Best HistoryPod Podcasts (2024)

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23rd July 1952: Egyptian Revolution begins, leading to the overthrow of King Farouk I and the end of British influence in Egypt

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The Free Officers, led by Mohamed Naguib and Gamal Abdel Nasser, launched a coup that seized key military installations and government buildings in Cairo with minimal ...By Scott Allsop

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22nd July 1706: Terms of the Acts of Union 1707 agreed by commissioners from England and Scotland

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On the 22nd July 1706, the foundation for the establishment of the Kingdom of Great Britain was laid when commissioners from England and Scotland agreed the Acts of ...By Scott Allsop

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21st July 1970: Construction of the Aswan High Dam completed in Egypt

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Construction of the Aswan High Dam took just over ten years and cost nearly $1 ...By Scott Allsop

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20th July 1801: The Cheshire Mammoth Cheese, is produced for President Thomas Jefferson, and weighs 1,235lbs

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Weighing more than half a ton, the completed cheese was marked with the Jeffersonian motto ‘Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God’ and was presented to President Jefferson on January 1, ...By Scott Allsop

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19th July 1870: The Franco-Prussian War begins when Napoleon III declares war

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The Franco-Prussian War began with a declaration of war by the French emperor, Napoleon ...By Scott Allsop

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18th July 1966: The Hough Riots begin in Cleveland, Ohio

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By Scott Allsop

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17th July 1917: King George V changes the name of the British royal family to the House of Windsor

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Amidst enormous anti-German sentiment during the First World War, King George V made a historic proclamation that all descendants of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert in the male line, who were British subjects, would bear the surname ...By Scott Allsop

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16th July 1935: World’s first parking meter installed in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

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The meters were installed along the southeast corner of First Street and Robinson Avenue in downtown Oklahoma City, and charged 5 cents per hour. They proved effective in regulating parking spaces and ensuring a higher turnover rate, which benefited local ...By Scott Allsop

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15th July 1815: Napoleon Bonaparte voluntarily surrenders to the British

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Napoleon Bonaparte voluntarily surrendered to British Captain Maitland on board the Royal Navy ship HMS ...By Scott Allsop

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14th July 1915: McMahon-Hussein Correspondence begins, resulting in the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire in World War I

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While Hussein believed Britain had agreed to recognise a vast independent Arab state, the British maintained that certain areas were excluded. This ambiguity went on to fuel later tensions and conflict in the Middle ...By Scott Allsop

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13th July 1863: New York City draft riots mark the largest civil urban disturbance in American history

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Over 100 people were killed in the riots and thousands more were injured. In addition, millions of dollars of damage was caused to buildings and ...By Scott Allsop

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12th July 1862: Creation of the Congressional Medal of Honor

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A resolution to create the U.S. Army Medal of Honor was authorised by Congress and signed into law by President Abraham ...By Scott Allsop

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11th July 1804: Vice President Aaron Burr fatally wounds Alexander Hamilton, former Secretary of the Treasury, in a duel

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Hamilton’s death shocked the nation, as he was a leading figure in American politics and instrumental in the country’s ...By Scott Allsop

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10th July 1913: Highest recorded temperature on Earth

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The highest temperature ever recorded on Earth was measured at Furnace Creek in Death Valley, ...By Scott Allsop

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9th July 1762: Catherine the Great becomes Empress of Russia following a coup against her husband, Peter III

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Peter III ascended the throne in January 1762 and within just six months had alienated key segments of Russian society. Meanwhile Catherine had garnered support from a number of key individuals due to her alignment with Russian ...By Scott Allsop

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8th July 1947: Roswell Army Air Base reports ‘flying disc’ debris

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Walter Haut, the public information officer of the Roswell Army Air Field, issued a press release saying that the military had recovered the remains of a ‘flying ...By Scott Allsop

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7th July 1952: SS United States establishes the record for the fastest transatlantic crossing by an ocean liner

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SS United States secured the Blue Riband, an accolade awarded to the passenger liner crossing the Atlantic with the highest average speed, and continues to hold the record to this ...By Scott Allsop

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6th July 1892: The Homestead Strike sees Pinkerton agents fight striking steelworkers

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Dozens were killed or injured when Pinkerton agents working on behalf of the Carnegie Steel Company fought striking steelworkers in Homestead, ...By Scott Allsop

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5th July 1937: SPAM, the canned cooked pork, first introduced by Hormel Foods Corporation @SPAMbrand

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The United States continues to be the world’s largest consumer of Spam, with the luncheon meat being a particularly big seller in ...By Scott Allsop

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4th July 1918: Mehmed VI ascends to the throne as the last sultan of the Ottoman Empire

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By the time Mehmed VI became sultan following the death of his half-brother, the empire was on the brink of collapse due to a combination of military losses, economic hardship, and nationalist movements at ...By Scott Allsop

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3rd July 1979: President Jimmy Carter authorises $500,000 to aid the mujahideen in Afghanistan

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By the time Soviet troops were withdrawn from Afghanistan in 1989, it had become one of the CIA’s longest and most expensive covert ...By Scott Allsop

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2nd July 1900: LZ 1, the first rigid Zeppelin airship, makes its maiden flight over Lake Constance in Germany

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The LZ 1 featured a rigid aluminium frame covered with a fabric skin, within which was a series of 17 individual gas cells made from rubberized ...By Scott Allsop

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1st July 1863: The Battle of Gettysburg begins, resulting in a decisive Union victory

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Approximately 23,000 Union soldiers and 28,000 Confederates were killed, wounded, or captured in just three ...By Scott Allsop

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30th June 1859: Charles Blondin became the first person to cross Niagara Falls on a tightrope

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With the aid of a 26 foot long balancing pole, he crossed the gorge in a stunt taking just 23 ...By Scott Allsop

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29th June 1971: Soviet spacecraft Soyuz 11 disaster, resulting in its cosmonauts becoming the only humans to ever die in space

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Subsequent investigations revealed that a cabin vent valve had accidentally opened and depressurised the capsule when the service module was jettisoned at an altitude of 168 km, causing the crew to fall unconscious and suffer cardiac arrest in less than a ...By Scott Allsop

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28th June 1969: The Stonewall Riots begin when New York City police raid the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village

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Rioting continued for another five nights and acted as a catalyst for LGBT political ...By Scott Allsop

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27th June 1898: Joshua Slocum completes the first solo circumnavigation of the globe

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Slocum completed the first solo circumnavigation on June 27, 1898, after covering approximately 46,000 miles in an old Massachusetts oyster boat named ...By Scott Allsop

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26th June 1963: American President John F. Kennedy declares US support for West Berlin with the phrase, ‘Ich bin ein Berliner’

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While the speech effectively recognised East Berlin as part of the Soviet Bloc, it also reaffirmed America’s commitment to defend West Berlin against ...By Scott Allsop

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25th June 1950: Korean War begins when North Korean forces cross the 38th parallel, invading South Korea

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North Korean troops launched a surprise and quickly advanced southward to capture Seoul, the capital of South Korea, within ...By Scott Allsop

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24th June 1947: The first widely-reported UFO sighting was made by private pilot Kenneth Arnold

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In what Kenneth Arnold later complained was an ‘historic misquote’, the press coined the now-ubiquitous phrase ‘flying saucers’ to describe the ...By Scott Allsop

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23rd June 1960: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Enovid as the first combined oral contraceptive pill in the world

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400,000 women saw their doctors to obtain Enovid contraceptive prescriptions in the first ...By Scott Allsop

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22nd June 1940: France signs the Second Armistice of Compiègne with Nazi Germany which signals the Fall of France

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Adolf Hitler seized the opportunity to inflict a symbolic humiliation on the French by signing the armistice in the same location, and in the same railway carriage, as the armistice of the First World ...By Scott Allsop

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21st June 1877: Ten Irish immigrants hanged for murder, having been accused of membership of the Molly Maguires secret society

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Historians have since questioned the convictions, which saw ten men hanged for murder – six in the prison at Pottsville, and four at Mauch Chunk in Carbon ...By Scott Allsop

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20th June 1945: The United States approves the transfer of Nazi rocket scientist Wernher von Braun to America

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Wernher von Braun initially developed rockets for the United States Army, but was later made director of the Marshall Space Flight Center where he oversaw the design of the Saturn V rocket that launched the Apollo spacecraft to the ...By Scott Allsop

