Episode 218 – Of Hedgehogs and Herons
By 1477 the rules of war that had been enshrined in the laws of chivalry are gone. The contest between the French and the Habsburgs over the inheritance of the Grand Dukes of the West gives us a foretaste of the things to come.
Episode 217 – When Mary Met Maxi
“Let others wage war; you, happy Austria, marry”, that is what we are told. The reality was very different – invasion, rebellion, execution…
Episode 216 – The Youth of Emperor Maximilian I
The Delights and Horrors of the Childhood of the Last Knight
Episode 215 – The Bold in the Cold
In just three years, between 1473 and 1477, Charles the Bold fritters away the mythical wealth of the Burgundian Dukes…
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About Me
I am Dirk, a history geek with a love for books and stories. I do this for fun and my personal self-aggrandisement.
I have been born, raised and educated in Germany but live in the UK for now over 20 years with my wife and two children. My professional background is in law, management consulting and banking. History has always been a hobby as are sailing, travelling, art, skiing and exercise (go BMF!).
My view of history is best summarised by Gregory of Tours (539-594): “A great many things keep happening, some good, some bad”. History has no beginning and no end and more importantly, it has no logic, no pattern and no purpose . But that does not mean there isn’t progress and sometimes we humans realise that doing the same thing again and again hoping for a different outcome is indeed madness. The great moments in history are those where we realise that we cannot go on as we were and things need to change. German history – as you will hopefully see – is full of these turning points, some good, some bad!
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I have very recently become aware of Your podcast on the history of the Germans. As a Danish citizen, who has spent 3 months every year for the last 17 years in Berlin (work), I find the podcast incredibly informative and well produced. A joy to listen to.
May I ask one question? It seems the communication in Europe was quite quick even in the 900’s. The events take place quite quickly, even across large distances. So: How did people communicate, and how quickly did news travel?
Thank you so much for your podcasts 😜please are you thinking of translating it to French or German – I need them 😜
French would be a bit of a stretch. I am occasionally thinking about a German version, but I have not enough time to run a German and an English one in parallel. Plus the whole point of this effort is to engage an Anglo-Saxon audience. There are a lot of great German Language history podcasts already! P.S., Thanks a lot for supporting the show!
Dear Dirk,
I’m binge listening to your podcast series (on the site historyofthegermans.com), and so far I’ve come across two disturbing errors in the site. These are not typo’s, but rather entirely missing podcasts. I hope you will be able to remedy this.
The first concerns episode 9. The page of this episode does display the text correctly, but where the podcast of episode 9 is supposed to be, there is the podcast of episode 2 instead.
The other is episode 28. On this page neither the written text nor the podcast itself is present, making it impossible to catch up with this episode.
I hope that this info will help you to correct these errors in your otherwise very informative and entertaining postcast series.
Greetings,
Qaz Janssen.
Thanks a lot for telling me. Will get on it right away!
Dear Dirk,
thank you so much for the podcast. I love the details, the humor, the big picture. I just started but I’m definitely going to listen to all of them and am very excited about it. It really is a joy to listen to.
Herzliche Grüße
Gudrun
Thank you so much!
Dear Dirk,
I trust I can be so informal. I am totally hooked on your podcast, History of the Germans. I love the careful choice of details, the bigger picture, the consequences and your sense of humor. I also enjoy listening to you pronounce German words and names. I have felt a sense of comfort just out of reach. Until I listened to episode 141, I had no idea why.
The familiarity comes from my year as an exchange student in Duisburg. What a surprise!
BTW this episode suddenly ends at 17 minutes, end of sentence but mid thought. I look forward to the rest of it. lol.
Thanks for such a wonderful podcast.
Marilyn MJ
Thank you so much for your kind words. It is great that you enjoy the show. I btw. love to hear from listeners since podcast creation is a bit of a lonely endeavour. getting feedback is what makes it worthwhile. All teh best!
I love your podcast – it’s my favourite one. I listen to quite a few history podcasts and yours is far and away the best. So very informative. I enjoy your wry commentary and sense of humour.
This is a fantastic podcast, I am on episode 96 and looking forward to the rest. Such great content and delivery, well done !
Hello from Canada. I am planning a trip to Germany in less than 3 weeks and was thrilled to discover your podcasts. They are fantastic, love all the information and the humour. Thank you so much!
