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Great Rivers That Shaped History

Experience the breathtaking history and lore of the world’s great rivers and their profound connection with human civilization from ancient times to the present.
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Great Rivers That Shaped History

Trailer

Rivers: The Arteries of History

01: Rivers: The Arteries of History

Begin with an overview of the place of rivers in human civilization. Learn about the geological formation of rivers, and their features, such as the world's river deltas and waterfalls. Take a first look at the human alteration of rivers, in the examples of levees and dams; their benefits and hazards. Consider how the beauty and drama of rivers have been featured in both visual art and literature.

27 min
The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers

02: The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers

Encounter these two great rivers of the Middle East, known as the "cradle of civilization." Follow the rise on their banks of the ancient Mesopotamian civilizations of Sumer, Babylon, and Assyria. Trace the fortunes of the Tigris and Euphrates through ancient times, World War I, and into our era. Note that the features of the rivers positioned them as centers of conflict through the centuries.

30 min
The Ever-Fertile Nile

03: The Ever-Fertile Nile

Visualize the centrality of the Nile in the life of ancient Egypt, both as the source of agricultural prosperity and its symbolic role in Egyptian religion. Track the river's history and culture, from Roman domination to Napoleon's conquest and the world's fascination with Egyptology. Follow the 19th century search for the Nile's source, and modern regulation of the Nile for power and irrigation.

30 min
The Jordan: Real and Symbolic

04: The Jordan: Real and Symbolic

The River Jordan holds immense symbolic and spiritual meaning in the Middle East. Travel into the river's significance in both the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament, in its relation to Jesus' ministry, and learn about the exploration of the Jordan and Dead Sea by Western travelers. Take account of the role of the Jordan in 20th century Zionism, and in conflict between Israel and its neighbors.

30 min
India's Sacred Ganges River

05: India's Sacred Ganges River

Discover the most sacred river of Hinduism and learn about the religious rituals and meanings associated with it. Map its long route from the Himalayas to the Bay of Bengal, and visit important communities through which it flows, such as Varanasi, Allahabad, and Kolkata. Note the natural features and rich wildlife of the Ganges, as well as the significant environmental challenges it faces.

32 min
The Yellow and Yangtze Rivers

06: The Yellow and Yangtze Rivers

China's two longest rivers have figured vitally in national life over millennia. Chart their geographical routes, navigability, and natural cycles, and grasp how controlling them has been a core challenge for Chinese leadership. Delve into the history that unfolded along the rivers, from the imperial Grand Canal and the Opium Wars to the Rape of Nanjing and the building of the Three Gorges Dam.

32 min
Culture and Conflict along the Mekong River

07: Culture and Conflict along the Mekong River

Travel the mighty Mekong, as it traverses China, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. Learn about great civilizations of the Mekong such as the Khmer Empire of Cambodia, and the lengthy French imperial domination of Indochina. Take account of the Mekong in the Vietnam War, the Cambodian Civil War, and now as a magnet for travelers seeking its rich cultures, as it faces environmental hazards.

32 min
The Amazon: Jungle, Empires, and Ecology

08: The Amazon: Jungle, Empires, and Ecology

Take stock of the vastness of the Amazon river system and its phenomenal biological diversity. Learn about its treasures of wildlife and its ecological role as the "lungs of the planet." Trace the exploration of the Amazon by European imperialists and scientists, and the rise and fall of the Amazon rubber industry. Grasp the Amazon's vital importance to the earth's environmental welfare.

31 min
The Rhine: Romance and Reality

09: The Rhine: Romance and Reality

Contemplate the multilevel presence of the Rhine in German experience. See how the river fired the German Romantic imagination, in mythology and legend, inspired great writers and scientists, and gave weight to the idea of a united Germany. Admire the Rhine's scenic beauty, renowned castles, and relive significant historical events on the river, from Roman times to its key role in World War II.

