The History of the Twentieth Century

Latest Episodes:

259 The Great Crash II Nov 14, 2021

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The crash of the stock market was a shock, but what did it mean? No one was sure, but over the next 18 months, the US economy went from bad to worse.

258 The Great Crash I Nov 07, 2021

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There were voices warning that the stock market was overpriced, but even in October 1929, there were louder voices proclaiming that all was well, right up to the moment the bottom fell out of Wall Street.

257 An Orgy of Speculation Oct 24, 2021

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By the beginning of the twentieth century, America already had a reputation for stock speculation, but the Roaring Twenties set new records.

256 When the Levees Broke Oct 17, 2021

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Unusually heavy rainfall led to widespread flooding in the Mississippi Valley in 1927. The Coolidge Administration's Secretary of Everything, Herbert Hoover, was tasked with flood relief. What kind of relief you got depended heavily on your skin color.

Meanwhile, a different sort of flood was rising on the New York Stock Exchange.

255 Mussolini Is Always Right Oct 10, 2021

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Five years into his premiership, Mussolini ruled over a one-party state. He projected an image of il Duce, the tireless, indispensable leader of the Italian people as he cracked down on dissent at home and unrest in Libya.

254 The Century of the State Oct 03, 2021

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Although Mussolini had come to power by legal means, he soon cast the moment as a Fascist revolution, and pushed for changes to the electoral system that would tighten the Fascist grip on the country.

253 Alfonso the African Sep 19, 2021

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The Algeciras Conference awarded Spain a strip of territory in northern Morocco known as the Rif, which became Spanish Morocco. But an award of territory granted by a conference of diplomats is one thing; actual control is another.

252: Mahatma Gandhi Ki Jai! Sep 12, 2021

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In the early 1920s, Gandhi's first nationwide satyagraha campaign saw unprecedented Hindu-Muslim unity, but led to violence and failed to achieve its aims. Gandhi spent some time in prison, but by 1930, with a Labour government in power, Gandhi and the Indian National Congress felt ready to declare independence.

251 Keep the Consumer Dissatisfied Sep 05, 2021

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Henry Ford built a successful car company based on the principle of mass production of affordable cars. But his company was eclipsed by General Motors, which had a totally different marketing strategy: planned obsolescence.

250 An Instinct for the Regrettable Aug 29, 2021

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Two of the twentieth century's worst technological innovations were leaded gasoline and chlorofluorocarbons. Both were introduced by the same person, engineer Thomas Midgley.

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