The Franco-American Alliance 1778
In Our Time22 Huhti 2021

The Franco-American Alliance 1778

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the treaties France entered into with the United States of America in 1778, to give open support to the USA in its revolutionary war against Britain and to promote French trade across the Atlantic. This alliance had profound consequences for all three. The French navy, in particular, played a decisive role in the Americans’ victory in their revolution, but the great cost of supporting this overseas war fell on French taxpayers, highlighting the need for reforms which in turn led to the French Revolution. Then, when France looked to its American ally for support in the new French revolutionary wars with Britain, Americans had to choose where their longer term interests lay, and they turned back from the France that had supported them to the Britain they had just been fighting, and France and the USA fell into undeclared war at sea.

The image above is a detail of Bataille de Yorktown by Auguste Couder, with Rochambeau commanding the French expeditionary force in 1781

With

Frank Cogliano Professor of American History at the University of Edinburgh

Kathleen Burk Professor Emerita of Modern and Contemporary History at University College London

And

Michael Rapport Reader in Modern European History at the University of Glasgow

Producer: Simon Tillotson

Jaksot(1081)

The May Fourth Movement

The May Fourth Movement

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the violent protests in China on 4th May 1919 over the nation's humiliation in the Versailles Treaty after World War One. China had supported the Allies, sending worke...

9 Joulu 202152min

The Battle of Trafalgar

The Battle of Trafalgar

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the events of 21st October 1805, in which the British fleet led by Nelson destroyed a combined Franco-Spanish fleet in the Atlantic off the coast of Spain. Nelson's de...

2 Joulu 202151min

Plato's Gorgias

Plato's Gorgias

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss one of Plato's most striking dialogues, in which he addresses the real nature of power and freedom, and the relationship between pleasure and true self-interest. As he...

25 Marras 202150min

The Decadent Movement

The Decadent Movement

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the British phase of a movement that spread across Europe in the mid-19th and early 20th centuries. Influenced by Charles Baudelaire and by Walter Pater, these Decadent...

18 Marras 202151min

William and Caroline Herschel

William and Caroline Herschel

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss William Herschel (1738 – 1822) and his sister Caroline Herschel (1750 – 1848) who were born in Hanover and made their reputation in Britain. William was one of the most...

11 Marras 202150min

The Song of Roland

The Song of Roland

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss an early masterpiece of French epic poetry, from the 12th Century. It is a reimagining of Charlemagne’s wars in Spain in the 8th Century in which Roland, his most vali...

4 Marras 202151min

Corals

Corals

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the simple animals which informed Charles Darwin's first book, The Structure and Distribution of Coral Reefs, published in 1842. From corals, Darwin concluded that the...

28 Loka 202151min

Iris Murdoch

Iris Murdoch

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the author and philosopher Iris Murdoch (1919 - 1999). In her lifetime she was most celebrated for her novels such as The Bell and The Black Prince, but these are now ...

21 Loka 202154min

Suosittua kategoriassa Historia

olipa-kerran-otsikko
gogin-ja-janin-maailmanhistoria
mayday-fi
huijarit
mystista
rss-ikiuni
totuus-vai-salaliitto
konginkangas
tsunami
rss-kirkon-ihmeellisimmat-tarinat
rouva-diktaattori
rss-i-dont-like-mondays-2
rss-subjektiivinen-todistaja
sotaa-ja-historiaa-podi
rss-peter-peter
rss-sattuu-sita-suomessakin
apinan-vuosi
rss-kikka-forever
historian-nurkkapoyta
rss-outoja-uutisia-pohjois-suomesta