This episode looks at the courtroom drama that helped to shape Asia after World War II with Princeton University's Gary Bass. Far more than a simple account of justice served, the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal represents a fascinating intersection of international law, power politics, and competing visions of history that continues to reverberate through East Asian relations today. The tribunal tried 28 Japanese leaders for crimes that began long before Pearl Harbor. Imperial Japan's expansionist wa...
Aug 18, 2025•1 hr 17 min•Season 1Ep. 93
When 50,000 northerners marched under their banners in 1536, England witnessed its largest rebellion since the Peasants' Revolt. The Pilgrimage of Grace wasn't merely a protest—it was a defining moment that threatened to unravel the English Reformation and return the kingdom to Rome. Professor Peter Marshall, renowned Tudor historian from Warwick University, takes us deep into this extraordinary episode where religious devotion, political power, and regional identity collided with explosive resu...
Jul 28, 2025•1 hr 25 min•Season 1Ep. 92
The story of the First Crusade isn't simply one of religious fervor or military conquest – it's a tale of desperate empires, complex political maneuvering, and unlikely alliances that would reshape medieval history. When Byzantine Emperor Alexius I found his thousand-year-old empire crumbling under Turkish advances in the late 11th century, he made an unprecedented move that would change the course of history: he asked the West for help. What followed was extraordinary. Pope Urban II's call at t...
Jul 09, 2025•1 hr 13 min•Season 1Ep. 91
What makes a nation launch an attack it cannot hope to win? Admiral Yamamoto, who planned the Pearl Harbor attack, warned Japan's leadership they would have only six months before America would mobilize its entire continent to destroy them. He was right, but his warning was ignored. The episode starts with a discussion about the controversial Yasukuni Shrine and museum, where we gain insight into how Japan's military establishment viewed their expansionist ambitions. This museum is not just a co...
Jun 19, 2025•1 hr 24 min•Season 1Ep. 90
How did Japan become embroiled in one of history's deadliest conflicts? The answer lies not in December 1941, but decades earlier. Jonathan Clements returns to unravel the forces that propelled Japan down a path to war with the world's greatest industrial power. Following Japan's victory in the First Sino-Japanese War, the country emerged with new confidence only to face the humiliation of the Triple Intervention, when European powers forced them to surrender their hard-won territories. This spa...
Jun 11, 2025•1 hr 4 min•Season 1Ep. 89
The transformation of Japan from hermit kingdom to imperial power happened with breathtaking speed. When American Commodore Perry's "black ships" steamed into Tokyo Bay in the 1850s, they shattered Japan's 250-year isolation with technology that seemed to come "from 200 years in the future." This technological gap created a constitutional crisis that would ultimately topple the Tokugawa Shogunate and usher in the Meiji Restoration of 1868. Jonathan Clements guides us through this pivotal period ...
Jun 03, 2025•1 hr 9 min•Season 1Ep. 88
The Hundred Years' War shaped medieval Europe's political landscape for over a century—but what really caused this epic conflict between England and France? In this illuminating conversation, former UK Supreme Court Justice and acclaimed medieval historian Lord Jonathan Sumption cuts through myths and misconceptions to reveal the war's true origins. Contrary to popular belief, the war didn't begin as a simple grab for the French crown. Instead, it stemmed from a complex constitutional crisis whe...
May 02, 2025•1 hr 1 min
The story of the Opium War is one of history's most consequential yet widely misunderstood conflicts. Professor Stephen Platt joined me to unravel the fascinating web of events that led Britain and China into a collision that would reshape Asia and the global balance of power for centuries to come. Far from being a simple tale of drug dealers backed by imperial force, Stephen reveals cultural misunderstandings, diplomatic failures, and economic pressures eventually converging with devastating co...
Apr 09, 2025•1 hr 18 min•Season 1Ep. 86
I spoke to Christopher before about his book the Lion House. That was part 1 of a trilogy on the life of Suleiman the Magnificent. Christopher is back to talk about part 2: The Golden Throne - the Curse of a King . From the intricate power dynamics of the Ottoman court to bloody naval battles in the Mediterranean, "The Golden Throne" recreates the world of Suleiman the Magnificent at the height of his reign. We discover an empire where Christian slaves could rise to the highest positions of powe...
Mar 17, 2025•1 hr 14 min•Season 1Ep. 85
Anton Howes writes the brilliant Age of Invention substack. We were supposed to talk about the history of salt and its powerful impact on people and states. We certainly did talk about that but also a lot more! - history's efflorescences - Henry VIII's ruthless tax grabs - The feebleness of England (until suddenly . . .) - Rebel space colonies - The Spanish and English Armadas - Lot's wicked daughters - The Roman (non) Industrial Revolution And amidst all our digressions I mentioned the film wit...
