Western Civ

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

France, under Napoleon, reaches the apex of its power. But, within the empire, the Spanish Ulcer and Continental System begin to unravel everything he had built. Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial 

Napoleon reaches the height of his powers on the frozen fields of Moravia. Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial

It does not take long for Napoleon to consolidate power. But reversals in the Caribbean require the First Consul to rethink his North American strategy resulting in the Louisiana Purchase. Western Civ 2.0 Free Trial

We catch up on the fledgling United States. George Washington becomes the first President of the United States (obviously...) and then the Election of 1800 secures the first peaceful transition of power in American history. Well, peaceful unless your name is Alexander Hamilton or Aaron Burr, that is... Western Civ Podcast 2.0 Free Trial

Napoleon Bonaparte becomes First Consul in what will be, thankfully, our final coup of the French Revolution.  Western Civ 2.0

This one is a bit different and I admit that. But I like opportunities to speak with incredibly intelligent people so I took it.  I sit down with Arman Verjee today and discuss a book he is finishing up: A Brief History of Financial Bubbles . The conversation is much more of a back and forth than an interview. But I think our discussion of the Dotcom Bubble and its application to the present AI ci...