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The HistoryExtra podcast brings you interviews with the world's best historians, on everything from the ancient world and the Middle Ages to the Second World War and the history behind current events. Produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed, it offers fresh takes on history's most famous figures and events. Subscribe for the real stories behind your favourite historical films and TV shows, and compelling insights into lesser-known aspects of the past.
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In the latest in our series charting the contested reputations of key historical figures, Laura O’Brien and David Andress discuss the life and afterlife of Napoleon Bonaparte, and explore why his story – including his rise to power and his role as the driving force in the bloodshed of the Napoleonic Wars – can still provoke heated debate two centuries later
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
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1We think of English houses as idyllic locations for an afternoon out, but as Stephanie Barczewski reveals, many have a more turbulent and violent history than we might expect. From the wholesale destruction of the Reformation and the damage caused by the Civil War, to financial instability and the influence of empire, Stephanie tells Elinor Evans more about the fascinating hidden histories of these beloved beauty spots.
(Ad) Stephanie Barczewski is the author of How the Country House Became English (Reaktion Books, 2023). Buy it now from Amazon:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Country-House-Became-English/dp/1789147603/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty
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Thomas Smallwood, a formerly enslaved shoemaker, helped hundreds of people to flee from slavery in the American South in the 1840s. Speaking to Elinor Evans, Scott Shane shares Smallwood’s remarkable story, and reveals how he was known for writing a cache of anonymous satirical letters that included the first use of the term ‘underground railroad’.
(Ad) Scott Shane is the author of Flee North: A Forgotten Hero and the Fight for Freedom in Slavery’s Borderland (Celadon, 2023). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Flee-North-Forgotten-Slaverys-Borderland/dp/1250843219/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
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From torrid affairs and messy duels to corrupt law-enforcers and vengeful ghosts, Georgian Britain loved a good scandal. Speaking to Ellie Cawthorne, historian and author Emily Brand dishes the dirt on cases that shocked, appalled – and captivated – Georgian society.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
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From the gunpowder plot and Oliver Cromwell’s clash with Charles I to Winston Churchill’s speeches during the Second World War, parliament has witnessed some of the most dramatic moments in British history. Speaking with Spencer Mizen, Stephen Roberts answers your queries on the history of Britain’s legislature, from medieval practices to strange traditions.
(Ad) Stephen Roberts is the author of The History of Parliament: The House of Commons 1640–1660 (History of Parliament, 2023). Buy it now from Amazon:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/History-Parliament-House-Commons-1640-1660/dp/1399937146/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
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Long before the rise of the internet troll, malicious letters written by anonymous authors were causing untold grief to those who received them, and tugging at the seams of social cohesion in small communities. Speaking to Spencer Mizen, Emily Cockayne reveals why these spiteful missives caused such chaos in the Victorian and Edwardian eras.
(Ad) Emily Cockayne is the author of Penning Poison: A History of Anonymous Letters (OUP, 2023). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Penning-Poison-Dr-Emily-Cockayne/dp/019879505X/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
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In the latest in our series charting the contested reputations of key historical figures, Joyce Tyldesley and Catharine Edwards discuss the life and cultural afterlife of Egyptian queen Cleopatra – from her association with feminine beauty to the focus on her romantic relationships
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
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Held in Winchester Cathedral are several ornate chests, said to contain the venerated bones of early kings of Wessex and England, dating from the seventh to the 12th centuries. But what can these boxes reveal about attitudes to death and the politics in the Anglo-Saxon period? Cat Jarman explains all to David Musgrove.
(Ad) Cat Jarman is the author of The Bone Chests: Unlocking the secrets of the Anglo-Saxons (William Collins, 2023)
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
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From ribbons, bonnets and ballgowns to Mr Darcy’s see-through shirt, the works of Jane Austen have long sparked the imaginations of fashion-minded readers and audiences. But what did the author herself wear? Austen has often been accused of dowdiness, but as Hilary Davidson reveals, this was in fact far from the truth. She takes Lauren Good on a tour through the wardrobe of the renowned writer, from the clothes she wore behind closed doors to her most treasured jewellery.
(Ad) Hilary Davidson is the author of Jane Austen’s Wardrobe (Yale, 2023). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Jane-Austens-Wardrobe-Hilary-Davidson/dp/0300263600/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
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The Dambusters raid of May 1943 is one of the most celebrated episodes of the Second World War. But in military terms, was it in fact a flop? And was Barnes Wallis, the man behind the audacious attack, really the maverick genius long depicted in books and film? Richard Morris tells Spencer Mizen how the brilliant mind behind the Dambusters raid made the journey from cantankerous boffin to national hero.
