qin (or Gongyi), Chinese general serving under Sun Quan

title: 219

section: Crime & Justice

date: September

text: September – In the Eastern Wu Kingdom, the Emperor Sun Quan orders the demotion of General Zhang Wen and his removal from command, commenting in the decree, "Oh, Zhang Wen, you are so fortunate to be spared from death." Two other officers, General Ji Yan and General Xu Biao are arrested and permitted to commit suicide rather than to be executed.

title: 224

section: Events › China

text: A merchant from the Roman Empire, called "Qin Lun" by the Chinese, arrives in Jiaozhi (modern Hanoi), and is taken to see King Sun Quan of Eastern Wu, who requests him to make a report on his native country and people. He is given an escort for the return trip, including a present of ten male and ten female "blackish-colored dwarfs." However, the officer in charge of the Chinese escort dies, and Qin Lun has to continue his journey home alone.

title: 226

section: Geopolitics & Diplomacy

date: June 23

text: June 23 – Chinese warlord Sun Quan formally declares himself emperor of the Eastern Wu state. The city of Jianye (modern Nanjing) is founded as the capital of Eastern Wu. The independent kingdoms in Cambodia and Laos become Eastern Wu vassals.

title: 229

text: Sun Liang succeeds his father Sun Quan, as emperor of the Chinese state of Eastern Wu.

title: 252

section: Events › By place › Asia

date: May 21

text: May 21 – Sun Quan, founder of the Eastern Wu state (b. 182)

title: 252


slug: sunni-islam

label: Sunni Islam

description: most populous Islamic denomination

text: Ibn Abi Asim, Muslim Sunni scholar (or 822)

title: 821

text: Ibn Abi Asim, Muslim Sunni scholar (or 821)

title: 822

text: Ibn Abi Asim, Muslim Sunni scholar (b. 822)

title: 900

text: Al-Hakim Nishapuri, Persian Sunni scholar (d. 1014)

title: 933

text: Ahmad al-Bayhaqi, Persian Sunni hadith scholar (d. 1066)

title: 994

section: Religion & Belief

text: Hammad ibn Buluggin adopts Sunni Islam and declares his independence from the Zirid dynasty (modern Algeria). He recognizes the Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad as being the rightful caliphs and becomes the first ruler of the Hammadid dynasty (until 1028).

title: 1014

section: Events › By place › Africa

text: Al-Hakim Nishapuri, Persian Sunni scholar (b. 933)

title: 1014

section: Conflict & Security

text: The Sunnis of Kairouan (modern Tunisia) revolt against the Shi'ite Zirid dynasty. The city is quickly retaken and sacked.

title: 1017

section: Events › Africa

date: April 9

text: April 9 – Al-Bayhaqi, Persian Sunni hadith scholar (b. 994)

title: 1066

text: Diya' al-Din al-Maqdisi, Arab Sunni scholar (d. 1245)

title: 1173

text: December 26 – Al-Mahdi Muhammad bin al-Mutahhar, the Shi'ite Muslim Imam of the Zaidiyyah state in Yemen, leads Zaidi troops to victory in a battle in the Sheref district against the Sunni Muslim Rasulid sultanate that dominates most of Yemen. A 10-year ceasefire agreement is brokered between Zaidiyyah and the Rasulid Sultan al-Mu'ayyad Da'udsultan.

title: 1311

section: Events › October – December

date: December 1

text: December 1 – Sultan Azim ud-Din I, recently forced to flee to Manila after being driven from the throne of Sultanate of Sulu elsewhere in the Philippine Islands, announces his intention to convert from Sunni Islam to become baptized as a Christian within the Roman Catholic Church. He changes his name to Fernando after being baptized.

title: 1749

text: June 5 – A Sunni militant group now calling itself the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (also known as ISIS, ISIL or Daesh) begins an offensive through northern Iraq, aiming to capture the Iraqi capital city of Baghdad and overthrow the Shiite government led by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

title: 2014


slug: supreme-court-of-the-united-states

label: Supreme Court of the United States

description: highest court of jurisdiction in the United States of America

date: February 1

text: February 1 – In New York City, the Supreme Court of the United States convenes for the first time.

title: 1790

section: Events › January–March

date: February 24

text: February 24 – Marbury v. Madison: The Supreme Court of the United States establishes the principle of judicial review.

title: 1803

date: November 30

text: November 30 – The Democratic-Republican-controlled United States Senate begins an impeachment trial against Federalist-partisan Supreme Court of the United States Justice Samuel Chase, on charges of political bias (he is acquitted by the United States Senate of all charges on March 1, 1805).

title: 1804

section: Events › October–December

date: February 20

text: February 20 – United States v. Peters: The Supreme Court of the United States rules that the power of the federal government is greater than any individual state.

title: 1809

date: March 9

text: March 9 – United States v. The Amistad: The Supreme Court of the United States rules in the case, that the Africans who seized control of the ship had been taken into slavery illegally.

title: 1841

section: Culture & Society

date: March 6

text: March 6 – Dred Scott v. Sandford: The Supreme Court of the United States rules that blacks are not citizens and slaves can not sue for freedom, driving the U.S. further towards the American Civil War (the ruling is not overturned until the 14th Amendment is adopted in 1868).

title: 1857

date: October 16

text: October 16 – In five Civil Rights Cases the Supreme Court of the United States declares part of the Civil Rights Act of 1875 to be unconstitutional, allowing individuals and corporations to discriminate based on race.

title: 1883

date: May 27

text: May 27 – In re Debs: The Supreme Court of the United States decides that the federal government has the right to regulate interstate commerce, legalizing the military suppression of the Pullman Strike.

title: 1895

section: Events › May

date: May 15

text: May 15 –Standard Oil is dissolved by the Supreme Court of the United States into 34 separate oil companies including Exxon, Mobil, Chevron, Texaco, and others due to violation of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act

title: 1911

section: Health & Medicine

text: October 25 – Lyda Conley, the first American Indian woman to appear before the Supreme Court of the United States as a lawyer, is admitted to practice there.

title: 1915

date: November 10

text: November 10 – Abrams v. United States: The Supreme Court of the United States upholds the conviction of Abrams for inciting resistance to the war effort against Soviet Russia.

title: 1919

section: Events › November

date: February 26

text: February 26 – Leser v. Garnett: The Supreme Court of the United States rebuffs a challenge to the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which gave women the right to vote on the same terms as men.

title: 1922

section: Events › February

section: Economy & Finance

text: May 27 – Schechter Poultry Corp. v. United States (the "Sick Chicken Case"): The Supreme Court of the United States declares that the National Industrial Recovery Act, a major component of the New Deal, is unconstitutional.

title: 1935

date: July 22

text: July 22 – New Deal: The United States Senate votes down President Franklin D. Roosevelt's proposal to add more justices to the Supreme Court of the United States.

title: 1937

section: Events › July

date: May 17

text: May 17 – Brown v. Board of Education (347 US 483 1954): The Supreme Court of the United States rules unanimously that segregated schools are unconstitutional.

title: 1954

date: November 22

text: November 22 – Berman v. Parker (348 U.S. 26): The U.S. Supreme Court upholds the federal slum clearance and urban renewal programs.

title: 1954

date: March 12

text: March 12 – 96 U.S. Congressmen sign the Southern Manifesto, a protest against the 1954 Supreme Court ruling (Brown v. Board of Education) that desegregated public education.

title: 1956

date: June 17

text: June 17 – In Abington School District v. Schempp, the US Supreme Court ruled that compulsory prayer and Bible-reading violated the First Amendment.

title: 1963

section: Events › June

date: June 13

text: June 13 – Miranda v. Arizona: The Supreme Court of the United States rules that the police must inform suspects of their rights before questioning them.

title: 1966

date: August 30

text: August 30 – Thurgood Marshall is confirmed as Justice of the United States Supreme Court. He is the first African American to hold the position.

title: 1967

section: Events › August

date: April 20

text: April 20 – Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education: The Supreme Court of the United States rules unanimously that busing of students may be ordered to achieve racial desegregation.

title: 1971

section: Events › April

date: September 17

text: September 17 – Hugo L. Black retires as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States after serving for 34 years, at this time a record for longevity; Black dies eight days later.

title: 1971

section: Events › September

date: September 25

text: September 25 – Hugo Black, American Supreme Court Justice (b. 1886)

title: 1971

section: Deaths › September

text: April 9 – James F. Byrnes, United States Secretary of State and Justice of the Supreme Court (b. 1882)

title: 1972

section: Deaths › April

date: July 3

text: July 3 – Gregg v. Georgia: The Supreme Court of the United States rules that the death penalty is not inherently cruel or unusual and is a constitutionally acceptable form of punishment overturning the Furman v. Georgia case of 1972.

title: 1976

text: March 28 – Stump v. Sparkman (435 U.S. 349): The Supreme Court of the United States hands down a 5–3 decision, in a controversial case involving involuntary sterilization and judicial immunity.

title: 1978

date: July 7

text: July 7 – United States President Ronald Reagan nominates the first woman, Sandra Day O'Connor, to the Supreme Court of the United States.

title: 1981

date: February 25

text: February 25 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in United States v. Paradise that affirmative action is lawful if the organization in question has a history of pervasive racial discrimination in hiring practices; in this case, police departments in the state of Alabama. Justice William J. Brennan, Jr. rules that the government is "justified by a compelling governmental interest in eradicating the Department's pervasive, systematic, and obstinate discriminatory exclusion of blacks."

title: 1987

section: Science & Discovery

date: June 19

text: June 19 – Edwards v. Aguillard: The Supreme Court of the United States rules that a Louisiana law requiring that creation science be taught in public schools whenever evolution is taught is unconstitutional.

title: 1987

date: May 4

text: May 4 – The U.S. Supreme Court rules in Rotary Int'l v. Rotary Club of Duarte that local Rotary Clubs do not have a constitutional right to deny membership to women. Other clubs thereafter comply with the ruling: Lions International begins admitting women in June, and Kiwanis Club in July.

title: 1987

date: September 27

text: September 27 – David Souter is confirmed to serve on the Supreme Court, replacing retiring Justice William J. Brennan Jr..

