History Analyzed

At the start of World War II, France was still a world power. The U.S. and many other nations were relying on the French, along with their ally Britian, to stop Hitler. But in just 6 weeks in May and June 1940, the Germans conquered France, Belgium, and The Netherlands; and drove the British off of continental Europe. The incredibly swift German victory completely changed the balance of power in the world; and woke up the isolationist United States.

Just about everybody knows the story. A supposedly unsinkable ship hit an iceberg and sank, proving the folly of humans. But there are many facts which are not widely known as well as prevalent myths which need to be debunked. Learn what really happened, what caused the disaster, and who were the heroes and who were the villains. 

After the Civil War, it took a century of protests, boycotts, demonstrations, and legal challenges to end the Jim Crow system of segregation and legal discrimination. Learn about the brave men, women, and children that risked their personal safety, and sometimes their lives, in the quest for Black Americans to achieve equal rights.

Thomas Jefferson bought the Louisiana Territory from France in 1803 and doubled the size of the United States. This set America on its expansion, known as Manifest Destiny, from the Atlantic to the Pacific. This episode explores the history of colonization of North America, how the U.S. expanded, why Napoleon sold Louisiana, the Lewis and Clark expedition, and what would have happened if the Louisiana Purchase did not occur. 

Augustus is the most significant nonreligious figure in history. He is probably the greatest political genius of all time. He created the Roman Empire which lasted for centuries and formed so much of the world we live in today, including our calendar, our system of time, our alphabet, the spread of Christianity, and a large percentage of modern languages.

The Western Allies' demand that the Axis Powers unconditionally surrender was essential to keep the Soviets and the Chinese in the war while enduring incredible losses, to keep up the morale of the western allies, and to achieve the elimination of the Nazi regime and reforming Japanese society. 

Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow were Depression Era outlaws who are just known by their first names. They have been romanticized as young lovers who stood by each other and lived life on their own terms. But in reality, Clyde was a thief and a murderer and Bonnie was his willing accomplice. For just over two years they went on a crime spree in the early 1930s robbing and killing. They were finally stopped when a 6 man posse headed by a former Texas Ranger shot and killed them with over 100 bullets, execution style, on a country road in Louisiana. 

For years all immigrants were allowed into the U.S., but some could not become citizens. Later, certain nationalities were limited or completely banned. This episode outlines those changes through the 1980s and discusses the pseudoscience of eugenics and how it was used to justify such bigotry and even involuntary sterilizations in the 20th Century. 

Within 30 years in the late 1800s and early 1900s, Europe went from controlling 20% of Africa to 90%. It was called "the Scramble for Africa". Find out why Europeans colonized the Americas easily through unintentional germ warfare, but Africa was "the White Man's Grave". Discover how Europe finally conquered Africa; the horrors of the Congo; and the residual problems in Africa which exist today. 

Adolf Hitler's insane and evil policies changed the world more than anybody since Christopher Columbus. This episode details the horrors of World War II; explains how Hitler is to blame for the war; illustrates how Hitler made WWII even worse than other wars; and analyzes the effects of WWII for the remainder of the 20th Century and today.

It was the bloodiest battle ever in the Western Hemisphere. For 3 days in July 1863 Americans slaughtered each other on a terrible scale around a small town in Pennsylvania, where the honored dead "gave the last full measure of devotion".Find out why Robert E. Lee invaded the north, and why he failed so terribly; why the civil war dragged on for almost two more years after this union victory; and how this conflict inspired one of the greatest speeches ever in the English language. 

Galileo is considered the father of modern science. His discoveries included the laws of pendulums which led to the development of the first accurate clocks. But tragically, he was tried by the Inquisition of Rome for heresy. The science deniers of the Church threatened to burn him at the stake unless he recanted his claims that he could prove that Copernicus was right: that the Earth is not the center of the universe, that we live in a heliocentric system where the earth and the other planets revolve around the sun. 

A lot of elements contributed into winning World War II: Britain refusing to make peace with Nazi Germany after the fall of France along with the Chinese and Soviets willingness to suffer millions of deaths. But World War II was a war between the factories; whichever side could produce the most military equipment would win. The deciding factor in World War II was the fantastic industrial output of the U.S. 

Polio was one of the scourges of the 20th century. And it mainly struck children. All of a sudden a person contracted polio and suffered terribly for several days; sometimes they recovered, sometimes they died, and sometimes they were left permanently disabled. The most famous polio victim of all time, Franklin Roosevelt, hid his disability from the public. But this story has a true hero: Jonas Salk, who developed a vaccine which led to the almost complete eradication of this dreaded disease. And Dr. Salk never patented the vaccine or earned any money from his discovery.

Wars are never solely military questions. They always involve politics and the will of the people. This episode outlines America's war in Vietnam and explains why the U.S. lost, including the limitations imposed by the American public and the realities of the Cold War. 

The story of the Vietnam War usually starts with President John Kennedy being assassinated and new President Lyndon Johnson getting the U.S. into a long, unwinnable war from 1964 through 1973. This episode explores what happened before that war: the collapse of the French colony of Indochina, why Vietnam was split into 2 countries of North Vietnam and South Vietnam, why the communists tried to take over the South, and how did America become involved in the quagmire of Vietnam.

The Vikings are history's best example of an irresistible force. They were raiders from Scandinavia that pillaged and slaughtered across much of Europe. They founded Iceland, lived in Greenland, and were the first Europeans in North America. They changed Britain and most of mainland Europe. Find out what made them so formidable and how they reshaped the western world.

In the 1950s, U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy led a hunt for Communists in the American government. His brand of persecution based on lies, rumors, and innuendos ruined many lives but did not send a single subversive to jail. He set the standard for politicians who wish to be bullies and demagogues. 

In the year 79 CE, Mount Vesuvius erupted and destroyed the Roman city of Pompeii. We have an eyewitness account describing the horrors of an event which certainly seemed like the end of the world. The volcanic ash preserved the city for centuries. Now most of Pompeii has been excavated and we can see how the ancient Romans lived. 

There are many reasons why the Union won the American Civil War: the brilliance of Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman as generals, the much larger population in the free states, and the industrial capacity of the North. But the number 1 reason the Union won was Abraham Lincoln. His governing style, his fantastic temperament, and his political genius tipped the balance.

On December 7, 1941, a date which will live in infamy, the Japanese launched a surprise attack on the U.S. Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. What appeared to be a stunning success actually spelled the end of Japan's dreams of empire and led to the defeat of the Axis Powers in World War II.

In 1846, a wagon train which became known as the Donner Party was headed to California. They became trapped in the Sierra Nevada Mountains and resorted to eating those who died. Out of 87 people only 46 survived.

On August 2, 1943, a Japanese destroyer rammed and cut in half an American PT boat captained by a young John F. Kennedy. Due to the determination of JFK, the bravery of his crew, the assistance of some Solomon Islands natives, and some good luck, most of the PT-109 crew survived. 

In 1519 Magellan set sail with five ships to find a southwest passage — a strait though South America. Three years later, only one ship returned to Spain with just 18 of the original 240 men. They had sailed around the entire earth. The voyage was eventful  with mutinies, scurvy, battles, and many discoveries.

The 18th Amendment, which banned the manufacture, sale, or transportation of alcohol within the U.S., might be the best example of unintended consequences. Prohibition helped start women's liberation, propelled the Jazz Age, and essentially created Organized Crime in the U.S. 

Most people only know one thing about Hannibal — that he brought elephants over the Alps to attack Rome. But there is so much more to the story. Carthage and Rome fought three wars over a period of 118 years to determine who would become the dominant people in the Mediterranean. Hannibal's loss led directly to the Romans being the ones to shape Western civilization and the modern world.

Most people know that Watergate was the biggest scandal in American history but few know many details. Listen to what actually occurred at the Watergate complex, how it was only part of a much broader campaign of corruption, and why Richard Nixon became the only U.S. president to resign from office. 

On June 28, 1914, Gavrilo Princip shot the heir apparent to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Hear how this assassination sparked World War I, ended four empires, created many new countries, and led to World War II.

Hear how famous lawman Wyatt Earp and his best friend Doc Holliday became legends of the Wild West and inspired many of the cliches and movies you know today. 

For 28 years the Berlin Wall stood as a testament to the cruelties and failures of communism. While Berlin became the epicenter of the Cold War, West Berlin became an island of freedom behind the Iron Curtain. Hear why Germany was divided into two separate countries and how it finally reunited. 

What would it be like to witness the end of the world? Europeans in the 1340s reasonably believed they were seeing the apocalypse. In only 4 years, the Black Death killed approximately half the population. Find out what caused this plague, and what people did to try to survive.

Everybody is familiar with the Statue of Liberty, the Washington Monument, the Hollywood sign, the Gateway Arch, and the Space Needle. But do you know the stories behind these landmarks and how they tie into the histories of their cities?

Find out why the Olympics Games were hosted by the world's worst regime. Hear how track and field star Jesse Owens won multiple gold medals, destroying the Nazi theories of racial superiority and humiliating Adolf Hitler in the process.

Starting in 1848, hundreds of thousands of people made the treacherous journey to California seeking easy riches. Hear how the Gold Rush not only created the state of California, but also changed the U.S. in unforeseen ways and even contributed to the outbreak of the Civil War.

In 1519 Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes landed in what is now Mexico with less than 600 men and conquered an empire with millions of people in two years. Hear about the Aztec's sophisticated city of Tenochtitlan, their religion based upon human sacrifice, and explore the fate of their civilization and Emperor Montezuma. 

Get all of your questions about the history of the atomic bomb and the Manhattan Project answered. Learn what drove scientists such as Leo Szilard, Enrico Fermi, and Robert Oppenheimer to develop it, and why it was used on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Part 1 of this episode explains how the bomb was developed and how it was used. Part 2 of this episode explores the arguments for and against the use of the atomic bombs on Japan. 

Get all of your questions about the history of the atomic bomb and the Manhattan Project answered. Learn what drove scientists such as Leo Szilard, Enrico Fermi, and Robert Oppenheimer to develop it, and why it was used on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Part 1 of this episode explains how the bomb was developed and how it was used. Part 2 of this episode explores the arguments for and against the use of the atomic bombs on Japan. 

Learn about the true story that inspired the legends. Find out what caused the people of Salem to accuse their neighbors of witchcraft in 1692 and how many died as a result of so-called spectral evidence.

Often overshadowed by the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl was the worst man-made ecological disaster of the 20th century. Poor farming practices led to this catastrophe, which caused thousands of deaths and ravaged millions of lives. Discover how FDR's New Deal helped save the southern plains region.

You probably know that Francis Scott Key wrote the Star-Spangled Banner, but why did he write it? What do the lyrics mean? Learn about the Battle for Fort McHenry, the War of 1812, and what became of the famous flag that inspired the American national anthem.

In the 1840s a blight hit Ireland, destroying the staple crop of the Irish peasants: the potato. As a result, Ireland lost approximately one third of its population to starvation and emigration. Essentially a British colony at the time, the natural disaster in Ireland was compounded by British incompetence and indifference. 

The epic battle between the first ironclad ships, the Monitor and the Merrimack (aka the CSS Virginia), revolutionized naval warfare forever. Learn about the genius of John Ericsson, who invented the revolving turret for cannons and the screw propeller, and how his innovations helped save the Union in the Civil War.

In his one term as president, James Polk added more territory to the U.S. than any other American. He should be on the money. But we choose to ignore him. Find out why we forget about the man who gave us the territories that now comprise California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Texas, New Mexico, and parts of Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana.

After seven decades of protests, petitions, and civil disobedience, the 19th Amendment was passed in 1920, granting women the right to vote. Learn about Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Alice Paul, and the countless other women who fought against a deeply sexist and patriarchal society for women's suffrage.

Although those in command at Pearl Harbor lost their commands after the attack, Douglas MacArthur, the commanding U.S. Army officer in the Philippines, got off scot-free. He was even warned in advance that the Japanese would attack, but still did nothing and suffered the worst defeat in American military history. This episode unpacks the many errors and bloody mistakes lurking beneath his popular legacy. 

You may already know that John Wilkes Booth assassinated Abraham Lincoln. But did you know that it was part of a larger conspiracy to also kill Vice President Andrew Johnson and Secretary of State William Seward? Find out about his co-conspirators and what happened after that fateful night at Ford's Theatre, including the epic 12-day manhunt for Booth. 

61 years ago, John F. Kennedy famously promised to land a man on the moon within one decade, but why was there a race to the moon anyway? Get your questions about the space race answered and discover little known facts. For example, many don't realize that a former Nazi rocket scientist was the main contributor to America's satellite and moon program, or that the USSR led the race until the mid-1960s.

Love him or hate him, Christopher Columbus has influenced the world more than anybody in the past 1,000 years. His actions set into motion many significant events - the spread of the Spanish language and Catholicism, enormous migrations of people, the trans-Atlantic slave trade, and five centuries of European colonialism. 

Outside of M*A*S*H reruns, the Korean War is largely forgotten by the American public. This episode explores the history of the Korean War and why it occurred. It also delves into key players on both sides of the war, such as Truman, MacArthur, Mao, Stalin, Kim Il-sung, Syngman Rhee, and more!

For over 160 years, people have asked who was the better general - Ulysses S. Grant or Robert E. Lee? It's time to put this debate to rest by comparing their military strategies, successes, and failures in the Civil War.

Forget what you've seen in movies and discover the real history of Cleopatra! Her affairs with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony are only the tip of the iceberg. Learn how she rose to power in a male-dominated world, ruled Egypt, and left her mark on history.