Antisemitism the Tsarist Way - The Blood Libel Trial

The Russian Empire's antisemitism was just as morally reprehensible as antisemitism in other parts of Europe.  But it had some unique features, in particular it was often rather short of Jews suitable to persecute.  When it did engage in active persecution it took some strange forms.  This podcast is about a book covering the trial of a particularly incongruous victim.  He was a successful manager and fairly unobservant Jew who would not have attracted much attention.  His misfortune was to be the Jew who happened to live closest to the place the body of a murdered Russian boy. 

He had been stabbed multiple times and this somehow put some people in mind of the pervasive notion going back to the Middle Ages that Jews required the blood of Christian children for their religious ceremonies.  There was, needles to say, not a scrap of evidence against the unfortunate Jew.  The way the trial unfolded reveals a lot about the state of Russia at the time.  A fascinating discussion that is well worth downloading.

http://newbooksinhistory.com/2014/07/13/edmund-levin-a-child-of-christian-blood-murder-and-conspiracy-in-tsarist-russia-schocken-2014/

New Books in History - Andrew Demshuk The Lost German East: Forced Migration and the Politics of Memory, 1945-1970

George Orwell was one of the few journalists in western Europe who pointed out the issues raised by the displacement of the German population from the parts of Germany that were being transferred to Poland.  Borders had changed often in European history but it was rare for the people to be moved with them.  What became of those people was a major factor in the development of post-war Germany, but one that almost nobody wanted to talk about.

This podcast goes into some fascinating details about just how these people were discretely dealt with and how it turned out that one of the biggest groups of displaced people in history didn't give rise to one of the biggest political problems in history.

http://newbooksinhistory.com/2014/07/23/andrew-demshuk-the-lost-german-east-forced-migration-and-the-politics-of-memory-1945-1970-cambridge-up-2012/

Lynching - New Books in History Robert Thurston

This book takes a fresh look at the role of lynching in American history.  Its thesis is that while bad, it wasn't perhaps quite as bad as it is often portrayed and was rather more complex than you might imagine. Personally, I had no idea it was so prevalent so the revelation was rather lost on me.  A gruesome and not particularly enjoyable podcast that frankly I can't recommend for any other reason than to make you realise just how bad humans can behave when the mood takes them.

http://newbooksinhistory.com/2011/08/05/robert-thurston-lynching-american-mob-murder-in-global-perspective-ashgate-2011/

The Populist Vision - New Books in History Charles Postel

 Imagine an American political party that is in favour of public ownership of things like the railways, that has progressive views on science and women's rights and that believes in organising the financial system to help small farmers.

This was exactly what the People's Party of the mid Nineteenth Century was.  The judgement of history has not been kind to the Populists, and in this podcast we hear that the judgement was probably unfair.  The Populists have been slammed as backward looking agrarian romantics rather than their true identity as the closest the US has ever got to a proper socialist party.

http://newbooksinhistory.com/2009/07/22/charles-postel-the-populist-vision/

Helping Humanity -New Books in History Keith Pomakoy

It can't be easy being American if you are sensitive to criticism.  America gets slammed not only for doing things, but also for failing to do things.  What's a superpower to do, eh?

This podcast is a good antidote to both American triumphalism and general anti-Americanism.  When it comes to genocide, on the whole the United States has tried to do what it can, but it turns out that generally what it can do isn't very much.  Basically, they are just humans trying their best in a difficult world rather than superheros riding to the rescue or uniquely wicked villains out to do the rest of us down.  An hour and a bit of common sense and plain talking.

A good listen for everyone except conspiracy theorists and bigoted patriots.

http://newbooksinhistory.com/2011/08/19/keith-pomakoy-helping-humanity-american-policy-and-genocide-rescue-lexington-books-2011/

Dominion of God - New Books in History Brett Whalen

 Brett Whalen has studied the millenarian atmosphere in the Middle Ages, in particular the crusades.  Marshall seems particularly interested in relating this to the present day.  This makes it quite an interesting chat - don't tune in if you want to learn about the book, interesting as it sounds, but do tune in for some historical perspective on modern American attitudes.

