Featured
Article
Clothing in the Victorian Era - Getting the Right Balance of Fabric, Figure, and Flashiness
Striking silhouettes, sumptuous fabrics, bright colours, frills galore, and all manner of ornate accessories define the clothing...
Featured
Definition
Socrates
Socrates of Athens (l. c. 470/469-399 BCE) is among the most famous figures in world history for his contributions to the development of ancient Greek philosophy which provided the foundation...
Featured
Image
Map of the Spread of the Black Death, c. 1346–1353 - Trade, Transmission & the Second Plague Pandemic
The Black Death was the catastrophic first great wave of the Second Plague Pandemic, caused by the bacterium Yersinia...
Featured
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12 Women Rulers of the Ancient World - Queens, Regents & Empresses Who Exercised State Power
Political power in the ancient world rested on dynastic legitimacy, control of court and military institutions, religious authority...
Latest Content
Article
Officers of the Roman Army
With the appearance of the legionary, the Roman army was able to maintain a vast empire that totally embraced the Mediterranean Sea. Although the success of the army rested on the...
Article
How Music and Politics Intertwined in the Time of Louis XIV
During the reign of Louis XIV of France (1643-1715), music accompanied some of the most visible occasions of royal life: entrances, diplomatic receptions...
Article
Ming Taxation & the Silver Economy
The rulers of China's Ming dynasty (1368-1644) acquired an insatiable desire for silver in the 16th century, largely to pay for huge prestige projects like building the Forbidden...
Article
U. S. Grant's Account of the Battle of Fort Donelson - Excerpts from the Official Action Report
Ulysses S. Grant's victory at the Battle of Fort Donelson (11-16 February 1862) during the American Civil War elevated him...
Curriculum Collection
AP World History Unit 5 - Revolutions (c. 1750–1900)
Two major revolutions remade the world between 1750 and 1900. The first was a revolution of the mind: thinkers of the Enlightenment argued that authority was...
Definition
Battle of Fort Donelson - The Victory that Might Have Won the War in the West
The Battle of Fort Donelson (11-16 February 1862) was a Union victory in the Western theater of the American Civil War on the Cumberland River...
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Map of the French Revolution & Revolutionary Wars, 1789–1799 - From the Fall of Monarchy to the Rise of Bonaparte
The French Revolution (1789–1799) was a decade of political and social upheaval that dismantled France's Ancien...
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House of Hanover in Britain, 1714–1901 - From George I to Victoria: Monarchy, Reform & Empire
The House of Hanover was the royal dynasty that ruled Great Britain and later the United Kingdom from 1714 to 1901. Its accession...
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Map of Edmond Halley’s Scientific Voyages - Exploration, Astronomy & Navigation, 1676–1703
The travels of Edmond Halley (1656–1742) illustrate how the Scientific Revolution increasingly joined theoretical knowledge with...
For You
Definition
Mount Athos - The Byzantine Holy Mountain
Mount Athos, located on the Chalkidike peninsula near Thessalonica, Greece, is a holy site which first saw hermit monks living there in the 9th century CE. Regarded as...
Definition
Saguntum
Saguntum (modern Sagunto), located near Valencia in Spain, was an Iberian, and then Roman, settlement. The town's most dramatic moment in history came in the late 3rd century BCE when it was attacked...
Definition
Mycenaean Art
The Mycenaean civilization flourished in the late Bronze Age from the 15th to the 13th century BCE, and their artists would continue the traditions passed on to them from Minoan Crete. Pottery...
Collection
12 Famous Ships in History
In this collection, we look at 12 of the most famous ships that have ever sailed the high seas. From antiquity to the 20th century, these ships were famous for various reasons, some...
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
A History of the Ottoman Empire
A History of the Ottoman Empire offers a comprehensive survey of Ottoman history in broad contours. Its author, Douglas A. Howard, Professor Emeritus at Calvin University, defies...
