Category: History Essay Examples
See our collection of history essay examples. These example essays are to help you understanding how to write a history essay. History is a fascinating puzzle with both personal and cultural significance. The past informs our lives, ideas, and expectations. Historians study the past to figure out what happened and how specific events and cultural developments affected individuals and societies. Also, see our list of history essay topics to find the one that interests you.
The man who led the nationalists to victory during the Spanish civil war and governed Spain until his death in 1975, Francisco Franco Bahamonde was the longest serving dictator in Europe in the 20th century, narrowly eclipsing the record set by his neighbor, Portuguese dictator António de Oliveira …
Afghanistan is a predominantly Muslim, landlocked country bordered by Iran, Pakistan, and the former Soviet republics of Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan. It is not a nation-state along European lines—it shares no common language or ethnic heritage. Instead, it consists of a host of different groups, including Pashtuns, Hazaras, …
Following a decade of political activism for the rights of blacks, Coloreds, and Indians in South Africa, the South African Native National Congress—later renamed the African National Congress (ANC)—was formed on January 8, 1912, in Bloemfontein. It unified the fragmented efforts of various organizations in the struggle against …
The Organization of African Unity (OAU) was formed on May 23, 1963, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, by 32 decolonized African nations. Built on Ghana’s president Kwame Nkrumah’s dream of Pan-Africanism, the OAU brought the opposing groups of African nations together in a single African organization. The founding members …
The AIDS epidemic has been considered one of the most important health emergencies in the contemporary world due to the destabilizing social, economic, and political consequences of its global spread and the unsuccessful attempts to develop vaccination against it. At the same time, some scientists have argued that …
Akihito became Japan’s 125th reigning emperor in 1989 upon the death of his father, Hirohito. According to Japanese mythology, the emperors, beginning with the legendary Jimmu, descendant of the sun goddess Amaterasu, had ruled over the country since 660 b.c.e. Although the emperors had de jure powers, it …
The Algerian war against French colonialism lasted from 1954 to 1962, when Algeria gained its independence. In 1954 armed attacks occurred at 70 different points scattered throughout the nation. Having just suffered a humiliating defeat by the Vietnamese at Dien Bien Phu, the French army was determined to …
Longtime politician, medical doctor, self-proclaimed Marxist, and president of Chile’s Popular Unity (Unidad Popular) government from 1970 to 1973, Salvador Allende occupies a highly controversial place in Chilean history. The country’s only democratically elected Marxist president, Allende instituted a range of reforms that sharpened the polarization of Chilean …
Announced by U.S. President John F. Kennedy on March 13, 1961, the Alliance for Progress was a massive U.S. foreign aid program for Latin America, the biggest aimed at the underdeveloped world up to that time. Likened to the Marshall Plan in postwar Europe, its express intent was …
In 1955 the American Federation of Labor (AFL) and the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) joined to create the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO). The 54 national and international federated labor unions within the AFLCIO are located in the United States, Canada, Mexico, …
Relations between Native peoples and U.S. federal and state governments soon after World War II swung between paternalism and indifference. Native Americans responded with a new militancy that echoed the Civil Rights movement and, by 1968, produced the American Indian Movement (AIM). “Red power,” expressed in lawsuits, sit-ins, …
The Republic of Angola is situated in south-central Africa. The country is bounded by the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the northeast, Zambia to the east, Namibia to the south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. It has an area of 1,246,700 square kilometers and its …
The ANZUS Security Treaty binds together Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. ANZUS was signed in San Francisco on September 1, 1951, and took effect on April 28, 1952. It remains in force, although it has increasingly come under attack by both Australia and New Zealand since …
Appropriate technology is an approach of using environmentally conscious, cost-effective, small projects rather than high technology and huge expensive projects to improve the lives of people around the world. Mohandas K. Gandhi was an early advocate of appropriate technology use, arguing that the massive Indian population could not …
Five major wars and numerous peace negotiations have failed to resolve the ongoing conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians over land and statehood. Israel declared its independence and won the first war against opposing Arab states and the Palestinians in 1948. The 1949 armistice mediated by Ralph Bunche, …
The nationalization of the Suez Canal was the ostensible cause for the 1956 Arab-Israeli War. After the United States refused aid for building the Aswan Dam on July 26, the anniversary of the 1952 revolution, Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal to finance building of the dam, …
The 1967 Arab-Israeli War lasted six days and was a resounding military victory for Israel but failed to achieve a resolution to the Arab-Israeli conflict. In 1966 border incidents and incursions into Israel by Fatah Palestinian guerrilla fighters increased, and Israeli launched a major military raid into Jordan …
The 1973 Arab-Israeli War (October 6–26), known as the Yom Kippur War in Israel and the Ramadan War among Arabs, was the fourth major military conflict between Israel and its Arab neighbors. During the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Israel occupied Egyptian, Syrian, and Jordanian-Palestinian territories; despite international efforts by …
In 1982 Israel invaded Lebanon in an attempt to eliminate the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) once and for all. In 1970, following Black September, when Palestinian forces were defeated in Jordan, the PLO moved its base of operations to Lebanon. The presence of large numbers of Palestinians further …
Yasir Arafat (full name, Muhammad Abdul Rauf Arafat al-Qudwa) was born to Palestinian parents in Cairo in 1929, although he claimed Jerusalem as his birthplace. Educated in Egypt, Arafat earned an engineering degree in 1956. While a student he met other Palestinians, especially Salah Khalaf (1932–91) and Khalil …
