Today I sit down with historian David Reynolds and talk about his latest book: Mirrors of Greatness: Churchill and the Leaders Who Shaped Him.Winston Churchill remains one of the most revered figures of the twentieth century, his name a byword for courageous leadership. But the Churchill we know today is a mixture of history and myth, authored by the man himself. In Mirrors of Greatness, prizewinning historian David Reynolds reevaluates Churchill’s life by viewing it through the eyes of his allies and adversaries, even his own family, revealing Churchill’s lifelong struggle to overcome his political failures and his evolving grasp of what “greatness” truly entailed. Through his dealings with Adolf Hitler and Neville Chamberlain, we follow Churchill’s triumphant campaign against Nazi Germany. But we also see a Churchill whose misjudgments of allies and rivals like Roosevelt, Stalin, Gandhi, and Clement Attlee blinded him to the British Empire’s waning dominance on the world stage and to the rising popularity of a postimperial, socialist vision of Great Britain at home. Magisterial and incisive, Mirrors of Greatness affords Churchill his due as a figure of world-historical importance and deepens our understanding of his legend by uncovering the ways his greatest contemporaries helped make him the man he was, for good and for ill.Buy the book HERE.WebsitePatreon Support

Today I sit down with Christopher Goscha to discuss his new book, Vietnam: A New History. In Vietnam, Christopher Goscha tells the full history of Vietnam, from antiquity to the present day. Generations of emperors, rebels, priests, and colonizers left complicated legacies in this remarkable country. Periods of Chinese, French, and Japanese rule reshaped and modernized Vietnam, but so too did the colonial enterprises of the Vietnamese themselves as they extended their influence southward from the Red River Delta. Over the centuries, numerous kingdoms, dynasties, and states have ruled over -- and fought for -- what is now Vietnam. The bloody Cold War-era conflict between Ho Chi Minh's communist-backed Democratic Republic of Vietnam and the American-backed Republic of Vietnam was only the most recent instance when war divided and transformed Vietnam.Purchase the book HERE.Check out the website.Support the show!

In this episode, we return to England. Edward VI is still a teenager and not in control of his own realm. His uncle, the Lord Protector Somerset, is trying his best to maintain power. But his brother, Seymour, the Lord Admiral, is making life difficult for him. Today it all comes to a head.WebsitePatreon Free Trial

Henry takes command determined not to repeat his father's mistakes. Catherine, at his side, does her best to help him while continuing to battle Diane de Poitiers for her husband's attention. France faces external pressures in Italy and from the Holy Roman Empire, still led by Charles V, while religious unrest within the kingdom grows. WebsitePatreon Support Free Trial

Francois, the Dauphin and heir to the throne of France, abruptly dies. Suddenly, Henry becomes first in line to inherit the throne of France. Henry and Catherine suddenly find their lives under tremendous scrutiny, made all the worse because the two lack an heir. The two, with the help of a skilled physician, finally solve this problem. Catherine, in the end, would have many children. It was a good thing...Patreon Support/Western Civ 2.0 Free TrialWebsite

Henry, Duke of Orleans, and Catherine de' Medici are destined to become the King and Queen of France. But you would not have thought so at the beginning of their respective lives. Today we start their story. WebsitePatreon Support/Western Civ 2.0

Edward's coronation sets off a wave of religious reforms. Unfortunately, not everyone is happy with Lord Somerset as Protector - least of all his own brother.WebsitePatreon Bonus Content

It is time to talk to historian Nic Morton again, we last discussed the Mongols and today are talking about the Crusades and crusading warfare. We talk about why it is a problematic idea to paint the Crusades as simply an East versus West or Christian versus Muslim conflict. We talk about the military challenges confronted by the Crusaders when besieging Jerusalem and the later problems they encountered when building a kingdom with the holy city as its capital. We discuss religious relics and whether anyone actually believed the Holy Lance (discovered during the siege of Antioch) saved the Crusaders. And, of course, we evaluate the military tactics of each side and the best leaders.Purchase Dr. Morton's Book: The Crusader States and their Neighbours: A Military History, 1099-1187Try the Medievalist Online Course (Feb. 2024): Medievalists.netWestern Civ WebsitePatreon Support

Now it's time to get back to politics. When we last left off, the deaths of Henry VIII, Francis I, Charles V and Sulieman the Magnificent left Europe with a major power void. To an extent, that is going to be the case for a while. Those long-reigning monarchs will be replaced with a series of heirs who will, with the exception of Philip II of Spain, die relatively quickly. Case in point: Edward VI. Today, we return to Tudor England. Website Patreon Support

