Today In History with The Retrospectors

The Victory of Adwa on 2nd March, 1896 marked a milestone in the so-called ‘Scramble for Africa’ - because, whilst so much of the continent had been colonised by European nations, Abysinnia successfully defended their country from the invading Italians.Rome had underestimated the Ethiopians’ weaponry, motivation and strategy, and turned up with bad maps, demoralized troops - and orders to march on.In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how a tricksy treaty was used to justify the incursion; consider the fates of the Eritreans who fought alongside the Europeans; and question the wisdom of getting your troops to march for nine hours straight before engaging in combat… Further Reading: ‘First Italo-Ethiopian War: Battle of Adwa’ (ThoughtCo, 2018): https://www.thoughtco.com/italo-ethiopian-war-battle-of-adwa-2360814 ‘The History of The Battle and Victory of Adwa (African History month): https://ahm.africa/the-history-of-the-battle-and-victory-of-adwa-125th/ ‘How did Italy Lose to Ethiopia?’ (Animated History, 2018): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Hln0GjuUQk&t=4s 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: Emma Corsham.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

Eva Tanguay, vaudeville megastar, was arrested in Louisville, Kentucky on 1st March, 1910 after stabbing a stagehand three times with a hat pin. At the police station, she reportedly produced a roll of bills and cried, “take it all. And let me go, for it's now my dinner time.”It was neither the first violent incident of her career, nor the first time she had piqued the curiosity of the press - indeed, Tanguay had made a career of combining her edgy charisma, style and sexuality with suggestive lyrics and wild gossip guaranteed to keep her in the public eye.In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how she co-opted ‘I Don’t Care’, a song not even written for her, into her personal anthem; reveal what ‘hotdogging’ is; and revisit her tragic letter to Henry Ford…Further Reading: ‘In search of Eva Tanguay, the first rock star’ (Slate, 2009): http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/music_box/2009/12/vanishing_act.html?via=gdpr-consent&via=gdpr-consent ‘Eva Tanguay (1896—1982)’ (Lawrence History Center): https://www.lawrencehistory.org/lhcexhibits/lewishine/tanguay ‘Eva Tanguay sings ‘I Don't Care’’ (Nordskog, 1922): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zte2sDJ0rys 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: Emma Corsham.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.#1910s #Crime #Theatre #Arts #Music #Strange #US Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Webster’s New International Dictionary (Second Edition) was the largest book to be mass produced, but - as was revealed on 28th February, 1939 - it contained an embarrassing error: on page 771, between the entries for Dorcopsis (a type of small kangaroo) and doré (golden in colour), was the word ‘dord’. Which doesn’t exist. The mistake had arisen from a note submitted by the dictionary’s Chemistry Editor, Austin M. Patterson, who had intended to include ‘D or d’ as an abbreviation for ‘density’. It became the most celebrated example of a ‘ghost word’.In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly ask whether the time is right to re-introduce ‘dord’ to the dictionary; reveal how the word ‘ghost’ itself contains a ‘ghost letter’; and explain why the the 1975 edition of the New Columbia Dictionary deliberately included an entry on fictitious photographer Lillian Virginia Mountweazel…Further Reading: ‘The Curious Case of “Dord,” the Dictionary-Defined Word That Doesn’t Exist’ (MindBounce, 2020): https://www.mindbounce.com/446502/the-curious-case-of-dord-the-dictionary-defined-word-that-doesnt-exist/ ‘What Are Ghost Words?’ (Grammarly): https://www.grammarly.com/blog/ghost-words/ ‘Ask The Editor: Ghost Word’ (Merriam-Webster, 2011): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3sDiH3FhnYEnjoy this episode? The team have uncovered even MORE about trap streets and unrecognisable words, which you can hear exclusively if you’re our supporter on Patreon* or subscriber on Apple Podcasts. Support the show, skip the ads** and get bonus material every week!*top two tiers only. Patreon.com/Retrospectors **Patreon only.We'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 Corsham.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.