Today In History with The Retrospectors

In the temple at Philae, an Egyptian Priest called Nesmeterakhem created the last ever known hieroglyphic inscription on 24th August, 394. Although ostensibly praising the God Mandulis, the scribe spent just as long commemorating his own presence - and the names of his Mum and Dad.For centuries, Western academics assumed his words might be more mysterious and spiritual than the somewhat prosaic reality - because, until the discovery of the Rosetta Stone in 1799, there was no accurate way to read them.In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain why hieroglyphs were written for centuries, even as ever-diminishing numbers of people could understand them; reveal ‘how to entertain a bored Pharoah’; and track down the earliest known example of dick graffiti…  Further Reading:• ‘The Great Pyramid Was Not Built by Slave (+ 9 Other Surprising Facts About Ancient Egypt)’ (HistoryExtra, 2016): https://www.historyextra.com/period/ancient-egypt/facts-ancient-egypt-mummification-cleopatra-pharaohs-tutankhamun-life-death/• ‘2,500-year-old erotic graffiti found in unlikely setting on Aegean island’ (The Guardian, 2014): https://www.theguardian.com/science/2014/jul/06/worlds-earliest-erotic-graffiti-astypalaia-classical-greece#start-of-comments • ‘Decoding the Secrets of Egyptian Hieroglyphs’ (Wondrium, 2018): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIjREbbFjNEFor bonus material and to support the show, visit Patreon.com/RetrospectorsWe'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/RetrospectorsThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Stockholm Syndrome - the condition in which hostages develop a psychological bond with their captors during captivity - was named after a bank robbery that began on 23rd August, 1973. It lasted for five days, with 73% of the Swedish public tuning in to watch it.  The robber was Jan-Erik Olsson, who pulled a loaded submachine gun, fired at the ceiling and, disguising his voice to sound like an American, cried out in English, “The party has just begun!”.In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly unpick how Olsson endeared himself to his hostages; consider what criminologists detected that inspired them to create a new ‘syndrome’; and explain how the story ended in a Thai supermarket…Further Reading: ‘The Real Bank Robbery That Gave the World Stockholm Syndrome’ (Time, 2020): https://time.com/5874808/stockholm-syndrome-history/ ‘The Strange Origin Of Stockholm Syndrome’ (Grunge, 2020): https://www.grunge.com/243202/the-strange-origin-of-stockholm-syndrome/ ‘SWEDISH BANK GUNMAN HOLDING HOSTAGES IN STOCKHOLM’ (Associated Press, 1973): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9kueGkjva4 For bonus material and to support the show, visit Patreon.com/RetrospectorsWe'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/RetrospectorsThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The world’s first notable air raid occurred on 22nd August, 1849, when the Austrian Army attacked Venice using a fleet of 200 miniature hot air balloons, each delivering a 33lb pound bomb. Following a disastrous first attempt - when the balloons blew back on to their own men - this time the Austrians equipped each balloon with a long copper wire to trigger the detonation. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly weigh up if the event had a decisive effect on their recapture of the Italian city; consider the psychological impact of attacking from the skies; and reveal why a ‘drone’ is called a drone… Further Reading:• ‘Bombs over Venice’ (History Today, 1958): https://www.historytoday.com/archive/bombs-over-venice• ‘Drones in Society’ by Ron Bartsch, James Coyne and Katherine Gray (Taylor & Francis, 2016) : https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Drones_in_Society/7CglDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=1849+austrian+venice+balloon&pg=PA20&printsec=frontcover• ‘Planehook Stories: The Siege of Venice’ (Droneport Texas): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQQhrd7_32wFor bonus material and to support the show, visit Patreon.com/RetrospectorsWe'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/RetrospectorsThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Emma CorshamCopyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Court witnesses have promised to tell ‘the whole truth’ since the 13th century; but, on 19th August, 1992, the U.S. Appeals Court permitted Wallace Ward to stand trial under his own oath - pledging not ‘truth’, but ‘fully integrated honesty’.Ward, the president of a Nevada-based mail order company, had coined the phrase himself when he devised Neothink, a cultish belief system structured around charging hundreds of dollars for self-help advice.In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly weigh up whether Ward’s bizarre convictions really were equivalent to religious faith; trace back the origins of oath-taking in English-speaking courtrooms; and uncover the surprising history of raising your hand when