Most people have heard of Lawrence of Arabia, and the romantic tale of his involvement in the revolution that liberated the middle East from Ottoman rule during World war One. But few people are aware that behind TE Lawrence there stood an even greater champion in the cause for freedom. And no, it wasn’t some moustached army general or cigar chomping politician. It was a woman. The first ever to graduate with first class honours from Oxford. One who spoke 6 languages, had climbed the highest mountains in Europe (in her underwear); was an accomplished archaeologist, surveyor and photographer. A scholar of both Arab and Persian ancient poetry, she had conducted six separate expeditions into the forbidding deserts of Mesopotamia and Anatolia; had met virtually every tribal sheikh and warlord in the region and was treated by them as a princess and honoured guest. It was Gertrude Bell who provided accurate maps, intelligence and favourable contacts to both Lawrence and the British High command and was instrumental in the success of the Arab revolt – even lobbying for the installation of Hashemite princes Faisal and Abdullah on the thrones of Iraq and Jordan after the war. If you’re just a little bit curious about this incredible woman, who dared to go where few Western Men had ever been, then join us, as we dive into the life and times of Gertrude Bell: scholar, mountaineer, spy and kingmaker. #gertrudebell #history #middleeast #arabic #iraq #palestine #israel #documentary Support the show

When many people think of Africa, they visualise wide open spaces, incredible wildlife and colourful friendly people with vibrant cultures, costumes and music. We might also contemplate the tragedy of the African slave trade and the consequences of colonialism. But what if I told you there was one powerful African kingdom in particular, that, when they first came into contact with Europeans, voluntarily and enthusiastically transformed their entire civilisation almost overnight– adopting the language, religion, fashion and even feudal aristocratic customs of the Portuguese, establishing diplomatic embassies in Lisbon, Madrid and even the Vatican, training their own clergy and corresponding regularly with popes and monarchs across Europe as well as participating in the political machinations of a post-renaissance Europe at war with itself. Though their story ultimately was to come to a tragic end, it was full of political intrigue, amazon warrior queens, and a quest for power that was integral to the History of the West, particularly in the Americas, which was inexorably linked to the kingdom’s rise and fall. If you’re just a little bit curious about this powerful, deeply catholic kingdom in the darkest heart of Africa, then join us as we dive into the history of the Kingdom of Kongo; its troubled relationship with Portugal and its tragic role in the Transatlantic Slave Trade; whose incredible heroes would go on to inspire generations of their descendants, with stories of mighty Amazon warrior queens; and tales of the Brazilian Black Spartacus and his renegade kingdom.#congo #history #portugal #africa #zumbidospalmares #palmares #brazil #gangazumba #Njinga #Nzinga #africanqueen Support the show

Few enlightenment thinkers are as famous as the French writer Voltaire. Born into a modest though socially ambitious family, he found his talent for writing early and by his late teens was punching way above his weight as a playwright and poet earning accolades and raising eyebrows for his witty use of satire to make not-so-subtle criticisms of church and state. Indeed he would spend his entire adult life dodging the authorities, often writing under multiple pseudonyms and denying authorship of most of his scandalous books, for which there was no shortage of interest among the literate class of Paris, while the government burned his prolific output on a continuous basis in the public square. In his long and productive life he would write more than 2000 books and articles- including several massive encyclopaedic volumes. He would correspond with both monarchs and nobodies, on subjects as diverse as geology and free-speech; history and biology; mathematics and religious tolerance. His fortunes would take him from the Bastille and exile to the court of Frederick the Great, back to the Bastille and exile again. His very name became synonymous with both scandal and genius, and yet despite his herculean output, he nevertheless found time to advocate for the downtrodden and oppressed classes – often at substantial personal expense. He would ferociously denounce laws and customs he believed were unjust and savage his enemies in brutal polemical arguments, yet was incredibly generous to the point of being a sucker. He had an iron wit yet was an interminable hypochondriac. He was a Frenchman who loved the English way of life, always tearing at the fabric of his corrupt society. Perhaps more than any other individual of the time, his works challenged people to think deeply about the need to evolve our institutions and culture to be more humane, rational and accountable. If you want to know a bit more about this genius who stood at the crossroads between the old Europe and the New, then join us, as we dive into life and times of Voltaire, the Rascal philosopher.#voltaire #history #france #enlightenment #philosophy Support the show

