SPILLED.

You loved our first WWII episode, so we're back with MORE! This week we're covering stories that your history teacher definitely skipped: women in codebreaking, queer resistance, and psychological warfare. Think cracking Nazi spy rings from behind a desk, two lesbian stepsister artists using "paper bullets" to take down an occupying army, and a 21-year-old Jewish refugee who had German soldiers writing her love letters.

No dry lectures. Just the drama, the gossip, and the stories that actually deserved the spotlight.

Haven't listened to Part 1 yet? Start there — that's where we lay the context on the origin of and players in WWII.

Obsessed? Want more? Check our fiction & nonfiction book recommendations here: https://bookshop.org/shop/SPILLED

Research Documents:
BBC Future. “The Female Code Breakers Who Were Left Out of History Books.” bbc.com/future, October 9, 2017. https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20171009-the-female-code-breakers-who-were-left-out-of-history-books
BBC. “The Bletchley Girls: Cracking Women.” bbc.co.uk. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/Q3lFn2vTv9JMgxX98bRhL/the-bletchley-girls-cracking-women
The Art Newspaper. “How Artist Couple Claude Cahun and Marcel Moore Resisted the Nazis with Their Paper Bullets.” November 4, 2020. https://www.theartnewspaper.com/2020/11/04/extract-or-how-artist-couple-claude-cahun-and-marcel-moore-resisted-the-nazis-with-their-paper-bullets
History Extra. “On the Same Side: Homosexuals During the Second World War.” https://www.historyextra.com/period/second-world-war/on-the-same-side-homosexuals-during-the-second-world-war/
Putnam, Jennifer, PhD. “V for Victory: A Sign of Resistance.” The National WWII Museum, February 1, 2024. https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/v-victory-sign-resistance
White, April. “One of the Allies’ Secret Weapons Against the Nazis Was a 21-Year-Old Woman Armed With a Microphone and a Script of Lies.” Smithsonian Magazine, March 2026. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/allies-secret-weapons-against-nazis-woman-armed-microphone-script-lies-180988094/
Context Sources:
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. “Introduction to the Holocaust.” https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/introduction-to-the-holocaust
National WWII Museum. “WWII by the Numbers.” https://www.nationalww2museum.org/students-teachers/student-resources/research-starters/research-starters-worldwide-deaths-world-war
History.com Editors. “World War II.” https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/world-war-ii-history

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She had a married sugar daddy funding her LA apartment. Then she dumped him and became the first — and only — woman to lead the Black Panther Party. This week we're spilling everything on Elaine Brown: her rise through the Black Panther Party, what black feminism actually looked like in the 1960s, and why history class completely left her out. If you've ever wanted to understand the civil rights movement, intersectionality, or just want to feel smarter at your next dinner party — this one's for you.

Sources:
Brown, Elaine. "A Woman Black Panther." PBS American Experience: Eyes on the Prize. https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/eyesontheprize-woman-black-panther/
Fremon, Celeste. "41st and Central, 1969 – The Black Panther Shootout & the Birth of SWAT." WitnessLA, April 6, 2011. https://witnessla.com/41st-and-central-1969-the-black-panther-shootout-the-birth-of-swat/
Henry, Carmel. "A Brief History of Civil Rights: The Black Panther Party." Howard University School of Law. http://library.law.howard.edu/civilrightshistory/bpp
Jernigan, Cameron. "A Taste of Power: The Rhetorical Potency of Elaine Brown." UNC JOURney, Spring 2017. https://uncjourney.unc.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/13377/2017/05/JOURneySpring2017vol1Digital-1.pdf
Maynard, Alicia. "The Assassination." The Assassination of Fred Hampton. Digital Chicago, 2019. https://digitalchicagohistory.org/exhibits/show/fred-hampton-50th/the-assassination
National Archives. "Elaine Brown (March 2, 1943)." https://www.archives.gov/research/african-americans/individuals/elaine-brown
NBCUniversal. "Elaine Brown: A Black Panther’s Journey in Breaking New Ground." Voices of the Civil Rights Movement, 2021. https://voicesofthecivilrightsmovement.com/articles/elaine-brown
Seither, Robert James. "Women in the Black Panther Party." TCNJ Journal of Student Scholarship 17 (April 2015). https://mapped.tcnj.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/176/2015/04/2015-Seither.pdf
Verge, Shane Trudell. "Revolutionary Vision." Meridians 2, no. 2 (2002): 101–25. http://www.jstor.org/stable/40338509
The Guardian. "Activist Elaine Brown: You Must Be Willing to Die for What You Believe In." March 27, 2022. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/mar/27/activist-elaine-brown-you-must-be-willing-to-die-for-what-you-believe-in

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Henry VIII's six wives — Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves, Catherine Howard, and Katherine Parr — were more powerful, more capable, and more fascinating than Tudor history ever gave them credit for. Let's fix that.

