Explaining History
971 episodes — Page 1 of 20
Gentlemen Amateurs – Staffing the Secret Service in the First World War
Japanese War Crimes in China 1937-45
America's withdrawal from Iraq
A Way of Love – Gay Life in Post-War Britain with Peter Parker
Bombing Damascus – France, the Mandate System, and the Atrocities of 1925
India, America and Nehru 1940-41
Stalin's Statues – Monuments, Memory, and the Theme Parking of History
Macmillan's Britain – Suez, Decline, and the Winds of Change 1957-60
MI6 in 1914
The AFD's advances– Neoliberalism, the Extreme Centre, and the Rise of the Far Right
Civil Rights After 1980 – The Unfinished Revolution
The Fall of Baghdad 1917 - Part Two
The Fall of Baghdad 1917
Britain Alone – The Hostile Environment and the Remaking of Britishness
Reforming the Tsar's Army – From Serfdom to Universal Service in Imperial Russia
Hegseth's War Crimes
An Exceptional Hatred – Antisemitism, Free Speech, and the American Culture War
Harold Wilson, Corporatism, and the Paranoia of the British Right
Trump, Canada and the defence of sovereignty
Voter suppression and stolen US elections
From Empire to Neoliberalism – The Long Arc of Capital and the Cannibalisation of the West
Belgium, America and Congo 1884-1960
America's Wrong Turn – How Neoliberalism Broke U.S. Healthcare with John McDonagh
California and the origins of the carceral state
The International Brigades and the fight for Spain
Between Two Empires – The Arab Revolts Against the Ottomans in Mesopotamia
Russia's post communist shock therapy 1991-3
War and Empire in the 20th Century
Mamdani, Corbyn and the War Within the Centre-Left
Quebec's secret biological warfare history
Belfast and the international networked far right
Italy from the fascism to post war republic
Militarism, Masculinity, and the Making of the American Warrior
The Ottoman March on Egypt 1915
Adoption, Colonialism, and the Korean War
The Shortest History of Scotland – Nation, Union, and the Rise of Nationalism
Trump and Nixon in Beijing - an instructive comparison
Master of Lies – Anthony Blunt, the Cambridge Spy Who Changed the Course of World War II
The Neocons Admit Defeat in Iran
Hobsbawm's Age of Extremes – The Golden Age, the Fall of Communism, and the Crisis of Social Democracy
The Tsar's Generals and the Press – Russian Military Journalism in the Reform Era
Austerity Never Ended – The Cultural Politics of Thrift in Modern Britain
The Lost Empire of Emmanuel Nobel – Oil, Revolution, and the Birth of the Soviet State
The Death of Britain's Two-Party System – A Century in the Making
The Transnational Far Right – Hate, Vigilantism, and the Mainstreaming of Extremism
The Gulf Crisis – Two Theories of American Decline
The New World Order and Its Unravelling – From Bush Snr to Trump
China's Transformation 1978-84
Capitalism without Democracy
The End of NATO?
What happens if NATO collapses—or if the United States simply walks away? In this episode, we speculate on a future that feels closer than ever. With the Trump administration openly hostile to the alliance and European allies refusing to be dragged into an illegal war in the Persian Gulf, the post-WW2 transatlantic bargain is coming undone.We go back to the beginning: why NATO was founded to keep the Russians out, the Germans down, and the Americans in. From Ernest Bevin’s Britain to the Truman Doctrine and the birth of Atlanticism, we trace how the alliance shaped the Cold War world. Then we ask the hard questions: Would a US withdrawal trigger a new European defense order? Could Russia really rebuild its empire? And what happens to American power, intelligence sharing, and the arms industry when the nuclear umbrella is gone?This is not a prediction—it’s a necessary speculation. The world at the end of the 2020s will look nothing like the one we entered. And the biggest winner of all might just be China.Welcome back to the *Explaining History Podcast*.Explaining History helps you understand the 20th Century through critical conversations and expert interviews. We connect the past to the present. If you enjoy the show, please subscribe and share.▸ Support the Show & Get Exclusive ContentBecome a Patron: patreon.com/explaininghistory▸ Join the Community & Continue the ConversationFacebook Group: facebook.com/groups/ExplainingHistoryPodcastSubstack: theexplaininghistorypodcast.substack.com▸ Read Articles & Go DeeperWebsite: explaininghistory.org Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.