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History

From the powerful civilizations of Egypt, Mesopotamia, and the Indus Valley, to the fearsome yet sophisticated society of the Vikings, the ancient world was a surprising and challenging place. Here we feature some of the most seminal and influential events and people throughout history, that have helped shape the world we know today.

The Funeral of Atahualpa by Luis Montero
7 April, 2015 - 04:11 dhwty

The Dramatic Life and Death of Atahualpa, the Last Emperor of the Inca Empire

The Inca ruler, Atahualpa, is one of the key figures in the history of the European colonialization of South America. As the last emperor of the largest empire in pre-Columbian Empire, Atahualpa was...
The Funeral of a Viking
5 April, 2015 - 03:55 Mark Miller

The 10th century chronicle of the violent, orgiastic funeral of a Viking chieftain

For the 10 th century holy man and jurist Ahmad Ibn Fadlan, the violent, orgiastic, drunken spectacle put on by mourning Vikings in Bulgaria must have been shocking. In Ibn Fadlan’s Muslim tradition...
Duke Margiris defending Pilėnai against Teutonic Knights 1336.
3 April, 2015 - 01:28 dhwty

Mass suicide at Pilenai: Lithuanian Defenders Choose Death over Enslavement

The Crusades are best known as a series of military campaigns launched by Western European states, and sanctioned by the Roman Catholic Church, aimed at reclaiming the Holy Land from the Muslims...
Tullia drives her chariot over the body of her father, Servius Tullius. Painting by Jean Bardin, 1765.
1 April, 2015 - 15:03 dhwty

Servius Tullius – The last benevolent king of Rome

Just a stone’s throw away from the bustling Termini station in the heart of Rome stands a section of an ancient wall. This wall is known as the Servian Wall, as it is believed to have been built...
Metal detector survey of the shipwreck area, photo by Brett Seymour.
30 March, 2015 - 15:02 dhwty

The Antikythera Shipwreck – The Titanic of the Ancient World and its Sunken Historic Treasure

Some of the world’s greatest archaeological discoveries have been uncovered by chance. The terracotta warriors, for instance, were first discovered in 1974 by Chinese farmers who were digging for a...
17th century illustration of a woman committing sati: self-immolation on her husband’s funeral pyre.
29 March, 2015 - 15:02 dhwty

Jauhar - The History of Collective Self Immolation during War in India

Sadly, the fate of civilians in war has often been harsh, perhaps even more so in the past. Men would invariably be killed, and children were often sold into slavery. As for the women, they might be...
An oil painting of Queen Tin Hinan.
28 March, 2015 - 13:55 dhwty

The Monumental Tomb of Queen Tin Hinan, Ancient Ancestress of the Tuaregs

Queen Tin Hinan is renowned in Tuareg history as a fourth century matriarch of great prestige – named “Mother of Us All”. Her monumental tomb was located in 1925 in the Sahara desert, but dramatic...
Geronimo
27 March, 2015 - 03:00 dhwty

Geronimo: The Apache Warrior that fought to Avenge the Slaughter of his Family

In the 1940s, the U.S. Army was experimenting with the possibility of infiltrating enemy territory by dropping soldiers with parachutes from aeroplanes. According to one account, on the night before...
The Gunpowder Plot: The conspirators’ last stand at Holbeach House
22 March, 2015 - 02:30 dhwty

Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder Plot to Obliterate the British House of Lords

Every fifth of November, people across the United Kingdom celebrate Guy Fawkes Night (also known as Guy Fawkes Day, Bonfire Night, and Firework Night). Every November, cities and towns across the...
A print, entitled 'Caractacus, King of the Silures, delivered up to Ostorius, the Roman General, by Cartismandua, Queen of the Brigantes'
21 March, 2015 - 20:55 dhwty

Mighty Cartimandua, Queen of the Brigantes Tribe and Friend to Rome

Standing next to Westminster Bridge and the Houses of Parliament in the heart of London is a giant bronze statue of a woman with her two daughters on a chariot. This was Boudicca, the queen of the...
A depiction of the Battle of Mactan
20 March, 2015 - 02:25 dhwty

Chief Lapu-Lapu - Warrior and Hero of the Philippines

In the early 16 th century, Spain was becoming a global superpower due to innovations in navigation and seafaring. At the end of the previous century, Christopher Columbus, whose voyage had been...
Model Kate Keown portraying Beatrice Cenci. 1968.
12 March, 2015 - 13:29 dhwty

The Spirit of Beatrice Cenci - A Tale of Terrible Injustice in Ancient Rome

Just a stone’s throw away from St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican City is the Ponte Sant’Angelo. Today, this bridge is one of the famous tourist attractions in the city of Rome. Yet, this bridge hides...
Sobeknefru, Powerful Pharaoh and Queen of the Dragon Court
9 March, 2015 - 12:58 Katrina Sisowath

Sobeknefru, Powerful Pharaoh and Queen of the Dragon Court

Named after the crocodile God Sobek, Sobeknefru, whose name means ‘she who shows the beauty of Sobek’, succeeded her brother to the throne of Egypt. At the time she came to power, the cult of Sobek...
Rostam the hero fighting the Dragon in the Seven Quests of Rostam. Iranian miniature illustration from Shahnameh
7 March, 2015 - 12:41 Mahbod Khanbolouki

The Longest Poem Ever Written: Shahnameh – The Epic Book of Kings

In 977 AD, a Persian poet named Ferdowsi began on a grandiose poetic journey that would take him 33 years to complete. He used ancient Persian tales which had been told from generation to generation...
Detail of a miniature from a 13th-century Icelandic manuscript.
4 March, 2015 - 11:25 Riley Winters

The Sagas of the Icelanders shed light on Golden Age

The Sagas of the Icelanders have long been preserved as the most comprehensive specimen of the literary culture of the 13 th and 14 th centuries of Iceland. In writing these sagas, many attributes of...
Egyptian mummy at the British Museum, London.
21 February, 2015 - 12:11 ancient-origins

Art, Meds, and Fuel - The Surprising Historical Uses of Ancient Mummies

By Liz Leafloor | Epoch Times Mummies are a familiar image in modern Western culture, sometimes silently resting in glass museum cases, or other times shuffling along on two cursed feet, moaning and...
Marguerite de La Rocque
15 February, 2015 - 01:16 mrreese

Marguerite de La Rocque: 16th Century Noblewoman Stranded on the Isle of Demons

Marguerite de la Rocque was a French noblewoman who is well-known for surviving several years alone on a deserted island known as the Isle of Demons. Marguerite was marooned on the island by her...
The wrecking of the White Ship
10 February, 2015 - 00:37 mrreese

Tragic Accident or Mass Murder? The Sinking of the White Ship leads to Disaster for England

Many year ago, before modern air travel, the only way to travel across large bodies of water was by ship. Many passengers would crowd onto a large vessel for a lengthy journey to their destination...
Castaway survivor
3 February, 2015 - 11:55 dhwty

How Castaway Survivor Alexander Selkirk Inspired the Tale of Robinson Crusoe

Many people would be familiar with the novel “ Robinson Crusoe” , a story written by the 17 th /18 th century English writer, Daniel Defoe. In the novel, the eponymous character is said to have been...
The Rape of the Sabine Women by Pietro da Cortona
2 February, 2015 - 21:24 dhwty

The Rape of the Sabine Women

According to tradition, the city of Rome was founded in the 8 th century B.C. by Romulus. The Roman historian Livy wrote that the city of Rome grew strong quickly, and was able to defend itself...
Marco Polo travelling, Miniature from the Book "The Travels of Marco Polo"
2 February, 2015 - 12:01 dhwty

The Life and Adventures of Marco Polo

"In Xanadu did Kubla Khan, a stately pleasure-dome decree…" Thus begins one of Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s three great poems, the unfinished “ Kubla Khan” . According to the poet, this poem was...
The Abduction of Europa, 1716, Jean Francois de Troy.
26 January, 2015 - 12:46 dhwty

The Phoenician city of Tyre - A rich history of industry, mythology and conflict

According to tradition, the city of Tyre was founded in 2750 B.C., and is considered one of the world’s oldest metropolises. For much of its history, Tyre has played an important role in the region...
Sea Peoples of the Levant
24 January, 2015 - 11:42 William James Veall

Sea-Farers from the Levant the first to set foot in the Americas: proto-Sinaitic inscriptions found along the coast of Uruguay

This article adds a new dimension to the age old conundrum, was Christopher Columbus, or was he not, actually the first to set foot in the Americas? A Movement currently actioning much debate in the...
Babak Khorramdin
21 January, 2015 - 12:21 Mahbod Khanbolouki

Babak Khorramdin – The Freedom Fighter of Persia

The Umayyad- and Abbasid Caliphate of the Arabs had invaded and occupied the Sassanid Persian empire for 144 years when in 10 July 795 AD, a child was born in a village called Balal Abad situated...

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