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19th June 1865: Juneteenth is established when enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, are informed of their freedom

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On June 19, 1865, Union General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, and issued General Order No. 3 which informed the enslaved African Americans of their ...By Scott Allsop

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18th June 1812: The War of 1812 began when President James Madison signed a declaration of war against Great Britain

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Madison signed the declaration of war against Great Britain, marking the first time that the United States declared war on another ...By Scott Allsop

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17th June 1775: Battle of Bunker Hill fought during the early stages of the American Revolutionary War

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While the Battle of Bunker Hill resulted in a British victory and the successful capture of the hill, it came the cost of 1,000 casualties that included many ...By Scott Allsop

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16th June 1884: The Switchback Railway, America’s first purpose-built roller coaster, opened at Coney Island in New York City

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Having opened on 16 June 1884, passengers paid 5 cents to ride the Switchback Railways and achieved speeds of up to 6 miles per ...By Scott Allsop

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15th June 1859: The Pig War begins between the USA and Britain

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The Pig War border confrontation began when Lyman Cutlar shot a British-owned pig on San Juan ...By Scott Allsop

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14th June 1900: Anglo-German naval arms race triggered by the Second German Naval Law to double the size of the fleet

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The enactment of the Second Naval Law represented an ambitious plan to double the size of the German fleet, but with the British Royal Navy having long been the world’s dominant maritime force Germany’s naval expansion was perceived as a direct challenge to British ...By Scott Allsop

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13th June 1966: Miranda Warning introduced after US Supreme Court says suspects must be told their rights

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Any suspect arrested in the USA must be informed of four key rights. ‘You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can, and will, be used against you in court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford one, one will be appointed for ...By Scott Allsop

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12th June 1817: Karl Drais makes the first recorded journey on the forerunner of the bicycle, known as the Laufmaschine or ‘dandy horse’

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Drais’ Laufmaschine, which translates as ‘running machine’ featured two wheels mounted on a wooden frame and a steering mechanism controlled by ...By Scott Allsop

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11th June 1962: Three inmates escape from the maximum-security Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary and are never seen again

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Once outside the prison walls, the three men inflated a homemade raft with a modified accordion and launched it into San Francisco ...By Scott Allsop

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10th June 1935: Alcoholics Anonymous was founded by Bill Wilson and Robert Smith

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Alcoholics Anonymous, which operates through local groups that follow a 12-step rehabilitation program to help people overcome alcoholism, is now estimated have around two million members ...By Scott Allsop

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9th June 747: Abbasid Revolution begins, which overthrows the Umayyad Caliphate

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The Abbasid Revolution gained momentum thanks to the leadership of Abu Muslim al-Khurasani, a Persian revolutionary who rallied support for the Abbasid cause in the eastern provinces of the ...By Scott Allsop

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8th June 1959: The world’s only delivery of ‘Missile Mail’ took place when the United States Post Office Department sent 3,000 letters using a cruise missile

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The missile was fired from the deck of the submarine USS Barbero towards the Naval Auxiliary Air Station in Mayport, Florida, and completed its 700-mile flight in just 22 ...By Scott Allsop

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7th June 1982: Elvis Presley’s Graceland estate in Memphis, Tennessee, was opened to the public

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Elvis Presley purchased Graceland for $102,500 in 1957 when he was 22 years ...By Scott Allsop

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6th June 1933: Worlds first drive-in theatre opens in Camden County, New Jersey

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Richard M. Hollingshead Jr.'s ‘Automobile Movie Theatre’ opened on a 400-acre plot of land on Admiral Wilson Boulevard in Pennsauken Township, and could accommodate 400 cars parked on ramps facing a 40 foot by 50 foot ...By Scott Allsop

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5th June 1947: U.S. Secretary of State George C. Marshall delivers a speech at Harvard University outlining his financial plan for post-war Europe

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The Marshall Plan provided aid to 16 Western European nations, distributing more than $13 billion of aid over a four year ...By Scott Allsop

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4th June 1855: United States Camel Corps initiated when USS Supply departed New York City for the Mediterranean to obtain camels

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The camels proved themselves to be both fast and strong, easily outperforming the horses and mules that the Army had used up until that ...By Scott Allsop

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