logo
episode-header-image
Aug 2023
1 h

74. Peter the Great: The First Emperor

Goalhanger
About this episode
A giant of Russian history, and a giant of a man. Peter the Great, standing at 6'8, established Russia as the world power that it is today and is famously one of Vladimir Putin's inspirations. He expanded Russia's borders, modernised the state, and built St Petersburg from a swamp. Yet with all this, he still found time for drunken debauchery of the most abs ... Show More
Up next
Yesterday
310. The Origin of The Ashes & The Killer Cricket Scandal (Part 1)
How is the history of cricket completely intertwined with the history of the British Empire? What was the Bodyline Controversy of the 1930s and how did it nearly kill a player? Who was Don Bradman and why is he believed to be the greatest sportsperson of all time? Anita and Will ... Show More
49m 22s
Nov 20
309. Tintin, Nazis, & Soviets
What was the origin story of Hergé, the Belgian illustrator who created The Adventures of Tintin? How did an unlikely friendship transform Hergé’s life and lead him to draw Tintin crying in a comic strip for the first and only time? Anita and William navigate the turbulent hot w ... Show More
45m 37s
Nov 18
308. Asterix and Obelix, Babar The Elephant, & Colonial Cartoons
How did a story made up by a mother for her sick children turn into Babar The Elephant? Why did two immigrants to France create such a patriotically French cartoon in Asterix and Obelix? How should we feel about racist depictions of people of colour in beloved children’s cartoons ... Show More
47m 27s
Recommended Episodes
Mar 2022
162. Putin's Russia
[Episode 4 of 4] 'In the noughties, Russian democracy becomes a form of show business' In the final instalment of our Russia mini-series, Tom and Dominic reach the climax of Putin’s rise to power, charting how a former KGB agent managed to climb from relative obscurity to becom ... Show More
35m 3s
Jul 2023
Prigozhin: The Fate of Russian ‘Favourites’
<p>Russian history is defined by the rise and fall of favourites. Peter the Great had Menshikov, and Nicholas II had Rasputin. It's part of the architecture of Russian regimes that those close to the ruler enjoy immense power and influence. But sometimes, they overstep the mark.< ... Show More
26m 40s
Mar 2022
159. Young Putin, the KGB and the Soviet Union
[Episode 1 of 4] Welcome to our new four part series on the latter years of the Soviet Union, its fall, Putin's early life and his subsequent rise to power. Today's episode focuses on Brezhnev, Putin's formative years, his early KGB career and Gorbachev's descent into chaos. W ... Show More
35m 28s
Aug 2019
10.10- The Russian Empire
Peter the Great and Catherine the Great made the Russian Empire great. 
31m 10s
Aug 2021
Shaving Russia
History repeats itself this week with an episode from the HISTORY This Week archives: Sept 5, 1698. Tsar Peter the Great of Russia returns home from a year-long European tour. When noblemen, religious figures and friends gather to welcome him home, Peter pulls out a straight razo ... Show More
26m 24s
Feb 2024
Nicolas II : le dernier tsar de Russie (1/3)
<p>L'empereur Nicolas II, tsar de toutes les Russies, dirige son empire d’une main de fer. Tourmenté par la maladie de son fils, le prince héritier, il peine à se montrer à l’écoute de son peuple. Sa mort tragique signe la fin de la Russie impériale et de la dynastie des Romanov, ... Show More
35m 24s
Aug 2018
The Dig: Russia Beyond Caricature
<p>Russia: the more your average American thinks about it, the less they seem to know. National security-state enthused liberals blame Putin and for creating what is an obviously-if-incomprehensibly made-in-America monster. Trump, in turn, cannot seem to contain his giddy enthusi ... Show More
1h 50m
Jul 2008
What was in Peter the Great's cabinet of curiosities?
<p>Peter the Great was a feared leader but also an intellectual. Learn about Peter the Great and Peter the Great's love of academia and collectibles in this podcast from HowStuffWorks.com!</p><p> </p> Learn more about your ad-choices at <a href="https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.c ... Show More
3m 53s
Aug 2023
Putin's Rise to Power
Serving continuously as either Prime Minister or President since 1999, Vladimir Putin's leadership of Russia has always dominated the geopolitical stage and made headlines. Enforcing extreme policies, engaging with dangerous allies, and hiring deadly mercenaries - it seems he isn ... Show More
47m 27s
Jan 2024
The Romanovs
<p>The Romanov family were the first imperial dynasty to rule Russia, reigning from the early seventeenth century until the Russian Revolution of 1917. Including such illustrious names as Peter the Great, Catherine the Great and Alexander I, they oversaw dramatic changes to the f ... Show More
29m 39s