Each of the courses below explore different aspects of World history. course takes you from the dawn of humanity through to the modern day, examining a diverse range of history from across the world. It is completely free, and is designed to give you a broad, solid foundation of historical knowledge. All the topics include images, many also have videos and podcasts that add extra information and context.

WORLD HISTORY COURSE – TURNING POINTS

This 49 lesson course takes you through the points that the human experience has changed, from the transition to urban settlements through to growth of the internet.

WORLD HISTORY COURSE – LESSER KNOWN HISTORY

This course delves into a dozen of the less well known episodes in history. Explore these lessons to add depth to your knowledge of World history.

Random World History Lesson

Pick from one of these random topics!

Full Course in Chronological Order

This course takes you from the dawn of humanity through to the modern day, examining a diverse range of history from across the world. It is completely free, and is designed to give you a broad, solid foundation of historical knowledge. It is arranged chronologically, you can work your way through from start to finish, or drop into a topic that takes your interest.

The Study of History and the Rise of Civilization

Precursors to Civilisation

The Study of History

Ancient Mesopotamian Civilizations

The First Urban Civilisations

Akkadian Empire

Babylonia

Early Civilizations

Ancient Societies on the Mediterranean

Ancient Africa

The Ancient Andes

Ancient Egypt

Introduction to Ancient Egypt

The Old Kingdom

The Middle Kingdom

The New Kingdom

Ancient Egyptian Society

Nubia and Ancient Egypt

Early Chinese Dynasties

The Mythical Period

The Shang Dynasty

The Zhou Dynasty

The Qin Dynasty

The Han Dynasty

Early Civilizations in the Indian Subcontinent

The Indus River Valley Civilizations

Indo-European Civilizations

Religion in the Indian Subcontinent

The Persian Empire

The Maurya Empire

The Kushan Empire

The Gupta Empire

Ancient Greece and the Hellenistic World

Early Periods in Greek History

Sparta

The Persian Wars

Athens

Culture in Classical Greece

The Peloponnesian War

Macedonian Conquest

The Roman World

The Etruscans

Early Rome

The Roman Republic

The Roman Empire

The Flavian Dynasty

The Nerva-Antonine Dynasty

Christianity and the Late Roman Empire

The Byzantine Empire

Byzantium: The New Rome

The Heraclian and Isaurian Dynasties

The Late Byzantine Empire

The Rise and Spread of Islam

Pre-Islamic Arabia

Muhammad and the Rise of Islam

The Umayyad and Abbasid Empires

The Middle Ages in Europe

The Germanic Tribes

The Catholic Church

The Carolingian Dynasty

The Development of England

The Crusades

Medieval Life

The Development of Russia

The Princes of Rus

The Grand Duchy of Moscow

The Mongol Empire

The Mongol Empire

Genghis Khan

The Mongol Empire After Genghis Khan

Chinese Dynasties

The Tang Dynasty

The Song Dynasty

The Yuan Dynasty

The Ming Dynasty

African Civilizations

Early Africa

Northern Africa

Central African Empires

West African Empires

East African Empires

Southern African States

Civilizations in the Americas

South American Civilizations

The Inca

Early Civilizations of Mexico and Mesoamerica

The Maya

The Toltecs and the Aztecs

Native American Cultures in North America

The Renaissance

The Renaissance

Italy During the Renaissance

Humanist Thought

Art in the Renaissance

Literature in the Renaissance

The Northern Renaissance

The Rise of Nation-States

Nation-States and Sovereignty

Spain and Catholicism

England and Parliamentary Monarchy

France and Authoritarianism

War of Spanish Succession

The Modernization of Russia

The Age of Enlightenment

The Enlightenment

The Age of Discovery

The Scientific Revolution

Enlightenment Thinkers

The Protestant Reformation

Protestantism

The Thirty Years’ War

Enlightened Despots

Frederick the Great and Prussia

The Holy Roman Empire

The Seven Years’ War

Catherine the Great and Russia

The Age of Enlightenment

The French Revolution

France under Louis XV

Louis XVI’s Early Years

Constitutional Monarchy

The Reign of Terror

The Beginning of Revolution

Napoleon

The French Empire

Napoleon’s Defeat

The 100 Days

The Transition to Dictatorship

Post-Napoleonic Europe

The Congress of Vienna

France after 1815

Russia after Napoleon

German Unification

The Industrial Revolution

Textile Manufacturing

Steam Power

Iron Making

Innovations in Transportation

Social Change

The Agricultural Revolution

Change in the Americas

The South American Revolutions

Brazilian Independence

The Mexican War of Independence

North America

European Imperialism in East Asia

The Last Chinese Dynasty

From the Edo Period to Meiji Restoration in Japan

British India

Indochina

The Scramble for Africa

The Berlin Conference

The Belgian Congo

France in Africa

Africa and the United Kingdom

German Imperialism

The Independent African States

World War I

The Century of Peace

The Coming of War

Events of World War I

The End of World War I

The Treaty of Versailles

The Interwar Period

Rebuilding Europe

The Russian Revolution

The Great Depression

The Rise of Fascism

Hitler and the Third Reich

World War II

Axis Powers

The Allied Powers

Hostilities Commence

The European Front

The Pacific War

The Allies Gain Ground

The End of the War

Impact of War World II

The Cold War

The Beginning of the Cold War

Life in the USSR

Containment

Competition between East and West

Crisis Points of the Cold War

Post-Colonial Africa

Independence in the Maghreb

The Democratic Republic of the Congo

Zimbabwe

South Africa

Egypt

The Middle East after the Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman Empire

Partition of the Ottoman Empire

Israel and Palestine

The Monarchies of the Middle East

Iran

Afghanistan

East Asia after World War II

Communist China

The Koreas

The Indian Subcontinent

Indochina

Japanese Recovery

South America and Latin America in the Cold War

Mexico

Argentina

Chile

Brazil

Conflict Across Latin America

The Long Decade (1989-2001)

European Unification

Fall of the Soviet Union

Apartheid Repealed

The Yugoslav War

Globalization

The Rwandan Genocide

The 21st Century

Europe in the 21st Century

East Asia in the 21st Century

Africa in the 21st Century

The Americas in the 21st Century

Global Concerns

The Middle East and North Africa in the 21st Century