Return to Table of Contents.

An Earth Empire ship commanded by General Williams encounters a Draconian battlecruiser. Unaware that the ship has no weapons, Williams attacks and destroys the ship. This causes a brief, but furious war between the Earth and Draconian Empires. At the conclusion of the war, a treaty is signed which establishes a "frontier in space" between the two Empires. Ships from either side are forbidden to cross the frontier.

The war started 20 years before "Frontier in Space" (2540).

Earthshock: 1,2,3,4: The Cybermen, having learned of a meeting held on Earth to force an interplanetary alliance against them, attempt to crash a space freighter into the planet, exploding its anti-matter engines. This would cause enough destruction to wipe out all life on Earth. This plan is foiled by the 5th Doctor, Nyssa, Tegan and Adric, whose interfence sends the freighter spiralling back through time 65 million years.

The 5th Doctor returns Lt. Scott and those under his command who survived their encounter with the Cybermen to their own time.

Just before "Time-Flight."

Time-Flight: 1: After dropping off Lt. Scott and his men, the 5th Doctor, Nyssa and Tegan leave the 26th century.

The Cyber War between the Earth Empire and the Cybermen begins. Eventually, the Cybermen's weakness to gold is discovered. The "glittergun" is developed, and the vast gold reserves on the planet Voga, the "Planet of Gold," are used as ammunition. When they realize that they have lost the war, the Cybermen detonate enough Cyber-bombs to blow Voga out of its orbit, sending it drifting through space, and driving the remaining Vogans underground. The Cybermen disappear and are not seen again until the late 29th century.

War described in "Revenge of the Cybermen." Presumably, this is the war started as a result of the events in "Earthshock," hence its placement here.

The giant squid called Kroll makes its second manifestation on the third moon of the planet Delta Magna.

"The Power of Kroll." 200 years prior to Kroll's next appearance in 2728.

The Cybermen manage to capture a vessel with time-travel capability. As the war with the Earth Empire is going poorly, the Cybermen decide to travel back through time to prevent the destruction of their homeworld in 1986 by slamming Halley's Comet into the Earth in 1985.

Some time before "Attack of the Cybermen."

Attack of the Cybermen: 1,2 ("long" episodes) or 2,3,4 ("short" episodes): The 6th Doctor, Peri and the mercenary Lytton arrive on the planet Telos from 1985 to prevent the Cybermen from carrying through their plan to destroy the Earth in the past. With the help of the native Cryons, the Cybermen's base is destroyed; Lytton, however, perishes.

Both A History of the Universe and The Terrestrial Index agree that "Attack of the Cybermen" takes place around this period, towards the end of the war with the Cybermen.

Peace Party members Professor Dale and Patel meet at a Party gathering; shortly afterwards, Dale is arrested and sent to the Luna Penal Colony on the Moon.

A year before "Frontier in Space" (2540).

A prisoner from the Luna Penal Colony on the Moon is killed in an escape attempt.

A month before "Frontier in Space."

At least three Earth ships are attacked by what appear to be Draconian soldiers, and Draconian ships suffer the same fate at the hands of, apparently, Earth soldiers. These soldiers are in fact Ogrons, working for the Master and the Daleks, who are seen by each race as the other, thanks to the Master's hypnosound device. As a result of the attacks on the Earth ships, many anti-Draconian riots take place on Earth.

Over the monh before "Frontier in Space."

Frontier in Space: 1,2,3,4,5,6: Working for the Daleks, the Master and the Ogrons attempt at start a war between the Earth and Draconian Empires. A war between the two would devastate both Empires, and the Daleks could easily conquer the galaxy. The 3rd Doctor and Jo manage to convince the leaders of both Empires that a war is not necessary. The Master escapes, and the Doctor and Jo follow the Daleks.

Planet of the Daleks: 1,2,3,4,5,6: The 3rd Doctor and Jo discover an invasion force of 10 000 Daleks on the planet Spiridon. With the help of a group of Thals, they entomb the Dalek army in tons of ice, thus ruining the Daleks' invasion plans.

Sanders joins the exploratory arm of Earth's military.

Sanders says that Deva Loka is the first time he's felt at home in 40 years at the time of "Kinda" (2582), implying he has been in the military that long.

On the planet Manussa, Director of Historical Research Dojjen realizes that the time of the Mara's return is near and decides to leave his position and become a Snakedancer to prepare.

Ten years before "Snakedance" (2583).