Today we wrap up our Galileo story arc. Galileo is tried for heresy after the publication of the Dialogue and, spoiler alert, found guilty. The father of modern science dies in isolation, bitter, but undaunted. WebsiteBonus and Ad-Free Episodes

In our final episode on the Spanish Inquisition, I cover its structure and organization. Specifically, I explain how the Spanish Crown, notably King Ferdinand, controlled the Inquisition for his purposes. Then I discuss the Acts of Faith or Autos de Fe as they were originally called, which were the large performances that were part sentencing and part executions. WebsitePatreon Support/Bonus Episodes

It is our last bonus author interview of the year - and it's a good one! I sit down with historian Nick Bunker and break down his amazing book: In the Shadow of Fear: America and the World in 1950.Halfway through the twentieth century, the United States towered over the world in industrial might. After winning the 1948 election, Harry Truman hoped to use this economic strength to build on FDR’s achievements with new liberal reforms. But then, in just ten months between September 1949 and June 1950, the president’s ambitions were overtaken by events that left the country gripped by rage and fear. The Soviets tested an atomic bomb, Mao’s army swept through China, and at home Truman faced labor unrest and a Republican Party desperate for power.In the Shadow of Fear is an innovative and gripping history of this pivotal moment. Recounting the launch of Senator Joe McCarthy’s anti-communist crusade, the defeat of Truman’s liberal program, and the start of the Korean War, prizewinning historian Nick Bunker shows us a polarized nation facing crises at home and abroad—a story with deep resonances today.Buy The BookWebsitePatreon Support

Had it not been for the Reformation, the Inquisition probably would have died out in the early Sixteenth Century. But, of course, there was a Reformation and so suddenly there was plenty of heresy to keep the Inquisition humming well into the Eighteenth Century...WebsitePatreon Free TrialWestern Civ 2.0 Free Trial

Today I am joined by author Charles Fischer to discuss his book: The Eunuch.Why would a eunuch want to write a secret history of life in the court of ancient Babylon's most famous king? To get back at his brother: that's why. Abducted as young boys by soldiers during the conquest of Nineveh, the brothers Uruk and Nergal receive very different fates in the ancient kingdom of Babylon. Uruk enjoys favors and climbs the Ziggurat of power to become a trusted advisor and the chief propaganda minister of King Nebuchadnezzar II, while Nergal is castrated and assigned to keep records of the daily life of the King's harem. While Uruk's cushioned prosperity is enviable, his real life is anxious because the King is viewed as the Divine Plowman who must seed the land and bring forth a bountiful harvest -- in other words, make whoopie in the harem and father many children because as the King's virility goes, so goes the harvest -- but the King is both crazy and chronically impotent, and a severe drought has withered the grain fields of the kingdom, so Uruk works nervously to spin propaganda into the official court records to hide the real state of affairs. Mostly out of contempt for his brother and his brother's official history, but also partly because of a deep respect for truth, Nergal the eunuch decides to write his his own secret, eye-witness, tell-all account of the real life inside the court of King Nebuchadnezzar, in all of its hilarious and embarrassing unseemliness. All goes well until, at a crucial moment during a high festival orgy, the King calls for Nergal to assist him in performing a mating ritual with a harem concubine chosen to be the symbolic holy bride of Babylon. Eager to please the King his master, Nergal unexpectedly receives a caressing touch from the concubine, Siduri of Megiddo, and he nearly swoons with love for her. The moment turns Nergal's life upside down and tosses him in a nearly treasonous bind of mixed loyalties. Although he does not know it at the time, the moment changes not only Nergal's life but also everyone else's, because it is the first of a series of events that result in the collapse of the kingdom. So The Eunuch is a laugh-out-loud funny narrative that begins as an effort to extirpate the lies of the hagiographic official history of Babylon, becomes a story of a very peculiar love triangle between a King with mental health issues, an alluring and manipulative concubine, and an obsessive eunuch slave-scribe, and then ends by describing the fall of an empire.Buy The BookWebsitePatreon Support

Both Ferdinand and Charles V refuse to reform the obvious abuses inherent to the Inquisition. And so the fires of the Acts of Faith burn. And burn. And burn...WebsitePatreon Free TrialWestern Civ 2.0 Free Trial

In this bonus author interview, I sit down with Andrew Pettegree and discuss his latest work: The Book at War. I talked with Professor Pettegree previously about his other recent work about the history of the library and, together, the two make excellent companion pieces. We talk about how books encourage war, how they can win wars, and even how they might end wars. Buy the BookWebsitePatreon Ad-Free ShowsWestern Civ 2.0

Today we cover the 1492 expulsion of the Jews and how that event created the need for the Inquisition by dumping rocket fuel on the already smoldering converso problem. WebsitePatreon Free TrialWestern Civ 2.0 Free Trial

In this episode, we switch gears and begin to unpack the Inquisition. The beginning of the Inquisition revolves around the Jews and the Spanish monarchs. By 1492 Isabella and Ferdinand have become convinced that the Jews of Spain must be expelled to protect the Christian population. While no one knew it at the time, the consequences of that decision would be long-reaching and disastrous. WebsitePatreon Free TrialWestern Civ 2.0 Free Trial

In today's bonus author interview, I sit down with Moshik Temkin to discuss his most recent book on leadership: Warriors, Rebels, and Saints: The Art of Leadership from Machiavelli to Malcolm X.We live in a period of leadership in crisis. At home, and across the globe, we sense that unqualified and irresponsible individuals are being elevated to positions of power, strong men and autocrats are consolidating their hold on governance, and the people are losing faith in the prospect of a better future. How have we arrived at this point? And how can we correct our course?For the past decade, Moshik Temkin has challenged his students at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government and around the world to grapple with the nature of leadership as part of his wildly popular course “Leaders and Leadership in History.” Now, in Warriors, Rebels, and Saints, Temkin refashions the classroom for a wider audience.Using art, film, and literature to illustrate the drama of the past, Temkin considers how leaders have made decisions in the most difficult circumstances—from the Great Depression of the 1930s to the dictatorship of Rafael Trujillo and from the anticolonial wars of the 20th century to the civil rights struggle—and how, in a world desperate for good leadership, we can evaluate those decisions and draw lessons for today. Buy The BookWebsitePatreon Support

Today I sit down with historian Roger Moorhouse and discuss his most recent work: The Forgers: The Forgotten Story of the Holocaust's Most Audacious Rescue Operation. Between 1940 and 1943, a group of Polish diplomats in Switzerland engaged in a wholly remarkable—and until now, completely unknown—humanitarian operation. In concert with Jewish activists, they masterminded a systematic program of forging passports and identity documents for Latin American countries, which were then smuggled into German-occupied Europe to save the lives of thousands of Jews facing extermination in the Holocaust. This is that story.Buy The BookWebsitePatreon Support

Galileo publishes The Dialogue, essentially sealing his fate with the Inquisition.WebsitePatreon Free TrialWestern Civ 2.0 Free Trial

Galileo travels to Rome and puts all his cards on the table. It was time to make the argument Copernicus was right. The Jesuits don't buy and he leaves Rome, formally or perhaps informally, warned never to advocate for Copernicanism again.WebsitePatreon Free TrialWestern Civ 2.0 Free Trial

In this bonus, author interview, I sit down with historian Adrian Goldsworthy and discuss his most recent book: Rome and Persia: The Seven Hundred Year Rivalry. The Roman empire was like no other. Stretching from the north of Britain to the Sahara, and from the Atlantic coast to the Euphrates, it imposed peace and prosperity on an unprecedented scale. Its only true rival lay in the east, where the Parthian and then Persian empires ruled over great cities and the trade routes to mysterious lands beyond. This was the region Alexander the Great had swept through, creating a dream of glory and conquest that tantalized Greeks and Romans alike. Tracing seven centuries of conflict between Rome and Persia, historian Adrian Goldsworthy shows how these two great powers evolved together. Despite their endless clashes, trade between the empires enriched them both, and a mutual respect prevented both Rome and Persia from permanently destroying the other. Epic in scope, Rome and Persia completely reshapes our understanding of one of the greatest rivalries of world history. Buy The BookWebsitePatreon Support

Today we get to the meat of our series on Galileo, the publication of The Starry Messenger. Galileo turns his much-improved telescope to the heavens and realizes: Jupiter has moons, Venus orbits the sun, and that same sun has spots. None of these discoveries are compatible with Ptolemy's never-changing universe. Today Galileo sets himself on a collision course with the Inquisition.WebsitePatreon Free TrialWestern Civ 2.0 Free Trial

In this bonus, author interview, I sit down with Historian Paul Carter and discuss the role Richard Nixon played in modern American History. Needless to say, we both agree that Nixon was a lot more than merely the "Watergate guy". In fact, were it not for Watergate, Nixon would likely be remembered as one of the most influential modern American Presidents.Buy the book here.WebsitePatreon Support

