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When the Ancient Roman city of Pompeii was destroyed by a volcanic eruption in 79 CE, it had a population of about 8,000. At that time in the entire Mediterranean world there were only a handful of places with a population of more than 25,000. Why does this make the position of Rome all the…

1238 – James I of Aragon founds the Kingdom of Valencia. 1446 – The Hangul alphabet, created by King Sejong the Great, is published in Korea. 1635 – The founder of Rhode Island Roger Williams is banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony as a religious dissident after he speaks out against punishments for religious offenses…