Book Review
Fluid Geographies: Water, Science, and Settler Colonialism in New Mexico
In her groundbreaking book, Fluid Geographies: Water, Science, and Settler Colonialism in New Mexico, K. Maria D. Lane delves deeply into the...
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Ancient Period
Definition
Shinto
Shinto means 'way of the gods' and it is the oldest religion in Japan. Shinto's key concepts include purity, harmony, family respect, and subordination of the individual before the group. The faith...
Definition
Ancient Chinese Warfare
In ancient China warfare was a means for one region to gain ascendancy over another, for the state to expand and protect its frontiers, and for usurpers to replace an existing dynasty...
Article
The Role of Women in the Roman World
The exact role and status of women in the Roman world, and indeed in most ancient societies, has often been obscured by the biases of both ancient male writers and 19-20th...
Definition
Senusret III - Greatest Egyptian Monarch of the Middle Kingdom
Senusret III (circa 1878-1839 BCE, also known as Senwosret III, Sesostris III) was the 5th king of the 12th Dynasty of the Middle Kingdom of Egypt (2040-1782...
Article
Egyptian Gods - The Complete List
The gods and goddesses of Ancient Egypt were an integral part of the people's everyday lives for over 3,000 years. There were over 2,000 deities in the Egyptian pantheon, many...
Definition
Mars
Mars was the Roman god of war and second only to Jupiter in the Roman pantheon. Although most of the myths involving Mars were borrowed from the Greek god of war Ares, Mars did have some uniquely...
Definition
Enheduanna - The World's First Author Known by Name
The Akkadian poet Enheduanna (circa 2300 BCE) is the world's first author known by name and was the daughter of Sargon of Akkad (Sargon the Great, reign 2334-2279...
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...
Medieval Period
Article
Daily Life in Medieval Japan
Daily life in medieval Japan (1185-1606 CE) was, for most people, the age-old struggle to put food on the table, build a family, stay healthy, and try to enjoy the finer things...
Article
Battle of Yarmouk
The Battle of Yarmouk River (or Yarmuk River; also written as the Battle of Jabiya-Yarmuk) was fought over the course of six days, from 15 to 20 August 636 CE, between the Muslim army of...
Definition
Nazca Civilization
The Nazca civilization flourished on the southern coast of Peru between 200 BCE and 600 CE. They settled in the Nazca and other surrounding valleys with their principal religious and urban...
Definition
Edward IV of England
Edward IV of England ruled as king from 1461 to 1470 CE and again from 1471 to 1483 CE. The Hundred Years' War (1337-1453 CE) had been lost by Edward's predecessor, Henry VI of England...
Definition
Eustathios Rhomaios - Judge and Jurist of the Byzantine Empire
Eustathios Rhomaios was a prominent Byzantine judge and jurist during the late-10th and early- to mid-11th century. He studied Roman Law and began his...
Definition
Nijo Castle
Nijo Castle, located in Kyoto, Japan, was first built in 1603 CE by Tokugawa Ieyasu (r. 1603-1605 CE), founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate (1603-1868 CE). The castle complex is surrounded by a...
Definition
Basil II
Basil II (aka Basilius II) was the emperor of the Byzantine Empire from 976 to 1025 CE. He became known as the Bulgar-Slayer (Bulgaroktonos) for his exploits in conquering ancient Bulgaria, sweet...
Definition
Razia Sultan - The First Female Muslim Ruler of India
Sultan Razia (Raziyyat-Ud-Dunya Wa Ud-Din, r. 1236-1240) was one of the few women rulers in the Indian subcontinent and the first and only female Sultan of Delhi...
Early Modern Period
Article
Sioux Ceremonial Pipe
The Sioux ceremonial pipe is a sacred object of the Sioux nation used in the seven sacred rites as well as other observances to connect the people with the Great Spirit (Wakan Tanka...
