Featured
Definition
Gunpowder Plot - Guy Fawkes & the Plan to Blow up Parliament
The 1605 Gunpowder Plot was a failed attempt by pro-Catholic conspirators to blow up the English Parliament on 5 November and kill King James I of England...
Featured
Article
Ten Halloween Facts and Traditions You Need to Know - A Celebration of Transformation
Halloween is the most popular holiday in the world, after Christmas (based on level-of-celebration and consumer spending) and, increasingly...
Featured
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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...
Featured
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12 Largest Contiguous Land Empires Before 1880 - From the Mongol Empire to Rome, Qing China & Russia
Land empires were expansive states whose rulers exercised authority over large, substantially connected territories and...
Latest Content
Article
Federalist No. 10 - James Madison's Antidote to the Dangers of Factionalism
Federalist No. 10 was an essay written by James Madison, under the pseudonym Publius, and originally published in the New York Daily Advisor...
Article
Stalin's Collectivisation of Agriculture
Joseph Stalin's policy to collect private farms into cooperatives and wholly state-owned farms across the USSR began in 1928. Stalin hoped the process of collectivisation...
Article
James Longstreet's Account of the Battle of Gettysburg - Excerpts From the Official Action Report
At the Battle of Gettysburg (1-3 July 1863) Confederate Lieutenant General James Longstreet urged his commanding officer...
Article
Gilgamesh and Huwawa - The Epic Battle of the Cedar Forest
Gilgamesh and Huwawa is a Sumerian poem relating the expedition of Gilgamesh and Enkidu to the Cedar Forest and the slaying of the monster-demon Huwawa...
Article
Stalin's Five-Year Plans - Collectivising Agriculture & Industrialising the USSR
Joseph Stalin's Five-Year Plans (1928-50) were a series of state-led initiatives which aimed to grow the economy of the USSR, rapidly industrialise...
Curriculum Collection
AP World History Unit 6 - Consequences of Industrialization (c. 1750–1900)
With industrialization, a small number of states gained the ability to project power across the globe. Steamships, railroads, machine guns...
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Map of Europe After World War II, 1945–1989 - Cold War Division, Reconstruction, and Alliances
Following World War II (1939–1945), Europe emerged devastated and increasingly divided between rival political systems. As relations...
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Map of the Vedic Age in South Asia, c. 1500–500 BCE - Indo-Aryan Migrations, Vedic Culture & Early States
The Vedic Age (c. 1500–500 BCE) was a formative period in the history of South Asia, named after the Vedas, a collection...
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The United States Constitution, 1787
The United States Constitution, drafted in Philadelphia in 1787, established the legal and political framework of the American republic, replacing the Articles of Confederation...
For You
Definition
Pythia
The Pythia (or Oracle of Delphi) was the priestess who held court at Pytho, the sanctuary of the Delphinians, a sanctuary dedicated to the Greek god Apollo. Pythia were highly regarded, for it was...
Collection
LGBTQ+ Relationships in the Ancient World
Evidence of what is now defined as LGBTQ+ relationships goes back to over 4,000 years of recorded history to ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia but was not regarded as anything...
Definition
Galba
Galba was Roman emperor from June 68 to January 69 CE. With the death of Emperor Nero on June 9, 68 CE, the Julio-Claudian dynasty officially ended, leaving the Roman Empire without a clear successor...
Definition
Neodamodeis
A huge part of the Spartan population was made up of those who were not actually Spartan, the helots; a cause of great concern to the Spartans throughout their history. These helots were slaves...
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 Essential Greek Historians
In his introduction to The Essential Greek Historians, an important distinction is made by the editor Stanley M. Burstein: what follows in this book is not "history" but "historiography."...
Book Review
Earth Shapers - How We Mapped and Mastered the World
When discussing an academic book on mapping, one might expect a text laden with lists of geological and geographical features of places that are barely depicted...
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| 1,768 | articles |
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| 2,643 | videos |
| 415 | 3D images |
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| 48 | languages |
| 1,345 | contributors |
| 15,636 | keywords |
| 62,865 | registered users |
Ancient Period
Definition
Agamemnon (Play)
The play Agamemnon was written by one of the greatest Greek tragedians Aeschylus (c. 525 – 455 BCE), “Father of Greek Tragedy.” Older than both Sophocles and Euripides, he was the most popular...
Definition
Gordium
Gordium was the capital of ancient Phrygia, modern Yassihüyük. It is situated on the place where the ancient Royal road between Lydia and Assyria/Babylonia crosses the river Sangarius, which flows...
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
Hellenistic Astrology
Hellenistic astrology encompassed various forms of divination in Greece and the Mediterranean, all linked to the observation of astronomical phenomena. Hellenistic astrology was based...
Definition
Caligula - The First Mad Emperor of Rome
Caligula (12-41 CE) was the third Roman emperor, who reigned from 37 to 41 CE. A member of the Julio-Claudian Dynasty, he came to power after the death of his great-uncle...
Article
Queen Hatshepsut: Daughter of Amun, Pharaoh of Egypt
Hatshepsut, whose name means "Foremost of Noble Women" or "First Among Noble Women" (royal name, Ma'at-ka-re, translated as "spirit of harmony and truth") was...
Definition
Seven Lucky Gods
In Japanese folklore the Shichifukujin are the Seven Lucky Gods who may also be known as the Seven Gods of Happiness or the Seven Gods of Good Fortune. The seven gods are in fact of diverse...
Article
Treasures of Roman Tunisia - 10 Key Sites Explored
Set on the North African coast, Tunisia is home to some of the finest Roman ruins in the Mediterranean. After the fall of Carthage, Rome transformed the region...
Medieval Period
Article
William the Conqueror & the Ely Rebellion
By early 1070 CE William I (r. 1066-1087 CE) had almost completed the Norman conquest of England. There remained threats from the border regions with Wales and Scotland...
Definition
Xolotl - The Dog God of the Aztecs
Xolotl was the dog god of the Mexica people, commonly known as the Aztecs. He is represented in codices, statuary, and other extant examples of Aztec art as a dog or a god...
Definition
Hausaland
Hausaland, sometimes referred to as the Hausa Kingdoms, was a group of small independent city-states in northern central Africa between the Niger River and Lake Chad which flourished from the...
Article
Saladin & the Unification of the Muslim Front: 1169-1187 CE
Saladin (c. 1137 – 1193 CE), the Muslim ruler who crushed the mighty Crusader army at the Horns of Hattin (1187 CE) and re-took Jerusalem after 88 years...
Definition
James IV of Scotland
James IV of Scotland ruled as king from 1488 to 1513. He succeeded his father James III of Scotland (r. 1460-1488) and became one of the most popular of the Stuart kings. James sought...
Article
Cortés & the Fall of the Aztec Empire
The Aztec empire flourished between c. 1345 and 1521 CE and dominated ancient Mesoamerica. This young and warlike nation was highly successful in spreading its reach and...
Definition
Serf
Medieval serfs (aka villeins) were unfree labourers who worked the land of a landowner (or tenant) in return for physical and legal protection and the right to work a separate piece of land for their...
Definition
Hwarang
The hwarang was a state-sponsored organisation for the education of elite young males in the ancient kingdom of Silla, Korea. Variously translated as the 'Flower Boys,' 'Flowering Youth,' or 'Elite...
Early Modern Period
Definition
Our Lady of Guadalupe - Patroness of the Americas
Our Lady of Guadalupe, also known as the Virgin of Guadalupe, is a title for a particular image of Mary, Mother of Jesus, as she appeared in the New World in the...
Definition
Astrolabe
The astrolabe is an astronomical instrument used from around the 6th century to measure time and position by determining the altitude of heavenly bodies like the Sun and certain stars. Measurements...
Image Gallery
10 Maps on European History
In this gallery of 10 maps on European history, we explore the dynamic borders and the fragile quest for peace on the continent. Witness the shifting borders and the persistent...
Definition
Doctrine of Discovery
The Doctrine of Discovery is a policy enacted initially by the 15th-century Catholic Church proclaiming the right of Christian nations to take possession of the lands of non-Christians...
Definition
Benedict Arnold
Benedict Arnold (1741-1801) was a general of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). He was considered one of the finest Patriot military officers during...
Definition
Storming of the Tuileries Palace
The Storming of the Tuileries Palace, also commonly known as the Insurrection of 10 August, was a defining moment in the French Revolution (1789-99) that saw the armed revolutionaries...
Definition
Council of the Indies
The Council of the Indies (El Real y Supremo Consejo de las Indias) operated from 1524 to 1834 and was the supreme governing body of the Spanish Empire in the Americas and Spanish East...
Definition
War in the Vendée
The War in the Vendée was a counter-revolutionary uprising that took place in the Vendée department of France from 1793 to 1796, during the French Revolution (1789-99). In response to the...
Modern Period
Definition
Tamahay (Eastman's Biography)
Tamahay (Tahama, Tamaha, "Pike", l. c. 1776-1864) was a Mdewakanton Dakota Sioux guide and scout who sided with the Americans against the British during the War of 1812. He was...
Definition
US Presidential Election of 1860 - The Election That Caused a Civil War
The election of 1860 was one of the most pivotal moments in the political history of the United States and was one of the direct causes of the...
Collection
Native American Creation & Origin Stories
Native American creation and origin stories are tales of the creation of the world and the origin of various aspects of it, including plant and animal life – especially...
Definition
Sturmabteilung
The Sturmabteilung (SA or Storm Detachment), popularly known as the Brownshirts for their uniform, was the paramilitary arm of the German Nazi party led by Adolf Hitler (1889-1945). The SA...
Article
The Life and Death of Sweet Medicine
The Life and Death of Sweet Medicine is a Cheyenne tale of the great prophet and law-giver Sweet Medicine who received the sacred Four Arrows, structure of government, and...
Article
Persian Miniature Painting
Persian miniature painting is a courtly and aristocratic art, with exquisite colors, balanced compositions, and meticulous attention to detail. Although its origins can be difficult...
Definition
Stono Rebellion
The Stono Rebellion (also known as Cato's Rebellion or Cato's Conspiracy, 9 September 1739) was the largest slave revolt in the British colonies of North America. Led by an educated slave...
Definition
Indigo Revolt
The Indigo Revolt (aka Indigo Riots or Blue Mutiny) of 1859-60 in Bengal, India, involved indigo growers going on strike in protest at working conditions and pay. The subsequent violence was...
Prehistoric Period
Article
Dynamics of the Neolithic Revolution
The Neolithic Revolution began between 10,000 and 12,000 years ago at several widely dispersed locations across the world, when our ancestors first began planting and raising...
Definition
Homo Sapiens
Homo sapiens ('wise man'), or modern humans, are the only species of human still around today. Despite having invented countless ways of labelling the world around us, we have so far done a...
Article
Rock Drawings of Valcamonica
The rock drawings of Valcamonica are prehistoric petroglyphs carved in the glacier-polished, grey-purple Permian sandstone of the Camonica valley that extends for 90 km in the...
Image Gallery
A Gallery of the Indus Valley Civilization
The Indus Valley Civilization (c. 7000-c. 600 BCE) is among the oldest in the world but, as it was only “discovered” in 1829 – after ancient Egyptian and Mesopotamian...
Definition
Denisovan
The Denisovans are an extinct group of fossil humans who, along with their sister group the Neanderthals, also share an ancestor with Homo sapiens. Thus far, they are known only from Denisova...
Article
Legends of the Rollright Stones, Oxfordshire
The Rollright Stones is the collective name for a group of enigmatic prehistoric monuments located next to an ancient ridgeway known as the Jurassic Way, on the border...
Article
The Neanderthal-Sapiens Connection
In May 2010, after years of intense discussions surrounding possible fossils of mixed Homo sapiens and Neanderthal descent floating around the scientific community, a team...
Definition
First Agricultural Revolution
The First Agricultural Revolution, beginning c. 12-20,000 years ago, was characterized by the emergence of different agricultural systems in different parts of the world, whose...
