Category: Articles

By Tim Lambert Early Latvia The earliest people in Latvia were Stone Age hunters and gatherers who arrived there after the last ice age about 9000 BC. However, the ancestors of today’s Latvians were Baltic tribes who migrated to the area about 2,000 BC. In the 12th century AD, some of the last pagans in… Continue reading A Brief History of Latvia

By Tim Lambert Ancient Hungary During the last ice age, humans in Hungary lived by hunting mammoths and reindeer with stone weapons. When the ice age ended they hunted smaller animals. However, about 5,000 BC farming was introduced into Hungary although the farmers still used stone tools. Then about 2,000 BC, they learned to use… Continue reading A Brief History of Hungary

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 Romania The earliest inhabitants of Romania were Stone Age hunters who lived about 8,000 BC. In time the people of Romania learned to farm and then they learned to make bronze tools. Eventually, they learned to use iron. From about 600 BC the ancient Greeks traded with the people they called… Continue reading A Brief History of Romania

By Tim Lambert Dedicated to Agnieszka Jurkowska Poland in the Middle Ages The written history of Poland began in the 10th century. At that time, Poland was ruled by a dynasty called the Piasts. A Piast named Mieszko I reigned from about 960 to 992. In 966, he became a Christian, and his people followed.… Continue reading A Brief History of Poland

By Tim Lambert Early Bhutan By 1,500 BC people lived in Bhutan by herding animals. In the 7th century AD Buddhism was introduced into Bhutan. In the 8th century, an Indian named Padmasambhava did much to encourage the spread of Buddhism in Bhutan. Ever since Buddhism has been an integral part of the culture of… Continue reading A Brief History of Bhutan

By Tim Lambert The Early History of Ukraine In the 7th century BC, a people called the Scythians lived in what is now Ukraine. Later the Greeks settled on the north coast of the Black Sea and they founded city-states there. Slavs settled in Ukraine in the 5th and 6th centuries AD. Then in the… Continue reading A Brief History of Ukraine

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 Ancient India The Indus Valley Civilisation The first Indian civilization arose in the Indus Valley about 2,600 BC. It straddled northwest India and Pakistan. By 6,500 BC the people of the area had begun farming. By 5,500 BC they had invented pottery. By about 2,600 BC a prosperous farming society had grown… Continue reading A Brief History of India

By Tim Lambert Ancient China The Beginning After 10,000 BC people in China lived by hunting and gathering plants. Then, about 5,000 BC, the Chinese began farming. From about 5,000 BC rice was cultivated in southern China and millet was grown in the north. By 5,000 BC dogs and pigs were domesticated. By 3,000 BC… Continue reading A Brief History of China