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In Search of the Promised Land: Saint Brendan’s Voyage
Between the 9th and the 10th century CE, in an unknown European abbey, an anonymous author told the story of an Irish monk and his 14 companions who embarked on a dangerous journey in the 5th century CE. The monk's name was Brendan, and his...
Definition
Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle is located in Berkshire, England, and was built as a motte and bailey castle by William the Conqueror (r. 1066-1087). Converted into stone by Henry II of England (r. 1165-1179), the shell keep tower was rebuilt by Edward III...
Interview
Interview: Ariadne by Jennifer Saint
World History Encyclopedia is joined by Jennifer Saint, who is going to tell us all about her debut novel Ariadne. Kelly (WHE): Do you want to tell us a little bit about the book? Jennifer Saint (author): The book is a retelling of the...
Article
Ten Should-Be Famous Women of Early Christianity
There were many famous women of early Christianity who made significant contributions to the development of the faith but have since been largely forgotten. Some have been canonized by the Church or recognized in other ways, but their efforts...
Article
Autobiography of Saint Ignatius of Loyola
The Autobiography of Saint Ignatius is the story of the life of Ignatius of Loyola (l. 1491-1556) dictated by him to the Jesuit priest Father Louis Gonzalez between 1553-1555, shortly before Loyola's death in 1556. It is an account of his...
Article
The Evacuation of Children in Wartime Britain
The evacuation of children from British cities during the Second World War (1939-45) was the largest population movement the country has ever experienced. Some 6 million women and children voluntarily evacuated from large cities to live with...
Definition
Committee of Public Safety
In the French Revolution (1789-1799), the Committee of Public Safety (French: Comité De Salut Public) was a political body created to oversee the defense of the French Republic from foreign and domestic enemies. To achieve this goal, the...
Definition
Medieval Monastery
A medieval monastery was an enclosed and sometimes remote community of monks led by an abbot who shunned worldly goods to live a simple life of prayer and devotion. Christian monasteries first developed in the 4th century in Egypt and Syria...
Article
Monastic Orders of the Middle Ages
The monastic orders of the Middle Ages developed from the desire to live a spiritual life without the distractions of the world. Men and women who took religious vows were seeking a purity of experience they found lacking as lay people. Their...
Definition
King William's War - The First Great Colonial War Between England and France
King William’s War (1688-1697) was the first of four major colonial conflicts fought between England, France, and their respective Native American allies in the 17th and 18th centuries. Though the war had its own unique origins, it coincided...