Europe

Europe (/ˈjʊərəp/ YOOR-əp or /ˈjɜrəp/ YUR-əp) is one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus region (Specification of borders) and the Black Sea to the southeast. Europe is bordered by the Arctic Ocean and other bodies of water to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and the Black Sea and connected waterways to the southeast. Yet the borders for Europe—a concept dating back to classical antiquity—are somewhat arbitrary, as the term continent can refer to a cultural and political distinction or a physiographic one.

Europe is the world's second-smallest continent by surface area, covering about 10,180,000 square kilometres (3,930,000 sq mi) or 2% of the Earth's surface and about 6.8% of its land area. Of Europe's approximately 50 states, Russia is the largest by both area and population (although the country covers both Europe and Asia), while the Vatican City is the smallest. Europe is the third-most populous continent after Asia and Africa, with a population of 731 million or about 11% of the world's population.

Europe, in particular Ancient Greece, is the birthplace of Western culture. It played a predominant role in global affairs from the 16th century onwards, especially after the beginning of colonialism. Between the 16th and 20th centuries, European nations controlled at various times the Americas, most of Africa, Oceania, and large portions of Asia. Both World Wars were largely focused upon Europe, greatly contributing to a decline in Western European dominance in world affairs by the mid-20th century as the United States and Soviet Union took prominence. During the Cold War, Europe was divided along the Iron Curtain between NATO in the west and the Warsaw Pact in the east. European integration led to the formation of the Council of Europe and the European Union in Western Europe, both of which have been expanding eastward since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.

British Empire

The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom, that had originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height it was the largest empire in history and, for over a century, was the foremost global power. By 1922, the British Empire held sway over a population of about 458 million people, one-quarter of the world's population at the time, and covered more than 13,000,000 square miles (33,670,000 km2): approximately a quarter of the Earth's total land area. As a result, its political, linguistic and cultural legacy is widespread. At the peak of its power, it was often said that "the sun never sets on the British Empire" because its span across the globe ensured that the sun was always shining on at least one of its numerous territories.

During the Age of Discovery in the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal and Spain pioneered European exploration of the globe and in the process, established large overseas empires. Envious of the great wealth these empires bestowed, England, France and the Netherlands began to establish colonies and trade networks of their own in the Americas and Asia. A series of wars in the 17th and 18th centuries with the Netherlands and France left England (Britain, following the 1707 Act of Union with Scotland) the dominant colonial power in North America and India. However, the loss of the Thirteen Colonies in North America in 1783 after a war of independence was a blow to Britain, depriving it of its most populous colonies. Despite this setback, British attention soon turned towards Africa, Asia and the Pacific. Following the defeat of Napoleonic France in 1815, Britain enjoyed a century of effectively unchallenged dominance, and expanded its imperial holdings across the globe. Increasing degrees of autonomy were granted to its white settler colonies, some of which were reclassified as dominions.

The growth of Germany and the United States eroded Britain's economic lead by the end of the 19th century. Subsequent military and economic tensions between Britain and Germany were major causes of the First World War, during which Britain relied heavily upon its Empire. The conflict placed enormous financial strain on Britain, and although the Empire achieved its largest territorial extent immediately after the war, it was no longer a peerless industrial or military power. The Second World War saw Britain's colonies in South-East Asia occupied by Japan, which damaged British prestige and accelerated the decline of the Empire, in spite of British victory. India, Britain's most valuable and populous colony, won independence within two years of the end of the war.

During the remainder of the 20th century, as part of a larger decolonisation movement by European powers, most of the territories of the British Empire became independent, ending with the handover of Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China in 1997. Fourteen territories remain under British sovereignty, the British overseas territories. After independence, many former British colonies joined the Commonwealth of Nations, a free association of independent states. Sixteen Commonwealth nations share their head of state, Queen Elizabeth II, as Commonwealth realms.

15th century

As a means of recording the passage of time, the 15th century was the century which lasted from 1401 to 1500.

Constantinople, the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire, falls to emerging Ottoman Turks, forcing Western Europeans to find a new trade route.

Spanish and Portuguese explorations led to discovery of the Americas and the sea passage along Cape of Good Hope to India for the European civilization. After this discovery, transportation increased between all continents of the earth.

The Papacy was split in two parts in Europe for decades, until the Council of Constance.

Tamerlane established a major empire in the Middle East and Central Asia, in order to revive the Mongolian Empire. The Inca Empire rose to prominence in South America.

