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S1 · E1
30mPlaying
1. The Dawn of History
The origins of the human race are traced from anthropoid ancestors to the agricultural revolution.
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2. The Ancient Egyptians
Egyptian irrigation created one of the first great civilizations.
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3. Mesopotamia
Settlements in the Fertile Crescent gave rise to the great river civilizations of the Middle East.
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4. From Bronze to Iron
Metals revolutionized tools, as well as societies, in the empires of Assyria, Persia, and Neo-Babylonia.
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5. The Rise of Greek Civilization
Democracy and philosophy arose from Greek cities at the edge of the civilized world.
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6. Greek Thought
Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle laid the foundation of Western intellectual thought.
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7. Alexander the Great
Alexander's conquests quadrupled the size of the world known to the Greeks.
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8. The Hellenistic Age
Hellenistic kingdoms extended Greek culture throughout the Mediterranean.
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9. The Rise of Rome
Through its army, Rome built an empire that shaped the West.
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10. The Roman Empire
Rome's civil engineering contributed as much to the empire as did its weapons.
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11. Early Christianity
Christianity spread despite contempt and persecution from Rome.
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12. The Rise of the Church
The old heresy became the Roman empire's official religion under the Emperor Constantine.
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13. The Decline of Rome
While enemies slashed at Rome's borders, civil war and economic collapse destroyed the empire from within.
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14. The Fall of Rome
Despite the success of emperors such as Hadrian and Marcus Aurelius, Rome fell victim to barbarian invasions.
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15. The Byzantine Empire
From Constantinople, the Byzantine Empire carried on the traditions of Greece and Rome.
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16. The Fall of Byzantium
Nearly a thousand years after Rome's fall, Constantinople was conquered by the forces of Islam.
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17. The Dark Ages
Barbarian kingdoms took possession of the fragments of the Roman Empire.
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18. The Age of Charlemagne
Charlemagne revived hopes for a new empire in Western Europe.
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19. The Middle Ages
Amid invasion and civil disorder, a military aristocracy dominated the kingdoms of Europe.
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20. The Feudal Order
Bishop, knight, and peasant exemplified some of the social divisions of the year 1000 A.D.
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21. Common Life in the Middle Ages
Famine, disease, and short life expectancies were the conditions that shaped medieval beliefs.
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22. Cities and Cathedrals of the Middle Ages
The great churches embodied the material and spiritual ambitions of the age.
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23. The Late Middle Ages
Two hundred years of war and plague debilitated Europe.
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24. The National Monarchies
A new urban middle class emerged, while dynastic marriages established centralized monarchies.
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25. Renaissance & the Age of Discovery
Renaissance humanists made man "the measure of all things." Europe was possessed by a new passion for knowledge.
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26. Renaissance & the New World
The discovery of America challenged Europe.
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27. The Reformation
Voiced by Martin Luther, Protestantism shattered the unity of the Catholic Church.
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28. The Rise of the Middle Class
As the cities grew, new middle-class mores had an impact on religious life.
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29. The Wars of Religion
For more than a century, the quarrels of Protestants and Catholics tore Europe apart.
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30. The Rise of the Trading Cities
Amid religious wars, a few cities learned that tolerance increased their prosperity.
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31. The Age of Absolutism
Exhausted by war and civil strife, many Europeans exchanged earlier liberties and anarchies for greater peace.
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32. Absolutism and the Social Contract
Arguments about the legitimate source of political power centered on divine right versus natural law.
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33. The Enlightened Despots
Monarchs considered reforms in order to create more efficient societies, but not at the expense of their own power.
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34. The Enlightenment
Intellectual theories about the nature of man and his potential came to the fore.
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35. The Enlightenment and Society
Scientists and social reformers battled for universal human rights during a peaceful and prosperous period.
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36. The Modern Philosophers
Freedom of thought and expression opened new vistas explored by French, English, and American thinkers.
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37. The American Revolution
The British colonists created a society that tested Enlightenment ideas and resisted restrictions imposed by England.
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38. The American Republic
A new republic, the compromise of radicals and conservatives, was founded on universal freedoms.
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39. The Death of the Old Regime
In France the old order collapsed under revolutionaries' attacks and the monarchy's own weakness.
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40. The French Revolution
Liberty, equality, and fraternity skidded into a reign of Terror.
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41. The Industrial Revolution
Technology and mass production reduced famine and ushered in higher standards of living.
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42. The Industrial World
A consumer revolution was fueled by coal, public transportation, and new city services.
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43. Revolution and Romantics
Leaders in the arts, literature, and political theory argued for social justice and national liberation.
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44. The Age of the Nation-States
The great powers cooperated to quell internal revolts, yet competed to acquire colonies.
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45. A New Public
Public education and mass communications created a new political life and leisure time.
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46. Fin de Siècle
Everyday life of the working class was transformed by leisure, prompting the birth of an elite avant-garde movement.
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47. The First World War and the Rise of Fascism
Old empires crumbled during World War I to be replaced by right-wing dictatorships in Italy, Spain, and Germany.
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48. The Second World War
World War II was a war of new tactics and strategies. Civilian populations became targets as the Nazi holocaust exterminated millions of people.
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49. The Cold War
The U.S. and Soviet Union dominated Europe and confronted each other in Korea.
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50. Europe and the Third World
Burdened with the legacy of colonial imperialism, the Third World rushed development to catch up with its Western counterparts.
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51. The Technological Revolution
Keeping up with the ever-increasing pace of change became the standard of the day.
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52. Toward the Future
Modern medicine, atomic energy, computers, and new concepts of time, energy, and matter all have an important effect on life in the 20th century.
