History on Fire

History on Fire

Daniele Bolelli

Where history and epic collide--"History on Fire" is a podcast by author and university professor Daniele Bolelli.

EPISODE 110: A Tale of Two Saints, St. Francis and Drukpa Kunley

EPISODE 110: A Tale of Two Saints, St. Francis and Drukpa Kunley

“What are servants of God good for, if not for moving the hearts of men and elevating them to spiritual joy?” St. Francis“I’ve come to help you all. Where can I find the best beer and the most beautiful women?” Drukpa Kunley“I tried going to hell, but the path there was so packed with hypocritical priests that I had to turn back.” Drukpa KunleyFor once, here’s an episode about individuals who didn’t build their reputation by killing. Considering much of recorded history is the history of warfare

Feb 17, • 1:44:39

[RERUN] EPISODE 74: The Life of Marcus Aurelius (Part 2): Stoicism, Pandemic and War

[RERUN] EPISODE 74: The Life of Marcus Aurelius (Part 2): Stoicism, Pandemic and War

“No matter how big a guy might be, Nicky would take him on. You beat Nicky with fists, he comes back with a bat. You beat him with a knife, he comes back with a gun. And you beat him with a gun, you better kill him, because he'll keep comin' back and back until one of you is dead.” From the film Casino“The condition of the people was pitiable to behold. They sickened by the thousands daily and died unattended and without help. Many died in the open street, others dying in their houses, made it k

Feb 3, • 2:37:08

[RERUN] EPISODE 73: The Life of Marcus Aurelius (Part 1): Stoicism, Pandemic and War

[RERUN] EPISODE 73: The Life of Marcus Aurelius (Part 1): Stoicism, Pandemic and War

“Rise up and do battle.” Homer“Discipline is freedom, and the companion to imagination. Discipline makes it possible for you to become whatever you want to be.” Deng Ming DaoMarcus Aurelius would have loved nothing better than studying philosophy for the rest of his days. Instead, destiny chose him to be the head of the Roman Empire. As a philosopher-emperor, Marcus turned to Stoicism to help him deal with more drama than any human being should have to deal with. Most of his children died before

Jan 20, • 1:40:08

EPISODE 109: The Mesoamerican Godfather

EPISODE 109: The Mesoamerican Godfather

“Keep your friends close and your enemies closer” Mario Puzo“Grant me revenge!” from Conan the Barbarian, 1982“I am immortal” NezahualcoyotlI originally created this episode years ago, as I was researching the Spaniards’ invasion of the Mexica (aka Aztec) empire, when I run into this little nugget of a story, which predates the arrival of the Spaniards. This is the first time this episode gets to be released to the public outside of any paywalls. This is basically a real historical version of wh

Dec 16, 2024 • 1:56:18

EPISODE 108: Tattooed Headhunters of the Steppes

EPISODE 108: Tattooed Headhunters of the Steppes

"Barbarism is the natural state of mankind… Civilization is unnatural. It is a whim of circumstance. And barbarism must always ultimately triumph." Robert E Howard “Becoming a barbarian was often a bid to improve one’s lot.” James C Scott“We are riders; our business is with the bow and the spear, and we know nothing of women’s work. But in your country no woman has anything to do with such things—your women stay at home in their wagons occupied with feminine tasks, and never go out to hunt or fo

Nov 18, 2024 • 1:50:36

[RERUN] EPISODE 72: John Brown (Part 3): Violent Delights, Violent Ends

[RERUN] EPISODE 72: John Brown (Part 3): Violent Delights, Violent Ends

“I, John Brown, am now quite certain that the crimes of this guilty land will never be purged away but with blood.” John Brown  “If you seek my blood, you can have it at any moment without the mockery of a trial.” John Brown “John Brown, and a thousand John Browns, can invade us, and the Government will not protect us. To secure our rights and protect our honor we will dissever the ties that bind us together, even if it rushes us into a sea of blood." Mississippi congressman Reuben Davis “John B

Oct 21, 2024 • 2:17:45

[RERUN] EPISODE 71: John Brown (Part 2): A Reckoning in Blood

[RERUN] EPISODE 71: John Brown (Part 2): A Reckoning in Blood

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Sep 23, 2024 • 2:02:40

[RERUN] EPISODE 70: John Brown (Part 1): Heartbreak & Slavery

[RERUN] EPISODE 70: John Brown (Part 1): Heartbreak & Slavery

In this first episode of a three-part series, we’ll introduce the early part of John Brown’s lifeand his crusade against slavery. Among today’s topics, we’ll have the ethics of punching aNazi, how the beating of an enslaved child set Brown on his path, how both pro and anti-slavery forces used Christianity to justify their stances, racism masquerading asphilanthropy, the Nat Turner rebellion, grief & PTSD, the Underground Railroad, themurder of Elijah Lovejoy, and much more. Learn more about you

Sep 9, 2024 • 1:22:32

EPISODE 107: The Forge of the Samurai: The Genpei War Part 2

EPISODE 107: The Forge of the Samurai: The Genpei War Part 2

“This is how 70,000 horsemen of the Taira died, buried in this one deep valley; the mountain creeks ran red with their blood and the mound of their corpses was like a small hill.” The Tale of the Heike “Tomoe had long black hair and a fair complexion, and her face was very lovely; but she was also a fearless rider, who could not be thrown by neither the fiercest horse nor the roughest ground; and with such skill she handled sword and bow that she was a warrior worth a thousand, ready to battle a

Aug 26, 2024 • 1:39:17

EPISODE 106: The Forge of the Samurai: The Genpei War Part 1

EPISODE 106: The Forge of the Samurai: The Genpei War Part 1

“The sound of the Gion Shoja bells echoes the impermanence of all things; the color of the sala flowers reveals the truth that the prosperous must decline. The proud do not endure, they are like a dream on a spring night; the mighty fall at last, they are as dust before the wind.” The Tale of the Heike“When you grow up, if you still feel raw about it, I'll be waiting.” Kill Bill"Let those in the distance hear me! Let those close at hand see me with their own eyes! I am Matataro Tadatsuna, son of

Jul 30, 2024 • 1:27:35

[RERUN] EPISODE 69: Capturing Mussolini

[RERUN] EPISODE 69: Capturing Mussolini

...

Jun 17, 2024 • 1:57:50

[RERUN] EPISODE 69: Capturing Mussolini

[RERUN] EPISODE 69: Capturing Mussolini

“He must be handed over to a tribunal of the people so it can judge him quickly. We want this, even though we think an execution platoon is too much of an honor for this man. He would deserve to be killed like a mangy dog.” Future Italian President Sandro Pertini about Benito Mussolini“The world unfortunately continues to be a battlefield where different egos clash, repeating the mistakes of the past.” Federigo Giordano“Death to the Nazi-Fascists.” The closing quote of most letters written by Fe

Jun 17, 2024 • 2:05:21

[RERUN] EPISODE 68: My Grandma and Her Bombs: A Story of WWII

[RERUN] EPISODE 68: My Grandma and Her Bombs: A Story of WWII

...

May 20, 2024 • 1:48:53

[RERUN] EPISODE 68: My Grandma and Her Bombs: A Story of WWII

[RERUN] EPISODE 68: My Grandma and Her Bombs: A Story of WWII

“Women must obey… My opinion of women’s role within the state is against any kind of feminism. In our state, women must not count.” Benito Mussolini“Yes, I participated in the actions. I usually had the task of carrying the weapons and would hand them to our shooters. As soon as they had used them, I’d get them back from them—still hot.” Liana Germani“I was mostly afraid of torture had they captured me, of the terrible suffering on the way to the concentration camps. Death seemed simple, somethi

May 20, 2024 • 1:54:42

[RERUN] EPISODE 66: Sex in Ancient Rome

[RERUN] EPISODE 66: Sex in Ancient Rome

“From an author’s perspective, writing about sex is risky, because if you write well enough, evocatively enough, vividly enough, you make the reader want to put the book aside and go get laid.”  — Tom Robbins  “Let's live and love,  Caring less than nothing for  The moralizing of stern old men. The sun sets and rises back again, But an eternal night of sleep awaits us When our brief light turns to darkness. Give me a thousand kisses, and a hundred more. Then a thousand, and another hundred. And

Apr 22, 2024 • 2:10:49

[RERUN] EPISODE 66: Sex in Ancient Rome

[RERUN] EPISODE 66: Sex in Ancient Rome

“From an author’s perspective, writing about sex is risky, because if you write well enough, evocatively enough, vividly enough, you make the reader want to put the book aside and go get laid.” Tom Robbins“Let's live and love,Caring less than nothing forThe moralizing of stern old men.The sun sets and rises back again,But an eternal night of sleep awaits usWhen our brief light turns to darkness.Give me a thousand kisses, and a hundred more.Then a thousand, and another hundred.And then more thous

Apr 22, 2024 • 2:16:24

Episode 105: Rationalizing Evil in El Salvador

Episode 105: Rationalizing Evil in El Salvador

“I didn't know what to do. They were killing my children. I knew that If I went back there to help my children I would be cut to pieces. But I couldn't stand to hear it, I couldn't bear it. I was afraid that I would cry out, that I would scream, that I would be crazy. I couldn't stand it, and I prayed God to help me.” — Rufina Amaya “In El Salvador the rich and powerful have systematically defrauded the poor and denied 80 percent of the people any voice in the affairs of their country.”

