Hey guys, it’s been a bit since last we had some new content but the next couple weeks we’ll have some fresh audio for you. Today, however, we have a friendly takeover as Elliot, host of Anthology of Heroes, takes over the podcast feed and talks about the “scramble for Africa”. Anthology of Heroes is a fantastic podcast, Hardcore History-esque, and Elliot does an excellent job of bringing you fast-paced, detailed history. The production is top-notch but it’ll be the storytelling that keeps you riveted and listening. I hope you enjoy Anthology of Heroes as much as I do, and if you do, give him a follow/subscribe/rate/review. As always, thanks again for listening!!

When the English colonists first came to the New World there was friction but, given the limits of the colonists population and power, no large scale conflict. The Abenaki homelands consisted of most of modern day New England and North East Canada. At first they had no issue with the English, so long as they stuck to the coasts. The fishing and fur trading hubs created by the newcomers was as a commercial positive for the Abenaki. The issue arose when the English population grew and the colonists began to settle the interior lands. The Abenaki were hard pressed as they fought the mighty Iroquois for domination of the fur trade and now found themselves dealing with a growing threat from the Europeans. The slaughter and sacking of a key Pequot village along the Mystic River in 1637 was one of many such defeats that finally made the situation clear to the Abenaki; the only way for them to maintain their homelands was through violence...

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Music - Alpha Mission by Jimena Contreras courtesy of Youtube free sound library

Few battles in history are so complete and decisive as Koniggratz. In a day the Austro-Prussian War was won and ended. The brilliant Moltke the Elder faced a much larger Austrian army and roundly defeated it. That, however, doesn’t mean it was easy. On July 3rd, 1866 Moltke and his army’s fate hung in the balance as the Austrian forces fought harder and harder before the timely arrival of the Prussian salvation decided the day.

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Muhammad ibn Abd al-Karim al-Khattabi, otherwise known as Abd el-Krim, was President of the Rif Republic, a Moroccan freedom fighter, and a guerrilla warfare specialist. He led his people through the Third Rif War and won a resounding victory against the Spanish at the battle of Annual in 1921. He would go on and influence many a revolutionary, from Ho Chi Minh to Mao to Che and in the process he helped to chip away at the tottering colonial system in Africa.

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War A to Z

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Abbasid Revolution

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Date- 747 A.D. - 750 A.D.

Location - Khorasan province Iran

Participants - Umayyads vs Abbasids

Key Players - Caliph Marwan, Governor Nasir Ibn Sayyar, Muhammad Ali, Abu Muslim

Key Battles - Merv, Nahavand, Isfahan, Mosul

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The Issue - The powerful Umayyad Caliphate, the second of the original four in early Islamic history, had a rocky relationship with its many subjects. The Umayyads were an Arab dynasty but could prove no direct relationship or bloodline to the Prophet’s family, and they had a willingness to tax all subjects at very high rates, Arab and non-Arab alike. Because they treated Arabs better than anyone, and should no preference for non-Arab muslims, the Umayyad’s had few friends in their lands. Some of the more discriminatory policies led to unrest and two leaders started to form an opposition party; Muhammad Ibn Ali, who could boast a blood tie to the Prophet and Abu Muslim, an Iranian leader that gave voice to the over taxed non-Arab and non-muslims. Wearing black and touting a black flag, mirroring the Prophets own battle flag, the Abbasids began their revolution in 745.

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The Result - The ensuing five years saw dozens of battles, from Merv to Nahavand, Isfahan to Mosul. The Abbasid forces crippled the Umayyad power structure and forced the governor of Khorasan to flee from city to city until at last he died in 748 A.D. The ignominious death of Governor Sayyar was to be repeated by the Caliph himself. As Abu Muslim’s forces marched on Harrran, Caliph Marwan ran for safety making it all the way to Egypt. Unfortunately for him, Marwan didn’t live long in the land of the pharaohs, he was murdered in 750 A.D. The resulting power vacuum caused by the Umayyad collapse allowed Abu Muslim to roll up Syria, Iraq, and Iran into the Abbasid Empire. A legitimate Islamic government was installed and tax laws and revenues regulated by the ruling Muslim dynasty. Abu al-Abbas was chosen as their first caliph and he ruled from the new capital of the Islamic world - Baghdad.

