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Battle of Hastings
The Battle of Hastings in south-east England on 14 October 1066 saw the defeat of the Anglo-Saxon king Harold II (r. Jan-Oct 1066) by the invading Norman army led by William, Duke of Normandy (reigned from 1035). After a day...
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Merlin
Merlin (also known as Myrddin, Merlinus) is the great wizard of the Arthurian Legends best known from Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur (1469 CE). The character was created by Geoffrey of Monmouth in his History of the Kings of Britain...
Definition
Gurjara-Pratihara Empire
The Gurjara-Pratiharas, or simply, the Pratiharas (8th century CE - 11th century CE) held their sway over western and northern India. This dynasty saw its fortunes rising under Nagabhata I (730–760 CE) who successfully...
Definition
Samaritans
The Samaritans are a religious sect of ethnic Jews living near Mount Gerizim, Nablus, Hebron, and the West Bank in Israel. This community differs from mainstream Judaism by claiming that followers only accept the five books of Moses...
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Aethelred the Unready
Aethelred II, also known as Aethelred the Unready, was king of the English from 978-1013 and 1014-1016. His long reign was initially stable, but Viking attacks on England escalated from the 990s onward. Viking incursions eventually...
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Piers Gaveston - The Rise and Fall of Edward II's Controversial Companion
Piers Gaveston (lived circa 1284-1312) was a Gascon-born English nobleman, famous as the favorite of King Edward II of England (reign 1307-1327). Gaveston's humble origins and undue...
Definition
Vandals
The Vandals were a Germanic tribe who are first mentioned in Roman history in the Natural History of Pliny the Elder (77 CE). The Roman historian Tacitus also mentions them in his Germania (c. 98 CE), though he also refers to them as...
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Ancient Britain
Ancient Britain was a landmass on the northwest of the continent of Europe first occupied by humans c. 800,000 years ago prior to it becoming an island c. 6000 BCE due to flooding which separated it from the mainland. Agriculture...
Definition
Shapur I
Shapur I (r. 240-270 CE) is considered one of the greatest kings of the Sassanian Empire for expanding his realm, his policy of religious tolerance, building projects, and committing the Zoroastrian scriptures (Avesta) to writing. He...
Definition
Tigranes the Great
Tigranes II or Tigranes the Great ruled as the king of Armenia from c. 95 to c. 56 BCE. Expanding in all directions, at its peak, Tigranes' Armenian Empire stretched from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean. Not before or since...