Episodios

  • 177. The Vietnam War: Lyndon Johnson, Americanisation, and Operation Rolling Thunder

    177. The Vietnam War: Lyndon Johnson, Americanisation, and Operation Rolling Thunder
    Aug 14 2024
    With the death of JFK, Lyndon B. Johnson took over the Presidency and immediately had to wrestle with America’s relationship with Vietnam after the killing of Diem. Right from the start he prophesised that it would be his downfall and so it was. He consistently resented it and the distraction it was from his domestic agenda, the Great Society. Over his five years in charge, LBJ Americanised the war, committing more and more troops to Vietnam, and initiating massive bombing campaigns known as Operation Rolling Thunder, putting America into a quagmire. But was this inevitable? Would JFK have done things differently? Listen as William and Anita are once again joined by Fredrik Logevall to find out. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis and Alice Horrell Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
    Más Menos
    59 m
  • 176. The Vietnam War: The Rise of Ho Chi Minh

    176. The Vietnam War: The Rise of Ho Chi Minh
    Aug 12 2024
    Vietnam, or Indochina as it was known, had been under French colonial rule since the nineteenth century. This was until the Vietnamese nationalist group, the Viet Minh, took on the French in 1946. Ho Chi Minh, son of a Confucian scholar, former chef in Boston, and lover of French literature, was at their head. The fighting came to an end in 1954 with the Geneva conference splitting the country in two. The northern side was to be ruled by the Viet Minh, with close links to the Chinese Communist party and the Soviet Union whilst the South, then known as the Republic of Vietnam, was to remain loyal to America. However, by summer 1963, America is taking an increasingly active role, tensions are rising and a second war is on the horizon. Listen as William and Anita are joined by Fredrik Logevall to discuss the lead up to the Vietnam War. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis and Alice Horrell Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
    Más Menos
    1 h y 4 m
  • 175. The CIA vs Fidel Castro

    175. The CIA vs Fidel Castro
    Aug 7 2024
    Following the fall of Batista, the Cuban revolution took a more radical turn. Castro was not a communist to begin with, but as those around him became increasingly Marxist, the CIA’s desire to regain control of the island grew. With the failure of JFK’s Bay of Pigs invasion, events escalated into the Cuban Missile Crisis as the USSR brought nuclear weapons to America’s doorstep. Listen as Anita and William are once again joined by Alex von Tunzelmann to talk about how the Caribbean almost became the centre of a nuclear armageddon. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis and Aaliyah Akude Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
    Más Menos
    56 m
  • 174. The Cuban Revolution

    174. The Cuban Revolution
    Aug 5 2024
    It’s 1959 and the swaggering Cuban revolutionary, Fidel Castro, has just overthrown the unpopular American backed dictator, Fulgencio Batista. Che Guevara, the Marxist physician whose face would become an internationally recognised symbol of resistance, is at his side. But how did the small Caribbean nation go from a profitable outpost of the Spanish empire to a heady American party island, rife with gangsters and gambling, to a hub of revolution? Listen as Anita and William are joined by Alex Von Tunzelmann to discuss the events that led up to the Cuban Revolution. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producers: Anouska Lewis and Alice Horrell Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
    Más Menos
    59 m
  • 173. The Korean War: Dividing the Peninsula

    173. The Korean War: Dividing the Peninsula
    Jul 31 2024
    The Korean War was a brutal affair. It is estimated that 3,000,000 people were killed in the conflict that absolutely devastated the Korean Peninsula. And the legacy of it is still with us today; it was over the course of this war that the division between North and South solidified into two separate nations. It was also at this time that Kim Il Sung rose to prominence, establishing North Korea's ruling dynasty that exists to this day. Listen as William and Anita are once again joined by Paul Thomas Chamberlin to discuss the events of the war and its monumental legacy. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: Anouska Lewis Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
    Más Menos
    51 m
  • 172. The Birth of North Korea

    172. The Birth of North Korea
    Jul 29 2024
    Whilst we know the Korean Peninsula is split into two quite separate countries, North Korea and South Korea, that has not always been been the case. Korea was an independent, singular nation until the Japanese colonised it at the start of the 20th century. This collapsed after the Second World War, at which time the USA and Russia swept in to create their own spheres of influence, separated by the 38th parallel. Communist Russia in the north, capitalist USA in the south. Listen as William and Anita are joined by Paul Thomas Chamberlin to discuss the origins of North and South Korea. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: Anouska Lewis Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
    Más Menos
    47 m
  • 171. The Bengal Famine: Chaos in Calcutta

    171. The Bengal Famine: Chaos in Calcutta
    Jul 24 2024
    By 1943, the price of rice was beyond unaffordable for most in Bengal, and people were dying in the streets. Despite government censorship of letters, news spread about the famine and the tide turned with the introduction of a new Viceroy. Yet when aid eventually did arrive from other regions of India, it was so chaotically handled that some food shipments were halted at the station. Listen as Anita and William are joined again by Kavita Puri to explore the legacy of what is sometimes dubbed “Churchill’s Famine”. Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: Anouska Lewis Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
    Más Menos
    44 m
  • 170. The Bengal Famine: A Disaster on the Horizon

    170. The Bengal Famine: A Disaster on the Horizon
    Jul 22 2024
    In 1942, in the midst of the Second World War, the British administration feared that Japanese forces would take India as part of their campaign. To prevent access to resources in the event of a potential invasion, colonial forces enacted a “denial policy”, confiscating rice and destroying boats. This, along with a cyclone and political unrest, led to starvation in the countryside of Bengal, forcing people to flee to cities in a desperate search for food. Listen as Anita and William take a break from the American series to revisit an important and tragic event in 20th century Indian history, with guest Kavita Puri… Twitter: @Empirepoduk Email: empirepoduk@gmail.com Goalhangerpodcasts.com Assistant Producer: Anouska Lewis Producer: Callum Hill Exec Producer: Neil Fearn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
    Más Menos
    44 m