Western Civ

Ivan goes on campaign against Kazan and the guardrails start coming off.  Website Patreon Support

Ivan IV assumes the throne after a twelve-year regency. It does not take him long to earn his nickname.  Website Western Civ 2.0

Before we jump into Ivan the Terrible (Ivan IV), let's catch up on the Rus. Website Patreon Support

Charles and Buckingham go on an adventure to Spain which ends, spoiler alert, horribly. The Thirty Years War erupts in Germany. But James does not live to see it reach a fever pitch.  Website Western Civ 2.0

James I desperately wanted to marry his son, Charles, to the Spanish Princess. However, when his son-in-law, Frederick of the Palatinate, becomes embroiled in what will become the Thirty Years War, that goal seems more and more distant by the minute. Website Patreon Support

A global history of the world’s best-known and most influential book. For Christians, the Bible is a book inspired by God. Its eternal words are transmitted across the world by fallible human hands. Following Jesus’s departing instruction to go out into the world, the Bible has been a book in motion from its very beginnings, and every community it has encountered has read, heard, and seen the Bibl...

The Stuart dynasty did NOT have a good relationship with the English Parliament. That begins with King James I.  Website Patreon Support

Aesop’s fables are among the most familiar and best-loved stories in the world. Tales like “The Tortoise and the Hare,” “The Dog in the Manger,” and “Sour Grapes” have captivated us for generations. The fables delight us and teach timeless truths. Aesop’s tales offer us a world fundamentally simpler to ours—one with clear good and plain evil—but nonetheless one that is marked by political nuance a...

Guy Fawkes et al decide to blow up King James I and the English Parliament. Spoiler alert: it doesn't work... Website Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial

The end of the reign of Elizabeth I ends the Tudor dynasty. James I becomes the first of the short-lived Stuart line. His reign begins with no shortage of economic headaches. Website Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial

Henry of Navarre spends several years fighting for the crown of France, converts to Catholicism (again), and issues the famous Edict of Nantes.  Website Patreon Support

Few dynasties have had the impact on a modern state more so than the Tudors on England. Yet, the dynasty lasted hardly more than a century.  Elizabeth I, the second born daughter of Henry VIII, who reigned after her younger brother and elder sister, would prove to be the final name on the list. Today we finish her story as the sun sets on Tudor England. Website Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial 

In this bonus episode, you get a sneak peek of the great stuff going on in Western Civ 2.0. You can join for a free trial by clicking HERE . After the Third Punic War, the Romans wasted little time turning on each other. Long-standing economic inequality became the issue of the late second century BCE and would, eventually, bring down the republic. In the late 140s, however, Tiberius Gracchus beli...

England emerges from the defeat of the Spanish Armada, its stock never higher. Yet all around Elizabeth the signs of the end of the Tudor age continue to emerge. Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial Website

We enter this episode with an heir and a spare. We end with neither and the end of France's ruling house since the High Middle Ages.  Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial Website

The "Protestant Wind" fells Philip's Armada, leaving Elizabeth "Eliza Triumphant".  Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial Website

Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, finally meets her end.  Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial Website

Catherine D'Medic's favorite son takes over the throne of France. Henri III is going to be notable for many reasons in French history and today we begin his story in earnest.  Website Patreon Support

Charles IX, fairly or unfairly, will forever be remembered for the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre. His death ushers in a new era of uncertainty for both France and England. Website Patreon Support

In this episode, we return to England under Queen Elizabeth I. Around Elizabeth, her key advisors grow increasingly uneasy about her seeming unwillingness to do anything about Mary Stuart's repeated efforts to steal her throne. When the Duke of Norfolk becomes implicated, even Parliament can no longer contain its frustration.  Website Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial

After the death of Selim II, the Ottoman Empire goes into a period of decline. Successive Sultans seem far more interested in doling out favors to their friends and family than expanding the borders of the empire. The Janissaries, never easy to deal with under the best of circumstances, become an increasing drain on the treasury and a problem for the government. It is not over yet for the Ottomans...

Today we are back in the Ottoman Empire. Selim II takes over for the deceased Suleyman the Magnificent. He continues his father's policies but suffers a major setback at the Battle of Lepanto.  Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial Website

The swelling tide in France finally explodes in August 1572. Just as it seems like the marriage of the Protestant Henri of Navarre prepares to wed the Catholic Princess Margot and solve the religious crisis once and for all, the kingdom explodes into an orgy of violence.  Website Patreon Free Trial

Catherine D'Medici does her best to continue charting a course of conciliation but, in this episode, her luck finally runs out. France lurches into not one but two wars of religion in this episode, leaving the kingdom torn and Catherine convinced conciliation with the Huguenots is no longer possible.  Website Patreon Support

Today I sit down with author DW Gibson and discuss his latest book: One Week to Change the World: An Oral History of the 1999 WTO Protests . One week in late 1999, more than 50,000 people converged on Seattle. Their goal: to shut down the World Trade Organization conference and send a message that working-class people would not quietly accept the runaway economic globalization that threatened thei...