The 15th century was a bridge between the Middle Ages, the Early Renaissance, and the Early modern period.


Events
Joan of Arc, a French peasant girl, directly influenced the result of the Hundred Years' War.

* 1401: Dilawar Khan establishes the Malwa Sultanate in present-day central India
* 1402: Ottoman and Timurid Empires fight at the Battle of Ankara resulting in Timur's capture of Bayezid I.
* 1402: Sultanate of Malacca founded by Parameshwara.
* 1403: The Yongle Emperor moves the capital of China from Nanjing to Beijing.
* 1403: The settlement of the Canary Islands signals the beginning of the Spanish Empire.
* 1405–1433: Zheng He of China sails through the Indian Ocean to India, Arabia, and East Africa.
* 1410: The Battle of Grunwald was the decisive battle of the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War leading to the downfall of the Teutonic Knights.
* 1410–1413: Foundation of St Andrews University in Scotland
* 1414: Khizr Khan, deputised by Timur to be the governor of Multan takes over Delhi founding the Sayyid dynasty
* 1415: Henry the Navigator leads the conquest of Ceuta from the Moors marking the beginning of the Portuguese Empire.
* 1415: Battle of Agincourt fought between the Kingdom of England and France
* 1415: Jan Hus is burned at the stake as a heretic at the Council of Constance.
* 1420: Construction of the Chinese Forbidden City is completed in Beijing.
* 1420–1434: Hussite Wars in Bohemia363
* 1424: James I returns to Scotland after being held hostage under three Kings of England since 1406
* 1424: Deva Raya II succeeds his father Veera Vijaya Bukka Raya as monarch of the Vijayanagara Empire
* 1425: Catholic University of Leuven (Belgium) founded by Pope Martin V.
* 1429: Joan of Arc ends the Siege of Orléans and turns the tide of the Hundred Years' War.
* 1438: Pachacuti founds the Inca Empire.
* 1440: Eton College founded by Henry VI.
* 1440s: The Golden Horde breaks up into the Siberia Khanate, the Khanate of Kazan, the Astrakhan Khanate, the Crimean Khanate, and the Great Horde.
* 1440–1469: Under Moctezuma I, the Aztecs become the dominant power in Mesoamerica.
* 1441: Jan van Eyck, Flemish painter dies
* 1441: Portuguese navigators cruise West Africa and reestablish the European slave trade with a shipment of African slaves sent directly from Africa to Portugal.
* 1443: Abdur Razzaq visits India
* 1444: The Albanian league is established in Lezha, Skanderbeg is elected leader. A war begins against Ottoman empire. An Albanian state is set up and lasts until 1479.
* 1444: Ottoman Empire under Sultan Murad II defeats the Polish and Hungarian armies under Władysław III of Poland and János Hunyadi at the Battle of Varna.
* 1445: Kazan Khanate defeats Grand Duchy of Moscow at the Battle of Suzdal
* 1446: King Sejong the Great published a hangul, the native phonetic alphabet system for the Korean language.
* 1446: Mallikarjuna Raya succeeds his father Deva Raya II as monarch of the Vijayanagara Empire
* 1449: Esen Tayisi leads an Oirat Mongol invasion of China which culminate in the capture of the Zhengtong Emperor at Battle of Tumu Fortress.
* 1451: Bahlul Khan Lodhi ascends the throne of the Delhi sultanate starting the Lodhi dynasty
* 1453: The Fall of Constantinople marks the end of the Byzantine Empire and the beginning of the Growth of the Ottoman Empire.
* 1453: The Battle of Castillon is the last engagement of the Hundred Years' War and the first battle in European history where cannons were a major factor in deciding the battle.
* 1454–1466: After defeating the Teutonic Knights in the Thirteen Years' War, Poland annexes Royal Prussia.
* 1455–1485: Wars of the Roses – English civil war between the House of York and the House of Lancaster.
* 1456: The Siege of Belgrade halts the Ottoman's advance into Europe.
* 1462: Sonni Ali Ber, the ruler of the Songhai (or Songhay) Empire, along the Niger River, conquered Mali in the central Sudan by defeating the Tuareg contingent at Tombouctou (or Timbuktu) and capturing the city. He developed both his own capital, Gao, and the main centres of Mali, Timbuktu and Djenné, into major cities. Ali Ber controlled trade along the Niger River with a navy of war vessels.
* 1462: Mehmed the Conqueror is driven back by Wallachian prince Vlad III Dracula at The Night Attack.
* 1467: Uzun Hasan defeats the Black Sheep Turkoman leader Jahān Shāh.
* 1467–1615: The Sengoku period is one of civil war in Japan.
* 1469: The marriage of Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile leads to the unification of Spain.
* 1469: Matthias Corvinus of Hungary conquered some parts of Bohemia.
* 1469: Birth of Guru Nanak Dev. Beside followers of Sikhism, Guru Nanak is revered by Hindus and Muslim Sufis across the Indian subcontinent.
* 1470: The Moldavian forces under Stephen the Great defeat the Tatars of the Golden Horde at the Battle of Lipnic.
* 1471: The kingdom of Champa suffers a massive defeat by the Vietnamese king Lê Thánh Tông.
* 1474–1477: Burgundy Wars of France, Switzerland, Lorraine and Sigismund II of Habsburg against the Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy.
* 1478: Muscovy conquers Novgorod.
* 1479: Battle of Breadfield, Matthias Corvinus of Hungary defeated the Turks.
* 1480: After the Great standing on the Ugra river, Muscovy gained independence from the Great Horde.
* 1481: Spanish Inquisition begins in practice with the first auto de fé.
* 1485: Matthias Corvinus of Hungary captured Vienna, Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor ran away
* 1485: Henry VII defeats Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth and becomes King of England
* 1485: Saluva Narasimha Deva Raya drives out Praudha Raya ending the Sangama Dynasty
* 1486: Sher Shah Suri, is born in Sasaram, Bihar
* 1492: The death of Sunni Ali Ber left a leadership void in the Songhai Empire, and his son was soon dethroned by Mamadou Toure who ascended the throne in 1492 under the name Askia (meaning "general") Muhammad. Askia Muhammad made Songhai the largest empire in the history of West Africa. The empire went into decline, however, after 1528, when the now-blind Askia Muhammad was dethroned by his son, Askia Musa.
* 1492: Boabdil's surrender of Granada marks the end of the Spanish Reconquista and Al-Andalus.
* 1492: Jews expelled from Spain.
* 1492: Christopher Columbus landed in the Americas from Spain.
* 1494: Spain and Portugal sign the Treaty of Tordesillas and agree to divide the World outside of Europe between themselves.
* 1494–1559: The Italian Wars lead to the downfall of the Italian city-states.
* 1497–1499: Vasco da Gama's first voyage from Europe to India and back.
* 1499: Ottoman fleet defeats Venetians at the Battle of Zonchio.

