In which John introduces you to quite a lot of Chinese history by discussing the complicated relationship between the Confucian scholars who wrote Chinese history and the emperors (and empress) who made it. Included is a brief introduction to all the dynasties in Chinese history and an introduction to Confucius and the Confucian emphasis on filial piety, the role the mandate of heaven played in organizing China, and how China became the first modern state.

Chapters:
Introduction: China
Dynasties of China
The Mandate of Heaven
The Qin Dynasty
Confucius and Confucianism
An Open letter to the Xia Dynasty
Ren and Li
The Problem with Early Written Chinese History
Credits

In which you are introduced to the life and accomplishments of Alexander the Great, his empire, his horse Bucephalus, the empires that came after him, and the idea of Greatness. Is greatness a question of accomplishment, of impact, or are people great because the rest of us decide they're great?

Also discussed are Kim Kardashian and the Situation, gender bias in history, Catherine the Great's death (not via horse love), the ardent love other generals--from Pompey the Great to Napoleon--had for Alexander, and a bit of Persian history.

Chapters:
Introduction
What Makes Historical Figures So 'Great?'
The Life of Alexander the Great
Death & Legacy of Alexander the Great
The Legend of Alexander the Great
An Open Letter to the Ladies
What Makes Alexander So Great?
Credits

In which John Green teaches you about the life and death of one of history's great explorers, Captain James Cook of the British Navy. He charted large swaths of the Pacific ocean, laid claim to Australia and New Zealand, and died a bizarre death in the Sandwich Islands, which are now called the Hawaiian Islands. Exactly how and why Captain Cook was killed in Hawaii is a long-running historical debate. John presents two interpretations of the event and talks about what the differing interpretations say about history. It turns out how the story is told depends on who is doing the storytelling, and people from different backgrounds can interpret events in very different ways. Also, there is a celebration and a mustache involved in this episode, so you definitely don't want to miss it.

Chapters:
Introduction
Captain James Cook
An Open Letter to "The White Man's Burden"
Captain Cook's Controversial Death
Interpretations of Captain Cook's Death: Makahiki
Issues with the Ritual Death Story
How Cook Actually (Probably) Died
Why Did Cook's Ritual Death Myth Persist?
Credits

In which John covers the long, long history of ancient Egypt, including the Old, Middle, and New Kingdoms, and even a couple of intermediate periods. Learn about mummies, pharaohs, pyramids, and the Nile with John Green.

Chapters:
Introduction: Ancient Egypt
How The Nile Shaped Egypt
The Old Kingdom of Egypt
The Middle Kingdom of Egypt
The New Kingdom of Egypt
An Open Letter to King Tut
Credits

In which John Green teaches you about the war that was supposed to end all wars. Instead, it solved nothing and set the stage for the world to be back at war just a couple of decades later. As an added bonus, World War I changed the way people look at the world, and normalized cynicism and irony. John will teach you how the assassination of an Austrian Archduke kicked off a new kind of war that involved more nations and more people than any war that came before. New technology like machine guns, airplanes, tanks, and poison gas made killing more efficient than ever. Trench warfare and modern weapons led to battles in which tens of thousands of soldiers were killed in a day, with no ground gained for either side. World War I washed away the last vestiges of 19th-century Romanticism and paved the way for the 20th-century modernism that we all know and find to be cold and off-putting. While there may not be much upside to WWI, at least it inspired George M. Cohan to write the awesome song, "Over There."

Chapters:
Introduction: The Great War
Causes of World War I
Who is to blame for starting WWI?
Trench Warfare
Combatants From Around the World
Casualties of World War I
Soldiers' Sentiments During the WWI
An Open Letter to Alcohol
Outcomes of WWI
Credits

In which John Green teaches you about one of the least funny subjects in history: slavery. John investigates when and where slavery originated, how it changed over the centuries, and how Europeans and colonists in the Americas arrived at the idea that people could own other people based on skin color.

Slavery has existed as long as humans have had civilization, but the Atlantic Slave Trade was the height, or depth, of dehumanizing, brutal, chattel slavery. American slavery ended less than 150 years ago. In some parts of the world, it is still going on. So how do we reconcile that with modern life? In a desperate attempt at comic relief, Boba Fett makes an appearance.