Mar 25, 2024 • 1:25:08

EPISODE 105: Rationalizing Evil in El Salvador

EPISODE 105: Rationalizing Evil in El Salvador

“I didn’t know what to do. They were killing my children. I knew that If I went back there to help my children I would be cut to pieces. But I couldn’t stand to hear it, I couldn’t bear it. I was afraid that I would cry out, that I would scream, that I would be crazy. I couldn’t stand it, and I prayed God to help me.” Rufina Amaya“In El Salvador the rich and powerful have systematically defrauded the poor and denied 80 percent of the people any voice in the affairs of their country.” Ambassador

Mar 25, 2024 • 1:27:09

EPISODE 104: The Saint and the Death Squads

EPISODE 104: The Saint and the Death Squads

“It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter he kingdom of God.” Matthew 19: 24  "And the great owners, who must lose their land in an upheaval, the great owners with access to history, with eyes to read history and to know the great fact: when property accumulates in too few hands it is taken away. And that companion fact: when a majority of the people are hungry and cold they will take by force what they need. And the little screaming fact that so

Feb 13, 2024 • 1:35:51

EPISODE 104: The Saint and the Death Squads

EPISODE 104: The Saint and the Death Squads

“It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter he kingdom of God.” Matthew 19: 24"And the great owners, who must lose their land in an upheaval, the great owners with access to history, with eyes to read history and to know the great fact: when property accumulates in too few hands it is taken away. And that companion fact: when a majority of the people are hungry and cold they will take by force what they need. And the little screaming fact that sound

Feb 13, 2024 • 1:43:15

[RERUN] EPISODE 65: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 3): A River Of Death

[RERUN] EPISODE 65: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 3): A River Of Death

“Everywhere in southern Anhui they are eating people.” — Zeng Guofan “Infants but recently born were torn from their mother’s breasts, and disemboweled before their faces. Young strong men were disemboweled, mutilated, and the parts cut off thrust into their own mouths…” — A British testimony on the Qing treatment of POWs If I were to ask you which is the deadliest conflict in history, you’d probably answer WW II. But if I were to ask you, which is the second deadliest conflict eve

Jan 15, 2024 • 2:22:38

[RERUN] EPISODE 65: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 3): A River of Death

[RERUN] EPISODE 65: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 3): A River of Death

“Everywhere in southern Anhui they are eating people.” Zeng Guofan“Infants but recently born were torn from their mother’s breasts, and disemboweled before their faces. Young strong men were disemboweled, mutilated, and the parts cut off thrust into their own mouths…” A British testimony on the Qing treatment of POWsIf I were to ask you which is the deadliest conflict in history, you’d probably answer WW II. But if I were to ask you, which is the second deadliest conflict ever—at least according

Jan 15, 2024 • 2:28:48

[RERUN] EPISODE 64: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 2): Jesus’ Chinese Younger Brother

[RERUN] EPISODE 64: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 2): Jesus’ Chinese Younger Brother

Dec 4, 2023 • 2:15:07

[RERUN] EPISODE 64: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 2): Jesus’ Chinese Younger Brother

[RERUN] EPISODE 64: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 2): Jesus’ Chinese Younger Brother

“Is not this insurgent movement truly wonderful? These rebels keep Sabbath as we do, they pray to God daily, they read the Scriptures, they break the idols, and they long for the time when, instead of those heathen temples, they shall have Christian chapels, and worship together with us… is it not a remarkable era in China?”A Christian missionary wife about the Taiping Rebellion“Jesus our Elder Brother showed us the treacherous heart of this demon follower.” Sign hanging around the neck of a man

Dec 4, 2023 • 2:19:52

[RERUN] EPISODE 63: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 1): Drug Dealers And Visionaries

[RERUN] EPISODE 63: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 1): Drug Dealers And Visionaries

“The entire story of the Taiping Rebellion might be told, from one perspective, as the rage of a failed exam candidate writ large.” — Stephen Platt “They may not intend to harm others on purpose, but the fact remains that they are so obsessed with material gain that they have no concern whatever for the harm they can cause to others.” — Lin Zexu about British opium traders  “Heaven is furious with anger, and all the gods are moaning with pain!... A murderer of one person is subje

Nov 20, 2023 • 1:26:41

[RERUN] EPISODE 63: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 1): Drug Dealers and Visionaries

[RERUN] EPISODE 63: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 1): Drug Dealers and Visionaries

“The entire story of the Taiping Rebellion might be told, from one perspective, as the rage of a failed exam candidate writ large.” Stephen Platt “They may not intend to harm others on purpose, but the fact remains that they are so obsessed with material gain that they have no concern whatever for the harm they can cause to others.” Lin Zexu about British opium traders“Heaven is furious with anger, and all the gods are moaning with pain!... A murderer of one person is subject to the death senten

Nov 20, 2023 • 1:32:36

EPISODE 103: The Lone Samurai, Miyamoto Musashi (Part 2)

EPISODE 103: The Lone Samurai, Miyamoto Musashi (Part 2)

Nov 6, 2023 • 2:11:10

EPISODE 103: The Lone Samurai, Miyamoto Musashi (Part 2)

EPISODE 103: The Lone Samurai, Miyamoto Musashi (Part 2)

“If you know the way broadly you will see it in everything.” Miyamoto MusashiEver since I started History on Fire, one topic has been the most consistently requested by listeners. Over the years, I received hundreds of messages asking me to cover the life of Miyamoto Musashi. That time has come. Here we go.Musashi has been the subject of one of the greatest bestsellers ever written, a novel by Eiji Yoshikawa that sold over 120 million copies. And yet, the story of his life is mixed with so many

Nov 6, 2023 • 2:19:57

EPISODE 102: The Lone Samurai, Miyamoto Musashi (Part 1)

EPISODE 102: The Lone Samurai, Miyamoto Musashi (Part 1)

Oct 9, 2023 • 1:45:52

EPISODE 102: The Lone Samurai, Miyamoto Musashi (Part 1)

EPISODE 102: The Lone Samurai, Miyamoto Musashi (Part 1)

“All warfare is based on deception.” Sun TzuEver since I started History on Fire, one topic has been the most consistently requested by listeners. Over the years, I received hundreds of messages asking me to cover the life of Miyamoto Musashi. That time has come. Here we go.Musashi has been the subject of one of the greatest bestsellers ever written, a novel by Eiji Yoshikawa that sold over 120 million copies. And yet, the story of his life is mixed with so many myths and legends that it’s rathe

Oct 9, 2023 • 1:48:24

EPISODE 101: The History Behind Killers of the Flower Moon

EPISODE 101: The History Behind Killers of the Flower Moon

Sep 11, 2023 • 1:26:11

EPISODE 101: The History Behind Killers of the Flower Moon

EPISODE 101: The History Behind Killers of the Flower Moon

“But the years of peace and plenty was not to last. Slowly the days turned sour and the watchful nights closed in. Thrór's love of gold grown too fierce and sickness had begun to grow within him. It was a sickness of the mind. And where sickness thrives, bad things will follow...” JRR Tolkien“The more White investigated the flow of oil money from Osage headrights, the more he found layer upon layer of corruption. Although some white guardians and administrators tried to act in the best interests

Sep 11, 2023 • 1:28:13

[RERUN] EPISODE 62: Plagues, Mystery and Dancing

[RERUN] EPISODE 62: Plagues, Mystery and Dancing

“The universities do not teach all things, so a doctor must seek out old wives, gypsies, sorcerers, wandering tribes, old robbers, and such outlaws and take lessons from them.  A doctor must be a traveler… Knowledge is experience.” — Paracelsus “They indulged in disgraceful immodesty, for many women, during this shameless dance and mock-bridal singing, bared their bosoms, while others of their own accord offered their virtue.” — C. Browerus describing the 1374 Dancing Plague  Weird seems like t

Aug 14, 2023 • 1:50:00

[RERUN] EPISODE 61: Raiders in the Night

[RERUN] EPISODE 61: Raiders in the Night

“Never in history had the United States Army been called on to rescue such a large number of POWs from so deep in enemy territory.” William Breuer “We were in the best shape of our lives, and with this mission we understood why he had driven us so hard.” Alvie Robbins speaking about Henry Mucci’s physical training“As far as we were concerned, they were gods.” Bob Body about the Rangers who rescued him and his fellow POWs.“Nothing in this entire campaign has given me so much personal satisfaction

Jul 3, 2023 • 2:21:33

EPISODE 100: Benvenuto Cellini (Part 2)

EPISODE 100: Benvenuto Cellini (Part 2)

“Brother, this is the greatest sorrow and the greatest trial that could happen to me in the whole course of my life. But don’t despair; before you lose sight of him who did the mischief, you shall see yourself revenged by my hand.” — Benvenuto Cellini  “Folk too gathered round us, for it had become clear that our words meant swords and daggers.” — Benvenuto Cellini Italian artists from the Renaissance often lived lives that would make artists-gangsters a la Biggie or Tupac blush. Born at a tim

Jun 19, 2023 • 1:57:27

EPISODE 99: Thug Life: Benvenuto Cellini (Part 1)

EPISODE 99: Thug Life: Benvenuto Cellini (Part 1)

“If one of you comes out of the shop, let the other run for a priest, because there’ll be no need for a doctor.” — Benvenuto Cellini  “The whole world was now in warfare.” — Benvenuto Cellini “And then falling on my knees, I begged him to absolve me of that homicide, and of the others I had committed while serving the Church in the castle. At this the Pope raised his hand, carefully made a great sign of the cross above my head, and said that he gave me his blessing and that he forgave me all th

Jun 5, 2023 • 1:55:06

[RERUN] EPISODE 60: Fear and Loathing in Mongolia (Part 2)

[RERUN] EPISODE 60: Fear and Loathing in Mongolia (Part 2)

“On these hills, where everywhere were rolling skulls, skeletons, and decaying body parts, Baron Ungern used to like to go to rest.” One of Ungern-Sternberg’s officers“Look at [Europe's] past full of fire and blood and the vicious, savage struggle of man against God. The West has given man science, wisdom, and power, yet it has also brought godlessness, immorality, treason, the abnegation of truth and goodness. There, in the West, the destruction of entire empires has begun. Whole nations are be

May 22, 2023 • 1:54:51

[RERUN] EPISODE 59: Fear and Loathing in Mongolia (Part 1)

[RERUN] EPISODE 59: Fear and Loathing in Mongolia (Part 1)

“My name is surrounded with such hate and fear that no one can judge what is the truth and what is false, what is history, and what is myth.” Roman von Ungern-Sternberg“Ungern had fused with the war, and equally, the war, in turn, had fused with him.”Willard Sunderland A recurring thread in History on Fire episodes is my soft spot for individuals who are mildly mentally deranged, but have something lovable about them. Today, that thread doesn’t quite apply. The subject of our story gets an A+ in

May 8, 2023 • 2:00:15

EPISODE 98: Machine Gun Blues

EPISODE 98: Machine Gun Blues

“Most people go through life thinking they’re totally safe. People like us, we know the truth. Life is hard and dangerous, and sometimes you just got to chop off somebody’s head to survive.” — Ash vs. Evil Dead “No friend ever served me, and no enemy ever wronged me, whom I have not repaid in full.” — Lucius Cornelius Sulla  “Around four o’clock on that Monday afternoon of the thirteenth, with a light rain falling, the bandits attacked. To the sound of a trumpet—for Lampiao did things in style—

Apr 24, 2023 • 1:43:01

[RERUN] EPISODE 58 Sitting Bull: Wounded Knee (Part 5)

[RERUN] EPISODE 58 Sitting Bull: Wounded Knee (Part 5)

“There a papoose cries by its mother’s breast which, cold and insensible, can nourish it no more; there lies a young girl with her long hair sticky of blood, hiding her mutilated face… And here—here rests the beautiful young squaw whom yesterday I offered a cigarette—dying, with both her legs shot off. She lies there without wailing and greets me with a faint smile on her pale lips.” First Sergeant Ragnar Ling-Vannerus“The Pioneer has before declared that our only safety depends upon the total e

Mar 31, 2023 • 3:02:04

[RERUN] EPISODE 57 Sitting Bull: Compulsory Civilization with a Side of Murder (Part 4)

[RERUN] EPISODE 57 Sitting Bull: Compulsory Civilization with a Side of Murder (Part 4)

“Sent to report on a story that wasn’t there, reporters invented one.” Heather Cox Richardson “Lakota will kill you.” A meadowlark speaking to Sitting Bull in a vision“If the white men want me to die, they ought not to put up the Indians to kill me… Let the soldiers come and take me away and kill me, wherever they like. I am not afraid. I was born a warrior.” Sitting Bull  In historical terms, it was just a blink of an eye ago. In the mid-1800s, the Great Plains in the United States were still f

Mar 14, 2023 • 1:40:10

[RERUN] EPISODE 56 Sitting Bull: Compulsory Civilization with a Side of Murder (Part 3)

[RERUN] EPISODE 56 Sitting Bull: Compulsory Civilization with a Side of Murder (Part 3)

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Feb 28, 2023 • 2:57:57

[RERUN] EPISODE 55 Sitting Bull (Part 2)

[RERUN] EPISODE 55 Sitting Bull (Part 2)

“I don’t want to have anything to do with people who make one carry water on the shoulders and haul manure. You are fools to make yourselves slaves to a piece of fat bacon, some hardtack, and a little sugar and coffee. The whites may get me at last, but I will have good times till then.” Sitting Bull “Let me live deep while I live.” Robert E. Howard“Were I to run away from the enemy, no one will consider me a man.” Kit Fox warrior society song“A warrior I have been. Now it is all over. A hard ti

Feb 16, 2023 • 1:54:37

[RERUN] EPISODE 54 Sitting Bull (Part 1)

[RERUN] EPISODE 54 Sitting Bull (Part 1)

“Sitting Bull, leader of the largest Indian nation on the continent, the strongest, boldest, most stubborn opponent of European influence, was the very heart and soul of the Frontier. When the true history of the New World is written, he will receive his chapter. For Sitting Bull was one of the Makers of America.” Stanley Vestal“If you intend to do this for my sake, take good care of them and let them live. My father is a man and death is his.” Sitting Bull addressing his fellow tribesmen who wa

Jan 30, 2023 • 2:06:17

EPISODE 97: The Psychology of Power in History: A Conversation with Aziz Al-Doory

EPISODE 97: The Psychology of Power in History: A Conversation with Aziz Al-Doory

“…we venerate the crooks, rapists, and pillagers credulous historians have repackaged as ‘founders,’ ‘conquerors,’ and ‘civilize.’ We erect statues and consecrate tombs to commemorate their difference-making. But in fact, most of these monuments memorialize the dark deeds of unhinged lunatics driven by rampant ego and raving greed… most of the supposed ‘great men of history’ were criminals on a rampage. We celebrate them because they ‘changed the world.’ But where’s the evidence that they chang

Jan 16, 2023 • 1:59:50

[RERUN] EPISODE 51: A Life for a Whistle: Emmett Till and the Birth of the Civil Rights Movement

[RERUN] EPISODE 51: A Life for a Whistle: Emmett Till and the Birth of the Civil Rights Movement

“Until the philosophy Which hold one race superior and anotherInferiorIs finallyAnd permanentlyDiscreditedAnd abandonedEverywhere is war” Bob Marley, War, inspired by a speech by Haile Selassie“Emmett Till is dead and gone… Why can’t people leave the dead alone and quit trying to stir things up?” Roy Bryant “I think black peoples' reaction was so visceral. Everybody knew we were under attack and that attack was symbolized by the attack on a 14-year-old boy.” Rose Jourdain“The audience fell silen

Dec 20, 2022 • 1:53:16

EPISODE 96: The Wildest Man You Have Never Heard Of: Thomas Morton

EPISODE 96: The Wildest Man You Have Never Heard Of: Thomas Morton

“The Puritans feared that which was undomesticated.” — Jeff Hendricks “Our earliest American heroes were Morton’s oppressors, Endicott, Bradford, Miles Standish. Merry Mount’s been expunged from the official version because it’s the story not of a virtuous utopia but of a utopia of candor. Yet it’s Morton whose face should be carved in Mount Rushmore.” — Philip Roth  “He held out the promise of America as an earthly paradise, a pagan, not a protestant prospect, a zone of pleasure, not salvation

Dec 6, 2022 • 2:29:12

[RERUN] EPISODE 50 Philosophers and Thugs: Jigoro Kano (Part 2)

[RERUN] EPISODE 50 Philosophers and Thugs: Jigoro Kano (Part 2)

“I teach Kodokan judo as a way of life.” — Jigoro Kano  “Even though he was drunker than usual, Saigo came to the driver’s aid. The burly sailors laughed out loud: “Scram, midget!” Much to their great surprise and considerable pain, in a flash, the pocket Hercules subsequently hurled each of them into the river.” — John Stevens  “I have not been able to transmit my ideals to many students, and there are unfortunately few instructors who can impart proper Kodokan values.” — Jigoro Kano  “The tea

Nov 23, 2022 • 2:25:04

Feed Drop For ‘This Job Is History’

Feed Drop For ‘This Job Is History’

Where the oddest jobs from the past meet a comedian from the present… and it’s awkward! On this weekly show, Chris Parnell (SNL, Rick and Morty) welcomes guests who have held some of human history’s most unexpected and downright bizarre jobs: funeral clowns, garden hermits, VHS clerks, and everything in between. With the help of his tireless producer, Chris hears from the essential workers from decades and centuries past. Because before there were actual medical doctors, there were barber surgeo

Nov 18, 2022 • 5:10

[RERUN] EPISODE 49 The Father of Martial Arts: Jigoro Kano (Part 1)

[RERUN] EPISODE 49 The Father of Martial Arts: Jigoro Kano (Part 1)

“It was a period of stupendous change and immense challenge; the entire social, political, and economic landscape of Japan would be transformed within a few decades. Just as this new era was dawning in Japan, Jigoro Kano was born, on October 28, 1860.” John Stevens“In my childhood, I had heard that there was a thing called jujutsu thanks to which even a weak person could defeat a strong person. I definitely thought about learning it.” Jigoro Kano “Some people believe that Judo means simply pract

Nov 7, 2022 • 1:53:53

EPISODE 95: Tom Le Forge: The Real Dances with Wolves

EPISODE 95: Tom Le Forge: The Real Dances with Wolves

“The adopted father gave away many presents to the people, and these in turn gave presents to me. Thus I became a Crow Indian, a brother of Three Irons and a son of Yellow Leggings, who was a leading counselor of Blackbird, chief of the Mountain Crow tribe.” — Tom Le Forge  “Cherry was utterly cool… under fire. She was as brave as the bravest. She liked to sing and pray, she was jolly and amiable, but on proper occasion she would stand her ground and fight bravely if that were necessary.” — Tom

Oct 24, 2022 • 1:43:15

[RERUN] EPISODE 48: Give Me Back My Legions! (Part 2)

[RERUN] EPISODE 48: Give Me Back My Legions! (Part 2)

“In order to depict a battle, there is required one of those powerful painters who have chaos in their brushes” Victor Hugo“Inconceivable!” From The Princess BrideA little over 2,000 years ago, Rome was a well-oiled war machine crushing everything in its path. At that time, the Roman legions were the most deadly military force in the Western world, and possibly in the whole world. Every year, they conquered new peoples and pushed the boundaries of their empire. Rape and pillage was the name of t

Oct 10, 2022 • 2:02:36

EPISODE 94: The Last War Chief

EPISODE 94: The Last War Chief

“Reflecting upon the chiefs I had known, I realized that here had never been one who was very well off. Poverty was part of a chief’s obligations…” — Frank Bird Linderman   “While we painted ourselves the drums kept beating, and our women sang war-songs. No man can feel himself a coward at such a time. Every man that lives will welcome battle while brave men and women sing war-songs. I would have willingly gone alone against our enemies that day.”  — Plenty Coups “To be alone with our war-horse

