History on Fire

Daniele Bolelli

4.7 (5.5K)
SOCIETY & CULTURE

Where history and epic collide--"History on Fire" is a podcast by author and university professor Daniele Bolelli.

MAR 17

Poets and Pirates, Sex and Drugs, Love and Music: D’Annunzio and L’Impresa di Fiume (Part 1)

“We heard that D’Annunzio was coming, and Italy and freedom were coming with him.” Anonymous Italian citizen of Fiume “The road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom.” William Blake “Legionaries adore him. The men from the palace fear him. Little kids think he’s the devil.” Leon Kochnitzky about Guido Keller This is the tale of one of the weirdest cultural-political experiments in modern history. The brutal end of WWI left many Italian soldiers dissatisfied, since the Allies refuse to grant them lands they had conquered at the price of rivers of blood. Feeling cheated by their own government and the Allies, some of these soldiers turned to the most popular man in the entire country: Gabriele D’Annunzio. Saying that he was a famous writer and a veteran of WWI doesn’t capture the magnetic power the man possessed. He was a true rock star before rock stars were a thing. He stopped traffic wherever he went. He made army units desert without using any weapon but his voice. Countless women risked their marriages, families and careers for a chance to have a fling with him. Casanova was an amateur compared to D’Annunzio. In 1919, D’Annunzio agreed to lead renegade units of the Italian Army to taking over the border city of Fiume. Despite the fact that this infuriated the Italian, French, British and American governments, D’Annunzio would go on to rule for fifteen months over an outlaw state where things that were not looked kindly upon in the world of 1919 (from drug use to free love, from the right to vote for women to nudism, from homosexuality to piracy) were widely practiced. Part One of this two-part series tackles the Italian experience in WWI, D’Annunzio’s literary and military career, the raid to occupy Fiume, the Futurist movement, the wild culture that sweeps through town, a pre-1960s sexual revolution, Guido Keller (the craziest man in town), and much more. This series is dedicated to Franco Bolelli If you feel generous and enjoy History on Fire, please consider joining my Patreon to access plenty of bonus content. All the links to History on Fire social media can be found at our LinkTree, including the HOF YouTube Channel, Substack, Instagram, TikTok. This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at https://www.betterhelp.com/hof Throughout history, people have used mushrooms (such as Lion’s Mane, Turkey Tail, Cordyceps, Reishi and Chaga) for their medicinal properties. My friends started Purest Mushrooms where they offer some of the best quality mushrooms you can find on the market at affordable prices. Use code historyonfire at checkout for a discount. Bison is some of the healthiest meat you could possibly eat. Get yours at Dakota Pure Bison. History on Fire listeners get a discount by using the code HOF10 at checkout. This episode is supported by Arizona State University. Learn more about how ASU supports all learners through all stages of life. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1h 38m
FEB 17

EPISODE 110: A Tale of Two Saints, St. Francis and Drukpa Kunley

“What are servants of God good for, if not for moving the hearts of men and elevating them to spiritual joy?” St. Francis “I’ve come to help you all. Where can I find the best beer and the most beautiful women?” Drukpa Kunley “I tried going to hell, but the path there was so packed with hypocritical priests that I had to turn back.” Drukpa Kunley For once, here’s an episode about individuals who didn’t build their reputation by killing. Considering much of recorded history is the history of warfare and politics, of glorified violent gangsters hiding behind lofty titles of nobility, this doesn’t happen too often, so I hope you enjoy the change. Today, I’ll tell you the tales of two men, St. Francis of Assisi and the ‘divine madman’ Drukpa Kunley: one lived in the 1200s in Italy, and the other in the 1400s in the area between modern-day Tibet and Bhutan. Even though they were very different from one another, both had an uneasy relationship with the established religious authorities of the day. Both ended up being considered saints in their respective traditions (respectively, Christian and Buddhist). Both were regarded as highly eccentric. St. Francis was the son of a wealthy merchant, but he turned his back on his birth family, gave away all earthly possessions and embraced a life of voluntary poverty serving lepers and the rejects of society (something for which he would later be heavily criticized by Martin Luther). Besides starting a new religious order, being named patron saint of ecology and becoming the author of the first piece of literature written in modern Italian, St. Francis had the guts to go preach among Muslims smack in the middle of the Crusades. Drukpa Kunley was a wild, wild man. It’s more or less impossible to separate history and folklore when it comes to his life. What emerges from the sources is a sort of trickster whose brand of enlightenment came with a heavy dose of laughter, strong sex positivity, and a general hostility to the religious establishment. A master of freestyle battle rap before rap even existed, Kunley was a wandering teacher known for his escapades with the ladies and for defeating demons by swinging his ‘flaming thunderbolt of wisdom’. As different as these two men were, both remind me of the heyokas of Lakota tradition, heroes of a kind of crazy wisdom at war with dogmatic thinking. If you feel generous and enjoy History on Fire, please consider joining my Patreon to access plenty of bonus content. All the links to History on Fire social media can be found at our LinkTree, including the HOF YouTube Channel, Substack, Instagram, and TikTok. This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at https://www.betterhelp.com/hof Throughout history, people have used mushrooms (such as Lion’s Mane, Turkey Tail, Cordyceps, Reishi and Chaga) for their medicinal properties. My friends started Purest Mushrooms where they offer some of the best quality mushrooms you can find on the market at affordable prices. Use code historyonfire at checkout for a discount. Bison is some of the healthiest meat you could possibly eat. Get yours at Dakota Pure Bison. History on Fire listeners get a discount by using the code HOF10 at checkout. This episode is supported by Arizona State University. Learn more about how ASU supports all learners through all stages of life at https://www.asu.edu/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1h 45m
FEB 3

