History Rage

A conqueror, a god, or just a man lost in myth?Alexander the Great: the name conjures images of conquest, charisma, and an empire that stretched from Greece to India. But how much of what we “know” is actually true?In this episode of History Rage, host Paul Bavill is joined by Dr Stephen Harrison, lecturer in Ancient History at Swansea University and author of Alexander: The Lives and Legacies, to rage against the myths that have defined Alexander for over two thousand years.Stephen dismantles the biggest misconceptions about the Macedonian conqueror — from his supposed divine ambitions and romantic legends to the illusion that historians can truly know what drove him. Together, they explore how unreliable ancient sources, political storytelling, and centuries of retelling have turned Alexander into a mythic figure rather than a historical one.This isn’t just another tale of military glory — it’s a journey through evidence, propaganda, and how history becomes legend.🎧 Listen now to discover:Why we can’t possibly “know” what Alexander thought or feltHow ancient storytellers invented famous scenes like taming BucephalusWhy his marriage to Roxane wasn’t a love story at allThe truth about Alexander’s relationship with HephaestionWhat his empire reveals about ancient power, identity, and mythmakingAbout Dr Stephen HarrisonDr Stephen Harrison is a lecturer in Ancient History at Swansea University. His research explores the legacy of Alexander the Great and the politics of memory in the ancient world.📘 Book: Alexander: The Lives and Legacies — available now from Bloomsbury. 👉 Order here: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/10120/9781789149975📸 Follow Stephen on Instagram: @stephenharrisonhistorySupport History RageIf you love what we do, help us keep raging against bad history! 🔥 Join our Patreon for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus episodes: patreon.com/historyrage 🍏 Subscribe on Apple Podcasts for ad-free listening (£3/month) 📣 Or simply tell a friend and spread the rage!Follow History Rage📱 Twitter / X: @historyrage 📸 Instagram: @historyrage 📘 Facebook: facebook.com/historyrage 🌐 Website: historyrage.com💥 History Rage – where historians demolish myths, one episode at a time.

Forget the katana myth — Japan’s samurai didn’t shun guns, they embraced them. 🔥Were the samurai really noble warriors who turned their noses up at guns? This week on History Rage, host Paul Bavill sits down with historian, author, and YouTuber Matt Okuhara to demolish the myth of the “honourable warrior.” From matchlocks and martial arts to gun control laws in the 1600s, Matt reveals how Japan’s most famous warriors were some of the earliest adopters of firearms — and how Hollywood got it all wrong.Matt takes us through the real evolution of samurai warfare — from their rise as Japan’s ruling military elite to the fall of their class during the Meiji Restoration. Along the way, he explains why Tokugawa’s gun laws were among the world’s first, how firearms shaped the great battles of Nagashino and beyond, and why the “sword-only” image is pure cinematic fiction.If you’ve ever wondered what happened when the sword met the gun in feudal Japan, this is the history lesson you didn’t know you needed.🎯 In this episode:Why the samurai did use guns (and loved them)How firearms arrived in Japan in 1543 and changed warfareThe truth about Bushido and “honourable combat”The real reason Japan’s navy lagged behindThe decline of the samurai — and how they became bureaucratsWomen warriors, ronin, and Japan’s early gun control laws📚 Guest Info – Matt Okuhara Matt is a British historian, author, interpreter, and YouTuber based in Japan. He’s a member of the Matsumoto Castle Gun Corps, one of Japan’s largest historical shooting teams. His work explores Japanese military history, samurai culture, and the global myths surrounding them.👉 Find Matt Online: 🌐 Website: gunsamurai.com 📺 YouTube: @Gun_Samurai 📸 Instagram: @gun.samurai🎧 Listen to Related Episodes:Ep 154 – India in World War I with Adam PrimeEp 213 – Hiroshima with Ian McGregor🔥 Support History Rage Love what we do? Keep the rage alive!🎙️ Subscribe on Apple Podcasts for early access & ad-free episodes💥 Join our Patreon for just £5/month: patreon.com/historyrage Get exclusive perks including monthly livestreams, prize draws, and the coveted History Rage Mug📲 Follow & Connect: Twitter / X: @historyrage Instagram: @historyrage Facebook: @historyrage Website: historyrage.com

Discover how drugs shaped empires, creativity, and chaos throughout history.From ancient battlefields to Victorian medicine cabinets, this week’s episode of History Rage dives into the surprising — and often shocking — role of substance use across the ages. Host Paul Bavill is joined by historian and writer Sam Kelly (@humanhistoryondrugs) for a deep, thought-provoking journey through how drugs influenced the world’s most famous figures, ideas, and empires.Together, they uncover how Alexander the Great, Sigmund Freud, Queen Victoria, and even Pope Leo XIII all encountered (and indulged in) mind-altering substances — often with world-changing consequences. From Freud’s cocaine-fuelled psychology to the British Empire’s opium trade, from religious visions to artistic inspiration, Sam and Paul reveal the hidden highs and devastating lows that shaped history’s greatest moments.You’ll learn how drugs were once tools of power and creativity, but also instruments of destruction. And, as Sam reminds us, it’s never a simple story — these substances weren’t inherently good or bad, but they were always influential.If you’ve ever wondered what connects emperors, popes, poets, and programmers — or how LSD helped inspire modern computing — this is an episode you won’t want to miss.🎧 Episode HighlightsThe Pope who publicly endorsed cocaine-infused wine 🍷How opium funded the British Empire’s expansion into China 💰Freud, Alexander the Great, and the deadly cost of indulgence ⚔️The link between artistic creativity and chemical experimentation 🎨Steve Jobs, LSD, and the psychedelic origins of the personal computer 💻Why understanding substance use gives us a truer picture of history 🔍📚 About the Guest – Sam KellySam Kelly is a historian, writer, and host of Human History on Drugs, where he explores the complex and often surprising intersections between humanity and its intoxicants. His work brings wit, nuance, and compassion to a subject too often oversimplified.👉 Follow Sam on Instagram: @human_history_on_drugs🎙️ Check out the TikTok Channel: @human_history_on_durgs ________________________________________💬 Connect with History Rage📱 Follow for more history myth-busting and expert rants:Instagram: @historyrageTwitter/X: @historyrageTikTok: @historyrage📧 Contact Paul Bavill: historyragepod@gmail.com💥 Support History RageLove what we do? Help keep History Rage independent: 💰 Join us on Patreon for exclusive episodes, early access, and behind-the-scenes extras: 👉 https://www.patreon.com/historyrage🎧 Subscribe on your favourite podcast app so you never miss an episode — and leave us a rating or review to help more listeners discover the truth behind the myths.

Anne Boleyn myths destroyed live at Katherine of Aragon FestivalRecorded live at the Katherine of Aragon Festival, this special episode of History Rage sees host Paul Bavill joined on stage by Owen Emerson (Assistant Curator, Hever Castle) and Alfred Hawkins (Curator, Tower of London) to challenge the biggest myths surrounding Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII and Tudor England.Anne Boleyn remains one of the most mythologised figures in British history. Was she a ruthless schemer? A Protestant heroine? A tragic innocent? Owen Emerson argues that much of what we “know” about Anne was shaped by Victorian historians. Far from being a woman without substance, she was highly educated, shaped by Renaissance France, politically aware and deeply engaged in religious reform — though not the architect of the English Reformation.The panel explores:Anne Boleyn’s relationship with Catherine of AragonWhether Anne pursued Henry VIII — or resisted himThe political reality behind the Break with RomeThe truth about her execution and burialWhy we don’t actually know what most ordinary people thought of herAlfred Hawkins also tackles a major misconception: the idea that the Tower of London is simply a grim execution site. While Anne’s death looms large, the Tower was a royal palace, administrative hub, armoury, archive and community for centuries. Reducing it to a Tudor “theatre of death” ignores over 1,000 years of English history.This live discussion is packed with Tudor historiography, debates about historical “expertise”, the limits placed on queenship, and why applying modern labels to early modern women can distort more than it clarifies.If you’re interested in Anne Boleyn, Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIII, the English Reformation, Tudor queens, or the Tower of London, this episode restores complexity to one of the most dramatic periods in British history.Guest DetailsOwen Emerson Assistant Curator, Hever Castle Visit: https://www.hevercastle.co.ukAlfred Hawkins Curator, Tower of London Visit: https://www.hrp.org.uk/tower-of-londonFollow & Support History Rage🌐 Website: https://www.historyrage.com 📩 Email: historyragepod@gmail.com 📱 Follow on social media: @HistoryRage 🎧 Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and all major platforms ⭐ Leave a rating and review on Apple Podcasts to help others discover the show ❤️ Support via Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/historyrageRecorded live at the Katherine of Aragon Festival.Stay angry.

The Desert Fox legend endures, but how much of it is true?In this landmark 200th episode of History Rage, host Paul Bavill is joined once again by military historian and author Peter Caddick Adams to dismantle the enduring myths surrounding one of WWII’s most famous — and most misunderstood — figures: Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, the Desert Fox.Rommel has long been painted as the daring genius of North Africa and even as a “good German” who stood against Hitler. But how much of that is reality, and how much is myth-making? Paul and Peter dig deep into the legend, the propaganda, and the politics that shaped Rommel’s reputation during the war — and long after it.The Strategic Genius? Rommel’s early victories in North Africa cemented his reputation, but Peter reveals the other side: his lack of staff training, his tendency to lead like a battalion commander even at army level, and how much his success relied on captured British equipment, Allied weakness, and signals intelligence.The Propaganda Machine Rommel wasn’t just lucky; he was a propaganda dream. From his days as Hitler’s bodyguard in Poland to his carefully staged desert photographs, he cultivated the Desert Fox image with Nazi backing.Politics and the July Plot Did Rommel oppose Hitler? Peter explains why there’s no evidence he joined the July 20th plot — a post-war myth shaped by biography and politics.The Post-War Reinvention After 1945, Rommel was recast as the “clean Wehrmacht” figure NATO needed. Churchill himself called him “a daring and skilful opponent,” sealing the legend.Packed with anecdotes — from a dachshund in the classroom, to Coronation Street’s “Rommel the cat” — this milestone episode strips away the myth to reveal the complex man behind the Desert Fox.🎧 Celebrate 200 episodes of History Rage with a myth-busting deep dive into Rommel’s real legacy.Guest Information: Follow Peter Caddick Adams on X: @militaryhistori and Instagram: @pcaddickadamsSupport History Rage: Ad-free listening and exclusive content for just £3/month on Apple or Patreon. For £5/month, unlock even more perks at patreon.com/historyrage.Contact History Rage: 📧 Email: historyrage@gmail.com🐦 Twitter/X: @HistoryRage📸 Instagram: @HistoryRage🌐 Website: www.historyrage.com👉 Help us challenge the myths of history — share this episode and spread the rage!

Why history lessons drain passion – and how we can fix itHistory should ignite curiosity, creativity and connection. Instead, too often, it does the opposite.In this powerful History Rage Live episode, host Paul Bavill is joined by medievalist, broadcaster and historian Professor Janina Ramirez to rage against the way history is taught – and how rigid curricula, “great man” narratives and siloed subjects are snuffing out a lifelong love of the past.Drawing on her own personal journey, Janina explains how school history almost drove her away from the subject she loved, why women and ordinary people remain marginalised in classrooms, and how our education system has all but killed the polymath. From medieval walls to modern smartphones, she makes a passionate case for interdisciplinary history that reflects real human lives – not just battles, kings and dates.Along the way, the conversation ranges widely:• Why women’s history is still treated as optional or tokenistic• How figures like Christine de Pizan and Hildegard of Bingen challenge everything we think we know about the past• Why timelines matter – but rigid periodisation often doesn’t• How digital access could create a new generation of polymaths• And why rewriting history isn’t about politics, but accuracyThis episode is essential listening for teachers, students, parents, historians and anyone who’s ever felt bored by history lessons – and wondered why.If you’ve ever loved history but felt pushed away by how it’s taught, this rage is for you.About the guest: Professor Janina RamirezProfessor Janina Ramirez is a medievalist, art historian and broadcaster, and President (for life) of the Gloucester History Festival. She is renowned for bringing interdisciplinary, people-centred history to wide audiences through books, television and public scholarship.Books📘 Legenda: The Real Women Behind the Myths That Shaped EuropeAvailable here: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/10120/9780753560419Follow & contact Janina RamirezTwitter / X / Instagram: @drjaninaramirezGloucester History Festival: https://www.gloucesterhistoryfestival.co.ukMore History Rage with Janina Ramirez🎧 Episode 82 – Medieval women written out of history: https://pod.fo/e/1ef944🎧 Episode 147 – Life inside a medieval convent: https://pod.fo/e/269598About History RageHistory Rage is the podcast where historians vent their frustrations and dismantle the myths we were taught at school. Hosted by Paul Bavill, each episode challenges comfortable narratives and puts passion back into the past.Follow History RageTwitter / X / Instagram / Facebook: @HistoryRageWebsite & bookshop: https://www.historyrage.comSupport the podcast❤️ Join Patreon for live streams and exclusive content:👉 https://www.patreon.com/historyrage🎧 Listen ad-free on Apple Podcasts for just £3 per month via Apple Subscriptions⭐ And if you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review or recommend History Rage to a friend – it really helps the podcast grow.Stay angry. History depends on it.