How Important are dates?

Dates help us in finding out how things were in the past, and how things change over time.

Earlier, history was an account of battles and big events, such as:

• the year some king was crowned
• the year he was married and had a child
• the year he fought a particular war or battle
• the year he died
• the year the next ruler succeeded to the throne

• We choose to write history around some dates, and then those dates become important. This happens because people focus on some major events (wars, for example) that they believe are important. But with time, a new set of events might come into focus, and new dates become important.
• Also, histories written by and about British Governor Generals do not give us a correct picture of the status and everyday activities of ordinary Indians. So history is actually very different for different people.