The History Files: Recent Episodes

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We’re back… and we brought pirates! Actually, that’s probably not such a great idea, what with all the stealing and pillaging and slow-matches in the beard and buckets of burning sulphur. Of course that’s only if we brought Edward Teach, but you get the idea. This episode was recorded live in front of a very groggy audience on a Sunday morning at the Brass Screw Confederacy Steampunk festival in Pt. Townsend, Washington on June 11, 2017. We had a great time revelling in all the pirate stuff and hope you enjoy our little presentation.

Show notes and links:

• On Stranger Tides , by Tim Powers (amazon.com)

• A General History of the Pyrates (wikipedia.org)

• The Seafarers, Time-Life: The Pirates (amazon.com)

• Movieing On #233: Yellowbeard (csicon.fm)

• The Sea Dogs (infogalactic.com)

• Barbarossa Brothers, Barbary Pirates: Pirate’s Realm (thepiratesrealm.com)

• Old Ironsides (1926) (amazon.com)

• Jean Lafitte (infogalactic.com)

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In part 2 of our series on World War 1, we take some time to talk about how the various Allied Countries armed up in the first months of the conflict, and how the United States basically became the “Arsenal of Democracy” long before WW2.

Show notes and links:

• “The Son” (2017) (imdb.com)

• The Persuaders! (TV Series 1971–1972) (imdb.com) The odd little action TV show with Roger Moore and Tony Curtis that we couldn’t remember the name of.

• Arsenal of Democracy (infogalactic.com)

• Gordon’s Gun Closet #1: Colt New Service (csicon.fm)

• M1911 pistol (infogalactic.com)

• Gordon’s Gun Closet #3: M1911 (csicon.fm)

• Lewis gun (infogalactic.com)

• M1895 Colt (infogalactic.com)

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Germany during WW2 seemed, at first, to be headed for economic recovery and a bright shining future. A few young people recently returned from witnessing the true heart of the Third Reich thought differently and sought to oppose the Nazi movement and Hitler’s government. They called themselves “The White Rose”*. They operated in secret, distributing pamphlets trying to wake up the populace to the reality of their situation:

“…our present ‘state’ is the dictatorship of evil. …if you know that, why do you not bestir yourselves, why do you allow these men who are in power to rob you…of one domain of your rights after another, until one day nothing, nothing at all will be left but a mechanized state system presided over by criminals and drunks? Is your spirit already so crushed by abuse that you forget it is your right – or rather, your moral duty – to eliminate this system? But if a man no longer can summon the strength to demand his right, then it is absolutely certain that he will perish.”

• We mistakenly call it the “Order of the White Rose” a few times during this episode. That’s a different thing.

Show notes and links:

• Memoirs of a Professional Cad, George Sanders (amazon.com)

• A History of Egypt from the Earliest Times to the Persian Conquest, James Henry Breasted (amazon.com)

• White Rose (infogalactic.com)

• “The White Rose Leaflets” Revolt & Resistance

• White Rose leaflet images with translations (holocaustresearchproject.org)

• “The Man in the High Castle” (2015) (imdb.com)

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Not all of our topics are hopeful or uplifting. Discussions of wars and man’s inhumanity to man are part of the study of history. In this episode we talk about a controversial chapter in world history, the Armenian Genocide, that overlaps WW1, but that we felt should be discussed separately.

Show notes and links:

• Movieing On #236: The Thing From Another World (csicon.fm)

• House of Rejoicing: Part 1 of The Book of Coming Forth by Day (amazon.com)

• Armenian Genocide (infogalactic.com)

• Fresno (TV Mini-Series 1986– ) (imdb.com)

• The Promise (2016) – IMDb (imdb.com)

• The Promise (reelviews.net)

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As we continue into the 100 year anniversary of the Great War, eventually known as World War 1, we thought it appropriate to begin a series discussing this turning point in history. In this episode we talk about the events leading up to the war.

Show notes and links:

• Bleak House (TV Mini-Series 2005– ) (imdb.com)

• 124-Year-Old Never-Worn Levi’s Found in Arizona Cedar Chest (foxbusiness.com)

• The Influence of Sea Power on History, Alfred Thayer Mahan (gutenberg.org)

• RMS Lusitania (infogalactic.com)

• The History Files #17: U.S. in Mexico, 1914 (csicon.fm)

• The History Files #47: Pancho Villa (csicon.fm)

• National Guard of the United States (infogalactic.com)

• Zimmermann Telegram (infogalactic.com)

• William Jennings Bryan (infogalactic.com)

• John J. Pershing (infogalactic.com)

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While there are no records of large-scale wars or even battles in the Puget Sound area, there have been a few skirmishes over the years. Many people have heard of the Pig War (see HF ep. 53) , but fewer know of the Battle of… Port Gamble. It’s a case of truth being stranger than fiction, with the US Navy coming to the defense of the S’Klallam Indians of present day Little Boston, and we’re here to tell you all about it.

Show notes and links:

• Norwood Cove Object (mdihistory.org)

• Gordon’s Gun Closet #18: Indiana Jones (csicon.fm)

• Battle of Port Gamble  (infogalactic.com)

• Battle of Port Gamble (youtube.com)

• In the Land of the Headhunter (vimeo.com)

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Civil wars are the ugliest wars, and one of the saddest was the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). It’s the subject and setting of many a novel and film, and it’s our topic in this episode.

Show notes and links:

• BRASS – Steampunk Radio Adventure (battlegroundproductions.org)

• Jonathan Coulton – A Talk With George (youtube.com)

• George Plimpton (wikipedia.org)

• Movieing On #228: Persuasion (csicon.fm)

• Movieing On #229: The Outlaw Josey Wales (csicon.fm)

• Guns of “The Outlaw Josey Wales” (csicon.fm)

• Spanish Civil War

• » What’s in a Name? (csicon.fm)

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He’s “Old Hickory”, he’s the seventh President of the United States, the guy on the twenty dollar bill, and he founded the Democratic Party. He’s Andrew Jackson, he’s a cranky Scot, and we’re here to talk about him.

Show notes and links:

• The Crown (TV Series 2016– ) (imdb.com)

• Movieing On #227: Au Revoir Les Enfants (csicon.fm)

• Andrew Jackson

• Gordon’s Gun Closet #16: Ferguson Breech-loader (csicon.fm)

• Peter McQueen

• William Weatherford (a.k.a. Lamochattee [Red Eagle])

• Creek War

• Battle of New Orleans

• The Corrupt Bargain

• Indian Removal Act of 1830

• What’s in a Name? (csicon.fm)

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This week we talk about one of the most beloved figures in American history, Gen. Robert E. Lee. He made a monumentally difficult decision to fight for the secessionists during the American Civil War (1861-65) and became world famous for leading a troubled South with steadfast honor.

Show notes and links:

• The Crown (TV Series 2016– ) (imdb.com)

• Mr. and Mrs. Hollywood: Edie and Lew Wasserman and Their Entertainment Empire, by Kathleen Sharp (amazon.com)

• Frontier (TV Series 2016– ) (imdb.com)

• Robert E. Lee

• Winfield Scott

• The History Files #53: The Pig War (csicon.fm)

• Henry “Light Horse Harry” Lee III

• Traveller (Lee’s horse)

• Movieing On #224: The Great Gatsby (csicon.fm)

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We all want to know what’s going on in our world and elsewhere, but who can we trust to give us “all the news that’s fit to print” or tell us “that’s the way it was”? This week we look at the origins of the news media, how it became a business, and try to figure out what’s “fake news” and what’s “real news”. Yep, it’s all the news about news.

Show notes and links:

• Geekdays (csicon.fm)

• The Man in the High Castle – Season 2 (amazon.com)

• The Crown (TV Series 2016– ) (imdb.com)

• Yellow journalism

• Aimee Semple McPherson

• US Govt Just Legalized Operation Mockingbird – FBI Can Now Impersonate the Media (thefreethoughtproject.com)

• Distorting Reality Worldwise – CIA and the Media (lewrockwell.com)

• Coffee With Jeff #117 – Celluloid of the Strange & Unusual 1 (csicon.fm)

• Movieing On #222: Wild at Heart (csicon.fm)

• Bad Cat Productions – YouTube (youtube.com)

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Alt history is a great way to analyze the past and take a long look at how we arrived at where we are now. Many historians and fiction writers have speculated about what the world would be like if World War 2 had ended differently. In celebration of season two of The Man in the High Castle, we take a look at the end of WW2 and talk about what happened versus what might have happened.

Show notes and links:

• The Man in the High Castle Season 2 Release Date, Trailer, and Review (denofgeek.com)

• The Man In the High Castle – Season 1 (amazon.com)

• The History Files #45: Alternate History (csicon.fm)

• History Files videos – Presidential Election Perspective: 2016 vs. 1860 (youtu.be)

• Operation Downfall

• Hunting Hitler (history.com)

• Conspiracy theories about Adolf Hitler’s death

• The Koumentang or National Revolutionary Army – Wikipedia

• Burma Road

• Chindits

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We spent two episodes talking about the origins of the American cowboy, the golden age of the cattle drive, and some of the heroes of the old west. This week – in part three – we talk about the cowboy’s migration from the range to the silver screen and further developments of cowboy culture.

Show notes and links:

• The Crown (TV series)

• Firearms of the American West at SteamCon II (2010) (Bad Cat Productions at youtu.be)

• Buffalo Bill

• Miller Brothers 101 Ranch

• Bill Pickett

• Tom Mix

• William S. Hart

• Packing Iron: Gunleather of the Frontier West – Richard C. Rattenbury, Janet Begley, Norm Flayderman

• This week’s special music: A Cocky Cowboy, Cliff Ferre with the Cafe Society Quintet (archive.org)

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Thanksgiving, American style. What’s this holiday all about? Who were those “Pilgrims” and why were they so keen to get to North America? And what about Squanto? Find out in this week’s exciting episode of The History Files!

Show notes and links:

• The History Files #77: Cowboys Pt. 2 (csicon.fm)

• Firearms of the American West at SteamCon II (2010) (youtu.be)

• Squanto

• Martin Frobisher

• John Cabot

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In part two of our short series on the cowboy, we dive into the peak years of the big cattle drives, the crystallization of American cowboy accoutrements, and take a look at some of the noteworthy personalities that made names for themselves in and around the cattle towns of the second half of the nineteenth century.

Show notes and links:

• The History Files #76: Cowboys Pt. 1 (csicon.fm)

• Bad Cat Productions (youtube.com)

• Charlie Siringo (author of “A Texas Cowboy”)

• “Arizona Cowboys”, Dane Coolidge (amazon.com)

• “Bear River” Thomas J. Smith

• John Wesley Hardin

• Elmer Keith

• Monte Walsh (1970 film)

• Bad Cat Store at Zazzle (zazzle.com)

• Archive.org – today’s special music, “Get Along Little Doggies” performed by the Cartwright Brothers (1927)

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Saddle up and stow your bedroll, it’s time to hit the dusty trail as we take a look at the history of the American cowboy. This week, in part one, we start in the early 19th century in the American southwest with Mexican Vaqueros, and end up mid-century in Abilene, Kansas and the era of the cattle drive.