World War I

World War I was a military conflict centered on Europe that began in the summer of 1914. The fighting ended in late 1918. This conflict involved all of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Allies (centred around the Triple Entente) and the Central Powers. More than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilized in one of the largest wars in history. More than 9 million combatants were killed, due largely to great technological advances in firepower without corresponding ones in mobility. It was the second deadliest conflict in history. The war is also known as the First World War, the Great War, the War To End All Wars or the World War (prior to the outbreak of World War II).

The assassination on 28 June 1914 of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, the heir to the throne of Austria-Hungary, is seen as the immediate trigger of the war. Long-term causes, such as imperialistic foreign policies of the great powers of Europe, such as the German Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, the Russian Empire, the British Empire, France, and Italy, played a major role. Ferdinand's assassination by a Yugoslav nationalist resulted in a Habsburg ultimatum against the Kingdom of Serbia. Several alliances formed over the past decades were invoked, so within weeks the major powers were at war; as all had colonies, the conflict soon spread around the world.

The conflict opened with the German invasion of Belgium, Luxembourg and France; the Austro-Hungarian invasion of Serbia; and a Russian attack against Germany. After the German march on Paris was brought to a halt, the Western Front settled into a static battle of attrition with a trench line that changed little until 1917. In the East, the Russian army successfully fought against the Austro-Hungarian forces but was forced back by the German army. Additional fronts opened after the Ottoman Empire joined the war in 1914, Italy and Bulgaria in 1915 and Romania in 1916. The Russian Empire collapsed in 1917, and Russia left the war after the October Revolution later that year. After a 1918 German offensive along the western front, United States forces entered the trenches and the allies drove back the German armies in a series of successful offensives. Germany agreed to a cease fire on Armistice Day, November 11, 1918.

