This video is a Saturday 'catch up' episode, where it is a video release of an audio podcast released earlier in the year. This episode is parts 3 and 4 of our audio podcast series on the outbreak of WW1 from earlier in the year, combined into one video.
@@restishistorypod Thanks! I’m going back in the podcast library as well… Every episode is thoroughly engaging and madly enjoyable. Thanks so much for all the work y’all put into this show.
So far, I've watched your series on Custer, The French Revolution, and the Roman invasion of Britian. I find you guys brilliant, informative, and extremely entertaining as a fan boy from "across the pond". I can only imagine the amount of work and preparation required to produce such great content. Keep up the great work but please don't get burned out guys. Thanks again!
@@billythedog-309 Yes, I stand corrected. It was not an invasion and I was struggling for the appropriate word. What would you call it? Perhaps a conquest of Britain starting with Emperor Claudius? Based on the series, it seems that tribes in Southern England engaged in Roman trade and culture during the intervening years of Julius Ceaser and Claudius.
Muscular Aussie farmer here I'm going to have to listen to this again as halfway through I was stuck in a mental looping image of the British foreign minister negotiating with statesmen via the Monty python's fish slapping skit
That Calliux murder case in France 25:10 deserves a whole episode in and of itself. Basically what happened was that the wife shot the newspaper guy becuase the politician husband wouldnt challenge him to a duel after he published their love letters to each other from when they were each married to other people. Then, when she was arrested and charged with murder, her lawyer's defense was 'when her husband refused to duel the victim, as was his responsibility as a man, she had to take on his masculine role, but since she's a woman, and women only act emotionally and not rationally like men, her brain couldn't handle it. Therefore she was temporarily insane and can't be found guilty' And of course she was found innocent. First time in Europe that defense was used, here in America it was used before the civil war in an extremely similar case involving a guy named Dan Sickles and his wife and Francis Scott Key's son.
Lmao that’s hilarious and sad but, since we’re so removed from it and I need a laugh rn it’s funnier than sad rn for me. (And it’s absurd af) Man I fn love history. It’s so fascinating and you can never learn enough. Thanks for sharing.
Cheese is one of the great things of life and I’m sure sir Winston would agree. So it’s not that. N ya it was. Basically nailed the speech impediment which is HARD to do.
Absolutely love your discussions of different world events, your discussions on WW1 could go on forever and somehow I think they are. Keep it up, there's still more to the story ? Excellent 👍
Brilliantly narrated episode as usual. When all is said & done on this subject it'd be very interesting to hear an episode covering how the 20th century might have turned out had all the protagonists pulled back from the brink in 1914.
As a patriotic listener, I have to say, I love your podcasts. I often find history incredible, but on occasions, you manage to make it hilarious. Very good Churchill vibes as well!
I can’t believe I actually caught an episode premiere! This makes the incredibly emotional week I’ve had feel somewhat better. Hearing your voices soothe my soul. Sidebar: I just got the free trial this week and I’ve been binging the heck out of your podcast. I’m gonna have to go for a full subscription. ::cough:: I’m an Alabamian ::cough:: there is something absurdly wonderful about listening to y’all talk Alabama politics. 😂 sigh* I feel particularly vindicated living in this state, so I thank you for that. Lols
Perhaps mention should be made of the effect Austria's failure to support Russia in the Crimea in the 1850s had on what developed - Austria drifted into the orbit of Germany, having previously been Russia's usual ally. Russia's move into the Balkans in the 1850s pushed Austria away, while Britain and France came together after centuries of antagonism - and thus began the realignment in Europe which came to a head in 1914
One of the most interesting crisis in world history and you two are doing a wonderful job covering it from all angles. I'm looking forward to your next episodes and will be revisiting these in the future.
The Question is usually: How can it be that they went to war when they were all so intimately related? The reality was that it was precisely because of the family relationships that war was inevitable - spend Christmas with your extended family. It is far easier to make peace with strangers than relatives.
Dominic Sandbrook (googled the fury of the vikings book) you sir, are a breath of fresh air. I listen to these stories like i'm listening to an old friend. Normally I find it difficult to discuss these subjectsl, because its hard to explain to people that everything in history is much more complicated than what is the "general consensus". We keep forgetting that the more we know, it gets apparent how much we don´t know. Anyway, just wanted to say that i keep finding amazing stuff in your videos.
EXCELLENT +++++ Golden opportunity to listen two expert historian talking about a difficult subject. As a descendant of a Great War soldier I give you my sincere respect and gratitude.
First time you said something that upsets me: "Russian salad" also known as Olivier is DELICIOUS!! In addition it was invented by a French chef in Petersburg and the ingridents used to be: "Earlier, it always included cold meat such as ham or veal tongue, or fish. The mid-20th century restaurant version involved not just vegetables, but also pickled tongue, sausage, lobster meat, truffles, etc. garnished with capers, anchovy fillets, etc. Some versions molded it in aspic." (Wikipedia)
As an amateur historian and tutor etc, “we” (not putting myself on their level by any means) live on tangents lol 😂 I always have to write bold “Keep Tangents in Check” all over my lesson outlines 😂
So, Brits call it Russian salad. French call it Salad Macedonaise. Balkan peoples (along with the Russians?) call it French Salad. A true product of international affairs it would seem.
