For more than a decade, the Explaining History Podcast has helped listeners around the world make sense of modern history. What began in 2012 as a simple experiment—short, accessible episodes explaining major historical events—has grown into a long-running library of carefully researched, thoughtful explorations of the 20th and 21st centuries.
This page introduces new listeners to the podcast, explains what makes it different from other history shows, and offers curated paths into more than a thousand episodes.
If you’re searching for a history podcast that goes deeper than anecdotes or trivia, this is where to begin.
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Donald Trump’s presidency became the instrument of the Protestant establishment’s final destruction, contrasting with Roosevelt’s class-defining portrait. Trump, unlike Roosevelt, was the son of a Queens developer, signaling a new era of arrival.
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President Trump’s impeachmentImpeachment Full Description:The constitutional mechanism by which a legislative body levels charges against a government official. It serves as the ultimate political remedy for “high crimes and misdemeanors,” designed to prevent the executive branch from becoming a tyranny. Impeachment is not the removal from office, but the formal accusation (indictment) by the legislature. In the context of the crisis, it represented the reassertion of congressional power against an executive branch that had grown increasingly unaccountable. The process forces the political system to decide whether the President is above the law. Critical Perspective:While designed as a check on power, the process highlights the fragility of democratic institutions. It reveals that the remedy for presidential criminality is fundamentally political, not legal. Consequently, justice often relies on the willingness of the President’s own party to prioritize the constitution over partisan loyalty, a reliance that makes the system vulnerable to factionalism.
Read more in 2019 revealed a pattern of disregarding constitutional norms. The charges of abuse of power and obstruction were rooted in his efforts to leverage military aid against foreign leaders. Trump’s dismissal of the proceedings as a ‘witch hunt’ and his subsequent Senate acquittal underscored his prioritization of personal narrative over institutional duty. -
The Gallipoli Campaign, a defining moment in World War I, saw over 130,000 soldiers killed. Its meaning varies by nation: to Australians and New Zealanders, it is the birth of national consciousness; to Turks, a myth of victory; and to the British, a symbol of imperial missteps. This article explores how history and memory shape these divergent national stories.
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The COVID-19 pandemic briefing on April 13, 2020, became a defining moment in presidential communication history. As hospitals in New York faced dire shortages of ventilators and the death toll surpassed 20,000 Americans, President Donald Trump opted for a video montage over delivering essential information. This self-directed production showcased his daily efforts against the pandemic, but critics saw it as a display of self-importance.
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The Ottoman Empire’s capture of Allied prisoners during WWI was staggering, with estimates between 100,000 and 150,000, while the Allies seized a similar number. These figures make the Ottoman theater one of the major sites of contention for captives.
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Trump’s early business education taught him one thing – the little people pay their debts back. Trump’s bankruptcies have been a part of a strategy of wealth extraction and this mindset now controls America.
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The mountains of Afghanistan held a prophecy that would shape global conflicts. In 1997, Osama bin Laden envisioned a United States weakened by its own response, a strategy that would echo in the wake of 9/11. As history unfolded, bin Laden’s insights into the cost of perpetual war proved prescient.
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The signing of the Armistice of Mudros in 1918 was a surrender that dismantled the Ottoman Empire, paving the way for the emergence of modern Turkey and altering Middle Eastern geopolitics forever
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In Susan Pedersen’s book *The Guardians*, the colonial mandate system is explored as a mechanism through which colonized peoples claimed nations’ rights. The narrative reveals how these systems were tools for colonial powers to legitimize territorial claims, yet they were viewed by colonized populations as betrayals of promised self-determinationSelf-Determination Full Description:Self-Determination became the rallying cry for anti-colonial movements worldwide. While enshrined in the UN Charter, its application was initially fiercely contested. Colonial powers argued it did not apply to their imperial possessions, while independence movements used the UN’s own language to demand the end of empire. Critical Perspective:There is a fundamental tension in the UN’s history regarding this term. While the organization theoretically supported freedom, its most powerful members were often actively fighting brutal wars to suppress self-determination movements in their colonies. The realization of this right was not granted by the UN, but seized by colonized peoples through struggle.. This complex legacy highlights the contradictions at the heart of post-war governance.
