Timeline 1-300 (Interference)

1-100 AD
ca. 1st c. AD - The Ligurian language and traditions prove resistant to the process of Latinization, resulting in an area of stable bilingualism between the Po and the Ligurian Sea. The Pictish language is born out of contact between the Iberic language of northern Britannia and Celtic Briton.

The Chinese invent paper. Roman colonization of the Danube basin and the Rhine river valley. The dromedary is introduced to Egypt and the Sahara.

The Kingdom of Kushan is powerful and controls the area between Central Asia and India.

30-33 Jesus of Nazareth preaches in Palestine. The kingdom of Osrhoene (between Syria and Cappadocia, with its capital at Edessa) is the first state to adopt Christianity, under King Abgar V Ukkama (Abgar the Black), a correspondent with and admirer of Jesus.

33 Jesus of Nazareth, called the Christ, is crucified in Jerusalem as a blasphemer, rises from the dead after three days and ascends to heaven. His followers (the Apostles) spread Christianity.

34-44 The Romans incorporate the Jewish kingdoms of Bethany and Galilee after the death of their rulers from the dynasty of Herod.

37-47 The Parthians occupy Gordiene (central Kurdistan) and subjugate Armenia, but within ten years the Romans reestablish their influence, extending it as far as Caucasian Albania (Azerbaijan).

42 There is an abortive revolt against the Roman emperor Claudius in Dalmatia. The Roman empire absorbs Mauretania. The small kingdoms of Geumgwam, Tae and Karak arise, and unite in the Kaya/Gaya Confederation, a Japanese “enclave” at the tip of the Korean peninsula.

43 The Roman empire absorbs Lycia (Southeast Asia Minor) and conquers southern Britannia. Ma Yuan, the Chinese general of the Han, conquers Tonkin and Annam, bringing about an end to the Vietnamese revolt led by the Trung sisters.

44 Some natives of Hesperia (*OTL America), thrown off course in their canoes by Atlantic storms, land in Lusitania/Portugal and are enslaved by Romans. Upon the death of Herod Agrippa I, king of Galilee and Peraea (the eastern part of the Jordan river valley), the Romans annex the two kingdoms.

46 Thrace and Noricum are definitively incorporated into the Roman Empire.

47 The Romans exact tribute from the Frisians.

48 The vast empire of the Xiongnu/Huns is divided into northern (or western) and southern (or eastern) portions.

ca. 50 The kingdom of Colchis (NW Georgia) becomes a vassal of Pontus (Tauride; OTL Crimea). The Iazyges, forerunners of the Sarmatians, are expelled from eastern Moldavia (Bessarabia) by their close relatives, the Roxolani, and occupy Slovakia, exchanging their influence there for the kingdom of Dacia. In eastern Turkestan, the kingdom of Su Lih (the region of Kashgar) is established, to escape the Tocharians/Yüeh-Ch’ih and as a close ally of Han China.

51 The Romans capture the Briton chieftain Caratacus, leader of the anti-Roman resistance.

55 After the restoration of the Arsacid Tiridates I (a member of the ruling dynasty of Parthia), the war between Parthia and Rome for supremacy over Armenia breaks out. Iberia (central Georgia) also liberates itself from Roman supremacy under other Arsacids, Bartom II and Qartam, who establish a kingdom with two kings (as in ancient Sparta).

58 An unsuccessful rebellion against the Romans in Frisia; the alliance with Rome is confirmed under the new Ubbo dynasty.

58-60 The Roman general Corbulo conquers Armenia and secures its fealty by deposing King Tiridates.

ca. 60 The Iazyges establish themselves in the valley of Tisza river (Pannonia). The Kushan Empire conquers the kingdom of Suren (a vassal of the Parthians).

61 The Romans suppress the rebellion of Queen Boudicca (Boadicea) in Britannia.

62 The Parthians defeat the Romans under General Peto at Rhandeia (Armenia). The Romans seize overlordship over Colchis (NE Georgia) from the Pontus kingdom.

