Softcore History

Peter Francisco was an absolute mountain of a man who served in the Continental Army during the American Revoltuion as a teenager. Often refered to as the Virginia Giant, this Portugese orphan turned freedom fighter was Washington's One Man Army who played a pivotal role in multiple battles with his sheer size and strength. Subscribe to the Softcore History Patreon for hundreds of hours of extra h...

For about a hundred or so years between the 17th and 18th centuries, a favorite German party pastime was… throwing animals high into the air and then watching them fall, get crippled, and be clubbed and to death or ripped apart by dogs. The animals included rabbits, badgers, boars, wolves, wildcats, and, of course, foxes, as the game was called “Fox Tossing.” And the German nobility LOVED it. Subs...

After the death of a local farmer, Petar Blagojević, a small Serbian town went into full vampire paranoia as nine other villagers suddenly dropped dead after claiming to see Blagojević risen from the grave. Jack Mandaville joins the show to discuss how much of Europe fell into a blood sucking monster craze in the early 18th century. Subscribe to the Softcore History Patreon for hundreds of hours o...

Does anyone have more unfinished business than a king or queen? Not in England, where the ghosts of Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn, Queen Victoria, King George III, Prince Albert, and more seemingly haunt every single building they ever walked into. We break down the most famous haunting stories from dead British royals. Subscribe to the Softcore History Patreon for hundreds of hours of extra history con...

The Koreshan Unity cult is NOT the infamous Waco commune the FBI barbecued in the 90s. Rather, it's a turn-of-the-century Florida cult founded by a man who so badly electrocuted himself that he woke up thinking he was Jesus. It turns out that Cyrus Teed was not the Messiah, but his incredibly whacky teachings sure did intrigue David Koresh, who would go on to take quite a bit of inspiration from t...

Ed Gein, also known as the Butcher of Plainfield or Plainfield Ghoul, was an American killer and body snatcher who committed unspeakable crimes in Wisconsin in the 1950s. His nightmare farm was filled to the brim with both metaphoric and literal skeletons thanks to severe mommy issues. Subscribe to the Softcore History Patreon for hundreds of hours of extra history content including episodes like...

This is a preview of the hundreds of hours of extra history content and bonus episodes we put out only on Softcore History Patreon. This episode is available ad free on Softcore History Patreon. It's the best way to support Dan and Rob and you get new episodes every Wednesday and Friday that you can find nowhere else but...Softcore History Patreon. Softcore History Patreon. Softcore History Patreo...

Pioneering female aviator Amelia Earhart disappeared forever on July 2nd, 1937. It has never been determined what happened to Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan. Now, the Trump Administration has promised to release all the files the U.S. Government has on Earhart. In light of this, we break down her (surprisingly incompetent) final flight and the many theories that abound about her fate. Subs...

After World War II, panty pandemonium struck American college campuses and organized raids of female dorms became a common prank. If your grandpa went to college in the 1950s, there's a good chance he stole some coed's undies. Subscribe to the Softcore History Patreon for hundreds of hours of extra history content including episodes like this, listener voicemails, movie watch-alongs, and weekly bo...

Anarcha Westcott (real name Annacay Jackson) was a 13-year-old slave instrumental in the creation of the medical field of gynecology. Instrumental… because she was the instrument. Dr. J. Marion Sims of Alabama performed 30 experimental surgeries on her — without anesthesia — in order to repair her horrific fistulas after a stillbirth at 13 years old. And the surgeries worked. Thanks to Annacay end...

Long before the Germans tried to fight half of Europe by themselves, Sweden did the same in 1700 during the Great Northern War. Under the leadership of their teenage, war obsessed king, the Swedes spent the better part of two decades overcoming the odds and defeating the Danish, Polish, and Russian armies on a regular basis. Eventually, though, the hot hand turns cold. Record-breaking, lowest temp...

King Edward III made it illegal to not be poor in 1300s England. At least, illegal if you were already poor. Negotiating for higher wages? Straight to jail. Wearing clothes that made you look wealthy? Straight to jail. Trying to get a better job? Jail. All because the upper classes were annoyed with having to negotiate wages with workers after the Black Death created a labor shortage and the worki...

The 369th Infantry regiment better known as the Harlem Hellfighters were a renowned all-black World War I unit who spent 191 days in action. They were loaned to the French forces and became the Germans worst nightmare on the front lines. Subscribe to the Softcore History Patreon for hundreds of hours of extra history content including episodes like this, listener voicemails, movie watch-alongs, an...

What is the most important person or place in the history of the colonization of the New World? Columbus? Cortez? Jamestown? Nah mon! It’s Jamaica bruh! If it weren’t for the English falling ass-backwards into an unwanted island, nothing would be as it is today. Subscribe to the Softcore History Patreon for hundreds of hours of extra history content including episodes like this, listener voicemail...

Softcore History presents "Two People Arguing on the Internet, About History," a full-cast comedy audiobook short story following a day in the lives of two people who can't stop being mean to each other in the comments section of a history page on Facebook instead of, you know, doing anything that is actually worthwhile with their time. You can hear this and an entire audiobook's worth of other sk...

On June 28, 1861 Confederate pirates led by Captain George Hollins and Lt. Colonel Richard Thomas Zarvona captured a passenger steamer on the Potomac with an unusual plan of deception. Learn how these men and a flirtatious "mystery woman" became heroes in the south in one of the lesser known conquest of the American Civil War. Subscribe to the Softcore History Patreon for hundreds of hours of extr...

Actual expert Alex Petkas, who has a PhD in Classics from Princeton and hosts the history podcast Cost of Glory, joins the show for some inexplicable reason to break down why the Roman dictator Sulla is Rome’s most underrated man, why Caesar wasn’t such a bad guy, and why he left Academia for the internet. Subscribe to the Softcore History Patreon for hundreds of hours of extra history content inc...

Fredrick Russell Burnham experienced one of the most insane and eventful lives in all of human history. From tracking Geronimo and getting into family feuds in the Wild West to fighting in multiple wars in South Africa and stopping an American President from getting assasinated, Burnham was a decorated hero who sought out adventure and eventually found good fortune for his trouble. Subscribe to th...

We break down the history of men wearing makeup with beauty writer Cristina Montemayor (@crismontyy), from Neanderthals and Homo Sapiens inventing sunless tanner instead of farming, to the Egyptians and Romans slathering their faces with lead because looking hot was more important than your brain working right. Subscribe to the Softcore History Patreon for hundreds of hours of extra history conten...

Robert Maxwell was a media mogul, decorated war hero, member of British Parliament, and Israeli intelligence asset. He was the father to Ghislaine, a rival to Rupert Murdoch, and a spy whose death was more mysterious than his hidden life. Before Jeffrey Epstein there was Captain Bob Maxwell. Subscribe to the Softcore History Patreon for hundreds of hours of extra history content including listener...

Wanton killing was common in Ancient Rome, but most mass murderers were Emperors and Generals. One woman, though, killed hundreds if not more. Not for conquest but for business. And practice. And Nero. Subscribe to the Softcore History Patreon for hundreds of hours of extra history content including listener history questions, history movie watch-alongs, and weekly bonus episodes. Rob Foxhttps://w...

Comedian Uncle Lazer joins the show to break down the history of professional wrestling in the United States, from Civil War campsite brawls to the sports entertainment we know and love today. Subscribe to the Softcore History Patreon for hundreds of hours of extra history content including listener history questions, history movie watch-alongs, and weekly bonus episodes. Rob Foxhttps://www.instag...

In 1884 Pope Leo XIII had a vision. A terrible vision. He overheard a conversation between God and the Devil about the destruction of the Catholic Church and the horrors of the 20th Century. Was this vision real? Or was it a product of his love of cocaine wine and some present-day political factors? Subscribe to the Softcore History Patreon for hundreds of hours of extra history content including...

The French Revolution in 1789 is often regarded as a watershed moment in world history with the violent removal of King Louis XVI and his family from power. Despite its romantic portrayal, this was one of the ugliest and most savage revolts that was covered by blood and feces wall-to-wall. We breakdown what caused the events to set in motion and end with Louis and Marie Antoinette's unpleasant fat...

Joseph Patrick Kennedy Jr. — aka Joe Jr. aka JFK’s older brother — was the original prince of Camelot. Ordained from birth by his father, Joe Kennedy Sr., to be first Catholic president in American history, Joe was trained for that job his entire life. But along the way he had some interesting thoughts about Adolf Hitler and Brazilian women. Sadly we didn’t get to see how his life panned out becau...