[RERUN] EPISODE 74: The Life of Marcus Aurelius (Part 2): Stoicism, Pandemic and War

“No matter how big a guy might be, Nicky would take him on. You beat Nicky with fists, he comes back with a bat. You beat him with a knife, he comes back with a gun. And you beat him with a gun, you better kill him, because he'll keep comin' back and back until one of you is dead.” From the film Casino “The condition of the people was pitiable to behold. They sickened by the thousands daily and died unattended and without help. Many died in the open street, others dying in their houses, made it known by the stench of their rotting bodies.” Giovanni Boccaccio “If anyone can refute me—show me I’m making a mistake or looking at things from the wrong perspective—I’ll gladly change. It’s the truth I’m after, and the truth never harmed anyone. What harms us is to persist in self-deceit and ignorance.” Marcus Aurelius “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” Viktor Frankl “Severe to himself, indulgent to the imperfection of others, just and beneficent to all mankind.” Edward Gibbon Marcus Aurelius would have loved nothing better than studying philosophy for the rest of his days. Instead, destiny chose him to be the head of the Roman Empire. As a philosopher- emperor, Marcus turned to Stoicism to help him deal with more drama than any human being should have to deal with. Most of his children died before reaching adult age. Rome’s old rival, Parthia, engaged the empire in a brutal war for supremacy. Germanic tribes raided the frontier and invaded Italy. Marcus’ adoptive brother and co-emperor died early, leaving to Marcus the burden to lead the empire under dreadful circumstances. And then there was the pandemic… a terrifying plague that would kill large chunks of the population, cripple the economy, disrupt travel, and create a very well justified climate of fear. Marcus’ ability to navigate all this and more thanks to his philosophical practices enshrined his name among those of the best emperors Rome ever had. In this final episode of this series about him: the first time Rome is ruled by two emperors at the same time, the party animal that was Lucius Verus, persecuting Christians, war with Parthia, a con man with his glove puppet, the movie Casino, Robert Greene’s book The 48 Laws of Power, Romans reaching China, a deadly pandemic, snake gods & Tulsa Doom, great ideas and not-so-great ideas in The Meditations, the Hagakure, Viktor Frankl, Deepak Chopra vs. Joe Rogan, the Dread Pirate Roberts, Germanic invasions, rebellions, marrying your adoptive uncle who was once engaged to your mom, the strange case of Commodus, and much more. If you feel generous and enjoy History on Fire, please consider joining my Patreon to access plenty of bonus content. All the links to History on Fire social media can be found at our LinkTree Including the HOF YouTube Channel, Substack, Instagram, and TikTok. Throughout history, people have used mushrooms (such as Lion’s Mane, Turkey Tail, Cordyceps, Reishi and Chaga) for their medicinal properties. My friends started Purest Mushrooms where they offer some of the best quality mushrooms you can find on the market at affordable prices. Use code historyonfire at checkout for a discount. Bison is some of the healthiest meat you could possibly eat. Get yours at Dakota Pure Bison. History on Fire listeners get a discount by using the code HOF10 at checkout. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

2h 37m
JAN 20

[RERUN] EPISODE 73: The Life of Marcus Aurelius (Part 1): Stoicism, Pandemic and War

“Rise up and do battle.” Homer “Discipline is freedom, and the companion to imagination. Discipline makes it possible for you to become whatever you want to be.” Deng Ming Dao Marcus Aurelius would have loved nothing better than studying philosophy for the rest of his days. Instead, destiny chose him to be the head of the Roman Empire. As a philosopher-emperor, Marcus turned to Stoicism to help him deal with more drama than any human being should have to deal with. Most of his children died before reaching adult age. Rome’s old rival, Parthia, engaged the empire in a brutal war for supremacy. Germanic tribes raided the frontier and invaded Italy. Marcus’ adoptive brother and co-emperor died early, leaving to Marcus the burden to lead the empire under dreadful circumstances. And then there was the pandemic… a terrifying plague that would kill large chunks of the population, cripple the economy, disrupt travel, and create a very well justified climate of fear. Marcus’ ability to navigate all this and more thanks to his philosophical practices enshrined his name among those of the best emperors Rome ever had. In this first episode, we cover: Lost, Marcus’ pep-talks, the power of rituals, the genesis of the empire, Marcus Aurelius’ early life, the impact of Greek culture in Rome, Emperor Hadrian’s murderous ways, Stoicism, Antoninus’ reign, and much more. If you feel generous and enjoy History on Fire, please consider joining my Patreon to access plenty of bonus content. All the links to History on Fire social media can be found at our LinkTree, including the HOF YouTube Channel, Substack, Instagram, and TikTok. This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at https://www.betterhelp.com/hof Throughout history, people have used mushrooms (such as Lion’s Mane, Turkey Tail, Cordyceps, Reishi and Chaga) for their medicinal properties. My friends started Purest Mushrooms where they offer some of the best quality mushrooms you can find on the market at affordable prices. Use code historyonfire at checkout for a discount. Bison is some of the healthiest meat you could possibly eat. Get yours at Dakota Pure Bison. History on Fire listeners get a discount by using the code HOF10 at checkout. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1h 40m
12/16/2024

EPISODE 109: The Mesoamerican Godfather

“Keep your friends close and your enemies closer” Mario Puzo “Grant me revenge!” from Conan the Barbarian, 1982 “I am immortal” Nezahualcoyotl I originally created this episode years ago, as I was researching the Spaniards’ invasion of the Mexica (aka Aztec) empire, when I run into this little nugget of a story, which predates the arrival of the Spaniards. This is the first time this episode gets to be released to the public outside of any paywalls. This is basically a real historical version of what would happen if we were to mix the plot of The Godfather with the plot of The Lion King in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica. Our key characters include Tezozomoc, a ruthless, Machiavellian genius power-player who ruled over much of the Central Valley of Mexico, and his nemesis Nezahualcoyotl, the poet-king of Texcoco. This episode features political intrigue, Mafia-style hits, the surprise of seeing a beheaded enemy show up with a head on his shoulders, human sacrifice, an unyielding quest for revenge, and a glimpse at the early days of the Aztecs. With characters named Angry Stone Face and Hungry Coyote, you know this has to be a good story… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

2h 4m
11/18/2024

EPISODE 108: Tattooed Headhunters of the Steppes

"Barbarism is the natural state of mankind… Civilization is unnatural. It is a whim of circumstance. And barbarism must always ultimately triumph." Robert E Howard “Becoming a barbarian was often a bid to improve one’s lot.” James C Scott “We are riders; our business is with the bow and the spear, and we know nothing of women’s work. But in your country no woman has anything to do with such things—your women stay at home in their wagons occupied with feminine tasks, and never go out to hunt or for any other purpose” A speech by an Amazon quoted by Herodotus “Persian, such is my nature: I have never run away for fear of any man, nor am I fleeing now from you. I am wandering, as I always wander in time of peace. You ask why I did not fight you at once. May I remind you that we have neither cities nor cultivated land of our own; since we are not afraid of our territory being ruined and plundered, we had no reason to fight you outright… Not will we, until we see fit. Instead of earth and water, I will send you other gifts, of the kind you deserve; and you will weep bitter tears for having claimed to be my ruler.” Idanthyrsus Typically, I prefer when the episodes I create have a clearly identifiable main character. This particular one doesn’t have a lead character. But what it does have instead is people drinking from the skulls of their enemies, and tattoos, and sweat lodges, and cannabis consumption, and blood brotherhood rituals, and getting drunk on fermented mare milk. In case, that’s not enough, it also has Amazons and Wonder Woman’s golden lasso, centaurs and King Arthur, and a whole lot more. So, I hope you shall forgive the lack of a lead character. Today, we won’t focus on a particular individual but on a culture, specifically some of the steppe nomadic cultures from roughly about 2,500 years ago among people like the Scythians and the Sarmatians. If you feel generous and enjoy History on Fire, please consider joining my Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/historyonfire to access plenty of bonus content. All the links to History on Fire social media can be found at https://linktr.ee/danielebolelli Including the HOF YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFCiqHbWJO26nFzUP-Eu55Q Substack: https://substack.com/@danielebolelli Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/historyonfire/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@historyonfirepodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1h 57m
03/26/2021

