Peter’s World history explainers give the background behind today’s geopolitics and warfare. Each one traces how a country or region reached the present, so that the news makes sense in context.
Regions
Now liveChina: From Marco Polo to Contemporary GeopoliticsImperial power, the Century of Humiliation, revolution, Deng’s reforms and Xi’s rivalry with the United States, in 27 sections with a timeline.Read the explainer →- Coming soonComing soonRussiaFrom Muscovy and empire to the Soviet Union and Putin’s wars.
- Coming soonComing soonIranPersia, the 1979 revolution and the Islamic Republic’s regional strategy.
- Coming soonComing soonIsrael and the Middle EastEmpires, mandates, independence and the wars that followed.
- Coming soonComing soonUkraineKyivan Rus’, independence in 1991 and Russia’s invasions.
- Coming soonComing soonKorean PeninsulaDivision, the Korean War and the nuclear standoff.
- Coming soonComing soonIndia and PakistanPartition, rivalry and two nuclear powers.
How these explainers work
- Facts are footnoted, with official government sources first, then scholarly and reference works.
- Interpretation is labeled Analysis and kept separate from the record.
- Each explainer closes with Peter’s World’s six lenses: Geography, Military, Alliances, Economics, Technology and Power.
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Card image: detail of Along the River During the Qingming Festival, Qing court version (1736). Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
