1071 - Seljuk ancestors of Ottomans, who spoke the language of the Tu-Kue tribes from Lake Baikal, and adopted the Islam religion of the caliph of Mesopotamia, and defeated Byzantium at Manzikert.
1097 - The Seljuk Turks were defeated by Christian Crusaders.
1284 - The Turkish leader Osman I founded the Osmanli Dynasty, the first of the 36 sultanates in the 600-year history of the Ottoman Empire, as it was called in the West.
1354 - Ottoman Turks made first foothold on European continent at Gallipoli.
1389 - the Ottomans defeated the Serbs at the Battle of Kosovo, and expanded into the Balkans with the conquest of Bulgaria in 1393
1453 - The Byzantium Empire disappeared with the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople, renamed Istambul that replaced Baghdad as the center of Sunni Islam.
1512 - Selim I began his 8-year conquest of Syria, Palestine, and Egypt, and became guardian of the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. By the time his son Suleyman the Magnificent died in 1588, the Ottoman Empire was a world power, across North Africa and the Middle East, from the Balkans and the Caucasus to the Persian Gulf.
1699 - Treaty of Carlowitz, the first peace treaty by the defeated Ottoman Muslims with Christian Europe, ending the Habsburg-Ottoman War that had started with the siege of Vienna 1683 and its liberation by Poland's king Jan Sobiesk in the Battle of Kahlenberg. The treaty gave most of Hungary to the Austrians. During the next century, Turkey was "the Sick Man of Europe" struggling to keep the Ottoman Empire intact.
1830 - France took Algeria from the Ottomans.
1877 - Russo-Turkish War resulted in Ottoman's loss of Romania and Serbia.
1881 - France took Tunesia from the Ottomans.
1911 - Italy took Lybia from the Ottomans.
1912 - In 1st Balkan War, Ottomans lost Albania.
1913 - In 2nd Balkan War, Greece and Serbia expanded into Macedonia.
1914 - Ottoman Empire entered World War I allied with Germany.
1915 - Mustafa Kemal led defense of Gallipoli and defeated British invasion - map
1919 - Kemal organized a new government in Ankara to replace the Ottoman empire.
1922 - Kemal led defense against invading Greek army that was supported by Britain.
1923 - Kemal Ataturk became president of the Republic of Turkey.
1925 - Adoption of Gregorian calendar. Prohibition of the fez.
1928 - The clause that established Islam as state religion removed from constitution, and Turkey became a secular state.
1930 - Constantinople, the former capital of Byzantine and Ottoman empires, was officially renamed Istanbul.
1938 - President Ataturk died, succeeded by Ismet Inonu.
1945 - Turkey in WWII was neutral for most of the war, then in Feb. declared war on Germany and Japan, but did not take part in combat. It was one of the 51 original charter members of the United Nations.
1950 - Republic's first open elections, won by opposition Democratic Party.
1952 - Turkey abandoned Ataturk's neutralist policy and joined Nato.
1960 - Army coup against ruling Democratic Party.
1961 - New constitution established two-chamber parliament.
1963 - Association agreement signed with European Economic Community (EEC).
1965 - Suleyman Demirel became prime minister, a position he held seven times.
1971 - Army forced Demirel's resignation after spiral of political violence.
1974 - Turkish troops invaded northern Cyprus.
1976 - Earthquake killed more than 5,000 people in western Van province.
1978 - US trade embargo resulting from invasion lifted.
1980 - Military coup followed political deadlock and civil unrest. Imposition of martial law.
1982 - New constitution created seven-year presidency, and reduced parliament to single house.
1983 - General election won by Turgut Ozal's Motherland Party (ANAP).
1984 - Turkey recognised "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus." Kurdistan Workers' Party launched separatist guerrilla war in southeast.
1987 - Turkey applied for full EEC membership.
1990 - Turkey allowed US-led coalition against Iraq to launch air strikes from Turkish bases.
1992 - 20,000 Turkish troops enter Kurdish safe havens in Iraq in anti-PKK operation. Turkey joined Black Sea alliance.
1993 - Tansu Ciller became Turkey's first woman prime minister, and Demirel elected president. Ceasefire with PKK broke down.
1995 - Major military offensive launched against the Kurds in northern Iraq, involving some 35,000 Turkish troops. Ciller coalition collapsed. Pro-Islamist Welfare Party won elections but lacked support to form government; two major centre-right parties formed anti-Islamist coalition. Turkey entered EU customs union.
1996 - Centre-right coalition falled. Welfare Party leader Necmettin Erbakan led first pro-Islamic government since 1923.
1997 - Coalition resigned after campaign led by the military, replaced by a new coalition led by the centre-right Motherland Party of Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz.
1998 - In January, the Welfare Party, the largest in parliament, was banned. Yilmaz resigned amid corruption allegations, replaced by Bulent Ecevit.
2001 - In January, French National Assembly recognised the killings of Armenians under the Ottoman Empire as genocide. In May, European Court of Human Rights found Turkey guilty of violating the rights of Greek Cypriots during its occupation of northern Cyprus.
2002 - In August, Parliament approved reforms aimed at securing EU membership. Death sentence to be abolished except in times of war and bans on Kurdish education, broadcasting to be lifted.
2003 - Parliament decided not to allow deployment of US forces ahead of war in Iraq but allowed U.S. use of Turkish air space. Turkish forces were sent into Kurdish areas of northern Iraq. In June, seeking future EU membership, parliament passes further laws easing restrictions on freedom of speech, Kurdish language rights, and on reducing political role of military.
2004 - In January, Turkey signed protocol banning death penalty in all circumstances, a move welcomed in EU circles. In December, EU leaders agreed to open talks in 2005 on Turkey's EU accession. The decision, made at a summit in Brussels, followed a deal over an EU demand that Turkey recognise Cyprus as an EU member.
