Europe and the wider world
World History
America’s story didn’t begin in 1607. It grew out of a thousand years of European history: kings and parliaments, explorers and empires, revolutions and world wars.
Explore by topic
Where America's story began
500 – 1500
Medieval Europe
Castles, crusades, the Magna Carta and the Hundred Years’ War.
1450 – 1600
Age of Exploration
Columbus, Ponce de León, Drake and the race to claim the New World.
1485 – 1900
England and Britain
From the Tudors and the English Civil War to the British Empire.
1789 – 1799
The French Revolution
A monarchy overthrown and a republic born in blood.
1799 – 1815
Napoleon
One man’s rise to rule most of Europe, and his fall at Waterloo.
1939 – 1945
World War II
The global war in Europe, North Africa and the Pacific.
Meanwhile in America
Each topic links back to what was happening in the United States at the same time, from Jamestown under James I to the Louisiana Purchase from Napoleon.