History Unplugged Podcast

In May 1945, German forces surrendered to the Allied powers, putting an end to World War II in Europe. But the aftershocks of global military conflict did not cease with the German capitulation. Millions of lost and homeless concentration camp survivors, POWs, slave laborers, political prisoners, and Nazi collaborators in flight from the Red Army overwhelmed Germany, a nation in ruins. British and American soldiers gathered the malnourished and desperate refugees and attempted to repatriate them. But after exhaustive efforts, there remained more than a million displaced persons left behind in Germany: Jews, Poles, Estonians, Latvians, Lithuanians, Ukrainians, and other Eastern Europeans who refused to go home or had no homes to return to. The Last Million would spend the next three to five years in displaced persons camps, temporary homelands in exile, divided by nationality, with their own police forces, churches and synagogues, schools, newspapers, theaters, and infirmaries. Today’s guest, David Nasaw, author of “THE LAST MILLION: Europe’s Displaced Persons from World War to Cold War “ discusses the fate of these people.The international community could not agree on the fate of the Last Million, and after a year of debate and inaction, the International Refugee Organization was created to resettle them in lands suffering from postwar labor shortages. But no nations were willing to accept the 200,000 to 250,000 Jewish men, women, and children who remained trapped in Germany. In 1948, the United States, among the last countries to accept refugees for resettlement, finally passed a displaced persons bill. With Cold War fears supplanting memories of World War II atrocities, the bill granted the vast majority of visas to those who were reliably anti- Communist, including thousands of former Nazi collaborators and war criminals, while severely limiting the entry of Jews, who were suspected of being Communist sympathizers or agents because they had been recent residents of Soviet-dominated Poland. Only after the controversial partition of Palestine and Israel's declaration of independence were the remaining Jewish survivors able to leave their displaced persons camps in Germany. By 1952, the Last Million were scattered around the world. As they crossed from their broken past into an unknowable future, they carried with them their wounds, their fears, their hope, and their secrets. Here for the first time, Nasaw illuminates their incredible history and, with profound contemporary resonance, shows us that it is our history as well.

The Mafia and many political machines ran entire American cities in the 19th and 20 centuries. But some mobsters claim that it went much further than that. Chicago-area Sam Giancana claims that he and the mafia "owned" Presidents Franklin Roosevelt and then Harry Truman, whose career they promoted; that they had all-star athletes in their pocket, including Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays; and that Giancana conspired with other top Mafia bosses, as well as Hoffa, Vice President Lyndon Johnson, Nixon, top CIA officials, top military officials, top Dallas police officials, top Texas oilmen etc. etc. to assassinate John F. Kennedy.How much of this is true and how much is fiction? We will never know completely, but the roots of the mafia run deep in the soil of American politics.

Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, and Tim Cook are just a few of today’s business pioneers who have succeeded in disrupting older existing business models, and whose motives and methods are constantly scrutinized by the government. They, in fact, resemble the robber barons of the 19th century.Today's guest is Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and Los Angeles Times columnist Michael Hiltzik, author of the book "Iron Empires." He explores the aftermath of the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad—how the country’s new railroad network expanded and was consolidated over the next four decades, and the incredible impact this had on the nation. Cornelius Vanderbilt, Jay Gould, J. Pierpont Morgan, and Edward H. Harriman are the men responsible for driving the country into the twentieth century and almost derailing our nation’s economy and society in the process. Additionally, the railway tycoons are responsible for creating the big business playbook that today’s big tech business leaders still use. Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, and Tim Cook are just a few of today’s business pioneers who have succeeded in disrupting an existing business model and whose motives and methods are constantly scrutinized by the government, much like the robber barons back in the day.

Almost no society worshipped its military as much as the German state of Prussia in the 1700s-1800s (outside of ancient Sparta). Prussia was famously described as not a country with an army but an army with a country. That's because during the 18th century when other European states spent 20-30 of their annual budget on the military, the Prussian army regularly accounted for as much as three-quarters of public expenditure — even in times of peace. And this expenditure was widely accepted in all levels of Prussian society. In this episode we will look at: • How Prussia was a hinge point between medieval and modern armies • How militaries evolved from aristocratic officers who treated enlisted men like slaves into the army being a great equalizer that unites a nation. • Why Frederick the Great was a military genius that Napoleon worshipped. • Why the Prussian military was the forge that created Germany and created a militaristic society that led to World War One.

In October 1844, tens of thousands of people in New England believed the world would soon end. They followed William Miller, a man who claimed that through his study of the Bible to know the exact day of Jesus’s return to earth. His followers sold everything they had in preparation for Christ’s second coming, in which he would gather them into heaven, and cleans the Earth in fire. The “Millerites” donned white garments called ascension robes. They climbed trees or mountains to speed up their ascension.But Christ never came. The followers sat in confused disappointment. What happened to them after they gave up completely in their lives on earth? Moreover, what made them believe in Miller in the first place? Was he a particularly charismatic speaker, or was something happening in the United States that made belief in the apocalypse ripe? If so, what are those conditions and can they happen again?

One of America’s greatest but little-remembered Civil War heroes was Commander William Barker Cushing, who sank the Confederate ironclad Albemarle in a spectacular mission in 1864.Regarded as erratic and insubordinate, Midshipman Cushing was drummed out of the Naval Academy in March 1861. But with the outbreak of war, the Union needed every trained officer it could find— and whatever his flaws, Cushing was an extremely talented naval officer. Ferocious, uncompromising, courageous, and loyal, he became a U.S. Navy commando and at the age of twenty-one was sent to destroy the South’s ultimate naval weapon—the Albemarle, an unsinkable vessel with a devastating iron ram.Todays guest, Jerome Priesler, is author of "Civil War Commando." We discuss the death-defying mission that succeeded in sinking the Albemarle, helped reelect President Abraham Lincoln, and earned Cushing a hero’s grave in the Naval Academy’s cemetery.

Imagine if Benedict Arnold defected from America, went to England, then conspired against England with France during the Napoleonic Wars. During the War of 1812, America asks for him to come back but because his military skills were so desperately needed. He then is granted the position of general and wins the entire war of 1812 against the British. We would admire him as a smooth operator – like a James Bond and Loki the god of mischief – but never look up to him like an Abraham Lincoln. We have that in the Ancient Greek character of Alcibiades. He was called the chameleon by Greek and Roman writers and for good reason. Alcibiades, (born in 450 BC) was a brilliant but unscrupulous Athenian politician and military commander who provoked the sharp political antagonisms at Athens that were the main causes of Athens’ defeat by Sparta in the Peloponnesian War. Alcibiades was intertwined with the conflicts in Athens between democracy, oligarchy, and tyranny. Depending upon the circumstances, he could be said to be a proponent of each form of regime. Those shifting allegiances became even more complicated with Persia, as all of the parties within both Athens and Greece sought Persian support.Learn how this Benedict Arnold of the ancient world played all sides and managed to stay alive far longer than anyone expected... until fate finally caught up with him.

The common view of Warren G. Harding is this: a likable affable fool from Ohio who was chose as Republican presidential candidate at a deadlocked national convention because he was the lowest common denominator. His cronies—the “Ohio Gang”— plundered the government while Harding pursued his vision of “a return normalcy,” which involved little more than writing raunchy poetry to his mistresses (which the Library of Congress made available to the public in 2014). Harding died in 1923, possibly at the hand of a political rival or a jealous wife. Historians agree with this assessment – in every poll of the president, Harding comes at the very bottom.But what if this view is wrong? After all, Harding was beloved by Americans during his life and mourned deeply at his early passing. He was the first president to require a budget from Congress, improved relations with Latin America, and pushed for the inclusion of Black Americans into civic life. In this episode, we’ll look at the legacy of America’s most hated president and if he deserves that distinction. Other topics include: • Theories about his death There are lots and lots of theories about how he was murdered and they have to do with the belief he was always involved in scandals and womanizing. • lurid poetry he sent to his mistress • theories he might have been black (CSPAN episode from 1999 had lots of callers bout this) • Whether Warren G. Harding’s reputation deserves to be rehabilitated.

World War One was the most consequential social event in centuries. 10 million soldiers died, creating 3 million widows and 10 million orphans. Many Europeans felt disillusionment and even anger about the war. They questioned earlier notions of honor, duty, and bravery. Europe lost its economic centrality. New York replaced London as the financial capital of the world., and the US and the USSR emerged as proto-superpowers. But positive changes happened. The notion of what roles women could take on changed. Women proved themselves capable of doing much of what men came. Four empires were gone. Many new smaller nations were created from the Empires’ former territories.

From 1914-1918, the leaders of World War One were generals who commanded millions of men, emperors who inherited dynasties with centuries of accumulated wealth, and Sultans who claimed a direct line of connection to the Prophet Muhammed. After the war, many of them lost all their money and power, and were forced into lonely exile. British Chief of Staff Henry Wilson left the army after the war and became a Member of Parliament.  He was murdered on his doorstep by the Irish Republican Army in 1922. Kaiser Wilhelm II went into exile in the Netherlands and died in 1941 at the age of 82.  When he died he was putting pins in a map to mark the progress of the German army. Enver Pasha fled to Germany after the war.  Then he fled to Moscow and then Turkmenistan, where he took command of anti-Soviet rebels and was killed in the fighting in 1922.

The Paris Peace Conference opened on January 18, 1919. Its task was the writing of five separate peace treaties with the defeated separate powers: Germany, Turkey, Bulgaria, Austria, and Hungary (now separate nations). The defeated Central Powers were not allowed to participate in the negotiations. The terms would be dictated to them. Russia was also not allowed to come. The world had been remade. Clemenceau, Lloyd George, and Wilson faced a daunting task. Even as they and all the other delegates sat down to their deliberations, borders and governments were being decided in tumult, anarchy, and armed conflict. Most of the crowned heads of Europe had been deposed. The Czar and his family had been murdered. The Kaiser was in exile in the Netherlands. Bavarian king Ludwig III had given way to a socialist revolt. Austria and Hungary had declared themselves republics, making Charles I an emperor without an empire (he would eventually go into exile in Switzerland, and later Madeira). The states of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Finland were reemerging from the past. Communist red flags popped up, however briefly, at points in the heart of Europe. German mercenary armies, the Freikorps, fought Bolsheviks in Germany, saving the secular, socialist Weimar Republic—and even tried to annex the Baltic States, in secular emulation of the Teutonic Knights.

