Featured
Article
Harrison's Marine Chronometer
John Harrison (1693-1776) invented an accurate marine chronometer after several decades of research and development. While the pendulum clock had already been invented in the 17th century, a clock that could withstand the vagaries of the sea, humidity, and air temperature remained...
Featured
Definition
Japanese Tea Ceremony
The Japanese Tea Ceremony (chanoyu or chado) is a cultural tradition involving very particular places, procedures, and equipment for drinking green tea. Originating as a habit of Chinese...
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Image
12 Blue Riband Ocean Liners, 1838–1938 - A Century of the Transatlantic Speed Race
The Blue Riband of the Atlantic was the unofficial distinction awarded to the passenger liner achieving the highest average speed on a...
Featured
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Twelve Spices That Changed the World - Trade, Empire, and the Global Age of Spices, 1450–1650
Between c. 1450 and 1650, demand for spices and other high-value plant commodities became an important catalyst for European...
Latest Content
Collection
WWII's Pacific War - A Collection of Resources
This collection of resources presents the Pacific theatre of the Second World War (1939-45), which saw the expansion of the Japanese Empire before the USA was brought...
Collection
AP World History Unit 3 - Land-Based Empires (c. 1450–1750)
This collection gathers articles, definitions, and maps covering the empires, rulers, and belief systems related to Unit 3: Land-Based Empires of the AP®...
Definition
James Buchanan - The President Who Lost the Union
James Buchanan (1791-1868) was an American politician who served as the fifteenth president of the United States. He took office during a time of great crisis...
Article
A Supervisor's Advice to a Young Scribe - Words of Wisdom or Satire?
A Supervisor's Advice to a Young Scribe is a Sumerian composition relating a dialogue between an elder scribe and a young graduate from his school...
Definition
Pacific War - The Defeat of Japan in WWII
The Pacific War concerned the theatre of the Second World War (1939-45) fought in the Pacific Ocean and eastern parts of Asia between Japan and the United States and...
Definition
Emancipation Proclamation - Lincoln's Call for Freedom
The Emancipation Proclamation was an executive order issued by US President Abraham Lincoln on 1 January 1863, at the height of the American Civil War (1861-1865...
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Map of Elizabethan England Trade with Europe, c. 1600 - Commerce, Companies & Expansion under Elizabeth I
Elizabethan England's trade with Europe around 1600 formed part of a changing early modern commercial system in which...
Image
The 5 Classical Orders of Architecture - Doric, Ionic, Corinthian, Tuscan & Composite
The five classical orders of architecture: Doric, Ionic, Corinthian, Tuscan, and Composite, are systems of proportion, structure, and...
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Map of the World Known to Europeans c. 1000 CE - Trade, Travel & the Limits of Geographic Knowledge
Around 1000 CE, European knowledge of the wider world was uneven and depended heavily on geography, trade, religion, and...
For You
Image Gallery
The Roman Empire in 10 Maps
In this gallery, we examine the evolution of the Roman Empire through 10 detailed maps. From Julius Caesar's victories to the splitting of the empire, these maps trace the geographical...
Definition
Mark Twain
Mark Twain is the pen name of Samuel Langhorne Clemens (1835-1910), an American humorist, journalist, lecturer, and novelist. He was the voice of his generation and one of the most celebrated...
Definition
Calypso - The Nymph Who Kept Odysseus Prisoner
In Greek mythology, Calypso, whose name means "to hide" or "to conceal," is a nymph best known from Homer's (c.750 BCE) epic The Odyssey for falling in love with...
Article
10 Myths of the Alamo - How Did Davy Die?
The 13-day siege and Battle of the Alamo, 23 February to 6 March 1836, is among the most famous in American history, but, like any such event, it has inspired several...
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
In Search of Japan's Hidden Christians: A Story of Suppression, Secrecy and Survival
Dougill writes about the history of Christianity in Japan writ large, before focusing more precisely on the history of Hidden Christians...
