The Best of The Rest Is History

  1. The Murder of Julius Caesar

    13/02/2023

    The Murder of Julius Caesar

    “He was trapped - he couldn’t get up. There was blood everywhere. The faces were coming closer, the knives rose and fell. And then, to his relief, he saw Brutus.”  One of the most iconic deaths in history, Caesar’s assassination is the brutal climax to an impressive series of victories: from triumphing during the First Triumvirate, to outlasting Pompey and Cato, gaining Imperator status and becoming dictator for life. How did it all come to such a gory end? *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Producer: Theo Young-Smith Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    58 min
  2. Titanic: The Tragedy Begins (Part 1)

    11/03/2024

    Titanic: The Tragedy Begins (Part 1)

    "There is no danger that Titanic will sink. The boat is unsinkable and nothing but inconvenience will be suffered by the passengers." The sinking of the Titanic, on a freezing Sunday night in April 1912, claimed more than 1500 lives. But how this state-of-the-art ocean liner came to be is also a story full of drama, encapsulating the turn of the century’s spirit of competition and drive for modernity. The booming financial world of the 1900s, rising immigration, the excitement of speed and steam, and an ever-growing transatlantic rivalry between Britain and the U.S. all played a part in the liner’s inception. And from this era emerged three men who would shape the Titanic’s journey: J.P. Morgan, an American titan of business; Thomas Ismay, the English magnate who owned the ship’s parent company; and William Pirrie, a leading British shipbuilder. Between these three men and two pivotal cities - New York and Belfast - the origins of the disaster that defined a generation can be traced…  Join Tom and Dominic as they discuss the context behind the building of RMS Titanic. From the rivalries of the transatlantic liner industry, to the tensions surrounding the Irish Home Rule movement, the story of the “unsinkable” began in a tumultuous age. *The Rest Is History LIVE in 2024* Tom and Dominic are back onstage this summer, at Hampton Court Palace in London!  Buy your tickets here: therestishistory.com Twitter: @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Producer: Theo Young-Smith Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    47 min
  3. The Fall of the Aztecs: The Adventure Begins (Part 1)

    06/11/2023

    The Fall of the Aztecs: The Adventure Begins (Part 1)

    The meeting of the controversial Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés and the formidable Emperor Montezuma in 1519 was one of the great hinge moments of world history, and the beginning of the end for the mightiest of the New World empires: the realm of the Aztecs.  The build-up to this extraordinary encounter is at once a thrilling adventure story and a tragic tale of violence, brutality and loss. It’s a story of temples and sacrifices, exploration and imperialism, with cataclysmic consequences for human history. Join Tom and Dominic in the first episode of this sensational saga, as they follow the young Cortés across the Atlantic to the Caribbean islands of Hispaniola and Cuba, where the search for gold comes at a terrible price … *Dominic’s book The Fall of the Aztecs is available now from bookshops across the UK - the perfect Christmas present!* *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in New Zealand and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Producer: Theo Young-Smith Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    52 min
  4. Watergate: Part 1

    11/10/2021

    Watergate: Part 1

    What led Richard Nixon into the greatest political scandal in American history? Dominic Sandbrook, acclaimed historian of the period, leads Tom Holland on an extraordinary journey from Nixon’s humble beginnings through his political rise and to the precipice of his downfall. The first in a two part mini-series. A Goalhanger Films & Left Peg Media production Produced by Harry Lineker Exec Producer Tony Pastor *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    48 min
  5. The Road to The Great War: Countdown to Armageddon (Part 1)

    14/07/2024

    The Road to The Great War: Countdown to Armageddon (Part 1)

    By the end of July 1914, the world hovered on the edge of a cataclysmic world war; Austria was at war with Serbia, Russia with Germany, and an ultimatum had been handed to Belgium. The July crisis had resolved itself in the most calamitous way possible. But how did this state of affairs erupt from the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie, in Sarajevo a month earlier? Even in the wake of their deaths war did not seem inevitable, with diplomats and politicians such as the British Foreign Secretary Sir Edward Grey manoeuvring to douse the flames kindled by the Serbian assassin Gavrilo Princip. The fires would, however, prove unquenchable, thanks to the implosion of of the Balkan powder keg beside a declining, desiccated Austro-Hungarian Empire, long fearful of Serbia, the rise of Germany under the eccentric Kaiser, as an industrious powerhouse to rival Britain, and the complex alliances and treaties that forbade the Great Powers any retreat from the coming inferno… Join Dominic and Tom as they set out upon Europe’s road to the First World War - the War to End All Wars - and explain how that devouring conflagration, which would see the end of the world as people knew it before 1914, came to pass. _______ LIVE SHOWS *The Rest Is History BOOK TOUR* To celebrate the launch of our second book, “The Rest Is History Returns”, Dominic and Tom will be appearing onstage in both Oxford and Cambridge in September! *The Rest Is History LIVE at the Royal Albert Hall* Tom and Dominic, accompanied by a live orchestra, take a deep dive into the lives and times of two of history’s greatest composers: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven. *The Rest Is History LIVE in the U.S.A.* If you live in the States, we've got some great news: Tom and Dominic will be performing throughout America in November, with shows in San Francisco, L.A., Chicago, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Boston and New York.  Tickets on sale now at TheRestIsHistory.com _______ Twitter: @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Producer: Theo Young-Smith Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    49 min
  6. Hannibal: Rome's Greatest Enemy (Part 1)

    25 MAY

    Hannibal: Rome's Greatest Enemy (Part 1)

    Who was Hannibal, the flawed but brilliant Carthaginian general? What makes Rome vs Carthage in the third century BC one of the most totemic ancient rivalries of all time? How did Hamilcar, father of Hannibal, restore the fortunes of Carthage following their devastating defeat to the Romans in 264 BC? And, what personal tragedy spurred Hannibal on to seize his destiny by the reins, take command of the Carthaginian army, and at last set out to have his vengeance on Rome? Join Tom and Dominic as they launch into the early life and rise of Hannibal; bane of Rome and master of Carthage, as the famous feud between those two greatest of cities gathers momentum... The Rest Is History Club: Become a member for exclusive bonus content, early access to full series and live show tickets, ad-free listening, our exclusive newsletter, discount book prices on titles mentioned on the pod, and our members’ chatroom on Discord. Just head to therestishistory.com to sign up, or start a free trial today on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/therestishistory. For more Goalhanger Podcasts, head to www.goalhanger.com _______ Twitter: @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Producer: Theo Young-Smith Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett + Aaliyah Akude Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    56 min
  7. The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln: Death at the Theatre (Part 1)

    10 AUG

    The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln: Death at the Theatre (Part 1)

    After passing the 13th amendment, in the closing weeks of the brutal American Civil War, what did president Abraham Lincoln - recently re-elected - do next to inflame his detractors? Crippled with guilt for the death and destruction of the war, was he indeed a unionist tyrant? What did Lincoln decide to do with the defeated rebel states? And, with time ticking for Lincoln’s life, who was John Wilkes Booth, the racist actor bent on Lincoln’s destruction? Join Dominic and Tom as they launch into the final days of one of America’s greatest presidents; Abraham Lincoln. Who would be his assassin, and where would he meet this tragic reckoning? The Rest Is History Club: Become a member for exclusive bonus content, early access to full series and live show tickets, ad-free listening, our exclusive newsletter, discount book prices on titles mentioned on the pod, and our members’ chatroom on Discord. Just head to therestishistory.com to sign up, or start a free trial today on Apple Podcasts: apple.co/therestishistory. For more Goalhanger Podcasts, head to www.goalhanger.com _______ Twitter: @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Producer: Theo Young-Smith Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett + Aaliyah Akude  Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    1h 2m
  8. The Blood-Drinking Bride of Christ

    02/08/2023

    The Blood-Drinking Bride of Christ

    A woman of immense influence on medieval Christendom, Catherine of Siena was one of the first female Doctors of the Church, who married Christ in her own bedroom. Living through a time of great anxiety due to the onset of the Black Death, she healed the sick, convinced the Pope to return from exile in France, appeased riotous crowds, and even brought her own mother back from the dead. Join Tom and Dominic as they discuss Catherine of Siena, her life, her impact on the Middle Ages, and her relationship with Christ.  *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Producer: Theo Young-Smith Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    52 min