By 1943, the price of rice was beyond unaffordable for most in Bengal, and people were dying in the streets. Despite government censorship of letters, news spread about the famine and the tide turned with the introduction of a new Viceroy. Yet when aid eventually did arrive from other regions of India, it was so chaotically handled that some food shipments were halted at the station. Listen as Anita and William are joined again by Kavita Puri to explore the legacy of what is sometimes dubbed “Churchill’s Famine”.

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In 1942, in the midst of the Second World War, the British administration feared that Japanese forces would take India as part of their campaign. To prevent access to resources in the event of a potential invasion, colonial forces enacted a “denial policy”, confiscating rice and destroying boats. This, along with a cyclone and political unrest, led to starvation in the countryside of Bengal, forcing people to flee to cities in a desperate search for food. Listen as Anita and William take a break from the American series to revisit an important and tragic event in 20th century Indian history, with guest Kavita Puri…

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By the end of the Spanish-US war, the Philippines was on the menu. Two battles played out simultaneously on the archipelago: and old and a new empire fought for power over a colony, whilst Filipinos fought for independence. The Philippines honoured the US in their new constitution and flag. But they were betrayed, and a young revolutionary, Emilio Aguinaldo, led the Filipino people in the brutal war against American imperialism. Listen as Anita and William are joined once again by Daniel Immerwahr to explore the colonisation of the Philippines. 

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In 1898, whilst his boss was on a break at the osteopath, Teddy Roosevelt basically started a war. A master of the press, he managed to whip up war fever amongst jingoists in Congress, leading the United States to declare war on imperial Spain. Building on an established independence movement in Cuba, the US was ambiguous about its intentions. Was it liberation or colonisation that it wanted for this Caribbean island? Listen as Anita and William are joined again by Daniel Immerwahr to discuss the Spanish-US war.

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On 7th July 1898, President McKinley formally annexed Hawaii, making it a colonial territory of the USA. It was not until 21st August, 1959, that it became the 50th state. Orchestrated by the American planter class in Hawaii, led by Sanford Dole, this annexation was the culmination of a process throughout the 19th century which pushed the native Hawaiian population to the side for commercial gain. Listen as William and Anita look at the taking of the 50th state and the attempts by the last Queen of Hawaii, Lili’uokalani, to fight against the Americans.

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Not everyone agrees that the USA should be classed as an empire. But in the late 1800s, after white settlers had colonised western states, America turned to acquiring overseas territories in what could be described as an imperial project. And one surprising commodity catalysed the project… bird poo. Joining Anita and William to answer questions like “how did shit shape the American empire?” and more, is Daniel Immerwahr, author of How To Hide An Empire. 

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Arizona Territory, April 30, 1871. The canyon known as Aravaipa lies still in the predawn darkness, the only sounds to be heard in the early-morning calm the song of birds and the lilt of running water as it courses its way toward the nearby San Pedro River. But upon this paradise all hell is about to break loose.

With Native American land being squeezed and squeezed by settlers, and relations becoming more and more violent as indigenous customs are degraded and exterminated, things are at breaking point in Arizona. Nearly 500 native men, women, and children have moved into the US military base, Camp Grant, for protection, yet, the Tucson Committee of Public Safety still see them as a threat. Listen as William and Anita are once again joined by Karl Jacoby as they discuss the Camp Grant Massacre and finish the story of 'How the West was Won'.

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A whole genre of movies is based on a relatively short period of nineteenth-century American history. But what is the real story behind battles between Native Americans and white settlers during westward expansion? In the aftermath of the Mexican-American War, settlers flooded to the newly acquired territory and before long, violence was commonplace. Images of battles fought on horseback continue to shape our popular understanding, yet have often overshadowed the cultures and lives that were decimated during this period. Listen as Anita and William are joined by Karl Jacoby to discuss the interactions between Native Americans, settlers, and the US army in the latter half of the nineteenth century.

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In 1850, 13-year-old Olive Oatman and her family set off on the perilous journey by foot from Missouri to Arizona. Olive and her little sister were captured by a group of Native Americans and then sold to another. Yet rather than being treated as slaves, the girls were treated with kindness and welcomed as kin. But her version of her story was to be twisted and rewritten in the years that followed… Listen as Anita and William are joined once again by Katie Hickman to discuss the extraordinary experiences of Olive Oatman.

Alongside Katie Hickman's, Bravehearted, available here (https://coles-books.co.uk/pioneering-women-of-the-american-wild-west-by-katie-hickman-hardback), a key source for Olive Oatman's life is The Blue Tattoo by Margot Mifflin, available here (https://coles-books.co.uk/the-blue-tattoo-the-life-of-olive-oatman-by-margot-mifflin).

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Fort Laramie was once a stockade where European fur traders and Native Americans lived together peacefully. But by the 1850s it became a stop-over along the busy trail of emigrants moving westwards seeking gold and religious utopias. Their effect on the environment increased tensions with the local Lakota, and peace crashed down in 1854 all thanks to the death of a Mormon cow… Listen as William and Anita are joined by Katie Hickman to discuss life at Fort Laramie and the First Sioux War.

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Despite having fought alongside them, President Andrew Jackson hated Native Nations. In the early 1800s, he sought to deceive Cherokee tribes into giving up their lands. How did Jackson overturn the precedent of respecting Native sovereignty and force thousands of Native Americans to migrate west? Listen as Anita and William are joined once again by Kathleen DuVal to explore the Indian Removal Act of 1830.

Twitter: @Empirepoduk

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Assistant Producer: Anouska Lewis

Producer: Callum Hill

Exec Producer: Neil Fearn

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