Show notes and links:

• The History Files #75: Election Shenanigans (csicon.fm)

• Bad Cat Productions – head over and subscribe! (youtube.com)

• “Ranch life and the hunting-trail”, Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919 (archive.org) Complete text.

• The Cowboys, William H. Forbis & Time-Life Books. (amazon.com)

• Two Years Before the Mast, Richard Henry Dana, Jr.

• Joseph McCoy

• Bad Cat Store at Zazzle (zazzle.com)

• “The Cowboy’s Lament”, performed by Ken Maynard (1930) This Week’s special music.

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It is said that truth is stranger than fiction. When it comes to presidential elections, this is definitely the case. This week we take a look at elections shenanigans over the past couple hundred years and answer questions like “What’s Tammany Hall?”, “What American president served the longest?”, and find out who said “Vote early, vote often.”

Show notes and links:

• Westworld (TV Series 2016– ) (imdb.com)

• Amelia Earhart May Have Died a Castaway on Uninhabited Island (nbcnews.com)

• Stars and Stripes – USA Month on British Pathé (youtube.com)

• Corrupt Bargain (wikipedia.org)

• Posse Comitatus Act

• Tammany Hall

• Vote early and vote often

• Bad Cat Productions’s YouTube channel

• Bad Cat Store at Zazzle (zazzle.com)

• TMS 30 Second Film Festival! (frogpants.com)

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As Halloween approaches, our thoughts turn to darker topics. This week we take a look at the history of witch hunts, which, it seems, were not always just about witches. Old World and New World, it seems folks just can’t suffer a witch and all that.

Show notes and links:

• The Lady’s Not for Burning (wikipedia.org)

• The Lady’s Not For Burning (1950) – John Gielgud, Pamela Brown, Richard Burton (youtube.com)

• The Crucible

• 1 Samuel 28:6 (NKJV) – Saul and the witch of EnDor

• The Malleus Maleficarum (malleusmaleficarum.org)

• DBad Cat Store at Zazzle (zazzle.com)

• The History Files (@history_files) (twitter.com)

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It’s dystopic, it’s cyber, it’s a thriller… and it’s a Western! Well, sort of. It’s the new (2016) HBO big-budget series Westworld, and we’re here to talk about it after seeing the first two episodes.

Show notes and links:

• Westworld (1973) Written and dir. by Michael Crichton

• Westworld (2016)

• Ed Harris’ LeMat Conversion Revolver in HBO’s WestWorld (Forgotten Weapons)

• Bad Cat Store at Zazzle (zazzle.com)

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The exploration of the New World, what we now call North America, is a long and many-faceted story. If Columbus wasn’t the first from the Old World to set foot in the Americas, then who was? The Norse? The Chinese? And if Drake’s Bay isn’t on Point Reyes, California… then where is it? We might not have the answers, but we certainly have some questions.

Show notes and links:

• Roman Bullets Tell Story of 1,800-Year-Old Attack on Scottish Fort (livescience.com)

• BRASS – The Steampunk Radio Adventure (battlegroundproductions.org)

• Christopher Columbus

• Norse colonization of the Americas (wikipedia.org)

• Evidence of the Chinese Fleets visiting California | 1421 | 1434 (gavinmenzies.net)

• Was Columbus Jewish? – Chuck Missler (khouse.org)

• New Albion

• The Secret Voyage of Sir Francis Drake: 1577-1580 – Samuel Bawlf

• Northwest Passage

• Bad Cat Store at Zazzle

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Grab your shooting irons, saddle up, and ride out with The Magnificent Seven. This week we give our opinions of this dusty, shooty Western in theaters now in Fall of 2016. Spoiler: we liked it.

Show notes and links:

• Ancient Roman coins unearthed from castle ruins in Okinawa (japantimes.co.jp)

• Surely Columbus Didn’t “Discover” America.. Roman Sword Found on Oak Island May Rewrite History (themindunleashed.com)

• BRASS – BATTLEGROUND PRODUCTIONS (battlegroundproductions.org)

• The Magnificent Seven (1960)

• Elmer Bernstein

• The Magnificent Seven (2016)

• Bass Reeves

• Jesse Chisholm

• Bad Cat Shop at Zazzle (zazzle.com)

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What’s almost as interesting as actual history? Why, making historical movies, that’s what. Today we get into a bit of Gordon’s background working on various film and television projects over the years, and finally answer the age-old question, “What’s more dangerous, water or horses?”

Show notes and links:

• History Buffs: Master and Commander (youtube.com)

• 2,000-Year-Old Human Remains Found on Famous Antikythera Shipwreck (ancient-origins.net)

• The Autobiography of Yakima Canutt (amazon.com)

• BRASS: The Audio Series. Season 2 by John Longenbaugh (hatchfund.org)

• BRASS – BATTLEGROUND PRODUCTIONS (battlegroundproductions.org)

• Bad Cat Shop at Zazzle (zazzle.com)

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Leaked correspondence! Mudslinging! Dirty politics! No, this week we’re not talking about the 2016 US presidential election season. How about the 1800 election? Yep, it’s time to talk about… Aaron Burr. I’ll bet you thought I was going to say Alexander Hamilton. He’s so overdone…

Show notes and links:

• A bowyer talks about authentic longbows (Lindybeige)

• Longbow versus breastplate – which will win? (Lindybeige)

• Totally Accurate Battle Simulator: Alpha signup — LandFall Games (landfall.se)

• Alexander Hamilton: Ron Chernow (amazon.com)

• Aaron Burr

• Tammany Hall

• Bad Cat Store at Zazzle (zazzle.com)

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The 15th century was a time of tumult, war, and change both social and technological. This week we look at five events that changed the course of history around the globe: the end of the 100 Years War, China’s switch to silver currency, the fall of Constantinople, Pope Nicholas V’s legalization of slavery, and Gutenberg’s printing press.

Show notes and links:

• Shades of Milk and Honey (Glamourist Histories Book 1), Mary Robinette Kowal (amazon.com)

• Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell

• Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell (miniseries)

• The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1989) dir. Terry Gilliam

• Baron Munchausen

• Hundred Years’ War

• China and Europe, 1500–2000 and Beyond: What is Modern? (columbia.edu) Chinese currency.

• Fall of Constantinople

• Pope Nicholas V legalizes slavery

• Gutenberg’s Printing press

• Music: Codex Faenza (ca. 1410 – 1420): Francesco Landini (youtube.com)

• Chinese Ancient Music (youtube.com)

• Istanbul (Not Constantinople) – Barbershop A Cappella Quartet (youtube.com)

• Music of Ottoman empire, old Ottoman Song 18/19 th Century – Üsküdara Giderken (youtube.com)

• Early 16th Century Venetian Lute Music, Paul O’Dette (youtube.com)

• German Renaissance Music (youtube.com)

• Bad Cat Store at Zazzle (zazzle.com)

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Given the nature of horses, how in the world did cavalry ever become a thing? Is cavalry a terrible idea? In this episode we delve into the crazy world of mounted combat, real and Hollywood style, by turning the tables on Gordon and interviewing him for a change. We ran a bit long, but not long enough to split it into two episodes. Consider it bonus material.

Show notes and links:

• THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN – The Seven (In Theaters September 23) (youtube.com)

• Westworld Trailer (HBO) – MATURE VERSION (youtube.com)

• Swordsmiths in Visby – part one (Lindybeige)

• Cavalry was a stupid idea (Lindybeige)

• Lars Andersen: a new level of archery This is the Swedish archer we mentioned. He makes Hawkeye (Marvel Universe) look like an amateur.

• Ride with the Devil (film) (wikipedia.org)

• School of the Renaissance Soldier (youtube.com)

• The History Files #14: From Lance to Pistol (csicon.fm)

• 21st Century Horse Soldiers – Special Operations Forces and Operation Enduring Freedom (defensemedianetwork.com)

• Bad Cat Shop at Zazzle

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In part four of our series on Afghanistan we endure the horrors of Maiwand and make it all the way through the Third Anglo-Afghan War (1919) to reach a lull in the endless skirmishing, invasion, and revenge ops.

Show notes and links:

• BRASS – Season 1 trailer (soundcloud.com)

• BRASS by John Longenbaugh on iTunes

• Lives of a Bengal Lancer – trailer – Gary Cooper

• The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (film) (1935)

• Rudyard Kipling: The Young British Soldier (poetryloverspage.com)

• Second Anglo-Afghan War

• Gen. George Burrows (Indian Army officer) – eBooks (gutenberg.org)

• Battle of Maiwand (July, 1880)

• Third Anglo-Afghan War (1919)

• This week’s special music: “Pareshe Jal” (The Flight of the Lark) (youtube.com)

• Bad Cat Shop at Zazzle (zazzle.com)

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In part three of our series on Afghanistan we get fully into the second Anglo-Afghan War, picking up where we left off, in 1878. Will the British have learned valuable lessons from previous decades? Will they consequently learn anything from subsequent disasters? If you’ve been listening, you can probably guess the answers, but tune in anyway and find out!

Show notes and links:

• Wee Willie Winkie (1937) Shirley Temple, Victor McLaglen, Cesar Romero

• Kim (1950) Errol Flynn.

• Afghan Wars and the North-West Frontier 1839-1947: Michael Barthorp

• Second Anglo-Afghan War

• Edward Bulwer-Lytton

• Sam Browne

• Gen. Frederick Roberts, 1st Earl Roberts

• This week’s special music: Raag Bhairvi – Afghan Instrumental

• Bad Cat Shop at Zazzle (zazzle.com)

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In part two of our series on Afghanistan, we discuss the devastating consequences of colonizing attempts in a region that really, really doesn’t want outside influence. With a healthy dose of home court advantage, the 1st and 2nd Afghan wars showed just how horrific the results can be.

Show notes and links:

• The Year Of Battles I THE GREAT WAR Summary Part 6 (youtube.com)

• Gunga Din (1939)

• King of the Khyber Rifles (1953) Tyrone Power, Michael Rennie (youtube.com)

• My Life in the Gurkhas : John Masters (amazon.com)

• The road past Mandalay : John Masters (openlibrary.org)

• The History Files #63: Afghanistan pt. 1 (csicon.fm)

• First Anglo-Afghan War

• Second Anglo-Afghan War

• Today’s special music: “Ghar Aya Mera Pardesi” (youtube.com)

• Bad Cat Shop at Zazzle (zazzle.com)

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Afghanistan has been called the “graveyard of empires”. This week we look far back into the origins of this concept and make it as far as the beginning of the 1st Anglo-Afghan war in the first half of the 19th century. Remember: it’s easy to get into Afghanistan, but not so easy to get out.