Chapters:
Introduction
The Atlantic Slave Trade
The History of European Slave Trade
How Africans Became Enslaved
Living Conditions of Enslaved People
An Open Letter to the Word 'Slave'
What is the Definition of Slavery?
Other Models of Slavery: Greek, Roman, Judeo-Christian, and Muslim
Credits

In which John relates a condensed history of India, post-Indus Valley Civilization. John explores Hinduism and the origins of Buddhism. He also gets into the reign of Ashoka, the Buddhist emperor who, in spite of Buddhism's structural disapproval of violence, managed to win a bunch of battles.

Chapters:
Introduction
The Vedas
The Caste System
Dharma
Samsara, Moksha, and Karma
Buddhism
Chutes and Ladders
Ashoka
Hinduism
Credits

In which John Green teaches you about capitalism and socialism in a way that is sure to please commenters from both sides of the debate. Learn how capitalism arose from the industrial revolution, and then gave rise to socialism. Learn about how we got from the British East India Company to iPhones and consumer culture in just a couple of hundred years. Stops along the way include the rise of industrial capitalism, mass production, disgruntled workers, Karl Marx, and the Socialist Beard. The socialist reactions to the ills of capitalism are covered as well, and John discusses some of the ideas of Karl Marx, and how they've been implemented or ignored in various socialist states. Plus, there are robots!

Chapters:
Introduction: Capitalism
What is Industrial Capitalism?
How did Industrial Capitalism begin?
Capitalism Increased Productivity
Capitalism as a Cultural System
Criticisms of Capitalism
Socialism
An Open Letter to Karl Marx's Beard
Karl Marx's Ideology
Socialism vs. Industrial Capitalism Today
Credits

In which John Green teaches you the history of Christianity, from the beginnings of Judaism and the development of monotheism, right up to Paul and how Christianity stormed the Roman Empire in just a few hundred years. Along the way, John will cover Abram/Abraham, the Covenant, the Roman Occupation of Judea, and the birth, life, death, and legacy of Jesus of Nazareth. No flame wars! Let's keep the commentary civil.

Chapters:
Introduction: The Son of God
Understanding the Jewish Tradition
Herod and Herod - Roman Rulers
Jesus of Nazareth
Why did people believe Jesus was the Messiah?
Why was Jesus so influential?
Saul / Paul of Tarsus
An Open Letter to The Fish (Ichthys)
How Christianity Survived
Credits

In which John Green wraps up revolutions month with what is arguably the most revolutionary of modern revolutions, the Industrial Revolution. While very few leaders were beheaded in the course of this one, it changed the lives of more people more dramatically than any of the political revolutions we've discussed. So, why did the Industrial Revolution happen around 1750 in the United Kingdom? Coal. Easily accessible coal, it turns out. All this, plus you'll finally learn the difference between James Watt and Thomas Newcomen, and will never again be caught telling people that your blender has a 900 Newcomen motor.

Chapters:
Introduction: The Industrial Revolution
What Was the Industrial Revolution?
Innovations in the British Textile Industry
Why did the Industrial Revolution start in Europe?
An Open Letter to the Steam Engine
What was going on in China during the Industrial Revolution?
European Advantages: High Wages and Low Fuel Costs
What was going on in India during the Industrial Revolution?
Credits

In which John Green teaches you about the changes wrought by contact between the Old World and the New. John does this by exploring the totally awesome history book "The Columbian Exchange" by Alfred Crosby, Jr. After Columbus "discovered" the Americas, European conquerors, traders, and settlers brought all manner of changes to the formerly isolated continents. Disease and invasive plant and animal species remade the New World, usually in negative ways. While native people, plants, and animals were being displaced in the Americas, the rest of the world was benefitting from American imports, especially foods like maize, tomatoes, potatoes, pineapple, blueberries, sweet potatoes, and manioc. Was the Columbian Exchange a net positive? It's debatable. So debate.