In particular, we get an interesting comparison between medieval anti-semitism and the modern variety. (Totally different).  We also get to see how apocalyptic visions compare.  (Pretty similar)

Basically, an entertaining and educational hour's worth of listening.  I wouldn't mind if they got together again and actually talked about the book either.

http://newbooksinhistory.com/2009/09/18/brett-whalen-dominion-of-god-christendom-and-apocalypse-in-the-middle-ages/

Rebels Rising - New Books in History Ben Carp

Rebels Rising covers some of the intriguing minutiae of the outbreak of the American War of Independence.  It doesn't ask the key question - if the colonists had lost would America have turned out as a normal country like, say, Canada.  But it does look at the role played by bars and churches, asks why the rebels dressed up as Red Indians during the Boston Tea Party, why was Boston such a key place during the build up to the war but not very significant during the war itself, and most fascinatingly could New York have become a sort of American version of Hong Kong?


http://newbooksinhistory.com/2009/06/05/benjamin-carp-rebels-rising-cities-in-the-american-revolution/

Natural Experiments of History - New Books in History Jared Diamond

What does Jared Diamond think of historians?  They are unloved and don't get paid much for good reason, because they produce work of little value.  They are too specialised and not good enough at sums.

This emerges in this podcast where he talks about it.  To an historian.

Incidentally they also talk about a history book that Diamond has just edited.  That sounds quite interesting too.


http://newbooksinhistory.com/2010/01/20/jared-diamond-and-james-a-robinson-natural-experiments-of-history/

Enduring the Great War - New Books in History Alexander Watson

 How did the troops who fought in the First World War cope with it?  It is a good question and one that Alexander Watson has set out to answer in this book.  He looks specifically at the British and German armies.  The two organisations seem to have faced largely the same challenges and solved much the same problem.   But there were some differences, and this may explain why the German army seemed to give in first.  It turns out that the end of German resistance didn't happen in quite the way I imagined it.  In particular it wasn't on the point of mutiny as I imagined.  Have a listen if you want to find out what really happened.

http://newbooksinhistory.com/2009/08/06/alexander-watson-enduring-the-great-war/

The Human Footprint - New Books in History Anthony Penna

Environmental history is a bit of a mix of disciplines, but with the great interest in the environment it does offer a new way of looking at a familiar problem.  It is also quite an eye opening way.  For example, this podcast points out a very surprising fact.  Cultivation of crops seems to have been invented independently about 14 times within the space of about a thousand years.  That doesn't sound like a coincidence.  You don't usually have to worry about spoilers when reviewing history podcast, but I'll let you find out the explanation Prof Penna comes up with when you listen yourself.

This is an intriguing podcast that made me think differently about some things I thought I knew all about already.  I am mightily tempted to seek the book out as well.

http://newbooksinhistory.com/2011/07/18/anthony-penna-the-human-footprint-a-global-environmental-history-wiley-blackwell-2010/

How Terrorism Ends - New Books in History Audrey Kurth Cronin

As podcasts go this one was a bit dull.  I don't think the subject matter really lends itself to podcasting somehow.  But I have posted it anyway because it does sound like an interesting book.  Terrorist campaigns don't last forever and it is worth considering the ways the come to an end.

http://newbooksinhistory.com/2010/05/28/audrey-kurth-cronin-how-terrorism-ends-understanding-the-decline-and-demise-of-terrorist-campaigns/

Brotherhood of Kings, really ancient diplomacy - New Books in History Amanda Podany

How long do the customs of diplomatic relationships that we read about on the Internet and in the newspapers every day go back?  If this podcast is right, then as far back as written records.

One of the things about this podcast series that I don't always like myself is that Marshal Poe is often very interested in the methods of history.  This is an interesting enough subject, but I am a bit impatient and I usually want to get straight onto the actual history.  But in this case it is fascinating to think that a whole history laid buried for thousands of years on clay tablets that nobody alive knew how to read.

And that is what this podcast is about - the diplomacy of the ancient world as revealed by one of the most enduring forms of information technology humans have come up with yet.

http://newbooksinhistory.com/2010/08/19/amanda-podany-brotherhood-of-kings-how-international-relations-shaped-the-ancient-near-east/

Bismarck by Jonathan Steinberg - New Books in History

Nobody did more to shape the Twentieth Century in Europe than Bismarck.  He united the disparate German states to create Germany, instigated regime change in France and basically redrew the map and rewrote the rulebook.  But the man himself is an enigma. Was Bismarck a liberal or a conservative?  What were his values?  How did he see his role, and what was his motivation.  This podcast doesn't really answer any of these questions but you do feel yourself getting to know the man a bit more.

