Dan Snow's History Hit

In the Second World War, the Germans liked to boast that there was 'no escape' from the infamous fortress and POW camp Colditz. However, the elite British officers imprisoned there were determined to prove the Nazis wrong and get back into the war; since then the fortress became just as famous for its escape attempts. As the officers dug tunnels, removed bricks and got lines of communication to the outside world the Gestapo were determined to uncover their secrets and planted a double agent- Walter Purdy in their midst. It was a race against time for the British officers to expose Purdy for the traitor he was.Drawn from unseen records, Robert Verkaik tells Dan this extraordinary never-before-told story and tries to make sense of why, despite committing treason, Purdy was able to escape the gallows, not once but twice.Robert's book is called 'The Traitor of Colditz'.The producer was Mariana Des Forges and the audio editor was Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe to History Hit today!To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information.

In 1989, Beijing's Tiananmen Square became the focus of large-scale demonstrations as mostly young students crowded into central Beijing to protest for greater democracy. On June 4, 1989, Chinese troops stormed through Tiananmen Square, firing into the crowds of protesters. The events produced one of the most iconic photos of the 20th century - of ‘Tank Man,' an unidentified protester who stood in front of a line of army tanks.Louisa Lim is an award-winning journalist who grew up in Hong Kong and reported from China for a decade. Louisa joins Dan on the podcast to discuss what led to the protests and how they grew, the turmoil that ensued and why the events remain a highly sensitive topic in China.Produced by Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe to History Hit today!To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information.

Numerous novels, TV shows and as many as 5 movies- including the Hollywood classic starring Clarke Gable and Marlon Brando - have immortalised the story of the Mutiny on the Bounty in the popular imagination forever. The mutiny on the HMS Bounty occurred in the South Pacific Ocean on 28 April 1789. Disaffected crewmen, led by acting-Lieutenant Fletcher Christian, seized control of the ship from their captain, Lieutenant Bligh, and set him and eighteen loyalists adrift in a rowing boat. The mutineers settled on Tahiti and Pitcairn Island, while Bligh navigated more than 4,000 miles in the rowing boat to safety. and began the process of bringing the mutineers to justice.Direct descendent of lead mutineer Fletcher Christian, Harrison Christian joins Dan on the podcast to seperate the myth from the truth in this epic tale of a rebellious crew, a mammoth journey and a lost colony in the far-flung tropics of the Pacific Ocean. The legends started when William Bligh returned to Britain and immediately rewrote the facts of what happened to fit his narrative; novelists and film-writers have been doing the same ever since.The producer was Mariana Des Forges and the audio editor was Dougal Patmore.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe to History Hit today!To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information.

2/2. It's a big summer for British politics with Boris Johnson's resignation and the race between conservative hopefuls Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss to take his place, firmly on. To make sense of this coveted premiership, we've delved into the History Hit podcast archives for our rampaging explainer on the history of British Prime Ministers. In this second episode, Dan is joined by the brilliant Robert Saunders, Reader in Modern British History at Queen Mary University of London. Together, they tackle the period following the Battle of Waterloo all the way up to Winston Churchill, including Peel, Gladstone and Lloyd George.You can listen to Part 1 here.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today!To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information.

