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Establishing the Silk Road

June 5, 2026

War of the Heavenly Horses

The War of the Heavenly Horses or the Han–Dayuan War was a military conflict fought in 104 BC and 102 BC between the Chinese Han dynasty and the kingdom of Dayuan, in the Ferghana Valley at the easternmost end of the former Alexander's empire. The war was allegedly instigated by trade disputes compounded by the extended geopolitics surrounding the Han-Xiongnu Wars, resulting in two Han expeditions that ended in a Han victory, allowing the Han dynasty to expand its hegemony deep into Central Asia.

Ferghana horse

Ferghana horses were one of China's earliest major imports, originating from the Fergana Valley in Central Asia. These horses, as depicted in Tang dynasty tomb figures in earthenware, may "resemble the animals on the golden medal of Eucratides, King of Bactria ."

Nisean horse

The Nisean horse, or Nisaean horse, is an extinct horse breed, once native to the town of Nisaia, located in the Nisaean plains at the foot of the southern region of the Zagros Mountains, Iran.

A Brief Look into Venice

May 19, 2026

Venice

Venice is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the region of Veneto. It is built on a group of 126 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are linked by 472 bridges.

Republic of Venice

The Republic of Venice, officially the Most Serene Republic of Venice and traditionally known as La Serenissima, was a sovereign state and maritime republic with its capital in Venice, on the northeastern coast of Italy. Founded, according to tradition, in 697 by Paolo Lucio Anafesto, over the course of its 1,100 years of history it established itself as one of the major European commercial and naval powers. Initially extended in the Dogado area, during its history it annexed a large part of Northeast Italy, Istria, Dalmatia, the coasts of present-day Montenegro and Albania as well as numerous islands in the Adriatic and eastern Ionian seas. At the height of its expansion, between the 13th and 16th centuries, it also governed Crete, Cyprus, the Peloponnese, a number of Greek islands, as well as several cities and ports in the eastern Mediterranean.

Metropolitan City of Venice

The Metropolitan City of Venice is a metropolitan city in the Veneto region of Italy, one of ten metropolitan cities in Italy. Its capital is the city of Venice. It replaced the province of Venice in 2015 and includes the city of Venice and 44 municipalities (comuni). It was first created by the reform of local authorities and then established by Law 56/2014.

The Origin of "Beyond the Pale"

May 17, 2026

The Pale (Ireland)

The Pale or The English Pale was the part of Ireland directly under the control of the English Crown in the Late Middle Ages. By the mid-15th century, direct English rule was largely restricted to the "four obedient shires", comprising most of counties Dublin, Kildare, Meath and Louth. This was the region in which English culture and English law were observed. In 1454, trenches began to be dug on the borders of this region, to prevent raids by the Gaelic Irish and Gaelicized Normans. The first recorded use of the name "English Pale" was in 1494, in an act of parliament summoned by the Lord Deputy, Edward Poynings. The region "beyond the Pale" was largely Gaelic.

Counties of Ireland

The counties of Ireland are historic administrative divisions of the island. They began as Norman structures, and as the powers exercised by the Cambro-Norman barons and the Old English nobility waned over time, new offices of political control were established at a county level. The number of counties varied depending on the time period, however thirty-two is the traditionally accepted and used number.

Auld Alliance

The Auld Alliance was an alliance between the kingdoms of Scotland and France against England made in 1295. The Scots word auld, meaning old, has become a partly affectionate term for the long-lasting association between the two countries. The alliance was never formally revoked, although it is considered by some to have ended with the signing of the Treaty of Edinburgh in 1560.

Kutuzov's Russia

May 15, 2026

Mikhail Kutuzov

Prince Mikhail Illarionovich Golenishchev-Kutuzov-Smolensky was a field marshal of the Russian Empire. He served as a military officer and a diplomat under the reign of three Romanov monarchs: Empress Catherine II, and Emperors Paul I and Alexander I. Kutuzov was shot in the head twice while fighting the Turks and survived the serious injuries seemingly against all odds. He defeated Napoleon as commander-in-chief using attrition warfare in the Patriotic War of 1812. For the Battle of Krasnoi against Napoleon, Kutuzov received the victory title of Smolensky to add to his surname; the word Smolensky literally means "of Smolensk". Alexander I, the incumbent Tsar during Napoleon's invasion, would write that he would be remembered amongst Europe's most famous commanders and that Russia would never forget his worthiness.

Catherine the Great

Catherine II, commonly known as Catherine the Great, was the Empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796. She came to power after a coup d'etat against her husband, Peter III. Her long reign helped Russia thrive under a golden age during the Enlightenment. This renaissance led to the founding of many new cities, universities, and theatres, along with large-scale immigration from the rest of Europe and the recognition of Russia as one of the great powers of Europe.

Novorossiya

Novorossiya is a historical name, used during the era of the Russian Empire for an administrative area that later became the southern mainland of Ukraine: the region immediately north of the Black Sea and Crimea. The name Novorossiya, which means "New Russia", entered official usage in 1764, after the Russian Empire conquered the Crimean Khanate, and annexed its territories, when Novorossiya Governorate was founded. Official usage of the name ceased after 1917, when the entire area was annexed by the Ukrainian People's Republic, precursor of the Ukrainian SSR.

Old Britannia's World War I

April 30, 2026

How World War I Began

Part 1

How Each Nation Planned to Win World War I

Part 2