World History


Ancient History in General

Ancient Civilizations
This site looks at ancient civilization from prehistory forward, covering not only classical Greece and Rome, but the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and the Americas as well.
Ancient History Lists
What were the 10 Oldest Civilizations That Ever Existed? Who were the Top 10 Most Famous People in Ancient China? The answers to these and a host of other questions can be found on this site.
Ancient Mesopotamia: This History, Our History
The purpose of this website is to disseminate knowledge and awareness of this ancient civilization that will lead to a better understanding of ourselves, others, and of current events for the K-12 community.
BBC: Ancient History
While this site is no longer updated, this part of the BBC’s large selection of educational offerings still has tons of valuable information about ancient civilizations.
History.com: Ancient History
Today’s world owes an immense debt to the mighty empires and great cities of ancient history. Their inventions and ideas enabled the advancement of human society and laid the foundation for modern life. Articles and videos from the History Channel.
History Link 101
Links to sites with information, maps, images, etc. relating to history topics around the world.
Internet Ancient History Sourcebook
This site contains hundred of local files as well as links to source texts throughout the net, covering areas including Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, Rome, and Christian Origins among others.
Odyssey Online
A set of pages with interesting facts about ancient civilizations.
The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
A virtual tour of the Seven Wonders, of which only the Great Pyramid is still around today.
Smithsonian Magazine: Ancient Civilizations
Links to all articles tagged as “Ancient Civilizations” at the Smithsonian Magazine website.
Thought.co: Ancient History and Culture
The Roman Empire and Qing Dynasty are now only ruins, but there’s far more to discover about the ancient world. Explore classical history, mythology, language and literature, and learn more about the many fascinating figures of the ancient world.
World History Encyclopedia
We want to make history engaging and compelling, inspiring our users and visitors to learn more. We reach the digital generation by sharing an array of historical topics and narratives through text, video, interactive features, and social media. (Formerly the ‘Ancient History Encyclopedia’)

Classical Greece & Rome

Ancient Greece (The British Museu)
The site is divided into ten ‘chapters’ which address themes or topics relevant to ancient Greece. Although primarily aimed at the middle school level, there are items of interest here for all.
Ancient Rome
Discover Ancient Rome from the legendary period dominated by kings through the Republic and Empire with biographies, timelines, and maps. With links to other pages.
Classics Unveiled
Portal to four classics sites online: MythNET (classical mythology), Rome Unleashed (Roman history), Rome Exposed (Roman life), and Latin Wordstock (Latin vocabulary and derivatives).
The Classics Pages
Over 1000 pages of news, information, games and controversy about the life, literature, art and archaeology of the ancient world of Greece & Rome.
Comparing and Contrasting Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome
Though we sometimes lump ancient Greece and Rome together under the idea of “classical” history, there were major differences between them, as well as some similarities.
A Digital Atlas of the Roman Empire
Roman provinces, roads, cities and towns, neatly laid out on a terrain map with sidebar annotations.
Digital Roman Forum
What the forum was like in late classical times. (Archived site.)
Forum Romanum
Collection of links concerning Latin language and Roman history and culture, with many visual images. A Perseus Award site.
Greco-Persian Wars: Battle of Thermopylae
Detailed description of the historic battle.
History.com: Ancient Rome
Article about the history and culture of ancient Rome, with links to further related articles.
History.com: Classical Greece
Article about the history and culture of ancient Greece, with links to further related articles.
The History of Rome
Archive of a podcast series …tracing the history of the Roman Empire, beginning with Aeneas’s arrival in Italy and ending with the exile of Romulus Augustulus, last Emperor of the Western Roman Empire.
LacusCurtius: A Gateway to the Roman World
Roman antiquities, texts, architecture, maps, and scholarly works about the classical world.
Livius: Articles on Ancient History
Livius is a site containing dozens of articles on varying ancient history topics by a professor of ancient history.
ORBIS: The Stanford Geospatial Network Model of the Roman World
A simplified version of the giant network of cities, roads, rivers and sea lanes that framed movement across the Roman Empire. This is basically a fancy map interface which allows one to zoom in, pan around, and virtually ‘travel’ across the ancient Roman world.
The Roman Empire in the First Century
Companion website to a PBS series about the Roman Empire in the first century.
The Roman Empire Explained
Here are 40 maps that explain the Roman Empire — its rise and fall, its culture and economy, and how it laid the foundations of the modern world.
Rome Reborn
An international initiative whose goal is the creation of 3D digital models illustrating the urban development of ancient Rome from the first settlement in the late Bronze Age (ca. 1000 B.C.) to the depopulation of the city in the early Middle Ages (ca. A.D. 550). With images and video.

