What makes an ordinary person risk everything to save a stranger? Author and historian Richard Hurowitz joins the show to discuss his book, In the Garden of the Righteous: The Heroes Who Risked Their Lives to Save Jews During the Holocaust , which recounts the extraordinary men and women who took immense personal risks to aid people who were being hunted by the Nazis. The conversation explores unforgettable stories of moral courage, including a Portuguese diplomat who saved thousands with a stam...
Jan 12, 2026•50 min•Ep. 71
Historian David Kennedy looks at Franklin D. Roosevelt’s leadership by exploring how he guided the United States through the twin upheavals of the Great Depression and World War II. Kennedy explains how FDR reshaped federal power, responded to mass economic hardship, and slowly steered a largely isolationist nation toward global responsibility. The discussion highlights the weaknesses of the pre–New Deal government, Roosevelt’s innovative (and sometimes improvised) approach to rebuilding institu...
Dec 09, 2025•57 min•Ep. 70
Historian Frank Dikötter, author of How to Be a Dictator: The Cult of Personality in the Twentieth Century , discusses the dark psychology behind absolute power. From Hitler and Mao to Putin and Xi Jinping, Dikötter reveals how dictators use fear, lies, and the cult of personality to control not just people’s actions—but their thoughts. Why do tyrants crave loyalty more than love? Why do they all end up surrounded by liars? And what happens when a dictator starts believing his own propaganda? Fr...
Oct 31, 2025•49 min•Ep. 69
Why did the Jews keep fighting Rome for over 200 years — long after the Great Revolt ended in disaster? Hoover Senior Fellow Barry Strauss discusses the epic story of Judea’s rebellions against the world’s most powerful empire in this conversation and in his new book, Jews vs. Rome: Barry Strauss on Two Centuries of Jewish Revolt . From the fall of Jerusalem and the siege of Masada to the guerrilla war of Bar Kokhba, Strauss reveals the key players, stunning twists, and surprising alliances — in...
Sep 26, 2025•27 min•Ep. 68
Former US Senator and university president Ben Sasse joins Andrew Roberts on Secrets of Statecraft for a candid and very wide-ranging conversation about the state of American institutions and how to revitalize them. Sasse explains why Congress has become weak and dysfunctional, why entitlement spending and debt threaten U.S. stability, and how social media distorts our politics. Sasse also takes on higher education—grade inflation, the replication crisis, and Harvard’s decline—while reflecting o...
Aug 28, 2025•49 min•Ep. 67
Historian Andrew Roberts is joined by former U.S. Secretary of State and current Director of the Hoover Institution Condoleezza Rice for a dive deep into today’s international hotspots—including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, rising tensions with China over Taiwan, and the complex relationships between Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea. Their discussion also covers how leaders draw lessons from history, what might tip the world into a new Cold War, and how nations might address these evolving ...
Aug 08, 2025•38 min•Ep. 66
The Canadian businessman and peer Conrad Black has published the second volume of his political and strategic history of the world, from 14AD to 1648, and it’s a corker.
Jul 31, 2025•47 min•Ep. 65
Sir Niall Ferguson on time travel, Trump bombing Iran, historical counterfactuals, Doctor Who, The Time Lord, using the past to help the present and future, the University of Austin’s revolutionary experiment, ChatGPT, and God possibly helping to split the atom.
Jul 02, 2025•58 min•Ep. 64
British historian Tim Bouverie discusses the knotty diplomatic dilemmas faced by Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin.
Jun 18, 2025•43 min•Ep. 63
Caroline Stanley, Countess of Derby, is an English aristocrat, art historian, and philanthropist. Affectionately known as “Cazzy,” she is married to Edward Stanley, 19th Earl of Derby, and serves as the chatelaine of Knowsley Hall, the ancestral seat of the Stanley family in Merseyside. In this conversation, which also delves into topics ranging from medieval politics to family connections with William Shakespeare, she primarily discusses her edition of the remarkable travel journals of the 14th...
