Think of an ancient empire and you’re probably picturing an iconic site like the Acropolis in Athens, or Rome's famous forum. Yet many seemingly unremarkable modern towns were once imperial ...

Picture this: the mightiest civilization the ancient world had ever seen, stretching from Britannia to the deserts of Mesopotamia, brought to its knees not just by barbarian hordes but by forces ...

The history of the world is, perhaps unfortunately, the history of empires. As far back as historians can take us, humans have sought to subjugate one another, and some have proved particularly good ...

Ten thousand Britons crowded into Hyde Park last week on Queen Victoria’s birthday, more popularly known as Empire Day, which England sets aside to honor her great inheritance. In the natural ...

Two empires met in 1519 when Hernan Cortes' conquistadors entered Tenochtitlan and encountered the court of the Emperor Moctezuma. The Aztecs didn't know what to make of the horses brought in by the ...

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Herodotus (History, Book 1.53) tells the story of Croesus, king of Lydia c. 585-546 BC in what is now Western Turkey and the Ionian shore of the Mediterranean. Croesus conquered Ephesus, Miletus and ...