Historiansplaining: A historian tells you why everything you know is wrong

Samuel Biagetti, PhD
  • 4.7 (138)
  • History
  • Updated Monthly

So much of what we learn in a standard history class, and in the culture around us, are just cliff-note narratives, crafted to explain how things appear, rather than how things actually came to be. Peel back the layers of time and place with this thoroughly researched, college-level history podcast with over 200 episodes that uncover the forgotten forces that shaped – and that are still shaping – our world today. There are no commercials in this long-form podcast. More information can be found at Historiansplaining.com, where you can hear Quick Samples of every episode, easily find related episodes based on topic, discover episodes by geographic location on a map of the world or on a timeline of world history, and much more. There’s so much to explore with Samuel Biagetti, PhD, in these conversational lectures and interviews, each one presenting hidden landscapes from the past that put the moments and movements of today’s world in a tangible, thought-provoking light. Press play for the joy of a great college-level course in history, without any of the homework! Unlock the most content by becoming a supporter through Patreon. You choose the amount you want to contribute, and your support helps keep the podcast commercial free! Visit patreon.com/user?u=5530632 Support through Patreon from listeners like you is the only source of ongoing funding for this podcast.

  1. Excerpt: Myth of the Month 26: The Industrial Revolution -- pt. 2: Spinning the National Yarn

    May 26

    Excerpt: Myth of the Month 26: The Industrial Revolution -- pt. 2: Spinning the National Yarn

    For patrons only for 1 year: We trace how the notion of the “industrial revolution” – originally a foreign, Continental idea rooted in German dialectical history – entered into British political discourse and then into sacred national mythology, enshrined by the tourism industry and by Thatcherite politics. Then we examine the evolving debate over whether the alleged revolution was a good or a bad thing—or whether such an event happened at all, considering its narrow limitations in time, space, and scope. Finally, we weigh carefully the arguments that have been advanced in defense of the traditional myth, including the explosive growth of British cities, the wide divergence between Europe and the rest of the world, and the appearance of so-called “proto-industrialization” in the organization of labor before the rise of machines. Please sign up as a patron to hear the entire lecture, and all patron-only lectures: https://www.patreon.com/posts/myth-of-month-26-159215235 Alternatively, non-patrons can purchase the entire “Myths of the Month” playlist for one flat fee: https://www.patreon.com/collection/2031535?view=condensed Image: Museum of Sciene and Industry, Manchester, England, UK Suggested further reading: Books: Kenneth Pomeranz, “The Great Divergence”; D.C. Coleman, “Myth, History, and the Industrial Revolution”; Eric Hobsbawm, “Industry and Empire: An Economic History of Britain Since 1750” Articles: Fores, “The Myth of a British Industrial Revolution,” History, 1981; Cameron, “A New View of European Industrialization,” The Economic History Review, Feb. 1985; Quataert, “A New View of Industrialization,” International Labor and Working-Class History, Spring 1988; Razzell, “The Growth of Population in Eighteenth-Century England: A Critical Reappraisal,” Journal of Economic History, Dec. 1993; Davenport, “Mortality, migration and epidemiological change in English cities, 1600-1870,” International Journal of Paleopathology, June 2021

    13 min
  2. Myth of the Month 26: The Industrial Revolution -- pt. 1: Conceiving a Catastrophe

    May 14

    Myth of the Month 26: The Industrial Revolution -- pt. 1: Conceiving a Catastrophe

    Dictionaries, textbooks, and encyclopedias routinely write in grave and solemn tones about the “industrial revolution” that reportedly “transformed” society, first in Britain and then in the rest of the globe, giving painful birth to the modern world. Everything from mystical poems to demographic statistics have been martialed to support the idea of a catastrophic upheaval which disrupted what had been the agrarian, medieval life of the countryside. However, nobody can quite agree on exactly when this revolution took place, and the people supposedly living in the midst of it, in Britain in the 1700s and early 1800s, never noticed that it was happening. In this first lecture, we trace the origins of the concept of the “industrial revolution” in political debates in Restoration-era France and in the philosophical ferment of the German radical press—all before the concept finally made its way back into the country where the great upheaval allegedly took place. Please sign up as a patron to hear the next lecture, part 2 on the Industrial Revolution, "Spinning the National Yarn," and all patron-only lectures: https://www.patreon.com/posts/myth-of-month-26-159215235 Alternatively, non-patrons can purchase the entire “Myths of the Month” playlist for one flat fee: https://www.patreon.com/collection/2031535?view=condensed Image: Print of Albion Mills on fire, by Sheppard, London, 1791 Suggested Further Reading: D.C. Coleman, “Myth, History, and the Industrial Revolution”; Anna Bezanson, “The Early Use of the Term Industrial Revolution,” The Quarterly Journal of Economics, vol. 36, no. 2; Rondo Cameron, “A New View of European Industrialization”, The Economic History Review, vol. 38, no. 1; Eric Hobsbawm, “Industry and Empire: An Economic History of Britain Since 1750”