Jun 02, 2025•57 min•Ep. 62
In this unique return visit to Secrets of Statecraft , New York Times columnist Bret Stephens discusses why defending Ukraine is in America’s interest, and reflects on the perils of Western flirtation with authoritarian figures. Recorded on May 16, 2025.
May 16, 2025•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 61
A new book, U.S. Defense Policy toward Israel: A Cold War History , takes on the revisionists over what happened in the Cold War. Recorded on April 16, 205.
Apr 18, 2025•52 min•Ep. 60
Mitch Daniels is the former Director of the Office of Management and Budget under Ronald Reagan, the former Governor of Indiana, and the former President of Purdue University. He discusses his life, his influences, and his passion for hogs (of the Harley-Davidson variety). Recorded on March 21, 2025.
Apr 02, 2025•47 min•Ep. 59
The former head of the British Army, Richard Dannatt, discusses an important war that is often forgotten. Recorded on February 6, 2025.
Mar 25, 2025•48 min•Ep. 58
America’s foremost presidential historian examines the motivations and careers of Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and George H. W. Bush. Recorded on January 24, 2025.
Feb 04, 2025•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 57
The bravest of all the free speech campaigners, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, speaks out eloquently on tribalism, Islam, immigration, Trump, her conversion to Christianity, and what it’s like being married to a quite well-known historian.
Jan 22, 2025•51 min•Ep. 56
Richard Langworth is the senior fellow at the Hillsdale Churchill Project at Hillsdale College, Michigan, and knows more about Winston Churchill than any person living (including me, annoyingly).
Jan 08, 2025•49 min•Ep. 55
A global tour d'horizon with the former Marine Corps commander and Secretary of Defense General Jim Mattis.
Dec 06, 2024•54 min•Ep. 54
The Polish foreign minister Radek Sikorski is characteristically blunt about his former friend Viktor Orban, the chances of nuclear war in Ukraine, and his enemy Vladimir Putin. Recorded on October 26, 2024.
Nov 20, 2024•42 min•Ep. 53
Professor John Bew’s knowledge as the biographer of Lord Castlereagh and Clement Attlee and the historian of Realpolitik was put to good use when he became the senior foreign policy advisor to no fewer than four British prime ministers. Recorded on October 18, 2024.
Nov 06, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 52
How Bill Browder reacted when Vladimir Putin murdered Browder’s friend and lawyer Sergei Magnitsky. Recorded on October 11, 2024.
Oct 23, 2024•45 min•Ep. 51
Nataliya Bugayova, Non-Resident Russia Fellow at the Institute for the Study of War, shares her latest in-depth knowledge on how the Russo-Ukrainian War is going. Recorded on September 9, 2024.
Oct 09, 2024•34 min•Ep. 50
The esteemed science writer and author of The Rational Optimist , Matt Ridley, gazes into the future of mankind. Recorded on September 16, 2024.
Sep 25, 2024•53 min•Ep. 49
Iranian-born Shay Khatiri, senior fellow of the Yorktown Institute, explains the (warped) thinking of the Teheran regime.
Sep 11, 2024•43 min•Ep. 48
The distinguished economist Paul Gregory recalls his time spent with Lee Harvey and Marina Oswald.
Aug 28, 2024•41 min•Ep. 47
The great historian of Russian history compares and contrasts the three monsters of the Russian Revolution.
Aug 09, 2024•49 min•Ep. 46
Nick True was until recently leader of the House of Lords and Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal. His Toryism hails from an earlier and better age, but still has modern relevance.
Jul 29, 2024•45 min•Ep. 45
Lord Hannan draws on his 21 years as a member of the European Parliament for this scholarly and masterly overview of world affairs.
Jul 18, 2024•49 min•Ep. 44
Con Coughlin, veteran war correspondent and Daily Telegraph foreign & defense editor, has written the biographies of Ayatollah Khomeini, Saddam Hussein and Bashir Al-Assad. And he’s also gone drinking with Hunter S. Thompson …
Jul 02, 2024•52 min•Ep. 43
Recorded on June 4, 2024. President Nicolas Sarkozy on the weight of history on his shoulders when he ruled France from 2007 to 2012.
Jun 17, 2024•35 min•Ep. 42
