# documents

id: 450ee0
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file_path: battles/battle-of-actium.md
file_hash: d51d6fc8d02585444dc62d50ca80f81558907ccf80fd003026d60b49dff5d80d
title: Battle of Actium
doc_type: battle
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:38:42.336230342+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.479608936+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:450ee0 -->
# Battle of Actium

# Battle of Actium

## Overview
The Battle of Actium (31 BCE) was the decisive naval engagement in which Octavian (later Augustus) defeated the combined forces of Mark Antony and Cleopatra VII, ending the Roman Republic's civil wars and paving the way for the Roman Empire.

## Key Facts
- Date: 2 September 31 BCE
- Location: Ionian Sea, near Actium (western Greece)
- Belligerents: Octavian vs. Mark Antony and Cleopatra VII
- Commanders: Agrippa (for Octavian), Antony and Cleopatra
- Result: Decisive victory for Octavian [^1]

## The Battle
- Octavian's fleet: ~400 ships; Antony's fleet: ~230 warships + 60 Egyptian ships
- Antony's forces were weakened by desertion and disease during a prolonged blockade
- Cleopatra's squadron broke through and fled; Antony followed
- Remaining fleet surrendered; Antony's legions defected to Octavian

## Aftermath
- Antony and Cleopatra committed suicide in Alexandria (30 BCE)
- Egypt became a Roman province
- Octavian became sole ruler; Senate granted him the title Augustus (27 BCE) [^2]

---
[^1]: Plutarch, *Life of Antony*
[^2]: Lange, C.H. *The Battle of Actium 31 BC* (Cambridge, 2022)


id: fc7830
repo_id: main
file_path: battles/battle-of-adrianople.md
file_hash: 1037e3325d12b475946b3b3f61ddefe633b0949773720a73ac61cb97c282a5f4
title: Battle of Adrianople
doc_type: battle
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:38:42.336230342+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.480865044+00:00
content:
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# Battle of Adrianople

# Battle of Adrianople

## Overview
The Battle of Adrianople (378 CE) was a catastrophic Roman defeat in which the Visigoths destroyed a Roman army and killed Emperor Valens. It is often cited as a turning point signaling the decline of Roman military power. @t[=378]

## Key Facts
- Date: 9 August 378 CE @t[=378]
- Location: Adrianople (modern Edirne, Turkey)
- Belligerents: Eastern Roman Empire vs. Visigoths
- Commanders: Emperor Valens (Rome, killed), Fritigern (Visigoths)
- Result: Decisive Visigothic victory [^1]

## The Battle
- Valens attacked without waiting for Western reinforcements under Gratian
- Roman cavalry was routed by a surprise Gothic cavalry charge
- Roman infantry was surrounded and annihilated
- ~20,000 Roman soldiers killed, including Valens himself

## Significance
- Demonstrated the vulnerability of Roman legions to heavy cavalry
- Led to the Treaty of 382 CE: Visigoths settled within the empire as *foederati* @t[=382]
- Often considered a harbinger of the fall of the Western Roman Empire [^2]

---
[^1]: Ammianus Marcellinus, *Res Gestae* 31.12–13
[^2]: Burns, T.S. *Barbarians Within the Gates of Rome* (1994)


id: 05754a
repo_id: main
file_path: battles/battle-of-cannae.md
file_hash: f6b339c00b1068c21939fba6ebb2624154e60beaf7606003894b41adac5566a3
title: Battle of Cannae
doc_type: battle
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:38:42.336230342+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.481909961+00:00
content:
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# Battle of Cannae

# Battle of Cannae

## Overview
The Battle of Cannae (216 BCE) was Hannibal Barca's masterpiece — a devastating double envelopment of a much larger Roman army during the Second Punic War. It remains one of the most studied tactical victories in military history.

## Key Facts
- Date: 2 August 216 BCE
- Location: Cannae, Apulia (southeastern Italy)
- Belligerents: Carthage vs. Roman Republic
- Commanders: Hannibal Barca (Carthage), Lucius Aemilius Paullus and Gaius Terentius Varro (Rome)
- Result: Decisive Carthaginian victory [^1]

## The Battle
- Romans: ~86,000; Carthaginians: ~50,000
- Hannibal placed his weakest troops in a convex center, with veteran infantry and cavalry on the flanks
- Roman advance pushed the center back into a concave shape, drawing them in
- Carthaginian flanks and cavalry closed the trap in a complete double envelopment
- Roman losses: ~50,000–70,000 killed — the worst single-day defeat in Roman history [^2]

## Legacy
- Hannibal's double envelopment became the gold standard of tactical warfare
- Despite the victory, Hannibal could not take Rome itself
- Rome eventually adopted Fabian attrition strategy and won the war

---
[^1]: Polybius, *Histories* 3.107–117
[^2]: Goldsworthy, A. *Cannae: Hannibal's Greatest Victory* (2001)


id: 2eca19
repo_id: main
file_path: battles/battle-of-gaugamela.md
file_hash: e86f11a7c6854ebc64888209102f325ade584a899dc7a043720811ee56f22d73
title: Battle of Gaugamela
doc_type: battle
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:38:42.336230342+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.483002021+00:00
content:
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# Battle of Gaugamela

# Battle of Gaugamela

## Overview
The Battle of Gaugamela (331 BCE) was the decisive battle in which Alexander the Great defeated the Persian King Darius III, effectively ending the Achaemenid Persian Empire.

## Key Facts
- Date: 1 October 331 BCE
- Location: Gaugamela (near modern Erbil, Iraq)
- Belligerents: Macedon vs. Persian Empire
- Commanders: Alexander the Great vs. Darius III
- Result: Decisive Macedonian victory [^1]

## The Battle
- Alexander: ~47,000 troops; Darius: ~50,000–100,000 (ancient sources claim up to 1 million)
- Darius prepared the battlefield with scythed chariots and leveled ground for cavalry
- Alexander used an oblique advance, drawing the Persian line apart
- Led a cavalry charge through a gap directly at Darius, who fled
- Persian army collapsed after Darius' flight

## Aftermath
- Alexander captured Babylon, Susa, and Persepolis
- Darius III was later murdered by his own satrap Bessus (330 BCE)
- Marked the end of the Achaemenid dynasty after ~220 years [^2]

---
[^1]: Arrian, *Anabasis of Alexander* 3.8–15
[^2]: Heckel, W. *The Conquests of Alexander the Great* (Cambridge, 2008)


id: f6391a
repo_id: main
file_path: battles/battle-of-kadesh.md
file_hash: 5a0f8a010554cacbac7e1d88e5164f64cb1680f1698f00bdf50facb32040d126
title: Battle of Kadesh
doc_type: battle
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:38:42.336230342+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.484040109+00:00
content:
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# Battle of Kadesh

# Battle of Kadesh

## Overview
The Battle of Kadesh (~1274 BCE) was fought between the Egyptian Empire under Ramesses II and the Hittite Empire under Muwatalli II near the city of Kadesh on the Orontes River (modern Syria). It is the earliest battle for which detailed tactical accounts survive from both sides.

## Key Facts
- Date: ~1274 BCE
- Location: Kadesh, on the Orontes River (modern Tell Nebi Mend, Syria)
- Belligerents: Egypt vs. Hittite Empire
- Commanders: Ramesses II (Egypt), Muwatalli II (Hittites)
- Result: Tactically indecisive; both sides claimed victory [^1]

## The Battle
- Largest chariot battle in history (~5,000–6,000 chariots total)
- Ramesses was ambushed after receiving false intelligence from Hittite spies
- Egyptian camp nearly overrun before reinforcements arrived
- Ramesses personally led a counterattack

## Aftermath
- Led to the Treaty of Kadesh (~1259 BCE), the earliest known international peace treaty
- Egypt retained influence in Canaan; Hittites kept Syria
- Ramesses commissioned extensive propaganda reliefs at Abu Simbel, Karnak, and the Ramesseum [^2]

---
[^1]: Spalinger, A. *War in Ancient Egypt* (Blackwell, 2005)
[^2]: Kitchen, K.A. *Pharaoh Triumphant* (1982)
---

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id: 8dbea7
repo_id: main
file_path: battles/battle-of-marathon.md
file_hash: 3e76d851c805f3272178f68db971e285b8283a5bcadfbe6dc69e0c2c59d3664a
title: Battle of Marathon
doc_type: battle
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:38:42.336230342+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.485103380+00:00
content:
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# Battle of Marathon

# Battle of Marathon

## Overview
The Battle of Marathon (490 BCE) was a decisive Greek victory over the Persian Empire during the first Persian invasion of Greece. It demonstrated that the Persians could be defeated and became a symbol of Greek resistance.

## Key Facts
- Date: September 490 BCE
- Location: Plain of Marathon, ~40 km northeast of Athens
- Belligerents: Athens and Plataea vs. Persian Empire
- Commanders: Miltiades (Athens), Datis and Artaphernes (Persia)
- Result: Decisive Greek victory [^1]

## The Battle
- ~10,000 Athenians and ~1,000 Plataeans vs. ~25,000 Persians (estimates vary)
- Miltiades strengthened the flanks at the expense of the center
- Greek wings enveloped the Persian center in a double envelopment
- Persian losses: ~6,400; Greek losses: ~192

## Legacy
- Pheidippides' legendary run from Marathon to Athens (~40 km) inspired the modern marathon race [^2]
- Athenian burial mound (*soros*) still visible at Marathon
- Boosted Athenian confidence and democratic identity

---
[^1]: Herodotus, *Histories* 6.102–117
[^2]: Krentz, P. *The Battle of Marathon* (Yale, 2010)


id: 49cfd2
repo_id: main
file_path: battles/battle-of-thermopylae.md
file_hash: bc5631a66fcdb2721da46621eddcd2b94d7562d77ddeee356fe2f73ca5ed164d
title: Battle of Thermopylae
doc_type: battle
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:38:42.336230342+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.486123964+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:49cfd2 -->
# Battle of Thermopylae

# Battle of Thermopylae

## Overview
The Battle of Thermopylae (480 BCE) was a famous last stand by a Greek force led by King Leonidas I of Sparta against the massive Persian army of Xerxes I during the second Persian invasion of Greece.

## Key Facts
- Date: August 480 BCE (three days)
- Location: Thermopylae pass ("Hot Gates"), central Greece
- Belligerents: Greek alliance vs. Persian Empire
- Commanders: Leonidas I (Sparta), Xerxes I (Persia)
- Result: Persian victory, but costly delay [^1]

## The Battle
- ~7,000 Greeks initially held the narrow pass against ~100,000–300,000 Persians (numbers debated)
- Greeks exploited the narrow terrain to negate Persian numerical advantage
- Betrayed by Ephialtes, who revealed a mountain path to outflank the Greeks
- Leonidas dismissed most allies; ~300 Spartans, ~700 Thespians, and ~400 Thebans fought to the death

## Legacy
- Epitaph by Simonides: "Go tell the Spartans, stranger passing by, that here obedient to their laws we lie" [^2]
- Bought time for the Greek fleet at Artemisium and the subsequent victory at Salamis
- Became the archetypal story of sacrifice against overwhelming odds

---
[^1]: Herodotus, *Histories* 7.201–233
[^2]: Cartledge, P. *Thermopylae: The Battle That Changed the World* (2006)
---

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id: a069ce
repo_id: main
file_path: cities/alexandria.md
file_hash: b7b1ca098f01106d1f155fb75321431431197bc9cc4994adeaee468cc49a2547
title: Alexandria
doc_type: citie
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:40:11.605594308+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.487218325+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:a069ce -->
# Alexandria

# Alexandria

## Overview
Alexandria was founded by Alexander the Great in 331 BCE on the Mediterranean coast of Egypt. It became the intellectual capital of the Hellenistic world, home to the Great Library and the Pharos Lighthouse.

## Key Facts
- Location: Mediterranean coast of Egypt, western Nile Delta
- Founded: 331 BCE by Alexander the Great
- Capital of: Ptolemaic Egypt (305–30 BCE)
- Peak population: ~500,000–1,000,000 (largest city in the ancient world for centuries)

## Major Features
- Great Library of Alexandria: Largest library of the ancient world, ~400,000–700,000 scrolls [^1]
- Mouseion (Museum): Research institution attached to the Library
- Pharos Lighthouse: One of the Seven Wonders, ~100–130 m tall, built ~280 BCE [^2]
- Serapeum: Temple of Serapis, housed part of the Library's collection

## Intellectual Legacy
- Euclid: *Elements* of geometry
- Eratosthenes: Calculated Earth's circumference
- Aristarchus: Proposed heliocentric model
- Ptolemy (Claudius): *Almagest* (astronomy), *Geography*
- Septuagint: Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible

---
[^1]: Casson, L. *Libraries in the Ancient World* (Yale, 2001)
[^2]: McKenzie, J. *The Architecture of Alexandria and Egypt* (Yale, 2007)
---

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file_path: cities/athens.md
file_hash: c2020b29111aa9c1e2d2e12b689e237a62c8f7bcf341799a621dbc38938e90aa
title: Athens
doc_type: citie
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:40:11.605594308+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.488248632+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:a025e0 -->
# Athens

# Athens

## Overview
Athens was the leading city-state of ancient Greece, birthplace of democracy, and the cultural center of the classical world. The Acropolis and Agora remain among the most important archaeological sites in the world.

