Podcast Episodes
Back to SearchThomas Cromwell: The Commoner Who Built the Tudor State
Episode 13140
Thomas Cromwell went from a troubled youth in Putney to mercenary, banker's employee in Florence and cloth merchant, then rose to become the most pow…
5 days, 13 hours ago
Tecumseh: Shawnee Strategist, Confederacy Builder and War of 1812 Ally
Episode 13139
Tecumseh built a multi-tribal community of thousands, outmaneuvered an American general without a shot fired in defense, and came close to redrawing …
5 days, 13 hours ago
Talleyrand: How One Diplomat Survived Six French Regimes
Episode 13138
Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord served an absolute king, helped overthrow him, served the revolution, helped install Napoleon, and then helped…
5 days, 13 hours ago
T.E. Lawrence: The Real Man Behind Lawrence of Arabia
Episode 13137
In the 1920s, one of the most famous men in the world was working as a low-ranking enlisted mechanic under a fake name. This deep dive strips away th…
5 days, 13 hours ago
Isaac Newton: Spite, Plague Years, Alchemy and Hidden Theology
Episode 13136
Isaac Newton was born so premature his mother said he could fit in a quart mug, and he grew up abandoned by her and resentful of his stepfather. This…
5 days, 13 hours ago
Seabiscuit: How an Undersized Racehorse Became a Depression Icon
Episode 13135
Seabiscuit lost his first 17 races, was offered in claiming races for $2,500 with no takers, and preferred eating and sleeping to work. Yet in 1938 h…
5 days, 13 hours ago
Rudolf Nureyev: Defection, Fame and the Reinvention of Male Ballet
Episode 13134
Rudolf Nureyev was born on a Trans-Siberian train in 1938 and became arguably the most famous male ballet dancer of the 20th century. This episode fo…
5 days, 13 hours ago
Robespierre: From Death Penalty Opponent to the Reign of Terror
Episode 13133
Maximilien Robespierre once resigned as a criminal judge because he opposed the death penalty, yet he became the face of the Reign of Terror. This de…
5 days, 13 hours ago
Cardinal Richelieu: The Real Architect of the Modern French State
Episode 13132
Cardinal Richelieu is best known as the villain of The Three Musketeers, but the historical Armand Jean du Plessis reshaped France and the idea of th…
5 days, 13 hours ago
Ramesses II: Propaganda, Monuments and the Real Pharaoh
Episode 13131
Ramesses II, also known as Ramesses the Great or Ozymandias, ruled Egypt for 66 years and lived to roughly 90. This deep dive separates the myth of t…
5 days, 13 hours ago