    1h 36m
  3. Virginia, pt. 2 -- A Dominion on Fire, 1646-1685

    Apr 28

    Virginia, pt. 2 -- A Dominion on Fire, 1646-1685

    We consider Virginia’s tumultuous rise to wealth and prominence as the so-called “Old Dominion” and one of the largest European settler colonies in the world –from the colony’s dangerous stand in the English Civil War, through the subsequent demographic boom, and the codification of chattel slavery – as all the while, social tensions escalated, with the growing underclass of smallholders and landless laborers chafing against gentry rule. We disentangle how a trade dispute between planters and the Doeg Indian tribe on the Potomac River touched off a massive rebellion that overthrew the royal governor, laid waste to Jamestown and many of the great plantations, and threatened to destroy the English colonial enterprise, before order was restored, and the colony was set a new path towards becoming a slave society. Please become a patron to hear all patron-only lectures, including “Virginia, pt. 1,” on Jamestown and the creation of the colony: www.patreon.com/c/u5530632 Suggested further reading: Morgan, “American Slavery, American Freedom: The Ordeal of Colonial Virginia”; Wertenaber, “The Planters of Colonial Virginia”; Kupperman, “The Jamestown Project”; Billings, Selby, & Tate, “Colonial Virginia: A History” Image: Depiction of Nathaniel Bacon & the burning of Jamestown, from Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation

    1h 47m
  4. Excerpt: Virginia, pt. 1 -- The Successful Failure, 1607-1646

    Apr 17

    Excerpt: Virginia, pt. 1 -- The Successful Failure, 1607-1646

    Virginia began from a small, undersupplied wooden fort immersed in a brackish and malarial marsh to become, after 30 years, the largest and most valuable colony in North America, pulling in thousands of indentured workers and African slaves each year and pumping out millions of pounds of tobacco. In achieving this shocking metamorphosis, the colonists had to contend with the Powhatan Confederacy, one of the strongest indigenous states in the Americas, which ruled the Tidewater region; and they had to to choose among different forking paths that might have led to an entirely different relationship between Indians and English. We consider the unrealized possible histories that iconic figures like John Smith and Pocahontas came to symbllize, and the reasons why the English backers poured so many resources and human lives into this endeavor of conquest and colonization, ultimately supplanting Powhatan civilization and creating a cash-crop colony. Please become a patron to hear all patron-only lectures: www.patreon.com/c/u5530632 Suggested further reading: Morgan, “American Slavery, American Freedom: The Ordeal of Colonial Virginia”; Wertenaber, “The Planters of Colonial Virginia”; Kupperman, “The Jamestown Project”; Billings, Selby, & Tate, “Colonial Virginia: A History” Image: Portrait of Matoaka / Pocahontas / Rebecca Rolfe, by WL Sheppard, 1891, based on an unknown original allegedly from life, 1616

    11 min
  5. Unlocked: History of United States in 100 Objects -- Beaver Fur Hat, 1590-1670

    Apr 11

    Unlocked: History of United States in 100 Objects -- Beaver Fur Hat, 1590-1670

    Unlocked after 1 year for patrons only: A tall “stovepipe” hat, which was made in the 1600s out of felt from beaver fur and likely belonged to a powerful member of the English Parl A tall “stovepipe” hat, which was made in the 1600s out of felt from beaver fur and likely belonged to a powerful member of the English Parliament, illustrates the extraordinary value of finely made hats, which fueled centuries of colonization, exploration, diplomatic feuding, and warfare all across North America, as European empires and Native American nations competed fiercely for control of the lucrative fur trade. Costume history blog post on beaver hats, with comtemporary artworks, by Gail Kellogg Hope: https://artbeautyandwell-orderedchaos.blogspot.com/2011/04/beaver-hats.html Dissertation by Elizabeth McFadden, on “Fur Dress, Art, and Class Identity in Sixteenth- and Seventeenth-Century England and Holland,” at: https://escholarship.org/content/qt79w6n34n/qt79w6n34n.pdf?t=q6z2rg Alice Morse Earle’s “Two Centuries of Costume in America,” vol. 1, 1620-1820: https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/10115/pg10115.txt Weiss Gallery page with portrait of Sir Rowland Cotton (1581-1634) holding a felt hat: https://www.weissgallery.com/artworks/categories/2/9411-paul-van-somer-c.1577-1622-sir-rowland-cotton-1581-1634-of-alkington-painted-1618/

