In 1900, a British colonial official demanded an African tribe - the Ashanti - give him a holy relic as a symbol of their capitulation to the English Crown. They refused - and instead took up arms against the British. The end result was thousands dead. This is the story of the War of the Golden Stool.

Sponsor

Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.

Sources

https://adf-magazine.com/2022/08/nana-yaa-asantewaa-and-the-war-of-the-golden-stool/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_the_Golden_Stool

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Stool

Images: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Typical_fight_in_the_forest,_Anglo-Ashanti_War_of_1900_(Battles_of_the_nineteenth_century,_1901).jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Flag_of_Ashanti.svg

History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com

Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at [email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The city of Milwaukee began as a collection of three towns around the mouth of the Milwaukee River. None of these communities liked each other very much, and vied for supremacy over the area. This competition would turn into open conflict, and the main target, was the cities' bridges. This is the story of the Milwaukee Bridge War.

Sponsor

Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.

Sources

https://emke.uwm.edu/entry/bridge-war/

https://shepherdexpress.com/culture/ae-feature/bridge-wars/

Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Milwaukee_1858.jpg

History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com

Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at [email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Florentine Diamond is a 137-carat diamond, known for its long association with European royalty. However, after the fall of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918 - the diamond disappeared. And it would remain that way until November of 2025 - when the fate of the famed gem would be revealed. This is the story of the Florentine Diamond.

Sponsor

Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.

Sources

https://www.instyle.com/florentine-diamond-found-story-mystery-value-11845394

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florentine_Diamond

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/arts/design/florentine-diamond-resurfaces-hapsburg.html

Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Florentiner_Glaskopie_NHM_Ay762.jpg

History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com

Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at [email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Saints, in the Christian tradition, are people that are in heaven and can influence the world. Most saints are there for their kindness, generosity, piety, or any number of good traits. And then there is St. Olga of Kyiv, who, as regent of Kievan Rus, avenged her husband by burying enemies alive, burning envoys, and torching entire cities in the name of revenge. This is the story of St. Olga of Kyiv.

Sponsor

Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.

Sources

Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St_Olga_by_Nesterov_in_1892_(cropped).jpg

History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com

Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at [email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In darkest hours of World War I, more than 500 American troops were surrounded by the Germans in the Argonne Forest in France. They were facing furious fire - and were subject to artillery fire from their own forces. The American commander would need a hero to get word to his comrades to stop the shelling - and get his troops rescued. And a hero would step up. Or should we say - fly up. This is the story of Cher Ami - the pigeon who saved the Lost Battalion.

Sponsor

Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cher_Ami

https://www.worldwar1centennial.org/index.php/communicate/press-media/wwi-centennial-news/1210-cher-ami-the-pigeon-that-saved-the-lost-battalion.html

History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com

Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at [email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The British flag flies in many places around the globe, but one of the most unlikely is a small cemetery on Ocracoke island in North Carolina. Its origin dates back to WWII, and the location has been permanently leased to the British Government. This is the story of the British cemetery on Ocracoke Island.

Sponsor

Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.

Sources

https://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/missions/battleoftheatlantic2/bedfordshire.html

https://www.ocracokepreservationsociety.org/ops-events/britishcemetery

https://www.cwgc.org/visit-us/find-cemeteries-memorials/cemetery-details/2073156/ocracoke-island-british-cemetery/

Image: By Sedna10387 - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ocracoke_Part_2_030.JPG

History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com

Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at [email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1804, Haiti gained its independence. Two decades later the fledgling nation was struggling for international recognition. That is until they struck a deal with France - agreeing to pay 150 million francs to their former colonial master. But this huge debt would be a burden that dragged down the nation’s economy - the ramifications being felt to this very day. This is the story of Haiti’s Independence Debt.

Sponsor

Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haitian_independence_debt

https://www.theglobalist.com/haiti-and-the-dominican-republic-one-island-two-worlds/

Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Traité_France_Haïti_1825.jpg

History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com

Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at [email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On July 25, 1956, on a foggy night, human error and a freak accident caused two ocean liners, the SS Andrea Doria and the MS Stockholm, to collide. The collision killed 51 people. Despite being over a hundred miles from shore, and only half the lifeboats usable, quick thinking, and fast acting rescue ships saved the remaining 1,600 lives. This is the story of the collision of the SS Andrea Doria and the MS Stockholm.

Sponsor

Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Andrea_Doria

https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/1971/august/andrea-doria-stockholm-disaster-accidents-dont-happen

https://noblemaritime.org/andrea-doria-home

Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Andrea_Doria_sinking_2.jpg

History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com

Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at [email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1985, a Humpback whale deviated from its normal migration route on the way to the waters of Alaska from Mexico - and made its way into San Francisco Bay and up the Sacramento River. The whale - named Humphrey - became an International celebrity. It would take the efforts of hundreds of volunteers, researchers, scientists, and even the US Coast Guard, Army and Navy to lure Humphrey back to the ocean. And the best part is that - in 1990 - Humphrey did it again. This is the story of Humphrey the Wayward Whale.

Sponsor

Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Humphrey_the_Whale

https://www.sfgate.com/local/article/humphrey-the-whale-bay-area-saga-20281317.php

https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/article312218999.html

History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com

Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at [email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Before modern medical standards to study the human body, many doctors and physicians stole corpses to carry out their research. Unfortunately, this was not looked too kindly upon by the general public. In 1788, a bad joke from one of these physicians turned an upset crowd into a riotous one, ending with thousands besieging a New York hospital, and several deaths. This is the story of the 1788 Doctor Riot.

Sponsor

Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.

Sources

https://www.sciencehistory.org/stories/magazine/the-anatomy-riot-of-1788/

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/gory-new-york-city-riot-shaped-american-medicine-180951766/ ; https://www.monmouthcollege.edu/live/files/739-mjur-i05-2015-9-niemeyerpdf

Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:An_Interrupted_Dissection.jpg

History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com

Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at [email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In early 1940, Soviet officials - including Joseph Stalin - authorized the execution of more than 25,000 Polish military and civilian leaders - in order to purge the nation of potential opponents. It is a crime that has been shrouded in blood, lies, and deception - the effects continuing to reverberate to this day. This is the story of the Katyn Massacre.

Sponsor

Go to factormeals.com/dispatchespod50off to get 50 percent off and free breakfast for a year. New subscribers only, varies by plan. 1 free breakfast item per box for 1 year while subscription is active.

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katyn_massacre

https://warsawinstitute.org/katyn-massacre-mechanisms-genocide/

History Dispatches is part of the Airwave Media Network: www.airwavemedia.com

Interested in advertising on History Dispatches? Email us at [email protected]

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices