History

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• WWorld History Encyclopedia2026-10-15✓ Read

  75 Images of the Pacific War

  In this gallery of 75 images, we examine the key features of WWII's Pacific War. After the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, the US naval base in Hawaii, Japan continued to expand its empire until the turning point of the Battle of Midway in mid-1942, when four Japanese aircraft carriers were sunk. The US air, sea, and land forces then went on the offensive and proceeded over the next three years to liberate successive Pacific island groups. Japan itself was attacked but did not surrender until the dropping of two atomic bombs in August 1945.

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• WWorld History Encyclopedia2026-10-14✓ Read

  Matter of Aratta: The Great Sumerian Epic

  The Matter of Aratta is the modern-day title for a collection of four poems – Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta, Enmerkar and En-suhgir-ana, Lugalbanda in the Mountain Cave, and Lugalbanda and the Anzud Bird – concerning the rivalry between the cities of Uruk and Aratta and dated to the Ur III period (circa 2112 to circa 2004 BCE).

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• WWorld History Encyclopedia2026-10-13✓ Read

  First Days in the Union Army: Recruitment and Training in the Civil War

  Recruitment and training practices during the American Civil War varied according to the year, the commanding officer, and between the opposing forces, but followed the same basic model. When the war began in 1861, both sides believed it would be a short conflict and easily won. They both realized they were wrong after the First Battle of Bull Run (First Manassas) on 21 July 1861.

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• WWorld History Encyclopedia2026-10-12✓ Read

  Battle of Belmont: B. F. Sawyer's Eyewitness Account

  The Battle of Belmont (7 November 1861) was an engagement fought during the American Civil War in Mississippi County, Missouri. It was the first combat command of Union Brigadier General Ulysses S. Grant in the war and the first battle experience of most of the men under him. The same was true of the Confederate soldiers fighting under Major General Leonidas Polk and Brigadier General Gideon J. Pillow.

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• WWorld History Encyclopedia2026-10-09✓ Read

  Drinking Customs in Merry Olde England

  Raising toasts, sharing cups of cheer, and singing raucous songs while partaking of alcohol are customs which date back to the early Middle Ages in England. Several of the more formal customs persist today in public and private institutions that cherish traditions. Nowadays, glass dominates when landlords pull a pint, but this was not always so.

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• WWorld History Encyclopedia2026-10-08✓ Read

  Officers of the Roman Army

  With the appearance of the legionary, the Roman army was able to maintain a vast empire that totally embraced the Mediterranean Sea. Although the success of the army rested on the backs of the foot-soldiers and cavalry, there were others on the field and in camp who enabled them to prevail. Besides the famed centurion who stood at the front of his cohort and led his legionaries into battle, there was a command hierarchy of military tribunes, a camp prefect, and a legate.

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