History Shorts

In 1919–1920, Johns Hopkins psychologist John B. Watson conducted the now-infamous “Little Albert” experiment to show that fear could be conditioned in humans, pairing a loud noise with a white rat until the infant subject, nicknamed Albert, reacted with distress to the rat and other furry objects. While the study became a classic example in psychology textbooks, it was deeply flawed: it involved only one child, lacked...

In this powerful and deeply human episode of History Shorts, historian Dr. Katarzyna Person, Director of the upcoming Warsaw Ghetto Museum and author of The Hour of Revenge, joins the show to explore some of the most haunting, silenced, and complex chapters of Holocaust history. From her lifelong work on the Ringelblum Archive, a secret collection of documents...

In 1811, Andrew Jackson, traveling with enslaved men along the Natchez Trace, confronted a challenge to his authority when a Native agent demanded proof of ownership for his slaves. In a dramatic response, Jackson armed his enslaved people and used them as a display of control to overpower the agent, emphasizing his belief in absolute power, while highlighting the complex and violent dynamics of slavery in the frontier South.

In this episode, we sit down with Brenda Wineapple, acclaimed historian and author of The Impeachers and Ecstatic Nation, to discuss her latest work: Keeping the Faith: God, Democracy, and the Trial That Riveted a Nation. At the center of this riveting new book is the Scopes “Monkey” Trial ...

In 1898, American author Morgan Robertson penned a novella titled Futility: Or the Wreck of the Titan. The plot centered around an enormous, luxurious ocean liner named the Titan that strikes an iceberg in the North Atlantic and sinks, killing hundreds of passengers due to an inadequate number of lifeboats. When the Titanic met its tragic end in April 1912, striking an iceberg, sinking in eerily similar conditions, and killing over...

Apart from the bullet that claimed his life in April of 1865, at least two other times during his life, Lincoln found himself the target of gunfire. Though these earlier incidents did not result in death or even injury, they foreshadowed the dangers he would face as a president presiding over a divided and combustible nation. These lesser-known episodes of near assassination paint a fuller picture of a man who, long be...

The epic journey of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark across the uncharted American West has long been celebrated as one of the most remarkable feats of exploration in U.S. history. But beneath the heroic narrative of adventure and scientific discovery lies a more uncomfortable, yet historically vital reality: venereal disease—particularly syphilis—was a constant and deeply disruptive problem for the men of the expedi...

The frontier was a land of promise and peril, wide, unsettled, and often lawless. In this space between civilization and wilderness, one figure became both symbol and servant of order: the circuit judge. Mounted on horseback and armed with little more than a Bible, a law book, and an unshakable belief in justice, these roving magistrates brought the authority of the courts to some of the most remote corners of early America. 

In this compelling episode of History Shorts, we’re joined by scholar and author Zaakir Tameez to discuss his new book, Charles Sumner: The Conscience of a Nation. Tameez sheds new light on the life and legacy of one of America’s most uncompromising abolitionists and moral voices during the 19th century, a man whose fierce opposition to slavery, eloquent speec...

In 1860, as the nation teetered on the brink of civil war, the Republican Party crafted a ticket designed to bridge the divides of a fractured Union. Abraham Lincoln, a self‑taught prairie lawyer from Illinois, needed balance, someone seasoned, staunchly anti‑slavery, and from the East. The choice was not the man that you likely remember that became the president after Lincoln’s assassination, that was the second term ...

Before America officially entered World War II, a group of daring young American women made history, only to be forgotten by it. In this episode, author Becky Aikman joins History Shorts to discuss her groundbreaking new book, Spitfires: The American Women Pilots Who Flew for Britain in World War II. Aikman takes us behind the scenes of her five-year journey u...

In the glittering court of imperial St. Petersburg, amid opulent balls and the orchestral sweep of Wagner and Tchaikovsky, a forbidden romance once stirred hearts and defied decorum. The man destined to become Russia’s last Tsar, Nicholas Alexandrovich, found himself irresistibly drawn to a ballerina who moved like a goddess on stage and held his fate in her poised grasp. Mathilde Kschessinska, the enchanting Prima Bal...

On August 8, 1963, just after 3 a.m., the quiet Buckinghamshire countryside was electrified by one of the most daring heists in British history. A Royal Mail train hurtling down the West Coast Main Line was stopped at a signal deliberately manipulated by a meticulously planned gang drifting in blue boiler suits. In under twenty minutes, they had ripped open sacks of cash, bundles worth £2.6 million, ransacked the train...

Few names from antiquity evoke the same mystique, glamour, and controversy as Cleopatra VII, the last active ruler of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt. A queen both revered and reviled across centuries of historical retellings, she has been cast variously as a seductive manipulator, a brilliant political strategist, a tragic lover, and an ambitious ruler who dared to challenge Rome’s expanding grip. Yet for all the drama and detail s...

When it comes to the shadowy world of World War II espionage, the Vatican might seem an unlikely player. After all, enclosed behind the ancient walls of the Holy See, the spiritual heart of Roman Catholicism maintained an image of neutrality and detachment. Yet beneath the marble floors and hushed halls of the Vatican, a hidden war raged; a covert struggle fought not with weapons, but with whispers, parchment, and secret meetings. ...

In this captivating episode, we sit down with Dr. Martyn Rady, a renowned British historian and preeminent expert on Central Europe, to unravel the layered legacies of the Habsburg Empire. From his early love of history (sparked by history-teacher parents) to the surprising global reach of Habsburg rule, Rady brings both wit and wisdom to the mic.

We explore how the Habsburgs’ dynastic empire spanned conti...

In this episode, we dive into one of the most infamous events in British colonial history, the Black Hole of Calcutta. On the night of June 20, 1756, a small, overcrowded prison cell became the site of a horrific tragedy. Join us as we explore the grim events leading to the Black Hole’s creation, the impact on British colonial rule in India, and its enduring legacy in the history of empire and imperialism.

DON’T FORG...

In this episode of TODAY IN CONTEXT, we trace the remarkable history of artificial intelligence, from its roots in ancient myth to its rapid rise in the digital age. Long before the first line of code was written, humans imagined machines that could think, speak, and serve. Join us as we explore how legends like Hephaestus’ golden servants and the Golem of Prague evolved into mechanical calculators, logic engines, and the birth of ...

In this episode, we’re joined by Stewart Reynolds, better known as Brittlestar, Canada’s beloved "Internet’s Favourite Dad" and a viral comedian who’s now turned author. His new book, Lessons From Cats for Surviving Fascism, is part satire, part self-help, and part political commentary, with an important underlying message: pay attention to how history repeats i...