Chapters:
Introduction: The Columbian Exchange
Diseases of the Columbian Exchange
John Green Does the Cinnamon Challenge (Ew)
An Open Letter to Tobacco
Animals of the Columbian Exchange
Plants of the Columbian Exchange
People of the Columbian Exchange
Credits

In which John Green teaches you about the beginning of the so-called Age of Discovery. You've probably heard of Christopher Columbus, who "discovered" America in 1492, but what about Vasco da Gama? How about Zheng He? Columbus gets a bad rap from many modern historians, but it turns out he was pretty important as far as the history of the world goes. That said, he wasn't the only pioneer plying the seas in the 1400s. In Portugal, Vasco da Gama was busy integrating Europe into the Indian Ocean Trade by sailing around Africa. Chinese admiral Zheng He was also traveling far and wide in the largest wooden ships ever built. Columbus, whether portrayed as a hero or a villain, is usually credited as the great sailor of the 15th century, but he definitely wasn't the only contender. What better way to settle this question than with a knock-down, drag-out, no holds barred, old-fashioned battle royal? We were going to make it a cage match, but welding is EXPENSIVE.

Chapters:
Introduction
Notable Sailors of the 15th Century
Zheng He, Chinese Admiral
Reasons for China's 15th Century Naval Expeditions
Vasco da Gama, Portuguese Explorer
Vasco da Gama's Motivations and Strategies
Myths about Christopher Columbus
An Open Letter to the Line of Demarcation
Christopher Columbus's First Voyage
Who Was the Greatest Mariner of the 15th Century?
Credits

In which John Green teaches you about China's Revolutions. While the rest of the world was off having a couple of World Wars, China was busily uprooting the dynastic system that had ruled there for millennia. Most revolutions have some degree of tumult associated with them, but China's 20th-century revolutions were REALLY disruptive. In 1911 and 1912, Chinese nationalists brought 3000 years of dynastic rule to an end. China plunged into chaos as warlords staked out regions of the country for themselves. The nationalists and communists joined forces briefly to bring the nation back together under the Chinese Republic, and then they quickly split and started fighting the Chinese Civil War. The fight between nationalists and communists went on for decades and was interrupted by an alliance to fight the invading Japanese during World War II. After World War II ended, the Chinese Civil War was back on. Mao and the communists were ultimately victorious, and Chiang Kai-Shek ended up in Taiwan. And then it got weird. Mao spent years repeatedly trying to purify the Communist Party and build up the new People's Republic of China with Rectifications, Anti Campaigns, Five Year Plans. the Great Leap Forward, and the Cultural Revolution. These had mixed results, to say the least. John will cover all this and more in this week's Crash Course World History.

Chapters:
Introduction: China's Revolutions
Calls for Reform in China
An Open Letter to Sun Yat Sen
Overthrowing the Qing Dynasty
The Guomindang and the Chinese Communist Party
Mao Establishes the People's Republic of China
China's Soviet-inspired Five Year Plans
China's Cultural Revolution
Credits

In which John Green teaches you about the Crusades embarked upon by European Christians in the 12th and 13th centuries. Our traditional perception of the Crusades as European Colonization thinly veiled in religion isn't quite right. John covers the First through the Fourth Crusades, telling you which were successful, which were well-intentioned yet ultimately destructive, and which were just plain crazy. Before you ask, no, he doesn't cover the Children's Crusade, in which children were provoked to gather for a Crusade, and then promptly sold into slavery by the organizers of said Crusade. While this story is charming, it turns out to be complete and utter hooey.

Chapters:
Introduction: The Crusades
What Prompted the Crusades?
The First Crusade
An Open Letter to Animal Crackers
What Motivated the Crusaders?
The Third Crusade
The Fourth Crusade
What Did The Crusades Accomplish?
Credits

John Green teaches you about the so-called Dark Ages, which it turns out weren't as uniformly dark as you may have been led to believe. While Europe was indeed having some issues, many other parts of the world were thriving and relatively enlightened. John covers European Feudalism, the cultural blossoming of the Islamic world, and the scientific and artistic advances in China, all during these "Dark Ages." Along the way, John will raise questions about the validity of Europe's status as a continent, reveal the best and worst years of his life, and frankly state that science and religion were once able to coexist.

Chapters:
Introduction: Europe
Why are they called The Dark Ages?
Feudalism in Medieval Europe
Dar al Islam and the Umayyad Dynasty
The Abbasids
An Open Letter to Science and Religion
Spanish Muslims in Cordoba
China's Golden Age
Credits

In which John Green teaches you about the post-World War II breakup of most of the European empires. As you'll remember from previous installments of Crash Course, Europeans spent several centuries sailing around the world creating empires, despite the fact that most of the places they conquered were perfectly happy to carry on alone. After World War II, most of these empires collapsed. This is the story of those collapses. In most places, the end of empire was not orderly, and violence often ensued. While India was a (sort of) shining example of non-violent change, in places like The Congo, Egypt, Rwanda, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos, things didn't go smoothly at all. John brings you all this, plus pictures of Sea Monkeys. Sadly, they don't look anything like those awesome commercials in the comic books.