EPISODE 71: John Brown (Part 2): A Reckoning in Blood

“I think he [God] has used me as an instrument to kill men; and if I live, I think he will use me as an instrument to kill a good many more.” John Brown “I had reached the point at which I was not afraid to die. This spirit made me a freeman in fact, while I remained a slave in form.” Frederick Douglass “I have only a short time to live, only death to die and I will die fighting for this cause. There will be no peace in this land until slavery is done for.” John Brown “We will continue to tar and feather, drown, lynch, and hang every white-livered abolitionist who dares to pollute our soil.” Dr. John H Stringfellow “Caution!? Caution!?—he exploded—I am eternally tired of hearing that word Caution! It is nothing but the word of cowardice!” John Brown “To know and not to act is not to know.” Wang Yangming “Behind them lay five twisted, red and mangled corpses. Behind them rose the stifled wailing of widows and little children… but before them rode a man, tall, dark, grim-faced and awful. His hands were red and his name was John Brown. Such was the cost of freedom.” DuBois The subject of this series is easily one of the most divisive individuals in U.S. history. The man we are talking about is Mr. John Brown. Many, in fact, see Brown’s actions as the spark that ignited the Civil War. He has been described as a civil rights hero, a terrorist, and everything in between. Some have argued he was clinically insane. Others believe he was the most principled man of his age. Regardless of how we interpret his story, certain facts are beyond dispute. Throughout his life, slavery was the law of the land in much of the United States. With hardly any abolitionist willing to do more than use words against slavery, while pro-slavery forces demonstrated they were quite skilled at using violence to further their worldview, it seemed inevitable that slavery would last for the foreseeable future. To John Brown, that was an unacceptable option. Allowing it to continue for one more second was cowardly and evil. If pacifist means weren’t enough to bring about the end of slavery, then John Brown was more than ready to speak the language of violence. For the sake of destroying slavery, he would shed the blood of his enemies, the blood of his family, and his own blood. In this second episode of a three-part series, we see John Brown meeting Frederick Douglass & visiting Europe, the passing of the Fugitive Slave Law, the experiment at North Elba, Bleeding Kansas, the pathetic story of the Border Ruffians, revising the notion of abolitionist pacifism, blood on the floor of the Senate, the Pottawatomie massacre, guerrilla in Kansas, and much more. If you feel generous and enjoy History on Fire, please consider joining my Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/historyonfire to access plenty of bonus content. All the links to History on Fire social media can be found at https://linktr.ee/danielebolelli Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

