The Ascent of Civilization

The Carthaginians were sly merchants and cruel child killers - at least according to the Ancient Romans and Greeks. But research shows that they weren't as bad as their reputation. The Carthaginians' story began around 3,000 years ago, when settlers left their homes in what is now Lebanon to set up new colonies around the Mediterranean.

There is barely a country in Europe that cannot look back on Germanic roots, though there has never been one unified people. The term 'Germanic' actually refers to a number of tribes and clans that lived in Central and Northern Europe from the 6th century BC. Gaius Julius Caesar is said to have used it when talking about the Gallic war.

The Arabs have been bringing knowledge of the ancient world to Europe since the 8th century. In the fields of medicine, mathematics or philosophy, their scholars were far beyond their time and still affect our world today. For a long time the Arabs were estranged, not united by one nation or leader. They had little in common but a shared language.