“It is hard to believe that Southern soldiers—and Texans at that—have been whipped by a mongrel crew of white and black Yankees … there must be some mistake.”
This is the story of Black Soldiers in the Civil War.
Black patriots are ready to fight from day one. The Lincoln Administration and Congress, however, are not ready to have them. They fear losing the ... Show More
Apr 13
203: The Holocaust: Killing Squads, Ghettos, & Gas Chambers
“The procedure is a pretty barbaric one and not to be described here more definitively. Not much will remain of the Jews.” —Joseph Goebbels This is the story of how the Holocaust becomes industrialized. In January 1942, Nazi leaders discuss what will become the “Final Solution”: ... Show More
1h 8m
Mar 30
202: Holocaust Prologue with US Holocaust Memorial Museum Director, Sara J. Bloomfield
After turning our attention back to Europe in the last few episodes, it’s time to finally examine the Holocaust. Back in episode 185, we covered a broad history of antisemitism in Europe and the violent results of the first few years of Hitler’s reign in Germany, going all the wa ... Show More
48m 21s
Mar 16
201: A Soft Underbelly: The Allied Invasion of Sicily & the Fall of Il Duce
"My dear Duce, it’s no longer any good… At this moment you are the most hated man in Italy.” This is the story of Operations Underworld, Mincemeat, and Husky. On the heels of the decisive Allied victory in Africa, leaders decide to take the fight north. But Hitler and Mussolini s ... Show More
58m 53s
Mar 2024
Edda Fields-Black, "Combee: Harriet Tubman, the Combahee River Raid, and Black Freedom During the Civil War" (Oxford UP, 2023)
Most Americans know of Harriet Tubman's legendary life: escaping enslavement in 1849, she led more than 60 others out of bondage via the Underground Railroad, gave instructions on getting to freedom to scores more, and went on to live a lifetime fighting for change. Yet the many ... Show More
1h 35m
Dec 2021
How Lincoln Almost Lost it All
December 11, 1862. Union Army engineers are urgently constructing a bridge, one that will carry soldiers into the town of Fredericksburg, Virginia, a Confederate stronghold. Union leaders are banking on the element of surprise and are desperate for a victory. But, by the time it’ ... Show More
33m 56s
Oct 2018
Civil Rights - New World A’Comin | 1
<p>President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, freeing the slaves in much of the South. But the road to freedom—true freedom—would take generations longer for most black Americans.</p><p>In this new six-part series, we investigate their stru ... Show More
38m 5s
Feb 2021
General Robert E Lee: US Civil War rebel
The US Civil War of 1861-65 left 700,000 troops dead. The Southern Confederate states rebelled against the Union of the North because the Confederates wanted to protect the right to own slaves. The hero of the rebel cause, General Robert E Lee, was charged with treason and had hi ... Show More
12m 28s
May 2024
447. Custer vs. Crazy Horse: The Winning of the West (Part 2)
With the American Civil War coming to a close in April 1865, George Custer, cavalry commander in the Union army, and a man of dubious political leanings for a unionist officer, was sent to Texas. Reckless, daring and bloodthirsty, the conclusion of the war came as a disappointmen ... Show More
1h 6m