Beyond the Breakers

This is part 1 of 2 in our discussion of the naval battle at Lepanto in 1571. Before we can get to Lepanto itself, there's a good bit of background to set up first. Sources:Anievas, Alexander and Kerem Nişancioğlu. “The Ottoman-Habsburg Rivalry over the Long Sixteenth Century.” How the West Came to Rule: The Geopolitical Origins of Capitalism. Pluto Press. Bicheno, Hugh. Crescent and Cross: The Battle of Lepanto 1571. Phoenix, 2004. Brummett, Palmira. “Foreign Policy, Naval Strategy...

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Many people are familiar with the RMS Carpathia as the vessel that picked up hundreds of Titanic survivors in the early morning of April 15th 1912. In this episode we discuss that monumental event in the Carpathia's history, in addition to what came before and after. Sources:"Arthur Henry Rostron: Captain of the RMS Carpathia." Encyclopedia Titanica. https://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/carpathia-crew/arthur-henry-rostron.html "Carpathia 1903." Tyne Built Ships, h...

Something different this week as we look into maritime folklore related to predicting (and maybe even altering) the weather.**we get into the lore at about 11:20**(for fans of the Loremen - yes, it's Christ-In-A-Hole!) Sources: Beck, Horace. Folklore and the Sea. Mystic Seaport, 1996.Hole, Christina. "Superstitions and Beliefs of the Sea." Folklore, vol. 78, no. 3, Autumn 1967, pp. 184 - 189. Minard, Antone. "'Like a Dying Duck in a Thunderstorm': Complex Weather Systems through t...

In this episode we go back to the early days of RORO ferries for the tale of the MV Princess Victoria, lost on a crossing of the Irish Sea's North Channel in January 1953. Sources:Bibby, Miriam. "The Loss of the Princess Victoria." Historic UK. https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/Loss-Of-Princess-Victoria-Ferry/Cameron, Stephen. Death in the North Channel: The Loss of the Princess Victoria, January 1953. Jackson, John. “The Loss of MV Princess Victoria.” Nor...

Though recorded in July it's technically supposed to be our June 2023 bonus episode - a discussion of an alternate route to freedom for those enslaved in the coastal regions of the American South. And our much-anticipated dive into John C. Calhoun's global race-war fantasy. **this episode was originally published in July 2023. We made some minor edits and clean-ups for release on the main feed**Sources:Bolster, W. Jeffrey. Black Jacks: African-American Seamen in the Age of Sail. Harvard ...

This is the story of a ship - the USS Princeton - but it's also the story of Robert F. Stockton and his most precious brainchild - a 12-inch wrought iron naval gun affectionately nicknamed 'Peacemaker' Invite your friends, invite your co-workers, hell invite the President!Sources:Duke, Marvin L. “Robert F. Stockton Early U.S. Naval Activities in Africa.” Naval War College Review, vol. 24, no. 9, May 1972, pp. 86 - 94. O’Connell, J. Harlin. “The U.S.S. Princeton.” The Princeton University Libr...

You've heard of Neo-Confederates, but what about Nepo-Confederates. Here's the story of the USS Underwriter and her loss during a Confederate attempt to re-capture New Bern, NC in February 1864. Sources:Coddington, Ronald S. "Civil War Sailors: From the Collections Of Our Readers." Military Images, vol. 30, no. 3, Nov - Dec 2008, pp. 25 - 37. Duppstadt, Andrew. "USS Underwriter." North Carolina History Project, 2016. https://northcarolinahistory.org/encyclopedia/uss-underwriter/Green, John B....

In our third episode of Season Four we tell the story of the Volga River cruise ship Aleksandr Suvorov, and her fatal run-in with the Imperial Bridge at Ulyanovsk in June 1983. **a very small part of conversation was cut when Tanner was talking about The Others of Edenwell by Verity Holloway. The missing portion was something like 'books that are set during WWI but not in the trenches on the Western Front' Sources:Жуковскуй, Иван. "'Сверху сплошным потоком лилась кровь': 40 лет жуткой ка...

In May 1944, during the buildup to Operation Forager, another shocking disaster rocked Pearl Harbor.Sources:Barger, Mel. "LST Memories: The Second Pearl Harbor Disaster." LST Scuttlebutt: The Official Website of the United States LST Association. https://www.uslst.org/memories/27-articles/17-lst-memories-the-second-pearl-harbor-disasterOral history of the experience of Paul E. Cooper, “Farm Boy from Oklahoma,” in Saipan: Oral Histories of the Pacific War, compiled and edited by Bruce M....

To kick off Season Four we are telling the story of the destroyer USS Reuben James, the first US Navy loss of the Second World War.Sources: Benson, Olver. “The Changing Patterns of the War.” Current History, vol. 1, no. 4, Dec 1941, pp. 297 - 302. Blower, Brooke. “From Isolationism to Neutrality.” Diplomatic History, vo. 38, no. 2, Apr 2014, pp. 345 - 376. Guerlac, Henry and Marie Boas. “The Radar War Against the U-Boat.” Military Affairs, vol. 14, no. 2, Summer 1950, pp. 99 - ...

This is Part Two of the tale of the Mavi Marmara and the Gaza Freedom Flotilla of 2010. This part of the episode details the raid itself, the aftermath, and where the flotilla fits in the long story of Palestine.This will also serve as the main feed finale for Season Three of the show. We will be back in the new year with a brand new season of old favorites, new fixations, and everything in between. فلسطين حرةOutro Music: Mohammed Assaf - Dammi Falastini (محمد عساف - دمي فلسطيني)Sources: ...

In this two-part episode we discuss the 2010 Gaza Freedom Flotilla, which was raided by Israeli forces resulting in the deaths of multiple participants. Part One looks at the history and context in which the Freedom Flotillas occurred, and leads into the raid itself. Part Two will deal with the details of the raid in the early morning of May 31st, 2010 and the aftermath of the attack, including the international response and connection to the current Israeli assault on P...

**this episode was originally released a Patreon-exclusive bonus episode in December 2022**Here is an extra special Patreon bonus episode wrapping up our discussion of the Lusitania. We talk about the legal aspects of Britain's blockade and the German U-boat campaign, the Lusitania Riots of 1915, and cover a few other bits of miscellanea. Thanks so much for supporting the show, and we look forward to bringing you more next season. Sources:Dedering, Tilman. “‘Avenge the Lusitania’: T...

In the dying days of the Great War, the French navy commissioned 12 Navarin-class minesweepers, to be constructed in Canada under the direction of Wisconsin's Manitowoc Shipbuilding. Three of these minesweepers - Inkerman, Cerisoles, and Sebastopol departed Fort William, Ontario on Novembers 23, 1918Only one would be seen again. Sources:Stonehouse, Frederick. "Ils Sont Disparu! They Are Gone: The Baffling Fate of Inkerman & Cerisoles." Lake Superior Magazine, 12 Nov 2018. https://ww...