1/2. It's a big summer for British politics with Boris Johnson's resignation and the race between conservative hopefuls Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss to take his place firmly on. To make sense of this coveted premiership, we've delved into the History Hit podcast archives for a rampage through the history of British Prime Ministers. In this episode, Dan is joined by Dr Hannah Grieg for a whirlwind tour of the eighteenth century's many Prime Ministers. From Sir Robert Walpole through William Pitt the younger through to Lord Liverpool, they discuss the creation of the office, prime ministerial control of the House of Commons, conflicts with the king and how politics has changed from continuity to constant change.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today!To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The summer of 1911 was a hot one. Massive strikes took place across the country, including seamen, railwaymen, coal miners, women working in food processing and garment-making and even school children. That, combined with record-breaking temperatures made Britain a constitutional, industrial and political tinderbox. It was harder to endure than today: no refrigeration for food, heavy clothing; more manual/outdoor labour, unventilated workplaces, surging food prices, and limited deodorant. All this fuelled industrial militancy, especially in hard, outdoor labour like the docks.It also raised political tempers: 670 MPs in heavy clothing, packed into a steaming Chamber…Dr Robert Saunders, reader in Modern British History at Queen Mary University of London joins Dan on the podcast to take a look at how heat exacerbates social and political unrest and what parallels are to be found between the scorching summer of 1911 and the summer of 2022.This episode was produced by Mariana Des Forges, the audio editor was Dougal Patmore.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today!To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Known as the Eternal City, ancient Rome was one of the greatest civilisations in human history, but how did it come about?With a turbulent history of Kings, civil wars and imperial desires - Rome has an incredible history. But who founded it? Were Romulus and Remus real brothers fighting for their kingdoms, or did a Trojan hero found one of the mightiest Italian states? Recent archaeological discoveries indicate a far more complicated picture of Rome's beginnings - but where does its mystic past fall into this new story?In this episode, Tristan is joined by Professor Guy Bradley from Cardiff University to discover more about the origins of Rome around the 8th century B.C.TW: This episode contains a reference to rapeThis episode was produced by Annie Coloe and edited by Aidan Lonergan.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today!To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On August 6 and 9, 1945, US B-29 bombers, dropped their nuclear bombs on the two cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, killing hundreds of thousands and consigning millions to disease and genetic defects. The accepted wisdom in the U.S. since has been that dropping the bombs on these Japanese cities was the only way to end World War II without an invasion of Japan that would have cost hundreds of thousands of American and perhaps millions of Japanese lives.Gar Alperovitz is a historian, political economist, activist and writer. A critic of the bombings, Gar joins Dan on the podcast to discuss how the decision to use the atomic bomb was wrapped up in atomic diplomacy: that the U.S. used nuclear weapons to intimidate the Soviet Union in the early stages of the Cold War. To mark the anniversary, we also dug back into the archives to bring you the human story at the heart of the tragedy - Hirata San, a survivor of the Hiroshima attacks, shares his experiences of the bombing.Produced by Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today!To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

2/2. Eva Schloss remembers her days as a girl in Amsterdam playing in the street with the other children including Anne Frank who, for a time, took a particular interest in her older brother Heinz. Eva also remembers the day the Dutch resistance worker exposed her family to the Nazis and they were carted off to Auschwitz. She remembers the train pulling up to the platform in Poland and the promise she made her brother to go back to find the paintings he'd done in hiding, if he didn't make it out alive.After being selected to live by Josef Mengele, Eva and her mother entered Auschwitz-Birkenau while her brother and father were sent to a men's camp. There they endured starvation, back-breaking work, blistering summers and freezing winter.In Part 2 of Eva's story, she describes stumbling across Otto Frank, Anne Frank's father while trying to find help after the liberation of the camp left her stranded with no idea what to do next. The story of Otto and her mother falling in love and finding happiness in the years after and how, after many years of nightmares and silence, Eva finally found her voice to tell her astonishing story of survival, which she still does to this day.You can listen to Part 1 first here.Her memoir is called After Auschwitz: A Story of Heartbreak and Survival by the Stepsister of Anne FrankThis episode was produced by Mariana Des Forges, the assistant producer was Hannah Ward and the audio editor was Dougal Patmore.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today!To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

1/2. On the morning of the 4th of August 1944, exactly 78 years ago today, the Frank family cowered behind a bookshelf in Amsterdam, listening to heavy boots and German voices on the other side. Anne Frank and her family were discovered and taken to the Nazi concentration camps where they all perished, apart from Otto. Anne's diary stops in the summer of 1944 so it's difficult for us to truly know exactly what her experience was after her arrest, as a teenage girl enduring the horrors of the Nazi death machine.But Eva Schloss, the girl who became her stepsister - does. She was sent to Auschwitz with her parents and older brother Heinz and remembers what that whole experience was like - from the way Austrians slowly turned on their Jewish neighbours, hiding in crawl spaces from Nazis, the cattle truck ride, her encounters with the angel of death Josef Mengele and how the liberation of Auschwitz left her stranded in the abandoned camp for weeks.Eva's is a story of close calls, unexplainable chances and turns of fortune, as well as unimaginable horrors. So, a warning that some parts of this story are distressing.Her memoir is called After Auschwitz: A Story of Heartbreak and Survival by the Stepsister of Anne Frank.This episode was produced by Mariana Des Forges, the assistant producer was Hannah Ward and the audio editor was Dougal Patmore.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today!To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Few early medieval gods are as well-known and as popular as Thor. He's currently thrilling moviegoers worldwide with his new outing for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor: Love and Thunder. But behind the countless films and works of fiction, what's the real origin story for Thor? How was he worshipped? And how has he secured such an enduring place in popular culture?In this episode of Gone Medieval, Dr Cat Jarman speaks to Professor Carolyne Larrington, an expert in Norse literature and mythology, to find out more about the god behind the superhero. The Senior Producer on this episode was Elena Guthrie. It was edited and produced by Rob Weinberg.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today!To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