Few politicians have been as polarising as UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who led her country during a tumultuous time in history, between 1979 and 1990. She was the first female leader of a major political party in British History; and its longest continually serving prime minister of the 20th century. She led her country to victory in the Falklands conflict; presided over the decolonisation of a number of former dominions, successfully pressuring warring factions in Rhodesia and the Apartheid regime of South Africa to come to a peaceful transition of power. She was a major player in the struggle against communism and the eventual breakup of the Soviet Union. But she also instigated a complete overhaul of the British economic system in a process that would eventually be named after her (Thatcherism); in which a massive privatisation and deregulation push of entire industries such as energy, communications, welfare, healthcare and transport into the private sector would cause substantial upheaval to many dependant communities. Nevertheless, these policies drove a surge in investment, GDP and capital that transformed Britain into a modern, efficient and productive nation that successive governments both left and right would continue to endorse. She was a conservative who nevertheless drove a number of progressive environmental policies. She was a traditionalist, yet supported free speech and personal liberty. She was a woman who believed herself to be the equal of any man in the arena, yet she was no feminist. In so many ways Margaret Thatcher was full of contradictions, yet most historians agree that in a world of wishy-washy populism, she was perhaps the only truly conviction politician who refused to back down from making the tough decisions that she believed would give individuals the greatest opportunities to thrive and make her nation great once more.#thatcher #margaretthatcher #politics #heroes #falklands #suez #history #unitedkingdom #british All film footage used in this montage remains the property of its respected creators, is used purely for educational purposes under fair act rules and is gratefully acknowledged in the end credits. If you have any issues or concerns please contact us.07:43 The Wesleyan Methodists17:16 The Liberal Party19:46 Youth, University and Early Career33:41 Anglo-Egyptian War and Suez Crisis50:25 Postwar Economic Theory 101 (Keynesianism and Miltonian Neoliberalism)1:10:01 Leadership1:19:53 Northern Ireland1:21:58 Falkland Islands Backstory1:31:30 Argentina and the Falklands Conflict1:46:49 Rhodesia and South Africa and Saddam Hussein1:52:00 Hong Kong, Gorbachev, Europe and the Trade Unions1:57:00 Thatcher the Greenie1:58:00 Third Term and downfall2:08:20 Death and LegacyIf you enjoy my content, leave your suggestions and comments below, and please consider making a donation via the heart-shaped Thanks link on your Youtube screen; via PayPal; or why not sign up as a Patreon supporter to get advanced screenings of new videos and help me continue making these unfunded educational videos:https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=4D958V58PAVDUhttps://www.patreon.com/heroesandlegendshttps://buymeacoffee.com/infoQh For an audio-narration only version of this video please visit the Heroes and Legends Documentary Channel Podcast, via Spotify, Itunes or other leading broadcasters.For resources, links to my other videos, merchandise, the latest social media posts and podcast links, please visit my Heroes and Legends Website: www.heroesandlegends.com.auSupport the show

We often look at history through the actions of great individuals, technological developments and natural events that initiate social, political and economic change. Sometimes animals play a role in those changes - such as the domestication of sheep, cattle and horses thousands of years ago as sources of food and burden or the ability to travel quickly and provide their riders with a battle platform. But despite those benefits, Europeans nevertheless continued to some degree to be constrained in their ability to travel long distances across oceans by the limits of nutritional deficiency- that is to say, disease borne of malnutrition. Food was difficult to keep from spoiling for more than a few weeks - particularly in humid environments and the effects of scurvy on sailors of during the golden age of sail is well known. But all this began to change when the Vikings began to dry and store a fish called the Cod, whose particular makeup was unlike that of other fish. When they introduced it other Europeans, the Basques in particular began salting the cod, which made the fish even more resistance to spoiling, and allowed them to travel great distances by ship. Tied into this new ability to travel was the discovery by fishermen of America - long before the celebrated explorers that we all learned about in school. These fishermen were feeding the impoverished and famine affected population of Europe with American Cod centuries before their monarchs began their official scramble for control of the New World, and the story of how they came to do it is one not widely known. Moreover, its also not widely known, that the Cod played a substantial role not only in the survival, economy and independence of the colonies of North America, but they facilitated significant social, political and economic progress that has led directly to the formation of the liberal democracies we live in today. But the relentless exploitation of Cod went further - greed and exploitation led to the redrawing of international boundaries, the unprecedented claim of continental shelves (previously part of international High Seas free commerce) and even caused a number of skirmishes between European countries late into the 20th century - known as the Cod Wars. That's a lot of significance for a fish to have. #cod #documentary #vikings #basque #history #columbus #exploration #fishing #conservation #cabot #america #newfoundland #canada #bristol Support the show

Few people know about the broader history of Ireland, and its long and tragic relationship with England: the uprisings and repression, the famines and exodus, or the political persecution that condemned activists to rot half way round the world as convicts in the brutal penal colonies of Australia. In this video, we’ll take a brief look at Irish history, its complex historical relationship with Britain, and as an interesting aside, the little known, though extraordinarily daring breakout of Fenian political prisoners from one of colonial Australia’s toughest convict prisons. From the post-Roman period and St Patrick; the Viking raids; the Anglo-Norman conquest, integration and and Tudor Protestant Plantations, through the Nine Years War, The War of the three Kingdoms; the Potato Famine and Fenian rising- aided by American ex-pats who were on a tragic journey of their own; the imprisonment, and escape of of rebels and the eventual push for Home Rule and lasting scars; in this video we examine the broad sweep of the Irish people's struggle for liberty, equality and sovereignty. Join us as we dive into the history of the Irish Problem, Fenian Rebels and the Catalpa rescue.#Irish, Ireland, #Fenian, #rebels, #Catalpa, #history, #documentary, Support the show

