Mankind: The Story of All of Us

A mysterious band of pirates plunders the Mediterranean coast - leaving destruction in its wake. Empires fall, but out of the chaos, we discover iron. Armed with this wonder metal, ordinary folk can overthrow tyrants and build a new world order.

When Rome is sacked by barbarians, Europe enters a Dark Age. But from the fringes of the old empire, two new forces remake the world. The Arabs, funded by a gold rush, unite under the banner of Islam.

Gold from Africa kickstarts the rebirth of Europe. Money flows into Venice, creating new opportunities for entrepreneurs willing to take risks. In China, a new weapon, the gun, allows a peasant uprising to unify the country.

In the Andes, the Spanish open up the largest silver mine in the world and mint millions of pesos de ocho (pieces of eight). These coins transform the global economy. They fill the treasure chests of pirates.

Two great revolutions entwine. The American Revolution inspires dreams of political and personal liberty. The Industrial Revolution replaces muscle power with machines, freeing Mankind from natures limits.

Mankind takes on godlike powers: to feed billions of people, reshape the landscape, re-engineer the human body. The greatest power of all was unleashed over Hiroshima on August 6, 1945.