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The Mongol conquests

This is an illustrated four-part historical account of the rise and fall of the Mongol Empire, the largest contiguous land empire in history. It includes sections on: factors leading to the Mongol conquests; the role of Chinggis (Genghis) Khan; how a small group of Mongols succeeded in conquering a vast domain; and the ...

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The Mongols in China

This is an illustrated four-part historical account of Mongol rule in China. It includes sections on: the Mongol influence on China; Khubilai Khan in China; life in China under Mongol rule; and the beginnings of the Mongol collapse. The life in China section describes the effects of Mongol rule on peasants, artisans, merchants, ...

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The Mongols in world history

This rich online resource is about the Mongol empire viewed in the context of the beginnings of world history. It provides a comprehensive set of materials about the Mongol culture and its history during the period from the birth of Temujin - later Chinggis (Genghis) Khan - in about 1162 to the end of the empire in 1368. ...

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Loot and land

This resource is about Viking conquests in the British Isles. It includes text and some images. The resource is organised under seven topic headings: Terror from the sea; Lindisfarne sacked; Who were the Vikings?; Ships and navigation; A fair wind for raiding; The need for more land; and Find out more. The images are interposed ...

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Beneath the surface: social reports as primary sources

This resource is about a report on the public heath conditions of Leeds in 1842 by a medical doctor, Robert Baker. It provides a background to the report along with information on Robert Baker and his credentials for undertaking the investigation. Extracts from the report describe the poor conditions of sanitation, the ...

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Chartist Movement 1838-48

This resource is about the Chartist Movement, a movement for the political rights of working people in Britain. It gives a brief history of the movement and describes the three petitions with millions of signatures that were presented to parliament in 1839,1842 and 1848. It is organised under the following headings: the ...

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Britain's empire in 1815

This resource is about the British Empire after the defeat of Napoleon as Britain emerged dominant among the European great powers and was recognised as one of the world's great imperial powers. It shows through a series of maps the extent of the British Empire in 1815, with three disparate parts: North America, the eastern ...

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Naachtun: lost city of the Maya

This resource is about the Mayan city of Naachtun rediscovered by archaeologists in 1922. It provides background material on the archaeological visits to the Mayan site from 1922 through to 2002, and describes the remnants of the structures and artefacts of the city, including stone monuments carved with hieroglyphic inscriptions ...

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Winding gear animation

This animated resource is about technical innovations in 19th-century Britain. It shows the winding gear used in coalmines to raise and lower people or equipment in a cage. Background material is provided, an animation shows how the winding gear operates and a quiz tests students' knowledge of the names of the parts of ...

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Spinning mill animation

This resource is about spinning mills in 19th-century Britain. The animation shows how a spinning mill used line shafting to spin cotton. Students read text material, then view the stages of line shafting: coal-fired furnaces produce steam, which passes through the valves and powers the piston rod; the piston rod transfers ...

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Stephenson's Rocket animation

This animated resource is about innovation in railway technology in 19th-century Britain. It models an early steam locomotive called Stephenson's Rocket, which won the Rainhill Trials in 1829, a competition to find the best locomotive engine for a railway line approaching completion. It includes background material, an ...

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Blast furnace animation

This resource is about blast furnaces and innovations in smelting iron in 18th-century Britain. The animation show how a blast furnace used a combination of iron ore and limestone with coke to produce iron. Students read text material and then view the animation, which also includes a segment on how to build a blast furnace.

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Beam engine animation

This animated resource is about innovation in steam engine technology in 19th-century Britain. It shows an early steam engine called the beam engine, which was developed to pump out floodwater from the deep mines in Cornwall. It includes background material, an animation of the workings of the beam engine, a clear, detailed ...

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Viking religion

This resource is about the Vikings attitude to religion. It includes text and some images. The resource is organised under six topic headings: The age of conversion; Pagan belief; Gods and giants; Pagan and Christian together; Conversion in Scandinavia; and Find out more. Interposed in the text are images of an amulet, ...

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Black Death: the effect of the plague

This resource is about the effects of the plague, known as the Black Death, in rural England from 1348 to 1352. The resource describes deserted villages in rural England, uninhabited after the death of the population from the plague. It reports that the biggest effect of the plague was in rural areas because most people ...

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Black Death

This resource is about the plague that broke out in England from 1348-49. It provides an overview of the plague in the British Isles beginning with the initial outbreak in Dorset, which then spread to England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. The resource includes many contemporary descriptions of the plague, the death toll ...

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Ancient China: geography - explore

This is a resource featuring six interactive maps and associated tools that address different aspects of the geography of China. The maps include geographical features and important cities, archaeological sites and political boundaries in ancient times, as well as a modern political map. The maps of ancient China depict ...

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Unmasking the Maya: preserving the culture

This resource is chiefly about the preservation of the Maya culture in the USA. It covers the Maya Indians today, the rich ancient Maya culture that existed from 500 BCE to 1519 CE, when the Spanish conquered them, and those Maya who emigrate today to the USA in search of a better life. The resource presents the Monkey ...

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Journey to the west - part 2

This is the second part of a Chinese folk story dating back 1,300 years called the Journey to the west: preparing for the great journey. The story is about finding three magical companions - a monkey, a pig and a strongman - for a monk who is going on a dangerous journey. The resource is 15 web pages and includes text, ...

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Mabo: the native title revolution

This a multi-layered website about the life and times of Eddie Mabo and the part he played in Indigenous land rights, produced by the National Sound and Film Archive. There are section headings on: The Mabo film; Mer; The man; The case; Native title; Land rights; and Terra Nullius. Each heading has multiple subheadings ...