Although they wielded tremendous power in Spain for 184 years, all was not well within the mighty House of Habsburg. Its members were plagued by unusual maladies and physical deformities, including bulbous lower lips and the excessively protruding chins now known as the 'Habsburg Jaw'. What was going on, and what can we take away from their story ourselves?

Main Source:

The Collections of Museo Del Prado: https://www.museodelprado.es/en/the-collection

Additional Sources:

Ansede, Manuel, Research Confirms that Intermarrying Caused the ‘Habsburg Jaw’ in Spanish Royals, El Pais Online (December 2019). Retrieved from https://english.elpais.com/elpais/2019/12/03/inenglish/1575367613_121836.html [Accessed 03/2021].

Dimuro, Gina, The Habsburg Jaw And The Cost Of Royal Inbreeding, All That’s Interesting (June 2018). Retrieved from https://allthatsinteresting.com/habsburg-jaw [Accessed: 03/2021].

García-Escudero López, A, Arruza Echevarría, A, Padilla Nieva, J, Puig Giró, R., ‘Charles II: From Spell to Genitourinary Pathology’, History of Urology Vol. 62, No. 3 (2009).

Holloway, James, Royal Portraits Confirm "Habsburg Jaw" was Caused by Inbreeding, New Atlas (December 2019). Retrieved from https://newatlas.com/science/habsburg-jaw-inbreeding/ [Accessed: 03/2021].

Khan, Razib, Inbreeding and the Downfall of the Spanish Hapsburgs, Discover Magazine (April 2009). Retrieved from https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/inbreeding-and-the-downfall-of-the-spanish-hapsburgs [Accessed: 03/2021].

Turliuc MD, Cucu AI, Perciaccante A, Tosolini G, De Luca S, Costachescu B, Costea CF, ‘Hydrocephalus of King Charles II of Spain, the Bewitched King’, European Neurology Vol. 81 No. 1-2 (2019).

HMS Carcass, HMS Fairy, HMS Truant...over the centuries, the Royal Navy has chosen some peculiar names for its ships. From HMS Cherub to HMS Lucifer and everything in between, these are some of the most unforgettable, along with the weird and wonderful stories behind them.

Main Source:

The Terror, AMC (2021, USA).

Additional Sources:

Bacon, Admiral Sir Reginald, The Dover Patrol 1915-1917: Volume 1 (1919). Transcription retrieved from Naval-History.net, accessible at https://www.naval-history.net/WW1Book-Adm_Bacon-Dover_Patrol.htm#2 [Accessed: 03/2021].

Christenson, Scot, From Vindictive to Dainty: The Extremes of Royal Navy Ship Names, US Naval Institute (2019). Retrieved from https://www.navalhistory.org/2019/02/01/from-vindictive-to-dainty-the-extremes-of-royal-navy-ship-names [Accessed: 03/2021].

Unknown, Angel Gabriel Versus The Devil: The Historic Ship Names Out Of Place Today, Forces.net (2020). Retrieved from https://www.forces.net/military-life/fun/angel-gabriel-versus-devil-historic-ship-names-out-place-today [Accessed: 03/2021].

Unknown, From HMS Cockchafer to HMS Pansy: Why Would You Call A Ship That?!, Forces.net (2020). Retrieved from https://www.forces.net/heritage/naval-history/hms-cockchafer-hms-pansy-why-would-call-ship [Accessed: 03/2021].

Unknown, ‘Secrets Behind the Names That Sail the Seas’, The War Illustrated Vol. 8 No. 203 (March 1945).

Xubova, Xenia, 10 Navy Ship Names That Might Raise Eyebrows, Forces.net (2020). Retrieved from https://www.forces.net/services/navy/10-navy-ship-names-might-raise-eyebrows [Accessed: 03/2021].

Some of history’s most infamous prisons - Alcatraz, Robben Island, the Dry Guillotine - have been established on naturally beautiful but hopelessly desolate islands. How can their secrets help us to make sense of our experiences in 2020/21?

