History in Five Minutes Podcast

History in Five Minutes Podcast episodes:

• 08.15.2016

  HFM 147 | The Real Story of the Scopes Monkey Trial

  If you’ve seen the 1960 Spencer Tracy movie Inherit the Wind, you know about the Scopes Monkey Trial. In this real-life 1925 case, John Scopes was accused of violating Tennessee’s Butler Act, which had made it unlawful to teach human evolution in any...

  
• 06.06.2016

  HFM 139 | James Holman: The Blind Traveller

  In the early 1800s there was no English explorer greater than James Holman. He travelled almost 20 times farther than Marco Polo. He travelled among 200 different cultures, charted undiscovered parts of Australia, and by October 1846 had visited every...

  
• 03.21.2016

  HFM 137 | Leaders in Times of Crisis, Part 7 – Mustafa Kemal Ataturk (1881-1938)

  Mustafa Kemal Ataturk — the victor at the Battle of Gallipoli, Turkey’s first president, and a reformer so zealous that he replaced six centuries of Ottoman Islamic legal and cultural custom with Western practices in the space of 15 years...

  
• 03.14.2016

  HFM 136 | Leaders in Times of Crisis, Part 6 – Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)

  Recognized by most historians and much of the public as one of our country’s greatest presidents, Abraham Lincoln is known for his impressive accomplishments, including preserving the union during the Civil War and signing The Emancipation Proclamation. But he is...

  
• 11.16.2015

  HFM 129 | The Step-by-Step Guide to Building a 13th-Century French Castle

  In a remote forest clearing in Burgundy, France, a 13th-century castle is slowly being constructed using only the tools, techniques, and materials that would have been available to the builders of the day. It’s archaeology in reverse. What started out as an...

  
• 11.02.2015

  HFM 128 | Europeans in the Far East Before Marco Polo

  Marco Polo is the most famous European explorer to the Far East, but he definitely wasn’t the first. His father and uncle came there years before. And they found a small colony of Europeans who lived permanently in China. Perhaps...

  
• 10.26.2015

  HFM 127 | Damascus Steel: The Medieval Blade That We Still Can’t Top Today

  Damascus swords, which were generally made in the Middle East anywhere from 540 A.D. to 1800 A.D., were sharper, more flexible and harder/stronger than other contemporary blades. According to legend, the blades can cut a piece of silk in half...

  
• 10.19.2015

  HFM 126 | Useful Skills That People Had in the Middle Ages That We Don’t Today, Part 2: Making Things With Your Hands

  Can you sew your own clothing? That one is easy. What about making your own shoes, butchering an animal, removing its skin, tanning the leather, then rending the fat to make candles? If you can answer ‘yes’ to all those...

  
• 10.11.2015

  HFM 125 | Useful Skills That People Had in the Middle Ages That We Don’t Today, Part 1: Ars Memoriae – The Art of Memory

  Think you have a good memory? The average peasant of 1,000 years ago had 10x more memorized than you ever will. Learn more about people trained in the  ars memoriae, who were living databases of information. Like this podcast? Click here...

  
• 07.06.2015

  HFM 124 | The Origin of “The Finger”: Why Do We Call it The Bird?

  We’ve all done it in moments of anger. But why do we use our middle finger to express anger? And why do we call it “the bird.” Suggestions range from The Battle of Agincourt in 1415 to Ancient Rome. We...

  
• 05.18.2015

  HFM 122 | The Most Productive People in History, Part 5: Thomas Aquinas

  Thomas Aquinas is arguably the greatest theologian in Catholic Church. During his lifetime he wrote over 60 tomes of philosophy and theology, most the size of a scholar’s magnum opus. The total word count of his extant writings exceeds 6...

  
• 05.07.2015

  HFM 121 | The Most Productive People in History, Part 4: Theodore Roosevelt

  Theodore Roosevelt won the presidency twice, was the first American to earn a belt in judo, hunted, wrote numerous books, and read four hours a day even during the busiest moments of his political life. For good measure he also...

  
• 05.06.2015

  HFM 120 | The Most Productive People in History, Part 3: Leonardo da Vinci

  Few Renaissance figures have as many legends swirling around their life as Leonardo da Vinci. The myths persist because of the unconventional nature of his life. Leonardo was a painter, architect, sculptor, mathematician, engineer, musician, inventor, anatomist, geologist, botanist, cartographer, military...

