What civilizations are covered in History of the World to 1500 CE?

The course examines early valley civilizations, the Mediterranean and Middle East, India, Greece, Iran, Rome, Han China, Islamic societies, Christian Europe, East Asia, the Americas, and Mongol Eurasia.

How does the course explain the significance of the Mongols in world history?

It explores how Mongol rule connected regions across Eurasia, intensified exchange, and created major political and cultural changes beyond Central Asia, Iran, and China.

What challenges do historians face when studying pre-Columbian America?

A major challenge is the limited and uneven written evidence, which requires historians to combine archaeology, oral traditions, art, and later historical accounts.

Free Course Image History of the World to 1500 CE

Free online course History of the World to 1500 CE

Duration of the online course: 31 hours and 11 minutes

4.6

(22)

Build global history skills fast in this free online course—connect early civilizations, empires, Islam, and the medieval world with quizzes and certificate options.

In this free course, learn about

Introduction and Early Valley Civilizations
New Civilizations, 2200-250 BCE
The Mediterranean and Middle East
India, Greece, and Iran
The Age of Empires: Rome and Han China
The Rise of Islam, 600-1200
The Emergence of Christian Europe
Inner and East Asia, 400-1200
Civilizations of the Americas
Mongol Eurasia and Its Aftermath
Tropical Africa and Asia
The Latin West and the Maritime Revolution

About the free online course

See the world before 1500 CE as an interconnected story rather than a set of isolated timelines. This free online history course helps you build a clear, usable framework for understanding how people, ideas, technologies, and environments shaped societies across Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas. Instead of memorizing dates, you will learn to think like a world historian: asking sharper questions, comparing regions fairly, and spotting the links between local change and wide-reaching consequences.

Beginning with the purpose and challenges of telling world history in a diverse, meaningful way, the course moves through the earliest human communities and the growth of valley civilizations, then expands to the formation of new political and cultural centers. You will develop a strong sense of why states and empires emerged, how belief systems and spiritual practices traveled, and what it means to study conversions, demographic shifts, and identity across long periods of time.

As you progress, you will explore the Mediterranean and the Middle East alongside India, Greece, and Iran, and then step into the age of large empires with comparative thinking that avoids simplistic one-to-one matches. Later modules examine the rise of Islam and the shaping of medieval societies, the development of Christian Europe, and the complexities of integrating East and Inner Asian histories into broader narratives without flattening what makes each region distinctive.

The course also takes you beyond the usual focus areas, giving dedicated attention to pre-Columbian American civilizations and to tropical Africa and Asia, where sources, trade networks, and cultural exchange require different historical methods and assumptions. You will see how the Mongol era transformed Eurasia through movement, administration, and unexpected patterns of rule, and how the Latin West and the maritime revolution helped set the stage for the world that followed.

Short exercises throughout reinforce key ideas and strengthen analytical reading and comparison skills, making this course valuable for school study, exam preparation, and anyone who wants a broader view of the past. By the end, you will have a more confident, connected understanding of world history to 1500 CE and a toolkit for evaluating historical narratives in books, classes, and everyday conversations.

Course content

Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 1) - Introduction to World History 1h17m
Exercise: What was the problem with teaching American history in a diverse fashion?
Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 2) - Valley Civilizations 8000-1500 BC 1h10m
Exercise: What factor contributed to early human diets being rich in meat?
Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 3) - Valley Civilizations 8000-1500 BC 1h14m
Exercise: What is the reason for the grouping of early China, Celtic Europe, early Americas, and Nubia in the same chapter of the book?

Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 4) - New Civilizations, 2200-250 B.C.E 1h16m
Exercise: What is the paradox that the author discusses in the New World?
Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 5) - New Civilizations, 2200-250 B.C.E. 1h16m
Exercise: What was one of the readings assigned related to the concept of cosmogeny?

Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 6) - The Mediterranean and Middle East 1h15m
Exercise: Which spiritual technology was believed to decode messages from an unseen world in ancient times?
Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 7) - The Mediterranean and Middle East 1h12m
Exercise: What was the reason for lumping India with Greece and Iran in the brief edition of the book?

Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 8) - India, Greece & Iran 1h14m
Exercise: What was the impact of Turkey's decision to abandon the Arabic script in the 1920s?
Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 9) - India, Greece & Iran 1h15m
Exercise: What comparison does the author suggest would have been a better option instead of comparing Rome with Han China?

Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 10) - Age of Empires: Rome and Han China 1h17m
Exercise: What is a significant challenge in studying religious conversions?
Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 11/12) Age of Empires: Rome and Han China 1h15m
Exercise: How can publicly available educational content impact universities?

Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 13) - The Rise of Islam, 600-1200 1h16m
Exercise: What was the publisher's criticism of the first draft of the chapter on the rise of Islam and medieval Islamic society?
Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 14) - The Rise of Islam, 600-1200 1h16m
Exercise: What was the crisis that hit Iran during the cotton boom?

Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 15) - Christian Europe Emerges, 600-1200 1h13m
Exercise: What was the traditional view of Western civilization in the early 20th century?
Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 16) - Christian Europe Emerges, 600-1200 1h19m
Exercise: What is the fundamental question that gets asked when historians talk about demographic history?

Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 17) - Inner and East Asia, 400-1200 1h13m
Exercise: What makes it difficult to engross Chinese, Korean, Japanese, or Vietnamese history into some narrative that emerges from the Middle East, Central Asia, the Mediterranean, or Europe?

Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 18) - Civilization of the Americas 1h16m
Exercise: What is the main challenge historians face when studying pre-Columbian America?
Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 19) - Civilization of the Americas 1h14m
Exercise: What type of sacrifice involves a deliberate taking of human life not in the context of crime, warfare, or legitimate conflict?

Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 20) - Mongol Eurasia and Its Aftermath 1h16m
Exercise: What is the significance of the Mongols in world history?
Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 21) - Mongol Eurasia and Its Aftermath 1h15m
Exercise: What is one of the curious patterns observed during the period of Mongol rule outside of their home territories in Central Asia, Iran, and China?

Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 22) - Tropical Africa and Asia 1h08m
Exercise: According to the index of the book "The Earth and Its People", who is the most frequently mentioned person in all of world history?
Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 23) - Tropical Africa and Asia 1h14m
Exercise: What is one of the most debated theories regarding the significant change in Europe between 1200 and 1500 CE?

Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 24) - The Latin West 1h12m
Exercise: What was the debate among the author team regarding the title of Chapter 14 in "The Earth and Its Peoples"?
Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 25) - The Maritime Revolution 1h13m
Exercise: What was the main focus of the final essay for the course?
Video class: Richard Bulliet - History of the World to 1500 CE (Session 26) - Conclusions 1h14m
Exercise: Which concept does the speaker show the least interest in?

Learn aboutWorld History

Explore free online World History courses, each including a certificate, and study the people, empires, revolutions, cultures, and events that shaped our world. Learn at your own pace through accessible lessons on ancient civilizations, medieval societies, modern history, and global change while building valuable knowledge for study, work, or personal growth.