Timeline of Ancient Greek History: 8.000 - 30 BC
- Published in History
According to archaeological and historical sources the story of Greece began deep in prehistory, and has continued to our days.
This timeline outlines the major periods and events of the Greek civilization from the Mesolithic period until the end of the Hellenistic Era.
Timeline of Greek History
8000 BCE | Mesolithic Period (8300-7000) |
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Earliest evidence of burials found in Franchthi Cave in the Argolid, Greece | 7250 BCE | |
Evidence of food producing economy, simple hut construction, and seafaring in mainland Greece and the Aegean | 7000 BCE | Neolithic Period (7000-3000 BCE) |
First "Megaron House" at Sesclo, in central Greece | 5700 BCE | |
Evidence of earliest fortifications at Dimini, Greece | 3400 BCE | |
Houses of Vasiliki and Myrtos Messara Tholoi House of Tiles at Lerna
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3000 BCE | Aegean Bronze Age or Early Bronze Age (3000-2000) Minoan Prepalatial Early Cycladic Culture Early Helladic Period |
2600 BCE | Minoan Prepalatial Period or: EMIIA, EMIIB, MMIII (2600-2000 BCE) |
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Destruction of Minoan settlements | 2000 BCE | Minoan Protopalatial Period or: MMIA, MMIB, MMI IA, MMI IB, MMI IIA, MMI IIB, LMIA Early (1900-1700 BCE) Early Middle Cycladic (2000-1600 BCE) Middle Helladic Period |
Destruction of Minoan palaces Settlement of Akrotiri, Thera Grave Circle B at Mycenae |
1700 BCE | Minoan Neopalatial Period or: LMIA Advanced, LMIA Final, LMIB Early, LMIB Late, LMII (1700-1400) |
Eruption of Thera volcano (sometime between 1627 and 1600) | 1627 BCE | |
Grave Circle A at Mycenae Legends: Argo Voyage, Heracles, Oedipus |
1600 BCE | Late Bronze Period or The Heroic Age (1600-1100) |
Tholos Tomb at Mycenae | 1550 BCE | Late Helladic Period (1500-1100) |
Linear B writing (1450-1180) | 1450 BCE | |
Mycenaean Palaces Evidence of expanded Mycenaean trade at Levand |
1400 BCE | Minoan Postpalatial Period or: LMIIIA1, LMIIIA2, LMIIIB, LMIIIC (1400-1100) |
Palace of Knossos destruction | 1370 BCE | |
"Sea Peoples" begin raids in the Eastern Mediterranean | 1300 BCE | Mycenaean Culture (1300-1000) |
Trojan War (1250 or 1210) |
1250 BCE | |
Destruction of many Mycenaean palaces Doric Invasions? (1200-1100) Sea Peoples (1200-1100) |
1200 BCE | |
1180 BCE | Sub-Mycenaean Period (1180-1050) |
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Destruction of Miletus and resettlement | 1100 BCE | Sub-Minoan Period (1150-950) Dark Age of Greece Proto-Geometric Period |
End of Mycenaean civilization Lefkandi: Toumba building |
1000 BCE | |
900 BCE | Geometric Period (900-700)
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First Olympic Games | 776 BCE | |
Greek colonies established in Southern
Italy & Sicily Invention of Greek alphabet Homeric poems recorded in writing (750-700) |
750 BCE | Late Geometric (circa 760-700) |
740 BCE | Orientalizing Period (circa 740-650) |
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First Messenian War Sparta invades Messenia (730-710) Naxos founded (734) Syracuse founded (733) |
730 BCE | |
700 BCE | Archaic Period (700-480) |
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Earliest Lyric Poets | 650 BCE | |
Second Messenian War Sparta invades Messenia (640-630) Cyrene founded (630) |
640 BCE | |
Sappho born in Lesbos | 630 BCE | |
Thales (625-545) born in Miletos | 625 BCE | |
Pythagoras (ca. 569-475) born in Samos | 569 BCE | |
Solon replaces the Draconian law in Athens and lays the foundation for Democracy. He introduced to Athens the first coinage and a system of weights and measures |
594 BCE | |
Pisistratos becomes tyrant of Athens | 546 BCE | |
Pesistratos Dies. His sons become tyrants of Athens | 527 BCE | |
Red-figure pottery developed in Athens | 525 BCE | |
Alcmaeonid family and Spartans free Athens from tyranny. Introduction of Democracy in Athens |
510 BCE | |
Kleisthenes begins reforming Athenian code of laws, and establishes a democratic constitution | 508 BCE | |
