If you don't have a good grasp of history you are bound to repeat the errors of the past, and it makes it difficult to put current events into their proper perspective. So I am creating Rittner's Online University that will point you to all of the excellent free courses and databases relating to history that are free and on the Internet. This week I will give you a brief sample of the great history resources online. If you visit only half these sites, I can assure you that your knowledge of world history will double.

Hyperhistory Online
www.hyperhistory.com/online_n2/History_n2/a.html

This site contains four categories including people, history, events, and maps with more than 2000 files covering 3000 years of world history as its focus. You can select a range of dates to study from 500 AD to today. It gives you a timeline with featured names, events, history, or maps and by simply selecting the title you are interested in, you are given a window with biographical information on the person or event. This is a good site when you need to obtain a quick source of information that is not that detailed.

Encyclopedia of British History, 1500-1950
www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/Britain.html

This site breaks British history down into various categories from the monarchy to parliamentary legislation. There are 40 categories in all. Lots of cross indexing so it makes a very useful site.

Online History
www.onlinehistory.co.uk/

Promoted as all the links a student of history will ever need. It may be a bit of exaggeration but sure is close. Thee are hundreds of links to Web sites that fall within their 24 categories from the Romans to sights and sounds. This is a good Web site just to surf and find a history site that may interest you.

Abraham Lincoln Papers
memory.loc.gov/ammem/alhtml/malhome.html

This is a Library of Congress online collection of all of Lincoln's papers, comprising about 20,000 documents. You can view the collection or search by keyword. You view the actual papers online and can download them to your desktop. A great resource about a great President.

The History of Economic Thought
cepa.newschool.edu/het/home.htm

If you want to know how we developed our economic policies and behaviors this site will teach the entire history of economic thought, broken down into "schools"of thought.

Daily Past
www.dailypast.com/

This site is designed like a daily newspaper and features "news" stories of various dates and events of the past, but written like it happened today.

Women and Social Movements in the United States, 1775-2000
womhist.binghamton.edu/about.htm

Great site for learning about women's role in subjects such as peace, politics, sexuality, work and race through time. Each category has links to documents relating to each topic area.

Digital History
www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/

A comprehensive site that contains full e-text books, maps, timelines, biographies, primary sources from Washington, Franklin, Jefferson and others, and a great deal more on American history.

The American West
www.americanwest.com/

Interesting site that documents the rise of the West from frontier days to the present.

Civil War and Reconstruction, 1861-1877
lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/ndlpedu/features/timeline/civilwar/civilwar.html

An excellent Library of Congress Web site that features original documents and photographs.

Map Center
www.ancestry.com/search/rectype/reference/maps/main.asp

Hundreds of maps are available online for viewing and downloading from US, Europe, emigration, migration, ethnicity, military, city, and other categories.

Historical Atlas of the 20th Century
users.erols.com/mwhite28/20centry.htm

Many interactive maps, timelines, covering the last century. Lots of useful statistics.

Historical Atlas of Europe (1648-201)
home.wanadoo.nl/gerard.vonhebel/index.htm

Similar to above but covers just Europe. Great maps.

Political Ideas
politics99.co.uk/theory.htm

Want to know the difference between anarchism and totalitarism. This site defines them all.

From Revolution to Reconstruction
odur.let.rug.nl/%7Eusa/index.htm

A series of outlines with links to appropriate web sites relating to American history.

The Sourcebooks

Internet Ancient History Sourcebook
www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/asbook.html

A very detailed site that contains full texts of every category of ancient history. This site has evolved into several different sourcebooks, and all are available through this main one: includes medieval, modern history, and a new women's studies (www.fordham.edu/halsall/women/womensbook.html). One of the most comprehensive sources of knowledge online.