Chapters:
Introduction: Decolonization
What Happens When Empires Fall?
Post-WWII Decolonization
Decolonization in India
Mohandas K. Gandhi
An Open Letter to Hunger Strikers
Indonesian Nationalism
The End of Colonization in French Indochina (Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia)
Gamal Abdul Nasser and Egyptian Nationalism
Decolonization in Central and Southern Africa
Credits

In which John Green teaches you about the fall of the Roman Empire, which happened considerably later than you may have been told. While the Western Roman Empire fell to barbarians in 476 CE, the Byzantines in Constantinople continued the Eastern Empire nicely, calling themselves Romans for a further 1000 years. Find out what Justinian and the rest of the Byzantine emperors were up to over there, and how the Roman Empire dragged out its famous Decline well into medieval times. In addition to all this, you'll learn about ancient sports riots and hipster barbarians, too.

Chapters:
Introduction: The Fall of Rome
Why Did the Roman Empire Fall? Barbarians at the Gates
Why Did the Roman Empire Fall? Barbarians Inside the Gates
An Open Letter to Pants
Constantine and the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire
Comparing the Eastern & Western Roman Empires
Emperor Justinian
The Orthodox and Catholic Churches Split
Credits

In which John Green examines the French Revolution, and gets into how and why it differed from the American Revolution. Was it the serial authoritarian regimes? The guillotine? The Reign of Terror? All of this and more contributed to the French Revolution not being quite as revolutionary as it could have been. France endured multiple constitutions, the heads of heads of state literally rolled, and then they ended up with a megalomaniacal little emperor by the name of Napoleon. But how did all of this change the world, and how did it lead to other, more successful revolutions around the world? Watch this video and find out. Spoiler alert: Marie Antoinette never said, "Let them eat cake." Sorry.

Chapters:
Introduction: The French Revolution
The French Declare Bankruptcy
Ancien Régime, Estates General, and the National Assembly
Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen
Louis XVI, Marie Antionette, and the Women's March
The Jacobins
Austria and Prussia Intervene
An Open Letter to the Guillotine
Guillotines Galore
Napoleon Bonaparte
How Revolutionary was the French Revolution?
Credits

In which John asks whether globalization is a net positive for humanity. While the new global economy has created a lot of wealth and lifted a lot of people out of poverty, it also has some effects that aren't so hot. Wealth disparity, rising divorce rates, environmental damage, and new paths for the spread of disease. So does all this outweigh the economic benefits, the innovation, and the relative peace that come with interconnected economies? As usual, the answer is not simple. In this case, we're living in the middle of the events we're discussing, so it's hard to know how it's going to turn out.

Chapters:
Introduction: Individualism
Collectivism vs. Individualism
Individual Freedom
Reproductive Freedom and Family Life
Humanity's Effect on the Environment
An Open Letter to Flowers
Globalization, Resource Extraction, and Energy
Global Health, Population Density, and Urbanization
International Trade
Globalization and International Affairs
Is Globalization Good?
Credits

In which John Green teaches you about globalization, a subject so epic, so, um, global, it requires two videos. In this video, John follows the surprisingly complex path of a t-shirt as it crisscrosses the world before coming to rest on your doorstep, and eventually in your dresser. The story of the t-shirt and its manufacture in far-flung places like China, Guatemala, and India is a microcosm of what's going on in the global economy. Globalization is a bit of a mixed bag, and there have definitely been winners and losers along the way. In this episode, John will talk about some of the benefits that have come along with it. Next week, he'll get into some of the less-positive side effects of globalization.

Chapters:
Introduction: Globalization
Globalized Trade
The Journey of a T-Shirt
Government Regulation of Free Trade
International vs Domestic Manufacturing and Consumption
An Open Letter to Cookie Monster
The Effects of Global Capitalism
Migration & Globalized Culture
Why We Study History
Credits