History Shmistory Podcast

It was very hard to come up with a title for this episode because it spans two very related but also difficult to explain topics. One centers on a look at Franz Mehring's essay "The German Reformation and its Consequences"and the other being the life and times of one Louis De Geer. John offers Mehring's explanation of the Reformation as a different framework for looking at the 30 Years War and its context, to be paired and contrasted with those offered by Wedgewood and Wilson in their more political/military histories of the time period. This context, the changing nature of economic conditions and conflict between classes and states, drives the career of Louis De Geer from humble Calvinist "refugee" in the Netherlands to the father of both Swedish industry and Swedish involvement in the slave trade. Suprisingly, there is less information available regarding the latter than the former. Come, as John purges his demons so he can finish the rest of the dang war already.  Rage Against the Machine- Ashes in the Fall Horse the Band- Octopus on Fire Ensiferum- Slayer of Light Tears for Fears- The Prisoner

Hello. Topics today include: Hesse-Kassel, differing views on the end of the war by Wedgewood and Wilson, the decline of Spain, the decline of Hapsburg fortunes, Wiederhold and partisans, and the opening of peace negotiations at Osnabruck and Munster. I went a little wild on the tunes for this one.  At the Gates- Suicide Nation Tom Waits- Earth Died Screaming Gipsy Kings- Pena Penita BLK JKS- Banna Ba Modimo Sigur Ros- Flugufrelsarinn Battle of Rocroy

The war drags on as our various powers all try to get out of the war with something more than they entered with and the troops continue to maraud across the countryside. France officially enters, Emperor Ferdinand II dies, and the lands of Germany and its surroundings continue to burn for 8 more years.  Music used in this episode: Talk Talk- New Grass Tom Waits- Oily Night Blind Guardian- Another Holy War article John mentions about French carpenter, just because its interesting.

We return with the conclusion to our two part series about the Blue Dove. There's nothing really Dutch about it. However, the story includes a conniving monarch (which one isn't though), a member of the Privy Council, a lucky "privateer" (pirate), and some early petty disputes over legal jurisdiction on the part of the American Colonies. outro- The Trailer Park Boys- Kittyman Sea Shanty

A few of things off the bat. One, the Kingdom of the Netherlands includes the overseas countries of Aruba, Curacoa, and Sint Maarten in addition to the special municipalities of Bonaire, Sint Eusatius and Saba. Two, Indonesia won its independence in 1949 not the 60s. Three, Vader does mean father in Dutch.  What is the "Blue Dove" and why do we care? Well, don't worry about writing about it because we have contacted lawyers and it is now trademarked by History Shmistory to care. You can listen. Background: Everyone in Christian Europe treated the Jews poorly. Some of them moved to The Netherlands. Eventually a king named Charles hid out there and the Jews took care of him. Charles was a real character, but as a monarch he only gets a small amount of slack. He was less mean to the Jews and this fostered trade relationships. Also European colonization of the new world was happening as well. There are lots of other tidbits as well.  Outro: Merck toch hoe sterck from the channel Anthem Hub on Youtube. 

Hey this episode is about the end of the life of Wallenstein and the cracking of the religious pretense of the war that had arguably been happening since the war started. You can email us or hit us on facebook with any questions. Also do a review!

John and Jeremiah talk about life during the 30 years war. Topics include plague, trade, urban growth, marauding armies, devastation, etc. It would have sucked really hard to be anybody but a noble during this time in Germany, specifically. Probably in most of Europe as well but definitely Germany. Glad we are back. Missed you guys xoxox.

This episode is about the black death, the reformation, guilds, courtesans, and general getting back in the saddle for John and Jeremiah after an exciting pandemic and baby filled past few months. This episode provides some context for what the Europe of the 1630s was like in a broad sense. Check out Grand National Championships!  