England's historic Euro 2022 victory on Sunday night was the most watched TV programme of the year. It feels like it's the first time women's football is getting the attention it deserves. Well, a century ago, it was women who dominated the pitch, commanding crowds bigger than the men's games. But that changed on the 5th of December 1921 when the FA placed a complete ban on women playing professional football. That ban lasted 50 years.In this episode from our archive, celebrated broadcaster Clare Balding joins Dan to tell the story of the factory girls who took on the world, why they were banned and the legacy of that ban over 100 years on.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today!To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In July 1588 the Spanish Armada sailed from Corunna to conquer England. Three weeks later an English fireship attack in the Channel—and then a fierce naval battle—foiled the planned invasion. Many myths still surround these events. The genius of Sir Francis Drake is exalted, while Spain's efforts are belittled. But what really happened during that fateful encounter?For this episode of the podcast, Dan welcomes back distinguished professor and historian, Geoffrey Parker. They deconstruct the many legends to reveal why, ultimately, the bold Spanish mission failed.‘Armada. The Spanish Enterprise and England's Deliverance in 1588' will be published in October 2022.Produced by Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Dougal Patmore See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We celebrate abolition - in Haiti after the revolution, in the British Empire in 1833, and in the United States during the Civil War. Yet, over the approximately 100 years in which there were various moments of emancipation, these processes often provided failed pathways to justice for people who had been enslaved.Kris Manjapra is a professor, author and historian. Kris joins Dan on the podcast to unearth disturbing truths about the Age of Emancipations, 1780-1880. They discuss examples of emancipations across the Americas, Europe and Africa where Black people were dispossessed by the very moves that were meant to free them.Produced by Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today!To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Anne of Cleves was the ‘last woman standing' of Henry VIII's wives and the only one buried in Westminster Abbey. How did she manage it? Was she in fact a political refugee, supported by the King? Was she a role model for her step-daughters Mary and Elizabeth? Why was her marriage to Henry doomed from the start?In this edition of Not Just the Tudors, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by author Heather R. Darsie - editor of maidensandmanuscripts.com - whose research into Anne of Cleves casts a new light on Henry's fourth Queen, potentially revealing a very different figure than the so-called 'Flanders Mare'.For this episode, the Senior Producer was Elena Guthrie. It was edited by Thomas Ntinas and produced by Rob Weinberg.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today!To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Ottoman Empire was gigantic; at one point it reached the walls of Vienna to the Persian Gulf and beyond. It was established at the end of the 13th century with its centre in what is now modern Turkey. It held swathes of Europe for centuries right up to the First World War.In this episode, Professor of International History, Marc Baer and Dan rampage through that history and discover how the Ottomans weren't simply the Islamic-Asian antithesis of the Christian-European West, but in fact, a multi-ethnic, multilingual empire whose religious tolerance and cultural innovation has shaped the landscape of East and West from 1299 right through to the present day.Produced by Hannah Ward and edited by Dougal Patmore.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today!To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