Thanks for saying that and have a great trip 🇩🇪⛪️🏰⛰️🙏
I have now binge listened all 154 episodes of History of The Germans podcast and I am amazed what one man can do better and more comprehensively than any broadcasting corporation. They always, always end up simplifying and shortening every detail until you repeat what people already expect to hear. And this feels like underestimating the interested audience because there is a possibly a huge but ignorant audience of the broadcasting corporation that is taken in consideration. This phenomena ois most underlined in Hollywood studio filmatisations of course but not alien to even BBC historical documentaries.
However, on your topic, I have previously watched ZDF Die Deutschen dokudrama series. At that time I found if refreshing – and realised how world history (outside of Germany) often ignores the importance of Central European events. In Britain, In Scandinavia, In East and West… And I was then impressed by the quality that superceded the BBC standard.
However you are even more thorough, seems. What is your evaluation of Die Deutschen?
https://www.zdf.de/dokumentation/terra-x/die-deutschen-140.html
Hello! I’m not sure if I’m replying to a comment or leaving a new message here, which is my intention. In any case, I’m enjoying your podcast immensely.
I listened to History of the Crusades, and enjoy that your show meshes with Sharon’s. I need to hear the names of the personnages several times to be able to place them in time, so coming across Louis VII and Raymond, cousin of Alienor, for example, helps me cross reference my historical knowledge.
I was in southern Italy in the spring, in Bari, and came across the name of Swabia for the first time in my life. As an English speaker, I found this name extremely amusing. There was much mention of Frederick of Swabia, in Bari, but little in depth information about him.
I guess we’re talking Barbarossa?
Anyhow, I’m a Francophile, studied French in school and love French history. But this massive Holy Roman Empire has always loomed, implacably, to the east, and I never understood how it functioned nor why Germans were thrown together politically with Romans. So thank you for shedding a long light on this complex political creature.
Johanna in Vermont
Hi Johanna – thanks for your kind words. If you are interested in the Frederick of Swabia who left his mark on Bari, that would be Frederick II – episodes 74ff. Enjoy!
Dirk! Veni, vidi, audivi!
I can’t overstate how much I love your podcast, what an unlooked for joy it is, how much I’m loving it (did I mention that?) Bravo, bravo, bravo, Bravo!
I’m a lover of history, but after spending most of the last 20 years in Asia or Australia it took me until my mid 30s to realise how darn interested I am in the Holy Roman Empire! And lo! I idly enter ‘Holy Roman Empire’ into my podcast app and you’re Right There, waiting for me!
I’ve listened to 57 episodes so far (plus later ones on a topic that I was very interested in, but can no longer rememeber as I’m just super intersted in everything you say) I had made the decision to stop after 50 and start again from 1 just to keep soaking it all in, but here I’ve blown right past my target! I’ll do it at 60. My favourite figures so far are… the three musketeers Adelaide, Theophanu and Gerbert of Aurillac!
Please keep it up!
Allow me to bring a bit of my age group into the conversation: I recommend a computer game! It’s called ‘Kingdom Come: Deliverance’ and it’s set in Bohemia during the time of Wenceslas the Idle! Made by an eastern european game developer, it’s quite beautiful and is historically accurate. I recommend you look on youtube for a ‘let’s play kingdom come deliverance no commentary’ and just watch someone playing a bit of it!
Anyway, I’m subscribed and I’m a fan for life.
Wenceslaus *
Thanks for taking the time to record your podcasts. I had a hunch that history as taught in my British schooling was lacking in Germany & Europe, little did I know by how much.
I have been listening to your History of the Germans, and also to content on the history of Japan as a means to understand the precursor histories of the peoples of the USA.
It’s remarkable how often I observe ‘convergent evolution’ lately I have been wanting to find more content about the roles respectively of Hatamoto of the Tokugawa Shogunate and the Ministeriales who feature so much in your podcast.
Moin Dirk!
Hello from Illinois,This is the best. Interesting material with a wry sense of humor. I am grateful for the time that you take to produce these episodes.
Hello from the Netherlands.
I joined up fairly recently and I had some issues with finding out how to message you, I hope this reaches you however!
I would like for you to use my name in your starting bit. I am not on any other social media (except Reddit[?]).
Love to keep hearing you about the magnicificance and madness that is the milenia long history of a frankly undersold part of the continent. Also, I am sure you will do this at some point, but will you do an episode on how the Netherlands (or general low countries) seperated from the empire like you did with the Poles and Bohemia?
Ontzettend bedankt (:
thanks so much for your support – I have put a note in for you!
