By Tim Lambert

Early Indonesia

c. 2,500 BC People in Indonesia learn to farm. They grow taro, bananas, millet and rice

c. 700 BC Bronze and iron are first used in Indonesia

400 BC The Indonesians trade with China and India

8th century AD Civilization in Indonesia is flourishing. The kingdom of Sriwijaya exists in south Sumatra. The kingdom of Sailendra exists in central Java.

13th century The Sriwijaya Empire breaks up

1292 The Majapahit Empire is founded

Early 15th Century The Majapahit Empire goes into a rapid decline

1511 The Portuguese capture Melaka

1602 The Dutch East India Company is founded

1619 The Dutch capture Batavia

1641 The Dutch take Melaka

1799 The Dutch government take over the territories Dutch East India Company

1825 The Javanese War begins. The Dutch take Pelambang in Sumatra.

1830 The Dutch win the Javanese War

1894 The Dutch capture Lombok

1905 The Dutch capture Sulawesi

1906 The Dutch conquer Bali

1942 The Japanese invade Indonesia

1945 August Sukarno declares Indonesian independence but the Dutch fight to subdue Indonesia

1946 The Dutch recognize the new republic but only in Java and Sumatra. They still claim the rest of Indonesia.

1947-48 Fighting continues

Modern Indonesia

1949 The Dutch recognize Indonesian independence

1957 President Sukarno introduces 'Guided Democracy'

1965 The Communists attempt a coup in Indonesia. It is crushed.

1966 Suharto becomes dictator of Indonesia

1973 Indonesia benefits from the high price of oil

1997 Indonesia suffers from a financial crisis

1998 Suharto resigns

1999 Elections are held

2004 Susilo Bambang Yudho is elected president of Indonesia

2016 The population of Indonesia is 261 million

A history of Indonesia

A timeline of Burma

A timeline of The Philippines

A timeline of Cambodia

A timeline of China

A timeline of Japan