By the war's end, four major imperial powers—the German, Russian, Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires—had been militarily and politically defeated. The last two ceased to exist. The revolutionized Soviet Union emerged from the Russian Empire, while the map of central Europe was completely redrawn into numerous smaller states. The League of Nations was formed in the hope of preventing another such conflict. The European nationalism spawned by the war and the break-up of empires, and the repercussions of Germany's defeat and the Treaty of Versailles led to the beginning of World War II in 1939.

Siege of Sevastopol (1854–1855)

The Siege of Sevastopol (sometimes rendered "Sebastopol") was a major siege during the Crimean War, lasting from September 1854 until September 1855. Leo Tolstoy's early book The Sebastopol Sketches (1855–56) detailed the siege in a mixture of reportage and short fiction.



Description
In September 1854, Allied troops (British, French and Turkish) landed in the Crimea and besieged the city of Sevastopol, home of the Tsar's Black Sea Fleet which threatened the Mediterranean. Before it could be encircled, the Russian field army withdrew.

At the start of October, French and British engineers, moving from their base at Balaclava, began to direct the building of siege lines along the Chersonese uplands to the south of Sevastopol. The troops dug redoubts, gun batteries and trenches.

With the Russian army and its commander Prince Menshikov gone, the defence of Sevastopol was led by Vice Admirals Vladimir Kornilov and Pavel Nakhimov, assisted by Menshikov's chief engineer, Lieutenant Colonel Eduard Totleben. The military forces available to defend the city were 4,500 militia, 2,700 gunners, 4,400 marines, 18,500 naval seamen and 5,000 workmen, totalling just over 35,000 men.

The Russians first began scuttling their ships to protect the harbour, then used their naval cannon as additional artillery and the ships' crews as marines. Those ships deliberately sunk by the end of 1855 included Grand Duke Constantine, City of Paris (both with 120 guns), Brave, Empress Maria, Chesme, Yagondeid (84 guns), Kavarna (60 guns), Konlephy (54 guns), steam frigate Vladimir, steamboats Thunderer, Bessarabia, Danube, Odessa, Elbrose and Krein.

By mid-October 1854, the Allies had some 120 guns ready to fire on Sevastopol; the Russians had about three times as many to return fire and defend against attacking infantry.

On October 17, 1854 (old style date, October 29 new style) the artillery battle began. The Russian artillery first destroyed a French magazine, silencing their guns. British fire then set off the magazine in the Malakoff redoubt, killing Admiral Kornilov, silencing most of the Russian guns there and leaving a gap in the city's defences. However, the British and French withheld their planned infantry attack and a possible early end to the siege was missed.

At the same time, the Allies' ships pounded the Russian defences, taking damage but inflicting little in return before their retirement. The bombardment resumed the following day; but, working overnight, the Russians had repaired the damage caused. This would become the pattern repeated throughout the siege.

During October and November 1854, the battles of Balaclava and Inkerman took place beyond the siege lines. After Inkerman, the Russians saw that the Sevastapol siege would not be lifted by a battle in the field, so moved their troops piece by piece into the city to aid the defenders. Toward the end of November, the weather broke and winter brought a storm which ruined the Allies' camps and supply lines. Men and horses became sick and starved in the poor conditions.

While Totleben extended the fortifications around the Redan, the Flagstaff Bastion and the Malakoff, the British chief engineer John Burgoyne sought to take the Malakoff, which he saw as the key to Sevastopol. Siege works were begun to bring the Allied troops nearer to the Malakoff; in response, Totleben dug rifle pits from where the Russians could snipe at the besiegers. In a foretaste of the trench warfare that became the hallmark of the First World War, these pits became the focus of Allied assaults.

Once winter subsided, the Allies were able to restore many supply routes. A new railway, the "Grand Crimean Central Railway" built by the contractors Thomas Brassey and Samuel Peto, was used to bring supplies from Balaclava to the siegelines, delivering more than five hundred guns and plentiful ammunition. Starting on April 8, 1855 (Easter Sunday), the Allies resumed their bombardment of the Russian defences. On 28 June (10 July), Admiral Nakhimov died from a head wound inflicted by an Allied sniper.
Attack on the Malakoff by William Simpson.

On 24 August (5 September) Allies started their sixth and the most severe bombardment of the fortress. 307 cannons fired 150,000 rounds, with Russians suffering 2,000 to 3,000 casualties daily. On 27 August (8 September) 13 Allied divisions and one Allied brigade (total strength 60,000) began the last assault. The British assault on the Redan failed but the French under General de Mac-Mahon managed to seize the Malakoff redoubt making the Russian defensive position untenable. By morning 28 August (9 September) Russian forces abandoned the Southern Side of Sevastopol.