Thick and chunky Swedish Intervention in the 30 Years by John of History Shmistory. We tell the tale of Gustavus Adolphus, the prophesized Lion of the North, who dies on the field of conflict at Lutzen. Before that though, he looked to be well on his way to ruling a protestant Empire in Germany. Fighting from the age of 17 until his death, he is a man of contrasts. A capable administrator who had good taste in counselors, but a King nonetheless, and his armies ravaged the countryside of Germany. Also, Wallenstein is back. And at the end, we are in a different place then we were before and peace is once again avoided by all parties involved. Outro: A Lifetime of War by Sabaton from their very terrific album "Carolus Rex"

Based on the definition of genocide presented in the Geneva Convention, the United States government committed genocide on the Native American people. Jeremiah explains why. This is the court case he refers to. Content Warning for explicit sexual trauma.

This episode is about Fannie Lou Hamer, a black female sharecropper living in poverty who went on to found an integrated Democratic Party in Mississippi and fight against racial and economic injustice in the United States. Included at the end of the episode is her testimony before the Credentials Committee of the Democratic National Convention in Atlantic City, NJ on August 22,1964.  source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KpIlI09Lxe8

We have made to the year 1628! Wallenstein is on the rise, Christian of Denmark is probably drunk, and Germany is being destroyed. Before the end of the pod Gustavus Adolphus will depart from Sweden to invade Germany and Wallenstein will be dismissed. Listen to discover the juicy middle bits and a little information on early newspaper and political satire! Thanks for listening, we love you all. Also, friend of the pod Getulio showed up to the Shmistory Chateau somewhere in the middle of the recording. 

If it wasn't explicit in the episode, solidarity with the protesters against police brutality and for racial equality and human dignity. Donate money to your local bail fund. This episode is about Boudica, who bravely rallied her people to fight the Romans. They didn't last long so it's a short episode. Getulio was there too. We all made alot of promises.

There's a guy named Boston George. He is the Dutch in this scenario. The Portuguese have product for Boston George. You know Boston George is getting his cut. How did we get here? Listen and find out the tale of sailing and spices and exploitation of native populations and battles. Have fun!

Pt. 4. I think we are at like 1629. Twenty more years to go. On this episode, the less impressive king of two Scandinavian Protestants quickly enters and exits the fray. TLDR: Catholics under Ferdinand doing well, France backs Denmark, Denmark loses, Catholics under Ferdinand doing well (?). Thousands of people being eaten out of house and home by wandering armies. A decade of war.

Prior to the start of the Civil War, when it became clear that there was a growing movement against slavery and a growing party which counted abolitionists as its members, South Carolina decided to secede. Before it did that, it readied secession commissioners to go out amongst the southern states, proclaiming the oncoming tide of racial depredations and uprooting of the treasured institution of chattel slavery of Black people in the U.S.A. (land of the free, home of the brave). Jeremiah is a history major now so now you will be taking his classes with him.

No snazzy title. Just new friends. Ferdinand gives us a new friend named Wallenstein. Fredrick pretends he didn't lose but eventually ends up getting help from another new friend named Christian of Denmark. He in turned is financed by Cardinal Richelieu of France. The war should've ended but didn't because France. Enjoy!

The 2nd part of the 30 Years War! We make it to 1622, so at this rate there will be at least more than 5 more episodes of this. I don't know I didn't actually do the math. This isn't a math podcast you nerds.  Fredrick is King of Bohemia. Gets a mercenary army. Lots of fake friends don't show up. He's on the run. Catholics and Protestants but its also more complicated than that. Also, surprise Transylvanians! https://www.facebook.com/historyshmistorypodcast/

You thought we were gone? No chance! We are putting this podcast out until the eventual end to electronic communication due to impending climate catastrophe, and even after that we will just yell this out across to the other makeshift rafts everyone will be living on between diving for submerged canned goods or fishing for mutated carp. We talk about the events leading up to some Catholics getting tossed out of a window by some Protestants, the fancy word we can use for it, and whether or not Jeremiah will commit to a topic or keep us all guessing (which is how you keep a relationship alive, fellas). Welcome back!

