Mozart's Zombie, the Runaway Priest, and the Emperor's Opera

Viking Invasions and St. Edmund's Talking Head: (Nicole) In 870 A.D.,  Edmund, the king of East Anglia, was killed by a Viking army. Discover how this event was transformed from a battle between two armies into the story of a Christian martyrdom. by Footnoting History

9 min listen

Why Simon de Montfort is in the U.S. House of Representatives: (Christine) His father was a major player in the Albigensian crusade but when was the last time you heard about the man who led a rebellion against King Henry III and became the father of the modern parliament? It's time to fix that. by Footnoting History

13 min listen

Science, Plague, and Pericles: Reconstructing the Face of Myrtis: (Kirsti) In 430 BCE, a plague swept through ancient Athens, killing thousands. It eventually claimed even the great Pericles. But what was it? In 1994, a group of historians and scientists banded together to find out, starting with the skull of one little by Footnoting History

9 min listen

Zombies in Thietmar of Merseburg: (Lucy) Why did commoners and kings in eleventh-century Germany keep seeing dead people? Why did a bunch of animated corpses decide to burn a priest alive? And why did a busy bishop write all this down? by Footnoting History

9 min listen

Special Edition: Olaudah Equiano: (Nathan and Elizabeth) Join us for a discussion of one of the most well-known narratives of slavery used by the British Abolitionist cause in the 18th century. We examine what it reveals about identity and race in the time period but also tackle the issue by Footnoting History

18 min listen

Occupy Alcatraz: Protesting Native American Autonomy: (Lesley) As an imposing fortress, Alcatraz island isolated inmates and imprisoned the most dangerous criminals like mob boss Al Capone. Yet after its closure in 1963, Alcatraz became the scene of occupying Freedom as Native Americans tried to take back la by Footnoting History

11 min listen

The French Revolution Countdown (Part II): (Nathan and Christine) Picking up where they left off at the end of Part I, Nathan and Christine tackle actors' rights and changing fashions while wondering if anyone truly understood the Republican Calendar. Join them as they conclude the countdown of th by Footnoting History

32 min listen

Historical Ad Campaigns: (Lesley) Ever wonder why women shave their legs? Or why manly cigars gave way to slim, feminine cigarettes? The answer lies with people like Don Draper. Examine the history of advertising and how some of our personal traditions stem from a carefully-desig by Footnoting History

11 min listen

Cruel Mind and Deadly Malice: A Murder in Early Modern England: (Lesley) Imagine hiring a man to kill off your enemy... and then pleading a defense that would allow you to walk out free. This week, we'll trace the story of a neighborly feud in Tudor England that left one man dead and an unbalanced man free, if not for by Footnoting History

10 min listen

Heresy and You: Alice Rowley and Lollardy: (Kirsti) Some people just get all the luck. Others, like poor Alice Rowley of Coventry, just can’t seem to catch a break. Join us as we explore Alice’s dedication to the Lollard community and what that meant for her in court! by Footnoting History

14 min listen

Drinking in Medieval England: (Samantha) Do you like to drink? Well, so did people in the Middle Ages.  Tune in to learn about what people were drinking and about the culture associated with booze 700 years ago. by Footnoting History

15 min listen

Tulipmania!: (Nathan) In the 1630s, the tiny-but-wealthy Netherlands were gripped by a frenzy of public trading in tulip bulbs.  At the height of the craze, a single bulb could sell for a small fortune.  What caused this "tulip mania" and how did it all come by Footnoting History

17 min listen

The French Revolution Countdown (Part I): (Nathan and Christine) From Marie Antoinette's fake peasant village to Robespierre's botched suicide, the French Revolution is full of fascinating stories that are often omitted from textbooks. Join Nathan and Christine for Part I of a two-part count by Footnoting History

27 min listen

Running in the Ancient Olympic Games: (Esther) How did the Greeks monitor foot races during the ancient Olympic games without technologies such as Timex watches and slow-motion cameras? They certainly weren't worried about doping, but there were other ways runners could gain unfair advan by Footnoting History

12 min listen

Prehistoric Runners and the 'Fall' of the Neanderthals: (Esther) Did you know that our homo sapien ancestors were altogether skinnier, weaker and dumber than our fellow hominid relatives, the Neanderthals? Some scientists theorize that it was running that saved us from extinction. by Footnoting History

14 min listen

The Several Defenestrations of Prague: (Kirsti) The people of Prague have a unique approach to the resolution of religious and political arguments: throwing the opposition out of windows! Listen as we explore this odd tradition throughout history, starting in 1419 and continuing to 1948. by Footnoting History

11 min listen

Getting Skinny: A Brief History of Dieting: (Samantha) From WeightWatchers to the Atkins Diet to the Lemon Detox, Americans are obsessed with using diet to control our weight. But we’re not the first ones to be concerned with our body mass, to experiment with dieting, and to come up with some reall by Footnoting History

14 min listen

Special Edition: Royal Baby Names: (Elizabeth and Christine) The Kingdom of Great Britain is celebrating today because the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have welcomed their first child, a son! In this special edition of Footnoting History, we discuss the history of royal baby names in by Footnoting History

20 min listen

Queer Women in the Golden Age of Mysteries: (Lucy and Elizabeth) From the early to mid-twentieth century, queens of crime Sayers, Christie, Marsh, and Wentworth reigned supreme over British detective fiction. Their works not only reveal whodunit but give insight into how queer women lived in and we by Footnoting History

24 min listen

Goethe's Werther and the Suicide Effect: (Elizabeth) Forget Nirvana or James Dean! Back in the 19th century, every angsty teen had one idol: Werther--and they would do anything to be like him ... anything. by Footnoting History

7 min listen

The Christmas Truce of 1914: (Samantha) In 1914 Europe's troops marched off to war expecting to be home by Christmas. When the holiday came and they found themselves stuck in the trenches for the foreseeable future many of them decided to take some time off and to fraternize with the by Footnoting History

7 min listen

From Magic Lanterns to Nickelodeons: The Origins of the Film Industry, Part I: (Nathan) For early movie-goers, film was a magical experience, but also sometimes a crowded and stuffy one. From the magic lantern shows of the eighteenth century to the heyday of the nickelodeon in the twentieth, in this episode we'll look at the origins by Footnoting History

28 min listen

Hernán Cortés and the Conquest of Mexico: (John) How did Hernán Cortés and his “300” soldiers topple the Aztecs? What motivated these conquistadores, and what legal justifications did they use to legitimize this conquest? Find the answer to these questions and more as we explore the clashing by Footnoting History

8 min listen

Lepers and Leprosy in the 13th Century: (Lucy) Reactions to medieval lepers were often extreme. Medieval romance-writers depict them as not only disease-ridden but filthy, and morally suspect to boot. Saints, on the other hand, ran around kissing them. More ordinary people just asked lepers to by Footnoting History

12 min listen

Mozart's Zombie, the Runaway Priest, and the Emperor's Opera: (Lucy) In Don Giovanni, Wolfgang Amadeus and Lorenzo da Ponte created opera's most famous antihero. Find out how Mozart and Da Ponte were influenced by the philosophical ideas and social concerns of their day in forging a tale of class conflict and l by Footnoting History

16 min listen

Edward Gibbon Wakefield, Part II: Australia and New Zealand: (Christine and Elizabeth) In Part II of the life of Edward Gibbon Wakefield, we follow him as he leaves prison, picks up his pen, and chases a new goal: revolutionizing British systems of colonization. Did people listen to a convicted felon? Were his drea by Footnoting History

32 min listen

Edward Gibbon Wakefield, Part I: The Abduction: (Christine and Elizabeth) The abduction of Ellen Turner was the talk of  early 19th century England and at the center of it was Edward Gibbon Wakefield, a widower with dreams of a seat in Parliament. How did Wakefield lure the young heiress from her by Footnoting History

30 min listen

From Union Soldier to Confederate Bushwacker: Loyalty and Disloyalty in Civil War West Virginia: (Ryan) In 1862, William, Christopher, and Phillip Raber enlisted in Company K of the 9th Regiment, Virginia Infantry. As loyal Union men, they joined nearly one thousand other volunteers for three years' service to put down the rebellion of the Confederac by Footnoting History

16 min listen

The Only Running Footman: (Esther) Country roads were rough, tough, and uneven. But the agile, handsome, and (sometimes) opulently dressed running footmen traversed these treacherous roads to scout, deliver messages, and honor their masters with their ultramarathon endurance. Hold by Footnoting History

13 min listen

Living Memory: The Fall of the Berlin Wall: (Kirsti) For 28 years, the Berlin Wall stood as a monument to the division between East and West. In the summer of 1989, a the borders of Hungary, then Czechoslovakia opened, and thousands of East Germans fled westward. On the 9th of November, East G by Footnoting History

17 min listen

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Mozart's Zombie, the Runaway Priest, and the Emperor's Opera

Mozart's Zombie, the Runaway Priest, and the Emperor's Opera

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