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Source - MacGill’s Military History

War A to Z

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Abbas I The Great

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Born - January 27 1571, Iran

Died - January 19 1629, Iran

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Wars/Battles of Note - Uzbek-Persian Wars, Turko-Persian Wars, Mogul-Persian Wars, Tabriz 1603,Sis 1606, Siege of Baghdad 1624-1626

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Through a combination of guile, patience, and determination, Abbas the Great ruled a powerful Persian state for over forty years. Upon taking the throne he faced threats from every direction including the vaunted Janissaries of the Turks and the mighty Mogul Empire to the south. Understanding that he could only deal with one enemy at a time, Abbas prioritized each opponent and then in turn dealt with the Uzbeks, Ottomans, Moguls, and even the Portuguese. His was court of culture and when not campaigning he was a powerful patron of the arts and builder of beautiful cities. On his death the Persian Empire ran from the Indus River to the Tigris River.

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Napoleon Bonaparte is, almost always, in the “Mt. Rushmore” greatest military commanders of all time conversation, and rightfully so. That being said, he wasn’t without a great many flaws, and long before Waterloo, Napoleon suffered his fair share of defeats. Marengo doesn’t fall into the loss column for Bonaparte, but it came pretty damn close. A poor French tactical choice, a drastic French inferiority in artillery, and a ferocious Austrian assault all led to Marengo being a "close run thing" for the First Consul. But as the First Consul said “The fate of a battle is a single moment…the decisive moment arrives, the moral spark is kindled and the smallest reserve force settles the issue.” 

As the title makes clear, this is not the promised battle of Marengo! Nope, it’s still very busy up here in Maine and the tourist season has yet to slow, so getting the new episode written up has been a bit more of a struggle than I anticipated. To hold you guys over while I finish up the Marengo script here is a conversation with Brett from the Whiskey Tango Podcast. Brett came on to chat about Turks, cataphracts, and the Byzantines at the battle of Manzikert and, much like the first time he and I talked, this was a blast. We ran a little long but since it has been over a month since the last show, I figure more is better! Enjoy! 

“For this campaign I see so very ill a prospect that I am extremely out of heart.” 

So wrote the man most responsible for today’s battle and one of Britain’s greatest military victories, the battle of Blenheim.

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"I had scarcely finished speaking when the enemy's battery opened fire upon us, and raked us through and through. They concentrated their fire upon us, and with their first discharge carried off Count de la Bastide, the lieutenant of my own company with whom at the moment I was speaking, and twelve grenadiers, who fell side by side in the ranks, so that my coat was covered with brains and blood. So accurate was the fire that each discharge of the cannon stretched some of my men on the ground. I suffered agonies at seeing these brave fellows perish without a chance of defending themselves, but it was absolutely necessary that they should not move from their post.” - Jean Martin de la Colonie

The battle of Schellenberg is one of the interesting stops on the Duke of Marlborough’s road to Blenheim. Time was in short supply and the Grand Alliance was in a tight spot, the heights over Donauworth had to be taken, and quickly. A frontal assault was in the offing and the deadly struggle that followed almost cost Marlborough his campaign, reputation, and maybe even the war itself. Let’s go back to the War of the Spanish Succession, the age of Marlborough and muskets. Let’s go back to 1704 and the battle of Schellenberg!

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Let’s go back to the year 1702, a time when Spanish treasure ships still sailed the open seas. Let’s go back to the age of sails and cannon, of Sun Kings and wars of succession. To a time when the Royal Navy was just coming into its own, and the Bourbon navy was about to find out what the cost of maritime power would be. Let’s go back to 1702, 23rd of October, and the battle of Vigo Bay! 

Bringing the booty of the Spanish Main with it, a Spanish-French fleet sailed into Vigo Bay to avoid lurking English and Dutch allied ships. Once the Grand Alliance fleet got wind the treasure fleet was penned up in close quarters, they pounced. The end result was a crushing victory that led to Portugal switching sides, Gibraltar becoming an English possession, and Jules Verne's Captain Nemo making his fortune. 

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