The ArmyChief Library
Historical Timelines
Key leadership transitions and military developments in chronological context.
Development collection · Historical summaries await reference checking. Portrait artwork is illustrative, not an authentic likeness.
336 BC
Ancient Macedon · Ancient Era
Alexander becomes king of Macedon
Royal succession precedes the campaigns associated with Alexander’s reign.
102 BC
Roman Republic · Ancient Era
Marius defeats the Teutones
Gaius Marius wins at Aquae Sextiae; he defeats the Cimbri at Vercellae the following year.
58 BC
Roman Republic · Ancient Era
Caesar begins the conquest of Gaul
Julius Caesar opens the Gallic campaigns that continue until 50 BC.
49 BC
Roman Republic · Ancient Era
Caesar crosses the Rubicon
The crossing triggers civil war between Caesar and the Pompeian faction.
44 BC
Roman Republic · Ancient Era
Assassination of Caesar
Julius Caesar is killed by a group of senators on the Ides of March.
31 BC
Roman Republic · Ancient Era
Agrippa wins at Actium
Agrippa commands Octavian’s fleet in the decisive victory over Antony and Cleopatra.
9 AD
Cherusci (Germania) · Ancient Era
Battle of the Teutoburg Forest
Arminius leads a coalition that destroys three Roman legions under Varus.
106 AD
Roman Empire · Ancient Era
Trajan annexes Dacia
The second Dacian war ends with Dacia becoming a Roman province under Trajan.
200 AD
Cao Wei (China) · Ancient Era
Cao Cao wins at Guandu
Cao Cao defeats Yuan Shao, securing dominance over northern China.
208 AD
Eastern Wu (China) · Ancient Era
Battle of the Red Cliffs
The allied forces of Sun Quan and Liu Bei repel Cao Cao’s southern campaign.
222 AD
Shu Han (China) · Ancient Era
Liu Bei defeated at Xiaoting
Liu Bei’s campaign against Eastern Wu ends in defeat at Xiaoting (Yiling).
260 AD
Sasanian Persia · Ancient Era
Shapur captures the emperor Valerian
Shapur I defeats the Romans near Edessa; the emperor Valerian is taken prisoner.
451 AD
Hunnic Empire · Ancient Era
Catalaunian Plains
Attila’s invasion of Gaul is checked by a Roman-led coalition; he invades Italy in 452 AD.
533 AD
Byzantine Empire · Medieval Era
Belisarius lands in North Africa
Belisarius opens the campaign that destroys the Vandal kingdom by 534 AD.
535 AD
Byzantine Empire · Medieval Era
Belisarius begins the Italian campaign
Belisarius opens the long war to recover Italy from the Ostrogoths.
630 AD
Tang China · Medieval Era
Taizong breaks the Eastern Turks
Campaigns directed by Emperor Taizong (Li Shimin) defeat the Eastern Turkic Khaganate.
636 AD
Rashidun Caliphate · Medieval Era
Battle of Yarmouk
Khalid ibn al-Walid plays a decisive role in the victory over the Byzantine army in Syria.
786 AD
Abbasid Caliphate · Medieval Era
Harun al-Rashid becomes caliph
Harun al-Rashid succeeds to the caliphate after earlier campaigning against Byzantium.
800 AD
Carolingian Empire (Francia) · Medieval Era
Charlemagne crowned emperor
Charlemagne is crowned emperor in Rome after decades of campaigns in Italy, Saxony and beyond.
878 AD
Wessex (England) · Medieval Era
Alfred the Great wins at Edington
Alfred the Great defeats the Viking army of Guthrum, securing the survival of Wessex.
1066
Normandy and England · Medieval Era
Battle of Hastings
William the Conqueror defeats King Harold and takes the English throne.
1187
Ayyubid Sultanate · Medieval Era
Saladin wins at Hattin
Saladin defeats the Crusader field army at Hattin and recovers Jerusalem later that year.
1206
Mongol Empire · Medieval Era
Temüjin proclaimed Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan is proclaimed ruler of the unified Mongol tribes.
1241
Mongol Empire · Medieval Era
Subutai’s Central European campaign
Subutai coordinates the Mongol invasion of Central Europe, including the victory at Mohi.
1429
France · Medieval Era
Relief of Orléans
Joan of Arc’s campaign activity becomes a defining episode of the Hundred Years’ War.
1804
France · Napoleonic Era
Napoleon becomes emperor
Political authority and military command converge in the First French Empire.
1903
United States · Early 20th century
U.S. Army establishes the Chief of Staff office
A new senior office replaces the earlier Commanding General arrangement.
1918
France · World War I
Foch appointed Supreme Allied Commander
Allied coordination on the Western Front takes a new form.
1939
United States · World War II
Marshall becomes Army Chief of Staff
George C. Marshall begins a tenure that spans U.S. participation in the Second World War.
1946
United Kingdom · Cold War
Montgomery becomes Chief of the Imperial General Staff
British Army leadership transitions into the postwar period.
1949
India · Cold War
Cariappa becomes Commander-in-Chief
K. M. Cariappa becomes the first Indian officer to hold the appointment after independence.
1969
India · Cold War
Manekshaw becomes Chief of the Army Staff
Sam Manekshaw begins his tenure at the head of the Indian Army.