The Cocaine Craze in Victorian Britain

The Cocaine Craze in Victorian Britain

Many things may come to mind when you hear the word 'cocaine' - and we'd wager that the last thing on that list would be the Victorians. But as it turns out, the Victorians were avid cocaine users, whether it be to remedy ailments and injuries, give them an edge in competitive sports or simply put a bit of pep in their step. A hundred years later, it is amongst the most criminalised substances on earth.


Dr Douglas Small is a historian of medicine and author of Cocaine, Literature, and Culture, 1876-1930. He joins us today to take us through the deeper history of cocaine and explain how it went from a central feature of Incan cultural life to the defining party drug of the modern day.


Produced by James Hickmann, and edited by Dougal Patmore and Max Carrey.


Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off for 3 months using code ‘DANSNOW’.


We'd love to hear from you - what do you want to hear an episode on? You can email the podcast at ds.hh@historyhit.com.


You can take part in our listener survey here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episoder(1485)

Fighting Nazism at the Grand Prix

Fighting Nazism at the Grand Prix

Neal Bascomb joined me on the podcast to tell a remarkable story of the fight against Hitler - on the Grand Prix racetrack. We delved into the high-speed world of the American heiress Lucy Schell, a m...

31 Mai 202014min

A History of Building Britain

A History of Building Britain

I was thrilled to be joined by Andrew Ziminski, a stonemason living and working in Somerset. He's just released his first book documenting the fascinating stories from three decades of hands-on experi...

30 Mai 202018min

Dunkirk Veterans

Dunkirk Veterans

Dan meets some of the surviving Dunkirk veterans on the famous Little Ships which helped to rescue them from the beaches. The Little Ships of Dunkirk were 700 private boats that sailed from Ramsgate i...

29 Mai 202036min

The Fall of France

The Fall of France

80 years ago this week, one of the most extraordinary evacuations in military history was under way: 'The Miracle of Dunkirk'. But how, and why, did the Allies find themselves in such a dire position?...

28 Mai 202033min

Muslim Soldiers of Dunkirk

Muslim Soldiers of Dunkirk

May 28, 1940: Major Akbar Khan of the Royal Indian Army Service Corps marches at the head of 299 soldiers along the beach at Dunkirk - the only Indians in the BEF in France and the only ones at Dunkir...

27 Mai 202020min

Coronavirus: Intelligence Failure

Coronavirus: Intelligence Failure

The greatest threats we face are climate breakdown and pandemic disease. This was the assessment of security advisers before the Covid outbreak and the last few months have seen the stunning reality o...

26 Mai 202025min

The Miracle of Dunkirk

The Miracle of Dunkirk

80 years ago, ships were gathering in Kent to begin the rescue of the British Expeditionary Force. Britain faced the prospect of the worst defeat in British military history and the loss of her entire...

25 Mai 202026min

Getting Inside the Mind of Hitler

Getting Inside the Mind of Hitler

No man knew Adolf Hitler as intimately as his trusted physician, Theodoor Morell. As part of Hitler's inner social circle, he assisted the leader in virtually everything for the entire war years. His ...

24 Mai 202036min

Populært innen Historie

rss-dette-ma-aldri-skje-igjen
henrettelsespodden
rss-historiske-romanser
historier-som-endret-norge
rss-katastrofe
rss-nadelose-nordmenn-gestapo
sektledere
historier-som-endret-verden
aftenposten-historie
rss-benadet
rss-frontkjemperne
rss-strid-de-norske-borgerkrigene
rss-gamle-greier
vare-historier
sannhet-eller-konspirasjon
historiepodden-ww2
rss-historiepodden-ww2
rss-alt-var-bedre-for
historiepodden
med-egne-oyne