HISTORY This Week

June 8, 1191. The Crusaders and Muslim forces are locked in battle over the city of Acre. On one side is Saladin, the great Muslim leader who has already recaptured Jerusalem. On the other, an armada arrives carrying England’s king: Richard the Lionheart.The Crusades will become one of the defining conflicts of the Middle Ages. But for centuries, their history fades into legend… until a Scottish writer named Walter Scott brings them roaring back. His novels turn knights, tournaments, and holy war into blockbuster entertainment. But Scott’s message was more complicated than simple nostalgia: he saw the Crusades as reckless, violent, and hollow. His readers mostly saw the armor.How did a Scottish poet revive this religious war and turn it into an international phenomenon? And how did his underlying message get lost, warped, and then repurposed to justify even more violence?Special thanks to Ian Duncan, professor of English at the University of California, Berkeley, and author of Scott's Shadow: The Novel in Romantic Edinburgh.You can find the rest of the books we used to research this episode at historythisweekpodcast.com.Get in touch: historythisweek@history.com Follow on Instagram: @historythisweekpodcastFollow on Facebook: ⁠HISTORY This Week Podcast⁠To stay updated: http://historythisweekpodcast.com

Search "World War II with Tom Hanks" wherever you get your podcasts! New episodes drop every Tuesday. World War II with Tom Hanks reexamines history’s most devastating conflict for a new century. Across twenty hours, the series traces the war’s full arc–from the rise of fascism to Hiroshima–uncovering the decisions, hidden networks, and lasting consequences that continue to shape our world. Episode 1 – The Beginning In September 1939, enabled by a secret pact between Adolf Hitler and Josef Stalin, Germany invades Poland with its lightning style of tank warfare, plunging Europe back into war. Adolf Hitler can now pursue his longed-for racial war, as the world watches in horror, and the stage is set for global conflict. This episode features interviews with (in order of appearance): Dan Carlin, podcaster, Hardcore History Alexandra Richie, professor, Collegium Civitas Robert Citino, senior historian, National WWII Museum Cameron Zinsou, associate professor, Command and General Staff College Geoffrey Wawro, professor, University of North Texas Jadwiga Biskupska, associate professor, Sam Houston State University Simon Sebag Montefiore, historian and author Roger Moorhouse, historian and author Leah Wright Rigueur, associate professor, Johns Hopkins University James Bulgin, Imperial War Museum General Wesley Clark, US Army, Ret. Sean McMeekin, professor, Bard College

May 23, 1934. On a muggy Louisiana morning, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow speed toward the Texas border. They’ve been on the run for over a year—wanted for robbery and murder—and the lurid news accounts of their exploits have made them famous. But today, Bonnie and Clyde’s legendary crime spree comes to an end … in a hail of bullets. Why did some come to view these Depression Era outlaws as agents of chaos the country needed? And what was the real motivation behind their crimes? Special thanks to our guest, John Neal Phillips, author of Running With Bonnie and Clyde: The Ten Fast Years of Ralph Fults. ** This episode originally aired May 22, 2023. Get in touch: historythisweek@history.com Follow on Instagram: @historythisweekpodcast Follow on Facebook: ⁠HISTORY This Week Podcast⁠ To stay updated: http://historythisweekpodcast.com

March 5, 1953. The Premier of the Soviet Union, Joseph Stalin, is on his deathbed, and he’s turning blue. At the end of his life, Stalin is surrounded by his closest advisors, but these comrades aren’t hoping for his quick recovery. For days, they’ve been sneaking away from their vigil, plotting. The moment Stalin’s heart stops, they leap into action. What happens when a tyrant falls? And what role did the inner circle play in bringing an end to Stalin? Special thanks to our guest, Sheila Fitzpatrick, historian and author of The Death of Stalin. -- Get in touch: historythisweek@history.com Follow on Instagram: @historythisweekpodcast Follow on Facebook: ⁠HISTORY This Week Podcast⁠ To stay updated: http://historythisweekpodcast.com

February 14, 1905. A stick of dynamite detonates under the Hudson River — and the ground above swallows a locomotive whole. It's the latest setback in an audacious plan to tunnel beneath the river and bring trains into Manhattan. The Pennsylvania Railroad is the largest corporation in the world, but the goopy riverbed keeps fighting back. How did they finally make it across? And why are these 115-year-old tunnels still the most critical infrastructure in America today? Special thanks to our guests: Polly Desjarlais, content and research manager at the New York Transit Museum; Jill Jonnes, author of Conquering Gotham: A Gilded Age Epic: The Construction of Penn Station and Its Tunnels; and Andy Sparberg, former LIRR manager, transit historian, and author of From a Nickel to a Token: The Journey from Board of Transportation to MTA. -- Get in touch: historythisweek@history.com Follow on Instagram: @historythisweekpodcast Follow on Facebook: ⁠HISTORY This Week Podcast⁠ To stay updated: http://historythisweekpodcast.com

Feb 13, 1920. For over thirty years, Black baseball players have been locked out of the major leagues. So on this day in Kansas City, Rube Foster, a former pitcher and now a team owner, is trying to make his own league just for Black players. He has gathered owners of other Black baseball teams, who currently play each other in one-off matchups or face independent teams in random games around the country. But Foster wants them to get organized, and soon, the Negro National League would be born. But up to this point, how did Black baseball survive after segregation became the unofficial policy of the major leagues? And how did Black players, owners, and managers join together to create something that no baseball fan could ignore? Special thanks to our guests, Phil S. Dixon, author and Negro Leagues researcher; and Bob Kendrick, President of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, MO. ** This episode originally aired Feb 7, 2022. Get in touch: historythisweek@history.com Follow on Instagram: @historythisweekpodcast Follow on Facebook: ⁠HISTORY This Week Podcast⁠ To stay updated: http://historythisweekpodcast.com

On January 5, 2026, Jirdes Winther Baxter passed away at 101 years old — the last known survivor of the 1925 diphtheria epidemic in Nome, Alaska. A few years ago, we told the story of the Serum Run: the desperate relay of mushers and sled dogs who carried a life-saving antitoxin across Alaska, including to an 11-month-old Baxter. Today, that run lives on through the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. Enjoy this classic HTW story, and stay tuned for new episodes soon! January 27, 1925. Musher “Wild Bill” Shannon and his team of sled dogs race off into the frigid Alaskan night. He’s carrying a package of life-saving serum, wrapped in fur to keep it from freezing. There’s no time to waste: nearly 700 miles away, in the snowed-in town of Nome, children are dying of diphtheria. Twenty mushers and hundreds of dogs are about to take part in an almost superhuman effort to ferry desperately needed medicine across the howling Alaskan wilderness. Who were they, and what did they endure to reach their goal? And as they pressed on, how did their efforts grip the nation? Special thanks to our guests, Pam Flowers, author of Togo and Leonhard, and Bob Thomas, author of Leonhard Seppala: The Siberian Dog and The Golden Age of Sleddog Racing 1908-1941. ** This episode originally aired Jan 23, 2023. -- Get in touch: historythisweek@history.com Follow on Instagram: @historythisweekpodcast Follow on Facebook: ⁠HISTORY This Week Podcast⁠ To stay updated: http://historythisweekpodcast.com