11th century: Did you mean...?

The Ghana Empire flourished in West Africa from at least the 6th to 13th century CE. Not connected geographically to the modern state of Ghana, the Ghana Empire was located in the western Sudan savannah region (modern southern Mauritania...

Lying at the crossroads of the eastern Mediterranean, the island of Cyprus has long been a meeting point for many of the world's great civilizations. Situated where Europe, Asia and Africa meet, its location shaped its history of bringing...

The weapons of an English medieval knight in combat included the long sword, wooden lance with an iron tip, metal-headed mace, battle-axe, and dagger. Trained since childhood and practised at tournaments, the skilled knight could inflict...

Jousts were, from the 13th to 16th century CE, a popular part of the European medieval tournament where knights showed off their martial skills by riding against one another with wooden lances in a designated area known as the lists. The...

The Great Hall was the architectural centrepiece of a medieval castle's interior and functioned as the social and administrative hub of the castle and its estates. With everyone dining and sleeping in the hall in its early days, the room...

This map illustrates the Silk Road in the late 8th century, a vital network of trade and cultural exchange across Eurasia. In the east, the Tang Dynasty controlled much of the Silk Road, linking China to the trade networks of Central and...

A map illustrating the rise and expansion (c. 1750 - 1200 BCE) of the Hittites, ancient Anatolian people who spoke an Indo-European language. At its height around the mid-14th century BCE, the Hittite empire ruled most of Asia Minor from...

A drawing of a typical 17th-century musketeer. Musketeers were a standard component of European infantry armies of the period and particularly during the English Civil Wars (1642-51). Ink and watercolours. Drawn in the 19th century. (British...

The Maukharis (554 CE - 606 CE) rose as a power after the downfall of the Gupta Empire (3rd to 6th century CE) in the 6th century CE in northern India. The core area of their kingdom was situated in what is now the state of Uttar Pradesh...

The widespread use of paper and printing were features of ancient China which distinguished it from other ancient cultures. Traditionally, paper was invented in the early 2nd century CE, but there is evidence it was much earlier. As a cheaper...