“Stand fast, my boys, and receive your enemy!” This is the story of a miserable winter at Valley Forge (1777-78), a possible conspiracy, and George Washington’s last major battle before Yorktown. Continental Commander George Washington is loved by many in Congress and the Army. But he has his enemies too. Some see a path to pushing George out of leadership–but will this so-called “Conway Cabal,” which happens while Continental soldiers are freezing and starving to death, actually work?...

“If old England is not by this lesson taught humility, then she is an obstinate old slut, bent upon her ruin.” - Horatio Gates This is the story of 1777’s Saratoga and Philadelphia campaigns.  Playboy and playwright General "Gentleman Johnny" Burgoyne is leading a Canadian-based invasion of upstate New York–and it's a tale of egos. From Britain’s Gentleman Johnny to America’s Horatio Gates and Benedict Arnold, a lot of Generals are looking out for "number one." But Saratoga is more than...

The Episode to end all … World War I episodes. Professor Jackson sits down with Kelsi Dynes to talk through all the things that didn’t make it into the final Great War episodes and go big picture on the Meuse-Argonne, Armistice, and Treaty of Versailles. ___ 3 Ways to dive deeper into History That Doesn’t Suck Join our growing Facebook community Get our monthly newsletter, The HTDS Gazette Become part of the HTDS Patreon family Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

“These are the times that try men’s souls.” This is the story of a Christmas Miracle at Trenton, New Jersey. George Washington’s army is exhausted, disheartened, battered, starving, freezing–all but broken. Sir William Howe’s mighty British Army has chased these American soldiers out of New York, New Jersey, and now, across the ice-filled Delaware River into Pennsylvania. Worse still for the Patriots, the British have captured Continental General General Charles Lee and scared Congress into...

“The circumstances under which we are spending this particular Christmas are unusual.” This is the story of the Christmases of World War I. Germans and British troops, singing carols together. French and German troops, kicking, playing sports and exchanging treats. It may not last, but for a brief moment–for Christmas of 1914–these opposing armies refuse the orders of their superiors as they temporarily “beat their swords into plowshares and spears into pruninghooks.” In the years ahead,...

“A Peace which cannot be defended in the name of justice before the whole world would continually call forth fresh resistance” This is the story of peacemaking in 1919–a fraught peacemaking. With the Armistice signed, some 30 nations (led by the major Allied Powers) are gathering in Paris, France, to deliberate on the terms they’ll give to Germany. But the conference is beset with conflicting views. Not only do these various nations and other unofficial representatives have conflicting...

 “The German delegation has come to receive the proposals of the Allied Powers looking to an armistice.” This is the story of guns falling silent across war-ravaged fronts–the story of the Great War’s armistice between Germany and the Allied Powers. Sailors are mutinying. Soldiers are breaking. A revolution–possibly a Bolshevist revolution–is knocking on the Second Reich’s door. German leaders are coming to accept a painful reality: they can’t carry on this war. They look to the merciful...

“If I can but reach that bridge,” thought Ichabod, “I am safe.” This is the story of schoolmaster Ichabod Crane and his ride home after an evening spent trying to woo Katrina Van Tassel at a party hosted by her father at their idyllic farm in rural New York. It’s a terrifying ride–perhaps as deadly as Ichabod’s pursuer is headless. For this third HTDS Halloween special, we “rewind” to one of the oldest ghost stories in American lore: Washington Irving’s “The Legend of Sleepy...

Professor Greg Jackson sits down with legendary documentary filmmaker Ken Burns about his latest film The American Buffalo which has a two-part premiere in the US on PBS beginning Monday, Oct. 16, 2023.   Some refer to Ken Burns as a historian, but he would be quick to tell you that he considers himself a storyteller. His latest documentary The American Buffalo is a sort of biography of the American bison, or the buffalo as they are more commonly known. The fact is, we would only know of...

Today, we have a special off-week treat: an episode of History Daily! Hosted by Lindsay Graham (podcaster not Senator), History Daily brings you a tale from the past, on its anniversary, daily. Listen to History Daily on Spotify, Apple, or where you get your podcasts! https://www.historydaily.com/. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“All right, General. We’ll take it, or my name will head the list.” This is the story of Meuse-Argonne and the Americans’ continued struggles to take the Kriemhilde Line. Tennessean Alvin York hates war, yet he finds himself an unlikely hero when his youthful days of hunting turn him into a prisoner-taking sharpshooter as the US First Army presses forward against the Germans. But this isn’t a battle just for the First Army anymore. A stressed-out, breaking, Black Jack Pershing finally...

“Our own artillery is dropping a barrage directly on us. For heaven’s sake, stop it.” This is the story of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive’s beginnings. “Tout le monde à la bataille.” So says Ferdinand Foch as the Allies hit the Germans from several pressure points at once. For the Americans, that means fighting between the thick woods of the Argonne Forest and the deep waters of the Meuse River. The region is heavily guarded and a “natural fortress.” The attack will have a high cost –...

