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Anglo-Maratha Wars
The three Anglo-Maratha Wars (1775-1819) were fought between the Maratha Confederacy of India (aka the Mahrattas, 1674-1818) and the British East India Company (EIC). The Maratha Hindu princes were rarely unified, and so the EIC steadily...
Definition
Anahita
Anahita is the ancient Persian goddess of fertility, water, health and healing, and wisdom. Owing to her association with life-giving properties, she also came to be connected with ancient Persian warfare as soldiers would pray to her for...
Definition
Ridda Wars
The Ridda Wars or the Wars of Apostasy (632-633 CE) were a series of military engagements between the armies of the Rashidun Caliphate (632-661 CE) and the renegade tribes of Arabia. The rebels had renounced their allegiance with the nascent...
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The Spread of Islam in Ancient Africa
Following the conquest of North Africa by Muslim Arabs in the 7th century CE, Islam spread throughout West Africa via merchants, traders, scholars, and missionaries, that is largely through peaceful means whereby African rulers either tolerated...
Article
Early Muslim Conquests (622-656 CE)
Islam arose as a religious and socio-political force in Arabia in the 7th century CE (610 CE onwards). The Islamic Prophet Muhammad (l. 570-632 CE), despite facing resistance and persecution, amassed a huge following and started building...
Article
Never Seen: The Trace of a Jewish Spirit from Mesopotamia
The Story Begins from a Dead End August 25, 2015 was a very hot day of summer but its omen was a very promising one! That day, I was with my friend, Mr. Hashim Hama Abdulla, director of the Sulaymaniyah Museum in Iraq, walking in the main...
Definition
Mali Empire
The Mali Empire (1240-1645) of West Africa was founded by Sundiata Keita (r. 1230-1255) following his victory over the kingdom of Sosso (c. 1180-1235). Sundiata's centralised government, diplomacy and well-trained army permitted a massive...
Definition
Mansa Musa I
Mansa Musa I was the ruler of the Mali Empire in West Africa from 1312 to 1337. Controlling territories rich in gold and copper, and monopolising trade between the north and interior of the continent, Mali grew extremely wealthy. Mansa Musa...
Definition
Black Hole of Calcutta
The Black Hole of Calcutta refers to a prison cell which was used to hold 146 mostly British prisoners captured after the Nawab of Bengal had taken over the city from the East India Company. Interred on 20 June 1756 in a tiny cell in Fort...
Definition
Napoleon's Campaign in Egypt and Syria
The French Expedition to Egypt and Syria (1798-1801), led by Napoleon Bonaparte, aimed to establish a French colony in Egypt and to threaten British possessions in India. Despite initial French victories, the campaign ultimately ended in...