Hey guys, its the History Shmistory boys. We are back in the internet town, down at Dino's bar and grill or whatever. Thin Lizzie is the band you are thinking of. They were Irish. Anyways, we are talking about Puerto Rico. The Puerto Rican Nationalist Party wanted to be independent of the United States. Many Puerto Ricans who were not nationalists would have like that too. Or at least some of their own land maybe. The United States wanted Puerto Rico. Many people died and were arrested. The United States government does not come out looking great. I should have read more sources. But things didn't go well for the people on the island of Puerto Rico for a while after they were "liberated". They have gone rather poorly recently. Context is important, but sometimes people do bad things. Like imprison and torture people and make people subjects but not citizens of the US. Like that. Enjoy the pod!

Greetings. We have returned from out long slumber. We were hoping that if we just fell asleep for a month or so we would wake up in Happy Land. Unfortunately we awoke in the same Vale of Tears, so Jeremiah read a book and we got back to the drudgery. Tecumseh tried to unite the Native Americans to combat the growing American presence in the West. He lost, but his example has been handed down through the ages as a man trying to organize against oppression. Just kidding, people get excited about his command of armed combat and romanticize Amerindians without actually considering the toll exacted back men such as Andrew Jackson and William Henry Dead-in-One-Month Harrison on the native peoples of the North American continent. So enjoy another kind of depressing episode in our nation's history. But also enjoy Jeremiah and John waxing philosophically on the nature of history, and also shmistory. Andrew Jackson sucked.

Tampa had a leftist labor movement amongst cigar workers in Ybor City. The government of Tampa and the owners like it. Working people of all colors were coming together to demand better wages and quality of life. They tried to march on the Soviet anniversary! All this and more. Returning champ David tells us all about his research (we have experts) and John and Jeremiah do a kind of a ride along through Tampa history. Its a great time and don't forget to thank your local cigar worker and frequent your local labor temple. But don't try to help a lady trying to help her son who is being unjustly arrested by police, because then you'll get arrested too. Good night, you sweet listeners.

Yes we can. We're back. I feel like we've been saying that a lot recently. So do you think about the Incan civilization? We did. Or Jeremiah did. Then he told us about it. The Incan's burned out quickly due to the anger of their subjects and to the intervention of some illegal immigrants. During the time the were around they did some pretty cool stuff, like Macchu Picchu and developing a written language. Hope you enjoy.

Septimius Severus was a Roman Emperor. He became a Roman Emperor by having money and being a good general. Then he died, and Rome slid slowly into the sea. Not really, but it started. He was relatively interesting? The events and circumstances that led to and played out from the reign of Septimius Severus are just as if not more important than his reign itself. Also, lots of primary sources (!) and stuff. Ancient Robin Hood. All of this and more in this exciting new episode of History Shmistory!

Welcome back to us. And welcome back to you. Ever heard a man eating a carrot on a USB microphone? Well you are about to at about 1:18:00. Or before that. Also, we are talking about the Haitian Revolution. Not a "fun" subject, but certainly an important one. A revolution to make every "Southern Gentleman" shit his breeches is a revolution we like to talk about. Jeremiah takes us to school. Turns out the French government can be real assholes. Go figure. Also, something I forgot to mention in the episode is Haitian Machete fighting (Tire Machete). Check it out. 

Na na na na na na na, na na na na na na na. Hey guys! We are talking about the Civil War again! This time its August Willich, an interesting piece o' the American Pie that doesn't get his just deserts (see what I did there?) To communist for Marx, just communist enough for the Union Army. John really wants you to know that he doesn't know if he's right, but he is going to go ahead and ascribe some motives to historical figures and make sweeping generalizations. So does Jeremiah, so its pretty sweepy on both sides. Enjoy. Also, itunes reviews would be terrific.

Hey. I took a long time to edit this and now it is the last day of february so I'd better post it. Its from like 2 or 3 weeks ago. Sometimes I get lazy. You know who wasn't lazy? Oliver Hazard Perry. At least not when it came to mobilizing and directing the forces that fought the British during the Battle of Lake Eerie. He did real well with that. Also, the war of 1812 was stupid. I mean, all war is stupid, but the war of 1812 was real dumb. Ummmm, Jeremiah did a great job. I think we will learn about a civil war general next time. I didn't know when we recorded the podcast but I have been doing some self-searching since then a realized many things. Most of them are food related. I enjoy sandwiches, for instance. But also I need a topic for the next podcast and that it is. So yeah, Oliver Hazard Perry was a Navy man who lead an interesting life and did some impressive stuff so enjoy bye.

Oh yeah. All the states too. They all failed as well. And then the American academy and educational apparatus failed to make people aware in subsequent generations that there was a time when people were given the opportunity to take active roles in their political and social life ("given" the opportunity means they were presented with the chance after years of chattel slavery and legal discrimination based on skin color) and grabbed hold wholeheartedly and effectively governed. But nope, instead we got Plessy vs. Ferguson, Woodrow Wilson, J. Edgar Hoover and the KKK and its affiliates in the governments of states like Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas and many others and fuck...just fuck it. Listen to the podcast, I hope we did a good job and I hope you enjoy!

Welcome to History Shmistory! There is a new Vice-President on the block. Well not really, he was Vice President in the 40s. But you maybe haven't heard of him so maybe he's new to you. Or maybe not, and look at you. Ain't you something. You should go on Jeopardy. Henry Wallace was a pretty cool dude it seems like. Jeremiah takes us on a word journey and guides us like Virgil in the Divine Comedy or like another famous guide. Like Gonzo in "A Muppet Christmas Carol". Henry was into things like crop rotation, corn, equality of race and gender, the end of poll taxes and corn. Did we mention corn? Have fun and Merry Merrymas!

Don't tell my heart, my achy, breaky (how do you spell breaky? is it brakey?) Something, something, Bill Ray Cyrus joke. Miley Cyrus was Hannah Montana the whole time. Cyrus the Great was the emperor of Persia before it was cool to be emperor of Persia (looking at you, Xerxes and Cyrus the not quite as great). He did some great stuff, like decreed an end to slavery on a cylinder. He ended the Babylonian Empire, and changed the world by physically assaulting the child of a noble seriously enough involve the authorities. "That's Grandpa Astyages to you, young man"

Here he comes, two swords a'swinging. Miyamoto Musashi is the guy we are talking about. He pisses off his dad, wipes out the male line of a family and then adopts a son to make up for the other adopted son who had to kill himself because culture of the time and stuff. He managed to write a few books ("The Five Rings" not a prequel to "The Lord of the Rings" as John thought) and become the greatest sword fighter ever (don't have much knowledge of who to compare it to so we will just do the "World Champion" thing for lack of contenders). Enjoy post-Hallows Eve fun!

Join us as we talk about the last pagan emperor of the Roman Empire, which at this point was decidedly less Roman then before. Also, the computer was having issues, so there is a great deal of sloppily edited restarts and some well edited restarts. Well edited is strong. Not as poorly edited. Julian was the thinking man's emperor. We are the thinking man's podcast. Do the sacred math, yo. 

Tito was the dictator of Yugoslavia. Yugoslavia doesn't exist anymore and neither does he. Jeremiah tells us all about him. John doesn't add much information, but some entertainment. There's a hurricane coming, but we thought it was important to get this to you, as all the podcasts we make are. Go look a Facebook sometime why don't you? We got one.

What did those Duke boys get up to again? Well I dunno, but I do know that we are back with a delightful serving of shmistory. The Confederacy was hella lame (an understatement), but they did a pretty good job with PR after they lost. Thank the United Daughters of the Confederacy! They want you to know that the south was a happy place where nobody liked slavery but where it did exist it was happy and did we mention that most of the people didn't have slaves and were really just fighting to protect their homes from Northern Aggression? Also, they make quilts! And statues, they loved statues and racism. The two things this podcast is about. So enjoy! Also , we got a facebook!

Join Jeremiah as he explains the significance of the arrest and case of Rosa Parks and its place within the context of American segregation. John is there too. Not must shmistory, but plenty to get fired up about. Rosa Parks sued OutKast as well. We waited a whole month and then gave you a relatively short episode, but what it lacks in quantity it makes up in quality (we think). Enjoy.

Hello all from the Land of Lincoln! Illinois! The guys recorded this a minute ago. But due to vacationing it took a while to get it all tuned up and uploaded. There probably isn't much difficulty in quality from the unedited files to the finished product. Nobody knows what they are doing around here. You know one person who did know what she was doing though? Hellen Keller. Without the aid of sight or sound she did more than most millennials could ever hope too. Even Mark Zuckerberg. Because on balance, how much has Facebook really improved your life? Also, who's the Twitter guy? Nobody talks about the Twitter guy. Anyway, maybe there will be a Facebook someday for History Shmistory and then we can be hypocrites. Hellen Keller, she wrote a bunch of books, advocated for rights on the parts of the blind, the deaf and the downtrodden, and led a long, full life to be proud of. Enjoy!

Come learn about Francis Drake. Jeremiah takes John on a trip to the New World in search of Spanish ships to plunder. We learn that its alright to associate with French pirates, the Spanish had a ship named after burning feces, don't be a sorcerer and talk bad about your captain, and always invest in more ships. Enjoy!

Hello guys and gals, hope you are doing great. Happy Mother's day to all the moms out there (which is probably most of our listener base). We got you what everyone would want for a day devoted to appreciation for maternal care. Vlad the Impalercast! That Son of a Dragon! Watch as Vlad fights for the Ottomans, then fights the boyars of Wallachia, then fights the Saxons in Transylvania, then fights against the Ottomans, then fights against Wallachians, then dies how he lived. Violently. He was a lot of things, but you know one thing he wasn't? A vampire. The vampire craze ended a few years ago. Get over it, author of Twilight.

Join the History Shmistory boys as we dip into well traveled territory and talk about Ivan the Terrible. This time we have guests! Our good friends David and Joel drop by to bring a bit of levity and some extra shmistory to our history. Also featuring John's air conditioner, as we recorded in his kitchen and it was a hot spring night. We are going to work on our future use of the microphone to record more than 2 people. But on the whole Ivan the Terrible thing, was he really that terrible? Only if you count some secret police, torture and a good ole filicide. Enjoy!

Hey there guys!California. So many songs. So many dreams. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Coastal elitism. Hybrids! Also, an early example of some sketchy dealings on the part of the US. But hey, you be the judge! Jeremiah and John sure decide too. Join the boys as they travel through the Californio social scene and the "conquest" of errors that was the end of Mexican rule. Also, the Mexican-American War! Oh my! Email us at a correctly spelled email for sources.  historyshmistorypodcast@gmail.com

And so it ends. John listened to a book but Jeremiah continues to steer the ship for this one. We talk about Hannibal's time in Spain and Italy, the end of that time, the end of Hannibal and the end of Carthage. The end of Carthage is pretty quick. The episode itself is not. Also I we forgot to mention in the episode, stay tuned for A Brief History of Finance's new episode soon and if you haven't find the podcast on iTunes and listen to it. Enjoy! historyschmistorypddcast@gmail.com

Surprise! Here it is. The new episode! Everything thing you ever wanted to know about the First Punic War! Ok, not really. There is a great deal more to know. But its what we have so there it is. There's more to Carthage then you picked up in your world history class. The Mediterranean world was a rich tapestry of tunic wearing, ship rowing fun time party guys and Carthage was the big daddy of all of them for a bit. Then Rome got big and stuff. John made a bunch of mistakes, Jeremiah probably pronounced things wrong. But they both made it out alive. As do the Carthaginians........for now (ominous music). historyschmistorypddcast@gmail.com  

Hello and welcome to this episode of the History Shmistory Podcast, Evelyn's brother. You have joined our significant others and moms in listening to this podcast. We have tried to convince our friends. In this episode, John does some heavy lifting in an unsafe fashion. From the back and with a twisting, wrenching motion. All to teach Jeremiah about Ambrosius Aurelianus, a man for whom we have exactly one (kind of) primary source. We also learn about his daddy, the Saxons and their long knives and what they do with said knives, the Welsh (the original Britons), and some other Britons (who became the Welsh). King Arthur too! I have found over 2 historical inaccuracies but less then 100. Prize goes to the person who finds the most. Tell your moms about us, we are doing really well with moms. Email us! historyschmistorypddcast@gmail.com Email me for sources, I know I said I would put them up here in the episode but I don't feel like it anymore. They exist, they are real, but maybe you aren't. What if this is all a figment of our imagination?

