Historiansplaining: A historian tells you why everything you know is wrong – Details, episodes & analysis

Dictionaries, textbooks, and encyclopedias routinely write in grave and solemn tones about the “industrial revolution” that reportedly “transformed” society, first in Britain and then in the rest of the globe, giving painful birth to the modern world. Everything from mystical poems to demographic statistics have been martialed to support the idea of a catastrophic upheaval which disrupted what had been the agrarian, medieval life of the countryside. However, nobody can quite agree on exactly when this revolution took place, and the people supposedly living in the midst of it, in Britain in the 1700s and early 1800s, never noticed that it was happening. In this first lecture, we trace the origins of the concept of the “industrial revolution” in political debates in Restoration-era France and in the philosophical ferment of the German radical press—all before the concept finally made its way back into the country where the great upheaval allegedly took place. Please sign up as a patron to hear the next lecture, part 2 on the Industrial Revolution, "Spinning the National Yarn," and all patron-only lectures: https://www.patreon.com/posts/myth-of-month-26-159215235 Alternatively, non-patrons can purchase the entire “Myths of the Month” playlist for one flat fee: https://www.patreon.com/collection/2031535?view=condensed Image: Print of Albion Mills on fire, by Sheppard, London, 1791 Suggested Further Reading: D.C. Coleman, “Myth, History, and the Industrial Revolution”; Anna Bezanson, “The Early Use of the Term Industrial Revolution,” The Quarterly Journal of Economics, vol. 36, no. 2; Rondo Cameron, “A New View of European Industrialization”, The Economic History Review, vol. 38, no. 1; Eric Hobsbawm, “Industry and Empire: An Economic History of Britain Since 1750”

We consider Virginia’s tumultuous rise to wealth and prominence as the so-called “Old Dominion” and one of the largest European settler colonies in the world –from the colony’s dangerous stand in the English Civil War, through the subsequent demographic boom, and the codification of chattel slavery – as all the while, social tensions escalated, with the growing underclass of smallholders and landless laborers chafing against gentry rule. We disentangle how a trade dispute between planters and the Doeg Indian tribe on the Potomac River touched off a massive rebellion that overthrew the royal governor, laid waste to Jamestown and many of the great plantations, and threatened to destroy the English colonial enterprise, before order was restored, and the colony was set a new path towards becoming a slave society. Please become a patron to hear all patron-only lectures, including “Virginia, pt. 1,” on Jamestown and the creation of the colony: www.patreon.com/c/u5530632 Suggested further reading: Morgan, “American Slavery, American Freedom: The Ordeal of Colonial Virginia”; Wertenaber, “The Planters of Colonial Virginia”; Kupperman, “The Jamestown Project”; Billings, Selby, & Tate, “Colonial Virginia: A History” Image: Depiction of Nathaniel Bacon & the burning of Jamestown, from Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation

Excerpt of a lecture for patrons only for 1 year: We explore the tumultuous history of Central Africa, embracing the enormous Congo rainforest, the great rift valleys, the Indian Ocean coast, and the gold fields of the Zambezi basin, as formidable kingdoms—Kongo, the Swahili cities, and the mysterious Great Zimbabwe—emerged in the tropical landscape, adapted to the traumatic incursion of the Portuguese, and eventually struck back against European power, through diplomatic schemes, military struggles, and religious awakenings. This same region of the world produced some of the most remarkable and towering figures in African or world history, such as King Afonso I and Queen Nzingha, as well as many of the first captives to be taken to the New World, including the “twenty-and-odd negroes” that were famously landed at Point Comfort, Virginia, in 1619. Please sign on as a patron of historiansplaining in order to heat the full lecture: https://www.patreon.com/c/u5530632 Image: Bronze crucifix, Kongo, 1650-1750, High Museum of Art Suggested further reading: Van Reybrouck, “Congo: The Epic History of a People”; Edgerton, “The Troubled Heart of Africa: a History of the Congo”; Wills, “An Introduction to the History of Central Africa”; Heywood, “Njinga of Angola : Africa's Warrior Queen” Samuel, “The kingdom of Ndongo and the Portuguese,” ; Thornton, “The Kongolese Saint Anthony: Dona Beatriz Kimpa Vita and the Antonian Movement, 1684–1706”

Unlocked for the public after 1 year on Patreon for patrons only: The "Founding Fathers" -- the most rarefied club in American history -- stand in for everything we love or hate about this country, from its civic and religious freedom to its white supremacism. As if carved in stone (which they oftentimes are), they loom over every political debate, even though most of us know next to nothing about them, or even who counts as one of the group. Coined by that immortal wordsmith, President Warren Harding, the phrase "Founding Fathers" serves as an empty vessel for civic emotion, conveniently covering over the actual history of struggle, conflict, and contention that shaped the American republic. Suggested Further Reading: Woody Holton, "Forced Founders" and "Unruly Americans and the Origins of the US Consitution"; Gordon Wood, "The Radicalism of the American Revolution"; Gerald Horne, "The Counter-Revolution of 1776"; Charles Beard, "An Economic Interpretation of the United States Constitution"; Joseph Ellis, "Founding Brothers" Become a patron at any level in order to hear patron-only lectures as soon as they post (https://www.patreon.com/c/u5530632), or alternatively, non-patrons can buy the entire playlist of Myths of the Month, including “The Enlightenment,” “Race,” & “Capitalism,” among others: https://www.patreon.com/collection/2031535?view=condensed

After 1500, Florida becomes a battleground in a new struggle for control of North America; we discuss the repeated doomed attempts by French and Spanish adventurers, from Ponce de Leon to the Huguenot colonists at Fort Caroline, to establish a foothold in Florida, until Spain finally succeeds in creating a lasting European stronghold at Saint Augustine. Hear part 1 here -- https://soundcloud.com/historiansplaining/fortresses-on-sand-the-history-of-florida-pt-1 Please support this podcast to help keep it coming and hear patron-only lectures! -- www.patreon.com/user?u=5530632 Follow the podcast on Twitter -- @historiansplain

I join with Geoff Shullenberger of "Outsider Theory" to discuss the sweeping and challenging new book, "The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity" by David Graeber and David Wengrow. We consider the book's marshalling of new archaeological evidence to debunk mechanistic and deterministic assumptions about the rise of civilization, its deep rejection of Marxism, and its insistence on the human ability to imagine and create an infinite range of social and political futures. We examine the weaknesses and limitations of the book, including its over-emphasis on personal freedom, its gross inaccuracy with regard to the eighteenth century, and its blindspot regarding the profound powers of myth, ritual, and the natural environment, all of which deeply guide and shape societies in ways that Graeber & Wengrow ignore or casually discount. Please support this podcast to help keep it coming and hear patron-only lectures! -- www.patreon.com/user?u=5530632 Alternatively, to hear other book reviews from historiansplaining, you can buy access to the playlist for a low flat fee: https://www.patreon.com/collection/2116432?view=condensed Other books & authors mentioned: Marshall Sahlins, "The Original Affluent Society" Yuval Noah Harari, "Sapiens" James C. Scott, "Against the Grain" Claude Levi-Strauss, "The Savage Mind" Victor Turner, "The Ritual Process" Karl Wittfogel, "Oriental Despotism" John Rawls, "A Theory of Justice" Francoise de Graffigny, "Letters of a Peruvian Woman" Niccolo Machiavelli, "Discourses on Livy" Jared Diamond, "Guns, Germs, and Steel" JN Heard, "The Assimilation of Captives on the American Frontier in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries," LSU thesis David Graeber, "On Flying Cars and the Declining Rate of Profit," "Debt: The First 5000 Years" Karl Polanyi, "The Great Transformation" Mark Fisher, "Capitalist Realism" Orlando Patterson, "Slavery and Social Death" Bruno Latour, "We Have Never Been Modern" Roberto Calasso, "The Ruin of Kasch" Ivan Illich Rene Girard Richard Wolff Thomas Sowell Divya Cherian

We discuss the complex and multilayered history of Florida, beginning with the prehistoric peoples that survived in and mastered the tropical landscape, built monumental mound complexes, and formed powerful kingdoms that would eventually confront the first European invaders. Hear part 2 here -- https://soundcloud.com/historiansplaining/fortresses-on-sand-the-history-of-florida-pt-2 Image: Fort Jefferson, Dry Tortugas, Gulf of Mexico Please support this podcast! -- https://www.patreon.com/user?u=5530632

I give an update on my historical activities this winter and plans for the podcast, as well as a brief teaser from the latest installment of the History of the United States in 100 Objects. My lecture on the History of the British and Irish Travellers: https://soundcloud.com/historiansplaining/history-of-the-british-and-irish-travellers My latest patron-only lecture in the History of the United States in 100 Objects: https://www.patreon.com/posts/61475405 Image courtesy of the Mackinac State Historic Parks, Michigan

Before Columbus had even set foot in America, medieval Europe and the Islamic Middle East already had a long history in trading and exploiting slaves. An important branch of the slave trade involved buying captives from the shores of the Black Sea and trafficking them through the Mediterranean to the commercial cities of Italy or to Egypt, where many of them became slave soldiers or even rulers (called "Mamluks"). We discuss the history of the trade, who these thousands of slaves were and what became of them with Hannah Barker of Arizona State University, author of "That Most Precious Merchandise: The Mediterranean Trade in Black Sea Slaves, 1260-1500." Image: Pillar capital with sculpted faces of foreign peoples, including Turk and Tatar, Doge's Palace, Venice. Please support this podcast to hear all patron-only materials, such as "History of the United States in 100 Objects" -- www.patreon.com/user?u=5530632 New website! -- www.historiansplaining.com

We consider the strange ambiguous developments of this year, including the political paralysis in the US, the furors over mask and vaccine mandates, and most importantly, the labor reshuffle or "great resignation," in light of crises past, including the bubonic plague and World War I and World War II, which have tended to bring class conflict and upheavals of the labor regime in their wakes. We examine the classic Frank Capra Christmas movie "It's A Wonderful Life," made 75 years ago in the aftermath of World War II, as an illustration of the post-war settlement that has shaped the conditions of work and home life since that time, and finally thank the 116 patrons that currently support this podcast. Please support this podcast to hear all patron-only materials, such as "History of the United States in 100 Objects" -- www.patreon.com/user?u=5530632