ANCIENT HISTORY BUILDINGS & LANDMARKS WEAPONS & WAR
Horse What were Soldiers of
armour velociraptors Ancient Rome
explained
really like? How did the
gramophone
How was the Flying
guillotine work? a WWII
invented?
plane OVER
Da Vinci's flying
machine 250
MILLION
YEARS OF
HISTORY
The biggest
prehistoric
predators
BOOK OF
Everything you need to know about the world we lived in
Inside St Mark's Who were the Trench
Basilica fearsome Celts? warfare
The American
Sherman
army tank
Cuckoo Darwin’s
clocks theories
explained
How did Native The
Americans fight? development
of explosives
INDUSTRY & INVENTIONS INFLUENTIAL FIGURES PREHISTORIC
Welcome to
BOOK OF
INCREDIBLE
HISTORY
Have you ever wondered what Ancient Rome invented? What life
would have been like in the time of the dinosaurs? How
dynamite was invented? What it was like to be a Zulu warrior or a
musketeer? With current technological advancements it is easy
to forget the wars, the discoveries, the creatures and the people
that have led us to where we are today. This revised edition
celebrates the past and takes us on a journey back in time
through some of the ages, customs and traditions that shaped the
world we live in, and the lasting legacies and monuments that we
cherish to this day. Covering the ancient world, the iconic
buildings and landmarks scattered around the globe, ground-
breaking weapons and warfare, the inventions that changed the
world, the influential visionaries from the past, and prehistoric
creatures that once roamed Earth, there’s something for
everyone to learn about and enjoy. Every subject is accompanied
by stunning illustrations and marked diagrams so that you can
best understand the topic covered in perfect detail. So, turn the
page and let’s bring history to life!
BOOK OF
INCREDIBLE
HISTORY
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How It Works Book of Incredible History Volume 2 Revised Edition © 2015 Imagine Publishing Ltd
ISBN 9781910439951
Part of the
bookazine series
BOOK OF
INCREDIBLE HISTORY
CONTENTS
Ancient History Buildings, Places Weapons & War
& Landmarks
010 VI Inventions of 072 Inside a Whippet tank
Ancient Rome 038 Saint Mark’s Basilica 074 Life in the trenches
078 Flying a WWII plane
016 The Circus Maximus 040 Sagrada Familia 082 The Sherman Tank
084 Brutal battering rams
018 History of ice mummies 042 The Pantheon 085 Secrets of the Zulu
018 What are the Nazca 044 Seville Cathedral Warriors
lines? 086 Meet the musketeers
046 Florence Cathedral 088 Battle of Agincourt
019 Making the Terracotta 092 The A7V
Army 048 Jerusalem under siege 094 Gunpowder
094 Horse armour
020 Ancient Egyptian 050 Buckingham Palace
cosmetics uncovered explained
095 Inside the F-4 Phantom
020 Origins of chocolate 054 Massachusetts State
House II fighter jet
021 How sundials tell the 096 Jousting explained
time 056 The Globe Theatre’s 098 How drawbridges
story
021 Horse shoeing worked
058 Inside a Japanese 099 Flint weapons
022 The art of castle 099 Breaking the sound
mummification
059 The Fogong Temple barrier
023 Britain’s tribal Pagoda
territories The Roman
060 Brooklyn Bridge army
024 Ancient Greek theatres
062 What went wrong at 010
026 Greek tomb Chernobyl?
construction
064 Exploring Macchu
027 Greek warriors Picchu
028 Aztec warriors 066 How was the Sistine
Chapel’s ceiling
029 Native American painted?
warrior
068 Cardiff Castle
030 Chinese junks
032 The ancient Celts
Faster than
sound
099
162
Prehistoric
predators
006
068
Cardiff Castle
Benjamin Industry & 124 The Sony Walkman
Franklin Invention 124 Hearing aid evolution
125 How did the first
130 102 Inside a cotton mill
electric refrigerators
148 104 Medieval writing work? © TThinkstock; DK Images; Dreamstime; Corbis; Cern; Arhtur_Weasley
equipment 126 How Leonardo da Vinci
Peter tried to fly
Higgs 104 The first hearing aids 127 How the gramophone
worked
Understanding 105 Apothecary secrets 127 The bow drill
morse code 136 Da Vinci’s flying
105 Compass of the oceans machine
119
106 The origins of Influential
helicopters figures
106 Pocket watches 130 Benjamin Franklin
explained 132 Isambard Kingdom
107 Meet Madame Brunel
Guillotine 134 Guglielmo Marconi
136 The Wright brothers
107 The first telephone 138 Tycho Brahe
140 Albert Einstein
108 The Colossus computer 142 Max Planck
144 Michael Faraday
110 How dry stone walls 146 Alfred Nobel
are built 148 Peter Higgs
150 Charles Darwin
110 Inside metronomes
Prehistoric
111 What were pneumatic
tube systems used for? 154 Age of the dinosaurs
162 Prehistoric predators
112 The Parsons steam 166 Biggest ever land
turbine
mammal
114 Rack-and-pinion 168 Velociraptors
railways 170 Ankylosaurus
172 The giant
116 Preserving the Mona
Lisa Brachiosaurus
174 Sabre-toothed cats
118 The first electric
submarine
118 Who was the Piltdown
Man?
119 Electric telegraph
machines explained
120 Darkrooms illuminated
122 How do overhead
projectors work?
122 The first vacuums
123 How are bronze statues
cast?
123 What are life-
preserving coffins?
007
ANCIENT
010 VI Inventions of 022 The art of
Ancient Rome
mummification
Explore the six best inventions
Unwrap the process of
that the Romans gave to us preserving mummies
016 The Circus Maximus 023 Britain’s tribal 030
See the largest stadium in the territories Chinese
junks
history of the Roman world Locate the native tribes of Inventions
ancient Britain
018 History of ice o0f1R3ome
024 Ancient Greek
mummies Ancient
theatres
How did these ancient C0e3l2ts
Discover how these massive
corpses freeze in ice? amphitheatres were built
018 What are the 026 Greek tombs
Nazca lines? Learn about the unique Greek
tomb structures
Where did these Peruvian
027 Greek warriors
ancient drawings come from?
The most feared fighters
019 Making the
028 Aztec warriors
Terracotta Army
Learn how these fierce
Meet the immortal warriors warriors fought battles
built over 2,200 years ago 029 Native American
020 Ancient Egyptian warrior
cosmetics Check out the key kit of a
Native American fighter
Find out why makeup was so
030 Chinese junks
important in ancient Egypt
Dynamic sailing at high speed
020 Origins of chocolate
032 The ancient Celts
The sacred Mayan beginnings
How the Iron Age
021 How sundials tell revolutionised the Celts
the time
How did our ancestors tell the
time of day
021 Horse shoeing
From the olden days we have
protected their feet – how?
Greek
tombs
026
008
Mummifica0ti2o2n
029 019 © DK images; Thinkstock;
Look and Learn; Nikthestunned
Native American The Terracotta
warriors Army
024
Roman
theatre
009
Ancient History
Inventions of Ancient Rome
How the Romans
changed the world you live in
Perhaps the greatest of all the ancient One of the most remarkable traits of all networks like the Cloaca Maxima. They were
civilisations, the Roman Empire though, was the ability for the Romans to work also famously proficient at town planning and
represented the age of classical all their schemes and inventions into fully building large structures.
antiquity and helped create the world we live in functioning cities within an extensive empire.
today. The massive engineering projects that Rome itself was a bustling metropolis that no Home life was revolutionised under the
were undertaken and the advances in medicine other civilisation matched in prosperity and Romans. Also, as is well known, the army was
and society ensure Roman influence can still be size for centuries afterward. Nowhere else in an all-conquering juggernaut that took the old
felt now. For example, concrete and cement the ancient world had grand shopping centres world by storm. To commemorate their affect on
were first popularised in Ancient Rome, as was like Trajan’s Market, specialised landfill sites modern society and technology, we discover
a type of central heating known as a hypocaust. such as Monte Testaccio or extensive sewer just how innovative and ground-breaking this
civilisation really was.
010
HEAD 1. BIG Carthage 2. BIGGER Alexandria 3. BIGGEST Rome
2HEAD The centre of the The Egyptian city became With an estimated
defeated Carthaginian prosperous in the population of 1 million
BIG ROMAN CITIES Empire, Rome made Ptolemaic dynasty and by and the home of the
Carthage one of its main the time of Roman emperor, Rome was
satellites with as many conquest had 500,000 the empire’s main
as 500,000 people. to 750,000 inhabitants. urban metropolis.
DID YOU KNOW? Lugo in Spain is now the only city in Europe to still be surrounded by intact Roman walls
Engineering in Roman home life
The technology inside a Roman house
The citizens of Rome had to be properly housed one or two storeys high and included lots of every year. If you wanted some retail therapy,
to ensure that the vast urban sprawl could different sections. Ideally adapted to the Trajan’s Market had over one hundred tabernae
operate as an organised society. Prior to the Mediterranean heat, the typical Roman house (shops) selling a variety of goods.
Romans, impressive structures were built by often had no windows (glass was rarely used),
the Egyptians and the Greeks but never on the instead fitted with an atrium to act as an Not every citizen was lucky or rich enough to
scale of the Roman Empire with its extensive open-air courtyard in the middle of the own a house. Lower classes were put into one of
housing projects. building. Life in a house was boosted by a fully Rome’s many ‘insulae’ apartment buildings
functioning public welfare system that and there are believed to have been over 40,000
Roman building techniques owed a lot to provided grain to 300,000 of Rome’s families of these in the city. In fact, these apartments
Greek and Etruscan influences. Houses were outnumbered family houses by 20 to one!
The Roman residence Building blocks Roof tiles
More than just a roof above your head, the The Romans used pulleys and A stonesman would carve thin
Roman house was quite complex levers to shift large building tiles from stone. These were
blocks. Slaves carried out the laid on top of wooden beams
hard graft. and fixed with nails.
Mosaics
Chips of stone were laid into
cement to create beautiful
works of art. This technique
borrowed from Greece.
Heating Clay bricks
Larger residences were Roman bricks were
heated by a hypocaust fired clay. Roman
system, an ancient method
of underfloor heating. legions operated mobile
kilns and bricks were often
Hypocaust heating system stamped with the mark of
Convection Roman roads the legion.
currents
Roman roads interlinked cities and towns and 011
Underneath a allowed rapid military and administrative
raised floor, vents communications. Construction began with a
allowed heated air trench, which was filled with a base of stones
to travel freely and and rocks. These were packed together
used convection tightly, usually with cement, to create a firm
currents to heat the foundation for armies to march on and
tiles above. The chariots to ride across. Large paving stones
warm air came were used on the surface. These were placed
from a wood- and fitted by hand along with channels on the
burning furnace. side of the road that allowed water to run off
into surrounding fields. In the UK, roads such
Running the hypocaust Disadvantages as the A1 and A5 owe their origins to the
Roman conquest of Britain.
Slaves kept the system running by keeping the The hypocaust was reserved only for
flame alight. It is still unknown how well the the wealthiest villas and large
convection currents worked and whether some bathhouses. Also, the burning of wood
rooms got too hot because of the system. produced toxic carbon monoxide fumes.
Ancient History
Inventions of Ancient Rome
Aqueduct engineering Hydraulics
How the Romans built their immense water-management network Despite having a limited
knowledge of construction
Aqueducts weren’t invented by water out of the city and into the (measured angles) and chorobates science, the Roman builders
Romans but were popularised by River Tiber. The first-ever aqueduct (measured horizontal planes). realised that gravity and water
them. These structures were the life was the Aqua Appia, built in 312 These were handled by skilled army pressure would play a key part.
stream of a city. 1,300 drinking BCE. It helped relieve the demand engineers who designed a gravity
fountains and 144 public toilets for water in a rapidly growing based system with dropshafts and Groma
were located in Rome and they Rome. Where possible, the majority chutes to help the water flow. This
were all fed by the complex system of an aqueduct was built demonstrated excellent structural An important
of aqueducts, which brought in underground to protect it from engineering and water surveying instrument
fresh drinking water from rural enemies. The iconic raised arches management expertise and they in Ancient Rome, the
areas. The system was were only required when the were built so well that some are still groma was used to
accompanied by an elaborate structures neared a city or needed operational to this day! measure straight lines
network of sewers. to cross a ravine. and right angles.
Topography
Rome’s main sewer was known The basic yet effective tools used
as Cloaca Maxima and carried dirty in construction were the dioptra Each aqueduct had to be tailored
to the shape of the land it
traversed so careful planning was
put into how best to construct it.
1 Building materials Scaffolding
Aqueducts were primarily
constructed out of limestone that was While under construction, the
mined from neighbouring quarries. aqueduct was propped up by
These slabs of rock were bound wooden scaffolding. This
together by Roman concrete and maintained the structure as
cement, which was made out of stone was imported from
durable and waterproof volcanic sand nearby quarries.
called pozzolana.
2 Planning
The building of aqueducts was
often financed by the emperors
themselves, so meticulous planning
was put into the operation. The land
needed to be surveyed by engineers to
make sure it was fit for construction.
3 Construction techniques
The reinforced Roman concrete
arch was an essential part of the
aqueduct as it could hold the pressure
and weight of the water after the
wooden construction supports had
been removed. Pulleys, wedges and
screws were used as lifting apparatus.