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The Ottoman Empire’s bold but ultimately failed assault on the Suez Canal in 1915 revealed the harsh realities of war and exposed its strategic vulnerabilities. This early military operation sought to sever British communications and incite an uprising but highlighted the fragile nature of Ottoman military planning.
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The looming showdown between the U.S. and Iran is shaping up to be a modern-day Battle of Tsushima, where a decisive defeat could unravel the very fabric of American power and prosperity. As ground troops are deployed, the specter of a catastrophic military failure looms large, threatening to ignite a seismic political crisis that could reshape global dynamics.
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Kharg Island, a strategic coral outcrop off Iran’s western coast, plays a pivotal role in Iran’s oil exports, handling 90% of crude oil exports. Seizing it could economically cripple Iran without American troops needing to land. However, history warns against such bold moves—Gallipoli and Dien Bien Phu show the perils of holding fortified positions against asymmetric warfare.
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The Question of Naming History has a way of naming things only after they have concluded. We look back at 1914 and 1939 as definitive starting points, but as we discuss in the latest Explaining History podcast, those living through the current conflagrations in Ukraine, Gaza, Iran, and Venezuela are left wondering: are we already in the midst of a global conflict? And if so, at what point do we give it a name? The historian Richard Overy, in his seminal work Blood and Ruins, suggests that the two World Wars might be viewed as a single, continuous struggle of…
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Jürgen Habermas, a towering figure in 20th-century philosophy, explored democracy’s essence, emphasizing reasoned discourse over coercion. Born in Düsseldorf, his life’s challenges shaped his views on communication and societal governance.
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Monica Sandler, a film historian at Ball State University, is completing her book, *The Oscar Industry*, focusing on the Oscars’ cultural significance. She discusses how the awards highlight artistic value within American culture, their historical ties to race and industry politics, and the impact of movements like #OscarsSoWhite and #MeToo.
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The Great Depression, far from being an American crisis, was a global catastrophe that affected every continent and economy between 1929 and 1932. As world trade plummeted by 66% and industrial production collapsed worldwide, unemployment soared catastrophically from Germany to Japan. This interconnected economic collapse was exacerbated by protectionist policies and competitive devaluations, reflecting the fragile international monetary system built on gold.
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Herbert Hoover’s ascent to the presidency in 1929 was marked by his self-made status and endorsement as a man of energy and executive ability. However, his presidency faced a dramatic shift as the Great Depression unfolded, highlighting the limitations of his associationalist philosophy.
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Key History Topics
Global History: Key Topics
- The Rise and Fall of Neoliberalism
- The Partition of India
- The Great Depression and the Collapse of Global Trade
- The Cultural Revolution in China
- The Mexican Revolution
- The Creation of the United Nations
- The Iranian Revolution
- The Marshall Plan and the Reconstruction of Europe
- The First Indochina War
- The Global Anti Apartheid Movement
- The Holocaust: Bureacracy and Genocide
- Korea: War, Division, Development
- Operation Condor
- The Bandung Conference
- The Rwandan Genocide
- Stalin and the transformation of the USSR 1924-41
- Pakistan from Independence to Belt and Road
- The Civil Rights Movement
- The 1911 Revolution and the fall of the Qing dynasty
- Watergate and Nixon’s Legacy
- The Arab-Israeli War of 1948 and Its Aftermath
- Ghana’s Independence and the ‘Year of Africa’
- The West German Republic: From Ruins to Reunification
- The Space Race and the Cold War
- Bangladesh war of Liberation
- The Sykes Picot Agreement and the conquest of the Middle East
- The Collapse of Yugoslavia
- Deng Xiaoping and the transformation of China
- The Fall of France, 1940
- The Spanish Civil War: A Global Struggle
- Post War Australia 1945-75
- The Sri Lankan Civil War
Cultural History: Key Topics
- The Birth of Consumerism and Mass Culture
- Modernism and the shock of the new
- The Jazz Age
- The Birth of Cinema and the Hollywood Studio System
- The Culture of Weimar Germany
- Interwar Britain: Media, Modernism, and the Invention of a National Culture
- Culture and Imperialism in European colonies between the wars