title: 1990

date: June 26

text: June 26 – United States v. Windsor (570 U.S. 744) decided in the Supreme Court of the United States, overturning a key section of the Defense of Marriage Act and hence granting federal recognition to same-sex marriage in the United States.

title: 2013

date: June 24

text: June 24 – The United States' Supreme Court rules in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization that America's constitution does not confer a right to abortion. In response, mass protests against the decision form across the US as well as in France, the UK and Canada.

title: 2022


slug: sur-empire

label: Sur Empire

description: empire of Pashtun origin who ruled a large territory in Northern part of South Asia between 1540 and 1556

date: April 6

text: April 6 – In India, Sher Shah Suri, who had been the Mughal Empire's Governor of the Bihar Subah province, declares the founding of the Sur Empire and crowns himself as Emperor in a ceremony at Delhi.

title: 1538

section: Events › April–June

section: Conflict & Security

text: June 26 – Battle of Chausa in modern-day Buxar, India: Sher Shah Suri defeats the Mughal emperor, Humayun (Sher Shah goes on to form the Sur Empire, and take control of nearly all Mughal territory).

title: 1539

date: May 17

text: May 17 – Battle of Kannauj: Sher Shah Suri defeats and deposes Mughal Emperor Humayan, establishing the Sur Empire.

title: 1540

section: Deaths

date: May 20

text: May 20 – Sher Shah Suri, King of the Sur Empire in northern India, is fatally injured by an explosion from one of his own cannons while leading the siege of the Kalinjar Fort and dies two days later.

title: 1545

text: November 22 – Upon the death of his father, Sultan Islam Shah Suri, 12-year-old Firuz Shah Suri becomes the Sultan of the Sur Empire at Delhi, but he is murdered within a few days.

title: 1554

date: June 22

text: June 22 – Adil Shah Suri becomes the Sultan of the Sur Empire at Delhi in India after Sikandar Shah Suri is forced to flee from the Mughal Empire forces.

title: 1555

date: October 7

text: October 7 – The Battle of Delhi is fought in India, at Tughlaqabad) near Delhi between forces of the Sur Empire (ruled by Muhammad Adil Shah) and the Mughal Empire (ruled by Akbar the Great). General Hemchandra Vikramaditya (Hemu) of the Suris overwhelms the forces commanded by the Mughal Governor of Delhi, Tardi Beg Khan within one day.

title: 1556

date: July 25

text: July 25 – In India, Sikandar Shah Suri, Sultan of the Sur Empire in Punjab, surrenders the fortress at Mau in the Nurpur kingdom (now in Uttar Pradesh) after a six month siege by the Mughal Empire. Mughal General Bairam Khan allows Sikandar to live in exile in Bihar, while Bakht Mal, Raja of Nurpur is imprisoned at Lahore and later beheaded.

title: 1557

section: Events › July–September


slug: surrey

label: Surrey

description: county of England

section: Religion & Belief

text: Earconwald, Anglo-Saxon abbot, establishes the Benedictine abbeys, Chertsey Abbey (Surrey) for men and Barking Abbey (now in east London) for women.

title: AD 666

section: Events › By place › Religion

text: King Ecgberht of Kent loses the overlordship of Surrey to King Wulfhere of Mercia. Ecgberht then grants the old Saxon Shore Fort at Reculver (south-east England) to a priest named Bassa, in order to establish a monastery dedicated to St. Mary (approximate date).

title: 669

section: Events › By place › Britain

text: King Frithuwold of Surrey flourishes under Mercian domination. The marriage of his daughter Osgyth to King Sighere of Essex breaks down. She desires the religious life, and flees the Essex court to the protection of bishop Bedwinus of North Elmham (Norfolk).

title: 673

text: King Wulfhere of Mercia dies after a 17-year reign, in which he has extended his sway over much of England south of the Humber River, including Essex, Surrey, and part of Wessex north of the Thames. Wulfhere is succeeded by his brother Æthelred.

title: 675

text: King Æthelred of Mercia invades Kent, in an attempt to enforce overlordship and diminish Kentish influence in Surrey and London. His armies destroy the Diocese of Rochester (seat of the bishops in West Kent), and ravage the surrounding countryside.

title: 676

text: Cædwalla conquers Surrey, and tries to exterminate the Jutes of the Isle of Wight. He executes King Arwald and his two brothers. Cædwalla probably also overruns the Meonware, a Jutish people who live in the Meon Valley (Hampshire).

title: 686

text: Battle of Ellandun: King Egbert of Wessex defeats Beornwulf of Mercia near Swindon. The battle marks the end of the Mercian domination of southern England. The kingdoms of Kent, Surrey, Sussex and Essex submit to Wessex, and East Anglia acknowledges Egbert as overlord (bretwalda).

title: 825

text: Ecgberht, King of Wessex, dies after a 37-year reign, and is succeeded by his son Æthelwulf ("Noble Wolf") as ruler of Wessex. Æthelwulf's eldest son, Æthelstan, is made sub-king of Kent, Essex, Surrey and Sussex, under his father.

title: 839

text: A Viking fleet of 350 vessels enters the Thames Estuary before turning north, and engages the Mercian forces under King Beorhtwulf. The Mercians are defeated, and retreat to their settlements. The Vikings then turn south and cross the river somewhere in Surrey; there they are slaughtered by a West Saxon army, led by King Æthelwulf and his son Aethelbald, at Oak Field (Aclea).

title: 852

section: Culture & Society

text: Spring – King Æthelwulf of Wessex decides to go on a pilgrimage to Rome, accompanied by his youngest son Alfred (age 6) and a large retinue. He divides the kingdom between his two eldest sons; Æthelbald receives the western part of Wessex, while Æthelberht becomes ruler over Kent, Surrey, Sussex and Essex.

title: 855

text: Winter – Æthelwulf returns to Wessex to face a revolt by his eldest son Æthelbald, who usurps the throne. Æthelwulf agrees to give up the western part of his kingdom, in order to avoid a civil war. He keeps control over Sussex, Surrey, Essex and Kent, over which Prince Æthelberht has presided.

title: 856

text: The town of Guildford (Surrey) becomes the location of the Royal Mint.

title: 978

section: Events › By place › England

section: Births

text: Alice de Lusignan, countess of Surrey (d. 1256)

title: 1224

date: August 6

text: August 6 (July 26 Old Style) – The first recorded women's cricket match takes place in Surrey, England.

title: 1745

text: May 4 – The first Epsom Derby horse race is run on Epsom Downs, Surrey, England. The victor is Diomed.

title: 1780

section: Geopolitics & Diplomacy

text: May 20 – The last mock Garrat Elections are held in Surrey, England.

title: 1796

date: March 26

text: March 26 – First legal cremation in England: widowed painter Jeanette Pickersgill of London, "well known in literary and scientific circles", is cremated by the Cremation Society at Woking, Surrey.

title: 1885

section: Events › March


slug: susa

label: Susa

description: ancient city in Iran, World Heritage site in Iran

text: c. 2254 BC – 2218 BC: The Stela of Naram-Sin, probably from Sippar, discovered in Susa (modern Shush, Iran), was made. It is now in the Musée du Louvre, Paris.

title: 23rd century BC

section: Events

text: c. 1792 BC – 1750 BC: (middle chronology) – Stela of Hammurabi, from Susa (modern Shush, Iran) is made. It is now in Musée du Louvre, Paris.

title: 18th century BC

year_label: 655 BCE

text: The Assyrian army invade Elam and overtake its twin capital cities Madaktu and Susa and install a king that is pro-Assyrian on the throne.

title: 655 BC

section: Events › By place › Mesopotamia

year_label: 647 BCE

text: Elam refuses to extradite an Aramaean prince, giving the king Ashurbanipal of Assyria an excuse to invade the country. He sacks the city of Susa.

title: 647 BC

section: Events › Middle East

year_label: 612 BCE

text: Battle of Nineveh: An allied army of Babylonians, Medes, Scythians, and Susianians besieges and conquers Nineveh, capital of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. Sinsharishkun, King of Assyria, is killed in the sacking.

title: 612 BC

year_label: 360 BCE

text: With the help of King Agesilaus II of Sparta, Nectanebo II deposes Teos and becomes king of Egypt. Teos flees to Susa and makes peace with the Persians. Nectanebo II pays the Spartans 230 talents for their help.

title: 360 BC

section: Events › By place › Egypt

year_label: 332 BCE

text: At the acropolis in Susa, an unidentified woman is buried in a bronze sarcophagus, wearing "a mass of finely-wrought and artistic gems and jewels" and two coins, one dating from 350 BC and the other from 332 BC. The tomb will remain unopened for more than 22 centuries, until French archaeologist Jacques de Morgan unearths it on February 10, 1901.

title: 332 BC

section: Events › By place › Persian Empire

year_label: 325 BCE

text: By the end of the year, Alexander's army reaches Persepolis, while his navy, under Nearchus, reaches Susa at around the same time.

title: 325 BC

section: Events › By place › Macedonian Empire

year_label: 324 BCE

text: Alexander the Great's treasurer, Harpalus, fearing arrest, flees from Susa to Athens. On arriving in Athens, he is imprisoned by the Athenians after a proposal of Demosthenes and Phocion, despite Hypereides' opposition, who wanted an immediate uprising against Alexander. Harpalus brings with him considerable wealth collected from the spoils of Alexander's conquest of Asia. This money is entrusted to a committee led by Demosthenes.

title: 324 BC

section: Events › By place › Greece

text: On returning to Susa, Persia, Alexander the Great punishes those who he considers to have failed in their duties in his absence in India, particularly those who have plundered tombs and temples. Alexander continues his policy of replacing senior officials and executing defaulting governors. Over a third of his satraps are replaced and six are put to death. Three generals in Media, including Cleander, the brother of Coenus (who died in 326 BC), are accused of extortion and are arrested, tried and executed.

title: 324 BC

year_label: 315 BCE

text: Antigonus claims authority over most of Asia, seizes the treasury at Susa and enters Babylon, where Seleucus is governor. Seleucus flees to Ptolemy in Egypt and enters into a league with him, Lysimachus (the ruler of Thrace) and Cassander, against Antigonus. This leads to the First Coalition War.

title: 315 BC

year_label: 245 BCE

text: Babylon and Susa fall to the Ptolemaic armies of Ptolemy III.