This is a story about a little known, yet much misunderstood hero. But more than that it is also a story about a clash of philosophies, the dawn of a new era; a young nation, and a once mighty one - both in their own way experiencing an identity crisis.In 1912, a young Norwegian explorer called Roald Amundsen reached the south Geographic Pole in a slick, clinical, sportsmanlike operation, having recently also been the first man to sail through the fabled North-West Passage on the other side of the globe. In doing so, he eclipsed a massive, lavishly funded, British polar expedition which was characterised by poor organisation, incompetent leadership and gross negligence that led to tragic suffering and loss of life.What followed in Britain was nothing less than a public cover-up, and whitewashing of their own expedition’s failures. Amundsen was characterised as a usurper and glory seeker, such that his reputation suffered even in his own fledgling nation of Norway. Undeterred, he would nevertheless push on with his polar ambitions, pioneering technology and protocols that saw him become the first explorer to reach both the north and south poles, the first to fly a plane beyond the arctic circle and even the first to fly an airship over the North Pole. A very private and driven man unused to public life or promotional spin, his serious and reserved nature won him few friends, while his unromantic writing style and matter of fact lectures hardly fired the popular imagination, hungry as they were for swashbuckling heroics and adventure; such that his stature has been overshadowed by the likes of Scott and Shackleton. In recent decades, a more sober reflection on what we now call the Heroic age of Polar exploration has begun to restore Amundsen to his pre-eminent position as the greatest of all Polar explorers. He was a man who spent years among the Netsilik Eskimo, studying their survival skills in minute detail, while astutely observing their culture with the greatest admiration and respect; pragmatically and successfully adopting their stone age wisdom while also embracing cutting edge technology. He was a man ahead of his time, yet was wise enough to apply the skills of the ancient ways in attaining his arctic goals.Join us as we dive into the life and times of Roald Amundsen, quiet conqueror of the earth’s Polar regions.#amundsen #roaldamundsen #explorer #northpole #southpole #arctic #antarctica #shackleton #norway #hero Support the show

September 2022 marks the 500th anniversary of the first circumnavigation of the globe by the expedition led by Ferdinand Magellan (Fernando de Magallanes/Fernão de Magalhães), and completed by Juan Sebastian Elcano- and it should be mentioned, a young slave boy by the name of Henry (Enrique) of Malacca. The story of how the spurned Portuguese Captain went to work for the Spanish is full of court intrigue, international espionage, daring exploits and narrow escapes; but also one of tragic blunders, mutiny and betrayal. Underscoring the fierce competition between Spain and Portugal for naval supremacy and a trade monopoly to the Orient is also the drama of East-West confrontation; the demise of Islamic hegemony and the emergence of European global economic & military dominance and a clash of cultures that changed the face of the world forever.  #magellan #magallanes #magalhaes #elcano #lapulapu #circumnavigation #enrique #malacca #spain #portugal #anniversary If you enjoy my content, please consider making a donation via PayPal or buy-me-a-coffee; or why not sign up as a Patreon supporter to help me continue making these unfunded educational episodes:https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=4D958V58PAVDUhttps://www.patreon.com/heroesandlegendshttps://buymeacoffee.com/infoQh To access a pdf - English OCR translation of Antonio Pigafetta's personal diary of the Magellan Voyage please visit our resource section at www.heroesandlegends.com.au   For a video montage version of this podcast please visit the Heroes and Legends Documentary Channel on our Youtube channel; feel free to comment, subscribe and share with your friends.For resources, links to my other work, merchandise, the latest social media posts and podcast links, please visit my Heroes and Legends Website: www.heroesandlegends.com.auSupport the show

When most people are asked to name an epic traveller from history, they usually come up with names like Marco Polo, Christopher Columbus, Magellan, or any number of other well-known European explorers and adventurers that come to mind.  Very few could name an explorer or traveller outside the realm of medieval and renaissance Europe, despite the obvious reality that there was at the same time, an enormous, incredibly diverse and highly interconnected parallel world outside their own relatively isolated domain, in which the Islamic faith had established networks of sultanates and empires extending from the Westernmost edge of Africa, all the way to China. This was a world in which newly conquered peoples were only just starting to assimilate the Arab Islamic culture, adopting – and adapting - this new faith to their own tastes and styles in an organic process of fusion that few Westerners ever credit other cultures as being capable of. What if I told you that around the same time of the celebrated Marco Polo, there was a young Muslim adventurer, who travelled 5 times as far. From his homeland in Morocco, through the middle East, doing numerous side-trips- north into Russia, with Mongol khans of the Golden Horde and Ilkhanate and Genoese traders, and then south again to India's Tughlaq Sultanate and South East Asia, dwelling in the court of mighty Sultans as well as hermits in lonely caves. He would go on to loop the middle East and Mediterranean and then sail down the mysterious East coast of Africa only to weave his way back north and on to modern Indonesia, Malaya and on to Yuan Dynasty China. Regularly stopping for months at a time to study and work under the greatest teachers of the day, on his journey, he would meet mystics and maniacs, firewalkers and killer elephants; princes and pirates. He would marry and divorce ten times; win and lose several fortunes; undertake the sacred Hajj 5 times; outrun the bubonic plague; and after a quarter of a century eventually make his way home, only to travel across the Sahara into deepest Africa. He would go on to recount his journey, the people he met and the cultures he encountered in rich and vivid detail, in a precious book that would eventually make him a hero throughout the entire Islamic world, and a household name, much as Marco Polo is to us. If this sounds like a rollicking adventure worth exploring, then join us, as we dive into the life and times of Ibn Battuta (بْنُ بَطُّوطَةُ) - pilgrim, intellectual, adventurer, hustler and all out freeloading tourist whose exploits across 40 modern countries over thirty years held the record for the longest individual journey until the advent of the jet-age, making Marco Polo’s journey look like a Contiki tour.#ibnbattuta #rihlah #traveller #documentary #history #islam #medieval  To access a pdf copy of Prof Gibb's translation of Ibn Battuta's "Rihla" please visit our resource section at www.heroesandlegends.com.au  Support the show