62-68 The Cimmerian Bosphorus kingdom (Bosporon/Kerč) is briefly annexed by Rome.

63 A peace without annexations is declared between the Romans and the Parthians, who renounce all claims to Armenia; Tiridates I returns to his throne as a Roman vassal.

64 The Romans explore the Nile as far as Bahr al-Ghazal (Sudan); an enormous fire devastates Rome; the Emperor Nero, a sadistic lunatic, blames the Christians and persecutes them.

65 Unsuccessful plot of Lucius Calpurnius Piso against Nero in Rome.

66 The rebellion of the Jews breaks out in Palestine.

67 Rome reconquers Galilee from the rebellious Jews.

68-69 Suicide of Nero, end of the Julio-Claudians, and year of the Four Emperors (Galba, Otho, Vitellius, and Vespasian) in Rome; Vespasian triumphs in the second battle of Bedriacum (northern Italy) and founds the Flavian dynasty. The Romans reconquer Judea and Idumea and lay siege to Jerusalem, which resists them fanatically.

69-71 The Roman legions between Batavia (Holland) and Treviri revolt; the Roxolani invade Moesia but are deflected.

70 The Roman general Titus, son of the emperor Vespasian, seizes Jerusalem and razes it to the ground, destroying its temple and putting an end to the millennial line of the High Priests (the Jewish “Popes”).

ca. 70 The satrap Bhumaka of the Satakani kingdom (also known as the Satavahana or Andhra) of the Deccan establishes the supremacy of the Sakas (Scythians) as far as the western coast of India.

72 The Alans, an Iranian people of Central Asia and the eastern branch of the Sarmatians, invade the transcaucasus region, establishing themselves there. Rome definitively annexes the kingdom of Commagene (NE of Antioch). Rome defeats the Brigantes of northern Britannia and forces them into submission.

73 Mass suicide of the defenders of the fortress of Masada, the last stronghold of the Jewish revolt in Palestine.

73-74 Rome conquers the Agri Decumates between the Upper Rhine, the Main, and the Danube, and subjugates the Siluri of SE Cambria / Wales.

74-76 The Chinese general Ban Chao subjugates Turkestan for the Han, but it is subsequently reclaimed by Luoyang.

78-96 King Kanishka expands the Kushan empire to its greatest extent, from Central Asia to Northern India.

79 The violent eruption of Vesuvius destroys Pompeii.

80 The Colosseum is dedicated in Rome while a plague rages.

ca. 80 The Kushan empire conquers the kingdom of Margiana (Turkmenistan).

80-97 Ban Chao, having returned to eastern Turkestan, obtains an astounding victory against the Tocharians who have not yet submitted to Han rule, and advances through Central Asia as far as the Caspian sea.

83 Germany: the Romans rout the Chatti (Germany), who had migrated from Lower Saxony to Franconia.

84 The Roman general Agricola defeats the Britanni, occupies Cambria (Wales), and advances as far as Caledonia (Scotland), where he defeats the Picts under Calgacus at Mons Graupius, before retreating below the southern boundaries of Caledonia.

ca. 85 The kingdom of Gurat secedes from the kingdom of Saba, which is in decline.

85-89 The Romans fight against the Dacians, who have invaded Moesia, and deflect them.

89 Saturninus, Roman legate of Germania Superior, attempts an abortive revolt.

ca. 90 The ancient republic of Cherson (*OTL Sebastople) is annexed by the Cimmerian Bosphorus kingdom, a Roman vassal.

92-96 An inconclusive war is waged by the Roman emperor Domitian against the Quadi, the Marcomanni, and the Iazyges.

93 The Xianbi (ancestors of the Mongolians) defeat the northern Xiongnu (Huns), who are expelled from Mongolia into the region of Tarbagataj, between Siberia, Dzungaria, and Kazakhstan, and begin to migrate towards the west.

95 An envoy of the Han Chinese empire reaches Rome, where he speaks with Emperor Domitian prior to dying from an illness.

96 The assassination of Domitian puts an end to the Flavian dynasty in Rome.

97 The Chinese general Gan Ying briefly reaches the Persian Gulf.

98-117 The glorious reign of Trajan in the Roman Empire.

ca. 100 A brief, fruitless attempt by the Romans to conquer Hibernia (Ireland). The final decline of the great Olmec civilization in Mexico. The three Tamil states of Chera (Kerala), Chola (in the southeast) and Pandya (the deep south) occupy the southern Deccan. The legendary foundation of the Funan empire, with its center on the Mekong river basin, at the hands of the Indian brahmin priest Kambu; the kingdom experiences a strong Hinduization in its culture. Axum becomes the capital of a strong Ethiopian empire. Bokhara becomes the capital of an independent Sogdian kingdom. The local kingdom of Puya arises in SW Korea. In Yemen, the kingdom of Saba is decisively conquered by Himyar; nonetheless, a number of them escape the conquest to found the kingdom of Ma’rib.

100-200 AD
101-107 After two bloody campaigns (101-102, 105-107), Rome conquers Dacia and introduces the Latin language.

106 The Romans conquer the kingdom of Arabia Nabatea (the Sinai and Jordan) seizing its fabled capital, Petra.

114-117 Trajan conquers Armenia and Mesopotamia, extending the Roman Empire to the Persian Gulf and the Caspian, but is repelled at Hatra (117); his successor Hadrian abandons the conquests as a result of the anti-Roman rebellions raging from Cyrenaica to Syria.

116 The Romans conquer Harran / Carrhae (northeastern Syria), annex the kingdom of Adiabene in northeastern Syria (which they name Assyria), and force Osrhoene to submit as a vassal.

ca. 120 The Goths migrate from Scandinavia to the mouth of the Vistula river, while the Rugi and the Lemovii establish themselves on the southeastern Baltic coast. The Romans build Hadrian's Wall between Roman Britannia and Caledonia. Tiastane/Chashtana, son of Bhumaka, founds a dynasty of eastern Kshatrapas (satraps) at Ujjain in Malwa, seceding from the empire of the Kushanas. Under King Agros, Colchis (northwestern Georgia) liberates itself from Roman rule and becomes the kingdom of Lazica/Egrisi.

129 In Iberia/Georgia, the custom of the two co-kings is brought to an end by the accession of King Rhadamist to the throne.

132-135 The great rebellion of the Jews under the religious leader Akiva and the "messiah" Simon bar Kokhba, which is repressed by the Romans with extreme brutality. The Jews are finally sent into diaspora.

139-143 The Romans quell the rebellion of the Brigantes in Britannia and build the Antonine Wall (abandoned shortly afterwards) in southern Caledonia.

146 The kingdom of Arakan (western Burma) converts to Buddhism.

150 The Romans defeat the Alans at Olbia (near today's Odessa) at the mouth of the Lower Bug river.

ca. 150 The kingdom of Teotihuacàn emerges as a strong power in central Mexico.

156 The Xianbi (forerunners of the Mongols) chase the Xiungnu/northern Huns from the Kazakh steppe; one part of these travels towards the west under Kama Tarkhan, and another part travels south, giving life to the kingdom of Yuehban between the Aral and the Balkhash lakes.

ca. 160 The Mayans found the kingdom of Xukpi/Copàn between western Honduras and Guatemala.

161-163 The (successful) Roman attempt to replace the Armenian Arsacid ruler with Sohamus of Emesa provokes a new conflict with Parthia.

161-180 Pestilence and invasions wrack the Roman Empire under Marcus Aurelius, the "Philosopher Emperor."

162-166 Roman victories against the Parthians under Vologaeses (Walakhsh) III: the general Gaius Avidius Cassius conquers Ctesiphon, whereupon his army is decimated by a plague. The Roman legions bring the plague back to their homeland.