2h 4m
03/26/2021

EPISODE 70: John Brown (Part 1): Heartbreak & Slavery

“You know what John Brown did? He went to war. He was a white man who went to war against white people to help free slaves. White people call John Brown a nut. Go read the history, go read what all of them say about John Brown. They’re trying to make it look like he was a nut, a fanatic… But they depict him in this image because he was willing to shed blood to free the slaves. And any white man who is ready and willing to shed blood for your freedom… So when you want to know good white folks in history where black people are concerned, go read the history of John Brown.” Malcolm X “When a man strikes his male or female slave with a rod so hard the slave dies under his hand, he shall be punished. If, however, the slave survives for a day or two, he is not to be punished, since the slave is his own property.” Exodus 21:20–21 “Here, before God, in the presence of these witnesses, from this time, I consecrate my life to the destruction of slavery!” John Brown The subject of this series is easily one of the most divisive individuals in U.S. history. The man we are talking about is Mr. John Brown. Many, in fact, see Brown’s actions as the spark that ignited the Civil War. He has been described as a civil rights hero, a terrorist, and everything in between. Some have argued he was clinically insane. Others believe he was the most principled man of his age. Regardless of how we interpret his story, certain facts are beyond dispute. Throughout his life, slavery was the law of the land in much of the United States. With hardly any abolitionist willing to do more than use words against slavery, while pro-slavery forces demonstrated they were quite skilled at using violence to further their worldview, it seemed inevitable that slavery would last for the foreseeable future. To John Brown, that was an unacceptable option. Allowing it to continue for one more second was cowardly and evil. If pacifist means weren’t enough to bring about the end of slavery, then John Brown was more than ready to speak the language of violence. For the sake of destroying slavery, he would shed the blood of his enemies, the blood of his family, and his own blood. In this first episode of a three-part series, we’ll introduce the early part of John Brown’s life and his crusade against slavery. Among today’s topics, we’ll have the ethics of punching a Nazi, how the beating of an enslaved child set Brown on his path, how both pro and anti-slavery forces used Christianity to justify their stances, racism masquerading as philanthropy, the Nat Turner rebellion, grief & PTSD, the Underground Railroad, the murder of Elijah Lovejoy, and much more. If you feel generous and enjoy History on Fire, please consider joining my Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/historyonfire to access plenty of bonus content. All the links to History on Fire social media can be found at https://linktr.ee/danielebolelli Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1h 26m

See All (119)

Daniele Bolelli

Host

4.7

out of 5

5,506 Ratings

Awesome deep-dives

Feb 4

Wtfsteve

Difficult subjects treated with care and well-times asides.
Great show, offensive ad

Mar 17

DragonShrimp5

Listened to the latest episode and it began with an extremely offensive and distasteful ad for H&R Block. In it a woman states, “I needed it when I dated that mistake 5 months ago.” Modern media portrays men as lovable at best, but fools. The typical sitcom dad, to incompetents that make the female lead look more endearing. At a time when men are unaliving themselves at an increasingly exponential rate with 10k a year, and an education gap where men are 8x less likely to get a degree than women, it is no longer acceptable to use men as an open punching bag. This show is great, and I love it. Hoping the ad is removed and I can update to a 5 star review.
Historical Storytelling At Its Finest

Jan 19

Ratfink82

I recently found this podcast searching for information on Crazy Horse. This might be the best podcast channel I’ve ever heard, I think k I have now listened to every episode Daniele has put out! Phenomenal show !
John Brown

11/29/2024

DaPing 1

One of the most informative dives into a subject that i have experienced. From what I sense you are not glorifying John Brown, rather you are providing needed context. Reminds me of Gavrilo Princip. Excellent review! Thanks Scott
Capisce?

11/13/2024

devil zilla

Whoa Professore! Love you and this pod but let’s please not list the Iraq war as an example of a “hit them first before they can hit you” strategy since they had NOTHING TO HIT US WITH IN THE FIRST PLACE. There were no WMDs and Dickbush knew it, (Cheney’s office planted the story in the NYT claiming evidence Saddam had them.) If you were merely referring to the lie as it was told and sold to us, that is not clear in the way you said it. Otherwise, superb work, thanks for all you do.
Grandma!

05/22/2024

Allbeagle

This is the best episode of one of the greatest podcasts!! Thank you for sharing this personal story.
Unfollowed

09/10/2024

Texn 334

The glorification of John Brown and his bloody path of killing from Kansas to Virginia was the last straw for me and this show. I’ll enjoy my history from other sources that don’t justify these actions.
Outstanding!

04/27/2024

Rmac757

The best history podcast out!
I think I know a subject well and Daniele Me so much more about it

04/19/2024

DrTal

Every two or three months I get a wonderful present from History on Fire. Sometimes he will do a deep dive, like the story of Diogenes. Other times he will do Min episodes like the 20+ hours the plains indigenous people. his a martial artist, and you have to hear what he has to say about Bruce Lee and how learning martial arts helped the women fighting for women’s rights in England. The breadth of his topics is amazing.
Top tier history podcasting

03/29/2024

sammy sour

Daniele is an excellent history podcaster. He is the best history podcaster on Native American history and he’s a great story teller. Elite on every level. Can’t miss pods on the Taiping, Spanish conquest of Mexico and American conquest of the North American west. I Can’t recommend him enough.