Joan of Arc; the Maid of Orleans; Jeanne D'Arc, Jehanne la Pucelle: she goes by many names. A provincial French peasant girl, barely in her teens, living in relative poverty, illiteracy and complete subordination during a time of total war and medieval brutality. Imagine this traumatised though deeply pious child having visions of angels and saints, and being commanded by them to seek out the dauphin (the French word for Crown Prince) and convince him to let her lead his demoralised army and liberate their kingdom from a powerful enemy. Most people then, as now, would have thought her at best, mentally ill. But so determined was she to carry out her mission, that no amount of opposition, discrimination or humiliation was going to stand in her way. Never taking NO for an answer, she eventually got her audience with the dauphin, she also got her army, and with it, proceeded to blaze her way across France, inspiring troops and civilians alike to fight on against overwhelming odds and turn the tide of war against England finally in their favour; always leading from the front and being herself seriously wounded on multiple occasions. This naïve teenager would soon wipe out the celebrated army of English longbowmen that had so humiliated her country at Crecy and Agincourt, such that it would take a generation for them to appear in force again on any battlefield. She would live to see her king, Charles VII crowned, only to suffer capture, a show trial and a horrible demise at the hands of the English; based entirely on her being a woman daring to participate in a man’s world.#joanofarc, #jeannedarc, jehannedarc, #hundredyearswar, #orléans, #orleans, #history, #documentary, #heroesandlegends, #girlpower    Support the show

Thomas Paine was a plain talking, big thinking common man - self educated in matters of science, philosophy, activism and political theory. His pamphlets and books inspired ordinary people throughout the colonies of America to stand up for their rights and throw off the yoke of British domination. Soon after, these books were smuggled into France, where they inspired the Third Estate to agitate for the guarantee of their natural rights. Eventually, this grass roots activism would lead to the overthrow of the French Monarchy in the French Revolution, where Paine would be granted honorary citizenship, a seat in its parliament and a voice in the drafting of the French Republic's constitution. He would eventually go on to write on many issues of social justice, including abolition, universal suffrage, aged care, education, welfare, healthcare and anti-corruption in government. This occasionally made him a target of powerful people, and despite his heroic status, he was eventually marginalised and forgotten. Overshadowed by the major players who used his tireless campaigning to their advantage, Paine died in obscurity and poverty, having transformed the landscape of democracy across three continents, and was the source of many of our greatest achievements in civil discourse and progress over the last 250 years.#thomaspaine, #americanhero, #democracy, #frenchrevolution, #documentary Support the show

The Grimm brothers fairy tale Iron John (or Der Eisenhans in German) was the subject of study by prize winning American poet and author Robert Bly, who was a prominent figure in the mythopoetic men's movement that began in the 1980's. In it he saw the remnants of pre-industrial male initiation, told through the story of a young prince, who goes off to live with a wild, hairy man in the forest, encounters a magical golden spring, and then later works anonymously as a servant in the castle of a great king. He eventually goes on to perform great feats of bravery and skill, to eventually win the hand of a princess. The many peculiar adventures of the boy were interpreted by Bly as metaphors for the necessary steps in becoming a man. In this video, I've split the story into four parts, and following each one, I've offered interpretations of the symbology and meaning as well as some contemporary context according to my own understanding, as well as that of Bly's book. If you want to skip the interpretations and go straight into the story, the relevant parts on the time line are shown below:Part1   2:09 - 14:12Part2    22:41 - 27:06Part3    35:39 - 39:53Part4    41:50 - 48:52#eisenhans, #robertbly, #ironjohn, #maleinitiation, #masculinity, #manhood, #mythopoetic For the video montage of this episode please visit the Triarius Project Youtube Channel, or follow this link:https://youtu.be/HcF_dd3agMwSupport the show