Book Review
Persian Painting
Written by Sheila R. Canby, Persian Painting provides an overview of the Persian miniature painting from the 14th to the 20th century. With the general public in mind, the book is rather...
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Ancient Period
Definition
Julia Domna
Julia Domna (160-217 CE) was a Syrian-born Roman empress during the reign of her husband, Roman emperor Septimius Severus (r. April 193 - February 211 CE). She was also the mother of the emperors...
Article
The Aztec Calendar
The Aztecs of ancient Mexico measured time with a sophisticated and interconnected triple calendar system which followed the movements of the celestial bodies and provided a comprehensive...
Article
Winning Against the Odds: Sargon II & the Urartu Campaign
It is often when one is faced with the most difficult circumstances that one is given the greatest opportunity for clarity. History provides ample evidence...
Definition
Mari
Mari was a city-state located near the west bank of the Euphrates River in Northern Mesopotamia (now eastern Syria) during the Early Bronze Age and the Middle Bronze Age. One of the earliest known...
Article
The Sack of Rome by the Gauls, 390 BCE
After the Gauls defeated the Romans at the confluence of the Tiber and the Allia rivers, the Gauls marched on to Rome. In late July 390 BCE, the undefended city fell to...
Definition
Aristarchus of Samos
Aristarchus of Samos (l. c. 310 - c. 230 BCE) was a Greek astronomer who first proposed a heliocentric model of the universe in which the sun, not the earth, was at the center. Although...
Article
Reactions to Plague in the Ancient & Medieval World
Throughout history, epidemics and pandemics of plague and other diseases have caused widespread panic and social disorder even, in some instances, when the people...
Article
Trade in Ancient Celtic Europe
Trade in raw materials and manufactured goods in ancient Celtic Europe was vibrant and far-reaching, particularly regarding the centre of the continent where there was a hub...
Medieval Period
Definition
Xochipilli
Xochipilli or the 'Prince of Flowers' was the Mesoamerican god of summer, flowers, pleasure, love, dancing, painting, feasting, creativity and souls. He is a benevolent manifestation of Piltzintecuhtli...
Article
Scandinavia Before the Vikings
In the Merovingian period, Scandinavia was only just emerging from its prehistoric Iron Age. A process of political centralization that had begun in the Migration Period led...
Definition
Hundred Years' War
The Hundred Years' War (1337-1453) was an intermittent conflict between England and France lasting 116 years. It began principally because King Edward III (r. 1327-1377) and Philip VI...
Definition
Marco Polo
Marco Polo (1254-1324 CE) was a Venetian merchant and explorer who travelled to China and served the Mongol ruler Kublai Khan (l. 1214-1294 CE) between c. 1275 and 1292 CE. Polo's adventures...
Definition
Magna Carta
The Magna Carta or 'Great Charter' was an agreement imposed on King John of England (r. 1199-1216) on 15 June 1215 by rebellious barons in order to limit his power and prevent arbitrary royal...
Definition
Aethelred I of Wessex - The Forgotten Victor of the Battle of Ashdown
Aethelred I ruled the Kingdom of Wessex (southern England) from 865 to 871 and led the English resistance to the Viking invasions of Britain. He...
Definition
Borobudur
The Temple of Borobudur or sometimes "Barabudur" is a Mahayana Buddhist temple located close to Muntilan on the island of Java in Indonesia. Built during the rule of the Sailendra Dynasty (c...
Definition
Qilin (Chinese Unicorn)
The qilin (麒麟, or simply lin 麟) is a Chinese mythical creature, frequently translated as "Chinese unicorn." While this term may suggest a one-horned creature, the qilin is often depicted...
Early Modern Period
Collection
British House of Hanover
The House of Hanover is a royal house that first ruled Hanover and then Great Britain from 1714 to 1901. The British Hanoverians began with George I when he succeeded the last of...
Definition
Marie Dentière
Marie Dentière (l. c. 1495-1561) was a French theologian, writer, and street preacher who advanced the cause of the Protestant Reformation in Geneva, Switzerland. Her written works were controversial...
