Featured
Article
The 1918 Armistice with Germany - Allied Victory on WWI's Western Front
The armistice that ended the First World War (1914-18) on the Western Front was signed between Germany and the Allies on 11 November 1918. The...
Featured
Article
The Causes of WWI
The origins of the First World War (1914-18) are many and varied, with some even dating back several decades, but a political assassination in the Balkans in the summer of 1914 was the...
Featured
Image
The Four Intact Pharaoh Burials of Ancient Egypt - Tutankhamun and the Royal Treasures of Tanis
Ancient Egyptian royal burials were designed to preserve the pharaoh's body, identity, and status for the afterlife. Coffins...
Featured
Image
12 Royal Princes Who Never Reached the Throne - From Germanicus to the Black Prince & Franz Ferdinand
Royal heirs and princes expected to succeed to a throne occupied an unusually precarious position: close enough to power...
Latest Content
Article
A History of Modern Time - From Railroad Time to Atomic Clocks
The rapidly expanding 19th-century rail network not only 'annihilated space,' in the parlance of the day, but also altered the definition, use, and perception...
Article
Battle of Chickamauga - The Second Bloodiest Battle of the American Civil War
The Battle of Chickamauga (19-20 September 1863) was a decisive battle in the western theater of the American Civil War (1861-1865). Fought...
Curriculum Collection
AP World History Unit 7 - Global Conflict (c. 1900 to the Present)
At the dawn of the 20th century, a few Western powers dominated global politics. Within only 50 years, that order was remade by two world wars of...
Article
Stalin's Gulag System - The USSR's Labour Camps
Joseph Stalin's gulag system was a network of labour camps across the USSR, which were, from 1930, used to detain criminals and anyone considered enemies of the state...
Article
F. Buchanan's Account of the Battle of Hampton Roads - Excerpts From the Official Action Report
Confederate Flag Officer Franklin Buchanan (1800 to 1874) is best known as the commander of the CSS Virginia on the first day...
Article
Battle of Hampton Roads - Clash of the Ironclads
The Battle of Hampton Roads (8-9 March 1862), also known as the Battle of the Monitor and the Merrimack, Battle of Ironclads, or Clash of the Ironclads, was a naval...
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Map of the Western Front in World War I, 1914–1918 - Trench Warfare, Major Battles, and the Allied Victory
The Western Front (1914–1918) was the principal battlefield of the First World War in Western Europe, emerging from...
Image
Map of the Fertile Crescent and the Origins of Agriculture - Early Farming and Domestication in the Ancient Near East
The Fertile Crescent, a term coined in 1916 by Egyptologist James Henry Breasted, describes an arc of Southwest...
Image
Map of the Roman Empire under Septimius Severus, 193-211 CE - Civil War, Roman Expansion, and the Rise of the Severans
The reign of Septimius Severus (193–211 CE) marked a turning point in Roman imperial history. Rising to power...
For You
Definition
Great Northern War
The Great Northern War took place from 1700 to 1721 and was fought between Russia and Sweden during the reign of Peter I of Russia (Peter the Great). One of the key causes of the war was...
Article
Women in Ancient Greece
Women in the ancient Greek world had few rights in comparison to male citizens. Unable to vote, own land, or inherit, a woman's place was in the home and her purpose in life was the...
Definition
Nisaba - Sumerian Goddess of Writing and Scribe of the Gods
Nisaba (also Naga, Se-Naga, Nissaba, Nidaba, and associated with Nanibgal) is the Sumerian goddess of writing, accounts, and scribe of the gods. Although...
Definition
Homo Floresiensis
Homo floresiensis, nicknamed 'hobbit' because it only stood about 1 meter tall, is an extinct species of fossil human that lived on the island of Flores, Indonesia during the Pleistocene...
Book Reviews
Book Review
The Army of Alexander the Great
The Army of Alexander the Great (2025) is a highly detailed and insightful examination of one of the most influential military forces in history. Rather than presenting Alexander...
Book Review
The Persians: Lost Civilizations
Iran tends to appear in Western media today only for negative press: conflicts in the Middle East always include speculation of Iran's involvement for or against the aggressor...