Kinda: 1,2,3,4: The 5th Doctor, Adric, Nyssa and Tegan visit the planet Deva Loka. While Nyssa recovers from a dizzy spell, the others encounter a group of explorers from Earth and the local humanoids, named the Kinda. A snake-like being called the Mara attempts to take control of the Kinda, using Tegan as a conduit, but the Doctor is able to drive it back to its own domain. The travellers are also able to convince the explorers to leave Deva Loka to itself.

Date is arbitrary. From some of the human's attitudes, this seems to take place during the Earth Empire, possibly early on, as there is a attempt at exploration and colonization.

Snakedance: 1,2,3,4: Tegan, whose mind still harbours the spirit of the Mara, steers the TARDIS to Manussa, where the Mara plans to physically manifest itself. The 5th Doctor and Nyssa are able to stop the ceremony which will do this, driving the Mara out of Tegan and destroying it.

Date is conjecture. I am arbitrarily placing this a year after "Kinda," as that much time seems to pass between stories for the characters.

Around this time, the surface of the planet Argolis becomes habitable once again.

Three centuries after "The Leisure Hive."

On an unnamed Earth colony, a colonist named Medok discover the existence of the Macra, breaking his conditioning.

Shortly before "The Macra Terror."

The Macra Terror: 1,2,3,4: The 2nd Doctor, Polly, Ben and Jamie release an unnamed Earth colony from the influence of the Macra, a crab-like race brainwashing the colonists into mining a gas vital to the Macra's survival.

Using other sources, there are two dates to choose from for this story. The Terrestrial Index places in the 22nd century; two other chronologies place it in the year 2600. I am choosing the latter because of the Pilot's remark that the Earth colony has been established for "many centuries."

Earth sends robots called Mechanoids to prepare the planet Mechanus for future colonists.

50 years before "The Chase" (2665).

Steven Taylor crash-lands on the planet Mechanus. He is taken captive by the Mechanoids, not knowing the correct codes to control them.

Two years before "The Chase" (2665).

The Chase: Journey Into Terror; The Death of Doctor Who; The Planet of Decision: On the planet Mechanus, the 1st Doctor, Barbara, Ian and Vicki defeat a robot double of the Doctor built by the Daleks. They then encounter the Mechanoids, who are keeping space pilot Steven Taylor captive in their city. All five escape as the Daleks and Mechanoids destroy each other. Ian and Barbara use the Daleks time-machine to get back home.

Using the 27th century date from The Terrestrial Index.

An Imperial slave-ship carrying a cargo of Tharils on board disappears when its warp drive malfunctions. The ship is pulled into a "null zone" bordering normal N-Space and E-Space.

"Months and months" before "Warriors' Gate."

Warriors' Gate: 1,2,3,4: The 4th Doctor, the 2nd Romana, K-9 Mark II and Adric arrive at an intersection point between E-Space and N-Space. Here, they discover a stranded slave-ship full of time-sensitive Tharils. The Tharils formerly used extensive slave labour themselves until the slave races, humans among them, rebelled. The travellers help to release the Tharils and find a way back to N-Space. Romana and K-9 stay behind in E-Space to help free the rest of the Tharil race.

Date is conjecture. This is during the period of the Earth Empire.

Terminus: 1,2,3,4: The 5th Doctor, Nyssa, Tegan and Turlough (still attempting to destroy the Doctor for the Black Guardian) visit Terminus, the final refuge for the victims of Lazar Disease. The victims, simply called Lazars are shipped to Terminus by Terminus, Inc. and subjected to an unreliable radiation therapy, sometimes curing, sometimes killing the Lazars. The Doctor also discovers that an explosion of one of Terminus' engines is responsible for the creation of the Universe, and is able to prevent a similar explosion, which would destroy all reality. Nyssa stays behind to help perfect the treatment for the disease.

Dating is conjecture. The Terminus workers are slave labour, and slavery is common in "Warriors' Gate," also set in this century.

The Space Museum: The Space Museum; The Dimensions of Time; The Search; The Final Phase: On the planet Xeros, after witnessing an alternate future in which they are exhibits in a space museum, the 1st Doctor, Barbara, Ian and Vicki prevent the potential events from happening by helping the Xerons revolt against their Morok oppressors.

At the end of this story, the Doctor takes from the museum the Space-Time Visualiser, as revealed in "The Chase." In that story, Vicki says that scientists were working on the Visualiser when she left Earth in 2493. I am allowing 200 years for the final development of the Visualiser, and for an encounter with the Moroks, giving us this date.

