Subject to Change Podcast
1) Napoleon III Part 2: The Power of Lust
As promised in part 1 we started the podcast by talking about some of Napoleon III’s many mistresses. Women like Harriet Howard, the Brighton bootmaker’s daughter, Virginia de Castiglione, sent by th...Show More
2) Napoleon III Part 1: the Lust for Power
Send us a text From exiled prince to emperor, Napoleon III's rise to power reads like a political thriller too wild to be true. Edward Shawcross tells the story of Napoleon Bonaparte's nephew, a man w...Show More
3) From Eunuchs to Corsairs: The World of Islamic Slavery
Fourteen centuries of enslavement, from the Prophet Muhammad's day to modern Mauritania. Justin Marozzi's fascinating book "Captives and Companions" unveils the extraordinarily complex history of slav...Show More
4) The Tokyo Tribunal: War Crimes, Justice, and Geopolitics
This episode looks at the courtroom drama that helped to shape Asia after World War II with Princeton University's Gary Bass. Far more than a simple account of justice served, the Tokyo War Crimes Tri...Show More
5) The Pilgrimage of Grace: When England Fought the Reformation
When 50,000 northerners marched under their banners in 1536, England witnessed its largest rebellion since the Peasants' Revolt. The Pilgrimage of Grace wasn't merely a protest—it was a defining momen...Show More
6) Byzantium and the First Crusade
The story of the First Crusade isn't simply one of religious fervor or military conquest – it's a tale of desperate empires, complex political maneuvering, and unlikely alliances that would reshape me...Show More
7) Shattered Jewels - Japan's Path to War (3 and final)
What makes a nation launch an attack it cannot hope to win? Admiral Yamamoto, who planned the Pearl Harbor attack, warned Japan's leadership they would have only six months before America would mobili...Show More
8) Manchuria to Pearl Harbor: Japan's Path to War (2)
How did Japan become embroiled in one of history's deadliest conflicts? The answer lies not in December 1941, but decades earlier. Jonathan Clements returns to unravel the forces that propelled Japan ...Show More
9) An Alien Game: Japan's Path to War (1)
The transformation of Japan from hermit kingdom to imperial power happened with breathtaking speed. When American Commodore Perry's "black ships" steamed into Tokyo Bay in the 1850s, they shattered Ja...Show More
10) How England Nearly Conquered France & Why They Failed
The Hundred Years' War shaped medieval Europe's political landscape for over a century—but what really caused this epic conflict between England and France? In this illuminating conversation, former U...Show More