The decades after the death of Alexander the Great saw a massive increase in the scale and intensity of warfare over an area stretching from Italy to Afghanistan. Dr. Charlotte van Regenmortel joins me to talk about the enormous economic impact of that warfare, and how it created a concept of wage labor that transformed the economies of the Helleni…

In this episode, I speak with Dr. Kimberly Jones about water justice in our communities. Dr. Jones dives deep into the pressing issue of water insecurity, exploring where our water comes from, who controls it, and the social, economic, and environmental factors that impact access to safe drinking water. From the ongoing challenges of contamination …

Turning Tides: Addressing This with Qasim Rashid will cover the 2024 election, as well as current societal issues plaguing America, as well as the rest of the world. Qasim is an author, human rights lawyer, political activist, and father. If you'd like to donate or sponsor the podcast, our PayPal is @TurningTidesPodcast1. Thank you for your support…

You know those messages that you get all the time, the ones that pop up out of nowhere? They could be real, but something about them seems fishy. You likely dismiss these texts and emails as mere annoyances, thinking you’ve stopped some random stranger from ripping you off. But the shocking truth is, the person behind that message might be trapped …

The German Peasants' War was the largest popular revolt in Europe before the French Revolution, but it's largely been forgotten. Why? Professor Lyndal Roper of the University of Oxford joins me to discuss her absolutely outstanding new book, Summer of Fire and Blood, and we discuss peasants, resistance, and the heady days of the early Reformation. …

Pyrrhus of Epirus won costly but clear victories over the Romans in their first battlefield meetings, but couldn't win the war. Rome's dogged determination eventually won the war for them and placed them on the path to seemingly inevitable conflict with Carthage. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Forty Ye…

Early modern Europe was a violent place, full of duels, bloody encounters, and decades-long feuds. In many ways, it was more fractious and dangerous than it had been during the Middle Ages. Professor Stuart Carroll is an expert on the social and cultural aspects of violence in that age, and we chat about murder, conflict resolution, and how people …

By 281 BC, Rome controlled much of Italy, but the city was still a minor player on the larger Mediterranean scene. That changed when King Pyrrhus of Epirus crossed the Adriatic with a powerful army of Macedonian pikemen and war elephants, setting in motion the toughest war the Romans had ever fought. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: …

In this episode, Professor Clifford Villa explains what toxic waste is, how its disposal disproportionately impacts marginalized communities, and how the Superfund program aims to address these inequities. Professor Villa served as Deputy Assistant Administrator for the EPA Office of Land and Emergency Management, where he led policy initiatives ac…

While the Punic Wars mark the stage of Roman history with which most people are familiar, Rome's entrance onto the stage of Mediterranean power politics actually came a decade earlier, with a bloody, grinding war against the Hellenistic king Pyrrhus of Epirus. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Forty Years…

As the fourth century drew to a close, Rome wasn't the only rising power in the central Mediterranean; Syracuse and Carthage were battling for dominance in Sicily and beyond, fighting devastating wars of ever-increasing scale that led directly to the eventual conflicts we know as the Punic Wars. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Refor…

Dr. Gino Caspari returns to discuss the extraordinary finds at his most recent excavation of an early (maybe the earliest) Scythian royal burial mound in Siberia! We discuss horse sacrifice, state formation, the earliest Scythians, and the trials of excavating in one of the more remote places on the planet. Patrick's book is now available! Get The …

In our first episode, Professor Running-Grass introduces the concept of environmental justice, reviews its origins and principles, and talks about the future direction of this movement. Professor Running-Grass is an educator and a long-time social justice and environmental activist. His expertise spans several fields including multicultural educati…

How would history look different if Alexander the Great had died in 334 BC? Would Macedonia still have conquered most of Asia? Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Forty Years that Shook the World in hardcopy, ebook, or audiobook (read by Patrick) here: https://bit.ly/PWverge. And check out Patrick's new pod…

There and Back Again: The Election of 1912 is an interview I took part in originally on Jerry Landry's podcast, Presidencies of the United States. We're excited to share this episode with the Turning Tides audience as well! Throughout this installment, Jerry and I discuss the 1912 presidential election and its lasting effects on American democracy …

Carthage spent most of the fifth century BC building up its economy, but in the aftermath of the disastrous Athenian expedition to Sicily, the Carthaginians decided that the time was ripe to create a new Mediterranean empire. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Forty Years that Shook the World in hardcopy, …

