15-Minute History

How do leaders confront villains? Among history’s most important lessons are seeing how people and nations face down rising evil. In this episode, we are going to examine the actions of three statesmen as they looked outward and saw gathering storms on the horizon. They took different approaches; some failed and others succeeded. And perhaps their deeds can shape our own if ever our societies are under threat.

Welcome to a new segment in 15-Minute History called, Thursday Thoughts! Every other Thursday, Joe will speak about a specific person, place, or event in history in under five minutes. This week, we teach about the real history of a pastry you know and love. Spoiler Alert: The truth may cause some of you to reach a baking point.

Join us as we discuss the Inquisition, the horrors it brought, the heroes that ended it, and the fiction around this dark time in history.

Welcome to a new segment in 15-Minute History called, Pop Quiz! Every other Thursday, Joe asks a topical question about history, and Jon has to answer it without any help or resources - other than his legendary memory and knowledge of history. These episodes are unedited and a fun way for the team to interact more with you, our outstanding audience. Have an idea for a topic? Want to try and stump Jon? Send it to us at 15minutehistory@gmail.com or submit it to our website at https://www.15minutehistorypodcast.org. We promise not to give him any hints.

A small chapel in the German town of Erfurt was hardly a proper venue for world-shaping events to begin. Nothing much had happened in this part of the Holy Roman Empire, and the Augustinian monk who swept the chapel's floor thought mainly about his lunch. His straw broom pushed dust from the tombs built into the floor before the altar. The monk then lit candles and said a brief prayer. He heard the doors open and turned to see a group of young men walking single-file toward him. The new servants of God were ready to take their vows and be ordained in His Church. Moments later, the bishop swept into the chapel resplendent in his best clerical garb. He stood before the new priests and led them through their oath to the Almighty. The monk, standing off to the side, was barely listening. He saw his new colleagues kneeling before the altar on the freshly-swept tombs and thought to himself, "All my work wasted." Join us as we teach you about the Inquisition, the horrors it brought, and the heroes that ended it.

Welcome back to 15-Minute History! We are excited to be back with you, our amazing audience, each week for more walks in history’s footsteps. History, like a haunted house, is filled with monsters. The people and events we selected for this season illustrate trends that have caused suffering and death for countless innocents. We know villains first by their words and then, if left unchecked or unchallenged, by their deeds. History is actionable. History matters, and before we dive deep into our conversation about villains, we first want to discuss how the application of history can help us see them. Be sure to stay close as we walk into the dark this season. We will encounter both horror and heroism. We will ask questions, challenge ideas, and see the best and worst in humanity. Only by taking this journey together can we be better on the other side.

Join us for the second part of our Interviews with Heroes. In this episode, we speak with an ICU/Trauma Nurse and Advanced EMT. Note: Some of the content in these interviews is graphic. Listener discretion is advised. Contents: 0:40 ICU Trauma Nurse 29:04 Advanced EMT We close out this season with a two-part episode with interviews that highlight those who voluntarily go into professions we naturally take for granted – until we need them. Some of these professions are dangerous. Others are gross, uncomfortable, and thankless. None of these people have YouTube channels or millions of followers. They are gritty, graphic, and authentic. Those that choose such careers are a different breed of person, and as we end the season, we want you to hear from them, listen to their stories, and understand that no matter where you are, you are surrounded by heroes every day. Season 7 of the 15-Minute History podcast will begin in October 2023.

We close out this season with a two-part episode with interviews that highlight those who voluntarily go into professions we naturally take for granted – until we need them. Some of these professions are dangerous. Others are gross, uncomfortable, and thankless. None of these people have YouTube channels or millions of followers. They are gritty, graphic, and authentic. Those that choose such careers are a different breed of person, and as we end the season, we want you to hear from them, listen to their stories, and understand that no matter where you are, you are surrounded by heroes every day. Part Two will be live next Monday, July 17.

Join us in this exciting discussion as we walk through the life of General George Patton, his leadership, heroism, and his effect on the world we know today.

The dull hum of aircraft filled the morning air. German soldiers looked up from the French town of St. Lô, expecting to see a few enemy fighters bearing down on them. Their hearts froze in their chests as nearly a thousand bombers emerged from the clouds. They had heard of the devastation wrought by their enemy on the Fatherland’s cities, but St. Lô was only a tiny provincial settlement far from the Paris metropolis. In minutes, their world was aflame as Allied bombs exploded around them and tore flesh and metal apart in equal measure. The panzer division holding St. Lô was nearly annihilated in the first of three waves, and little was left as the sun reached its noon height. Then, the survivors heard engines approaching from the north and east in the direction of the Normandy beaches. Tanks and half-tracks bearing white stars swarmed through the town, finishing off the defenders and ripping open the Nazi left flank that had held the Allies back for over a month. The Third United States Army is one of the best-known units of the Second World War. From the opening move on St. Lô in August 1944 to the war’s end nine months later, it liberated an area of Nazi-occupied Europe roughly the size of Afghanistan. Its soldiers were the best-trained men in the US Army, its officers and NCOs among the most professional in American military history, and its record of battle remains unsurpassed in enemy casualties inflicted and land covered. Most of the credit is due, of course, to the soldiers in tanks and trucks, but even the proudest of these would point to their commander as the man who made the Third Army such a terrifying weapon of war: General George S. Patton, Jr. Join us for this special, double-length episode of 15-Minute History as we teach you about General George Patton, his life, leadership, heroism, and his effect on the world we know today.