Chapter I: Front Matter

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A SHORT HISTORY OF THE WORLD

By H. G. WELLS

New York

THE MACMILLAN & COMPANY

1922

_Copyright 1922_

CONTENTS CHAPTER Page

A SHORT HISTORY OF THE WORLD I. THE WORLD IN SPACE 1 II. THE WORLD IN TIME 5 III. THE BEGINNINGS OF LIFE 11 IV. THE AGE OF FISHES 16 V. THE AGE OF THE COAL SWAMPS 21 VI. THE AGE OF REPTILES 26 VII. THE FIRST BIRDS AND THE FIRST MAMMALS 31 VIII. THE AGE OF MAMMALS 37 IX. MONKEYS, APES AND SUB-MEN 43 X. THE NEANDERTHALER AND THE RHODESIAN MAN 48 XI. THE FIRST TRUE MEN 53 XII. PRIMITIVE THOUGHT 60 XIII. THE BEGINNINGS OF CULTIVATION 65 XIV. PRIMITIVE NEOLITHIC CIVILIZATIONS 71 XV. SUMERIA, EARLY EGYPT AND WRITING 77 XVI. PRIMITIVE NOMADIC PEOPLES 84 XVII. THE FIRST SEA-GOING PEOPLES 91 XVIII. EGYPT, BABYLON AND ASSYRIA 96 XIX. THE PRIMITIVE ARYANS 104 XX. THE LAST BABYLONIAN EMPIRE AND THE EMPIRE OF DARIUS I 109 XXI. THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE JEWS 115 XXII. PRIESTS AND PROPHETS IN JUDEA 122 XXIII. THE GREEKS 127 XXIV. THE WARS OF THE GREEKS AND PERSIANS 134 XXV. THE SPLENDOUR OF GREECE 139 XXVI. THE EMPIRE OF ALEXANDER THE GREAT 145 XXVII. THE MUSEUM AND LIBRARY AT ALEXANDRIA 150 XXVIII. THE LIFE OF GAUTAMA BUDDHA 156 XXIX. KING ASOKA 163 XXX. CONFUCIUS AND LAO TSE 167 XXXI. ROME COMES INTO HISTORY 174 XXXII. ROME AND CARTHAGE 180 XXXIII. THE GROWTH OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE 185 XXXIV. BETWEEN ROME AND CHINA 196 XXXV. THE COMMON MAN’S LIFE UNDER THE EARLY ROMAN EMPIRE 201 XXXVI. RELIGIOUS DEVELOPMENTS UNDER THE ROMAN EMPIRE 208 XXXVII. THE TEACHING OF JESUS 214 XXXVIII. THE DEVELOPMENT OF DOCTRINAL CHRISTIANITY 222 XXXIX. THE BARBARIANS BREAK THE EMPIRE INTO EAST AND WEST 227 XL. THE HUNS AND THE END OF THE WESTERN EMPIRE 233 XLI. THE BYZANTINE AND SASSANID EMPIRES 238 XLII. THE DYNASTIES OF SUY AND TANG IN CHINA 245 XLIII. MUHAMMAD AND ISLAM 248 XLIV. THE GREAT DAYS OF THE ARABS 253 XLV. THE DEVELOPMENT OF LATIN CHRISTENDOM 258 XLVI. THE CRUSADES AND THE AGE OF PAPAL DOMINION 267 XLVII. RECALCITRANT PRINCES AND THE GREAT SCHISM 277 XLVIII. THE MONGOL CONQUESTS 287 XLIX. THE INTELLECTUAL REVIVAL OF THE EUROPEANS 294 L. THE REFORMATION OF THE LATIN CHURCH 304 LI. THE EMPEROR CHARLES V 309 LII. THE AGE OF POLITICAL EXPERIMENTS; OF GRAND MONARCHY AND PARLIAMENTS AND REPUBLICANISM IN EUROPE 318 LIII. THE NEW EMPIRES OF THE EUROPEANS IN ASIA AND OVERSEAS 329 LIV. THE AMERICAN WAR OF INDEPENDENCE 335 LV. THE FRENCH REVOLUTION AND THE RESTORATION OF MONARCHY IN FRANCE 341 LVI. THE UNEASY PEACE IN EUROPE THAT FOLLOWED THE FALL OF NAPOLEON 349 LVII. THE DEVELOPMENT OF MATERIAL KNOWLEDGE 355 LVIII. THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION 365 LIX. THE DEVELOPMENT OF MODERN POLITICAL AND SOCIAL IDEAS 370 LX. THE EXPANSION OF THE UNITED STATES 382 LXI. THE RISE OF GERMANY TO PREDOMINANCE IN EUROPE 390 LXII. THE NEW OVERSEAS EMPIRES OF THE STEAMSHIP AND RAILWAY 393 LXIII. EUROPEAN AGGRESSION IN ASIA, AND THE RISE OF JAPAN 399 LXIV. THE BRITISH EMPIRE IN 1914 405 LXV. THE AGE OF ARMAMENT IN EUROPE, AND THE GREAT WAR OF 1914-18 409 LXVI. THE REVOLUTION AND FAMINE IN RUSSIA 415 LXVII. THE POLITICAL AND SOCIAL RECONSTRUCTION OF THE WORLD 421 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE 429 INDEX 439

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Page

Luminous Spiral Clouds of Matter 2

Nebula seen Edge-on 3

The Great Spiral Nebula 6

A Dark Nebula 7

Another Spiral Nebula 8

Landscape before Life 9

Marine Life in the Cambrian Period 12

Fossil Trilobite 13

Early Palæozoic Fossils of various Species of Lingula 14

Fossilized Footprints of a Labyrinthodont, Cheirotherium 15

Pterichthys Milleri 17

Fossil of Cladoselache 18

Sharks and Ganoids of the Devonian Period 19

A Carboniferous Swamp 22

Skull of a Labyrinthodont, Capitosaurus 23

Skeleton of a Labyrinthodont: The Eryops 24

A Fossil Ichthyosaurus 27

A Pterodactyl 28

The Diplodocus 29

Fossil of Archeopteryx 32

Hesperornis in its Native Seas 33

The Ki-wi 34

Slab of Marl Rich in Cainozoic Fossils 35

Titanotherium Robustum 38

Skeleton of Giraffe-camel 40

Skeleton of Early Horse 40

Comparative Sizes of Brains of Rhinoceros and Dinoceras 41

A Mammoth 44

Flint Implements from Piltdown Region 45

A Pithecanthropean Man 46

The Heidelberg Man 46

The Piltdown Skull 47

A Neanderthaler 49

Europe and Western Asia 50,000 years ago

_Map_ 50

Comparison of Modern Skull and Rhodesian Skull 51

Altamira Cave Paintings 54

Later Palæolithic Carvings 55

Bust of Cro-magnon Man 57

Later Palæolithic Art 58

Relics of the Stone Age 62

Gray’s Inn Lane Flint Implement 63

Somaliland Flint Implement 63

Neolithic Flint Implement 67

Australian Spearheads 68

Neolithic Pottery 69

Relationship of Human Races _Map_ 72

A Maya Stele 73

European Neolithic Warrior 75

Babylonian Brick 78

Egyptian Cylinder Seals of First Dynasty 79

The Sakhara Pyramids 80

The Pyramid of Cheops: Scene from Summit 81

The Temple of Hathor 82

Pottery and Implements of the Lake Dwellers 85

A Lake Village 86

Flint Knives of 4500 B.C. 87

Egyptian Wall Paintings of Nomads 87

Egyptian Peasants Going to Work 88

Stele of Naram Sin 89

The Treasure House at Mycenæ 93

The Palace at Cnossos 95

Temple at Abu Simbel 97

Avenue of Sphinxes at Karnak 98

The Hypostyle Hall at Karnak 99

Frieze of Slaves 101

The Temple of Horus, Edfu 103

Archaic Amphora 105

The Mound of Nippur 107

Median and Chaldean Empires _Map_ 110

The Empire of Darius _Map_ 111

A Persian Monarch 112

The Ruins of Persepolis 113

The Great Porch of Xerxes 113

The Land of the Hebrews _Map_ 117

Nebuchadnezzar’s Mound at Babylon 118

The Ishtar Gateway, Babylon 120

Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser II 124

Captive Princes making Obeisance 125

Statue of Meleager 128

Ruins of Temple of Zeus 130

The Temple of Neptune, Pæstum 132

Greek Ships on Ancient Pottery 135

The Temple of Corinth 137

The Temple of Neptune at Cape Sunium 138

Frieze of the Parthenon, Athens 140

The Acropolis, Athens 141

Theatre at Epidauros, Greece 141

The Caryatides of the Erechtheum 142

Athene of the Parthenon 143

Alexander the Great 146

Alexander’s Victory at Issus 147

The Apollo Belvedere 148

Aristotle 152

Statuette of Maitreya 153

The Death of Buddha 154

Tibetan Buddha 158

A Burmese Buddha 159

The Dhamêkh Tower, Sarnath 160

A Chinese Buddhist Apostle 164

The Court of Asoka 165

Asoka Panel from Bharhut 165

The Pillar of Lions (Asokan) 166

Confucius 169

The Great Wall of China 171

Early Chinese Bronze Bell 172

The Dying Gaul 175

Ancient Roman Cisterns at Carthage 177

Hannibal 181

Roman Empire and its Alliances, 150 B.C. _Map_ 183

The Forum, Rome 188

Ruined Coliseum in Tunis 189

Roman Arch at Ctesiphon 190

The Column of Trajan, Rome 193

Glazed Jar of Han Dynasty 197

Vase of Han Dynasty 198

Chinese Vessel in Bronze 199

A Gladiator (contemporary representation) 202

A Street in Pompeii 204

The Coliseum, Rome 206

Interior of Coliseum 206

Mithras Sacrificing a Bull 210

Isis and Horus 211

Bust of Emperor Commodus 212

Early Portrait of Jesus Christ 216

Road from Nazareth to Tiberias 217

David’s Tower and Wall of Jerusalem 218

A Street in Jerusalem 219

The Peter and Paul Mosaic at Rome 223

Baptism of Christ (Ivory Panel) 225

Roman Empire and the Barbarians _Map_ 228

Constantine’s Pillar, Constantinople 229

The Obelisk of Theodosius, Constantinople 231

Head of Barbarian Chief 235

The Church of S. Sophia, Constantinople 239

Roof-work in S. Sophia 240

Justinian and his Court 241

The Rock-hewn Temple at Petra 242

Chinese Earthenware of Tang Dynasty 246

At Prayer in the Desert 250

Looking Across the Sea of Sand 251

Growth of Moslem Power _Map_ 254

The Moslem Empire _Map_ 254

The Mosque of Omar, Jerusalem 255

Cairo Mosques 256

Frankish Dominions of Martel _Map_ 260

Statue of Charlemagne 262

Europe at Death of Charlemagne _Map_ 264

Crusader Tombs, Exeter Cathedral 268

View of Cairo 269

The Horses of S. Mark, Venice 271

Courtyard in the Alhambra 273

Milan Cathedral (showing spires) 278

A Typical Crusader 280

Burgundian Nobility (Statuettes) 283

Burgundian Nobility (Statuettes) 284

The Empire of Jengis Khan _Map_ 288

Ottoman Empire before 1453 _Map_ 289

Tartar Horsemen 291

Ottoman Empire, 1566 _Map_ 292

An Early Printing Press 296

Ancient Bronze from Benin 299

Negro Bronze-work 300

Early Sailing Ship (Italian Engraving) 301

Portrait of Martin Luther 305

The Church Triumphant (Italian Majolica work, 1543) 307

Charles V (the Titian Portrait) 311

S. Peter’s, Rome: the High Altar 315

Cromwell Dissolves the Long Parliament 321

The Court at Versailles 323

Sack of a Village, French Revolution 325

Central Europe after Peace of Westphalia, 1648 _Map_ 326

European Territory in America, 1750 _Map_ 330

Europeans Tiger Hunting in India 331

Fall of Tippoo Sultan 332

George Washington 337

The Battle of Bunker Hill 338

The U.S.A., 1790 339

The Trial of Louis XVI 344

Execution of Marie Antoinette 346

Portrait of Napoleon 352

Europe after the Congress of Vienna _Map_ 353

Early Rolling Stock, Liverpool and Manchester Railway 356

Passenger Train in 1833 356

The Steamboat _Clermont_ 357

Eighteenth Century Spinning Wheel 361

Arkwright’s Spinning Jenny 361

An Early Weaving Machine 363

An Incident of the Slave Trade 367

Early Factory, in Colebrookdale 368

Carl Marx 372

Electric Conveyor, in Coal Mine 376

Constructional Detail, Forth Bridge 378

American River Steamer 385

Abraham Lincoln 387

Europe, 1848-71 _Map_ 391

Victoria Falls, Zambesi 395

The British Empire, 1815 _Map_ 397

Japanese Soldier, Eighteenth Century 401

A Street in Tokio 403

Overseas Empires of Europe, 1914 _Map_ 406

Gibraltar 407

Street in Hong Kong 408

British Tank in Battle 410

The Ruins of Ypres 411

Modern War: War Entanglements 412

A View in Petersburg under Bolshevik Rule 418

Passenger Aeroplane in Flight 423

A Peaceful Garden in England 426

A SHORT HISTORY OF THE WORLD