Ctesiphon

City · c. 239 BCE – c. 637 CE · in the Middle East

Capital of Parthian Empire (239 BCE–224).

Nisa (c. 239 BCE – c. 224 CE): Capital of Parthian Empire (239 BCE–224).
Caesarea of Cappadocia (c. 239 BCE – c. 17 CE): Capital of Kingdom of Cappadocia (239 BCE–17).
Hecatompylos (c. 239 BCE – c. 224 CE): Capital of Parthian Empire (239 BCE–224).
Balkh (c. 247 BCE): Capital of Greco-Bactrian Kingdom (247 BCE–127 BCE), Sasanian Empire (215–643), Indo-Sasanian Empire (260–357).
Co Loa Citadel (c. 256 BCE – c. 965 CE): Capital of Âu Lac (256 BCE–207 BCE), Ngô Dynasty (947–965).
Xianyang (c. 218–206 BCE): Capital of Qin Dynasty (218 BCE–209 BCE), Zhai (208 BCE–206 BCE).
Cherchell (c. 212 BCE): Capital of Mauretania (212 BCE–42).
Chang'an (202 BCE): Capital of the Western Han, Sui and Tang dynasties; under the Tang it was one of the largest cities in the world. Modern Xi'an stands on the site.
Carcathiocerta (c. 202 BCE): Capital of Kingdom of Sophene (202 BCE–94 BCE).
Arsamosata (c. 202–94 BCE): Capital of Kingdom of Sophene (202 BCE–94 BCE).

Around the same time and place

Cyrus the Great (c. 600 BCE – 530 BCE): Founder of the Achaemenid Persian Empire, which he expanded from Anatolia to Central Asia by conquering Media, Lydia and Babylon.
Campaigns of Alexander the Great (334–323 BCE): Alexander of Macedon crossed into Asia in 334 BCE, defeated Darius III at Issus and Gaugamela, conquered Egypt and the Persian Empire, and campaigned as far as the Indus valley before dying in Babylon in 323 BCE.
Cleopatra (69 BCE – 30 BCE): The last active ruler of Ptolemaic Egypt, she allied with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony; her death after defeat by Octavian ended the dynasty and Egypt became a Roman province.
Jesus (c. 4 BCE – 30 CE): A Jewish preacher from Galilee whose teachings and crucifixion in Jerusalem under Pontius Pilate became the foundation of Christianity.
Muhammad (c. 570 CE – 632 CE): The prophet of Islam, born in Mecca, who united much of Arabia under the new faith before his death in Medina.
First revelation of the Quran (c. 610 CE): According to Islamic tradition, Muhammad received his first revelation in the cave of Hira near Mecca in 610, beginning the Quran and the religion of Islam.
The Hijra (622 CE): Muhammad and his followers migrated from Mecca to Medina, where he established the first Muslim community; the year marks the start of the Islamic calendar.
Baghdad (762 CE): Founded by the Abbasid caliph al-Mansur as a round city on the Tigris, Baghdad became the Abbasid capital and one of the largest cities in the world.