167-174 The Marcomannic War: a confederation of Germanic and Sarmatian peoples invades the Danube valley and reaches as far as Furlania/Friuli before they are turned back and defeated.

169 Roman merchants reach China bearing gifts for the emperor. German barbarians enter Italy and besiege Aquileia.

ca. 170 The Lombards abandon Mauringia (Lower Saxony) and travel towards the southeast.

170-180 Dardjegwe/Tanshihuai briefly unifies the Xianbi tribes.

174 The Romans invade “Slovakia”, defeating the Iazyges, whom they deport to Britannia by the thousands.

175 A rebellion by Gaius Avidius Cassius in Syria is promptly crushed by Rome.

178-180 Rome subdues the Marcomanni and the Sarmatians to their rule, from Bohemia to Pannonia and the Carpathians, but upon the death of Marcus Aurelius, his son Commodus renounces any expansion of the imperial borders, and in Armenia the Arsacids return to power under Vologaeses (Walakhsh) II the Great.

184 The great rebellion of the Yellow Turbans in China, after years of famine and other natural disasters.

185 Foundation of the kingdom of Nepal under Jayavarma Licchavi.

186 The Arsacids of Armenia confirm their hold on the throne of Iberia/Georgia with Rev I the Just after Hamzasp’s rebellion.

190-192 Dong Zhuo governs China through a Han puppet emperor, but is subsequently eliminated by Cao Cao.

191 The king of Armenia Vologaeses II rises to the throne of Parthia as King Vologaeses IV.

192 Emperor Commodus is slain in Rome by his Praetorian Guards. Chinese sources describe for the first time the Malay Cham kingdom in southern-central Vietnam.

193 Civil war in Rome after the assassination of the emperor Pertinax and the purchase of the imperial throne by the rich banker Didius Julianus; the legions react by nominating as emperor the Pune Septimus Severus, who is supported by the legions of the Danubian limes (which march on Rome and eliminate Didius Julianus); Pescennius Niger in Syria and Clodius Albinus in Britannia are also acclaimed as emperors by their men.

194 Septimius Severus recognizes Clodius Albinus as his heir, and then defeats Pescennius Niger in the battles of Cyzicus, Nicaea and Issus, killing him in the vicinity of Antioch.

197 Septimius Severus kills Clodius Albinus at the battle of Lyon.

199 Septimius Severus sacks Ctesiphon and defeats the Parthians, fostering their decline, then fails in the siege of Hatra and is forcd to retreat.

198-217 The isle of Lesbos is de facto independent from Rome under Apelles Menemachos, then it’s reabsorbed by the Empire. 3rd century Severe crisis in the Roman Empire, run by barbarians and wracked by civil wars (235-284, the Thirty Tyrants). Birth of the Frank and Alamannic tribal confederations, respectively forerunner of France and Germany. The Saxons sack Britannia’s coasts. The Dorset culture Inuits abandon Greenland. Decline and fall of the Nok civilization in Nigeria. A wave of Indonesian peoples colonizes Madagascar.

ca. 200 The Rugi move south from Pomerania; the Asdingian Vandals, pushed towards south-east, expels the Iazyges from Slovakia. The Gepids too move form the lower Vistula river in the footsteps of the Goths, settling down in Galicia. Yax Ch’aktel Xok founds the royal dynasty of the powerful Mayan city-state of Mutul/Tikal. In the lower Mississippi valley the native Hopewell culture replaces the previous Adena culture.

200-300 AD
205-211 Septimus Severus routs the Caledonians and Picts in Britannia and withdraws from the Antonine Wall to Hadrian's Wall.

208 Cao Cao attempts to reunify China, but is defeated at the Battle of Chibi (the Red Wall) in Hubei.

212 The emperor Caracalla grants Roman citizenship to all free men of the Empire.

214 Caracalla stops the Alemanni in Germany and the first Goths on the lower Danube.

216 Rome annexes western Armenia after having defeated and taken prisoner the Arsacid king of Armenia, Chosroes I. The Chinese subjugate the southern Xiongnu/Huns, who divide themselves into five tribes.