(Ad) Richard Morris is the author of Dam Buster: Barnes Wallis: An Engineer’s Life (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2023). Buy it now from Amazon:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Barnes-Wallis-Richard-Morris/dp/1474623425/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
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Did the Spanish flu pandemic actually begin in Spain? What were the symptoms? Is it true it killed more people than the First World War, and how similar was it to the Covid pandemic? Speaking to Lauren Good, Agnes Arnold-Forster answers listener questions about the deadly pandemic that began in 1918 for our latest Everything You Wanted to Know episode.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
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How do you surface the stories of women in the Roman empire, when the majority of ancient texts were written by men, telling of military victories and losses, or intrigues in the political arena? Speaking to Elinor Evans, Emma Southon chronicles the Roman empire through the stories of women whose experiences illuminate war, empire and political machinations, taking readers from the foundational myth of Rome to a ‘leisure centre’ in ancient Pompeii.
(Ad) Emma Southon is the author of A History of the Roman Empire in 21 Women (Oneworld, 2023). Buy it now from Amazon:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/History-Roman-Empire-21-Women/dp/0861542304/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
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In the latest in our series charting the contested reputations of key historical figures, Ronald Hutton and Mark Stoyle debate the life and legacy of statesman, politician and military leader Oliver Cromwell, exploring his religious zealotry, his campaign in Ireland, and more
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
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In downtown New York, in the early 20th century, a secret club of women met regularly, to discuss ideas, politics, art and their own lives. They forged friendships and alliances, and took up some of the most significant social fights of the day. Joanna Scutts joins Elinor Evans to discuss the women of the Heterodoxy club.
(Ad) Joanna Scutts is the author of Hotbed: Bohemian New York and the Secret Club that Sparked Modern Feminism (Duckworth Books, 2022). Buy it now from Amazon:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hotbed-Bohemian-Greenwich-Village-Feminism/dp/1541647173#detailBullets_feature_div/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
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Margaret Cavendish has been largely forgotten and, when remembered, divides opinion. One of England’s first female philosophers, professional authors and scientists, the 17th-century writer challenged convention throughout her life with her proto-feminist writing and audacious behaviour. Speaking to Lauren Good, Francesca Peacock explores this remarkable and complex woman.
(Ad) Francesca Peacock is the author of Pure Wit: The Revolutionary Life of Margaret Cavendish (Head of Zeus, 2023). Buy it now from Waterstones: https://go.skimresources.com?id=71026X1535947&xcust=historyextra-social-histboty&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.waterstones.com%2Fbook%2Fpure-wit%2Ffrancesca-peacock%2F9781837930173
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
In 1429 a young peasant woman burst onto the scene and transformed the fortunes of England and France in the Hundred Years’ War. In today’s episode, medieval historian and former supreme court judge Jonathan Sumption joins Rob Attar to discuss the fifth and final volume of his epic history of the conflict, revealing how the arrival of Joan of Arc set the scene for one of England’s most significant defeats.
(Ad) Jonathan Sumption is the author of The Hundred Years War Vol 5: Triumph and Illusion (Faber & Faber, 2023). Buy it now from Amazon:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hundred-Years-War-Vol-Illusion/dp/0571274579/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
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Of all the enemies the Roman empire faced in its centuries-long history, one name stood out: Hannibal. In the late third century BC, the Carthaginian general came dangerously close to destroying Rome and utterly reshaping the history of the world. Hannibal’s campaigns were a pivotal episode in the Punic Wars (264-146 BC), and these three conflicts between Rome and Carthage are the subject of this Everything You Wanted to Know episode. Rob Attar puts your questions to Professor Philip Freeman on the causes, key events and legacy of the wars, and asks whether elephants were really of any use on the ancient battlefield.
(Ad) Philip Freeman is the author of Hannibal: Rome’s Greatest Enemy (Pegasus, 2022). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hannibal-Greatest-Philip-Freeman-PhD/dp/1643138715/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-hist298
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
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Exactly 100 years ago today, on 1 September 1923, the streets of Tokyo began to shudder. It was the first warning sign that something terrible was coming – a devastating earthquake that would level much of the city. But, as historian Dr Christopher Harding tells Ellie Cawthorne, the Great Kantō earthquake wasn’t just a natural disaster – it also exposed deep lying social and political divides.
(Ad) Christopher Harding is the author of The Japanese: A History in Twenty Lives (Allen Lane, 2020). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/India-Second-World-War-Emotional/dp/1787389456/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
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When cries of “Black Lives Matter” rang out across the world in 2020, protestors were echoing the chants of civil rights activists advocating for change in the previous century. In the sixth and final episode of our series delving into the US Civil Rights movement, Dr Adriane Lentz-Smith and Dr Kennetta Hammond Perry join Rhiannon Davies to consider the legacy of the struggle for racial equality – both in America and beyond.
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In 1949 the notorious Nazi doctor Josef Mengele, known as the “Angel of Death” fled to South America. Three decades later, US lawyer Gerald Posner set out to track him down. What followed was a remarkable tale of dogged persistence and lucky breakthroughs, as Posner’s search brought him face to face with Nazi operatives and members of Mengele’s family. Matt Elton caught up with Gerald to find out more about his hunt for the notorious fugitive.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Always enjoy hearing Prof Tyldesley
22.34 Ireland, anyone?
very poor episode,really not in keeping with the high quality of the HE series. you don't get the full story which is infuriating;what happened?buy the book,errr,don't think I'll bother on the evidence of this.the story you do get seems to be all supposition,I found the authors idea that people in prison who aren't meant to communicate with another don't particularly incredible
The host is most concerned with the well-being of the Industrialist fat cats , isnt she? Sort of leaves a sour taste in a listener's mouth.
Interesting podcast, but Hubert Humphrey was definitely not FDR's predecessor as president!
That interview didn't age well. Here in tje summer of 2023, Brits are finally wakening up to the economics of putting a tariff barrier between themselves and their closest major trading partners. That both the Commonwealth nations and the US can replace the EU, when these are drawn to Asian products, and a post-UK EU will still be more attractive than little UK in the contemporary world is longing for a long-dead world. This author's mindset is focused on the age where Britain could feed itself cheaply, mass produce products according to its own standards and could sell them anywhere and had a triangular native population growth pyramid. By 2015 an entirely new demographic and economic system had integrated European nations, like it or not. The author ignores economics and longs for a distant, hard-to-recover past. Whereas Remainers were talking about contemporary market economics, he presents that as saying Remainers had shallow desires to be part of a new trend. In other words,
excellent episode, Martin Davidson was articulate and made some fantastic points about a subject where he's obviously an expert. I am sure the book is very good.
The expert on this laughs and it's not at appropriate moments. I'm fascinated by the medieval & women's history but this was quite trying to listen to. Maybe it's an American thing but it's not for me.
these podcast keeps stopping. it's very frustrating.
Not the most promising material, but the speaker here was very good.
Oh please, Professor. The BLM protests were not exacerbated by covid restrictions. The anger had been building for many years, as police kept performing summary executions, and as schools shootings have escalated without any senisible measures for remediation. Also, have you forgotten the Watts (and other) riots of the sixties? Or the anti-capitalism riots when summits were held in the US? The anger was about the return of 1950s-1960s rollback of civil rights and the rise of right-wing militancy. ALSO, the US mishandling of covid (and Britain's) was about the amateurism of conservative politics, their disdain for expertise and their desire to cronyize the response to politically connected favorites. The US experts were sidelined, and Jared Kushner was tasked with inventing the wheel again. Even now in 2023 Dr. Fauci is held in scorn by the right as are vaccines.
FDR. The greatest president we've ever had. The president we desperately need today.
not. a . conspiracy. another word with meaning being utilised for completely different purposes.
How come after all these years haven't H.E. solved the basic issue of having good audio? The guest's voice is clear, but not the interviewer's, and it's his show!
I was surprised that Kyle Harper is not an epidemiologist, but when he said he was an historian his name clicked. He also wrote "The Fate of Rome", a groundbreaking book, and excellent read, where he examined the western Roman Empire from a climatological and epidemiological perspective.
Gore Vidal already covered the _great philosopher_ material in considerable detail quite a while ago.
What is this club of Scott devotees? Lt. Scott represented the epitome of "Jolly good" amateur officers who thought any venture could be tossed together, improvised and muddled through with grit and determination. Amundesen with a much smaller team studied and trained on Norwegian glaciers and Greenland's icecap, and made a science out of their expedition. They made it to the pole and back (gaining body weight!) with no real mishap, because they were professionals. I was gobsmacked to remember that I had seen this current guy being here interviewed in National Geographic decades ago, and he too did man hauling, and repeating other inefficiencies Scott used. It resembled a personal quest to prove a cult figure could have, should have, deserved to have triumphed over Amundsen, just because he was a Jolly Good old-school English officer! By Jove. Right-o!
A gem of an interview with a wonderful, loving human. He dares look inward where 99% of the rest of us never would.
Would like to see the Mary Rose someday. Our Wasa here in Stockholm is another must-see recovered old warship. We had better luck in the Wasa sank in very sheltered water and is largely intact. But the half-ship you have is a beautiful cross-section of the full ship, if the photos do it justice.
is there any lyrics?