Explore major events, conflicts, countries and political developments in world history, with a particular focus on the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
World History
Explore major developments in world history through international conflicts, political change, revolution, economic transformation and the changing relationships between states and societies. The site contains substantial material on the world wars, the inter-war period, the Cold War, Russia and the Soviet Union, the United States, China, Vietnam and other international developments.
First World War
Explore the causes, course and consequences of the First World War, including the Western Front, naval warfare, military developments and the experiences of those involved. The site contains extensive material on the conflict and its wider international significance.
Inter-War Period
Explore the political, economic and international developments between the two world wars. Topics include the Treaty of Versailles, the League of Nations, the Great Depression, international crises, appeasement and the development of tensions that led to the Second World War.
Second World War
Explore the causes, major campaigns and consequences of the Second World War. The material covers Britain, Europe and the wider global conflict, including military developments, wartime decision-making and the experiences of individuals and societies. Related material on British History provides the wider context of Britain’s political and social development.
The Holocaust
Explore the persecution and systematic murder of Jews and other groups under Nazi rule during the Second World War. The site’s material includes Nazi racial policies, the Nuremberg Laws, ghettos, concentration camps, the Wannsee Conference, the Final Solution and the extermination camps.
Cold War
Explore the developing rivalry between the United States and Soviet Union after the Second World War. Topics include the division of Europe, NATO and the Soviet bloc, Berlin, the arms race, the Cuban Missile Crisis and changing relations between the superpowers. The European context is developed further through European History.
Russia and the Soviet Union
Explore the final years of the Russian Empire, revolution, civil war, Stalinism and the development of Soviet society and politics through the site’s Russia and Soviet Union section.
Russia and the Soviet Union connect European and world history. The international role of the Soviet Union is also explored throughout the Cold War material.
United States
Explore the United States during the inter-war period, including economic and social change, the 1920s, the Wall Street Crash, the Great Depression and the New Deal.
Explore the United States after the Second World War, including the Red Scare, civil rights, social change and the country’s role in international affairs during the early Cold War.
China
Explore China’s political and social transformation from the period before the Second World War through the Communist victory and the rule of Mao Zedong. Topics include the Long March, the impact of the Second World War, land reform, the Great Leap Forward and wider social change.
Vietnam and Conflicts in Asia
Explore the conflicts that shaped Asia during the Cold War, including the Vietnam War. The material includes the American intervention, military operations, media coverage, the experiences of civilians and the eventual end of the war.
Arab-Israeli Conflict and the Middle East
Arab-Israeli Conflict and the Middle East, 1956–1979
Explore the Arab-Israeli conflict and wider developments in the Middle East from the Suez Crisis of 1956 through the wars and political changes of the following decades.
British Empire and the Wider World
The history of the British Empire connects British history with developments across Africa, Asia and other parts of the world. Explore the subject in greater depth through the British Empire section.
History of Medicine
Medicine has developed across geographical and cultural boundaries, with ideas, treatments and discoveries moving between societies over thousands of years. Explore the development of medical knowledge, ideas about disease, treatments, public health and medical practice through the History of Medicine section.
International Conflict and Change
World history brings these subjects together through wider themes including international conflict, revolution, economic change, political ideology and changing relationships between states. The individual sections provide routes into the site’s detailed histories of major countries, conflicts and periods.