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Featured
Definition
Lewis and Clark Expedition
The Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804-1806) was a US military expedition of exploration, led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, whose goal was to explore the newly acquired western lands that comprised the Louisiana Purchase and to reach the Pacific Ocean. The journey, which covered about 8,000...
Featured
Definition
Golden Fleece
The golden fleece is the fleece of a flying, winged ram named Crius Chrysomallos, or 'Golden-fleeced Ram', in Greek mythology. It is best known from the story of Jason and the Argonauts, who...
Featured
Image
Map of the Allied Pacific Counteroffensive, 1942–1945 - WWII's Pacific War
From mid-1942, the Allied war against Japan shifted from containing expansion to sustained counteroffensive. The Battle of the Coral Sea (May...
Featured
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12 Ancient Scripts We Still Cannot Read - Undeciphered Scripts & Lost Languages of the Ancient World
Throughout history, writing enabled societies to record administration, trade, law, religion, and historical events. From...
Latest Content
Article
Georgia's Declaration of Secession - Why Georgia Left the Union
On 19 January 1861, at a state convention held in Milledgeville, Georgia voted to secede from the United States of America, becoming the fifth state...
Definition
Bronze Age Collapse - The Decline and Fall of Mediterranean Civilization
The Bronze Age Collapse (also known as Late Bronze Age Collapse) is a modern-day term referring to the decline and fall of major Mediterranean...
Definition
Guadalcanal Campaign - WWII's Brutal Fight to Control the Solomons
The Guadalcanal Campaign (aka Battle for Guadalcanal) in the Solomon Islands was a series of land, air, and sea battles between US and Japanese forces...
Definition
Macedon - Birthplace of Alexander the Great
Macedon was an ancient kingdom located in the north of the Greek peninsula first inhabited by the Mackednoi tribe whose identity was challenged by some southern Greeks...
Definition
Gettysburg Address - Lincoln's Most Important Speech
The Gettysburg Address was a speech delivered by US President Abraham Lincoln on 19 November 1863. It was given during the formal dedication of the Soldiers’...
Article
The Rise of the Christian Cult of the Saints - Relics, Tombs, and Pilgrimages
Many world religions have elevated individuals with the title of "saint," which often simply means "pious one," "devout," or "holy one." The...
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Map of the Allied Pacific Counteroffensive, 1942–1945 - WWII's Pacific War
From mid-1942, the Allied war against Japan shifted from containing expansion to sustained counteroffensive. The Battle of the Coral Sea (May...
Image
The Royal House of Windsor in Britain - Rebranding the Crown - From Saxe-Coburg to Windsor
The House of Windsor represents the modern phase in the long dynastic evolution of the British monarchy, reflecting how royal identity...
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12 Ancient Scripts We Still Cannot Read - Undeciphered Scripts & Lost Languages of the Ancient World
Throughout history, writing enabled societies to record administration, trade, law, religion, and historical events. From...
For You
Definition
Ryoanji
Ryoanji (Ryōan-ji) is a Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan which is today most famous for its Zen rock garden with its enigmatic arrangement of stones. Founded in the 15th century CE, the temple...
Interview
Rubin Museum's Faith and Empire: Tibetan Buddhist Art
Faith and Empire: Art and Politics in Tibetan Buddhism, a new exhibition at the Rubin Museum of Art in New York, explores the dynamic historical intersection...
Article
Causes of the American Civil War - Spoiler Alert: It Was All About Slavery
There was actually only one cause for the American Civil War: slavery. All the events leading to the Civil War, understood as steps moving steadily...
Definition
Mitanni
The Kingdom of Mitanni, known to the people of the land, and the Assyrians, as Hanigalbat and to the Egyptians as Naharin and Metani, once stretched from present-day northern Iraq, down through...
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
Athens After Empire: A History from Alexander the Great to the Emperor Hadrian
Ian Worthington’s Athens After Empire: A History from Alexander the Great to the Emperor Hadrian shows how there has been a tendency to...
Book Review
The Failures of Philosophy: A Historical Essay
Stephen Gaukroger, Emeritus Professor of History of Philosophy and Science at the University of Sydney, presents a fresh viewpoint toward examining the history of...
