-
The western world as we understand it, is over. China’s advances in key technologies has reached an inflection point that is historically without precedent, soon western countries will offer access to their markets in return for Chinese technology transfers. Listen to this special Friday analysis report on China and the west.This is part seven of the Explaining History study course based on the AQA A level history module Revolution and Dictatorship: Russia 1917-53.In this episode we explore the
-
Drawing from the classic history of war reporting The First Casualty by Phillip Knightley, we explore the history of news, propaganda and misinformation from the Nanjing Massacre and the battle of Shanghai in 1937-8 to Pearl Harbour in 1941.This is part seven of the Explaining History study course based on the AQA A level history module Revolution and Dictatorship: Russia 1917-53.In this episode we explore the aftermath of the Russian Civil War and the challenges that the Bolshevik Regime faced
-
Between December 1937 and January 1938 on of the great crimes of Japan’s war against China occurred at the Chinese capital of Nanjing. Determined to break Chiang Kai Shek’s nationalist forces, the Japanese murdered tens of thousands of captured soldiers and proceeded to slaughter the civilian population. The Japanese army went of the rampage, killing children and raping the city’s female population. In 1985 a permanent memorial hall to the horrors inflicted on the city and on China by Japan was
-
In today’s episode of the Explaining History podcast, we hear from Terence Peterson author of Revolutionary Warfare: How the Algerian War Made Modern Counterinsurgency. In this fascinating discussion, we explore the brutal realities of the Algerian war of Independence and France’s struggle to comprehend and counter a nationalist movement that threatened to dismantle its empire. France’s loss in Vietnam had been a shattering blow to French pride and self confidence, along with the national humili
-
In this episode of the Explaining History Podcast, we delve into the complex and often overlooked intersection of Neoliberalism and National Liberation Movements during the pivotal decades of the 1940s, 50s, and 60s. Drawing insights from Quinn Slobodian’s insightful book “Globalists,” we unravel the ideological and practical challenges that the process of decolonization presented to neoliberal thinkers of the era. As countries across Asia, Africa, and Latin America broke free from colonial rule
-
In this compelling episode of Explaining History, we delve deep into the ideological and historical currents that gave rise to Maoism, the influential doctrine of China’s revolutionary leader, Mao Zedong. Drawing from Julia Lovell’s profound work, “Maoism: A Global History,” we aim to demystify Mao’s philosophy and its global impact.Our exploration takes us from the early seeds of Mao’s political thought, encapsulated in his infamous aphorism “Power comes from the barrel of a gun,” to its implem
-
Join us on this episode of Explaining History, where we journey back to one of the most politically turbulent eras in American history. We’re privileged to have Mary McNeil, a renowned historian and scholar, as our guide through the labyrinth of events that transpired from the release of the Pentagon Papers to the fall of the Nixon administration in the Watergate scandal.Mary elucidates the critical roles that Daniel Ellsberg and John Dean played in these defining moments of the early 1970s. She
-
In this captivating episode of Explaining History, we delve into the profound historical moments leading to the end of World War II with our special guest, acclaimed writer and historian, Evan Thomas.As the author of numerous bestselling books and an expert in American history and foreign policy, Thomas guides us through the fraught final days of the Pacific War. He elaborates on the intricate blend of military strategy, diplomatic negotiations, and human psychology that marked this tumultuous p
-
In the aftermath of the Second World War, the economic strains on Britain after six years of conflict were immense, but Britain’s international commitments were if anything even greater than during the war. Imperial overstretch, the temporary re-conquest of other European colonies like French Indochina and the Dutch East Indies, the occupation of Germany and the involvement in the Greek Civil War, and the new realities of the Cold War world meant that Britain needed to maintain a large standing
-
In 1941, Iraq was a nominally independent country, but still part of the British sphere of influence in the Middle East. Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany saw the growing wave of Arab nationalism in Iraq as a powerful device to place pressure on Britain in the Middle East. As intelligence reports showed that some form of Axis intervention in Iraq was planned, the Commander in Chief of British forces in India, Claude Auchinlek, saw the subcontinent as being particularly vulnerable and argued with Lo