Middle Ages: Definition and Timeline (Video)

Pandemics That Changed History

In the realm of infectious diseases, a pandemic is the worst case scenario. When an epidemic spreads beyond a country’s borders, that’s when the disease officially becomes a pandemic. Communicable diseases existed during humankind’s hunter-gatherer days, but the shift to agrarian life 10,000 years ago created communities that made epidemics more possible. Malaria, tuberculosis, leprosy, […]

Hagia Sophia

What Is the Hagia Sophia? The Hagia Sophia (Ayasofya in Turkish) was originally built as a basilica for the Greek Orthodox Christian Church. However, its function has changed several times in the centuries since. Byzantine Emperor Constantius commissioned construction of the first Hagia Sophia in 360 A.D. At the time of the first church’s construction, […]

2:08 minTV-PG

Holy Grail

How did the real history of the Knights Templar become intertwined with the mysterious object known as the Holy Grail? Historian Dan Jones traces the medieval origins of the myth linking the cup of Christ to Crusader knights.

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2:43 minTV-PG

Knights Templar

During the Middle Ages, the Templars were famous across Europe, but their fall in 1307 shocked the world. Historian Dan Jones examines how the real history of the Templars is even more astonishing than the fiction that still swirls around them.

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Tower of London

The White Tower Initial construction of the “White Tower,” the oldest structure in the Tower of London complex, started in 1078 and was completed in 1100, during the rule of King William II. It was designed and built by Gundulf of Rochester, a Norman bishop who has been credited with overseeing the construction of a […]

Holy Grail

What Is the Holy Grail? The Holy Grail is the subject of numerous myths and legends, which makes it difficult for scholars to distinguish fact from fiction. The word “grail” probably comes from the Latin word gradale, which refers to a deep platter that foods were served on at medieval banquets. Throughout the years, the […]

Knights Templar

Who Were the Knights Templar? After Christian armies captured Jerusalem from Muslim control in 1099 during the Crusades, groups of pilgrims from across Western Europe started visiting the Holy Land. Many of them, however, were robbed and killed as they crossed through Muslim-controlled territories during their journey. Around 1118, a French knight named Hugues de […]

2:30 minTV-PG

Ask HISTORY: Is There Really a Holy Grail?

The Holy Grail is considered the most sacred Christian relic, but does it actually exist? Ask History finds out.

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3:24 minTV-14

The Plague

In the Middle Ages, the bubonic plague ravages Europe in one of the most deadly pandemics in human history.

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2:57 minTV-14

What Were the Crusades?

Christian knights waged a religious war against the Muslims in Jerusalem in an attempt to reclaim the Holy Land.

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2:32 minTV-PG

Braveheart Attacks Lockleven Castle

Discover the story of how Braveheart and the Scottish army stormed Lockleven Castle in an effort to expel the English from Scotland.

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2:09 minTV-PG

From Black Plague to Superflu: When Microbes Become Mass Murderers

Could a microbe really cause the extinction of the human race? An exploration of the possibility that SARs or a superflu could wreak havoc on human life on Earth in a fashion similar to the Black Plague.

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