Spartacus Educational is a free

online encyclopedia An online encyclopedia, also called an Internet encyclopedia, or a digital encyclopedia, is an encyclopedia accessible through the internet. Examples include Wikipedia and ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Digitization of old content In January 199 ...

with essays and other educational material on a wide variety of historical subjects principally

British history The British Isles have witnessed intermittent periods of competition and cooperation between the people that occupy the various parts of Great Britain, the Isle of Man, Ireland, the Bailiwick of Guernsey, the Bailiwick of Jersey and ...

from 1700 and the

history of the United States The history of the lands that became the United States began with the arrival of the first people in the Americas around 15,000 BC. Numerous indigenous cultures formed, and many saw transformations in the 16th century away from more densely ...

. Based in the United Kingdom, Spartacus Educational was established as a book publisher in 1984 by former history teacher John Simkin and Judith Harris. It became an online publisher in September 1997. It grew into a large database of primary and secondary sources on a wide variety of subjects:

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and adopt a socialist form of government ...

, campaign against slavery, Chartism, women's suffrage (biographies of 230 women),

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlism, Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebeli ...

and

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because t ...

. Wherever possible, the history is told, Simkin explained, via the words of the people involved of the people involved in the struggle for equality and democracy. Alan Tucker writing in the blog of the Great War Forum Ltd wrote: “One of the most useful things about Spartacus is the range of secondary sources they use - some very difficult to obtain. Also not all secondary sources - lots of quotes from memoirs, autobiographies and letters… all Spartacus sources are properly acknowledged so you can make up your own mind. I taught an 'A' Level unit where Spartacus has a range of superb material (not Great War)." For World War II, Simkin describes the focus of this encyclopedia as "providing background information on major political leaders from each of the countries involved in the war ..., including individuals from a miscellaneous category such as: Chaing Kai-Shek and Josip Tito... The site has the ability to provide more of a well-rounded learning experience by illustrating how the war affected people and places all over the world.” The

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second largest public library in the United States (behind the Library of Congress) ...

recommended the articles about the history of Germany and Russia as educational resources. According to Elias, speaking about the assassination of John F. Kennedy, "the site simply reproduces a host of conspiracy theories that first appeared elsewhere". This author also describes the site as "very shoddy, not well-sourced" citing Arthur Goldwag, author of ''Cults, Conspiracies, and Secret Societies''. The blog of Great War Forum Ltd addresses the question 'How reliable a source is Spartacus Educational?'; for the Great War (1914-1918) at least, contributors reached a different assessment. Monica Burns, an EdTech consultant listed for

Edutopia Edutopia is a website published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation (GLEF). Founded in 1991 by filmmaker George Lucas and venture capitalist Steve Arnold, the foundation "celebrates and encourages innovation" in K-12 schools. Edutopia f ...

free online resources in history for teaching students how to comprehend informational text. Of Spartacus Educational Burns 2013 wrote: "a great resource for global history. It contains free encyclopedia entries that directly connect to primary source documents, making it a perfect tool for educators looking to give students a starting point in their research.".

References

External links

Spartacus Educational website
*

{{Authority control Book publishing companies of the United Kingdom British online encyclopedias Educational book publishing companies History websites of the United Kingdom Online encyclopedias