Timeline (Atlantic Islands)

Timeline of events for Atlantic Islands (open to any suggestions for events or timing).

Pre-history

 * circa 13,000 B.C. - Stone Age hunters from Europe cross to North America during the last Ice Age. They use the Atlantic Islands as stepping stones. During the, the sea level was lower, meaning there were even more, and larger islands, than there are at present. The European nomads add to the genetic diversity of the mostly Siberian descended native Americans, especially on the eastern seaboard of the North American continent. Also, a few pockets of habitation remain on the larger of the Greater Azores.
 * c. 10,000 B.C. - The last Ice Age ends, and the ice retracts to the poles. The melted ice raises the Earth's sea levels, and almost all of the large islands in the Atlantic Ocean are flooded by water. Only several smaller islands remain.
 * c. 1500 B.C  - Minoian artifacts are found in the Ampere Islands.
 * c. 700 B.C  - Ampere is belivied to be mentioned in Homer's Odyseey, as Amphacikade, the island is featured as Odysseus's battle with the 7 headed Mydra the sister of the creature Scylla that resided much farther east.
 * c. 400 B.C - Keltic Gauls settle on the Greater Azories, being isolated from Euraisa they evolve into their own culture the Amphiness Glamgoris 
 * c. 300 B.C. - A Phoenician expedition reaches the Greater Azores. There, they find an obscene basalt altar dedicated to an Octopoid god together with the Pnakotic manuscripts. They are attacked by native Gauls and flee back to Carthage.

Ancient and Medieval history

 * c. 175 A.D - A Roman Merchant by the name of Segrigo (according to refferences) is ship wrecked on Amper finding Afircan inhabitents. Emperor Marcus Aruelis sends 300 colonists to the Amper, Amper is rexonigzed as a Roman Pronvince and has regular contact with the Empire until 400 A.D.
 * c. 460 A.D - Roman general Marcus Arthurius and a British Lord cited as Gwanie made voyages to an island referred as Recedentia Meridianus Occasus part of the Azories Island Chain. Then Arthuis goes to Amper and defends it aganist Vandal Pirates
 * c. 600 A.D - Irish Monks settle on Pellennig Gorllewin part of the Greater Azories bulding the monastery Brith Caregu. For centuries to come the island will be a mystical place in Keltic Literature
 * c. 850 A.D - Norse raiders destroy homesteads and monastaries in the Azories.and the Amperes they estabalish settlements on the Corner, Kelvin and Greater Bermuda. According to accounts a raiding party lands on North America
 * c. 900 A.D - Emerson Auigor is founded on Cape Cod with 80 settlers, the colony will grow to ecompass all of Massachusetts by 1300 A.D.
 * c. 1050 A.D - Berber Pirates raid but fail to conquer the Ampere Islands.

Early modern history

 * 12th Century - The Greater Azores were discovered by Basque fishermen and soon hosted small settlements from Portugal and France.
 * 13th Century - Basques discovered the Corner Islands in the early 13th century and tried to keep their existence a secret. By the end of the century they also discovered the Greater Bermuda Islands, Kelvin Islands, and the North America.
 * Early 14th Century - The existence of the islands and of the New World became common knowledge in Europe and North Africa. Semi-permanent settlements were established in Bermuda and New England.
 * 16th Century - The previous existence of the handful of European colonies innoculated the Native Americans against the worst of Old World diseases, such as cholera, influenza and smallpox. Although these diseases still devastated the Native Americans, especially the Aztec Empire, they were better able to resist the Conquistadors and retain more of their identity.
 * c. 1520 - Explorers from the travel through the Atlantic Ocean and land in present-day.
 * 1591 - The Songhai Empire collapses. Colonists in New Songhai assume their own sovereignty.
 * 17th Century - Spanish galleons returning from the New World are heavily attacked by British and French privateers and pirates operating from numerous bases on the islands. Far fewer ships reach Spain and so Spain is unable to finance its wars against the Dutch rebels to the same extent. The Netherlands gains its independance sooner and Spain takes a less active role in the Thirty Years War (1618-1648). Spain sinks into economic decline by the 1640s.
 * 1650 - Oliver Cromwell and the Protectorate seize a few of the Corner Islands and the whole of the Greater Bermudas for England.
 * 1650s-1680s - Numerous plantations and depots established throughout the Islands. Slave ships lose far fewer of their cargo as they are better supplied and sick captives are discharged onto the Islands. Although slavery still takes place, fewer Africans are needed and taken on the Middle Passage to the New World. The economies and societies of West Africa are not quite as traumatised by the savagery and depopulation and there are some independant native African Kingdoms and countries throughout the colonial period. These are mainly to be found in the more developed Islamic areas of what in OTL is Northern Nigeria and Timbuktu etc.
 * 1725 - The Greater Bermuda Alligator, a rare form of crocodile, becomes extinct.
 * 1776-1785 - Britain uses its bases in the Greater Bermudas and Corner Islands in the American Revolution. Although fewer sailors and troops get scurvy or other diseases, the 13 Colonies become independant and become USA.
 * 1799 - The Kelvin Islands are annexed to the USA and become one of its territories.

19th Century

 * 1800s - Ships from New Songhai use routes to the Americas to bring freed and runaway slaves to sanctuary in their island nation. Unfortunately, despite its idealistic aims, it becomes a byword for corruption and poverty. It establishes relations with Britain, which causes an American blockade during the War of 1812-1814.
 * 1816 - The Kelvin Islands become the USA's 21st state.
 * 1864 - General Augustus P. Barrard from the Kelvin Isles is shot by a sniper at the Battle of the Wilderness leading his Federal Troops.
 * 1871  - A senator from the Kelvin Isles convinces his fellow congress men to vote in favor of Dominican president Buenaventura Baez's request to give Santo Domingo Statehood.

20th Century

 * 1939-1945 - The islands create a new dimension in WWII. The Vichy French and Portuguese colonies are taken over by Great Britain and USA to make air bases for the RAF and USAAF. Because of this, the Battle of the Atlantic is a lot less severe for the allied forces as the bases provide better air cover for the convoys. There is no "black gap" in the middle of the Atlantic where there is no air cover. The U-Boat campaign causes far fewer merchant ships to be sunk and so more supplies reach Britain and Europe. Also, the convoys do not have to go the long way round via Iceland. The effects of the blitz on British morale is not as bad. D-Day is still June 1944 and the allies allow the Soviet forces to take Berlin for political reasons, even though American forces could have finished the war by Feb 1945. German U-Boats concentrate more in the Mediterranean and off West Africa instead.


 * 1959 - The Greater Bermuda and Corner Islands become US territories.


 * 1960s-1970s - The growth in package tourism benefits the economies of the Greater Azores and other Atlantic Islands. As there are fewer tourists to the Spanish Costas, they are not as overdeveloped.


 * Early 1980s - During the Cold War, the United States takes control of some Atlantic Islands, and used them as missile bases and refueling stations for spy planes.