4th Century BC

Events in the 4th Century BC 7

• 14000 BC – 300 BC Jomon period World's earliest pottery — hunter-gatherers of the islands The Jomon period is named for the cord-marked (jomon) pottery its people produced — among the oldest pottery in the world. These were sophisticated hunter-gatherers, fishers and foragers who lived a largely sedentary life in the Japanese archipelago for over ten thousand years, long before agriculture arrived.
• 753 BC – 476 The Roman Civilisation The Roman civilisation — kingdom, republic and empire — shaped Western law, language, architecture, religion and governance more profoundly than any other ancient civilisation. From the legendary founding of Rome by Romulus in 753 BC to the deposition of the last western emperor Romulus Augustulus in 476 AD, Rome endured for over twelve centuries, governing at its peak an empire of 70 million people stretching from Scotland to Mesopotamia.
• 550 BC – 330 BC Achaemenid Empire — First Persian Empire The largest empire the ancient world had yet seen Founded by Cyrus the Great in 550 BC, the Achaemenid Empire stretched from the Balkans and Egypt to the Indus Valley — the largest empire the world had yet seen. It was renowned for its tolerance of subject peoples, its network of royal roads and the administrative system of satrapies.
• 390 BC The Gallic Sack of Rome A Gallic tribe — the Senones under their chieftain Brennus — defeats the Roman army at the Battle of the Allia and sacks Rome in 390 BC (or 387 BC by some chronologies). The city is burned; only the Capitol holds out. According to legend, the sacred geese of Juno wake the defenders when a night assault is attempted. Rome pays a ransom in gold; when the Romans complain the weights are rigged, Brennus throws his sword on the scales: "Vae victis" — Woe to the conquered.
• 343 BC – 290 BC The Samnite Wars Three wars against the Samnites — a powerful Italic people of the Apennine mountains — between 343 and 290 BC cement Roman dominance of peninsular Italy. The Second Samnite War (326–304 BC) includes the humiliation of the Caudine Forks (321 BC), where an entire Roman army is forced to pass under the yoke. Rome recovers, learns, adapts — and ultimately prevails. By 290 BC, Rome controls most of Italy south of the Po valley.
• 322 BC – 185 BC Maurya Empire First empire to unify the subcontinent The Maurya Empire, founded by Chandragupta Maurya in 322 BC, was the first state to unify most of the Indian subcontinent under one centralised administration. From its capital Pataliputra it became one of the largest empires of the ancient world.
• 312 BC – 63 BC Seleucid Empire Greek successor state rules Persia After Alexander's death his general Seleucus seized the eastern territories, founding the Seleucid Empire that ruled Persia for some two and a half centuries. It spread Hellenistic culture across the region before fragmenting and giving way to the resurgent Parthians.