Statistics
| 2,964 | definitions |
| 1,739 | articles |
| 19,656 | illustrations |
| 2,618 | videos |
| 415 | 3D images |
| 15,517 | translations |
| 47 | languages |
| 1,325 | contributors |
| 15,293 | keywords |
| 52,042 | registered users |
Ancient Period
Definition
The Gospels
The New Testament contains four gospels attributed to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The four gospels are not biographies of Jesus, nor are they history as we define it. What each gospel attempted...
Definition
Movses Khorenatsi
Movses Khorenatsi (Moses of Khoren) was a 5th-century CE Armenian historian whose work the History of the Armenians has earned him the title of the “father of Armenian history”. Drawing...
Definition
Egyptian Papyrus
Papyrus is a plant (cyperus papyrus) which once grew in abundance, primarily in the wilds of the Egyptian Delta but also elsewhere in the Nile River Valley, but is now quite rare. Papyrus...
Article
The Discovery of Tutankhamun's Tomb
Before Howard Carter discovered Tutankhamun's tomb, he began his career as a 17-year-old artist on an excavation in Egypt. His skills were soon recognized, and he quickly...
Definition
Titus Quinctius Flamininus
Titus Quinctius Flamininus (229-174 BCE) was a consul and military commander of the Roman Republic during the Second Macedonian War, who decisively defeated Philip V of Macedon (r...
Definition
Philip the Arab
Philip the Arab ruled as emperor of the Roman Empire briefly from 244 CE to 249 CE. In 244 CE Roman emperor Gordian III responded to an uprising in the eastern provinces instigated by the...
Article
Ten Native American Legendary Creatures You Need to Know
Native American lore features many legendary creatures and supernatural entities that were understood as beneficial to humanity but just as many that posed...
Article
Medicine in Ancient Mesopotamia - A Gift of the Gods to Their People
In ancient Mesopotamia, the gods informed every aspect of daily life, including the practice of medicine. Gula, the Sumerian goddess of healing...
Medieval Period
Article
Ten Legendary Female Viking Warriors
In 2017 CE, Uppsala University archaeologist Charlotte Hedenstierna-Jonson published her study of a Viking grave discovered in Birka, Sweden in the 1800's CE which she and...
Article
The Aztec New Fire Ceremony
The New Fire Ceremony, also known as the Binding of the Years Ceremony, was a ritual held every 52 years in the month of November on the completion of a full cycle of the Aztec...
Definition
Richard, Duke of York
Richard, 3rd Duke of York (l. 1411-1460 CE) was the richest man in England and one of the nobles who sparked off the Wars of the Roses (1455-1487 CE), a dynastic dispute that rumbled...
Definition
Chillon Castle
Chillon Castle (French: Château de Chillon) is a medieval fortress celebrated for its beauty and is widely regarded as one of the best-preserved medieval castles in Europe. Situated in Canton...
Definition
Leif Erikson
Leif Erikson (also spelled Leif Eriksson, Old Norse Leifr Eiríksson), nicknamed Leif 'the Lucky', was a Norse Viking who is best known for arguably being the first European to have set foot...
Definition
Edda
Edda is a term used to describe two Icelandic manuscripts that were copied down and compiled in the 13th century CE. Together they are the main sources of Norse mythology and skaldic poetry that...
Definition
Medieval Hygiene
People in the Middle Ages have acquired something of a bad reputation when it comes to cleanliness, especially the peasantry. However, despite the general lack of running water and other...
Definition
Ardagh Chalice
The Ardagh Chalice, one of the finest examples of Irish metalwork from the Middle Ages, was found in 1868 CE as part of a hoard at an Irish ringfort in Reerasta, near Ardagh, Co. Limerick...
Early Modern Period
Definition
Camille Desmoulins
Camille Desmoulins (1760-1794) was one of the most prominent journalists during the French Revolution (1789-1799). A fervent republican, he played an important role in the Storming of...
Definition
Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus (l. 1451-1506 CE, also known as Cristoffa Corombo in Ligurian and Cristoforo Colombo in Italian) was a Genoese explorer (identified as Italian) who became famous...
Definition
Mary Rose - Henry VIII's Ill-fated Ship
The Mary Rose was a carrack warship built for the Royal Navy of Henry VIII of England (r. 1509-1547). The ship infamously sank in the Solent off the south coast of England...
Article
Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel Ceiling
In 1508 CE the Pope commissioned the celebrated Florentine sculptor and painter Michelangelo (1475-1564 CE) to paint scenes on the ceiling of the Vatican's Sistine Chapel...
