History

The Civil War decided slavery and the Union. You will learn its causes, the campaigns and leaders, emancipation, the home front and Reconstruction, via the best narrative and academic histories.

This topic covers the political, social, economic, and cultural development of the United States from pre-colonial times to the modern era. Learners will analyze key events, institutions, and conflicts that shaped the nation.

Ancient Civilizations studies the rise, development, and collapse of early human societies across the globe. Learners will examine the political structures, cultural achievements, and daily lives of societies in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, Rome, and Mesoamerica.

Ancient Egypt endured for three millennia along the Nile. You will learn its chronology, pharaohs and religion, hieroglyphs and monuments, daily life and how Egyptology reconstructs it.

This field studies the rise and fall of early civilizations across the globe, from the Bronze Age to the early Middle Ages. Learners will analyze the political structures, cultures, and legacies of ancient societies.

The Aztec, Maya and Inca built complex civilisations before 1492. You will learn their histories, cities, writing and calendars, the conquest and what archaeology is still revealing.

Early Modern History covers the global transition from the late Middle Ages to the industrial era, roughly 1500 to 1800. Learners will analyze the Renaissance, the Scientific Revolution, European expansion, and the rise of centralized nation-states.

Financial history explains booms, busts and the institutions built after them. You will learn the great bubbles and crashes from tulips to 2008, central banking's evolution and the recurring patterns behind crises.

The French Revolution and Napoleon remade Europe. You will learn the fall of the monarchy, the Terror, the Napoleonic wars and reforms, and the era's lasting political legacy.

Genealogy traces your ancestors through records and DNA. You will learn research methods, archives and databases, DNA testing interpretation and how to document a family history.

Historiography and Methods examines how historians write history and the methodologies they use to interpret the past. Learners will understand how to evaluate primary sources, analyze historical biases, and apply different theoretical frameworks to historical research.

History is the systematic study of past human events, societies, and cultures. Learners will understand how historical narratives are constructed, analyze patterns of change and continuity over time, and evaluate the causes and consequences of major global developments.

Africa's history spans ancient kingdoms, trade empires, colonisation and independence. You will learn the continent's major civilisations and eras beyond the Eurocentric narrative.

China's history spans dynasties, philosophies and revolutions. You will learn the imperial eras, Confucian statecraft, the century of humiliation, the Communist revolution and the reform era.

India's history spans the Indus civilisation, the great empires, Mughal rule, the Raj and independence. You will learn its periods, religions and politics through the best scholarly and narrative histories.

Japan's history runs from the classical court through the samurai age to modernisation and postwar recovery. You will learn its periods, culture and politics and the best surveys and specialist works.

The history of mathematics traces ideas from Babylon to the present. You will learn how number, geometry, calculus and modern abstraction developed, and the people and problems that drove them.

Russia's history runs from Kievan Rus through the tsars, revolution and Soviet rule to the present. You will learn its turning points and the historians who explain them.

The history of science traces how we learned to learn about nature. You will learn the scientific revolution, key discoveries and figures, and how scientific ideas and institutions developed.

The Middle East's history runs from the rise of Islam through the caliphates and Ottomans to the modern states. You will learn its empires, intellectual golden age, colonial era and present conflicts.

Medieval History covers the period from the fall of the Western Roman Empire to the dawn of the Renaissance. Learners will examine feudalism, the influence of the Church, the Crusades, and the cultural and political developments of Europe and Afro-Eurasia.

Military History examines the history of warfare, military technology, strategy, and the societal impacts of armed conflict. Learners will analyze how battles, military institutions, and geopolitical strategies have shaped the rise and fall of nations throughout history.

Modern History covers global developments from the late 18th century to the present day. Learners will analyze the impacts of industrialization, world wars, the Cold War, decolonization, and globalization on contemporary political and social structures.

The Cold War divided the world for four decades. You will learn its origins, nuclear strategy, proxy wars, espionage, the space race and how and why the Soviet system collapsed.

The Crusades were religious wars launched from Latin Europe between the eleventh and fifteenth centuries. You will learn why they began, the major campaigns in the Levant and beyond, the crusader states, Muslim and Byzantine perspectives, and how historians interpret them.

The Holocaust was the systematic murder of six million Jews and millions of others. You will learn its history and causes, memoirs and scholarship, and the resources of leading memorial institutions.

The Industrial Revolution transformed how humanity lives and works. You will learn its origins in Britain, key technologies, social consequences and the debates on why it happened where and when it did.

The Mongol Empire became the largest contiguous land empire in history within a century. You will learn Genghis Khan's rise, the conquests across Asia and Europe, how the empire was governed and divided, and its lasting effects on trade and states.

The Ottoman Empire ruled much of southeastern Europe, the Middle East and North Africa for six centuries. You will learn its origins, the conquest of Constantinople, imperial institutions, its long transformation and its collapse after the First World War.

Rome grew from a city-state to an empire spanning three continents. You will learn the Republic's rise, the emperors, the army and economy, daily life and the debates over why Rome fell.

The Silk Road was the network of trade routes linking China, Central Asia, the Middle East and Europe. You will learn what moved along it, including goods, religions, technologies and disease, and how it shaped the empires it connected.

The Vietnam War was a decades-long conflict over Vietnam's independence and unification. You will learn its roots in French colonial rule, American escalation, how the war was fought, home-front politics, and its consequences for Vietnam, the United States and the Cold War.

The Norse raided, traded and settled from Newfoundland to Baghdad. You will learn Viking-age history and archaeology, Norse mythology and sagas, and how to separate evidence from popular myth.

World History examines global historical patterns, cross-cultural interactions, and transnational developments. Learners will understand how different regions of the world connected through trade, migration, empire-building, and the exchange of ideas across different eras.

The First World War destroyed empires and birthed the twentieth century. You will learn its origins, the Western and Eastern fronts, the war's global reach and the peace that followed.

The Second World War reshaped the modern world. You will learn its causes, the major theatres and campaigns, the Holocaust, the home fronts and its aftermath, through the best narrative and scholarly histories.