## Key Facts
- Location: Attica, Greece
- Period of prominence: ~508–322 BCE (democratic period)
- Population: ~250,000–300,000 (including slaves and metics) at peak ~430 BCE
- Key sites: Acropolis, Agora, Pnyx, Kerameikos

## Major Monuments
- Parthenon: Temple of Athena, built 447–432 BCE under Pericles [^1]
- Erechtheion: Temple with the Caryatid porch
- Temple of Hephaestus: Best-preserved Greek temple
- Theatre of Dionysus: Birthplace of Greek drama
- Stoa of Attalos: Reconstructed in the Agora

## Historical Significance
- Birthplace of Athenian democracy (~508 BCE, Cleisthenes' reforms)
- Center of philosophy: Socrates, Plato's Academy, Aristotle's Lyceum
- Led the Delian League against Persia
- Defeated by Sparta in the Peloponnesian War (404 BCE) [^2]

---
[^1]: Hurwit, J. *The Athenian Acropolis* (Cambridge, 1999)
[^2]: Camp, J. *The Archaeology of Athens* (Yale, 2001)


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repo_id: main
file_path: cities/babylon.md
file_hash: 4e87976f66a96115d663f38978cd497c28235b72f00e398f7ce56f06c64ebced
title: Babylon
doc_type: citie
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:40:11.604594304+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.489313902+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:61a12b -->
# Babylon

# Babylon

## Overview
Babylon was one of the most important cities of the ancient world, located on the Euphrates River in modern-day Iraq. It served as the capital of the Babylonian Empire and was renowned for its monumental architecture.

## Key Facts
- Location: Central Mesopotamia, ~85 km south of modern Baghdad, Iraq
- Period of prominence: ~1894 BCE – 539 BCE
- Modern site: Hillah, Babil Governorate, Iraq
- UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2019

## Major Features
- Ishtar Gate: Glazed brick gate decorated with dragons and bulls, built under Nebuchadnezzar II (~575 BCE) [^1]
- Processional Way: Ceremonial avenue leading to the Esagila temple
- Etemenanki: Ziggurat dedicated to Marduk, possibly the inspiration for the Tower of Babel
- Hanging Gardens: One of the Seven Wonders (existence and location debated) [^2]

## Archaeological History
- Excavated by Robert Koldewey (1899–1917) for the German Oriental Society
- Ishtar Gate reconstructed in the Pergamon Museum, Berlin
- Site suffered damage during the Iraq War (2003–2004) from military base construction

---
[^1]: Koldewey, R. *The Excavations at Babylon* (1914)
[^2]: Dalley, S. *The Mystery of the Hanging Garden of Babylon* (2013)
---

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id: a9b8b0
repo_id: main
file_path: cities/pompeii.md
file_hash: bb3f5a44dcb9786bfa942b239f0eadd372071578563b9d0a17e776bcc60a5475
title: Pompeii
doc_type: citie
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:40:11.605594308+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.490365456+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:a9b8b0 -->
# Pompeii

# Pompeii

## Overview
Pompeii was a Roman city near modern Naples, Italy, buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius on 24 August 79 CE. The volcanic ash preserved the city in extraordinary detail, providing an unparalleled snapshot of Roman daily life. @t[=79]

## Key Facts
- Location: Near modern Naples, Campania, Italy
- Destroyed: 24 August 79 CE (eruption of Vesuvius) @t[=79]
- Population at destruction: ~11,000–20,000
- Rediscovered: 1748 (systematic excavation began)
- UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997

## Major Features
- Forum: Central public square with temples, basilica, and markets
- Amphitheatre: Oldest surviving Roman amphitheatre (~70 BCE)
- Villa of the Mysteries: Frescoes depicting Dionysiac initiation rites [^1]
- Thermopolia: Fast-food counters (over 80 found)
- Plaster casts of victims: Created by Giuseppe Fiorelli's technique (1863)

## Archaeological Significance
- Preserves Roman urban planning, architecture, art, and daily life
- Graffiti provides insight into language, politics, and social life
- Ongoing excavations continue to reveal new areas [^2]

---
[^1]: Beard, M. *Pompeii: The Life of a Roman Town* (2008)
[^2]: Wallace-Hadrill, A. *Houses and Society in Pompeii and Herculaneum* (1994)


id: bcd937
repo_id: main
file_path: cities/rome.md
file_hash: 0eb71eb8182c07c9c6da1bd33f62f6e459cd7f8b4f68d675b00cc732686c7396
title: Rome (City)
doc_type: citie
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:40:11.605594308+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.491440522+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:bcd937 -->
# Rome (City)

# Rome (City)

## Overview
Rome, the "Eternal City," was the capital of the Roman Republic and Empire, growing from a small settlement on the Tiber River to the largest city in the ancient world with a population exceeding one million.

## Key Facts
- Location: Central Italy, on the Tiber River
- Traditional founding: 753 BCE (Romulus and Remus legend)
- Peak population: ~1 million by the 2nd century CE
- Key hills: Palatine, Capitoline, Aventine, and four others ("Seven Hills")

## Major Monuments
- Roman Forum: Political and commercial center of the Republic and Empire
- Colosseum (Flavian Amphitheatre): Completed ~80 CE, capacity ~50,000 [^1]
- Pantheon: Rebuilt by Hadrian ~125 CE, largest unreinforced concrete dome
- Circus Maximus: Chariot racing venue, capacity ~250,000
- Baths of Caracalla and Diocletian
- Aqueducts: 11 aqueducts supplied ~1 million cubic meters of water daily

## Historical Significance
- Capital of a republic (509–27 BCE) and empire (27 BCE–476 CE)
- Center of Roman law, engineering, and administration
- Sacked by Visigoths (410 CE) and Vandals (455 CE) @t[=410]
- Fall of the Western Empire: 476 CE @t[=476] [^2]

---
[^1]: Hopkins, K. & Beard, M. *The Colosseum* (Harvard, 2005)
[^2]: Claridge, A. *Rome: An Oxford Archaeological Guide* (2010)


id: 75b7d0
repo_id: main
file_path: cities/troy.md
file_hash: da5d70dde073e7374dea8cfdc1bba553d3d502474b7f4d0608ffafc082d7272a
title: Troy
doc_type: citie
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:40:11.605594308+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.492487247+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:75b7d0 -->
# Troy

# Troy

## Overview
Troy (ancient Ilion/Ilium) was a Bronze Age city in northwestern Anatolia, famous as the setting of Homer's *Iliad*. The archaeological site at Hisarlik reveals multiple occupation layers spanning ~3000 BCE to the Roman period.

## Key Facts
- Location: Hisarlik, Çanakkale Province, Turkey
- Period: ~3000 BCE – Roman era
- Excavated by: Heinrich Schliemann (1870s), Wilhelm Dörpfeld, Carl Blegen, Manfred Korfmann
- UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998

## Archaeological Layers
- Troy I–V (~3000–1750 BCE): Early Bronze Age settlements
- Troy VI (~1750–1300 BCE): Major fortified city, likely the Homeric Troy [^1]
- Troy VIIa (~1300–1180 BCE): Destroyed by fire; candidate for the Trojan War destruction
- Troy VIII–IX: Greek and Roman Ilion

## The Trojan War
- Traditionally dated ~1184 BCE (Eratosthenes' calculation)
- Homer's *Iliad* describes a Greek siege of Troy over the abduction of Helen
- Historical basis debated; may reflect Bronze Age conflicts between Mycenaeans and Anatolian powers [^2]

---
[^1]: Korfmann, M. "Was There a Trojan War?" *Archaeology* 57.3 (2004)
[^2]: Latacz, J. *Troy and Homer* (Oxford, 2004)
---

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id: d882f6
repo_id: main
file_path: cities/ur.md
file_hash: ce02f4651f63bdc192f41fc70c121c542f59e2084a0f6377e0300ac7b5b683fb
title: Ur
doc_type: citie
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:40:11.605594308+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.493585176+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:d882f6 -->
# Ur

# Ur

## Overview
Ur was one of the most important Sumerian city-states, located in southern Mesopotamia. It is notable for the Royal Tombs, the Great Ziggurat, and its association with the biblical Abraham.

## Key Facts
- Location: Tell el-Muqayyar, Dhi Qar Province, Iraq
- Period: ~3800 BCE – ~500 BCE
- Excavated by: Leonard Woolley (1922–1934)

## Major Discoveries
- Royal Tombs of Ur (~2600–2400 BCE): Elaborate burials with gold, lapis lazuli, and human sacrifices [^1]
- Standard of Ur: Mosaic box depicting war and peace scenes
- Great Ziggurat of Ur: Built by Ur-Nammu (~2100 BCE), partially restored
- Ram in a Thicket: Gold and lapis lazuli figurine (now in British Museum and Penn Museum)

## Historical Significance
- Third Dynasty of Ur (~2112–2004 BCE): Last Sumerian dynasty, produced the Code of Ur-Nammu
- Major trading port connected to the Persian Gulf
- Traditionally identified as "Ur of the Chaldees" (Genesis 11:31) [^2]

---
[^1]: Woolley, L. *Ur Excavations II: The Royal Cemetery* (1934)
[^2]: Woolley, L. *Excavations at Ur* (1954)


id: ee0ff0
repo_id: main
file_path: civilizations/akkadian-empire.md
file_hash: f03ea962c3834a31f6725d7bbb06a88937e3fdc4823654a21a36e44cbe3a23e0
title: Akkadian Empire
doc_type: civilization
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:36:25.081686116+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.494622496+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:ee0ff0 -->
# Akkadian Empire

# Akkadian Empire

## Overview
The Akkadian Empire (~2334–2154 BCE) was the first empire in Mesopotamia, unifying Sumerian and Akkadian-speaking city-states under Sargon of Akkad. It established a model for subsequent Mesopotamian empires.

## Key Facts
- Region: Mesopotamia, extending from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean
- Period: ~2334–2154 BCE
- Capital: Akkad (location still undiscovered)
- Language: Akkadian (Semitic), alongside Sumerian
- Founded by: Sargon of Akkad

## Notable Rulers
- Sargon of Akkad (~2334–2279 BCE): Founder, conquered Sumerian city-states [^1]
- Naram-Sin (~2254–2218 BCE): Grandson of Sargon, expanded empire, declared himself divine

## Achievements
- First multi-ethnic empire in recorded history
- Standardized weights and measures across Mesopotamia
- Akkadian became the lingua franca of the ancient Near East
- Produced significant art including the Victory Stele of Naram-Sin

## Decline
Collapsed ~2154 BCE due to internal revolts, Gutian invasions, and possibly severe drought linked to the 4.2-kiloyear climate event [^2].

---
[^1]: Westenholz, J.G. *Legends of the Kings of Akkade* (1997)
[^2]: Weiss, H. et al. "The Genesis and Collapse of Third Millennium North Mesopotamian Civilization" *Science* 261 (1993)


id: 133a48
repo_id: main
file_path: civilizations/ancient-china.md
file_hash: b58f1885950639df6bb6856e69bb901ac4258dea10785073292513a1131075cd
title: Ancient China
doc_type: civilization
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:36:25.082686119+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.496619804+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:133a48 -->
# Ancient China

# Ancient China

## Overview
Ancient Chinese civilization developed along the Yellow and Yangtze rivers, producing enduring contributions to philosophy, governance, technology, and culture. This entry covers the period from the Shang dynasty through the Han dynasty (~1600 BCE – 220 CE).

## Key Facts
- Region: East Asia, centered on the Yellow River and Yangtze River valleys
- Period covered: ~1600 BCE – 220 CE
- Major dynasties: Shang, Zhou, Qin, Han
- Language: Old Chinese, Classical Chinese
- Writing: Oracle bone script (~1200 BCE), evolving into seal script and clerical script

## Major Dynasties
- Shang (~1600–1046 BCE): First historically verified dynasty, oracle bones, bronze casting [^1]
- Zhou (~1046–256 BCE): Longest dynasty, Mandate of Heaven, Confucius, Laozi
- Qin (221–206 BCE): First unified empire under Qin Shi Huang, Great Wall, standardization
- Han (206 BCE – 220 CE): Silk Road trade, paper invention, Confucian state ideology

## Achievements
- Oracle bone script: Earliest Chinese writing ~1200 BCE
- Iron casting by ~500 BCE (centuries before the West)
- Silk production and trade
- Paper invented ~100 CE during the Han dynasty [^2]
- Confucianism, Daoism, and Legalism as philosophical traditions
- Great Wall construction begun under Qin Shi Huang ~221 BCE

---
[^1]: Keightley, D. *Sources of Shang History* (University of California Press, 1978)
[^2]: Tsien, T. *Written on Bamboo and Silk* (University of Chicago Press, 2004)


id: 2ac383
repo_id: main
file_path: civilizations/ancient-egypt.md
file_hash: 42e69180f7b70470b99e6548ce3ef9ce2af6a87a971de949a54b5a4fa6fa9b3c
title: Ancient Egypt
doc_type: civilization
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:36:25.081686116+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.497756164+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:2ac383 -->
# Ancient Egypt

# Ancient Egypt

## Overview
Ancient Egypt was a civilization centered along the Nile River in northeastern Africa, lasting from ~3100 BCE to 30 BCE. It produced monumental architecture, a complex writing system, and one of the longest-lasting state structures in history.

## Key Facts
- Region: Nile Valley and Delta, northeastern Africa
- Period: ~3100 BCE – 30 BCE (Roman annexation)
- Capital cities: Memphis, Thebes, Amarna, Alexandria (Ptolemaic)
- Language: Egyptian (Afro-Asiatic family)
- Writing systems: Hieroglyphic, Hieratic, Demotic
- Religion: Polytheistic with pharaoh as divine intermediary

## Major Periods
- Early Dynastic (~3100–2686 BCE): Unification under Narmer/Menes
- Old Kingdom (~2686–2181 BCE): Pyramid age, centralized power
- Middle Kingdom (~2055–1650 BCE): Cultural golden age
- New Kingdom (~1550–1069 BCE): Imperial expansion, Ramesses II, Tutankhamun
- Ptolemaic Period (305–30 BCE): Greek-ruled Egypt after Alexander's conquest

## Achievements
- Great Pyramid of Giza, built ~2560 BCE under Khufu [^1]
- Developed hieroglyphic writing ~3200 BCE
- Advanced mummification and funerary practices
- Sophisticated medicine, mathematics, and astronomy
- Monumental temple complexes at Karnak and Luxor

## Decline
Egypt fell under Persian rule (525 BCE), then Macedonian (332 BCE), and finally became a Roman province after the death of Cleopatra VII in 30 BCE.

