Timeline of Christian History
c.2100 BC | Calling of Abraham - the Father of the Jewish nation. |
c.2000 BC | Birth of Jacob, later to be called Israel. The twelve tribes of Israel are named after Jacob's sons. |
c.1900 BC | Joseph is sold into slavery in Egypt. Israelites eventually become captives in the land. |
c.1446 or 1290 BC | The Exodus begins. Led by Moses, the Israelites leave Egypt and eventually settle in Canaan. |
c.1010 BC | David becomes king of Israel, making Jerusalem his capital. |
c.970 BC | David's son Solomon becomes king. He later builds a temple in Jerusalem to honour God. |
c.930 BC | Following Solomon's death, the Kingdom is divided into two sections: Northern (Israel) and Southern (Judah). |
753 BC | Traditional date for the founding of Rome. |
722 BC | Fall of the kingdom of Israel to the Assyrians. |
612 BC | Nineveh, the Assyrian capital, falls to the Babylonians. |
586 BC | Babylonians take Jerusalem and destroy Solomon's temple. Jewish nation is taken into captivity in Babylon (the exile). |
c.538 BC | Return of some of the exiles. Start of reconstruction of the temple. |
c.512 BC | Completion of the temple. |
c.330 BC | Conquest by Alexander the Great. Rise of Hellenism (Greek culture). |
c.250 BC | Work begins to translate the Old Testament from Hebrew into Greek. This is known as the Septuagint or LXX. |
63 BC | Roman rule of Israel begins. |
c.4 BC | Birth of Jesus Christ, in Bethlehem. |
c.30 AD | Death of Jesus Christ. |
c.33 | Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2). Sometimes known as the Birthday of the Church. |
c.33 | Stephen - First Christian martyr (Acts 7). |
c.48 | Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15). Gentile Christians accepted alongside those in the Jewish tradition. |
c.60 | First Gospel published (often thought to be that written by Mark). |
62 | Martyrdom of James, "The Lord's Brother". |
c.67-68 | Apostles Peter and Paul* martyred in the reign of the Roman emperor Nero. |
70 | Jewish rebellion against the Roman empire ends. Destruction of the temple in Jerusalem. |
From 70 | Centre of Christianity moves to Antioch, Alexandria and Rome. |
c.90 | Book of Revelation and Gospel of Saint John written. |
161-80 | Widespread persecution of Christians under Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius. (Severe persecutions also occurred under the emperors Decius (249-251) and Diocletian (284-305)). |
301 | Armenia becomes the world's first country to officially adopt Christianity as the state religion. |
312 | Roman emperor Constantine receives a vision of a flaming cross with the words 'In hoc signo vinces' : 'By this sign conquer'. Defeats rival Maxentius at the Battle of Milvian Bridge. |
313 | Edict of Milan issued by Constantine - Christianity becomes a legal religion within the Roman empire. |
325 | Constantine calls the first ecumenical council at Nicea. Arian heresy which declared Christ was a created being is refuted. Nicene Creed is drawn up, declaring Christ to be "...Begotten, not made; of one essence with the Father..." |
367 | Saint Athanasius is the first to list all 27 New Testament books in his festal letter. |
381 | Ecumenical Council at Constantinople revises the Nicene creed to its current form. |
c.382 | Saint Jerome begins a translation of the Bible into Latin. |
397 | Synod at Carthage ratifies the 27 books of the New Testament as sacred scripture. |
431 | Ecumenical council held at Ephesus refutes Nestorianism. (The doctrine that Christ was two persons (one human, the other divine) in one body). Mary is declared Theotokos i.e. 'God-bearer' or more commonly, 'Mother of God'. |
449 | At Ephesus, Pope Leo I delivers his 'Tome', defending orthodox Christian belief. Leo also asserts Papal supremacy. |
451 | Ecumenical council at Chalcedon affirms Christ as having two distinct natures united in one person (known as the 'Hypostatic Union'). |
553 | Ecumenical council at Constantinople affirms teaching of previous councils. |
563 | Columba establishes a monastery at Iona. |