Feb 14, 2025•1 hr 19 min•Season 1Ep. 84
In this episode Professor Ed Watts and I look at the brilliant career and sad life of the Emperor Tiberius. We try to understand how this most capable and intelligent man came to be seen by history as one of the most monstrous of the Roman emperors. In researching for the podcast I came across a really stirring defence of Tiberius in the shape of a monograph by Norman Douglas. On looking into who Norman Douglas was I discovered that he was a great literary figure of the first half of the 20th ce...
Jan 15, 2025•1 hr 16 min•Season 1Ep. 83
This is part 2 of my podcast with Jonathan Clements on Japan's Christian century. In this episode we get on to the rebellion itself. Sensitive listeners may want to brace themselves! You can send a message to the show/feedback by clicking here. The system doesn't let me reply so if you need one please include your email.
Dec 27, 2024•58 min
A two part podcast on Japan's Christian century. Jonathan Clements wrote a brilliant book called Christ's Samurai about the Shimabara rebellion of 1638. We cover the story in two parts - this is part 1 and tells of the early successes and later disasters of the efforts to bring christianity to Japan. Part 2 will cover the story of the rebellion itself. You can send a message to the show/feedback by clicking here. The system doesn't let me reply so if you need one please include your email....
Dec 19, 2024•59 min•Season 1Ep. 81
Hampton Sides loves to tell stories of people fighting against impossible odds. The story of the Jeannette's voyage is right in that vein. His book is called In the Kingdom of Ice and the subtitle sums it up - the Grand and Terrible Polar Voyage of the USS Jeannette. Look forward to hearing about US naval officer George de Long's polar expedition of 1879, including: a rich and eccentric newspaper owner a syphilitic navigator a mentally unbalanced German cartographer a wonderful love story and co...
Dec 02, 2024•56 min•Season 1Ep. 80
Spring Heeled Jack was an uncatchable villain from Victorian times. His speciality was attacking young women, raking their faces and clothes with metal claws and sometimes breathing fire in their faces. We have good evidence for his existence with newspaper reports and police and courts involved. But the more historian Mike Dash peels away the layers the harder it becomes to be sure of anything. A proper historical investigation into a proper mystery! You can send a message to the show/feedback ...
Nov 09, 2024•57 min•Season 1Ep. 79
The 'spice wars' between the Dutch and the English in the 1600's were quite something. Giles Milton told the story in his remarkable book Nathaniel's Nutmeg . What I hadn't realised until reading this was how feeble and disorganised the English were compared to their competitors. And the Dutch in particular were as ruthless as they were capable. Visits to the court of Ivan the Terrible, a knight of the realm imprisoned in a cupboard under the stairs, horrific torture, courage and persistence bey...
Oct 07, 2024•55 min•Season 1Ep. 78
We are back with Jonathan Clements for part 2 of our podcast on the history of Taiwan. In this episode we start with the remarkable story of Taiwan's 50 years as a colony of Japan. And Jonathan then takes the story through the White Terror up to the current day. And to remind you: Rebel Island Jonathan's blog You can send a message to the show/feedback by clicking here. The system doesn't let me reply so if you need one please include your email....
Sep 12, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Season 1Ep. 77
Jonathan Clements has written a number of histories of East Asia. His latest, Rebel Island , is a history of Taiwan from the earliest times up to today. If you have any interest in the history of the region this book is an absolute must read. And while it is a serious and meticulously researched history it is also genuinely gripping with 'Blimey! I didn't know that!' moments on every other page. Really terrific stuff. We ran rather long so I split it into two parts. Part 1 takes us all the way u...
Sep 10, 2024•50 min•Season 1Ep. 76
Delighted to have Professor Ed Watts back on the show. This time he is talking about the 4th Crusade which turned into one of history's great catastrophes. People give many possible dates for the fall of the Roman Empire and Ed argues persuasively for 1204 when the crusade reaches its heartbreaking climax. You can send a message to the show/feedback by clicking here. The system doesn't let me reply so if you need one please include your email....
Aug 23, 2024•1 hr 24 min•Season 1Ep. 75
Professor Ed Watts is a reliably brilliant guest on the show. In this episode he looks at Sulla's career and the blight the cast on the Roman Republic. Ed argues that it is impossible to understand any the great characters - Caesar, Cicero, Cato, Pompey and so on - without understanding the scarring effect of Sulla's rule. In Ed's view Caesar emerges from all this as a man with terrible ambition and many faults but ultimately redeemed by his refusal to follow Sulla's example. Refreshingly revisi...