31 min
The Beautiful Blue Danube

10: The Beautiful Blue Danube

Follow this beloved river on its route from Germany's Black Forest to Eastern Europe. Picture the Roman conquests, battles between Christians and Ottoman invaders, and European wars that unfolded on its banks, and glimpse its era as the artery of the splendid Habsburg Empire in Vienna. Learn about trade, travel, and canal building on the Danube amid its turbulent 20th century history.

32 min
The Thames and British Culture

11: The Thames and British Culture

The history of the river Thames epitomizes the culture of Britain. Begin in London, visiting sites that show the river's role as a vital artery of governance and trade, as told in the words of famous observers. Explore the river's route from its headwaters in the west, and east to its estuary. Note the Thames in literature, its depiction by centuries of artists, and the numerous historical treasures along its path.

30 min
Canals around the World

12: Canals around the World

Canals are one of the most ancient forms of human intervention in water transport. Uncover the history of canals, for irrigation, travel, water regulation, and more, and how they have functioned through the ages. Take a grand tour of the world's great canals, from cities built on canals, such as Venice, and industrial canals, to those facilitating global trade, such as the Suez and Panama canals.

32 min
Great Rivers of France

13: Great Rivers of France

Many of France's greatest cultural achievements are linked with its rivers. As cases in point, start with the beloved Seine in Paris, flanked by iconic monuments such as the Louvre and immortalized by writers and painters. Travel to the Loire Valley and visit the great chateaux (castles) that make the area world famous. Also visit the Rhône, and its historical treasures at Avignon and Arles.

32 min
The Hudson and St. Lawrence Rivers

14: The Hudson and St. Lawrence Rivers

Chart the 1609 exploration of the Hudson by the Dutch, and its role in the American Revolution. Learn about travel on the Hudson, and the sights along it; its great mansions, its course through New York City, and its depiction by great painters. Learn how the French claimed the St. Lawrence and Quebec, and note the river's beautiful scenery, landmarks, and its presence in Canada's history.

31 min
The Mighty Mississippi

15: The Mighty Mississippi

Take the measure of America's grandest waterway, in both fact and fiction. In tracing its epic route, mark early exploration and trade, the great era of steamboats, and river life as immortalized by Mark Twain. Assess its place in the Civil War, the ongoing challenge of flooding, and visit key sites, from the native American Cahokia Mounds to the Mississippi cities of New Orleans and St. Louis.

32 min
The Columbia: Once Wild, Now Tame

16: The Columbia: Once Wild, Now Tame

Track the travels of Lewis and Clark in 1805 in the Pacific Northwest, and the wild and stormy Columbia river they encountered. Follow early trade on the river, and emigration on the Oregon trail. In the 20th century, witness how the Columbia has been dramatically transformed by a series of dams and reservoirs, which successfully control floods, generate power, and facilitate travel on the river.

31 min
The Colorado: Sacred or Utilitarian?

17: The Colorado: Sacred or Utilitarian?

Grasp how determined management of the Colorado River has made possible the economic development of the Southwest and southern California. Learn about the building of major dams, canals, and aqueducts that have brought life and agriculture to barren desert, while the sublime beauty of the southwestern landscapes has been increasingly championed by environmentalists, writers, and travelers.

31 min
The Yukon and Mackenzie Rivers

18: The Yukon and Mackenzie Rivers

The great waterways of the Yukon and Mackenzie, flowing through Northern Canada and Alaska, remain largely unchanged by human hands. Relive the fascinating story of exploration and trade on the rivers in the 18th and 19th centuries, culminating in the Klondike gold rush, vividly recorded by Jack London and Robert Service. Learn how the frozen rivers become ice roads for transportation in winter.

30 min
Russia's Storied Rivers

19: Russia's Storied Rivers

Delve into the deep cultural significance of Russia's rivers. Visualize the river Volga in Russian history from the 16th century; the great cities on its route, its history of uprisings and strife, its depiction in art, and its role in the World War II Battle of Stalingrad. Then, encounter the river Don and its evocation in literature, and hear the epic story of the dam on the Dnieper River.