In this episode, Galileo finally turns his attention firmly to the heavens. Quickly, Galileo recognizes that, with this new technology, the telescope, he can decisively prove that both Ptolemy and Tycho Brahe were wrong. Copernicus was right. Today Galileo sets himself on a collision course with the Inquisition and the Roman Catholic Church. WebsitePatreon SupportWestern Civ 2.0 Free Trial

In this author interview, I sit down with Peter Sarris and discuss his latest book: Justinian: Emperor, Soldier, Saint. It is an excellent historical biography that covers the importance of one of the most influential figures of the Early Middle Ages. We talk about Rome, Persia, the plague, Belisarius, and, of course, Hagia Sophia. Links:Buy The BookWebsite Patreon Ad-Free ShowsWestern Civ 2.0

In this historian interview, I sit down with Tom Wheeler, author of Techlash: Who Makes the Rules in the Digital Gilded Age? We talk about economic explosion, social unrest, international competition, and even fake news. Can the problems of the past provide inspiration to the solutions of the future? Are we doomed to repeat the growing pains of the early Twentieth Century? We discuss all this and more.Buy the book HERE.WebsitePatreon Support

Here is a bonus, sneak peak of Western Civ 2.0. In my Patreon feed, we hit the proverbial reset button and start from scratch. The episodes are more detailed but the storytelling is the same. This is the principal way I support the show. Patreon offers a variety of options for support running as low as $1 per month. There is also a free trial wherein you check it out for a week free of charge.In this episode, I wrap up the Wars of the Successors. Alexander the Great's death in 323 BCE shattered his empire before it had the chance to get up and going. Ptolemy, Seleucus, and a slew of others fought over the remains until Rome gobbled it all up. Patreon FeedWebsite

Today we get more into the meat of Galileo. He is remembered as someone willing to challenge the church on the issue of the geocentric universe. But he actually challenged a lot more than that. Today we will explore how Galileo challenged Aristotle's perceived truths and how that changed science. Website Patreon Ad-Free ShowsWestern Civ 2.0

We come now to the most recognizable name from the early Scientific Revolution: Galileo. Galileo studied motion, falling bodies, and, of course, the stars. His infamous Inquisition trial has made him a nearly household name. Today we begin his story. WebsitePatreon Free TrialWestern Civ 2.0 Free Trial

In this author interview, I sit down with renowned mathematician Marcus Du Sautoy and talk about his newest book: Around the World in 80 Games. I LOVE games, as will be apparent in this interview. And I could not miss the chance to talk to a mathematician about how, for example, my Risk strategy has been all wrong. Links:Buy The BookWebsite Patreon Free TrialWestern Civ 2.0 Free Trial

Nicholas Copernicus and Galileo Galilei usually get all the credit for the breakthroughs in astronomy in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries and rightfully so to an extent. However, though his efforts were far from "sexy", Tycho Brahe was an essential innovator in his own right during the early Scientific Revolution. Without Brahe, we might not get many aspects of modern science that we, frankly, take for granted today. In today's episode, I tell the tale of the early modern astronomer who lost half his nose in a duel. WebsitePatreon SupportWestern Civ 2.0

Today we finish Copernicus and inch toward Tycho Brahe. On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres was a truly monumental achievement. Sadly, its release was marred by a poorly added preface by Andreas Osiander. In the end, no one involved with its publication was pleased by the final product. Still, in this history podcast, we evaluate the role the work played in the beginning of the Scientific Revolution. WebsitePatreon Support Western Civ 2.0

There is no discussion of modern Roman Historiography without Tom Holland. He is one of the premier historians covering the medieval, classical, and ancient world. Today I get the pleasure of talking to him about his new book: Pax: War and Peace in Rome's Golden Age. We discuss Nero, Vesuvius, the Year of the Four Emperors, Vespasian and his sons: Titus and Domitian, and then the emperors of Rome's true golden age: Trajan and Hadrian. Pick up a copy of the book HERE.Check out the WEBSITE for more content.Join Western Civ 2.0 to support the show and receive bonus, ad-free content.