Show notes and links:

• Shooting Austro-Hungarian Arms | WeaponsMan (weaponsman.com)

• The Quiet Gun 1957 Western Movie Forrest Tucker, Jim Davis, Lee Van Cleef (youtu.be)

• Gun the Man Down | (trailersfromhell.com)

• Afghanistan: the Great Game, review (telegraph.co.uk)

• East India Company

• Henri-Joseph Paixhans

• Alexander Burnes

• First Anglo-Afghan War

• Bad Cat Store at Zazzle (Zazzle.com)

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It’s Christmas time. No, not the holiday, and not Jason Statham’s kick-butt character from the “Expendables” movie trilogy; we’re talking about the real deal, here. The historical General Lee Christmas was a larger-than-life character who made a name for himself policing, gun-running, and, well, kicking butt in late 19th century Honduras. Grab a gin and tonic and your favorite machine gun: it’s going to be a wild ride.

Show notes and links:

• Ten Medieval Kingdoms and States that No Longer Exist (medievalists.net)

• Moghul armour part two (Lindybeige)

• Afghanistan: the Great Game (telegraph.co.uk)

• Dictionary of the American West: Over 5,000 Terms and Western Expressions from AARIGAA! to Zopilote, by Win Blevins (amazon.com)

• Soldiers of Fortune by Richard Harding Davis (gutenberg.org)

• A Gallery of Gunfighters: Eugene Cunningham, Joseph G. Rosa, Eugene Manlove Rhodes

• General Lee Christmas, train driver turned mercenary (headstuff.org)

• The History Files #38: Interventions (For more on the United Fruit Company)

• The History Files #47: Pancho Villa (Wherein we mention Emil Holmdahl)

• The History Files #42: The Black Count (All about Alexandre Dumas, Sr.)

• War Is A Racket, by Major General Smedley Butler, 1935 (ratical.org)

• Bad Cat Store at Zazzle (zazzle.com)

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This week we go full Medieval, all the way back to 1212 A.D., King Alfonso VIII of Castile, and the Battle of Los Navas de Tolosa. It’s the Moors vs. the Spaniards: who will win? Tune in and find out!

Show notes and links:

• Plated mail – armour of the Moghuls (Lindybeige)

• Ripper Street (TV Series 2012– )

• The Cavalier of the Apocalypse (Aristide Ravel Mysteries Book 1), Susanne Alleyn

• Affair of the Diamond Necklace

• The Battles that Changed History, by Fletcher Pratt (gutenberg.ca)

• Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa

• Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

• Karankawa people

• The narrative of Alvar Nunez Cabeça de Vaca : Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, Alvar, 16th cent (complete text at archive.org)

• Bad Cat Store at Zazzle (zazzle.com)

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This week is a bit of a double-header. Part 1 is all about how nations deal with a major crisis especially in the area of technological development. Part 2 is about the Rule of Law, a topic we’ve touched on before, but especially pertinent in the current legal and political climate of 2016.

Show notes and links:

• The Great War (Indy Nydell)

• History Buffs: Saving Private Ryan

• Whale Oil (petroleumhistory.org)

• Pennsylvania oil rush

• The Battle of Jutland, pt 1 (The History Files)

• Fourth-generation warfare

• Magna Carta

• William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham – “The Great Commoner”

• Bad Cat Store at Zazzle (zazzle.com)

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Considered one of the most horrific battles of the First World War, The Somme decimated a whole generation of men. In this episode of the History Files, 100 years later, we discuss the events of this turning point in world history.

Show notes and links:

• Westercon 69/GearCon schedule(westercon69.org)

• Battlefield 1 – Second Trailer Analysis (The Great War at youtube.com)

• No Man’s Land (a.k.a. Willie McBride) by Eric Bogle

• The Green Fields Of France (special music for this episode)

• Green fields of France – tin whistle (other special music selection)

• Battle of the Somme

• The Face of Battle – Keegan

• Guns and How They Work, by Ian V. Hogg

• The Emma Gees, Herbert W. McBride (amazon.com)

• A Rifleman Went To War, Herbert W. McBride (amazon.com)

• Lewis gun

• Herbert Kitchener

• Lord Kitchener Wants You – the famous recruiting poster

• Mills bomb

• A Brief History of the Wristwatch (theatlantic.com)

• Gallipoli (1981 film)

• Stokes mortar

• Bad Cat store at Zazzle

• Gordon’s blog

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Encill Tener was a yeoman on the USS New Jersey in May of 1916. One day he sat down at his typewriter to write home, and the result was a mini time-capsule explaining the ups and downs of life in the US Navy during World War 1.

Gordon thought it would be fun to share this letter with our listeners, in particular because Encill was his grandfather. This week’s episode is a bit shorter than usual, but we think you’ll enjoy a unique glimpse into the daily life of a Great War sailor. For photos and whatnot be sure to visit Gordon’s blog.

Show notes and links:

• Abolition of slavery timeline

• Early American currency

• Battle of Waterloo (1815)

• Queen Victoria ascends throne (1837)

• Dazzle Camouflage – Sabotage Operations (The Great War YouTube channel)

• The Way I Heard it | Mike Rowe podcast (mikerowe.com)

• Frankenstein, the Baroness, and the Climate Refugees of 1816 (publicdomainreview.org)

• USS New Jersey (BB-16)

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It’s our first “live” edition of the show; a spirited discussion with Nathan Barnett, talking about the resurgence in Western Martial Arts, which it turns out has a lot to do with swords and fists. We recorded this episode in Port Townsend, WA at the 2016 Brass Screw Confederacy, an annual Steampunk festival that takes over the entire 19th century-era city.

Show notes and links:

• Excuse me, good sir, whilst I stab you: Seattle Victorian fitness fanatics have ‘silly, good fun’ (seattletimes.com)

• The Brass Screw Confederacy – Port Townsend Steampunk Festival (brass-screw.org)

• Historical European martial arts

• Society for Creative Anachronism

• Salle Saint-George | A Traditional School for Fencing Arts (sallesaint-george.com)

• Jherek Swanger’s Books and Publications Spotlight (lulu.com)

• Tinkerswords.com (tinkerswords.com)

• Angus Trim Swords (sword-buyers-guide.com)

• George Silver

• Brief Instructions Upon My Paradoxes of Defence, by George Silver (complete text)

• Embassy Arms – Fencing, Swordplay, and Historical Martial Arts Club in Port Townsend Washington (embassyarms.org)

• LONIN – BWAHAHAHA (lonin.org)

• Eglinton Tournament of 1839 – Jousting Revival

• HEMAA (hemaalliance.com)

• ‘knight fights’ (armored cage fighting) (mmafighting.com)

• Alfred Hutton

• Edward William Barton-Wright

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We’re excited to welcome back special guest Dr. Morgan Blanchard, adventurer archaeologist, to talk about the most iconic of all automobiles, the Ford Model T.

Show notes and links:

• Gustav I of Sweden becomes king of Sweden (1523)

• First drivers’ license (1915)

• Comstock Lode discovered (1859)

• US Marines Invade Cuba – Spanish–American War (1898)

• The Battle of Jutland – THE GREAT WAR Week 97 (youtu.be)

• The Battle of Jutland Animation (narrated by Jellicoe’s grandson)

• The Antique Phonograph Music Program Playlists and Archives (wfmu.org)

• Coffee With Jeff: Vinyl, Tape, Record Clubs and a Scam (csicon.fm)

• The Great Race (1965) Dir. Blake Edwards, starring Tony Curtis, Natalie Wood, Jack Lemmon, etc.

• Baker Electric Motor Vehicle

• Stanley Motor Carriage Company (steam-powered car)

• Christopher Spencer’s steam automobile (manchesterhistory.org)

• Ford Model T (wikipedia.org)

• East of Eden – the driving scene (complete text at google.com)

• Fordlândia

• Kingsford charcoal

• Henry Ford’s social engineering efforts

• B-24 Liberator

• Lewis guns on Model Ts

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This week we finish our discussion of the Battle of Jutland on its 100th anniversary, with special guest Duncan Clark. If you haven’t listened to episode #54 yet, you’ll want to do that first to get the background and context for this engagement, one of the largest and costliest of the Great War. Be sure to visit Gordon’s blog for more details.

Show notes and links:

• Élisabeth Thible – first female balloonist (1784)

• Ford Quadricycle (1896)

• Dunkirk evacuation (June, 1940)

• ‘The Prisoner’ debuts (1968)

• 1916 Battle of Jutland – 100th Anniversary – Remember the Dead (youtube.com)

• Hannibal goes to the Alps (Lindybeige)

• Great War Diaries (TV Mini-Series 2014) (imdb.com)

• The Influence of Sea Power Upon History, 1660-1783, by A. T. Mahan (Complete text)

• Skagerrak

• Queen Elizabeth-class battleship

• Admiral Horace Hood

• “Crossing the ‘T'”

• “Pyrrhic victory”

• Picric acid

• “Fabian victory”

• The History Files store

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This week we welcome special guest Duncan Clark to tackle the sprawling drama of the naval Battle of Jutland on its 100 year anniversary. With great loss of life and materiel, it is one of the most significant engagements of World War 1 despite the lack of a clear victory on either side. To give it proper attention, we’ve split this episode into two parts, so be sure to tune in next week for the exciting conclusion.

Show notes and links:

• The Purchase of Manhattan Island, 1626 (1626)

• William Kidd hanged (1701)

• Royal Canadian Mounted Police formed (1873)

• Fort Whoop-Up (fortwhoopup.com)

• Levi Strauss patents his “jeans” (1873)

• Salt – more valuable than gold? (Lindybeige)

• Forever England (1935) John Mills (youtu.be)

• Battle of Jutland

• Battle of Jutland Part I (britishbattles.com)

• Wilhelm II, German Emperor

• Commerce raiding or “guerre de course”

• Alfred Thayer Mahan

• Dreadnought

• Mississippi-class battleship

• Battlecruiser

• Scapa Flow

• John Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe

• David Beatty, 1st Earl Beatty

• Hugh Evan-Thomas

• Reinhard Scheer

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Ah, springtime, when a young man’s thoughts turn to dealing with wandering livestock…at least that’s the way it was on San Juan Island in June of 1859. Things didn’t go well for the marauding pig, and it almost led to an international incident between the US and Britain. Join us as we take a look at the Pig War. For a fairly accurate transcript of the main topic of this episode, and for possible bonus content, be sure to visit Gordon’s blog.

Show notes and links:

• The nickel first issued (United States coin) (1866)

• 1st Academy Awards (1929)

• Whispering Smith (TV series) (1961)

• 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens (May 18, 1980)

• Battlefield 1 Historical Trailer Analysis at THE GREAT WAR (youtube.com)

• The Civil War (Ken Burns TV series)

• The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) dir. John Ford, starring John Wayne, James Stewart, etc.

