1200BC - Phoenicians colonizing Southern Spain, Sardinia, Sicily
8th Century BC - Greeks colonizing Southern Italy and coast of Turkey
539-311 BCE - Achaemedid Empire control Middle East
331-30 BCE - Hellenistic (Alexander the Great generals) control Middle East
227BC - Carthaginians from North Africa colonizing Spain, Sardinia, Sicily
206 BCE-220 CE - Han Dynasty conquered Xinjiang
30-640 CE - Roman and Byzantine control eastern Mediterranean
300AD - Aksumite conquest of Kush
370 CE - Huns raiding Roman territories
600CE - Rashidun Caliphate
618-907 CE - Tang Dynasty controls Xinjiang
661-750CE - Umayyad Caliphate
711 AD - Moors invading Spain, France, Spain
750-1258CE - Abbasid Caliphate
756-1031 - Umayyad dynasty of Córdoba
793-1066 - Vikings
800-1000 - Magyars
827 AD - Aghlabid conquering Rome
900s - Islam conquers Xinjiang
909-1171CE - Fatimid Caliphate
1000-1500CE - Mississippian Warfare
c. 1000-1620 - European-Indigenous contact in North America, to the Mayflower (with disease timeline)
1009–1110 - First Taifa period
1066 - Norman
1076 - Almoravid conquest of Ghana Empire
1085–1234 - Almoravid rule
1095-1291 CE - European Crusades control parts of Levant
1121-1269CE - Almohad Caliphate
1207-1335 - Mongols control Persia (Iran, Iraq, parts of Turkey and Caucasus)
1232–1492 - Emirate of Granada
1400-1500s - Songhai conflict with Mossi states
1400 (late) - Songhai conquest of Mali Empire
1428-1521 - Aztec Expansion
1442 - Columbus lands
1500 - Portugal colonization of Brazil
1504 - Funj conquest of Nubia
1500s (early) - Spain colonies Aztec and Inca
1500s (early) - Spanish colonies established
1517-1521 - Spanish Conquest of Aztec
1500s (mid-late) - French Canada
1500-1600s - Anishnaabe and Cree push Lakota West to Great Plains
15-16th Century - Spain-Portugal to South America
15-16th Century - Portugal to Africa and Asia
1603 - British colonialism begins with Ireland
1607 - British establishment of Jamestown
1609 - Britain colonizes Bermuda
1517-1934 - Ottoman Caliphate
1600s (early) - Britain and France in Caribbean
1607 - English Jamestown Colony
1609-1701 - Beaver Wars (Iroquois Wars in Canada)
1698-1730s - Oyo invasions of Dahomey
1706-1780 - Comanche Expansion to Texas, New Mexico & Mexico
1750s - Lakota dominate the Northern Great Plains and expansion
1814 - British control Cape of Good Hope
1819 - British establish Singapore as a trading post
1824 - British acquire Burma
1839 - British take control of Yemen port city of Aden
1842 - British colonizes Hong Kong
1851 - British and African allies control Lagos
1890 - British colonizes Zanzibar
19th Century- European powers to Africa
1903 - British control of Nigeria
1919 - British and French mandates in Middle East after WWI
1942 - Japan occupies Singapore
1945 - Britain reoccupies Singapore
1949 - People’s Republic of China takes control of Xinjiang
Islam Caliphates, Conquering, Colonizing
| Time Period | Region | Conquering Countries | Previous Control |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15th-16th centuries | Americas | Spain, Portugal | Indigenous civilizations (Aztec, Maya, Inca, etc.) |
| 15th-16th centuries | Africa | Portugal | African kingdoms and states |
| 15th-16th centuries | Asia | Portugal | Muslim sultanates |
| 17th-18th centuries | Southeast Asia | Netherlands | Local kingdoms |
| 17th-18th centuries | India | Britain | Mughals and other states |
| 17th-18th centuries | North America | Britain, France | Indigenous peoples |
| 17th-18th centuries | South America | Spain, Portugal | Indigenous peoples |
| 19th century | Africa | European powers (Britain, France, Germany, Belgium, Italy, etc.) | Indigenous states and kingdoms |
| 19th century | Asia | Britain, France, Netherlands | Local kingdoms and states |
| 19th century | Americas | Largely gained independence, but under European economic influence | - |
| 20th century | Africa, Asia | Decolonization movements, independence | European colonial powers |
Only a handful of countries escaped European colonization completely, including Japan, Korea, Thailand, and Liberia. Most of the world fell under partial or total European control at some point between the 15th and 20th centuries, with the colonial powers conquering lands previously controlled by indigenous states, kingdoms and empires across the Americas, Africa and Asia. Decolonization in the mid-20th century led to the emergence of newly independent nation-states, often based on the borders established during the colonial era.