217-218 Assassination of Caracalla in Syria at the hands of the Praetorian Guard prefect Macrinus, who for his part was eliminated by his son Macrinus II; Severan restoration under Heliogabalus

220 Fall of the Han dynasty in China, replaced by the Wei (Cao Pei, son of Cao Cao): here begins the Period of Three Kingdoms. Jafnah I ibn Amr establishes the kingdom of Ghassan at Damascus, a client of Rome between Jordan and Syria

221 Liu Bei founds the Shu-Han dynasty in Sichuan (SW China)

222 Sun Quan founds the Wu dynasty in Nanking

224 Ardashir I the Sassanian, son of Pabag, king of Persia, overthrows the Parthians, defeating and killing the last emperor of the Arsacid dynasty, Artabanus V, at Hormuz, and establishes the Sassanian Empire of Persia

ca. 225 The Goths begin to split into the Visigoths (to the west of the Dnieper) and the Ostrogoths (to the east)

227 The Sassanians conquer Samarkand from the Kushans, making it a vassal city.

230 The Sassanians begin a new war with Rome, plundering Syria, and establish hegemony over Caucasian Albania.

232 The emperor of Rome, Severus Alexander, stops the Sassanians in Syria, where they had seized Harran/Carrhae

233 In Bactria, Ardashir I the Sassanians destroys the Kushan Empire, of which only fragments remain in the East (Kabul and the Hindus Valley under the Kushanshahs).

234-235 The Alamanni make trouble with the Romans. The assassination of the emperor Severus Alexander causes the beginning of the so-called Age of Thirty Tyrants in the Roman Empire (235-284)

238 Civil War in the Roman Empire; after the murder of Emperor Maximinus Thrax, the young Gordian (III), scion a noble Senatorial family, ascends to the throne.

239 Destruction of the Roman border stronghold, Dura Europos (Mesopotamia), at the hands of the Sassanians.

242 The Romans, led by the Praetorian Guard prefect Timesitheus, decisively defeat the Sassanians at Resaina (Assyria).

244 Philip the Arab, who is perhaps a Christian, usurpes the Roman throne of Rome by assassinating Gordian (III), is beaten by the Sassanians near Ctesiphon and must accept a scarcely satisfactory peace, according to which Rome annexes Osrhoene.

The Chinese kingdom Wei seizes the capital of the Korean kingdom of Koguryo, reducing it to servitude.

247 The millennial celebrations of the foundation of Rome are celebrated in the Roman Empire

248 Taking advantage of the crises within the Chinese Empire, the Cham conquer northern Vietnam and some of the southern Chinese provinces.

249 The Roman general Decius rebels in Dacia, marches on Italy and defeats and kills Philip the Arab in Verona

249-251 Most serious anti-Christian persecution in the Roman Empire under Decius

ca. 250 The Goths establish themselves between Dacia and the Taurida (*OTL Crimea) absorbing the Germano-Sarmatian Bastarnae and thwarting the Sarmatians in Pannonia, while the Gepids establish themselves in Transylvania in a close relationship with the Goths.

End of the major Satakani/Andhra dynasty in the Deccan; foundation of the Traikutaka dynasty in the Maharashtra; the Ganga dynasty emerges in Mysore. The Persian priest Mani starts spreading the religious doctrine of Manichaeism.

Foundation of the Mayan kingdom of Calakmul (the Head of Snake) in the Yucatàn, historical rival of Mutul/Tikal.

The Kedarites, Arab marauders of the uninhabited Syro-Jordanian desert, are subjugated by the kingdom of Tayma.

Under the Mamikonian dynasty, the Armenian kingdom of Taron (region of Daron/Muş) arises, a "buffer vassal" between Rome and the Sassanians.

