History Loves Company

As we all know, the rulers of Ancient Egypt were known as pharaohs, great kings (and, therefore, men) who reigned over their empire with an iron fist. But did you know that, in its 3000-year history, a handful of women assumed the role of pharaoh? The most famous of these is none other than Hatshepsut who, following the death of her husband, went on to assume command of the throne and obtain the f...

Though the Han Chinese are in the majority, the People's Republic of China is actually quite diverse with hundreds of languages spoken within its borders and up to fifty-five officially recognized ethnic groups. One of the largest and most well-known of these are the Uyghurs, a Turkic people who have called the Northwest province of Xinjiang home for centuries. Despite their rich and lengthy histo...

Despite what we're led to believe, humanity is more similar than it is different. At the end of the day, we all more or less strive for the same things. Perhaps this explains how countless cultures throughout history shared similar cultural practices and beliefs without making contact with one another prior to our global age. This can best be exemplified in two codes of conduct from Medieval Europ...

Following Hitler's invasion of Poland on September 6th, 1939, the official start of World War Two, an eerie eight-month period of little to no fighting ensued. But whispers of the Nazi invasion of other countries was too critical to ignore. As such, Allied British, French and Belgian troops rushed to defend Western Europe from the Nazi menace and became stranded on the beaches of Northwest France...

Throughout much of its history, the Jewish homeland (known in antiquity as Judea) was occupied and incorporated into other empires. But the longest period of its occupation occurred, not surprisingly, under Roman rule. First annexed in 63 BC following the Siege of Jerusalem, by the start of the 2nd Century AD, tensions between the Jews and their Roman oppressors had reached a boiling point. Then,...

Haile Selassie has become a renowned and beloved figure the world over. The last reigning monarch of Ethiopia, he's venerated as a prophet in the Rastafarian religion and is seen as a symbol of African liberation. But, despite this reputation, there are those who speak ill of him, calling him a tyrant and no better than any other monarch in history. Regardless of one's opinion of him, there's no d...

Located right on the cusp between big city and dense jungle, Angkor Wat is considered the largest religious site in the world. Built in the 12th Century by King Suryavarman II of the Khmer Empire of Cambodia, it was originally meant to be the state temple as well as serve as the downtown section of the-then capital. While the capital eventually moved following his death and the originally Hindu te...

Today, most people know the name Hannibal from the book and film 'Silence of the Lambs' but, long before the deliciously wicked Doctor Hannibal Lecter leapt off the page and onto the screen, the name was both feared and revered as being one of the greatest military strategists and tacticians of all time. Tune in to the 'History Loves Company' podcast this week as we explore the wondrous life and e...

The world of sports has seen its fair share of scandals and controversies, but perhaps none has left as lasting an impression as that of the 1919 World Series between the Chicago White Sox and the Cincinnati Reds. Driven by greed and spite, eight White Sox players vowed to rig the Series in order to line their pockets with even more money. But, as to be expected, it blew up disastrously in their f...

Most of us are familiar with the legends of Robin Hood. Much like 'The Odyssey' or Grimm's Fairy Tales, they've become cornerstones of Western literature and have entered the popular imagination. But was there ever such a real person? It appears there very well could have been. William of Cassingham was a skilled 13th Century archer who was deemed an outlaw by his fellow Englishmen following his h...

By 1943, the tide of the conflict was changing. With Italy's resources nearly spent and her armies both physically and spiritually spent, the nation was on the verge of collapse. Public opinion had greatly shifted on Mussolini's leadership and the people had had enough. With a major rift in the country following Il Duce's deposition, Italy was plunged into the throes of chaos and civil war, with F...

In 1943, at the height of World War Two and fighting on multiple fronts, Italy was rocked by a civil war. Waged between fascist sympathizers and a rising Italian Resistance, it rocked the country to its very core, near well splitting it in two. But what led up to this violent skirmish? What was the political climate that created it? Tune in to part one of this two-part episode on the Italian Civil...

