Aspects of History

This week on the podcast, historians Robert Lyman and Phil Craig move between modern Britain and the
interwar years to ask a disturbingly familiar question: why do we keep repeating the same mistakes when it comes to military preparedness?

 

Drawing on Robert Lyman’s recent book Victory to Defeat (written with General Lord Dannatt), the discussion explores how Britain’s formidable military machine of 1918 was allowed to waste away, even as other powers - most notably Germany - absorbed and applied the lessons of British success. The failure to prepare for war, or to apply credible deterrence in the 1930s, would have grave consequences.

 

Are we witnessing a similar pattern today? And should we rethink the balance between being ‘good global citizens’ and exercising hard national power?

Episode Links

⁠Victory to Defeat: The British Army 1918-40

Aspects of History Links

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Robert Links

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Robert on ⁠⁠⁠Substack⁠⁠

Phil Links

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We think we know about gladiators, toned biceps on show during a deadly bout in the arena. But is that Hollywood depiction less interesting than the actual truth? We’d venture so… Joining Zeb Baker-Smith, Editor of Aspects of History, on the podcast is Harry Sidebottom, whose day-at-the-games account shines light on the life of a gladiator and the realities behind Rome’s most enduring spectacle in his book, Those Who Are About To Die.

Episode Links

Those Who Are About To Die: Gladiators and the Roman Mind

Aspects of History Links

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Zeb Links

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A round-up of the best 2025 Tudor books - Joining host Nathen Amin are guest contributors, and authors extraordinaire, Sarah Gristwood and Steve Veerapen.

Sarah Gristwood Links:

Website: https://sarahgristwood.com/

Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/author/B00IVN1JM6

Steven Veerapen Links

Website: https://www.stevenveerapen.com/

Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/author/B07PBBLPRL

Nathen Amin Links:

Website: www.nathenamin.com

Substack: https://nathenamin.substack.com/

Aspects of History Links:

Website: www.aspectsofhistory.com

Email: [email protected]

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When his queen Eleanor of Castile died in 1290, how did Edward I demonstrate his love for the woman 'whom in life we dearly cherished, and whom in death we cannot cease to love'. Joining Aspects of History today for a fascinating and wide-ranging conversation, history titan Alice Loxton adeptly explains how she followed, quite literally, in Edward's grief-stricken footsteps not just to commemorate his grief but to celebrate love.

Alice Loxton Links:

Website: https://aliceloxton.com/

Eleanor: A 200-Mile Walk in Search of England's Lost Queen

Nathen Amin Links:

Website: www.nathenamin.com

Substack: https://nathenamin.substack.com/

Aspects of History Links:

Website: www.aspectsofhistory.com

Email: [email protected]

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Hello and welcome to the Aspects of History 2025 books of
the year podcast.
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