Much of what we take for granted about the European Middle Ages was a product of the Carolingian dynasty, particularly its most notable member, Charlemagne. But before long, the empire Charlemagne built splintered, thanks to the ambitions of his grandsons. Dr. David Perry is co-author, along with Professor Matthew Gabriele, of the new book Oathbrea…

Turning Tides: A Soldier's Life is a two-part interview with Professor of History at Louisiana State University and award-winning author, Alexander Mikaberidze. In part two of the interview, Alexander and I discuss the book "War and Peace," Napoleon's controversial legacy, and Alexander's past and upcoming works. If you'd like to donate or sponsor …

By the 280s BC, only a few of the men who had ridden the length and breadth of Asia with Alexander were still alive, and the world they had spent decades fighting to make was ready to be born: the Hellenistic world. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Forty Years that Shook the World in hardcopy, ebook, or …

What was it like to be a soldier during the Thirty Years War? I spoke with Dr. Lucian Staiano-Daniels, author of the upcoming book The War People: A Social History of Common Soldiers during the Era of the Thirty Years War, about what we can know of the thousands of men who fought during that extraordinarily violent and confusing period. Patrick's b…

Turning Tides: A Soldier's Life is a two-part interview with Professor of History at Louisiana State University and award-winning author, Alexander Mikaberidze. Part one of the interview covers Alexander's early life growing up in the U.S.S.R. and details how that influenced his work. We discuss his book, The Napoleonic Wars: A Global History, as w…

Antigonus the One-Eyed came closer than almost any other figure in the post-Alexander world to recreating the dead king's empire, but his success aroused the ire of the other Successors, and his doom wasn't far behind. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Forty Years that Shook the World in hardcopy, ebook, …

Ancient DNA has transformed our understanding of the more distant reaches of the human past, but what can it tell us about more recent ages of history? Dr. Hannah Moots has extensively investigated the genomic history of the Iron Age Mediterranean, offering striking new insights into an age of mobility and interaction over huge spaces. Patrick's bo…

As the dust began to settle after Alexander's death, the possibility of one of his relatives truly ruling the dead king's empire grew smaller and smaller. The power lay with the generals, and as they fought it out, the outlines of a new world order began to take shape. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Fo…

With mountains of treasure, huge armies, and ambitions that no amount of conquest could ever slake, Alexander's Successors spent the next 40 years after the king's death fighting over his inheritance. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Forty Years that Shook the World in hardcopy, ebook, or audiobook (read…

Turning Tides: Paraguayan War will discuss the War of the Triple Alliance, or López's War, as well as the effects of the war on South America and the rest of the world. The second and final episode, One Vast Tomb, will cover the period from 1867 to 1870, in which the Paraguayan population suffers from both the allied blockade and Lopez's increasing…

The last years of Alexander the Great's reign were a troubled time. The king wanted to keep fighting, but his soldiers were spent after years of campaigning. Then, quite suddenly, the king died, and it was up to his generals to determine the fate of the empire he'd built. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and…

Professor Fred Naiden wrote one of my favorite books on Alexander the Great - Soldier, Priest, and God - and it provides a much different view of Alexander than the warrior king we so often see in modern treatments. Alexander was a deeply religious person, and his ideas and beliefs about religion were at the core of understanding his actions. Patri…

Join us for a relaxing mindful meditation...

Turning Tides: Paraguayan War will discuss the War of the Triple Alliance, or López's War, as well as the effects of the war on South America and the rest of the world. The first episode, Let Them Come, will cover the period from 1864 to 1866, in which President Francisco Solano López of Paraguay invades Argentina and is forced back by the armies o…

When we think of the ancient world, we tend to think of just a few societies: Egypt, Mesopotamia, and so on. But the more distant reaches of the past contained multitudes, and Raven Todd DaSilva has written a new book - The Other Ancient Civilisations - about some of them. I chat with her about her favorite lesser-known archaeological cultures and …

Alexander the Great's campaigns didn't end once he had defeated the Persian king Darius III and conquered the heart of his empire; he went still further, into the vastness of the Iranian Plateau and Central Asia, and then south into India. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Forty Years that Shook the World…

Turning Tides: Charles XII will discuss the life and times of King Charles XII of Sweden, as well as his effect on the surrounding areas. The fourth and final episode, God on My Side, will cover the period from 1715 to 1721, in which the Great Northern War ends and King Charles XII dies in the trenches during battle. If you'd like to donate or spon…

Henry V of England was the archetypal medieval king, a warrior par excellence whose example inspired English kings for centuries to come, the victor at Agincourt and conqueror of much of France. Tides of History's returning champion guest, Dan Jones, joins me to talk about his new book on Henry V, the king's childhood and adolescence, and why he ma…