For years, it was believed that Chinese civilization was born solely on and around the Yellow River in Northeastern China in the 3rd and 2nd Millennia BC. But with the discovery of the Sanxingdui (lit. "three star mound") site in Southwest China in 1927 as well as subsequent excavations up to the present day, this notion is being challenged and rewritten. The treasures unearthed reveal a complex a...

While music often unites us, it can just as easily divide us, sometimes rather violently. Several punk shows in the 1970s ended in such a manner and a famous incident at a Rolling Stones concert in 1969 resulted in the stabbing death of an attendee. But perhaps the most famous riot in modern music history took place on the night of May 29th, 1913. The subject of such violence? A ballet. Join me as...

The Four Corners region of the United States, located where the states of Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico meet, is a place of dramatic landscapes and natural beauty. It epitomizes the Wild West but was also once home to one of the most fascinating indigenous cultures in North America. The Ancestral Puebloans left behind some of the most sophisticated and impressive settlements on Earth with...

Most people today recognize Benjamin Franklin as the face on the American one hundred dollar bill, but there was much more to him than a portrait on currency. Born in Boston in 1706, he rose from humble beginnings to become one of the preeminent politicians, revolutionary figures as well as minds of his day. What did he do before his foray into early American politics? What contributions did he ma...

Egypt, Greece, Rome. Each of the names of these ancient civilizations conjures up images of grandeur and rightfully so. The massive monuments they left behind are testaments of their greatness and have cemented their reputation in the annals of history. But it's important to note that they were by no means the first of their kind. In a fertile region between two rivers in what's now Iraq, the firs...

Bands like the Beach Boys and films like "Endless Summer" have immortalized surfing in popular culture and the collective consciousness. Who can say that they aren't at least somewhat familiar with the sport as a result? But its origins go back much farther than the 1960s. Join me as we explore the history of this most popular and exciting watersport.

When Armenia fell to Ottoman rule in the 15th Century, the tiny country in the Caucasus was absorbed into the Turks' mighty empire. Over the next five hundred years, the Armenians would make a name for themselves as Ottoman subjects but, in that time, suspicions on behalf of the ruling class began to emerge. A Christian minority in a Muslim majority country, Armenians were seen as outsiders and in...

She was the largest ship of her day and, when she was christened, her name reflected this. Born out of a bitter rivalry between the two largest shipping firms in Britain, the 'Titanic' was meant to be a bigger and better class of ocean liner that was meant to exemplify human achievement and ingenuity. But then, tragedy struck when, on her maiden voyage, she struck an iceberg and sank beneath the i...

The ancient city of Palenque, located in the state of Chiapas in Southern Mexico, is considered the greatest and best-preserved Mayan city ever found. Once an independent city-state on the fringes of the Mayan world, it rose from obscurity to its height in the 7th Century when its then-ruler, K'inich Janaab Pakal (also known as Pacal the Great) ascended to the throne and set about building it up i...

April 1st each year is an occasion in which practical jokes and mischievous mayhem of every kind are played out against unsuspecting "victims." Known as April Fools' Day, its specific origins are unknown but stem from a myriad of sources that span the course of human history. Tune in to this fun episode to find out all about it!

It was exactly two hundred years ago today that Greece declared itself independent from the Ottoman Empire (based in present-day Turkey), but the road to freedom was a long and arduous one for the Greek people. Having been absorbed into Turkish sovereignty way back in 1453, it would take nearly four hundred years for them to make any headway, thanks in large part to major regrouping efforts as wel...

Saint Patrick's Day is celebrated annually on March 17th which, tradition dictates, was the day of its namesake's passing way back in 461. Despite its religious origins, it has become a secular holiday as well in which its revelers celebrate all things Irish. But who was the man whose name graces the holiday itself? What's his story? And how did he become the most beloved national figure in Irish...

Japan is no stranger to earthquakes. Being on the cusp of two major tectonic plates, they are a frequent, albeit inconvenient and frightening, part of life there. But the one that took place exactly ten years ago today quite literally shook the island nation to its core, as it was proof positive of just how devastating and fatal these natural disasters can be. What is the science behind the Tо̄hok...