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The Western Tradition

The Western Tradition

★ 7.0/10•1989•27m•TV-G•Documentary
Similars

Covering the ancient world through the age of technology, this illustrated lecture by Eugen Weber presents a tapestry of political and social events woven with many strands — religion, industry, agriculture, demography, government, economics, and art. A visual feast of over 2,700 images from the Metropolitan Museum of Art portrays key events that shaped the development of Western thought, culture, and tradition.

StatusEnded
Runtime27m
LanguageEN
First Air DateJan 1, 1989

Episodes

E130m

The Dawn of History

The origins of the human race are traced from anthropoid ancestors to the agricultural revolution.

Jan 1, 1989

E230m

The Ancient Egyptians

Egyptian irrigation created one of the first great civilizations.

Jan 1, 1989

E330m

Mesopotamia

Settlements in the Fertile Crescent gave rise to the great river civilizations of the Middle East.

Jan 1, 1989

E430m

From Bronze to Iron

Metals revolutionized tools, as well as societies, in the empires of Assyria, Persia, and Neo-Babylonia.

Jan 1, 1989

E530m

The Rise of Greek Civilization

Democracy and philosophy arose from Greek cities at the edge of the civilized world.

Jan 1, 1989

E630m

Greek Thought

Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle laid the foundation of Western intellectual thought.

Jan 1, 1989

E730m

Alexander the Great

Alexander's conquests quadrupled the size of the world known to the Greeks.

Jan 1, 1989

E830m

The Hellenistic Age

Hellenistic kingdoms extended Greek culture throughout the Mediterranean.

Jan 1, 1989

E930m

The Rise of Rome

Through its army, Rome built an empire that shaped the West.

Jan 1, 1989

E1030m

The Roman Empire

Rome's civil engineering contributed as much to the empire as did its weapons.

Jan 1, 1989

E1130m

Early Christianity

Christianity spread despite contempt and persecution from Rome.

Jan 1, 1989

E1230m

The Rise of the Church

The old heresy became the Roman empire's official religion under the Emperor Constantine.

Jan 1, 1989

E1330m

The Decline of Rome

While enemies slashed at Rome's borders, civil war and economic collapse destroyed the empire from within.

Jan 1, 1989

E1430m

The Fall of Rome

Despite the success of emperors such as Hadrian and Marcus Aurelius, Rome fell victim to barbarian invasions.

Jan 1, 1989

E1530m

The Byzantine Empire

From Constantinople, the Byzantine Empire carried on the traditions of Greece and Rome.

Jan 1, 1989

E1630m

The Fall of Byzantium

Nearly a thousand years after Rome's fall, Constantinople was conquered by the forces of Islam.

Jan 1, 1989

E1730m

The Dark Ages

Barbarian kingdoms took possession of the fragments of the Roman Empire.

Jan 1, 1989

E1830m

The Age of Charlemagne

Charlemagne revived hopes for a new empire in Western Europe.

Jan 1, 1989

E1930m

The Middle Ages

Amid invasion and civil disorder, a military aristocracy dominated the kingdoms of Europe.

Jan 1, 1989

E2030m

The Feudal Order

Bishop, knight, and peasant exemplified some of the social divisions of the year 1000 A.D.

Jan 1, 1989

E2130m

Common Life in the Middle Ages

Famine, disease, and short life expectancies were the conditions that shaped medieval beliefs.

Jan 1, 1989

E2230m

Cities and Cathedrals of the Middle Ages

The great churches embodied the material and spiritual ambitions of the age.

Jan 1, 1989

E2330m

The Late Middle Ages

Two hundred years of war and plague debilitated Europe.

Jan 1, 1989

E2430m

The National Monarchies

A new urban middle class emerged, while dynastic marriages established centralized monarchies.

Jan 1, 1989

E2530m

Renaissance & the Age of Discovery

Renaissance humanists made man "the measure of all things." Europe was possessed by a new passion for knowledge.

