Dan Snow's History Hit - TopPodcast.com

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Prison Camps in WW2 Britain Mar 20, 2022

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From the summer of 1940, approximately 30,000 so-called ‘enemy aliens’ were indefinitely sent to internment camps across Britain.

Gripped by spy fever and the panic over the fall of France, the British government adopted an aggressive internment policy targeting a broad cross-section of Austrian and German passport holders who were then living in the UK. Many of these people were refugees who had fled the Nazi regime, only to find themselves once again a target of persecution.

In this episode, we speak to Simon Parkin, author of Island of Extraordinary Captives, about the experience of the prisoners, the remarkable cultural and educational exchange within the camps as well as the campaign efforts that eventually led to their release.

If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store.

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ENDURANCE22: Questions & Reflections Mar 18, 2022

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To mark the end of a truly epic journey, Dan wanted to hear from you -the listeners- those that have dedicatedly followed the story of Endurance22. Find out the answers to your questions as Dan responds candidly to the things that you all wanted to know.

In the concluding episode of the Endurance22 series, we also share Dan’s conversation with John and Viv James, the sons of Endurance veteran Reginald James. Although Dan spoke with John and Viv before the shipwreck was discovered, the meaning of the search for Endurance was evident even then.

Finally, Dan reflects on the experience of Endurance22 and the incredible people that he has met along the way.

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What Is an Oligarch? Mar 17, 2022

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The use of the word ‘Oligarch’ has been increasingly rampant across international news outlets since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine just weeks ago. But what does it actually mean?

Jeffrey A. Winters, an American political scientist at Northwestern University who specialises in the study of oligarchy, notes that the common thread for oligarchs across history is that wealth defines them, empowers them and inherently exposes them to threats.

While Dan makes his voyage home, Matt Lewis, from the ‘Gone Medieval’ podcast, steps in for this timely episode. To try and make sense of this ancient, yet contemporary phenomenon, Jeffrey joins Matt for a discussion of what oligarchy is, historic and contemporary cases and the relationship between oligarchy and democracy.

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The Steam Engine and Simultaneous Invention Mar 16, 2022

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The revolution in speed ground to a halt in the 1960s. The previous half-century saw great leaps in how quickly people could get from place to place: high-speed railways, cars, intercontinental flight. In our lifetime transport may have become safer and comfier — but we aren't getting anywhere any faster.

How did these great leaps happen? What grove this focus on transport innovation and where does collaboration come into play? And why has the focus shifted? In this episode, we talk to Matt Ridley, author of How Innovation Works, about the acceleration of transport innovation from the steam engine to space travel.

If you want to hear more from History Hit's newest podcast Patented: History of Inventions presented by Dallas Campbell then click here. Expect new episodes every Wednesday and Sunday.

There are also hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store.

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The Assassination of Julius Caesar: Explained Mar 15, 2022

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March 15th 44BC is perhaps the most notorious date in all of ancient history. On that fateful day, the Ides of March, 55-year-old Roman dictator Gaius Julius Caesar was assassinated by a group of disaffected senators.

In this episode – the first of our special Ides of March miniseries this month – Tristan from The Ancients (with a little help from Dr Emma Southon and Dr Steele Brand) untangles fact from fiction, truth from myth, to take you back to that very afternoon in the heart of Rome's doomed republic.

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The KGB in Ukraine Mar 14, 2022

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The KGB was the main security agency for the Soviet Union. Tasked with surveillance and rooting out dissidents, religious practitioners and anti-government organisations, the KGB were feared for their intimidation tactics and brutality. They operated across the soviet countries with a particularly sinister presence in Ukraine.

In his desperate attempt to restore the Soviet Union, Putin has silenced critics, historians and organisations that reveal the atrocities committed under the Soviet regime. While the Russian KGB files are completely classified once again, the Ukrainian archives are open for all. Dr Tatiana Vagramenko is currently shedding light on the contents of those archives. She tells Dan that 'what we are witnessing in this current war is the forceful drive to control the pen of Soviet history. This history preserved in Soviet-era archives, is one of the underlying causes of the current war in Europe and peace cannot be achieved without understanding and coming to terms with this past.'

She has spent hours pouring over confiscated letters, diaries, interrogation notes and photos to reveal the lives of ordinary Ukrainians suffering under the persecution of the KGB. She tells Dan about their stories, their suffering and their defiance. Her project is called History Declassified: The KGB and the religious underground in Soviet Ukraine.

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My Dad Wrote a History Hit! Mar 13, 2022

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In this special episode Dan Snow teams up with Alice Levine, Jamie Morton and James Cooper from My Dad Wrote A Porno to chat about all things sex and history. Expect slow thrusting, Henry The Eighth sexual slander and more filth than you can shake a bread dildo at.

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The Origins of Kyiv Mar 11, 2022

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24th of February 2022 marked the beginning of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. This episode of Gone Medieval looks at the origins of its capital city, Kyiv, and how today it has become central to this ongoing conflict. Host Matt Lewis is joined by Dr. Olenka Pevny from the University of Cambridge. Together, they discuss the emergence of the Rus people, the consequences of the Mongols' arrival into the region - and ultimately how this period of medieval history has influenced eastern European relationships and the modern-day geopolitical stability of eastern Europe.

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Preventing Nuclear War Mar 10, 2022

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While Ukraine fights to defend itself from Russian forces, Putin makes a nuclear threat to the west and the rest of the world. Dr Jeremy Garlick, Associate Professor of International Relations and China Studies at the University of Economics, Prague, explains the strategies currently being used by Russia and the West, ‘game theory’ and nuclear deterrence between these two opposing forces through recent history.

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War, Women and the 1921 Census Mar 08, 2022

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After World War One women outnumbered men by the highest margin in recorded history, even compared to after World War Two. This had wide-reaching implications for the social, demographic and economic fabric of post-war society.

Today Dan is joined by Mary McKee and Paul Nixon from Findmypast to explore: What does the 1921 Census reveal about the impact of the First World War for Britain?

Are you interested in exploring your own family history? After years spent digitising and transcribing this unique record of your recent history, the 1921 Census is now available exclusively online with Findmypast. Start exploring now at findmypast.co.uk.

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