After Germany's' failed spring offensive, realized the only way to win was to push into France before the United States fully deployed its resources. The French and British were barely hanging on in 1918. By 1918, French reserves of military-aged recruits were literally a state secret; there were so few of them still alive. The British, barely maintaining 62 divisions on the Western Front, planned, in the course of 1918 – had the Americans not appeared – to reduce their divisions to thirty or fewer and essentially to abandon the ground war in Europe. But with the Americans, it renewed the fighting chances for the Allies. They decisively overtook the Germans at the Meuse-Argonne Offensive in September. In November, Kaiser Wilhelm, visiting Spa, was advised that he had no real control over much of the army. While there, he received a telegram from Berlin that read “All troops deserted. Completely out of hand.” Wilhelm decided to go to the Netherlands. There, he abdicated on November 9. The war officially came to an end on November 11, where all troops kept a moment of silence.It was a religious experience. Here's what novelist Kurt Vonnegut says about it: "I have talked to old men who were on battlefields during that minute. They have told me in one way or another that the sudden silence was the Voice of God. So we still have among us some men who can remember when God spoke clearly to mankind."

The Battle of Megiddo was the climactic battle of the Sinai and Palestine campaign of the First World War, with Germans and Ottomans on one side, and British and French forces on the other (with Arab nationalists led by T.E. Lawrence). The actions immediately after it were a disaster for the Ottomans. They now had permanently lost control over their Middle Eastern possessions. Historian Edward Erickson writes “The battle…ranks with Ludendorff's Black Days of the German Army in the effect that it had on the consciousness of the Turkish General Staff. It was now apparent to all but the most diehard nationalists that the Turks were finished in the war. In spite of the great victories in Armenia and in Azerbaijan, Turkey was now in an indefensible condition, which could not be remedied with the resources on hand. It was also apparent that the disintegration of the Bulgarian Army at Salonika and the dissolution of the Austro–Hungarian Army spelled disaster and defeat for the Central Powers. From now until the Armistice, the focus of the Turkish strategy would be to retain as much Ottoman territory as possible.”

For thousands of years, two distinct cultures evolved unaware of one another’s existence. Separated by what one culture called The Great Sea and known to the other as the Atlantic Ocean, the course of each culture’s future changed irreversibly four hundred years ago. In 1620 the Mayflower delivered 102 refugees and fortune seekers from England to Cape Cod, where these two cultures first encountered one another. The English sought religious freedom and fresh financial opportunities. The Natives were recovering from the Great Dying of the past several years that left over two-thirds of their people in graves. How would they react to one another? How might their experience shape modern cross-cultural encounters?Today's guest, Kathryn Haueisen is the author of the book “The Mayflower Chronicles." Being descended from Elder William and Mary Brewster, Haueisen grew up knowing the English version of the story. She learned it both in school and at home. Once her life included grandchildren with Native American heritage, she became more curious about the Native side of the story. Her curiosity took her on a seven-year journey to England, the Netherlands, Plymouth, MA, and numerous museums, libraries, books, websites, and interviews with historians and descendants of the Native communities connected to the story

Thanksgiving today is now a commercially driven holiday with Black Friday following closely at its heels, celebrated with a department store parade, football, and at one point in time, masked costumes. But the holiday originally came into existence all thanks to a 19th-century widowed mother with no formal schooling. She eventually became one of America's most influential tastemakers. Sarah Josepha Hale worked at the helm of one of the most widely read magazines in the nation, Godey’s Lady’s Book, Hale published Edgar Allan Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and others, while introducing American readers to such newfangled concepts as “domestic science,” white wedding gowns, and the Christmas tree. A prolific writer, Hale penned novels, recipe books, essays, and more, including the ubiquitous children’s poem, “Mary Had a Little Lamb.” But one theme ran throughout her life, from her first novel published in 1827, to a mission accomplished 36 years later; Hale never stopped pushing the leaders of her time to officially recognize and celebrate gratitude. She finally got her wish by personally petitioning Abraham Lincoln to make Thanksgiving a national holiday. Today's guest is Denise Kiernan, author of "We Gather Together." Alongside the story of Hale, Kiernan brings to the fore the stories of Indigenous peoples, immigrant communities, women’s rights activists, abolitionists, and more, offering readers an inspiring tale of how imperfect people in challenging times can create powerful legacies. From Ancient Rome through 21st-century America, festivals resembling Thanksgiving have been celebrated the idea of gratitude, as a compelling human instinct and a global concept, more than just a mere holiday.