  
• 05.05.2015

  HFM 119 | The Most Productive People in History, Part 2: Thomas Edison

  Thomas Edison is arguably the most prolific inventor in all of history, with 1,093 patents to his name. At one point Edison promised to turn out a minor invention every 10 days and a big thing every six months or...

  
• 05.04.2015

  HFM 118 | The Most Productive People in History, Part 1: Benjamin Franklin

  Benjamin Franklin was nothing if not diversified in his talents. The Founding Father was a printer, scientist, inventor, diplomat, postmaster general, educator, philosopher, entrepreneur, library curator, and America’s first researcher to win an international scientific reputation for his studies in...

  
• 04.20.2015

  HFM 117 | What Was Dental Hygiene Like During the Middle Ages?

  Medieval peasants had rotting teeth if they had any at all, right? Not all all. They not only had pretty good dental hygiene, but it was even better than ours today. For more from Tim O’Neil, check out these old...

  
• 04.06.2015

  HFM 116 | Americana: The Brazilian City Where the Confederacy Still Lives

  The United States has accepted immigrants throughout its history, but America has its emmigrants as well. Did you know there is a city in Brazil founded by Confederates who wanted to flee the U.S. during Reconstruction? Welcome to Americana, Brazil....

  
• 01.25.2015

  HFM 110 | Gunpowder started as an eternal-life elixir – The most useful inventions originally designed with a completely different purpose, part 3

  Gunpowder has killed more people than any other invention in history, but it was ironically invented by Chinese alchemists with the intention of helping people live forever. Like this podcast? Click here to subscribe to the podcast via iTunes

  
• 12.15.2014

  HFM 104 | Where Does the Phrase “On the Wagon” Come From?

  Why do drunks fall off the wagon while teetotalers stay on the wagon? Some say it has to do with an English tradition before execution. Others say it comes from America’s temperance movement. Find out which one is correct! Like...

  
• 12.01.2014

  HFM 102 | Kara Feyzi: The Ottoman Mafioso Who Controlled Bulgaria from 1792 to 1808

  The line between mafia and legitimate government can get very blurry. In the case of Kara Feyzi, an Ottoman bandit in the 19th century who practically controlled Bulgaria, the line was non-existent. Like this podcast? Click here to subscribe to...

  
• 11.03.2014

  HFM 094 | How The Ottomans Pushed Dozens of Ships Up a Hill To Conquer Constantinople in 1453: The Best Deceptive Tactics Used During War, Part 2

  How do you get your ships into an enemy harbor when it sits behind the strongest fortifications on earth and guarded by a massive sea chain? If you are Sultan Mehmed fighting the  Siege of Constantinople in 1453, you grease...

  
• 10.20.2014

  HFM 092 | Where Do Vampire Myths Come From?

  Vampires didn’t always sparkle or maintain a vegan diet of deer — they were once known as bloodthirsty killers. The myth of vampires goes back centuries and exists in many different cultures. But where does the myth originate? Are there...

  
• 09.01.2014

  HFM 085 | How Vaccines saved the Revolutionary War

  Debates over vaccines go back way further than Jenny McCarthy. And they have influenced history in ways we still don’t appreciate — chief among them helping America win the Revolutionary War. Like this podcast? Click here to subscribe to the...

  
• 08.18.2014

  HFM 083 | Anne Askew: The 16th Century Protestant Martyr and the Tower of London’s Only Female Victim

  Meet England’s 16th-century martyr who boldly challenged the government establishment for her faith. Think of Anne Askew as England’s Joan of Arc, but with less swordsmanship. Like this podcast? Click here to subscribe to the podcast via iTunes

  
• 08.11.2014

  HFM 082 | The President Who United a Fractured Washington, Paid Off the National Debt, and Grew America’s Colonies

  In this episode, we do a Paul Harvey-esque description of a U.S. president, where his identity isn’t revealed until the end. You know what the news is. In a minute, you’re going to hear the rest of the story! Like...

  
• 08.04.2014

  HFM 081 | What Exactly Did a Lady in Waiting Do?

  Ladies in waiting were required parts of any royal court. But why is the job so enduring — even up to the 21st century — when all they appeared to do was help the queen get dressed? Is there more...

