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700 CE
800 CE
900 CE
1000 CE
1100 CE
1200 CE
1300 CE
1400 CE
1500 CE
750 CE: Muslim traders from Arabia begin to settle on the Swahili Coast.
1100 CE - 1500 CE: The trading city-states of Africa's Swahili Coast flourish.
1497 CE - 1499 CE: The Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama sails around the Cape of Good Hope and on to India and back.
1505 CE: The Portuguese begin to attack cities and build forts along the Swahili Coast in order to control trade.