---
[^1]: Lehner, M. *The Complete Pyramids* (Thames & Hudson, 1997)


id: af7739
repo_id: main
file_path: civilizations/ancient-greece.md
file_hash: 1aef4b43c00e5881c6ec005bdca24f23b776f16c5a9378841bc5c7df329f6454
title: Ancient Greece
doc_type: civilization
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:36:25.081686116+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.498912868+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:af7739 -->
# Ancient Greece

# Ancient Greece

## Overview
Ancient Greece (~800–146 BCE) comprised independent city-states (*poleis*) that produced foundational contributions to Western philosophy, democracy, science, art, and literature.

## Key Facts
- Region: Greek peninsula, Aegean islands, western Anatolia, colonies across the Mediterranean
- Period: ~800 BCE (Archaic) – 146 BCE (Roman conquest)
- Major city-states: Athens, Sparta, Corinth, Thebes
- Language: Ancient Greek (Indo-European)
- Writing: Greek alphabet, adapted from Phoenician ~800 BCE

## Major Periods
- Archaic (~800–480 BCE): Colonization, rise of the polis, early philosophy
- Classical (480–323 BCE): Golden Age of Athens, Peloponnesian War, Alexander
- Hellenistic (323–146 BCE): Post-Alexander kingdoms, cultural diffusion

## Achievements
- Athenian democracy established ~508 BCE under Cleisthenes [^1]
- Philosophy: Socrates, Plato, Aristotle
- Drama: Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, Aristophanes
- History: Herodotus, Thucydides
- Olympic Games, first held 776 BCE
- Parthenon completed ~432 BCE

## Decline
Greece fell under Macedonian hegemony after the Battle of Chaeronea (338 BCE), then became a Roman province after the destruction of Corinth in 146 BCE.

---
[^1]: Ober, J. *The Rise and Fall of Classical Greece* (Princeton, 2015)


id: 177c6a
repo_id: main
file_path: civilizations/assyrian-empire.md
file_hash: 68f24722a0cfe447ccf3136a76d2a463c4becd87c5598b8fe1d87e5c918ab207
title: Assyrian Empire
doc_type: civilization
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:36:25.081686116+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.500059959+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:177c6a -->
# Assyrian Empire

# Assyrian Empire

## Overview
The Assyrian Empire was a Mesopotamian power that dominated the ancient Near East, reaching its zenith during the Neo-Assyrian period (911–609 BCE) as the largest empire the world had yet seen.

## Key Facts
- Region: Northern Mesopotamia, expanding across the Near East
- Neo-Assyrian period: 911–609 BCE
- Capitals: Ashur, Nimrud (Kalhu), Nineveh
- Language: Akkadian (Assyrian dialect), later Aramaic

## Notable Rulers
- Tiglath-Pileser III (745–727 BCE): Administrative reforms, professional army
- Sargon II (722–705 BCE): Conquered Israel, built Dur-Sharrukin
- Sennacherib (705–681 BCE): Expanded Nineveh, besieged Jerusalem
- Ashurbanipal (668–631 BCE): Created the Library of Nineveh [^1]

## Achievements
- Library of Nineveh: ~30,000 cuneiform tablets, preserving Mesopotamian literature
- Advanced siege warfare and military engineering
- Extensive road network and postal system
- Monumental palace reliefs (Nimrud, Nineveh)

## Decline
Fell to a coalition of Babylonians and Medes; Nineveh destroyed in 612 BCE. The last Assyrian forces defeated at Carchemish in 605 BCE [^2].

---
[^1]: Frahm, E. "The Library of Ashurbanipal" in *The Oxford Handbook of Cuneiform Culture* (2011)
[^2]: Radner, K. *Ancient Assyria: A Very Short Introduction* (Oxford, 2015)
---

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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 22: "Library of Nineveh: ~30,000 cuneiform tablets, preserving Mesopotamian litera..." - what is the source?
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 23: "Advanced siege warfare and military engineering" - what is the source?
  > 

- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 24: "Extensive road network and postal system" - what is the source?
  > 

- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 25: "Monumental palace reliefs (Nimrud, Nineveh)" - what is the source?
  > 

- [ ] `@q[ambiguous]` Line 16: "Tiglath-Pileser III (745–727 BCE): Administrative reforms, professional army" - what does "III" mean in this context?
  > 

- [ ] `@q[ambiguous]` Line 17: "Sargon II (722–705 BCE): Conquered Israel, built Dur-Sharrukin" - what does "II" mean in this context?
  > 

- [ ] `@q[stale]` Line 19: "Ashurbanipal (668–631 BCE): Created the Library of Nineveh [^1]" - Frahm source from 2011 may be outdated, is this still accurate?
  > 


id: c1f224
repo_id: main
file_path: civilizations/babylonia.md
file_hash: 271ce45e8d7c0d5ada5020aab638e92cc982986832e5bba8e47c22e1ee577b60
title: Babylonia
doc_type: civilization
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:36:25.081686116+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.501192363+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:c1f224 -->
# Babylonia

# Babylonia

## Overview
Babylonia was a major Mesopotamian civilization centered on the city of Babylon, with two principal periods of dominance: the Old Babylonian period under Hammurabi (~1792–1750 BCE) and the Neo-Babylonian Empire (626–539 BCE) under Nebuchadnezzar II.

## Key Facts
- Region: Central-southern Mesopotamia (modern Iraq)
- Old Babylonian period: ~1894–1595 BCE
- Neo-Babylonian period: 626–539 BCE
- Capital: Babylon
- Language: Akkadian (Babylonian dialect)

## Notable Rulers
- Hammurabi (~1792–1750 BCE): Unified Mesopotamia, issued the Code of Hammurabi [^1]
- Nebuchadnezzar II (605–562 BCE): Built the Ishtar Gate, destroyed the Temple of Jerusalem (586 BCE)
- Nabonidus (556–539 BCE): Last native king, defeated by Cyrus the Great

## Achievements
- Code of Hammurabi: One of the earliest comprehensive legal codes (~1754 BCE)
- Advanced astronomy and mathematics (predicted eclipses, developed algebra)
- Hanging Gardens of Babylon (one of the Seven Wonders, existence debated) [^2]
- Ishtar Gate and Processional Way

## Decline
The Neo-Babylonian Empire fell to Cyrus the Great of Persia in 539 BCE.

---
[^1]: Roth, M.T. *Law Collections from Mesopotamia and Asia Minor* (1997)
[^2]: Dalley, S. *The Mystery of the Hanging Garden of Babylon* (2013)


id: 91256b
repo_id: main
file_path: civilizations/carthage.md
file_hash: 931e3de5dc1b92559e832398087fad9b417fe08b81bc7d78b0152cda293632ef
title: Carthage
doc_type: civilization
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:36:25.082686119+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.502330687+00:00
content:
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# Carthage

# Carthage

## Overview
Carthage (~814–146 BCE) was a Phoenician colony that grew into a major Mediterranean power, rivaling Rome in three devastating Punic Wars before its total destruction.

## Key Facts
- Region: North Africa (modern Tunisia), with territories in western Mediterranean
- Period: ~814–146 BCE
- Founded by: Phoenician settlers from Tyre, traditionally by Queen Dido
- Language: Punic (Phoenician dialect)
- Government: Oligarchic republic with elected *suffetes* (magistrates)

## Punic Wars with Rome
- First Punic War (264–241 BCE): Fought over Sicily; Rome won naval supremacy [^1]
- Second Punic War (218–201 BCE): Hannibal's invasion of Italy via the Alps; Rome ultimately prevailed
- Third Punic War (149–146 BCE): Rome besieged and destroyed Carthage completely

## Achievements
- Dominant Mediterranean naval and trading power
- Advanced harbor engineering (circular military harbor at Carthage)
- Agricultural expertise (Mago's treatise on farming)
- Hannibal Barca: One of history's greatest military commanders [^2]

## Destruction
Rome destroyed Carthage in 146 BCE. The site was later refounded as a Roman colony by Julius Caesar in 46 BCE.

---
[^1]: Goldsworthy, A. *The Fall of Carthage* (2003)
[^2]: Lancel, S. *Hannibal* (Blackwell, 1998)


id: c153d0
repo_id: main
file_path: civilizations/hittite-empire.md
file_hash: aa41744826b7fda266e1404b5d8bed27a4d69b991535c0f2456d35391c36ea24
title: Hittite Empire
doc_type: civilization
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:36:25.081686116+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.503452335+00:00
content:
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# Hittite Empire

# Hittite Empire

## Overview
The Hittite Empire (~1600–1178 BCE) was a major Bronze Age power centered in Anatolia (modern Turkey). The Hittites were among the first to work iron and engaged in diplomacy with Egypt, producing the earliest known peace treaty.

## Key Facts
- Region: Central Anatolia, expanding into Syria and Upper Mesopotamia
- Period: ~1600–1178 BCE
- Capital: Hattusa (modern Boğazkale, Turkey)
- Language: Hittite (earliest attested Indo-European language)
- Writing: Cuneiform (official), Anatolian hieroglyphs

## Notable Rulers
- Hattusili I (~1650–1620 BCE): Early expansion
- Suppiluliuma I (~1344–1322 BCE): Greatest territorial extent
- Muwatalli II (~1295–1272 BCE): Fought Ramesses II at Kadesh
- Hattusili III (~1267–1237 BCE): Signed Treaty of Kadesh with Egypt

## Achievements
- Treaty of Kadesh (~1259 BCE): Earliest known international peace treaty [^1]
- Early adoption of iron technology
- Sophisticated legal codes and vassal treaty system
- Extensive diplomatic correspondence (Amarna Letters)

## Decline
Collapsed ~1178 BCE during the Bronze Age Collapse, likely due to invasions by the Sea Peoples, internal instability, and disrupted trade networks [^2].

---
[^1]: Beckman, G. *Hittite Diplomatic Texts* (1999)
[^2]: Bryce, T. *The Kingdom of the Hittites* (Oxford, 2005)


id: 86e2bb
repo_id: main
file_path: civilizations/maurya-empire.md
file_hash: 335644a5e0d638419d1cb4a73fa724f829cd12c888677e6cfef0f00e48216429
title: Maurya Empire
doc_type: civilization
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:36:25.082686119+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.504569338+00:00
content:
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# Maurya Empire

# Maurya Empire

## Overview
The Maurya Empire (~322–185 BCE) was the first empire to unify most of the Indian subcontinent, founded by Chandragupta Maurya and reaching its greatest extent under Ashoka.

## Key Facts
- Region: Indian subcontinent, from Afghanistan to Bengal
- Period: ~322–185 BCE
- Capital: Pataliputra (modern Patna)
- Language: Prakrit, Sanskrit
- Religion: Initially Vedic/Hindu, Buddhism promoted under Ashoka

## Notable Rulers
- Chandragupta Maurya (~322–298 BCE): Founded the empire, defeated Seleucid forces [^1]
- Bindusara (~298–272 BCE): Expanded southward
- Ashoka (~268–232 BCE): Converted to Buddhism after the Kalinga War, erected edicts promoting dharma [^2]

## Achievements
- Unified most of the Indian subcontinent for the first time
- Ashoka's edicts: Earliest deciphered Indian inscriptions, promoting non-violence and tolerance
- *Arthashastra* attributed to Chanakya: Treatise on statecraft and economics
- Extensive road network and trade connections

## Decline
Declined after Ashoka's death due to weak successors and regional fragmentation. Last Maurya ruler overthrown by Pushyamitra Shunga ~185 BCE.

---
[^1]: Thapar, R. *Aśoka and the Decline of the Mauryas* (Oxford, 1961)
[^2]: Olivelle, P. *Ashoka: Portrait of a Philosopher King* (2023)


id: 85231f
repo_id: main
file_path: civilizations/minoan-civilization.md
file_hash: 44ce6c8e13723d517d08981c64c52ce3f4084ecd63cffde25d08b2dfedcc1db6
title: Minoan Civilization
doc_type: civilization
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:36:25.082686119+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.505697648+00:00
content:
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# Minoan Civilization

# Minoan Civilization

## Overview
The Minoan civilization (~3000–1450 BCE) on Crete was the first advanced civilization in Europe, known for elaborate palace complexes, vibrant frescoes, and the undeciphered Linear A script.

## Key Facts
- Region: Crete and Aegean islands
- Period: ~3000–1450 BCE
- Major sites: Knossos, Phaistos, Malia, Zakros
- Writing: Cretan hieroglyphs, Linear A (undeciphered)
- Named by: Arthur Evans, after the mythical King Minos [^1]

## Achievements
- Palace complexes at Knossos (up to 1,300 rooms)
- Advanced plumbing and drainage systems
- Vibrant fresco art depicting nature, rituals, and bull-leaping
- Extensive maritime trade network across the eastern Mediterranean

## Decline
The Minoan civilization declined after ~1450 BCE, possibly due to the Thera eruption (~1628 BCE), Mycenaean invasion, or a combination of factors [^2].

---
[^1]: Evans, A. *The Palace of Minos at Knossos* (1921–1935)
[^2]: Driessen, J. & Macdonald, C. *The Troubled Island* (1997)


id: 229f8a
repo_id: main
file_path: civilizations/mycenaean-civilization.md
file_hash: 3f5f6e793590729d685c90330d164c8f64d76ec648f375385f88c8c9432b769a
title: Mycenaean Civilization
doc_type: civilization
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:36:25.082686119+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.506779420+00:00
content:
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# Mycenaean Civilization

# Mycenaean Civilization

## Overview
The Mycenaean civilization (~1600–1100 BCE) was the first major civilization on mainland Greece, known for its warrior culture, palatial centers, and connection to the Homeric epics.