A group from the Marine Space Corps searches space for the mineral parrinium, the only known cure to a space plague sweeping through Earth's colonies. Parrinium is detected on Exxilon, but when the MSC ship approaches the planet, they lose all power and are forced to make an emergency landing. Several members of the crew are injured or killed. The crew attempt to send a distress signal and set up a mining dome to refine the parrinium.

Shortly before "Death to the Daleks."

Death to the Daleks: 1,2,3,4: On the planet Exxilon, the 3rd Doctor and Sarah encounter a group from the Marine Space Corps which is attempt to mine parrinium as an antidote to a plague attacking Earth's colonies. The travellers prevent the parrinium from being taken from the MSC by the Daleks, who plan to blackmail the Empire into submission. They also help to destroy the City, a living structure worshiped by some of the natives, which is draining power from all ships on the planet, preventing them from leaving.

This story takes place in the future, probably during Earth's Empire. Possible dates I have found are the 25th century (The Terrestrial Index), 2600 (A History of the Universe), and 2800 (several fan-produced timelines). I am choosing 2725, roughly halfway through the Empire's reign.

On the third moon of Delta Magna, the giant squid worshipped by the native Swampies as Kroll makes his third manifestation. Kroll destroys the temple dedicated to him, killing the High Priest, and devouring the Swampies' symbol of power, in reality the fourth segment of the Key to Time.

200 years before Kroll's next manifestation in "The Power of Kroll" (2928).

A group of five humans lands on the Sense-Sphere. After experimenting with telepathy, all 5 go insane. Two of the men try to leave the planet, but are killed when the remaining 3 blow up the ship. The survivors hide in the aqueducts and begin poisoning the Sensorites' water supply with Deadly Nightshade.

Ten years before "The Sensorites" (2764).

On a ship orbiting the Sense-Sphere, Carol Richmond's fiancee, John discovers the presence of molybdenum on the planet below, and is driven insane by the Sensorites' thoughts

A year before "The Sensorites" (2764).

The Sensorites: Strangers in Space; The Unwilling Warriors; Hidden Danger; A Race Against Death; Kidnap; A Desperate Venture: The 1st Doctor, Susan, Ian and Barbara discover a group of space travellers held captive in orbit around the Sense-Sphere. They secure their release after helping to capture the spacemen poisoning the Sensorites water, and the corrupt City Administrator.

A conflict over the spectrox mines on Androzani Minor begins between rebel Sharaz Jek and Siruis Conglomerate-backed government forces.

Six months before "The Caves of Androzani."

During the conflict on Androzani Minor, General Chellak's aide-de-camp Salateen is captured by Sharaz Jek's forces and is replaced by one of Jek's androids.

"Months" prior to "The Caves of Androzani."

On Androzani Major, the Head of Minerals of the Sirius Conglomerate sends out a limiting order on copper production.

A month before "The Caves of Androzani."

The Caves of Androzani: 1,2,3,4: On the planet Androzani Minor, mad android expert Sharaz Jek is at war with government forces (backed by Jek's nemesis, Director Morgus). Sharaz Jek controls the planet's entire supply of spectrox, a substance which can double human lifespan. The 5th Doctor and Peri are caught in the middle of the battle, which goes poorly, with both sides suffering severe casualities, including Jek and Morgus. The Doctor, suffering from spectrox toxaemia poisoning throughout, is forced to regenerate.

Date is conjecture. This would appear to happen sometime during the Earth Empire (e.g., the government approving of labour camps).

What remains of Voga, the "Planet of Gold," is caught by the gravitational pull of the planet Jupiter, and begins to drift through the solar system. It is originally named "Neo-Phobos" by astronomers, but is later renamed "Voga" when Professor Kellman learns the truth about the planet.

50 years before "Revenge of the Cybermen" (2890).

On Uvanov's first sand-mining expedition as Commander, a crewmember suffering from robophobia runs out of an air-lock in terror and dies. The boy's rich father has the events covered up so that no one will think his son a coward. Commander Uvanov is blamed instead.

Ten years before "The Robots of Death" (2865).

A sand-mining expedition is sent out from base. Her crew, led by Commander Uvanov, includes a disguised Taren Capel, mad robot expert, and two Company undercover agents, Chief Mover Poul and robot D84.

Eight months before "The Robots of Death" (2865).

The Robots of Death: 1,2,3,4: The 4th Doctor and Leela discover a sand-mining expedition where the crew are being killed off one by one. They discover that one crew member is the insane robotics expert Taren Capel who is trying to lead a robot revolution and is programming the robots on board the ship to kill all humans. The Doctor tricks the robots into not following Capel's orders, and the revolution is prevented.

This story takes place in an unspecified future (most other chronologies do place this story as part of Earth's future history despite no mention of Earth on screen). I am using as a starting point the launching of the Mechanoids from "The Chase" in the year 2615. Arbitrarily adding 250 years to account for enough advancement to build the robots seen in this tale gives us this date (which, incidentally, ends up quite close to A History of the Universe's date of 2877).

On the planet Voga, Vorbus begins work on a massive rocket as part of an elaborate plan to destroy what remains of the Cybermen.

Two years prior to "Revenge of the Cybermen" (2890).

On space station Nerva, Professor Kellman unleashes several Cybermats, which proceed to kill most of the station's crew. The remaining crew believe that Nerva is infected with some kind of plague, and the beacon is quarantined. Kellman, although appearing to work for the Cybermen, is in fact luring them into a trap set up by Vorbus, on Voga. In return for his help, Kellman has been promised large quantities of gold.

The "plague" starts 79 days before "Revenge of the Cybermen."

Revenge of the Cybermen: 1,2,3,4: The 4th Doctor, Sarah and Harry arrive on Nerva orbiting the Earth centuries before they left it and become involved in a conflict between the Cybermen and the inhabitants of Voga, the "Planet of Gold." Each intends to destroy the other, both using Nerva and her crew in their plans. The Doctor manages to help destroy the Cybermen, while preventing the destruction of Nerva.

Exact date is conjecture. These events would seems to have taken place in the late 29th century.

The planet Aridius begins to get closer to its two suns, which will cause their planet to become desert-like over the next millennium.

One thousand years before "The Chase" (3900).

In orbit around Earth, the space beacon Nerva completes its original assignment.

Thirty years after "Revenge of the Cybermen" (2890), assuming regular operations resumed afterwards.

While on a visit to Delta Magna, methane factory technician Thawn makes a deal with recently escaped gun-runner Rohm-Dutt. Thawn plans to start a conflict with the Swampies on Delta Magna III, the planet's third moon, framing the radical group, the Sons of Earth, in the process. Rohm-Dutt's ship follows close behind Thawn's as he returns to Delta Magna III.

Just before "The Power of Kroll."

The Power of Kroll: 1,2,3,4: On the moon Delta Magna III, while searching for the fourth segment of the Key to Time, the 4th Doctor and the 1st Romana get caught in the middle of a fight between the native people, called "Swampies," and the technicians at a methane factory. Complicating matters is the presence of a giant squid, whom the Swampies worship as their god, Kroll. When the leaders on both sides of the conflict are killed, the fighting stops. The fourth segment, swallowed centuries ago by Kroll is recovered, destroying Kroll in the process.

This story takes place in an indeterminate future, probably during the Earth Empire, considering the human treatment of the Swampies. Parkin's A History of the Universe places it in 2878. I am pushing that ahead another 50 years to bring it closer to the end of the Empire later in the 30th century.

The Administrator of the planet Solos calls a conference with Solonian representatives. He plans to announce that Earth is giving Solos its independence.

Just before "The Mutants."

The Mutants: 1,2,3,4,5,6: The 3rd Doctor and Jo are sent to the planet Solos by the Time Lords. There they help the Solonians through the next step in their evolution into a race of super-beings, allowing them to gain independence from the Earth Empire, despite the efforts of the power-mad Marshall of Solos.

Around this time, the principle of anti-magnetic cohesion is developed.

"Carnival of Monsters." The Doctor says that Jo was born "about a thousand years too early" for cohesion. As Jo's birthdate is unknown, I am adding a thousand years to the "contemporary" setting of 1973 to reach this date.

On the planet Stella Stora, Hallet investigates a granaries shortage. While there, he meets Kimber.

Three years before "The Trial of a Time Lord" (2986).

On the planet Mogar, Ruth Baxter, one of Professor Sarah Lasky's lab assistants, becomes infected by a Vervoid spore and begins to change in a humna/Vervoid hybrid.

Some time before "The Trial of a Time Lord."

The Trial of a Time Lord: 9,10,11,12: Answering a distress call, the 6th Doctor and Mel become involved in the investigation of a series of murders in the interstellar cruiser Hyperion III. In the course of solving the murders, the Doctor discovers a race of deadly sentient plants, called Vervoids, has been smuggled on board the ship. In order to prevent the Vervoids from reaching Earth and destroying all animal life there, the Doctor must force them to age rapidly and die.

Return to Table of Contents.