Definition
Revolt of the Parlements
The Revolt of the Parlements of 1787-1788, was the climax of a power struggle between the royal authority of King Louis XVI of France (r. 1774-1792) and the Parlement of Paris, the...
Definition
Ignatius of Loyola
Ignatius of Loyola (l. 1491-1556) was a Basque soldier who became a Catholic priest and theologian after a mystical experience convinced him he was called to the service of Christ. He...
Definition
James Armistead Lafayette
James Armistead Lafayette (l. c. 1748-1832) was an African American Patriot who served the Continental Army as a spy during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). During the...
Article
Siege of Bristol in 1645
The siege and capture of Bristol by Parliamentary forces on 10 September 1645 was one of the most devastating blows to the Royalist cause during the English Civil Wars (1642-1651...
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...
Article
Robespierre & the Death Penalty
"I come to ask, not the gods, but legislators…to erase from the code of the French the blood laws that command judicial murders" (Robespierre, 6). These impassioned words, spoken...
Modern Period
Definition
Bleeding Kansas - Dress Rehearsal for the American Civil War
Bleeding Kansas' was a term coined by the New York Tribune in 1856, referring to the escalating hostilities in the Kansas Territory between pro-slavery...
Definition
Sioux Chief Spotted Tail (Eastman's Biography)
Spotted Tail (Sinte Galeska, l. 1823-1881) was a Brule Lakota Sioux chief best known for choosing diplomacy over military conflict in dealing with the US government's...
Definition
German-Soviet War - WWII's Bloodiest Front
The German-Soviet War, known in the USSR and today's Russia as the Great Patriotic War or, in Western Europe, as the Eastern Front of the Second World War (1939-45...
Image Gallery
50 Stunning Photographs of WWII
This gallery of photographs tells the dramatic story of the Second World War (1939-45). The selection aims to reflect the global nature of the conflict and reveal many of its...
Definition
Jallianwala Bagh Massacre - The British Atrocity at Amritsar
The 13 April 1919 Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (aka Amritsar Massacre) was an infamous episode of brutality which saw General Dyer order his troops to open...
Article
Napoleonic Concordat of 1801 & Religious Pluralism
The Napoleonic Concordat of 1801 defined France's relationship with the Catholic Church for over 100 years. The Organic Articles were added in 1802 and provided...
Article
Second Battle of El Alamein
The Second Battle of El Alamein (Oct-Nov 1942) was a major battle in North Africa during the Western Desert Campaigns of the Second World War (1939-45). The British Eighth Army...
Article
The Daughter of the Sun
The Daughter of the Sun is a Cherokee origin myth explaining how Uktena, the great horned serpent, came to be, as well as why those who die cannot return to life. The story also explains...
Prehistoric Period
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...
Definition
Clava Cairns - Monuments to Memory and More
Clava Cairns is an early Bronze Age site in Scotland, located east of the city of Inverness, consisting of three well-preserved cairns (two of which are passage graves...
Definition
Skara Brae
Skara Brae is a Neolithic Age site, consisting of ten stone structures, near the Bay of Skaill, Orkney, Scotland. Today the village is situated by the shore but when it was inhabited (c.3100-2500...
Definition
Altamira
Altamira is a Paleolithic cave located in Santillana del Mar (Cantabria region) in northern Spain, containing prehistoric paintings. The cave was inhabited for millennia and so, besides Paleolithic...
Definition
Knap of Howar
The Knap of Howar is a Neolithic site on the island of Papa Westray in Orkney, Scotland. The name is Old Norse for `mound of mounds' or `large barrow'. The building preserved at the site...
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...
Article
The Megalithic Temples of Malta
The megalithic temples of Malta and Gozo rank amongst the oldest free-standing buildings in the world. Construction of these temples started c. 3500 BCE, an impressive architectural...
Article
The Stonehenge Burials
A great deal has been written about why the prehistoric monument of Stonehenge, in Wiltshire, southern England, was constructed. Perhaps it was designed as a temple to the ancestors...
