More than 20,000 people gathered in a Kinshasa stadium on July 27 to hear an address by Jean-Pierre Bemba, a candidate in the Democratic Republic of Congo's presidential election. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)

1840-1872:

Scottish explorer David Livingstone explores the Congo River and surrounding area.

1878:

King Leopold II of Belgium makes plans for colonization of Congo. He commissions former journalist Henry Morton Stanley to ink treaties with local chiefs.

1885:

Congo Free State established under Leopold after being formally recognized by European powers at Conference of Berlin.

1890-1908:

Belgian forces annex a number of areas of the Congo basin, forcing control of trade. Congolese are pressed into forced labour to harvest rubber and ivory and to build transportation and other infrastructure. Millions of Congolese are killed by Leopold's enforcement squads.

1908:

Reacting to outcry over atrocities committed against Congolese, the Belgian parliament annexes Congo Free State. It is renamed Belgian Congo.

June 30, 1960:

The Republic of the Congo gains independence from Belgium. Patrice Lumumba, leader of the Congolese National Movement (the country's first nation-wide party) wins the first national election. He is deposed within months by army leader Joseph Mobutu and killed by secessionists on January 16 of the following year.

July 1960 - June 1964:

Up to 20,000 UN peacekeepers are sent to the Congo after the newly independent country asks for help resisting Belgian troops. The UN Security Council asks Belgium to withdraw. In the years immediately following independence, a number of secessionists (including foreigners and Congolese nationals) clash with the provisional UN forces for control.

Nov. 1965:

Mobutu installs himself as president.

Nov. 1970:

Mobutu officially elected president in national elections.

1971 - 1973:

Mobutu changes the country's name to Zaire (and changes his own name to Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku wa za Banga). Foreign interests are nationalized.

1975:

Most nationalized property returned to former owners.

Dec. 1977:

Mobutu re-elected.

1977 - 1978:

Zairian rebels launch raids from Angola and Zambia into the Katanga region of Zaire. They are repelled with the help of French and Belgian troops.

1982:

For the first time, Mobutu allows legislative elections (although not the formation of opposition parties).

1984:

Mobutu is re-elected president for the third time. It is his 20th year in office.

1990:

Mobutu declares the Third Republic and promises multi-party elections. Canada is among a number of countries that cut off aid to Zaire after a group of protesting students are killed by government fighters.

1991:

Mobutu fires newly acclaimed Prime Minister Étienne Tshisekedi (who opposes Mobutu) and replaces him with a series of puppet leaders. Western nations react by cutting off all ties with Zaire and pulling nationals out of the country.

1996 - 1997:

While Mobutu is out of the country, Tutsi rebels take control of a large portion of eastern Zaire. With the help of Rwanda, they take the capital.

A victim of the violence (Courtesy James Astel's report "A Massacre Foretold")

May 1997:

Laurent-Desire Kabila becomes president and re-names Zaire the Democratic Republic of Congo. The following year, troops from Rwanda and Uganda invade in hopes of removing Kabila from power. They are halted by Angolan, Namibian and Zimbabwean troops allied with Kabila.

July 1999:

After more than two years of fighting, the countries involved sign the Lusaka peace accord. But the fighting continues, even despite the presence of a contingent of more than 5,000 UN peacekeepers sent to monitor the cease-fire.

January 2001:

Laurent Kabila killed by a bodyguard and succeeded by son Joseph. Later that year, Kibila the younger reaches an agreement for Rwandan and Ugandan-backed troops to pull back, and for the withdrawal of UN troops. By this point, an estimated 2.5 million had died in the fighting, according to the U.S.-based International Rescue Committee.

2002:

Separate peace deals are reached between the Congo and Rwandan and Ugandan-backed troops for their withdrawal. Most pull out, but pockets remain in the country, virtually unchecked by opposition.

April 2003:

New constitution signed, providing for the installation of a provisional government agreed upon by rival factions.

The streets of Bunia – in May 2003, a 10-day tribal battle cost hundreds of lives (Courtesy James Astel's report "A Massacre Foretold")

May 30, 2003:

The United Nations votes to send a multinational peacekeeping force into the Congo. France will lead a force into the Bunia region with instructions to take all necessary means to gain control. Since the pullout of Ugandan troops earlier in the month, Bunia has been racked by violence between warring tribal groups.

June 6, 2003:

Residents of the Congolese town of Bunia cheer as French troops begin to arrive in the violence-torn region. UNICEF says the hostilities are preventing it from aiding millions of people. As many as 500 people have been killed in the eastern province of Ituri in the past month. That prompted the UN to authorize a 1,400-troop force led by France to go to the Democratic Republic of Congo to attempt to restore order.

June 10, 2003:

The first French combat troops that aim to end years of tribal violence arrive in the Congolese town of Bunia. The 40 troops will be part of a 1,400-strong international contingent that's taking shape under a mandate from the European Union and the United Nations. More than 600 French troops are scheduled to arrive in Bunia within a week.

July 13, 2003:

More than a month after French troops first arrived to demilitarize the Congolese city of Bunia, the crackle of gunfire continues to break the night time silence. People have started to trickle back after a spike in fighting in May 2003 sent many streaming out. But there are still skirmishes on the outskirts of the city. Earlier in the week, the UN-mandated force was showing off how safe Bunia was; now it refuses to take journalists along on night-time patrols.

July 17, 2003:

Congo's two main rebel leaders are sworn in as vice presidents in a new power-sharing government. The development is viewed as a major step toward ending a bloody civil war, but it comes amid renewed violence in the expansive African country. Jean-Pierre Bemba and Azarias Ruberwa were sworn in at a ceremony attended by thousands in Kinshasa. Also sworn in as vice presidents were a member of the political opposition and an ally of standing president Joseph Kabila. The new government's mandate is to reunify the country, which has been torn apart by a five-year civil war.

May 30, 2004:

Fighting between the Congolese army and armed men loyal to a suspended military officer breaks out in Bukavu, near the border with Rwanda. Col. Jules Mutebutsi is a former officer with the Rally for Congolese Democracy, a Rwanda-backed rebel group that joined the power-sharing government.

June 2, 2004:

Two groups of renegade soldiers seize Bukavu, despite the presence of several hundred UN peacekeepers. The rebels say the region's army commander was persecuting Tutsis in eastern Congo. The UN Security Council condemns the seizure and Congolese President Joseph Kabila accuses Rwanda of helping the renegades.

June 9, 2004:

Government forces retake Bukavu without firing a shot, marching into the centre of the city as residents sing, beat drums and honk horns. Troops loyal to Col. Mutebutsi fled the city the previous night.

July 27, 2006:

A violent riot in the capital Kinshasa leaves at least five people dead days before Congo's first free multi-party elections in 46 years. A mob attacks and kills a soldier who reportedly fired into a crowd at a campaign rally. The UN says two police officers were killed, and officials for candidate Jean-Pierre Bemba say three civilians died.

July 30, 2006:

Millions of Congolese cast ballots in the first multi-party parliamentary and presidential elections since the African country won independence from Belgium.

About 25 million people are registered to cast ballots for 33 presidential, 9,000 national legislative and 10,000 provincial assembly candidates.

About 60,000 Congolese police, 17,000 UN peacekeepers and 1,000 soldiers from Europe provide security for the vote.

Final results are expected in about three weeks. In the event no presidential candidate earns a majority, a second vote between the top two finishers will follow, likely in September.