    51 min
  6. The Elizabethan Dream: How England Became a Sea Power

    Mar 20

    The Elizabethan Dream: How England Became a Sea Power

    We follow the adventures and the atrocities of the English “sea dogs,” from raiding ports in West Africa and Spanish mule trains in Central America to scrounging for gold in the Canadian tundra, as the Tudor regime exploited England’s expertise in sailing and navigation to undermine the Spanish empire and try to turn the Atlantic into a massive free-trade zone. We uncover why Elizabethan England never created lasing colonies of their own, until the accession of the first Stuart king in 1603 led to a profound shift in policy, paving the way for the first English colonies beyond Ireland and the extension of the “British empire” to America. Patrons: comment on this post to let us know which country or state you are in: https://www.patreon.com/posts/tell-me-where-153392904 Please become a patron to hear all patron-only lectures: https://www.patreon.com/c/u5530632 My previous lecture on England in the Tudor Age: https://soundcloud.com/historiansplaining/age-of-absolutism-2-tudor-england-1485-1603 My interview with historian Melissa Morris on the early European colonies in Guiana, South America: https://soundcloud.com/historiansplaining/before-jamestown-when-england-colonized-the-amazon-a-conversation-with-melissa-morris Image: the “Armada Portrait” of Queen Elizbeth I, version probably commissioned by Francis Drake; notice English & Spanish ships seen over queen's shoulders, & queen’s hand resting on North America on the globe, representing her purported claim to that land Suggested further reading: Armitage, “Ideological Origins of the British Empire”; Kupperman, “The Jamestown Project”

    2h 7m
  7. Acadia: First Foothold in the North

    Feb 27

    Acadia: First Foothold in the North

    We follow the tortuous beginnings of Acadia, the first northern European colony in America -- a string of remote fishing and fur trading outposts, Catholic missions, and French farming villages, which had to withstand a harsh, remote environment, religious and political feuding, a near civil war, and frequent privateer attacks, in order to persist through the seventeenth century and finally begin to develop a distinctive Acadian provincial society which would later survive global war and ethnic cleansing. Please become a patron to hear patron-only lectures -- www.patreon.com/user?u=5530632 My previous lecture on Bourbon France in the same period: https://www.patreon.com/posts/age-of-3-bourbon-44146424 Suggested further reading: N. Griffiths, “The Contexts of Acadian History” & “From Migrant to Acadian: A North American Border People”; Arseneault, “History of the Acadians” Image: Depiction of Belle-Isle area just outside of Port Royal from French census of 1686 Music: “Danse des Sauvages,” from “Les Indes Galantes” by Rameau, performed by Les Arts Florissants

    1h 34m
  8. History of the United States in 100 Objects -- 25: "Wilkes And Liberty" Cufflink Jewel, 1760s

    Feb 13

    History of the United States in 100 Objects -- 25: "Wilkes And Liberty" Cufflink Jewel, 1760s

    The riots, protests, and boycotts that broke out in North America in the wake of the Stamp Act were only one part of the mass crisis that beset Great Britain in the 1760s, as the discontented poor and middle classes rallied behind the ideals of liberty and freedom of speech, and around “radical Whig” politicians who challenged the power of the Crown and the London oligarchy – none more so than the infamous provocateur, satirist, and “rake,” John Wilkes, who ignited popular passions in London and the colonies and nearly burned down the ruling Whig establishment. We examine a key specimen of a tiny glass cufflink jewel inscribed with the incendiary slogan, “Wilkes and Liberty,” which was rececntly discovered in an abandoned town in North Carolina, and which has touched off a wave of similar discoveries, revealing the importance of small, almost unnoticeable objects in the spread of discontent and radical rhetoric across the Atlantic in the years before the American Revolution. Special thank you to: Charles Ewen, East Carolina University; Jim McKee, Brunswick Town / Fort Anderson State Historic Site; Addison Siemon Please sign on as a patron, including to hear the previous installment of "History of the United States in 100 Objects" -- https://www.patreon.com/c/u5530632 For non-patrons, to hear all installments in this series on the history of the United States in 100 objects, you can purchase access through a single small payment: https://www.patreon.com/collection/2070759?view=condensed My lecture on the Interregnum & Restoration, including the origins of the Whig party: https://www.patreon.com/posts/england-and-1650-42722389 My lecture on the Glorious Revolution and the beginning of the Whig ascendancy: https://www.patreon.com/posts/james-ii-and-88-73953596

    1h 29m
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4.7
out of 5
138 Ratings

About

So much of what we learn in a standard history class, and in the culture around us, are just cliff-note narratives, crafted to explain how things appear, rather than how things actually came to be. Peel back the layers of time and place with this thoroughly researched, college-level history podcast with over 200 episodes that uncover the forgotten forces that shaped – and that are still shaping – our world today. There are no commercials in this long-form podcast. More information can be found at Historiansplaining.com, where you can hear Quick Samples of every episode, easily find related episodes based on topic, discover episodes by geographic location on a map of the world or on a timeline of world history, and much more. There’s so much to explore with Samuel Biagetti, PhD, in these conversational lectures and interviews, each one presenting hidden landscapes from the past that put the moments and movements of today’s world in a tangible, thought-provoking light. Press play for the joy of a great college-level course in history, without any of the homework! Unlock the most content by becoming a supporter through Patreon. You choose the amount you want to contribute, and your support helps keep the podcast commercial free! Visit patreon.com/user?u=5530632 Support through Patreon from listeners like you is the only source of ongoing funding for this podcast.

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