Although defended heroically and at the cost of heavy Allied casualties, the fall of Sevastopol would lead to the Russian defeat in the Crimean War.

Most of the Russian defenders of the city killed during the siege were buried in Brotherhood cemetery in over 400 collective graves. The three main commanders (Nakhimov, Kornilov, Istomin) were interred in the purpose-built Admirals' Burial Vault.

Hugh of Cluny

Hugh of Cluny (May 13, 1024 – April 28, 1109) was an Abbot of Cluny. He is sometimes referred to as "Hugh the Great" or "Hugh of Semur" and was canonized by the Roman Catholic Church as Saint Hugh (the Great). He was one of the most influential leaders of one of the most influential monastic orders of the Middle Ages.

Abbot Hugh built the third abbey church at Cluny, the largest structure in Europe for many centuries, with funds provided by Ferdinand I of Leon. He was the driving force behind the Cluniac monastic movement during the last quarter of the 11th century, which had priories throughout Southern France and northern Spain. Hugh's relationship to Ferdinand I and Alphonso VI of Leon and Castile, as well as his influence upon Pope Urban II, who had been prior at Cluny under Hugh, made Hugh one of the most powerful and influential figures of the late 11th century. As the godfather of Henry IV, he also played a role as a mediator during the conflict between Gregory VII and Henry IV, though he was not successful.

His feast day is April 29.

He appears in one chapter of the Japanese manga Cesare from Fuyumi Soryo where he is at Canossa as a mediator.

Pope Alexander II

Alexander II (died April 21, 1073), born Anselmo da Baggio, was Pope from 1061 to 1073.

He was born in Milan. As bishop of Lucca he had been an energetic coadjutor with Hildebrand in endeavouring to suppress simony, and to enforce the celibacy of the clergy. His election, which Hildebrand had arranged in conformity with the decree of 1059 (see Pope Nicholas II), was not sanctioned by the imperial court of Germany. This court, true to the practice observed by it in the preceding elections, nominated another candidate, Cadalus, bishop of Parma, who was proclaimed at the council of Basel under the name of Antipope Honorius II (1061–72), marched to Rome, and for a long time threatened his rival's position. At length, however, he was forsaken by the Germanic court and deposed by a council held at Mantua; and Alexander II's position remained unchallenged.

In 1065, he admonished Landulf VI of Benevento "that the conversion of Jews is not to be obtained by force."

In 1066, he entertained the embassy from William the Conqueror which had been sent to obtain his blessing for the Norman conquest of England. This he gave to them, gifting to them a papal ring, the Standard of St. Peter, and a papal edict to present to the English clergy saying that William was given the papal blessing for the bid for the throne. These favours were instrumental in the submission of the English church and people following the Battle of Hastings.

Alexander II oversaw the suppression of the 'Alleluia' during the Latin Church's celebration of Lent. This is followed to this day, and in the Tridentine rite 'Alleluia' is also omitted during the pre-Lenten season.

Alexander II was followed by his associate Hildebrand, who took the title of Gregory VII (1073–85).

War of Barbastro

The War of Barbastro (also known as the Siege of Barbastro) was an international expedition, sanctioned by Pope Alexander II, to take the Spanish city of Barbastro from the Moors. A large army composed of elements from all over Western Europe took part in the successful siege of the city (1063). The war was part of the Reconquista, but in its international and papal character it presaged the Crusades of the next two centuries.

Expedition
Alexander II first preached the Reconquista in 1063 as a "Christian emergency." It was also preached in Burgundy, probably with the permission of participation of Hugh of Cluny, where the abbot's brother, Thomas de Chalon, led the army. Certainly zeal for the crusade spread elsewhere in France, for Amatus of Montecassino notes that "grant chevalerie de Francoiz et de Borguegnons et d'autre gent" were present at the siege. Thus, a large army, primarily of Frenchmen and Burgundians, along with a papal contingent, mostly of Italo-Normans, and local Spanish armies, Catalan and Aragonese, was present at the siege when it began in 1063. The leader of the papal contingent was a Norman by the name of William of Montreuil. The leader of the Spaniards was Sancho Ramírez, King of Aragon, whose realm was greatly threatened by the Moors to the south. The largest component, the Aquitainian, was led by the Duke Guy Geoffrey. Though the makeup of this grand army has been subject to much dispute, that it was largely a force of knights of Frankish extraction is generally agreed.

