First in the Unknown Soldiers Podcast's interview series, we have Mr. David Townsend, author of "My Road to Mandalay: Compiled from his Father's Letters." David's father fought in the Burma Campaign of World War II, and his letters were only found years later. David tells us about his discovery of the side of his father that he never knew: one more of history's Unknown Soldiers. Amazon link to My Road to Mandalay: https://tinyurl.com/mw9m3689 Check the website: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast...
Jun 13, 2022•39 min•Season 1Ep. 35
In the early months of the American Civil War, the Confederacy launched an invasion of New Mexico to achieve their dream of empire. This forgotten campaign culminated in a small but important battle at Glorieta Pass - the Gettysburg of the West. Sources, Images, Maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-32-gettysburg-of-the-west-maps-images-and-sources Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/unknownsoldierspodcast https://twitter.com/unksoldierspod Music: ...
Jun 06, 2022•1 hr 30 min•Season 1Ep. 34
The soldiers of the Crimean War had pretty miserable diets and a strong desire for all kinds of alcohol. If you are what you eat, the Crimean War's soldiers were salt beef, biscuit, and liquor - though that, like everything else, was about to change. Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-27-31-crimean-war-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-epis...
May 30, 2022•30 min•Season 1Ep. 33
Russian imperialism, and its opponents, are often forgotten. Throughout the early 19th Century, Russia fought to subdue the mountain tribes of Chechnya and Dagestan and the Muslim guerrilla leader Imam Shamil. Who will become Lord of the Caucasus? Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-27-31-crimean-war-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode...
May 30, 2022•31 min•Season 1Ep. 33
The last stages of the Crimean War saw some of its fiercest combat in the Allied assaults on Sevastopol. What the nations of Europe learned in the trenches would change how they viewed each other - and how they viewed themselves. Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-27-31-crimean-war-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episodes-27-31-the-crimea...
May 23, 2022•1 hr 58 min•Season 1Ep. 32
In 1855, a woman of color arrived on the Crimea to do her part for the British war effort. Mary Seacole, a mixed-race Creole widow, would be one of the great British heroines of the Crimea, a light driving back the melting dark. Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-27-31-crimean-war-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episodes-27-31-the-crimean...
May 16, 2022•29 min•Season 1Ep. 31
A young Russian army officer arrived in Sevastopol in December 1854, and he was transformed by his experience in the Crimean War. Let's take a look at the Siege of Sevastopol with our tour guide, Ensign Leo Tolstoy. Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-27-31-crimean-war-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episodes-27-31-the-crimean-war-series-s...
May 16, 2022•28 min•Season 1Ep. 31
The winter of 1854-1855 would test every army on the Crimea to their limits. Only the intervention of heroes and heroines from across the class system would bring their armies through the darkness - and into the light of the first mass media war. Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-27-31-crimean-war-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episodes...
May 09, 2022•1 hr 30 min•Season 1Ep. 30
Four armies are locked on a desperate, bitter struggle around the fortress city of Sevastopol, the key to the Crimea. But in the valleys of Balaclava and the fog of Inkerman, it is the soldiers, not the generals, who decide the fate of empires. Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-27-31-crimean-war-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episodes-2...
May 02, 2022•1 hr 31 min•Season 1Ep. 29
The armies of the Crimean War were a product of their histories, their societies, and their cultures. They reflected the nations that deployed them. When they finally collide on the Alma River, their strengths...and weaknesses...will be revealed. Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-27-31-crimean-war-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episodes...
Apr 25, 2022•1 hr 29 min•Season 1Ep. 28
Welcome to the Victorian Age, the 19th Century. The decline of the Ottoman Empire, the Sick Man of Europe, has caused an international crisis. Ambition, fear, escalation and miscalculation will pull Europe into the first modern conflict. Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-27-31-crimean-war-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episodes-27-31-th...
Apr 18, 2022•1 hr 54 min•Season 1Ep. 27
A brief introduction to the Crimean War series and Europe in the 19th Century. Need some context before we get into the story? Don't know your Prussias from your Russias? Find the answers here! Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-27-31-crimean-war-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episodes-27-31-the-crimean-war-series-sources Social Media: h...
Apr 18, 2022•23 min•Season 1Ep. 26
In today's Unfiltered Soldiers, it's time to take a look at the First World War beyond the mud and blood of trench warfare in France and Flanders. What was going on in Africa? China? The Middle East? The Balkans? Ukraine? Let's look at the Great War...beyond the Western Front. Check the website: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/ Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/unknownsoldierspodcast https://twitter.com/unksoldierspod...
Apr 11, 2022•1 hr 59 min•Season 1Ep. 26
When World War I began, multiple German ships were in foreign waters. The story of the last German squadron at large, Admiral Von Spee's East Asia Squadron, is an epic drama on the high seas...but also shows how culture can change the tide of history. Maps, Images, Sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/ Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/unknownsoldierspodcast https://twitter.com/unksoldierspod Music: 100 Seconds by Punch Deck | https://soundcloud.com/punch-deckMusic promoted by ht...
Apr 04, 2022•1 hr 29 min•Season 1Ep. 26
Today we meet the women who followed, suffered, and died with European armies in the age of gunpowder, 1450-1850. They are the invisible people of military history, some of the greatest unknown soldiers, the women of the army: the camp followers. Maps, Images, Sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/ Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/unknownsoldierspodcast https://twitter.com/unksoldierspod Music: Fantasy Motion (Loop Ready) by Alexander Nakarada | https://www.serpentsoundstudios.co...
Mar 28, 2022•1 hr 25 min•Season 1Ep. 25
During the leadup to the U.S. Civil War, American adventurers tried to invade and conquer new slave territories in the Caribbean. They were called the "filibusters", and their most infamous hero, William Walker, became Central America's historical villain. Maps, Images, and Sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-24-how-to-steal-a-country-maps-images-and-sources Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/unknownsoldierspodcast https://twitter.com/unksold...
Mar 21, 2022•1 hr 29 min•Season 1Ep. 24
Brief update on the present and future of the Unknown Soldiers Podcast. No episode this week - sorry! But there's a bunch of good stuff just over the horizon... Check the Website: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/ Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/unknownsoldierspodcast https://twitter.com/unksoldierspod...
Mar 14, 2022•17 min
BONUS SHORT ROUND for the Imjin War. Don't let the title fool you. The iron hand of logistics can make or break an army, a campaign, a war...and it broke the Japanese invasion of Korea. Let's take an in-depth look at what it takes to feed an army. Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-20-23-the-imjin-war-series-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcas...
Mar 07, 2022•36 min•Season 1Ep. 24
PART IV of the Imjin War. By 1598, the Japanese had failed to conquer Korea...if only they would admit it. The last years of the conflict will see some of the bloodiest and most horrifying events in Asian history...and their scars still refuse to heal. Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-20-23-the-imjin-war-series-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-p...
Feb 28, 2022•1 hr 39 min•Season 1Ep. 23
PART III of the Imjin War. In 1597, the Japanese came back for Round Two, and Korea was brought to the brink of disaster. Its survival rested on a disgraced admiral and his 13 ships...holding the line against 300. It is one of history's greatest last stands: the Battle of Myeongnyang, the Korean Thermopylae. Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-20-23-the-imjin-war-series-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https...
Feb 21, 2022•1 hr 28 min•Season 1Ep. 22
BONUS SHORT ROUND for the Imjin War. Ming China was a gunpowder empire, the East Asian superpower that would ultimately thwart Hideyoshi's invasion of Japan...with help from Little Brother, Joseon Korea. Let's take a hard look at the Chinese army in the gunpowder age. Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-20-23-the-imjin-war-series-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/un...
Feb 18, 2022•30 min•Season 1Ep. 21
PART II of the Imjin War. In 1593, the Japanese invasion of Korea had run into serious trouble. An overstretched army, the valiant resistance of the Korean people, and the guns of the Ming Dynasty would force the samurai to admit defeat. Or would they? Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-20-23-the-imjin-war-series-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-p...
Feb 14, 2022•1 hr 28 min•Season 1Ep. 21
BONUS SHORT ROUND for the Imjin War. The samurai army that invaded Korea in 1592 was a highly effective, ruthless gunpowder army, a fusion of katanas and muskets. It had some surprising strengths, and...even more surprising weaknesses. Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-20-23-the-imjin-war-series-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-20...
Feb 11, 2022•29 min•Season 1Ep. 20
PART I of the Imjin War. In 1592, a Japanese warlord named Toyotomi Hideyoshi unleashed a campaign of brutal world conquest. But even the mighty samurai would meet their match when they met a courageous Korean admiral named Yi Sun-Sin. Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-20-23-the-imjin-war-series-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-20...
Feb 07, 2022•1 hr 55 min•Season 1Ep. 20
A brief introduction to the Imjin War series and Asia in the 16th Century. Need some context before we get into the story? Don't know your Mings from your Mongols? Find the answers here! Check out my hand-drawn maps: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-20-23-the-imjin-war-series-maps Where did I get my info? Here are my sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-podcast-episode-20-23-the-imjin-war-series-sources Social Media : h...
Feb 07, 2022•21 min•Season 1Ep. 19
War elephants were a surprisingly common presence on the battlefield from ancient times until almost the present day. This is a look at the big leathery fellas - how they were trained, how they were used, who used them, and how effective they were. Check the website: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/ Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/unknownsoldierspodcast https://twitter.com/unksoldierspod...
Jan 31, 2022•29 min•Season 1Ep. 19
The Maurya Dynasty ruled the first great empire of Ancient India. But how did the peoples of ancient India view war, combat, and conflict? The answers are much more relevant to the modern world than you might imagine. Maps, Images, Sources: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/post/unknown-soldiers-episode-19-caesars-of-india Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/unknownsoldierspodcast https://twitter.com/unksoldierspod Music: India Drums - Inspirational Ethnic Percussion Documentary Music by...
Jan 24, 2022•1 hr 24 min•Season 1Ep. 19
The Ancient Greek King Pyrrhus of Epirus was legendary in his own time, and is still spoken of today – but for entirely different reasons. What happens when a victory in battle is not worth the cost? What happens when the victories don’t matter at all? Check the website: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/ Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/unknownsoldierspodcast https://twitter.com/unksoldierspod Music Credit: Blood Eagle by Alexander Nakarada | https://www.serpentsoundstudios.com Music...
Jan 17, 2022•1 hr 28 min•Season 1Ep. 18
The myths of the Greek city-state of Sparta, of Spartan invincibility and Spartan warrior might, are a favorite theme of popular history. But do the facts match up to the legend? It’s time to do some mythbusting on the Unknown Soldiers Podcast. Sources, Maps & Commentary: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com//post/unknown-soldiers-episode-17-the-spartan-pr-department-maps-images-sources Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/unknownsoldierspodcast https://twitter.com/unksoldierspod Music C...
Jan 10, 2022•1 hr 54 min•Season 1Ep. 17
In today's Unfiltered Soldiers, it's time to bust some myths about the German military of World War II - the Wehrmacht. Guest starring a glass of beer and a rant about the film "Enemy at the Gates." Check the website: https://www.unknownsoldierspodcast.com/ Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/unknownsoldierspodcast https://twitter.com/unksoldierspod...
Jan 03, 2022•1 hr 59 min•Season 1Ep. 17