• Captain Cook’s HMS Endeavour has been found in the United States (dailymail.co.uk)

• Pig War (1859)

• “Standoff at Griffin Bay” by Mike Vouri (discovernw.org)

• Nootka Crisis (1789)

• Alexander Mackenzie

• Fort Chipewyan

• George Vancouver

• Oregon (toponym)

• The History Files #46: Sutter’s Fort and Joseph Sutter

• San Juan Island Natl.

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The heavily-armored, heavily-gunned, tank is a ubiquitous part of modern warfare, but it’s a relative newcomer in the large scale of history. In this episode we look at the development of this tracked vehicle and its debut on the battlefields of World War 1.

Show notes and links:

• Hernando de Soto discovers Mississippi River (1541)

• Victory in Europe Day (May 8, 1945)

• Golden spike joins transcontinental railroad (1869)

• Lewis and Clark Expedition begins (1804)

• Battlefield 1 game trailer

• The Boop Show – ep 111 (Discussion of upcoming Battlefield 1 release)

• Kelly’s Heroes (1970) (imdb.com)

• War Horse (2011) (imdb.com)

• Holt Manufacturing Company

• Benjamin Holt: the story of the caterpillar tractor (amazon.com)

• Ernest Dunlop Swinton

• Jean Baptiste Eugène Estienne

• Little Willie

• Mk IV Tank (British Tank Museum picks up “War Horse” replica Mk IV tank from Speilberg)

• The A7V (…and another replica from the same film.)

• Small Arms of WWI Primer 022: German T-Gewehr Anti-Tank Rifle (youtube.com)

• Second Battle of Villers-Bretonneux

• Tanks in the Great War 1914-1918 by J.F.G.Fuller (allworldwars.com)

• J. F. C. Fuller

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This week we take a look at the wild world of jousting, historical and modern. Originally a diversion for bored cavalry soldiers, it evolved into a pro sport and way of life for a whole class of people, then died out in the 17th century, then revived briefly in the 1830s, and today can be found at Renaissance festivals and historic sites around the world.

For photos and supplemental tidbits, be sure to visit Gordon’s blog.

Show notes and links:

• James Monroe’s birthday (April 28, 1758)

• World’s Columbian Exposition (1893)

• RMS Lusitania sunk by German U-boat (1915)

• Archery ballistics – Lindybeige (youtube.com)

• American Jouster (2005)

• Knightriders (1981) (imdb.com)

• The Lion in Winter (1968) (imdb.com)

• Ivanhoe Official Trailer #1 – George Sanders (1952) (youtube.com)

• Men of Iron, by Howard Pyle (1891)

• Jousting (wikipedia.org)

• William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke

• Henry II of France killed in jousting accident

• Pierre Terrail, seigneur de Bayard

• Quintain (jousting) –

• Eglinton Tournament of 1839 (the revival of jousting)

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Pirates; romanticized or despised, they are a cultural icon scattered through history and a probability wherever there is merchant shipping. Let’s grab a pitcher of grog and set sail through a rogue’s gallery of swashbucklers, political opportunists, and entrepreneurs, and dig into the reality of the world’s third-oldest profession.

For supplemental info and photos, be sure to visit Gordon’s blog.

Show notes and links:

• Mutiny on the Bounty (1789)

• Louisiana Purchase (1803)

• Spanish–American War (1898)

• Landing at Anzac Cove, Gallipoli (1915)

• Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) (imdb.com)

• On Stranger Tides, by Tim Powers (amazon.com)

• The Pyrates: A Swashbuckling Comic Novel, George MacDonald Fraser (amazon.com)

• Old Ironsides (1926) DVD Movie (mthexpress.com)

• Old Ironsides (film) (wikipedia.org)

• Alfred the Great

• Ching Shih

• Sir James Brooke, Rajah of Sarawak (Another one of Gordon’s historical doppelgangers.)

• Sea Dogs

• Privateers

• Henry Morgan

• Buccaneers

• Golden Age of Piracy

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This week, we are joined by special guest David S. Baker as we don our pith helmets and visit the phenomenon that is and was British Colonialism in India. We tried to keep this episode under an hour but failed. From ancient technologies to race relations to the origins of Steampunk, there’s just too much to talk about.

Because it turned out to be very difficult to find much about Pedro Alonso O’Crouley y O’Donnelly anywhere online, we uploaded some scans from a facsimile of his book on Gordon’s blog.

Notes: During the interview we talked about the discovery of Ainu-like ancient remains in a cave in Nevada. The actual location is the Spirit Cave, not Lovelock Cave, although both are near Fallon, NV. Also, David informs me that he accidentally moved a decimal point when talking about the numbers of Indians who served in the British army. It should be 2.5 million, not “20 million”.

Show notes and links:

• A short history of the world by H.G. Wells (archive.org)

• With The Night Mail by Rudyard Kipling (forgottenfutures.com)

• A Passage to India (1934, novel)

• A Passage to India (1984) (imdb.com)

• The Man Who Would Be King (1975) (imdb.com) dir. John Huston

• The Man Who Would be King | Rudyard Kipling (audible.com)

• Strange Suns : Dotting the Eye. (short story by D.S. Baker)

• Vedic literature (wikipedia.org)

• Trinitite

• Spirit Cave mummy (wikipedia.org)

• Bones, Boats, and Bison – E. James Dixon Possible Ainu origins of Spirit Cave mummy.

• Charles James Napier (wikipedia.org)

• John Masters (wikipedia.org)

• Pedro Alonso O’Crouley y O’Donnell: “anchor baby” and explorer...

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Let’s take a look at the real Abraham Lincoln, sixteenth president of the United States and eventually known as, amongst other things, “The Great Emancipator”. How much of what is popularly known about him is the truth, and how much is folklore? We thought it was high time for a little myth-busting.

Show notes and links:

• War of Jenkins’ Ear (April 9, 1731)

• Assassination of Abraham Lincoln (April 14, 1865)

• RMS Titanic disaster (April 10, 1912)

• Lincoln (2012) (Speilberg)

• Young Mr. Lincoln (1939) (John Ford)

• Blackstone’s Commentaries on the Laws of England

• American Colonization Society (wikipedia.org)

• Abraham Lincoln and the Politics of Black Colonization (umich.edu)

• Mexican–American War (wikipedia.org)

• The Mexican American War, pt. 1 (The History Files episodes 26-28)

• Corwin Amendment (wikipedia.org)

• A New Look at Abraham Lincoln, His Agenda, and an Unnecessary War: Thomas DiLorenzo (amazon.com)

• What You’re Not Supposed to Know About Dishonest Abe: Thomas DiLorenzo (amazon.com)

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This week, we take a look at the larger-than-life Mexican rebel Pancho Villa, and what was going on in Mexico in the first decade of the 20th century that would produce characters like him and other would-be military leaders. For bonus photos and other info, visit Gordon’s blog.

Show notes and links:

• Lost Nazi library containing thousands of occult books discovered (deadbeatspanel.com)

• V-2 rocket (wikipedia.org)

• And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself (TV Movie 2003) (imdb.com)

• Old Gringo (1989) (imdb.com)

• Viva Zapata! (1952) (imdb.com)

• Chasing Pancho Villa, Gordon England (audible.com)

• Columbus, NM (wikipedia.org)

• Emiliano Zapata (wikipedia.org)

• Francisco I. Madero (wikipedia.org)

• Ambrose Bierce (the real “Old Gringo”)

• Elfego Baca (wikipedia.org)

• Soldiers of the Queen – Foreign Military Attaches, Cape Town, South Africa, 1900 (soldiersofthequeen.com)

• The Last Campaign of the U.S. Cavalry: Frank Tompkins (amazon.com)

• John J. “Black Jack” Pershing (wikipedia.org)

• Pancho Villa Expedition(a.k.a. “Punitive Expedition”)

• Zimmermann Telegram (wikipedia.org)

• The Tin Lizzie Troop by Gle...

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Have you ever wondered what a Swiss-German immigrant and a handful of Hawaiians were doing in central California in the early 19th century? If you have, join us this week as we take a look at the up and down history of Johan August Sutter, founder of present-day Sacramento and the fort that still bears his name.

Show notes and links:

• Texas Declaration of Independence (1836)

• Emancipation reform of 1861, Russia

• Nikola Tesla’s public radio demonstration (teslauniverse.com)

• Kohl Tutorial (youtube.com)

• The Iliad – what is it really about? (youtube.com)

• History Hit: 2016 Oscars historical films (historyh.it)

• The Year of Decision 1846, Bernard DeVoto, Mark DeVoto, Stephen E. Ambrose (amazon.com)

A book about the California trail that we failed to mention.

• John Sutter

• Fort Vancouver

• Sutter’s Fort

• Californios

• Bartleson–Bidwell Party

• Fort Ross, California

• John C. Frémont

• California Republic – Bear Flag Revolt (1846)

• Battle of Monterey – a.k.a. Sloate’s Landing (1846)

• Donner Party

• Mormon Battalion

• Jean Baptiste “Pomp” Charbonneau

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This week, we take a look at Alternative History, a growing genre of speculative fiction. So much of it is dark and dystopian, but it can be hopeful, too, as demonstrated by the Steampunk radio drama “Brass”, written by today’s guest, John Longenbaugh. As Mr. Longenbaugh says of writers in this genre, “At their best they do the same thing a good historian does: make the past seem nearer and more accessible.”

Our show format is a bit different this time, being pretty much one long interview with no other segments, but we hope you’ll find it entertaining.

Show notes and links:

• John Longenbaugh (johnlongenbaugh.com)

• If It Had Happened Otherwise (1931) – essays on alt history.

• West of Eden (1984) by Harry Harrison

• Patrick O’Brian

• Making History, by Stephen Fry (goodreads.com)

• The Peshawar Lancers, S. M. Stirling (amazon.com)

• Space: 1889 (tabletop RPG)

• 1632 series by S. M. Stirling

• The Destroyermen Series (taylorandersonauthor.com)

• Lest Darkness Fall (1939) by L. Sprague de Camp

• Harry Harrison: A Transatlantic Tunnel, Hurrah! (1972) by Harry Harrison

• The Man in the High Castle (1972) by Philip K. Dick

• Brass (battlegroundproductions.org)

• The Iron Dream (1972) by Norman Spinrad

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This week, we take at the Law of Accelerating Returns, or the exponential explosion of information over the centuries. It’s a big topic and we just skim the surface of a fascinating area of study, beginning with the development of language, to the invention of the printing press, to today’s portable microcomputers. Things are a bit topsy-turvy this week, so apologies for the abbreviated length of this episode (kind of ironic considering the subject matter). Not only is it about half our usual run time, but most of the “media” references showed up at the end as we thought of more and more things to add.