SOURCES
Catherine of Aragon:
Bergenroth, G. A., ed. "Introduction." Calendar of State Papers, Spain. London, 1868. British History Online. https://www.british-history.ac.uk/cal-state-papers/spain/supp/vols1-2/vii-lxxx
Bridge, Mark. "Katherine of Aragon’s Military Nous Helped Defeat Scots Invasion." The Times, May 27, 2020.
Britannica Editors. "Catherine of Aragon." Encyclopedia Britannica, January 3, 2026. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Catherine-of-Aragon
Brown, Rebecca Starr. "The Upbringing of Katherine of Aragon & Her Siblings." RebeccaStarrBrown.com, March 5, 2018. https://rebeccastarrbrown.com/2018/03/05/the-childhood-of-katherine-of-aragon/
Glasgow Museums Collections Online. "Catherine Aragon." https://collections.glasgowmuseums.com/mwebcgi/mweb?request=record;id=82029;type=701
Prendergast, Maria Teresa. "King, Confessor, and Princess: Contesting Catherine of Aragon’s Dowry and Soul in Her 1507 Letters."
Solly, Meilan. "When Catherine of Aragon Led England’s Armies to Victory Over Scotland." Smithsonian Magazine, October 14, 2020. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/when-catherine-aragon-led-englands-armies-victory-over-scotland-180975982/
Zarevich, Emily. "Catherine of Aragon: Europe’s First Female Ambassador." Daily JSTOR, January 2, 2023. https://daily.jstor.org/catherine-of-aragon-europes-first-female-ambassador/
Anne Boleyn:
"Anne Boleyn." Historic Royal Palaces. https://www.hrp.org.uk/tower-of-london/history-and-stories/anne-boleyn/
"Anne Boleyn Timeline." Hever Castle. https://www.hevercastle.co.uk/visit/hever-castle/timelines/anne-boleyn-timeline/
Percy, Henry. "Henry Percy." Spartacus Educational. https://spartacus-educational.com/Henry_Percy.htm
Toscani, Melissa. "Anne Boleyn." Prof. Pavlac’s Women’s History Resource Site. http://departments.kings.edu/womens_history/anneboleyn.html
Jane Seymour:
Britannica Editors. "Jane Seymour." Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jane-Seymour
EBSCO Research. "Jane Seymour." History Research Starters, 2022. https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/history/jane-seymour
"Jane Seymour: Henry VIII’s Favourite Queen?" Historic Royal Palaces. https://www.hrp.org.uk/hampton-court-palace/history-and-stories/jane-seymour/
Walsh, Alexandra. "The Scandalous Seymours." Historia Magazine, July 26, 2022. https://historiamag.com/the-scandalous-seymours/
Anne of Cleves:
"Anne of Cleves." Historic Royal Palaces. https://www.hrp.org.uk/hampton-court-palace/history-and-stories/anne-of-cleves/
"Anna of Cleves: Early Life and Court Culture." Maidens and Manuscripts, September 22, 2021. https://maidensandmanuscripts.com/2021/09/22/anna-of-cleves-early-life-and-court-culture/
Nunn, Hillary. "‘It Lak’th but Life’: Redford’s Wit and Science, Anne of Cleves, and the Politics of Interpretation." Comparative Drama, vol. 33, no. 2, 1999. JSTOR. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41153970
Catherine Howard:
"Catherine Howard." Historic Royal Palaces. https://www.hrp.org.uk/hampton-court-palace/history-and-stories/catherine-howard/
Britannica Editors. "Catherine Howard." Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Catherine-Howard
"Catherine Howard: Facts About Her Life, Death and Marriage to Henry VIII." History Extra. https://www.historyextra.com/period/tudor/catherine-howard-facts-life-death-marriage-henry-viii-execution-ghost/
"Catherine Howard: Why Was She Executed?" Thirteen/WNET. https://www.thirteen.org/wnet/sixwives/meet/ch_handbook_why.html
Katherine Parr:
"Katherine Parr." Historic Royal Palaces. https://www.hrp.org.uk/hampton-court-palace/history-and-stories/katherine-parr/
Kulik, R. M. "Lady-in-waiting." Encyclopedia Britannica, July 13, 2024. https://www.britannica.com/topic/lady-in-waiting

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CORRECTION: In this episode we reference Audie Murphy as the "most decorated American soldier in WWII." His kill count was 240, not 33 -- we misspoke, he had 33 awards.
In this episode, we get into what to say when a man starts mansplaining WWII… and the stories he’s probably leaving out. We talk about Lyudmila Pavlichenko, known as Lady Death, and how she became one of the deadliest snipers of the war, the Soviet Night Witches who flew nighttime bombing missions in near-silent planes, double agent Juan Pujol García (Garbo) who helped mislead the Nazis, and Wojtek the bear, a literal bear enlisted by Polish troops who carried ammunition during battle.

If you’re into World War II history, this episode has a mix of overlooked figures, spy chaos, and stories that sound fake but are very real. It’s part history lesson, part unhinged commentary, and fully the kind of context you’ll wish you had the next time this topic comes up.

Sources:
National WWII Museum. “Night Witches: The Soviet Women Pilots Who Terrified Nazi Soldiers.” October 2025. https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/night-witches-soviet-women-pilots-who-terrified-nazi-soldiers
National WWII Museum. “Lady Death of the Red Army: Lyudmila Pavlichenko.” March 2021. https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/lady-death-red-army-lyudmila-pavlichenko
MI5. “Agent GARBO.” mi5.gov.uk. https://www.mi5.gov.uk/history/world-war-ii/agent-garbo
BBC News. “Wojtek the Bear.” https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy4nd3n33yeo
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. “Introduction to the Holocaust.” https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/introduction-to-the-holocaust
National WWII Museum. “WWII by the Numbers.” https://www.nationalww2museum.org/students-teachers/student-resources/research-starters/research-starters-worldwide-deaths-world-war
History.com Editors. “World War II.” https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/world-war-ii-history
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In this episode, we get into the Sacred Band of Thebes, an elite ancient Greek army made up of 150 pairs of male lovers who quite literally fought side by side. We talk about why the Thebans believed love made soldiers stronger, how this unit became one of the most feared forces in Greece, and how they went head to head with Sparta at the height of its power.

If you loved The Song of Achilles, this story has the same mix of battlefield devotion, loyalty, and heartbreak. It is part military strategy, part love story, and fully chaotic in the way only ancient history can be. We break down the rivalry, the battles, and the real history behind the idea that couples who fight together might actually win together.
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