Subject to Change
Imperial Twilight: How Trade, Tea, and Opium Led to War
The story of the Opium War is one of history's most consequential yet widely misunderstood conflicts. Professor Stephen Platt joined me to unravel the fascinating web of events that led Britain and China into a collision that would reshape Asia and the global balance of power for centuries to come. Far from being a simple tale of drug dealers backed by imperial force, Stephen reveals cultural misunderstandings, diplomatic failures, and economic pressures eventually converging with devastatin...
The Curse of a King - with Christopher de Bellaigue
I spoke to Christopher before about his book the Lion House. That was part 1 of a trilogy on the life of Suleiman the Magnificent. Christopher is back to talk about part 2: The Golden Throne - the Curse of a King. From the intricate power dynamics of the Ottoman court to bloody naval battles in the Mediterranean, "The Golden Throne" recreates the world of Suleiman the Magnificent at the height of his reign. We discover an empire where Christian slaves could rise to the highest positions of po...
Anton Howes on Salt (and on much, much more!)
Anton Howes writes the brilliant Age of Invention substack. We were supposed to talk about the history of salt and its powerful impact on people and states. We certainly did talk about that but also a lot more! - history's efflorescences - Henry VIII's ruthless tax grabs - The feebleness of England (until suddenly . . .) - Rebel space colonies - The Spanish and English Armadas - Lot's wicked daughters - The Roman (non) Industrial Revolution And amidst all our digressions I mentioned the film ...
Tiberius - a good emperor, a broken man
In this episode Professor Ed Watts and I look at the brilliant career and sad life of the Emperor Tiberius. We try to understand how this most capable and intelligent man came to be seen by history as one of the most monstrous of the Roman emperors. In researching for the podcast I came across a really stirring defence of Tiberius in the shape of a monograph by Norman Douglas. On looking into who Norman Douglas was I discovered that he was a great literary figure of the first half of the 20t...
Christ's Samurai with Jonathan Clements - part 2
This is part 2 of my podcast with Jonathan Clements on Japan's Christian century. In this episode we get on to the rebellion itself. Sensitive listeners may want to brace themselves! You can send a message to the show/feedback by clicking here. The system doesn't let me reply so if you need one please include your email.
Christ's Samurai with Jonathan Clements - part 1
A two part podcast on Japan's Christian century. Jonathan Clements wrote a brilliant book called Christ's Samurai about the Shimabara rebellion of 1638. We cover the story in two parts - this is part 1 and tells of the early successes and later disasters of the efforts to bring christianity to Japan. Part 2 will cover the story of the rebellion itself. You can send a message to the show/feedback by clicking here. The system doesn't let me reply so if you need one please include your email.
In the Kingdom of Ice - with Hampton Sides
Hampton Sides loves to tell stories of people fighting against impossible odds. The story of the Jeannette's voyage is right in that vein. His book is called In the Kingdom of Ice and the subtitle sums it up - the Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette. Look forward to hearing about US naval officer George de Long's polar expedition of 1879, including: a rich and eccentric newspaper ownera syphilitic navigatora mentally unbalanced German cartographera wonderful love storyand...
Spring Heeled Jack - with Mike Dash
Spring Heeled Jack was an uncatchable villain from Victorian times. His speciality was attacking young women, raking their faces and clothes with metal claws and sometimes breathing fire in their faces. We have good evidence for his existence with newspaper reports and police and courts involved. But the more historian Mike Dash peels away the layers the harder it becomes to be sure of anything. A proper historical investigation into a proper mystery! You can send a message to the show/f...
Giles Milton on Nathaniel’s Nutmeg
The 'spice wars' between the Dutch and the English in the 1600's were quite something. Giles Milton told the story in his remarkable book Nathaniel's Nutmeg. What I hadn't realised until reading this was how feeble and disorganised the English were compared to their competitors. And the Dutch in particular were as ruthless as they were capable. Visits to the court of Ivan the Terrible, a knight of the realm imprisoned in a cupboard under the stairs, horrific torture, courage and persistence ...
Rebel Island - Jonathan Clements on the history of Taiwan - part 2
We are back with Jonathan Clements for part 2 of our podcast on the history of Taiwan. In this episode we start with the remarkable story of Taiwan's 50 years as a colony of Japan. And Jonathan then takes the story through the White Terror up to the current day. And to remind you: Rebel Island Jonathan's blog You can send a message to the show/feedback by clicking here. The system doesn't let me reply so if you need one please include your email.
Rebel Island - Jonathan Clements on the history of Taiwan - part 1
Jonathan Clements has written a number of histories of East Asia. His latest, Rebel Island, is a history of Taiwan from the earliest times up to today. If you have any interest in the history of the region this book is an absolute must read. And while it is a serious and meticulously researched history it is also genuinely gripping with 'Blimey! I didn't know that!' moments on every other page. Really terrific stuff. We ran rather long so I split it into two parts. Part 1 takes us all the wa...
The 4th Crusade and the final fall of the Roman Empire - with Ed Watts
Delighted to have Professor Ed Watts back on the show. This time he is talking about the 4th Crusade which turned into one of history's great catastrophes. People give many possible dates for the fall of the Roman Empire and Ed argues persuasively for 1204 when the crusade reaches its heartbreaking climax. You can send a message to the show/feedback by clicking here. The system doesn't let me reply so if you need one please include your email.
In Sulla's shadow - Ed Watts reappraises Caesar
Professor Ed Watts is a reliably brilliant guest on the show. In this episode he looks at Sulla's career and the blight the cast on the Roman Republic. Ed argues that it is impossible to understand any the great characters - Caesar, Cicero, Cato, Pompey and so on - without understanding the scarring effect of Sulla's rule. In Ed's view Caesar emerges from all this as a man with terrible ambition and many faults but ultimately redeemed by his refusal to follow Sulla's example. Refreshingly rev...
Mother Leakey and the Bishop
I can't remember enjoying a story more than Peter Marshall's Mother Leakey and the Bishop. The way Peter tells the story is absolutely brilliant with walk on parts from some very famous characters. At heart though it is a ghost story and the story of how an Anglican Bishop came to be hanged for the crime of sodomy in Dublin in the winter of 1640. Peter is one of the leading historians of the Reformation and won the Woolfson prize for his book Heretics and Believers. And as I s...
Kaldellis on Byzantium - part 2
We cover the miserable tale of the 4th crusade, the Latin Empire and Anthony gives advice on how to write a Byzantium based historical novel. We had fun with this one and I hope you enjoy it. You can send a message to the show/feedback by clicking here. The system doesn't let me reply so if you need one please include your email.
Anthony Kaldellis on Byzantium (Part 1)
If you have any interest at all in Byzantium or in the Roman Empire generally I think you should really enjoy this episode. Professor Kaldellis is one of the leading scholars on Byzantium (East Rome?) and his book The New Roman Empire - A History of Byzantium takes you all the way from the founding of Constantinople to its fall to the Ottoman Turks in the 15th century, more than a thousand years later. The book is a tour de force and despite the scale of the story it is extremely readable and...
Hampton Sides - the last voyage of Captain Cook
Hampton has been on the podcast before and if you haven't yet found his books of narrative history I urge you to seek them out. Absolutely thrilling stories but told with real historical skill. Today we talked about Captain Cook's last voyage which ended in 1779. Hampton's book is called The Wide Wide Sea and he pays attention to all parts of the story - Cook was very much only a part of the tale. And do seek out not just the Wide Wide Sea but Hampton's other books. If you enjoy narrative his...
The Sin Eater
I am a huge fan of Mike Dash's books. We have talked about Batavia's Graveyard and Tulipomania in past episodes. But Mike also has a fascination for weird semi folkloric stories and in this episode he unearths the truth about that remarkable creature, the Sin Eater. You can send a message to the show/feedback by clicking here. The system doesn't let me reply so if you need one please include your email.
Ed West - From the Romans to Alfred the Great
Most people know Ed West for his journalism and in particular for his substack The Wrong Side of History. If you haven't found that yet then check it out - it is one of the best things of its kind out there. But Ed also writes book and in particular a series of short introductions to various periods of English history. If (like me) you sometimes find you need a good overview of something before diving into the detail these books are an absolute godsend. We talked about the period from when th...
John McWhorter and Scott Sumner - talking movies
I am a huge fan of John McWhorter and have come to have great respect for Scott Sumner's knowledge and judgement when it comes to movies. It was a real pleasure to get them together to chat about favourite movies, directors and genres. You can send a message to the show/feedback by clicking here. The system doesn't let me reply so if you need one please include your email.
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