Asia • c. 1300–1046 BC: in China, the
Shang dynasty flourishes as it settles its capital,
Yin, near
Anyang. Chinese settlers swarm in compact groups to create new clearing areas towards the
Yangtze basin in the south, the
Shanxi terraces in the northwest and the
Wei River valley. The Shang then seem to frequently wage war with the still non-Sinicized populations who inhabit the
Huai River valley. Graves in the form of cruciform pits have been discovered in Anyang containing
chariots with their yokes, numerous bronze vases and the remains of human sacrifices, as well as the first
Chinese inscriptions on
oracle bones (
Jiaguwen) or bronze vases. China's Shang armies are organized into infantry and archers in companies of one hundred men, supporting sections of five chariots. • c. 1300 BC: the
Aryans dominate northwest India as far as the
Sarasvati River. The
Vedas mention the
Dasas (slaves) as their enemies. Dasas are interpreted as being a North
Iranian tribe, Dahae. The Aryans are organized in tribal monarchies headed by a
raja (king), who shares power with two councils or assemblies that will differentiate over time, the sabhā (court of justice) and the samiti (council of war). Only one raja is named in the
Rigveda:
Sudas of the
Bharatas, a tribe established on the upper reaches of the Sarasvatî. He is described as the victor of the coalition of ten kings, the most powerful of which was Pûru. Subsequently, the Kurus take control of the Bharatas. • c. 1260 BC:
Lapita pottery discovered at the Bourewa site southwest of
Viti Levu dates back to this period.
Middle East • c. 1350–1210 BC: the Igihalkid dynasty in
Elam. They resume the title of "Kings of Anshan and Susa". • c. 1306–1186 BC: the
Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt.
Memphis, then
Pi-Ramesses, are the capitals of the
New Kingdom of Egypt. It is a period of relative prosperity. During the reign of
Ramesses II, the construction of the
Great Hypostyle Hall of the temples of
Karnak, the
Luxor Temple and the temples of
Abu Simbel are completed. • 1307–1275 BC: the first Assyrian mention of the
Ahlamu, proto-
Aramaic people, during the reign of
Adad-nirari I, in the region of the north of the Euphrates. The Aramaeans, a Semitic people reported from the 14th century BC by the
archives of
Amarna and then
Ugarit, settled in North
Mesopotamia, then in
Aram (now
Syria) and
Lebanon where they formed kingdoms in the
11th century BC. The biblical tradition of the sons of Jacob, apparently originating from the Aram Naharayim or "Aram of the two rivers", in the loop of the Euphrates, around the towns of
Harran and Nahur, seems to confirm that this region was populated by Proto-Aramaic pastors around the 13th century BC. • 1274 BCE: the Egyptian and Hittite Empires clash in the
Battle of Kadesh, with heavy losses to each side but no decisive outcome. •
1207 BC:
Merneptah repels attacks by northern invaders (the "
Sea-Peoples") in the 8th year of his reign, according to the
Great Karnak Inscription.
Eric Cline closely links this event with the beginning of the
Late Bronze Age collapse.
Europe • c. 1300–1200 BC:
Bronze IIIB in
Greece. The
Lion Gate and the
Treasury of Atreus are built in
Mycenae. It is a time of peace and prosperity in the
Aegean. Mycenaean imports to the Levant peak. A
wreck found on the southern coast of
Anatolia contained ingots of copper, tin, ivory, Syrian, Cypriot and Mycenaean vases, and pieces of elephant and hippo ivory. The
Acropolis of Athens is developed: towards the end of the century, a
Cyclopean wall four to six meters thick, known as the “pelasgic wall” (
Pelargikon), is constructed, as well as a well to supply the citadel with water.
Linear B tablets are created in
Pylos. • c. 1300–1200 BC: approximately 4,000 men fight a
battle at a causeway over the Tollense valley in Northern Germany, the largest known prehistoric battle north of the Alps. • c. 1300–500 BC: the
Lusatian culture in
Poland, parts of the
Czech Republic and
Slovakia, eastern
Germany and northern
Ukraine. • c. 1250–850 BC: the
Urnfield culture, characterized by vast cemeteries housing urns with the ashes of the deceased and offerings, marks the Late Bronze Age in Western Europe. • c. 1250–1000 BC: the culture of
Pantalica develops inland in
Sicily. • 1225–1190 BC:
Late Helladic IIIB2 in mainland Greece. The perimeters of the defense systems of the Mycenaean palaces (
Mycenae,
Tiryns,
Midea) are widely extended, a sign that insecurity is increasing. The end of the period was marked by widespread destruction on most sites: Mycenae, Tyrinth, Midéa,
Thebes,
Orchomenus,
Dimini, and
Pylos, whose unfortified palaces have not been rebuilt. ==Sovereign states==