Jul 24, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Season 1Ep. 74
I can't remember enjoying a story more than Peter Marshall's Mother Leakey and the Bishop. The way Peter tells the story is absolutely brilliant with walk on parts from some very famous characters. At heart though it is a ghost story and the story of how an Anglican Bishop came to be hanged for the crime of sodomy in Dublin in the winter of 1640. Peter is one of the leading historians of the Reformation and won the Woolfson prize for his book Heretics and Believers . And as I say in the introduc...
Jun 01, 2024•56 min•Season 1Ep. 73
We cover the miserable tale of the 4th crusade, the Latin Empire and Anthony gives advice on how to write a Byzantium based historical novel. We had fun with this one and I hope you enjoy it. You can send a message to the show/feedback by clicking here. The system doesn't let me reply so if you need one please include your email.
May 02, 2024•38 min•Season 1Ep. 72
If you have any interest at all in Byzantium or in the Roman Empire generally I think you should really enjoy this episode. Professor Kaldellis is one of the leading scholars on Byzantium (East Rome?) and his book The New Roman Empire - A History of Byzantium takes you all the way from the founding of Constantinople to its fall to the Ottoman Turks in the 15th century, more than a thousand years later. The book is a tour de force and despite the scale of the story it is extremely readable and I ...
Apr 30, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Season 1Ep. 71
Hampton has been on the podcast before and if you haven't yet found his books of narrative history I urge you to seek them out. Absolutely thrilling stories but told with real historical skill. Today we talked about Captain Cook's last voyage which ended in 1779. Hampton's book is called The Wide Wide Sea and he pays attention to all parts of the story - Cook was very much only a part of the tale. And do seek out not just the Wide Wide Sea but Hampton's other books. If you enjoy narrative histor...
Apr 08, 2024•52 min•Season 1Ep. 70
I am a huge fan of Mike Dash's books. We have talked about Batavia's Graveyard and Tulipomania in past episodes. But Mike also has a fascination for weird semi folkloric stories and in this episode he unearths the truth about that remarkable creature, the Sin Eater. You can send a message to the show/feedback by clicking here. The system doesn't let me reply so if you need one please include your email....
Mar 01, 2024•48 min•Season 1Ep. 69
Most people know Ed West for his journalism and in particular for his substack The Wrong Side of History . If you haven't found that yet then check it out - it is one of the best things of its kind out there. But Ed also writes book and in particular a series of short introductions to various periods of English history. If (like me) you sometimes find you need a good overview of something before diving into the detail these books are an absolute godsend. We talked about the period from when the ...
Feb 08, 2024•1 hr 6 min•Season 1Ep. 68
I am a huge fan of John McWhorter and have come to have great respect for Scott Sumner's knowledge and judgement when it comes to movies. It was a real pleasure to get them together to chat about favourite movies, directors and genres. You can send a message to the show/feedback by clicking here. The system doesn't let me reply so if you need one please include your email.
Jan 21, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Season 1Ep. 67
Frank Dikötter returns to the show to talk about dictators and in particular how they use the cult of personality to crush friends and enemies alike. HIs book on dictators is an elightening tour of some of the worst men of the 20th century - horribly enjoyable! You can send a message to the show/feedback by clicking here. The system doesn't let me reply so if you need one please include your email....
Jan 07, 2024•51 min•Season 1Ep. 66
If, like me, your idea of East Germany is dominated by spy movies and and you think that perhaps it was nothing more than a open air prison with the Stasi round every corner then Katja Hoyer's remarkable book Beyond the Wall is an ideal corrective. Katja blends personal tales (some happy and some utterly tragic) with an analysis of the wider geopolitical scene. Above all it is fantastically readable and unsurprisingly is on pretty much every 'book of the year' list in the newspapers. She was a g...
Dec 09, 2023•1 hr 18 min•Season 1Ep. 65
Giles Milton is one of my favourite authors producing narrative history today. The stories he tells are just jaw dropping. We talked about his book White Gold which tells the stories of Thomas Pellow who was seized and taken off into slavery in 1714. Looming large in the story is the remarkable Moulay Ismail, ruler of Morroco at the time. He makes his entrance on his chariot pulled by some of his eunuchs and some of his 500 wives. A brutal and cruel ruler but a fascinating character. The title o...
Oct 25, 2023•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 64
