This document outlines the key topics in virology including the nature of viruses, viral taxonomy, replication, pathogenesis, genetics, infection mechanisms, diagnosis, and vaccination. It then summarizes the early history and discoveries in virology, from the first vaccines developed by Pasteur and Jenner, to Ivanovsky's 1892 experiment showing that the infectious agent causing tobacco mosaic disease was able to pass through filters that trapped bacteria. Beijerinck coined the term "virus" and discovery of bacteriophages by Twort and d'Herelle further advanced the field. Rivers later defined viruses as obligate parasites in 1926.