I don't have a bunch to write here....The Hopi enjoyed themselves just fine. But then the Spanish come looking for gold, the Mexican government pays good money for scalps and the USA comes looking to spread Christianity and give haircuts. Here's an idea, lets get some of the most unqualified people we can, give them positions of power and send them out to Arizona to take care of some fully functioning adults. That's a great idea. John and Jeremiah learn about the Hopi. Hopefully they don't do terribly. Enjoy! Write in at historyschmistorypddcast@gmail.com!

Join John in getting a broad overview of a less romantic and more bloody and backstabby period in the history of China. The Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Lots of Dynasty Warrior references, the good guy dies before the end, the fall of the Han Dynasty and the business interests of the Mars candy company. Just giving you a little taste so you can go out and search for more information on you own, like better podcasts. Tell us how bad we did at historyschmistorypddcast@gmail.com!

The War of the Triple Alliance, the Paraguayan War, the Great War (in Paraguay), all names for one of the bloodiest conflicts in South America and in terms of population loss, one of the bloodiest in world history. John schools Jeremiah on this conflict, but also on the post independence history of Paraguay, Uruguay, Brazil, and Argentina. They also talk about a whole bunch of different things. It takes about an hour to actually get to the topic, John didn't actually check on any pronunciations, and we may have managed to offend both the nation of Portugal and the state of Delaware at the same time. You are welcome. email for sources historyschmistorypddcast@gmail.com

John and Jeremiah take their first tentative steps (again) into the world of podcasting to talk about the wealthiest man ever! What was his secret? Saving? Good investments? Magic? Gold. It was totally gold. Lots and lots of gold, all owned by the Mansa himself. We learn about the history of the Mali Empire, the fabled Hajj of Mansa Musa and the further consolidation of links between Sub-Saharan Africa and the rest of the Islamic world. All with poor audio quality (Not anymore!). We got a better mic since the first time, so we figured what the heck. John ate to many tacos, which accounts for the yawns. Friyay indeed.

John got really excited and rushed into the rainy moors of English history in search of the real Edward I without enough provisions. Jeremiah appeared like a shining knight to save him. This is a story of the rescue mission that saved the History Shmistory Podcast from the ravages of hunger and poor use of time in reading source material. Jeremiah guides us through the reign of Edward I. John incorrectly states the current queen of the UK is Victoria (it isn't, its Elizabeth II). We both forget to mention the story of Edward chasing a guy with a sword because of poor falconry skills. Edward I, great for England (Kind of). Poor if you happen to be an English Jew, a Welshman who doesn't want to be ruled by England, a Scot who doesn't want to be ruled by England or Mel Gibson as William Wallace as a character loosely based on a true story. John makes mistakes.

Learn about the Cathars (didn't actually call themselves Cathars) and the efforts of the 13th century papacy to get rid of them. Featuring: Pope Innocent III (not very "innocent"), Simon de Monfort, and too many Raimons to count! Listen as John butchers some perfectly good French and both of our heroes learn that Crusades make for somber reading material. A reflection on misunderstandings and the misty expanses of history. Enjoy!

A long talk about the long travels of Abu 'Abdallah Muhamamad ibn 'Abdallah ibn Muhammad ibn Ibrahim al-Lawati ibn Battuta through the Dar al-Islam and beyond during the 14th century. Laughs will be had, parties will be pooped on, and we will learn a great deal about the world inhabited by one of the most prolific travels of history. Enjoy!