Main Sources:

Belbenoit, Rene, Dry Guillotine: Fifteen Years Amongst the Living Dead translated by Rambo, P. (New York: 1938). Available at https://archive.org/details/Dry_Guillotine/mode/2up 

Grosser, Philip, Uncle Sam's Devil's Island: Experiences of a Conscientious Objector in America during the World War (Boston: 1933). Available at https://hdl.handle.net/2027/mdp.39015069746421 

Additional Sources:

Frost, Natasha, Quarantined for Life: The Tragic History of US Leprosy Colonies, The History Channel (2020). Retrieved from https://www.history.com/news/leprosy-colonies-us-quarantine [Accessed: 03/2021].

Humphrys, Julian, Napoleon on St Helena: How Exile Became the French Emperor’s Last Battle, BBC History Extra. Retrieved from https://www.historyextra.com/period/georgian/napoleon-where-exile-why-st-helena-death-murder/ [Accessed: 03/2021].

Larkins, Karen, Ten Infamous Islands of Exile, The Smithsonian Magazine (2010). Retrieved from https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/ten-infamous-islands-of-exile-1947938/ [Accessed: 03/2021].

St Louis, Regis, The Wall of Tears in the Galapagos, G Adventures (2017). Retrieved from https://www.gadventures.com/blog/wall-tears-galapagos/ [Accessed: 03/2021].

Unknown, Devil’s Island, History Hit (2020). Retrieved from https://www.historyhit.com/locations/devils-island/ [Accessed: 03/2021].

Unknown, Robben Island, UNESCO. Retrieved from https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/916 [Accessed: 03/2021].

Unknown, The Rock, Federal Bureau of Prisons. Retrieved from https://www.bop.gov/about/history/alcatraz.jsp [Accessed: 03/2021].

Some of the most poignant questions, sage advice and heartrending pleas ever received by American presidents have come via children’s letters. These are some of the most memorable from over the last century - compelling reminders of the wit, wisdom and political power of youth!

Main Source:

Laskas, Jeanne Marie, To Obama With Love, Joy, Hate and Despair (London: 2018).

Additional Sources:

Letter to President Franklin D Roosevelt retrieved from https://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/active_learning/explorations/children_depression/12yearold.cfm [Accessed: 02/2021}.

Letter to President Kennedy retrieved from https://jfk.blogs.archives.gov/2017/12/21/its-cold-war-outside/ [Accessed: 02/2021}.

Letter to President Nixon retrieved from https://cpanel.ischool.illinois.edu/~gtg2/omeka2/items/show/53 [Accessed: 02/2021}.

Sir Thomas More, once Lord High Chancellor of England, was publicly executed in 1535 - but the fall of the axe only marked the beginning of the adventures of his severed head. What insight can this bizarre story give us into public shaming culture today? Thanks to William Weingarten for help with researching this episode. 

Main Sources:

Mantel, Hilary, Wolf Hall (London: 2009).

Mantel, Hilary, Bring Up the Bodies (London: 2012).

Mantel, Hilary, The Mirror and the Light (London: 2020).

Additional Sources:

Bridgett, T.E., The Life and Writings of Sir Thomas More, Lord Chancellor of England and Martyr under Henry VIII (London: 1892).

Simkin, John, Thomas More, Spartacus Educational. Retrieved from https://spartacus-educational.com/TUDmoreT.htm [Accessed: 02/2020].

Stubbs, John, John Donne: The Reformed Soul (New York: 2007).

Weiring, Maria, Relics of Sts. Thomas More and John Fisher Draw Crowds to Cathedral, The Catholic Spirit (27 June 2016). Retrieved from https://thecatholicspirit.com/news/local-news/relics-of/ [Accessed: 02/2021].

It's not Japan. It isn't Germany. And it's not Vietnam, either. This is the story of the nation devastated by the so-called 'Secret War' - when it was relentlessly bombarded with 2 million tons of ordnance - and the people who are still living with the consequences today.

Main Source:

Rhodes, Ben, The World As It Is (London: 2018).

Additional Sources:

Becker, Rachel A., Video Clip: Meet the Giant Rats that are Sniffing Out Landmines, National Geographic (7 October 2015). Available at https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2015/10/151006-giant-rats-landmines-cambodia-science-animals/ [Accessed: 02/20201].

Boland, Rosita, Death from Below in the World’s Most Bombed Country, The Irish Times (13 May 2017). Retrieved from https://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/asia-pacific/death-from-below-in-the-world-s-most-bombed-country-1.3078351 [Accessed: 02/2021].

De Sam Lazaro, Fred, Video Clip: How Giant African Rats are Helping Uncover Deadly Landmines in Cambodia, PBS (10 September 2019). Available at https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/how-giant-african-rats-are-helping-uncover-deadly-land-mines-in-cambodia [Accessed: 02/2021].

O’Connor, Juliette, Bombies: Legacies of the Secret War in Laos, The London School of Economics. Retrieved from https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lseih/2020/02/11/bombies-legacies-of-the-secret-war-in-laos/ [Accessed: 02/2021].

Rotondi, Jessica Pearce, Why Laos Has Been Bombed More Than Any Other Country, History Channel. Retrieved from https://www.history.com/news/laos-most-bombed-country-vietnam-war [Accessed: 02/2021].

Unknown, Geneva Accords on Laos, The New York Times (7 March 1970). Digitized article retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/1970/03/07/archives/geneva-accords-on-laos.html [Accessed: 02/2021].

Unknown, Laos: Barack Obama regrets 'biggest bombing in history', BBC News. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-37286520 [Accessed: 02/2021].

Unknown, Secret War in Laos, Legacies of War. Retrieved from http://legaciesofwar.org/about-laos/secret-war-laos/ [Accessed: 02/2021].

The centuries-old tale of a creature moulded from clay and brought to life as an obedient servant and fierce protector - although that isn't how the story ends. What can the golem of Jewish folklore teach us about the ethics of artificial intelligence today? Thanks to William Weingarten for help with researching and fact-checking the information in this episode.

Main Sources:

Wecker, Helene, The Golem and the Djinni (London: 2013).

Der Golem: Wie Er In Die Welt Kam, Directed by Carl Boese and Paul Wegener, Universum Film (1920, Germany).

Additional Sources:

Cooper, Marilyn, ‘Jewish Word: Golem: A Mutable Monster’ Moment Magazine (July-August 2017). Retrieved from https://momentmag.com/jewish-word-golem/ [Accessed: 02/2021].

Michaelson, Jay, ‘Golem. Making Men of Clay: Can Imitating God Extend to the Creative Realm?’, My Jewish Learning. Retrieved from https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/golem/ [Accessed 02/2021].

Samson, Shmuel Erez, Golem: A Man Made of Mud (Online Ebook: 2018).

Storied (2019), Golem: The Mysterious Clay Monster of Jewish Lore: Monstrum. Available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCfOH_RKgmU [Accessed 02/2021].

TED-Ed (2015), The Ethical Dilemma of Self-Driving Cars - Patrick Lin. Available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixIoDYVfKA0 [Accessed 02/2021].

The story of the fabulous and forgotten Philippe I, Duke of Orleans - a royal son who was brought up as a daughter, and a complex figure who can teach us plenty about our modern-day understanding of masculinity. 

Main Source: 

Versailles, Canal+ (2015, France).

Additional Sources:

Harper, J. and von Goeth, A., Louis XIV, the Real Sun King (South Yorkshire: 2018).

Unknown, Philippe de France, Frere Unique de Roi, Party Like 1660. Retrieved from https://partylike1660.com/philippe-de-france-frere-unique-du-roi/ [Accessed: 01/2021].

The story of how pesky pigeons helped the Allies to victory in World War II - and why that's relevant to our approach to climate change today.

Main Sources:

Corera, G., Secret Pigeon Service: Operation Columba, Resistance and the Struggle to Liberate Europe (Glasgow: 2018).

Day, J., ‘Operation Columba’, London Review of Books Vol. 41 No. 7 (April 2019).

Additional Sources: 

Unknown, Hero Pigeon's WWII Medal on Show, BBC News. Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/hampshire/4600865.stm [Accessed 01/2021].

Unknown, The Pigeon: Britain’s Most Misunderstood Bird?, BBC Radio 4. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/40ngTyz4RqxzRtZ5Cgy4lyt/the-pigeon-britain-s-most-misunderstood-bird [Accessed 01/2021].

Unknown, Pigeons in War, The Royal Pigeon Racing Association. Retrieved from https://www.rpra.org/pigeon-history/pigeons-in-war/ [Accessed 01/2021].

British Pathe (2014), D-Day Fliers Decorated 1944. Available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msqgZFvQk_E [Accessed 01/2021].