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The Weird History Podcast — History
The Weird History Podcast

Latest Episodes:

118 Italian Fascism Part Seven, Meagan Zurn on Antonio Gramsci Mar 02, 2017
Show notes

This week’s episode is an interview with Meagan Zurn (or “Zee,” co-producer of The British History Podcast) about Antonio Gramsci. Gramsci was a socialist, journalist, and briefly a member of the Italian parliament before getting thrown in jail by Mussolini’s regime in 1926. He died in prison in 1937. His writings, especially his prison writings, outlined the relationship of power and culture, and his insights are especially useful for understanding the rise of fascism in Italy, as well as how power and hegemony function everywhere else.

117 Italian Fascism Part Six, Church and State Feb 23, 2017
Show notes

Italian fascism came to power (and solidified power) by co-opting existing political organizations and interests in Italy. That included the Catholic Church. Since Italian Unification the Church had been at odds with liberal Italy, and for fifty-nine years pope did not even set foot outside the Vatican. In 1929, though Mussolini offered the papacy a way out, with the creation of Vatican City as an independent state. Unfortunately, this would not go entirely well for the church.

Plague Has Taken Me Feb 16, 2017

Show notes

I’m sick. The harrowing tale of Benito Mussolini and Pope Pius XI will have to wait until next week.

116 Italian Fascism Part Five, “All Within the State” Feb 10, 2017
Show notes

After Mussolini proclaimed dictatorship in January of 1925 fascist Italy became the first modern totalitarian state. The regime extended its power and influence to everything from the national and local government, to the press, to unions, and even to the private lives of ordinary Italians.

115 Italian Fascism Part Four, Voter Suppression and Murder Feb 02, 2017
Show notes

Following the March on Rome Mussolini and the fascists cemented their grasp on power via an electoral reform known as the Acerbo Law, voter suppression and intimidation in the 1924 election, and (possibly) by killing one of their biggest opponents, the socialist MP Giacomo Matteotti.

114 Italian Fascism Part Three, The March on Rome Jan 26, 2017
Show notes

The March on Rome is often cited as the beginning of Italian fascism. However, there was a fair amount of a run-up to the actual blackshirt invasion of the capital. Right-wing violence ravaged the Italian provinces for years before the actual march and, when Mussolini came to power, he formed a coalition government with conservative liberals and Catholics. In the coming years, Italy’s liberal democracy would be gradually dismantled. Nevertheless, the march was a turning point, and it introduced fascist elements into the Italian governmental leadership.

113 Italian Fascism Part Two, What is Fascism, Anyway? Jan 19, 2017
Show notes

In this episode we try to answer (or at least clarify) one of the most vexing questions of political science, history, philosophy, and contemporary scholarship: What, exactly, is fascism?

italy-before-unification — 112 Italian Fascism Part One: The Idea of Italy Jan 12, 2017
Show notes

Fascism is the most malignant of the major political ideologies, and one of the least understood. For fascism, the nation (and therefore state) are paramount. Considerations for the needs of social classes or individuals are subordinate to the state, if they are considered at all. While Germany is easily the most famous fascist state, this ideology had its origins in Italy following WWI.

Prior to 1870 the term “Italy” was a geographic designation, referring to a collection of kingdoms, city-states, and papal states that happened to share a boot-shaped peninsula. Curiously, this collection of disparate elements would form not only a national identity, but a particularly violent, extreme one. One that would form the basis of probably the most destructive ideology of the past one hundred years.

chilies-a-global-history — 111 Heather Arndt Anderson on Chilies Jan 05, 2017
Show notes

This week’s show is an interview with Heather Arndt Anderson, author of Chilies: A Global History. We talk about the origins of chilies, their spread around the globe, how they were perceived and used by the people who found them, and how, occasionally, they have been used as a highly painful weaponized plant.

Mystery Series Announcement! Dec 29, 2016

Show notes

We’re still on break, but we’ll be back with an interview episode on January 5th, and the start of a long-form series on January 12th.

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