Show notes and links:

• Postal Service Act

• Battle of Olustee (1864)

• Panama–Pacific International Exposition, San Francisco (1915)

• Habibullah Khan

• Some Remarks: Essays and Other Writing, Neal Stephenson

• The Law of Accelerating Returns by Ray Kurzweil

• To the Dustbin of History , Gary North (lewrockwell.com)

• Moore’s law

• The History of Paper (silk-road.com)

• Printing press

• The Space Show (podcast) Tue, 02/16/2016 | Dr. John Brandenburg (thespaceshow.com)

• Hand Weapons of World War One: Knife, Club, & Spade (youtube.com)

• Rough Riders (TV Movie 1997) (imdb.com)

• Rough Riders (1997) (youtube.com) With Spanish subtitles. It’s the only streaming version I could find.

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This week, inspired by last week’s discussion of the Count of Monte Cristo, we take a look at some real revolutions. If you ever wondered about what makes a successful revolution, or about the difference between a revolution vs. a coup d’état, look no further. As far as the cause of most revolutions… it turns out it’s usually about money, which isn’t really surprising since it seems like most conflicts boil down to squabbles over either money, power, or both.

Show notes and links:

• Mary, Queen of Scots

• Alexander Graham Bell

• Saint Valentine

• Medieval Garments Reconstructed: Norse Clothing Patterns, Lilli Fransen, Shelly Nordtorp-Madson, Anna Norgard, Else Ostergard: Books (amazon.com)

• The March of Folly by Barbara Tuchman

• The history-pedants’ guide to The Last Kingdom – episode one (youtu.be)

• Pope Urban II, the Papal Revolt

• Protestant Reformation

• English Civil War

• Glorious Revolution

• American Revolution

• French Revolution

• Russian Revolution

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This week we take a look at the origins of Alexander Dumas’ legendary literary figure, the Count of Monte Cristo. New writers are often told “write what you know”, and Dumas did exactly that. The heroic protagonists in his epic adventure tales were based on… his father; a larger-than-life individual who not only provided the characters for his writer son’s stories but many of their feats of derring-do.

Show notes and links:

• James II of England

• Elizabeth II

• Fort Ross, California (fortross.org)

• 1925 serum run to Nome (wikipedia.org)

• Hitler Becomes Army Commander (historyplace.com)

• The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo, Tom Reiss (amazon.com)

• The Count of Monte Cristo (2002) (imdb.com)

• Fusil Charleville (wikipedia.org)

• The Count of Monte Cristo

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This week for our main topic we take a look at the ill-fated Donner party and their misbegotten attempt to cross the Sierras into California in… October. Although these tragic events later found a place in the folklore of the American West, in 1846 it was just a horrific series of terrible decisions resulting in the deaths of around 50% of the participants, many of them children. Sadly, the tragedy could have been avoided had it not been for the overweening hubris of the group’s leaders. As Gordon says, “You can ignore reality, but you can’t ignore the consequences of ignoring reality.”

Show notes and links:

• Rum Rebellion (1808)

• Gold Discovered at Sutter’s Mill, California (1848)

• Charles George “Chinese” Gordon killed in Khartoum (1885)

• Khartoum (1966)

• The Death of Queen Victoria and the Victorian Era

• Egyptian Museum Employees Face Fines for Botched Repair on King Tut’s Mask | Smart News (smithsonianmag.com)

• Red Letter Media Half in the Bag: The Revenant (redlettermedia.com) (NSFW)

• Winston Churchill’s lost card game now on iOS thanks to Donald Rumsfeld (arstechnica.com)

• Hawken rifle – the Plains Rifle

• Donner Party

• The Emigrants’ Guide To Oregon and California (complete text)

• The Hastings Cutoff (scienceviews.com)

• Sutter’s Fort (suttersfort.org)

• The Story of the Donner Party: Patty Reed’s Doll

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This week, in one of our bi-weekly, shorter episodes, we take a look at the super secret government program popularly known as MK Ultra. One of several clandestine operations generated during the Cold War, this one is notorious for its creepy experiments and conspicuous lack of ethics.

Not a lot is definitively known about the project, supposedly dismantled in the 1970s, but that won’t stop us from talking about it, because the truth is out there.

Show notes and links:

• Hugh Glass – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The real-life subject portrayed in The Revenant.

• An Informal History of the Rocky Mountain Fur Company, Don Berry

• The Revenant (2015) (imdb.com)

• OperationPaperclip.info

• Project MKUltra

• Operation Midnight Climax

• The Men Who Stare at Goats, by Jon Ronson

• The Men Who Stare at Goats – Declassified

• Crazy Rulers of the World – part 1 – The Men Who Stare At Goats

Jon Ronson’s documentary about the First Earth Army.

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In this episode we take a look at that most ubiquitous of modern rifles, the M16 variant of the AR15. Whether the select-fire military-issue variant or single-shot civilian model, Eugene Stoner’s revolutionary design has become the iconic long arm of the modern age, so we thought it was time to dispel some of the myths and explain some of the idiosyncrasies of this ballistic marvel. I’d make a “trigger warning” disclaimer but that wouldn’t be tactful.

Show notes and links:

• Massacre of Novgorod (1570)

• Rhubarb – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (1770)

• Jean Pierre Blanchard: Made First U.S. Aerial Voyage in 1793

• Common Sense (pamphlet) by Thomas Paine (1776)

• First cargo down the Mississippi (1812)

• Banana Wars – US Marines invade Honduras (1912)

• 50-ft Revolutionary War-era ship found near hotel site (usatoday.com)

• 144-year-old Arctic shipwreck discovered (cnn.it)

• Caduceus vs Staff of Asclepius (drblayney.com)

• The Paradise (TV Series 2012–2013) (imdb.com)

• Half in the Bag Episode 101: The Hateful Eight and The Ridiculous 6 (sort of) (youtube.com)

• Submachine gun

• PPS h41

• PPS submachine gun

• Sturmgewehr 44

• 7.62×39mm – the M43

• SKS

• Mikhail Kalashnikov

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In this week’s “History Bites” edition we take a look at international military interventions. For decades the bossiest nation on the planet seemed to be Britain, but by the end of the 19th century the baton had been passed to the United States of America. From Japan to South America to Hawaii, we’ve poked our fingers into as many pies as we could… with mixed results.

Show notes and links:

• Tracey Curtis-Taylor finishes UK to Australia biplane flight (bbc.com)

• United Fruit Company

• Shimonoseki Campaign (1863)

• US Expedition to Korea (1871)

• Banana Wars

• Panama Canal

• Who first found the Panama palindrome?” (fun-with-words.com)

• Spanish–American War (1898)

• United States occupation of Haiti (1915)

• Overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii (1893)

• Hawaiian sovereignty movement

• First Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895)

• Hermit kingdom

• Boxer Rebellion (1900)

• Capture of Guam (1898)

• History of American Samoa (1900)

• United States occupation of Veracruz (1914)

• Pancho Villa Expedition (1916-1917)

• Ambrose Bierce

...

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2015 shall go down in history as the year we started The History Files: yay! What happened in all those other ’15 years? How about a whirlwind tour of the highlights of almost every year ending in “15”? Of course the episode wouldn’t be complete without a visit to Gordon’s Gun Closet, either, so we talk a bit about the iconic Winchester Model 1907 “.350 SLR”.

Show notes and links:

• 15 AD, Destruction of Alexandria (en.wikipedia.org)

• 615 AD, Muhammad emigrates to Ethiopia (a small colony there under the protection of the Christian Ethiopian emperor Așhama ibn Abjar)

• 815 AD, Hrafna-Flóki Vilgerðarson discovers Iceland.

• 1015, August: Cnut’s invasion of England (historyextra.com)

• Berserkers outlawed in Norway (1015)

• Olaf II of Norway (1015)

• 1115, Battle of Sarmin (Crusaders rout the Seljuk Turks)

• 1215, the First Baron’s War (King John)

• Great Famine of 1315–17

• Battle of Agincourt (1415)

• Francis I of France (1515: France and Switzerland decide to get along with each other)

• Champlain’s Account of the Battle of 1615 from Voyages to New France

• Jacobite rising of 1715, Scotland

• Battle of Waterloo (1815)

• History of the Great War (1915)

• Dan Snow’s HISTORY HIT (historyhitpodcast.com)

• Winchester Model 1907 (.351 SLR)

• Semi-automatic firearms

• Carbines

• Ribeyrolle 1918 automati...

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In this shorter “History Bite” episode, we look at the real Saint Nicholas and try to trace the winding path from stalwart early church bishop to jolly secular rewarder of goodness. We might also sneak in a segment about Khyber Pass firearm copies too, because when our listeners ask, we deliver. Oh, and Merry Christmas, everyone!

Show notes and links:

• Khyber Pass Copy (en.wikipedia.org)

• Khyber Pass Rifles (oldbritishguns.com)

• Khyber Pass Martini Pistol at RIA (Video) (forgottenweapons.com)

• Christmas Traditions (khouse.org)

Scroll down for some good St. Nicholas info.

• St. Nicholas Center : Origin of Santa (stnicholascenter.org)

• Patara, Lycia (en.wikipedia.org)

• First Council of Nicaea (en.wikipedia.org)

• The Age of Pilgrimage: The Medieval Journey to God, by Jonathan Sumption

• Thomas Nast (en.wikipedia.org)

Creator of the first iconic “Santa” image

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This week we take a look at the origins of Christmas. Was Jesus really born on December 25th, or was that just a convenient calendar slot in a year increasingly full of saint’s feast days? We’re also premiering a new show segment: Gordon’s Gun Closet! Podcasters, like writers, should play to their strengths, and Gordon loves his historical firearms. In honor of the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, we’re here to talk about the BlasTech DL-44 Heavy Blaster (a.k.a. “broomhandle” Mauser pistol), because Han shot first but Greedo was totally about to ice him so it was justified. Also included: History Headlines and a festive pile of gaily-wrapped Christmas movies and books… at no extra charge!

Show notes and links:

• Oliver Cromwell becomes lord protector of England (1653)

• Boston Tea Party (Dec. 16, 1773)

• Bill of Rights take effect (Dec. 15, 1791) (billofrightsinstitute.org)

• Louisiana Territory purchase (Dec. 20, 1803)

• A Christmas Carol published (Dec. 19, 1843)

• A Christmas Carol (1951), full movie (youtube.com)

• The Wright Brothers first flight! (Dec. 17, 1903)

• Project Blue Book ends (Dec. 17, 1969)

• Nazi gold train: ‘No evidence’ of discovery in Poland (bbc.com)

• A Christmas Story (1983) (imdb.com)

• White Christmas (1954) (imdb.com)

• THE LITTLE PRINCESS: Shirley Temple, Walter Lang (amazon.com)

• Santa Claus (1959) full movie (youtube.com)

• Santa Claus (riffed by Mystery Science Theater 3000)

• Mauser C96 (imfdb.org)

• Borchardt C-93 (en.wikipedia.org)

• Churchill in the Sudan (historynet.com)

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Christmas is a time of goodwill, joy, and cozy family gatherings… unless you’re a very naughty child, in which case you’ll be lucky if all you get is a lump of coal in your stocking come Christmas morning. Beware the Krampus! Is he a minion of St. Nicholas, an imp of Satan, or just your average child-abusing, girl-chasing goat man? Who knows?

