Prehistory began 3 million years ago and lasted until 3000 BC. During this time, humans were hunter-gatherers and began using tools like fire. The Stone Age followed, divided into the Paleolithic and Neolithic eras. In the Neolithic, humans transitioned to agriculture and permanent settlements. The Metal Ages saw the rise of copper, bronze and iron tools. Writing emerged around 3000 BC, marking the beginning of ancient civilizations like Egypt, Greece and Rome, which established governments, trade and important constructions. The Middle Ages in Europe lasted from 400-1500 AD between the fall of Rome and the Renaissance, defined by a feudal system and conflicts like the Crusades.

1. PREHISTORY is the period of time from the appearance of
the first human being to the invention of writing.
It started 3 million years ago and lasted to the 3.000 BC
(Before Christ)
3 million years
3.000 BC

2. No writing documents exist, so we
study that period with material
remains:
For example, the human body itself,
hunting instruments, paintings,
sculptures , etc.
1) STONE AGE
This age is divided into Paleolithic and Neolithic:
PALEOLITHIC. During this stage the man was:
-NOMAD: he never lived in the same place, and lived in
CAVES.
-HUNTER (animals for food) and COLLECTOR (from plants)
-Invented the FIRE.
-Clothing was made from FUR (skin of the animals).

3. NEOLITHIC. During this stage the man was:
-AGRICULTURE and FARMING: people learned how to grow
the food, and people domesticated animals
-They were SEDENTARY (lived in the same place) and had
permanent HOUSES. Homes were usually made from wood or
bricks .
-They started to use CLOTHES made by the skin of the
animals (knitting).
2) METAL AGE
In this period of time in which the use of metal tools appears
along with the use of stone tools.
First metal used by humans seems to have been COOPER.

4. BRONZE AGE.
This age is the new period in the development of
technology when metals are first used regularly in the
development in the creation of tools and weapons.
Bronze was also used in art.
IRON AGE.
Iron is the key metal (most important metal) of
history.
This age is the new period in the development of
industry that begins with the general use of iron and
continues into modern times.
Iron is more common, durable, stronger and sharper
than bronze.

5. Ancient History started when people invented
writing.
In ANCIENT TIMES, all over the world, civilizations
appeared, for example, the Egyptians, the Greeks and the
Romans.
A civilization can be defined as the way of life of a
people and how they organize themselves into a society.
A society is a group of people with a common
territory, interaction, and culture.
This way, early people joined together to create
villages, city-states, nations and empires.
First Governments were formed.
People started to TRADE, i.e. (that is) to sell or buy
things with coins.

6. And important constructions were built too, like
Egyptian Pyramids, the Greek Parthenon or Roman theatres.
Ancient History finished when the Roman Empire ended.
Archaeologists have learned a great deal about these
early civilizations from the artifacts (man-made objects) they
left behind (created in that time).

7. Egypt is a dry, hot desert country and ancient life
depended on the waters of the River Nile.
People lived beside the Nile and Egyptian houses
were almost all built from bricks of Nile mud.
(The palaces of the Pharaohs were built from stone.)
The richer families in ancient Egypt had houses
with beautiful gardens, looked after by slaves or servants.
The Egyptians also enjoyed story-telling, parties and music.
There were a number of great public festivals, such as the
celebration of the resurrection of Osiris (god) where
thousands of people danced to the music of harps and flutes.
Greek history is an interesting and wonderful era of
human invention, philosophy, art and architecture.

8. Education was taken very seriously in school. Students
studied many of the same subjects learned in school today.
In school, maths was difficult, as six Roman letters (I,
V, X, L, C, and M)
While the kids were in school and the mothers and
daughters tended to the household chores, the fathers spent
a few hours working each day.
At night, Romans used lamps that burned olive oil.
Public games, sporting, and athletic events were an
important past time, which eventually led to the creation of
the Olympic Games that we still celebrate today!
Greeks adopted and utilized a new alphabet,
which is very similar to the one we use today.
The government and economy were
structured into a form of democracy that
we are familiar with today.

9. The Middle Ages refers to a time in European history from
400-1500 AD.
It occurred between the fall of the Roman Empire and the
Renaissance.
Historians usually divide the Middle Ages into three smaller
PERIODS called the Early Middle Ages, the High Middle Ages,
and the Late Middle Ages.

10. During much of the Middle Ages,
people in Europe were FIGHTING
against the Islamic Empire to take
back the Eastern Mediterranean,
especially Jerusalem, for the
Christian religion. These wars were
called the CRUSADES.
The Middle Ages was defined by a
FEUDAL SYSTEM in much of Europe.
This system consisted of kings, lords,
knights, vassals, peasants and serfs.
The people who were part of the church
played an important part also.
When a person was born into a certain
group, they rarely moved to another
level.

11. KINGS ruled by what they
believed was their “Divine Right”.
This meant they believed God
made them the King, and their
kingdom was passed down through
generations.
The soldiers that fought for the king and lords
were called KNIGHTS.
When conflict arose, the peasants would leave
their fields and villages and come into the
safety of the castle walls.

12. CASTLES were built for the lords
and kings who lived in them. The
bigger and stronger the castle, the
more wealthy (rich) the person who
had it built.
The poor lived in HUTS made from
sticks, straw and mud.
The CHURCH had a great influence over
the people.
The peasants believed that the harder
they worked, the more of their money
they gave to the church, and the more
they served the church, the better the
after-life would be for them.

13. By the early 1300s, however, Europe
suffered from both WAR and
DISEASE.
The wars were made much worse by
the Black Death (bubonic plague),
which spread along the Silk Road
from China to Europe starting in
1328, killing millions of people.
By the 1400s, after the plague,
Europe looked very different, and the
wars were over (finished), and Middle
Ages were coming to an END.
Also, many FAIRY TALES have their
roots in the Middle Ages. When you
read about castles and the characters
that lived and around them, these
stories are being told about this time
in history.