The hero’s journey is the mythological representation of the challenges we all face in life and the path that must be travelled to overcome them. But more than that, it represents what famous mythologist Joseph Campbell saw as the generic-representation of the process of personal development and maturity that each person must undergo in order to become balanced, healthy members of society. This usually means dealing with repressed emotional issues, making difficult decisions, having the courage to suffer, and accepting all the consequences. Campbell was influenced in his wide study of religion and mythology by psychologists such as Freud and Jung, who often used dream analysis, myths and folk stories to illustrate their insights. Campbell once wrote:“A myth is a public dream and a dream is a private myth”Both Jung and Campbell believed that certain archetypical ideas were expressed collectively. In other words, they believed that we all have similar mental representations of subconscious phenomena. These phenomena are expressed in dreams and stories that intuitively seem to resonate with all people, despite their cultural backgrounds and personalities. It is something that is imprinted on our DNA, like the instinctive fear all newly hatched chicks have of a snake, or snake-like object, despite never having seen one. The hero’s journey is a myth found in all cultures that provides a framework, or path to resolution of an unfolding life drama, that we can all learn from, and take comfort in. This is why Campbell called it the “monomyth”, or the singular story that defines the human experience.#herosjourney, #josephcampbell, #monomyth,The video montage of this podcast can be found on my Triarius Project Youtube channel, by following this link:https://youtu.be/KHOhHwzO_2Yor via my Triarius Project website at www.triariusproject.comSupport the show

William Shakespeare was arguably the greatest writer in history. His works have been translated into every living language. He’s been credited with literally inventing a tenth of the entire English language, or almost 2000 new words and phrases, many of which remain in common usage to this day. Yet, he was an aspiring tradesman’s son during a time of great civil upheaval. He apparently left school at 13 only to be forced into a murky marriage at the age of 18. Despite these challenges he somehow managed to pen works that showed an incredible breadth and depth of knowledge of law, medicine, botany, geography, politics, history, religion and human psychology that mark him as a true renaissance man. And yet, we have so few pieces of material evidence about him that we could fit everything we know of his life, into literally one paragraph. We can’t even be sure that the portraits we instantly recognise are actually his. And yet, there are over a thousand books that have been written about him, almost all of which are based on pure speculation. Some even suggest that the man we assume to be the greatest treasure of the English Speaking World could not possibly be the obscure son of an illiterate glovemaker; but merely a front-man or pseudonym for a restless aristocrat wanting to keep anonymous. Join us, as we dive into the life and times of William Shakespeare; take a brief look at his works, themes and their significance, and review some of the ongoing controversies that have plagued our understanding of his legacy to this very day.#williamshakespeare, #shakespeare, #shaksper, #controversy, #antistratfordian, #oxfordian, #Edwarddevere, #francisbacon, #baconian, #hamlet, #macbeth, #sonnets, #renaissance, #cypher, Further links related to content in the video:Medieval Perfect Storm (on this Channel)https://youtu.be/qavGsly6y98Brutus (on this Channel)https://youtu.be/45BabLOPZioJoseph Campbell's Monomyth or Hero's Journey, on the Triarius Project Channel:https://youtu.be/KHOhHwzO_2YIron John on the Triarius Project Channel:https://youtu.be/HcF_dd3agMwCracking the Shakespeare Code with Petter Amundsen:https://youtu.be/XpJzi3JunucThe Shakespeare Mystery:https://youtu.be/wkqcLJZ9I3s9 Fake Facts about Shakespeare- A quick summary by Dr. Ros Barberhttps://youtu.be/vPIKgfEWRo0Diana Price and Shakespeare's lack of a Literary Trailhttps://youtu.be/GEQNWpo1PSsShakespeare was a fake- by Alexander Waugh at Brunel Universityhttps://youtu.be/XGn6eJkQligWho Wrote Shakespeare? Public debatehttps://youtu.be/HgImgdJ5L6oShakespeare Authorship Question. Prof Paul Cantor:https://youtu.be/dMM_Un6W_mQDid Shakespeare write Shakespeare? By Dr. Ros Barber-https://youtu.be/l8oJy318BDoBy Tom Regnier-https://youtu.be/EAprYZnjGX4Websites of prominent Anti-Stratfordian Groups:https://deveresociety.co.uk/edward-de-vere-as-shakespeare/https://shakespeareoxfordfellowship.org/the-oxfordian/https://sirbacon.org/wells.htmShakespeare Authorship Question and trustworthiness:https://youtu.be/5h1HJSNzDDITraditional Shakespeare Sites:https://shakespeareauthorship.com/Support the show

Marcus Junius Brutus is a name that has come down through history as being synonymous with unexpected betrayal. Dante- in his Divine Comedy portrays Brutus as being in the lowest pit of the underworld. He was however a far more complex character, and even William Shakespeare, in his play The Death of Julius Caesar, portrays him as a man torn by his duty to his country and his duty to his friend and benefactor - Caesar. Brutus' monologues and conversations are by far the longest of all the characters - which suggests that the play was really about Brutus, not Caesar. So Brutus is a figure of history that has been twisted and manipulated by emperors and kings to justify their own power, and also by democratic republics as a martyr to the ideals of freedom. But the real story of Brutus is more complex, more human and deserving of a deeper exploration.Film montage references are listed in the credit roll at the end of the video.#brutus #Rome #Caesar.02:28 Background10:52 Key Players / 1st Triumvirate41:52 Marc Antony's "Funeral Speech" (Shakespeare)47:36 Decimus Junius Brutus55:10 Aftermath 1:00:00 Second Triumvirate1:03:00 End of the Republic1:05:18 Brutus Speech at Caesar's funeral (Shakespeare)Support the show

Pemulwuy was a member of the Bidgigal Clan, of the Eora nation that inhabit the Sydney Basin on the East Coast of Australia. When Arthur Phillip arrived in Kamay (Botany Bay) with the First Fleet in 1788, to establish a convict settlement, tensions soon arose between the British and the Aboriginal clans that inhabited the area. Under pressure from expanding settlers, the Aboriginal people found a champion in Pemulwuy, a Carradhy (Cleverman), whose hit-and-run tactics unified a number of independent tribes in the region and put serious pressure on colonial food reserves and security. His relentless campaign lasted 12 years, and during that time he gained legendary status among his people, and the respect of his enemies, such that today he has become a worthy hero to Australians of all backgrounds.#hero #australianhero #aboriginalheroSupport the show

In today’s episode, we will look at the life of Fray Bartolomé de Las Casas, a Dominican Priest who, during the 1500’s at the time of Spanish conquest in the Americas, has been called the “world’s first Social Justice Warrior”. But his isn’t a cosy story of messianic devotion to a cause held firmly in his breast from the outset. He was, in the beginning, one of the bad guys, up to his elbows in it. But then something happened that would transform him into a relentless champion of human rights at a time when the phrase didn’t even exist; taking part in the legendary Valladolid debate; pushing the Pope to issue a Human Rights Bull on behalf of indigenous people; hustling an audience with Charles V, Habsburg King of Spain and Holy Roman Emperor; and then going on to publish what is considered the first anthropology textbook on the Americas. His tireless campaigning would lead to changes in attitudes and law, that provided a foundation for the European enlightenment centuries later. And yet, today in the West, he and compatriots such as Fray Antonio Montesinos largely remains one of the unknown heroes of history, being overshadowed by conquistadors such as Pizarro, Cortez and Columbus.#lascasas, #socialjusticewarrior, #humanrights, #spanishheroSupport the show

Born Prince Philip of Denmark and Greece; the consort of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom has often been maligned in the media for his frequent gaffes and politically incorrect comments. Yet his troubled youth, intense study and courageous actions in World War 2 marked him as a man of substance. A man's man and avid sportsman, he abandoned his promising Naval career and previous royal titles to support his wife the monarch and adopted country. Working tirelessly for the public good, he travelled extensively in his patronage of nearly 800 organisations, personally writing and delivering over 70 speeches a year in a marathon effort of public service of over 65 years. Committed to youth, environmental and sporting causes, he left a significant legacy on the many organisations and societies he passionately supported. A devoted husband and protective father, he passed away in May 2021, just short of his 100th birthday.#princephillip, #dukeofedinborough, #stoicismSupport the show

Albert Facey, born at the desperate tail end of the Australian gold rush, suffered incredible hardship, poverty and even child slavery, only to escape and survive like so many other Huckleberry Finns of his time, purely by his wits and determination, in a harsh, unforgiving land. Illiterate, he taught himself to read and write, and was soon swept up in the fervour of the Great War. Ending up in the hell of Gallipoli, and its horrors of trench warfare, he was wounded and returned to Australia. He had barely settled into married life, when the Great depression hit; a nightmare he was only too familiar with from his childhood. Battling constant illness himself, and then losing a son in the second world war, and still having the strength to go on, his was a tale similar to so many others, of one disaster after another, of narrow escapes and lean expectations. And yet, in his 80’s he was to name his published memoirs “A Fortunate Life”, reflecting his incredibly positive outlook on life. He was in many ways the archetypical battler of his era, one of the faceless legions of pioneers that build nations, and a voice from the past that we can all benefit listening to.Join us, as we explore the life of this extraordinary, yet ordinary man, and pause to take some inspiration, during our own trying times, from his indomitable spirit.#aussiehero, #aussiebattler, #abfacey, #anzacSupport the show

Vice Admiral Robert FitzRoy is one of the forgotten heroes of the mid eighteenth century. An aristocrat of the old school, he became an outstanding naval officer, rapidly rising through the ranks. He became most famous, as the taciturn and melancholy captain of the Beagle - taking the young and inexperienced Charles Darwin, as a mere companion, on the journey that would inspire his evolutionary theory of Natural Selection that changed the course of science, and history. But as a fundamentalist Christian, he struggled with the societal shockwaves the theory would send through Britain, and his role in motivating and encouraging Darwin. But quite aside from his incredible relationship with Darwin, FitzRoy went on to become governor of the young nation of New Zealand, championing indigenous Maori rights against the expansion of settlers, Then, most notably, being the developer of a series of barometers and warning stations across the United Kingdom, gathering data and establishing the first meteorological office in the world and publishing the first ever weather forecast- his system of charts and warning reports being the foundation of weather forecasts in use all around the world to this day, saving the lives of countless sailors and fishermen. Battling his entire life with what we would now diagnose as Bipolar disorder, his incredible feats of navigation and charting of some of the most treacherous seas in the world, as well as gathering weather data for stations across Britain, contrasted with his regular bouts of deep and debilitating depression, that would eventually see him take his own life, due to an illness that had no treatment any aroused very little sympathy.#weatherman, #realhero, #fitzroy, #charlesdarwin, #evolution, #creationism, #meteorology, #beagleSupport the show