  
• 07.28.2014

  HFM 080 | History’s Greatest Spies, Part 5: George Koval (1913-2006): The Soviet Nuclear Spy from Sioux City, Iowa

  George Koval was as American as they came — he was from Iowa, a World War II vet, and loved baseball…. Except for the fact that he stole nuclear secrets for the Soviets and launched the Cold War nuclear arms...

  
• 07.21.2014

  HFM 079 – History’s Greatest Spies, Part 4: Nancy Wake (1912-2011): The “White Mouse” of the French Resistance

  Nancy Wake was a World War II spy and saboteur who operated behind enemy lines to organize the French Resistance, helping soldiers and escaped prisoners flee the country. She was a high-society hostess-turned-decorated-war hero who led a guerrilla army of...

  
• 07.14.2014

  HFM 078 – History’s Greatest Spies, Part 3: Richard Sorge (1895-1944) The Soviet Spymaster

  Richard Sorge was a hard-drinking journalist and Nazi Party member, widely respected by the German embassy for his intuition of Japanese politics. By day he charmed German ambassadors in Tokyo and earning their trust to the point of accessing classified...

  
• 07.07.2014

  HFM 077 – History’s Greatest Spies, Part 2: Mata Hari (1876-1917): World War One’s Sweetest Honeypot

  Mata Hari was Europe’s most famous exotic dancer and courtesan in pre-World War I times, sleeping with high society’s most important politicians and military officers. She was also a spy and honey pot in World War I. But was she...

  
• 06.30.2014

  HFM 076 | History’s Greatest Spies, Part 1: Sir Francis Walsingham (1532-1590) On Her Majesty Elizabeth’s Secret Service

  Before James Bond had his M, Queen Elizabeth had her Francis Walsingham. Learn about the original spymaster, who uncovered multiple plots against Elizabeth in the 16th century and managed the extraordinary feat of preventing her assassination. Like this podcast? Click...

  
• 06.23.2014

  HFM 075 | Ancient Peoples That Are Still Around Today, Part 2: The Greeks

  Everyone knows the Greeks are important throughout history. But what is their secret for maintaining a language and culture for 3,000 years. It’s easier than you think — write books! Like this podcast? Click here to subscribe to the podcast...

  
• 06.16.2014

  HFM 074 | Ancient Peoples That Are Still Around Today, Part 1: The Chaldeans

  What if you met somebody claiming to be from the Roman Empire? You would hopefully disbelieve their sanity. But the idea of a modern person with a direct connection to an ancient civilization isn’t all that far-fetched. Today we look...

  
• 06.09.2014

  HFM 073 | The Biggest Technological Advances of the Civil War

  What do the telegraph, balloon surveillance, the submarine, land mines, machine guns, tin cans, and standard shoe sizes have in common? They became commonplace, thanks to the Civil War! Like this podcast? Click here to subscribe to the podcast via...

  
• 06.02.2014

  HFM 072 | A Million Ways to Die in the Middle Ages

  Think there are a million ways to die in the West? There are even more ways to die in the Middle Ages! They include, but are limited to, indigestion from eating an entire goose, being dragged 16 miles by a...

  
• 05.26.2014

  HFM 071 | What Archeology Tells us about Old Testament Jericho

  And the walls came tumbling down! Or did they? Today we step into the world of archeology and look at the evidence for and against the Biblical account of Israel’s conquest of the city of Jericho. Like this podcast? Click...

  
• 05.19.2014

  HFM 070 | Marozia of Rome: The Woman who Ruled the Papacy

  Despite what most people think about the Catholic Church in the Middle Ages, the pope wasn’t all that powerful. In fact — it was easy to manipulate him for your own ends. One such woman who did just that was...

  
• 05.12.2014

  HFM 069 | Why People on the Fringes and Borderlands of Empires Mattered Just as Much as Those Living in the Hinterlands

  The Varangians, Cossacks, and inhabitants of Ryukyu lived in very different places and times. The Varagians were Vikings that controlled trade between Arabia, Byzantium, and Europe during the 1000s and lived on the borders of Byzantium. The Cossacks lived on...

  
• 05.05.2014

  H5M 068 | How Iowa Conquered the World, Part 5: Why Iowa Standardized the English Language

  Why is it that all news broadcasters talk with a Midwestern accent? For many reasons, but partly because Iowa standardized the English language by sending lots of talent to California during Hollywood’s golden age. Like this podcast? Click here to...

  
• 04.28.2014

  HFM 067 | How Iowa Conquered the World, Part 4: Why Iowa Controls Your Political Destiny, Wherever You Live on Earth

  Iowans have more political power proportionally than anyone else on earth. Do you want to be the U.S. president? Prepare to spend months in all of Iowan’s 99 counties, meeting groups of 20 at Pizza Ranches, and shaking hands with...

  
• 04.21.2014

  HFM 066 | How Iowa Conquered the World, Part 3: Why Iowa is the Multicultural Center of the World

  You don’t think of diversity or multicultural when you think of Iowa — more likely, thoughts of middle aged white farmers in Carhartt overalls come to mind. But in this podcast, I will show that not only is Iowa more...

  
• 04.14.2014

  HFM 065 | How Iowa Conquered the World, Part 2: The State that Created the Global University System

  Did you graduate from college? Whether it was in America, the UK, Turkey, Brazil, or Kazakhstan, there is a strong chance that the direct inspiration for your university is Iowa State University — considered by coastal elites as a forgettable...

  
• 04.07.2014

  HFM 064 | How Iowa Conquered the World, Part 1: The State that Saved Billions of Lives in the 20th Century

  You probably didn’t know that Iowa saved over a billion lives in the 20th century. You also probably didn’t that Iowa is the greatest cultural force in the world. This is the first part of a podcast series in which...

  
• 03.31.2014

  HFM 063 | Explorers that Pushed the Boundaries of the Known World, Part 5.5: Ernest Shackleton’s Daring Anatarctic Rescue of His Stranded Crew

  Ernest Shackleton set out in a tiny 22-foot-long lifeboat with a few helpers to brave an 18-day voyage across open Antarctic sea in order to save his stranded crew. How did he manage to succeed despite the terrible odds against...

  
• 03.24.2014

  HFM 062 | Explorers that Pushed the Boundaries of the Known World, Part 5: Ernest Shackleton’s Frozen March at the Bottom of the World

  Ernest Shackleton’s attempted crossing of Antarctica and the disaster that befell the expedition led to one of the greatest moments of bravery in the 20th century. Find out about the terrible conditions his crew faced, and their daring rescue attempt...

  
• 03.17.2014

  HFM 061 | Explorers that Pushed the Boundaries of the Known World, Part 4:Richard Francis Burton (1821-1890) – Spy, Soldier, Linguist, Swordsman, Secret Pilgrim to Mecca

  Richard Francis Burton — sword fighter, explorer, learner of 29 languages, is quite possibly the real life World’s Most Interesting Man. Learn the many fascinating exploits of this Victorian traveler. Like this podcast? Click here to subscribe to the podcast...

  
• 03.10.2014

  HFM 060 | Explorers that Pushed the Boundaries of the Known World, Part 3: Ferdinand Magellan (1480-1521) – The Portuguese Navigator’s Terrifying Voyage Across an Endless Sea

  Everyone knows that Magellan’s circumnavigation of the globe was hard, but they don’t know how hard. Nor do they realize how tragic and unnecessary his death was. Learn more about the explorer that boldly ventured into an ocean that took...

  
• 03.03.2014

  HFM 059 | Explorers that Pushed the Boundaries of the Known World, Part 2: Admiral Ming Zheng He, China’s Master of the Seas (1371-1433)

  What would have happened if China discovered America before Europe? More importantly, what would have happened if it colonized America? We can’t know, but what we do know is that China discovered much of the world at the high of...

  
• 02.24.2014

  HFM 058 | Explorers that Pushed the Boundaries of the Known World, Part 1: Marco Polo – Opening Europe’s Window to the East

  Marco Polo is more than a game you play at the YMCA pool — he spent 20 years traveling throughout the farthest domains of the Mongolian Empire, wrote a best-selling travel account, and permanently altered Europe’s mental map of the...

  
• 02.17.2014

  HFM 057 | Dark Ages in History, Part 3: Europe’s Collapse in 476 AD – And its Rise that Happened Much Sooner than the 1500s

  We all know that the Dark Ages in Europe began after the fall of Rome and continued until the Renaissance in the 1400-1500s. But what if what we all know is all wrong? Find out when, how, and why the...