## Key Facts
- Region: Mainland Greece, Crete (after ~1450 BCE), Aegean islands
- Period: ~1600–1100 BCE
- Major sites: Mycenae, Tiryns, Pylos, Thebes, Athens
- Writing: Linear B (deciphered by Michael Ventris in 1952 as early Greek) [^1]
- Society: Warrior aristocracy ruled by *wanax* (king)

## Achievements
- Massive fortifications with Cyclopean masonry
- Lion Gate at Mycenae (~1250 BCE)
- Tholos tombs (Treasury of Atreus)
- Extensive trade networks reaching Egypt, the Levant, and Italy
- Likely historical basis for the Trojan War tradition [^2]

## Decline
Collapsed ~1100 BCE during the Bronze Age Collapse, leading to the Greek Dark Ages (~1100–800 BCE). Causes debated: Sea Peoples, internal conflict, systems collapse.

---
[^1]: Chadwick, J. *The Decipherment of Linear B* (Cambridge, 1958)
[^2]: Latacz, J. *Troy and Homer* (Oxford, 2004)


id: 785e2c
repo_id: main
file_path: civilizations/persian-empire.md
file_hash: 35313260fb13405118443e24ca6098098dbce63cf414e2b690610134d324a75b
title: Persian Empire (Achaemenid)
doc_type: civilization
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:36:25.081686116+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.507889539+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:785e2c -->
# Persian Empire (Achaemenid)

# Persian Empire (Achaemenid)

## Overview
The Achaemenid Persian Empire (550–330 BCE) was the largest empire of the ancient world by territory, stretching from Egypt to the Indus Valley. Founded by Cyrus the Great, it pioneered administrative innovations including satrapies, a postal system, and religious tolerance.

## Key Facts
- Region: Iran, Mesopotamia, Egypt, Anatolia, Central Asia, Indus Valley
- Period: 550–330 BCE
- Capital cities: Pasargadae, Persepolis, Susa, Ecbatana
- Language: Old Persian (official), Aramaic (administrative lingua franca)
- Religion: Zoroastrianism (royal religion)

## Notable Rulers
- Cyrus the Great (559–530 BCE): Founded the empire, conquered Babylon (539 BCE) [^1]
- Darius I (522–486 BCE): Administrative reforms, built Persepolis, Royal Road
- Xerxes I (486–465 BCE): Invaded Greece (480 BCE)
- Darius III (336–330 BCE): Defeated by Alexander the Great

## Achievements
- Cyrus Cylinder: Early declaration of human rights and religious tolerance [^2]
- Royal Road: ~2,700 km highway from Susa to Sardis
- Satrapy system of provincial governance
- Qanat irrigation technology
- Persepolis: Monumental ceremonial capital

## Decline
Conquered by Alexander the Great; Darius III defeated at Gaugamela (331 BCE), Persepolis burned 330 BCE.

---
[^1]: Briant, P. *From Cyrus to Alexander: A History of the Persian Empire* (2002)
[^2]: Kuhrt, A. "The Cyrus Cylinder and Achaemenid Imperial Policy" *JSOT* 25 (1983)


id: f760d3
repo_id: main
file_path: civilizations/phoenicia.md
file_hash: 09e7b73290b103c177a374ea7130769f85e5b4c0cd8508e230a8a8d0670fc9f7
title: Phoenicia
doc_type: civilization
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:36:25.082686119+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.509054892+00:00
content:
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# Phoenicia

# Phoenicia

## Overview
Phoenicia (~1500–300 BCE) was a maritime civilization of city-states along the coast of modern Lebanon. The Phoenicians were master sailors and traders who developed the alphabet that became the ancestor of Greek, Latin, and most modern alphabets.

## Key Facts
- Region: Coastal Lebanon, with colonies across the Mediterranean
- Period: ~1500–300 BCE
- Major cities: Tyre, Sidon, Byblos, Berytus (Beirut)
- Language: Phoenician (Northwest Semitic)
- Writing: Phoenician alphabet (~1050 BCE), ancestor of Greek and Latin alphabets [^1]

## Achievements
- Developed the first widely-used phonetic alphabet ~1050 BCE
- Founded Carthage (~814 BCE) and colonies across the western Mediterranean
- Pioneered long-distance maritime trade (tin from Britain, gold from West Africa)
- Produced Tyrian purple dye from murex snails
- Circumnavigated Africa under commission from Pharaoh Necho II (~600 BCE) [^2]

## Decline
Phoenician city-states fell under successive foreign rule: Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, and finally Macedonian. Tyre was besieged and captured by Alexander the Great in 332 BCE.

---
[^1]: Markoe, G. *Phoenicians* (University of California Press, 2000)
[^2]: Herodotus, *Histories* 4.42


id: c00c4a
repo_id: main
file_path: civilizations/roman-republic-and-empire.md
file_hash: 277bcf1feec9a391a3fc274b485269d8af027cb459b7f94a420a7e81e50bc81f
title: Roman Republic and Empire
doc_type: civilization
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:36:25.082686119+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.510199191+00:00
content:
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# Roman Republic and Empire

# Roman Republic and Empire

## Overview
Rome evolved from a small Italian city-state to a republic (509–27 BCE) and then an empire (27 BCE – 476 CE in the West) that dominated the Mediterranean world. Roman law, engineering, and governance profoundly shaped Western civilization.

## Key Facts
- Region: Mediterranean basin, Western Europe, North Africa, Near East
- Kingdom: ~753–509 BCE
- Republic: 509–27 BCE
- Empire: 27 BCE – 476 CE (Western), continued as Byzantine Empire in the East
- Capital: Rome; later Constantinople (from 330 CE)
- Language: Latin
- Writing: Latin alphabet

## Major Periods
- Roman Kingdom (~753–509 BCE): Legendary founding by Romulus
- Early Republic (509–264 BCE): Expansion in Italy, Conflict of the Orders
- Late Republic (264–27 BCE): Punic Wars, civil wars, Caesar's assassination (44 BCE)
- Principate (27 BCE – 284 CE): Augustus through the Crisis of the Third Century
- Dominate (284–476 CE): Diocletian's reforms through the fall of the Western Empire @t[=476]

## Achievements
- Roman law: Foundation of Western legal tradition [^1]
- Engineering: Aqueducts, roads (~400,000 km network), concrete, the Colosseum
- Pax Romana (~27 BCE – 180 CE): ~200 years of relative peace and prosperity
- Latin language and literature: Virgil, Ovid, Cicero, Tacitus

## Fall of the Western Empire
The Western Roman Empire fell in 476 CE when Odoacer deposed Emperor Romulus Augustulus @t[=476]. Contributing factors included barbarian invasions, economic decline, military overextension, and administrative fragmentation [^2].

---
[^1]: Jolowicz, H.F. *Historical Introduction to the Study of Roman Law* (Cambridge, 1972)
[^2]: Heather, P. *The Fall of the Roman Empire* (Oxford, 2006)


id: 6d7974
repo_id: main
file_path: civilizations/sumer.md
file_hash: ecf550be5aba25c7e225a564807e58baccac3591014272326c253c1c59ee93ae
title: Sumer
doc_type: civilization
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:36:25.081686116+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.511475144+00:00
content:
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# Sumer

# Sumer

## Overview
Sumer was the earliest known civilization in southern Mesopotamia (modern-day southern Iraq), emerging ~4500 BCE and flourishing during the 3rd millennium BCE. It is credited with foundational innovations including writing (cuneiform), urbanization, and codified law.

## Key Facts
- Region: Southern Mesopotamia, between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers
- Period: ~4500–1900 BCE
- Major cities: Ur, Uruk, Eridu, Lagash, Nippur, Kish
- Language: Sumerian (language isolate)
- Writing system: Cuneiform, developed ~3400 BCE
- Government: City-states ruled by *lugal* (kings) and *ensi* (governors)

## Major Periods
- Ubaid period (~5500–4000 BCE): Proto-urban settlements
- Uruk period (~4000–3100 BCE): First true cities, invention of writing
- Early Dynastic period (~2900–2350 BCE): Competing city-states
- Third Dynasty of Ur (~2112–2004 BCE): Final Sumerian renaissance under Ur-Nammu

## Achievements
- Invented cuneiform writing ~3400 BCE [^1]
- Built ziggurats as temple complexes
- Developed the sexagesimal (base-60) number system
- Created the earliest known legal code (Code of Ur-Nammu, ~2100 BCE)
- Established irrigation agriculture at scale
- Produced the *Epic of Gilgamesh*, among the earliest literary works [^2]

## Decline
Sumer was absorbed by the Akkadian Empire under Sargon of Akkad ~2334 BCE, briefly revived under the Third Dynasty of Ur, and finally eclipsed by the rise of Babylon ~1900 BCE.

---
[^1]: Schmandt-Besserat, D. *Before Writing* (1992)
[^2]: George, A. *The Epic of Gilgamesh* (Penguin Classics, 2003)


id: 06dbd9
repo_id: main
file_path: cultural-movements/greek-philosophy.md
file_hash: 63203fe2e0d763e166b289fe7b9ea34cd7efc59861c386980d4abe17e8cb8df0
title: Greek Philosophy
doc_type: cultural-movement
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.820144750+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.512652975+00:00
content:
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# Greek Philosophy

# Greek Philosophy

## Overview
Greek philosophy (~600 BCE – ~500 CE) laid the foundations of Western intellectual tradition, encompassing metaphysics, ethics, logic, political theory, and natural science.

## Key Facts
- Period: ~600 BCE (Thales) – ~529 CE (closure of Plato's Academy by Justinian)
- Region: Greek world (Ionia, Athens, Alexandria, Rome)
- Major schools: Pre-Socratics, Platonism, Aristotelianism, Stoicism, Epicureanism, Skepticism

## Major Figures
- Thales of Miletus (~624–546 BCE): First philosopher, proposed water as the fundamental substance [^1]
- Heraclitus (~535–475 BCE): "Everything flows" (*panta rhei*)
- Socrates (~470–399 BCE): Socratic method, executed for impiety
- Plato (~428–348 BCE): Theory of Forms, founded the Academy
- Aristotle (384–322 BCE): Logic, natural science, ethics, politics; founded the Lyceum
- Epicurus (341–270 BCE): Atomism, pleasure as the highest good
- Zeno of Citium (~334–262 BCE): Founded Stoicism [^2]

## Legacy
- Shaped Western philosophy, science, and political thought
- Transmitted to the Islamic world and medieval Europe
- Aristotle's works dominated European thought for ~2,000 years

---
[^1]: Kirk, G.S. et al. *The Presocratic Philosophers* (Cambridge, 1983)
[^2]: Long, A.A. *Hellenistic Philosophy* (University of California Press, 1986)


id: 517513
repo_id: main
file_path: cultural-movements/hellenism.md
file_hash: b5ccef7823e94946e65ec83d4047c352c9705b57491d9a4c8cbb9d29d2508848
title: Hellenism
doc_type: cultural-movement
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.820144750+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.513797100+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:517513 -->
# Hellenism

# Hellenism

## Overview
Hellenism refers to the spread of Greek language, culture, art, and thought across the eastern Mediterranean and Near East following Alexander the Great's conquests (323 BCE onward). The Hellenistic period lasted until Roman absorption of the last successor kingdom (30 BCE).

## Key Facts
- Period: 323–30 BCE (death of Alexander to death of Cleopatra VII)
- Region: Eastern Mediterranean, Near East, Central Asia, Egypt
- Key kingdoms: Ptolemaic Egypt, Seleucid Empire, Antigonid Macedon, Pergamon
- Lingua franca: Koine Greek

## Cultural Achievements
- Library of Alexandria and the Mouseion
- Hellenistic sculpture: Venus de Milo, Winged Victory of Samothrace, Laocoön
- Science: Euclid, Archimedes, Eratosthenes, Hipparchus
- Philosophy: Stoicism, Epicureanism, Skepticism flourished [^1]

## Syncretism
- Greek and local cultures blended: Serapis (Egyptian-Greek deity), Gandhara art (Greek-Buddhist)
- Greek became the administrative and literary language from Egypt to Afghanistan
- Hellenistic Judaism: Septuagint translation, Philo of Alexandria [^2]

## Legacy
- Roman culture was deeply Hellenized ("Captive Greece captured her rude conqueror" — Horace)
- Koine Greek became the language of the New Testament
- Hellenistic science and philosophy transmitted to the Islamic Golden Age

---
[^1]: Shipley, G. *The Greek World After Alexander* (Routledge, 2000)
[^2]: Green, P. *Alexander to Actium: The Historical Evolution of the Hellenistic Age* (1990)


id: 9c16b6
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file_path: definitions/ancient-history-terms.md
file_hash: 576bb2f4340545b397a07e8c6e4051be766af1fcb646c03daaa3b9371cf98f0c
title: Definitions: Ancient History Terms
doc_type: definition
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.820144750+00:00
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content:
<!-- factbase:9c16b6 -->
# Definitions: Ancient History Terms

# Definitions: Ancient History Terms

## Chronological Terms
- **BCE**: Before Common Era — equivalent to BC, used in secular academic contexts
- **CE**: Common Era — equivalent to AD, used in secular academic contexts
- **Bronze Age**: Period characterized by bronze metallurgy (~3300–1200 BCE in the Near East)
- **Iron Age**: Period following the Bronze Age, characterized by iron technology (~1200–~500 BCE)
- **Archaic Period**: Early phase of Greek civilization (~800–480 BCE)
- **Classical Period**: Height of Greek civilization (~480–323 BCE)
- **Hellenistic Period**: Post-Alexander era of Greek cultural diffusion (323–30 BCE)

## Political Terms
- **Polis**: Greek city-state, the fundamental political unit of ancient Greece
- **Satrapy**: Provincial administrative unit of the Persian Empire, governed by a satrap
- **Principate**: First phase of the Roman Empire (27 BCE–284 CE), maintaining republican facades
- **Dominate**: Later phase of the Roman Empire (284–476 CE), openly autocratic
- **Foederati**: Barbarian groups settled within the Roman Empire under treaty obligations

## Cultural Terms
- **Cuneiform**: Wedge-shaped writing system of Mesopotamia
- **Hieroglyphics**: Pictorial writing system of ancient Egypt
- **Linear A**: Undeciphered Minoan script
- **Linear B**: Deciphered Mycenaean Greek script
- **Koine Greek**: Common dialect of Greek used across the Hellenistic world

## Archaeological Terms
- **Tell/Tel**: Artificial mound formed by accumulated remains of ancient settlements
- **Stele/Stela**: Upright stone slab used for commemorative or legal inscriptions
- **Ziggurat**: Stepped temple platform in Mesopotamian architecture
- **Necropolis**: Large ancient cemetery ("city of the dead")
---

## Review Queue

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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 24: "**Hieroglyphics**: Pictorial writing system of ancient Egypt" - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 24: "**Hieroglyphics**: Pictorial writing system of ancient Egypt" - what is the source?
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 25: "**Linear A**: Undeciphered Minoan script" - what is the source?
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 33: "**Necropolis**: Large ancient cemetery ("city of the dead")" - what is the source?
  > 


id: 31de03
repo_id: main
file_path: legal-codes/code-of-hammurabi.md
file_hash: 9a191080091825fee33111afb601e373f2a0c82b8d7be4bcb7b1c2e6f5b687ed
title: Code of Hammurabi
doc_type: legal-code
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.819144746+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.517152130+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:31de03 -->
# Code of Hammurabi

# Code of Hammurabi

## Overview
The Code of Hammurabi (~1754 BCE) is one of the most complete and well-known ancient legal codes, inscribed on a basalt stele and containing 282 laws governing Babylonian society.

## Key Facts
- Date: ~1754 BCE
- Issuer: Hammurabi, King of Babylon
- Language: Akkadian (Babylonian dialect)
- Medium: Basalt stele, 2.25 m tall
- Current location: Louvre Museum, Paris (discovered at Susa, 1901)

## Structure
- Prologue: Hammurabi as divinely appointed shepherd of his people
- 282 laws organized by topic
- Epilogue: Blessings for those who uphold the laws, curses for those who deface the stele [^1]

## Legal Principles
- *Lex talionis*: "An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth" (with class-based modifications)
- Three social classes: *awilum* (free), *mushkenum* (dependent), *wardum* (slave)
- Covers: Property, trade, family law, labor, personal injury, agriculture
- Presumption of innocence in some cases; trial by ordeal in others [^2]

## Significance
- Not the earliest code (preceded by Code of Ur-Nammu) but the most complete
- Provides detailed picture of Old Babylonian society
- Influenced later Near Eastern legal traditions

---
[^1]: Roth, M.T. *Law Collections from Mesopotamia and Asia Minor* (1997)
[^2]: Driver, G.R. & Miles, J.C. *The Babylonian Laws* (Oxford, 1952–1955)


id: 5a1717
repo_id: main
file_path: legal-codes/code-of-ur-nammu.md
file_hash: b0c3f7d0dfbdf39d3d73f69df43bd9e65bcae350e20b59ce68392c728568bbc1
title: Code of Ur-Nammu
doc_type: legal-code
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.819144746+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.518373407+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:5a1717 -->
# Code of Ur-Nammu

# Code of Ur-Nammu

## Overview
The Code of Ur-Nammu (~2100–2050 BCE) is the oldest known legal code, predating the Code of Hammurabi by ~300 years. It was issued by Ur-Nammu (or his son Shulgi) of the Third Dynasty of Ur.

## Key Facts
- Date: ~2100–2050 BCE
- Issuer: Ur-Nammu or Shulgi, Third Dynasty of Ur
- Language: Sumerian
- Discovered: Fragments found at Nippur and Ur

## Content
- Prologue establishes the king as agent of divine justice
- ~30 surviving laws (originally more)
- Covers: Bodily injury, robbery, sexual offenses, marriage, slavery, agricultural disputes
- Uses monetary compensation (fines) rather than *lex talionis* ("eye for an eye") [^1]

## Significance
- Oldest known legal code, predating Hammurabi by ~300 years
- Shows that Sumerian legal tradition favored fines over physical punishment
- Demonstrates sophisticated legal thinking in the 3rd millennium BCE [^2]

---
[^1]: Roth, M.T. *Law Collections from Mesopotamia and Asia Minor* (1997)
[^2]: Kramer, S.N. "Ur-Nammu Law Code" *Orientalia* 23 (1954)
---

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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 13: "Discovered: Fragments found at Nippur and Ur" - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 17: "~30 surviving laws (originally more)" - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 23: "Shows that Sumerian legal tradition favored fines over physical punishment" - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 24: "Demonstrates sophisticated legal thinking in the 3rd millennium BCE [^2]" - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 17: "~30 surviving laws (originally more)" - what is the source?
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 22: "Oldest known legal code, predating Hammurabi by ~300 years" - what is the source?
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 23: "Shows that Sumerian legal tradition favored fines over physical punishment" - what is the source?
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- [ ] `@q[stale]` Line 19: "Uses monetary compensation (fines) rather than *lex talionis* ("eye for an ey..." - Roth source from 1997 may be outdated, is this still accurate?
  > 

- [ ] `@q[stale]` Line 24: "Demonstrates sophisticated legal thinking in the 3rd millennium BCE [^2]" - Kramer source from 1954 may be outdated, is this still accurate?
  > 


id: 6beab6
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file_path: legal-codes/twelve-tables.md
file_hash: 3ffc72f0e31f0215e8bc569ea309ab1977af4708c600014e2fe7893c4eddd0d9
title: Twelve Tables
doc_type: legal-code
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.819144746+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.519517045+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:6beab6 -->
# Twelve Tables

# Twelve Tables

## Overview
The Twelve Tables (~451–450 BCE) were the foundation of Roman law, the first written legal code of the Roman Republic. They were created in response to plebeian demands for publicly accessible laws.

## Key Facts
- Date: ~451–450 BCE
- Issuer: Decemviri (commission of ten men)
- Language: Archaic Latin
- Context: Conflict of the Orders between patricians and plebeians

## Content
- Originally inscribed on twelve bronze tablets displayed in the Roman Forum
- Covered: Court procedure, debt, family law, property, inheritance, torts, public law [^1]
- Established legal equality (in principle) between patricians and plebeians
- Prohibited intermarriage between classes (later repealed by *Lex Canuleia*, 445 BCE)

## Significance
- Foundation of all subsequent Roman law (*ius civile*)
- First written Roman law, ending patrician monopoly on legal interpretation
- Roman schoolchildren memorized them for centuries
- Original tablets lost (possibly in the Gallic sack of Rome, 390 BCE) [^2]
- Survived through quotations in later Roman legal and literary sources

---
[^1]: Crawford, M.H. *Roman Statutes* (1996)
[^2]: Watson, A. *Rome of the XII Tables* (Princeton, 1975)


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file_path: religions/ancient-egyptian-religion.md
file_hash: aa256121a2d8b084308c8d4e80b6c9d217bb6303565389a1319fdb40236aaa77
title: Ancient Egyptian Religion
doc_type: religion
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:40:11.605594308+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.520650364+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:9f0b6a -->
# Ancient Egyptian Religion

# Ancient Egyptian Religion

## Overview
Ancient Egyptian religion was a complex polytheistic system practiced for over 3,000 years, centered on maintaining *ma'at* (cosmic order) through ritual, temple worship, and funerary practices.

## Key Facts
- Period: ~3100 BCE – ~400 CE (suppressed under Christianity)
- Type: Polytheistic with henotheistic tendencies
- Sacred texts: Pyramid Texts, Coffin Texts, Book of the Dead
- Priesthood: Temple-based, pharaoh as chief intermediary with the gods

## Major Deities
- Ra/Amun-Ra: Sun god, king of the gods
- Osiris: God of the dead and resurrection
- Isis: Goddess of magic and motherhood
- Horus: Sky god, divine kingship
- Anubis: God of mummification
- Thoth: God of writing and wisdom [^1]

## Key Concepts
- *Ma'at*: Cosmic order, truth, and justice
- *Ka* and *Ba*: Aspects of the soul
- Afterlife: Judgment by Osiris, weighing of the heart against the feather of Ma'at
- Mummification: Preservation of the body for the afterlife

## Atenism
Pharaoh Akhenaten (~1353–1336 BCE) briefly imposed monotheistic worship of the Aten (sun disk), suppressing other cults. Reversed after his death [^2].

---
[^1]: Wilkinson, R. *The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt* (2003)
[^2]: Assmann, J. *The Search for God in Ancient Egypt* (Cornell, 2001)


id: 459036
repo_id: main
file_path: religions/early-christianity.md
file_hash: b8163d065db3745d355aebb3c355900291df716b7726447633f6801968c9246c
title: Early Christianity
doc_type: religion
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:40:11.605594308+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.521885677+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:459036 -->
# Early Christianity

# Early Christianity

## Overview
Early Christianity emerged in the 1st century CE as a Jewish sect in Roman Judaea, growing into a major religion across the Roman Empire before becoming the state religion under Theodosius I in 380 CE. @t[=380]

## Key Facts
- Origin: Roman Judaea, ~30 CE
- Founder: Jesus of Nazareth (~4 BCE – ~30 CE)
- Key figures: Paul of Tarsus, Peter, James
- Sacred texts: New Testament (written ~50–120 CE)
- State religion of Rome: 380 CE (Edict of Thessalonica) @t[=380]

## Spread and Development
- Paul's missionary journeys (~46–60 CE) spread Christianity across the eastern Mediterranean [^1]
- Persecutions under Nero (64 CE), Decius (250 CE), Diocletian (303–311 CE)
- Edict of Milan (313 CE): Constantine legalized Christianity @t[=313]
- Council of Nicaea (325 CE): First ecumenical council, established the Nicene Creed @t[=325]
- Edict of Thessalonica (380 CE): Christianity became the state religion @t[=380]

## Key Theological Developments
- Christological debates: Nature of Christ (Council of Nicaea, Chalcedon)
- Canon formation: New Testament canon largely settled by ~4th century CE
- Monasticism: Desert Fathers in Egypt (~3rd–4th century CE) [^2]

---
[^1]: Ehrman, B. *The New Testament: A Historical Introduction* (Oxford, 2016)
[^2]: Brown, P. *The Rise of Western Christendom* (Blackwell, 2003)


id: 072273
repo_id: main
file_path: religions/greek-religion.md
file_hash: 1b3378f32373a7a62e5ba0cea982d71b7cea2534199aad84a17e6a66d451ab95
title: Greek Religion
doc_type: religion
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:40:11.605594308+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.523039350+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:072273 -->
# Greek Religion

# Greek Religion

## Overview
Ancient Greek religion was a polytheistic system centered on the Olympian gods, practiced through public festivals, sacrifices, oracles, and mystery cults from the Archaic through Hellenistic periods.

## Key Facts
- Period: ~800 BCE – ~400 CE (suppressed under Christianity)
- Type: Polytheistic
- Sacred sites: Olympia, Delphi, Eleusis, Delos
- Key texts: Homer's *Iliad* and *Odyssey*, Hesiod's *Theogony*

## The Olympian Gods
- Zeus: King of the gods, sky and thunder
- Hera: Queen of the gods, marriage
- Athena: Wisdom and warfare
- Apollo: Sun, music, prophecy
- Artemis: Hunt and wilderness
- Poseidon: Sea and earthquakes
- Aphrodite: Love and beauty
- Ares, Hermes, Hephaestus, Demeter, Dionysus [^1]

## Religious Practices
- Animal sacrifice at altars
- Panhellenic festivals: Olympic Games (776 BCE–), Pythian Games, Eleusinian Mysteries
- Oracle at Delphi: Pythia delivered prophecies from Apollo
- Mystery cults: Eleusinian Mysteries, Orphic mysteries, Dionysiac rites [^2]

---
[^1]: Burkert, W. *Greek Religion* (Harvard, 1985)
[^2]: Mikalson, J. *Ancient Greek Religion* (Blackwell, 2010)


id: 5dccc5
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file_path: religions/mesopotamian-religion.md
file_hash: a6c398ba91844db5fc167c3a623da15180b41946c80230f91b14202fd3c4e096
title: Mesopotamian Religion
doc_type: religion
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:40:11.605594308+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.541662449+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:5dccc5 -->
# Mesopotamian Religion

# Mesopotamian Religion

## Overview
Mesopotamian religion was the polytheistic belief system of Sumer, Akkad, Babylonia, and Assyria, practiced from ~4000 BCE until supplanted by Christianity and Islam. It profoundly influenced later Near Eastern religions.

## Key Facts
- Period: ~4000 BCE – ~100 CE
- Type: Polytheistic
- Sacred sites: Ziggurats in every major city
- Key texts: *Enuma Elish* (creation epic), *Epic of Gilgamesh*, *Descent of Inanna*

## Major Deities
- An/Anu: Sky god, father of the gods
- Enlil: God of wind and storms, chief deity of Nippur
- Enki/Ea: God of wisdom and fresh water
- Inanna/Ishtar: Goddess of love, war, and fertility
- Marduk: Patron god of Babylon, supreme deity in the *Enuma Elish*
- Shamash/Utu: Sun god and god of justice [^1]

## Key Concepts
- Ziggurats: Temple platforms connecting heaven and earth
- Divination: Extispicy (reading entrails), astrology, dream interpretation
- Flood narrative: Utnapishtim in the *Epic of Gilgamesh* (parallels Noah) [^2]
- Afterlife: Gloomy underworld (*Kur*/*Irkalla*) for all, regardless of virtue

---
[^1]: Bottéro, J. *Religion in Ancient Mesopotamia* (University of Chicago Press, 2001)
[^2]: Dalley, S. *Myths from Mesopotamia* (Oxford, 2000)


id: 70f24f
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file_path: religions/roman-religion.md
file_hash: 1a0ae86f7f0a34640338057f243e4eb13c6cb52a1b081393a8ac1a47ff76b756
title: Roman Religion
doc_type: religion
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indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.542995273+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:70f24f -->
# Roman Religion

# Roman Religion

## Overview
Roman religion was a polytheistic system that evolved from early Italic and Etruscan traditions, heavily influenced by Greek religion, and centered on state ritual, augury, and the maintenance of *pax deorum* (peace with the gods).

