History Loves Company

She was the largest ship of her day and, when she was christened, her name reflected this. Born out of a bitter rivalry between the two largest shipping firms in Britain, the 'Titanic' was meant to be a bigger and better class of ocean liner that was meant to exemplify human achievement and ingenuity. But then, tragedy struck when, on her maiden voyage, she struck an iceberg and sank beneath the icy waters of the North Atlantic. Just what went wrong to cause such a heartbreaking event to occur? Was it nature or was human error more to blame? Tune in to this week's episode to find out.

The ancient city of Palenque, located in the state of Chiapas in Southern Mexico, is considered the greatest and best-preserved Mayan city ever found. Once an independent city-state on the fringes of the Mayan world, it rose from obscurity to its height in the 7th Century when its then-ruler, K'inich Janaab Pakal (also known as Pacal the Great) ascended to the throne and set about building it up into a commercial and cultural hub. Though successive generations would continue his legacy of greatness, by the late 8th Century, it had all gone the way of the dinosaurs and the site was abandoned. When was Palenque founded? Who was Pacal the Great? And how have the two become inextricably linked? Find out in this fascinating episode!

April 1st each year is an occasion in which practical jokes and mischievous mayhem of every kind are played out against unsuspecting "victims." Known as April Fools' Day, its specific origins are unknown but stem from a myriad of sources that span the course of human history. Tune in to this fun episode to find out all about it!

It was exactly two hundred years ago today that Greece declared itself independent from the Ottoman Empire (based in present-day Turkey), but the road to freedom was a long and arduous one for the Greek people. Having been absorbed into Turkish sovereignty way back in 1453, it would take nearly four hundred years for them to make any headway, thanks in large part to major regrouping efforts as well as help from other European powers. What's the history behind Ottoman rule of Greece? When did revolutionary fervor really take hold? And how long did the conflict last? Find out in this special bicentennial commemorative celebrating Greek Independence Day!

Saint Patrick's Day is celebrated annually on March 17th which, tradition dictates, was the day of its namesake's passing way back in 461. Despite its religious origins, it has become a secular holiday as well in which its revelers celebrate all things Irish. But who was the man whose name graces the holiday itself? What's his story? And how did he become the most beloved national figure in Irish culture and history? Tune in to this week's episode to find out!

Japan is no stranger to earthquakes. Being on the cusp of two major tectonic plates, they are a frequent, albeit inconvenient and frightening, part of life there. But the one that took place exactly ten years ago today quite literally shook the island nation to its core, as it was proof positive of just how devastating and fatal these natural disasters can be. What is the science behind the Tо̄hoku Earthquake? What made it particularly lethal? And how were the government and people affected by it? Find out in this special edition of the "History Loves Company" podcast.

By the 1950s, the law known as separate but equal had become second-nature to Southern Blacks. Having originated in the aftermath of the American Civil War, it was proposed by Southern Democrats to maintain continued oppression over the newly-emancipated African Americans. Though there was some opposition in the near-century that followed, it wasn't until 1955 that the fight against it finally gained some traction when a Montgomery, Alabama-based seamstress named Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a White rider on a city bus. But who was Rosa Parks? What is the history surrounding the notorious separate but equal law? And how did Parks' heroic actions launch the Civil Rights Movement? Find out in the final Black History Month installment of the "History Loves Company" podcast.

African Americans have fought in all of America's major conflicts since the inception. By the outbreak of World War Two, they'd more than proven themselves as skilled fighters, though they faced a new challenge. The racist misconception that Blacks were incapable of flying or learning how to operate aircraft led them to enlist in President Franklin Roosevelt's civilian flight program, which he expanded in the years leading up to America's entry into the conflict. Deployed to North Africa and then to Italy, these African American figther pilots proved themselves as they took down hundreds of enemy aircraft within the span of two years. Who were the Tuskegee Airmen? What led to the formation of this special group? And how did their heroism change the U.S. military forever? Find out in this week's enlightening episode!

African American literature as we know it came about just prior to, during and after the American Civil War, but did you know that, a century before, a Black woman became the first international literary sensation? Phillis Wheatley was a slave who was given the rare opportunity of receiving an education from her owners. She soon displayed amazing prowess as a wordsmith and became a household name not just in Colonial America, but in Britain as well. Who was Phillis Wheatley and how did she pave the way for African American writers who followed? Tune in to this week's episode to find out!

The practice of slavery in the United States was as old as the country itself. The first African slaves arrived in the Jamestown Colony of Virginia in 1619. Even then, there were stories of runaway or escaped slaves, but it wasn't until the late 18th Century that a concerted effort arose to lead them to safety. For about seventy years, the Underground Railroad served to help fugitive slaves seek freedom in the Northern free states, Canada and even Mexico, but what are the origins of this gateway to freedom? Tune in to find out.