It took Alexander just three years to effectively conquer the Persian Empire. Two decisive battles - Issus and Gaugamela - proved his supremacy over the Persian king Darius III, and the two-century rule of the Achaemenids died on battlefields in the Fertile Crescent. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Fort…

Turning Tides: Charles XII will discuss the life and times of King Charles XII of Sweden, as well as his effect on the surrounding areas. The third episode, Tyr in Exile, will cover the period from 1707 to 1714, in which King Charles XII campaigns throughout Russia and Ukraine before ultimately being defeated at the Battle of Poltava. If you'd like…

Gladiators are one of the most enduring symbols of the Roman world, but what do we really know about them? Gladiator historian Alexander Mariotti joins me to discuss the logic behind gladiatorial games, the lives of real gladiators, and how the reality contrasts with the popular image we have today. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: R…

Alexander wasn't yet "The Great" when he invaded the westernmost provinces of the Persian Empire in 334 BC, but he quickly showed that he was a serious threat to the old and still-powerful state ruled by Darius III. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Forty Years that Shook the World in hardcopy, ebook, or …

Turning Tides: Charles XII will discuss the life and times of King Charles XII of Sweden, as well as his effect on the surrounding areas. The second episode, Art of War, will cover the period from 1703 to 1706, in which King Charles XII campaigns throughout Poland and eventually brings war to Central Europe. If you'd like to donate or sponsor the p…

Philip of Macedonia was a towering figure, and if he had been succeeded by anyone other than Alexander the Great, he would be far better known today. But in 336 BC, at the peak of his powers, Philip was assassinated, and it became Alexander's kingdom to expand. He would do so beyond anyone's wildest dreams. Patrick's book is now available! Get The …

Welcome to my podcast! In the following episodes, I'll speak with experts in the field of environmental justice striving for a fair and sustainable world. From the impacts of climate change on marginalized communities to innovative solutions and policy changes, this podcast sheds light on the struggles and triumphs in the quest for environmental ju…

When we think of the rise of Rome, our usual image is one of conquest: Roman armies marching out year after year to subdue their adversaries. But Professor Nicola Terrenato has an alternative way of understanding that process, one rooted in negotiation, the relationships and networks of elite families, and the self-interest of powerful individuals …

Turning Tides: Charles XII will discuss the life and times of King Charles XII of Sweden, as well as his effect on the surrounding areas. The first episode, By Defeating My Enemies, will cover the period from 1682 to 1702, in which Charles XII is born, comes to power, and attempts to expand his empire through conquest. If you'd like to donate or sp…

We all know the name of Alexander the Great, but his father Philip the One-Eye was no less important a historical figure. In just 20 years, he turned Macedonia into the preeminent power in the Greek world, laying the foundation for the much better-known exploits of his son and heir. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renai…

Hello everyone. We've been away for a little bit but we're back with a mini-episode updating you on a coupkle of things that we are doing...

For most of the history of ancient Greece, Macedonia was a backwater: a semi-barbarian kingdom on the fringes of the Greek world, only tangentially involved in the dealings of the sophisticated city-states to the south. But with the rise of King Philip II, father of Alexander the Great, all of that began to change very quickly. Patrick's book is no…

Turning Tides welcomes Mark Bulik, a senior editor at the New York Times and author of Ambush at Central Park: When the IRA Came to New York for an interview in which he discusses his new book, as well as his first book, The Sons of Molly Maguire: the Irish Roots of America's First Labor War. Mark Bulik's Website: https://markbulik.com/ The Sons of…

What was Italy like during the period of Rome's rise to power? Dr. Kathryn Lomas, author of The Rise of Rome: From the Iron Age to the Punic Wars, joins me to discuss the fascinating history of Italy outside and inside the city of Rome. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Forty Years that Shook the World in…

It's time for another mailbag! Patrick answers questions about the Axial Age, the best places to see Iron Age archaeology, and how to be a discerning consumer of history. Patrick's book is now available! Get The Verge: Reformation, Renaissance, and Forty Years that Shook the World in hardcopy, ebook, or audiobook (read by Patrick) here: https://bit…

Turning Tides: The Mughal Empire will discuss the rise and fall of the Mughals in the Indian subcontinent. The third episode, Tears of Blood, will cover the period from 1708 to 1858, in which the Mughal Empire steadily declined before completely capitulating during the First War of Indian Independence. If you'd like to donate or sponsor the podcast…