The Ascent Of Civilization

The ancient Greeks laid the foundations for much of modern civilisation, and were the responsible for democracy and the beginning of scientific reasoning over 3000 years ago.

The Roman Empire was one of the greatest in history, with the help of their army and politics, and they left a lasting legacy with the world today.

The Vikings were a group of seafarers who discovered America 500 years before Columbus, which revolutionised exploration and trade in the Middle Ages.

This is a journey to the roots of the modern world: from the eclectic Germanic tribes that defied the mighty Romans, to the seafaring Carthaginians that established the first global trade network, and the pioneering Arabs and their advances into modern science. Meet the ancestors that have shaped the world. The Carthaginians were sly merchants and cruel child killers - at least according to the Ancient Romans and Greeks. But research shows that they weren't as bad as their reputation. Their story began around 3,000 years ago, when settlers left their homes in what is now Lebanon to set up colonies around the Mediterranean. The most powerful was Carthage, a bustling Metropolis in what is now Tunisia, with a port that was the envy of the entire world.

The Arabs have been bringing knowledge of the ancient world to Europe since the 8th century. In the fields of medicine, mathematics or philosophy, their scholars were far beyond their time and still affect our world today. For a long time the Arabs were estranged, not united by one nation or leader. They had little in common but a shared language. This didn?t change until Mohammed ended polytheism, founded a new religion and united all of the Arabic tribes in their faith in one God: Allah.