Bismarck once said (I'm paraphrasing): "The Balkans aren't worth the bones of a single Prussian soldier." I wonder what would have happened had the pilot not left the ship.
Ah, it seems there are not enough hours in the day to absorb the abundance of remarkable knowledge set before me. I am enthralled-utterly captivated, in fact. I implore you, do not cease; let the torrent of wisdom continue to flow!
Your discussion of the cultural ties and family links between Britain and Germany reminded me of Stefan Zweig’s ‘The World of Yesterday’. We mostly think of WWI’s redefinition of maps and alliances, but it utterly destroyed that sense among educated people of almost being citizens of Europe before their own countries, swimming in the fantastic literary and scientific soup of that era.
When Tom was talking about fly fishing and how he can cast perfectly when thinking of Sir Edward Grey I thought of my desire to be a great comedian and thought of Boris Johnson lol 😃
Re mobilisation: Austria mobilising against Serbia made it impossible for them to mobilise fully against Russia. That hampers Central Powers planning and the Von Seeckt in his postwar analysis of the German defeat reckoned the only way the Germany could have won would have been if they could have convinced the Austrians to join them in attacking France before turning on Russia.
Given the experience of warfare in the age of the machine gun, Germany might well have succeeded had it not invaded Belgium and instead turned eastward. Britain would likely have stayed out of the war, Russia might have been defeated by 1916, and France might well have exhausted itself in bloody assaults in Alsace-Lorraine and eventually sought peace.
@mebsrea but the victory in the East would have had to be quick. Given the spaces involved, it was unlikely to be so. German mobilisation plans would have given the Entente powers prior knowledge of the plan and the Russians, far from hurling themselves to defeat in Prussia, would have defended and when necessary, given ground. Meanwhile the French would be attacking the necessarily few German forces left in the West. That was von Seeckt's observation. The elder von Moltke's pre-Schlieffen plan had been to defend on all fronts and wear the enemy down but Germany's growing dependency on imported food and resources, compounded by Britain's adherence to the Entente scuppered that. The need to keep supply lines open against the French fleet led to naval building and naval building helped a bit to prod Britain into the Entente. Added to all that, Austria mobilised primarily against Serbia rather than Russia, undermining, which is why the French thought it such a fine time to have a war.
@@davidr2802 parrot that narrative David. I suppose establishing good diplomatic relations with Russia, and ending the grift, death, and destruction in the Ukraine is something that your not in favor of?
@@natelyons8327The death and corruption are occurring on the Russian side of the line, my friend. Russia is a fascist, terrorist state, and its investment in Donald Trump and the Republican Party has been the most spectacularly successful intelligence operation since the cracking of Enigma.
Amazing podcast been listening to it for a while now, and I won't go into history of things you guys covered that really good, but to say Russian salad is awful is to offend so many people it's basically a must have dish in Serbia during the winter, and it's delicious.
My apologies if someone has already mentioned these points, but in Margaret MacMillan's book THE WAR THAT ENDED PEACE she wrote that after Paul Cambon's 16 years in Britain he could communicate in "slow, simple English". He routinely did so, she wrote, with Sir Edward Grey, and Sir Edward spoke to him in slow, simple French. However, Cambon was such a linguistic chauvinist and Sir Edward was so well known for his inability to speak anything but English that it's impossible to imagine such an arrangement. Cambon was also (i) reportedly scornful of Oxbridge academics' pronunciation of Latin and (ii) totally dismissive of la cuisine anglaise. He was probably not the first Frenchman to express (i) and he was definitely not alone when it came to (ii). Also, at 1:37:32 Dominic mentioned Italy was officially an ally of Austria and Germany but actually "hated the Austrians". This hatred - mostly in government circles and not much of a factor among the general Italian population - was due to strong revanchist sentiments regarding Austria-Hungary's Italian territories. In the spring of 1915 Italy decided it could no longer stand aside and it declared war on Austria. Some ally!
Absolutely no idea how, but in naples-italy, Russian salad is a traditional Christmas eve (and Christmas day) starter. It is absolutely dreadful however we always had it!!! Absolutely disgusting, no idea how it came all the way to Naples of all places.
Where is the rest of the French revolution series please. It disappeared without further mention. You sharpened the blade, hoisted it up , never fell. ( I have to know whether the royal family got pardoned (: )
Have you guys considered an episode or two on Guy Fawkes? I was astonished to hear, when I voted in my local USA election (I’m a naturalized citizen) had to fill out a form and said out loud “Oh it’s Guy Fawkes day” and the Yanks on either side of me started to exclaim “Please to remember… “. We might all really enjoy a couple of hours of your views
Thanks for recommending a link to Wikipedia TH-cam. Can't have these two historians saying whatever they please without a reminder of the REAL authority!
Sir Edward Grey? How about the “Grey Cup” , the Canadian Football League’s annual Championship prize and the game will be played next weekend in Vancouver British Columbia.
The fact that Russia was motivated by the Straits rather than Slav solidarity is best illustrated by the Russian position vis a vis Bulgaria in the Balkan Wars. In the First Balkan War, Russia backed the Slavic Bulgaria, which got almost to the walls of Constantinople. But Bulgaria threatened to take Constantinople in the Second Balkan War, so Russia turned AGAINST their Slavic brothers because they feared if Bulgaria took Constantinople it would be very hard, diplomatically and politically, for Russia to get it from Bulgaria. The Russians thought they had a better chance if the Ottomans held the city, and the Russians could get it at some future date. By antagonizing Bulgaria, the Russians had to get even closer to Serbia to have any influence in the Balkans... which should be understood in looking at 1914. And all this was precursor to Bulgaria later joining the Central Powers. Of course, the Straits were the goal of the Dardanelles/Gallipoli campaigns in 1915, and much of the rationale for the Saloniki expedition. And, while nobody in the West will talk about this, in a sense, the current Russo/Ukraine war was first predicated when in 2008 NATO announced its intent to bring Ukraine AND GEORGIA into NATO, depriving Russia of Sevastopol and boxing in the only other significant Russian port on the Black Sea, Novorossiysk (look at a map). Russia attacked Georgia later that year.
Nato in 2008 ... was its position inspired by the Dubbya Bush or Obama regime? Personally, I think that position by Nato is indefensible. The overthrow of Ukraine in 2014 would probably feature as Phase 2 of the 2008 initiative.
No one is forced to join NATO. Countries must apply to join, and both Ukraine and Georgia’s applications for NATO membership action plans were turned down in 2008 as a result of opposition from France and Germany along with several other Western European countries.
Britain allied with France and Russia in order to maintain an equilibrium of power on the Continent and thus preventing any one power from gaining dominance, and it has been the central plank of English diplomacy on the Continent for hundreds of years? That the alliance offered benefits in regards India would have only emphasised the advantages of the Entente Cordial to British interests. You haven't mentioned the German reasoning behind starting the Anglo/German Naval Race or the implications of that, a continental power with an army massively larger and a navy that could match or even outmatch the RN
I found this podcast very interesting. But I take huge huge issue with the mis-characterisation of the Russian Salad (also known as Salade de boeuf - proving your point of Russian-French cooperation in this case). I find it grossly maligned, slated, shaded!!!!! :-) Pardieu! In parts of the world that are not Great Britain (such as Romania, where I come from) it is considered a really nice entrée, that we have at Christmas and Easter. And we are not particularly fond of Russia... but we are of good food. Maybe if you try it with home made mayonnaise you will change your mind and this terrible terrible culinary rift could be healed, or at least papered over ;-) ... And some Ukrainians would argue Borsch is their invention ... as would some Poles, too
If only they'd given poor Dominic a more caring arts teacher, maybe even put him in one of those viennese schools. His life could have been significantly different. He could have used his stunning rhetoric for good. And so much pain would have been avoided. 55:55 I thought Joe Rogan hit it out of the park this week with his appearances. But these two chaps got the infamous Churchill to perform his own words in their (second) intro. I'm speechless. The Golden Age of youtube is back. 1:10:25 Living on prussian land, it pains me to admit this.
The French know how to pronounce Fashoda, for them it is still a big deal. I heard it mentioned recently on French TV when a presenter was upset with the Anglo-Saxons. Fashoda was a traumatic event for De Gaulle, and he never forgave Britain for the humiliation. Fashoda helps explain his and France's, warped and often inexplicable attitude to the UK. I would argue that Salisbury was the last great PM. He understood the country's strengths and weaknesses and would have avoided what was an unnecessary war. Tucker Carlson recently blamed the stupidity of the British ruling class in throwing away the empire and its top-dog status. The rapid decline started with the clueless British Liberal government in 1914. According to Adam Tooze, the British Empire had the world's largest economy until 1916, Edward Grey was a disaster. He was too much of a wimp to be a foreign secretary. He was intimidated by the Germans after attending a meeting as a junior minister, and they were rude to him. He liked the French because they were nice and charming. He disliked travelling - his first official trip abroad was to France in 1914 - preferring instead to conduct relations through ambassadors in London. Unfortunately, the German ambassador in London was frozen out by the military in Berlin. Moltke believed Britain would side with France, but didn't care. The British Army was too small to worry about, the war would be over quickly. He wasn't p[banning for a long war. I have US citizenship and have often felt that Churchill was an American plant. He helped America become number one by helping to destroy the British Empire. He pushed for war in the cabinet in 1914 and convinced Lloyd George that war was necessary when it wasn't. Palmerston and Gladstone looked the other way when confronted with Prussian aggression. Gladstone stayed out of the Franco-Prussian War. That was the smart thing to do. The Thucydides Trap was between Russia and Germany over control of Eastern and Central Europe and their long border in Poland. Britain never wanted to dominate Europe, it wasn't a typical hegemonic power like the US and Germany.
The German nation was founded at the end of the Napoleonic Wars, when Napoleon forced the German-speaking population to become French. But what can you base such a state and nation on when you have no tradition of statehood, no capital, no borders - the only thing that united these people was the different German dialects (often so different that they could not understand each other). So you base it on a language that you deify, because you have nothing else. Then you add the evolutionary theory to it (nowhere in all of Europe, except Russia, were there so many admirers of this theory - when the English eavesdropped on captured German officers, they were shocked that they absolutely firmly believed that they were waging war to cleanse Europe of "inferior nations" and help the development of humanity, and all this long before Hitler). Moreover, this nation will be founded by the Prussians, descendants of a militant Catholic order, who treated the original Prussians like slaves. So if the German nation was founded at the beginning of the 19th century by, for example, The Bavarians would have looked completely different, far more cultured - but the Bavarians would never have founded it, they wanted to remain Bavarians and were annexed to Germany, like the Saxons and others, by great force.
As always, highly informative and enjoyable. However, being South African, this episode is so replete with references to the Boer War, I hope you will do an episode or two about it, with specific reference to the genocide the British perpetrated against the Boers in that horror. My grandmother survived three concentration camps set up by Kitchener and the damage continued for generations.
This video is a Saturday 'catch up' episode, where it is a video release of an audio podcast released earlier in the year. This episode is parts 3 and 4 of our audio podcast series on the outbreak of WW1 from earlier in the year, combined into one video.
This was an excellent way to spend 2 hours on a Saturday afternoon! Thank you.
Thank you! I am always looking for these versions from your podcasts. I love the playlists! Thanks for catching up!
@@restishistorypod Thanks! I’m going back in the podcast library as well…
Every episode is thoroughly engaging and madly enjoyable. Thanks so much for all the work y’all put into this show.
Quite shocking that Dom would go two buttons down for such a serious topic. My wife had to leave the room. Scandalous.
Well, now you're making me feel bad. I'm sitting here, listening to them in nought but my undercrackers.
@sloths-df3gf quote shocking indeed
So far, I've watched your series on Custer, The French Revolution, and the Roman invasion of Britian. I find you guys brilliant, informative, and extremely entertaining as a fan boy from "across the pond". I can only imagine the amount of work and preparation required to produce such great content. Keep up the great work but please don't get burned out guys.
Thanks again!
Thank you !
The Romans never invaded Britian.
@@billythedog-309 Yes, I stand corrected. It was not an invasion and I was struggling for the appropriate word. What would you call it? Perhaps a conquest of Britain starting with Emperor Claudius? Based on the series, it seems that tribes in Southern England engaged in Roman trade and culture during the intervening years of Julius Ceaser and Claudius.
@@natelyons8327 l think it's more pertinent that there's never been a country called Britian.
Muscular Aussie farmer here
I'm going to have to listen to this again as halfway through I was stuck in a mental looping image of the British foreign minister negotiating with statesmen via the Monty python's fish slapping skit
The whole saga reminds me of a weird mix of Monty Python and Blackadder 😃
@nigeh5326 or the stop motion animation show "The Magic roundabout".
(Except no-one came down in the end on a spring announcing "Time for bed")⏰
@@nigelmcconnell1909 it’s now almost 01:00 so I’m off to bed lol 😂
Boing boing (I’m a West Bromwich Albion fan)
@ oh b4 I go to kip great name Nigel 👍🇬🇧
@@nigeh5326 👍🇭🇲
You guys are great. Working my way thru your back catalogue.
Thank you !
That Calliux murder case in France 25:10 deserves a whole episode in and of itself. Basically what happened was that the wife shot the newspaper guy becuase the politician husband wouldnt challenge him to a duel after he published their love letters to each other from when they were each married to other people. Then, when she was arrested and charged with murder, her lawyer's defense was 'when her husband refused to duel the victim, as was his responsibility as a man, she had to take on his masculine role, but since she's a woman, and women only act emotionally and not rationally like men, her brain couldn't handle it. Therefore she was temporarily insane and can't be found guilty'
And of course she was found innocent. First time in Europe that defense was used, here in America it was used before the civil war in an extremely similar case involving a guy named Dan Sickles and his wife and Francis Scott Key's son.
Yes! Ol Dan Sickles. The Gettysburg national park service does a lecture on him you can find on TH-cam. A real character
d'accord!
@@johndaven1 potential history has a great human meme video about him too
Lmao that’s hilarious and sad but, since we’re so removed from it and I need a laugh rn it’s funnier than sad rn for me. (And it’s absurd af)
Man I fn love history. It’s so fascinating and you can never learn enough. Thanks for sharing.
@@johndaven1 I fight mits Sickles!
Tom’s impressions are getting so immersive, he almost became Winston Churchill there, or have I eaten too much cheese before bedtime? 😉😁
Cheese is one of the great things of life and I’m sure sir Winston would agree. So it’s not that. N ya it was. Basically nailed the speech impediment which is HARD to do.
There’s a story about some members of a gentlemen’s club in London on 28 June 1914, getting a message on the tickertape:
A member read it and declared “Damn it, not one of my horses in the first three!”
Absolutely love your discussions of different world events, your discussions on WW1 could go on forever and somehow I think they are. Keep it up, there's still more to the story ? Excellent 👍
Brilliantly narrated episode as usual. When all is said & done on this subject it'd be very interesting to hear an episode covering how the 20th century might have turned out had all the protagonists pulled back from the brink in 1914.
As a patriotic listener, I have to say, I love your podcasts. I often find history incredible, but on occasions, you manage to make it hilarious. Very good Churchill vibes as well!
I can’t believe I actually caught an episode premiere! This makes the incredibly emotional week I’ve had feel somewhat better. Hearing your voices soothe my soul. Sidebar: I just got the free trial this week and I’ve been binging the heck out of your podcast. I’m gonna have to go for a full subscription. ::cough:: I’m an Alabamian ::cough:: there is something absurdly wonderful about listening to y’all talk Alabama politics. 😂 sigh* I feel particularly vindicated living in this state, so I thank you for that. Lols
Been waiting for this perfect timing gents🎉
Oh gosh, i love every second of it. Thanks for lighten up this grey november day. You did win a new fan in Lusatia. :D
Great podcast. Events leading up to WW1 explained in a very lively and nuanced way. New fan 👍
Perhaps mention should be made of the effect Austria's failure to support Russia in the Crimea in the 1850s had on what developed - Austria drifted into the orbit of Germany, having previously been Russia's usual ally. Russia's move into the Balkans in the 1850s pushed Austria away, while Britain and France came together after centuries of antagonism - and thus began the realignment in Europe which came to a head in 1914
One of the most interesting crisis in world history and you two are doing a wonderful job covering it from all angles. I'm looking forward to your next episodes and will be revisiting these in the future.
The Question is usually: How can it be that they went to war when they were all so intimately related? The reality was that it was precisely because of the family relationships that war was inevitable - spend Christmas with your extended family. It is far easier to make peace with strangers than relatives.
Aah, surely true as a plum pudding sixpence
Dominic Sandbrook (googled the fury of the vikings book) you sir, are a breath of fresh air. I listen to these stories like i'm listening to an old friend. Normally I find it difficult to discuss these subjectsl, because its hard to explain to people that everything in history is much more complicated than what is the "general consensus". We keep forgetting that the more we know, it gets apparent how much we don´t know. Anyway, just wanted to say that i keep finding amazing stuff in your videos.
Making Germany the enemy was the worst mistake of the 20th century. 😢
EXCELLENT +++++ Golden opportunity to listen two expert historian talking about a difficult subject. As a descendant of a Great War soldier I give you my sincere respect and gratitude.
First time you said something that upsets me: "Russian salad" also known as Olivier is DELICIOUS!!
In addition it was invented by a French chef in Petersburg and the ingridents used to be:
"Earlier, it always included cold meat such as ham or veal tongue, or fish. The mid-20th century restaurant version involved not just vegetables, but also pickled tongue, sausage, lobster meat, truffles, etc. garnished with capers, anchovy fillets, etc. Some versions molded it in aspic." (Wikipedia)
Thank you: you two are saviours to the wayward mind .
Hello from New Zealand. Absolutely love it when you veer off on tangents.
As an amateur historian and tutor etc, “we” (not putting myself on their level by any means) live on tangents lol 😂
I always have to write bold “Keep Tangents in Check” all over my lesson outlines 😂
Love the line about how you guys said how being the most kindest and and decent Russian foreign minister is a really low bar to be on
Brilliant Boys just Love listening! All the Best..
Thank you !
Dominic, will you be my dad?
I want to hear the bedtime stories about Alastair Campbell when he found out trump won for the second time
🤣@@afctaylor12
😂😂😂😂
😂 he should write a book 🤣
Mine too please, you have to share 😂
So, Brits call it Russian salad.
French call it Salad Macedonaise.
Balkan peoples (along with the Russians?) call it French Salad.
A true product of international affairs it would seem.
And it's also delicious.
It's delicious and we, from Balkan call it Russian salad, while Russians call it Olivier salad.
Best series yet ! Is there anymore in this series - still not sure why we Brits had to get involved
So we got involved in a terrible mechanised war to protect India and our empire which crumbled away less than 50 years later anyway
Bismarck once said (I'm paraphrasing): "The Balkans aren't worth the bones of a single Prussian soldier." I wonder what would have happened had the pilot not left the ship.
Actually, " the bones of a single Pommeranian grenadier", butvhey, same thing.
Ah, it seems there are not enough hours in the day to absorb the abundance of remarkable knowledge set before me. I am enthralled-utterly captivated, in fact. I implore you, do not cease; let the torrent of wisdom continue to flow!
Best cliffhanger yet...
This channel and these two gentlemen are top drawer. We are fortunate to have them
Hey Dominic . Just finished Who Dares Wins . Absolutely amazing . Really loved it . When’s the next book you mentioned coming ?
Your discussion of the cultural ties and family links between Britain and Germany reminded me of Stefan Zweig’s ‘The World of Yesterday’. We mostly think of WWI’s redefinition of maps and alliances, but it utterly destroyed that sense among educated people of almost being citizens of Europe before their own countries, swimming in the fantastic literary and scientific soup of that era.
Im confused, is this a new series or a replay of the one done over summer?
Excellent episode.
Thank you !
@@restishistorypodwhere did you find the footage of Winston Churchill!? 😂
When Tom was talking about fly fishing and how he can cast perfectly when thinking of Sir Edward Grey I thought of my desire to be a great comedian and thought of Boris Johnson lol 😃
Didn’t I listen to this already? Was this released as a podcast sometime ago?
This is MUCH better than how it was presented in high school
Sir Edward Grey is said to have been the model for JR Hartley, I understand
Re mobilisation: Austria mobilising against Serbia made it impossible for them to mobilise fully against Russia. That hampers Central Powers planning and the Von Seeckt in his postwar analysis of the German defeat reckoned the only way the Germany could have won would have been if they could have convinced the Austrians to join them in attacking France before turning on Russia.
Given the experience of warfare in the age of the machine gun, Germany might well have succeeded had it not invaded Belgium and instead turned eastward. Britain would likely have stayed out of the war, Russia might have been defeated by 1916, and France might well have exhausted itself in bloody assaults in Alsace-Lorraine and eventually sought peace.
@mebsrea but the victory in the East would have had to be quick. Given the spaces involved, it was unlikely to be so. German mobilisation plans would have given the Entente powers prior knowledge of the plan and the Russians, far from hurling themselves to defeat in Prussia, would have defended and when necessary, given ground. Meanwhile the French would be attacking the necessarily few German forces left in the West. That was von Seeckt's observation. The elder von Moltke's pre-Schlieffen plan had been to defend on all fronts and wear the enemy down but Germany's growing dependency on imported food and resources, compounded by Britain's adherence to the Entente scuppered that. The need to keep supply lines open against the French fleet led to naval building and naval building helped a bit to prod Britain into the Entente. Added to all that, Austria mobilised primarily against Serbia rather than Russia, undermining, which is why the French thought it such a fine time to have a war.
Thank you chaps. Exceptional content
Is there a book/reading list?
Why are these WW1 episodes not available also in the podcast player?
They are, they were released back in the summer, and I think this is 2 podcast episodes put together.
Episodes 469-474, mid-July 2024, 6 parts of 'The Road to the Great War'. This is parts 3 and 4.
To this day, Russia still has an eye on Constantinople
And Washington DC. Oh, thats now in the bag.
The straits to this day are extremely important for multiple reasons. 🌎✌️🌍
@@davidr2802 parrot that narrative David. I suppose establishing good diplomatic relations with Russia, and ending the grift, death, and destruction in the Ukraine is something that your not in favor of?
@@natelyons8327The death and corruption are occurring on the Russian side of the line, my friend. Russia is a fascist, terrorist state, and its investment in Donald Trump and the Republican Party has been the most spectacularly successful intelligence operation since the cracking of Enigma.
Amazing podcast been listening to it for a while now, and I won't go into history of things you guys covered that really good, but to say Russian salad is awful is to offend so many people it's basically a must have dish in Serbia during the winter, and it's delicious.
Another brilliant episode.
My apologies if someone has already mentioned these points, but in Margaret MacMillan's book THE WAR THAT ENDED PEACE she wrote that after Paul Cambon's 16 years in Britain he could communicate in "slow, simple English". He routinely did so, she wrote, with Sir Edward Grey, and Sir Edward spoke to him in slow, simple French.
However, Cambon was such a linguistic chauvinist and Sir Edward was so well known for his inability to speak anything but English that it's impossible to imagine such an arrangement.
Cambon was also (i) reportedly scornful of Oxbridge academics' pronunciation of Latin and (ii) totally dismissive of la cuisine anglaise. He was probably not the first Frenchman to express (i) and he was definitely not alone when it came to (ii).
Also, at 1:37:32 Dominic mentioned Italy was officially an ally of Austria and Germany but actually "hated the Austrians". This hatred - mostly in government circles and not much of a factor among the general Italian population - was due to strong revanchist sentiments regarding Austria-Hungary's Italian territories. In the spring of 1915 Italy decided it could no longer stand aside and it declared war on Austria. Some ally!
Just started watching this, havent watched part one yet. Is this leading up to Wilhelm's failure to renew the reinsurance treaty with Russia?
