The French History Podcast

We introduce the seven great lords who led the holy war. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"The General." "The Great Asparagus." "A man with the most oversized personality." Charles de Gaulle was President of France from 1959-69, and his near-mythological status had been building up for decades before then. His debut appearance in Billy's song is because of his critical involvement in the May 1958 Crisis, which saw Algerian Nationalists rise up and, after nearly 130 years of French colonization, fight for freedom. Dr Arthur Asseraf is an expert in modern France and North Africa, and grew up in France well aware of the near-mythological status that de Gaulle still adopts today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is it better to be a hero or great? What is the difference? What makes someone a hero or great in France? Pierre talks all about that and how to get into the Panthéon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Scholar Michelle Chun-Han Hsu looks at what a Belle Époque play can tell us about France's understanding of China. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The pope ordered that only soldiers should fight God's enemies. But a mystic from Amiens leads unnumbered masses to holy war and their doom. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Arazoo Ferozan discusses how the Sun King remade the port city of the Marseille, France's gateway to the Mediterranean. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pope Urban II's call to kill the enemies of God inspires zealots across France and Germany. Yet, many see an enemy amongst them that needs addressing first. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A humorous episode where we test the limits of AI creativity using French history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An examination of the world-changing speech at the Council of Clermont to discover what Pope Urban II actually said. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pope Urban II calls a holy war like no other for motives that are...complex. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices