Podcast Episodes

Germany's Fears of Russian Invasion in 1914

Episode Summary:

In this episode of Explaining History, Nick moves beyond the familiar trenches of the Western Front to explore the terrifying reality of the Eastern Front in 1914. Drawing from Alexan…

Published on 19 hours ago

The Wannsee Conference and the Nazi Camps

In this episode of Explaining History, Nick revisits Nikolaus Wachsmann's monumental study, KL: A History of the Nazi Concentration Camps.

We explore a critical and often misunderstood aspect of the H…

Published on 2 days ago

Child Labour in the Industrial Revolution

Episode Summary:

In this episode of Explaining History, Nick delves into the harrowing yet complex world of child labour during the British Industrial Revolution. Moving beyond the Dickensian caricatu…

Published on 2 days, 21 hours ago

The Damascus Affair: Blood Libel, Empire, and the Birth of Jewish Internationalism

In 1840, a monk disappeared in Damascus, and the ancient, deadly accusation of "blood libel" was levelled against the city's Jewish community. This event, known as the Damascus Affair, became a pivot…

Published on 3 days, 18 hours ago

The US National Security Strategy: A manifesto for the far right

In this episode of Explaining History, Nick analyzes the newly published 2025 US National Security Strategy, a document that could be considered a foundational text for the global far-right.

We explor…

Published on 4 days, 2 hours ago

Stalin and Tito: 1947 - Part Two

Episode Summary:

In the second part of our exploration into the Stalin-Tito split, Nick delves into the dramatic climax of 1948: the expulsion of Yugoslavia from the Cominform.

Stalin famously boasted,…

Published on 5 days, 2 hours ago

On Taxing Wealth

Episode Summary:

In this episode of Explaining History, Nick takes a deep dive into the history and necessity of taxation, connecting the Tudor reign of Henry VII to the modern crisis of inequality in…

Published on 5 days, 17 hours ago

Stalin and Tito: 1947

Episode Summary:

In this episode of Explaining History, Nick explores one of the most critical schisms in Cold War history: the rupture between Joseph Stalin and Josip Broz Tito. While the Sino-Soviet…

Published on 5 days, 23 hours ago

Crisis and Identity: Russian Jews in the 19th Century

Episode Summary:

In this episode of Explaining History, Nick delves into Jonathan Frankel's seminal work, Crisis, Revolution, and Russian Jews. We explore how moments of acute crisis—from the Damascus…

Published on 1 week ago

The Russian General Staff 1905-14

In this episode of Explaining History, Nick delves into the institutional failures of the Imperial Russian Army in the critical decade before World War I. Drawing from the essay collection Reforming …

Published on 1 week, 1 day ago