Jan 1, 1989

E2630m

Renaissance & the New World

The discovery of America challenged Europe.

Jan 1, 1989

E2730m

The Reformation

Voiced by Martin Luther, Protestantism shattered the unity of the Catholic Church.

Jan 1, 1989

E2830m

The Rise of the Middle Class

As the cities grew, new middle-class mores had an impact on religious life.

Jan 1, 1989

E2930m

The Wars of Religion

For more than a century, the quarrels of Protestants and Catholics tore Europe apart.

Jan 1, 1989

E3030m

The Rise of the Trading Cities

Amid religious wars, a few cities learned that tolerance increased their prosperity.

Jan 1, 1989

E3130m

The Age of Absolutism

Exhausted by war and civil strife, many Europeans exchanged earlier liberties and anarchies for greater peace.

Jan 1, 1989

E3230m

Absolutism and the Social Contract

Arguments about the legitimate source of political power centered on divine right versus natural law.

Jan 1, 1989

E3330m

The Enlightened Despots

Monarchs considered reforms in order to create more efficient societies, but not at the expense of their own power.

Jan 1, 1989

E3430m

The Enlightenment

Intellectual theories about the nature of man and his potential came to the fore.

Jan 1, 1989

E3530m

The Enlightenment and Society

Scientists and social reformers battled for universal human rights during a peaceful and prosperous period.

Jan 1, 1989

E3630m

The Modern Philosophers

Freedom of thought and expression opened new vistas explored by French, English, and American thinkers.

Jan 1, 1989

E3730m

The American Revolution

The British colonists created a society that tested Enlightenment ideas and resisted restrictions imposed by England.

Jan 1, 1989

E3830m

The American Republic

A new republic, the compromise of radicals and conservatives, was founded on universal freedoms.

Jan 1, 1989

E3930m

The Death of the Old Regime

In France the old order collapsed under revolutionaries' attacks and the monarchy's own weakness.

Jan 1, 1989

E4030m

The French Revolution

Liberty, equality, and fraternity skidded into a reign of Terror.

Jan 1, 1989

E4130m

The Industrial Revolution

Technology and mass production reduced famine and ushered in higher standards of living.

Jan 1, 1989

E4230m

The Industrial World

A consumer revolution was fueled by coal, public transportation, and new city services.

Jan 1, 1989

E4330m

Revolution and Romantics

Leaders in the arts, literature, and political theory argued for social justice and national liberation.

Jan 1, 1989

E4430m

The Age of the Nation-States

The great powers cooperated to quell internal revolts, yet competed to acquire colonies.

Jan 1, 1989

E4530m

A New Public

Public education and mass communications created a new political life and leisure time.

Jan 1, 1989

E4630m

Fin de Siècle

Everyday life of the working class was transformed by leisure, prompting the birth of an elite avant-garde movement.

Jan 1, 1989

E4730m

The First World War and the Rise of Fascism

Old empires crumbled during World War I to be replaced by right-wing dictatorships in Italy, Spain, and Germany.

Jan 1, 1989

E4830m

The Second World War

World War II was a war of new tactics and strategies. Civilian populations became targets as the Nazi holocaust exterminated millions of people.

Jan 1, 1989

E4930m

The Cold War

The U.S. and Soviet Union dominated Europe and confronted each other in Korea.

Jan 1, 1989

E5030m

Europe and the Third World

Burdened with the legacy of colonial imperialism, the Third World rushed development to catch up with its Western counterparts.

Jan 1, 1989

E5130m

The Technological Revolution

Keeping up with the ever-increasing pace of change became the standard of the day.

Jan 1, 1989

E5230m

Toward the Future

Modern medicine, atomic energy, computers, and new concepts of time, energy, and matter all have an important effect on life in the 20th century.

Jan 1, 1989

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Natural World
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Planet Earth III
Lost Treasures of Egypt
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