Short answers, pulled from the story.
The Persians stands as the earliest surviving work of theatre that records an entire historical event under modern understanding. Aeschylus wrote this play in 472 BCE, depicting the Persian reaction to the Battle of Salamis.
The history play first took its modern form in Tudor England during the sixteenth century. New books of English history appeared by Polydore Vergil on the 1st of May 1534, Edward Hall in 1543, and Raphael Holinshed in 1577.
Shakespeare wrote eight plays covering the continuous period between Richard II and Richard III. The so-called first tetralogy includes Henry VI parts one, two and three and Richard III, while the second tetralogy finished in 1599 includes Richard II, Henry IV Part 1, Henry IV Part 2 and Henry V.
Stuff Happens by David Hare chronicles events leading up to the Iraq War with only two years separating author from subject. This play focuses heavily on use of exact quotes where all public speeches given by main characters are taken word for word from actual quotes.
The Persians incorporates supernatural elements into its narrative about the battle at Salamis. The Greeks did not distinguish between myth and history when crafting their narratives, which creates a key difference from modern history plays that generally do not include such phenomena as key elements.