Dan Snow's History Hit - TopPodcast.com

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US Presidents Who Were Almost Assassinated Jul 16, 2024

Show notes

Lincoln, FDR, Reagan, Clinton, Bush and now Trump. All have been targets of assassination attempts while in or running for office. Dan is joined by Professor of American History at Cambridge University Gary Gerstle to take a look at the assassination attempts that could have changed the course of American history and how.

Produced by Dan Snow, Mariana Des Forges and edited by Dougal Patmore

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We'd love to hear from you - what do you want to hear an episode on? You can email the podcast at ds.hh@historyhit.com.

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The Greatest Tea Race of the Victorian Age Jul 14, 2024

Show notes

2/4. With towering masts and billowing sails, the Cutty Sark and the Thermopylae raced neck and neck through relentless waves to be the first to arrive in London with their tea shipment from Shanghai. The first ship back could claim the highest price for its cargo.

Dan is joined by Senior Archivist at Lloyd's Register Foundation Max Wilson for a dramatic blow-by-blow account of this high-stakes race that gripped Victorians in the late summer of 1872, where fortunes were made and lost by the hour.

This is episode 2 of our mini-series 'Ships that Made the British Empire' that tells four stories of ships that have shaped Britain and its maritime history, from the trade that kickstarted the global food chain to the technology that revolutionised our ability to conquer the seas.

You can find out more about Lloyd's Register Foundation, its history and its work that supports research, innovation and education to help the global community tackle the most pressing safety and risk challenges. Just go to https://hec.lrfoundation.org.uk/

Produced by Mariana Des Forges and edited by Dougal Patmore. Peta Stamper is the production manager and Beth Donaldson is the production coordinator for the series 'Ships that Made the British Empire'.

We'd love to hear from you - what do you want to hear an episode on? You can email the podcast at ds.hh@historyhit.com.

You can take part in our listener survey here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Cutty Sark Jul 13, 2024

Show notes

1/4. Join Dan for the first episode in a mini-series telling four stories of ships that have shaped Britain and its maritime history, from the trade that kickstarted the global food chain to the technology that revolutionised our ability to conquer the seas.

The Cutty Sark was the fastest ship of her day and could carry over a million pounds of tea from China back to Britain for a thirsty Victorian public. She ruled the waves at the height of Britain's imperial century as she carried trade goods across the globe as far as Australia. To make the treacherous journey across the world's biggest oceans, she was equipped with state-of-the-art technology and surveyed by the Lloyd's Register, the world's first ship classification society. Before the Lloyd's Register, shipbuilding in Britain was something of a wild west.

Dan and Senior Archivists from Lloyd's Register Foundation Max Wilson and Zach Schieferstein meet on board the Cutty Sark to delve into the story of this magnificent ship and what it tells us about shipbuilding and trade in the 19th century.

We'd love to hear from you - what do you want to hear an episode on? You can email the podcast at ds.hh@historyhit.com.

You can take part in our listener survey here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Britain's Secret Atomic Tests in Australia Jul 10, 2024

Show notes

During the 1950s, in the remote expanses of Australia's outback, the British government conducted a series of clandestine nuclear tests. These were the early years of the Cold War, and Britain was determined to expand its atomic capabilities and shore up its great power status. But these tests came at a harrowing cost to Aboriginal communities and site personnel, who were not sufficiently protected from the deadly nuclear fallout. The full extent of the harm done by these detonations is still not known.

We're joined by Elizabeth Tynan, author of 'The Secrets of Emu Field: Britain’s Forgotten Atomic Tests in Australia'. She explains the reasons for these tests, the damage they did, and what they tell us about the peculiar bonds of colonialism.

Produced by James Hickmann and edited by Dougal Patmore.

For more episodes on the history of nuclear weapons:

Oppenheimer - https://shows.acast.com/dansnowshistoryhit/episodes/oppenheimer
How to Prepare for Nuclear War - https://shows.acast.com/dansnowshistoryhit/episodes/how-to-prepare-for-nuclear-war
The Decision to Use the Atomic Bomb - https://shows.acast.com/dansnowshistoryhit/episodes/the-decision-to-use-the-atomic-bomb

Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off for 3 months using code ‘DANSNOW’.

We'd love to hear from you - what do you want to hear an episode on? You can email the podcast at ds.hh@historyhit.com.

You can take part in our listener survey here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Was Scott's Antarctic Expedition Sabotaged? Jul 09, 2024

Show notes

In the winter of 1911, Captain Robert Falcon Scott and his party set out into the frozen heart of Antarctica. Battling blizzards and treacherous terrain, they were determined to be the first people to reach the South Pole. But when they arrived in early 1912, they discovered that a Norwegian team had beaten them to it. As if that weren't enough, their return journey turned into a tragedy, with Scott and his men dying just 11 miles from a supply depot that would have been their salvation.

