Dan Snow's History Hit

In the summer of 1791, thousands of enslaved people in Saint Domingue, as Haiti was then known, cast aside their shackles and revolted against French colonial rule. The Haitian Revolution lasted for over a decade, and Haiti became the first independent country to be founded by former enslaved people.

Among the key leaders of the revolution was a man named Henri Christophe. Born an enslaved person, Christophe served in the American Revolutionary War, fought in the Haitian Revolution and became Haiti's first and only king. But what happened during the Haitian Revolution? And how did Christophe make himself king of the first free black nation in the Americas?

Dan is joined by Paul Clammer, author of Black Crown: Henry Christophe, the Haitian Revolution and the Caribbean's Forgotten Kingdom, to guide us through this extraordinary tale.

Produced by James Hickmann and edited by Dougal Patmore.

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On the night of the 16th May, 1943, Operation Chastise commenced - 133 RAF airmen in their iconic Lancaster bombers took off from England, bound for Germany. Armed with specially designed 'bouncing bombs', the highly trained crews were tasked with destroying key installations in Germany's industrial heartland, the Ruhr Valley. It was an audacious mission of unprecedented precision, from which over a third of the airmen would never return. The Dambusters Raid, as it came to be known, is remembered as one of the greatest feats of daring and airmanship in the Second World War. In this two-part Explainer, and with the help of the late, great RAF veteran 'Johnny' Johnson, Dan delves into the true story of this historic operation.

Produced by James Hickmann and edited by Dougal Patmore.

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If you want to get in touch with the podcast, you can email us at [email protected], we'd love to hear from you!

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On the night of the 16th of May, 1943, 133 RAF airmen in their iconic Lancaster bombers took off from England, and headed for Germany. Armed with specially designed 'bouncing bombs', the highly-trained crews were tasked with interrupting German industry by destroying three enormous dams in the Ruhr Valley. It was a risky mission of unprecedented precision, from which over a third of the aircrew would never return. The Dambusters Raid, as it came to be known, is remembered as one of the greatest feats of daring and airmanship in British military history. In this two-part Explainer, and with the help of the late, great RAF veteran Johnny Johnson, Dan delves into the crew's preparations as well as the events of the historic raid itself.

Produced by James Hickmann and edited by Dougal Patmore.

You can take part in our listener survey here.

If you want to get in touch with the podcast, you can email us at [email protected], we'd love to hear from you!

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The 16th century in Europe was an age of great Queens. But just because they were in charge, didn't always mean they were powerful or safe; it was tough being a queen in the Renaissance and. Author and Former Professor of French at The George Washington University Leah Redmond Chang joins Dan to delve into the fascinating and complicated lives of three queens: Catherine De Medici, a noblewoman in one of the most important families of the Renaissance, who married the King of France and found herself Queen some deaths later. They discuss the fate of her daughter Elizabeth De Valois who married Phillip II King of Spain and ruler of the Spanish Empire that launched the Armada and conquest of the Americas and Mary Queen of Scots who ruled over a mighty Scotland but who endured assault, exile and finally execution at the behest of her cousin Elizabeth I. These women were at the top of European society but faced pressure, personal dangers and political threats unique to women in power during that time.

Her new book is called Young Queens: Three Renaissance Women and the Price of Power

Produced by Mariana Des Forges and edited by Tom Delargy 

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The legend of the Minotaur and its labyrinth has captivated us for centuries, but is there any evidence of it really existing?

In this episode, Tristan visits the Ashmolean museum in Oxford to interview Dr. Andrew Shapland, the curator of a new exhibition exploring the Bronze Age settlement of Knossos in Crete - the home of the mythical King Minos, the Minotaur and the labyrinth.

Together they explore ancient artefacts that hint at human sacrifices being carried out, and find out through archaeological evidence if there is any truth behind the myths.

The Senior Producer was Elena Guthrie

The Assistant Producer was Annie Coloe

Mixed & edited by Stuart Beckwith

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In 1831, the French aristocrat Alexis de Tocqueville left the troubled continent of Europe and set sail for America. Travelling in the shadow of the French Revolution, his goal was to learn about the world's largest democracy and work out how France could move forward. He would eventually publish a remarkable account of life and politics in the United States that became one of the best 19th century accounts of the burgeoning democracy. But Tocqueville would go on to travel to a myriad of other places by ship and stagecoach, on horseback and on foot across North America, Europe and North Africa. In this episode, Dan is joined by Jeremy Jennings, author of Travels with Tocqueville Beyond America, to find out more about his little-known travels beyond the United States.

Produced by James Hickmann and edited by Dougal Patmore.

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If you want to get in touch with the podcast, you can email us at [email protected], we'd love to hear from you!

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*WARNING there are adult words and themes in this episode*

How debaucherous do you have to be to be remembered as the original bad boy? How mad, bad and dangerous to know was Lord Byron? And how much of it did he get from his family?

For this episode, Kate is joined by Emily Brand, the author of ‘The Fall of the House of Byron: Scandal and Seduction in Georgian England’. From incest to murder - this family must have made for a very awkward dinner party.

Poems by George Gordon Byron read by Matt Lewis: ‘So, We’ll Go No More A Roving’ and lines 1089 to 1096 of Don Juan, canto 2.

Produced by Charlotte Long and Sophie Gee. Mixed by Sophie Gee.

Betwixt the Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society. A podcast by History Hit.

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J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth is perhaps the most captivating fantasy world ever created. His mythology and folklore continues to influence the work of writers, film-makers, musicians and artists to this day. He first conceived of the idea during the First World War, and built his world to examine the fear and courage, despair and hope that he witnessed. So how exactly did this brutal, bloody war help to shape Middle-earth? Dan is joined today by John Garth, an award-winning Tolkien biographer and author of Tolkien and the Great War, to tell us about Tolkien's life and how the conflict influenced his writing.

Produced by James Hickmann and edited by Dougal Patmore.

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If you want to get in touch with the podcast, you can email us at [email protected], we'd love to hear from you!

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The Battle of Agincourt looms large in the English historical and cultural imagination, this explainer wades through the mythology to help listeners really understand this infamous battle.

From almost the moment the battle finished the myth of Agincourt was being spun. Henry V milked the victory for all its worth to secure his reign and it has continued to play a prominent role in the British psyche ever since inspiring both Shakespeare and Churchill amongst others. It was however a crushing English victory with much of the nobility of Northern France being killed on that muddy field that day. It is all the more remarkable as Henry's army had been worn down by previous battles and ravaged by dysentery with thousands dying in miserable agony. In this episode, Dan returns with another of his explainers to explore the background, the campaign, the battle itself and its aftermath. 

If you want to get in touch with the podcast, you can email us at [email protected], we'd love to hear from you!

If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe to History Hit today!

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What do you get when you bring together five top historians to debate Mary, Queen of Scots on film? History with the gloves off - our second special episode of Not Just the Tudors Lates! This time, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb takes as her starting point the tragic life of the Scottish Queen and her relationship with her rival and cousin Queen Elizabeth I.

Suzannah is joined once again by Dr Joanne Paul, Jessie Childs, Alex von Tunzelmann and Professor Sarah Churchwell to compare the various film versions of Mary’s story, where they have got it right - and often wildly wrong.

This episode was produced by Rob Weinberg.

Listen to the first Not Just the Tudors Lates about Elizabeth I on Screen, here.

If you want to get in touch with the podcast, you can email us at [email protected], we'd love to hear from you!

If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe to History Hit today!

Download the History Hit app from the Google Play store.

Download the History Hit app from the Apple Store.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.