## Key Facts
- Period: ~8th century BCE – ~4th century CE (suppressed under Christianity)
- Type: Polytheistic, with later imperial cult
- Key institutions: Pontifex Maximus, Vestal Virgins, College of Augurs
- Influenced by: Etruscan religion, Greek religion

## Major Deities
- Jupiter: King of the gods (Greek Zeus)
- Juno: Queen of the gods (Greek Hera)
- Mars: God of war (Greek Ares), father of Romulus
- Minerva: Goddess of wisdom (Greek Athena)
- Venus: Goddess of love (Greek Aphrodite), ancestor of the Julian family
- Neptune, Mercury, Diana, Apollo, Vulcan, Ceres [^1]

## Key Practices
- Augury: Reading divine will through bird flight, entrails, and omens
- Vestal Virgins: Six priestesses maintaining the sacred flame of Vesta
- Imperial cult: Deification of emperors beginning with Julius Caesar (42 BCE)
- *Religio*: Proper observance of ritual obligations to maintain divine favor [^2]

## Mystery Cults
- Cult of Isis (from Egypt)
- Mithraism (from Persia, popular with soldiers)
- Cult of Cybele (from Anatolia)

---
[^1]: Beard, M. et al. *Religions of Rome* (Cambridge, 1998)
[^2]: Scheid, J. *An Introduction to Roman Religion* (Indiana, 2003)
---

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id: 78e9e7
repo_id: main
file_path: religions/zoroastrianism.md
file_hash: ece6019ea62f0d5ee4a9774f87e46dcdf71531b064411194a6e76794169fbe0d
title: Zoroastrianism
doc_type: religion
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:40:11.605594308+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.544199519+00:00
content:
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# Zoroastrianism

# Zoroastrianism

## Overview
Zoroastrianism is one of the world's oldest monotheistic religions, founded by the prophet Zoroaster (Zarathustra) in ancient Iran. It was the state religion of the Achaemenid, Parthian, and Sasanian empires.

## Key Facts
- Founded by: Zoroaster (Zarathustra), date debated (~1500–1000 BCE or ~600 BCE)
- Region of origin: Eastern Iran or Central Asia
- Sacred text: *Avesta*, including the *Gathas* (hymns attributed to Zoroaster)
- Supreme deity: Ahura Mazda ("Wise Lord")

## Core Beliefs
- Cosmic dualism: Ahura Mazda (good) vs. Angra Mainyu (evil)
- Ethical triad: Good thoughts, good words, good deeds
- Eschatology: Final judgment, resurrection, and triumph of good over evil
- Sacred fire as symbol of truth and righteousness [^1]

## Historical Influence
- State religion of the Achaemenid Empire (550–330 BCE)
- Influenced Judaism, Christianity, and Islam (concepts of heaven/hell, angels, final judgment) [^2]
- Declined after the Arab conquest of Iran (651 CE)
- Surviving communities: Parsis in India, Zoroastrians in Iran (~100,000–200,000 worldwide)

---
[^1]: Boyce, M. *Zoroastrians: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices* (Routledge, 2001)
[^2]: Clark, P. *Zoroastrianism: An Introduction to an Ancient Faith* (1998)


id: 817dc2
repo_id: main
file_path: rulers/alexander-the-great.md
file_hash: 1add6782c047891abbd01f5495af965c458625206a9900d2cf432361b3448d3f
title: Alexander the Great
doc_type: ruler
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:37:34.956971857+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.545384813+00:00
content:
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# Alexander the Great

# Alexander the Great

## Overview
Alexander III of Macedon (356–323 BCE), known as Alexander the Great, conquered the Persian Empire and created one of the largest empires in ancient history, spreading Greek culture from Egypt to India.

## Key Facts
- Born: 356 BCE, Pella, Macedon
- Died: 323 BCE, Babylon (age 32)
- Reign: 336–323 BCE
- Father: Philip II of Macedon
- Tutor: Aristotle

## Major Campaigns
- Battle of Granicus (334 BCE): First victory against Persia in Anatolia
- Battle of Issus (333 BCE): Defeated Darius III
- Siege of Tyre (332 BCE): Seven-month siege of the island city
- Battle of Gaugamela (331 BCE): Decisive defeat of the Persian Empire [^1]
- Indian campaign (327–325 BCE): Defeated King Porus at the Hydaspes

## Legacy
- Founded over 20 cities, most notably Alexandria in Egypt
- Spread Hellenistic culture across the Near East and Central Asia
- Empire divided among his generals (Diadochi) after his death [^2]
- Ptolemaic Egypt, Seleucid Empire, and Antigonid Macedon emerged as successor states

---
[^1]: Arrian, *Anabasis of Alexander*
[^2]: Green, P. *Alexander of Macedon* (University of California Press, 1991)


id: 06d51f
repo_id: main
file_path: rulers/ashoka.md
file_hash: e1b6b18d83c69785a2f98cba0375223f2617cbe8fe65ef95d307696e576edb21
title: Ashoka
doc_type: ruler
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:37:34.957971861+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.546516728+00:00
content:
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# Ashoka

# Ashoka

## Overview
Ashoka (~304–232 BCE) was the third Maurya emperor who, after the bloody conquest of Kalinga, converted to Buddhism and promoted non-violence through rock and pillar edicts across the Indian subcontinent.

## Key Facts
- Born: ~304 BCE, Pataliputra
- Died: ~232 BCE
- Reign: ~268–232 BCE
- Dynasty: Maurya
- Religion: Buddhism (after Kalinga War)

## The Kalinga War
- Conquered Kalinga (~262 BCE) with devastating casualties (~100,000 killed, 150,000 deported per his own edicts)
- The carnage prompted his conversion to Buddhism [^1]

## Ashoka's Edicts
- Rock and pillar edicts erected across the empire in Prakrit, Greek, and Aramaic
- Promoted *dhamma* (dharma): Non-violence, religious tolerance, welfare of subjects
- Established hospitals for humans and animals
- Sent Buddhist missionaries to Sri Lanka, Central Asia, and the Hellenistic world [^2]

## Legacy
- The Ashoka Chakra appears on India's national flag
- Lion Capital of Ashoka at Sarnath is India's national emblem
- Rediscovered by James Prinsep who deciphered Brahmi script in 1837

---
[^1]: Thapar, R. *Aśoka and the Decline of the Mauryas* (Oxford, 1961)
[^2]: Singh, U. *A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India* (2008)
---

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id: 4fb0a1
repo_id: main
file_path: rulers/augustus.md
file_hash: 9dad609bcbb75a1c0bd23c2e0be02f50e2b9672859b161658ed748aeca088b18
title: Augustus
doc_type: ruler
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:37:34.956971857+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.547667678+00:00
content:
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# Augustus

# Augustus

## Overview
Augustus (63 BCE – 14 CE), born Gaius Octavius, was the first Roman emperor. He transformed Rome from a republic into an empire and inaugurated the Pax Romana.

## Key Facts
- Born: 23 September 63 BCE, Rome
- Died: 19 August 14 CE, Nola @t[=14]
- Reign: 27 BCE – 14 CE
- Original name: Gaius Octavius; adopted as Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus
- Title: Augustus ("the revered one"), granted 27 BCE

## Rise to Power
- Adopted heir of Julius Caesar (44 BCE)
- Second Triumvirate with Mark Antony and Lepidus (43 BCE)
- Battle of Actium (31 BCE): Defeated Antony and Cleopatra [^1]
- Senate granted him the title Augustus (27 BCE), marking the start of the Principate

## Achievements
- Pax Romana: Inaugurated ~200 years of relative peace
- Administrative reforms: Professionalized the army, created the Praetorian Guard
- Building program: "Found Rome a city of brick and left it a city of marble" [^2]
- Established the imperial succession system
- Month of August named after him

---
[^1]: Suetonius, *The Twelve Caesars*
[^2]: Everitt, A. *Augustus: The Life of Rome's First Emperor* (2006)


id: 801168
repo_id: main
file_path: rulers/cyrus-the-great.md
file_hash: 58b9c6158edb7bc9456faac6d4c1d6d10b9a0a5368f7c57c70e9d4ed9cbb41cc
title: Cyrus the Great
doc_type: ruler
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:37:34.956971857+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.548826973+00:00
content:
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# Cyrus the Great

# Cyrus the Great

## Overview
Cyrus II of Persia (~600–530 BCE), known as Cyrus the Great, founded the Achaemenid Persian Empire and is celebrated for his tolerance toward conquered peoples.

## Key Facts
- Born: ~600 BCE, Anshan (modern Iran)
- Died: ~530 BCE (in battle against the Massagetae)
- Reign: ~559–530 BCE
- Title: King of Kings, King of Anshan, King of Persia, King of Babylon

## Conquests
- Defeated the Medes under Astyages (~550 BCE)
- Conquered Lydia and captured Croesus (~547 BCE)
- Conquered Babylon (539 BCE) — reportedly entered without a battle [^1]
- Freed the Jews from Babylonian captivity, allowing return to Jerusalem

## Legacy
- Cyrus Cylinder: Clay cylinder declaring his policies of tolerance and restoration [^2]
- Respected by Greeks (Xenophon's *Cyropaedia*), Jews (called "messiah" in Isaiah 45:1), and Persians
- Tomb at Pasargadae still stands
- Founded the largest empire the world had yet seen

---
[^1]: Kuhrt, A. *The Persian Empire* (Routledge, 2007)
[^2]: British Museum, "The Cyrus Cylinder" (BM 90920)


id: 25cc1e
repo_id: main
file_path: rulers/hammurabi.md
file_hash: 1066da636ecda144199f8d1ee25a97605921176b94f553a22a9777f1f325ab5d
title: Hammurabi
doc_type: ruler
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:37:34.956971857+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.549979074+00:00
content:
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# Hammurabi

# Hammurabi

## Overview
Hammurabi (~1792–1750 BCE) was the sixth king of the First Babylonian Dynasty who transformed Babylon from a minor city-state into the dominant power in Mesopotamia. He is best known for the Code of Hammurabi.

## Key Facts
- Reign: ~1792–1750 BCE
- Title: King of Babylon
- Capital: Babylon
- Dynasty: First Dynasty of Babylon (Amorite)

## Achievements
- Unified most of Mesopotamia through diplomacy and military conquest
- Issued the Code of Hammurabi (~1754 BCE): 282 laws inscribed on a basalt stele [^1]
- Improved irrigation systems and infrastructure
- Established Marduk as the supreme deity of Babylon

## The Code of Hammurabi
- 282 laws covering property, trade, family, labor, and criminal matters
- Principle of *lex talionis* ("an eye for an eye") with class-based distinctions
- Stele discovered at Susa in 1901, now in the Louvre [^2]
- Not the earliest code (preceded by Code of Ur-Nammu) but the most complete

---
[^1]: Roth, M.T. *Law Collections from Mesopotamia and Asia Minor* (1997)
[^2]: Harper, R.F. *The Code of Hammurabi* (1904)
---

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id: 5f1362
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file_path: rulers/julius-caesar.md
file_hash: 902473e19add6f5442c28d0a073b15b6a6bbb4e7c528370297db7515f0e9f9ba
title: Julius Caesar
doc_type: ruler
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:37:34.956971857+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.551119836+00:00
content:
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# Julius Caesar

# Julius Caesar

## Overview
Gaius Julius Caesar (100–44 BCE) was a Roman general, statesman, and dictator whose conquest of Gaul and crossing of the Rubicon precipitated the end of the Roman Republic.

## Key Facts
- Born: 100 BCE, Rome
- Died: 15 March 44 BCE, Rome (assassinated)
- Offices: Consul (59 BCE), Dictator perpetuo (44 BCE)
- Military: Conquered Gaul (58–50 BCE)

## Major Events
- Gallic Wars (58–50 BCE): Conquered Gaul, invaded Britain [^1]
- First Triumvirate: Alliance with Pompey and Crassus (60 BCE)
- Crossing the Rubicon (49 BCE): Triggered civil war against Pompey
- Battle of Pharsalus (48 BCE): Defeated Pompey
- Appointed dictator perpetuo (February 44 BCE)
- Assassinated on the Ides of March (15 March 44 BCE) by Brutus, Cassius, and other senators [^2]

## Legacy
- Julian calendar reform (46 BCE)
- Granted citizenship to many provincials
- His adopted heir Octavian became Augustus, first Roman emperor
- Month of July named after him

---
[^1]: Caesar, *Commentarii de Bello Gallico*
[^2]: Goldsworthy, A. *Caesar: Life of a Colossus* (Yale, 2006)


id: 0648e6
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file_path: rulers/pericles.md
file_hash: 14d88bfd2c45a4c74f52fbce28475dc3004c147befcde2166cf452d25a72d4e2
title: Pericles
doc_type: ruler
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:37:34.957971861+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.553220088+00:00
content:
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# Pericles

# Pericles

## Overview
Pericles (~495–429 BCE) was an Athenian statesman and general who led Athens during its Golden Age, championing democracy, arts, and the construction of the Parthenon.