589 | Insertion of the filioque (Latin: 'and the son') into the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed at a council in Toledo. |
597 | Following a mission authorised by Pope Gregory I, St. Augustine becomes the first Archbishop of Canterbury. |
664 | Synod of Whitby ratifies the authority of the Pope in England. |
680-81 | Ecumenical council at Constantinople rejects Monothelite heresy of one will in Christ. |
731 | Bede writes his Ecclesiastical History. |
787 | Ecumenical council at Nicea ends the controversy over the use of icons in worship. |
800 | Charlemagne is crowned emperor of the Holy Roman Empire by Pope Leo III. |
988 | Conversion of Prince Vladimir in Kiev. Growth of Christianity in Russia. |
1054 | Great Schism - Eastern Orthodox and Western Catholic churches separate. |
1095 | Pope Urban II authorises the first Crusade to recover the Holy Land from Moslems. |
1099 | Crusaders conquer Jerusalem. |
1182 | Massacre of Latin inhabitants of Constantinople. |
1187 | Jerusalem recaptured by a Moslem army led by Saladin. |
1189 | Third Crusade led by Richard the Lionheart of England. |
1204 | Sack of Constantinople during the fourth crusade. |
1216/23 | Papal approval of the Dominican and Franciscan mendicant ('begging') orders. |
1266-73 | Thomas Aquinas writes his great work of systematic Theology: Summa Theologiae. |
1305 | Papacy moved to Avignon following a dispute with Philip IV of France. |
c.1341 | Defence of Orthodox spirituality by Gregory Palamas. Rise of Hesychasm. |
c.1376 | John Wycliffe writes 'Civil Dominion', arguing for reform of the church. |
1378 | Following the return of the Papacy to Rome, rival claimants (Antipopes) emerge. Dispute ends in 1417 with election of Martin V. |
c.1380 | John Wycliffe translates the Bible into Middle English. |
1453 | Constantinople falls to the Ottoman Turks. |
1517 | Martin Luther posts his 95 Theses in Wittenburg, Germany; beginning the Protestant reformation. |
1521 | Diet of Worms - Luther's final breach with the Catholic church. |
1525 | William Tyndale completes his translation of the Bible into English. |
1534 | Ignatius of Loyola founds the Jesuits. |
1534 | Act of Supremacy passed - Henry VIII becomes supreme head of the English church. |
1536 | John Calvin publishes his Institutes of the Christian Religion. |
1545-63 | Council of Trent - Roman Catholic counter reformation. |
1549 | Thomas Cranmer publishes the Book of Common Prayer in England (later revised in 1662). |
1555 | Peace of Augsburg ends religious wars in Germany. |
1611 | Publication of the King James Version of the Bible. |
1618-48 | Protestant/Catholic conflict in Germany (Thirty Years War). |
1730-60 | The 'Great Awakening' - A revival movement among Protestants in the USA. |
1738 | John and Charles Wesley converted. They lead an Evangelical revival in England and form the Methodist church. |
1854 | Dogma of the Immaculate conception of Mary proclaimed by the Roman Catholic church. |
1870-1 | First Vatican council. Dogma of Papal infallibility proclaimed. |
1906 | Azusa street revival in Los Angeles. Beginnings of the Pentecostal movement. |
1910 | World mission conference held in Edinburgh. |
1918 | Billy Graham born. Later becomes one of the most prominent evangelists in Christian history. |
1948 | Formation of the World Council of Churches. |
1950 | Dogma of the Assumption of Mary proclaimed by the Roman Catholic Church. |
1962-5 | Second Vatican council. Major reforms in the Roman Catholic church are initiated. Mutual anathemas of 1054 between Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches lifted. |
1997 | Death of Mother Teresa of Calcutta - founder of the 'Missionaries of Charity'. |
1999 | Signing of the Joint Declaration on Justification by the Lutheran and Roman Catholic Churches. |
2005 | Death of Pope John Paul II, who is succeeded by Pope Benedict XVI. |
2006 | World Methodist Council adopts the Lutheran/Catholic Joint Declaration on Justification. |
2011 | Beatification of Pope John Paul II. |
2013 | Resignation of Pope Benedict XVI, who is succeeded by Pope Francis. |
* See the Timeline of Paul's ministry for more information.