15 April, 1912: North Korean founder Kim Il-sung is born in Pyongyang.
16 February 1942: Kim Jong-il is born in a guerrilla fighters' camp on Mount Paektu, the highest peak on the Korean peninsula, according to official North Korean history. Some sources say he was born in a Siberian village, and that the year of his birth was 1941.
9 September 1948: Kim-il sung establishes the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in the northern half of the Korean peninsula.
25 June 1950: North Korea invades South Korea.
27 July 1953: The Korean War ends in a truce, not a peace treaty.
September 1973: Kim Jong-il assumes the Workers' party's No. 2 post – the secretary for the party's organisation, guidance and propaganda affairs.
February 1974: Kim Jong-il is elected to the political bureau of the Workers' party's central committee and formally becomes North Korea's future leader.
8 January 1983: Kim Jong-il's third and youngest son Kim Jong-un is believed to have been born.
24 December 1991: Kim Jong-il is named supreme commander of the Korean People's Army.
April 1993: Kim Jong-il is named chairman of the National Defence Commission.
8 July 1994: Kim Il-sung dies of a heart attack and Kim Jong-il inherits power.
8 October 1997: Kim Jong-il is named general secretary of the Workers' party.
21 July 2010: The US imposes new sanctions on North Korea in a bid to stem Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions.
28 September 2010: Kim Jong-un is promoted to four-star general and given leadership roles in the ruling Workers' party moves seen as confirmation that he is slated to become the country's next leader. The announcement is North Korean state media's first mention of Kim Jong-un.
10 October 2010: Kim Jong-un makes his public debut at what is believed to be the largest military parade the communist state has ever staged. The celebration in Pyongyang marks the 65th anniversary of the ruling Workers' party but also serves as a coming-out party for the younger Kim.
11 October 2010: Kim Jong-nam, the casino-loving eldest son of Kim Jong-il, says he opposes a hereditary transfer of power to his youngest half-brother. Analysts say Kim Jong-nam spends so much time outside his native land that his opinion carries little weight. He spoke to Japan's TV Asahi in an interview from Beijing.
28 January 2011: Kim Jong-nam says his father opposed continuing the family dynasty into a third generation but named his youngest son as heir to keep the country stable, according to TV Asahi.
16 February 2011: Kim Jong-il celebrates his 69th birthday.
15 April 2011: North Koreans honour the country's founder, Kim Il-sung, on the 99th anniversary of his birth. It is the nation's most important holiday and known as "the day of the sun".
18 December 2011: Kim Jong-il's death at the age of 69 is announced by state television from Pyongyang.
From : BBC News