The kingdom of Himyar suppresses and conquers the kingdoms of Gurat and Ma'rib, completing the conquest of the former kingdom of Saba and the unification of Yemen.

251 The Roman emperor Decius dies at Abrittus on the lower Danube, in a defeat against the Goths that have invaded Dacia

252 Taking advantage of serious Roman tribulations, the Persian Sassanians conquer Gordiene (central Kurdistan), advancing to destroy the Roman town of Zeugma/Belkis on the Euphrates, and placing Artavasdes V on the Armenian throne

253 Valerian ascends to the throne of Rome and for the first time divides the empire into the East (under his own rule) and the West (under his son Gallienus).

256 The Ripuarian Franks (southern or eastern Franks, located in Franconia and distinguished from the Salians, who are located in southern Holland) invade the Rhine valley. Second war between Rome and the Sassanians for Armenia: the Persians win the battle at Barbalissa and plunder Antioch (Syria).

257-260 The Roman emperor Valerian fights the Persians in Syria but is taken prisoner by them in Edessa, ending his days as a slave.

260 After capturing Valerian, the Persians invade Syria, Cilicia and Cappadocia but are thwarted by the king of Palmyra (Syria), Odenathus, who gains virtual independence from Rome (though still paying lip service to the empire).

ca. 260 The eruption of the volcano Ilopango results in the decline of the Mayan city state of Kaminaljuyú

260-274 Secession of Gaul and Britannia from the Roman Empire

261 The Roman emperor Gallienus defeats the Alamanni at Milan. The Palmyrenes of Odenathus establish their own supremacy over the kingdom of Ghassan (Jordan and southern Syria) and reconquer Antioch from the Persian Sassanians.

261-293 Sassanian interval on the throne of Armenia under Hormizd and Narses.

262 Odenathus of Palmyra reconquers northern Mesopotamia for Rome.

264 The Wei conquer the Shu-Han kingdom of Sichuan.

264-269 Wave of invasions, plunder and maritime piracy at the hands of the Goths in the Sklaviniai (*OTL Balkans) and in the Roman East

265-266 Sima Yan replaces the Cao (Wei) dynasty of Luoyang with his own dynasty, the Jin, and quells a revolt of the Xiongnu/Huns

267 The Heruli, another Germanic nation of Scandinavian origin, devastate Athens and Greece. The Roman emperor Gallienus recognizes the de facto independence and imperial title of Odenathus of Palmyra.

268 The Roman emperor Gallienus besieges the rebel Aureolus at Milan but is killed by his troops; Claudius II eliminates Aureolus and takes power.

269 The Roman emperor Claudius II annihilates the Goths at Naissus (Moesia), then puts down the Alamanni at the battle of Lake Garda (northern Italy). Zenobia of Palmyra, succeeding her father Odenathus, rebels against Rome and conquers Egypt and Cappadocia.

270 Germanic invasion of northern Italy

ca. 270 The Goths conquer the Tauris (*OTL Crimea) (or Taurian Chersonese) subjugating the Roxolani kingdom of Pontus. The Romans abandon Dacia to the Goths, and a good part of the Latin colonists are transplanted in Moesia (Bulgaria) around Vidin where they form the nucleus of the Vlachs of the Sklaviniai (*OTL Balkans); also, the Agri Decumates between Rhine and Main come to be abandoned to the Alamanni. The Arab kingdom of Hirah arises under Amr I ibn Uday of the clan of the Lakhmids, a servant of the Persian Sassanians, extending from the lower Euphrates to Qatar.

271 The Persian emperor Hormizd I dies in battle against the Sogdians of Bukhara. The new Roman emperor Aurelianus turns back the Germanic invasion at Milan.

272 Aurelianus smashes the empire of Palmyra, destroying the town and deporting queen Zenobia to Rome. The Alamanni and Iazyges penetrate as far as Umbria before being destroyed by the Romans. Hormizd, the king of Armenia, of the Sassanian royal family, ascends to the throne of Persia as Hormizd II.