title: 245 BC

year_label: 187 BCE

text: The Seleucid king, Antiochus III, attempts to collect tribute from a temple near Susa, Persia, where he was killed. He is succeeded by his son, Seleucus IV, who inherits an empire consisting of Syria, Mesopotamia, Babylonia, western Iran.

title: 187 BC

section: Events › By place › Seleucid Empire

text: Emperor Trajan completes his invasion of Parthia by capturing the cities of Seleucia, Babylon, Ctesiphon and Susa, marking the high-water mark of the Roman Empire's eastern expansion.

title: AD 116

section: Events › By place › Roman Empire

text: King Shapur II, ruler of the Persian Empire, age 70, dies after a 69-year reign in which he conquered Armenia and transferred multitudes of people from the western lands to Susiana (Khuzistan). The great town Nishapur in Khorasan (eastern Parthia) is also founded by him. His brother Ardashir II, governor-king of Adiabene, is placed by the nobles on the throne.

title: 379

section: Events › By place › Persia

text: Abdas, bishop of Susa, burns down a Zoroastrian temple; in retaliation, King Yazdegerd I of Persia orders the destruction of churches.

title: 414

section: Events › By topic › Religion

text: Abdas, bishop of Susa, is accused of burning down one of the fire temples of Ahura Mazda, and after refusing to rebuild it, he is executed, under orders of Shah Yazdegerd I.

title: AD 420

text: Saint Abdas, bishop of Susa (Iran)

title: AD 420

text: Hormuzan, Persian satrap of Susiana (vassal of the Rashidun Caliphate), revolts against the Muslims and raids Mesopotamia. Arab forces under Abu Musa al-Asha'ari destroy Susa in the lower Zagros Mountains.

title: 639

section: Events › By place › Arabian Empire


slug: sussex

label: Sussex

description: historic county of England, United Kingdom

text: Aelle, first king of the South Saxons, lands on the Sussex coast of England with his three sons near Cymenshore, according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. The Britons engage him upon landing, but his superior force besieges them at Pevensey and drives them into the wood called Andredes leage. Over the next nine years, Saxon coastal holdings are gradually expanded.

title: 477

section: Events › By place › Europe

section: Disasters & Accidents

text: Wilfrid returns to Great Britain, but is shipwrecked in Sussex. When he finally reaches Northumbria, he finds he has been deposed and is forced to retire to Ripon.

title: AD 666

section: Events › By place › Religion

section: Conflict & Security

text: King Cædwalla of Wessex establishes overlordship of Essex, and invades Kent for a second time. King Eadric is expelled, and Cædwalla's brother Mul is installed in his place. The sub-kings Berthun and Andhun are killed, and Sussex is subjugated by the West Saxons.

title: 686

section: Events › By place › Britain

text: The exiled prince Ealdbert, possibly a nephew of King Ine of Wessex looking for recognition as his heir, seeks sanctuary in Sussex. Ine attacks the South Saxons and kills Ealdbert.

title: 725

text: Spring – A rebellion led by William the Conqueror's half-brothers Odo of Bayeux and Robert (2nd Earl of Cornwall), begins against King William II with the aim to remove him from the throne. Odo's revolt in Kent and Sussex is supported by nobles across the country.

title: 1088

section: Religion & Belief

date: June 4

text: June 4 – 1525 Bayham Abbey riot; Villagers from Kent and Sussex, England riot and occupy Bayham Old Abbey for a week in protest against Cardinal Thomas Wolsey's order to suppress the monastery in order to fund two colleges founded by him.

title: 1525

section: Events › April–June

section: Crime & Justice

date: June 18

text: June 18 – Mass executions by burning at the stake resume in England for Protestants convicted of heresy under the law of England's Catholic ruler, Queen Mary I. On the first day, four women and three men are put to death at Maidstone at Kent. The next day, at Canterbury, another seven prisoners are burned. On June 22, ten more people (six men and four women) burn at the stake at Lewes at Sussex. In all, 24 people (12 men and 12 women) are killed in a five-day period

title: 1557

section: Technology & Infrastructure

date: June 30

text: June 30 – The earliest reported first-class cricket match takes place in Sussex in England.

title: 1697

section: Climate & Environment

date: December 27

text: December 27 – Lewes avalanche: An avalanche at Lewes in Sussex, England, kills eight of fifteen people buried, when a row of cottages is engulfed in snow.

title: 1836

section: Events › October–December


slug: sviatoslav-i

label: Sviatoslav I

description: Prince of Kiev

section: Births

text: Sviatoslav I, Grand Prince of Kiev (approximate date)

title: 942

text: Igor I, ruler of the Kievan Rus', is killed while collecting tribute from the Drevlians and is succeeded by his three-year-old son Sviatoslav I. His mother Olga becomes regent and the official ruler.

title: 945

text: Sviatoslav I, Grand Prince of Kyiv, begins a 2-year campaign in which he will defeat Khazar forces along the Don River – vanquish the Ossetes and the Circassians in the northern Caucasus. He also successfully attacks the Bulgars on the Volga River.

title: 963

text: The Khazar fortress city of Sarkel, located on the Lower Don River, is captured by Kievan Rus' under Grand Prince Sviatoslav I. The city is renamed Belaya Vezha (White Fortress) and settled by Slavs.

title: 965

text: Summer – Sviatoslav I, Grand Prince of Kiev, defeats Bulgar forces in the Balkans at the behest of Emperor Nikephoros II (who pays him 1,500 pounds of gold to invade the Bulgarian Empire).

title: 967

text: Battle of Silistra: A Kievan army (60,000 men) led by Sviatoslav I crosses the Lower Danube and defeats the Bulgarians at Silistra. He occupies most of the Dobruja by seizing 80 fortresses in northeastern Bulgaria. They are looted and destroyed but not permanently occupied. During the winter, Sviatoslav transfers the capital from Kiev to Pereyaslavets.

title: 968

text: Emperor Nikephoros II receives a Bulgarian embassy led by Prince Boris (the son of Tsar Peter I of Bulgaria), with a plea for help against the invading Kievan Rus'. Nikephoros, occupied in the East, is unable to support him. Instead he sends envoys to summon the Pechenegs to aid Boris. They besiege Kiev, but Grand Prince Sviatoslav I (on campaign in Bulgaria) returns with a Kievan relief force, and defeats the Pechenegs. He drives them out into the Steppe, and sets up viceroys to rule his Rus' territory.

title: 968

section: Events › By place › Byzantine Empire

text: Summer – Grand Prince Sviatoslav I invades Bulgaria at the head of a Kievan army, which includes Pecheneg and Hungarian auxiliary forces. He defeats the Bulgarians in a major battle and retakes Pereyaslavets. Boris II capitulates and impales 300 Bulgarian boyars for disloyalty. Sviatoslav assigns garrisons to the conquered fortresses in Northern Bulgaria.

title: 969

text: Battle of Arcadiopolis: John I dispatches an elite force (10–12,000 men) to delay the Kievan Rus'. The Byzantines under Bardas Skleros successfully ambush the Kievan-Bulgarian invaders at Arcadiopolis (modern Turkey). The battle turns into a complete rout, killing thousands. Grand Prince Sviatoslav I is driven out of Thrace and withdraws his forces to the fortress city of Silistra.

title: 970

text: Spring – Grand Prince Sviatoslav I is ambushed by the Pechenegs (possibly in the service of the Byzantines) and killed during his attempt to cross the Dnieper rapids (modern Ukraine). His skull is made into a drinking cup. Sviatoslav is succeeded by his eldest son Yaropolk I as ruler of Kiev, which leads to a civil war with his brother Oleg.

title: 972

section: Deaths

text: Sviatoslav I (Igorevich), Grand Prince of Kiev

title: 972


slug: swabia

label: Swabia

description: cultural, historic and linguistic region of Germany

text: Emperor Alexander Severus celebrates a triumph in Rome to observe his "victory" the previous year over the Persians (in reality, Severus Alexander advanced towards Ctesiphon in 233, but as corroborated by Herodian, his armies suffered a humiliating defeat against Ardashir I). He is soon summoned to the Rhine frontier, where the Alamanni invade what is now modern-day Swabia. German tribes destroy Roman forts, and plunder the countryside at the Limes Germanicus.

title: 233

section: Events › By place › Roman Empire

date: March 27

text: March 27 (night) – Swabians invade the Gallic city of Lugo. The governor is killed.

title: 460

text: Charlemagne repudiates his Lombard wife Desiderata, daughter of Desiderius, after one year of marriage. He marries the 13-year-old Swabian girl Hildegard, who will bear him nine children. Desiderius, furious at Charlemagne, plans a punitive campaign against the Franks and Rome.

title: 771

text: King Pepin I of Aquitaine, and his brother Louis the German, revolt against their father, Emperor Louis the Pious. They gather an army of Slav allies and conquer Swabia.

title: 832

text: Third Civil War: King Louis the German, grandson of Charlemagne, invades Swabia. His nephew, Pepin II of Aquitaine, and his Gascon subjects, conquer territory all the way to the Loire.

title: 839

section: Geopolitics & Diplomacy

text: King Louis the German divides the East Frankish Kingdom among his three sons. Carloman receives Bavaria (with more lands along the Inn River). He gives Saxony to Louis the Younger (with Franconia, and Thuringia) and Swabia (with Raetia) to Charles the Fat. Louis arranges marriages into the local aristocracy, for his sons to hold important territories along the frontiers.

title: 865

text: Arnulf of Carinthia crosses the Po River and divides his army in two: one corps (Swabian) proceeds to Florence (via Bologna), while the other corps (Franks) moves through the Lunigiana to the precincts of Rome.

title: 895

date: July

text: July – The Magyars (Hungarians), led by Zoltán, only son of the late Grand Prince Árpád, attack Swabia, Franconia and Saxony. Small units penetrate as far as Bremen, burning the city.

title: 915

section: Exploration & Expansion

text: Isaac Zarfati sends a circular letter to Rhineland, Swabia, Moravia and Hungary, praising the happy conditions of the Jews under the crescent, in contrast to the "great torture chamber" under the cross, and urging them to come to the Ottoman Empire.

title: 1454

section: Events › Date unknown


slug: sweden

label: Sweden

description: country in Northern Europe

text: The monument of Ale's Stones is built in Sweden (approximate date).

title: AD 500

section: Events › By place › Europe

text: According to the Ynglinga saga, king Ingvar Harra of Sweden invades Adalsysla (present day Lääne County in Estonia), but is killed by the locals (approximate date).

title: 600

text: Yngling King Olof Trätälja founds a colony in Värmland. He is expelled from his native Västergötland (in modern-day Sweden) (according to the Ynglingatal).

title: 630

section: Events › By place › Scandinavia

text: Ansgar, Frankish abbot of Corvey (modern Westphalia), is appointed missionary to Sweden by Louis the Pious, at the request of the Swedish king Björn at Haugi.

title: 829

section: Events › By topic › Religion

text: Ansgar, a Frankish missionary, visits the trade city Birka, located at Lake Mälaren in Sweden (approximate date).

title: 830

text: Summer – Ansgar, Frankish missionary, founds the first church at Birka (modern Sweden).

title: 831

text: Eric Anundsson, king of Sweden (d. 882)

title: 849

text: Ragnar Lodbrok, king of Denmark and Sweden

title: 865

text: Eric the Victorious, king of Sweden (approximate date)

title: 945

text: Eric the Victorious becomes the first (documented) king of Sweden in Uppland.

title: 970

text: Estrid (or Astrid), queen consort of Sweden (d. 1035)

title: 979

text: Olof Skötkonung, king of Sweden (approximate date)

title: 980

section: Culture & Society

text: The city of Lund, Sweden is founded, during the reign of the Danish king Sweyn Forkbeard (approximate date).

title: 990

text: King Eric VI (the Victorious) dies at Uppsala, after a 25-year reign. He is succeeded by his son Olof Skötkonung, as the first baptized Christian ruler of Sweden.

title: 995

section: Events › Europe

text: Eric VI (the Victorious), Viking king of Sweden

title: 995

text: Olof Skötkonung, king of Sweden, is baptized in Husaby (Västergötland) by missionary Sigfrid, and makes generous donations on the spot.

title: 1008

text: King Olof Skötkonung dies and is succeeded by his son Anund Jakob as ruler of Sweden. He becomes the second Christian king of the Swedish realm.

title: 1022

text: Battle of Helgeå (off the coast of Sweden): Naval forces of King Cnut's North Sea Empire defeat the combined Swedish and Norwegian royal fleets.

title: 1026

section: Events › Asia › Europe

text: Cnut the Great sails from England to Norway with a fleet of 50 ships. He defeats Olaf Haraldsson and is crowned king of Norway. Cnut becomes the sole ruler of England, Denmark and part of Sweden (known as the Danish North Sea Empire).

title: 1028

section: Events › By place › England

date: July 29

text: July 29 – Battle of Stiklestad: King Olaf II Haraldsson (St. Olaf) attempts to reconquer Norway with help from King Anund Jakob of Sweden. He is defeated by a superior Norwegian peasant and Danish army (14,000 men). Olaf is killed in the battle. He is later canonized and becomes the patron saint of Norway and Rex perpetuum Norvegiae ('the eternal king of Norway').

title: 1030

text: Winter – Harthacnut is unable to travel to his coronation in England because his Danish kingdom is under threat of an invasion by King Magnus I of Norway and King Anund Jacob of Sweden.

title: 1035

text: Estrid of the Obotrites (or Astrid), queen consort of Sweden

title: 1035

text: Ingegerd, queen of Denmark and Sweden (approximate date)

title: 1046

text: King Anund Jacob dies after a 28-year reign. He is succeeded by his elder half-brother Emund the Old as king of Sweden.

title: 1050

text: Anund Jacob (or James), king of Sweden (b. 1008)

title: 1050

text: Emund the Old, king of Sweden (approximate date)

title: 1060

text: King Stenkil (or Steinkell) dies after a 6-year reign. Two rivals named Eric battle for power in Sweden, both claiming the throne.

title: 1066

text: Eric and Eric, two pretenders to the Swedish throne, are both killed during the struggle for power in Sweden. Halsten, son of the late King Stenkil, becomes the new ruler.

title: 1067

text: Approximate date – Halsten Stenkilsson is deposed as king of Sweden, with Håkan the Red becoming king in Götaland, and Anund Gårdske being chosen as king of Svealand.

title: 1070

section: Events

text: Anund Gårdske is deposed as king of Svealand (also called Sweden proper). King Håkan the Red of Götaland proclaims himself ruler of all Sweden.

title: 1075

text: Upon the death of Håkan the Red, Halsten Stenkilsson returns as king of Sweden, jointly with his brother Inge the Elder (approximate date).

title: 1079

text: Håkan the Red, king of Sweden (approximate date)

title: 1079

date: April 17

text: April 17 – King Harald III of Denmark dies after a 4-year reign and is buried at Dalby Church in Scania (modern Sweden). He is succeeded by his brother Canute IV ("the Holy") as ruler of Denmark.

title: 1080

text: King Halsten Stenkilsson is killed and his brother Inge the Elder is deposed in Svealand (modern Sweden). Inge is replaced by his brother-in-law Blot-Sweyn.

title: 1084

text: Halsten Stenkilsson, king of Sweden (approximate date)

title: 1084

text: Katedralskolan in Lund (modern Sweden), the oldest school in Scandinavia, is founded by King Canute IV of Denmark.

title: 1085

text: Inge the Elder returns to Svealand and kills his brother-in-law Blot-Sweyn after a 3-year reign. Inge again proclaims himself king of Sweden (approximate date).

title: 1087

text: Intense urban activity in north and central Europe: Kalmar (Kungälv) and Varberg (Sweden) are chartered; The cities of Aach (southern Germany) and Nakléřov in Bohemia are created. The castle of Burg Eppstein is built in central Germany.

title: 1100

text: Inge the Elder, king of Sweden (approximate date)

title: 1105

text: Inge the Elder dies and is succeeded by his nephew Philip as ruler of Sweden. He and his brother Inge the Younger rule the kingdom together (until the death of Philip in 1118).

title: 1105

date: April 12

text: April 12 – Richeza of Poland, queen consort of Sweden (d. 1156)

title: 1116

text: Philip, king of Sweden (House of Stenkil)

title: 1118

text: Ingegerd, queen of Denmark and Sweden (b. 1046)

title: 1120

text: Sigurd I performs a Crusade, the Kalmare ledung, to Christianize the Swedish province of Småland. He makes a pact with King Niels of Denmark.

title: 1123

text: Ragnvald Knaphövde, pretender to the Swedish throne, is killed by upset peasants at a local thing. Sweden is without a ruler, but Magnus Nielsen ("the Strong") claims sovereignty over Götaland.

title: 1126

text: Approximate date – Magnus the Strong is deposed as king of Götaland, when Sverker the Elder proclaims himself king of Sweden.

title: 1130

text: Sverker I (the Elder), king of Sweden (d. 1156)

title: 1134

text: Åhus, in present-day Sweden, gains city rights (approximate date).

title: 1149

text: December 25 – King Sverker I (the Elder) is murdered on his way to church. He is succeeded by his rival, Eric IX (the Holy), as ruler of Sweden.

title: 1156

text: December 25 – Sverker I (the Elder), king of Sweden

title: 1156

text: May 18 – Erik IX Jedvardsson of Sweden is murdered, after which his murderer Magnus Henriksen proclaims himself king of Sweden as Magnus II. He is murdered in turn the following year, however. Erik is soon worshipped as a saint. Though never formally canonized by Pope Alexander III, he eventually becomes the patron saint of Sweden.

title: 1160

text: May 18 – Erik IX Jedvardsson ("the Holy"), king of Sweden (b. 1120)

title: 1160

text: Magnus Henriksson, pretender to the throne of Sweden, is murdered by Charles VII, who becomes king of Sweden until 1167.

title: 1161

text: Magnus Henriksson, king of Sweden (b. 1130)

title: 1161

text: April 12 – King Charles VII (Sverkersson) is murdered at Visingsö by supporters of Canute I (son of Eric IX), who proclaims himself king of Sweden. However, Charles's half-brothers Boleslaw and Kol Sverkerson proclaim themselves rulers of Östergötland, in opposition to Canute, which leads to fights for the power in Sweden (until 1173).

title: 1167

text: April 12 – Charles VII (Sverkersson), king of Sweden (b. 1130)

title: 1167

text: During the Swedish power struggle, Boleslaw is killed, but his brother Kol continues as ruler of Östergötland (until 1173), in opposition to King Knut Eriksson of Sweden.

title: 1169

text: Pope Alexander III addresses a series of letters to the backward Swedish church. He wants to impose the strict canonical requirements on the Swedes, that is, the ecclesiastical legal system. Due to being Christianized in 1050, Sweden is having trouble to fully adapt to the Catholicism that is preached and acted on in Europe.

title: 1170

text: Knut Eriksson (King Canute I of Sweden) extends his rule after the death of co-ruler Kol – which includes also Östergötland. He becomes the unopposed sole-ruler of Sweden with the support of jarl Birger Brosa.

title: 1173

text: Summer – Pillage of Sigtuna: A fleet of Karelians enters Lake Malar and ravages the coast. The marauders burn Sigtuna and kill Archbishop Johannes at Almarestäket in Sweden.

title: 1187

text: Canute I (Eriksson), king of Sweden (approximate date)

title: 1196

text: Bridget Haraldsdotter, queen consort of Sweden (approximate date)

title: 1208

text: January 31 – Battle of Lena: Swedish forces under Erik Knutsson defeat the invading Danish army (some 12,000 men). King Sverker the Younger is deposed as king of Sweden and is succeeded by Erik.

title: 1208

text: July 17 – Sverker II (the Younger), king of Sweden

title: 1210

text: Catherine Sunesdotter, queen of Sweden (d. 1252)

title: 1215

text: Eric XI (the Lisp and Lame), king of Sweden (d. 1250)

title: 1216

text: May 8 – Rikissa of Denmark, queen of Sweden (b. 1180)

title: 1220

text: July 27 – Visby Cathedral in Sweden is consecrated.

title: 1225

text: November 28 – Battle of Olustra: Eric XI (the Lisp and Lame) is defeated and deposed as king of Sweden by Canute II (the Tall), who proclaims himself the new ruler.