swearing to tell the truth… Further Reading:• ‘United States of America, Plaintiff-appellee, v. Wallace Ward, Defendant-appellant, 973 F.2d 730 (9th Cir. 1992)’ (Justia): https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/973/730/386559/• ‘How the courtroom got its oath’ (Slate, 2004): https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2004/04/how-the-courtroom-got-its-oath.html• ‘Secret society mailing mysterious invitations’ (Good Morning Maryland, 2020): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZvdfabaIOo… And, if you enjoyed this episode, there’s an additional three-and-a-half minutes of material about oath-taking available to our supporters, in which the Retrospectors discuss the strangest books that have been used as a prop, and reveal the times when it wasn't a book at all, but a saucer, a candle, a dog, or a chicken! To unlock this content - and a bonus bit like it each week - subscribe to the show via Apple Podcasts, or support our Patreon: https://patreon.com/RetrospectorsWe'll be back on Monday! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/RetrospectorsThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Rerun. A weather map was first broadcast on TV on 18th August, 1926 - but there were no fancy graphics, no on-screen forecaster, and only one intended recipient: the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Washington, DC.In the UK, the Met Office had been producing weather forecasts since 1861, but the BBC didn’t bring a ‘weatherman’ to British screens until 1954.In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain Charles Darwin’s connection to weather-forecasting; review the first weather forecast on NBC’s Today programme, and reveal exactly how much time the Brits spend discussing the weather… Further Reading:• ‘Weather forecast facts: the first forecast in Britain, the birth of the Met Office and the first TV weatherman’ (HistoryExtra, 2018): https://www.historyextra.com/period/victorian/facts-history-weather-forecast-weatherman-tv/• ‘BBC Television Weather at 60 - A Celebration’ (BBC, 2014): https://www.bbc.com/historyofthebbc/research/television-weather• ‘TODAY's First Weather Forecast: Jan. 14, 1952’ (NBC): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XiAyWYCcAI0‘Why am I hearing a rerun?’ We’re planning exciting new things for the autumn, and we’re banking that most of you haven’t heard it yet. So stick with us.For bonus material and to support the show, visit Patreon.com/RetrospectorsWe'll be back tomorrow with a new episode! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/RetrospectorsThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Louis XIV was among the V.I.P. guests at Nicolas Fouquet’s lavish houseparty on 17th August, 1661 - and was supposedly so consumed with jealousy that he had Fouquet arrested for treason.Although not entirely true, the story adds to the mystique of Vaux-le-Vicomte, the opulent chateau Fouquet created with the design team who later went on to reimagine Versailles.In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how Molière, d'Artagnan, and even the Man in the Iron Mask became tied up in this iconic event; consider how Fouquet constructed his extraordinary castle in just three years; and reveal the impressive contents of his guests’ Party Bags… Further Reading:• ‘Vaux-le-Vicomte Book: Inside The Lavish Home That Inspired Versailles’ (Bloomberg, 2021): https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-10-08/vaux-le-vicomte-book-inside-the-lavish-home-that-inspired-versailles• ‘Party Like It's 1661’ (People Newspapers, 2020): https://www.peoplenewspapers.com/2020/01/09/party-like-its-1661/• ‘Treasures from Vaux-le-Vicomte – Episode One: Fouquet’s Legacy’ (Sotheby’s, 2018):https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aKGBCxuchLwFor bonus material and to support the show, visit Patreon.com/RetrospectorsWe'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/RetrospectorsThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Aviation in the 1920s could be a lethal business, as proven on 16th August 1927, when only 2 of the 15 planes that entered The Dole Derby - a $35,000 contest to fly from California to Hawaii - successfully reached their destination. The brainchild of pineapple magnate James D. Dole, the competition inspired the public imagination - and a crowd of 100,000 people - but claimed the lives of TEN participants.In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly consider the inefficient and dangerous aeronautics of the time; explain how winning team Woolaroc were able to distinguish themselves ahead of the pack; and reveal how the modern-day Dole company have distanced themselves from such provocative promotions… Further Reading:• ‘Fifteen Planes Enter, Two Planes Leave - The Deadly Dole Air Race’ (Atlas Obscura, 2011): https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/morbid-monday-deadly-dole-air-race• ‘Dole Air Race: The Daring and Pioneering Conquest Across the Pacific’ (STSTW, 2018): https://www.ststworld.com/dole-air-race/• ‘Army Officers Hop Off For Hawaii’ (1927): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CW1brsdc_fMImage courtesy of San Diego Air & Space MuseumFor bonus material and to support the show, visit Patreon.com/RetrospectorsWe'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/RetrospectorsThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Camp Siegfried hosted a ‘Nazi Camp Fete’ for 40,000 attendees on 15th August, 1938. The Summer resort, on Yaphank, Long Island, was the epicentre of the German-American Bund: an organisation devoted to establishing a Nazi stronghold across the United States. Alongside campfire building and swimming lessons, young attendees were taught to emulate the Hitler Youth and host mini Nuremberg-style rallies. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how delegates were trained to anticipate a Nazi coup of the USA; consider why all the key players in the movement escaped serious criminal prosecution, even after the Second World War; and why events such as these were so casually reported, even in the New York Times… Further Reading:• ‘New York's 1930s Nazi Summer Camp’ (Ripley’s, 2016): https://www.ripleys.com/weird-news/nazi-summer-camp/• ‘A New York Town in the 1930s Embraced Hitler and Nazi Germany’ (History Collection, 2017): https://historycollection.com/welcome-hitler-street-usa-pending/• ‘Nazis on Long Island: The Story of Camp Siegfried’ (Museum of Jewish Heritage, 2022): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGJW1VQo1TsFor bonus material and to support the show, visit Patreon.com/RetrospectorsWe'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/RetrospectorsThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When 42 bodies buried near Liverpool Street Station in London were dug up as part of the works on Crossrail on 12th August, 2015, they were thought to be victims of the Great Plague of 1665. The incident shone a light on the cemetery in which they were buried - a pauper’s grave at Bethlem Hospital; the institution more commonly known as ‘Bedlam’.From its establishment in 1247, Bedlam ‘lunatic asylum’ quickly gained a reputation as a place that was pioneering - it was the only mental health facility in Britain - and fearsome, a place of stigma and spectacle. The public could pay to tour the facility and have pisspots thrown at them.In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly reveal how the abuses perpetrated at Bedlam still have echoes in modern-day surgery; look back at the first formal inspection of the premises; and consider why ‘Bedlam’ has become so resonant in literature from Shakespeare to Dickens… CONTENT WARNING: description of unsanitary conditions and patient abuse; reference to out-dated and pejorative language about mental healthFurther Reading:• ‘London Crossrail Dig At Bedlam Reveals 'Great Plague Victims' Were Buried In Thin Wooden Coffins’ (HuffPost UK, 2015): https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/08/12/london-crossrail-excavators-skeletons-great-plague_n_7976488.html• ‘How Bethlem Royal Hospital Became The Notorious Bedlam Asylum’ (All Thats Interesting, 2021): https://allthatsinteresting.com/bedlam• ‘Skeletons from Bedlam Hospital site uncovered by Crossrail’ (Daily Mail, 2015): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obXO60iOyLMFor bonus material and to support the show, visit Patreon.com/RetrospectorsWe'll be back on Monday! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/RetrospectorsThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Rerun. The 7,885 year-long calendar that the Mayan people used to measure long stretches of time, ‘The Long Count’, began on 11th August, 3114 B.C.The combination of a Haabʼ and a Tzolkʼin date identifies a day in a combination which does not occur again for 18,980 days (52 Haabʼ cycles of 365 days equals 73 Tzolkʼin cycles of 260 days, approximately 52 years), a period known as the Calendar Round. ARE YOU KEEPING UP.In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly discover the rules of ‘Mayan Space Jam’; explain why people thought the world might end in 2012; and call into question the whole diary system on which their beloved podcast depends…Further Reading:• ‘Danger on the Court: The Deadly Ancient Mesoamerican Ball Game’ (Ancient Origins, 2020): https://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history/ulama-mesoamerican-ball-game-deadly-sport-ancient-americas-003156• ‘9 Interesting Facts About The Mayans’ (yocover, 2021): https://yocover.com/facts-about-the-mayans/• ‘Maya Cosmology & the Real 2012’ (Mary Lou Ridinger, TEDxSanMigueldeAllende, 2013 ): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xN6E5AFEb9M‘Why am I hearing a rerun?’ We’re planning exciting new things for the autumn, and we’re banking that most of you haven’t heard it yet. So stick with us.For bonus material and to support the show, visit Patreon.com/RetrospectorsWe'll be back tomorrow with a new episode! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/RetrospectorsThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices