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Twelve Caesars with Mary Beard
Episode 1437
The title of Caesar has echoed down the ages as the pinnacle of absolute power and perhaps even tyranny. A single man at the head of a nation or empi…
1 year, 10 months ago
Marshal Pétain: Hero or Traitor?
Episode 1436
Marshal Pétain emerged from the First World War as a French national hero. His defence of Verdun had set him on course to become one of France's most…
1 year, 10 months ago
Merlin, The Occult and British Politics
Episode 1434
Who was the real Merlin? Dr Francis Young says the closest is John Dee, Elizabeth I's occultist advisor who gave her the idea for a British Empire. D…
1 year, 10 months ago
The Dynasty That Made Medieval France
Episode 1433
From Hugh Capet to Eleanor of Aquitaine, the Capetian dynasty considered itself divinely chosen to fulfil a great destiny. From an insecure foothold …
1 year, 10 months ago
Why Are We Drawn to Dictators?
Episode 1432
Is liberal democracy facing an existential crisis? A 2023 poll conducted by the Open Society Barometer found that faith in democracy among young peop…
1 year, 10 months ago
The Atomic Bomb & Civil War Cigars: Greatest 'What Ifs' from History
Episode 1431
We think of history as a neat chain of predictable events; but what if the truth is far wilder than that? Today, we're talking about the pivotal forc…
1 year, 10 months ago
The Battle of Okinawa
Episode 1430
Please note, this episode contains discussion of suicide.
On 1 April 1945, as the Second World War in Europe was reaching its end, one of the bloodies…
1 year, 10 months ago
The Original Kamikaze: The Mongol Invasions of Japan
Episode 1429
At the height of the Mongol Empire, Kublai Khan set his sights on the island of Japan. He launched two enormous invasions of that nation in 1274 and …
1 year, 10 months ago
The Kamikaze Hunters
Episode 1428
Please note, this episode contains discussion of suicide.
In 1945, after lengthy delays, the Royal Navy sent a powerful fleet into the Pacific. After …
1 year, 10 months ago
The Kamikaze Pilots
Episode 1427
Please note, this episode contains discussion of suicide.
By October 1944, the Japanese were in real trouble. The Allies had made great strides in th…
1 year, 10 months ago