Dear Dirk,
to answer the question you asked at the end of episode #199: yes, please keep on meandering! What you call diversions (Hanseatic League etc.) are most interesting & informative & I enjoyed them very much. And you tie in the various loops well into the straight narrative as in this latest episode. I’m looking forward to Thursday morning every week to listen to you.
Best wishes & many thanks for all your work
Hi Dirk,
Thank you for your excellent podcast!
Just a tiny correction to the episode 111. (yes, I am two years behind). StoraEnso is actually a Finnish company today, even if the Stora part comes from the Stora Kopparberg. There has been multiple mergers in the history of the supposedly oldest chartered company in the world…
Best regards
Juha
Thank you Juha. I am about under water at the moment so it will be a while before I find the time to correct it. And apologies for missing the Finnish connection.
Stora Enso was forned in a merger and is incorporated in Finland, as was the predecessor company Enso-Gutzeit Oy.
However this company was origibally Norwegian: W. Gutzeit Aa, a saw mill that moved operations to Finland in 1872. incorporating there as a Finnish company ro enable acquisitiin of forest real estate.
Wilhelm Gutzeit first founded in Fredrikstad, at the mouth of Glömma river, in 1840s as steam was allowed and founding mills were liberated there, decades before Finland followed. And Wilhelms son Hans followed the liberalist wave there. However, Wilhelm was bot originally from Norway, but was a naturalized German mwrcgant from Königsberg, who was first sent to Norway after Napoleonic wars to oversee German ganseatic banking intrests investmebts into extremwly lucrative mines that produced blue colour pigment for paints. A
Monopoly, before chemists managed to create synthetic blue, that Danish crown had pawned during the wars, and lost, with Norway.
So thw origins of Stora Kopparberg and Enso Gutzeit are quite interesting, connected to multinational, Hanseatic Baltic trade, and liberalism. even jewishness as greatgrandfather of Wilhelm converted and Germanized early 18th century.
Dear Dirk,
You managed, what all my history teachers failed at: To make history interesting and entertaining. I remember copying graphs and figures in school on how decisions were made, what the role of kings dukes and whatever where and being bored to death. But you actually tell stories about why it likely has been this way and what implications this had for all involved. And the funny part is: I know more today about the history that I ever could in school.
It’s great and I am greateful for that gift of interest and knowledge about my countries history that you gave me – and hopefully many others as well.
I hope my small contribution helps to keep you going until the end. Please read out my full name in at the beginning of the episode (Like Wuffy, i don’t have any social media accounts and don’t know how to contact you otherwise)
Thank you very much!
Hallo Herr Glaeser, thank you so much for your extraordinarily generous support, but even more for your kind words. The work on the podcast is extremely fulfilling but also a bit of a lonely pursuit. Kind comments like yours make it all worthwhile!
I’ve just started listening your podcast and I’m enjoying it very much. You are a good narrator. I would like to be a patron but don’t know how to contribute as I live in the US. My apologies if the way to do this is listed elsewhere.
Thanks for the podcast!
Julie Daye
Hi Julie, thanks so much for wanting to support the show. That is very much appreciated. There is no problem for US listeners to make a contribution. There are several options here: https://historyofthegermans.com/support-2/
Dirk, podcast is great, just switch my membership to newer website. The book recommendation of “The German Genius”, by Peter Watson was much appreciated. Best Rich Reynolds
Thanks so much Rich!
Hi Dirk. Hello from the east coast of the U.S.. Virginia specifically. I really do enjoy your podcast and it’s really quite impressive how much you put into each episode. I subscribed to the podcast via Patreon a few months ago, but unfortunately I can’t get to the content on this site. Such as the forum or special content. Is there a way that the subscription can transfer between sites?
Thank you!
Geoff
Hi Geoff, I tried to send you a link that gave you access to teh forum. did you get it?
hello Dirk,
danke für deinen Podcast. Gerade wandere ich in Australien und er hilft mir über die langen Strecken. Super. Selbstverständlich habe ich eine Spende dagelassen.
letztes Mal habe ich dich auf das sog. I.33 aufmerksam gemacht. Nach deinem Bericht über die Schlacht bei Nikopol, habe ich micj gefragt, ob du die original Quelle von Johannes Schiltberger kennst. Er hat als knappe in Nikopol teil genommen und dann später Timor gedient und ist tatsächlich wieder nach Bayer zurück gekommen.
dort hat er dann ein buch verfaßt.
also. Vielen dank und weiter so!
cheers Roman
Hi Roman, I found this source, but unfortunately after I did the recording….my bad