History was not a traditional part of classical education. It is not, of course, one of the seven liberal arts. However, most contemporary educators who are interested in the classical tradition, which is historical in itself, find that history is an area of knowledge—actually a framework for other knowledge—that must not be neglected. We desire to read the works of the thinkers of the past, and in order to fully appreciate their thoughts, we need to know something of the times that they lived in, the forces that shaped their thinking, and the results that proceeded from their ideas.
