Videos

The Julio-Claudian dynasty was the first dynasty to rule the Roman Empire. Octavian, the adopted son of the Dictator for life of the Roman Republic, Julius Caesar, became the first emperor of Rome after defeating Julius Caesar’s enemies after...

The long-awaited fourth installment of my French Revolution series addresses the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen, which was passed by the National Assembly in 1789. The Declaration outlines the principles of the French Revolution...

The people of ancient Rome loved spectacles and, lucky for them, they could often be entertained by lavish public shows. The emperors of Rome knew of their people's love of spectacle so a way that they could garner popularity and prestige...

Hathor was not only a powerful goddess but also one of the most popular in ancient Egypt and it’s not surprising since she was the goddess of love, fertility, beauty, pleasure, music, dancing, and was also the protector of women and women’s...

This lecture is a brief introduction to the early history of the Pennsylvania Colony. The Pennsylvania Colony was founded in 1681 by William Penn, a Quaker convert who converted a debt owed to his family by the king into a charter for a proprietary...

The Norse people in their mythology divided their universe into nine realms with the world tree, Yggdrasil, in the centre. From Yggdrasil the nine realms of their cosmology either spread out from it or they stretched from the roots below...

SWERVE, MARTIN LUTHER! Mr. Richey explains the key elements of the Catholic Counter-Reformation, including the Council of Trent, the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), and Teresa of Avila. This lecture was designed specifically for students preparing...

When the Protestant Reformation broke out in Western Europe, the Catholic Church got the message, at least a little bit. Pope Paul III called a council to look into reforming some aspects of the Catholic Church and try to stem the tide of...

In this introduction to Ancient Scepticism, I look at Pyrrhonism through its four most important philosophers: Pyrrho of Elis, Timon, Aenesidemus, and Sextus Empiricus. First I look at some of the basic arguments and problems laid down by...

After the Reformation, the Roman Catholic Church began to reform some of its abuses. The Catholic Reformation, though, was not only a reaction to Protestantism, but also a flowering of Roman Catholic practice. Ignatius of Loyola and the Jesuits...