History Matters

History Matters

@historymatters · 1.9M subscribers · 398 videos · English

History Matters is a history-focused channel which aims to help students studying for A levels, GCSEs and AP World/Euro History by providing short introductions to multiple topics. The episodes released are designed to act as both intros and as revision material for students or people who are simply interested in World History. Videos will also focus on the lesser-known parts of history too and dive deep into questions that many people ask but aren't often answered.

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Videos

8:11

Why didn't Napoleon just stop? (Short Animated Documentary)

1.4M views · 7d ago · 8:11

Napoleon Bonaparte made sweeping changes to the European continent and greatly expanded the borders of France. His 13 year winning-streak came to a crashing end after his failed invasion of Russia and it wasn't long afterwards that Napoleon was forced to abdicate his crown and his dynasty was (mostly) finished. So why didn't Napoleon stop his conquests and just consolidate what he already had? To find out watch this short and simple animated history documentary.

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9:07

Why did Germany and the USSR sign the Molotov Ribbentrop Pact? (Short Animated Documentary)

854K views · 28d ago · 9:07

In August 1939, the Soviet Union and Germany signed the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, a non-aggression Pact and economic agreement that brought the two powers close together and also secretly divided up Poland and much of Eastern Europe between them. Which is a bit odd given the ideological hatred the two states had for one another and the fact that they'd spent the last half a decade calling for the others ruin. So why did they do this?

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9:20

Why did Charles V split up his empire? (Short Animated Documentary)

1.2M views · 1mo ago · 9:20

Emperor-King Charles V was the overlord and ruler of a lot of European territory as well as the growing Spanish Empire in the Americas, too. Most monarchs at this point just passed everything they owned to their heir but when Charles abdicated in 1556, he split his empire up. Giving his Austrian lands and the Holy Roman Empire to his brother, Ferdinand and giving his Spanish lands, souther Italy, the Netherlands and Milan to his son, Philip. So why did he do this?

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9:00

Why did Britain join WW1? (Short Animated Documentary)

1.3M views · 2mo ago · 9:00

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8:10

Why didn't the Dutch also scramble Africa? (Short Animated Documentary)

675K views · 2mo ago · 8:10

When Europeans were scrambling for Africa in the late 19th century, one historically significant colonial power, the Dutch, were missing. When the dust had settled the Netherlands, for all of its history was left with precisely zero colonies of holding in Africa whereas poorer, less influential countries like Belgium or Portugal had managed to carve out sizeable empires there. So why was this the outcome?

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8:34

Why did the Treaty of Versailles Fail? (Short Animated Documentary)

480K views · 3mo ago · 8:34

The Peace established with Germany in the Treaty of Versailles was supposed to last for more than 20 years. Famously, it did little to calm European politics and the 1920s and 1930s were filled with German attempts to avoid or do away with it which by the mid 1930s was essentially complete. So why did this happen? Why did the Treaty of Versailles fail to stop Germany from waging another war and the keep the peace in Western Europe?

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9:33

When did the Cold War actually start? (Short Animated Documentary)

517K views · 4mo ago · 9:33

The Cold War is known for its proxy conflicts, its nuclear stand-offs, the ideological competition and its geopolitical scheming that ended with the Soviet Union's dissolution in 1991. And whilst the year the Cold War ended isn't often debated, its beginning is much harder to pin down. So when exactly did the political framework that defined the latter half of the twentieth century begin? Was it 1947? 1917? Or some other date?

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8:50

Why wasn't Japan allowed to keep Taiwan after WW2? (Short Animated Documentary)

573K views · 5mo ago · 8:50

After losing the Second World War, the Empire of Japan was stripped of its empire, losing everything it had gained since 1895 (and more). Part of this reckoning included the loss of Japanese Formosa, known nowadays as Taiwan. Whilst this had been agreed upon by the UK and USA, whether or not they really wanted it to go to China isn't entirely clear and there were some that even believed Japan shouldn't lose it at all.

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8:21

Why did the Spanish choose to fight the USA in 1898? (Short Animated Documentary)

658K views · 5mo ago · 8:21

The Spanish-American War of 1898 is famous for being a very one-sided fight with the USA famously crushing the Spanish in a few short months both on land and at sea. And given how much more powerful the USA was back then, why did the Spanish declare war on the United States? Why did Spain choose to fight a war that it seems obvious that it was going to lose? To find out watch this short and simple animated history documentary.

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8:57

Why didn't Germany stop expanding in 1939? (Short Animated Documentary)

1.5M views · 6mo ago · 8:57

Before the outbreak of World War 2 in 1939, Germany had been expanding rapidly, gaining the territories of the Saarland, Austria, the Sudetenland and Memel as well as turning Czechoslovakia into two puppet states. In spite of all these gains, German leaders still pushed for the return of Danzig and some territories around it and led to the outbreak of World War 2.

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8:41

Why didn't the other Central Powers have to pay reparations too? (Short Animated Documentary)

640K views · 6mo ago · 8:41

After World War One was over and the losing nations had seen their territory divided amongst the winners, there was still the matter of them having to pay reparations. As you'll know Germany was ordered to pay a lot of money to the Entente whereas the rest of the defeated Central Powers were ordered to pay either minuscule sums or even nothing at all. So why was it that only Germany had to pay? Why didn't the other central powers pay reparations as well?