4Design and uses
The water was carried a great
distance from spring to urban area and
was then held in cisterns in the city
and onto a network of pipes to each
individual building. Aqueducts also
aided a town’s sewer system and
protected against fires.
012
RECORD ROME’S LONG-STANDING RECORD
BREAKERS
Rome’s population peaked at 1 million people when the empire was at
CROWDED CAPITAL
1MILLION the height of its powers. This number wasn’t topped in Europe for nearly
2,000 years, until London began to prosper in the Industrial Revolution.
DID YOU KNOW? Rome’s aqueducts provided up to 1,000 litres (264 gallons) of water for every person in the city
Covering Arches
On the overground parts Arches were a popular
of an aqueduct, a roof feature of Roman
called a ‘specus’ was architecture. Strong
sometimes used to and versatile, an
protect the water from aqueduct would have
the elements, keeping it been much less
fresh and clean. effective without them.
Flowing far
Many claim that aqueducts were one of
the best Roman developments. Frequent
throughout the Roman world, their
effective and modern system was lost
after the fall of the empire and never
recovered until much, much later in
human history. A lot of these structures
were actually underground, but they are
most fondly remembered for their
overground segments with their iconic
vaulted arches that were essential in
their construction. As techniques
improved, aqueducts were also used to
supply out-of-town factories and mines
with water. The longest aqueduct in
Rome was the Aqua Marcia at 91
kilometres (57 miles) from source to city,
but even longer systems were built
across the empire.
Roman newspapers
All citizens in Rome were kept up-to-date with two daily newspapers.
The Acta Senatus made sure the public was up to speed with what
was going on in the Senate while the Acta Diurna was a daily
gazette based on Roman news and weather. Both publications were
handwritten so their circulation wasn’t exceedingly high, but the
Acta Diurna lasted two centuries of service. The Senatus wasn’t so
lucky as several emperors forbade its publication and preferred to
keep Senate minutes private. They were also pioneers of the postal
service. The Cursus Publicus was a state-run courier system that
delivered messages throughout the Roman Empire.
013
Ancient History
Inventions of Ancient Rome
Buildings
The biggest cities were home to the biggest buildings
In its prime Rome was one of the, if not the The Colosseum became the cultural centre of
most, technologically advanced cities in the Rome after its construction in 80 CE, but the
world. Containing huge, expansive buildings, capital also contained one of the largest sports
revolutionary architecture and a housed, fed stadiums of all time, the Circus Maximus, as
and watered population within its walls, the well as other examples of stunning
vast empire’s capital in Rome was well ahead engineering, such as the Pantheon, the Arch of
of its time. Septimius Severus and the Theatre of Pompey.
The Colosseum All in a name Dimensions
How the centrepiece of the empire The name ‘Colosseum’ comes from 48m (157ft) high and 189x156m
and its architecture was built the word ‘colossus’ which was the (620x512ft) in length and width, the
name of giant statues erected in the
Concrete and cement city by Emperor Nero. Colosseum had room for around
50,000 bloodthirsty Romans!
Pozzolanic ash-based cement
made buildings much
sturdier and allowed
several levels to be
built on top of
each other.
Tickets
Not unlike modern
stadia, spectators
were given
numbered tokens as
tickets and wooden
barriers helped
maintain order on
the terraces.
Velarium Construction Arches Underground labyrinth
All the spectators in the The Colosseum’s outer wall was 80 concrete arches meant the Underneath the Colosseum was a
Colosseum were protected from made from 100,000m3 (3.53mn Colosseum had an extremely system of tunnels that elevated
the hot Mediterranean sun by an ft3) of limestone held together by durable design, which has allowed cages into the arena using a
awning called the velarium. 300 tons of iron clamps. it to stand for nearly 2,000 years! slave-run pulley system.
014
5FATCOTPS Organisation Training Pay Army oath Clothing and armour
ROMAN MILITARY 1 80 legionnaires were in a century. 2 Training lasted four months 3 A legionnaire would earn a 4 Each soldier would swear a 5 Armour was light but sturdy.
Together, six centuries made a and consisted of marching, basic 225 denarii for a year’s ‘sacrementum’ when they The helmets and armour
cohort of 480 men. A legion had formation and weapons service. Out of this wage began their service, pledging could repel projectiles while
ten cohorts and the entire army training. Recruits also packet were deductions for their allegiance to the emperor the military-issue tunic was
contained 30 legions, a total of learned to swim, ride a horse equipment, food and even a and vow never to abandon comfortable enough to
around 150,000 soldiers. and use a bow and a sling. regiment savings bank. comrades or desert a battle. wear on long marches.
DID YOU KNOW? Soldiers had to be able to march 32km (20mi) in five hours while carrying around 20.5kg (45lb) of equipment
Military
Ingenious conquerors
On both land and sea, the Roman Empire The war at sea Greeks and Carthaginians, maritime © Sol90; Thinkstock; Look and Learn; CG Textures
dominated warfare for centuries, invading superiority was essential for victory in the
large portions of Europe and making significant On the high seas of the Mediterranean, the Punic Wars and Egypt campaigns. The senior
inroads into Africa and Asia Minor. The Romans Romans enjoyed even more dominance than arm of the Roman navy was known as the
outwitted their opponents using expert battle on land. Using triremes and galleys propelled Classis Misenensis and except for internal
tactics and perfectly engineered weapons and by teams of over 100 men, ships attacked civil wars, achieved total marine dominance
armour. Soldiers were divided into legions that either by ramming the opposition or boarding for Rome after the Punic Wars.
served different territories and swore an oath of their ships. Owing a lot of their strategies to
loyalty to the centurions. One of the main reverse-engineering methods learnt from the
reasons why the Romans consistently beat their
enemies (and what links them to today’s Formation Centurions
military) is the fact that the army was a
professional conscripted force. A full-time Legionnaires would form a A centurion usually commanded a unit
operation, a soldier was one of the highest-paid defensive front using their of 80 men and was in charge of their
and most-respected occupations in the empire. rectangle scutum shields, training and discipline after rising
which was a progression on through the ranks.
Romans on the Greek phalanx formation.
the battlefield Ranged warfare
Legionnaires
What a battle between the Empire and a The pilum and verutum
barbarian horde would have looked like The legion was were spears used for
the main unit of long distance attacks to
Cavalry the army and unsettle the enemy
applicants were ranks before a charge.
Roman cavalry required to be
riders supported Roman citizens
the legionnaires between the ages
by attacking an of 17 and 45.
army’s flanks.
They could also
chase down any
enemies that
tried to escape.
Auxiliaries Discipline Close-quarters combat
Auxiliaries (non-citizen The strict Roman ranks were extremely Either a gladius or pugio was
soldiers) formed the rest of effective against the barbarian hordes, used in tight hand-to-hand
the Empire’s militia and could who had no effective response to the combat when the two forces
only be granted citizenship Testudo (tortoise) formation. engaged in a close proximity.
after 25 years’ service.
015
Ancient History
The Circus Maximus
The Circus Maximus
Explore the largest stadium in the history of the Roman world
and find out what spectacular events were held there
As the name suggests, the Circus centuries, the Circus Maximus essentially including musical recitals, athletics
Maximus was Rome’s biggest circus, remained the same for the next 400 years. competitions, plays and staged animal hunts.
or racetrack. It was established by Despite the massive cost of the circus’s
Tarquinius Priscus, the fifth king of Rome, in construction and the popularity of chariot With the advent of Christianity and the
the sixth century BCE. The first circus to be racing, admission was entirely free – anyone crumbling Roman Empire, the fortunes of the
erected in the city, the original building was a could attend races, including poorer citizens. Circus Maximus quickly declined. The last
wholly wooden construction. Increased in size recorded chariot race took place in 549 CE, after
by Julius Caesar, a triple stone arch was later Betting was popular with all classes and which Rome’s greatest entertainment venue
added to honour Emperor Titus, before the under the stands were food stalls, stables and was abandoned and became a quarry.
entire structure was rebuilt in stone and shops that serviced charioteers and public
concrete by Emperor Trajan in 103 CE, after a fire alike. Several small temples and shrines were In 1587, the two Egyptian obelisks that stood
destroyed its wooden predecessor. also incorporated into the complex and on the central spine were removed by Pope
Although various monumental additions religious festivals were held annually within its Sixtus V to adorn different parts of the city; the
were continually added during the following walls. Other forms of entertainment also rest of the building disappeared soon after.
featured in the venue’s yearly calendar, Today, the circus’s site is used as a public park
and there is little to indicate its former glory.
A trip to the Roman circus Metae Egyptian obelisk
How was the Circus Maximus laid out to enable vast crowds Made from three conical Removed from Heliopolis
to comfortably enjoy sport and other spectator events? stone pillars, these in Egypt by Augustus, the
turning posts marked the obelisk commemorated
Starting gates ends of the central the Roman victory over
dividing barrier and Antony and Cleopatra.
Charioteers entered the protected it from damage
circus from the starting as the chariots cornered.
gates located at the
northern end of the arena.
The statistics… Spina Seating
Circus Maximus Running down the Rising some three
length of the circus, storeys or more in
Length: 621m (2,037ft) chariots raced around height, the seating in
Width: 118m (387ft) this central brick and the Circus Maximus was
Height: Up to 30m (98ft) stone barrier. built of stone and brick,
Area: 84,000m² (904,200ft2) with wooden sections
Seating capacity: 250,000 added at the top.
016
HEAD 1. BIG Stadium of 2. BIGGER Constantinople 3. BIGGEST Circus
Philippopolis Hippodrome Maximus
2HEAD
Built near Plovdiv, Bulgaria, 450m (1,476ft) in length, At 621m (2,037) long and
ROMAN STADIA in the second century CE, the Hippodrome built next with a 250,000 capacity
this stadium is 240m to the Great Palace in (according to Pliny), this
(787ft) long and could Constantinople could seat great Roman circus was
host 30,000 people. 100,000 spectators. never surpassed.
DID YOU KNOW? The celebration for Italy’s World Cup 2006 victory was held on the site of the Circus Maximus
Roman Forum Colosseum
The centre of Roman Known as the Flavian
public life, the Amphitheatre, this
rectangular forum was the largest
was surrounded by amphitheatre in the
statues, temples and empire. It too hosted
government buildings. public spectacles, like
animal hunts and
gladiatorial battles.
Aqua Claudia
This aqueduct supplied
water to the districts of
Rome from mountain
sources 72km (45mi) away.
In the neighbourhood… Palatine Palace
Also called the Flavian
Palace, this was the
principal seat of the
emperors of Rome.
Located to the south of the city’s was the Septizonium, a huge marble Circus Maximus
heart, the Circus Maximus was a façade, which functioned as an
functional building as well as a ornamental fountain. Rising above Like the Colosseum, it
prestigious monument proclaiming the circus on its southern flank was hosted public events called
the glory of Rome. Towering over the the Aventine Hill, crowded with ‘ludi’, including horse races,
circus on its northern flank was the temples and private villas, while to plays and athletics, but its
great Palatine Palace, built by the the west stood smaller buildings and capacity was far greater
emperors Vespasian, Titus and the River Tiber. This picture details than the amphitheatre’s.
Domitian. Bordering both the palace the location of the Circus Maximus
and the circus at its southern end and other landmarks in its vicinity.
Imperial box Drainage canal Chariot racing in
Roman times
Located on the palace Dug between the
side of the circus, the bottom of the seating Chariot racing was probably the Roman world’s
imperial box allowed and the edge of the equivalent of football. Inherited from the Ancient
the royal family to track, the canal helped Greeks and Etruscans, the sport was refined by
watch races in drain the floor and also the Romans and practised throughout the
comfort and security. protect spectators from empire. Dangerous to horses and charioteers
chariot crashes. alike, there were frequent accidents and even
deaths during races in the circus. © SPL; Alamy
Processional
entrance There could be as many as 24 chariot races in
a circus per day and although there were basic
Civic and religious rules for behaviour while racing, charioteers
processions entered the often deliberately crashed into opponents or
circus at its southern tried to force them into the central barrier.
end under a triple arch
erected in honour of An average race in the Circus Maximus would
Emperor Titus. see up to 12 teams of charioteers lined up
against each other, each chariot drawn by four
horses competing over a distance of 6.4
kilometres (four miles). There were four principal
teams – the Reds, Whites, Greens and Blues –
the latter two of which rose to great prominence.
Fans followed their team’s progress closely,
much like football clubs do today. Fierce rivalry
often resulted in violence between factions and
sometimes even riots.
A highly paid sport, the most famous Roman
charioteer, Gaius Appuleius Diocles, won 1,462
out of his 4,257 races. When he retired at the
age of 42, he had amassed winnings of
35,863,120 sesterces – approximately £9 billion
($15 billion) in today’s money – making him the
highest-paid sports star in history.
017
Ancient History
Ice mummies / Nazca lines
The tomb of a 2,400- What are the
year-old mummy known Nazca lines?
as the Siberian Ice Maiden
Inset: One of three Incan children Ancient drawings cover the Peruvian
excavated on the summit of plains, but where did they come from?
Cerro Llullaillaco, Argentina
The Peruvian coastal plain in South America is home to a
History of wonder of archaeology. The ground is scarred by images, or
ice mummies geoglyphs, known as the Nazca lines, thought to have been
constructed by the people of Nazca between 500 BCE and 500 CE.