Sep 24, 2022 • 2:37:18

EPISODE 93: The Beast of Gevaudan

EPISODE 93: The Beast of Gevaudan

“This animal is a monster whose father is a lion; it remains open what the mother is.” — Jean-Baptiste Boulanger Duhamel “I would be tempted to imagine that we are dealing with a witch, or the devil in person, if only I could believe it.” — Jean-Baptiste Boulanger Duhamel It’s the 1760s, in the Gevaudan area of South Central France. Imagine being a kid. Maybe 12 years old. Maybe as young as 8. You have heard the rumors. Maybe, you saw the mangled bodies. There’s a monster out there. A monster t

Aug 17, 2022 • 1:29:52

EPISODE 92: Jujitsuffragettes With Attitude

EPISODE 92: Jujitsuffragettes With Attitude

“…a mad, wicked folly…” — Queen Victoria about the notion of women having the right to vote “When I watched a policeman fell a girl to the ground and kick her across the platform, my only regret was that I had no weapon with which to strike him an effective blow.” — Eunice G. Murray “£100 to any man who can defeat him. Notwithstanding the physical disadvantages against heavier men (for Tani weighs 9 stone only), Apollo will pay any living man twenty guineas who Tani fails to defeat in fifteen m

Jul 15, 2022 • 2:24:27

EPISODE 85: The Siege That Changed All of History

EPISODE 85: The Siege That Changed All of History

“I cut off their heads. I burned them with fire. With their blood I dyed the mountain red like red wool. Men I impaled on stakes. The city I destroyed, devastated… the young men and maidens I burned in the fire.” — Ashurnairpal II “I filled the wide plain with the corpses of his warriors…. These [rebels] I impaled on stakes. …A pyramid of heads I erected in front of the city.” — Salmaneser III “Don’t let Hezekiah mislead you by saying, ‘The Lord will rescue us!’ Have the gods of any other natio

Jan 17, 2022 • 2:29:04

EPISODE 78: Bruce Lee (Part 2)

EPISODE 78: Bruce Lee (Part 2)

“Jeet Kune Do favors formlessness so that it can assume all forms and since Jeet Kune Do has no style, it can fit with all styles. As a result, Jeet Kune Do utilizes all ways and is bound by none and, likewise, uses any techniques or means which serve its ends.” — Bruce Lee “1. Research your own experience.
2. Absorb what is useful.
3. Reject what is useless.
4. Add what is specifically your own.” — Bruce Lee’s methodology “I maintain that truth is a pathless land and you cannot approach it by

Jan 17, 2022 • 2:26:28

EPISODE 77: Bruce Lee (Part 1)

EPISODE 77: Bruce Lee (Part 1)

“Energy is eternal delight.” — William Blake “Hong Kong in the 1950s was a depressed place. Post–World War II Hong Kong had suffered from unemployment, a poor economy, over-crowding, homelessness, and people taking advantage of each other. Gangs roamed the street, and juvenile delinquents ran rampant.” — Hawkins Cheung “Teachers should never impose their favorite patterns on their students—he said—They should be finding out what works for them, and what does not work for them. The individual is

Jan 17, 2022 • 2:13:19

EPISODE 72: John Brown (Part 3): Violent Delights, Violent Ends

EPISODE 72: John Brown (Part 3): Violent Delights, Violent Ends

“I, John Brown, am now quite certain that the crimes of this guilty land will never be purged away but with blood.” John Brown  “If you seek my blood, you can have it at any moment without the mockery of a trial.” John Brown “John Brown, and a thousand John Browns, can invade us, and the Government will not protect us. To secure our rights and protect our honor we will dissever the ties that bind us together, even if it rushes us into a sea of blood." Mississippi congressman Reuben Davis “John B

Mar 26, 2021 • 2:20:39

EPISODE 71: John Brown (Part 2): A Reckoning in Blood

EPISODE 71: John Brown (Part 2): A Reckoning in Blood

“I think he [God] has used me as an instrument to kill men; and if I live, I think he will use me as an instrument to kill a good many more.” John Brown “I had reached the point at which I was not afraid to die. This spirit made me a freeman in fact, while I remained a slave in form.” Frederick Douglass  “I have only a short time to live, only death to die and I will die fighting for this cause.  There will be no peace in this land until slavery is done for.” John Brown“We will continue to tar a

Mar 26, 2021 • 2:03:50

EPISODE 70: John Brown (Part 1): Heartbreak & Slavery

EPISODE 70: John Brown (Part 1): Heartbreak & Slavery

“You know what John Brown did? He went to war. He was a white man who went to war against white people to help free slaves. White people call John Brown a nut. Go read the history, go read what all of them say about John Brown. They’re trying to make it look like he was a nut, a fanatic… But they depict him in this image because he was willing to shed blood to free the slaves. And any white man who is ready and willing to shed blood for your freedom… So when you want to know good white folks in

Mar 26, 2021 • 1:26:28

EPISODE 69: Capturing Mussolini

EPISODE 69: Capturing Mussolini

“He must be handed over to a tribunal of the people so it can judge him quickly. We want this, even though we think an execution platoon is too much of an honor for this man. He would deserve to be killed like a mangy dog.” Future Italian President Sandro Pertini about Benito Mussolini“The world unfortunately continues to be a battlefield where different egos clash, repeating the mistakes of the past.” Federigo Giordano“Death to the Nazi-Fascists.” The closing quote of most letters written by Fe

Mar 26, 2021 • 1:59:57

EPISODE 68: My Grandma and Her Bombs: A Story of WWII

EPISODE 68: My Grandma and Her Bombs: A Story of WWII

“Women must obey… My opinion of women’s role within the state is against any kind of feminism. In our state, women must not count.” Benito Mussolini“Yes, I participated in the actions. I usually had the task of carrying the weapons and would hand them to our shooters. As soon as they had used them, I’d get them back from them—still hot.” Liana Germani“I was mostly afraid of torture had they captured me, of the terrible suffering on the way to the concentration camps. Death seemed simple, somethi

Oct 4, 2020 • 1:51:15

EPISODE 67: Ripples of History

EPISODE 67: Ripples of History

“If I knew the way, I would take you home.”  — From the song Ripple by the Grateful Dead  “The only thing that will redeem mankind is cooperation.” — Bertrand Russell  “Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships.” — Michael Jordan  “A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.” — Tao Te Ching  In most fields, we are taught that people in your same profession are your competitors, and you need to do whatever you can to prevent them from rising above you. In podcast

Sep 13, 2020 • 2:51:39

EPISODE 66: Sex in Ancient Rome

EPISODE 66: Sex in Ancient Rome

“From an author’s perspective, writing about sex is risky, because if you write well enough, evocatively enough, vividly enough, you make the reader want to put the book aside and go get laid.” Tom Robbins“Let's live and love,Caring less than nothing forThe moralizing of stern old men.The sun sets and rises back again,But an eternal night of sleep awaits usWhen our brief light turns to darkness.Give me a thousand kisses, and a hundred more.Then a thousand, and another hundred.And then more thous

Sep 6, 2020 • 2:14:00

EPISODE 65: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 3): A River of Death

EPISODE 65: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 3): A River of Death

“Everywhere in southern Anhui they are eating people.” Zeng Guofan“Infants but recently born were torn from their mother’s breasts, and disemboweled before their faces. Young strong men were disemboweled, mutilated, and the parts cut off thrust into their own mouths…” A British testimony on the Qing treatment of POWsIf I were to ask you which is the deadliest conflict in history, you’d probably answer WW II. But if I were to ask you, which is the second deadliest conflict ever—at least according

Sep 5, 2020 • 2:25:07

EPISODE 64: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 2): Jesus’ Chinese Younger Brother

EPISODE 64: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 2): Jesus’ Chinese Younger Brother

“Is not this insurgent movement truly wonderful? These rebels keep Sabbath as we do, they pray to God daily, they read the Scriptures, they break the idols, and they long for the time when, instead of those heathen temples, they shall have Christian chapels, and worship together with us… is it not a remarkable era in China?”A Christian missionary wife about the Taiping Rebellion“Jesus our Elder Brother showed us the treacherous heart of this demon follower.” Sign hanging around the neck of a man

Sep 5, 2020 • 2:16:24

EPISODE 63: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 1): Drug Dealers and Visionaries

EPISODE 63: The Taiping Rebellion (Part 1): Drug Dealers and Visionaries

“The entire story of the Taiping Rebellion might be told, from one perspective, as the rage of a failed exam candidate writ large.” Stephen Platt “They may not intend to harm others on purpose, but the fact remains that they are so obsessed with material gain that they have no concern whatever for the harm they can cause to others.” Lin Zexu about British opium traders“Heaven is furious with anger, and all the gods are moaning with pain!... A murderer of one person is subject to the death senten

Sep 5, 2020 • 1:28:43

EPISODE 62: Plagues, Mystery and Dancing

EPISODE 62: Plagues, Mystery and Dancing

“The universities do not teach all things, so a doctor must seek out old wives, gypsies, sorcerers, wandering tribes, old robbers, and such outlaws and take lessons from them. A doctor must be a traveler… Knowledge is experience.” Paracelsus “They indulged in disgraceful immodesty, for many women, during this shameless dance and mock-bridal singing, bared their bosoms, while others of their own accord offered their virtue.” C. Browerus describing the 1374 Dancing PlagueWeird seems like the most

Sep 5, 2020 • 1:50:05

EPISODE 61: Raiders in the Night

EPISODE 61: Raiders in the Night

“Never in history had the United States Army been called on to rescue such a large number of POWs from so deep in enemy territory.” William Breuer “We were in the best shape of our lives, and with this mission we understood why he had driven us so hard.” Alvie Robbins speaking about Henry Mucci’s physical training“As far as we were concerned, they were gods.” Bob Body about the Rangers who rescued him and his fellow POWs.“Nothing in this entire campaign has given me so much personal satisfaction

Apr 17, 2020 • 2:20:36

EPISODE 60: Fear and Loathing in Mongolia (Part 2)

EPISODE 60: Fear and Loathing in Mongolia (Part 2)

“On these hills, where everywhere were rolling skulls, skeletons, and decaying body parts, Baron Ungern used to like to go to rest.” One of Ungern-Sternberg’s officers“Look at [Europe's] past full of fire and blood and the vicious, savage struggle of man against God. The West has given man science, wisdom, and power, yet it has also brought godlessness, immorality, treason, the abnegation of truth and goodness. There, in the West, the destruction of entire empires has begun. Whole nations are be

Apr 6, 2020 • 1:52:30

EPISODE 59: Fear and Loathing in Mongolia (Part 1)

EPISODE 59: Fear and Loathing in Mongolia (Part 1)

“My name is surrounded with such hate and fear that no one can judge what is the truth and what is false, what is history, and what is myth.” Roman von Ungern-Sternberg“Ungern had fused with the war, and equally, the war, in turn, had fused with him.”Willard Sunderland A recurring thread in History on Fire episodes is my soft spot for individuals who are mildly mentally deranged, but have something lovable about them. Today, that thread doesn’t quite apply. The subject of our story gets an A+ in

Apr 6, 2020 • 1:58:13

BONUS EPISODE Dan Carlin’s “The End Is Always Near”

BONUS EPISODE Dan Carlin’s “The End Is Always Near”

“That is the nicest guilt trip anybody has ever given me in my entire life.” — Dan Carlin  Dan Carlin is one of my all time favorite human beings, and on top of that an incredible podcaster. He’s now a published author as well. In this episode we chat about his new book, The End is Always Near. The conversation covers more than should theoretically be possible to cover in little over an hour—from Dan’s understanding for Thanos’ plight to the collapse of civilizations, the concept of Gross Natio

Apr 5, 2020 • 1:10:35

EPISODE 58 Sitting Bull: Wounded Knee (Part 5)

EPISODE 58 Sitting Bull: Wounded Knee (Part 5)

“There a papoose cries by its mother’s breast which, cold and insensible, can nourish it no more; there lies a young girl with her long hair sticky of blood, hiding her mutilated face… And here—here rests the beautiful young squaw whom yesterday I offered a cigarette—dying, with both her legs shot off. She lies there without wailing and greets me with a faint smile on her pale lips.” First Sergeant Ragnar Ling-Vannerus“The Pioneer has before declared that our only safety depends upon the total e

Apr 5, 2020 • 2:59:13

EPISODE 57 Sitting Bull: Compulsory Civilization with a Side of Murder (Part 4)

EPISODE 57 Sitting Bull: Compulsory Civilization with a Side of Murder (Part 4)

“Sent to report on a story that wasn’t there, reporters invented one.” Heather Cox Richardson “Lakota will kill you.” A meadowlark speaking to Sitting Bull in a vision“If the white men want me to die, they ought not to put up the Indians to kill me… Let the soldiers come and take me away and kill me, wherever they like. I am not afraid. I was born a warrior.” Sitting Bull  In historical terms, it was just a blink of an eye ago. In the mid-1800s, the Great Plains in the United States were still f

Apr 5, 2020 • 1:36:27

EPISODE 56 Sitting Bull: Compulsory Civilization with a Side of Murder (Part 3)

EPISODE 56 Sitting Bull: Compulsory Civilization with a Side of Murder (Part 3)

“Kill the Indian and save the man.” Richard Pratt“The life my people want is a life of freedom. I have seen nothing that a white man has, houses or railways or clothing or food, that is good as the right to move in the open country, and live in our own fashion.” Sitting Bull“The white man knows how to make everything, but he does not know how to distribute it.” Sitting Bull “Possession—a war that doesn’t end.” John Trudell “We were faint with hunger and maddened by despair. We held our dying chi

Dec 18, 2019 • 2:55:42

EPISODE 55 Sitting Bull (Part 2)

EPISODE 55 Sitting Bull (Part 2)

“I don’t want to have anything to do with people who make one carry water on the shoulders and haul manure. You are fools to make yourselves slaves to a piece of fat bacon, some hardtack, and a little sugar and coffee. The whites may get me at last, but I will have good times till then.” — Sitting Bull  “Let me live deep while I live.” — Robert E. Howard “Were I to run away from the enemy, no one will consider me a man.” — Kit Fox warrior society song  “A warrior I have been. Now it is all over

Nov 9, 2019 • 1:49:02

[RERUN] EPISODE 54 Sitting Bull (Part 1)

[RERUN] EPISODE 54 Sitting Bull (Part 1)

“Sitting Bull, leader of the largest Indian nation on the continent, the strongest, boldest, most stubborn opponent of European influence, was the very heart and soul of the Frontier. When the true history of the New World is written, he will receive his chapter. For Sitting Bull was one of the Makers of America.” — Stanley Vestal  “If you intend to do this for my sake, take good care of them and let them live. My father is a man and death is his.” — Sitting Bull addressing his fellow tribesmen

Oct 2, 2019 • 2:03:28

EPISODE 53 Diogenes: The Punk Rocker of Ancient Greece

EPISODE 53 Diogenes: The Punk Rocker of Ancient Greece

“A Socrates gone mad.” — Plato referring to Diogenes  “Had I not been Alexander, I would have liked to have been Diogenes.” — Alexander the Great  "If I wasn't Diogenes, I would be wishing to be Diogenes too." — Diogenes “There are nowadays professors of philosophy, but not philosophers… To be a philosopher is not merely to have subtle thoughts, nor even to found a school, but so to love wisdom as to live according to its dictates, a life of simplicity, independence, magnanimity, and trust. It

Aug 31, 2019 • 1:47:21

EPISODE 52 The Lady and Her Gun

EPISODE 52 The Lady and Her Gun

“It's just incredible that this little hand has killed Nazis, has scythed them down by the hundreds, without missing…” — Charlie Chaplin  “Miss Pavlichenko's well known to fame,  Russia's your country,  fighting is your game,  Your smile shines as bright as any new morning sun,  But more than three hundred Nazi dogs fell by your gun.” — Woody Guthrie  “Charging together, we would dash into battle and forget about everything else in the world.” — Lyudmila Pavlichenko “Gentlemen, I am 25 years ol

Jul 28, 2019 • 1:45:45

EPISODE 51 A Life for a Whistle: Emmett Till and the Birth of the Civil Rights Movement

EPISODE 51 A Life for a Whistle: Emmett Till and the Birth of the Civil Rights Movement

“Until the philosophy  Which hold one race superior and another Inferior Is finally And permanently Discredited And abandoned Everywhere is war” — Bob Marley, War, inspired by a speech by Haile Selassie  “Emmett Till is dead and gone… Why can’t people leave the dead alone and quit trying to stir things up?” — Roy Bryant  “I think black peoples' reaction was so visceral. Everybody knew we were under attack and that attack was symbolized by the attack on a 14-year-old boy.” — Rose Jourdain  “The

Jun 21, 2019 • 1:50:16

EPISODE 50 The Father of Martial Arts: Jigoro Kano (Part 2)

EPISODE 50 The Father of Martial Arts: Jigoro Kano (Part 2)

“I teach Kodokan judo as a way of life.” Jigoro Kano“Even though he was drunker than usual, Saigo came to the driver’s aid. The burly sailors laughed out loud: “Scram, midget!” Much to their great surprise and considerable pain, in a flash, the pocket Hercules subsequently hurled each of them into the river.” John Stevens“I have not been able to transmit my ideals to many students, and there are unfortunately few instructors who can impart proper Kodokan values.” Jigoro Kano“The teaching of one

Jun 6, 2019 • 2:26:24

EPISODE 49 The Father of Martial Arts: Jigoro Kano (Part 1)

EPISODE 49 The Father of Martial Arts: Jigoro Kano (Part 1)

“It was a period of stupendous change and immense challenge; the entire social, political, and economic landscape of Japan would be transformed within a few decades. Just as this new era was dawning in Japan, Jigoro Kano was born, on October 28, 1860.” — John Stevens  “In my childhood, I had heard that there was a thing called jujutsu thanks to which even a weak person could defeat a strong person. I definitely thought about learning it.” — Jigoro Kano  “Some people believe that Judo means simp

Jun 6, 2019 • 1:52:21

EPISODE 48: Give Me Back My Legions! (Part 2)

EPISODE 48: Give Me Back My Legions! (Part 2)

“In order to depict a battle, there is required one of those powerful painters who have chaos in their brushes” — Victor Hugo  “Inconceivable!” — From The Princess Bride  A little over 2,000 years ago, Rome was a well-oiled war machine crushing everything in its path. At that time, the Roman legions were the most deadly military force in the Western world, and possibly in the whole world. Every year, they conquered new peoples and pushed the boundaries of their empire. Rape and pillage was the

Jun 6, 2019 • 1:57:04

EPISODE 47 Give Me Back My Legions! (Part 1)

EPISODE 47 Give Me Back My Legions! (Part 1)

“Bits of weapons and horses' limbs lay about, and human heads fixed to tree-trunks. In groves nearby were barbaric altars, where the Germans had laid the tribunes and senior centurions and sacrificed them.” — Tacitus “It stands on record that armies already wavering and on the point of collapse have been rallied by the women, pleading heroically with their men, thrusting forward their bared breasts…” — Tacitus “They are not so easily convinced to plough the land and wait patiently for harvest a

May 12, 2019 • 1:27:03

EPISODE 46 Enjoying Hell: The Life of Ikkyu Sojun (Part 2)

EPISODE 46 Enjoying Hell: The Life of Ikkyu Sojun (Part 2)

“Even if I go to Hell, I’ll find a way to enjoy it.” — Ikkyu  “Watching my four year old daughter dance, I can’t break free of her. Forgetting my duties, I slip into freedom.” — Ikkyu  "After ten days in this temple, my mind is spinning. Between my legs the red thread stretches and stretches. If you wish to find me in the future, you better look for me in a fish shop, a sake parlor, or a brothel.” — Ikkyu  “…tasting life and enjoying sex to the fullest.” — Ikkyu  “Thus the so-called ‘traditiona

Mar 25, 2019 • 1:38:35

EPISODE 45 Sex, Sake and Zen: The Life of Ikkyu Sojun (Part 1)

EPISODE 45 Sex, Sake and Zen: The Life of Ikkyu Sojun (Part 1)

“The autumn breeze of a single night of love is better than a hundred thousand years of sterile sitting meditation.” — Ikkyu  “Thirsty, you dream of water. Cold, you want fire. Not me: I want the firm warm breasts and wetness of a woman.” — Ikkyu  "Drinking and lust, no man can match me in these things.” — Tyrion Lannister in Game of Thrones  “You will always be wild and strange among men—wild and strange even when they love you.” — Friedrich Nietzsche  “…to live deep and suck out all the marro

Mar 18, 2019 • 1:51:40

EPISODE 44 Dan Carlin

EPISODE 44 Dan Carlin

“You keep using this word. I don’t think it means what you think it means.” — The Princess Bride  "Political parties exist to secure responsible government and to execute the will of the people. From these great tasks both of the old parties have turned aside. Instead of instruments to promote the general welfare, they have become the tools of corrupt interests which use them impartially to serve their selfish purposes. Behind the ostensible government sits enthroned an invisible government, ow

Feb 18, 2019 • 1:59:08

EPISODE 43 The Melian Dialogue (The Peloponnesian War and Morality in History)

EPISODE 43 The Melian Dialogue (The Peloponnesian War and Morality in History)

“The strong do what they want, and the weak suffer what they must.” — Athenian embassy to Melos via Thucydides  “As far as right and wrong are concerned, our people think there is no difference between the two—that those who still preserve their independence do so because they are strong, and that if we fail to attack them it is because we are afraid.” — Athenian embassy to Melos via Thucydides  “This is no fair fight, with honor on one side and shame on the other. It is rather a question of sa

Jan 21, 2019 • 2:12:00

EPISODE 42 Joan of Arc (Part 4)

EPISODE 42 Joan of Arc (Part 4)

“It is true that I wished and still wish to escape, as is lawful for any captive or prisoner.” — Joan of Arc  “I have greater fear of failing my voices in saying something that displeases them than I have of answering you.” — Joan of Arc addressing a group of theologians in charge of deciding whether to burn her alive  “Tear me limb from limb. I would rather have you cut my throat than tell you all I know.” — Joan of Arc  “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in them,

Dec 13, 2018 • 2:02:24

EPISODE 41 Joan of Arc (Part 3)

EPISODE 41 Joan of Arc (Part 3)

“We know that everything that she has said has come to pass, that her words are always confirmed by the event—she has in truth come to achieve great things in this world.” — Antonio Morosini “Go and camp for today, because it is quite late. But tomorrow, at the pleasure of God and Our Lady, we will look more closely at you.” — Joan of Arc  By 1429, the heir to the French throne was about to give up and flee in exile. The English and their Burgundian allies controlled huge parts of the country.

Nov 15, 2018 • 1:31:48

EPISODE 40 Joan of Arc (Part 2)

EPISODE 40 Joan of Arc (Part 2)

“Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi. You’re my only hope.” — Star Wars  “… No one else, neither a king nor a duke nor the daughter of the king of Scotland, nor any other who can recover the kingdom of France, and he will have no help, if not through me…” — Joan of Arc “You know as little of war as that Hobbit. When the fear takes him, and the blood, and the screams, and the horrors of battle take hold, do you think he would stand and fight? He would flee. And it would be right to do so. War is the provinc

Oct 16, 2018 • 2:06:12

EPISODE 39 Joan of Arc (Part 1)

EPISODE 39 Joan of Arc (Part 1)

“No person in the Middle Ages, male or female, has been the subject of more historical studies than Joan of Arc.” — Kelly Devries “The life of Joan is such a flagrant beating of the odds that no facts sufficiently explain the course of it. She was born during one of the most corrupt, demoralized periods of French history; she is considered a religious and military hero, but she had neither religious nor military training.” —Mary Gordon By 1429, the heir to the French throne was about to give u

Sep 18, 2018 • 1:51:55

EPISODE 38 Monster in the Darkness

EPISODE 38 Monster in the Darkness

“Not since the panic-ridden days in 1888, when Jack the Ripper was abroad in the East End, had London known such a reign of terror as that which existed in this wartime February...” — Scotland Yard Chief Superintendent Fred Cherrill What I am going to tell you is one of the craziest serial killer stories that you have never heard of. And there are very good reason why most people have never heard of this. In 1942, Death stalked London. Death came from the sky in the form of German bombs. And o

Aug 23, 2018 • 1:35:30

EPISODE 37 The 47 Ronin (Part 2)

EPISODE 37 The 47 Ronin (Part 2)

“Among other things, the Way of the Samurai requires that he realize that something may occur at any moment to test the depth of his resolution, and day and night he must sort out his thought and prepare a line of action. Depending on the circumstances, he may win or lose. But avoiding dishonor is quite a separate consideration from winning or losing.” — Hagakure  “It would not befit a samurai wife to shed sorrowful tears, so please be strong. Of course I will miss you, but this is what a warri

Jul 26, 2018 • 1:18:21

EPISODE 36 The 47 Ronin (Part 1)

EPISODE 36 The 47 Ronin (Part 1)

“Death poems Are a delusion.  You just die.” — Zen monk Kanzawa Toko The tale of the 47 Ronin is one of the most renowned revenge tales to ever come out of Japan. It is the subject of countless books, plays, and movies. It is also a story that has ignited never-ending debates. Some people argue that the 47 Ronin were paragons of virtue—perfect embodiments of the loyalty and honor that should be expected from the samurai. They offered the answer to the riddle that was plaguing the samurai at the

Jun 28, 2018 • 1:26:25

EPISODE 35 The Magliana Gang (Part 2)

EPISODE 35 The Magliana Gang (Part 2)

“There was money that wasn’t coming back and the choice was between leaving some cardinal dead on the street or to strike someone close to the Pope. We chose the second path.” — Antonio Mancini  “We of the Magliana gang were street bandits. We loved robberies, without asking anyone’s permission, without compromises. I wanted a Ferrari? One hit and i’d buy it. Cops would take it from me? Another robbery and i’d buy it again. I enjoyed all my money. De Pedis instead would buy night clubs, restaur

May 30, 2018 • 1:38:10

EPISODE 34 The Magliana Gang (Part 1)

EPISODE 34 The Magliana Gang (Part 1)

“A lifetime serving one machine Is ten times worse than prison”  — The Clash (from the song Bankrobber) “We were treated like movie stars with muscle. We had it all, just for the asking… Anything I wanted was a phone call away. Free cars. The keys to a dozen hideout flats all over the city…When I was broke I would go out and rob some more. We ran everything. We paid off cops. We paid off lawyers. We paid off judges. Everybody had their hands out. Everything was for the taking.”  — From the movi

May 3, 2018 • 1:23:07

EPISODE 33 On Good and Evil: From My Lai to Sand Creek

EPISODE 33 On Good and Evil: From My Lai to Sand Creek

“Most people are not evil. Most people are weak. And weakness is fertile ground where evil can thrive.” — DB "Every Day/ On our fellow man we prey/ Dog eat Dog/ To Get by/ Hope you like my genocide” — The Offspring  “Hello darkness, my old friend…” — Simon and Garfunkel What makes seemingly normal men commit horrific acts against civilians during war? What allows some people to act heroically in the darkest circumstances and what makes others turn into monsters? How does training and leadership

Apr 4, 2018 • 2:13:04

EPISODE 32B Anything That Moves (Part 2): The Parallel Stories of Sand Creek and My Lai

EPISODE 32B Anything That Moves (Part 2): The Parallel Stories of Sand Creek and My Lai

"Because I felt like I was ordered to do it, and it seemed like that, at the time I felt like I was doing the right thing." — Private First Class Paul Meadlo explaining his role in the My Lai Massacre.  "How do you shoot babies?" Meadlo was then asked. His reply... "I don't know. It's just one of them things." "I felt then and I still do that I acted as I was directed, and I carried out the order that I was given and I do not feel wrong in doing so." — Lieutenant William Calley Jr. addressing h

Mar 8, 2018 • 2:35:24

EPISODE 32A Anything That Moves (Part 1): The Parallel Stories of Sand Creek and My Lai

EPISODE 32A Anything That Moves (Part 1): The Parallel Stories of Sand Creek and My Lai

"Every Day/ On our fellow man we prey/ Dog eat Dog/ To Get by/ Hope you like my genocide” — The Offspring  “Hello darkness, my old friend…” — Simon and Garfunkel “I believe now it is but the commencement of war with this tribe, which must result in their extermination.” — Major Jacob Downing  “Damn any man who sympathizes with Indians! ... I have come to kill Indians, and believe it is right and honorable to use any means under God's heaven to kill Indians. ... Kill and scalp all, big and littl

Mar 7, 2018 • 2:11:05

EPISODE 31 Gladiators in Ancient Rome (Part 2): The Spirit of the Gladiator

EPISODE 31 Gladiators in Ancient Rome (Part 2): The Spirit of the Gladiator

“It’s the steel that they love” — Juvenal  “I needed money for wine” — Titus Pullo in HBO’s series Rome “We can live vicariously through that moment, or use it to fuel what we desire in life.” —Jake Rossen "You must die erect and invincible. What difference will it make if you gain a few more days or years? We are born into a world in which no quarter is given." — Seneca “He who has learned how to die has learned how not to be a slave.” — Seneca "Joy... is the victim's revolt and revenge agains

Feb 14, 2018 • 1:48:19

EPISODE 30 Gladiators in Ancient Rome (Part 1): Are You Not Entertained?

EPISODE 30 Gladiators in Ancient Rome (Part 1): Are You Not Entertained?

"The stupid crowd is waiting eagerly For the two valiant heroes to contend. No farther than their noses can they see; A spectacle is all they comprehend.” — Ludovico Ariosto, Orlando Furioso, 30.27 Ancient Romans were obsessed with gladiatorial combat. In this two-part series, we time-travel back to get a sense of what the Games (of which gladiatorial combat was the main attraction) were like. In this episode: the origins of gladiators, human sacrifice, Achilles and the Iliad, feeding the dead

Feb 1, 2018 • 1:47:34

EPISODE 29 I Drink and I Know Things (Where History and Game of Thrones Intersect)

EPISODE 29 I Drink and I Know Things (Where History and Game of Thrones Intersect)

“No matter how much I make up, there’s stuff in history that’s just as bad, or worse.” — George R.R. Martin “Though I would treasure your friendship, I am mainly interested in your facility with murder” — Tyrion Lannister “That’s what I do. I drink and I know things.” — Tyrion Lannister “If we don’t put aside our enmities and band together, we will die. And then it doesn’t matter whose skeleton sits on the Iron Throne.” — Ser Davos Seaworth “Now, I’m sure cutting off heads is very satisfying, b

Jan 18, 2018 • 2:21:07

EPISODE 28 Jack Johnson (Part 3): Nobody’s Slave

EPISODE 28 Jack Johnson (Part 3): Nobody’s Slave

“He refused to allow anyone—white or black—or any laws and customs—to dictate his place in society or the manner in which he should live.” — Al-Tony Gilmore “This negro, in the eyes of many, has been persecuted. Perhaps as an individual he was. But it was his misfortune to be the foremost example of the evil in permitting the intermarriage of whites and blacks.” — Asst Atty. Gen. Harry Parkin “No brutality, no infamy, no degradation in all the years of Southern slavery, possessed such a villain

Jan 4, 2018 • 2:07:16

EPISODE 27 Jack Johnson (Part 2): The Fight

EPISODE 27 Jack Johnson (Part 2): The Fight

“And it was fast cars and whiskey Long legged girls and fun I had everything that money could bring And I took it all with a gun” — from the song I’ve Never Picked Cotton “Johnson did not care. He had no use for the bourgeois values of thrift and respectability.” —Randy Roberts “You don’t catch Jim Jeffries losing to a colored man.” — Jim Jeffries “Quite conceivably there had never been a more important athletic event in American history.” — Randy Roberts  “Even those who have an absurdly exagg

Dec 7, 2017 • 2:04:14

EPISODE 26 Jack Johnson (Part 1): Bad To The Bone

EPISODE 26 Jack Johnson (Part 1): Bad To The Bone

Back in the day when you could still pay your ticket on the spot in cash, a cop pulled over Jack Johnson for speeding.  “Hey boy—said the cop—This is going to cost you $50!” Johnson handed him $100. The cop tried to protest he didn’t have change, but Johnson waved him off.  “I will be coming back this same way, and I’ll be driving at the same speed, so I’m just paying you in advance.”  “His story is one of the great dramas not just of American sports, but of all American history.” — New York Ti

Nov 9, 2017 • 1:44:19

EPISODE 25 Roman History with Mike Duncan

EPISODE 25 Roman History with Mike Duncan

Mike Duncan is one of the pioneers of historical podcasting. His “History of Rome” is iconic. And his current “Revolutions” is equally compelling. In this episode, we sit down to chat about Roman history, Rome in cinema, the inevitable comparisons between Ancient Rome and the United States, the factionalism and corruption that brought down the Republic, the connection between ‘The Walking Dead’ + ‘Game of Thrones’ and Roman history, his upcoming book “The Storm Before the Storm,” and the future

Oct 12, 2017 • 1:28:26

EPISODE 24 The Pirate Queen

EPISODE 24 The Pirate Queen

“I never planted wheat and never will, so long as there are other harvests to be reaped with the sword.” —Robert E. Howard (from ‘Beyond the Black River’)  “In the rough and violent world of seafaring, mariners could not afford to always abide by the niceties of the law or proper etiquette.” —Robert J Anthony “There is no greater calamity than not knowing what is enough”. —Tao Te Ching At the very beginning of the 1800s, a Chinese woman went from being employed as a prostitute in the floating b

Sep 14, 2017 • 2:12:58

EPISODE 23 The Conquest of Mexico (Part 4): Tenochtitlan Or Bust

EPISODE 23 The Conquest of Mexico (Part 4): Tenochtitlan Or Bust

“After getting this information, he had the arms, feet, and heads of our unfortunate companions cut off, and sent them round to various towns of our allies and those who had made peace with us, with the message that he did not think one of us would be left alive to return to Texcoco. Then he offered their hearts and blood to his idols.” — Bernal Diaz “Eat the flesh of your brothers, for we are full. You can stuff yourselves with our leftovers.” —Mexica warriors addressing the Spaniards  “It is

Aug 17, 2017 • 2:29:59

EPISODE 22 The Conquest of Mexico (Part 3): Tenochtitlan Syndrome

EPISODE 22 The Conquest of Mexico (Part 3): Tenochtitlan Syndrome

“And when we saw all those cities and villages built in the water, and other great towns on dry land, and that straight and level causeway leading to Mexico, we were astounded. These great towns and cues and buildings rising from the water, all made of stone, seemed like an enchanted vision from the tale of Amadis. Indeed, some of our soldiers asked whether it was not all a dream. It is not surprising therefore that I should write in this vein. It was all so wonderful that I do not know how to

Jul 21, 2017 • 2:29:35

EPISODE 21 The Conquest of Mexico (Part 2): The Dogs of War

EPISODE 21 The Conquest of Mexico (Part 2): The Dogs of War

“My advice is not to allow into your house someone who will put you out of it.” —Cuitlahuac “He added that we could look for no help or assistance except from God, for now we had no ships in which to return to Cuba. Therefore we must rely on our own good swords and stout hearts.” — Bernal Diaz  “We knew that they had come determined to leave none of us alive except those who were to be sacrificed to their idols.” — Bernal Diaz  In the 1500s, two highly militaristic peoples fueled by religious i

Jun 22, 2017 • 2:09:27

EPISODE 20 The Conquest of Mexico (Part 1): People Of The Sun

EPISODE 20 The Conquest of Mexico (Part 1): People Of The Sun

“We came to serve God and get rich” — Bernal Diaz  “Behold this torch which we will light and place between our armies. If you do not make haste and retreat before the torch is burned, you will die. We do not want you as guests.” — Maya warning to the Spaniards in 1518  “Do not lose your soul for the sake of an Indian woman” — Geronimo de Aguilar to Gonzalo Guerrero In the 1500s, two highly militaristic peoples fueled by religious ideologies requiring bloodshed clashed with one another. This is

May 25, 2017 • 1:56:06

EPISODE 19 Featuring Dan Carlin

EPISODE 19 Featuring Dan Carlin

"If I can add some nuance and complexity and some context and compassion. If I can get people to think about walking a mile in the other guy's moccasins, or pretend like you want to, I can feel like I'm adding something that is unusual. And it's a little bit shocking and upsetting to me that it is unusual. When people say it's so refreshing, you wonder why it's refreshing to try to see the other person's viewpoint? Shouldn't that just be how we are?" — Dan Carlin  “It’s an uplifting story with

Apr 28, 2017 • 1:34:06

EPISODE 18 The War for the Black Hills (Part 3): Last Stand

EPISODE 18 The War for the Black Hills (Part 3): Last Stand

"It made my heart bad. After that, I killed my enemies with the hatchet.” — Lakota leader Gall, upon finding out his family had been killed “If we’ve got to die, let’s die here like men." — Lieutenant Luther Hare "We were terribly alone on that dangerous hilltop. We were a million miles from nowhere. And death was all around us.” — Charles Windolph “Only Earth and the Heavens last long, Uncle. If we four can stop the soldiers from taking our camp, our lives will matter little.” — Bobtail Horse

Mar 31, 2017 • 2:18:57

EPISODE 17 The War for the Black Hills (part 2): The Long Defeat

EPISODE 17 The War for the Black Hills (part 2): The Long Defeat

“…And together through ages of the world we have fought the long defeat.” — J.R.R. Tolkien  “I shall have glory by this losing day.” — William Shakespeare “Oyate kin ninpi kta ca lecamu yelo” (“I do this so that the people may live.”) — Lakota song “My mind was occupied mostly by such thoughts as are regularly uppermost in the minds of young men. I was eighteen years old, and I liked girls.” — Wooden Leg To the Lakota people, the Black Hills of South Dakota were — and still are — "the heart of

Mar 2, 2017 • 2:04:51

EPISODE 16 The War for the Black Hills (Part 1): The Heart of Everything That Is

EPISODE 16 The War for the Black Hills (Part 1): The Heart of Everything That Is

“The Black Hills is my land and I love it. And whoever interferes will hear this gun.” — Lakota song “Came to the Hills in 1833… got our gold in 1834. Got all the gold we could carry. Our ponys got by Indians. I have lost my gun and nothing to eat and Indians hunting me.” — Ezra Kind To the Lakota people, the Black Hills of South Dakota were — and still are — "the heart of everything that is." To the United States, they were a goldmine, and Manifest Destiny’s next target. It was for the Black H

Jan 19, 2017 • 2:12:14

EPISODE 15 Ted Roosevelt (Part 3): The Man In The Arena

EPISODE 15 Ted Roosevelt (Part 3): The Man In The Arena

“Ladies and gentlemen, I don't know whether you fully understand that I have just been shot, but it takes more than that to kill a Bull Moose.”  — Theodore Roosevelt  He was the first American to receive a brown belt in Judo.  He won the largest percentage of the vote ever by a third-party candidate. He once took a bullet to the chest shot at point blank range, and rather than going to the hospital went to deliver a 90 minute speech.  He survived tragedies that would break lesser men. He spent

Dec 18, 2016 • 1:24:55

EPISODE 14 Ted Roosevelt (Part 2): The Strenuous Life

EPISODE 14 Ted Roosevelt (Part 2): The Strenuous Life

“The poorest way to face life is to face it with a sneer,” he said. “A cynical habit of thought and speech, a readiness to criticize work which the critic himself never tries to perform, an intellectual aloofness which will not accept contact with life's realities—all these are marks, not ... of superiority but of weakness.”  — Theodore Roosevelt  He was the first American to receive a brown belt in Judo.  He won the largest percentage of the vote ever by a third-party candidate. He once took a

Nov 29, 2016 • 1:51:37

EPISODE 13 Ted Roosevelt (Part 1): The Rough Rider and His DemonsEPISODE 13 Ted Roosevelt (Part 1): The Rough Rider and His DemonsEPISODE 13 Ted Roosevelt (Part 1): The Rough Rider and His DemonsEPISODE 13 Ted Roosevelt (Part 1): The Rough Rider and His D

EPISODE 13 Ted Roosevelt (Part 1): The Rough Rider and His DemonsEPISODE 13 Ted Roosevelt (Part 1): The Rough Rider and His DemonsEPISODE 13 Ted Roosevelt (Part 1): The Rough Rider and His DemonsEPISODE 13 Ted Roosevelt (Part 1): The Rough Rider and His D

“You must still have chaos in yourself to be able to give birth to a dancing star” — Friedrich Nietzsche “History as well as life itself is complicated—neither life nor history is an enterprise for those who seek simplicity and consistency.” — Jared Diamond He was the first American to receive a brown belt in Judo.  He won the largest percentage of the vote ever by a third-party candidate. He once took a bullet to the chest shot at point blank range, and rather than going to the hospital went

Oct 19, 2016 • 2:02:50

EPISODE 12 Caravaggio (Part 2): Folsom Prison Blues

EPISODE 12 Caravaggio (Part 2): Folsom Prison Blues

During a visit to a church in Sicily, a priest offered Caravaggio “holy water”. Caravaggio asked the old priest what it was for. “It will cancel your venial sins, my son,” replied the priest. “Then it’s no use—Caravaggio commented—My sins are all mortal.”  Giles Lambert about Caravaggio and his friends “They provoked the Papal police, hung around with the many Roman women of easy virtue, drank excessively and frightened the bourgeoisie.” He was the greatest artist of his age, and also an outlaw

Sep 20, 2016 • 1:50:28

EPISODE 11 Caravaggio (Part 1): Light and Darkness

EPISODE 11 Caravaggio (Part 1): Light and Darkness

During a visit to a church in Sicily, a priest offered Caravaggio holy water. Caravaggio asked the old priest what it was for. “It will cancel your venial sins, my son,” replied the priest. “Then it’s no use—Caravaggio commented—My sins are all mortal.” Gilles Lambert about Caravaggio and his friends: “They provoked the Papal police, hung around with the many Roman women of easy virtue, drank excessively and frightened the bourgeoisie.” He was the greatest artist of his age, and also an outlaw

Aug 18, 2016 • 1:55:44

EPISODE 10 Crazy Horse (Part 4)

EPISODE 10 Crazy Horse (Part 4)

“In your presence they feel small, and their baseness glimmers and glows against you with hidden vengeance.” — Friedrich Nietzsche “Let me go, my friend—you have hurt me enough.” — Crazy Horse  In this last chapter of the Crazy Horse series, we’ll see Crazy Horse hunting miners in the Black Hills, a Lakota leader shaking hands with one hand while holding his guts in with the other, fighting at Slim Buttes, cutting horses open and hiding babies inside them to keep them from freezing, saying fare

Jul 10, 2016 • 1:59:19

EPISODE 9 Crazy Horse (Part 3)

EPISODE 9 Crazy Horse (Part 3)

“Hold on, my friends! Be strong! Remember the helpless! This is a good day to die!” — Crazy Horse  Everything we have seen so far in Crazy Horse’s life was a warm-up. In Episode 9, things really heat up: leadership, a legend in intertribal warfare, a bison apocalypse, Black Buffalo Woman, a bullet in the face, heartbreak sets up home in Crazy Horse’s tepee, drowning pain into an ocean of blood, taking on the Northern Pacific Railroad, round one with George Armstrong Custer, the thieves’ road, f

Jun 15, 2016 • 1:36:07

EPISODE 8 Crazy Horse (Part 2)

EPISODE 8 Crazy Horse (Part 2)

“There were many bullets, but there were more arrows—so many that it was like a cloud of grasshoppers all above and around the soldiers” — Fire Thunder In Episode 8, we pause the blow by blow narration of Crazy Horse’s life to focus on the larger context: the war between Lakota & Cheyenne and the United States in the mid-1860s. In this episode: things heat up with battles at Platte River Station and Red Buttes, “the yellow metal that makes the wasichus crazy”, just for fun Crazy Horse lets sold

May 23, 2016 • 1:40:08

EPISODE 7 Crazy Horse (Part 1)

EPISODE 7 Crazy Horse (Part 1)

You Don’t Get to Be a Legend by Being Normal "What good is power if you cannot protect the ones you love?" muses Cersei Lannister in Game of Thrones. I can’t think of a more appropriate question to discuss the life of 19th century Lakota hero Crazy Horse. His undeniable power as a warrior, in fact, didn’t spare him from having tragedy visit him time and time again. Taking place against the backdrop of the Lakota-U.S. conflict in the second half of the 1800s, his life was the quintessential tale

May 3, 2016 • 2:16:48

EPISODE 6 The Duel

EPISODE 6 The Duel

On July 11, 1804, the vice-president of the United States (Aaron Burr) and the first Secretary of the Treasury (Alexander Hamilton) decided to settle their grievances by drawing their pistols and trying to shoot each other dead. This is the story of the events leading Burr and Hamilton to stop exchanging words and begin exchanging lead. Also, in this episode: the good old days when killing people in a duel was no obstacle to gaining high political office (just ask Andrew Jackson), Abraham Lincol

Mar 14, 2016 • 1:47:44

EPISODE 5 The 10,000 (Part 2)

EPISODE 5 The 10,000 (Part 2)

In this second and last part of this two-part series, we find out why it is a very bad idea to get on the wrong side of Parysatis, one of the most ruthless queens of the ancient world. We will also run into betrayal, prophetic dreams, epic battles, Xenophon’s rise to leadership, heartbreaking moments, tribal guerrillas in the mountains, poisoned honey, athletic competitions, sweet revenge, and the planting of the seeds for Alexander the Great’s campaigns. This episode is s

Jan 25, 2016 • 1:50:02

EPISODE 4 The 10,000 (Part 1)

EPISODE 4 The 10,000 (Part 1)

Legendary historian Will Durant has described the subject of this episode as “One of the great adventures in human history”. In the first part of this two-part series, we meet the main characters of our tale, when a band of over 10,000 Greek mercenaries agree to serve under the Persian prince Cyrus the Younger in a fratricidal civil war against Cyrus’ brother, King Artaxerxes II.This episode will also include a brief history of the Persian empire, tattooed, head-hunting +

Jan 9, 2016 • 1:43:30

EPISODE 3 The Iceman

EPISODE 3 The Iceman

This episode focuses on one of the greatest archaeological discoveries of the late 20th century: the oldest, fully preserved human body ever found. The man emerged from the ice in the Alps over 5,000 years after his death. The more archaeologists discovered about him, the more haunting the mystery of his fate became. This is a tale of murder, Neolithic battles, the possibly European origins of acupuncture, the best mountain climber who ever lived, Brad Pitt’s tattoo, and o

Nov 30, 2015 • 1:44:17

EPISODE 2 The Slave Wars (Part 2: Spartacus)

EPISODE 2 The Slave Wars (Part 2: Spartacus)

One of the most legendary characters in history comes to visit us in this episode: Spartacus was an auxiliary soldier in the Roman army, a deserter, an outlaw, a gladiator, and the leader of one of the greatest slave rebellions in history. Under his leadership, over 70,000 people defeated the Roman legions multiple times. This episode features mass crucifixions, Dionysian orgies, a master course in guerrilla warfare, walls built with corpses, the most brutal punishment in

Oct 16, 2015 • 2:21:01

Episode 1 The Slave Wars (part 1)

Episode 1 The Slave Wars (part 1)

In the space of a few decades, three major slave wars threatened the Roman Republic. In this episode, we see how the greed of land speculators, tax collectors and slave owners unleashed an orgy of bloodshed as tens of thousands of escaped slaves went to battle against Rome’s armies. Part I of this story covers the first two of the servile wars, and features political intrigues, fire-breathing Syrian prophets, cannibalism, love struck aristocrats arming their slaves, and heroic mass suicides.Plea

Sep 10, 2015 • 1:56:54

Episode 0 Introduction to History on Fire Podcast

Episode 0 Introduction to History on Fire Podcast

In this quick intro, we explore the guiding philosophy of the podcast, Dan Carlin’s influence, and future plans.Please support our sponsors by shopping for supplements, special foods, clothing, and exercise equipment at www.onnit.com/history and receive a 10% discount. Also, if you are in the market for coffee, please consider doing business at Kimera Koffee and use the code “history” at checkout for a 10% discount.Discounts exclusive to our listeners are also available on hemp gear using the co

Sep 10, 2015 • 14:49

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