Listen on: iTunesSubscribe on Android, Stitcher and more Welcome back, everyone. So, last week, we discussed how the English Civil War finally broke out. And, this week, we’ll look at some debates which emerged among Puritans in the following year. Debates which, essentially, boiled down to the fundamental question of how far the revolution should go. Read more about English Civil War 3: Aristocracy vs. Democracy[…]
Listen on: iTunesSubscribe on Android, Stitcher and more Transcript The English Civil War officially started in 1642, and the road to war was a terrifying and chaotic time of political intrigue, mob violence and widespread paranoia. Introduction If you’ve been following this series from the beginning, you have a vague idea of the events of Read more about English Civil War 2: An overview of the war[…]
Listen on: iTunesSubscribe on Android, Stitcher and more Transcript Welcome back, everyone! First, thank you so much for your patience the past few weeks. And without further ado, it’s time to cover the war that changed America. Introduction Today, to start our series, I thought I’d start with an overview of what exactly English America Read more about The English Civil War 1: America in 1642[…]
Listen on: iTunesSubscribe on Android, Stitcher and more Transcript Welcome back! Last week, we saw the second Spanish attack on Providence Island, and the final reorganization of the venture into a potentially successful enterprise. It was the colony’s last hope. They adopted vital reforms, sold most of their slaves, and removed colony’s most belligerent citizens, and a Read more about Providence Island 9: End of an era[…]
Listen on: iTunesSubscribe on Android, Stitcher and more Transcript Welcome back, last episode, we discussed the final descent of the Providence Island project into irrecoverable failure, and this week, we’ll discuss the last couple years of the colony’s existence. I’d intended to finish this in just one episode, but there’s just so much that happens that I Read more about Providence Island 8: The second Spanish attack[…]
Listen on: iTunesSubscribe on Android, Stitcher and more Transcript Welcome back! Last week, we saw the fulfillment of hopes and dreams for Providence Island as a privateering base. Company members were preparing to relocate to the colony, they reduced civilian rents and increased their liberties, and things should have been better than ever. But, the focus on Read more about Providence Island 7: Descent into chaos[…]
Listen on: iTunesSubscribe on Android, Stitcher and more Transcript Welcome back! Last episode, we saw our company earn the right to privateer in the Caribbean, reinvigorating the colony with hopes of plunder, and fulfilling the Elizabethan dream. Privateering, they thought, could help them recruit new settlers, pay their debts, and protect Protestantism from the Spanish menace. This Read more about Providence Island 6: Dreams Fulfilled[…]
Listen on: iTunesSubscribe on Android, Stitcher and more The return of privateering In 1635, there were still people who dreamed of reviving the Elizabethan legacy. There’s a lot of good to be said about the Stuarts – they were less oppressive, less violent, more easygoing than their Tudor predecessors, but to many 17th Century Englishmen, there was Read more about Providence Island 5: the last Elizabethan colony[…]
Listen on: iTunesSubscribe on Android, Stitcher and more First things first, Happy New Year! Last episode, we discussed the economic failures of 1632-33. Too little agricultural knowledge, too many orders from England, too little support, too few laborers, and too poor a government meant that nothing of value was produced in the fledgling colony. Resentment festered, Read more about Providence Island 4: Differing Puritan visions[…]
Listen on: iTunesSubscribe on Android, Stitcher and more Privateering and slavery Faction fighting crippled Providence Island, but the company insisted on maintaining control from London. The company also sent fewer servants than promised, while insisting colonists experiment with a huge variety of commodities. But, Governor Bell had an idea. Slaves could be a cheap way to make Read more about Providence Island 3: Old problems and new solutions[…]