Category: Histories of countries and key towns and cities around the world

By Tim Lambert Russia in the Middle Ages In the early 9th century Slavic tribes lived in what is now Russia and Ukraine. However, Vikings captured Novgorod in 862 and Kyiv in 882. They created a new nation was called Rus. In time its Viking rulers adopted the customs and language of the native Slavic… Continue reading A Brief History of Russia

By Tim Lambert Ancient Scotland During the ice age, Scotland was uninhabited. However, when the ice melted forests spread across Scotland, and stone-age hunters moved there. By 6,000 BC small groups of people lived in Scotland by hunting animals like red deer and seals and by gathering plants for food. Then about 4,500 BC farming… Continue reading A Brief History of Scotland

By Tim Lambert Early Senegal The first human beings in Senegal were hunters but by about 3,000 BCE they had learned to farm. About 500 BCE knowledge of how to make iron tools reached West Africa. By 500 AD a sophisticated society arose in Senegal capable of building stone circles. Towns and trade flourished. In… Continue reading A Brief History of Senegal

By Tim Lambert Early Serbia In the 7th century Slavs, ancestors of modern Serbs arrived in Serbia. At first, they were divided into clans but in the 8th century, a man named Vlastimir founded the first Serbian state called Rasica. Then in the 9th century, the Serbs were converted to Christianity. However, until the 13th… Continue reading A Brief History of Serbia

By Tim Lambert The Foundation of Singapore According to legend, Singapore was founded centuries ago when a prince from Sumatra landed on the island and saw a lion. He took it as a good omen and founded a city called Singapura, which means lion city. The legend may or may not be true. The name… Continue reading A Brief History of Singapore

By Tim Lambert Early Slovenia By about 3,500 BC Stone Age farmers lived in what is now Slovenia. The bronze age followed then about 750 BC the iron age began. Then about 400 BC, the Celts settled in Slovenia. They formed the state of Noricum. However, in 10 BC the Romans conquered Slovenia. Under Roman… Continue reading A Brief History of Slovenia

By Tim Lambert Dedicated to Anthony Simon Pursell Early South Africa Over a hundred thousand years ago people in what is now South Africa lived by hunting animals and gathering plants. They used stone tools. Then about 2,000 years ago people in the west learned to herd sheep and cattle. About 200 AD people mixed… Continue reading A Brief History of South Africa

By Tim Lambert Ancient Spain From about 900 BC a seafaring people called the Phoenicians who came from what is now Lebanon traded with what is now Spain. They founded a chain of trading settlements along the coast on islands and peninsulas. The Iberians gave the Phoenicians silver in return for wine and olive oil… Continue reading A Brief History of Spain

By Tim Lambert Ancient Sri Lanka About 500 BC when a people called the Sinhalese migrated there from India. According to legend, the first settlers were led by a man named Vijaya. According to tradition, Buddhism was introduced into Sri Lanka in 260 BC by a man named Mahinda. It soon became an integral part… Continue reading A Brief History of Sri Lanka

By Tim Lambert Ancient Sweden The first humans arrived in Sweden by 8,000 BC after the end of the ice age, when warming temperatures first made the country habitable. The first Swedes were stone-age hunters and fishermen who lived near the coast. However, after 4,000 BC, farming was introduced into Sweden. The farmers used stone… Continue reading A Brief History of Sweden