You probably know the name, Copernicus. But you likely don't know the name, Rheticus. Well, today I explain why you should. Without Rheticus, On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Bodies might never get published and the Father of Astronomy might have been an unknown. In this history podcast, we take a look at Copernicus between roughly 1531 and 1540.WebsitePatreon SupportWestern Civ 2.0

Copernicus completes his studies and begins his major astronomical research. Before long, the Father of Modern Astronomy becomes convinced Ptolemy was wrong. The sun does not revolve around the earth. And that is not all Ptolemy was wrong about. WebsitePatreon Support Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial

Today we begin the life of Nicholas Copernicus - the father of modern astronomy. While there is a lot of validity to Copernicus' title, what I cover today are his immediate predecessors: George Peurbach and Regiomontanus. Without these two men, Copernicus might never have written On The Revolutions of the Heavenly Bodies. WebsitePatreon SupportWestern Civ 2.0

Bismarck. Napoleon III. France. Prussia. Germany. The siege of Paris. The great precursor to World War One. Today I talk about it all when I sit down with Rachel Chrastil and talk about her new book: Bismarck's War: The Franco-Prussian War and the Making of Modern Europe. Click the link to buy the book. But, honestly, even if you don't, you are going to love this excellent historian interview. WebsitePatreon Support Western Civ 2.0

In our last overview episode, before we start Copernicus, I want to cover the concept of the "fact" and the "experiment" as each pertains to the Scientific Revolution. Both were products of the Scientific Revolution and did not exist, at least in our modern sense, in the Middle Ages or prior. While Francis Bacon usually gets the credit for the "fact", the true story is more complicated.WebsitePatreon Free Trial Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial

Today I sit down with Historian Mark William Jones and discuss his newest book: 1923: The Crisis of German Democracy in the Year of Hitler's Putsch. The story of Hitler's rise to power is documented in many histories. Jones, however, gives a much more detailed account that describes how Hitler's rise was anything but inevitable. More than anything, the work serves as a cautionary tale about how we can never take democracy for granted.Links:Buy The BookWebsitePatreon Free TrialWestern Civ 2.0 Free Trial

Prior to the Scientific Revolution, math was considered a part of philosophy. But with a new emphasis on measurement and objective facts, it did not take long for mathematics to have a profound impact on the European world.WebsitePatreon Western Civ 2.0

Today we continue exploring the origins of the Scientific Revolution. If it was possible to sail across the Atlantic Ocean, and if there were large landmasses directly opposite Asia, then how the ancients had thought about the earth was wrong. The idea of Earth would need to be rethought and reconsidered. Moreover, while Columbus' discovery might have implications for the continents, it also had implications for the cosmos. WebsitePatreon Support (With Seven-Day Free Trial)Western Civ 2.0

It is weird to think about, but when Columbus "discovered" the New World there was no word for "discover" in English. Or French. Or Latin for that matter. Discover, as a word, did not exist because it was not something one did. Today I talk about the origins of the Scientific Revolution which are inherently grounded in the Age of Discovery. I also answer the question: can there be a Scientific Revolution without discovery?WebsitePatreon SupportWestern Civ 2.0

***NOTE: I was not able to upload this episode as one file which is not what I originally planned. So I had to break it in half. In this episode, I begin a deep dive into Hernando de Soto who, in so many ways, absolutely represents the conquistador era. I over Soto's travails through Panama with Balboa, in Nicaragua on his own, in Peru with Pizarro, and, ultimately, to La Florida. Soto would die in the wilds of Arkansas, still searching for that El Dorado he would never find. WebsitePatreon (Free Trial)Western Civ 2.0

***NOTE: I was not able to upload this episode as one file which is not what I originally planned. So I had to break it in half. In this episode, I begin a deep dive into Hernando de Soto who, in so many ways, absolutely represents the conquistador era. I over Soto's travails through Panama with Balboa, in Nicaragua on his own, in Peru with Pizarro, and, ultimately, to La Florida. Soto would die in the wilds of Arkansas, still searching for that El Dorado he would never find. WebsitePatreon Support (With Free Trial)Western Civ 2.0

Today I sit down with author Jason Voiovich and discuss his most recent book: Booze, Babe, and the Little Black Dress. Jason and I talk about all manner of topics related to the Roaring Twenties, everything from Prohibition and speakeasies to baseball and the radio. It is a fantastic book and, as always, Jason is an engaging interview. LINKS:Buy The BookWebsitePatreon AccountWestern Civ 2.0

After so many battles and insurgencies today the Inca Empire finally runs out of gas. The Inca free state is destroyed and the last Inca Emperor is executed. Then I examine some of the common themes that run through the stories of our two conquistadors: Cortés and Pizarro.WebsitePatreon SupportWestern Civ 2.0