YouTube has dramatically changed how we learn about history, offering some of the best YouTube channels for history enthusiasts. Once confined to textbooks and classrooms, historical education is now accessible to millions through engaging video content. This shift has made history more appealing and understandable to a broad audience, nurturing a new generation of history fanatics.
As this digital revolution in historical education unfolds, several key trends have emerged, shaping how history is presented and consumed on the platform.
Current Trends in History YouTube Channels
History channels on YouTube employ diverse methods to present information:
Animation – Channels like House of History and The Armchair Historian use animated history videos to explain complex events.
Entertaining animated history videos – These videos make history more accessible and engaging by simplifying complex subjects and adding visual appeal.
Documentaries – Timeline and History Hit produce long-form, in-depth explorations of historical themes.
Reenactments – English Heritage brings history to life through live-action portrayals.
Niche Focus – Some channels specialize in specific areas, such as CuriousDroid (space and technology) or NativLang (language history).
These channels offer multiple perspectives on historical events, often tackling overlooked or misunderstood topics. They create communities where viewers can discuss history, extending their reach through social media and collaborations with other creators.
Among the many history channels on YouTube, several stand out for their exceptional content, innovative approaches, and significant impact on viewers.
12 Notable Channels Reshaping Historical Education
These history YouTubers are known for their quality of production, frequency of uploads, and the educational value of their content, building a vibrant community of history nerds.
These channels exemplify the best in online historical education, offering unique content that engages viewers and transforms how we learn about the past. From animated overviews to in-depth analyses, here are some of the most influential history channels on YouTube:
Timeline – World History Documentaries [5.29M subscribers]
Timeline is part of the HistoryHit Network and features various contributors, including historians, filmmakers, and educators. The channel uses a documentary-style format for long-form storytelling, with videos typically ranging from 45 to 90 minutes. This extended format allows for in-depth exploration of complex historical events like the Battle of Stalingrad and the history of pre-Columbian Americas.
Timeline emphasizes educational value and accuracy, featuring expert commentary and historical evidence. This approach has helped the channel cultivate a community of historical experts who engage through comments and discussions. As part of the HistoryHit Network, Timeline collaborates with other history-focused platforms and creators, expanding its reach and content diversity.
Weird History [4.48M subscribers]
Weird History was created by writers, historians, and content creators passionate about entertaining history. The channel focuses on unusual, bizarre, and lesser-known historical events, often with a humorous twist. Weird History covers various topics, including bizarre historical events, odd inventions, and peculiar customs.
While maintaining an entertaining tone, Weird History aims to provide useful content. This balance has helped the channel cultivate an active community of viewers who engage with the content through comments and discussions. Weird History has expanded its reach with a TV series and maintains an active presence on social media platforms.
Simple History [4.8M subscribers]
Daniel Turner, the creator of Simple History, has a passion for history and a talent for creating engaging animated videos. Simple History is a feature history channel that uses minimalist animations to explain historical events and figures, focusing on core narratives. The channel covers various historical events and periods, including World War I and the French Revolution.
It aims to give viewers a basic understanding of historical events and their significance. The channel has likely cultivated a community of viewers interested in accessible historical content. The channel’s success suggests potential partnerships and cross-platform presence.
Kings and Generals [3.64M subscribers]
A team with history, animation, and video production expertise runs Kings and Generals. The channel uses animation to present historical events, focusing on military history and famous battles from ancient history.
The channel emphasizes well-researched content and historical accuracy. This approach has helped Kings and Generals cultivate a community of viewers interested in military history.
Epic History TV [2.36M subscribers]
Toby Groom, the creator of Epic History TV, has an M.A. in History from the University of Edinburgh and experience in documentary filmmaking. The channel creates short, fact-filled videos that blend storytelling techniques with historical accuracy, presenting a rich mixture of human history. It covers various topics, from ancient civilizations to modern conflicts.
The channel’s emphasis on thorough research and factual accuracy has resonated with viewers, as evidenced by its impressive subscriber count of over 2 million. This growing popularity reflects the channel’s ability to make complex historical topics accessible to a broad audience. Platforms like IMDb have recognized Epic History TV’s impact, further validating its contributions to historical education on YouTube.
The Armchair Historian [2.3M subscribers]
Griffin Johnsen, the founder of The Armchair Historian, has a background in history and a passion for storytelling. The channel blends entertaining animated history videos with humor to make history engaging and accessible. Notable series include the Battle of Okinawa, daily life in East Berlin, and the Fall of Italy during World War II.
Despite its humor, The Armchair Historian emphasizes thorough research and factual accuracy. This balance has helped the channel cultivate a dedicated community of history buffs actively engaging with the content. It has expanded its offerings by launching a streaming service called Armchair History TV.
The Great War [1.74M subscribers]
American historian Indy Neidell initially hosted the Great War channel, which Canadian historian Jesse Alexander now leads. The channel initially followed World War I events weekly in real time, later shifting to longer documentaries about post-WWI events. This unique approach to covering the world wars resonated with viewers interested in a comprehensive, chronological exploration of the conflict.
