Early Modern
Founding of the Khalsa (1699): Guru Gobind Singh and the Sikhs
The Khalsa was established as the order of initiated Sikhs, giving the community a distinct identity, discipline and military organisation.
Region
Asia
Early Modern
The Forty-Seven Ronin (1701-1703): Japan's Famous Revenge Story
The ronin killed Kira in January 1703 and were ordered to commit seppuku; their act became Japan's most famous story of loyalty, retold as Chūshingura.
Early Modern
Chengde Mountain Resort (1703): The Qing Emperors' Summer Capital
A vast summer palace and ring of temples became the Qing court's second political centre, used to receive Mongol, Tibetan and foreign envoys.
Early Modern
Hōei Eruption (1707): The Last Eruption of Mount Fuji
About two weeks of explosive eruptions created the Hōei craters, spread ash across the Kantō region including Edo, and ruined farmland for decades.
Early Modern
Kangxi Dictionary (1710-1716): The Great Qing Dictionary
An imperial dictionary of about 47,000 characters became the standard reference for Chinese characters and fixed the 214-radical system still used today.
Early Modern
Giuseppe Castiglione (1715): A Jesuit Painter at the Qing Court
Castiglione spent five decades as a court painter, creating a hybrid Sino-European style and helping design the European palaces of the Yuanmingyuan.
Early Modern
Qing Expedition to Tibet (1720): The Qing Take Lhasa
Dzungar forces withdrew from Tibet, the Seventh Dalai Lama was enthroned in Lhasa, and a Qing garrison and protectorate were established.
Early Modern
Yongzheng Emperor (1722-1735): Reform and Control in Qing China
Yongzheng centralised power, reformed taxation and created the Grand Council, leaving his son Qianlong a strong state and a full treasury.
Early Modern
Great Northern Expedition (1733-1743): Bering Reaches Alaska
The expedition mapped most of Russia's Arctic coast and reached north-western America in 1741, but Bering died on Bering Island after his ship was wrecked.
Early Modern
Qianlong Emperor (1735-1796): The High Qing at Its Peak
The Qing Empire reached its greatest territorial extent and cultural splendour, but ended the reign burdened by corruption, rebellion and a strained treasury.
Early Modern
Nader Shah: The Afsharid Conqueror Who Sacked Delhi
Nader restored Iran's borders and founded the short-lived Afsharid dynasty, but his empire fragmented after his assassination in 1747.
Early Modern
Battle of Karnal (1739) and Nader Shah's Sack of Delhi
Decisive Persian victory; Nader Shah occupied Delhi, massacred thousands of its inhabitants and carried off the Mughal treasury, including the Peacock Throne.