History Analyzed

Although those in command at Pearl Harbor lost their commands after the attack, Douglas MacArthur, the commanding U.S. Army officer in the Philippines, got off scot-free. He was even warned in advance that the Japanese would attack, but still did nothing and suffered the worst defeat in American military history. This episode unpacks the many errors and bloody mistakes lurking beneath his popular legacy. 

You may already know that John Wilkes Booth assassinated Abraham Lincoln. But did you know that it was part of a larger conspiracy to also kill Vice President Andrew Johnson and Secretary of State William Seward? Find out about his co-conspirators and what happened after that fateful night at Ford’s Theatre, including the epic 12-day manhunt for Booth. 

61 years ago, John F. Kennedy famously promised to land a man on the moon within one decade, but why was there a race to the moon anyway? Get your questions about the space race answered and discover little known facts. For example, many don't realize that a former Nazi rocket scientist was the main contributor to America's satellite and moon program, or that the USSR led the race until the mid-1960s.

Love him or hate him, Christopher Columbus has influenced the world more than anybody in the past 1,000 years. His actions set into motion many significant events - the spread of the Spanish language and Catholicism, enormous migrations of people, the trans-Atlantic slave trade, and five centuries of European colonialism. 

Outside of M*A*S*H reruns, the Korean War is largely forgotten by the American public. This episode explores the history of the Korean War and why it occurred. It also delves into key players on both sides of the war, such as Truman, MacArthur, Mao, Stalin, Kim Il-sung, Syngman Rhee, and more!

For over 160 years, people have asked who was the better general - Ulysses S. Grant or Robert E. Lee? It's time to put this debate to rest by comparing their military strategies, successes, and failures in the Civil War.

Forget what you've seen in movies and discover the real history of Cleopatra! Her affairs with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony are only the tip of the iceberg. Learn how she rose to power in a male-dominated world, ruled Egypt, and left her mark on history.

Have you ever wondered how, when, and why, time zones were invented? Well, here are the answers. As a bonus, this episode explores how comparing local time to Greenwich Mean Time enabled ships to locate their longitude. 

Neville Chamberlain has been ridiculed for the 1938 Munich Agreement between Britain and France on one side and Nazi Germany on the other. Instead of being derided, Chamberlain should be praised. Chamberlain tried to avoid a world war. He failed, but a least he tried. And, even though he did not completely avoid World War II, his actions ensured that Britain did not lose the war. Britain remaining in the war throughout 1940 and into 1941 allowed for an eventual Allies victory. As some historians have phrased it, Chamberlain did not win World War II but he prevented the UK from losing the Battle of Britain in 1940 by making sure that Britain had enough fighter planes and an adequate radar system.

It’s time to debunk the conspiracy theories! Lee Harvey Oswald killed President John F. Kennedy and acted alone. Part 1 covers the events of November 22-24, 1963, from Oswald holing up in the Texas School Book Depository to Jack Ruby’s assassination of Oswald, and starts to systematically discredit the main conspiracy theories with direct evidence. Part 2 dismantles the remaining conspiracy theories and demonstrates why the Warren Commission was correct in its findings.