Explaining History

Updated: 13 Mar 2025 • 751 episodes
www.explaininghistory.org

The Explaining History Podcast, created and hosted by Nick Shepley, offers a comprehensive exploration of 20th-century history through weekly episodes. For over a decade, this podcast has been providing students and history enthusiasts with in-depth analyses of key events, processes, and debates that shaped the modern world. The podcast covers a wide range of topics within 20th-century history, including: - Major historical events like World Wars I and II, The rise and fall of communism, fascism and imperialism - Political movements and ideologies - Economic developments and crises - Social and cultural changes Episodes typically run for about 25 minutes, offering concise yet informative discussions on specific subjects. The podcast invites listeners to engage with complex historical topics in manageable segments, making it ideal for students and busy history enthusiasts. Expert Insights Nick frequently invites expert guests to contribute their knowledge and perspectives, enriching the podcast with diverse viewpoints and specialized expertise. This approach helps listeners understand the competing debates and interpretations surrounding historical events and processes. Educational Focus The podcast is particularly valuable for students, especially those studying A-level history. It offers targeted content aligned with specific curricula, such as the AQA syllabus for Russian history. This educational focus makes it an excellent supplementary resource for formal history studies. Chronological Approach While the podcast primarily focuses on the 20th century, it adopts a chronological approach to storytelling. This method allows listeners to follow the progression of events and understand how different historical moments are interconnected Engaging Presentation Nick's presentation style combines rigorous historical analysis with an engaging narrative approach. The podcast aims to not only inform but also captivate listeners, making complex historical topics accessible and interesting to a broad audience By offering this mix of comprehensive content, expert insights, and engaging presentation, the Explaining History Podcast serves as a valuable resource for anyone looking to deepen their understanding of 20th-century history. Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/explaininghistory. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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How did China embrace its own hybrid form of market capitalism with state control after the death of Mao in 1976? How did China avoid the economic shock therapy that devastated the USSR and become a technological super power in the 21st Century? Today's podcast explores the writings of David Harvey on Chinese capitalis

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Britain's political class have realised that the writing is on the wall for them in the past week as Trump's tariffs as imposed. This podcast explores the contemporary state of international affairs between Britain, America and the EU. Help the podcast to continue bringing you history each week If you enjoy the Explain

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Scholarship of the Black Power Movement in general and the Nation of Islam in particular has been harder to accumulate than that on the main Civil Rights Movement led by Dr Martin Luther King and the SCLC. This podcast explores reasons for this and the differing interpretations on the nation that were recorded by histo

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Since the beginning of the 21st Century, American internationalism has been in crisis and Trump's recent verbal and economic threats towards allies has accelerated this trend. This podcast explores America's 20th and 21st Century internationalist moments and crises. Help the podcast to continue bringing you history eac

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In June 1941 Nazi Germany and its allies invaded the USSR, they saw the conquest of the country, the eradication of its leadership and the starvation of tens of millions of its people as part of a wider goal at creating a zone of resource extraction for the Nazi state in order to enable it to withstand an allied blocka

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In this episode of The Explaining History Podcast we were fortunate enough to speak with Dr Surekha Davies, historian of art, science and ideas, whose new book, Humans: A Monstrous History explores the darker aspects of human imagining and how we see ourselves through the filter of the monstrous. Help the podcast to co

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