In this episode, we look at some of the factors and effects of centralization in pre-modern European states such as England, Spain, and the Ottoman Empire.  We also briefly analyze why the German-centered Holy Roman Empire failed to centralize effectively ..read more

This episode is a little different in that I just introduce a series that I am planning to develop.  In this series, I will look at, compare, and contrast different types of communism.  Communism, like so many other broad topics in history, is not a monolith.  There is variation and change, and there are many different manifestations of communist ideology, with the most well-known ones being Soviet Stalinism and Chinese Maoism.  There are other forms of communism as well, such as Ho Chi Minh Thought, Juche, and the forms of communism that governed Yugoslavia, Cambodia, and ..read more

In this episode, I interview Professor Natalia Telepneva.  She is a Lecturer in International History at the University of Stratchlyde.  Her specialty is the Cold War-era Soviet Union and socialism, with a specific focus on Africa.  And today we will discuss her first book, "Cold War Liberation: The Soviet Union and the Collapse of the Portuguese Empire in Africa, 1961-1975," in which she details the roles of Soviet and even Czechoslovak bureaucrats and spies in the anti-colonialist wars in Portugal's African colonies of Guinea-Bissau, Angola, and Mozambique.  We will talk ..read more

In this episode, I go a little bit beyond what I discussed in the last entry.  Last time, I used Hayden White's literary framework to try and categorize an old Russian history textbook.  Today I critique White's framework a bit further.  I also talk more broadly about two types of historical works - historical research and historical fiction.  I argue that, contrary to White's position, historians are different from novelists.  I also give some cautions that must be considered when crafting or reading historical fiction.   Apologies for a mistake at about timestam ..read more

Today I analyze one of my old Russian history textbooks, A History of Russia, the Soviet Union, and Beyond: Sixth Edition, 2002.  I use the literary framework of Hayden White to categorize the textbook, and I give some of my thoughts on it ..read more

In the podcast's second episode with a guest, we sit down with CJ Leung, who hosts the "Cool History Bros" Channel on YouTube.  "Cool History Bros" presents deep topics in Chinese and East Asian history and literature in a lighthearted way, and it is a great resource for learning about the region's history.  Today on the podcast, CJ talks with us about Confucianism, which is more commonly known as Ruism in Asia.  We discuss the philosophy's origins, misconceptions about it that have been transmitted since Jesuit missionaries' encounters with it, and how Ruism was historically ap ..read more

Welcome to the 40th episode of the podcast!  Thank you for all of your listening and support.  It has been great, and I look forward to producing many more episodes for your listening. In this episode, we will look into Russian-Serb relations during the Breakup of Yugoslavia.  We will look into some shared history and memory, but we'll especially see how the common faith of Orthodox Christianity played a role in how these societies saw the Yugoslavian War.   ..read more

In this (very short) episode, we will look into Leo Tolstoy's thoughts about what makes a "good civilization" as he expressed in Hadji Murad, which was his short novel about the Imperial-era Russian wars in Chechnya ..read more

In this episode we will look at Soviet filmmaker Sergei Eisenstein's "Ivan the Terrible."  Here I detail three different interpretations of the film: the Stalinist view, the "subversive affirmation" opinion, and the Renaissance perspective.  And I will describe my thoughts on which interpretation makes the most sense ..read more

What were some of the contemporary concerns around Ronald Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) proposed missile defense system?  In this episode we will take a broad look at attitudes towards the "Star Wars" program, both in support and against.  What did some Americans think of it?  Why did it concern the Soviet Union as well as some among America's allies ..read more