During World War II, in the town of Cowra in central New South Wales, thousands of Japanese prisoners of war were held in a POW camp. On the icy night of August 5th they staged one of the largest prison breakouts in history, launching the only land battle of World War II to be fought on Australian soil. Five Australian soldiers and more than 230 Japanese POWs would die during what became known as The Cowra Breakout.In this episode historian and podcaster Mat McLachlan joins Dan to tell him this extraordinary story of negligence and complacency, and of authorities too slow to recognise danger before it occurred - and too quick to cover it up when it was too late.This episode was produced by Mariana Des Forges and it was edited by Thomas Ntinas.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Vladimir Putin has the power to reduce the United States and Europe to ashes in a nuclear firestorm. He invades his neighbours, most recently Ukraine, meddles in western elections and orders assassinations inside and outside Russia. But who is the man behind the headlines?For years, Philip Short was a foreign correspondent for the BBC. He is now the author of many acclaimed biographies. Having spent eight years interviewing those who dealt with Putin as part of their official duties, Philip joins Dan on the podcast to explore the personality of Putin and the forces and experiences that have shaped his decisions since he took on the role of president in 2000.Produced by Hannah Ward.Mixed and Mastered by Peter Dennis.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In a special episode from our sister podcast Warfare, Dan is joined by host James Rogers fresh off the Waterloo battlefield in Belgium where last week an astonishing discovery was made. The project Waterloo Uncovered unearthed bones that could hold extraordinary insights into the experiences of Waterloo soldiers, their diets, health, life and death.This episode was edited and sound designed by Aidan Lonergan.For more Warfare content, subscribe to our Warfare Wednesday newsletter here. If you'd like to learn even more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download, go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Getting to the moon was no easy feat, no matter how confident President Kennedy may have sounded in his famous 1961 speech. NASA built a team from the ground up, and there were plenty of moments where it seemed as if they weren't going to make it. Kevin Fong tells stories of just how close they came, and how risky it was. After all, it was hard to feel safe when a pen could go straight through the module. Professor Kevin Fong is a consultant anaesthetist at UCLH and professor of public engagement and innovation in the Department of Science, Technology, Education and Public Policy (STEaPP) at University College London and an expert in space medicine.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On the West Bank of the Nile in Luxor, Egypt sits a temple considered to be one of the great architectural wonders of ancient Egypt. The memorial temple of Hatshepsut, the great female pharaoh who came to the throne of Egypt in 1478 BC sits nestled beneath a dramatic amphitheatre of limestone cliffs on the edge of the Valley of the Kings. Hatshepsut lived as long before Jesus was born as Henry the 8th lived after and presided over rich and powerful Egypt. She established trade routes and her reign was marked by peace and prosperity. But, at her death her step-son Thutmose III did all he could to erase her from the history books, replacing her image with his own, burying her statues and scratching her name from the temple walls.In this episode director of the West Bank Dr Bahaa Gaber takes Dan around her temple and fills him in on what kind of leader Hatshepsut really was.Produced by Mariana Des Forges.Mixed and Mastered by Dougal Patmore.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

From the notorious thief Mary Frith in the seventeenth century to industrialist and LGBT trailblazer Anne Lister in the nineteenth, these heroines redefined what a woman could be and what she could do in pre-twentieth-century Britain.Holly Kyte, author and literary critic, joins Dan to shine a light on some of the unsung heroines of British history who refused to play by the rules. They detail the histories of the formidable women whose grit, determination and radical unconventionality saw them defy the odds to forge their own paths.Produced by Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Seyi AdaobiIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Imperial Japanese occupation of Hong Kong began on December 25, 1941, after the then Governor, Sir Mark Young, surrendered the British Crown colony to the Empire of Japan. The occupation lasted until Japan surrendered at the end of World War Two.Joining Dan on the podcast today is Barbara Sowerby, who was born in Hong Kong in 1936 to an English father and Portuguese mother. Aged just five years old, Barbara's happy childhood would change when her family were amongst the fleeing civilians caught and imprisoned by the Imperial Japanese Army. Barbara shares the remarkable story of her time as a child prisoner of war.This episode is dedicated to Barbara's late husband Keith Sowerby. Keith detailed the remarkable story of Barbara's early life and had hoped, before his passing, to publish a book of this extraordinary account. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Pint, bottle, schooner, tinny … no matter how you drink it, beer is undeniably a part of social life here in Britain and around the world.But how did it come to hold this position? Why has this been more true for British men than for British women? And what did beer taste like before mass production and microbiology?Kate Lister has a pint with author, broadcaster and beer lover Pete Brown to find out.WARNING this episode includes some fruity languageProduced by Charlotte Long and Sophie Gee. Mixed by Thomas Ntinas.Betwixt the Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society. A podcast by History Hit.This podcast includes music from Epidemic Sound and archive clips from "Brooklyn Bar Owner Wins Irish Sweepstake", 1937.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

How has warfare shaped the way humans live in the Atlantic World? Well, a lot. Military campaigns from the late Middle Ages to the Age of Revolution drove the development of technologies like ships, port facilities, fortresses, and roads. Crossing the ocean was made possible, connecting previously separate lands, nations and empires from Europe to West Africa and North and South America.In this episode, Professor of Early Modern History Geoffrey Plank joins Dan to discuss how connecting the lands of Europe, West Africa and North and South America brought commerce, expansion, empires, the slave trade and more conflict on land and sea. They compare the European, African, and indigenous American experiences of warfare, violence, and military culture over a period of four centuries.Produced by Hannah Ward.Mixed and Mastered by Dougal Patmore.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Lasting 900 years, the ‘Dark Ages' were between the 5th and 14th centuries, falling between the fall of the Roman Empire and the Renaissance. Today's guest overturns preconceptions of the ‘Dark Ages' as a shadowy and brutal era, showing them to be a richly exciting and formative period in the history of Britain.For more than 40 years, historian and broadcaster Michael Wood has made compelling journeys into the past, which have brought history alive for a generation. Michael joins Dan on the podcast for the 40th anniversary of his ‘In Search of the Dark Ages' - an unrivalled exploration of the origins of English identity.Alongside portraits of Boadicea, King Arthur, Alfred the Great, Athelstan, and William the Conqueror, the story of England is expanded further to include new voices on fascinating characters such as Penda of Mercia, Aethelflaed Lady of the Mercians, Hadrian the African, Eadgyth of England, and Wynflaed.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In 1945, when Congress began reviewing the record of the most conspicuous acts of courage by American soldiers during WWII, they recommended awarding the Medal of Honour to 432 recipients. Despite the fact that more than one million African-Americans served, not a single black soldier received the Medal of Honour.Rob Child is an Emmy-nominated screenwriter, director and published author. Allene Carter is the daughter-in-law of Edward Allen Carter Jr., an Army sergeant who exhibited heroism on the battlefield. Rob and Allene join Dan on the podcast to share why the seven African American soldiers had been denied recognition for 50 years and the remarkable story of how they were ultimately awarded the prestigious military decoration.Produced by Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In a time of grave uncertainty about the future of our planet, the radical potential of democracy is more important than ever.From its beginnings in Syria-Mesopotamia – and not Athens – to its role in fomenting revolutionary fervour in France and America, democracy has subverted fixed ways of deciding who should enjoy power and privilege, and why. Democracy encourages people to do something radical: to come together as equals, to determine their own lives and futures.In this vigorous, illuminating history, acclaimed political thinker John Keane traces its Byzantine history, from the age of assembly democracy in Athens, to European-inspired electoral democracy and the birth of representative government, to our age of monitory democracy. He gives new reasons why democracy is a precious global ideal and shows that as the world has come to be shaped by democracy, it has grown more worldly – American-style liberal democracy is giving way to regional varieties with a local character in places such as Taiwan, India, Senegal and South Africa.In an age of cascading crises, we need the radical potential of democracy more than ever. Does it have a future, or will the demagogues and despots win? We are about to find out.Produced by Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

A cup of coffee was once a luxury. Now it is quick, cheap and widely available — a daily essential for many.How did this happen? Today on Patented, Jonathan Morris walks us through the evolution of coffee: from how people first figured out its psychoactive properties, to the transformations in roasting, processing and preparation that resulted in a coffee shop on every high street.Listen to the History of Coffee podcast here.Find Jonathan's book, Coffee: A Global History here.This episode was produced by Emily WhalleyThe senior producer is Charlotte LongEdited and mixed by Seyi AdaobiIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

It's been an extraordinary day in British politics with dozens of Conservative MPs handing in their resignations and expressing a lack of confidence in Prime Minister Boris Johnson. It feels like this could be the end of his premiership. Johnson has clung to power despite scandal after scandal, including allegations of financial misconduct, risking national security and lying to parliament. Anyone else would have resigned or been ousted by now. How has Boris Johnson managed to stay in office?Dan is down at Westminster after an explosive Prime Minister's Questions. With analysis from Labor MP and historian Chris Bryant, Former Tory politician and diplomat Rory Stewart and Professor of Politics at Queen Mary University, Tim Bale, Dan looks to history for insight into the parliamentary system, how political conduct has changed over the last century and how we ended up here. Produced by Mariana Des Forges and Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

During the War of 1812, the last time Britain and the United States went to war with each other, more than six thousand American sailors ended up in Dartmoor Prison. At the end of the war, prisoners remained behind Dartmoor's walls for months after peace had been ratified. The prisoners' fury at their continued incarceration led to an uprising on April 6, 1815, and then to a massacre: nine Americans were shot dead, the last men to be killed in a war between the two countries.Nick Guyatt is a historian, author and lecturer in modern history. Nick joins Dan on the podcast to discuss the extraordinary story of what happened at Dartmoor during the War of 1812, what really took place in the prison, and how the tragedy created a brief and fiery outrage in the United States but then slipped from view.Produced by Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Born Malcolm Little in 1925, Malcolm X would become human rights activist— a prominent African American minister and figure during the civil rights movement. As a spokesman for the Nation of Islam until 1964, Malcolm X was a vocal advocate for Black empowerment, Black nationalism and the promotion of Islam within the Black community. After Malcolm X's assassination in 1965, his posthumous autobiography popularised his ideas of Black pride, Black dignity and the importance of political activism.Peniel E. Joseph is an American scholar, teacher, and public voice on race issues. Professor Joseph joins Dan on the podcast to discuss Malcolm X's leadership of the Nation of Islam, comparisons made to Dr King, and his crucial legacy in the fight for social justice and equality.Produced by Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

