unhappilyeverafter | Pre-Curse Timeline

Born to Cora and Henry, Regina is promised from an early age that she will one day be Queen (S2E16 The Miller's Daughter.)
Meets Snow White and saves her life, but at a price. Her mother, Cora finds out she plans to run away with Daniel, and murders him. (S1E18 The Stable Boy.)
She is forced to marry King Leopold against her wishes. Desperate to escape her mother's control, she delves into magic, and with Rumplestiltskin's encouragement, banishes Cora through the Looking Glass to Wonderland. (S2E02 We Are Both.)
Regina continues to practise magic under the watchful eye of Rumplestiltskin, but something is holding her back. Here she meets Jefferson, who introduces her to Frankenstein, a man who may be able to bring Daniel back to life. But when Frankenstein fails, Regina is lost to her grief and falls further into a need for revenge, finally submitting to the power within her. She does not know she was tricked by Rumplestiltskin, to force her to embrace dark magic. (S2E05 The Doctor.)
Regina's quest for power continues, and she tricks a Genie into loving her, resulting in him killing the King. Despite this, the Genie's feelings remain, and he wishes to be with her forever, but this results in him being trapped in her mirror. (S1E11 Fruit of the Poisonous Tree)
With the King dead, Regina advances with her plan to kill Snow White. She and the Mirror track down a Huntsman to assassinate her, but when he returns, the heart is that of an animal. Furious, Regina tears out his heart, controlling him and intending to keep him as her pet. (S1E07 The Heart is a Lonely Hunter.)
Cora has captured Regina's father and trapped him in Wonderland. Determined to free him, Regina returns to Jefferson, offering him and his daughter riches if he takes her there. In Wonderland, she's reunited with father, but only two can step back through the glass. Having tricked him, Regina leaves Jefferson trapped to face the wrath of her mother, the Queen of Hearts. (S1E17 Hat Trick.)
In a bid to gain an edge on Rumplestiltskin, Regina purposely meets Belle, manipulating her into thinking that true love's kiss is all he needs to break his curse; thus ridding him of his dark powers and quashing his threat to her. (S1E12 Skin Deep.)
As this doesn't happen, she forms another plan to weaken Rumplestiltskin. Later on, she captures Belle, locking her away in her palace and tormenting Rumplestiltskin about her supposed suicide. (S2E11 The Outsider, S1E12 Skin Deep.)
Despite a handsome reward for Snow's capture, there has been no sign of her. Instead, Regina presses on with a different tactic, and enlists the help of two children to return a stolen item of hers. With the poisoned apple back in her care, Regina strikes a deal with King George, who has Snow's true love captured. Regina bargains with Prince Charming's life to force Snow to bite the apple, sending her into an enchanted sleep. (S1E09 True North, S1E21 An Apple as Red as Blood.)
The Huntsman disobeys her and frees Prince Charming, who is on his way to rescue Snow White. Using the Mirror, she traps him in the Infinite Forest, but he still manages to reach Snow. (S1E22 A Land Without Magic.)
The pair declare war on Regina, and she is imprisoned and sentenced to death. In her final words, she announces her only regret is that she never killed Snow White. Despite this, Snow calls off the execution, wanting to give Regina a chance to redeem herself. When she fails to do so, she's banished from the kingdom. Shortly after, Rumplestiltskin visits Regina, who is displeased that he has put a protection spell on Snow, but he reminds her the magic only works in this land. (S2E10 The Cricket Game.)
Regina crashes Snow and Charming's wedding, declaring her plans to enact the Dark Curse and claim her victory. She then travels to Maleficient to take back the curse, having long ago swapped it for the failed Sleeping Curse. (S1E01 Pilot, S1E02 The Thing You Love Most.)
Fearing love may pose a risk to the Dark Curse, Regina makes a deal with the newly acquainted Captain Hook, for him to travel to Wonderland and bring back (what she thinks) is her dead mother. (S2E09 Queen of Hearts)
Ready to enact the curse, Regina sacrifices the heart of her steed to complete the magic, but it fails. An imprisoned Rumplestiltskin informs her it must be the thing she loves most, and so a reluctant Regina rips out her father's heart. (S1E02 The Thing You Love Most.)
With the fresh heart, the Dark Curse is cast. As it sweeps over the land, Regina rides to Snow's castle to declare her victory before they're all engulfed by the curse and taken to Storybrooke. (S1E01 Pilot.)