A Popular History of Unpopular Things

Available Episodes

5 of 68

The Belgian Congo
Join Kelli as she goes over the Congo Free State, owned not by Belgium, but by its King - Leopold II.During the 19th century in Africa, seven European countries - Britain, France, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Spain, and Portugal, met to divide up Africa; they had already encroached on about 10% of it, mostly the coasts, but now they wanted more. In this episode we discuss why, and what happened to the Congolese men, women, and children who were suddenly under the control of King Leopold.Support me on my Patreon - your support helps keep this podcast going!http://www.patreon.com/APHOUTFollow the APHOUT YouTube channel!Intro and Outro music credit: @nedricmusicFind him on all streaming services and YouTube!http://www.nedricmusic.com SourcesBooksAdam Hochschild, King Leopold’s Ghost. https://www.amazon.com/King-Leopolds-Ghost-Heroism-Colonial/dp/0618001905David Van Reybrouck, Congo: The Epic History of a People. Articles/WebsitesGermany officially recognises colonial-era Namibia genocide - BBC, 2021 | https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-57279008Rudyard Kipling, “The White Man’s Burden” 1899 | https://www.kiplingsociety.co.uk/poem/poems_burden.htmGeorge Washington Williams, “An Open Letter to His Serene Majesty Leopold II, King of the Belgians and Sovereign of the Independent State of Congo By Colonel, The Honorable Geo. W. Williams, of the United States of America” as found on BlackPast | https://www.blackpast.org/global-african-history/primary-documents-global-african-history/george-washington-williams-open-letter-king-leopold-congo-1890/Support the show
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45:49
The 1381 English Peasant's Rebellion
Join Kelli as she goes over the history of the English Peasant's Rebellion, 1381.The Black Death had severely impacted England - not just in high mortality rates, but also its ability to function within its strict feudal order. To help compensate for the drop in workers, and to try and get the economy back on track, Edward III passes the Statute of Laborers in 1351. But what this did was set in motion a rage against feudalism, government intervention, and inequality that manifested as the Peasant's Rebellion, led by men like Wat Tyler and John Ball, in 1381.The Peasant army would meet King Richard II in London, and it was an absolute bloodbath.Let's go over the historical context that leads us to the Rebellion, then the event itself. It's a fascinating story that shows us how far the common folk are willing to be pushed before they break.Support me on my Patreon - your support helps keep this podcast going!http://www.patreon.com/APHOUTFollow the APHOUT YouTube channel!Intro and Outro music credit: @nedricmusicFind him on all streaming services and YouTube!http://www.nedricmusic.com SourcesBooks:Dan Jones, Summer of Blood (2009)Elizabeth Kimball Kendall, Source-book of English History (2015)Rosemary Horrox, The Black Death Medieval Sourcebook (1994)Articles/Online Sources:“Ordinance of Laborers, 1349” Fordham University Medieval History Sourcebook https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/seth/ordinance-labourers.asp“Tales from Froissart: Beginning of the English Peasant Revolt” Nipissing University https://uts.nipissingu.ca/muhlberger/FROISSART/PEASANTS.HTMSupport the show
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40:41
The Tanganyika Laughter Epidemic
Join Kelli as she goes over the history behind the Tanganyika Laughter Epidemic, an event that started with three schoolgirls in late January 1962 and spread to nearby villages. It took roughly 18-24 months for the epidemic to finally stop, and luckily, nobody died.It was determined that this was a case of mass psychogenic illness - the more modern name for "mass hysteria."But how did it start? Why schoolgirls in Tanganyika in early 1962? Let's look to the historical context to get an understanding of what happened here and why.And a special thanks to one of my cannibal patrons, Zack, for recommending this episode! Support me on my Patreon - your support helps keep this podcast going!http://www.patreon.com/APHOUTFollow the APHOUT YouTube channel!Intro and Outro music credit: @nedricmusicFind him on all streaming services and YouTube!http://www.nedricmusic.com Support the show
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25:14
The Guatemala Syphilis Experiments
Join Kelli as she goes over another case where the US government experimented on humans - but this time, they purposefully infected Guatemalans with syphilis, taking what happened with the men of Tuskegee a whole step further.So today we'll do some historical context to figure out why Guatemala - what happened in history that led to such a level of interventionism that the US government would conduct medical experiments on the Guatemalan people? Once that's squared away, we'll briefly go over syphilis so we have a complete understanding on what the infected Guatemalans faced. Then, we'll talk about the event itself - and how we only just learned about it.I really hope I run out of examples of the US doing this. Support me on my Patreon - your support helps keep this podcast going!http://www.patreon.com/APHOUTFollow the APHOUT YouTube channel!Intro and Outro music credit: @nedricmusicFind him on all streaming services and YouTube!http://www.nedricmusic.com Support the show
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34:34
The Stonehenge Mystery
Join Kelli as she goes over Stonehenge. We'll start with the basics - what stonehenge is, what it's made of, who might have built it, how they built it, what a henge even is... before talking about some of the more recent explanations for some of its mysteries.We'll also talk about its purpose - a gathering place to celebrate the summer and winter solstices? A burial ground? Both? And does it have a connection with nearby Durrington Walls, only two miles away, and a henge complex that might have the evidence needed to understand who built Stonehenge, and why.Sources referenced:Stonehenge―A New Understanding: Solving the Mysteries of the Greatest Stone Age Monument by Mike Parker Pearson and the Stonehenge Riverside ProjectSupport me on my Patreon - your support helps keep this podcast going!http://www.patreon.com/APHOUTFollow the APHOUT YouTube channel!Intro and Outro music credit: @nedricmusicFind him on all streaming services and YouTube!http://www.nedricmusic.com Support the show
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28:06