30 min
The Niger, Zambezi, and Congo Rivers

20: The Niger, Zambezi, and Congo Rivers

The rivers of Africa posed daunting challenges to exploration and trade. Relive the dramatic exploits on three great rivers of 19th century explorers David Livingstone, Henry Morgan Stanley, and others. Learn about the conquest of the Congo by Belgium, the horrific colonial regime under it, and taste the literary evocation of the Congo and its people by Joseph Conrad and Barbara Kingsolver.

32 min
Rivers Reversed, Diverted, and Disappeared

21: Rivers Reversed, Diverted, and Disappeared

Look into the successes and failures of human interventions in rivers. Study the diversion of the Turia River in Spain, to avert flooding, and the disastrous diversion of two rivers by the Soviet Union. Note the project to reverse the flow of the Chicago River, the story of the Los Angeles aqueduct, and rivers, such as in England and Korea, which have been paved over, and sometimes revived.

31 min
Great River Bridges of the World

22: Great River Bridges of the World

Uncover the history and lore of river bridges, as they combine both engineering genius and beauty. Envision bridge building under the Romans, and the challenges and developing technology of bridge design over the centuries, encompassing arch-building, coffer dams, truss bridges, Indian tree root bridges, iron bridges, and finally suspension bridges, in remarkable examples across the world.

33 min
Rivers in the Arts

23: Rivers in the Arts

Explore the human connection with rivers as expressed in music, in works by Handel, Schubert, and Smetana, and in the poetry of Shakespeare and Tennyson. Observe how great painters have illuminated the role of rivers in history and culture, in masterful images from Titian and Breugel, British and Japanese artists, and American painters Moran, Sargent, Whistler, and others.

32 min
The Enjoyment of Rivers

24: The Enjoyment of Rivers

Conclude with a look at many ways to savor the beauty and fascinating features of rivers. Learn about river cruises on the Thames in London, on the Seine in Paris, and about multi-day cruises on rivers in Europe and the US, highlighting the majesty and the remarkable sights of the Niagara River. Reflect on the extraordinary, multi-level legacy of our rivers and waterways.

36 min

Overview Course No. 10650

Throughout history, Earth’s great rivers have lived at the heart of human life. As sources of food, and arteries of transport, trade, irrigation, travel, religious ritual, and more, rivers have not only shaped the landscapes through which they flow, they have also shaped civilization.

In the 24 lectures of Great Rivers That Shaped History, you’ll explore the major rivers of our planet, and the civilizations that thrived on them, as you travel the Middle East’s Nile, Tigris, and Jordan; Asia’s Ganges, Mekong, Yellow, and Yangtze; trace the history and lore of Europe’s Danube, Rhine, Loire, Volga, and other waterways; chart the vast river system of the Amazon, known as “the lungs of the planet”; glimpse Africa’s Niger, Zambezi, and Congo; and, in North America, follow the exploration and development of the Mackenzie, the Yukon, the Hudson, the Columbia, the iconic Mississippi, and others.

In the enthralling presentation of Professor Patrick N. Allitt of Emory University, you’ll travel deeply into these natural wonders that have profoundly influenced human life.

About

Patrick N. Allitt
Patrick N. Allitt

We live in a world that has created many new incentives for us to become lifelong learners. Luckily, lifelong learning is a pleasure.

INSTITUTION

Emory University

Patrick N. Allitt is Cahoon Family Professor of American History at Emory University, where he has taught since 1988. He received his PhD in American History from the University of California, Berkeley, and completed postdoctoral fellowships at Harvard Divinity School and Princeton University. He is a widely published author whose books include A Climate of Crisis: America in the Age of Environmentalism; The Conservatives: Ideas and Personalities throughout American History; and Religion in America since 1945: A History.

By This Professor

The Industrial Revolution
The Great Tours: England, Scotland, and Wales
Victorian Britain
A History of the United States, 2nd Edition
The Art of Teaching: Best Practices from a Master Educator
The Conservative Tradition
How Railways Transformed the World
America after the Cold War: The First 30 Years
The American West: History, Myth, and Legacy
Great Rivers That Shaped History

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