Images

A 1728 illustration of Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar (1465-1524) was a Spanish conquistador who conquered Cuba in 1511, became the island’s governor for the next decade, and sponsored the expedition of Hernán Cortés (1485-1547) which conquered...

Richelieu on the Sea Wall of La Rochelle, oil on canvas by Henri-Paul Motte, 1881. Musée des Beaux-Arts de La Rochelle.

Louis XIII of France (1601-1643), oil on canvas portrait by Philippe de Champaigne, 1635. Museo del Prado, Madrid.

An image illustrating the progression of Chinese dynasties from the semi-mythical Xia, and the conquest of the Mongols (who ruled China as the Yuan dynasty), until the eventual fall of the Qing, the last imperial house. The emperors of China...

The Edict of Nantes, guaranteeing religious freedom in France, issued by Henry IV of France in 1598. National Archives of France.

Portrait of Henry IV, King of France and Navarre (1553–1610), oil on canvas by Frans Pourbus the Younger, early 17th century. Palace of Versailles.

A map illustrating the two and a half centuries of Chinese history commonly known as the age of the Warring States. During this period Zhou dynasty's vassal states declared themselves independent. They fought for territory as the more powerful...

Battle of Heiligerlee, 1568, drawing by F. Hogenberg, late 16th century. Groninger Archieven.

Allegory of the Tyranny of the Duke of Alba in the Netherlands, oil on panel by an unknown artist, c. 1622-1630. Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam.

Bullet holes in the wall from the assassination of William the Silent in 1584. Prinsenhof Museum, Delft, the Netherlands.