YouTube is full of top quality documentaries about history (that so many people don’t know about). Here are 10 must-watch instructional videos to watch in 2023.
1. The Sumerians – Fall of the First Cities by Fall of Civilizations
Travel into the extremely distant past to look at the Sumerians. These ancient people invented writing and mathematics, and built some of the largest cities that the world had ever seen.
2. The Olmec Legacy by Ancient Americas
The Olmec were the first great civilization of Mesoamerica. Despite being latecomers, they bloomed with incredible speed and left an enduring legacy across all of Central America.
3. How Rome Conquered Greece by Kings and Generals
This video covers the first Roman intervention into Greece during the First Macedonian War, followed by the Second Macedonian War, featuring famous battles like Pydna, Cynoscephalae or Callinicus
4. The Ninja: From Reality to Myth by The Shogunate
The Ninja, more accurately known throughout history as Shinobi. This video dives deep into the history of espionage in Japan to uncover the evolution of Japan’s shadowy warriors. This channel is also among our favorite history channels.
5. Napoleonic Wars: March of the Eagles by Epic History TV
The Napoleonic Wars brought upheaval and destruction to Europe on an unprecedented scale. Napoleon Bonaparte, the self-crowned Emperor, ruled supreme on the battlefield and international stage.
6. The Siege of Jerusalem (70 AD) by Invicta
This battle is one of the most stunning of antiquity featuring impressive siege works and feats of bravery on both the Roman and Jewish sides as they fought mercilessly over every inch of Jerusalem.
7. The Spanish American War: The Rise of a New Global Power by Warographics
This was a conflict between the US and Spain in 1898 that ended Spanish colonial rule in the Americas and resulted in U.S. acquisition of territories in the western Pacific.
8. Hannibal – Rome’s Greatest Enemy by HistoryMarche
Learn more about the Second Punic War, fought between Carthage and Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For 17 years the two states struggled for supremacy, primarily in Italy and Iberia, but also on the islands of Sicily and Sardinia.
9. The Songhai Empire – Africa’s Age of Gold by Fall of Civilizations
Find out how this civilization grew and flourished, passing through a process known as the imperial cycle, and learn about what ultimately caused its sudden and dramatic collapse.
10. When did SANSKRIT appear in India? by World of Antiquity
A topic that stirs up controversy in India is the development of Indo-Aryan languages. In this video, other theories like the claims of Abhijit Chavda concerning the genetic evidence for or against the migration of this language group into India.
If you enjoyed these documentaries, here is a list of more than 50 of the best history channels on Youtube. We also wrote an article about the top history channels.
