True leadership knows no gender and despite societal condemnation or restrictions of the gods, powerful women have risen to the challenge and stepped up to take the reins of governance firmly in...
Our understanding and treatment of mental illness has come a long way over the centuries – and it’s just as well! In medieval times, people suffering a bout of ‘melancholia’ or those deemed ‘mad’...
There were two Scorpion Kings in the pre-dynastic period of ancient Egypt. They were forgotten by most of the world until Dwayne Johnson played one of the rulers in the famous movie ‘The Scorpion...
Genghis Khan was one of the most famous conquerors in the world history. He was the founder and first Great Khan of the Mongol Empire. Although his beginnings were obscure and seemingly insignificant...
Alexander III of Macedon, better known as Alexander the Great (356-323 BC), was a Macedonian king who ruled over an expansive empire that reached from Greece to the Gandharan regions of Pakistan...
As far as Asian nations and their histories go, one of the most interesting places that grabs everyone’s attention is Japan. The islands of Japan were always home to many lords, kingdoms, and...
The ‘Magical Treatise of Solomon’ and the ‘ Key of Solomon’ are two grimoires (magic handbooks) commonly said to have been written by the biblical King Solomon . The latter grimoire has been...
Monarchs have always played a very important role in how their subjects form their cultural identity. Egypt, China, and the Sumerian city-states are examples of some of the oldest monarchies. The...
Xerxes I, also known as Xerxes the Great, was a 5th century Achaemenid king of the Persian empire. He is best known for leading the massive invasion of Greece, marked by the battles of Thermopylae,...
Even in periods we might not think of as being glamorous, ancient Egyptians still knew how to be stylish. Take Khnumhoteps I and II, nomarchs (governors/administrators) of the Oryx nome (province)...
The Zulu monarch Shaka was a contemporary of the French emperor Napoleon, and has even been dubbed the ‘African Napoleon’ by some. However, apart from their reputation as great military leaders,...
Moctezuma II was the 9 th ruler of the Aztec Empire, whose unfortunate reign coincided with the arrival of the Spanish under the conquistador Hernan Cortez (Hernán Cortés). Moctezuma is remembered...
Moctezuma II was the 9 th ruler of the Aztec Empire, whose unfortunate reign coincided with the arrival of the Spanish under the conquistador Hernan Cortez (Hernán Cortés). Moctezuma is remembered...
A tlatoani sat at the top of the Aztec city-state hierarchical structure. He was the ruler or king of his people and was thought to speak for them. Whilst each Aztec city-state had its own tlatoani,...
Krishnadevaraya ruled ancient India’s Vijayanagara Empire for only about two decades, however his power, skills, and personality were made known in that short amount of time and so it seemed much...
Read Part I Here Wang Mang’s usurpation of the throne and the establishment of the Xin Dynasty brought the Han Dynasty to a temporary end. Displeasure with the Xin Dynasty, however, caused rebellions...