Early populants were influenced by Indian peoples
The earliest known kingdom was Kutai, established in East Kalimantan in the 4th century
Tarumanagara kingdom flourished in the 5th century

The Srivijaya a Sumatran maritime empire rose to prominance leading up the 7th century and dominated trade in the region
The Saliendra dynasty built the Borobudur temple in the 8th century, to honour Buddhism
The Mataram Kingom grew in the 8th century and built the Prambanan temples to honour Hinduism
In the 11th century, the Airlangga unified eastern Java as the Kahurpan Kingdom
The Majaphit Empire emerged in the the late 13th century under Raden Wijaya

Islam began to spread over Indonesia in the 13th Century
Samudera Pasai was a key Islamic kingdom in Sumatra
The Sultanate of Malacca dominated trade in the 15th century
The Demak Sultanate rose in the 16th century, promoting Islam across the island
Aceh Sultanate became the Islamic centre in the 16th century, competing with the Portuguese and the Dutch for control of the spice trade

The Dutch East India Company arrived in 1602 and monopolised the spice trade
The Dutch began to establish control and consolidated power in Java in the mid 17th century
The Mataram Sultanate fell and the Dutch expanded their control
The Dutch East India Company dissolved and the Dutch government took control. Establishing the Dutch East Indies
The Java war (1825 – 1830) was a revolt against the Dutch led by Prince Diponegoro. The Dutch one

During WWII the Japanese occupied Indonesia, promoting anti-colonialism. Indonesia declared independence in 1945 against the Dutch and were fully independent by 1949
There was a coup in 1965 against the socialist, nationalist new government. Seharto seized power but as industrialisation grew, so did corruption and human rights abuse