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Definition
Commodus
Commodus was Roman emperor from 180 to 192 CE. With the death of Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius in March of 180 CE, the long reign of the five good emperors came to an end and with it so did the Pax Romana (the Roman Peace). Those emperors who followed for the next century would witness a time of both chaos and decline. The first of these inept emperors was Commodus, the son of Marcus Aurelius, who...
Featured
Definition
Mau Mau Rebellion - Nationalism & Terror in British Kenya
The Mau Mau rebellion (1952-60), led by the Kikuyu people of Kenya, was a guerrilla war conducted against British colonial rule, motivated by anger at land...
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10 Crowned Monarchs on Crusade for the Holy Land (1107–1254) - Kings and Emperors Who Personally Led Crusades to Jerusalem
Between 1107 and 1254, ten crowned European monarchs personally led or joined major Crusades to the Holy...
Featured
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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...
Latest Content
Definition
P. G. T. Beauregard - The Confederate Advocate for Civil Rights
Pierre Gustave Toutant-Beauregard (P. G. T. Beauregard, 1818 to 1893) was an engineer and Confederate general during the American Civil War. He is famous...
Definition
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (24 February 1500 to 21 September 1558) reigned from 1519 until his abdication in 1556 and was one of the most powerful rulers in the history of...
Definition
Braxton Bragg - The Most Controversial Confederate General
Braxton Bragg (1817-1876) was a Confederate general from North Carolina, best known for commanding the Army of Tennessee in the Western Theater of the American...
Article
Battle of Iwo Jima - The Pacific War's Bloodiest Encounter
The Battle of Iwo Jima (February to March 1945) was the bloodiest battle of WWII's Pacific War. A 72-day bombing campaign pounded the island before 110,000...
Definition
Kish - The First City of Political Prominence in History
Kish was one of the most significant and politically prestigious city-states in ancient Mesopotamia. According to the Sumerian King List, it was the first...
Article
Battle of Guam - The US Takes Back its Territory in WWII
The Battle of Guam, in the Mariana Islands, took place in July and August 1944 during the Pacific War of the Second World War (1939-45). Guam had been US...
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10 Crowned Monarchs on Crusade for the Holy Land (1107–1254) - Kings and Emperors Who Personally Led Crusades to Jerusalem
Between 1107 and 1254, ten crowned European monarchs personally led or joined major Crusades to the Holy...
Image
Map of Spanish Conquest in Northern South America - Andes, Amazon & Caribbean Expeditions, 1499–1561
Spain’s rapid expansion into South America followed the consolidation of its Caribbean footholds by 1512, marking a decisive...
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6 Crusader Military Orders of the Latin East - Faith, Warfare & Power in the Outremer
The crusader military orders of the Latin East emerged during the 12th and 13th centuries from the religious, charitable, and military...
For You
Definition
Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924) was an Italian composer best known for his operas La Bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, and Turandot. Puccini drew inspiration from a wide range of literary sources...
Article
Key German Weapons of World War I
Superior weapons can win wars, and during the First World War (1914-18) all sides attempted to gain an advantage over the enemy by producing more and more destructive devices...
Article
The Ball Game of Mesoamerica
The sport known simply as the Ball Game was played by all the major Mesoamerican civilizations and the impressive stone courts became a feature of many cities. More than just a...
Collection
Causes of War in History
This collection of resources examines the causes of various conflicts in the last millennium, from religious and civil wars to revolutions and global wars. The origins of conflict...
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
Ancestors: A Prehistory of Britain in Seven Burials
Ancestors: A History of Britain in Seven Burials is a focused yet detailed look at the prehistory of Britain, particularly what burials, skeletons, ancient DNA...
Book Review
Teotihuacan: City of Water City, of Fire
Teotihuacan is not even that old, but its origins are already obscure. Founded in the 1st century CE and located within the Valley of Mexico, Teotihuacan was once the...
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| 2,969 | definitions |
| 1,744 | articles |
| 19,680 | illustrations |
| 2,620 | videos |
| 415 | 3D images |
| 15,633 | translations |
| 47 | languages |
| 1,327 | contributors |
| 15,320 | keywords |
| 53,101 | registered users |
Ancient Period
Definition
Djed
The djed is an ancient Egyptian symbol for stability which features prominently in Egyptian art and architecture throughout the country's history. `Stability' should be understood to mean not only...
Definition
Khosrow II
Khosrow II (aka Kosrau II, r. 590-628) was the last powerful shahanshah (king of kings) of the Sassanian Empire. Grandson of Kosrau I (r. 531-579) and near-conqueror of the Byzantine Empire...
Definition
Anaxagoras
Anaxagoras (l. c. 500-c. 428 BCE) was a Pre-Socratic Greek philosopher who claimed the First Cause of existence was Mind (nous) and all things were constituted of indestructible “seeds” (or...
Definition
Hachiman - Origin of the Kamikaze Wind
Hachiman is the ancient Shinto god or kami of war, divination, and culture. He is famously credited with sending the kamikaze or 'divine wind' which twice dispersed the...
Definition
Odin
Odin (Old Norse: Óðinn) is the main god in Norse mythology. Described as an immensely wise, one-eyed old man, Odin has by far the most varied characteristics of any of the gods and is not only the...
Article
Opening the Way to India
Possibly being overjoyed by the tales of mythical exploits of Heracles, Semiramis, the fabled queen of Assyria, Cyrus, King of Persia and so on, Alexander the Great set out from the...
Definition
Longshan Culture
The Longshan culture (aka Lung-shan) flourished in parts of late Neolithic northeast China during the third millennium BCE and was an important link in the development of Chinese civilisation...
Article
Wall Reliefs: Ashurnasirpal II's War Scenes at the British Museum
The Mighty King 600 of their warriors I put to the sword and decapitated; 400 I took alive; 3,000 captives I brought forth; I took possession of...
Medieval Period
Article
The Seven Voyages of Zheng He
Admiral Zheng He (aka Cheng Ho, c. 1371-1433 CE) was a Chinese Muslim eunuch explorer who was sent by the Ming dynasty emperor Yongle (r. 1403-1424 CE) on seven diplomatic missions...
Definition
Hisham's Palace
Hisham's Palace at Khirbat al-Mafjar (the ruins of Mafjar) is an Umayyad structure that is listed among the last of the surviving antiquities of Romans and Byzantines. It was built by Walid...
Definition
Robert the Bruce
Robert I of Scotland, better known as Robert the Bruce, reigned as King of Scotland from 1306 to 1329 CE. For his role in achieving independence from England, Robert the Bruce has long been...
Definition
David IV the Builder
David IV the Builder or the Restorer (also known as Davit IV Aghmashenebeli) was the king of Georgia from 1089 to 1125 CE. His long reign was marked by a substantial revival of medieval...
Collection
The Arthurian Legend
The Arthurian Legend developed in Europe between c. 830, when the Welsh historian Nennius first mentions King Arthur through c. 1469 when Sir Thomas Malory composes Le Morte D’Arthur...
Definition
Ragnarök - The Cataclysmic Battle of Norse Mythology
Ragnarök is the cataclysmic battle between the forces of chaos and those of order in Norse mythology, ending the world and killing most of the gods and their...
Article
The Early Christianization of Armenia
The Christianization of Armenia began with the work of Syrian apostles from the 1st century CE and was boosted in the early 4th century CE by such figures as Saint Gregory...
Collection
Great African Kingdoms
This collection presents a small sampling of the many great African kingdoms that rose and fell from the ancient period when Punt traded with Egypt up through the common era. Each kingdom...
Early Modern Period
Interview
Interview: Peerless among Princes, the Life and Times of Sultan Süleyman by Kaya Şahin
Join World History Encyclopedia as they chat with Kaya Şahin about his new book Peerless among Princes, the Life and Times of Sultan...
Article
Hummingbirds in Aztec Culture - Warriors, Survivors, & the Namesakes of Gods & Kings
Hummingbirds, called huitzillin ("wee-TZEEL-een") in the Nahuatl language of the Aztecs, are one of the most recognizable and striking...
Article
8 Sonnets and Songs by William Shakespeare
The literary works of William Shakespeare (l. c. 1564-1616) are often regarded as some of the most important in the English language. Alongside his famous plays, he...
Definition
Francis Drake
Sir Francis Drake (c. 1540-1596 CE) was an English mariner, privateer and explorer who in 1588 CE helped defeat the Spanish Armada of Philip II of Spain (r. 1556-1598 CE) which attempted to...
Article
Royal Women in the Mughal Empire
It was not only the Mughal emperors that left an indelible mark in the history of the Indian subcontinent but also the queens and princesses. The latter's contributions to art...
Article
Battle of Bunker Hill
The Battle of Bunker Hill (17 June 1775) was a major engagement in the initial phase of the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783), fought primarily on Breed's Hill in Charlestown, Massachusetts...
Definition
Ihara Saikaku
Ihara Saikaku (1642-1693) was a Japanese poet and novelist who played a leading role in creating the so-called ‘floating world’ (ukiyo-zoshi) genre of popular literature in the 17th century...
Article
Artillery in the English Civil Wars
During the English Civil Wars (1642-1651) artillery was an important if still developing feature of warfare. Both Royalist and Parliamentarian armies had large artillery...
Modern Period
Article
Battle of Stalingrad - The Destruction of Germany's Sixth Army
The Battle of Stalingrad (now Volgograd, July 1942 to February 1943) was an attempt by Adolf Hitler (1889-1945) to control the USSR's access to the Caucasus...
Article
Jefferson Davis' Message to Congress - States' Rights and Defense of Slavery
There were many events leading up to the American Civil War, with tensions becoming increasingly heightened between the Fugitive Slave Act...
Definition
Dmitri Shostakovich
Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975) was a Russian composer of operas, ballets, concertos, string quartets, and 15 symphonies. Shostakovich was frequently denounced by the repressive Soviet...
Definition
Missouri Compromise
The Missouri Compromise of 1820 was an effort by the US Congress to resolve a sectional dispute between the 'free states' of the North and the 'slave states' of the South. Hoping to hinder...
Definition
Estado da India
The Estado da India (1505-1961) was the name the Portuguese gave to that part of their empire which stretched from India to East Asia. However, in its widest sense, the name includes all...
Definition
First Anglo-Sikh War
The First Anglo-Sikh War (1845-6) was a short and bloody conflict won by the British East India Company (EIC) against the Sikh Empire. The EIC was keen to expand into northern India...
Definition
Antonio López de Santa Anna - "Greatest Scalawag" or Great Leader?
Antonio López de Santa Anna (1794-1876) was a general, politician, and six-time president of Mexico. Although he is best-known in the United States...
Article
Ten Halloween Facts and Traditions You Need to Know - A Celebration of Transformation
Halloween is the most popular holiday in the world, after Christmas (based on level-of-celebration and consumer spending) and, increasingly...
Prehistoric Period
Definition
Chauvet Cave
The Chauvet Cave (also known as the Chauvet-Pont-d'Arc Cave) is a Palaeolithic cave situated near Vallon-Pont-d'Arc in the Ardèche region of southern France that houses impeccably preserved...
Image Gallery
A Gallery of Historical Maps
This gallery of 30 maps traces the history of cartography, with examples of maps made by cultures from the Paleolithic to the early modern period. The maps cover cities, states...
Definition
Newgrange
Newgrange is a Neolithic monument located in the region of Bru na Boinne, County Meath, Ireland. The name is fairly modern and comes from the 'newer' grange (farm) of the monks of Mellifont Abbey...
Definition
Maeshowe - The Ancient Meadow Mound of Orkney
Maeshowe (pronounced `maze-ow' or `maze-oo') is a large Neolithic chambered cairn, dating from between 3000-2800 BCE, in the Stenness parish of Orkney, Scotland. According...
Definition
Oldowan Tools
The appearance of simple stone tools, widely known as Oldowan tools or the Oldowan industry, marked the beginning of our technological revolution. To our knowledge, these artifacts appeared...
Article
Prehistoric Hunter-Gatherer Societies
Hunter-gatherer societies are – true to their astoundingly descriptive name – cultures in which human beings obtain their food by hunting, fishing, scavenging, and gathering...
Definition
Homo Habilis
Homo habilis ("handy man") is an extinct species of human that lived in East and South Africa between 2.3 and 1.5 million years ago and plays an interesting role in the discussion surrounding...
Definition
Ice Age
An ice age is a period in which the earth's climate is colder than normal, with ice sheets capping the poles and glaciers dominating higher altitudes. Within an ice age, there are varying pulses...