We sure don’t, but we’ll chat about him anyway.

Show notes and links:

• “Krampus Is Coming to Town” by The Plastic Bastards; today’s special music.

• Greetings from Krampus , Some Krampus greeting cards.

• Santa’s Horned Helper: The Fearsome Legend of Krampus, Christmas Punisher | Ancient Origins (ancient-origins.net)

• The Origin of Krampus, Europe’s Evil Twist on Santa (smithsonianmag.com)

• Krampuslauf Graz 2010, A typical Austrian Krampusnacht parade (youtube.com)

• Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010): (amazon.com) Darkly wonderful Finnish film.

• Half in the Bag Episode 99: Krampus , Red Letter Media’s review of the 2015 film.

• @history_files (twitter.com)

• CSICONauts Chat

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In this episode of The History Files we take a look at “war fever” and what drives world leaders to take up arms against each other. Sometimes it’s justified, as in defense, but sometimes it doesn’t seem very legitimate, as in the case of imperialist expansion. Then there’s the whole problem of dealing with the conundrum of wishing for victory, the harsh reality being that one is of course wishing death and destruction on the losing side.

War: What is it good for?

Show notes and links:

• Evacuation Day (Nove. 25, 1783) (en.wikipedia.org)

• Amistad revolt (1841) (law.cornell.edu)

• Gold Rush: 1848–1860: “I Saw the Elephant”

• John Brown (abolitionist) hanged (1859) (en.wikipedia.org)

• UN grants a Homeland for the Jewish people (1947) (en.wikipedia.org)

• Jack Ruby shoots Lee Harvey Oswald (1963) (en.wikipedia.org)

• Amistad (1997) (imdb.com)

• Amazon.com: The Man In The High Castle (amazon.com)

• Just and Unjust Wars: A Moral Argument with Historical Illustrations , by Michael Walzer (amazon.com)

• Tales of Tinfoil: Stories of Paranoia and Conspiracy , various authors (amazon.com)

• Zaporozhian Cossacks , an awesome painting. Seriously, go look at it. (en.wikipedia.org)

• Greek War of Independence (1827) (en.wikipedia.org)

• Crimean War (1850s) (en.wikipedia.org)

• Russo-Turkish War (1877–78) (en.wikipedia.org)

• Hermann Goering on what drives a people to war.

• HL Mencken on practical politics (izquotes.com)

• The War Prayer, by Mark Twain , complete text.

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In this, the first episode of History Bites (the bi-weekly, abbreviated version of The History Files), we take a look at the founders of modern musical theater, and all-around creative geniusses (genii?), Gilbert & Sullivan. (Don’t worry, we’ll have Gordon again next time.)

Show notes and links:

• I, Robot (en.wikipedia.org)

• The Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon

• Charitots of Fire (The Mikado)

• Gilbert and Sullivan in Raiders of the Lost Ark (Salah sings!)

• The Pirates of Penzance , The 1981 Joe Papp revival.

• Oh, Better Far to Live and Die Kevin Kline sings “Oh, better, far, to live and die…”

• Topsy-Turvy (1999) (imdb.com)

• The History Files | CSICON (csicon.net)

• @history_files (twitter.com)

• The History Files Show (at facebook.com)

• CSICONauts Chat (csicon.net)

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This week we look at the woefully brief history of the Pony Express (1860-61), America’s wild and woolly rapid postal system.

Show notes and links:

• Gunpowder Plot and Guy Fawkes. “Remember, remember the 5th of November…”

• Mayflower Compact

• Henry Morton Stanley , African explorer.

• Armistice of 11 November 1918, ending the 1st World War.

• Howard Carter , discoverer of King Tutankhamen’s tomb.

• Laika, the first animal in space.

• Space Doggity (jonathancoulton.com).

• Space Shuttle Columbia

• Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries (TV Series 2012– ) (imdb.com).

• Fleming (TV Mini-Series 2014) (imdb.com).

• Amazon.com: Generations: The History of America’s Future, 1584 to 2069. Neil Howe, William Strauss

• Pony Express

• William Hepburn Russell

• Johnny Fry, the first official Westbound rider of the Pony Express.

• Pony Express Mochila

• Coffee With Jeff (episodes 60-62 re. Ed Wood)

• History Files on Twitter

• CSICONauts Chat

• Goodreads History Files group. (goodreads.com).

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This week we look at the Battle of Antietam, one of the bloodiest of the American Civil War; General Lee’s attempt to bring the fight to the North.

Show notes and links:

• French Quebec surrenders to the British after Battle of the Plains of Abraham (1759).

• John Paul Jones declares, “I have not yet begun to fight!” (1779).

• List of amendments to the United States Constitution (1789).

• French National Convention abolishes the monarchy (1792).

• Assassination of William McKinley (1901).

• Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (1996).

• Death Comes to Pemberley (TV Mini-Series 2013) (imdb.com).

• Crisis At The Antietam, by Bruce Catton (full text).

• Second Battle of Bull Run

• Robert E. Lee

• Henry “Lighthorse Harry” Lee III

• George B. McClellan

• Battle of Antietam

• Hope Paintings (nps.gov).

• Emancipation Proclamation

• Third Battle of Nanking (the 1862 action in China with enormous casualties that we couldn’t remember the name of).

• @history_files (twitter.com).

• CSICONauts Chat

• The History Files at Goodreads (goodreads.com).

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This week we take a look at the War of 1812 in North America.. The one without the awesome Tchaikovsky theme music. Still; plenty to talk about, including the birth of the US Navy. Anchors away!

Show notes and links:

• Henry Hudson and the exploration of the Hudson River (1609).

• The Second Continental Congress (1776).

• “We Have Met The Enemy, and they are Ours” , Oliver Perry, after the Battle of Lake Erie (1812).

• Star Trek: The Original Series (1966).

• Scottish devolution referendum, 1997

• September 11 attacks

• Methodical Illusion (interesting investigation of the 9-11 attacks).

• Horatio Hornblower , by C.S. Forester.

• Hornblower (TV series)

• Amazon.com: Damn the Defiant!: Alec Guinness, Dirk Bogarde (1962)

• The Assassination of the Prime Minister: John Bellingham and the Murder of Spencer Perceval, David C. Hanrahan

• The Assassination of the Prime Minister, Spencer Perceval | The Public Domain Review

• USS Constitution “Old Ironsides”

• Chesapeake–Leopard Affair

• Fort Detroit

• Fort Michilimackinac

• Original six frigates of the United States Navy (the War of the Frigates).

• John Rodgers (1772–1838)

• Commerce raiding (“guerre de course...

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This week our headlines seem to be mostly volcanoes and Spaniards: sometimes history kind of gets in a wad. In our main discussion, we get into the major campaign of the Mexican American War, and find out what a battalion of Irish were doing in the Mexican army.

Show notes and links:

• Eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 (en.wikipedia.org).

• The assasination of Atahualpa by Francisco Pizarro (1533).

• St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre (1572).

• Treaty of Córdoba: Mexico gains independence from Spain (1821).

• 1883 eruption of Krakatoa (en.wikipedia.org).

• I Have A Dream Speech, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (1963).

• 121-year-old time capsule found at bridge near Kingussie (bbc.com).

• Catastrophe: An Investigation into the Origins of Modern Civilization, by David Keyes (amazon.com).

• Connections (TV series) , James Burke. Many episodes on YouTube.

• Invasion of Poland begins World War 2 (1939).

• Viking 2: Second Landing on Mars (space.com).

• Zachary Taylor (en.wikipedia.org).

• Winfield Scott (en.wikipedia.org).

• Battle of Puebla (en.wikipedia.org).

• Battle of Chapultepec (en.wikipedia.org).

• Saint Patrick’s Battalion , the “San Patricios” (en.wikipedia.org).

• @history_files (twitter.com).

• Join CSICONauts Chat (csicon.net).

• History Files group at goodreads.com.

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This week we continue our exploration of the Mexican American War and the formation of the American West, with highlights including the Bear Flag Revolt and the adventures of John C. Fremont.

Show notes and links:

• English Civil War (1642-1651).

• Pueblo Revolt, Santa Fe, New Mexico (1680).

• USS Constitution vs HMS Guerriere (en.wikipedia.org).

• Alaska Gold Rush (en.wikipedia.org).

• Assassination of Leon Trotsky (1940).

• Hawaii admitted to the Union (1959).

• Voyager 2 launched (1977).

• Help Us Decipher This Inscription (britishlibrary.typepad.co.uk). Mystery engraving on ancient sword. Can you decode it?

• Voynich manuscript (the thing Nancy couldn’t think of).

• Has missing Nazi gold train been found in Poland? (cnn.com).

• Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries (TV Series 2012– ) (imdb.com) (streaming on Netflix)

• The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt and the Fire that Saved America, by Timothy Egan .

• Dragoon (a type of cavalry).

• Stephen W. Kearny (en.wikipedia.org).

• Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov).

• James Wiley Magoffin (tshaonline.org).

• Thomas ap Catesby Jones (en.wikipedia.org).

• Herman Melville (en.wikipedia.org). author of White Jacket

• John C. Frémont (en.

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This week on the History Files we continue our series on the evolution of the American West, embarking on a discussion of the Mexican American War.

Show notes and links:

• Fall of Tenochtitlan (1521).

• Joseph Lister originates use of antiseptics.

• The siege of the Beijing legations in the Boxer Rebellion (1900).

• Atomic bombing of Nagasaki (en.wikipedia.org).

• V-J Day (en.wikipedia.org).

• Watts riots (1965). Side note: Watts is also home to one of the weirdest examples of funky public pop “art”, the Watts Towers.

• King Tut’s Tomb May Hide Nefertiti’s Secret Grave (news.discovery.com).

• 55 Days at Peking (dir. Nicholas Ray, Andrew Marton, Guy Green (1963). Starring Charleton Heston, David Niven, and Ava Gardner.

• The Atomic Times: My H-Bomb Year at the Pacific Proving Ground, Michael Harris (amazon.com).

• James K. Polk , 11th President of the United States.

• Battle of Palo Alto (en.wikipedia.org).

• Battle of Resaca de la Palma (en.wikipedia.org).

• flying artillery: the zenith of horse artillery in the 19th century.

• Samuel Colt and his revolver. (en.wikipedia.org).

• John Coffee Hays and the Texas Rangers.

• @history_files (twitter.com).

• CSICONauts Chat (csicon.net).

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This week on the History Files: part 2 of our three-part series on the origins of the American West. Moving from Texas to New Mexico and the Southwest, we spend time on the Santa Fe trail and in the California hide trade.

Show notes and links:

• Christopher Columbus sets sail on 1st voyage, 1492. (en.wikipedia.org).