Ionian revolt | 499 BCE | |
Ionian revolt defeated by Persians | 494 BCE | |
Persian Wars | 497-479 BCE | |
Battle of Marathon Athenians defeat Darius and his Persian army |
490 BCE | |
Silver mines discovered near Athens. Athens begin building naval fleet |
483 BCE | |
Aristides ostracized | 482 BCE | |
Xerxes marches on Greece Battle of Thermopylae Persians burn the Acropolis Athens and allies defeat Persian fleet at naval battle of Salamis |
480 BCE | Classical Period (480-323 ) Transitional (480-450) |
Battle of Plataea Greeks defeat Persian army |
479 BCE | |
Delian league lead by Athens | 477 BCE | |
Earthquake in Lakonia Helot revolt against Sparta in Messenia |
465 BCE | |
Peloponnesian Wars: "First Peloponnesian War" |
461-445 | |
Perikles leads Athens through its "Golden Era" (ca. 460-429) | 460 BCE | |
Aeschylus produces "the Oresteia" trilogy of tragedies (Agamemnon, Libation Barers, Eumenides) in Athens |
458 BCE | |
Delian league treasury moved from Delos to Athens | 454 BCE | |
Sophist Protagoras visits Athens | 450 BCE | |
Acropolis and other major building projects begin in Athens Construction of Parthenon (449-432) Sophocles produces the tragedy "Ajax" |
449 BCE | |
Thirty-year peace treaty signed between Athens and Sparta in winter 446/445 | 446 BCE | |
Sophocles produces "Antigone" in Athens 430-429 | 441 BCE | |
Peloponnesian War (431-404) resumes Euripedes produces "Medea" in Athens |
431 BCE | |
Plague epidemic in Athens | 430 BCE | |
Death of Perikles | 429 BCE | |
Peace of Nicias | 421 BCE | |
Construction of Temple of Athena Nike (420-410) | 420 BCE | |
Athenians resume hostilities Spartans defeat Athens at Mantinea |
418 BCE | |
Athens razes Melos | 416 BCE | |
Athens expedition to Syracuse Alcibiades defects to Sparta |
415 BCE | |
Syracuse defeats Athens | 413 BCE | |
Aristophanes produces "Lysistrata" | 411 BCE | |
Athens surrenders to Sparta Thirty tyrants rule Athens |
404 BCE | |
Democracy restored in Athens | 403 BCE | |
Trial and execution of Socrates | 399 BCE | |
Plato establishes the Athens Academy | 380 BCE | |
Sparta defeated in Leuctra | 371 BCE | |
Thebes defeats Sparta at Mantinea | 362 BCE | |
Philip II, becomes King of Macedonia | 359 BCE | |
Macedonian army defeats Athens and its allies at Chaeronea League of Corinth founded |
338 BCE | |
Phillip II Assassinated. Alexander the Great becomes king of Macedonia |
336 BCE | |
Aristotle founds the Lyceum in Athens | 335 BCE | |
Alexander the Great defeats Persian army at Granicus river in Anatolia | 334 BCE | |
Alexander the Great defeats Persians at Issus | 333 BCE | |
Tyre capitulates to Alexander after siege | 332 BCE | |
Alexander invades Egypt City of Alexandria founded in Egypt Alexander defeats Persians at Gaugamela |
331 BCE | |
Alexander's army reaches Bactria (Afghanistan) | 329 BCE | |
Alexander marries Roxane (princes of Bactria) | 327 BCE | |
Alexander's army reaches India | 326 BCE | |
Death of Alexander the Great | 323 BCE | Hellenistic Period (323-146) |
Aristotle dies | 322 BCE | |
Stoic philosopher Zeno founds school in Athens | 310 BCE | |
Stoic philosopher Epicurus founds school in Athens | 307 BCE | |
Ptolemy I founds museum in Alexandria | 300 BCE | |
Archimedes (287-212) born in Syracuse | 287 BCE | |
Achaean League founded | 284 BCE | |
Invasion of Greece by Gauls | 279 BCE | |
Gauls defeated by king Attalus I | 238 BCE | |
First Macedonian War (214-204) Rome defeats Philip V of Macedon |
214 BCE | |
Second Macedonian War (200-196) Victory of Flamininus at Cynoscephalae |
200 BCE | |
Third Macedonian War (172-168/7) Lucius Aemelius Paulus of Rome defeats Perseus of Macedon at Pydna. Macedonia divided into four republics |
172 BCE | |
Roman Invasion of Greece Mummius Achaicus sacks Corinth and dissolves the Achaean league. Rome rules Greece henceforth |
146 BCE | Late Hellenistic or Greco-Roman (146-30) |
Romans led by Sulla sack Athens | 86 BCE | |
Battle of Aktion Octavian (later Augustus) defeats Mark Antony and Cleopatra |
31 BCE | |
Death of Cleopatra |
30 BCE | End of "Ancient Greece" period |
Source:Ancient-Greece