The Great War aimed to provide educational content about World War I, focusing on historical accuracy. The channel cultivated a community of viewers interested in World War I history, attracting over one million subscribers. The Great War collaborated with the video game Battlefield 1 and maintained a presence on various social media platforms, extending its reach beyond YouTube.
English Heritage [1.35M subscribers]
Established in 1984, English Heritage is a charity managing over 400 historic sites across England. The channel brings history to life through live reenactments, dramatizations, and interactive experiences at historic sites. This unique approach allows viewers to engage with history in a more immersive way.
The channel showcases its historical sites and events, focusing on accuracy and making history accessible through these immersive experiences. English Heritage engages with its community through various platforms, including YouTube and social media. This multi-platform approach allows them to reach a broad audience and provide different types of historical content across different mediums.
History Hit [1.25M subscribers]
Dan Snow, a British historian and broadcaster with a background from the University of Oxford, founded History Hit, a prominent example of modern history TV. The channel offers a mix of documentaries, podcasts, and articles across multiple platforms, providing a comprehensive approach to historical education. History Hit is known for its engaging documentaries on various historical topics.
The channel emphasizes educational value and accuracy, featuring expert commentary and historical evidence. History Hit has cultivated a community of history lovers through interactive content and social media engagement. The channel collaborates with various historians and experts and maintains a solid cross-platform presence, allowing it to reach a broad audience with its historical content.
CuriousDroid [1.1M subscribers]
Paul Shillito, the founder of CuriousDroid, brings his electronics, computing, and video production background to the channel. CuriousDroid stands out for its focus on space exploration, technological history, and aerospace. The channel often uncovers overlooked stories from the space race and Cold War eras, providing viewers with unique historical perspectives.
One of CuriousDroid’s most viewed videos is “5 Tragic Deaths Caught Live on Camera,” which has garnered over 17.7 million views. It demonstrates the channel’s ability to tackle sensitive historical topics while attracting a broad audience. It emphasizes thorough research and accurate information presentation, which has helped it develop a loyal community of viewers interested in science and technology history. The channel extends its reach through a companion website featuring blog posts and guest contributions.
NativLang [1.04M subscribers]
Joshua R., the creator of NativLang, has a strong background in linguistics and animation. This unique combination of skills allows NativLang to use animation to explain linguistic concepts and the history of languages. The channel is known for its animated explanations of various linguistic phenomena and historical language developments.
NativLang emphasizes educational value and accuracy in its well-researched content. This commitment to quality has helped the channel cultivate a community of language enthusiasts who engage through comments and discussions. Its presence extends beyond YouTube to other social media platforms, where Joshua R. engages with the audience, nurturing further interest in language history.
House of History [239K subscribers]
Griffin Johnsen, an American with a history degree, founded House of History, a channel that embodies the ‘history guy’ approach by delivering engaging and informative historical content. The channel leverages Johnsen’s experience in documentary production and collaborations with historians worldwide. It uses animation to bring historical events to life, focusing on battles and wars from ancient times to World War II. The channel covers Mongol invasions, the Hundred Years’ War, and the Napoleonic Wars.
House of History aims to make complex topics easy to understand while maintaining historical accuracy. This approach has proven successful, as evidenced by the channel’s growth to over 239,000 subscribers. Beyond YouTube, the channel maintains a presence on other social media platforms, extending its reach to history enthusiasts across various digital spaces.
While these channels have undoubtedly revolutionized historical education, creating engaging and informative content is no small feat.
Educational Impact
History channels are transforming historical education both in and out of the classroom. Teachers use them to supplement traditional materials, making history more engaging for students. Outside of school, they’re sparking interest in history among the general public.
Recent statistics show that about 70% of Americans have used YouTube to learn about history.
These channels also play a crucial role in correcting historical misconceptions and encouraging critical thinking. By presenting multiple perspectives on historical events, they build more profound understanding and ongoing discussions about the past.
Content Creation Process
Producing high-quality history content for YouTube is a challenging process. Creators must:
Conduct thorough research using primary sources, academic literature, and expert consultations.
Balance entertainment value with historical accuracy.
Navigate gaps in historical records and potential biases in existing information.
Handle sensitive historical topics with respect and care.
Adapt to new historical discoveries and changing interpretations.
Despite these challenges, many YouTube channels successfully make history accessible and accurate, finding innovative ways to engage viewers while maintaining educational integrity.
Capping Off
YouTube history channels have revolutionized how we learn about and engage with the past, making history more accessible and engaging to a broad audience. Their success highlights the growing demand for high-quality historical content online.
As more educators and history enthusiasts recognize the potential of video platforms for historical education, the need for professional video editing services, like those offered by Vidpros, may increase. These services help aspiring history content creators match the production quality of leading channels.
Looking ahead, we can expect even more innovative ways of presenting historical information. These YouTube channels are not just entertaining; they’re shaping a more historically literate society, encouraging critical thinking, and buidling a deeper understanding of our shared past.
As this trend continues, online video platforms will likely play an increasingly important role in historical education, supplementing traditional learning methods and serving as standalone educational resources.
