Timeline of Athens

Prior to 15th century

630 BCE - Temple of Athena Polias built (approximate date).

594 BCE - Solonian law established.

575 BCE - Coins in use (approximate date).

566 BCE - Panathenaic festival begins.

560 BCE - Peisistratos in power.

546 BCE - Athenian tetradrachm (coin) in use.

486 BCE - Parthenon built.

431 BCE - Peloponnesian War begins with Sparta.

430 BCE - Plague.

424 BCE - Temple of Athena Nike built.

409 BCE - Erechtheion built (approximate date).

385 BCE - Academy founded (approximate date).

335 BCE - Lyceum founded (approximate date).

229 BCE - Athens liberated from Macedonian supremacy, but refuses to join Achaean League.

88 BCE - City sacked by Roman forces.

267 CE - Agora sacked by Germanic Heruli forces.

396 CE - City taken by forces of Visigoth Alaric.

580 - City sacked by Slavic forces.

1146 - City "plundered by Roger, King of Sicily."

1204 - Othon de la Roche of Burgundy becomes Duke of Athens.

1311 - City under Aragonese rule.

15th-19th centuries

1456 - Conquest by the Ottoman Empire.

1687 - City besieged by Venetian forces under Francesco Morosini during the Morean War.

1801 - Elgin Marbles taken to Britain.

1821 - April: Siege of the Acropolis (1821–22) begins.

1826 - August: Siege of the Acropolis (1826–27) begins.

1829 - National Archaeological Museum established.

1833 - City becomes part of the Attica and Boeotia Prefecture administrative division.

1834

City becomes capital of Kingdom of Greece.

National Library of Greece headquartered in city.

1837 - National and Kapodistrian University of Athens ("Othonian University") and National Technical University of Athens ("Royal School of Arts") established.

1840 - Royal Garden planted.

1842 - Observatory built.

1843

3 November: Third of September National Assembly of the Greeks at Athens begins.

Royal Palace built.

1846 - Omonoia Square ("Palace Square") laid out.

1854 - Occupation of city by British and French forces during the Crimean War begins.

1856 - Occupation of city by British and French forces ends.

1860s - Anafiotika neighborhood settled.

1862 - 10 December: Second National Assembly of the Greeks at Athens begins.

1869 - Athens and Piraeus Railway in operation.

1871 - Athens Conservatoire founded.

1874 - German Archaeological Institute at Athens established.

1876 - Athens Stock Exchange established.

1878 - Hotel Grande Bretagne in business.

1881 - American School of Classical Studies at Athens established.

1886 - British School at Athens established.

1896 - 1896 Summer Olympics held.

1899

City becomes part of the Attica Prefecture administrative division.

Spyridon Merkouris becomes mayor.

20th century

1904

Athens Metro in operation.

Athens Railway Station opens.

1905 - Athens News Agency established.

1907 - Population: 167,479.

1908 - Panathinaikos A.O. football club formed.

1909 - Goudi coup.

1916 - 1 December: "Allied and Greek forces clash."

1919 - Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry founded.

1920

* Third National Assembly of the Greeks at Athens begins.

Population: 453,042 metro.

1922

Population increases with war refugees; shantytowns develop.

To Vima newspaper begins publication.

Apostolos Nikolaidis Stadium opens in Ampelokipoi.

1923

Vradyni newspaper begins publication.

Fourth National Assembly of the Greeks at Athens, convenes.

1926 - Academy of Athens founded.

1928 - Population: 802,000 metro.

1929 - Residential Psychiko suburb developed near city.

1930 - National Theatre of Greece and Benaki Museum established.

1932 - Residential Filothei suburb developed near city.

1935

October: Fifth National Assembly of the Greeks at Athens held.

Alexandras Prosfygika housing complex built on Alexandras Avenue.

1938 - Airport built.

1939 - Greek National Opera established.

1940 - Population: 481,225 city; 1,124,109 metro.

1941 - 27 April: City occupation by German forces begins.

1944

14 October: City occupation by German forces ends.

December: Dekemvriana clashes begin.

Ta Nea newspaper begins publication.

1947 - Star-Cinema opens.

1951 - Population: 559,250 city; 1,368,142 metro.

1955 - Athens Festival of arts begins.

1957

Astron Cinema opens.

Hellenic American Union founded.

1972 - City becomes part of the Athens Prefecture administrative division.

1973

Museum of the City of Athens established.

Athens Polytechnic uprising.

1974 - Eleftherotypia newspaper begins publication.

1980 - 31 July: 1980 Turkish embassy attack in Athens.

1981 - Ethnos newspaper begins publication.

1983 - Eleftheros Typos newspaper begins publication.

1984 - Sister city relationship established with Los Angeles, USA.

1987 - Miltiadis Evert becomes mayor.

1991 - Athens Concert Hall opens.

1994 - City becomes part of the Athens-Piraeus super-prefecture administrative division.

1995 - Dimitris Avramopoulos becomes mayor.

1998 - Kokkalis Foundation headquartered in city.

1999 - 7 September: 1999 Athens earthquake.

21st century

2000 - Ambelokipi metro station, Megaro Moussikis metro station, and Panormou metro station open.

2001 - Athens International Airport opens.

2003 - Dora Bakoyannis becomes mayor.

2004

Athens Tram begins operating.

2004 Summer Olympics and Paralympics held.

2007 - Nikitas Kaklamanis becomes mayor.

2008 - December: 2008 Greek riots.

2009 - Acropolis Museum and Art Foundation open.

2010

July: Journalist Giolias killed.

November: Muslim demonstration.

Giorgos Kaminis elected mayor.

2011

Athens Mass Transit System formed.

Population: 664,046 city; 3,737,550 metro.

2012

13 February: Protest.

Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center construction begins.

2013 - Flooding.