#30s #Mistakes #Discoveries #Funny #US Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Henri Landru, known as ‘Bluebeard’ to the French public, was executed by guillotine on 25th February, 1922, having murdered at least ten women he dated during the First World War.He continued to protest his innocence throughout his sensational trial - despite having drawn a detailed doodle of the oven he had used to burn his victims’ bodies.In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly unpick Landru’s disturbing methodology; uncover why France’s top defense attorney was attracted to the case; and explain what it all had to do with Rudyard Kipling… Further Reading: ‘The Story Of Henri Landru, France's Charming Bluebeard Serial Killer’ (All That’s Interesting, 2017): https://allthatsinteresting.com/henri-landru ‘Hidden for 100 years, the untold story of serial killer who preyed on lonely war widows’ (Mail Online, 2019): https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6511793/Hidden-100-years-untold-story-serial-killer-preyed-lonely-war-widows.html ‘Bluebeard's 10 Honeymoons’ (Anglo Allied Pictures, 1960): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrfmrucyKGo For 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: Emma Corsham.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022. #20s #Person #Crime #War #Macabre #France Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The ‘Last Invasion’ of Britain was not, as most people assume, The Battle of Hastings - but actually a farcical French attempt to conquer the Pembrokeshire town of Fishguard on 24th February, 1797. Windy weather had already scuppered the first two prongs of this failed three-pronged attack, which was ultimately overthrown by a rag-bag militia of volunteers, a shipload of discarded booze, and a Welshwoman with a pitchfork.In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly ask if the French had any realistic chance of success; explain why their soldiers seemed quite so unmotivated by the task at hand; and pay tribute to the pub at the heart of the surrender… Further Reading:• ‘Battle of Fishguard: The Last Invasion Of Mainland Britain’ (HistoryExtra, 2022): https://www.historyextra.com/period/georgian/last-invasion-britain-french-battle-fishguard-what-happened-jemima-nicholas/• ‘Jemima Nicholas, a Fishguard Heroine - People of Pembrokeshire’ (coastalcottages.co.uk): https://www.coastalcottages.co.uk/inspiration/heritage/jemima-nicholas-a-fishguard-heroine/• ‘The One Show: The French Invasion of Fishguard’ (BBC Wales, 2011): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6QGBV-rizTwFor 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 Corsham.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.#1700s #War #UK #France Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When Jennifer Lopez turned up on the Grammys’ red carpet wearing a green Versace dress on February 23rd, 2000, there was such a rush from the public to see the image that it became the most searched-for term in Google’s history. As a result - Eric Schmidt later confessed - Google Images was developed and launched, and a whole new way of searching the web was created.In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly discover where the iconic dress is now; explain how Geri Halliwell missed out on the chance of (increased) internet infamy; and reveal just how many dresses J-Lo tried on before settling on ‘the one’...   Further Reading: ‘How Jennifer Lopez’s Versace Dress Created Google Images’ (GQ, 2019): https://www.gq.com/story/jennifer-lopez-versace-google-images Geri Halliwell actually wore Jennifer Lopez's iconic Grammy dress first (yahoo.com): https://uk.style.yahoo.com/blogs/shine-on/geri-halliwell-actually-wore-jennifer-lopezs-175622959.html ‘Jennifer Lopez Tells the Story of the Green Versace Dress’ (Vogue, 2019): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTyBFcEgc-A 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: Emma Corsham.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.#2000s #Person #Music #Fashion #Inventions #US Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dolly The Sheep, the first ever successfully cloned mammal, was introduced to the world’s press at the Roslin Institute in Scotland on 22nd February, 1997.Born seven months earlier, with the comparatively unremarkable name ‘Lamb Number 6LL3’, news of her birth had been leaked by The Observer before the scientific paper about her genesis could be published, sparking an international frenzy. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly ask why the international media (and Bill Clinton) took the opportunity to drum up panic about human cloning, rather than engage with the remarkable breakthrough she actually represented; reveal why Dolly developed a snack habit; and identify a missed opportunity for Dolly’s Tea Rooms in Roslin…Further Reading:• ‘Dolly the sheep’ (National Museum of Scotland): https://www.nms.ac.uk/dolly• ‘Dolly the Sheep and the human cloning debate - twenty years later’ (The Conversation, 2016): https://theconversation.com/dolly-the-sheep-and-the-human-cloning-debate-twenty-years-later-63712• ‘Retro Report: The Story of Dolly the Cloned Sheep’ (The New York Times, 2014): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tELZEPcgKkEEnjoyed this episode? There’s FIVE MINUTES of bonus content about Dolly The Sheep for you to download, exclusively available to our Subscribers on Apple Podcasts and our supporters* on Patreon (patreon.com/Retrospectors). Sign up now, support our show and get bonus content each and every week!