The Redcoat History Podcast
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The podcast for military history geeks and people with a passion for good stories.
The Redcoat History Podcast
1w ago
Henry Hook VC has been called the most famous private soldier in British military history.
Does the name ring a bell? I’m sure it does - he was the bad lad in the film Zulu.
We’ve spoken about him before on the show but today we are going deep, learning more about his life and about the actions that lead to his Victoria Cross at the Defence of Rorke’s Drift.
We have a brilliant interview today with well-known historian Neil Thornton.
Neil is the author of numerous military history books. His latest details the life of Hooky. . . Who was he really? Was he tea-total? Did his wife think he ..read more
The Redcoat History Podcast
2w ago
Today I am joined by Matthew Taylor to discuss The Corps of Colonial Marines…Escaped black American slaves who joined the British cause during the War of 1812.
The unit was a force multiplier - men who knew the battlefields like the back of their hand and were very highly motivated.
Not only were they an important part of the British war effort but their descendants still make up a unique ethnic group in the Caribbean.
Stay tuned till the end to find out about the survivors of the unit who continued to fight the Americans under the union flag - even after the war was over.
Matt's book can be p ..read more
The Redcoat History Podcast
3w ago
The Sepoys on the Western Front…often praised - sometimes derided.
Were they lions in the trenches or did they fail the big test against the Germans?
Were they terrified by artillery, did a huge number deliberately wound themselves, and could they operate without command and control from their British officers?
These are all thorny questions and ones which we will be examining closely today.
To discuss the topic I am joined by friend of the show David Snape.
He has written a book called A Tiger Loose on an Ice Floe - all about the Ferozepore Brigade on the Western Front in 1914-15.
If you want ..read more
The Redcoat History Podcast
1M ago
The British Army - those famous redcoats, cavalrymen and green clad riflemen - became surprisingly adept at fighting small wars of empire during the Victorian Era.
We won war after war and battled enemies from across the globe.
But it wasn’t all one way traffic.
Yes, I know it’s painful but there were quite a few defeats for the British army.
Today we are looking at five times the British army were defeated during the Victorian era.
You might be able to guess some of them in advance but stay tuned till the end to discover which defeat we consider to be the worst and why they were all worse tha ..read more
The Redcoat History Podcast
1M ago
Samurai vs Redcoat. In this episode we examine the multiple times that bayonet and Katana battled during the 1860s. It includes the bombardment of Kagoshima and also the Shimonoseki campaign.
This is the story behind James Clavell’s Gaijin: a tale of samurai, imperialism, politics, war and gunboat diplomacy in the Wild East.
This podcast also sees the first American earn the Victoria Cross and the ancient rule of the Japanese Shoguns come to an end.
Thanks to Joshua Provan for researching and writing the script. His YouTube channel can be found here - https://www.youtube.com/@adventuresin ..read more
The Redcoat History Podcast
1M ago
1895-95.
In the latest Redcoat History Battlefield tour episode, we walk in the footsteps of Leander Starr Jameson and his troops as they try and enter Johannesburg and overthrow the Afrikaner government.
It's a fascinating tale - with a number of interesting and hard to find sites that are well worth a visit.
Please join the Patreon page for early access to content and no ads. https://www.patreon.com/RedcoatHistory  ..read more
The Redcoat History Podcast
2M ago
An important and brutal war that you’ve probably never heard of…
A tribe of well-armed mounted warriors as tough as any in Africa.
A handful of surrounded colonial officials - massively outnumbered and outgunned.
Now if that hasn’t caught your attention then I don’t know what will.
Today we are talking about two sieges and the battles to relieve them during the Basotho Gun War of 1880-81.
Thanks to Cam Simpson. His books can be found via this link - https://amzn.to/47P5yDo
If you are interested in the Zulu War, then please sign up for my mailing list to receive my free book on the subject: htt ..read more
The Redcoat History Podcast
2M ago
This episode is a long one - a full and in-depth look at the First Boer War aka the Transvaal Rebellion. It combines a number of my previous episodes into one comprehensive examination of the fighting.
Here are my key sources: Majuba 1881: Ian Castle
A Rain of Lead: Ian Bennet - https://amzn.to/3HbbtaZ
With the Boers in the Transvaal and Orange Free State: C L Norris Newman - https://amzn.to/3Hcaszv
The Transvaal Rebellion: John Laband - https://amzn.to/3NWnox0
The Transvaal War, 1880-81: Lady Bellairs - https://archive.org/details/transvaalwar00belliala/page/n5/mode/2up
If you are interested ..read more
The Redcoat History Podcast
2M ago
The American revolutionary war.
Britain versus the 13 colonies.
The fledgling United States was backed by the French…but did you know that the Spanish also weighed in against the Brits?
In fact, beginning in 1779, they fought a successful campaign against the redcoats in the area of Louisiana, Missipissi and Florida.
Today I’m joined by the one and only Joshua Provan who has just written a book about the campaign and the Spanish Siege of Pensacola.
The book can be purchased here: https://amzn.to/3vc9uQV
It’s a fascinating story and one I know literally nothi ..read more
The Redcoat History Podcast
3M ago
The Napoleonic wars - the first Great War. An era that saw the British army come of age.
But how much do you know about the officers at the forefront of the war?
Were they all aristocratic buffoons like Henry Simmerson? Were most commissions and promotions paid for? What sort of training did they receive? And were battalion commanders actually younger and more dynamic than their counterparts in other armies?
Historian Steve Brown joins me on the show today and we are going to busting plenty of myths today…The answers to these questions really surprised me and I think you may be shocked.
Steve ..read more