Why I made this
I've been reading history books, and finding the right map to go with a chapter was always a chore. The map sites I found online were either out of date or showed only one moment in time.
So I thought: why not make one myself, and share it with the world for free? A globe you can spin through 125,000 years, a story for every empire, and a way to ask any spot on Earth who ruled it.
It's a side project, built with Claude Code in my spare time, alongside the other things on my projects page.
Like it?
Drop me a message on LinkedIn or hit Follow. It genuinely makes my day.
Message or follow me on LinkedInIn numbers
- 53 world maps, from 123,000 BC to 2026
- 66 empire and homeland histories
- 749 rulers, each with a one-line note
- 3,000+ kingdoms, peoples and states on the maps
This is random research by a curious person, not a history book. I'm not claiming that anything here is accurate.
Maps of the past are educated guesses, and history is argued about for good reason. The borders come from an open dataset that is itself approximate, and the stories and ruler lists are my own reading. You will find mistakes.
When you do, I'd genuinely love to hear about it. I'm the kind of person who enjoys being corrected, so drop me a message on LinkedIn and I'll fix it.
Send me a correction on LinkedInWhere it comes from
- Historical borders: historical-basemaps by André Ourednik, an open dataset under the GPL-3.0 licence. Each border carries its own accuracy rating, shown when you click a territory.
- The 2026 map: Natural Earth country borders, public domain. It shows internationally recognised borders.
- Stories, rulers and homelands: written for this project from general historical knowledge. Dates marked "c." are approximate.
- Built with: D3 for the maps, and fonts served from this site. The only outside service is Google, for the ads.
Privacy
The atlas is free and needs no sign-up. It is paid for by ads from Google, which use cookies; in Europe you are asked first. The map itself remembers your view, filters and settings in your own browser only. Read the privacy page.
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