Empires: Did you mean...?

Heraclius (Herakleios) was emperor of the Byzantine Empire from 610 to 641 CE. He crushed the Persian empire and returned the looted True Cross to Jerusalem, but the second half of his reign was beset by intrigues and ecclesiastical controversies...

The “Barracks Emperors” is a term coined by later historians referring to the Roman emperors who were chosen and supported by the army during the period known as the Crisis of the Third Century (also known as the Imperial Crisis, 235-284...

George II of Great Britain (r. 1727-1760) was the second of the Hanoverian monarchs, and like his father George I of Great Britain (r. 1714-1727), he faced a Jacobite rebellion to restore the Stuart line. Wars in Europe and beyond drained...

Artashat (aka Artaxata) was the capital of Ancient Armenia from 176 BCE and remained so for over 300 years of the kingdom's history. Located just south of Armenia's modern capital Yerevan, according to the ancient historian Plutarch, the...

The Artaxiad (Artashesian) dynasty ruled ancient Armenia from c. 200 BCE to the first decade of the 1st century CE. Founded by Artaxias I, the dynasty would ensure Armenia enjoyed a sustained period of prosperity and regional importance...

Yazdegerd III (r. 632-651) was the last monarch of the Sassanian Empire (224-651), ruling – or attempting to rule – amidst the chaos of its final decline and fall to the invading Muslim Arabs. He was the son of the prince Shahriyar (d. 628...

Cilicia Campestris was one of the six districts of the Roman province of Cilicia organized by Pompey the Great (l. c. 106-48 BCE) in 64 BCE. The name translates roughly into “Cilicia of the Plains” and corresponds to the earlier name for...

Hamaxia (now known as Sinek Kalesi or Sinekkalesi, near the modern Alanya) was a city in western Cilicia in southern Turkey known for its lush landscape, cedar forests, and thriving timber export business. It was located on a high hill near...

Tigranocerta (Tigranakert) was a city in the southwest of ancient Armenia founded and made capital by Tigranes the Great in 83 BCE. Famous for its riches and fine buildings, as well as its mix of Hellenistic and Persian culture, the city...

To many historians, the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century CE has always been viewed as the end of the ancient world and the onset of the Middle Ages, often improperly called the Dark Ages, despite Petrarch's assertion. Since...