274 Aurelian defeats the Gallic Empire, reunifying the Roman Empire

275-276 Devastating Franco-Alamannic invasion of Gaul after the assassination of Aurelianus. The Goth and Alan marauders are chased from Asia Minor.

277 The reaction of the Zoroastrian clergy in Persia leads to the crucifixion of Mani and the persecution of the Manichaeans. The Roman emperor Probus repels the barbarians back beyond the Rhine.

279 Armenia is divided in two kingdoms, western and eastern, both subjects to Persia: but the western one returns under rule of the Arsacids, while the eastern becomes an appanage (feudal territory) for heirs to the throne of the King of Kings of Ctesiphon.

280 The Jin conquer the Wu kingdom of Nanking, briefly reunifying China.

282-283 The victorious Roman invasion of Mesopotamia, accompanied by the conquest of Ctesiphon, ends with a withdrawal upon the sudden death of the emperor Carus; his sons Numerianus and Carinus divide the empire, the East going to the former, and the West going to the latter.

284 The Roman armies of the East elect Diocletian as emperor. The Khusrawids replace the local branch of the Arsacids on the throne of Iberia/Georgia.

285 Diocletian reunifies the Roman Empire, defeating and killing Carinus, son of Carus, at the battle of the Margus (Moravia), and puts an end to the chaos. The Xianbi invade Manchuria and overwhelm the Korean kingdom of Fuyu/Buyeo (region of Harbin), the forces of which come to be "inherited" by the kingdom of Koguryo, to which it is bound.

286 The Romans suppress the rebellion of the Bagaudi in Gaul. Diocletian entrusts the governing of the Roman West to his colleague Maximianus, with its capital at Milan, and maintains control of the East, establishing his own capital at Nicomedia (Bithynia, Asia Minor). Under the new dynasty of the Offo, the Frisians free themselves from Roman suzerainty, taking advantage of Carausius’ rebellion against Maximian.

286-296 Separatist empire in Britannia under Carausius (the former commander of the Roman North sea fleet) and his assassin and successor Allectus.

287 Diocletian retakes from the Persians Gordiene (central Kurdistan) and western Armenia, where he installs the Roman candidate Tiridates V of the Arsacids on the throne

290 Diocletian quashes a serious rebellion in Egypt, setting fire to Alexandria and putting the rebels to the sword. Liu Yuan-hai reunifies the southern Xiongnu/Huns.

293 Diocletian establishes the system of the tetrarchy (the division of the Roman Empire in four parts, managed by different men but ultimately under the sovereignty of one alone) adopting as his heir (Caesar) Galerius, while Maximianus adopts Constantius Chlorus. Reunification of Armenia under Roman suzerainty with Tiridates V as king.

296 The Sassanian emperor Narses expels Tiridates V from Armenia, inciting a new conflict with Rome. Constantius Chlorus and his praetorian prefect Asclepiodotus reconquer Britannia

297-298 The Romans defeat the Sassanians and the Alamanni. Galerius, Caesar of Diocletian in the Roman East, is first beaten by the Persians at Harran/Carrhae, then in the following year crushes them, invading Mesopotamia and forcing them to recognize Roman suzerainty over Armenia.

4th century Barbarian invasions by Xiongnu/Huns, proto-mongolic and Tungusic tribes foster a fragmentation of centralized power in China. The Ethiopian Axumite kingdom is Christianized. Christianization and lack of new conquests wrack the slaveholding economy of the Roman Empire

Ca. 300 The Polynesians colonize the Marquesas Islands. The Guptas wrest Punjab from the Kushanshas. Foundation of the Dravidian kingdom of Pallava at Kanchi (south-eastern India) under a Persian dynasty. Hinduism spreads amongst the Malay Chams of southern-central Vietnam. The Danish people is forming between Sjælland island and southern Sweden under the sway of the Skioldung dynastic clan. The Arab tribal princedom of Kindah is born west of Hadramaut.