| 1805–1848 | 1884–1885 |
| – Muhammad Ali modernizes Egypt | – Berlin Conference |
| 1839–1842 | 1885 |
| – First Opium War; Treaty of Nanking | – Russian expansion reaches borders of Afghanistan |
| 1853 | 1898 |
| – Perry “opens” Japan for trade | – United States takes over Philippines; hundred days of reform in China; Battle of Omdurman |
| 1856–1860 | 1899 |
| – Second Opium War | – Kipling writes “The White Man’s Burden” |
| 1857–1858 | 1899–1902 |
| – Britain crushes Great Rebellion in India | – South African War |
| 1863–1879 | 1902 |
| – Reign of Ismail in Egypt | – Conrad publishes Heart of Darkness; Hobson publishes Imperialism |
| 1867 | 1912 |
| – Meiji Restoration in Japan | – Western-style republic replaces China’s Qing Dynasty |
| 1869 | 1914 |
| – Suez Canal opens | – Panama Canal opens |
| 1880–1900 | |
| – Most of Africa falls under European rule | |