Book Review
Beyond the Silk Roads: Trade, Mobility and Geopolitics across Eurasia
This is the story of the "informal networks" established and maintained by mobile traders from the modern geographical region of Afghanistan who...
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| 1,774 | articles |
| 19,897 | illustrations |
| 2,646 | videos |
| 415 | 3D images |
| 16,507 | translations |
| 48 | languages |
| 1,347 | contributors |
| 15,673 | keywords |
| 63,744 | registered users |
Ancient Period
Definition
Mesopotamia - The Beginning of Beginnings
Mesopotamia (from the Greek, meaning "between two rivers") was an ancient region located in the Near East (Middle East) bounded in the northeast by the Zagros Mountains...
Definition
Adad Nirari I
Adad Nirari I (r. 1307-1275 BCE) was the king of the Assyrian Empire who initiated the first major expansion of the Assyrian kingdom from the city of Ashur throughout the region of Mesopotamia...
Definition
Cave of Letters
Everyone is aware of the Dead Sea Scrolls, but few realise that these were just one find in a region which continues to yield hundreds of finds significant to our understanding of lives...
Definition
Roman Government
Western Civilization is forever indebted to the people of ancient Greece and Rome. Among the numerous contributions these societies made are in the fields of art, literature and philosophy...
Definition
Neptune
Neptune is the Roman god of the sea and the Roman equivalent of the Greek god Poseidon. He was originally a god of fresh water and became associated with Poseidon early on in Roman history. He...
Definition
Hagia Sophia
Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, constructed 532-537, continues to be revered as one of the most important structures in the world. Hagia Sophia (Greek Ἁγία Σοφία, for 'Holy Wisdom') was designed...
Definition
Roman Engineering
The Romans are known for their remarkable engineering feats, be they roads, bridges, tunnels, or their impressive aqueducts. Their constructions, many of them still standing, are a testament...
Definition
Hoplite - The Key Infantry Soldier of Ancient Greece
A hoplite (from ta hopla meaning tool or equipment) was the most common type of heavily armed foot-soldier in ancient Greece from the 7th to 4th centuries BCE...
Medieval Period
Definition
Zapotec Civilization
The Zapotecs, known as the 'Cloud People', dwelt in the southern highlands of central Mesoamerica, specifically, in the Valley of Oaxaca, which they inhabited from the late Preclassic...
Definition
James I of Scotland
James I of Scotland ruled as king from 1406 to 1437. In 1406, the future king was captured by pirates and then imprisoned by Henry IV of England (r. 1399-1413), a confinement that lasted...
Definition
Gisela of France
Gisela of France was a legendary 10th-century CE Francian princess, who, according to tradition, was married off to Viking leader Rollo of Normandy. Her name, Gisela or Gisla, comes from...
Definition
Medieval Jousting
Jousts were, from the 13th to 16th century CE, a popular part of the European medieval tournament where knights showed off their martial skills by riding against one another with wooden...
Definition
Batu Khan
Batu Khan (l. 1205-1255 CE) was a grandson of Genghis Khan and the founder of the Golden Horde. Batu was a skilled Mongol military commander and won battles from China to Persia, although his...
Article
A Traditional Japanese House
The traditional house of ancient and medieval Japan (1185-1606 CE) is one of the most distinctive contributions that country has made to world architecture. While the rich and...
Definition
British Crown Jewels
The Crown Jewels of the monarchy of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland are today kept in the Tower of London and date mostly to the 17th century, with a few later...
Definition
Saint Cuthbert
Saint Cuthbert (c. 634 - 20 March 687) was an Anglo-Saxon monk from the Kingdom of Northumbria, who became the bishop of Lindisfarne and one of the most important saints of the medieval church...
Early Modern Period
Article
Slavery in Colonial America
Slavery in Colonial America, defined as white English settlers enslaving Africans, began in 1640 in the Jamestown Colony of Virginia but had already been embraced as policy prior...
Definition
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire officially lasted from 962 to 1806. It was one of Europe’s largest medieval and early modern states, but its power base was unstable and continually shifting. The...
Definition
Kappa
A kappa is a Japanese mythological water sprite or, literally, "river child" (河童). One of the more popularly known yōkai (Japanese mythological creature) in Japan, kappa are generally green or yellow...
Article
Siege of Boston
The Siege of Boston (19 April 1775 to 17 March 1776) was the first major military operation of the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). After the first shots were fired at the Battles...
Definition
Château d'Amboise
The Château d'Amboise, located in the Loire Valley, in central France, was built over several centuries and was the centre of royal power during the Renaissance (from the 15th to the early...
Definition
William Howe
Sir William Howe (1729-1814) was a British military officer and politician, most notable for his role as commander-in-chief of the British army during the initial years of the American Revolutionary...
Definition
Richard Grenville
Sir Richard Grenville (1542-1591 CE) was an Elizabethan adventurer, mariner, and privateer whose life story is as entertaining as any fictional sailor. His early career saw him become a...
Article
Luther's 97 Theses
Martin Luther's 95 Theses, credited with sparking the Protestant Reformation in Europe, have become a cultural touchstone since he posted them 31 October 1517, but the little-known 97...
Modern Period
Article
Wihio Tales
Wihio tales are the Cheyenne legends featuring the trickster figure Wihio, who appears, variously, as a wise man, fool, villain, or hero and is associated with the spider. Wihio Tales continue...
Definition
Béla Bartók
Béla Bartók (1881-1945) was an innovative Hungarian pianist and composer most famous for his classical works for piano and orchestra, string quartets, and songs, many of which present traditional...
Article
How the Hopi Indians Reached Their World
How the Hopi Indians Reached Their World is the creation story of the Native American Hopi nation (the Hopi tribe of Arizona) located today within the Navajo Nation reservation...
Article
Battle of Saipan
The Battle of Saipan took place in June-July 1944. US forces engaged in a titanic three-week struggle with Japanese defenders to finally take the island, part of the Mariana Islands, during...
Definition
Battle of Philippi (Philippi Races) - The First Organized Land Battle of the American Civil War
The Battle of Philippi (3 June 1861) was the first organized land engagement of the American Civil War, fought in Philippi...
Definition
Pacific War - The Defeat of Japan in WWII
The Pacific War concerned the theatre of the Second World War (1939-45) fought in the Pacific Ocean and eastern parts of Asia between Japan and the United States and...
Article
Sees-In-The-Night
Sees In The Night (Sees-In-The-Night) is a Cheyenne tale of a young, poor boy who, through the kindness shown to a dog, becomes a great warrior and chief of his people. The story emphasizes...
Article
British Concentration Camps in the Boer War
The British authorities controversially used concentration camps for civilians during the Boer War (1899-1902) in Southern Africa. The reason was to deprive Boer guerrilla...
Prehistoric Period
Definition
Venus Figurine
The term Venus figurine is used to describe the more than 200 small statuettes of voluptuous female figures that have been found at Upper Paleolithic sites across Europe and some parts of...
Definition
Chauvet Cave
The Chauvet Cave (also known as the Chauvet-Pont-d'Arc Cave) is a Palaeolithic cave situated near Vallon-Pont-d'Arc in the Ardèche region of southern France that houses impeccably preserved...
Article
The Megalithic Funerary Art of San Agustín
Beginning approximately 2000 years ago, in a rugged stretch of southwestern Colombia where the Andes split into multiple ranges and the mighty Magdalena River is born...
Article
Prehistoric Hunter-Gatherer Societies
Hunter-gatherer societies are – true to their astoundingly descriptive name – cultures in which human beings obtain their food by hunting, fishing, scavenging, and gathering...
Article
The Stonehenge Burials
A great deal has been written about why the prehistoric monument of Stonehenge, in Wiltshire, southern England, was constructed. Perhaps it was designed as a temple to the ancestors...
Definition
Altamira
Altamira is a Paleolithic cave located in Santillana del Mar (Cantabria region) in northern Spain, containing prehistoric paintings. The cave was inhabited for millennia and so, besides Paleolithic...
Definition
Homo Heidelbergensis
Homo heidelbergensis is an extinct species of human that is identified in both Africa and western Eurasia from roughly 700,000 years ago onwards until around 200,000 years ago – fitting...
Article
Early Human Migration
Disregarding the extremely inhospitable spots even the most stubborn of us have enough common sense to avoid, humans have managed to cover an extraordinary amount of territory on this...