Captain James Cook, a British Navigator, Cartographer and explorer was one of the pre-eminent sailors and innovators of his age. Now a controversial figure for indigenous cultures who see him as the instigator and symbol of European colonial expansion and genocide; the real James Cook was actually quite a different man to what has been imagined. Coming from abject poverty in rural Yorkshire England; raised among the pacifist and hard working Quakers, he dreamed of sailing to far off lands in the pacific since he was a boy. Working as an apprentice aboard a grubby Whitby Cat collier, he soon proved himself a hard working and competent sailor. He was later to join the Royal Navy and sail to Canada, taking part in the siege of Louisburg and Quebec, while learning the cartography and surveying skills that were to revolutionise the Navy from that time on. James Cook circumnavigated the globe three times, charted approximately a third of the unknown coastlines of the globe; beginning with his first voyage aboard the Endeavour, with Naturalists Joseph Banks and Daniel Solander. He was the first man to sail below, and above the 70th parallel, and his regime of hygiene and fresh food revolutionised the management of scurvy while at sea. For this, he was admitted as a fellow to the Royal Society, as well as raised from the rank of Master, to Lieutenant and then Post Captain -something that would otherwise have caused a scandal among the high society gentry, if it were not for his incredible reputation. In all three of his major voyages, spanning twenty years, he never lost one crew member to the disease, which was an astonishing achievement when compared to a 40% plus death rate that was typical of long range voyages in the time preceding his. His untimely murder in Hawaii robbed the world of a humble, humane and dedicated leader, whose legacy now risks being tarnished by historical revisionists more focused on political activism than historical reality.#captaincook, #jamescook, #realhero, #aussiehero, #endeavour, #Australia, #navigator, #cartographer, #circumnavigationSupport the show

This episode explores the geopolitical situation of the late medieval period wherein an enabled papacy, thanks to its projection of spiritual authority onto temporal powers, became increasingly political and corrupt. With the advent of climate change that caused the little ice age in the early 1300's, there followed the great famine of 1315 that killed a quarter of Europe's population, as well as causing a collapse of the livestock, grain supply and local economies for decades. Just as they began to recover, Europe was then hit by the Black Death (or Bubonic Plague) in 1346, which caused the death of upwards of half the remaining population. Labour shortages then caused peasant and working class unrest, as well as a growing sense that the end of the world was coming. Both they and the professors in the universities, squarely viewed the church, its endemic corruption and the scandal of first, the Avignon Papal "Babylonian Captivity" and then the subsequent Great Schism that saw multiple competing anti-popes, as being in need of serious reform. In England, John Wycliff began his series of tirades against the pope in Rome, while in Bohemia, nationalist stirrings by an oppressed Czech population led to a similar movement led by priest and university professor Jan Hus (or John Huss). His betrayal, eventual burning at the stake in 1415 and subsequent mass uprising by his Hussite followers set off shockwaves throughout Europe that would eventually lead Martin Luther, a hundred years later, to begin the Protestant Revolution.#janhus, #johnhuss, #protestant, #reformation, #bohemia, #medieval, #papacy, #plague, #blackdeath, #hussitesSupport the show

May 2021 marks the bicentenary of the death of French Emperor and ethnic Corsican, Napoleon Bonaparte. A military and political genius and champion of the French Revolution, he has been much maligned by history as a dictator, and precursor for Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini and other modern despots by victorious British, Bourbon and other European monarchies. Napoleon's achievements both on and off the battlefield changed the course of world history and ultimately, drove the reforms and changes that were to improve the quality of life and futures of countless nameless peasants and disenfranchised people across Europe and the New World. And yet, he is continuously described as "controversial", racist, misogynist and an evil megalomaniac by biased historians viewing his life from their own narrow perspectives and political agendas.#napoleon, #napoleone, napoleonbonaparte, #frenchrepublic, #frenchrevolution, #vivelafrance, #empereur, #corsicaSupport the show

La guerra de la independencia: Arriving in Buenos Aires, capital of the Viceroyalty of Rio de la Plata; San Martin and his companions were faced with a colonial government in disarray. Not quite revolutionary, and not quite loyalist; attempting to form a new United Provinces; factional infighting so preoccupied them that they proved ineffective not only in subjugating outlying provinces, but barely securing their external borders. To be sure, there was much pride in the repulsion of two British invasions a couple of years earlier; which, it could be said was the primary trigger for self-determination; but beyond that, the local government struggled to define its purpose or its capacity to lead the rest of the colony.Outlying provinces were suspicious of the motives of Buenos Aires, and pursued a federalist agenda, which carried its own risks, as border security was flimsy, and led by heroic leaders who for the most part, were nevertheless not professional soldiers.San Martin was ideally suited to reorganise the military, but suspicions as to his motives ran deep, so early on he was assigned to mobilise a small cavalry regiment and police the river towns along the Parana River. Several successful engagements quickly proved his loyalty and skill and he was catapulted into senior leadership roles and quickly began re-organising the army.His primary goal was to secure external borders, particularly against the northern Viceroyalty of Peru, which posed a huge threat of attack from the Highlands. Seeing no way to win in the mountainous terrain, he instead formed a new army, and crossed the Andean Alps into Chile, in a Herculean feat not seen since Hannibal's crossing of the Italian Alps into Rome, taking the enemy by surprise and liberating Santiago, and eventually sweeping up the coast and taking Peru, in battles that had so few casualties, that commentators were shocked at his ability to achieve victory. From here he met up with the swashbuckling Bolivar, who, not willing to share the glory of Liberating the rest of the continent, insisted on going it alone rather than join forces with his southern ally. Low on funds, and lacking the support of Buenos Aires, who was embroiled in a civil war, San Martin left the war to the politicians and retired. Still unsatisfied, the ruling elites feared his political clout, so he voluntarily exiled himself to Europe, watching from afar, as his homeland continued to be plagued by both civil war as well as Portuguese incursion, entirely of their own making.At the time, he was seen as a controversial figure by the ruling elite, refusing to raise a sword against his own countrymen in a civil war that to him, seemed like an unnecessary distraction from the wider scope of liberation from Colonial oppression. It took many decades for successive governments to begrudgingly recognise what the ordinary folk knew all along- that he was the enabler not only of liberation of the entire southern half of the continent, but also of the further ability of Simon Bolivar to finish what San Martin himself had started. It is highly probable that without San Martin's actions, Bolivar would have failed to take Peru, or indeed proceed any further south than Guayaquil in modern Ecuador, as he desperately needed San Martin's reinforcements even in that outlying campaign. Forgotten for decades, San Martin now lies in the cathedral of Buenos Aires, rightly venerated by ordinary Argentines, Chileans and Peruvians alike, as "el libertador", the Liberator.#josedesanmartin, #sanmartin, #libertador, #argentinaSupport the show

Jose de San Martin, champion of the "guerra de la independencia", was an Argentine General, provincial governor and innovative commander who played a key role in the liberation of the viceroyalties and colonies of Latin America from the Spanish Crown in their post-Napoleonic struggle for independence. His youth was spent training as a professional soldier and his early career saw him first fighting with Napoleon's French forces against the Portuguese; then against them, as Napoleon revoked his alliance with the Spanish King and invaded the Iberian peninsula and installed his brother Joseph Bonaparte on the throne in 1808. Years of bloodshed and horror during the Iberian campaign was the crucible in which he developed his social consciousness and military thinking, and as the war ground to a stalemate, the call to return to his native motherland in its struggle for self-determination became increasingly difficult to ignore. This led San Martin - the highest ranking criollo officer in the Iberian peninsula, to resign his commission and make his way back to Buenos Aires, where this quiet, reserved and politically moderate soldier was to embark on a military career that would see him become venerated as "el libertador" (the liberator).#josedesanmartin, #sanmartin, #libertador, #argentina, #independenciaSupport the show

Herakles (Hercules) was a demigod (half human, half god) within the mythological pantheon of ancient Greece (and later, Rome) and illegitimate son of Zeus.Off to a bad start, he was the target of assassination attempts by Zeus's wife Hera, who was appalled at her husband's insatiable lusting after mortal women. But Heracles' sheer strength and naïve determination saw him evade these threats and roam the countryside, ridding the local kingdom of monsters to the great celebration of both kings and peasants. Outraged by his celebrity, Hera caused him to mistake his wife and children for monsters and slay them, before revealing their true identities to his great horror, and outrage of locals, who thought he had simply gone mad.Distraught, and contemplating suicide, he was instead convinced to submit to servitude to his jealous cousin, in the traditional manner of expiating his sins; who, in league with Hera, contrived to humiliate Herakles, and have him killed, but time after time, Herakles completed the now famous 12 Herculean labours, frustrating all attempts to make him fail, and thus lose all possibility of seeing his family in the afterlife.Throughout his life, Hercules demonstrated incredible commitment and tenacity in completing his assigned duties, demonstrating the super-human and awe-inspiring power of the divine half of his nature. But time after time, he lapsed into selfish, childish and ignorant behaviours that highlighted his all-too-human vulnerabilities, that caused him nothing but grief and despair for much of his time on Earth.In typical Greek fashion, Herakles was a blended portrayal of both the vices and virtues of men and gods. His story highlights the often brutal and helpless nature of existence; yet the possibility of redemption from even the most despairing circumstances, through the exercise of patience, forbearance and tenacity, and so his story acts as instructive on the seductions of power, frailty of existence, and the virtues of fortitude in the face of overwhelming odds.#hercules, #herakles, #greekmyths, #greekheroSupport the show

The siege of Malta, defended by the knights of St John, otherwise known as the Knights Hospitaller, or Knights of Malta, is one of the great military actions in history. They were a religious military order established prior to the crusades, in order to assist pilgrims on their journey to Christian holy sites across the levant. As the crusades began in earnest, they soon transformed into a military order, rivalling the knights Templar in their prowess and influence. As the crusader kingdoms slowly began to collapse, the Knights retreated to other strongholds, such as Cyprus and Rhodes, till they eventually also fell to the Muslims. Finally, entrenched in their last remaining stronghold of Malta, they made their final stand. This battle was to be either "the Alamo" for them, or for the Muslims- "Stalingrad".#knightsofmalta, #knightsofstjohn, #knightshospitaller, #hospitallers, #maltahistory, #siegeofmalta, #malta, #historySupport the show