A fact-filled introduction to global history with stories and characters from the most important turning points from the dawn of civilisation to the Second World War, designed for children with an interest in the past who want to find out more about the people who made history - artists and architects, soldiers and explorers, politicians and religious leaders.Chapter 1 - Prehistory to the Classical Age: The move from hunter-gathering to settled farming; cities of the ancient Near East; the rise of Egypt and of the Greek city-states; the assassination of Julius Caesar and the unification of China under the First Emperor. | Chapter 2 - Medieval Times: The flowering of Mayan culture in Central America; the birth and expansion of Islam; the Viking invasions of northern Europe; the devastation of the plague; the powerful kingdoms of Africa; the Mongol conquests of Eurasia. | Chapter 3 - Age of Exploration: Artists and explorers in Renaissance Europe; medieval Japan; Mughal India; the Ottoman Empire; the settlement and independence of North American colonies. | Chapter 4 - From Empire to the Modern Age: The American West and the Civil War; colonial and independent Africa; the two World Wars.