Stay ConnectedWDF examines how wars broke out, how they were concluded, and their consequences. Expect juicy diplomacy, sneaky intrigue, fascinating characters, and incredible drama. By Dr Zack Twamley, qualified history nerd.
Current Series: The July Crisis
Patreon Series: The Age of Bismarck
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After covering the adoption of a revolutionary new musket drill by Maurice of Nassau in the late 1590s, in this episode we come to the point where all of these innovations would be put to the test, so I hope you’re ready to listen in, as the full horrors of constant barrages of lead on the human body were felt to their full effect for the first time in Western Europe, in the relatively unknown Battle of Nieuwpoort, in July 1600.
This episode provides a key example of what made the Military Revolution so unique and important for European warfare. From Maurice’s display at Nieuwpoort, so many other innovations would follow, including the adoption of its key lessons by other powers, and the perfecting and adding to them by others, like the Swedish and French. Before long, the drill would be the staple means by which infantry would take the field, and training these men and giving them the platform they needed to succeed would become the occupation of all competent commanders in early modern Europe. Make sure you tune in here to see what made innovators like Maurice of Nassau tick, and why he was so important for his time. We also get a window into how the Dutch government organised its military, and what they were up against in the sheer professional supremacy of the Spanish tercio system. I hope you enjoy it history friends! Make sure you spread the word – thanksss!
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We're back! At long last, after a lot of confusing scheduling and weird decisions, WDF is finally ready to introduce to you what we have planned for the next few years. It is an investigation of the Thirty Years War (1618-1648) like you've never seen it before, and I couldn't be more excited to begin! Listen in here for a rundown of what we've done so far since our too eager release back in May 2018, and what we plan to do going forward. For those confused with what this all means, and why there's so many introduction episodes floating around, look no further than this episode, which is made up of explainers, disclaimers, and probably a few complainers! Thanksss!
Click here to pre-order the book | Click here to sign up on Patreon from as little as $2 a month and access awesome goodies! | Click here to find our dedicated section of the website | AND #1) Follow us on Twitter #2) Like us on Facebook #3) Join the history friends group!
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What a lovely surprise! I sat down with Kaner [Ken] and Amby [Gavin], two Ozzies with a love of the game Diplomacy, which I have name dropped many times on this show. The three of us chat about a whole range of topics, from our experiences playing the game, to my recent projects and the processes involved with them, to current examples of diplomacy failing. It was a great chat and I had a wonderful time, and if you did too, make sure to check out their show Diplomacy Games, and follow the links below!
Subscribe to their show [iTunes]: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/diplomacy-games/id1148827717
Subscribe to their show [Stitcher]: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/diplomacy-games?refid=stpr
If you are interested in playing Diplomacy online, check these links:
webDiplomacy - https://webdiplomacy.net
playDiplomacy - https://www.playdiplomacy.com
vDiplomacy - https://www.vdiplomacy.net
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The Versailles Anniversary Project consumed 8 months of my life, and 8 months of your attention. It was the largest, most ambitious, and most exhausting project we have ever taken on. What did this 'taking on' actually look like though? You may know that it was a long hard enjoyable slog, but what else is there to the story of this monster, which, as the statistics show, has taken more than 67 hours to fully unwrap? Well history friend, look no further, as finally bid farewell to this project once and for all.
No concluding revelations here - just the musings and memories of me, your host, as I spill the beans about my experience. If you were curious, or had more questions about how I did this, then look no further. A huge thanksss must be said once more history friend, for maing Versailles the best place to be for well over half a year. Here's to the next audio adventure, but until then, I will see you all on 9th September for the Thirty Years War!
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The Versailles Anniversary Project is possible because of your support and interest - make sure to spread the word, engage with the debate, and look at the different ways you can help this project succeed!
->Visit the homeland for this new project!
->Become a delegate and play the Delegation Game for just $6 a month!
->Support the podcast financially and access ad free episodes with transcripts from just $2 a month!
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After 8 months and 85 episodes, what is left to say? As it turns out, quite a lot, so I hope you'll join me as we wrap up the longest project we've ever tackled here at WDF. The questions of German responsibility, of Woodrow Wilson's selective compromising, and the exercise of finger pointing all come under our microscope, as we deliver our final words on this saga. Thanksss so much for your support over the last few months, and here's to our next audio adventure!
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The Versailles Anniversary Project is possible because of your support and interest - make sure to spread the word, engage with the debate, and look at the different ways you can help this project succeed!
->Visit the homeland for this new project!