* top two tiers onlyFor 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 Corsham.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.#90s #Science #Invention #Discoveries #UK Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Pan-Am pilot Byron Rickards was surrounded by soldiers and told he had become the prisoner of a revolutionary organisation shortly after landing in Arequipa, Peru on 21 February 1931 - the first recorded aircraft hijack in history.Rickards refused to drop pro-rebel propaganda, leading to a stand-off - although, astonishingly, it wasn’t the only time in his career that his plane would be hijacked…In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain why the 1960s created the perfect circumstances for a hijacking boom; reveal the most hijacked pilot of all time; and attempt to investigate the origins of the word ‘hijack’ - with mixed results…Further Reading:• ‘From the Bizarre to the Deadly: History’s Most Notorious Hijackings’ (History Hit): https://www.historyhit.com/from-the-bizarre-to-the-deadly-historys-most-notorious-hijackings/• What is the origin of the word 'hijack'? (The Guardian): https://www.theguardian.com/notesandqueries/query/0,,-1420,00.html• ‘The First Ever Flight Hijacking in History’ (Histographics, 2021): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=psoHDSMjGvUFor 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 Corsham.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.#30s #Crime #Peru Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sentenced to death for treason against his brother King Edward IV, George, Duke of Clarence was executed on 18th February, 1478 - and, according to legend, chose to be drowned in a butt of his favorite tipple: malmsey wine. It was apt punishment for years of plotting against his brother alongside his father-in-law, the Earl of Warwick - most notably by claiming that the King’s two children were illegitimate.In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly reveal how close George came to actually seizing the throne; consider how Shakespeare sexed things up for ‘Richard III’; and investigate the financial outlay required if you wanted to drown yourself in a butt of malmsey wine in 2022…Further Reading:• ‘Duke of Clarence: A title through time’ (The History Press): https://www.thehistorypress.co.uk/articles/duke-of-clarence-a-title-through-time/• ‘Malmsey - Madeira Wine and Dine’: https://www.madeirawineanddine.com/malmsey/• ‘On This Day: the execution of George, Duke of Clarence’ (Matt Lewis, 2020): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3teyJXLduCMFor 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: Emma Corsham.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022. #1400s #Royals #Food #Crime #Macabre #Strange #UK Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The 1870 Education Act was the first to deal specifically with the provision of British schools. Speaking in the House of Commons, William Edward Forster MP proposed: "I believe that the country demands from us that we should… cover the country with good schools, and get parents to send their children to those schools.”But there was opposition: from Christians concerned about the religious nonconformity of these new institutions; ideologues who thought the state simply couldn’t afford to fund them; and families who relied on their children bringing home a wage from work. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain why Prime Minister William Gladstone was disappointed by the reforms; examine whether the intention was really as philanthropic as it seemed; and reveal why it was only in living memory that Britain’s education policy truly provided the nation’s kids with full-time schooling… Thanks to James Plunkett’s book, End State (2021) for inspiring this topic. Check out the audiobook (read by Olly!) here: https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/End-State-Audiobook/1398702218Further Reading:• ‘LEAVE. FIRST READING: Elementary Education Bill’ (Hansard, 1870): http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1870/feb/17/leave-first-reading• ‘The 1870 Education Act’ (UK Parliament): https://www.parliament.uk/about/living-heritage/transformingsociety/livinglearning/school/overview/1870educationact/• ‘What was life like at a Victorian Reformatory School?’ (BBC Teach): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=erYwMz5rdW0For 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 Corsham.Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.#1800s #Victorian #Inventions #Religion #Politics #UK Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices