1942-45: Japanese occupation.
1946-1947: Unrest under British colonial rule.
1948: Federation of Malaya formed. State of Emergency.
1948-60: Brutal British war against rebels to keep hold of rubber industry.
1957: Federation of Malaya becomes independent from Britain.
1963: Federation of Malaysia formed.
1965: Singapore withdraws from Malaysia. Insurgency in Sarawak.
1977: Unrest.
1989-1990: Peace with insurgents.
2001: Ethnic clashes.