The Knights Templar were the first officially recognized Christian military order

Europe’s first universities emerged from medieval church school

The modern university can be traced back to the Middle Ages, when schools in Italy, France, and England initially trained clergy before expanding to include lay students. By the 10th and 11th centuries, they taught law, medicine, and theology across Europe.

The Middle Ages, the roughly 1,000-year period between the fall of Rome and the Renaissance, shaped the political and cultural foundations of modern Europe.

What was the Fourth Crusade?

Originally destined for Jerusalem, the Crusaders became entangled in a Byzantine civil war, and found themselves besieging the greatest city in Christendom. After breaching the sea walls and subjecting the city to the worst sack in its history, they installed a Flemish nobleman as Latin emperor of Constantinople.

The Illuminati were a real espionage society in the 1770s

Bavarian professor Adam Weishaupt founded the group in 1776 as an anti-clerical, anti-royalist sect that used hierarchy, codes, and surveillance as a proto-spy network. Within a decade, it was suppressed, but the mythology never quite died. Today, it functions as an adaptable conspiracy theory, able to fit any era's anxieties about who really holds power.

The First Amendment established religious freedom as a constitutional right—a safeguard no other nation had before

Europe had limited religious tolerance for centuries, but always as a privilege granted by rulers who could revoke it. The First Amendment in the United States was unique for the time: It banned the government from interfering with religion, making religious freedom a permanent constitutional limit on state power.

Modern swordsmen still are trying to figure out how medieval knights fought

There's no line of succession for the secrets to fighting like a medieval European knight. All the primary sources of information on the art are either dead or trapped in vague manuscripts. But that doesn't mean people aren't trying to piece the martial art back together. This article explores one group's attempt to revive the world of historical European martial arts.

Explore a map of Medieval Europe, which was a patchwork of hundreds of competing states.

For the medievals, the moon was a versatile religious symbol

Within the distinct traditions of Christianity and Islam, the moon became a central metaphor and sign for religious teaching. For Christians, its light was used to explain Jesus' humanity with the light of the sun (divinity). For Muslims, the moon represented a cosmic longing for god.

12th-century English monks claimed discovery of King Arthur's bones

The medieval legend of King Arthur and his Queen, Guinevere, is one of the most popular to endure into the modern era. The legend regularly evolved during the Middle Ages, as is seen in this story where a historian from King Henry the Second's court claims the bones of Arthur were discovered at Glastonbury Abbey.

Medieval monasteries preserved ancient knowledge through hand-copied books

Medieval monks and nuns lived in religious communities devoted to work and prayer. Still, their script-copying traditions had a lasting impact: through illuminated manuscripts, monasteries preserved hundreds of ancient texts that might have otherwise been lost.

Miracles versus magic: How early Christians distinguished their beliefs from pagan ones

This in-depth article describes how early Christians attempted to differentiate their beliefs and rituals from those that came before. One major difference? Demons. For pagans, demons could be good or bad, occupying the middle ground between gods...

Many early colonists came to America to escape religious persecution in Europe

Fleeing state-sponsored religious oppression in England and Europe, many early colonists sought freedom of conscience in the New World. Many—especially in New England—established their own religiously exclusive communities: They persecuted dissenters, expelled nonconformists, and enforced orthodoxy.

The modest monks behind Trappist beer

Trappist monks, a sect of Catholic clergy, follow a strict code that requires all work to benefit their religious community. It's believed they began brewing beer sometime in the 6th century to fund their abbeys.

Early Christians viewed the Resurrection as a political claim about authority

Titles like "Son of God," "Lord," and "Savior" were in active circulation as official imperial titles at the time, stamped on Roman coins and carved into public inscriptions about Caesar. Early Christians applied those same words to Jesus, a crucified Jew, as a counter-claim about who actually held authority over the world. (Romans who refused to say "Caesar is Lord" were executed for it.)

Charlemagne sparked a medieval revival of learning and Roman culture

During the Carolingian Renaissance, Charlemagne—the king of the Franks and later the emperor of much of Western Europe—and his successors promoted education, the arts, and scholarship. Monasteries preserved hundreds of Roman texts, while architecture and artistic styles drew inspiration from classical Rome.

White supremacist groups like the Ku Klux Klan emerged to undermine Reconstruction

Founded in 1865 by former Confederate officers in Tennessee, the Ku Klux Klan used terror, murder, and intimidation to suppress Black political power and restore white Democratic control across the postwar South.

Trade and conquest carried chess into Europe by the 11th century

After spreading through Persia, chess traveled along Islamic military and trade routes into North Africa and Moorish Spain by the 10th century. By the 11th century, it had taken root across much of Europe, flourishing in courts and monasteries.

Feudal landholding organized medieval Europe’s economy without relying on slavery

From the 10th to 13th centuries, Europe’s agricultural system relied on localized hierarchies. Lords granted land to knights for defense, who in turn mainly oversaw free peasants paying rents in labor, goods, or money rather than living under slavery.

The "green men" were among the first European pyrotechnicians

In the 1600s, men wore leaf-covered caps when handling fireworks to protect against sparks. Headgear was also worn by those helping to maintain order when leading medieval fireworks processions, often acting like jesters to entertain viewing audiences.

Hear how the 2 religious clauses in the First Amendment have been tested and evolved over time

This podcast examines the evolution of the free exercise and establishment clauses, tracing their development from federal restrictions to state and local laws. Discover the believers who challenged the limits of religious freedom throughout American history.

Medieval sword manuals survive—but their techniques are hard to decode

While some knights guarded their combat knowledge, others recorded it in illustrated fighting manuals. Centuries later, scholars struggle to interpret these cryptic texts, revealing how much medieval martial knowledge was lost or obscured over time.

Read the language in the Constitution that protects religious freedom in the US

The First Amendment's religion clauses include two provisions: the establishment clause and the free exercise clause. These two parts prevent the government from endorsing any specific religion and from interfering with the free practice of religion.

Rise and fall of the Byzantine Empire in 60 seconds

In 330 CE, Emperor Constantine made the bold move of shifting the Roman capital to Byzantium and renaming it Constantinople. This decision helped shape the Eastern Roman Empire, or what we now call the Byzantine Empire. Here’s how the city rose to global prominence, and why its legacy lingers today.

What did the earliest swords look like?

That depends on where you draw the line between daggers and swords. According to current evidence, the first swords appeared 5,000 years ago in what's now Turkey. Unfortunately, evidence of the earliest swords is colored by survivorship bias; It's...

The Satanic Temple has protested the presence of the Ten Commandments at state capitols

After Oklahoma and Arkansas put up Ten Commandments monuments on their state capitol grounds, the Satanic Temple argued that if one religion's symbols are allowed, theirs should be, too. The temple asked for permission to install a bronze statue of the goat-headed figure Baphomet next to them.

London bankers created the first clearinghouse to process checks in 1770

Until that time, each banker was required to bring that day's checks to every other bank for settlement. Perhaps understandably, the first place bankers opted to gather to clear and settle checks was a tavern known as the Five Bells. The innovation gave rise to what would become clearinghouses, key institutions that facilitate payments.

For centuries, European aristocrats made travel a rite of passage with 'Grand Tours' of the continent.

The Middle Ages produced inventions that still affect our lives today, like coffee houses and improved agricultural techniques.

Explore the medieval world in this 14th-Century map

This virtual replica of a 14th-Century map allows viewers to see the medieval world through a Christian framework. Jerusalem is the center axle of the map, harkening back to the Bible's Old Testament, which states Jerusalem is the "centre of...

Unitarian Frank Lloyd Wright made Unity Temple to honor his own faith

In 1905, a Unitarian church in Frank Lloyd Wright's town was struck by lightning and destroyed. Wright, a Unitarian himself, was commissioned to build the replacement and constructed a simple yet radical concrete sanctuary known as Unity Temple.

Who was the world's first author?

This article details the effort to define the world's first author, as supported by current archaeological evidence. Clay disks found in an ancient Sumerian city point to Enheduanna, a high priestess and daughter of Akkadian King Sargon, as the...

One of the earliest Advent practices came as a response to a heretical movement

In 380 CE, the Council of Saragossa met to oppose the spread of Priscillianism, a local heresy. The council ordered Christians to observe strict church attendance from Dec. 17 to Christmas—one of the earliest documented Advent-like practices.

The 1621 Pilgrim-Wampanoag peace treaty was the first of its kind

The Wampanoag people, weakened by disease, were at risk of being forcefully subsumed by the neighboring Narragansett tribe. Recognizing an opportunity, the Wampanoag offered the settlers necessary survival skills in exchange for protection through the settlers’ firearms. The treaty remained in place for more than 40 years.

NATO was formed in 1949 to deter Soviet expansion, prevent European militarism, and encourage political integration.

Thomas Jefferson wrote the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom in 1786, which directly influenced the US Constitution

Drafted by Jefferson, the statute guaranteed freedom of worship to people of all faiths. Jefferson considered it one of his greatest achievements, and it served as the direct model for the First Amendment's religion clauses.

King Henry VIII's first divorce is likely the most famous divorce of all time

How often does a divorce change the course of a nation? When English King Henry VIII wanted to divorce his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, in the 1500s, Catholicism was the national religion. Even though Catherine didn't produce a male heir, religious leaders refused to grant his wish. In response, King Henry turned his country upside down for the chance to marry the second of his six wives.

The words 'separation of church and state' are not found in the Constitution

Responding to Connecticut Baptists concerned about religious liberty, Jefferson described the First Amendment as building "a wall of separation between church and state." The Supreme Court later cited the letter as an authoritative guide to the Establishment Clause.

The earliest Advent was a Lent-like fast beginning Nov. 11

In 490, Bishop Perpetuus of Tours ordered Christians to fast three days a week from St. Martin’s Day (Nov. 11) until Christmas. This 40-day season—called St. Martin’s Lent—is one of the earliest documented forms of Advent.

The roots of American law and the jury system trace back to medieval England

King Henry II established a jury of 12 local knights to settle land disputes in the 12th century, and his judges developed national laws common to everyone. American courts inherited this "common law" tradition directly from the English system.

The League of Nations was the predecessor to the UN—and the US never joined

The League of Nations—established in 1920 after World War I—was the first global organization aimed at maintaining world peace. Although US President Woodrow Wilson championed its creation, the United States never joined.

Thanksgiving, explained

Thanksgiving may be synonymous with turkey and pie today, but its roots trace back to a 1621 feast between Pilgrims and the Wampanoag, who gathered to celebrate the settlers’ first successful harvest.

Martin Luther is often cited as the first to decorate the Christmas tree—though the practice began decades earlier

Luther lore claims he may have been the first to link tree decorations to Jesus, as he used candles to symbolize the Nativity star. However, German bakers had adorned evergreens with apples and sweets as early as 1419 for Christmas Eve displays.

Money—not land—became Europe’s key economic driver in the Middle Age

During the medieval commercial revolution, money gradually replaced land as the primary economic commodity. Expanding trade, markets, and finance transformed Europe’s economy—laying foundations, historians argue, that were essential for the later Industrial Revolution.

See how migrating tribes reshaped Europe after the fall of Rome

During the early Middle Ages (c. 300–700 CE), groups such as the Franks, Vandals, Visigoths, and Suebi migrated into former Roman territories. Their movements transformed European politics and culture while preserving many Roman traditions.

The Medicis of Italy innovated 'bills of exchange,' precursors to checks

At the time, lending money for interest (also known as usury) was banned in much of the Christian world. The enterprising Medicis developed bills of exchange to allow merchants to promise payment without cash or coin (with some discrete means of earning interest woven in). Learn more about how this family laid the foundation for modern banking.

Roger Williams founded the first American colony without an established church

Banished from Massachusetts in 1636 for preaching religious dissent, Williams founded Providence, Rhode Island—one of the earliest governments in the Western world to guarantee broad religious liberty. His phrase "wall of separation" between church and state directly influenced Jefferson and the Constitution's framers.

A medievalist explains how romantic love emerged as a cultural concept

Many long-form stories written in English were originally considered "romances," a term derived from the Old French word for "the speech of the people." But changes in medieval culture, triggered by a number of 12th-century church reforms, led to a new interest in what we now consider romantic love, including a new view of marriage as a pursuit of love rather than a transaction. Those new perspectives were then reflected in the period's popular stories, including stories in Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales."

Francis Drake: favored English pirate who sailed around the world

Before becoming the global explorer that many know him as today, Sir Francis Drake was a pirate, merchant, and slave trader. This in-depth article dives into the life of Drake, who's commonly credited as the first person to circumnavigate the globe by ship successfully.

Six myths about the Middle Ages

The Middle Ages, or medieval era, refers to roughly 500 CE to 1,500 CE. Contemporary opinion perceives this era as "dark" or backward because it was the time between the fall of Rome and the rise of the Renaissance. But much of the era was vibrant, and many myths are just that, including the idea that most people believed the Earth was flat. Watch this video to debunk more myths.

The idea of resurrection was not common at the time of Jesus' death

NT Wright, a leading New Testament scholar, argues that first-century Jews held a wide spectrum of beliefs about the afterlife. This included that the early Christian claim of one individual rising bodily from the dead, ahead of the general resurrection, was without precedent in Judaism or the wider Greco-Roman world.