The U.S. was cast into a spiralling panic following the economic depression of 1873, and waves of paramilitary violence swept through the south as the debates surrounding Reconstruction swirled on. Amidst this uncertainty, the government, under the leadership of Ulysses S. Grant and his chief advisors, began drawing up a cold blooded plan to strike into the heart of Montana and settle the issue of the Plains Indians once and for all. Meanwhile, the drumbeats of war were sounding amongst the newly united Lakota and Cheyenne themselves, spearheaded by their war chiefs Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull, as the pressures of white settlers and the railroads increased. Their numbers swelled in the wake of a failed winter campaign lead by General Crook, as swarms of refugees accumulated into Sitting Bull's village - the largest assembly of Lakota ever seen on the Plains. The stage seemed set for a mighty reckoning in the summer of 1876, as the Federal government geared up for another assault. Much to his delight George Custer, spared from the brink of disaster by his reckless impetuosity, was recruited to the 7th Cavalry marching on one of the armies closing in on the Lakota encampment near the Little Bighorn River…the Battle of the Rosebud that followed would see a six hour struggle of monumental violence.

Join Dominic and Tom as they discuss the events and battles that lead up to the Battle of the Little Bighorn; Grant’s eccentric generals, and Custer’s impulsive escapades in the build up to the final evening of his life…

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*The Rest Is History LIVE in 2024*

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Producer: Theo Young-Smith

Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett

Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor

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In the wake of the barbaric Washita River massacre, George Custer found himself drifting; addicted to gambling, at odds with his wife, and failing in his efforts to take advantage of the American gold rush in New York. Finally, Custer was sent to Kentucky to suppress the terrible post war fighting there, but again found himself alienated from many of his companions by his controversial views on Reconstruction. Restless and dissatisfied, the chance for danger and action finally came Custer’s way, thanks to the ambitions of the Northern Pacific Railway. With plans to build it right across Lakota territory, the venture was intended to and would fatally threaten their way of life, by spelling the death of the bison. With this threat on the horizon, the mighty Lakota war leaders, Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse lead violent raids against the survey party sent to prospect the land, hampering and halting their efforts. So it was that in 1873 another expedition was sent, and with it went George Custer, bringing him into contact for the first time with the two mighty warriors who would shape his destiny. A fearful, bloody game of cat and mouse would ensue, culminating in an epic confrontation…

Join Dominic and Tom as they discuss the evolution of Custer’s career leading up to his first legendary encounter with Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse, the incremental creep of the Northern Pacific Railway, and the U.S. Government’s secret plan to defeat the Lakota Sioux, once and for all.  

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*The Rest Is History LIVE in 2024*

Tom and Dominic are back onstage this summer, at Hampton Court Palace in London!

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Twitter:

@TheRestHistory

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@dcsandbrook

Producer: Theo Young-Smith

Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett

Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor

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"What would you do if your home was attacked? You would stand up like a brave man and defend it. That is our story." 

Following the bloody Fetterman Fight, which saw the Lakota warlord Crazy Horse and his warriors ambush and massacre American troops, the American public was left stunned, its government and civilian population hungry for revenge. In the wake of this a new treaty was signed, further restricting the Lakota Sioux’s freedoms, but nevertheless signed by their political leader, Red Cloud. Still, many would not be constrained to reservations, and instead sought war. Chief amongst them was Sitting Bull, a legendary, mythologised figure of the Great American Plains and the Wild West - the embodiment of a vanished age. Born into the Lakota Sioux, and a world of shifting allegiances, violent initiation rituals, and intransigent spiritualities, as a young man Sitting Bull’s herculean destiny was sung to him by an eagle. The career that followed in his war against the U.S. government would exceed even the greatest of epics. By 1860 he was paramount leader of the Sioux Nation, when news reached him of the imminent arrival of a survey party, lead by none other than George Armstrong Custer…

Join Dominic and Tom as they discuss Sitting Bull’s rise, his extraordinary upbringing, and his stand against the increasing encroachment of railroads into his homelands.

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Twitter:

@TheRestHistory

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Producer: Theo Young-Smith

Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett

Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor

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Of all the great characters entangled in the story of George A. Custer and the American Indian Wars, few are as captivating as Crazy Horse. A mighty warrior of the Lakota Sioux, and a tremendous military tactician, he was a charismatic but enigmatic figure. The Sioux, of which the Lakota are a subculture, are groups of Native American tribes and First Nations people from the Great Plains. Their way of life was transformed by the introduction of horses to North America, but their nomadic lifestyle and dependence upon buffalo hunting was severely threatened by the imposition of telegraph lines, forts and then railroads upon their lands. So it was that, reluctant to be confined to the reservations outlined for them by the U.S. Government, they decided to fight back, under the joint leadership of the politically savvy Red Cloud, and the fated, fearless, tactically brilliant, Crazy Horse… 

Join Dominic and Tom as they plunge into the world of the Lakota Sioux, looking at the history of their people in the American plains, their rich, complex culture and often gory rituals, and the fascinating characters who would challenge George Custer and the U.S. Government. 

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Tom and Dominic are back onstage this summer, at Hampton Court Palace in London!

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Twitter:

@TheRestHistory

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Producer: Theo Young-Smith

Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett

Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor

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With the American Civil War coming to a close in April 1865, George Custer, cavalry commander in the Union army, and a man of dubious political leanings for a unionist officer, was sent to Texas. Reckless, daring and bloodthirsty, the conclusion of the war came as a disappointment to him. Then, having allied himself with the new, anti-Reconstruction American president, Andrew Johnson, Custer alienated himself from one of the most important men in the country: Ulysses S. Grant. As such he found himself exiled to the murderous but dull post of Kansas. There, he and the 7th Cavalry were charged with handling the looming conflict with the Cheyenne; an indigenous people of the Great Plains, whose lives and culture had been radically jeopardised by modernisation, and the encroachment of the railroads into their lands. While some Cheyenne were inclined to negotiate with Washington, their more zealous warriors, the ‘Dog Soldiers’, were determined to fight and destroy the settlers, sending bloodthirsty raids into federal forts. The campaigns that followed saw acts of terrific violence, culminating in a terrible, brutal massacre…

Join Tom and Dominic as they discuss Custer’s first forays into the gruesome and tragic American Indian Wars: his political missteps, southern adventures, romantic rollercoasters, and battles with the remarkable horse-riding, buffalo hunting Cheyenne. 

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*The Rest Is History LIVE in 2024*

Tom and Dominic are back onstage this summer, at Hampton Court Palace in London!

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Twitter:

@TheRestHistory

@holland_tom

@dcsandbrook

Producer: Theo Young-Smith

Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett

Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor

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“Come on, you Wolverines!”

The story of the American Indian Wars of 1862-68 is an enthralling tale of hubris, politics, recklessness, and the merciless assault of industrialisation and modernity on an old world, nearly extinguished. An immense tragedy, it is also a story of great adventure, with formidable heroes and villains on both sides. No two figures encapsulate this better than the enigmatic, strategically brilliant Lakota war leader, Crazy Horse, and his foil on the side of the Unites States government, cavalry commander George A. Custer, whose daring, panache and egotism has immortalised him in the annals of American history. From the bloody battles of the American Civil War and the snake-pit of Reconstruction politics, to his ruthless campaigns against the Native American and First Nation peoples of the Great Plains, and his ensuing, mysterious demise, Custer’s life is a thrilling mix of heroics, brutality, madness and gore. 

Join Dominic and Tom as they delve into the thrilling American Indian Wars, and the life of George A. Custer. From his flamboyant and salacious youth, to his daredevil performance fighting for the Union army, and his entry into the fascinating world of nineteenth century American politics. 

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Tom and Dominic are back onstage this summer, at Hampton Court Palace in London!

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Twitter:

@TheRestHistory

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@dcsandbrook

Producer: Theo Young-Smith

Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett

Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor

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The Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, the Habsburg dynasty's mightiest ruler, was at once King of Spain, Archduke of Austria, Lord of the Netherlands and Duke of Burgundy. With a lineage supposedly stretching back to Noah’s Ark, and a name born in Ancient Rome, the Habsburgs are one of the most influential dynasties in all of European history, shaping and changing the course of nations and empires. The first great Habsburg, Rudolph, was made King of the Romans in 1273, though it was from 1500, through a series of tactical marriages, that their ascendancy truly began. Key among these was the marriage of Maximilian I, Charles V’s grandfather, to the powerful heiress Mary of Burgundy. The resulting gigantic Habsburg dominion would eventually split into two dynastic branches, located in Spain and Vienna, forging remarkable, multinational empires, that dominated central Europe until the twentieth century. But is there any truth to the claim that the Habsburg’s notorious proclivity for inbreeding resulted in genetic deformities that would see the downfall of the family?

In this week’s episode, Dominic and Tom are joined by none other than Eduard Habsburg-Lothringen, to discuss his illustrious family’s tumultuous history, its most famous members, strange death rituals, romantic legends, and the seven rules he’s derived from the stories of the House of Habsburg.

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*The Rest Is History LIVE in 2024*

Tom and Dominic are back onstage this summer, at Hampton Court Palace in London!

Buy your tickets here: therestishistory.com

Twitter:

@TheRestHistory

@holland_tom

@dcsandbrook

Producer: Theo Young-Smith

Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett

Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

"The First Emperor will die and his land will be divided….”

The First Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, left behind him a monumental legacy: an Empire which would last millennia, the foundations of the Great Wall of China, and an eerie Terracotta Army - 8000 warriors who would protect the Emperor in the afterlife. His deeply autocratic reign, and the brutal tactics he used to conquer rival states and establish the Chinese Empire, have seen him cast as the archetype of the “bad emperor”. And when compared with Qin Shi Huang, Mao boasted that “when you berate us for imitating his despotism, we are happy to agree!”. But was Chinese unification under one empire inevitable, or did it need a ruthless figure to centralise power? And to what terrifying lengths did the first Emperor go to secure immortality…?

Join Tom and Dominic as they discuss the fantastical First Emperor of China - one of the world’s most powerful and formidable rulers. From warring kingdoms and ruthless suppressions, to necromancy, mythical beasts, doom-ridden prophecies, and even 20th century Chinese Communism. 

*The Rest Is History LIVE in 2024*

Tom and Dominic are back onstage this summer, at Hampton Court Palace in London!

Buy your tickets here: therestishistory.com

Twitter:

@TheRestHistory

@holland_tom

@dcsandbrook

Producer: Theo Young-Smith

Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett

Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor

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Rumours surrounding Lord Byron’s scandalous divorce rippled throughout the world. Finally, he had no choice but to abandon England in disgrace and flee to Italy, an exile but still the most famous man in Europe. Then, in the summer of 1816 in Geneva, he met a young poet named Percy Bysshe Shelley, and one of the most iconic literary friendships of all time was sparked. A handsome republican with an enthusiasm for free-love, Shelley immediately attracted Byron’s admiration. With him, however, was his sister-in-law Claire, a former lover of Byron’s, pregnant with his child whom he detested. Also, Shelley’s wife, Mary. So it was that on a stormy night of ghost stories, another great masterpiece was born…However, as time passed and in the wake of a series of tragedies, the aging Byron grew increasingly isolated and restive, his thoughts turning once more to Greece, that ancient land of myth and legend. Approached by the London Greek Committee to help support the cause of Greek independence, Byron set off once more for Kefalonia. Was it doom or destiny that beckoned?

Join Tom and Dominic for the grand finale of their gripping journey through the life of one of history’s most darkly intriguing figures, Lord Byron. From his English exile, Italian sojourn and final love affair, to the greatest adventure of them all...

*The Rest Is History LIVE in 2024*

Tom and Dominic are back onstage this summer, at Hampton Court Palace in London!

Buy your tickets here: therestishistory.com

Twitter:

@TheRestHistory

@holland_tom

@dcsandbrook

Producer: Theo Young-Smith

Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett

Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor

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Good God I am surely in hell!

Upon Lord Byron’s return to England and the publication of Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage, he became one of the most notorious men in Europe and the world's first celebrity. The next period of his life would be rocked by shocking scandal, moral depravity and sexual outrage. Pale and sickly but devastatingly romantic, he attracted a dedicated fan base, the likes of which had never been seen. Chief amongst these was the eccentric and androgynous Lady Caroline Lamb, whose affair with Byron would inflame London society and push both to the brink of insanity. So extreme was Caroline’s obsession that upon the advice of her mother-in-law, the cunning and cruel Lady Melbourne known as "the Spider", Byron set out to find himself a wife. The woman he chose was an unlikely candidate: a mathematician, Annabella Milbanke, who Byron hoped would redeem his devilish disposition. Their marriage would be blighted by cruelty, immorality and a particularly pernicious breed of infidelity. For, one other woman now played a central role in Byron’s life: Augusta Leigh, his lover, and sister…

Join Tom and Dominic as they discuss Lord Byron’s tumultuous romantic love affairs and marriage; culminating in a scandal so shocking and sexually licentious that it would drive him from England. 

*The Rest Is History LIVE in 2024*

Tom and Dominic are back onstage this summer, at Hampton Court Palace in London!

Buy your tickets here: therestishistory.com

Twitter:

@TheRestHistory

@holland_tom

@dcsandbrook

Producer: Theo Young-Smith

Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett

Executive Producers: Jack Davenport + Tony Pastor

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices