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As part of UK Black History Month, History from a New Perspective has been exploring London's historic relationship with the Transatlantic slave trade. This is a short episode which explains how the city's wealth grew as a result of slavery in the Caribbean and the Americas. The episode also explores how Britain later abolished the slave trade and slavery. Joseph Keen visited the 'London, Sugar and Slavery: 1600-present' exhibition at the London Museum Docklands.

Also available on YouTube: https://youtu.be/AW_-EAwdYTQ

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Buried deep beneath coconut groves in South India’s Tamil Nadu state lies Keeladi, an ancient settlement whose 2,500-year-old remains are igniting a fierce debate over India’s history. Archaeologists, politicians and linguists have clashed over what Keeladi means — for identity, heritage and the story we tell about the past.  India’s first major civilisation, the Indus Valley, thrived between 3300 and 1300 BCE in the north and central regions. After its decline, the Vedic period arose lasting until the 6th century BCE. This era saw the emergence of cities, kingdoms and Vedic culture, laying the foundations for Hinduism. Urbanisation in ancient India is often framed as a northern phenomenon, with the narrative of northern Aryans bringing “civilisation” to the Dravidian south. Could these new discoveries challenge that narrative? Joseph Keen has been speaking to Sowmiya Ashok, a journalist and writer working on an upcoming book called “The Dig.” 

Sowmiya's Instagram for updates on The Dig: https://www.instagram.com/sowmiyashok.writes/?hl=en

Also available on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNKxfFpEKV8

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The US FBI recently returned a 500-year-old stolen document to Mexico. The manuscript was penned by Hernán Cortés, a man who helped pave the way for Spanish colonisation of the Americas and bring about the end of the Aztec Empire. The Aztec empire lasted until the 16th century in what is now Mexico with Spain’s conquest leading to its collapse in 1521. The civilisation has often been linked to the practice of human sacrifice. Scholars have traditionally relied on European sources to document their history, but how did the Aztecs see their history from their own perspective? The book “Fifth Sun: A New History of the Aztecs” uses indigenous sources to tell their story. Joseph Keen has been speaking to the book’s author, Professor Camilla Townsend who is Board of Governors Distinguished Professor of History at Rutgers University.

Camilla's book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fifth-Sun-New-History-Aztecs/dp/0190673060

Also available on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxbwyoY2G04

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Archaeologists have used high-resolution scans to produce images of tattoos found on an ancient woman in an ice cave. This woman was part of the Pazyryk people, a nomadic Scythian culture (documented by the Ancient Greek historian, Herodotus) which existed between the 6th and 3rd centuries BC in the area of modern day Russia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan and North Western China. The “Ice mummies” were found in the Altai mountains of Central Asia in the 19th century. Joseph Keen has been speaking to Dr Gino Caspari, archaeologist, entrepreneur and explorer from the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology and the University of Bern. He was the lead author of the research.

Link to the study: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/antiquity/article/highresolution-nearinfrared-data-reveal-pazyryk-tattooing-methods/74D1A37DF0F0920F3BFCA82EA19DDF5B

Also available on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVeX9DNi1R8

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In 1830, French forces invaded Algeria leading to over a century of colonial rule. The North African nation was even treated as an integral part of France known as “Algerie Francaise.” By 1 November 1954, Algeria’s National Liberation Front or FLN began a major war of decolonization from France, which eventually led to the deaths of somewhere between 400,000 to 1.5 million people. The struggle was famously depicted in the 1966 film “Battle of Algiers.”  By 5 July 1962, the country had achieved its independence. Joseph Keen spoke to Natalya Benkhaled-Vince, historian of the French empire, decolonisation and post-colonial histories at the University of Oxford. She is author of “The Algerian War, The Algerian Revolution.”

Natalya’s book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Algerian-War-Revolution/dp/3030542637

Episode also available on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QblYoBWte6c&t=135s

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Want to learn more about the history of the African continent? From the ancient Nubian kingdoms of Sudan and Egypt to Mansa Musa's medieval Mali, to modern-day Ghana, we'll explore the rise and fall of civilizations and the lasting legacies they left behind. Joseph Keen spoke to Luke Pepera is a writer, broadcast, anthropologist, historian and author of "Motherland: A Journey through 500,000 Years of African Culture and Identity."

Luke's Book: https://www.waterstones.com/book/motherland/luke-pepera/9781398707368?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAae55gwwm-v4MizfxqZtUUHqgT73moOwqgvHARmuJ9Rx6px2lNy_WO5FNzIxBg_aem_gSGEsTuK5NUzVBbGk1X6tQ

YouTube version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCwQvtmlnvY&t=56s

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History from a New Perspective is a world history channel and podcast exploring history from the ancient period to the modern, covering every continent.

Also available on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@historynewperspective

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