Time to review! Greg and Kelsi talk through the main takeaways of the American story in World War I to date, from causes to new inventions and social changes. We get a little behind the scenes on episodes, a few stories that didn’t make in, and set the stage for the last battle of the Great War. ___ 3 Ways to dive deeper into History That Doesn’t Suck Join our growing Facebook community Get our weekly newsletter, The Revolution Become part of the HTDS Patreon family Learn more about...

A picturesque paragliding flight becomes a terrifying nightmare when a massive storm rolls in. Sucked into the clouds, Ewa Wiśnierska is pelted by hailstones the size of oranges. With lightning crackling all around her, she is sent hurtling upwards - still clinging to her parachute. Soon, she’ll be higher than Everest and nearing the cruising altitude of a jumbo jet. Covered in ice, approaching the edge of the breathable atmosphere… how on earth does she make it down in one piece? Real...

“Something has happened to one of the boys.” This is the story of the Great War’s flyboys – particularly, Americans taking to the skies to fight for France. Long before the United States will enter the Great War, hundreds of American men head to Europe to fight for the French Republic. Some drive ambulances. Some fight in the French Foreign Legion. But come 1916, some begin to fly. In 1916, seven pilots (our “Flying Founders,” if you will) start an American squadron within France’s...

“Is there any regulation which specifies that a Navy yeoman be a man?”  This is the story of the United States in the Great War and the role of women in that changing world. Women of the Progressive Era are all about change. They’re fighting for several reforms — including their own right to vote — and as the United States enters the Great War, they’re ready to embrace new responsibilities and opportunities. Women are stepping into all sorts of new roles, be that on a factory floor or by...

“My men never retire. They go forward, or they die!” This is the story of the 15th New York, a.k.a, the 369th, or the Harlem Hellfighters. James “Big Jim” Europe is one of the most talented musicians in the world. His ragtime and early jazz sounds electrify New York City. That’s exactly why Colonel William “Big Bill” Hayward, who’s just been named commander of New York’s newly established Black regiment (the 15th) wants the young machine gun officer to step into his rightly earned celebrity...

 “Marshal Foch, you have no authority as Allied Commander-in-Chief to call upon me to yield up my command of the American Army and have it scattered among the Allied Forces where it will not be an American army at all.” This is the story of the first battle of the First American Army. Fresh off of an Allied victory at Amiens, Supreme Commander Ferdinand Foch has new ideas for a combined Allied strategy along the Meuse and in the Argonne forest. But his plan comes at a cost to the Americans,...

“Every time I have felt annoyed since then at France, this picture comes to mind and my anger softens.” This is the story of the Great War’s turning point. After a fourth and failed Spring Offensive operation, German General Erich Luddendorf is ready to make a fifth push. He’s making a pincer movement around the city of Reims, and to its west, on the banks of the Marne River, the US 3rd Division finds itself caught in a fight that the French present call worse than Verdun. It’s a slaughter,...

The impact of the 1918 Battle of Belleau Wood on the US Marine Corps is hard to overstate. Though in existence since 1775, the Corps was reborn in those woods. Not only did it give rise to new lore, but a whole generation of future leaders. Given its significance, Greg sits down with Captain Mac Caldwell of the US Marine Corps to go several cuts deeper on Belleau Wood and its legacy right into the twenty-first century. ___ 4 Ways to dive deeper into History That Doesn’t Suck Join our...

This is the story of the first real battles of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) in World War I. Carrying out his third operation of the German Spring Offensive, General Erich Ludendorff is hoping to distract the French before delivering a KO punch to the Brits farther north in Flanders. But this offensive is going far too well to let up. German troops are advancing rapidly down here. This mere diversion has taken them to Château-Thierry on the banks of the Marne River! Erich can’t help...

“Lafayette, nous sommes ici!” (Lafayette, we are here!) This is the story of a nation building an army from nothing. After years of trying to avoid entanglements with and war in Europe, President Woodrow Wilson has asked Congress for a declaration of war against Germany. But that’s easier said than done. The US might be the world’s greatest industrial producer and have a large population, but will the nation’s population of heavily first- and second-generation American citizens (or...

“I still think I see the struggling of poor passengers in the water.” This is the story of the United States’ path into the Great War. The United States wishes to stay out of the Great War. Woodrow Wilson wins reelection (barely) on that very basis. But as Germany contends with Britain’s blockade, its submarines, or “u-boats,” are attacking merchant and passenger ships (like the RMS Lusitania) without warning. This policy is touch and go, but worse still, the US learns in Februarly 1917...

Introducing a new podcast: YE GODS WITH SCOTT CARTER. We all know that faith and ethics are recurring themes in history. Scott Carter is an award-winning TV producer for HBO and PBS whose shows get people talking about the big issues of the day. Now he’s launched a new podcast to get people talking about the big questions of life.  Each week he asks prominent authors, comics, musicians, filmmakers and philosophers about the rules that guide their lives, whether they be sacred or secular....

Starting the Great War (World War I) and covering this massive conflict up to 1917 has been a pretty big task unto itself. So, before we go in close on America's role, Greg and Kelsi sit down to digest and talk through a few aspects of the War, as well as share a few additional stories and experiences. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices