Central Italian Peninsula, modern day Tuscany- 900- 450 BCE -- The Etruscans had a major influence on the Roman civilization. The origin of the Etruscans is subject to debate, some historians believe the Etruscans are Italian natives, while others believe they migrated from Asia-Minor, or elsewhere. The Etruscans lived in walled …

287 - 212 BCE- Archimedes is one of the most famous scientists of all time. Archimedes was a native of Syracuse. He is renowned for many inventions and contributions. His contributions include work on the geometry of spheres and cylinders, a value for the constant pi, the concept of specific gravity …

310- 230 BCE - A Greek astronomer who is known to have developed a heliocentric view of the universe. Aristarchus of Samos believed that the Sun and stars were 'fixed' in the heavens, while the Earth rotated around the Sun in a circular orbit. Aristarchus also believed that the Earth revolved …

203- 120 BCE - Polybius was the central historian of the Hellenistic period. Polybius was Greek, however he lived in Rome for a time. He wrote a detailed history of the "inhabited Mediterranean world" from 221 to 146 BCE.

His history focuses on the growth of Rome and the achievements of …

Warfare in the Age of Crusades, Volume II, Europe will have a major focus on North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula. I feel my perspective shifting West.

315 - 250 BCE

Theocritus was a native of Sicily who wrote short poems known as idylls. The themes of Theocritus' poetry usually centered around eroticism, "lovers' complaints," and nature. Theocritus' contemporaries believed that Homer's epic's could never be out done and thus writers should limit the length of their work …