title: 1229

text: Lund Cathedral in Sweden is heavily damaged in a catastrophic fire. Large donations are made to the church, to rebuild the cathedral.

title: 1234

text: King Canute II of Sweden ("the Tall") dies after a five-year reign, perhaps of natural causes. His rival, Eric XI ("the Lisp and Lame"), returns as ruler of Sweden (possibly after a civil war between the two of them).

title: 1234

text: Magnus Ladulås (Birgersson), king of Sweden (d. 1290)

title: 1240

text: February 2 – Erik Eriksson, king of Sweden (b. 1216)

title: 1250

text: February 2 – King Erik Eriksson of Sweden dies. The ten-year-old Valdemar, the eldest son of Birger Jarl, is elected King of Sweden, and becomes the first king from the House of Bjälbo.

title: 1250

text: July – The settlement of Stockholm in Sweden is founded, by Birger Jarl.

title: 1252

text: Helena Pedersdatter Strange, queen of Sweden (b. 1200)

title: 1255

text: The pagan Karelians start a destructive expedition to Sweden in which King Valdemar requests Alexander IV to declare a crusade against them. This leads to the Third Swedish Crusade to Finland (1293–95).

title: 1257

text: June 14 – Battle of Hova: King Valdemar Birgersson of Sweden is defeated by his brother Magnus in the forest of Tiveden.

title: 1275

text: Construction of Uppsala Cathedral in Sweden begins (it lasts until 1435).

title: 1287

text: June 16 – Petrus, bishop of Västerås, buys 1/8 of the Stora Kopparberg copper mine in Falun, Sweden. During the reign of King Magnus Ladulås, nobles and foreign merchants from Lübeck take interests in the mining area.

title: 1288

text: December 18 – Magnus Birgersson, king of Sweden (b. 1240)

title: 1290

text: December 18 – King Magnus Birgersson of Sweden dies after a 15-year reign. He is succeeded by his 10-year-old son Birger Magnusson.

title: 1290

text: September 29 – The Hatuna Games are played in Sweden. Duke's Eric Magnusson and Valdemar Magnusson, arrive at the estate of their brother, King Birger Magnusson, by Lake Malar. They are invited as guests at a feast, but during the night Birger and his wife, Martha of Denmark, are captured by the two brothers and are imprisoned in the dungeon at Nyköping Castle – while Eric and Valdemar jointly take over the Swedish throne.

title: 1306

text: Magnus Eriksson, king of Sweden and Norway from the House of Bjälbo (d. 1374)

title: 1316

text: December 11 – King Birger Magnusson has his brothers, Dukes Eric Magnusson and Valdemar Magnusson, captured and thrown into a dungeon during the Nyköping Banquet – as a revenge for their imprisonment of him in the Håtuna games (see 1306). As the brothers soon starve to death in the dungeon, their followers rebel against Birger, throwing Sweden into civil war.

title: 1317

text: August – Magnus Eriksson, grandson of the recently deceased king Haakon V and already proclaimed King of Sweden, is recognized by the Norwegian assembly as King Magnus VII of Norway, thus establishing a personal union with Sweden and Norway.

title: 1319

text: Blanka of Namur, queen of Norway and Sweden (d.1363)

title: 1320

text: Slavery is abolished in Sweden.

title: 1335

text: June 21 – Upon the death of Erik Magnusson, his claims to the Swedish throne die with him, and power is restored undivided to his father, King Magnus. With this unexpected death of Erik Magnusson, a previous promise to give Helsingborg to Denmark was reneged on by Magnus IV Eriksson. But Valdemar IV Atterdag was far too ambitious a ruler to have his plan to reassemble the Danish kingdom fall into pieces, and so he proceeded to invade Scania the next year with his mercenary army.

title: 1359

text: King Valdemar IV Atterdag of Denmark reconquers Scania, which has been in Swedish possession since 1332.

title: 1360

text: February 15 – King Haakon VI of Norway, son of King Magnus Eriksson of Sweden, proclaims himself king of Sweden in opposition to his father. However, later in the year, father and son are reconciled and rule Sweden together.

title: 1362

text: February 15 – Joint kings Magnus Eriksson and Haakon Magnusson of Sweden are both deposed by noblemen, who instead elect Magnus's nephew Albrekt of Mecklenburg the new king of Sweden.

title: 1364

text: March 3 – Battle of Gataskogen: Albert of Mecklenburg defeats and captures Magnus Eriksson, obtaining the throne of Sweden.

title: 1365

text: December 1 – Magnus Eriksson, king of Sweden (b. 1316)

title: 1374

text: Olav IV of Norway is elected as titular King of Sweden, in opposition to the unpopular King Albert.

title: 1385

text: July 20 – Queen Margaret I of Denmark, Norway and Sweden publishes the Treaty of Kalmar, proposing the personal union of the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway (with Iceland, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Shetland and Orkney) and Sweden (including Finland and Åland).

title: 1396

text: June 17 – Erik of Pomerania is crowned in Kalmar (Sweden) as ruler of the Kalmar Union, a personal union of the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway (with Iceland, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Shetland and Orkney) and Sweden (including Finland and Åland) engineered by Queen Margaret I of Denmark, his great-aunt and adoptive mother, who retains de facto power in the realm.

title: 1397

text: April 5 – The Teutonic Knights conquer the island of Gotland, near Sweden, which has previously been run by the piratical Victual Brothers. In the agreement of surrender, the city of Visby and the entire island are ceded to Johan of Mecklenburg, and merchants from the Hanseatic League are allowed free trade. In addition, the Knights receive the opportunity to clear all known pirates and other enemies from Gotland.

title: 1398

text: November 12 – Bishop Nils Ragvaldsson of Sweden delivers a speech at the Council of Basel, arguing the Kingdom of Sweden and its monarch, Eric of Pomerania deserve senior rank over the Spanish delegation.

title: 1434

text: January 11 – Sweden's first Riksdag of the Estates is summoned under rebel leader Engelbrekt Engelbrektsson, who is elected rikshövitsman (military commander of the realm), in the absence of a king, on January 13.

title: 1435

text: July 29 – The War in Gotland begins in Scandinavia as an army from Sweden, commanded by Generals Magnus Gren and Birger Trolle, invades the island of Gotland, at the time ruled by Denmark. The invasion is repelled by Erik of Pomerania, ruler of the island and the former King of Sweden and Denmark.

title: 1448

text: June 20 – The Regency period of Sweden ends with the election by Swedish nobles of Karl Knutsson Bonde as King Karl VIII.

title: 1448

text: August 29 – The Treaty of Bergen is signed by officials of Norway and Sweden to reunite the two kingdoms under the rule of King Christian I. Both Norway and Sweden retain self-government and their own governing bodies.

title: 1450

text: October 17 – The University of Greifswald is established, making it the second oldest university in Northern Europe. Due to border changes, from 1648 to 1815 it is the oldest in Sweden, and from 1815 to 1945 the oldest in Prussia.

title: 1456

text: February 24 – King Charles VIII of Sweden is declared deposed after fleeing from Stockholm to Danzig following a rebellion. The Archbishop of Sweden, Jöns Bengtsson Oxenstierna, and statesman Erik Axelsson Tott become co-regents of Sweden. The coup leaders then offer the throne to Christian I, King of Denmark and Norway.

title: 1457

text: October 10 – Battle of Brunkeberg in Stockholm, Sweden: The forces of Regent of Sweden Sten Sture the Elder, with the help of farmers and miners, repel an attack by Christian I, King of Denmark.

title: 1471

text: February 27 – Uppsala University is founded, becoming the first university in Sweden and all of Scandinavia.

title: 1477

text: June – Gribshunden, the flagship of King Hans Oldenburg of Denmark sinks off the coast of Ronneby in Sweden while King Hans is ashore to negotiate with Sten Sture the Elder to restore the power of the Kalmar Union. According to some accounts, the sinking (and the death of more than 150 crew) happened after an explosion and fire, though explorations of the shipwreck centuries later show no indication of burning.

title: 1495

text: January 21 – After the death of Sten Sture the Elder on December 14 the year before, Svante Nilsson is elected the new Regent of Sweden.

title: 1504

text: January 19 – King Christian II of Denmark and Norway defeats the Swedes, at Lake Åsunden in Sweden. The Swedish regent Sten Sture the Younger is mortally wounded in the Battle of Bogesund. He is rushed towards Stockholm, in order to lead the fight against the Danes from there.

title: 1520

text: February 2 – The Nydala Abbey Bloodbath takes place at Nydala Abbey, Sweden; the abbot and many monks are murdered by Danes.

title: 1521

text: June 6 – Gustav Vasa is elected king of Sweden, establishing the full independence of Sweden from the Kalmar Union, which marks the end of the Kalmar Union. This event is also traditionally considered to be the establishment of the modern Swedish nation.

title: 1523

text: June 17 – The Protestant Reformation begins in Sweden. The Riksdag of the Estates in Västerås adopts Lutheranism as the state religion, in place of Roman Catholicism. This results in the confiscation of church property and dissolution of Catholic convents in accordance with the Reduction of Gustav I of Sweden.

title: 1527

text: January 12 – Gustav I of Sweden is crowned king of Sweden, having already reigned since his election in June 1523.

title: 1528

text: September 24 – At the age of 35, King Gustav I Vasa of Sweden is married for the first time, taking Catherine of Saxe-Lauenburg as his bride on her 18th birthday.

title: 1531

text: June 8 – Battle of Bornholm: Combined Swedish and Danish fleets defeat the Hanseatic navy.

title: 1535

text: January 13 – At Västerås, the estates of Sweden swear loyalty to King Gustav Vasa and to his heirs, ending the traditional electoral monarchy in Sweden. Gustav subsequently signs an alliance with the Kingdom of France.

title: 1544

text: June 12 – The city of Helsinki (now in Finland but known as Helsingfors in Sweden at this time) is founded by King Gustav I of Sweden.

title: 1550

text: September 29 – Eric XIV becomes King of Sweden, upon the death of his father, Gustav Vasa.

title: 1560

text: June 4 – The nobility of Harrien-Wierland and the town of Reval (on June 6) of the Livonian Order swear allegiance to Sweden.

title: 1561

text: September 4 – Northern Seven Years' War: King Frederick II of Denmark, advancing from Halland, takes Old Älvsborg from Sweden.

title: 1563

text: October 21 – Battle of Wenden: The Russians are defeated by the Swedes, who proceed to take Polotsk.

title: 1578

text: September 6 – A mercenary army of Sweden, under Pontus De la Gardie, captures Narva from Russia.

title: 1581

text: March 5 – The city of Karlstad, Sweden gaines city status by Duke Charles.

title: 1584

text: December 25 (Christmas Day) – The monks of the Pechenga Monastery, the northernmost in the world, are massacred by Swedes, led by a Finnish peasant chief, in the course of the Russo-Swedish War.

title: 1589

text: The Riksdag of the Estates at Söderköping in Sweden elects the Lutheran Duke Charles as the country's regent, in place of Sigismund III Vasa, King of Poland and Sweden.

title: 1595

text: September 25 – Battle of Stångebro at Linköping in Sweden: The Catholic King Sigismund of Sweden and Poland is defeated in his attempt to resume control of Sweden by the Protestant forces of his uncle, Charles. Sigismund is deposed shortly thereafter.

title: 1598

text: July 24 – Swedish King Sigismund III Vasa is dethroned by his uncle Duke Charles, who takes over as regent of the realm until 1604, when he becomes King Charles IX.

title: 1599

text: November 10 – The Åbo Bloodbath takes place in Åbo (Turku), in modern-day Finland, which was part of Sweden at the time.

title: 1599

text: March 20 – Linköping Bloodbath: Five Swedish nobles are publicly executed by decapitation and Polish–Swedish King Sigismund III Vasa is de facto deposed as ruler of Sweden.

title: 1600

text: February 24 – At Linköping in Sweden, the Riksdag declares that Sigismund, Grand Duke of Lithuania and King of Poland, who has been absent for five years, has effectively abdicated as King of Sweden, and recognizes Karl, Duke of Södermanland, as the new monarch.

title: 1604

text: September 27 – Swedish armies are decisively defeated by Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth cavalry in the Battle of Kircholm.

title: 1605

text: July 4 – (June 24 O.S.); Polish–Russian War – Battle of Klushino: The outnumbered forces of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth defeat the combined Russian and Swedish armies; Polish troops go on to occupy Moscow.

title: 1610

text: April 4 – Denmark-Norway declares war on Sweden, then captures Kalmar.

title: 1611

text: January 20 – King James I of England successfully mediates the Treaty of Knäred between Denmark and Sweden.

title: 1613

text: February 27 – The Treaty of Stolbovo ends the Ingrian War between Sweden and Russia. Sweden gains Ingria and Kexholm.

title: 1617

text: October 12 – The coronation ceremony of King Gustav Adolf of Sweden takes place in Stockholm, almost six years after he succeeded to the throne.

title: 1617

text: The Swedish city of Gothenburg is founded by King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden. The king also grants city rights to Luleå, Piteå and Torneå (Tornio). Riga falls under the rule of Sweden.

title: 1621

text: Johannes Rudbeck founds Rudbeckianska gymnasiet, the first gymnasium in Sweden.

title: 1623

text: January 7 – Polish-Swedish War: Battle of Wallhof in Latvia – Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden, defeats a Polish army.

title: 1626

text: November 28 – Polish-Swedish War: Battle of Oliwa – A Polish-Lithuanian fleet defeats a Swedish fleet.

title: 1627

text: September 25 – Polish–Swedish War (1626–1629): Sweden and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth sign the Truce of Altmark, ending the war in highly favourable terms for Sweden.

title: 1629

text: June 6 – Swedish warships depart from Stockholm, Sweden for Central Europe.

title: 1630

text: August 22 – The Treaty of Werben is signed as an alliance between Hesse-Cassel and Sweden.

title: 1631

text: January 23 – Thirty Years' War: Sweden and France sign the Treaty of Bärwalde, a military alliance in which France provides funds for the Swedish army invading northern Germany.

title: 1631

text: Catharina Stopia succeeds her spouse as Sweden's ambassador to Russia, becoming perhaps the first female diplomat in Europe.

title: 1632

text: September 12 – The Treaty of Sztumska Wieś is signed between Sweden and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.

title: 1635

text: March 5 – Thirty Years' War: The Treaty of Hamburg is signed by France and Sweden, providing the latter with funds.

title: 1638

text: April 14 – In the Battle of Chemnitz, Swedish forces under Johan Banér inflict a crushing defeat on the army of the Holy Roman Empire, prolonging the Thirty Years' War and allowing the Swedes to occupy Pirna and advance into Bohemia.

title: 1639

text: The town of Falun, Sweden is given city rights by Queen Kristina.

title: 1641

text: The village of Bro (Broo), Sweden is granted city rights for the second time and takes the name Kristinehamn (literally "Christina's port") after the Swedish monarch at this time, Queen Christina.

title: 1642

text: April 1 – Åmål, Sweden, is granted its city charter.

title: 1643

text: November 23 – Battle of Jüterbog (December 3 New Style): Sweden's forces defeat those of the Holy Roman Empire.

title: 1644

text: March 5 – Thirty Years' War – Battle of Jankau: The armies of Sweden decisively defeat the forces of the Holy Roman Empire, in one of the bloodiest battles of the war, in southern Bohemia, some 50 kilometres (31 mi) southeast of Prague.

title: 1645

text: March 14 – Thirty Years' War: Bavaria, Cologne, France and Sweden sign the Truce of Ulm.

title: 1647

text: April 11 – A commercial treaty between England and Sweden is signed.

title: 1654

text: The Stockholm Banco, the first bank to issue banknotes, is founded in Stockholm, Sweden.

title: 1656

text: June 1 – King Frederick III of Denmark signs a manifesto, de facto declaring war on Sweden.

title: 1657

text: March 8 (February 26 OS) – The peace between Sweden and Denmark-Norway is concluded in Roskilde by the Treaty of Roskilde, under which Denmark is forced to cede significant territory. This leads to Sweden reaching its territorial height during its time as a great power.

title: 1658

text: February 11 – The Assault on Copenhagen by Swedish forces is beaten back, with heavy losses.

title: 1659

text: February 13 – Charles XI becomes king of Sweden at the age of five, upon the death of his father, Charles X Gustavus.

title: 1660

text: July 1 – The war between the empires of Russia and Sweden is ended with the signing of the Treaty of Cardis in what is now the Estonian city of Kärde. Russia returns those portions of Livonia and Ingria that it had taken earlier from Sweden.

title: 1661

text: February 22 – The Lejonkulan ("lion's den") opens at Stockholm in Sweden as the first permanent theater in Scandinavia, with the performance of Jean Magnon's Orontes en Satira.

title: 1667

text: January 23 – The Triple Alliance of 1668 is formed between England, Sweden and the United Provinces of the Netherlands.

title: 1668

text: October 15 – The Torsåker witch trials begin in the Torsåker Parish in Sweden, with over 100 men and women accused of witchcraft and the abduction of children. On June 1, 1675, the mass beheading of the 71 people convicted takes place at Häxberget, 65 of whom are women. The others are two men and four boys.

title: 1674

text: May 15 – After an invasion and attempt to take over the German principality of Brandenburg, the army of Sweden makes its first conquest, forcing the surrender of the fortress at Löcknitz.

title: 1675

text: December 4 – Scanian War – Battle of Lund: Sweden defeats the forces of Denmark.

title: 1676

text: July 14 – Battle of Landskrona: Sweden and its 13,000 troops, under the command of King Charles XI, successfully repel a 12,000-man invasion force from Denmark, commanded by King Christian V.

title: 1677

text: May 31 – Scanian War: Battle of Møn – Danish ships clash with a Swedish fleet under Niels Juel, between Fehmarn and Warnemünde; the Danish defeat the Swedish and capture a number of ships.

title: 1677

text: May 6 – King Charles XI of Sweden marries Princess Elonora, daughter of the late King Frederick III of Denmark-Norway and sister of King Christian V.

title: 1680

text: October 29 – At the request of King Charles XI of Sweden, the Riksdag in Sweden enacts the Great Reduction, returning fiefs which had been granted to the Swedish nobility to the Crown. The nation becomes an absolute monarchy under the rule of Charles.

title: 1680

text: July 9 – The Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg) is founded, in response to claims made by Louis XIV of France on the Electorate of the Palatinate in western Germany. It comprises the Holy Roman Empire, the Netherlands, Sweden, Spain, the electors of Bavaria, Saxony and the Electorate of the Palatinate.

title: 1686

text: The textile factory Barnängens manufaktur is founded in Stockholm, Sweden.

title: 1691

text: The Great Famine of 1695–1697 begins as the Great Famine of Estonia (1695–97) in Swedish Estonia and spreads across Finland, Latvia, Norway and Sweden, while the "seven ill years" of famine in Scotland are ongoing.

title: 1695

text: Christopher Polhem starts Sweden's first technical school.

title: 1697

text: July 19 – Crossing of the Düna: Following his victories over Denmark-Norway and Russia in 1700, Charles XII of Sweden escalates the conflict in the Great Northern War by an invasion of Poland. The Swedish defeat the army of Saxony (then in personal union with Poland) at the River Dvina.

title: 1701

text: March 24 – Great Northern War: Battle of Darsūniškis – The Swedish army of about 240 men under the command of Alexander Hummerhielm is defeated by the Polish–Saxon army of 6,000 men under Michał Serwacy Wiśniowiecki.

title: 1702

text: May 16 – Much of the city of Uppsala, Sweden is destroyed in a fire.

title: 1702

text: May 27 (May 16 OS) – The city of Saint Petersburg, Russia is founded, following Peter the Great's reconquest of Ingria from Sweden during the Great Northern War.

title: 1703

text: June 15 – Anna Eriksdotter becomes the last person to be executed for Witchcraft in Sweden. (b. 1624)

title: 1704

text: August 27 – Charles XII of Sweden launches his campaign to conquer Russia, marching to the east from Altranstädt with 60,000 coalition troops. Another 16,000 soldiers are waiting on the outskirts of Riga, guarding the Swedish supply lines.

title: 1707

text: February 4 – Great Northern War: Eighteen months after losing the Battle of Warsaw, while leading a cavalry charge for Saxony against the army of Sweden, General Otto von Paykull of Swedish Livonia is beheaded outside of Stockholm, following his conviction for treason.

title: 1707

text: Fearful of a Swedish attack, the Russians blow up the city of Tartu, Estonia.

title: 1708

text: In Sweden, the Royal Society of Sciences in Uppsala is founded as the Collegium curiosorum.

title: 1710

text: October 10 – Great Northern War – Capitulation of Estonia: the Swedish garrison in Reval (Tallinn) surrenders, ending Swedish rule in Estonia.

title: 1710

text: September 26 – Great Northern War – Capitulation of Livonia: the Swedish garrison in Riga surrenders, ending Swedish rule in modern Latvia.

title: 1710

text: April 11 – Great Northern War: the Battle of Fladstrand takes place at sea near Fladstrand, Jylland, between Swedish and Danish forces.

title: 1712

text: March 11 (February 30 Swedish Style, February 29 on the Julian calendar) – Sweden temporarily adopts the rare February 30, as a day to adjust the Swedish Calendar back to the Julian calendar.

title: 1712

text: May 3 – A total solar eclipse is seen across southern England, Sweden and Finland (the last total eclipse visible in London for almost 900 years). English astronomer Edmond Halley (who is using the old style Julian calendar date of April 22) records the first observation noted of the phenomenon of "Baily's beads", in which higher elevations on the moon can be observed obscuring portions of the light moments before and after totality.

title: 1715

text: January 1 – Count Carl Gyllenborg, the Swedish ambassador to Great Britain, was arrested in London for a plot to assist the Pretender to the British throne, James Francis Edward Stuart.

title: 1717

text: December 11 (November 30 Old Style) – King Charles XII of Sweden is killed at the Siege of Fredriksten in the Great Northern War, the last European monarch to die on a battlefield. His death ends the first era of absolute monarchy in Sweden. Five days later, when the news reaches Stockholm, his sister Princess Ulrika Eleonora proclaims herself Queen regnant of Sweden.

title: 1718

text: December 2 – Workers in Falun Mine, Sweden, find the apparently petrified body of "Fet-Mats" Israelsson (d. 1677), in a flooded part of the copper workings.

title: 1719

text: February 3 (January 23 Old Style) – The Riksdag of the Estates (the parliament of Sweden) recognizes Ulrika Eleonora's claim to the Swedish throne, after she has agreed to sign a new Swedish constitution. Thus, she is recognized as queen regnant of Sweden.

title: 1719

text: October 28 – Sweden and Denmark-Norway sign an armistice, halting combat in the Great Northern War between them, with final terms agreed to in the Treaty of Frederiksborg on July 3, 1720.

title: 1719

text: January 21 – Treaties of Stockholm (Great Northern War): Sweden and Prussia sign a treaty by which part of Swedish Pomerania, including the town of Stettin, is ceded to Prussia.

title: 1720

text: January 23 (January 12 Old Style) – The Conventicle Act (Konventikelplakatet) is adopted in Sweden, outlawing all non-Lutheran religious meetings outside of church services.

title: 1726

text: January 23 – The Civil Code of 1734 is passed in Sweden.

title: 1736

text: October 11 – The first national stage in Sweden opens, when Carl Gyllenborg's play Den svenska sprätthöken is performed in the Swedish language, by the first native actors, on the stage of Bollhuset in Stockholm.

title: 1737

text: June 13 – (June 2 Old Style); The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences is founded in Stockholm, Sweden.

title: 1739

text: August 18 (August 7 Old Style) – Russia and Sweden sign the Treaty of Åbo.

title: 1743

text: July 3 – As a concession to Russia, Sweden's parliament ratifies the election of Adolphus Frederick of Holstein-Gottorp, a great-grandson of King Charles XI, to be heir to the throne of Sweden. Adolphus becomes king on the death of King Frederick on April 5, 1751, marking the end of the Hesse-Kassel dynasty and the start of the dynasty of the Holstein-Gottorp that will rule Sweden from 1751 to 1818

title: 1743

text: April 5 – Sweden's King Frederick I dies at the age of 74 (March 25 on the Julian calendar, which remains in effect in Sweden and Finland until 1753), after a reign of 31 years, bringing an end to the rule of Sweden by the House of Hesse because he has no legitimate heirs. Prince Adolf Frederick of the House of Holstein-Gottorp, who had been elected as the crown prince in 1743, becomes the new King.

title: 1751

text: March 1 – Sweden adopts the Gregorian calendar, by skipping the 11 days difference between it and the Julian calendar, and letting February 17 be followed directly by March 1.

title: 1753

text: June 22 – The Coup of 1756, an attempted coup d'état planned by Queen Louisa Ulrika of Sweden, to abolish the rule of the Riksdag of the Estates and reinstate absolute monarchy in Sweden with the support of the Hovpartiet, is exposed and subdued.

title: 1756

text: March 21 – Sweden signs an alliance treaty with France and Austria in the multinational effort to remove King Frederick the Great, even though Queen Consort Ulrika of Sweden is Frederick's sister. Sweden agrees to contribute 25,000 troops to the French and Austrian force.

title: 1757

text: September 13 – Pomeranian War: A column of troops from Sweden begins the surprise invasion of Prussia, setting up a pontoon bridge across the Peene River that marks the boundary between Swedish Pomerania and northern Prussia. After crossing at Loitz in the early morning hours, the troops march 10 km and begin the occupation of the undefended Prussian town of Demmin. Hours later, another Swedish infantry regiment charges across the border into the Prussian town of Anklam, where the city gate had been left open.

title: 1757

text: July 19 – The Great Stockholm Fire 1759 breaks out at Södermalm in Stockholm, Sweden.

title: 1759

text: December 2 – The Law on the Freedom of Printing abolishes censorship in Sweden and guarantees freedom of the press, making Sweden the first country of the world to introduce constitutional protection of press freedom, and to pass wide-ranging freedom of information legislation.

title: 1766

text: February 12 – Upon the death of Adolf Frederick, he is succeeded as King of Sweden by his son Gustav III. At the time, however, Gustav is unaware of this, since he is abroad in Paris; the news of his father's death reaches him about a month later.

title: 1771

text: August 21 – A coup d'état by King Gustav III is completed by adopting a new Constitution, ending half a century of parliamentary rule in Sweden, and making him an enlightened despot.

title: 1772

text: January 18 – The first opera performance in the Swedish language, Thetis and Phelée, performed by Carl Stenborg and Elisabeth Olin in Bollhuset in Stockholm, Sweden, marks the establishment of the Royal Swedish Opera.

title: 1773

text: November 17 – The city of Kuopio, Finland (belonging to Sweden at this time) is founded by King Gustav III of Sweden.

title: 1775

text: June 6 – A fire destroys major parts of the town of Askersund, Sweden.

title: 1776

text: March – Restrictions on the grain trade in Sweden are lifted.

title: 1776

text: October 1 – The city of Tampere, Finland (belonging to Sweden at this time) is founded by King Gustav III of Sweden.

title: 1779

text: March 11 – The First League of Armed Neutrality is formed by Russia with Denmark and Sweden to try to prevent the British Royal Navy from searching neutral vessels for contraband (February 28 O.S.).

title: 1780

text: April 3 – A Peace and Commercial Treaty is signed between the newly-formed United States and Sweden in Paris, among the first acts of state concluded between the U.S. and a foreign power.

title: 1783

text: October 23 – The settlement of Östersund is established in Sweden.

title: 1786

text: May 10 – The Royal Dramatic Theatre (Kungliga Dramatiska Teatern), Sweden's national drama company, is founded.

title: 1788

text: February 21 – King Gustav III enforces the Union and Security Act, delivering the coup de grace to Sweden's 70-year-old parliamentarian system, in favor of absolute monarchy.

title: 1789

text: August 1 – Aristocrats in Sweden gather to mourn the demise of coffee after the beverage is forbidden by royal decree.

title: 1794

text: April 23 – Sweden becomes the first monarchy to recognize the French Republic - Swedish ambassador introduced into the French Convention.

title: 1795

text: February 21 – Russia issues an ultimatum to Sweden, to join Napoleon's Continental System against the United Kingdom.

title: 1808

text: August 23 – Napoleonic Wars – Battle of Großbeeren: Napoleon is defeated by Prussia and Sweden.

title: 1813

text: January 14 – Treaty of Kiel: Frederick VI of Denmark cedes the Kingdom of Norway into personal union with Sweden, in exchange for west Pomerania. This marks the end of the real union of Denmark-Norway.

title: 1814

text: May 11 – Charles XIV of Sweden–Norway is crowned king of Sweden.

title: 1818

text: May 3 – Pehr Henrik Ling, pioneer of physical education in Sweden (b. 1776)

title: 1839

text: June 18 – Education in Sweden: A primary school system is established in Sweden.

title: 1842

text: Swedish chemistry professor Gustaf Erik Pasch is granted a privilege for his invention of a safety match.

title: 1844

text: September 30 – HSwMS Eugenie leaves from Karlskrona, Sweden to begin its voyage as the first Swedish Royal Navy vessel to circumnavigate the world.

title: 1851

text: June 22 – In Sweden, the Riksdag of the Estates votes to replace itself by an elected two-chamber Riksdag.

title: 1866

text: The Swedish arms company Aktiebolaget (AB) Bofors-Gullspång, better known as Bofors, is founded.

title: 1873

text: April 1 – Lars Magnus Ericsson starts a small mechanical workshop in Stockholm, Sweden (from April 27 partnering with Carl Johan Andersson), dealing with telegraphy equipment, which grows into the worldwide company Ericsson.

title: 1876

text: October 31 – A fire destroys the Eldkvarn gristmill in Stockholm, Sweden.

title: 1878

text: ASEA is founded by Ludvig Fredholm in Sweden, predecessor of the global electronic equipment and engineering business ABB.

title: 1883

text: May 16 – Sweden's Finance Minister Robert Themptander becomes his country's Prime Minister (1884–88).

title: 1884

text: Global construction and real estate development company Skanska is founded in Malmö, Sweden.

title: 1887

text: April 10 – The Hammarby Roddförening (later Hammarby IF) sports club is founded in Sweden.

title: 1889

text: February 15 – Allmänna Idrottsklubben (AIK) sports club is founded in Stockholm, Sweden.