Their deaths are usually attributed to Scott's failures in planning and leadership or simple bad luck. But based on rediscovered documents, journalist and writer Harrison Christian points to other, more sinister causes - betrayal, sabotage, and a bubbling animosity that pitted the expedition's two most senior members against one another.

Harrison's book is called 'Terra Nova: Ambition, jealousy and simmering rivalry in the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration'.

Produced by James Hickmann and edited by Dougal Patmore.

Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off for 3 months using code ‘DANSNOW’.

We'd love to hear from you - what do you want to hear an episode on? You can email the podcast at ds.hh@historyhit.com.

You can take part in our listener survey here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Communism in America Jul 08, 2024

Show notes

The history of the United States' relationship with communism is one littered with fear and persecution. So where did the American Communist Party come from? How powerful has it been in the last century? And where is it now?

In this episode of American History Hit, Don is joined by Dr. Vernon Pederson, Professor at the American University of Sharjah and President of the Historians of American Communism.

Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. The senior Producer was Charlotte Long.

Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off for 3 months using code ‘DANSNOW’.

We'd love to hear from you - what do you want to hear an episode on? You can email the podcast at ds.hh@historyhit.com.

You can take part in our listener survey here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Emperor Heraclius: Rome vs Persia Jul 07, 2024

Show notes

Emperor Heraclius took the Byzantine Empire from its lowest ebb to its greatest heights. After years of turmoil at the hands of invading Persian armies, Heraclius led lightning counter-offensives that swept into Mesopotamia and devastated the Sassanid Empire. His battlefield exploits became the stuff of legend, but his success was not to last - in the Arabian Peninsula, a new religion was on the rise that would mark the end of one era and the beginning of another.

Jonathan Harris, Professor of the History of Byzantium at Royal Holloway, explains how Heraclius reinstated the empire as a regional superpower, and why the rise of the Arab Muslims brought it all tumbling down.

Produced by Mariana Des Forges and James Hickmann and edited by Max Carrey.

Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off for 3 months using code ‘DANSNOW’.

We'd love to hear from you - what do you want to hear an episode on? You can email the podcast at ds.hh@historyhit.com.

You can take part in our listener survey here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A Short History of Pirates Jul 03, 2024

Show notes

Swashbuckling, murder and robbery on the high seas! We're bringing back the fan-favourite episode on Dr Rebecca Simon's 'Pirate Queens: The Lives of Anne Bonny & Mary Read' from our archive.

She takes Dan through a dramatic history of piracy in the Caribbean and the Atlantic World. She tells the extraordinary stories of pirates Anne Bonny, and Mary Read as well as captains Blackbeard, Jack Rackham and the notoriously sadistic Charles Vane. She also gives Dan the lowdown on pirate treasure.

Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off for 3 months using code ‘DANSNOW’.

We'd love to hear from you - what do you want to hear an episode on? You can email the podcast at ds.hh@historyhit.com.

You can take part in our listener survey here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Inside Story of the Brexit Referendum Jul 02, 2024

Show notes

On the eve of the 2024 General Election, we're joined by Tim Shipman, chief political commentator at The Sunday Times, to hear about how things really work in Westminster.

Tim draws on his first-hand experience to explain the tumultuous last decade of British politics. How are crucial decisions made in the halls of government? Who can we trust when we get wildly differing accounts of the same event? And why exactly did Brexit turn out the way that it did?

Tim's latest book and the final instalment of his Brexit quartet, 'Out', is available now.

Produced by Mariana Des Forges and James Hickmann, and edited by Dougal Patmore.

Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off for 3 months using code ‘DANSNOW’.

We'd love to hear from you - what do you want to hear an episode on? You can email the podcast at ds.hh@historyhit.com.

You can take part in our listener survey here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How did Brexit Happen? A History Jul 01, 2024

Show notes

On the eve of the 2024 General Election, we're tackling one of the UK's most divisive topics; Brexit.

The 2016 referendum on EU membership split voters in two, creating two entrenched camps - Brexiteers and Remainers - whose differences show no signs of abating 8 years later. To better understand this political hot potato, we're charting Britain's relationship with the EU from the 1950s all the way up to the present day.

Dan is joined by Tim Bale, Professor of Politics at Queen Mary University of London. Tim explains why Britain first pursued closer integration with Europe, and how various factors saw the Brexit movement eventually gain traction.

Produced by Mariana Des Forges and James Hickmann, and edited by Dougal Patmore.

Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off for 3 months using code ‘DANSNOW’.

We'd love to hear from you - what do you want to hear an episode on? You can email the podcast at ds.hh@historyhit.com.

You can take part in our listener survey here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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