The duke of Aquitaine led the army through the Pyrenees at Somport. He joined the Catalan army at Gerona early in 1064. The entire army then marched past Graus, which had resisted assault twice before, and moved against Barbastro, then part of the taifa of Lleida ruled by al-Muzaffar. The city, which received no reinforcements from Lleida and had its water supply cut off, was besieged and quickly fell. The crusaders plundered and sacked it without mercy. It has been said that 50,000 Moslems were killed.

Legacy
The crusaders made off with a lot of booty. Records indicate the capture of a good many Saracen girls and Saracen treasures. Armengol III of Urgel was given the lordship of the city. In 1065, in a counterattack, the Moors easily retook the city and undid all the crusaders' work, massacring the small garrison.[7]

Thibaut, the Burgundian leader, died, possible of wounds received on campaign, while returning to France after the loss of the city in 1065.[1]

The War of Barbastro has been seen as a proto-Crusade, giving impetus to the Crusading movement in France.

Historiography
Historian Reinhart Dozy first began a study of the War in the mid-nineteenth century based on a the scarce primary sources, mainly Amatus and Ibn Hayyan. Dozy first suggested the participation of a papal element based on Ibn Hayyan's reference to the "chivalry of Rome." Subsequent hisoriography has stressed the Cluniac element in the War, primarily the result of Ferdinand I of León's recent attempts to introduce the Cluniac reform to Spain and inspired by the death of Ramiro I of Aragon following the failed Siege of Graus.

This interpretation has been attacked in more recent decades, especially the papal connection and Italian involvement. It has been alleged that Alexander was preoccupied with the Antipope Cadalus at the time and did not preach a plenary indulgence for warriors of the Reconquista until the 1073 campaign of Ebles II of Roucy. It has thus been alleged that it was not William of Montreuil, but Guy Geoffrey, who was the "Roman" leader implied by Ibn Hayyan.

Crusades

The Crusades were a series of religiously sanctioned military campaigns waged by much of Western Christian Europe, particularly the Franks of France and the Holy Roman Empire. The specific crusades to restore Christian control of the Holy Land were fought over a period of nearly 200 years, between 1095 and 1291. Other campaigns in Spain and Eastern Europe continued into the 15th century. The Crusades were fought mainly by Roman Catholic forces (taking place after the East-West Schism and mostly before the Protestant Reformation) against Muslims who had occupied the near east since the time of the Rashidun Caliphate, although campaigns were also waged against pagan Slavs, pagan Balts, Jews, Russian and Greek Orthodox Christians, Mongols, Cathars, Hussites, Waldensians, Old Prussians, and political enemies of the various popes. Orthodox Christians also took part in fighting against Islamic forces in some Crusades. Crusaders took vows and were granted penance for past sins, often called an indulgence.

The Crusades originally had the goal of recapturing Jerusalem and the Holy Land from Muslim rule and were launched in response to a call from the Christian Byzantine Empire for help against the expansion of the Muslim Seljuk Turks into Anatolia. The term is also used to describe contemporaneous and subsequent campaigns conducted through to the 16th century in territories outside the Levant usually against pagans, heretics, and peoples under the ban of excommunication for a mixture of religious, economic, and political reasons. Rivalries among both Christian and Muslim powers led also to alliances between religious factions against their opponents, such as the Christian alliance with the Sultanate of Rum during the Fifth Crusade.

The Crusades had far-reaching political, economic, and social impacts, some of which have lasted into contemporary times. Because of internal conflicts among Christian kingdoms and political powers, some of the crusade expeditions were diverted from their original aim, such as the Fourth Crusade, which resulted in the sack of Christian Constantinople and the partition of the Byzantine Empire between Venice and the Crusaders. The Sixth Crusade was the first crusade to set sail without the official blessing of the Pope. The Seventh, Eighth and Ninth Crusades resulted in Mamluk and Hafsid victories, as the Ninth Crusade marked the end of the Crusades in the Middle East.

Lindisfarne Gospels

The Lindisfarne Gospels is an illuminated Latin manuscript of the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John in the British Library. The manuscript was produced on Lindisfarne in Northumbria in the late 7th century or early 8th century, and is generally regarded as the finest example of the kingdom's unique style of religious art, a style that combined Anglo-Saxon and Celtic themes, what is now called Hiberno-Saxon art, or Insular art. The manuscript is complete (though lacking its original cover), and is astonishingly well-preserved considering its great age.

