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Walter Raleigh
Sir Walter Raleigh (c. 1552-1618 CE) was an English courtier, soldier, mariner, explorer, and historian. A one-time favourite of his queen, Elizabeth I of England (r. 1558-1603 CE), Raleigh organised three expeditions to form a colony on...
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Ancient Geography of India
The first text in Greek devoted entirely to India was written by Ctesias in the fourth century BCE. Only fragments of it survive. Yet he was probably the most widely quoted author on India, although Aristotle treated him with contempt. However...
Definition
Claudius Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy (c. 100 to c. 170 CE) was an Alexandrian mathematician, astronomer, and geographer. His works survived antiquity and the Middle Ages intact, and his theories, particularly on a geocentric model of the universe with planets...
Definition
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars (1792-1802) were a series of conflicts that arose from the tensions surrounding the French Revolution (1789-1799). The wars were fought between Revolutionary France and several European powers, most notably Austria...
Definition
French Directory
The French Directory, or Directorate (French: le Directoire), was the government of France from 2 November 1795 until 9 November 1799, a period that spanned the last four years of the French Revolution (1789-1799). The Directory was unpopular...
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War of the Second Coalition
The War of the Second Coalition (1798-1802), part of the broader French Revolutionary Wars, was the second attempt by an alliance of major European powers to defeat Revolutionary France. The Second Coalition, which included Russia, Austria...
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A Gallery of Historical Maps
This gallery of 30 maps traces the history of cartography, with examples of maps made by cultures from the Paleolithic to the early modern period. The maps cover cities, states, continents, sometimes the entire world as it was known at the...
Definition
French Consulate
The French Consulate was the government of the First French Republic from 10 November 1799 to 18 May 1804, spanning the last four years of the Republic's existence. Headed by Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) as First Consul, the Consulate served...
Definition
War of the First Coalition
The War of the First Coalition (1792-1797) was a continent-spanning conflict in which a coalition of European powers, including Austria, Prussia, Great Britain, the Dutch Republic, Spain, and several others, sought to contain and defeat Revolutionary...
Article
Battle of Castiglione
The Battle of Castiglione (5 August 1796) was one of the most important battles of Napoleon's Italian Campaign of 1796-97. After laying siege to the vital fortress of Mantua, General Napoleon Bonaparte and his Army of Italy defeated an Austrian...