http://newbooksinhistory.com/2011/05/24/jonathan-steinberg-bismarck-a-life-oxford-up-2011/

Fixing the Sky: The Checkered History of Weather and Climate Control James Fleming - New Books in History

 

One  of the big problems facing mankind is that we are unwittingly changing the weather by burning fossil fuels.  The extent to which this is happening, and whether there is anything we either can or should do about it is debatable.  But what may come as a surprise is that humans have been trying to control the weather for longer than you might think.  In fact, just about every bit of new technology that has come along has been used to attempt precisely that.  The results?  Total failure every time.  Fascinating stuff, and with the climate debate ranging topical stuff as well.


http://newbooksinhistory.com/2010/10/20/james-fleming-fixing-the-sky-the-checkered-history-of-weather-and-climate-control/

Cry Havoc: How the Arms Race Drove the World to War, 1931–1941 Joe Maiolo - New Books in History

Which country in Europe was producing the most planes in 1939 and 1940?  It has to be Germany doesn't it?  No, it was Britain.  Which year did it become inevitable that Germany would lost the Second World War.  1942?  Not according to this book, try 1933.

A fascinating look at the great conflict of the twentieth century from an angle it is rarely viewed from, that of resources and how they affected the arms race that built up to the outbreak of war.  I won't say any more, it is more fun to listen and have your eyes (ears?)  opened.

http://ir.uiowa.edu/history_nbih/132/

Making Sense of the Vietnam Wars- New Books in History

This is a scholarly book written by a scholar.  The podcast starts off with 30 minutes of scholarly discussion about the business of researching and writing a book like this.  If you like that sort of thing it is 30 minutes you will no doubt want to spend.  If you are mainly interested in the contents of the book you might want to skip to the 29minute point.

The discussion remains a bit scholarly rather than journalistic when we get the actual history.  There is a lot of journalism about the Vietnam Wars, indeed if you are as old as me you will remember actual news broadcasts about it.  The perspective is from the point of view of the Vietnamese and Ho Chi Minh, the North Vietnamese leader in particular.  Mark Bradley is interested in the facts not the drama, but even so there are still some dramatic moments.  In particular the amazing declaration of independence made in Hanoi in September 1945 is one of the remarkable scenes of history.

Not really told in a way to make it a riveting story, but an interesting podcast nonetheless.

http://newbooksinhistory.com/2009/07/04/mark-bradley-vietnam-at-war/   

The Ottoman Age of Exploration - New Books in History Giancarlo Casale

It was the Portuguese that opened up the globe by setting out from the banks of the Tagus and sailing around the world to create new markets and find fame and riches.  Only, when they got there they found that the Turks were already doing the same.  When Vasco da Gama first arrived in India after sailing around the whole of Africa, he met some Moroccans already there who spoke Portuguese.

An interesting podcast covering an aspect of history very few of us know anything about.

http://newbooksinhistory.com/2011/03/18/giancarlo-casale-the-ottoman-age-of-exploration-oxford-up-2010/

Why did Rome fall? - New Books in History Adrian Goldsworthy

There are hundreds of theories to explain why Rome fell.  (That isn't a figure of speech incidentally, the published ideas do literally run into the hundreds.)  Nobody really knows, but Adrian Goldsworthy thinks he has a pretty good idea.  Well worth a listen.


http://newbooksinhistory.com/2009/05/01/adrian-goldsworthy-how-rome-fell-death-of-a-superpower/

The Origins of Political Order - New Books in History Francis Fukuyama

Francis Fukuyama is most famous for the phrase 'the end of history'.  This was supposed to have happened with the fall of the Berlin Wall.  The basic idea was that mankind had finally worked out the ideal way of organising their societies and that the way to do it was a liberal democracy.   This book seems to be filling in a lot of the detail around that basic idea.  Going from the origin of man as a species up to the French Revolution, this is broad brush stuff indeed.  Listen to this if you want to hear some interesting ways of looking at how humans behave and how that has affected the way history has developed.

http://newbooksinhistory.com/2011/05/03/francis-fukuyama-the-origins-of-political-order-from-prehuman-times-to-the-french-revolution-fsg-2011/

Model Nazi - New Books in History Catherine Epstein

Whatever you think of top Nazis, having affairs with pianists doesn't spring to mind.  When you look at the things the Nazis did it is hard to think of them as normal people at all.  But of course they might be monsters, but that doesn't stop them being humans.