->Become a delegate and play the Delegation Game for just $6 a month!
->Support the podcast financially and access ad free episodes with transcripts from just $2 a month!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In this episode, we conclude our story f the delegates who partook in this romp through alternative history and imagination land over the last six months. You are all a credit to history podcast listeners, and thanksss so much for making such hard work be so much darn fun. What does the world look like up to 1945? What did the delegates do after 1919 to make their mark upon the world? Furthermore, who would walk away with the coveted 74th ANNUAL DELEGATION GAME AWARDS!? Find out here! Thanks again, you are the best dear delegates.
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It's high time we examined where the Germans fit into all of this mess. Having been left with the most unfair treaty in the universe, how could these poor unfortunate Germans possibly repair and move on? My point, as I make many times in this final episodes of our project, is that the German responsibility for this 'moving on' rested with the Germans and the Germans alone. An imperfect Treaty was not an excuse for Nazism. A did not automatically equal B, and the Treaty of Versailles did not have to lead inexorably to WW2. To claim that it did, to recall those few sentences in a textbook which proclaims as such, is to seriously underrate the responsibility of individuals in Germany, Hitler included of course, for what followed.
Few would ever seek to claim that Hitler was justified, but the problem was, he used this Treaty as justification for his earlier successes in peacetime, and while we recognise these successes were wrong, we also let his core argument go unchallenged. If Hitler was wrong to invoke the Treaty when marching into the Rhineland, annexing Austria or seizing the Sudetenland, then it stands that neither he nor his contemporaries were justified in proclaiming that the Treaty of Versailles 'made him do it'. No, it was the German people who made WW2 possible, and setting the record straight in this regard is a mission which is long overdue...
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The Versailles Anniversary Project is possible because of your support and interest - make sure to spread the word, engage with the debate, and look at the different ways you can help this project succeed!
->Visit the homeland for this new project!
->Become a delegate and play the Delegation Game for just $6 a month!
->Support the podcast financially and access ad free episodes with transcripts from just $2 a month!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Vittorio Orlando, George Clemenceau, David Lloyd George and Woodrow Wilson. Four men, who over the last eight months, had been more central to the development of the peace, and thus the development of the 20th century, than any other figures. In this episode, we remember each man and his story during this eight month period. What struggles did each face, what triumphs did they enjoy, and what has history come to say about each of them? Can any one of them truly claim to have succeeded? If all had some qualms with the Treaty, was that Treaty even worth anything? A century later, how do explain the behaviour of these men, and what does it tell us about the Treaty which emerged afterwards?
Was there a good guy and a bad guy? Not quite, and just like in 1914, there was no smoking gun. The big four were four men in a sea of others, who tried their best to change the narrative, and to make something new. Each man differed as to exactly what he wanted, but all were united on one thing - a desire to avoid at all costs, a repeat of the Great War. Unfortunately, it is impossible now to avoid the conclusion that they failed, but as we've also learned, not a single one of them went down without a fight. In fact, for a few, the struggle which followed the Treaty truly was a matter of life and death.
Track down the song Whirlwinds of Danger which we used in our intermission by clicking here
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The Versailles Anniversary Project is possible because of your support and interest - make sure to spread the word, engage with the debate, and look at the different ways you can help this project succeed!
->Visit the homeland for this new project!
->Become a delegate and play the Delegation Game for just $6 a month!
->Support the podcast financially and access ad free episodes with transcripts from just $2 a month!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Germany and Austria receive their peace treaties, amidst an atmosphere which was calm and collected in some places, but scheming and troubling in others. Could it be guaranteed that these arrangements would stand the test of time? Who was left pleased, where others were enraged? Was anyone listening to the small people? Find out in our final narrative episode of the Delegation Game!
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Just because the main event had been and gone, did not mean that the story ended here. For many delegates and peacemakers, the mission remained one of leveraging as many advantages from the peace treaty as possible. For others, it was a case of working with friends and foes alike to secure their borders or their interests once they returned home. Returning home, indeed, was on the agenda on many statesmen who had helped make the treaty. Yet, the signing of the Treaty of Versailles did not mean that the leaders outside of the Big Four were satisfied, and in this episode, we hone in on their experiences, and tell their side of the story.
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The Versailles Anniversary Project is possible because of your support and interest - make sure to spread the word, engage with the debate, and look at the different ways you can help this project succeed!
->Visit the homeland for this new project!
->Become a delegate and play the Delegation Game for just $6 a month!
->Support the podcast financially and access ad free episodes with transcripts from just $2 a month!
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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