Western Civ

Here I quickly cover Russian history from Peter the Great, through Catherine the Great, and then down to the beginning of the Crimean War.  Western Civ 2.0

After Gettysburg and Vicksburg, the Confederacy slowly fades. Despite Lee's efforts, Grant grinds his army down through murderous battles such as the Wilderness and Cold Harbor. Ultimately, the resouces of the Union are simply too much. But even as America ultimately wins its civil war, its greatest president falls to an assassin's bullet.  Western Civ 2.0  

In three days in Pennsylvania in 1863, the American Civil War turns forever.  Western Civ 2.0 

The Battle of Antietam drives President Lincoln to issue the Emancipation Proclamation. But Robert Lee wins two dramatic victories in this aftermath at the battles of Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville.  Western Civ 2.0

Two ironclads face off to change the shape of naval warfare while Robert E. Lee emerges from the Seven Days Battles as the lead Confederate commander. Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial

The Battle of Shiloh starts as an apparent Confederate victory, but the loss of General Johnston and the resulting chaos dooms the South. Meanwhile, in New Orleans, the Anaconda Plan takes hold. Western Civ. 2.0 Free Trial 

When the American Civil War begins, everyone expects a picnic. The Battle of Bull Run erases those false expectations. Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial

From Nat Turner's Rebellion to the Compromise of 1850, Americans did everything they could to avoid the Civil War.... and failed.  Western Civ Podcast 2.0 Free Trial

In the 19th Century, Europeans carved up the globe with devastating consequences. Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial

In the United States today, there is no faith more dominant than Christianity. In  Chosen Land , historian Matthew Avery Sutton chronicles Christians’ five-hundred-year endeavor to turn North America into their version of the kingdom of God, revealing the fruitful and dynamic entanglement between the history of America and the history of American Christianity. In the centuries after Christianity f...

When the potato crop failed in 1845 in Ireland, no one at the time knew just how momentous it was. By the close of 1847, Ireland's population, through death and emigration, had fallen by nearly three million souls. It still has not recovered.  Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial

From Paris to Vienna, 1848 rocked Europe. While the revolutions themselves failed, they set the stage for dramatic changes to come.  Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial

Political, economic, and social currents sweep Europe, bringing massive change and setting the stage for the Revolutions of 1848. Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial

The presidency of Andrew Jackson was instrumental in reshaping America politically, socially, and economically. Today we cover the Bank War, Nullification Crisis, and Indian Removal. Western Civ 2.0

The Congress of Vienna was supposed to freeze the map of Europe in time. It did not take long for it to thaw. Western Civ 2.0

Before we move on to more political history, I want to broadly discuss some of the changes sweeping Great Britain and then ultimately the rest of Europe driven by the Industrial Revolution. Today we focus in on "Cottonopolis" - otherwise known as Manchester. Western Civ 2.0

Simon Bolívar drives the Spanish out of South and Central America. His vision for what came afterwards, however, did not last. Western Civ Podcast 2.0 Free Trial

The Cry of Dolores sparks the Mexican Independence Movement ending in victory over Spain in 1821.  Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial

There is no issue that dominated American politics like chattel slavery between the American War of Independence and the American Civil War. Today we go back to Bacon's Rebellion to try and explain why and then work our way all the way through the administration of John Quincy Adams. Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial 

Today I sit down with author and historian James McDougall and talk about his most recent book:  Worlds of Islam: A Global History.  From its birth in seventh-century Arabia, Islam has been a faith on the move. Over the span of a thousand years, armies, missionaries, and merchants carried it to the edges of Europe, the coasts of Southeast Asia, and the remote interior of China. By the nineteenth c...

The Congress of Vienna sought to put Europe back together after the Napoleonic Wars. It was not an easy task. But, by and large, the delegates were successful and peace prevailed for 99 years until the outbreak of World War One. Western Civ 2.0

Napoleon returns from exile for one last chance at empire. His defeat at Waterloo, however, seals his fate. Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial

Desperate to enforce his Continental System, Napoleon invades Russia. But Tsar Alexander will not fight and, instead, Napoleon finds himself cornered and finally beaten. Western Civ 2.0  

James Madison watches as Washington DC burns. But America emerges from the War of 1812 more united and confident than ever before. Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial

Thomas Jefferson's administration was full of contradictions and sweeping successes.  Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial