The thing about European History is that it tends to leak out of Europe. Europeans haven't been great at staying put in Europe. As human beings do, the people of Europe were very busy traveling around to trade, to spread religion, and in...

How do characters make a story? In this episode of Crash Course Kids Literature, we’ll investigate the traits of characters from “King and the Dragonflies” by Kacen Callender and uncover the ways they relate to each...

How do characters make a story? In this episode of Crash Course Kids Literature, we’ll investigate the traits of characters from “King and the Dragonflies” by Kacen Callender and uncover the ways they relate to each other. Topic:...

In which Mike Rugnetta quests for knowledge of the Holy Grail of Mythology. Which is the actual, literal Holy Grail! The cup of Christ! Legends about the Holy Grail are often connected to the British legends of King Arthur, and this...

No substance has been as constant an ally to insidious scheming as arsenic, the so-called “king of poisons.” In its chemically pure form, it isn’t much of a threat because our bodies don’t absorb it well; it’s when arsenic combines with...

After witnessing a bird carrying a single golden hair, King Mark of Cornwall declared his future bride must have equally radiant locks. The only royal matching this description was Princess Isolde of Ireland. So the king sent Tristan,...

Achinpur was on the precipice of demonic takeover. A mysterious woman beguiled the king and infiltrated the royal family. But she wasn’t human; under her beautiful façade lurked an insatiable appetite for flesh. One night, the demon...

Of all Shakespeare’s plays, perhaps none is stranger than “Macbeth”— a parable on power rife with supernatural elements. But according to texts from the 11th century, this tragedy has its roots in reality. What’s more, other accounts...

Agriculture is key to solving the climate crisis, but most farmers don’t have the financial incentive to switch to more eco-friendly practices, says banker and farmer Berry Marttin. He explores how improving the systems around carbon and...

Beehives always have a queen, who is the mother of the entire hive. But have you ever wondered, what happened to the king, if there was ever any? Can a male bee become a king?

The next entry in our parade of heroes is Rama, the protagonist of the Ramayana, one of India's oldest stories. We're going to be talking about Rama's importance to Hindu culture, and how Rama fits into Campbell's idea of the Hero's...

Born to a sea nymph and a king, and trained by the legendary centaur Chiron, Achilles was a demigod destined for greatness. When Greece declared war on Troy, Achilles knew the war was written into his destiny. With horses born from the...

Fifty years ago, a 26-year-old rural Maine school teacher wrote the horror novel “Carrie.” That man, Stephen King, has gone on to write more than 60 books and many have been turned into such films as “The Shining” and “Shawshank...

During the 8th century CE, warfare and failing agriculture forced Maya people to move north, to hotter, drier Yucatán. Because of its freshwater access, Chichen Itza became the most powerful Maya city, with nearly 50,000 citizens at its...

Rosalind Franklin was a British scientist who helped discover the structure of DNA, but you most likely haven't heard of her. Hank will attempt to fix this gap in your knowledge on today's SciShow: Great Minds

Achilles, just slain in the Trojan War, arrives in the Underworld and is greeted by Sibyl of Cumae— a prophetess and also the realm’s local guide. Though it gets a bad rap, Sibyl is determined to prove to the newcomer that hell is...

Your agent has infiltrated a life or death poker game in a hidden back room of a grand casino. Your team is on the trail of an elite society of assassins, each of whom carries a signature playing card corresponding to their role—...

It's daybreak in the city of Chan Chan, and former soldier Maxo has been up all night fretting. Last night, a friend stopped by and instructed him to go to the plaza at noon to receive an important message. But with the recent defeat of...

Contrary to common belief, jesters weren't just a medieval European phenomenon but flourished in other times and cultures. The first reliably recorded jester is thought to be You Shi, of 7th century BCE China. Jesters had unique...

She was the Queen of France, notorious for living in opulence while peasants starved and became a symbol of everything wrong with monarchy. But was Marie Antionette a heartless, wasteful queen, or a convenient scapegoat in turbulent...

Long ago, the Hawaiian wind goddess wielded a gourd that housed the winds of the Islands. It came to hold her bones, along with the life force they carried, and was eventually passed to her grandson, Paka'a. Like his father before him,...

Horses have been human companions for thousands of years, and have been essential companions and tools for the development of human culture. So, it makes sense that horses would make their way into our most important stories. Today,...

This week, Mike is teaching you about the most mythic of mythological creatures: Dragons. Cultures across the world (and across Westeros) tell stories of dragons, and their power to destroy, their power to prop up kings, and their power...

It's difficult to talk about African theater thanks to colonialism. Pre-colonial Africa was home to many spoken languages, and not nearly as many written languages. The chain of oral tradition was broken by colonial policies, and so many...