250 years ago, on December 16th 1773, an event happened that shocked an Empire and fired the starting pistol for the American Revolution. At the time it was known simply as the Destruction of the Tea, an act that shook the world from Bengal to Britain to Boston.

In this specially made film to ma...

Dan Snow goes to Pittsburgh to explore the extraordinary story of how an over-ambitious young George Washington fought for the British and helped to fire the shots that started the Seven Years War, the world’s first global conflict.

History Hit has been up close to a remarkable story from the American War of Independence, exploring the history and attending the commemorations for the dead of the bloody battle of Camden, 1780.

Travelling to South Carolina for this special film, Dan Snow investigates some exceptional histo...

Buffalo Bill was America’s first celebrity… and the most famous man in the world at the turn of the 20th century.

He was a former scout, soldier, Buffalo hunter…but what he’s most known for of course, is his showmanship. He vied with PT Barnum for the title of greatest showman on earth.

At the ...

On 13 September 1759, on the Plains of Abraham near the city of Quebec, an outnumbered British army fought a battle that would change the history of the world: the Battle of Quebec. For the past three years, Britain and France were locked in a bitter struggle for dominance in the Seven Years War:...

In this first episode of 'The Room Where It Happened', History Hit invites three experts to deconstruct the thoughts and feelings of the key players at the heart of this crucial historic moment - each taking the perspective of one of the main protagonists: Khrushchev, Kennedy and Castro.

October...

On 16 September 1620, 400 years ago, a merchant ship called the Mayflower departed from Plymouth, England, on a voyage to America. Its passengers sought a new life, for some this meant religious freedom and for some a fresh start in a new land. They would go on to be known as Pilgrims, and influe...

To many, Columbus is still the man who discovered America. Yet, there had been others before him. The Viking Leif Eriksson, who around 1000 AD became the first European to set foot on American soil. A medieval Welsh Prince named Madoc supposed to have built fortified places along the Ohio River. ...

Join Don Wildman, as he discovers how Pearl Harbor transformed America and changed the lives of a whole generation of Americans, including his father's.

This new series tells the compelling story of the Vietnam War, from the country’s dynastic history, the impact of Christian missionaries & French colonialism, Japan’s invasion during WWII and the rise of Ho Chi Minh. How the USA’s fear of communism started a relentless sequence of events that cau...

"The Ascent of Europe - How the Vikings Changed the World

A nation of seafarers and merchants, the Vikings revolutionised exploration and trading in the Middle Ages and discovered America 500 years before Columbus. This gripping film unveils their bad reputation as wild, murdering and pillaging ...

In the second talk of a three part series, Steven Bishop will pick up where we left off last time at the Declaration of Independence to examine the first decades of the newly formed United States. How did George Washington rise to become the first President and a national hero? How were the Bill ...

Steven Bishop tells us how the first thirteen states of America formed, and how East Anglia had a role to play in their creation.

The formation of the Spanish Empire in the Americas can be seen as a remarkable feat, as against seemingly impossible odds a handful of soldiers conquered empires of thousands and took control of much of modern day of Latin America for Spain. But how accurate are the stories? And after the dust s...

Was King George really mad? Could the American Revolution have been avoided? Does the play Hamilton get George III right? To find out Dan Snow spoke to historian Andrew Roberts, biographer of Churchill, Napoleon and now George III.

George III ruled through an extraordinary period of revolutiona...

At the beginning of America's involvement in World War II, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) called on the country to become "an arsenal of democracy" – to become producers of war materiel to help defeat the Axis powers – Germany, Japan and Italy. This is the story of how Chicago answered...

Most history is hierarchical: it’s about popes, presidents and prime ministers. A very small section of society has wielded very great power. But what if that’s simply because they are responsible for creating the historical archives? What if we are missing out on understanding equally powerful b...

Narrated by Tom Selleck: Sunday, December 7, 1941 was a beautiful morning on the Hawaiian island of Oahu. A few sailors and soldiers were already up and playing a game of football near Pearl Harbor. Others were sleeping in their barracks or aboard ships after a late night of partying in Honolulu....

I was delighted to be joined by Caleb McDaniel, History professor and author of the Pulitzer prizewinning book, “Sweet Taste of Liberty: A True Story of Slavery and Restitution in America”. He told me the remarkable story of Henrietta Wood. Born into slavery in Kentucky, she was freed as an adult...

Susan Schulten presents a selection of maps from the fascinating collection of maps that feature in her book 'A History of America in 100 Maps'.

An informative film made for American troops travelling to Britain, letting them know what to expect and advising them on how to behave. The film covers varied subjects, from the humble British pub, to rationing, to the treatment of black British servicemen.

75 years ago, in the spring of 1945, the aerial assault on Germany was reaching a crescendo as city after city was devastated by British and American bomber fleets. James Holland, leading World War Two historian and bestselling author, joins Dan Snow on the podcast to talk about why and how the b...

On 8 May 1945 Karl Donitz authorised the formal, final surrender of Nazi Germany, marking the end of World War Two in Europe. This archive footage from 1945, retells the major events of the Second World War and how complete victory in Europe was finally achieved. A British Movietone film first re...

The campaign for Okinawa, located just 350 miles south of Japan, was one of the bloodiest of the war. US land forces faced a Japanese defence occupying a system of tunnels, caves and fortifications exploiting the natural defensive advantages of the hilly southern region of the island. At sea, ves...