Definition
Tintoretto
Tintoretto (c. 1518-1594 CE), real name Jacopo Robusti, was an Italian Renaissance artist who specialised in religious, mythological, and portrait paintings. A prolific artist over a long career...
Definition
Nathanael Greene
Nathanael Greene (1742-1786) was a general of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). One of George Washington's most trusted subordinates, Greene served...
Article
John Knox on Female Leadership
The rule of women in government and ministry has long been a source of controversy in the Christian Church. Beginning with the Apostolic period, female leadership has been embraced...
Article
Coal Mining in the British Industrial Revolution
Coal mining boomed during the British Industrial Revolution as it provided fuel for steam engines of all kinds in factories, transport, and agriculture. Draining...
Definition
Parson's Cause
The Parson's Cause was a legal and political controversy that arose in the British colony of Virginia in the early 1760s. In response to the royal veto of the Two Penny Act, a policy passed...
Article
Japanese Castles
Fortifications of one kind or another had been used in Japan since ancient times, but in the period from 1576 until 1639, a new and distinctive style of castle was constructed. Rather than...
Article
Falling Star
Falling Star is a Cheyenne tale of the great hero Hotoketana'ohtse ("Falling Star") who came from the heavens to stand up for those who could not defend themselves, slay monsters, and save...
Modern Period
Article
Discovery of Troy
In his epic poems, the Iliad and the Odyssey, the Greek poet Homer (c. 750 BCE) told the story of the Trojan War, a ten-year siege of the city of Troy by an alliance of Greek city-states...
Article
The Invasion of Poland in 1939
The leader of Nazi Germany Adolf Hitler (1889-1945) ordered the invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939. Hitler's refusal to withdraw brought a declaration of war from Britain...
Article
Second Battle of El Alamein
The Second Battle of El Alamein (Oct-Nov 1942) was a major battle in North Africa during the Western Desert Campaigns of the Second World War (1939-45). The British Eighth Army...
Definition
Transatlantic Slave Trade - The Shame of Nations
The transatlantic slave trade (also given as the Atlantic slave trade, circa 1492 to 1860) was the practice of enslaving the citizens of African states and transporting...
Article
Seven Sacred Rites of the Lakota Sioux
The Seven Sacred Rites of the Lakota Sioux (Seven Sacred Rites of the Lakota Oyate) are the spiritual observances of the Native American Sioux nation that maintain their...
Interview
Interview: American School of Classical Studies at Athens
The American School of Classical Studies in Greece has been running its operations since the 19th century CE, with excavations across the country and an...
Article
Mandan Buffalo Dance
The Mandan Buffalo Dance is a ceremonial ritual observed in the modern era to honor the spirit of the buffalo and preserve Native American cultural traditions and was performed in the...
Article
Slavery in Plantation Agriculture
The first plantations in the Americas of sugar cane, cocoa, tobacco, and cotton were maintained and harvested by African slaves controlled by European masters. When African...
Prehistoric Period
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...
Definition
Migration Age
The Migration Period, also called the Barbarian Invasions or German: Völkerwanderung (wandering of the peoples), was a period of human migration that occurred roughly between 300 to 700 CE...
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...
Definition
Homo Rudolfensis
Homo rudolfensis is an early human species that lived in East Africa between c. 2.5 and 1.8 million years ago. It is known from a handful of skull, jaw and teeth fragments that remind alternatingly...
Article
Origins of World Agriculture
Agriculture arose independently at several locations across the world, beginning about 12,000 years ago. The first crops and livestock were domesticated in six rather diffuse areas...
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...
Definition
Knap of Howar
The Knap of Howar is a Neolithic site on the island of Papa Westray in Orkney, Scotland. The name is Old Norse for `mound of mounds' or `large barrow'. The building preserved at the site...
Definition
Stone Age
From the dawn of our species to the present day, stone-made artefacts are the dominant form of material remains that have survived to today concerning human technology. The term “Stone Age”...