Middle Ages

The Middle Ages (adjectival form: medieval) is a period of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The period followed the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476, and preceded the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period in a three-period division of history: Classical, Medieval, and Modern. The term "Middle Ages" (medium aevum) was coined in the 15th century and reflects the view that this period was a deviation from the path of classical learning, a path supposedly reconnected by Renaissance scholarship.

The Early Middle Ages saw the continuation of trends set in Late Antiquity, depopulation, deurbanization, and increased barbarian invasion. North Africa and the Middle East, once part of the Eastern Roman Empire, were conquered by Islam. Later in the period, the establishment of the feudal system allowed a return to systemic agriculture. There was sustained urbanization in northern and western Europe. During the High Middle Ages (c. 1000 - 1300), Christian-oriented art and architecture flourished and Crusades were mounted to recapture the Holy Land. The influence of the emerging nation-state was tempered by the ideal of an international Christendom. The codes of chivalry and courtly love set rules for proper behavior, while the Scholastic philosophers attempted to reconcile faith and reason. Outstanding achievement in this period includes the Code of Justinian, the mathematics of Fibonacci and Oresme, the philosophy of Thomas Aquinas, the painting of Giotto, the poetry of Dante and Chaucer and the architecture of many great cathedrals such as Notre Dame de Paris.

Isaac Brock

Major-General Sir Isaac Brock KB (6 October 1769 – 13 October 1812) was a British Army officer and administrator. Brock was assigned to Canada in 1802. Despite facing desertions and near-mutinies, he commanded his regiment in Upper Canada (present-day Ontario) successfully for many years. He was promoted to major general, and became responsible for defending Upper Canada against the United States. While many in Canada and Britain believed war could be averted, Brock began to ready the army and militia for what was to come. When the War of 1812 broke out, the populace was prepared, and quick victories at Fort Mackinac and Detroit crippled American invasion efforts.

Brock's actions, particularly his success at Detroit, earned him a knighthood, membership in the Order of the Bath, accolades and the epithet "The Hero of Upper Canada". His name is often linked with that of the Native American leader Tecumseh, although the two men collaborated in person only for a few days. Brock died at the Battle of Queenston Heights, which was nevertheless a British victory.

George Rogers Clark

George Rogers Clark (November 19, 1752 – February 13, 1818) was a soldier from Virginia and the highest ranking American military officer on the northwestern frontier during the American Revolutionary War. He served as leader of the Kentucky (then part of Virginia) militia throughout much of the war. Clark is best known for his celebrated captures of Kaskaskia (1778) and Vincennes (1779), which greatly weakened British influence in the Northwest Territory. Because the British ceded the entire Northwest Territory to the United States in the 1783 Treaty of Paris, Clark has often been hailed as the "Conqueror of the Old Northwest."

Clark's military achievements all came before his 30th birthday. Afterwards he led militia in the opening engagements of the Northwest Indian War, but was accused of being drunk on duty. Despite his demand for a formal investigation into the accusations, he was disgraced and forced to resign. He left Kentucky to live on the Indiana frontier. Never fully reimbursed by Virginia for his wartime expenditures, Clark spent the final decades of his life evading creditors, and living in increasing poverty and obscurity. He was involved in two failed conspiracies to open the Spanish-controlled Mississippi River to American traffic. After suffering a stroke and losing his leg, Clark was aided in his final years by family members, including his younger brother William, one of the leaders of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Clark died of a stroke on February 13, 1818.

Battle of North Point

The Battle of North Point was fought on September 12, 1814, between General John Stricker's Maryland Militia and a British force led by Major General Robert Ross. Although tactically a British victory, the battle delayed the British advance against Baltimore, buying valuable time for the defense of the city. The engagement was a part of the larger Battle of Baltimore, a strategic American victory and a turning point in the War of 1812.

United States Navy

The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare service branch of the United States armed forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. In August 2010, the U.S. Navy had 330,729 personnel on active duty and 102,923 in the Navy Reserve. It operates 289 ships in active service and more than 3,700 aircraft. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S. Navy also has the world's largest carrier fleet, with 11 in service and one under construction.