The ancient artworks – most easily viewed from the air – were
created by methodically removing dark-coloured gravel from the
surface to reveal lighter material below. The plains’ unique climate
has preserved the lines for thousands of years. Each year, the region
receives just 20 minutes of rainfall on average, and the ground is
mostly stone and gravel, which prevents the striking images from
eroding in the wind.
Preserved in ice for centuries, even These intricate patterns The extremely dry
millennia, how did these people freeze? were created by using very conditions in Peru have
simple tools and methods preserved the drawings
On an early autumn arbitrary violence, an accident or,
afternoon in 1991, Erika in a more recent and famous case, The complexity of the Nazca
and Helmut Simon were a ritual sacrifice. The ice mummy lines has led to some wild
walking off the beaten track in the Juanita was found in 1995 on top of theories as to their origin
Alps when they encountered a Mount Ampato, Peru, having been
corpse protruding from the ice of a sacrificed to Incan gods at the age Going on a Nazca safari…
retreating glacier. It looked so of only 12-14 at some point in the
fresh that they assumed it was the 16th century.
body of an unfortunate skier or
climber – but this was Ötzi, an The sub-zero conditions would
early-Bronze Age hunter who have preserved their bodies
roamed the area 5,300 years ago. As indefinitely. But after removing
valuable an archaeological find as them from the ice, the museums in
he was though, Ötzi is far from a which they’re housed need to keep
unique specimen. their humidity high (around 90 per
Ancient corpses interred in ice cent) and temperature below -6
have been found across the globe, degrees Celsius (21.2 degrees
whether they were the victim of Fahrenheit) to make sure that they
do not deteriorate.
ON THE 54
MAP 2
3
Ice mummy 1 Dog Spider Hummingbird © Thinkstock; Corbis; Getty; Martin St Amant
sites around 6
the world This 51m (167ft) An impressive 45m The Nazca
canine is thought to (150ft) in length, hummingbird
1 Mount Ampato, Peru be an image of an this Nazca arachnid measures 97m (318ft)
2 The Alps, Italy ancestor of the was one of the very from beak to tail.
3 Altai Mountains, Russia hairless Peruvian first figures to be Carved on a raised
4 Qilakitsoq, Greenland dog. It was kept by studied in the region plateau, it is one of
5 Beechey Island, Canada the Nazca as a pet, by scientists back in the most prominent
6 El Plomo Peak, Chile used as a watchdog. the Thirties. of the animals.
018
Making the Terracotta Army
Meet the immortal warriors built to defend the Chinese Emperor Qin Shi
Huang and find out how they were constructed over 2,200 years ago
The Terracotta Army comprises a huge exposure to the air, when originally completed The Terracotta Army is but one feature –
collection of sculptures found within these sculptures would have been brightly albeit the most impressive one to date – of Qin’s
the mausoleum of the first emperor of painted and highly detailed – evidence of larger mausoleum and necropolis, with the
China, Qin Shi Huang. Featuring close to 9,000 which can still be found on a few well- emperor’s tomb and underground palace yet to
figures, objects and weapons, the massive preserved specimens. What does remain be excavated. According to famous Chinese
earthenware cohort was built to accompany unchanged is their original layout, with the historian Sima Qian (circa 145-90 BCE), all
Emperor Qin into the afterlife. thousands of statues arranged in accurate manner of treasures are concealed there, but
The terracotta army was manufactured by military formations, with generals and other the site is considered sacred so there are no
thousands of labourers and craftsmen during important officers identified. immediate plans to disturb the tomb.
Qin’s reign around 220-210 BCE. The material
used to build the sculptures was harvested Beyond the warriors…
from the site of the mausoleum – Mount Li in
Shaanxi Province. According to detailed Officials Acrobats Musicians Animals
examination of the figures, their heads, arms,
legs and torsos were modelled and fired Qin also needed In contrast to the Music was important Emperor Qin Shi
separately, only being assembled afterwards, protection from the sombre and serious in Ancient China, Huang was clearly a
so many more were probably made but trials and tribulations terracotta soldiers, which is represented big fan of animals, as a
damaged during production. of administration other pits within Qin’s by the abundance of host of sacred
work. Terracotta court mausoleum have musicians and creatures, such as
While today the excavated figures officials and revealed acrobats and instruments. A set of cranes and swans, as
have reverted to their natural counsellors can dancers, each crafted Bianzhong bronze well as a full-blown
therefore be found in animated positions chimes was recently imperial zoo, have
orange-red colour due to throughout his and with strong unearthed in very been found inside
enormous mausoleum. facial expressions. good condition. the mausoleum.
All about Qin
Qin Shi Huang, the legendary first
emperor of China, brought the
Warring States period to a close in
221 BCE. His reign was typified by
military conquest, with campaigns
into modern China’s southern
lands, as well as massive public
projects; examples include the
unification of state walls into the
Great Wall of China and a national
road system. Qin ruled unopposed
until his death in 210 BCE – an
event he reportedly attempted to
avoid by undertaking a search for
a fabled elixir of immortality.
© Thinkstock
How It Works | 019
Ancient History
Egyptian cosmetics / Origins of chocolate
Ancient Egyptian cosmetics
Makeup was once an important part of everyday life in Egypt – find out why
In Ancient Egypt, the image of Applicator Cosmetic spoon Bronze mirror
an individual often acted as a
substitute for the body in the afterlife. The applicator was These spoons are The Egyptians used
Therefore, in funerary paintings, both males used to add rouge highly decorative – the mirrors of polished
and females are shown in their best clothes, to the lips. It was one shown here is bronze. The handle was
wigs and makeup. made of wood, fashioned in the shape often carved in the form
In life, the Egyptians utilised a variety of ebony or ivory. of a swimming girl. of an Egyptian goddess.
pigments to adorn the face. The most
predominant of these was kohl, which was Wig Cosmetic jars
used to line the eyes. Kohl came from two
sources: a green eye paint made of mineral Because of lice infestations, The Egyptians’ special oils
malachite and a black liner derived from Egyptians often shaved their and unguents were stored in
galena, a form of lead ore. Women used red head. They wore elaborate containers made from glass,
ochre to form a light blush for cheeks and lips, wigs of real human hair, faience ceramic and stone.
while henna was used to paint the nails and which were adorned with
dye the hair. Cosmetics were also applied for flowers and braids.
practical reasons – the military wore it to
protect their eyes from the intense glare of the
African Sun. Moreover, it had a religious
resonance – each day, in the holy sanctuary of
the temple, the god was anointed with makeup
as a symbol of celestial regeneration.
Origins of chocolate © Look and Learn; Corbis
Why it was more than just a tasty snack…
Chocolate is derived from the theobroma (‘food of the gods’)
cacao tree and was consumed by the Mayans as a drink.
Chocolate became a sacred elixir to both the Mayans and
Aztecs; it was used during state executions and religious ceremonies.
Archaeologists have discovered
residues of chocolate in ancient jars
that were found in Honduras and
dated to 1100 BCE. Cocoa trees grew in
abundance throughout the Mayan
territories, and by 600 CE their pods
(pictured) were processed in order to
produce a frothy, bitter drink. The
Mayans blended their chocolate with
spices like chilli pepper and vanilla;
once consumed they were believed to
ward off tiredness. Evidence
suggests that cocoa beans were
also ground to a powder. During
this process, other ingredients
could be added – in this instance,
the resulting powder was mixed with
cold water to create porridge.
020
How sundials tell the time
Discover how this ancient contraption worked
The sundial is one of the world’s oldest The mechanism’s dial is known as a gnomon or paths across the sky in different parts of the world
scientific instruments. Designed to tell style and contains numerals representing the so a sundial must be tailored for the location it is
the time to the nearest hour, the ancient hours of the day, so when a shadow (or shard of in. Also, the time shown can vary by how close it
contraption was first created by the Babylonian light in some variations) is present on a specific is to a time-zone boundary. Clearly, they work
and Egyptian civilisations and works by number, that is the current hour. Sundials vary by better in sunnier areas, so they are more effective
measuring the Sun’s movement across the sky. their latitude. The Sun appears to take various in the Mediterranean than in England!
Telling time Sun position
The base of the sundial is Throughout the day,
marked with the daylight the Sun appears to
hours. The shadow will tell move across the sky
you the time, depending on because Earth is
where it falls. spinning on its axis.
Sundial points north Shadow length Model of a Babylonian
time spire in the Clock
Sundials need to point north and The Sun is highest in the sky Museum in Zacatlán,
sit on a flat surface. The gnomon at midday and casts short Puebla, Mexico
– the part that protrudes from shadows. When it is lower in
the dial – casts a shadow. the sky, shadows are longer.
Horse shoeing
Why do horses wear shoes and how are they fitted?
© Look and Learn, Dreamstime Ever since horses were first manicure by levelling off the hoof with a rasp
domesticated thousands of years ago, and trimming excess growth. Next, they take a
horsemen realised the importance of shoe made steel or aluminium and heat it in a
protecting their animals’ feet. On hard or rocky forge until it glows red-hot. The shoe is quickly
terrain, shoes protected a horse’s hooves from placed against the hoof to makes an
cracking or wearing down faster than they could impression, which the farrier uses as a guide for
grow. In soft, wet terrain – like the farmlands of reshaping the malleable metal with a hammer
northern Europe – shoes stopped their hooves and anvil. The shoe is cooled in water and fixed
from becoming porous and unstable, as well as to the hoof with nails, which are angled so they
helping the horse gain a good footing. exit the outer wall of the hoof and can be bent
To prepare the foot, a farrier – an expert who down to form clenches. Finally, the edges are
shoes horses for a living – gives the horse a basic smoothed down with a rasp.
021
Ancient History
Mummification explained
The art of mummification
Mummies have been found in many parts of the world, but Egyptian mummies are the
most well-known due to their distinctive appearance and unique embalming process
Ancient Egyptians used to bury their © Thinkstock
dead directly in the hot sand, which
dried and preserved them somewhat. An extreme way
When they began using caskets, the of wrapping up
bodies decayed instead. Around 2600 BCE, warm for winter
Egyptians began experimenting with a way to
preserve their ancestors. They learned that bodies “The practice of mummification was
decayed from the inside out, starting with their used for nearly 3,000 years”
organs. Embalmers perfected a process by which
the organs were removed and the body dried prior
to burial. This practice, known as mummification,
was used for nearly 3,000 years.
Mummification was an expensive process and
could take up to 70 days to complete. The
embalmers worked in open tents, out in the desert
and away from the general population. After
washing the body, they removed the brain from the
skull. In order to get into the brain cavity,
embalmers put a chisel up the body’s nose and hit it
with a hammer to crack through the bone. Then,
they inserted a long hook to pull out brain matter.
After cutting a slit in the left side of the body,
embalmers removed the abdominal organs. They
were washed, wrapped in linen and packed in jars.
Natron, a naturally occurring salt, was added as a
drying agent. The body was rinsed with wine and
filled with incense and natron, then covered with
more natron. A slanted table allowed fluids to drip
from the body as it dried while guards kept away
scavengers. Once the body was dry, embalmers
wrapped it in linen strips in several stages and
coated it with resin. The linen helped keep the body
together and prevented moisture from entering. A
rigid scaffold was then fitted over the body and a
funeral mask attached to the face. Finally, the
completed mummy was placed into a container
decorated to look like a person, called a suhet.
© 2005 David Monniaux
022
Britain’s tribal Head
territories to Head
ANCIENT BRITISH
TRIBES
MOST
REBELLIOUS
Before the Roman © PHGCOM
invasion in 55 BC,
Britain was Caledones Taexali 1. Iceni
characterised by a
large number of Located: Norfolk
ancient tribes, each Facts: One of the most rich and
with its own culture powerful tribes in Britain, the Iceni
revolted against the Romans after
the death of their client-king
Prasutagus and were lead until
her death by Prasutagus’ wife, the
renowned Queen Boudicca.
While the first modern MOST
humans populated the CIVILISED
area we now call Venicones
Britain at the end of the
Ice Age (6,500 BC), very little is © John Opie
known about the intricacies of their Epidii © Rhys Jones
culture and peoples until recorded
Damnonii
history begins circa the Roman Selgovae 2. Catuvellauni
invasion of 55 BC. Indeed, if it were not Novantae Located: South-east
Facts: One of the most pro-
for the Roman chroniclers of the time The view of an encircling ditch Roman tribes, the Catuvellauni
around Danebury hill fort quickly adopted Roman lifestyles
such as Tacitus and Ptolemy, who met Votadini and, as a result, were made very
rich and powerful. One of the
the ancient tribes of Britain either in trade most famous British tribal kings,
Cunobelinus, heralded from the
or in war, our sketchy picture of these peoples Catuvellauni.
would be even more incomplete than it is today. MOST
DEFENSIVE
However, centuries of historical records, stories and Brigantes
archaeological finds have at least given us a snapshot
of their lives, leaders and customs.
Before the Roman invasion there were over 27 separate Carvetii © Nigel Mykura
tribes living in Britain. These people had grown from the
early hunter-gathers who had inhabited the area, and
later the farmers who had developed agriculturally Parisi
focused societies and who had built such sophisticated
structures as Stonehenge. For the last 600 years BC though, 3. Durotriges
influenced much by the arrival of the Celts from the Cornovii Located: Dorset
continent, expansionist tribal kingdoms headed by Deceangli Facts: A southern tribe, the
dynastic and highly territorial rulers and chieftains arose, Durotriges differed from others by
remaining largely in hill forts long
delivering cultures of fierce violence and sophisticated Native Corieltauvi after others had abandoned them.
manufacture, artistry and trade. Iceni They were huge traders and,
through numerous harbours,
While the Romans are often credited with bringing a Ordovices tribes of
unified currency, as well as structured towns and a host of Britain exchanged many goods with
amenities and technology, these features – at least in part the Romans.
– were already integrated into areas of British tribal
Catuvellauni
society. Some tribes such as the Venicones buried their Demetae Accurate locations of Trinovantes Maiden Castle, a great
dead in stone casings, very much akin to a tomb or each tribe settlement example of an Iron Age,
coffin. Others, like the Iceni, Catuvellauni and
multi-ditch hill fort
Atrebates, had already created and distributed Silures
currency throughout their territories.
Over 200 years, however, from 55 BC until well into Dubunni Atrebates
the 2nd Century AD, the ancient tribes of Britain
were either conquered or indoctrinated into the Roman
empire, a process that largely converted the population’s Belgae Cantiaci
attitudes and cultures to those shared on the continent and Regni
saw a gradual climb in society towards standards of © Ray Beer
administration, architecture, sanitary systems and Dumnonii Durotriges
health care that resonate with today’s society.
023
Ancient History
Ancient Greek theatres
Ancient Greek Episkenion
theatres
Thyroma The upper storey of the
Discover how these massive skene. Accessed by a
amphitheatres were built and used These structures were ramp or stairwells, it
stone pillars into which provided an additional
vertical grooves were acting/singing space.
cut. The grooves
received the painted Prohedria
background panels and
held them in place. This was the general
term used for any stone
With the invention of tragedies in the Tour of the theatre seating within the theatre
late-sixth century BCE, comedies in – but is sometimes used
the fifth century BCE and the satyr Take a guided tour of the theatrical building to specifically describe
play tragicomedies around the first century at the heart of Ancient Greek entertainment the honorific seats in
BCE, the Ancient Greeks had to build a huge Kerkis front of the orchestra.
number of impressive theatres to do their plays
justice. As the centuries went on – and the The koilon was composed
popularity of the theatre grew and grew – the of a series of wedge-
buildings had to expand and adapt to meet the shaped seating blocks
demand. Indeed, many of these semicircular (kerkides) arranged in a
amphitheatres could seat well over 10,000 semicircle. These were
people and were used frequently during divided by various
religious festivals such as the Dionysia, a major walkways and stairs.
celebration centred around the god Dionysus.
While the theatres of the Ancient Greeks Analemmata
began as simple clearings with a smattering of
wooden benches for the audience to sit on, Often the theatre’s koilon
before long they had grown into full-blown was built into a hillside,
sanctuary-like facilities. These included large which acted as a natural
banks of stone seats, a vast orchestra and acting brace. However, the outer
area, a complex backstage network of rooms, edges could be left
entrances and trapdoors, as well as a wide exposed and so were
selection of ornate and decorative scenic secured by analemmata
backdrops. These features, along with the – ie retaining walls.
Ancient Greeks’ love for festivals, led theatres
to take a central role in cementing and
spreading Greek culture – something the
Romans would later adopt for themselves.
Theatres were made primarily out of stone,
often with the amphitheatre’s seats placed into
the side of a hill for extra support, while
traditional construction methods for civic
buildings and temples were transferred for the
production of colonnades, scenery and
entranceways. Interestingly, the greatest
technical feat in constructing many of these
theatres were the excellent acoustics, with the
shape and angle of the seating arrangement
and materials (limestone was a popular choice,
for instance) serving as acoustic traps. These
would filter out low-frequency sounds like
spectator chatter and enhance the high
frequencies of the performers’ voices.
024
HEAD 1. BIG Theatre 2. BIGGER Odeon of 3. BIGGEST Theatre of
of Delphi Herodes Atticus Epidaurus
2HEAD
Located behind the With a capacity of 5,000, Built in the fourth century
ANCIENT GREEK Temple of Apollo in the the Odeon is located on the BCE and able to seat
THEATRES Sanctuary of Delphi, this Acropolis in Athens, Greece, 15,000, this theatre is one
theatre has 35 rows of and is still used for of the largest classical
seats for spectators. performances today. examples in the world.
DID YOU KNOW? Members of Ancient Greek acting guilds were referred to as ‘technitai’
Pinakes Skene Diazoma The role of masks
Pinakes were the painted This background structure Midway up the koilon a The wearing of masks in a theatre setting was
wooden panels used as was used by the actors and semicircular walkway, not invented by the Ancient Greeks but was a
changeable backdrops to theatre workers to change known as the diazoma, key part of all their productions. For one thing,
indicate where the action costumes, assemble props split the amphitheatre’s masks were closely connected to Ancient Greek
was taking place. They and operate any mechanical seating area in two. religion, with many of their gods – who famously
were inserted into the apparatus. It would often liked to meddle in the affairs of humans –
skene’s slotted thyromata. resemble a Greek temple. depicted in each performance. The masks worn
by the actors therefore both allowed them to
Parodos transform into a deity visually, as well as
venerate them in a form of ritual performance;
Both actors and audience indeed, records indicate many masks were
members could enter burned after each show as a sacrifice.
through parodoi into the
theatre proper. Typically, Secondly, masks enabled each actor to be
entrances were located better seen by the audience, with exaggerated
either side of the skene. features such as noses and mouths, as well as
facial expressions, more easily transmitted at a
distance. The hiding of the face also enabled
each actor to play multiple roles – especially
female characters, as women were banned from
acting within the theatre at this time.
One of the most common deity masks worn
was that of Dionysus, who among other
hedonistic roles – such as the god of wine and
revelry – was also the god of the theatre.
Thymele Klimakes © Fingalo; Nikthestunned; Plusgood; Sandra Doyle, The Art Agency
This was an altar-like Located at either side
structure used by the of the kerkides were
leader of the chorus to klimakes, narrow stone
direct the other singers, steps that led from the
much like a conductor. It bottom of the koilon to
was located at the centre the top. They were the
of the orchestra. primary means of
reaching the epitheatron.
Koilon
Epitheatron
The koilon was the
theatre’s seating area, Any seating above the
though it was sometimes diazoma was part of the
used to describe the epitheatron. Seats here
theatre as a whole too. cost less than those
below the diazoma.
Proskenion
025
The proskenion was the
platform/stage directly
in front of the skene. It
typically included a
colonnade and wide open
acting space located in
front of the prohedria.
Ancient History
Greek tomb construction
Greek tomb Who were the
construction Mycenaeans?
Learn about the unique structures in which the The Mycenaean civilisation occupied much of
elite of these Ancient Greek people were buried modern-day central Greece and flourished
between 1600 and 1100 BCE. Unlike the earlier
There were two main types of These beehive tombs were accessed via a Minoan settlers of the area whose society
Mycenaean tomb: chamber tombs and long approach corridor, or passage, that was expanded and prospered through trade, the
tholos tombs. The former predates the known as a dromos, which culminated in a Mycenaeans advanced theirs through military
latter and consisted of a rhomboidal chamber large entranceway, called a stomion. The conquest. One of the most notable examples of
cut into rock/earth and finished with a square stomion consisted of a large rectangular brick the Mycenaean expansion through war is
stone pyramid on the top. No examples of these opening commonly flanked by two stone recorded in Homer’s The Iliad, where the king of
tombs have been found in modern times, columns and topped with a single giant stone Mycenae, Agamemnon, and the united forces of
however they are detailed in ledgers of the mantle. Above the mantle a triangular hole was Greece took the city of Ilium (Troy) in north-west
ancient Babylonian city of Uruk. often filled with a decorative relief sculpture. Anatolia (Turkey). Another advance saw the
The latter, which became the more common Mycenaeans capture the island of Crete.
tomb after 1500 BCE, is of a grander design. Inside, off the main conical chamber, lay an
Tholos tombs, which resemble the shape of a antechamber, which was typically rectangular. © DK Images; Thinkstock
beehive, were conical, false-domed chambers This could be used either for burials – other
built out of mud bricks and stone. The bricks family members – or more likely grave goods,
were laid in a circle on top of one another up to such as jewellery and weapons. There’s
a tapered centre point. The entire dome was evidence that both the antechamber and main
then covered by an earthen mound (tumulus). stomion were installed with wooden doors, the
latter set slightly back from the main façade.
A tholos tomb unearthed
Discover the major elements that made up the final
resting places of the Mycenaean aristocracy
Dromos Tumulus
The tholos was Upon the dome a small
approached by a dromos, mound of earth called a
an avenue leading up to tumulus was placed. This
its entrance. These were protected the tomb from
either cut into natural the elements and hid it
rock or built from ashlar from potential raiders.
masonry (stone bricks).
Antechamber Stomion
Commonly a small At the end of the dromos
antechamber abutted the stood a large stomion, an
main chamber in which the
person’s grave goods and entranceway typically
even deceased relatives constructed out of cut
may have been placed.
stone and flanked by
026 ornate stone pillars.
HEAD 1. FAMOUS Ajax 2. MORE FAMOUS Agamemnon 3. MOST FAMOUS Heracles
2HEAD A mythological hero and Also in the Iliad, but A divine hero in Greek
key player in Homer’s Iliad, suspected by some to be mythology, Heracles was
HOMERIC HEROES Ajax is a warrior with the real, Agamemnon was a Earth’s greatest warrior.
strength of many men. warrior king of Mycenae. During his 12 Labours, he
During the story he kills a He was commander-in- killed the Nemean lion and
lot of Trojan warriors. chief of the Greek forces. a nine-headed hydra.
DID YOU KNOW? Panoply is the term used to describe a complete set of hoplite armour and weaponry
Greek Hoplite kit Helmet
warriors
We look at the major armour Various styles of helmet
The hoplites of Ancient Greece and weapons used by were worn, ranging from
were some of the most feared these elite soldiers the heavy-duty Corinthian
fighters in the world – find out to the lighter Chalcidian
why they were so hard to defeat Breastplate
variety seen here. The
Both in Homeric and post-Homeric Greece, Both linen and metal crest colour and design
hoplite warriors were considered the most breastplates were worn, varied between city-states.
deadly and efficient soldiers on the planet. with the richer and more
Armed with a variety of highly refined weapons – important warriors wearing Shield
such as spears, swords and daggers, protected by very ornate bronze
toughened bronze armour and adept at executing examples. Here, the warrior The Ancient Greek
cunning tactics and formations, these Ancient Greek is wearing a linothorax, a warrior’s shield was
warriors tore through many an enemy army with linen variety popular in called an aspis and
considerable ease. later periods. consisted of a concave
Arguably, hoplites really came into their own circle of bronze-coated
around the sixth century BCE. Prior to this point Sword wood that measured
Greek warriors – who were self-armed and trained
civilians – fought for personal, familial or national Hoplites also carried a 1m (3.3ft) across.
honour singularly. They obviously grouped under short sword called a
city-state banners to wage wars, but when the battle xiphos. This secondary 027
started, the onus was very much on man-to-man weapon was only used
single combat; indeed, many battles of this period when the spear was
began with army commanders/heroes facing off damaged or a phalanx
against each other solo. formation broke ranks.
After the introduction of advanced military
formations such as the phalanx – see ‘Wall of death’
boxout for more – circa 700 BCE, soldiers began to
fight battles as cohesive military units.
This increased their battle prowess further and,
by the time of the massive Persian invasion of 480
BCE, enabled them to win a series of decisive battles
against forces that, going on the numbers, they
should have lost.
Wall of death Spear
Aside from their good training, weapons and The primary weapon of
armour, a key reason hoplite warriors were so any hoplite was a 2.5m
feared was their use of formations. Chief among (8ft)-long spear or lance.
these was the phalanx, a rectangular mass These were tipped with
formation composed of heavy infantry that, by a leaf-shaped blade on
engaging the enemy as one, allowed the one end and a short
warriors to effectively crush any foe in their spike on the other.
path. The phalanx was created by arranging
hoplites in lines typically eight to ten men deep, Greave © Ad Meskens; Ian Jackson
with the front rank of soldiers interlocking their
shields together. The long rectangular body of Metal greaves were
soldiers would then slowly advance, spears common, with the pieces
outstretched, skewering any enemies ahead. of armour hammered out
of iron or bronze sheets.
They stretched from the
top of the foot to the knee.
Ancient History
Aztec warriors
Aztec warriors Headgear
Ready yourself for battle as you learn about the An eagle-head helmet was
martial side of this Central American civilisation a sign that a warrior had
entered the elite fighting
force of the Eagles, while
members of the Jaguar
warrior force wore the
head of a slain jaguar.
The Aztecs were a fierce called the ‘Eagles’ and ‘Jaguars’ – Clothing Long-range weapon
and powerful group of dressed as their namesakes. Eagle
warriors, defined by their warriors donned feathers and an The bravest warriors who Aztec warriors also used
religious fervour and class system. eagle-head helmet (see annotated captured four prisoners could arrows, slings and spears.
New warriors had to work their warrior), while Jaguar fighters were wear eagle helmets and The latter could be thrown
way up from the bottom by wrapped in the skin of the South feathers or jaguar skins, but many metres with the atlatl
capturing prisoners. This was an American big cat. The higher up the the base layer was typically – basically a stick with a
important part of a young warrior’s social rank you rose, the more made of thick cotton. mini sling at one end.
introduction into the martial elaborate the costume became.
society, as the Aztecs would
sacrifice prisoners to the god Their main weapon was the
Huitzilopochtli. Once a warrior had maquahuitl, a wooden sword with
captured a prisoner, he would vicious shards of obsidian
attain the rank of a warrior. embedded down the sides. This
Most Aztecs wore padded cotton deadly tool was capable of
armour called ichcahuipilli, which beheading a human. The Aztecs
remained cool in the intense heat of were also proficient users of arrows,
Mexico but was also tough enough slings and the atlatl, a throwing
to deflect most arrows and darts. device that allowed them to hurl
However, the elite fighting forces – spears harder and faster than
possible with the arm alone.
Shield
Protection from missiles
came in the form of the
chimalli, a round shield
made of wood, with fibres
twisted into it for strength.
Maquahuitl Footwear © Jean-Michel Girard/The Art Agency; Alamy
The maquahuitl was a brutal Ordinary citizens and
wooden sword edged with warriors were barefoot.
obsidian shards. This was However, upper-class
said to be able to decapitate citizens and the elite fighting
men and even horses. They forces were allowed to wear
also used the tepoztopilli, a cactli. These sandal-like
2m (6.6ft) pole, which was shoes had straps wound
lined with sharp stones too. around the ankles to hold
them in place.
Although fearsome warriors,
Aztec armour and weapons could
not compete with Spanish steel
028
STRANGE What did tribal chief Sitting Answer:
BUT TRUE Bull do after he surrendered?
In 1885 Sitting Bull became an attraction at Buffalo
BULLISH BEHAVIOUR A Move to Canada B Open a shop C Join a circus Bill’s Wild West show, riding around in traditional
Native American garb and posing for pictures and
signing autographs. Allegedly, he would curse the
audience in his native tongue.
DID YOU KNOW? Despite the stereotype, only a select few Native American tribes practised scalping
Native American warrior
Check out the key kit as carried by a fighter from the Dakota Sioux tribe
Despite being lightly armoured, Native Headgear Long-range
American warriors were fierce weapon
combatants, well-trained in both Unlike many modern
hand-to-hand and ranged combat. Armed with depictions of Native The short bow and arrow
a selection of bows, spears, swords, daggers, American warriors, was the Native American
axes and even – in the later decades of the 19th they did not enter
century – guns, Westerners coming to claim the battle wearing grand long-range weapon of
Indians’ land were in for a shock. headpieces. Instead, choice – something which
Indeed, despite their superior firepower, a simple selection of
armour and resources, British and American bird feathers was they used with aplomb.
armies often found themselves outmanoeuvred worn in the hair, while Arrowheads were typically
and outfought, with the Native American the face and body made of iron, while the tail
warriors’ expert horsemanship skills allowing would be covered
them to strike quickly and with deadly with war-paint. feathers of birds were
precision, taking out large swathes of the used as fins.
invading forces before retreating to the safety Shield
granted by their knowledge of the territory. Clothing
Both the Native Americans’ excellent combat The only form of protection
skills and innovative use of terrain in battle against incoming missiles, Native American warriors
tactics meant that it took the British and then a small circular wooden were not heavily armoured,
Americans over 150 years to evict all of the shield covered with animal with leather, fur and animal
Native American tribes in North America onto skins and/or leather could
the reservations that many of their descendants be used to deflect arrows. skins providing their only
inhabit today. And they did so at great cost, with form of protection. This
thousands of soldiers being cut down by their
fierce and agile opposition right up until the light armour granted them
turn of the 20th century. excellent agility and
manoeuvrability.
In battle, the Native Americans were
tenacious and fierce warriors Hand-to-hand
weapon
Native American warriors
carried a variety of
handheld weaponry,
including axes, daggers,
spears and even swords.
Axes were popular, as they
could be thrown as well as
used in melee combat.
Footwear
Moccasins were the
footwear of choice. Made
from soft leather or
deerskin and adorned
with embroidery and
beading, they offered no
protection but were light
and comfortable.
© Ian Jackson
029
Ancient History
Inside the iconic Chinese vessel
Painting of the Kangxi
Emperor travelling by
Chinese junk
© Remi Jouan
Chinese
junks
Highly versatile, the Chinese junk © DK Images
has been used since the second
Century AD, granting dynamic
sailing controls and high speed
Chinese junks – variously sized trading overly large keel and series of lee treasure ships, boasting
and transportation ships used in Asia and centreboards (lifting foils) to nine masts and crewed by
from the second Century AD to the remain stable. Hulls were also over 130 men. During He’s 1405
modern day – work by partnering a strengthened greatly by multiple tour of the Indian Ocean, the explorer commanded
sturdy keelless hull with a versatile and mobile partitioning lengthways and sideways over 300 junks and 30,000 men.
sail-plan, in order to generate a fast and highly internally, creating a series of interior
stable sailing platform. compartments. The addition of these Today, the role of junks has diminished from its
The sail-plan of a junk differs from that of matrix braces increased hull integrity – military and trading height due to the rise of modern
traditional square-rigged ships, with the junk’s especially from sideways pressure – and also technology and transportation methods. However,
various sails capable of being moved inwards dramatically reduced flooding speed if they are still commonly used by civilians to fish,
towards the ship’s lengthy central axis, allowing it to breeched, with a series of limber holes (drainage commute, trade and travel, as well as by tourists
be easily modified in order to sail into the wind. The holes) transferring water outside. who board them on sightseeing tours.
sails themselves also differ from the traditional
variety, with long horizontal struts called battens Chinese junks developed from smaller living or
providing a rigid shape – akin to that of Venetian fishing boats such as sampans in the Han Dynasty of
blinds – and greater tear-resistance in high wind. 206 BCE-220 AD, being used primarily to traverse
Further increasing the power and speed of a junk is inland waterways and coastal waters. However, by
its tendency to spread its sails over multiple masts, the 15th Century AD their size and role had evolved
with five or more common on larger vessels. massively into trans-continent trading and military
Junk hulls were traditionally constructed from vessels, carrying hundreds of men and tons of
softwoods such as cedar and sported a horseshoe- products. Indeed, according to Chinese historical
shaped stern, elevated poop deck and flat base with documentation, during the missions of renowned
no keel. Due to this, junk hulls are fitted with an explorer and mariner Zheng He, junks had been
transformed into 420-feet long, 180-feet wide
030
5 TOP Taiwan San Junco da Conti Trade Origami
FACTS
1 In 1955, six men sailed a Ming 2 The word entered the English 3 During his expeditions in Asia 4 The primary use of Chinese 5 One of the most famous
JUNKS Dynasty-style replica junk language in the mid 17th (1419-1444), Venetian junks were as trading vessels. origami designs of all time is
6,000 miles from Taiwan to Century via the Portuguese merchant and explorer According to Richard Cocks, called the Chinese junk, a
San Francisco. In 1959, Catalan word ‘junco’. Other names Niccolo da Conti sighted junks head of the English trading multi-stage folding method
men also used a junk to sail include ‘jong’ in Malay and weighing over 2,000 tons with factory in Hirado, over 60 to create four distinct objects
from Hong Kong to Barcelona. ‘chuán’ in Mandarin. five sails and multiple masts. junks visited Nagasaki in 1612. from one sheet of paper.
DID YOU KNOW? Chinese junks developed in the Han Dynasty of 206 BCE-220 AD
Sail Head
to Head
Unlike traditional square-rigged
ships, junk sails could be moved TRADING VESSEL
inward, allowing it to easily sail EVOLUTION
into the wind. The sails were also
supported by a series of battens LARGE
(solid strips of wood), improving
the resistance to tears.
© WIBEAN © Bernard Gagnon
Rudders Junk
Junks used stern-mounted Along with sampans, junk ships
rudders that could be adjusted developed from smaller fishing
according to water depth. They vessels. Their flat-bottomed
were traditionally made out of design and Venetian blind-type
elm or other hardwoods and on sails allowed them to remain
stable in rough conditions and sail
larger boats needed multiple against the wind with great ease.
men to adjust them. They originated in Asia but spread
throughout the Middle East and
Africa through trade in the early
centuries AD.
LARGER
© Tomasz Sienicki
Hull Galleon © Huhu Uet
Junk hulls were typically Evolving from the carrack – the
carved from softwoods and predominant sailing vessel of
sported horseshoe-shaped the 14th and 15th Century – the
sterns and high poop decks. galleon was a multi-decked
ship used for warfare and trade.
Hulls were flat, however, Galleons developed in Portugal
with no keel. and Spain in the 16th Century
and were used throughout
Compartments Europe, Africa and the
Caribbean to transport goods
A notable feature of junks was their along trade routes.
interior compartments, which were
LARGEST
rare at this time. They aided cargo
storage, slowed flooding and
strengthened the hull.
Lee/centreboards (not shown) Freighter
Leeboards and centreboards were used to The predominant method used
stabilise the junk and improve its today to trade by sea over long
capability to sail upwind. distances, freighters can carry
hundreds of tons’ worth of metal
The design spread containers filled with goods.
through Asia, as seen in These container ships were
this Vietnamese variant developed in the middle of the
20th Century and now account
© Thomas Schoch Traditionally junks were for 90 per cent of worldwide
2 x © Paul A. Hernandez made from softwoods trade in non-bulk goods.
031
Ancient History
Ancient Celts
The ancient Celts
How the Iron Age revolutionised this pre-Roman civilisation
The discovery of how to extract iron If there was a negative to the Iron Age it was in
from its ore changed the world. As the medicine. Still very primitive and led primarily
Iron Age was born, new tools could be by druids, one of the only surgical operations
made for warfare, agriculture, hunting and was the trepanning procedure. Headaches
fishing. Among the main beneficiaries of this were believed to come from evil spirits so if
new age were the Celts. The Iron Age in Europe you were feeling under the weather, a hole
lasted from 800 BCE until 43 CE and signalled a was drilled into your skull to release the
significant development of society. demons. With the coming of the Iron Age
Ploughs, scythes and sickles were fashioned to and sharper, tougher tools, archeological
tend to and gather crops. Rotary querns were evidence has shown that this gruesome
introduced to turn grain into flour and hunting practice was still popular. It seems the
tools became sharper and tougher. With iron, an Celts had an obsession with the human
array of swords, helmets and armour could also head. They believed the head harboured
be fashioned. Clothing accessories developed the soul and that’s why, after a
too, with the creation of iron brooches and torcs. victorious battle, they would cut off
The Celts lived in small farming communities, the heads of fallen enemies and
often in hill forts for added protection. The display them on their houses,
houses had thatched roofs and one of the biggest both as bragging rights and to
settlements in Britain was Colchester, believed warn anyone who messed
to be the oldest town in Britain. with them.
A Celtic hill fort
Discover how Celtic farming
communities worked
Well
Without the technology
of aqueducts, water was
collected from rain or
nearby springs for the
hill-fort community.
Outdoor fire
Outdoor ovens were
used to cook bread
and meat to feed the
whole fort.
032
F5ATCOTPS Iceni Dobunni Dumnonii Catuvellauni Silures
BRITISH CELTS 1 Famous for being led by 2 This tribe was one of the 3 Occupying Cornwall, Devon 4 One of the most powerful 5 After the Iceni, this band of
Boudicca, the Iceni were largest in Britain and resided and Somerset, the Dumnonii tribes, the Catuvellauni were Celts gave the Romans the
located in modern-day East on the modern English-Welsh favoured small farms over made out of several smaller most trouble. Originating in
Anglia and were a wealthy, border. Unlike many others, larger settlements and groups. Supporting Roman the valleys of South Wales,
warlike people who led many the Dobunni easily submitted preferred healthy relations rule, Verulamium (St Albans) they were described as a
revolts against Roman rule. to Roman rule. with Brittany in France. was a big Roman settlement. strong and warlike nation.
DID YOU KNOW? Female Celts had just as many rights as men. They would fight, own land and achieve status
A reconstructed
roundhouse like the
ones Celts lived in
Construction
A roundhouse was typically
constructed from a wooden
frame with a straw roof.
Celtic cities
Celts lived in small
communities led by a
chieftain and a band of
warriors. There were
few alliances among the
different tribes and no
sort of centralised state
or government.
Indoor fire Distribution Who were the Celts?
The indoor fire was sometimes The buildings within the A term used for many different tribes, the Celts
used for extra cooking but fort’s society served varied from region to region. For instance, the
primarily for warmth in the different functions and Gauls were based in what is now France and the
harsh winter months. roles to ensure survival Celtiberians were located in modern day Spain
and development. and Portugal. As their European influence began
Hill fort location to come under threat from the Romans and
Saxons, many migrated to Britain around 500
Often surrounded by a BCE. Despite invasions from the Romans, Angles,
wooden or stone wall, both Saxons, Jutes and Vikings, the Celts still
natural and man-made remained established inhabitants in many areas
defences made the fort of Britain by the 8th century. However, their
tricky for enemies to breach. lands were now pushed back to Wales and
Scotland rather than England, which was
primarily Anglo-Saxon territory. Their influence
can still be seen today with the uncovering of the
Tal-y-Llyn hoard of Iron Age metal tools and
weapons and substantial evidence of Celtic hill
forts in Maiden Castle and Old Oswestry.
The remains of the Celtic
hill fort at Maiden Castle
033
Ancient History
Ancient Celts
How the Celts fought back
The Celts had a reputation for being fearsome Roman ninth legion and sacked the Roman-
warriors, but the advent of the Iron Age made Celtic ruled Colchester, Londinium (London) and
Britain even more resistant to overseas attack than Verulamium (St Albans). Boudicca was finally
before. The mighty Roman army took three defeated by Roman general Paulinus at the
attempts to conquer Britain and continually Battle of Watling Street, but the Iceni’s
struggled to rule over large parts of the island, stand proved that Roman rule was
especially in Scotland and Wales. The Celts had far from invincible.
access to the technology to make their own swords,
spears and axes, as well as shields for protection.
According to both Greek and Roman
historians, the Celts would often go into
battle without armour or even completely
naked, covered only in war paint. Although
there is some evidence that they used
helmets and body armour, these were
apparently rare, possibly only used by
chieftains and high-ranking warriors.
The Celtic military was primarily based
around infantry, but they also used
chariots and – occasionally – cavalry
during battles. Their tactics weren’t as
advanced as the Roman testudo, for
instance, but they still had some bold
strategies up their sleeve.
The most famous is perhaps the Furor
Celtica. Translated to ‘Celtic Fury’, it was a
mass charge on the front of an enemy line that
was used to disrupt and split enemy ranks.
Celts on the continent were known to be more
defensive and used a tight phalanx set-up, much
like the original Greek formation.
The Celtic tribes had many iconic chieftains
such as Vercingetorix, Caratacus and
Cassivellaunus, but the most famous,
without a doubt, was Boudicca (or Boadicea).
The fierce and influential warrior queen of
the Iceni tribe, she led a resistance force
against the Roman invaders. Successfully
forming an alliance with various other clans
around the British Isles, her forces defeated the
What tools and weapons did the Celts use?
Sickles & Ploughs Spears Helmets
scythes
The ‘ard’ broke up The advent of iron The Celts donned
Used to cut crops fertile soil for smelting brought two types of
and chop wood, crops so large tougher and helmet: the
iron scythes and communities sharper spears. Montefortino and
sickles made could be fed, a big These helped in the Coolus. The
farming and reason for the Iron hunting large game latter was the
building simpler Age population and were also used legionnaires’
and quicker. increase. in warfare. helmet of choice.
034
STRANGE Who invented the first Answer:
BUT TRUE European road network?
The Romans are often attributed with creating the
ON THE A The Celts B The Romans C The Aztecs infrastructure of Europe but recent research has
ROAD AGAIN shown the Celts may have preceded them. Not as
long lasting or well built, Celtic roads such as the
Via Heraclea still provided a transport system.
DID YOU KNOW? The Celts didn’t have a writing system, so much of what we know comes from artwork and secondary accounts
There were other The Dun Carloway broch
types of settlements on the Isle of Lewis,
Hill forts were the most common type of settlement in Celtic Scotland. It is one of the
Britain, but there were other types of communities too. In best preserved in the world
Scotland, for instance, brochs were very common. Stone was
more readily available than wood in the north so hollow dry Place of origin
stone towers were built. A structure known as a crannog was
also popular on the side of the lochs of Scotland. The Celts originated in an
area known as ‘Hallstatt’
Hill forts themselves also differed across the British Isles. in the foothills of the Alps
Where the terrain was not hilly, a plateau or valley fort had to in modern-day Austria.
rely on man-made defences for protection. Others were built on
river confluences for water access while others were purposely East expansion
constructed on coastlines. Last of all, some forts were not built
with defence as a priority so had smaller walls and enclosures. The extent of Celtic
expansion reached as far
Even the buildings themselves differed, with Britain having east as parts of Romania
roundhouses while in mainland Europe; rectangle or square by 275 BCE before the
buildings were preferred. rise of the Roman Empire.
On the map
Q The largest extent of
Celtic lands at
around 275 BCE
British Isles
Scotland, Wales, Ireland,
Cornwall, the Isle of Man
and Brittany in France are
known as the ‘Celtic
Nations’ where old Celtic
traditions and cultures can
still be seen and heard.
Gaul and Iberia The Alps Armour An artist’s impression of © Alamy; Corbis; Look and learn; Sol90; Thinkstock
Boudicca addressing her
Historians disagree over The two main Celtic Known as
the likelihood of a Celtic cultures are believed to Ceannlann, it was a troops before battle
presence on the Iberian be from this area, the mixture of linen
Peninsula where Hallstatt and the La Tène. and metal scales Ranged
‘Lusitanian Celts’ are sewn onto chain weapons
thought to have settled. Falcata sword mail armour. Nobles
and rich Celts could The Celtic infantry
Longer swords A typical Celtic afford this, while focused on
sword used in the poor warriors wore close-quarters
As iron and steel Iberian leather armour or combat, but after
production Peninsula. A short none at all. witnessing Viking
techniques sword used for bows, they began
gradually quick slashes, it to occasionally use
improved, longer, delivered a slings, bows and
double-edged and powerful blow spears for attacks
better balanced and could split from a distance.
swords became enemy shields
a popular weapon and helmets. 035
of choice in
Celtic warfare.
BUILDINGS,
PLACES &
LANDMARKS
038 Saint Mark’s 050 Buckingham Palace 062 What went wrong at
Basilica Discover how the home of the Chernobyl?
British monarchy emerged
The treasures within Venice’s from marshland Learn how a runaway reaction
most famouch church led to a nuclear disaster
054 Massachusetts
040 Sagrada Familia 064 Exploring Macchu
State House
Why is Spain’s most iconic Picchu
church still not finished being Behind Boston’s most
built after 130 years? recognisable building Discover this ancient Incan
complex perched between
042 The Pantheon 056 The Globe two mountain peaks in Peru
Bask in the brilliance of Theatre’s story 066 How was the Sistine
Roman architectural design
The original home to William Chapel’s ceiling
044 Seville Cathedral Shakespeare’s greatest plays painted?
Take a closer look at the 058 Inside a Japanese Explore the tools, techniques
largest Gothic cathedral in and challenges behind
the world castle Michelangelo’s lofty
Rennaisance masterpiece
046 Florence Cathedral Explore the impressive Himeji
Castle in Japan 068 Cardiff Castle
Crowned with the largest
masonry dome in the 059 The Fogong Temple Explore the Welsh captial’s
world, Florence Duomo is a central castle
Renaissance masterpiece Pagoda
066 Painting the
048 Jerusalem under Read about the oldest Sistine Chapel
wooden pagoda in China
siege
060 Brooklyn Bridge
Why has this city seen so
much conflict? Discover of New York’s most
recognisable landmarks
Inside
Buckingham
Palace
050
036
Florence
Cathedral
046
064 Sagrada
Familia
Exploring
Macchu Picchu 040
Japanese © Thinkstock; Alamy
castles
058
037
Buildings, Places & Landmarks
Saint Mark’s Basilica
Saint Mark’s Basilica
Why does Venice’s most storied and famous church have so
much treasure within its walls?
An eye-catching mix of Eastern Inside the Proclamation stone
Byzantine, Western Gothic and even Church of Gold (not shown)
Islamic styles of architecture and art,
Saint Mark’s Basilica in Venice, Italy is The many origins of St Mark’s interior Important announcements
testament not just to the wealth and power of
the Medieval Republic of Venice in Winged lion were made from the red Pietra
northeastern Italy, but to its swashbuckling
adventures in the Mediterranean – not just as The winged lion del Bando, or ‘proclamation
traders, but as conquerors. with an open book
In 828, two rather unscrupulous Venetian is the symbol of stone’, which was stolen from
merchants stole what they believed were the Saint Mark and of
remains of Saint Mark the Evangelist from Venice itself. Syria during the Crusades.
Alexandria in Egypt. Declaring Saint Mark
their home city’s patron saint, they then built Horses of Saint Mark
a church to house the body. Instead of hiding
its origin, one mosaic in Saint Mark’s Basilica Replicas of the bronze horses
even boasts of the theft – showing the that were stolen from
Venetians in question hiding the stolen saint Constantinople in 1204. The
in barrels of pork, which the Muslim originals can now be seen in
Egyptians were forbidden from touching, so the church museum.
that the customs officials wouldn’t inspect
their cargo too closely. Confession
After the original church was damaged in a
fire in 976, it was restored and then rebuilt The 17th-century mosaic
some time before 1094 around the striking over the southernmost
central dome that still stands there today. door shows the theft of
With Venice at the height of its powers in the Saint Mark’s body from
11th to 14th centuries, the city provided naval Alexandria, Egypt.
support to European armies in the Crusades
and actually led the Fourth Crusade against
Constantinople (now Istanbul in Turkey, but
then the Greek Orthodox Christian capital of
the Byzantine Empire) and took the
opportunity to loot its many religious relics,
gold and chalices, as well as four bronze horse
statues, to further embellish their Basilica.
The Venetians even stole mosaics, columns
and carvings from various churches and
houses of worship across the Middle East to
pile onto their own back in Venice.
Not everything that found its way into the
Basilica was taken by force, though, for it was
also a tradition for Venetian merchants to
bring back gifts from their travels, making
Saint Mark’s Basilica – or to give it its 11th-
century nickname, Chiesa d’Oro, or ‘Church of
Gold’ – one of the most beautiful cathedrals in
not only Italy, but all of Europe.
038
KEY 832 976 1094 1202 1797
DATES
The original Saint Mark’s The Basilica is damaged The new church is Venice leads the Fourth Napoleon Bonaparte
ST MARK’S STORY steals many treasures
Basilica is constructed by a fire during a consecrated. It will be Crusade against
from Saint Mark’s.
to house the saint’s revolution against Venice’s modified many times over Constantinople; Saint Most are later returned.
pilfered remains. ruler Pietro IV Candiano. the coming centuries. Mark’s is showered in booty.
DID YOU KNOW? Saint Mark’s Basilica only became Venice’s cathedral in 1807 – prior to that it was a chapel
False dome Altar screen
The original domes were The beautiful Pala
extended with lead- d’Oro, or ‘golden
covered wood in the 13th pall’, altar screen
century to match the style was bought from
of the palace next door. Constantinople in
1102, rather than
Mosaics being stolen.
There are 8,000m2 The falling tower
(86,100ft2) of mosaics,
many in gold. That’s more Italian churches often have bell
than enough to cover a towers, or ‘campaniles’, separate from
football pitch. the main building and Saint Mark’s
Campanile, which stands 50m (164ft)
high, was built in the 9th century.
The tower is so iconic that not only
does it adorn postcards, magnets and
T-shirts, but replicas – most often
used as clock towers – can be found
around the world.
But even Saint Mark’s Campanile
itself is something of a replica. In the
early hours of 14 July 1902 a crack
appeared in the wall, which continued
to grow. Then at 9.45am, the tower
completely collapsed. It was rebuilt
with stronger foundations and finally
opened on 25 April 1912. The
reconstruction cost 2.2mn lire
(£88,000), a vast amount at the time.
© DK Doge’s platform
To the left of the altar
is a platform where
Venice’s ruler, the
doge, would appear
after his election.
Columns
There are more than
500 columns, many
stolen from the
Byzantine Empire and
dating from the 6th to
11th centuries.
Syrian columns RIGHT View of the
Basilica from Saint
Two Byzantine columns Mark’s Campanile
stolen from Syria in the
crusades – they date from
the 5th or 6th century.
039
Buildings, Places & Landmarks
Sagrada Família
Sagrada Família Sagrada Família is not a cathedral,
because it doesn’t have a bishop. But it
Why is Spain’s most iconic church still not finished was intended from the outset to be
after 130 years? cathedral sized. The design calls for 18 spires,
seven side chapels and three grand facades.
The statistics… The raised choir space has room for 1,100
Sagrada Família singers and the six separate organs will be
playable from a central console to give a single
Length: 90m instrument with 8,000 pipes. When it is
Height: 170m completed, Sagrada Família will be the
Area: 4,500m2 tallest church building in the world. But
Spires: 18 the extraordinary gingerbread
Seats: 8,000 architecture has divided opinion
Visitors: 2 million per year from the very beginning. George
Orwell called it “one of the most
hideous buildings in the world.”
The church was commissioned by a
pious bookseller called Josep Maria
Bocabella and the first stone was laid in
1882. The Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí
took charge of the design a year later. Because
it has never received money from government
or the Catholic Church, the pace of building
work has always depended on the money that
could be raised privately. During Gaudí’s
lifetime only the crypt, the apse above it and
one of the spires had been completed. Gaudí
himself was not concerned with the slow
progress and famously said: “My client is not in
a hurry.”
Today, Sagrada Família is a UNESCO World
Heritage Site and one of the most popular
tourist attractions in Spain. The admission
charge and other fund raising generates more
than €25 million (£20 million), which now
allows an extraordinary level of craftsmanship
and detail on the construction. But Sagrada
Família is not a museum piece. Modern
construction techniques and materials are
used wherever possible, including reinforced
concrete, computer-aided design and
3D-printing of plaster decorations. Even though
Antoni Gaudí lies buried in the crypt at Sagrada
Família, a team of engineers, artists and
craftsmen remain dedicated to finishing the
work he began.
Construction 1882 1883 1894 1926
ahead
Work begins under the Gaudí takes More than a decade later, Gaudí dies,
The road toward completion of the architect Francisco de over after the crypt and apse (the aged 74. He has
Sagrada Família has been long and Paula del Villar y Lozano. It the original architect semi-circular area behind spent over 42 years working on
arduous – and there is still some is originally designed as a disagrees with the project the altar) are the first parts Sagrada Família, but more than
way to go… Gothic revival church. promoter and resigns. of the church to be finished. 75 per cent of it is still unbuilt.
040
HEAD 1. LONG Ryugyong 2. LONGER Ajuda National 3. LONGEST Siena
Hotel, North Palace, Portugal Cathedral, Italy
2HEAD Korea
The official residence of the A massive extension to this
DELAYED Begun in 1987, it took 20 Portuguese royal family was ancient cathedral was
CONSTRUCTIONS years to finish the exterior begun in 1796 but wars and commenced in 1339 but
of this 105-storey hotel a revolution stalled was halted by the Black
and it still hasn’t opened. construction indefinitely. Death and never finished.
DID YOU KNOW? The Jesus tower will be 1m (3.3ft) lower than Montjuïc Hill – Gaudí believed his creation should not exceed God’s
Inspiring Jesus tower
architecture
Work on this tower has not
Every tower and entrance represents a even started, but it will
different part of the New Testament eventually be the tallest of
the spires at 170m (558ft).
The Mary tower Vaulted roof (not Modern interior
shown)
Currently missing the top Sagrada Família uses elaborate
half of the spire, this tower The ingenious double roof branching internal columns to
will be 123m (404ft) high direct all the weight of the
when finally completed. space is angled so that building downward. This allows it
to have a durable stone roof,
light from the side instead of the traditional wooden
design, and avoids the need for
windows is directed down flying buttresses (which Gaudí
called ‘crutches’) to prop up the
into the church below. walls on the outside. The shapes
of the columns are modelled on
Evangelist towers Apostle towers twisting plant stems. At their
(not shown) base, each column begins as a
These will be topped with polygon or star, and the number
a statue to represent each One for each of Jesus’ 12 of sides or points doubles at
of the four canonical apostles. The four at the intervals as the columns rise, until
gospel writers: Matthew, south end represent they all become cylinders at the
Mark, Luke and John. Andrew, Peter, Paul and top. The stained glass windows
James the Greater. are another deliberate departure
from traditional Catholic church
Nativity facade design. Normally, the panes at the
bottom are in lighter colours than
The earliest facade and the those near the top, to give even
only one with sculptures illumination. At Sagrada Família
designed by Gaudí himself. it’s the other way around. The
His original vision called for windows at the top of the central
all the statues to be nave are completely clear, to flood
brilliantly painted. the vaults with light.
Sacristy Gloria facade
A private chamber where Construction of this facade
the priest prepares for the only began in 2002. It
service. There is another represents humanity’s
on the opposite side. ascension to heaven and will
eventually be the grandest of
Passion facade the three facades.
The three facades depict
different parts of Christ’s
story. The Passion facade
shows his crucifixion and
is more austere.
1933 1936 1978 1992 2010 2026 © Getty; Alamy
The Nativity facade is The Civil War interrupts The four towers of The Barcelona The roof of the The aim is to have the
finished. It is intended to construction. Catalan the Passion facade Olympics speed up central nave is completed and church completed in
set the standard for the anarchists burn down are built and work funding by bringing Pope Benedict XVI consecrates time for the centenary
structure and decoration Gaudí’s workshop. His starts on the in millions of extra the basilica so it can be used of Gaudí’s death – 144
of the rest of the church. models are destroyed. facade itself. tourists to the city. for religious services at last. years after work began.
041
Buildings, Places & Landmarks
The Pantheon
The Pantheon Facade
Bask in the brilliance of Roman architecture
The writing on the front
You may have heard of the Roman façade reads: “M Agrippa
Emperor Hadrian – he has a wall LF. Cos Tertium Fecit”
named after him in Northern England (“Marcus Agrippa, son of
– but his most famous and influential project is Lucius, three-time consul,
the Pantheon. Nestled in the heart of Ancient made this”).
Rome, it is the largest unreinforced concrete
dome in the world. It was completed in around Columns
125 CE after the original was burnt to a cinder.
The Pantheon served as both a temple to the Originally covered in white
gods and also as a place where the emperor marble, the porch’s eight
could make public appearances. 11.8m (39ft) Corinthian
The front of the structure is Greek in style and columns were copied by
is not too different from many of the buildings in the Romans from Ancient
Ancient Athens in its pomp. The remainder is a Greek structures such as
classical Roman style and contains an 8.8-metre the Parthenon.
(29-foot) oculus in the dome. This opening
allowed the Sun to light the main chamber.
While the Greek columns were made of marble,
the Roman arches inside are constructed from
brick. The vast dome is held up by internal
arches and step rings and signifies a major
breakthrough in architecture. These techniques
enabled the Romans to construct the biggest
structures ever seen in that period.
With the fall of the Western Roman Empire,
Europe experienced a period of architectural
decline known as the Dark Ages. As cities across
the empire were ransacked, many of the great
Roman buildings were destroyed by barbarian
hordes. One of the exceptions to this was the
Pantheon. It was converted to a Christian
Church called the St Mary of the Martyrs in 608
CE. Christianity was the main religion of Europe
at the time so this is probably what saved it
from being levelled. Currently, the building
serves as a symbolic tomb for the old Italian
monarchy and as a constant reminder of the
greatness of Ancient Rome.
Pretenders to the crown
From the Panthéon in Paris to the little closer to home in the Villa Exterior
Pantheon of National Revival Heroes Almerico-Capra in Italy. Ancient
in Bulgaria, the legendary structure Roman architecture has been the The bronze doors of
has influenced building style around template for many structures and the Pantheon weigh
the world. You’ll notice the since the Pantheon is undoubtedly 20 tons and the
symmetrical design with rows of one of the best preserved of them all, exterior walls are
Corinthian columns reproduced in the it’s only natural to look to it for 7.5m (25ft) thick.
US Capitol Building and the Jefferson inspiration. As they say, imitation is
Memorial in Washington, USA, and a the sincerest form of flattery.
042
HEAD 1. BIG Oita Bank 2. BIGGER AT&T Stadium 3. BIGGEST Singapore
Dome National
2HEAD The 80,000-capacity Stadium
This impressive stadium home of the NFL’s famous
BIGGEST DOMES in Japan played host to Dallas Cowboys, the At an immense 312m
IN THE WORLD three fixtures in the 2002 dome is the biggest in the (1,024ft), the
FIFA World Cup and has a United States at a huge retractable roof is the
dome of 270m (886ft). 274m (900ft). daddy of all domes.
DID YOU KNOW? Every year, on 21 June, the rays of the Sun at the summer equinox shine from the oculus through the front door
Oculus
The small hole in the
top of the dome was
originally the only
light source within
the building.
Dome
The dome’s rotunda is
43.3m (142ft) in diameter
and is constructed from
pozzolanic concrete.
Main room
The main room is designed
to symbolise the heavens
while the oculus depicts
the Sun.
Pantheon
through
the ages
126 CE
A temple to all the
Roman gods
1600
A Renaissance
period regeneration
Drainage system Roman religion Interior design 1835 © Thinkstock, Sol90, Corbis, Alamy
The short-lived bell
Rain water entering Seven shrines represent the Due to renovation and towers are seen here
through the oculus is five planets the Romans restoration projects over the
carried from the centre of knew of (Mercury, Venus, years, the interior is now 2014
the temple through drains. Mars, Jupiter and Saturn) and decorated in a Christian Today, it hosts mass
the Sun and Moon. design rather than Roman. and weddings
043
Buildings, Places & Landmarks
Seville Cathedral
Seville Cathedral
The largest Gothic cathedral in the world, when completed it
was regarded as a wonder of its age. It’s easy to see why…
The Cathedral of St Mary of the See, Work began on the cathedral
more commonly known as Seville we see today in 1401 – but its
Cathedral, is the mother church of history goes as far back as 1184
Andalucía. The cathedral was built on the site of
a former 12th-century Almohad mosque. This Up close with the
house of prayer originally consisted of a iconic giralda
rectangular courtyard, flanked by the mosque
itself – a low rectangular building, oriented east The cathedral’s bell tower started life as the
to west, containing many aisles divided by long minaret of the original mosque of Seville.
lines of pillars. Built of stone and brick, the Constructed between 1184 and 1198, by the
mosque had a tall minaret on its eastern flank. architect Ahmed Ben Basso, the brick tower was
After the Christian conquest of the city in topped by large decorative gilt bronze spheres.
1248, the mosque was quickly converted into a After Seville was taken by the Christians in the 13th
church – the minaret pressed into use as a bell century, the minaret was converted into the
tower. By the beginning of the 15th century, cathedral’s bell tower by the addition of a belfry
however, the structure of the old mosque had stage. After an earthquake in the mid-14th century,
become so dilapidated that it was decided to the Islamic bronze balls collapsed and they were
build an entirely new cathedral in stone. This replaced by a large central bell house topped by a
new church largely followed the ground plan of cross. This was in turn replaced when the
its predecessor, but it was considerably taller Renaissance architect Hernán Ruiz the Younger
and contained fewer columns. In result, the designed a new belfry surmounted by a spire
cathedral has a vast, hall-like interior. topped by a large bronze statue representing the
But despite its massive walls and complex triumph of Christianity. Finally completed in 1568,
system of flying buttresses, which supported many architects have since found inspiration in the
the stone vaults, the new cathedral’s design giralda’s design and fusion of architectural styles.
was far from perfect. Structural instability
resulted in the collapse of the central tower in
1511, which was then rebuilt to an improved
design. However, it again fell down in 1888 –
this time due to an earthquake – and its
reconstruction didn’t take place till 1903.
The cathedral also contains many famous
tombs. The most notable is that of the explorer
Christopher Columbus, which stands in the
south transept. Three kings of Castile are also
buried in the cathedral – Pedro I, Alfonso X and
St Ferdinand III. Due to its size, architectural
importance and the artistic treasures that it
houses, Seville Cathedral was designated a
UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.
Cathedral 1184 1248 1401 1507
in progress
The building of the Seville is conquered by Work on the The main body
Key events in cathedral history
original Almohad Ferdinand III and the mosque present-day of the cathedral
044
mosque began. turned into a church. cathedral starts. church is finished.
HEAD 1. LONG Seville 2. LONGER Liverpool 3. LONGEST St Peter’s
Cathedral Cathedral Basilica
2HEAD
Despite being the largest The longest cathedral in It may be over 400 years
CATHEDRALS OF Gothic cathedral in the Britain, at 188.7m (619ft), old, but at 211.5m (694ft),
THE WORLD world, at 132m (433ft) Liverpool’s 20th-century St Peter’s Basilica in
Seville Cathedral’s length cathedral is the world’s Rome, Italy, is the longest
is pretty average. second longest. church by a long chalk.
DID YOU KNOW? In 1401 the cathedral chapter resolved to build a church so large that all who saw it would think they were ‘mad’
Tour of Seville Spire and statue Sacristy
Cathedral
The 16th-century spire is surmounted Covered by a great dome,
Although an apparently by a statue representing the triumph the sacristy contains all
compact structure, the of the Christian faith. the vestments and sacred
cathedral evolved over vessels used in services.
many centuries Capilla real
Giralda The domed chapel which
stands immediately
Built between 1184 behind the high altar.
and 1568, the tower
is 105m (344ft) high. Tomb of Columbus
Retablo The tomb of 15th-century
explorer Christopher
The retablo, or altarpiece, Columbus stands in the
is covered in religious centre of the south transept.
sculpture and forms the
backdrop to the high altar.
El Patio de
los Naranjos
The courtyard to the north
of the cathedral takes its
name from the orange
trees that grow there.
The statistics… West façade © Thinkstock; DK Images; Miguel Mendez; Roberto Chamoso
Seville Cathedral The west front contains
the cathedral’s main door
Architects: Alonso Martínez, and great circular
Pieter Dancart, Hernán Ruiz stained-glass window.
Architectural style:
Gothic, Renaissance Choir
Years of construction:
1401-1507 Lined with wooden stalls,
Type of building/purpose: the choir stands before the
Metropolitan cathedral high altar where all the
Location: Seville, Spain major services are held.
Spire height: 105m (344ft)
Nave height: 42m (138ft) Side chapels
Area of site:
11,520m2 (124,000ft2) The north and south sides
of the church are lined with
1569 small chapels in which daily
services are conducted.
The top stages
of the bell tower 1656 1888 1898
are finished.
The baptistry, with its The cathedral’s Christopher Columbus’s
painting The Vision Of central tower and bones are interred to
St Anthony, is built. vaults collapse. Seville Cathedral.
045
Buildings, Places & Landmarks
Florence Cathedral
The statistics… Italy
Florence
Mediterranean
Florence Cathedral
Height: 114.5m (375ft)
Length: 153m (502ft)
Width: 38m (125ft)
Cost: At least £500m ($802m)
Date of construction:
1296-1436
Architect:
At least 11 different architects
Florence Cathedral
Crowned with the largest masonry dome in the world,
Florence Duomo is a Renaissance masterpiece
Popularly called the The cathedral’s exterior walls A tour of the basilica
Duomo, Florence are faced in alternate vertical and
Cathedral’s name is horizontal bands of coloured It looks deceptively simple but Florence Cathedral
derived from the Latin ‘domus dei’ marble – white from Carrara, green boasts some very sophisticated architecture
– the House of God – and is from Prato and red from Siena.
dedicated to the Virgin Mary Santa Despite the many architects to Baptistry West façade
Maria del Fiore (St Mary of the work on it the building retains a
Flower). The present building was remarkable architectural and This octagonal building’s This was the last part
started in 1296 and is the third aesthetic cohesion. The interior is eastern doors are a of the cathedral to be
cathedral to stand on the site. sparsely decorated, but contains a Renaissance masterpiece completed between
Taking 140 years to build, the number of major Renaissance by the sculptor Lorenzo 1876-1887 to the
original plan was only changed artworks and 44 stained-glass Ghiberti. Its panels designs of architect
once during construction when the windows – in fact, the largest illustrate scenes from Emilio de Fabris.
eastern half of the cathedral was expanse of glass installed during the Old Testament.
massively expanded to allow for 14th and 15th-century Italy.
the now iconic dome. Work on this
extraordinary structure began in Above the main door is the
1420 and was completed in just 16 basilica’s one-handed liturgical
years. Higher and wider than any clock, which shows all 24 hours.
previously built, the octagonal Erected in 1443, it is still working
dome was constructed without today. The largest cathedral in
using a temporary wooden Europe when it was built, it has
supporting frame. Consisting of a become symbolic of Florence and
double shell made of sandstone, its dome is instantly recognised
marble and brick, the base of the around the globe. Such is the
dome is 52 metres (171 feet) above Duomo’s cultural importance that
the ground and has a staggering the cathedral complex was
44-metre (144-foot) diameter. designated a UNESCO World
Heritage site in 1982.
046
KDEATYES 1296 1436 1439 1865 1887
THE DUOMO The building of the The cathedral is The Council of Florence Florence is made capital The cathedral’s
present cathedral begins formally consecrated by is held to try and reunify of the newly created neogothic west façade
Pope Eugene IV (right). Kingdom of Italy; the
to the east of the old the Orthodox and is finally completed.
cathedral of St Reparata. Catholic churches. Duomo is its cathedral.
DID YOU KNOW? The famous English mercenary, Sir John Hawkwood, was buried in Florence Cathedral in 1394
Lantern Dome The Baptistry
of St John
A stone lantern crowns The double-skinned dome
the dome and is comprises more than 4 This octagonal building stands slightly to the
surmounted by a gilt- million bricks and over west of the cathedral. Built to house the font in
copper cross and ball 37,000 tons of material. which all Christians in Florence were baptised, it
containing holy relics. was constructed between 1059 and 1128. The
baptistry is famous for three sets of artistically
Dome interior important bronze doors. The eastern pair, facing
the cathedral, so impressed Michelangelo that
The interior surface of the he called them the ‘Gates of Paradise’. Made of
dome is covered in an sandstone and faced with marble incorporating
enormous fresco depicting many reused fragments of Roman buildings, the
The Last Judgement, exterior features many sculptural groups and
painted by Giorgio Vasari. two massive porphyry columns.
Campanile The interior of the baptistry is clad in marble,
while the inside of the dome which roofs the
Considered by many to be structure is inlaid with magnificent gold mosaics.
Italy’s most beautiful bell The floor is covered in marble featuring a design
tower, the top of the based on the zodiac. Unusually, the baptistry also
campanile can be reached houses a number of tombs, including that of the
by climbing 414 steps. antipope John XXIII which is considered a
significant early-Renaissance sculptural work.
Giotto’s
campanile
The campanile, or bell tower, was
designed by the celebrated painter
Giotto di Bondone and it houses
seven bells. Standing next to the
cathedral, it is built from the same
coloured marbles and so blends in
well with its neighbour. The tower
is square in plan with sides
measuring 15 metres (47 feet) and
it soars 87 metres (278 feet) high.
Embraced by polygonal buttresses
at its corners, it’s divided into five
separate levels – the upper three
of which contain windows. Each of
the three top levels is larger than
the one below it in every
dimension. These differences in
size counter the effect of
perspective so when viewed from
below, the three top levels of the
tower look equal in size. Although
Giotto originally intended the
campanile to be surmounted by a
tall spire, after his death it was
decided to build a large projecting
terrace instead, which lends the
tower a dramatic ‘broken off’ look.
Nave Crypt Transept
Consisting of four Located beneath the body The cathedral’s small
vast bays, the nave is of the basilica, the crypt transepts (the ‘cross
designed for processions houses the tombs of the arms’) house a number
and to accommodate bishops of Florence and of chapels, tombs and
other notable people. major sculptural works.
large congregations
of worshipers. Chancel © Thinkstock
The silver shrine of St
Zenobius, the first bishop of
Florence, is located in the
chancel’s eastern chapel.
047
Buildings, Places & Landmarks
Jerusalem under siege
Jerusalem The battle for
under siege Jerusalem
From Roman battles to WWI, this city has
seen more than its fair share of conflict Discover how the city was besieged
on the First Crusade in 1099
In its long history, the city of Jerusalem This victory led to a counterattack in 1187
has been besieged over 20 times. One from Saladin of the Ayyubid Dynasty. The city, Inner city
of the oldest cities in the world, it has still under Christian rule, was defended by
been the scene of Roman civil wars, holy Balian of Ibelin. At first, Saladin negotiated for a The Jerusalem citadel contained
crusades and even a world war. peaceful surrender but after it was rejected he some of Islam’s holiest sites such
The first siege of the Common Era was when began besieging Jerusalem. as the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the Dome
the city was under Roman rule in 70 CE. Started of the Rock and the Tower of David.
by the Great Jewish Revolt in 66 CE, the Jews He focused his attacks on the Tower of David
were incensed when a Roman official stole from and the Damascus Gate. The assault was Attack the walls
the synagogue. Jews rose up against their repelled so the attention was turned to the
oppressors’ rule and established Jerusalem as Mount of Olives, which had no gate. This proved A direct offensive was
the centre of rebellion. Subsequently, Emperor to be a tactical masterclass and, just as the launched and ladders
Vespasian ordered a force led by General Titus Christian stronghold was about to fall, Balian were put against the
to retake the city. Battering rams, catapults and offered a negotiated surrender to which Saladin battlements as crusaders
siege towers were used to destroy the walls and eventually agreed. The later Third Crusade led tried to rush the city.
sacred relics from the city’s temple were stolen. by Richard the Lionheart and Philip II in 1189
The Arch of Titus in Rome was built to aimed to reclaim the city, but ultimately failed.
commemorate the victory.
Perhaps the most famous of all Jerusalem’s The next major siege was centuries later in
conflicts, though, were the Crusades. In the 1917 during World War I. A battle between the
First Crusade of 1099, a Christian army with British and the Ottoman Empire, the city fell
12,000 infantry and 1,500 cavalry took the city. into Allied hands after several days of fighting.
Siege towers and scaling ladders were used to The city remained under British rule until 1948,
overwhelm the defences of one of the best- when the Arab-Israeli War divided Jerusalem
defended metropolises of the age. between Israel and Jordan, leading to decades
of internal conflict. Today, it is the capital of two
sovereign states: Israel and Palestine.
Why is Jerusalem so sought after?
Jerusalem has been regarded as a city Jews believe the city was designed
of religious significance for Jews, for them by God. For Islam, the city
Christians and Muslims for over 2,000 contains one of the holiest mosques
years. For Crusaders, the city needed after that in Mecca and is known as
to be recaptured from Muslim rule, as Al-Quds. Jerusalem was also
it was essential to pilgrimages. In geographically important for empires
Judaism, Jerusalem is considered holy to get a foothold on the Middle East
and is often known as Zion. for military campaigns and trade.
Road to Nov 1095 Dec Jun 1097
Jerusalem 1096
Christian armies from The Anatolian city of
Jerusalem was the main the West, encouraged Western forces Nicaea is captured,
target for the First by Pope Urban II, arrive in the followed by an
Crusade – here’s how decide to recapture Byzantine capital eight-month siege of
the conquest unfolded the Holy Land from of Constantinople Antioch (right).
the Muslims. to begin the war.
048
F5ATCOTPS Gibraltar The Alamo Candia Constantinople Stalingrad
FAMOUS SIEGES 1 The Great Siege of Gibraltar 2 Fought during the Texas War 3 Lasting for two decades, the 4 In 1453, just 10,000 men 5 In 1942, Soviet city Stalingrad
was a French and Spanish of Independence in 1836, the Siege of Candia is the longest stood against 100,000 was surrounded by German
attempt to take over the British Alamo is renowned for the in history. 60,000 Ottomans Ottomans. Cannons and forces. Fierce street-to-street
stronghold. Lasting over three bravery of 200 Texans who attacked the Venetian city in warships led to not just the fighting ensued, eventually
years, the British held out held out over a 13-day siege Crete in 1648 and it eventually city’s demise but also the resulting in a Russian victory
despite navy blockades. against 6,000 Mexicans. succumbed in 1669. fall of the Byzantine Empire. and a turn of the tide in WWII.
DID YOU KNOW? 2005’s Hollywood blockbuster film Kingdom Of Heaven is based on the 1187 Siege of Jerusalem
Surrounding the city
With certain areas heavily
defended, the attackers widened
their assault and targeted
weaker areas of the walls.
Siege towers Defence
Huge towers were The defenders fought back
constructed after help by throwing projectiles
from Genoese allies. from the ramparts and
Hordes of crusaders using ranged weapons to
could now swarm bring down the ladders and
over the walls. slow the Christian advance.
Jul 1097 Dec Jun 1098 Jun Camp (not shown) © Getty; Thinkstock
1097 1099
The first big The Battle of the Orontes The Christian Crusaders
skirmish of the The Muslims, led by sees a 75,000-strong The Siege of arrived on 7 July and
campaign at Duqaq and Ridwan, Islamic army, low on Jerusalem established a camp. Their
Dorylaeum results strike back in two morale, defeated by begins and the full force was reportedly
in heavy losses but battles at Harenc 15,000 Christians. Crusaders are around 13,000 men.
a Christian win. but are repelled. victorious by
July (right). Siege engines
Weapons such as
trebuchets and
mangonels were built for
long-range attacks on
the city’s fortifications.
Aug 1099
At the Battle of Ascalon,
an Egyptian force of
50,000 is defeated by
the Crusaders. With
Jerusalem still under
Christian control, the
First Crusade ends.
049
Buildings, Places & Landmarks
Buckingham Palace uncovered
Buckingham
Palace uncovered
The London home of the British monarchy is recognised
the world over, but how did it emerge from marshland?
Although one of London’s most popular State ballroom Grand entrance
historic landmarks, Buckingham
Palace as we know it today is less than The largest room in the This is the official
200 years old. Part of the medieval manor of palace, the ballroom entrance and exit point
Ebury, the land on which the palace stands, was added by Queen to the palace through
came into royal possession under Henry VIII. Victoria in 1854. It is which all distinguished
Planted up as a mulberry garden by King 37m (121ft) long, 18m visitors pass.
James I (1603-1625) in an attempt to rear (59ft) wide and 13.5m
silkworms, the site of the future palace passed (44ft) high. Kitchen and
through various hands before Goring House, staff quarters
Arlington House and then Buckingham House The statistics…
were built on the same site in less than 150 years. Most of the everyday
Little is known about these houses, but they are Buckingham Palace work in the palace
thought to have stood where the south wing of happens behind the
the palace is located today. Architects: John Nash, Sir Aston scenes in the staff
In 1761 George III purchased Buckingham Webb, Edward Blore and others quarters. They are
House for his wife, Queen Charlotte, as a quiet Built: 1762-1914 located all around and
family home close to St James’s Palace. A rather Area: 77,000m2 (830,000ft2) even under the palace.
simple redbrick building, the king remodelled Height: 24m (79ft)
the house in 1762 and it was redesigned again on Number of rooms: 775
the accession of George IV in 1820. In 1826 the Cost: Estimated at over £1bn
king decided to transform the old-fashioned ($1.7bn) today
house into a palace. The celebrated architect
John Nash doubled the size of the building by
adding a new suite of rooms in a French
neoclassical style. The north and south wings of
the old house were demolished and rebuilt on a
larger scale, with a triumphal arch – the Marble
Arch – as the courtyard’s centrepiece.
With the accession of William IV, Nash was
replaced by Edward Blore who finished work on
the palace. The king, however, did not care for
the building, failed to move in and even offered
The palace 1536 1624 1674
over time
Land sold First house built Fire!
Take a tour through Buckingham
Palace’s history and discover the King Henry VIII takes the Sir William Blake builds Purchased by Henry
key events that made it the Manor of Ebury, which the first house on the site. Bennet, First Earl of
landmark it is today includes the land where Bought by Lord Goring in Arlington, Goring House
the palace now sits, off 1633, the original structure burns down in 1674. Its
050 Westminster Abbey and is extended and becomes replacement is called
leases it to royal landlords. known as Goring House. Arlington House.