• English forces attack the Spanish Armada, 1588.(en.wikipedia.org).

• History of the US Income Tax (Business Reference Services, Library of Congress) (loc.gov).

• Wild Bill Hickok (en.wikipedia.org).

• Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki (en.wikipedia.org).

• Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies, Jared M. Diamond (amazon.com).

• Commerce of the Prairies, by Josiah Gregg (1844-45) Complete text.

• Flashman and the Redskins, George MacDonald Fraser (1983).

• Medicine on the Santa Fe Trail, by Thomas B. Hall (1987).

• Armada: 12 Days to Save England, (bbc.co.uk) presented by Dan Snow.

• Broadcloth and Britches: The Santa Fe Trade, Seymour V. Connor, Jimmy M. Skaggs (amazon.com).

• Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov).

• Fort Union National Monument (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov).

• William Becknell (en.wikipedia.org).

• Santa Fe Trail (en.wikipedia.org).

• Josiah Gregg (en.wikipedia.org).

• California hide trade (en.wikipedia.org).

• Richard Henry Dana, Jr. and Two Years Before the Mast (complete text).

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This week on The History Files we begin a three-part series on the Spanish conquest of America and how these territories evolved into the present day Western US. Starting with early exploration by Ponce de Leon, who probably never really hunted for the Fountain of Youth, we get as far as 1840s Texas… Which is as far as Santa Anna got.

Show notes and links:

• Thomas Cromwell (en.wikipedia.org).

• The First Legislative Assembly in North America, 1619. (en.wikipedia.org).

• Maximilien Robespierre (en.wikipedia.org).

• Austria-Hungary declares war on Serbia. (wp.me).

• Korean War armistice. (en.wikipedia.org).

• Richard Nixon , his impeachment and the Watergate scandal. (en.wikipedia.org).

• Close to Shore: The Terrifying Shark Attacks of 1916, by Michael Capuzzo: (2002).

• The Alamo (1960) dir. John Wayne

• Alamo: The Price of Freedom (1988) Imax, Casey Biggs.

• The Alamo (2004) dir. John Lee Hancock. Dennis Quaid, Billy Bob Thornton, etc.

• Juan Ponce de León (en.wikipedia.org).

• Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca (en.wikipedia.org).

• Francisco Vázquez de Coronado (en.wikipedia.org).

• Juan de Oñate (en.wikipedia.org).

• Utopia by Thomas More (en.wikipedia.org). Complete text here.

• Museum at the Palace of the Governors, Santa Fe, New Mexico. Home of the Segesser hide paintings.

• Tlaxcalens (en.wikipedia.org).

• Adams–Onís Treaty (en.wikipedia.org).

• Moses Austin (en.wikipedia.org).

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This week on the History Files, we continue our conversation with economics writer Rand MacGreal, focusing on the Greek financial crisis, its causes and potential outcomes.

Show notes and links:

• Mormon pioneers arrive at the Great Salt Lake (en.wikipedia.org).

• Tennessee is readmitted to the Union July 24, 1866 (politico.com).

• James Train Robbery (rits.org).

• Bikini Atoll (bikiniatoll.com).

• Egyptian Revolution of 1952 (en.wikipedia.org).

• SS Andrea Doria (en.wikipedia.org).

• Port Gamble, Washington (en.wikipedia.org).

• David Stockman’s Contra Corner (davidstockmanscontracorner.com).

• The Battles that Changed History, by Fletcher Pratt (gutenberg.ca), complete text.

• Greek government-debt crisis (en.wikipedia.org).

• Lindybeige (youtube.com).

• John Maynard Keynes

• History Files Twitter feed. (twitter.com).

• Join the CSICONauts Chat | CSICON (csicon.net).

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Happy Bastille Day! This week on the History Files we continue our discussion with economics writer Rand MacGreal to further explore the history of money. In particular we learn about Jean Baptiste Say and his Law of Markets, as well as the interesting but unwise economical tenets of John Maynard Keynes. This episode ran long, even with dividing the interview portion in half, but there’s so much interesting material in there that we think it’s worth every minute.

Show notes and links:

• Bastille Day (en.wikipedia.org).

• The Second Hundred Years War (sageamericanhistory.net).

• The Death of Marat (en.wikipedia.org).

• New York City draft riots (en.wikipedia.org).

• Russian-American Company (en.wikipedia.org).

• Trinity (nuclear test) (en.wikipedia.org).

• Apollo–Soyuz Test Project (en.wikipedia.org).

• Lost Foundation: A Conversation with 18th century Economist Richard Cantillon (Lost Economics) , Rand MacGreal.

• Rule of Money: A Solution to the Global Debt Crisis, Rand MacGreal.

• Killing an Idea , Rand MacGreal

• Walking Through History (channel4.com).

• 300 Helpful Suggestions for Your Victory Lunch Box a Hook-up Cook Book #4: Gertrude Editor Buchholz (amazon.com).

• Say’s law (en.wikipedia.org).

• John Maynard Keynes (en.wikipedia.org).

• Velocity of money (en.wikipedia.org).

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This week on The History Files, we sit down with economics writer Rand MacGreal to talk about the history of money, the Mississippi Bubble land speculation debacle, and Richard Cantillon, the 18th century father of economics.

This session yielded so much good discussion that we’re splitting it into two sections. Tune in next week for part two!

Show notes and links:

• A Man for All Seasons (1966) (imdb.com).

• Aaron Burr (en.wikipedia.org).

• The Occupation of Monterey (en.wikipedia.org).

• Lost Foundation: A Conversation with 18th century Economist Richard Cantillon, Rand McGreal (amazon.com).

• Meeting of Minds (steveallenonline.com).

• Richard Cantillon (en.wikipedia.org).

• John Law (economist) (en.wikipedia.org).

• Fiat money (en.wikipedia.org).

• Market Crashes: The Tulip and Bulb Craze (investopedia.com).

• Mississippi Company (en.wikipedia.org).

• ECB (ecb.europa.eu).

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Happy Independence Day to Americans everywhere! Gordon is out of town this week, so Nancy is flying solo. In this abbreviated Special Edition of the History Files show we tackle “loose women”.

Trust me; it’s not what you’re thinking.

Show notes and links:

• Independence Day (United States) (en.wikipedia.org).

• Battle of Gettysburg (en.wikipedia.org).

• Battle of San Juan Hill (en.wikipedia.org).

• This date in science: The Tunguska explosion (earthsky.org).

• Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria (en.wikipedia.org).

• Treaty of Versailles (en.wikipedia.org).

• Amelia Earhart (ttps).

• Holocaust ‘hero’ Sir Nicholas Winton dies aged 106 (bbc.com).

• Victorian dress reform (en.wikipedia.org).

• Bicycle and the Women’s Suffragette Movement of the 1890s (annielondonderry.com).

• Sarah Chrisman and This Victorian Life (thisvictorianlife.com).

• History of corsets (en.wikipedia.org).

• SteamPort Gamble (mrsmuirhouseofghostsandmagic.com).

• Jason Bledsoe – Collodion Artist (wetplate.weebly.com).

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This week on The History Files, we tackle the phenomenon that is the Westward Expansion movement of the late 18th to mid 19th century in North America.

Spoiler: nobody dies of dysentery in this episode.

Show notes and links:

• King Philip’s War (en.wikipedia.org).

• Kenneth Arnold UFO sighting (en.wikipedia.org).

• The Official Foyle’s War Fan Site (foyleswar.com).

• David Crockett: Hero of the Common Man by William Groneman (goodreads.com).

• Long rifle (en.wikipedia.org).

• The Sharpened Axe: The Development of the American Felling Axe in Northern Maine, by Chingatchgook (thesharpenedaxe.blogspot.com).

• Alexander Mackenzie (explorer) (en.wikipedia.org).

• Hudson’s Bay Company (en.wikipedia.org).

• Rocky Mountain Fur Company (en.wikipedia.org).

• The Platte River Route. (en.wikipedia.org).

• William Becknell (en.wikipedia.org).

• Commerce of the Prairies, by Josiah Gregg (kancoll.org).

• Two Years Before the Mast, by Richard Henry Dana, Jr. (en.wikipedia.org).

• Marcus Whitman. (en.wikipedia.org).

• The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Prairie Traveler, by Randolph B. Marcy (gutenberg.org).

• Joseph R. Walker

• The Prairie Traveler: A Hand-Book for Overland Expeditions, by Randolph Marcy (full text)

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This week on the History Files, it’s the 800th anniversary of the signing of the Magna Carta, which calls for some discussion of what it is and its impact on western governments, especially those of Britain and the United States.

Show notes and links:

• The Lion in Winter (1968) (imdb.com).

• The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938) (imdb.com).

• Robin Hood (1922) (imdb.com) The classic Douglas Fairbanks silent.

• Robin Hood (1991) (imdb.com) Patrick Bergin and Uma Thurman.

• Ivanhoe, by Sir Walter Scott (gutenberg.org).

• Ivanhoe (TV Movie 1982) (imdb.com)

• The Return to Camelot: Chivalry and the English Gentleman, by Mark Girouard (amazon.com).

• Is America practicing Lex Rex or Rex Lex? (jacklewis.net).

• Featured Document: The Magna Carta (archives.gov).

• Edward Coke (en.wikipedia.org).

• John Locke (en.wikipedia.org).

• The March of Folly: From Troy to Vietnam, by Barbara W. Tuchman (amazon.com).

• Habeas corpus (en.wikipedia.org).

• World Wide Words: Deodand (worldwidewords.org).

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This week we look into the U.S. incursion into Mexico after the unpleasantness in Vera Cruz in 1914, a precursor to further intervention in 1916 during Mexico’s Civil War.

Show notes and links:

• CSICONauts Chat | CSICON (csicon.net).

• CSICON | Home of Geek Culture (csicon.net). Apparently some of us can’t remember our web site URL. It’s csicon.net, not “.com”. Duh.

• Old Gringo (1989) (imdb.com).

• The Ambrose Bierce Site (donswaim.com).

• Ambrose Bierce (thedevilsdictionary.com).

• Bohemian Club (en.wikipedia.org).

• Pancho Villa (history.com). Pancho Villa

• Pastry War (en.wikipedia.org).

• Mexican-American War (history.com). Mexican American War

• Diaz and the Porfiriato 1876-1910 (mexicanhistory.org).

• 21 April 1914: Woodrow Wilson invades Veracruz in his pajamas | The Mex Files (mexfiles.net).

• Frederick Funston (en.wikipedia.org).

• The Zimmermann Telegram (archives.gov).

• Banana Wars (en.wikipedia.org).

• The Bonus March [ushistory.org] (ushistory.org).

• 1914 Naval Aviation

• laststandonzombieisland | Weapons, Wars, Preparation and Security from a recovering gun nut turned bad writer (laststandonzombieisland.com).

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This week we look at the various situations of minorities in early Colonial America, the evolution from indentured servitude to outright slavery, and eventual abolition.