The Navy traces its origins to the Continental Navy, which was established during the American Revolutionary War and was essentially disbanded as a separate entity shortly thereafter. The United States Constitution provided the legal basis for a military force by giving Congress the power "to provide and maintain a navy".

Depredations against American shipping by Barbary Coast pirates in the Mediterranean Sea spurred Congress to employ this power by passing the Naval Act of 1794 ordering the construction and manning of six frigates. These ships were used to end most pirate activity off the Barbary Coast. In the twentieth century American blue-water navy capability was demonstrated by the 1907–1909 world tour of the Great White Fleet.

The 21st century United States Navy maintains a sizable global presence, deploying in such areas as East Asia, the Mediterranean, and the Middle East. It is a blue water navy with the ability to project force onto the littoral regions of the world, engage in forward areas during peacetime, and rapidly respond to regional crises, making it an active player in American foreign and defense policy.

The Navy is administratively managed by the Department of the Navy, which is headed by the civilian Secretary of the Navy. The Department of the Navy is itself a division of the Department of Defense, which is headed by the Secretary of Defense. Traditionally, the highest ranking Naval officer is the Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Gary Roughead. However, today the highest ranking Naval Officer is the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Michael Mullen.

Ahmose I

Ahmose I  was a pharaoh of ancient Egypt and the founder of the Eighteenth dynasty. He was a member of the Theban royal house, the son of pharaoh Tao II Seqenenre and brother of the last pharaoh of the Seventeenth dynasty, King Kamose. During the reign of his father or grandfather, Thebes rebelled against the Hyksos, the rulers of Lower Egypt. When he was seven his father was killed, and he was about ten when his brother died of unknown causes, after reigning only three years. Ahmose I assumed the throne after the death of his brother, and upon coronation became known as Neb-Pehty-Re (The Lord of Strength is Re).

During his reign, he completed the conquest and expulsion of the Hyksos from the delta region, restored Theban rule over the whole of Egypt and successfully reasserted Egyptian power in its formerly subject territories of Nubia and Canaan. He then reorganized the administration of the country, reopened quarries, mines and trade routes and began massive construction projects of a type that had not been undertaken since the time of the Middle Kingdom. This building program culminated in the construction of the last pyramid built by native Egyptian rulers. Ahmose's reign laid the foundations for the New Kingdom, under which Egyptian power reached its peak. His reign is usually dated to about 1550–1525 BC.

Thutmose I

Thutmose I was the third Pharaoh of the 18th dynasty of Egypt. He was given the throne after the death of the previous king Amenhotep I. During his reign, he campaigned deep into the Levant and Nubia, pushing the borders of Egypt further than ever before. He also built many temples in Egypt and built a tomb for himself in the Valley of the Kings; he is the first king confirmed to have done this (though Amenhotep I may have preceded him). He was succeeded by his son Thutmose II, who in turn was succeeded by Thutmose II's sister, Hatshepsut. His reign is generally dated from 1506 to 1493 BCE.

Akhenaten

Akhenaten was known before the fifth year of his reign as Amenhotep IV (sometimes given its Greek form, Amenophis IV, and meaning Amun is Satisfied), a Pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty of Egypt, ruled for 17 years and died in 1336 BC or 1334 BC. He is especially noted for abandoning traditional Egyptian polytheism and introducing worship centered on the Aten, which is sometimes described as monotheistic or henotheistic. An early inscription likens him to the sun as compared to stars, and later official language avoids calling the Aten a god, giving the solar deity a status above mere gods.

Akhenaten tried to bring about a departure from traditional religion, yet in the end it would not be accepted. After his death, traditional religious practice was gradually restored, and when some dozen years later rulers without clear rights of succession from the Eighteenth Dynasty founded a new dynasty, they discredited Akhenaten and his immediate successors, referring to Akhenaten himself as 'the enemy' in archival records.

He was all but lost from history until the discovery, in the 19th century, of Amarna, the site of Akhetaten, the city he built for the Aten. Early excavations at Amarna by Flinders Petrie sparked interest in the enigmatic pharaoh, which increased with the discovery in the Valley of the Kings, at Luxor, of the tomb of King Tutankhamun, who has been proved to be Akhenaten's son according to DNA testing in 2010 by Dr Zahi Hawaas, Cairo. Akhenaten remains an interesting figure, as does his Queen, Nefertiti. Their modern interest comes partly from his connection with Tutankhamun, partly from the unique style and high quality of the pictorial arts he patronized, and partly from ongoing interest in the religion he attempted to establish.