Absolutely no idea how, but in naples-italy, Russian salad is a traditional Christmas eve (and Christmas day) starter.
It is absolutely dreadful however we always had it!!! Absolutely disgusting, no idea how it came all the way to Naples of all places.
How do you feel about trumps peace proposal I know it’s of subject but I love your analysis
The Guns of August, The Fishing Rods of July
A great book.
@@charlesfenwick6554It’s terrible if you know real history
We fail to realize it but he world and especially Europe never fully recovered from WW1.
Where is the rest of the French revolution series please. It disappeared without further mention. You sharpened the blade, hoisted it up , never fell. ( I have to know whether the royal family got pardoned (: )
Dominic - My junior high school art teacher told me something similar. You’re not alone.
Paleologue (the French ambassador) wrote a two volume diary during this time that is very good and entertaining.
Dominic didn’t know that the tea is named for the man? My world is shaken to its foundations.
What was that X complex the half German/half British guy had? It was a bit garbled there.. around 1:47..
You guys rule!
Thank you!
Have you guys considered an episode or two on Guy Fawkes? I was astonished to hear, when I voted in my local USA election (I’m a naturalized citizen) had to fill out a form and said out loud “Oh it’s Guy Fawkes day” and the Yanks on either side of me started to exclaim “Please to remember… “. We might all really enjoy a couple of hours of your views
Thanks for recommending a link to Wikipedia TH-cam. Can't have these two historians saying whatever they please without a reminder of the REAL authority!
Sir Edward Grey? How about the “Grey Cup” , the Canadian Football League’s annual Championship prize and the game will be played next weekend in Vancouver British Columbia.
Brilliant.
The fact that Russia was motivated by the Straits rather than Slav solidarity is best illustrated by the Russian position vis a vis Bulgaria in the Balkan Wars.
In the First Balkan War, Russia backed the Slavic Bulgaria, which got almost to the walls of Constantinople. But Bulgaria threatened to take Constantinople in the Second Balkan War, so Russia turned AGAINST their Slavic brothers because they feared if Bulgaria took Constantinople it would be very hard, diplomatically and politically, for Russia to get it from Bulgaria. The Russians thought they had a better chance if the Ottomans held the city, and the Russians could get it at some future date.
By antagonizing Bulgaria, the Russians had to get even closer to Serbia to have any influence in the Balkans... which should be understood in looking at 1914. And all this was precursor to Bulgaria later joining the Central Powers.
Of course, the Straits were the goal of the Dardanelles/Gallipoli campaigns in 1915, and much of the rationale for the Saloniki expedition.
And, while nobody in the West will talk about this, in a sense, the current Russo/Ukraine war was first predicated when in 2008 NATO announced its intent to bring Ukraine AND GEORGIA into NATO, depriving Russia of Sevastopol and boxing in the only other significant Russian port on the Black Sea, Novorossiysk (look at a map). Russia attacked Georgia later that year.
Nato in 2008 ... was its position inspired by the Dubbya Bush or Obama regime?
Personally, I think that position by Nato is indefensible. The overthrow of Ukraine in 2014 would probably feature as Phase 2 of the 2008 initiative.
No one is forced to join NATO. Countries must apply to join, and both Ukraine and Georgia’s applications for NATO membership action plans were turned down in 2008 as a result of opposition from France and Germany along with several other Western European countries.
Borscht is Ukrainian!
And Ukraine is Russian
Needs to be made into a "Death of Stalin" type of movie.
lol! Great idea!
Britain allied with France and Russia in order to maintain an equilibrium of power on the Continent and thus preventing any one power from gaining dominance, and it has been the central plank of English diplomacy on the Continent for hundreds of years? That the alliance offered benefits in regards India would have only emphasised the advantages of the Entente Cordial to British interests.
You haven't mentioned the German reasoning behind starting the Anglo/German Naval Race or the implications of that, a continental power with an army massively larger and a navy that could match or even outmatch the RN
I love the sardonic banter.❤
The Boer War was even unpopular in Australia and considering how much Australia was wedded to the Empire that's saying something
Dominic mentions Christopher Clark ALL the time. Is that the only historian he reads?
I believe gents, in a hundred years there's gonna be a vid on "Mistakes that caused WW3".
I highly doubt it as there wouldn’t be human life left if WW3 went Nuclear.
Many of the characters in this episode remind me so much of Monty Python 😃 lol
They are either eccentric or mad as hatters
it would be very nice if graphics of maps are overlaid over these stories
This reminds me of Trump's brag that he can end the war in Ukraine instantly.
He said it will be over by Christmas! LOL
I found this podcast very interesting. But I take huge huge issue with the mis-characterisation of the Russian Salad (also known as Salade de boeuf - proving your point of Russian-French cooperation in this case). I find it grossly maligned, slated, shaded!!!!! :-) Pardieu! In parts of the world that are not Great Britain (such as Romania, where I come from) it is considered a really nice entrée, that we have at Christmas and Easter. And we are not particularly fond of Russia... but we are of good food. Maybe if you try it with home made mayonnaise you will change your mind and this terrible terrible culinary rift could be healed, or at least papered over ;-) ... And some Ukrainians would argue Borsch is their invention ... as would some Poles, too
I wonder why it all historians complain about our militarism - that was one of our nicer sides
How big is the fly Tom is using if he can spear a duck with it? Lol 😃
Not planned, but it looks like I’ll finish listening just before 11am on the 11th
If only they'd given poor Dominic a more caring arts teacher, maybe even put him in one of those viennese schools.
His life could have been significantly different. He could have used his stunning rhetoric for good.
And so much pain would have been avoided.
55:55 I thought Joe Rogan hit it out of the park this week with his appearances.
But these two chaps got the infamous Churchill to perform his own words in their (second) intro. I'm speechless.
The Golden Age of youtube is back.
1:10:25 Living on prussian land, it pains me to admit this.
"Specktackl". Laying it on thick there.
The British had absolutely no interest in what was happening in the Balkans, they were very interested in what was happening across the Channel
1:05:44 fascinating
49:50 "and he's just making sh... making stuff up!"
The French know how to pronounce Fashoda, for them it is still a big deal. I heard it mentioned recently on French TV when a presenter was upset with the Anglo-Saxons. Fashoda was a traumatic event for De Gaulle, and he never forgave Britain for the humiliation. Fashoda helps explain his and France's, warped and often inexplicable attitude to the UK. I would argue that Salisbury was the last great PM. He understood the country's strengths and weaknesses and would have avoided what was an unnecessary war. Tucker Carlson recently blamed the stupidity of the British ruling class in throwing away the empire and its top-dog status. The rapid decline started with the clueless British Liberal government in 1914. According to Adam Tooze, the British Empire had the world's largest economy until 1916,
Edward Grey was a disaster. He was too much of a wimp to be a foreign secretary. He was intimidated by the Germans after attending a meeting as a junior minister, and they were rude to him. He liked the French because they were nice and charming. He disliked travelling - his first official trip abroad was to France in 1914 - preferring instead to conduct relations through ambassadors in London. Unfortunately, the German ambassador in London was frozen out by the military in Berlin. Moltke believed Britain would side with France, but didn't care. The British Army was too small to worry about, the war would be over quickly. He wasn't p[banning for a long war.
I have US citizenship and have often felt that Churchill was an American plant. He helped America become number one by helping to destroy the British Empire. He pushed for war in the cabinet in 1914 and convinced Lloyd George that war was necessary when it wasn't. Palmerston and Gladstone looked the other way when confronted with Prussian aggression. Gladstone stayed out of the Franco-Prussian War. That was the smart thing to do. The Thucydides Trap was between Russia and Germany over control of Eastern and Central Europe and their long border in Poland. Britain never wanted to dominate Europe, it wasn't a typical hegemonic power like the US and Germany.
Oh I missed it!!
Dominic, that PM you dared not mention who you believed would be capable of writing love letters during cabinet - not another Balliol man per chance?
Please adopt me Dominic ❤️
What happened to the ostrich?
Ok guys help! I am a pain member of the podcast, and none of these podcasts are listed in the rest is history club
These were released in the summer as part of the road to ww1
The German nation was founded at the end of the Napoleonic Wars, when Napoleon forced the German-speaking population to become French. But what can you base such a state and nation on when you have no tradition of statehood, no capital, no borders - the only thing that united these people was the different German dialects (often so different that they could not understand each other). So you base it on a language that you deify, because you have nothing else. Then you add the evolutionary theory to it (nowhere in all of Europe, except Russia, were there so many admirers of this theory - when the English eavesdropped on captured German officers, they were shocked that they absolutely firmly believed that they were waging war to cleanse Europe of "inferior nations" and help the development of humanity, and all this long before Hitler). Moreover, this nation will be founded by the Prussians, descendants of a militant Catholic order, who treated the original Prussians like slaves. So if the German nation was founded at the beginning of the 19th century by, for example, The Bavarians would have looked completely different, far more cultured - but the Bavarians would never have founded it, they wanted to remain Bavarians and were annexed to Germany, like the Saxons and others, by great force.
As always, highly informative and enjoyable. However, being South African, this episode is so replete with references to the Boer War, I hope you will do an episode or two about it, with specific reference to the genocide the British perpetrated against the Boers in that horror. My grandmother survived three concentration camps set up by Kitchener and the damage continued for generations.
Not genocide.
Why oh why did they not let the Austrians and Serbia have their local war. Bunch of imbeciles 🤦♂️
Wow! I didn’t know you guys say squirrels so strange. Now I know.
Britain was totally conned into that awful war by the french, damn them
Didn’t the Russians and Austrians have telegraph or phone service. Why couldn’t they communicate rapidly ?
And for that matter didn’t the French ship carrying their PM have telegraph service?
Cold Russian Salad is a great Summer dish, gentlemen.
Mental note. Ultimatums are a terrible idea.