How does a bastard, orphan, son of a whore and a Scotsman, dropped in the middle of a forgotten spot in the Caribbean by providence impoverished in squalor, grow up to be a hero and a scholar?This is the famous question posed by Lin Manuel Miranda in his smash-hit Broadway show Hamilton that's swept the globe. It's a celebration and looks into the life of the once lesser-known founding fathers, instrumental in the creation of the United States in the late 18th Century. To mark American Independence Day celebrations, Senior Lecturer of American Studies at the University of Manchester Dr Natalie Zacek joins Dan to break down Alexander Hamilton's life, role in the American Revolutionary War and whether he really was as important as Miranda's play makes him out to be.Produced by Mariana Des Forges & Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In the dying days of the eighth century, the Vikings erupted onto the international stage with brutal raids and slaughter. The medieval Norsemen may be best remembered as monk murderers and village pillagers, but this is far from the whole story. Throughout the Middle Ages, long-ships transported hairy northern voyagers far and wide, where they not only raided but also traded, explored and settled new lands, encountered unfamiliar races, and embarked on pilgrimages and crusades.In this episode recorded at the 2022 Chalke Valley History Festival, Dr Eleanor Barraclough joins Dan to talk about all things Viking- from the old sagas that tell exotic wonder-tales of Norse life to the recent archaeological discoveries that are now challenging our understanding of these far travelling people.You can learn more in Dr Barraclough's new book 'Beyond the Northlands: Viking Voyages and the Old Norse Sagas'. Produced by Mariana Des ForgesMixed and Mastered by Dougal Patmore If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Alexander the Great's untimely death at Babylon in 323 BC triggered an unprecedented crisis across his continent-spanning empire.Within a couple of days, the very chamber in which he died witnessed a gore-soaked showdown between his previously united commanders and soldiers. Within a fortnight, Babylon saw the first siege of the post-Alexander age.In this special explainer episode to mark the anniversary of Alexander's death, Tristan brings to life the imperial implosion that was the immediate aftermath of the Macedonian king's death - a subject he knows one or two things about, seeing as he's written a book on it!Tristan's book The Perdiccas Years, 323-320 BC (Alexander's Successors at War) is available on Amazon here.This episode was produced by Elena Guthrie and mixed by Aidan Lonergan. It contains translations of contemporary speeches by JC Yardsley & music from Epidemic Sound.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store.Further Reading - Primary Sources Arrian Events After Alexander 1.1–1.9A.Curtius 10.5–10.10.Diodorus Siculus 18.1–18.6.Justin 13.1–13.4.Plutarch Life of Eumenes 3.Secondary Sources Anson, E. (1992), ‘Craterus and the Prostasia', Classical Philology 87 (1), 38–43.Anson, E. (2015), Eumenes of Cardia, Leiden, 58–77.Bosworth, A. B. (2002), The Legacy of Alexander: Politics, Warfare, and Propaganda under the Successors, New York, 29–63.Errington, R. M. (1970), ‘From Babylon to Triparadeisos: 323–320 bc', The Journal of Hellenic Studies 90, 49–59.Meeus, A. (2008), ‘The Power Struggle of the Diadochoi in Babylon, 323bc', Ancient Society 38, 39–82.Meeus, A. (2009), ‘Some Institutional Problems concerning the Succession to Alexander the Great: “Prostasia” and Chiliarchy', Historia 58 (3), 287–310.Mitchell, L. (2007), ‘Born to Rule? Succession in the Argead Royal House', in W. Heckel., L. Tritle and P. Wheatley (eds.), Alexander's Empire: Formulation to Decay, California, 61–74.Worthington, I. (2016), Ptolemy I: King and Pharaoh of Egypt, New York, 71–86 See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In April 1944 nineteen-year-old Rudolf Vrba and fellow inmate, Fred Wetzler became the first Jews ever to break out of Auschwitz. Under electrified fences and past armed watchtowers, evading thousands of SS men and slavering dogs, they trekked across marshlands, mountains and rivers to freedom. Vrba's mission: to reveal to the world the truth of the Holocaust.Celebrated journalist and broadcaster Jonathan Freedland joins Dan on the podcast to tell this astonishing story which can be found in his new book 'The Escape Artist'.This episode does contain descriptions that some listeners may find distressing.Produced by Mariana Des ForgesMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Europe in 1914 was a tinderbox of imperial tensions and the spark that would light the conflagration would be the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. But there is much more to this story than simply the murder of two royals on the street of Sarajevo. Archduke Franz Ferdinand was an often misunderstood figure seemingly hard and old-fashioned. But in private he was a dedicated family man and husband who had married for love against the wishes of the Emporer and he and Sophie had endured snubs and humiliation at court because of it. He had travelled the world and hoped to reform the Austrian-Hungarian empire he was supposed to one day rule. Sue Woolmans, historian and author of The Assassination of the Archduke: Sarajevo 1914 and the Murder that Changed the World, joins the podcast to discuss the real Franz Ferdinand. She guides Dan through the life of Franz Ferdinand and the incompetence, bad luck and chance on the day that would lead to the death of the Archduke and begin a century of conflict.Mixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Cleopatra VII was part of a dynasty of Macedonian rulers founded by Ptolemy, who served as general under Alexander the Great during his conquest of Egypt in 332 B.C. Cleopatra served as the dominant ruler in all three of her co-regencies and was a shrewd strategist and an ingenious negotiator. Though her life spanned fewer than forty years, it reshaped the contours of the ancient world.Stacy Schiff is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Cleopatra: A Life. Stacy joins Dan on the podcast to reconstruct Cleopatra's life. From ascension to the throne, her relationships with Julius Caesar and Mark Anthony, to her eventual death, Stacy and Dan chart the life of a ruler who controlled the largest territory of any woman.Produced by Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The roots of the word ‘Nomad' dates back to an extremely early Indo-European word, ‘nomos'. After towns and cities are built and more people settle, ‘Nomad' comes to describe people who live without walls and beyond boundaries. Now, the word is used by settled people - for some with a sense of romantic nostalgia, and for others, it carries an implicit judgement that such people are wanderers of no fixed abode. Yet, often overlooked, Nomads have fostered and refreshed civilisation throughout our history.Anthony Sattin is a journalist, broadcaster and author. Anthony joins Dan to trace the transformative and often bloody relationship between settled and mobile societies, from the Neolithic revolution to the 21st century via the rise and fall of the Roman Empire and the great nomadic empires of the Arabs and Mongols.Produced by Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Born in Brooklyn, New York in January 1899, Alphonse Gabriel Capone would go on to become perhaps the most infamous gangster in American history. During the Roaring Twenties, Al Capone ruled an empire of crime in the Windy City of Chicago: gambling, prostitution, bootlegging, bribery, narcotics, robbery, and many brutal acts of violence.Jonathan Eig is a journalist, author and biographer dubbed by Ken Burns as a “master storyteller.” Jonathan joins Dan on the podcast to discuss Capone's transition from young entrepreneur to notorious criminal, how the escalating Mob violence in Chicago culminated with the St. Valentine's Day Massacre and the events which led to the end of his ​​crime boss reign.Produced by Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Royal Marines are the UK's Commando Force and the Royal Navy's own amphibious troops. The Commandos have become a byword for elite raiding skills and cutting-edge military operations. They are globally renowned, yet shrouded in mystery.Former Royal Marine Monty Halls joins Dan to shed light on the modern vanguard of a legendary unit, the descendants of the misfits and eccentrics who were so effective and feared in WW2 that Hitler famously ordered them to be shot on sight. They reveal the history behind the green beret, the real stories of extraordinary individuals and what it means to patrol the high seas and police coastlines around the globe.Produced by Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Seyi AdaobiIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In 2011, a 43-foot-high tsunami crashed into a nuclear power plant in Fukushima, Japan. In the following days, explosions would rip buildings apart, three reactors would go into nuclear meltdown, and the surrounding area would be swamped in radioactive water. It is now considered one of the costliest nuclear disasters ever. But Fukushima was not the first, and it was not the worst.Acclaimed historian Serhii Plokhy returns to the podcast. Serhii joins Dan to tell the tale of some of the nuclear disasters that shook the world. From the 1957 fire at the Windscale facility in Cumbria which burned for three days and released radioactive fallout, to the 1986 crisis at Chernobyl, Serhii shows how the same story of nuclear ambition, often clouded by political and economic motives, is tragically repeated time and again.Produced by Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

An extraordinary discovery has been unearthed by archaeologists working alongside the HS2 rail project. The find, made at an undisclosed location near Wendover in the Chilterns, consists of a 5th-6th century burial site that has been described as one of the most important post-Roman, early medieval discoveries of our lifetime.It offers the chance to see more clearly a part of British history that has been hidden from us until now. If there was a real, historical King Arthur, this is the part of history he's hiding within.In this special episode, join our very own Dan Snow and Gone Medieval host Matt Lewis as they chat to the team behind the dig about some of their revelatory finds, and begin to see the people behind them, and the way they may have lived their lives.A special thanks to HS2, INFRA and Fusion for giving History Hit special access behind the scenes!The Senior Producer on this episode was Elena Guthrie. The Producer was Rob Weinberg. It was edited and mixed by Aidan Lonergan.If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On June 17, 1940, the British ocean liner, RMS Lancastria, was sunk during Operation Aerial.RMS Lancastria had sailed to the French port of St. Nazaire to aid in the evacuation of British and French soldiers, civil servants and British civilians after the fall of Dunkirk. The ship was loaded well in excess of its capacity— the consequences of which were felt when a German fighter plane flew overhead and catastrophically attacked the Lancastria.Janet Dempsey is a former maritime record specialist who worked at The National Archives for fifteen years. Janet joins Dan to discuss why the Lancastria was requisitioned as a troopship, the horrific sinking and loss of life, and how the subsequent media blackout at the time has informed ​​this largely forgotten chapter in British history.Produced by Hannah WardMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Civil War was the most traumatic conflict in British history, pitting friends and family members against each other, tearing down the old order.Award-winning historian Jessie Childs plunges the reader into the shock of the struggle through one of its most dramatic episodes: the siege of Basing House. To the parliamentarian Roundheads, the Hampshire mansion was a bastion of royalism, popery and excess. Its owner was both a Catholic and a staunch supporter of Charles I. His motto Love Loyalty was etched into the windows. He refused all terms of surrender.As royalist strongholds crumbled, Loyalty House, as it became known, stood firm. Over two years, the men, women and children inside were battered, bombarded, starved and gassed. Their resistance became legendary. Inigo Jones designed the fortifications and the women hurled bricks from the roof. But in October 1645, Oliver Cromwell rolled in the heavy guns and the defenders prepared for a last stand.Drawing on exciting new sources, Childs uncovers the face of the war through a cast of unforgettable characters: the fanatical Puritan preacher who returns from Salem to take on the king; the plant-hunting apothecary who learns to kill as well as heal; the London merchant and colonist who clashes with Basing's aristocratic lord; and Cromwell himself who feels the hand of God on his sword. And we hear too the voices of dozens of ordinary men and women caught in the crossfire.The Siege of Loyalty House is a thrilling tale of war and peace, terror and faith, friendship and betrayal - and of a world turned upside down. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

A history of British monarchs in coins. With a history stretching over 1,100 years, The Royal Mint has forged a fascinating story through the world of historic coins. As the second oldest mint in the world, and the oldest company in the UK, its history is entwined with the 61 monarchs who have ruled England and Britain over the last 1,200 years. Chris Barker, historian at the Royal Mint Museum takes Dan through some of the rarest coins in the collection from within the vaults, unravelling what the coinage reveals about monarchs from the Norman conquest right through to the 20th century, including the coins created for Edward VIII but were never released in light of his abdication. Produced by Mariana Des ForgesMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Argentina surrendered to British forces in Port Stanley on the 14th of June 1982. The Falklands conflict was over. In the months after the fighting ended troops and their equipment shipped out, graves were dug and memorials were put up across the islands for those killed in battle. British military personnel were identified, most buried at sea or repatriated to the UK. But for 237 deceased Argentine soldiers, their hastily buried bodies remained unidentified for decades and their families were left unable to claim their loved ones who'd died fighting in the islands. Their memorials read simply: “Argentine Soldier Known Only By God”Then in 2012, a team embarked on a project to change that. The International Committee of the Red Cross began a mission to collect DNA samples from each of the unknown graves in the hope that they could give the Argentine soldiers back their names and provide answers to relatives. Reporter Beth Timmins went to the Falkland Islands for the 40th-anniversary commemorations earlier this year and tells this moving story on this final podcast of our Falklands40 series.If you want to find more episodes on the Falklands War, you can go back through the Dan Snow History Hit feed and look for episodes that begin with 'Falklands40'. This special season goes through all the key moments of the Falklands War, the tactics, the equipment, the challenges and of course the human stories of those tested by the extremes of war on a rocky island in the middle of the freezing Southern Atlantic. Find explainers and analyses from eminent historians and powerful testimonials from serving officers on both sides.Presented by Dan Snow and Beth TimminsProduced by Beth Timmins and Mariana Des ForgesMixed and Mastered by Dougal PatmoreIf you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.