How many people were slaughtered in the street-to-street battle for Paris known as the ‘bloody week’? Why did the German Chancellor help the French government start a civil war? Who were the ‘Petroleuses’, the mythical wild-eyed working class women accused of setting the city on fire?
David Olusoga and Sarah Churchwell relive the brutal final days of the ... Show More
Oct 15
609. Nelson: The Gathering Storm (Part 2)
After two years at sea, what happened when Horatio Nelson - now Britain’s most celebrated naval commander - finally returned home, to his wife and father? Following his involvement in the poisonous politics of Naples, his terrible treatment of the Jacobite rebels, and starting an ... Show More
1h 2m
Oct 22
611. Nelson: Bonaparte Prepares to Strike (Part 4)
With Britain at war for more than eight long years, and her people depleted and hungry, how did her government react to the news that Napoleon Bonaparte was planning a full-scale invasion in 1801? What happened when Nelson tried to attack the French at Boulogne, and what was the ... Show More
1h 9m
Jul 2024
472. The Road to The Great War: Britain's Fateful Choice (Part 4)
On the 24th of July 1914, in London, the Liberal British Cabinet met to hear the Foreign Secretary, Sir Edward Grey, read them the Ultimatum handed to Serbia by the Austro-Hungarian Empire the day before. The world held its breath, awaiting Serbia’s response. With Germany determi ... Show More
53m 45s
Jul 2025
587. Mary, Queen of Scots: Murder Most Foul (Part 4)
Why did Mary Queen of Scots’ second marriage to the volatile Lord Darnley threaten to send Scotland into civil war? In what way did she essentially declare war upon her powerful cousin, Elizabeth I? Who was the hotheaded James Hepburn, the Earl of Bothwell, and why would he come ... Show More
54m 22s