Western Civ

Ponce de Leon and the fountain of youth... right? Not so much. Today we discuss the historical reality of Juan Ponce de Leon, which has nothing to do with fountains and much to do with Florida. Websit...

12 Nov 20211h 4min

Tis the season of bonus author interviews on Western Civ! This time, I sit down with Andrew Petegree and Arthur Der Weduwen to talk about a subject near and dear to us all: books. Specifically, the li...

9 Nov 20211h 9min

Without Magellan, the remaining three ships still must find a way to get to the Spice Islands and back to Spain if they are to complete their mission. Under normal circumstances, this would be difficu...

5 Nov 20211h

Today I sit down with scholar Peniel Joseph and talk about his latest book, The Sword and the Shield, a new history of Martin Luther King Jr and Malcolm X. Website: www.westerncivpodcast.comBecome a P...

1 Nov 202148min

Now that Magellan has passed through the Dragon's Tail, he still has to cross the Pacific Ocean, which proves to be much larger than anyone in Europe believed. Arriving in the Philippines, Magellan's ...

29 Okt 202156min

Today I sit down with author Paul Lockhart and discuss his latest book: Firepower: How Weapons Shaped Warfare. It is a brilliant book that covers the evolution of warfare from pikes and longbows to he...

26 Okt 20211h 4min

Magellan had made it through several mutinies. But he had yet to defeat his most intractable foe: the strait. But where was this mysterious strait around South America? To find it, Magellan would need...

22 Okt 20211h 3min

I sit down for an interview with historian and author Edward Shawcross to discuss his new book, The Last Emperor of Mexico. Did you know that in the 1860's Emperor Napoleon III of France tried to put ...

19 Okt 20211h 11min