Welcome to Century Past’s resource for exploring global history events and specialized world history topics. Our extensive, free online library offers meticulously curated articles on major history events and cultural developments across Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe. Whether you are researching key conflicts, societal transformations, or interconnected global trends, you’ll find diverse perspectives and in-depth analysis on crucial world history topics to enrich your knowledge.
Table of contents
African History Events and World History Topics
Explore significant history events and specialized world history topics across Africa, covering colonialism, major revolutions, and modern-day challenges.
Belgian Colonial Education Policy: A Poor Foundation for Stability
Of all African nations, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has had an especially tumultuous post-colonial experience. There are many historical reasons for the DRC’s instability but Belgian colonial education policies are a key cause of this instability.
Jessica Achberger, Ultimate History Project
Survival and Oblivion: Egyptian Jews after the Second Exodus Egypt History Events
Tensions in the early 20th century resulted in the Second Exodus of the Jews from Egypt. Although many left or converted, a great many more remain, either forgotten or hiding.
Haythem Bastawy, History Today 2017
Democracy in Africa – Podcast
Professor Nic Cheeseman and a panel of experts will explore some of the most important questions facing Africa and democracy today in the wake of recent events in Burkina Faso, Burundi, Nigeria and Zimbabwe.
Professor Nic Cheeseman,Professor Stephen Chan, Dr Phil Clark, Univ. of Oxford
Thicker Than Water: Revisiting Global Connections on the Banks of the Suez Canal with Valeska Huber
Discussion of the Suez Canal with Dr. Valeska Huber, author of Channelling Mobilities: Migration and Globalization in the Suez Canal Region and Beyond.
Timothy Nunan, Toynbee Prize Foundation blog 2016
History Events in the Americas: Key Topics and Revolutions
Delve into pivotal history events throughout the Americas, examining major revolutions and diverse world history topics from the age of Enlightenment to the modern era.
‘Enlightenment’: America’s Semantic Shield for the Cold War – Podcast
Caroline Winterer is a professor of history at Stanford University, and author of the new book “American Enlightenments: Pursuing Happiness in the Age of Reason.” Her new work examines the period leading up to the Revolutionary War – a period many view as an era of “American Enlightenment.”
Caroline Winterer, The Takeaway 2016
Canada: Who Do We Think We Are?
Canada: Who Do We Think We Are? is a new exhibition by Library and Archives Canada (LAC) marking the 150th anniversary of Canadian Confederation. This exhibition is accompanied by a year-long blog series.
Colonial History in the Age of Digital Humanities World History Events
Digital history tools and approaches, shown through the author’s work on the Canada fur trade between 1730 and 1830.
Robert Englebert, Voyageur Database Project
Cuban Revolution Bibliography
A long reading list on the Cuban Revolution, provided by an Assistant Professor of Latin American History.
Michael J. Bustamante, Age of Revolutions
Haitian Revolution Bibliography Haitian History Events
Booklist for the Haitian Revolution.
Age of Revolutions
Haitian Revolution Reading List – World History Topics
Two authorities on the Haitian revolution each provide 5 recommended titles, with descriptions of each book.
Marlene Daut and John Garrigus, Age of Revolutions
Latin American Revolutions Bibliographies Latin America History Events
Book list for studying Latin American revolutions.
Atlantic Revolutions
Fidel Castro’s anti-colonialist legacy
The Cuban leader was an energetic sponsor of socialist movements throughout Latin America and Africa.
Manuel Barcia, Al Jazeera 2016
Asian History Events and World History Topics
Discover crucial history events and focused world history topics in Asian history, including the study of trade routes, cultural evolution, and modern societal transformations.
A Hatred for Hindus – World History Topics
Long before the recent rise in Islamophobia, distrust of Hinduism was rife among Britain’s ruling class.
Mihir Bose, History Today 2016
China: The Virtues of the Awful Convulsion China History Events
Review of five books on China during the era of the Cultural Revolution of the 1960s to 1970s.
Ian Johnson, NY Review of Books 2016
A visit with Mahatma Gandhi
Modern intro to and text of a prize-winning report of a 1948 interview with Gandhi. Gandhi was killed 11 days after the two men spoke.
Price Day, The Pulitzer Prizes 1948
The Indian Ocean: A Maritime Trade Network History Nearly Forgot – World History Topics
Long before the Silk Road or the Roman Empire, the Indian Ocean was awash with commerce.
by Adrianne Daggett, Discover 2016
After Decades, A Shanghai Preservationist Heads Home To America – Podcast
Interview with Tess Johnson, author and authority on Shanghai colonial architecture.
Frank Langfitt, All Things Considered 2016
Australia’s changing landscape through Google timelapse – video – World History Topics
Google’s timelapse project allows users to see how anywhere in the world has changed in the past 32 years using Landsat satellite images. These images of Australia show the extent of development around its largest cities, as well as the changes brought by projects such as the Cubbie Station cotton plantation in Queensland, the Fimiston goldmine in Western Australia and mining development in the New South Wales Hunter Valley.
Guardian 2016
European History Events: Conflicts and World History Topics
Analyze defining history events in European history, such as major conflicts and unifications, alongside a variety of related world history topics and societal changes.
1989: The Year That Changed It All – Podcast Global History Events
Guests discuss crumbling of the Soviet Union and the Berlin Wall, and what it all means today.
Nicholas Breyfogle, Theodora Dragostinova and Angela Brintlinger, Origins 2014
7,500 Strangers Just Bought A Crumbling French Chateau Together
Crowdfunding has been used to finance films, board games, classical music, scientific research and infertility treatments. Add this to the list of things bought with collective purchasing power: A chateau in the French countryside, complete with moat.
Laurel Wamsley, The Two Way 2017
A Bold and Dangerous Family review – unlikely heroes in the war on fascism
Review of A Bold and Dangerous Family by Caroline Moorehead. A gripping account of two Jewish brothers’ fight against Mussolini shines a light on an overlooked chapter of Italian history.
Alex Preston, Guardian 2017
Dangers of Walking in Vienna in the 1820s – World History Topics
Extended quote from John Russell, A Tour in Germany, and Some of the Southern Provinces of the Austrian Empire, in the Years 1820, 1821, 1822 (Boston, 1825).
Shannon Selin, Imagining the Bounds of History
A Different Guernica European History Events
Review of Gernika, 1937: The Market Day Massacre, by Xabier Irujo. The attack on Guernica served as a tactical military and aeronautical experiment to test the German Luftwaffe’s ability to annihilate an entire city and crush the morale of its people.
John Richardson, NY Review of Books 2016
Anthony Sattin’s best history books of 2017
The author recommends eight books and provides brief synopses.
Anthony Sattin, Guardian 2017
At the Buchenwald Gate – Podcast
Host Neil MacGregor visits Buchenwald, one of the earliest and largest concentration camps.
Germany: Memories of a Nation (series), BBC Radio 4 2014
Masha Gessen on a Planned Jewish Homeland in Soviet Russia –
Book review: WHERE THE JEWS AREN’T; The Sad and Absurd Story of Birobidzhan, Russia’s Jewish Autonomous Region By Masha Gessen.
Steven J. Zipperstein, NY Times 2016
Revisiting Churchill’s “Iron Curtain” Speech – World History Topics
The article contains links to two related scholarly articles and a link for audio streaming Churchill’s speech.
Matthew Wills, JSTOR Daily 2016
East Germany Builds the Berlin Wall
Interview with Richard W. Boehm, a State Dept FSO who served in Berlin from 1959 to 1961, and describes events around the building of the Wall.
Richard W. Boehm, Moments in U.S. Diplomatic History
French Revolution Bibliography
Two lists of recommended texts on the French Revolution.
David Andress and Rebecca Spang, Age of Revolutions
French Revolution Reading List
Each of the authors provided 5 recommended titles for the French Revolutions, with descriptions of each book.
David Andress and Rebecca Spang
Superb Animation Presents The Reconstruction And History Of Versailles
Article, photos and video about Versailles palace.
Dattatreya Mandal, Realm of History 2016
The Fall of the Berlin Wall and German Reunification – Podcast
Bridget Kendall hears how the lives of three East Germans – an English teacher, a radio music producer and a university graduate – took an unexpected turn when their country dissolved (in 1989). While for some opportunities opened up, others had to face personal crisis.
Bridget Kendall, Cold War: Stories from the Big Freeze (series) BBC Radio 4 2017
Berlin Street Scenes Beautifully Caught on Film (1900-1914) – Video – World History Topics
Some collected film of random scenes of Berlin life in the years before WWI.
Open Culture 2013
Major Global History Events and World History Topics
A collection of significant history events that shaped the globe and interconnected world history topics spanning multiple continents and eras.
75 years of major refugee crises around the world World History Events
The conflict in Syria has now displaced 12 million people, creating the largest wave of refugees to hit Europe since World War II. But in the last half century, other events around the world have pushed even larger numbers of people to flee war and persecution. Here’s a brief guide to the major refugee events in recent history.
Lydia DePillis, Kulwant Saluja and Denise Lu, Washington Post 2015
Maps and Graphs with the Tag “Languages”
Posts from Languages Collection
Maps on the Web
Maps on the web, charts, and infographics with the theme of languages.
Atlantic Revolutions – Bibliography
The goal of this bibliography is to link revolts and revolutionary movements in Europe, Africa, and the Americans.
Julia Gaffield and Wim Klooster, Atlantic Revolutions
Atlantic Revolutions Reading List #1 Global History Events
The two authors each provide five books, with descriptions, that they recommend on the subject of Atlantic revolutions.
Wim Klooster and Julia Gaffield
Information Networks in the Age of Revolutions Bibliography – World History Topics
Bibliographies on Information Networks in the American, French, Haitian and Latin American revolutions.
Atlantic Revolutions
Video envisions human population growth worldwide
Video animation. 7 Billion People in 6 Minutes; watch the world’s human population soar over 200,000 years.
Slate
Related Pages on Century Past
Here are CenturyPast.org pages with books or other resources on related subjects. Use the top Menu to look through our 400+ pages.