## Key Facts
- Born: ~495 BCE, Athens
- Died: 429 BCE, Athens (plague)
- Role: Strategos (general), elected repeatedly ~443–429 BCE
- Political alignment: Democratic faction

## Achievements
- Expanded Athenian democracy: Introduced pay for jury service, opening participation to poorer citizens [^1]
- Commissioned the Parthenon and other Acropolis buildings (~447–432 BCE)
- Led the Delian League, transforming it into an Athenian empire
- Funeral Oration (431 BCE): Celebrated Athenian democracy and values [^2]

## Peloponnesian War
- His defensive strategy against Sparta (retreating behind the Long Walls) led to overcrowding
- Plague of Athens (430–426 BCE) killed ~25% of the population, including Pericles himself in 429 BCE

---
[^1]: Plutarch, *Life of Pericles*
[^2]: Thucydides, *History of the Peloponnesian War* 2.35–46


id: 68ae1b
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file_path: rulers/qin-shi-huang.md
file_hash: 4dee8d614a832a0c7725ed7da7e6e00c94e453c3c6f2b0f3c2b9109cb503be86
title: Qin Shi Huang
doc_type: ruler
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:37:34.957971861+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:05.554368960+00:00
content:
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# Qin Shi Huang

# Qin Shi Huang

## Overview
Qin Shi Huang (259–210 BCE) was the first emperor of a unified China, founding the Qin dynasty and establishing centralized imperial governance that would endure for over two millennia.

## Key Facts
- Born: 259 BCE, State of Zhao
- Died: 210 BCE (age 49)
- Reign as emperor: 221–210 BCE
- Original name: Ying Zheng
- Dynasty: Qin

## Achievements
- Unified the Warring States into a single empire (221 BCE) [^1]
- Standardized weights, measures, currency, and writing across China
- Began construction of the Great Wall by linking existing fortifications
- Built an extensive road and canal network
- Terracotta Army: ~8,000 life-sized warrior figures guarding his mausoleum, discovered 1974 [^2]

## Controversies
- Burning of books and burying of scholars (~213–212 BCE)
- Harsh Legalist governance
- Massive forced labor for construction projects

## Legacy
The Qin dynasty collapsed shortly after his death (206 BCE), but his unification model was adopted by the succeeding Han dynasty.

---
[^1]: Sima Qian, *Records of the Grand Historian* (*Shiji*)
[^2]: Portal, J. *The First Emperor: China's Terracotta Army* (British Museum, 2007)


id: 009548
repo_id: main
file_path: rulers/ramesses-ii.md
file_hash: 953c087c7779949afa2531a8794d18e0dcccf474b92967e75d6f5793531a20f6
title: Ramesses II
doc_type: ruler
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:37:34.956971857+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:09.202695336+00:00
content:
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# Ramesses II

# Ramesses II

## Overview
Ramesses II (~1279–1213 BCE), also known as Ramesses the Great, was the third pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt and one of the most powerful and celebrated rulers of ancient Egypt.

## Key Facts
- Reign: ~1279–1213 BCE (66 years, one of the longest in Egyptian history)
- Dynasty: 19th Dynasty, New Kingdom
- Capital: Pi-Ramesses (Nile Delta)
- Died: ~age 90

## Major Events
- Battle of Kadesh (~1274 BCE): Fought the Hittites under Muwatalli II; indecisive but claimed as victory [^1]
- Treaty of Kadesh (~1259 BCE): Signed peace with Hittite king Hattusili III
- Built Abu Simbel temples in Nubia
- Expanded Karnak and Luxor temples
- Completed the hypostyle hall at Karnak

## Legacy
- Fathered over 100 children
- His mummy was discovered in the Deir el-Bahari cache (1881) [^2]
- Often identified (controversially) with the pharaoh of the Exodus narrative
- Nine subsequent pharaohs took the name Ramesses

---
[^1]: Kitchen, K.A. *Pharaoh Triumphant: The Life and Times of Ramesses II* (1982)
[^2]: Tyldesley, J. *Ramesses: Egypt's Greatest Pharaoh* (2000)
---

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- [ ] `@q[stale]` Line 24: "His mummy was discovered in the Deir el-Bahari cache (1881) [^2]" - Tyldesley source from 2000 may be outdated, is this still accurate?
  > 


id: e55b29
repo_id: main
file_path: rulers/sargon-of-akkad.md
file_hash: e4e91e415c5ffcc53479139f05a01e0607e1d845671a9f6f9986bd0c83c809a8
title: Sargon of Akkad
doc_type: ruler
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:37:34.956971857+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:09.205746825+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:e55b29 -->
# Sargon of Akkad

# Sargon of Akkad

## Overview
Sargon of Akkad (~2334–2279 BCE) founded the Akkadian Empire, the first empire in recorded history. His rise from humble origins to ruler of all Mesopotamia became legendary.

## Key Facts
- Reign: ~2334–2279 BCE
- Title: King of Akkad, King of Kish, King of the Four Quarters
- Capital: Akkad (location undiscovered)
- Empire: United Sumerian and Akkadian city-states

## Life and Reign
- Birth legend: Set adrift in a basket on the Euphrates as an infant (parallels Moses narrative) [^1]
- Rose to power as cupbearer to the King of Kish
- Conquered Lugal-zage-si of Uruk, unifying Sumer
- Conducted military campaigns from the Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf
- Appointed his daughter Enheduanna as high priestess of Ur — she became the first named author in history [^2]

## Legacy
Sargon became a legendary figure in Mesopotamian tradition, with later kings modeling themselves after him.

---
[^1]: Westenholz, J.G. *Legends of the Kings of Akkade* (1997)
[^2]: Hallo, W.W. & van Dijk, J.J.A. *The Exaltation of Inanna* (1968)
---

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  > 


id: 543601
repo_id: main
file_path: technologies/bronze-working.md
file_hash: eb9f01761927cbd5f104ebfad1b3de4a19621a25cb83dda6aca6ca1cfffcc754
title: Bronze Working
doc_type: technologie
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.813144722+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:09.208219698+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:543601 -->
# Bronze Working

# Bronze Working

## Overview
Bronze working — the alloying of copper with tin — defined the Bronze Age (~3300–1200 BCE) and enabled advances in weaponry, tools, and art across Eurasia.

## Key Facts
- Period: ~3300–1200 BCE (Bronze Age)
- Composition: ~88% copper, ~12% tin
- Earliest bronze: Mesopotamia and the Caucasus, ~3300 BCE
- Spread to: Egypt, Indus Valley, China, Europe

## Development
- Copper smelting preceded bronze by ~2,000 years (Chalcolithic period)
- Tin was scarce; long-distance trade networks developed to source it (Cornwall, Afghanistan, Southeast Asia) [^1]
- Lost-wax casting technique enabled complex shapes
- Chinese bronze casting (Shang dynasty, ~1600 BCE) achieved exceptional sophistication [^2]

## Impact
- Superior weapons: Swords, spearheads, armor
- Agricultural tools: Plows, sickles
- Monumental art: Statuary, ritual vessels
- Drove long-distance trade networks for tin and copper

---
[^1]: Muhly, J.D. "Sources of Tin and the Beginnings of Bronze Metallurgy" *American Journal of Archaeology* 89 (1985)
[^2]: Bagley, R. *Shang Ritual Bronzes in the Arthur M. Sackler Collections* (1987)


id: c491ef
repo_id: main
file_path: technologies/iron-smelting.md
file_hash: 854edeb51a49e43e8bece42ee0e5395888bb530fe7f43e49eb1fe30bdb2fd10c
title: Iron Smelting
doc_type: technologie
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.813144722+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:09.210673980+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:c491ef -->
# Iron Smelting

# Iron Smelting

## Overview
The development of iron smelting technology (~1200 BCE onward) ushered in the Iron Age, making metal tools and weapons accessible beyond elite classes and transforming agriculture, warfare, and society.

## Key Facts
- Transition period: ~1200–800 BCE (varies by region)
- Earliest iron smelting: Anatolia (Hittites), ~1500 BCE (limited use)
- Widespread adoption: After the Bronze Age Collapse (~1200 BCE)
- Key innovation: Carburization (adding carbon to create steel)

## Development
- Meteoric iron used before smelting was developed
- Hittites may have been early innovators, though evidence is debated [^1]
- Iron became widespread after the Bronze Age Collapse disrupted tin trade routes
- Chinese independently developed cast iron by ~500 BCE (bloomery iron in the West until medieval period) [^2]

## Impact
- Democratized access to metal tools (iron ore is abundant, unlike tin)
- Improved agricultural productivity (iron plows)
- Transformed warfare (iron weapons, armor)
- Enabled deforestation and land clearing at scale

---
[^1]: Waldbaum, J. *From Bronze to Iron* (1978)
[^2]: Wagner, D. *Iron and Steel in Ancient China* (Brill, 1993)


id: dcee65
repo_id: main
file_path: technologies/roman-aqueducts.md
file_hash: 004334e58258172fb5da282ee4eab74327d5c02c30fe8371b50f78c9640e83bd
title: Roman Aqueducts
doc_type: technologie
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.814144726+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:09.213158861+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:dcee65 -->
# Roman Aqueducts

# Roman Aqueducts

## Overview
Roman aqueducts were engineering marvels that transported water over long distances using gravity, supplying cities with fresh water for drinking, bathing, and sanitation. Rome alone had 11 aqueducts delivering ~1 million cubic meters daily.

## Key Facts
- First Roman aqueduct: Aqua Appia (312 BCE)
- Total aqueducts serving Rome: 11 (by 226 CE)
- Combined length: ~500 km (mostly underground)
- Daily water delivery to Rome: ~1 million cubic meters [^1]

## Engineering
- Gravity-fed: Maintained a consistent gradient (~1:200 to 1:4800)
- Mostly underground channels; iconic arched bridges were only ~5% of total length
- Used *opus caementicium* (Roman concrete) and lead pipes (*fistulae*)
- Settling tanks and distribution castella regulated flow

## Notable Aqueducts
- Aqua Appia (312 BCE): First aqueduct, built by Appius Claudius Caecus
- Aqua Marcia (144 BCE): Longest at ~91 km
- Pont du Gard (France, ~19 BCE): Three-tiered bridge, 49 m high [^2]
- Aqueduct of Segovia (Spain, ~1st century CE): Still standing

---
[^1]: Frontinus, *De Aquaeductu Urbis Romae* (~97 CE)
[^2]: Hodge, A.T. *Roman Aqueducts and Water Supply* (2002)


id: eb53be
repo_id: main
file_path: technologies/roman-concrete.md
file_hash: fab2ef9df098080d6edc1c4d9ed65c79b13de61e55cfbc88114da83fbcece153
title: Roman Concrete
doc_type: technologie
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.815144730+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:09.215580765+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:eb53be -->
# Roman Concrete

# Roman Concrete

## Overview
Roman concrete (*opus caementicium*) was a revolutionary building material that enabled the construction of domes, vaults, harbors, and aqueducts. Its durability surpasses modern Portland cement in some marine applications.

## Key Facts
- Period of use: ~3rd century BCE – 5th century CE
- Composition: Volcanic ash (pozzolana), lime, seawater, and rock aggregate
- Key innovation: Pozzolanic reaction with volcanic ash

## Properties
- Set underwater (hydraulic cement) — critical for harbor construction
- Increased in strength over time through mineral crystallization [^1]
- Could be molded into complex shapes (domes, vaults)
- Less tensile strength than modern concrete but superior durability

## Notable Structures
- Pantheon dome (~125 CE): 43.3 m span, largest unreinforced concrete dome ever built
- Colosseum (~80 CE): Concrete core with travertine facing
- Harbors at Caesarea Maritima and Puteoli
- Baths of Caracalla and Diocletian [^2]

---
[^1]: Jackson, M. et al. "Mechanical resilience and cementitious processes in Imperial Roman architectural morite" *PNAS* 111 (2014)
[^2]: Lancaster, L. *Concrete Vaulted Construction in Imperial Rome* (Cambridge, 2005)


id: 11bfdd
repo_id: main
file_path: technologies/roman-roads.md
file_hash: c4a8d5e2846405c73000bb6cdbb07f3deef00e95233cbc83c3dcae30bb2ebead
title: Roman Roads
doc_type: technologie
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.814144726+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:09.218056250+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:11bfdd -->
# Roman Roads

# Roman Roads

## Overview
The Roman road network was one of the greatest engineering achievements of the ancient world, spanning ~400,000 km at its peak and enabling rapid military movement, trade, and communication across the empire.

## Key Facts
- Total network: ~400,000 km (80,000 km paved)
- First major road: Via Appia (312 BCE), Rome to Capua
- Construction: Layered system of gravel, sand, and paving stones
- Maintained by: State and local authorities

## Engineering
- Surveyed in straight lines where possible (*agrimensor* surveyors)
- Layered construction: Foundation (*statumen*), gravel (*rudus*), concrete (*nucleus*), paving (*summa crusta*) [^1]
- Drainage ditches on both sides
- Milestones (*miliaria*) every Roman mile (~1.48 km)

## Major Roads
- Via Appia (312 BCE): "Queen of Roads," Rome to Brindisi
- Via Egnatia (~146 BCE): Connected Adriatic to Byzantium
- Via Augusta: Spain
- Stane Street, Watling Street: Roman Britain [^2]

## Legacy
- "All roads lead to Rome" — the network radiated from the *Milliarium Aureum* in the Forum
- Many modern European roads follow Roman alignments

---
[^1]: Laurence, R. *The Roads of Roman Italy* (Routledge, 1999)
[^2]: Chevallier, R. *Roman Roads* (University of California Press, 1976)


id: 445d5a
repo_id: main
file_path: trade-routes/amber-road.md
file_hash: 559db3d622b95affdc0d78df77f9786df41266703cf859bf85b02cfaa5967e7b
title: Amber Road
doc_type: trade-route
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.819144746+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:09.220524367+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:445d5a -->
# Amber Road

# Amber Road

## Overview
The Amber Road was an ancient trade route connecting the Baltic Sea coast to the Mediterranean, primarily transporting amber from northern Europe to the civilizations of Greece, Rome, and Egypt.

## Key Facts
- Period: ~3000 BCE – Roman era
- Key good: Baltic amber (fossilized tree resin)
- Northern terminus: Baltic coast (modern Poland, Lithuania)
- Southern terminus: Adriatic (Aquileia), Greece, Egypt

## Route
- From the Baltic coast through the Vistula and Danube river corridors
- Key waypoints: Wroclaw, Brno, Carnuntum, Aquileia
- Connected to Mediterranean trade networks at the Adriatic [^1]

## Significance
- Baltic amber found in Mycenaean shaft graves (~1600 BCE) and Egyptian tombs
- Romans valued amber highly; Nero sent an expedition to the Baltic
- Facilitated cultural exchange between northern and southern Europe [^2]

---
[^1]: Bouzek, J. "The Amber Route" in *Greece, Anatolia and Europe* (1997)
[^2]: Causey, F. *Amber and the Ancient World* (Getty Museum, 2011)


id: aca285
repo_id: main
file_path: trade-routes/incense-route.md
file_hash: f0e847ca2f245b11aff7cdb239afb0c22f61f709705a4533e906888d4238334e
title: Incense Route
doc_type: trade-route
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.819144746+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:09.222847551+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:aca285 -->
# Incense Route

# Incense Route

## Overview
The Incense Route was a network of trade paths connecting the Arabian Peninsula to the Mediterranean, primarily transporting frankincense and myrrh from southern Arabia (modern Yemen and Oman) to markets in Egypt, Mesopotamia, Greece, and Rome.

## Key Facts
- Period: ~7th century BCE – ~2nd century CE
- Length: ~2,400 km (main overland route)
- Key goods: Frankincense, myrrh, spices, textiles
- Key peoples: Nabataeans, Sabaeans, Minaeans

## Route
- Southern terminus: Dhofar (Oman) and Hadhramaut (Yemen)
- Northern terminus: Gaza, Petra, Damascus
- Key waypoints: Shabwa, Ma'rib, Petra, Gaza [^1]

## Key Players
- Nabataeans: Controlled the northern segment from Petra; grew wealthy as middlemen
- Kingdom of Saba (Sheba): Controlled production in southern Arabia
- Romans: Attempted to conquer Arabia Felix under Aelius Gallus (25 BCE) but failed [^2]

## Decline
Declined after the Romans discovered monsoon wind patterns enabling direct sea trade with India (~1st century CE), bypassing overland routes.

---
[^1]: Avanzini, A. *Along the Aroma Routes* (2008)
[^2]: Hoyland, R. *Arabia and the Arabs* (Routledge, 2001)


id: c22a18
repo_id: main
file_path: trade-routes/silk-road.md
file_hash: c9e3a026a5f33e9db1d461c7d585e8f67bdee283eb1d4296fc228e2dcba9f652
title: Silk Road
doc_type: trade-route
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.815144730+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:09.225257681+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:c22a18 -->
# Silk Road

# Silk Road

## Overview
The Silk Road was a network of overland trade routes connecting China to the Mediterranean world, facilitating the exchange of goods, ideas, religions, and technologies for over 1,500 years.

## Key Facts
- Period: ~130 BCE – ~1450 CE (ancient period focus: ~130 BCE – ~400 CE)
- Length: ~6,400 km (main route)
- Named by: Ferdinand von Richthofen (1877)
- Key goods: Silk, spices, gold, glass, horses, precious stones

## Route
- Eastern terminus: Chang'an (Xi'an), China
- Western terminus: Rome, Antioch, Constantinople
- Key waypoints: Dunhuang, Kashgar, Samarkand, Merv, Ctesiphon, Palmyra
- Crossed the Taklamakan Desert, Pamir Mountains, and Iranian Plateau [^1]

## Cultural Exchange
- Buddhism spread from India to China via the Silk Road
- Nestorian Christianity, Manichaeism, and Islam traveled eastward
- Technologies transferred: Papermaking, gunpowder (later), glassmaking
- Diseases also spread, possibly including plague [^2]

## Key Periods
- Han dynasty (206 BCE – 220 CE): Zhang Qian's missions opened the route (~130 BCE)
- Kushan Empire (1st–3rd century CE): Facilitated trade across Central Asia
- Roman demand for Chinese silk drove trade westward

---
[^1]: Hansen, V. *The Silk Road: A New History* (Oxford, 2012)
[^2]: Frankopan, P. *The Silk Roads: A New History of the World* (2015)


id: d23a9f
repo_id: main
file_path: treaties/peace-of-nicias.md
file_hash: e07661a595ea41a564163f4cb289acc8c653a19b62dc80c2cc00131ec8e337ab
title: Peace of Nicias
doc_type: treatie
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:38:42.337230346+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:09.227720392+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:d23a9f -->
# Peace of Nicias

# Peace of Nicias

## Overview
The Peace of Nicias (421 BCE) was a treaty intended to end the first phase of the Peloponnesian War (the Archidamian War) between Athens and Sparta. It was supposed to last 50 years but effectively collapsed within a few years.

## Key Facts
- Date: 421 BCE
- Parties: Athens and Sparta (and their respective allies)
- Context: Ended the Archidamian War (431–421 BCE), first phase of the Peloponnesian War
- Duration: Nominally 50 years; effectively ~6 years

## Terms
- Return of prisoners and captured territories
- Mutual non-aggression for 50 years
- Disputes to be settled by arbitration [^1]

## Failure
- Key Spartan allies (Corinth, Boeotia) refused to sign
- Neither side fully implemented the terms
- Alcibiades undermined the peace by forming an anti-Spartan alliance
- The Sicilian Expedition (415–413 BCE) effectively ended any pretense of peace [^2]

---
[^1]: Thucydides, *History of the Peloponnesian War* 5.18–19
[^2]: Kagan, D. *The Peace of Nicias and the Sicilian Expedition* (Cornell, 1981)
---

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id: 7207df
repo_id: main
file_path: treaties/treaty-of-apamea.md
file_hash: 7fe2c239e6a0142ae12f2d0da2255c7117c4f7245c8f55acfd8d30b7fcedaf5c
title: Treaty of Apamea
doc_type: treatie
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:38:42.337230346+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:09.230089476+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:7207df -->
# Treaty of Apamea

# Treaty of Apamea

## Overview
The Treaty of Apamea (188 BCE) was imposed by Rome on the Seleucid Empire after the Roman-Seleucid War, effectively ending Seleucid power in Anatolia and establishing Roman dominance in the eastern Mediterranean.

## Key Facts
- Date: 188 BCE
- Parties: Roman Republic and Seleucid Empire (Antiochus III)
- Context: Followed the Battle of Magnesia (190 BCE)

## Terms
- Seleucids withdrew from all territory west of the Taurus Mountains
- Massive war indemnity of 15,000 talents of silver over 12 years
- Seleucid navy reduced to 10 warships; war elephants surrendered
- Territory redistributed to Rome's allies: Pergamon and Rhodes [^1]

## Significance
- Marked the end of Seleucid influence in Anatolia
- Established Rome as the dominant power in the eastern Mediterranean
- Weakened the Seleucid Empire, contributing to its eventual fragmentation [^2]

---
[^1]: Polybius, *Histories* 21.43
[^2]: Gruen, E. *The Hellenistic World and the Coming of Rome* (1984)


id: 07edd5
repo_id: main
file_path: treaties/treaty-of-kadesh.md
file_hash: fd776f4629fd346a6eb6aa9629dc57b6ff29b8b76879e63511b6b1b6520826f1
title: Treaty of Kadesh
doc_type: treatie
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:38:42.336230342+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:09.232430482+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:07edd5 -->
# Treaty of Kadesh

# Treaty of Kadesh

## Overview
The Treaty of Kadesh (~1259 BCE) between Egypt and the Hittite Empire is the earliest known international peace treaty. It ended decades of conflict between the two great Bronze Age powers.

## Key Facts
- Date: ~1259 BCE
- Parties: Egypt (Ramesses II) and Hittite Empire (Hattusili III)
- Context: Followed the Battle of Kadesh (~1274 BCE)
- Languages: Egyptian hieroglyphic and Akkadian cuneiform

## Terms
- Mutual non-aggression pact
- Defensive alliance against third-party attacks
- Extradition of political refugees (with humane treatment clause)
- Mutual recognition of borders in Syria [^1]

## Significance
- Earliest surviving international peace treaty
- A copy hangs in the United Nations headquarters in New York as a symbol of diplomacy
- Both Egyptian and Hittite versions survive (discovered at Karnak and Hattusa) [^2]
- Later sealed by a diplomatic marriage between Ramesses II and a Hittite princess

---
[^1]: Beckman, G. *Hittite Diplomatic Texts* (1999)
[^2]: Bryce, T. *Letters of the Great Kings of the Ancient Near East* (2003)


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repo_id: main
file_path: writing-systems/cuneiform.md
file_hash: 8c6c2591763e78f68e178fee759e484df7b117531c35648db8563c6d1bcfa023
title: Cuneiform
doc_type: writing-system
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.819144746+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:09.234829018+00:00
content:
<!-- factbase:f36cdb -->
# Cuneiform

# Cuneiform

## Overview
Cuneiform is the earliest known writing system, developed in Sumer ~3400 BCE. Written by pressing a reed stylus into wet clay tablets, it was used for over 3,000 years across multiple languages and civilizations.

## Key Facts
- Origin: Sumer, southern Mesopotamia, ~3400 BCE
- Medium: Clay tablets impressed with a wedge-shaped reed stylus
- Name: From Latin *cuneus* ("wedge")
- Languages written: Sumerian, Akkadian, Hittite, Elamite, Urartian, Old Persian
- Deciphered by: Henry Rawlinson, Edward Hincks, and others (~1840s–1850s) via the Behistun Inscription [^1]

## Development
- Began as pictographic/logographic system for accounting (~3400 BCE)
- Evolved into syllabic writing by ~2600 BCE
- ~600–1,000 signs in use at various periods
- Last known cuneiform tablet: 75 CE (astronomical text from Babylon) [^2]

## Significance
- Enabled record-keeping, literature, law, science, and diplomacy
- Preserved the *Epic of Gilgamesh*, Code of Hammurabi, and thousands of administrative records
- ~500,000 cuneiform tablets have been excavated; many remain untranslated

---
[^1]: Walker, C.B.F. *Cuneiform* (British Museum, 1987)
[^2]: Robson, E. *Mathematics in Ancient Iraq* (Princeton, 2008)


id: 68261c
repo_id: main
file_path: writing-systems/egyptian-hieroglyphics.md
file_hash: baae365ab8d86138598ebd52d4c8adcad5c1f49beff142978813556d199d9592
title: Egyptian Hieroglyphics
doc_type: writing-system
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.819144746+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:09.244465975+00:00
content:
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# Egyptian Hieroglyphics

# Egyptian Hieroglyphics

## Overview
Egyptian hieroglyphics were the formal writing system of ancient Egypt, used for ~3,500 years on monuments, temples, and tombs. Deciphered by Jean-François Champollion in 1822 using the Rosetta Stone.

## Key Facts
- Origin: ~3200 BCE (earliest examples from Abydos)
- Period of use: ~3200 BCE – ~400 CE
- Number of signs: ~700 in classical usage (expanded to ~5,000 in Ptolemaic period)
- Deciphered by: Jean-François Champollion (1822) using the Rosetta Stone [^1]

## System
- Combination of logographic, syllabic, and alphabetic elements
- Written left-to-right, right-to-left, or top-to-bottom (direction indicated by which way figures face)
- Hieratic: Cursive form for everyday use (~2600 BCE onward)
- Demotic: Later cursive form (~650 BCE onward)

## Key Artifacts
- Rosetta Stone (196 BCE): Trilingual decree (hieroglyphic, Demotic, Greek) that enabled decipherment [^2]
- Narmer Palette (~3100 BCE): Among the earliest hieroglyphic inscriptions
- Book of the Dead: Funerary texts with hieroglyphic illustrations

---
[^1]: Robinson, A. *Cracking the Egyptian Code* (Thames & Hudson, 2012)
[^2]: Parkinson, R. *The Rosetta Stone* (British Museum, 2005)


id: a94620
repo_id: main
file_path: writing-systems/phoenician-alphabet.md
file_hash: 25e32c2d99275be1dd92df46f85a05b3d942d64911fed7b6d9dea4eaca7d352a
title: Phoenician Alphabet
doc_type: writing-system
file_modified_at: 2026-02-22T20:42:25.819144746+00:00
indexed_at: 2026-02-22T20:43:09.246890631+00:00
content:
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# Phoenician Alphabet

# Phoenician Alphabet

## Overview
The Phoenician alphabet (~1050 BCE) was the first widely-used phonetic alphabet, consisting of 22 consonant letters. It is the ancestor of virtually all modern alphabets including Greek, Latin, Arabic, and Hebrew.

## Key Facts
- Origin: Phoenicia (modern Lebanon), ~1050 BCE
- Type: Abjad (consonantal alphabet, no vowels)
- Number of letters: 22
- Direction: Right to left
- Derived from: Proto-Sinaitic/Proto-Canaanite script (~1800 BCE) [^1]

## Descendants
- Greek alphabet (~800 BCE): Added vowels, adapted letter forms
- Aramaic alphabet: Ancestor of Hebrew, Arabic, Syriac, and many Asian scripts
- Latin alphabet (via Greek and Etruscan): Used by most of the modern world
- South Arabian script: Ancestor of Ethiopic (Ge'ez) [^2]

## Significance
- Simplified writing from hundreds of signs (cuneiform, hieroglyphics) to 22 letters
- Made literacy more accessible beyond scribal elites
- Spread across the Mediterranean through Phoenician trade networks

---
[^1]: Sass, B. *The Genesis of the Alphabet* (1988)
[^2]: Daniels, P.T. & Bright, W. *The World's Writing Systems* (Oxford, 1996)
---

## Review Queue

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