title: 1891

text: June 15 – Sweden's Department of Foreign Affairs hosts a conference for delegates from Germany, Denmark, Norway, the UK, the Netherlands, Russia and Sweden to make agreements on fishing in the Arctic Ocean, the Baltic Sea and the North Sea.

title: 1899

text: October 4 – Swedish Association football club IFK Göteborg is founded, becoming the 39th IFK-association.

title: 1904

text: July 11–12 – The steamship Amalthea, housing 80 British strikebreakers in Malmö harbour, Sweden, is bombed by Anton Nilson; 1 is killed, 20 injured.

title: 1908

text: May 5 – The 1912 Summer Olympics open in Stockholm, Sweden. Modern Pentathlon is contested for the first time in these games.

title: 1912

text: Astra, a predecessor of the AstraZeneca global healthcare and pharmaceutical brand, is founded in Södertälje, Sweden.

title: 1913

text: February 17 – Karl Staaff steps down as Prime Minister of Sweden in the aftermath of the Courtyard Crisis. He is replaced by Hjalmar Hammarskjöld, father of Dag Hammarskjöld.

title: 1914

text: January 4 – The Finnish Declaration of Independence is recognized by Soviet Russia, Sweden, Germany and France.

title: 1918

text: March 10 – The world's first peaceful establishment of a social democratic government takes place in Sweden as Hjalmar Branting takes over as prime minister when Nils Edén leaves office.

title: 1920

text: June 5 – Ernst Alexanderson sends the first facsimile across the Atlantic Ocean, which goes to his father in Sweden.

title: 1924

text: June 24 – A Swedish aeroplane rescues some survivors of the Italian North Pole expedition, including Umberto Nobile. The Soviet icebreaker Krasin saves the rest July 12.

title: 1928

text: April 22 – Austria, the UK, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Sweden and the United States recognize the Spanish Republic.

title: 1931

text: January 22 – In Sweden, Victor Hasselblad registers the Hasselblad Camera Company.

title: 1941

text: January 12 – British submarine collides with Swedish oil tanker Divina in the Thames Estuary and sinks; 64 die.

title: 1950

text: An 18-year-old sailor is fined for kissing in public in Stockholm, Sweden. The law court calls his actions "obnoxious behavior repulsive to the public morals".

title: 1951

text: March 13 – The United Nations Security Council nominates Dag Hammarskjöld from Sweden as United Nations Secretary General.

title: 1953

text: June 10 – 1956 Summer Olympics: Equestrian events open in Stockholm, Sweden (all other events are held in November in Melbourne, Australia).

title: 1956

text: February 16 – Ingmar Bergman's film The Seventh Seal opens at cinemas in Sweden.

title: 1957

text: June 29 – Brazil beats Sweden 5–2 in the final game to win the football World Cup in Sweden.

title: 1958

text: April 24 – Swedish warship Vasa, sunk on her maiden voyage in 1628, is recovered from Stockholm Harbor.

title: 1961

text: May 13 – A smallpox outbreak hits Stockholm, Sweden, lasting until July.

title: 1963

text: September 3 – At 5:00 a.m. local time, all road traffic in Sweden switches from left-hand traffic pattern to right-hand traffic.<

title: 1967

text: October 1 – In Sweden, Olof Palme is elected Leader of the Social Democratic Worker's Party, replacing Tage Erlander as Prime Minister on October 14.

title: 1969

text: June 5–16 – The United Nations Conference on the Human Environment is held in Stockholm, Sweden

title: 1972

text: December – Chile breaks diplomatic contacts with Sweden.

title: 1973

text: April 6 – Swedish pop group ABBA's song "Waterloo" wins the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest in Brighton, England, UK.

title: 1974

text: July 1 – Sweden becomes the first country to outlaw corporal punishment in the home.

title: 1979

text: January 1 – Changes to the succession to the Swedish throne come into effect, introducing absolute primogeniture, thus placing Crown Princess Victoria first in line to the throne (heir apparent), ahead of her baby brother. Sweden is the first monarchy to adopt this rule of succession. Members of the royal family may also now marry commoners without losing their place in the succession.

title: 1980

text: March 25 – Sweden re-establishes diplomatic ties with the Vatican after a 450-year interruption. Sweden broke off relations in 1534 in keeping with the rise of Lutheranism.

title: 1983

text: May 5 – The Herreys' song "Diggi-Loo Diggi-Ley" wins the Eurovision Song Contest for Sweden in Luxembourg. It subsequently becomes a top-ten hit in five European countries.

title: 1984

text: May 4 – The 30th Eurovision Song Contest takes place in Gothenburg, Sweden and is won by the Bobbysocks! song La det swinge for Norway.

title: 1985

text: June 1–10 – Pope John Paul II visits Norway, Iceland, Finland, Denmark and Sweden.

title: 1989

text: June 10–26 – Sweden hosts the UEFA Euro 1992 football tournament, which is won by Denmark.

title: 1992

text: January 1 – Austria, Finland and Sweden join the European Union.

title: 1995

text: March 22 – Sweden's Finance Minister Göran Persson becomes the new Prime Minister of Sweden.

title: 1996

text: May 28 – Two Swedish police officers are wounded by bank robbers armed with automatic firearms, and later executed with their own service pistols in Malexander, Sweden.

title: 1999

text: July 1 – The Øresund Bridge between Denmark and Sweden is officially opened for traffic.

title: 2000

text: November 29 – The European Union agree to an €85 billion rescue deal for Ireland from the European Financial Stability Facility, the International Monetary Fund and bilateral loans from the United Kingdom, Denmark and Sweden.

title: 2010

text: May 10–14 – The Eurovision Song Contest 2016 is held in Stockholm, Sweden, and is won by Ukrainian entrant Jamala with the song "1944".

title: 2016

text: September 9 – The 2018 Swedish general election is held to elect all 349 members of the Riksdag, Sweden's unicameral legislature.

title: 2018

text: May 13 – Prosecutors in Sweden reopen the rape allegation investigation against Julian Assange. Swedish prosecutors mention their intent to seek extradition of Assange from the U.K. after he has served his 50-week prison sentence for skipping bail.

title: 2019

text: March 7 – As the final Nordic country to join the alliance, Sweden officially joins NATO, becoming its 32nd member after Finland a year earlier.

title: 2024

text: May 7–11 – The Eurovision Song Contest 2024 is held in Malmö, Sweden. Swiss contestant Nemo wins with the song "The Code".

title: 2024


slug: swedish-empire

label: Swedish Empire

description: the years 1611–1721 in the history of Sweden

section: Conflict & Security

date: July 16

text: July 16 – Ingrian war: The Swedish Empire wins a decisive victory against Tsarist Russia in Battle of Bronnitsy.

title: 1614

section: Events › July–September

date: July 8

text: July 8 – Thirty Years' War: Battle of Oldendorf – Sweden defeats the Holy Roman Empire near Hessisch Oldendorf.

title: 1633

date: July 1

text: July 1 – Torstenson War: Battle of Colberger Heide – The Dano-Norwegian and Swedish fleets fight a naval battle off the coast of Schleswig-Holstein. The battle is indecisive but represents a minor success for the Dano-Norwegian fleet.

title: 1644

date: March 8

text: March 8 (February 26 OS) – The peace between Sweden and Denmark-Norway is concluded in Roskilde by the Treaty of Roskilde, under which Denmark is forced to cede significant territory. This leads to Sweden reaching its territorial height during its time as a great power.

title: 1658

section: Events › January–March

date: May 3

text: May 3 – In the Treaty of Oliva, peace is made between the Swedish Empire, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Habsburgs and Brandenburg-Prussia.

title: 1660

section: Events › April–June

date: April 25

text: April 25 – The Swedish Empire signs a treaty with England and the Dutch Republic to join the Triple Alliance.

title: 1668

date: November 22

text: November 22 – The Treaty of Preobrazhenskoye, negotiated by Johann Patkul, is signed at a palace of the Tsar of Russia Peter the Great, and representatives of Augustus the Strong, Elector of Saxony, King of Poland and Elector of Saxony to provide for the partition of Swedish Empire between Saxony, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Kingdoms of Denmark-Norway and the Russian Empire. The attack on Sweden, which takes place on February 22, starts the Great Northern War.

title: 1699

date: August 18

text: August 18 (August 7 O.S.) – The Peace of Travendal is concluded between the Swedish Empire, Denmark–Norway and Holstein-Gottorp in Traventhal. On the same day, Augustus II, King of Poland, and Peter the Great, Tsar of Russia, enter the war against Sweden.

title: 1700

date: February 22

text: February 22 (Gregorian), February 12 (Julian) – The Great Northern War begins with a joint invasion of Swedish territory in Germany and Latvia, by Denmark and Poland/Saxony. Sweden has control of the Baltic Sea and holds territory that includes Finland, Estonia, Latvia and parts of northern Germany. To challenge its power, an alliance is formed between Tsar Peter I of Russia, King Frederick IV of Denmark and Augustus II the Strong, King of Poland and Elector of Saxony. Sweden's ruler is the militaristic Charles XII, known as the "Swedish Meteor".

title: 1700

date: November 28

text: November 28 – The Treaty of Warsaw is concluded between the Swedish Empire and the faction of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth loyal to Stanisław Leszczyński during the Great Northern War.

title: 1705

date: September 28

text: September 28 (O.S.); September 29 (Swedish calendar); October 9 (N.S.) – Great Northern War: Battle of Lesnaya – Peter the Great of Russia defeats the forces of the Swedish Empire.

title: 1708

section: Events › July–December

date: February 7

text: February 7 – The Siege of Tönning (a fortress of the Swedish Empire and now located in Germany in the state of Schleswig-Holstein) ends after almost a year, as Danish forces force the surrender of the remaining 1,600 defenders. The fortress is then leveled by the Danes.

title: 1714

text: July 8 – The Battle of Dynekilen: The Swedish fleet is defeated by a Danish–Norwegian fleet.

title: 1716

section: Climate & Environment

date: January 8

text: January 8 – Carolean Death March begins: A catastrophic retreat by a largely-Finnish Swedish-Carolean army under the command of Carl Gustaf Armfeldt across the Tydalen mountains in a blizzard kills around 3,700 men and cripples a further 600 for life.

title: 1719