Governments and Political Systems

Alexis de Tocqueville: Democracy in America
Complete text of de Tocqueville’s famous work on American history, character, and government in the 1830’s. Also available as free downloadable files in various formats from Project Gutenberg: volume 1volume 2.
Alternatives to Capitalism and Democracy
An overview of “alternatives to democracy” from the 2001 book The Economic History of the Twentieth Century.
Ancient Greek Philosophy
Constite
Check out Constitute to read, search, and compare the world’s constitutions!
The Core Documents of our Democracy
The purpose of this guide is to showcase the core documents, websites and databases that provide vital information about the workings and activities of our Federal Government.
Global Integrity
Global Integrity is an independent, non-profit organization tracking governance and corruption trends around the world. Global Integrity uses local teams of researchers and journalists to monitor openness and accountability.
James Russell Lowell: On Democracy
Essay on American democracy by American poet and man of letters James Russell Lowell in the 19th century.
Political Philosophy
Political philosophy is the study of fundamental questions about the state, government, politics, liberty, justice and the enforcement of a legal code by authority. (Philosophy Basics). For further information, check out Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Philosophy Basics, or the Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy Online.
Political Resources on the Net
Listings of political sites available on the Internet sorted by country, with links to Parties, Organizations, Governments, Media and more from all around the world.
University of Michigan Documents Center: Political Science
Find political science data, articles, encyclopedias, handbooks and information about quantitative and qualitative research methods along with information on writing dissertations, publishing, and non-traditional research methods like digital scholarship.
Wikipedia: Forms of Government /
Government /
Political Philosophy
General introductions with links.
World Statesmen
World Statesmen is an encyclopedia of nations, colonies, international and religious organizations, and other polities mostly since the year 1700. Country facts, maps, anthems, flags, links, and multiple indexes are included.

Imperialism

General Imperialism

African Slave Trade and European Imperialism
A timeline with links.
Boundless U.S. History: American Imperialism
Overview of American imperialism in the latter part of the nineteenth century from a free online course.
Colonization of Africa
Let’s look at a map and see a summary of the different phases of exploration, conquests and colonization of African territories by European powers, beginning from the mid-15th century. From the Geo History channel on YouTube.
Imperialism: Crash Course World History #35 (video)
John Green teaches you about European Imperialism in the 19th century. European powers started to create colonial empires way back in the 16th century, but businesses really took off in the 19th century, especially in Asia and Africa.
International Encyclopedia of the First World War: Imperialism
This article focuses on the extent to which imperialism contributed to the outbreak of the First World War.
Internet Modern History Sourcebook: Imperialism
Internet Modern History Sourcebook: The Long Nineteenth Century
Excellent resources for links to websites and primary sources.
John Hobson: Imperialism
1902 critique of imperialism by a British economist.
The New Imperialism
A look at the ‘New Imperialism’ of the late 19th and early 20th century. Part of a site about the British Empire.

The Belgian Congo

Belgium – Moving from Regrets to Reparations
A look at past and present relations between Belgium and the Congo, in June 2020.
The Butcher of Congo
(Interview with the author of a popular book about King Leopold and the Congo.
King Leopold’s ‘Heart of Darkness’
In 1885, King Leopold II of Belgium gained a vast area in central Africa as his personal possession. His greed and the system of forced labor he imposed there prompted the first human rights movement of the 20th century.
Info Please: Congo, Democratic Republic: History
Short history by the Information Please Almanac.
Internet African History Sourcebook: European Imperialism
Colletion of links to articles from the Internet History Sourcebook site.
Leopold II: Belgium ‘wakes up’ to its bloody colonial past
A renewed global focus on racism is highlighting a violent colonial history that generated riches for Belgians but death and misery for Congolese. (June 2020)
The Scramble for Africa
An overview for students from secondary school teachers.
The Story of the Congo Free State
Selections from a 19-5 book about imperialism in Africa.

British India

BBC: The British Presence in India in the 18th Century
BBC: British India and the ‘Great Rebellion’
Archived pages from the British History section of the British Broadcasting Company site.
Britannica: British raj
Encyclopedia article about the period of direct British rule over the Indian subcontinent from 1858 until the independence of India and Pakistan in 1947.
The British Empire
This site tries to bring to life the peoples, cultures, adventures and domination that made the Empire such a powerful institution.
Case Study 4: background: Living in the British empire
Article from the British National Archives discussing the British rule in India.
Internet Indian History Sourcebook
Excellent resource for links to primary source documents and other sites.
Boundless World History: British India
An overview of the British in India from the time of the East India Trading Company though Gandhi and independence.
Queen Victoria’s Empire: Passage to India
From PBS, an overview of Queen Victoria and the Indian Rebellion in the mid-19th century.
Manas: British India
Pages about the history of the British in India, from the 1600s through the 20th century.

China and the Opium Wars

China and Europe: 1500-1800
Website looking at eonomic relations between China and Europe from 1500 through the mid-twentieth century.
The Chinese Opium Wars
Articles and illustrations from a website about the Victorian era.
The Opium Wars: The Bloody Conflicts That Destroyed Imperial China
In 1839, England went to war with China because it was upset that Chinese officials had shut down its drug trafficking racket and confiscated its dope. Stating the historical record so plainly is shocking?—?but it’s true, and the consequences of that act are still being felt today. (August 2016)
Letter of Advice to Queen Victoria
Letter from the Chinese Commissioner to Queen Victoria detailing the Chinese issues which led to the Opium Wars.
The Opium Wars in China
The Opium Wars in the mid-19th century were a critical juncture in modern Chinese history. Discusses the causes of the Opium Wars and their long-lasting consequences.
Tea and Opium
Explores the history and economics of British-Chinese interactions..
Thought.co: The First and Second Wars
Overview of the background, history, and results of the Opium Wars.

Industrial Revolution

The Ecological Impact of the Industrial Revolution
The impact of the Industrial Revolution on the world’s health and psyche would not begin to register until the early 1960s, some 200 years after its beginnings. From human development, health and life longevity, to social improvements and the impact on natural resources, public well-being, energy usage and sanitation, the effects have been profound.
History.com: Industrial Revolution
Overview of the First Industrial Revolution from the History Channel.
National Geographic: Industrial Revolution and Technolocy
Whether it was mechanical inventions or new ways of doing old things, innovations powered the Industrial Revolution.
Internet Modern History Sourcebook: Industrial Revolution
Subject-organized links about the Industrial Revolution.
The Plight of Women’s Work in the Early Industrial Revolution in England and Wales
How the Industrial Revolution affected and was affected by women.
Spartacus Educational: Child Labour in Britain
Short articles about child labor during the British Industrial Revolution.
Spartacus Educational: The Industrial Revolution
Numerous short articles about the British Industrial Revolution.
Thought.co: A Beginner’s Guide to the Industrial Revolution
Summary of the Industrial Revolution. With links to related articles and topics.
Thought.co: Significant Eras of the American Industrial Revolution
There were actually two Industrial Revolutions. The first occurred in Great Britain in the mid-17th and early 18th centuries as that nation became an economic and colonial powerhouse. The second Industrial Revolution occurred in the U.S. beginning in the mid-1800s….
Toynbee Lectures on the Industrial Revolution in England
Famous lecture by historian Arnold Toynbee.