Article
Sioux Story of The Gift of Corn
Corn (maize) was central to the lives of Native Americans across North, Central, and South America. Maize was introduced to North America from Mesoamerica c. 700/900 CE and transformed...
Collection
The Real Pirates of the Caribbean
The real pirates of the Caribbean operated during the Golden Age of Piracy (1690-1730) terrorizing merchant ships and colonial ports to grab gold, liquor, and any cargo they...
Definition
Vasco da Gama
Vasco da Gama (c. 1469-1524) was a Portuguese navigator who, in 1497-9, sailed around the Cape of Good Hope in southern Africa and arrived at Calicut (now Kozhikode) on the south-west coast...
Definition
British Industrial Revolution
The British Industrial Revolution (1760-1840) brought innovative mechanisation and deep social change. The process saw the invention of steam-powered machines, which were used...
Modern Period
Definition
RMS Lusitania - Tragic Victim of WWI
RMS Lusitania was a British transatlantic liner infamously sunk by a German U-boat on 7 May 1915 during the First World War (1914-18). Struck off the coast of southern Ireland...
Article
Ehyophsta Legend
Ehyophsta is a Cheyenne legend of the heroine, Ehyophsta, the Yellow Haired Woman, who first brought the buffalo to the people. When she accidentally breaks a taboo, the buffalo vanish until...
Image Gallery
Mary Cassatt: A Gallery of 30 Paintings
In this gallery, we showcase 30 works by Mary Cassatt (1844-1926), the American impressionist painter. The selection here is presented in chronological sequence to show...
Article
Volunteer Services in the London Blitz
An army of 250,000 volunteers, both men and women, working in many different services, ensured life went on during the London Blitz, a period of sustained bombing by the...
Collection
North Africa Campaign
From 1940 to 1943, the desert of North Africa became an important theatre of the Second World War (1939-45) since it was the only place the British Empire, standing alone, could directly...
Article
Italian Colonialism in Eritrea
Eritrea, located on the Red Sea coast of the Horn of Africa, was the ‘firstborn’ colony of Italy. The potential of a trade centre and naval base at Assab first attracted Italian...
Definition
Dolley Madison
Dolley Madison (1768-1849), born Dolley Payne, was a prominent American First Lady, a function she held both during the presidency of her husband, James Madison, and for his predecessor...
Definition
Franz Schubert
Franz Schubert (1797-1828) was an Austrian composer of Romantic music best known for his songs, symphonies, piano music, and chamber music. Schubert's career lasted only 15 years, but he...
Prehistoric Period
Definition
Poulnabrone
Poulnabrone is a portal tomb in the region known as the Burren, County Clare, Ireland and the oldest dated megalithic monument in the land. The name means "Hole of the Quern Stones", but the...
Image Gallery
A Gallery of the Indus Valley Civilization
The Indus Valley Civilization (c. 7000-c. 600 BCE) is among the oldest in the world but, as it was only “discovered” in 1829 – after ancient Egyptian and Mesopotamian...
Definition
Göbekli Tepe
“Göbekli Tepe” (“Hill with a Navel”, or “Potbelly Hill”) is found approximately 16 km (10 miles) northeast of Şanlıurfa, an ancient city in southeastern Turkey once named “Edessa” and known...
Article
Dynamics of the Neolithic Revolution
The Neolithic Revolution began between 10,000 and 12,000 years ago at several widely dispersed locations across the world, when our ancestors first began planting and raising...
Definition
Dolmen
A dolmen is a megalithic structure typically formed from a large horizontal stone slab resting on two or more upright slabs. The oldest European examples are found in Brittany, northern France...
Definition
Hill of Tara
The Hill of Tara is an ancient Neolithic Age site in County Meath, Ireland. It was known as the seat of the High Kings of Ireland, the site of coronations, a place of assembly for the enacting...
Definition
Neolithic Period
The term Neolithic Period refers to the last stage of the Stone Age - a term coined in the late 19th century CE by scholars which covers three different periods: Palaeolithic, Mesolithic...
Image Gallery
Prehistoric Isles of Scilly
The Isles of Scilly are a small island group west of Cornwall. Despite their small size, they abound in prehistoric sites dating from the Stone Age to the Bronze Age, including...
