Latest Content
Featured Article
Article
Letters & Post in the Ancient World
Letters and their delivery via a state communication system was a feature of many ancient cultures. The writing medium may have differed but the Mesopotamians...
Featured Image
Image
Eleanor of Aquitaine
Effigy of Eleanor of Aquitaine, Fontevraud Abbey, France. Eleanor of Aquitaine (l. c. 1122-1204 CE) was one of the most powerful political figures...
Free for the World, Supported by You
World History Encyclopedia is a non-profit organization. For only $5 per month you can become a member and support our mission to engage people with cultural heritage and to improve history education worldwide.
Become a Member Donate
Definition
Civilization
Civilization (from the Latin civis=citizen and civitas=city) is a term applied to any society which has developed a writing system, government, production...
Interview
Interview: King of the World by Matt Waters
In this interview, World History Encyclopedia sits down with author Matt Waters to chat about his new book King of the World: The Life of Cyrus the...
Article
The Silver of the Conquistadors
The Spanish conquistadors might have gained a lasting reputation as the great gold-seekers of history, but they were actually far more successful in...
Article
Cyrus the Great's Conquests
The estimated expanse of the Achaemenid Empire at its height c. 500 BCE was two million square miles. Most of this territory was conquered by Cyrus...
Definition
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648) was the last major European conflict informed by religious divisions and one of the most devastating in European history...
Definition
Gustavus Adolphus
Gustavus Adolphus (l. 1594-1632; r. 1611-1632) was the King of Sweden who elevated his country to a major power in the 17th century. He also is traditionally...
Definition
Flight to Varennes
The Flight to Varennes was a pivotal moment of the French Revolution (1789-1799), in which King Louis XVI of France (r.1774-92), his wife Queen Marie...
Definition
Ancient Afghanistan
The ancient history of Afghanistan, a landlocked country in Central Asia, is full of fascinating cultures, from early nomadic tribes to the realms of...
Article
Interview: Rome Strategy of Empire by James Lacey
In this interview, World History Encyclopedia sits down with author James Lacey to chat about his new book Rome: Strategy of Empire published by Oxford...
Article
Cajetan's On Faith and Works
On Faith and Works (1532) by Cardinal Thomas Cajetan (l. c. 1468-1534) is a refutation of the central arguments of Martin Luther (l. 1483-1546) concerning...
Article
The Sixteenth-Century Massacre of the Waldensians of Mérindol
As the Reformation developed in France in the first half of the 16th century, there were several episodes of severe repression which preceded the Wars...
Definition
Cardinal Thomas Cajetan
Cardinal Thomas Cajetan (l.c. 1468-1534) was a Catholic theologian and philosopher best known for his disputations with Martin Luther (l. 1483-1546...
