The Four Key Dates of Human History

I recently published ‘The History of the World by Century.’ By listing the key events of every century, we can better understand the flow of human chronology. But even this simple list might be intimidating. There are so many centuries and so many events!

Thankfully, we can simplify this with a mere four key dates. Each of these dates is significant because it marks a revolution – a change so dramatic as to change everything. What was before and what came after are almost complete opposites. (Note: it’s important to remember that these are key dates within a western oriented perspective).

October 1, 331 BC – The Battle of Gaugamela

On the dusty plains of northern Mesopotamia, the armies of Alexander the Great and Darius III met for the final time. Alexander represented Greece and the civilizations of the West; Darius represented Persia and the civilizations of the East. Following a Greek victory, the ‘center of balance’ of the world shifted decisively. Until that battle, human history centered in the East: such locales as Babylon, Assyria, Egypt, and Persia. Afterward, the emphasis would be on the West: Greece and Rome (and, later, Western Europe and America). This was far more than a battle; it was a clash of cultures. To this day, ‘the West’ has replaced ‘the [Near] East.’

April 3, AD 33 – The Crucifixion of Jesus

Even atheists admit the significance of Jesus of Nazareth on the flow of human history; the fact that time itself is numbered based on his life gives evidence of his influence. From a theological perspective, his death must be considered the defining event of human history: the death of God for man. But even from a chronological perspective, the crucifixion of this rabbi from a backwater Roman province changed everything, setting in motion a movement that would eventually spread worldwide and influence the entirety of future history.

February, AD 313 – The Edict of Milan

In the previous decades, the Roman Empire appeared on the verge of collapse. Then, a dramatic leader, Diocletian, seized the reigns of government, stabilized the empire, and divided it into two major administrative units. He resigned, and eventually those two units ended up in the hands of Constantine I (in the west) and Lucinius (in the east). They met in February of AD 313 and made an agreement that Christians would no longer be persecuted within the Empire. At this point, Christianity was not an official religion, and both emperors remained technically ‘pagan.’ But the tide had definitely turned. From this point on, Christianity would become ascendant, gaining more and more power until it was not only the official religion of Rome, but until even paganism itself was outlawed.

October 31, AD 1517 – Martin Luther Publishes 95 Theses

Despite some internal bickering and even a high-profile break  (in AD 1054) between eastern and western Christianity, the hierarchy of the Church was the single most important reality in Europe after the fall of Rome. Everything changed when Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses. Though only a tiny spark, it lit a raging bonfire of theological debate, political turmoil, and military chaos. The Protestant Reformation changed everything about Europe. It broke the power of the Roman Church to control and censor. Not only Protestants benefitted; the Enlightenment, with its irreligion, was able to proliferate because Rome’s power was diminished. There was a deeper change, too. The source of authority was no longer the ecclesiastical hierarchy; truth was supreme, and each man could judge it himself. This was the idea behind the Reformation: even the authorities should not be followed if they misinterpreted the truth, which individuals could recognize.

If you choose to memorize these dates, it’s not necessary to remember the specific day of the year. Remembering the year itself is what matters. For example, if you are reading a book and see a date of 200 AD, you can instantly know a few things: the West is dominant (after 313 BC), Christianity is on the scene (after AD 33) but paganism is still dominant (before AD 313). And of course, we are a long way from the time when Roman Christianity’s power would be diminished.

A note on the events that I omitted. I’m omitting the dates of creation and the flood for two reasons. First, we don’t know these dates with certainty. Second, written extra-biblical history begins after the flood, so neither of those dates are going to be as important in understanding the way that western civilization has developed.

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