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8:34

Why didn't the Boers ever unite against the British? (Short Animated Documentary)

709K views · 6mo ago · 8:34

The Boers were constantly at odds with the British and their south African colonies throughout the 19th century. When they and the Brits went to war twice in the late 1800s, the Boers were never politically unified which prevented them from better resisting, something which led to the end of the Boer Republics and their incorporation into South Africa in 1910.

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8:52

Why couldn't the Mongols conquer Japan? (Short Animated Documentary)

720K views · 8mo ago · 8:52

The Mongols are famous for their broad, rapid conquests and the gargantuan empire that they build as a result. They conquered numerous great states, such as the Chinese Song Dynasty and the Persian Khwarazmian Empire, thereby taking their great resources for themselves. But on the fringe of the Mongol's greatest centre of power, Kublai Khan's Yuan Dynasty, sat the island of Japan whose government refused to pay tribute to Kublai and did away with his messengers.

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8:23

Why did Mao win the Chinese Civil War?

999K views · 9mo ago · 8:23

When the Chinese Civil War began, the Communists (eventually under the leadership of Mao) started at a disadvantage. They didn't control much territory, the number of soldiers they had access to was much smaller and they had much more limited supplies than their opponents.

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8:46

Why did Austria-Hungary do so poorly in World War One? (Short Animated Documentary)

1.1M views · 10mo ago · 8:46

The Austro-Hungarian Empire's performance in World War One is often seen as a bit of a joke and one of blunder and blunder with it failing to conquer Serbia and do little more than wait for Germany to help. But given that the Austria-Hungary started the war, why did it perform so poorly? Why did the Austro-Hungarian army fail so badly? To find out watch this short and simple animated history.

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8:11

Why didn't the US focus on Japan first in WW2? (Short Animated Documentary)

1.2M views · 10mo ago · 8:11

The United States entered World War 2 in the wake of the Japanese sneak attack on Pearl Harbor. However, upon joining the allies Roosevelt's government and the US military agreed to a 'Europe First' policy whereby Germany would be the primary focus and once defeated, the allies would turn their attention to Japan. But given how angry Americans were feeling over Pearl Harbor, why didn't the US aggressively focus on destroying Japan first.

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8:34

Why did the 1945 Japanese Army coup against the Emperor fail? (Short Animated Documentary)

855K views · 1y ago · 8:34

In 1945, just as the Japanese Government confirmed its intent to surrender, some Officers in the army launched a coup against Emperor Hirohito and those who served under him. This was supposed to overthrow the peace faction and keep Japan fighting against the allies to the bitter end and avoid the disgrace of surrender. But despite the Japanese army's hatred of capitulation, why didn't it try to keep fighting and why did the coup against the Emperor fail so spectacularly.

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8:54

Why did France get so much of Africa? (Short Animated Documentary)

1.5M views · 1y ago · 8:54

As many of you will know, when Africa was Scrambled by the European powers (and Belgium) in the late 19th century, France got a massive chunk of it all to itself. But given that France was seen as the great enemy of Europe and went through long periods of imposed Isolationism, why did it get so much? Why did France get so much of Africa and why didn't the other great powers do anything about it? To find out watch this short and simple animated history documentary.

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8:08

Why didn't Castro try to retake Guantanamo Bay from America?

2.5M views · 1y ago · 8:08

Throughout the Cold War, US-Cuban relations weren't exactly great. Castro, Cuba's leader, never acknowledged the US' ownership of the Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay as legitimate but during the decades after he took power he never made a single concerted effort to get it back. So why not? To find out watch this short and simple animated history documentary.

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8:35

Why was Egypt forced to give up so much of its land in 1840? (Short Animated Documentary)

1.2M views · 1y ago · 8:35

After rebelling against the Ottoman Empire in the 1830s, Egypt was able to become all but independent, massively increasing the size of its borders and dominating large parts of Arabia and the Levant. During this time it continuously defeated its Ottoman overlords and was even a threat to the Sultan himself. Yet, in spite of its victories, in 1840, the Great Powers of Europe intervened and forced it to hand back all of its gains to the Ottomans.

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8:37

How close was the US to another Civil War in 1876? (Short Animated Documentary)

1.3M views · 1y ago · 8:37

The 1876 election was a hotly contested one with results from numerous states contested with both candidates claiming victory. During the 4 months leading up to the inauguration tensions grew massively and many people across the Unites States feared the breakdown of the government and the beginning a second Civil War in 1876/1877. But how realistic were these fears? Was the USA actually close to another civil war in after the 1876 election?

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4:20

Why did France halt its invasion of Germany in 1939? (Short Animated Documentary)

854K views · 1y ago · 4:20

In 1939, during the opening days of the Second World War, France had the opportunity to invade Germany whilst its forces were busy in Poland. What happened wasn't a major offensive but instead a tiny, localised push into the frontier of Germany that ended before it really began. So why didn't the French commit to a grander offensive and why did they just wait and watch as Poland was conquered? To find out watch this short and simple animated history documentary.

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