Show notes and links:

• Treaty of Tordesillas (en.wikipedia.org).

• Hot Air Balloons and the Montgolfier Brothers (inventors.about.com).

• This post has no title. (biography.com). Homer Plessy

• Action Comics 1 (en.wikipedia.org).

• D-Day.

• Queen Elizabeth II coronation.

• Bacon’s Rebellion (en.wikipedia.org).

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Since this episode of The History Files was recorded in May of 2015, exactly 100 years after the sinking of the RMS Lusitania, Gordon thought it might be appropriate to discuss “false flag” events.

It should come as no surprise that the Lusitania incident isn’t the only one. It should also not surprise anybody to discover that political leaders can do some pretty shady things in the name of “the ends justify the means”.

Show notes and links:

• US-China war ‘inevitable’ unless Washington drops demands over South China Sea (telegraph.co.uk).

• Sinking of the RMS Lusitania (en.wikipedia.org).

• Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania by Erik Larson — Reviews, Discussion, Bookclubs, Lists (goodreads.com).

• Case Closed: The Gulf of Tonkin Incident (historynet.com).

• 42 ADMITTED False Flag Attacks Washington’s Blog (washingtonsblog.com).

• USS Maine (ACR-1) (en.wikipedia.org).

• Attack At Pearl Harbor, 1941 (eyewitnesstohistory.com).

• Fumimaro Konoe (en.wikipedia.org).

• Lend-Lease Act (history.com).

• Walter Short (en.wikipedia.org).

• Husband E. Kimmel (en.wikipedia.org).

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In this episode of The History Files, Gordon discusses the difference between “warrior” and “soldier”, and the impact of the evolution of firearms on what would become the model of the modern army.

Producer’s note: We had a recording glitch that meant I had to chase Gordon down at his day job and re-record part of the main segment in less-than-ideal circumstances, so that’s the reason for the weird “why is he suddenly in an abandoned warehouse?” sound for a few minutes. Apologies!

Show notes and links:

• 2015 Waco shootout (en.wikipedia.org).

• Amazon.com: Weapons and Warfare in Renaissance Europe: Gunpowder, Technology, and Tactics (Johns Hopkins Studies in the History of Technology) (9780801869945): Bert S. Hall: Books (amazon.com).

• Matchlock (en.wikipedia.org).

• Wheellock (en.wikipedia.org).

• Stuhlweissenburg, Battle of | Hungarian history | Encyclopedia Britannica (britannica.com).

• Arquebus (en.wikipedia.org).

• Universalmuseum Joanneum :: Styrian Armoury (museum-joanneum.at). Graz Armory

• Heritage History | Homeschool History Curriculum | Story of Old France by Helene Guerber (heritage-history.com). Battle of Coutras (1587)

• Battle of Turnhout (1597) (en.wikipedia.org).

• From Lance to Pistol — myArmoury.com (myarmoury.com).

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In this episode of The History Files, Gordon interviews historical archeologist Morgan Blanchard. Starting with new developments in high-tech surveying tools, they go on to discuss excavations of battle sites in New Mexico, World War 2 internment camps, the Battle of the Little Big Horn, and the Tlingit Revolt of 1802 amongst other things.

Show notes and links:

• Victory in Europe (history.com). VE Day

• Baseball | PBS (pbs.org). Ken Burns’ “Baseball”

• Battle of Glorieta Pass (nps.gov). Battle of Glorieta Pass (1862)

• Archaeological Perspectives on the Battle of the Little Bighorn: Douglas D. Scott, Dr. Richard A. Fox Jr. Ph.D, Melissa A. Connor, Dick Harmon: 9780806132921: Amazon.com: Books (amazon.com). Doug Scott, “Archeological Perspectives on the Battle of the Little Big Horn”

• The Taos Revolt. (en.wikipedia.org). The Taos Revolt (1847)

• Battle of Sitka (en.wikipedia.org). Tlingit Rebellion (1802)

• Indian Battles and Conflicts in Washington State (legendsofamerica.com). Yakima War (1855-1858)

• Tlingit (everyculture.com). Katlian, Chief of the Tlingits

• Evacuation and Internment, 1942-1945 (nps.gov). Japanese Internment during World War 2 in Alaska

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In this episode of The History Files, Gordon cites three examples from history that illustrate national conditions which usually lead to revolution, sometimes even several waves of revolution.

Bonus: stay tuned after the sign-off to hear Neb and Gordon ramble on about Iran, pop-culture wars, and that inexplicable statue of Lenin in Fremont (a neighborhood on the ship canal north of Seattle).

Show notes and links:

• Agustí­n de Iturbide (en.wikipedia.org). Agustín de Iturbide

• Porfirio Diaz : Faces of the Revolution : The Storm That Swept Mexico : PBS (pbs.org). Porfirio Diaz

• This post has no title. (royal.gov.uk). Charles I

• Glorious Revolution | English history | Encyclopedia Britannica (britannica.com). The Glorious Revolution

• Reign of Terror (en.wikipedia.org). The Reign of Terror

• Charlotte Corday (en.wikipedia.org). Charlotte Corday

• Thermidorian Reaction (en.wikipedia.org). Thermadorian Reaction

• BBC (bbc.co.uk). Czar Nicholas II

• Duma | Define Duma at Dictionary.com (dictionary.reference.com).

• The Mossadegh Project :: Mohammad Mossadegh .com (mohammadmossadegh.com).

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Gordon gives some background to and insight on the first horrific genocide of the 20th century, perpetrated by the Turkish government against Christian Armenians from 1915 to 1918.

Show notes and links:

• The Face of Battle (en.wikipedia.org). by John Keegan

• The Armenian Genocide (en.wikipedia.org).

• Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (en.wikipedia.org).

• Atatürk (Mustafa Kemal) | Australian War Memorial (awm.gov.au). Ataturk’s 1934 tribute to the Anzacs killed at Gallipoli

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In this episode of the History Files, we’re back in the Ukraine, but this time it’s in the midst of the turbulent Russian Civil War of 1917 to 1921.

Bonus material: Ever wonder what Gordon talks about “off mic”? Since the show ran a little short this week, we’ve included a little extra chatter at the end about rock stars who moonlight as defence analysts and the changing world of intelligence.

Show notes and links:

• John Harris (novelist) (en.wikipedia.org). Light Cavalry Action

• The Lighthorsemen (1987) (imdb.com).

• Doctor Zhivago (1965) (imdb.com).

• The Great War (youtube.com).

• Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (en.wikipedia.org).

• Jeff “Skunk” Baxter (youtube.com). The Revolution in Intelligence. Bonus material!

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The average duration of empires the world over seems to be about 250 years. In this episode of the History Files Gordon looks at the classic symptoms of that decline, which are often confused with causes, and reflects on “The Fate of Empires” by Sir John Glubb.

Show notes and links:

• “The Fate of Empires”. (newworldeconomics.com). “The Fate of Empires and Search for Survival”, Sir John Glubb

• John Bagot Glubb (en.wikipedia.org). Sir John Bagot Glubb (1897-1987)

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There’s truly nothing new under the sun, and journalistic bias is one of those things. In this episode Gordon talks about the Spanish Civil War, specifically George Orwell’s experiences which he fictionalized in his novel Homage to Catalonia.

Show notes and links:

• For Whom the Bell Tolls: Ernest Hemingway: 9780684803357: Amazon.com: Books (amazon.com).

• Homage to Catalonia: George Orwell: 9780156421171: Amazon.com: Books (amazon.com).

• Pan’s Labyrinth (2006) (imdb.com).

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Gordon discusses Breki Tomasson’s musings about where Canada may be headed, recommends the 2004 feature film The Alamo, and then adds his own thoughts on the formation of Canada and the United States and what the future may hold for North America.

Special outro music: The Plains of Alberta, by Wilf Carter (a.k.a. Montana Slim), ca. 1930s

Show notes and links:

• The (Un)United States of Canada | Breki Tomasson (brekitomasson.com).

• Old Alberta Plains (youtube.com).

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Gordon and special guest Nancy Frye discuss five major events of the 1450s that shaped our world, after first chatting extensively about historical fiction in film, television, and literature… the good and the not so good.

Addendum: One of the things we didn’t squeeze into the show, while discussing China and silver, was the importance of Spanish silver on world trade. The Spanish “real” was, during the 17th and 18th Centuries, the standard form of exchange between people, nations, and cultures everywhere in the world. Renowned for its purity and reliable weight, these “Spanish Dollars” or “pieces of eight” were hugely important in world trade. Spanish ships carrying silver reals sailed across the Pacific from Peru and Mexico to Manila, which became the primary trade entrepôt for Chinese merchants engaged in commerce with the Europeans, and likewise Spaniards engaged in the China trade. Similarly, the “Spanish Dollar” was the standard form of exchange within all of the American colonies, Spanish and English alike (and I imagine French and Portuguese as well!).

Since small change wasn’t minted, in order to “make change” these silver dollars would be cut into up to eight pieces, thus the “pieces of eight” nomenclature. See also the doggerel “Two bits, four bits, six bits, a dollar…”, being a quarter, half and three-quarters of a dollar respectively. 1/8 of a dollar was 12-1/2 cents in “American money”, as it were, but seldom used. The quarter and half-dollar denominations became standard, even though the name “piece of eight” still referred to the original sum of the parts.

Special outro music: Istanbul not Constantinople, from the Alka Seltzer Show, 1953, performed by Martha Tilton and Kurt Massey and via the Internet Archive.

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In this episode, Gordon recommends The Man in the High Castle, we find out what makes Dylan tick, and we learn the ins and outs of bureaucracies and why they’re their own worst enemies.

Show notes and links:

• Amazon.com: The Man in the High Castle: Amazon Instant Video (amazon.com).

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Gordon and Dylan discuss the consequences of the Versailles treaty, the Sykes-Picot Agreement, and other related events from the vantage point of 2015 and the centennial of World War 1.

Show notes and links:

• The Guns of August: The Pulitzer Prize-Winning Classic About the Outbreak of World War I: Barbara W. Tuchman, Robert K. Massie: 8580001061313: Amazon.com: Books (amazon.com).

• Amazon.com: With Lawrence in Arabia eBook: LOWELL THOMAS, Cristo Raul: Kindle Store (amazon.com).

• Seven Pillars of Wisdom: A Triumph: The Complete 1922 Text: T. E. Lawrence: 9781617201837: Amazon.com: Books (amazon.com).

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Gordon is skeptical about promises of self-determination, tells us why we in the West should care about the Ukraine, and declares the A-10 the Chevy pickup of tactical aircraft.

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In episode two of The History Files, Gordon and Dylan talk about the Spanish American War, U.S. imperialism in the 1890s (and beyond), and blame it all on Gordon’s ancestors.

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Gordon talks with Dylan about books, TV shows and movies that inspired him to study history, dispels some historical misconceptions, and explains why George Washington was even more awesome than you already think he is.

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