Uncle Andrew Teaches History

Andrew C Grillet
  • 0.0 (0)
  • HISTORY
Uncle Andrew Teaches History Podcast

When my friend's daughter said "Uncle Andrew - what was it like when dinosaurs roamed the earth?" I realised I was old, and in a good position to tell my version of history to a wider audience! Most conventional histories focus on "facts" - which may or may not be true, and may or may not be relevant today. My focus is on explaining what life was like and how it changed how we live today. To me, all of history influenced life today, sometimes a little, and sometimes a lot.

Episodes

  1. 02/05/2023

    Britain - The Tenth Century

    First a recap of the story so far. Then - Britain at the end of the dark ages.

    7 min

  2. 01/05/2023

    Britain - The Ninth Century

    The Ninth Century sees the beginning of the end of the dark ages.

    5 min

  3. 03/04/2023

    Britain, The Eighth Century

    The Eighth century saw England becoming unified, and a new social structure leading to the beginnings of capitalism.

    6 min

  4. 30/03/2023

    Britain, The Seventh Century

    The dark ages continues - But the foundations of our legal system and land ownership are established too.

    6 min

  5. 30/03/2023

    Britain, The Sixth Century

    This is the sixth century - The dark ages continue ...

    7 min
  6. A brief History of Time

    06/09/2022

    A brief History of Time

    (Almost) everything you wanted to know about the history of counting, measuring time and computing. (Not by Stephen Hawking, and no Quantum physics)

    24 min

  7. 22/09/2021

    Britain - the Fifth Century

    About 500 years after invading Britain, bringing brick built houses, roads, and tasty food, the Romans leave, and Britain is invaded by Anglo-Saxons instead. They bring decay and violence.

    12 min

  8. 18/08/2021

    Britain, The Fourth Century

    The fourth century, with a description of village life

    9 min

  9. 18/08/2021

    Britain, the Third Century

    In which Britain gets to rule quite a lot of the world! (Updated)

    9 min

  10. 22/01/2021

    Britain, the second century

    The Romans brought a lot of changes, most of it progress, and The Second Century saw a dramatic change in lifestyle for a lot of the British population, though not all. Many of the divides between north, south, east and west that we are aware of today became visible then - 2,000 years ago.

    14 min
  11. Britain, the first century

    16/01/2021

    Britain, the first century

    History depends on written records. Before the Romans came, there were no written records. This episode is about the Romans, and about them coming to Britain.

    12 min

  12. 04/01/2021

    Introduction

    Uncle Andrew Teaches History?  Who, how, where, what and why? I am a grandfather who lives in London. Like most Londoners, none of my great grandparents lived in London. I have traveled all over Britain, and sailed several seas in sailing boats, and been to various continents. This was, in part, written for my grandchildren. History is, by definition, what happened before you were born. That means that no historian, ever, was present when it happened! To have a good idea what really happened, you need to read several peoples' versions and compare them. I did that so you don't need to. (If you believe that, then you might want to get your brain tested - and stay away from Putin and Trump). I have spent a lot of time reading history and watching Youtube videos about historical topics. I don't care who was king, or what battles they fought. I do care what it was like in the past, and how things came to be how they are now. Henry Ford, who is now part of it, famously said "History is bunk". Well, I can tell you that a lot of what is taught as history, is, indeed, bunk. Not all of it. Ford had a major impact on America. Here, I talk about British history. In short, easy to understand, pieces, suitable for listening to while waiting for the next bus, train, or plane. You don't need to listen to them in order if you just want to dip in and out, but it will make more sense if you do. Politicians are fond of producing a version of history that supports their political views. My podcasts will help you judge whether history really does support what they say. If you listen to my podcasts (yes, all of them ;-) then you will discover how Britain today is still influenced by things that happened in the past, even 2,000 years ago. Not just a bit, but a lot. I plan to cover from the year 0 to the year 2,000 (yes, I know I am cheating, because I was alive a long time before the year 2,000, but I expect a lot of my listeners were not, and might like my style of presentation. And anyway, I have probably forgotten at least some of it, and mis-remembered other bits. I will most certainly claim that if anyone sues me!

    4 min
  • 12 Episodes

About

When my friend's daughter said "Uncle Andrew - what was it like when dinosaurs roamed the earth?" I realised I was old, and in a good position to tell my version of history to a wider audience! Most conventional histories focus on "facts" - which may or may not be true, and may or may not be relevant today. My focus is on explaining what life was like and how it changed how we live today. To me, all of history influenced life today, sometimes a little, and sometimes a lot.

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