Middle Ages & Renaissance

6 myths about the Middle Ages that everyone believes (video)
Medieval Europe. Where unbathed, sword-wielding knights ate rotten meat, thought the Earth was flat, defended chastity-belt wearing maidens, and tortured their foes with grisly gadgets. Except… this is more fiction than fact. So, where do all the myths about the Middle Ages come from? And what were they actually like? A five-minute video from TED-Ed.
The 50 Most Important Events of the Middle Ages
A list of the most important events in the medieval world, between the years 500 and 1500 AD. This includes political and military events, as well as the dates of inventions, new writings and religious matters in Africa, Asia and Europe.
Annenberg Learner: Renaissance
Join us as we explore the Renaissance and discover the forces that drove this rebirth in Europe, and in Italy in particular.
BBC: History: Middle Ages
Archives of articles about Great Britain during the Middle Ages. (No longer updated.)
Eyewitness to History: The Middle Ages and Renaissance
This site contains excerpts from primary sources with explanatory text.
History.com: Middle Ages
History.com: Renaissance
History.com: The Crusades
Articles, videos, and images about the Medieval and Renaissance periods from The History Channel.
HistoryExtra: About the Medieval Period
Read everything you need to know about the medieval period …. one of the most turbulent and transformative periods in history, popularised by the Black Death, Magna Carta and the Hundred Years’ War.
Internet Medieval Sourcebook
Primary sources on various topics in medieval history.
The Labyrinth: Resources for Medieval Studies
Provides free, organized access to electronic resources in medieval studies through a … server at Georgetown University. The Labyrinth’s easy-to-use menus and links provide connections to databases, services, texts, and images on other servers around the world. (No longer updated as of 2021)
Life in Elizabethan England
Free online book about what life was like in the age of Elizabeth I.
Medieval Europe: A Complete Overview (video)
Medieval Europe is a feature length journey through the Middle Ages! It is divided into 5 major timeframes. This one and three-quarters hour-long video covers events from the fall of Rome to the Renaissance.
Medievalists.net
We aim to be the first place people go to when they want to learn about the Middle Ages. Our aim is to offer readers news, articles, videos and more about the medieval world and how that history is presented today.
The Middle Ages
People, arts, literature, wars and weapons, and culture of the Middle Ages. Includes a special section on the Black Death.
Mostly Medieval – Exploring the Middle Ages
Here you will find information on heraldry, myths and legends, religion, medicine, and other aspects of life in Britain during the Middle Ages.
Overview of the Middle Ages
Video from Khan Academy with a short (10 min.) overview of the Middle Ages.
Thought.co: Medieval and Renaissance History
Gather round all ye fair maidens and travel back to medieval times to explore the history, people, culture, and events of the Middle Ages and Renaissance.

Twentieth Century

20th Century Documents : 1900 – 1999
Major documents of the 20th century, from the Avalon Project at Yale Law School.
Modern World History: 1918-1980
Short articles on topics from the Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points and the Treaty of Versailles through the 1982 Falklands War.
Historical Altas of the Twentieth Century
The twentieth century as seen through annotated maps.
History Channel: Topics
Choose a subject to read articles about 20th century history, including early 20th century US, Communism’s rise and decline, and more.
History on the Net: Twentieth Century
Includes articles about the Titanic, World War One, Nazi Germany, the Holocaust, and the Cold War.
Internet Modern History Sourcebook
Large collection of links to primary source documents on modern history.
Khan Academy: The 20th Century
This topic takes us on a journey from the end of Imperialism through two world wars and the Cold War and brings us to our modern world.
Rutgers Oral History Project
An enterprise to record the personal experiences of: Rutgers University alumni and/or New Jersey residents who served on the home front and overseas during World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and the Cold War among other topics.
Thought.co: Timeline of the 20th Century
This century witnessed two world wars, the Great Depression of the 1930s, the Holocaust in Europe, the Cold War, revolutionary social equality movements, and the exploration of space. Follow the changes in this decade-by-decade timeline of the 20th century.
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