The Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire was founded by Turkish tribes which settled in modern day Turkey. The empire was named after the first Sultan called Osman. The Ottomans were basically muslims but they allowed other religions to flourish in their empire. One of their most famous rulers was Suleiman-I, during his reign he reformed the legal and educational system and the empire reached its peak. The empire extended all along...

The Byzantine Empire Around 300 A.D. began the decline of the Roman empire, and the Roman emperor Constantine moved his capital to Constantinople, now called Istanbul. It was here that he began establishing the Byzantine Empire, Scholars came from all over Europe to study in Constantinople. Later, after the collapse of the remaining Roman empire, the Byzantine empire began to expand. Emperor Justinian-I regained most of the Roman empire and brought...

The Roman Empire Around 750 B.C. the first Roman settlements were established in Europe. By the year 500 B.C. the Estruscans were driven out of Rome and the Roman republic was established. The Romans were the first to unite most of the Middle East, North Africa and Western Europe into a single empire. The empire saw stability during the reign of its first great emperor Augustus who ruled it with the...

The Greek Civilisation In 1400 B.C. most of the Greek mainland was dominated by the Mycenaean civilisation and it was not till 1000 B.C. that Greek speaking people began arriving in Greece to establish the first city states. About 2500 years ago the Greeks set up a culture which left its influence over the years to come. The adaptations of Greek plays are still performed today, the designs of Greek architects...

The Phoenicians Along the coast of the Mediterranean were located a large number of cities inhabited by the Phoenicians. These people were skilled ship builders and traders. Their ships had sails and rudders and were rowed by a large group of men. All the cities of this area were linked by sea. The Phoenicians traded in many thing amongst which the most famous ones were Ivory, cloth, jewellery, glass, dyes etc....

The Indus Valley Civilisation One of first civilisations of the world developed on the banks of the river Indus between 2500 B.C. and 1500 B.C. in modern day Pakistan. There were more than hundred small towns and villages in the area along the river Indus. Amongst these Mohenjodaro and Harappa are the famous ones. The people who inhabited this area used baked clay bricks to build their homes and surrounding streets....

The Sumerian Civilisation Before 2000 B.C. the lower part of Mesopotamia, in modern Iraq. was inhabited by the Sumerians. The Sumerians came to this area probably from modern day Turkey or Iran. Sumerians considered their rulers to be the representatives of gods. The cities of Uruk, Ur and Eridu were built by them using clay bricks dried in the sun. A large number of clay tablets with writings, found in the...

The Egyptian Civilisation Over 5000 years ago the fertile valley of the river Nile, in Egypt, was the home of a thriving civilisation which lasted for about 3000 years. The people were ruled by kings who were called the *Pharaohs’. Most of the people were farmers who worked for rich land owners or the king. Besides farming, the Egyptians used boats made from papyrus reeds to fish in the Nile river...