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PODCAST

Empire: World History

The rise and fall of empires and the events that shaped world history. William Dalrymple and Anita Anand explore the intricate stories of revolutions, imperial wars, and the people who built and lost empires. From the British Empire to the Ottomans to Ancient India, history is shaped by power struggles and territorial conquests. How does it continue to affect the world today? Empire Club: Become a member of the Empire Club to receive early access to miniseries, ad-free listening, early access to

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All Episodes

53:30

362. Ancient Egypt: Great Kings of The Bronze Age (Ep 1)

Empire: World History ·

2026/05/24

**Unlock the entire Ancient Egypt series early and ad-free by joining the Empire Club at empirepoduk.com**You’ve heard of Tutankhamun, but what do you know about the world he grew up in? In this series, we explore the Amarna Revolution, when Tutankhamun’s father instigated the biggest religious revolution the world had ever seen. Who were the individuals at the centre of the movement: Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and Tutankhamun? What are the Amarna Letters and how do they reveal the intricate lives

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49:18

361. Louis Theroux On The Settlers, The Manosphere, &...

Empire: World History ·

2026/05/20

William and Anita are joined by Louis Theroux to discuss his documentaries on the Settler movement in the West Bank, and explore how extremists operate. What are the commonalities between HS TikkyTokky and the mother of the settler movement, Daniella Weiss? How do the extremists in these documentaries use shamelessness to their advantage? And what does Louis think about having invented “The Theroux Method”?To listen to our series on the history of the Arab-Israeli conflict, head to episodes

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6:24

The Scandal That Shaped Partition: The Affair (Ep 3)

Empire: World History ·

2026/05/19

**Unlock the full episode and the complete members’ miniseries by joining the Empire Club at empirepoduk.com**How did Edwina Mountbatten literally fall into the arms of Jawaharlal Nehru in 1946? Who was Subhas Chandra Bose and why did he travel to Nazi Germany? How did Louis Mountbatten also become close with Nehru and in what way did this change Indian politics? In Episode 3 of Empire’s first members’ miniseries, Anita is joined once again by Alex Von Tunzelmann to discuss the moment that Edwina

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54:54

360. Spice Wars: The Battle of the East India...

Empire: World History ·

2026/05/17

What caused the mighty Dutch East India Company to plummet from immense Golden Age wealth to total bankruptcy? Who was ‘Peter Pepper’, and how did his stolen plants end the VOC's spice monopoly? And how did a tiny Caribbean island spark the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War simply by saluting the American flag? Get the entire Dutch Empire miniseries early and ad-free by joining the Empire Club at ⁠⁠empirepoduk.com⁠ ⁠ In Episode 3 of our series on the VOC, William and Anita are joined by Dutch

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53:21

359. Spice Wars: The Birth of New York (Ep 2)

Empire: World History ·

2026/05/13

What drove the Dutch to employ samurai mercenaries to commit horrifying genocides in the Banda Islands? Why were European powers willing to torture and kill just to control the global supply of a dried seed? How did a peace treaty trade a spice island for Manhattan, giving birth to New York? Get the entire Dutch Empire miniseries early and ad-free by joining the Empire Club at empirepoduk.com In the second episode of our series on the Dutch East India Company, William and Anita are joined by

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4:51

The Scandal That Shaped Partition: The House of...

Empire: World History ·

2026/05/12

Who was the last Viceroy of India and why was his marriage so unconventional? How many affairs did Edwina Mountbatten have? Why was Lord Mountbatten known as the “Master of Disaster” by senior Navy officials?In Episode 2 of Empire’s first members’ miniseries, Anita is joined once again by Alex Von Tunzelmann to discuss the origin story of the remaining two characters in the love triangle that shaped partition: Louis and Edwina Mountbatten. Email: empire@goalhanger.com Instagram:

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51:03

358. Spice Wars: The Rise of the Dutch East India...

Empire: World History ·

2026/05/10

What’s the real story behind the creation of the Dutch East India Company, and how was espionage involved? What made the VOC the first ‘mega-corporation’ in history? And what was the horrific human cost of establishing a colonial stronghold in the East Indies?Get the entire Dutch Empire miniseries early and ad-free by joining the Empire Club at empirepoduk.com William is joined by Dutch historian Herold van der Linde to explore the staggering rise of the Dutch East India Company - a company

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40:53

357. Liberator of Latin America: Revolutionary Hero...

Empire: World History ·

2026/05/06

How should we view Simón Bolívar today – as a racist tyrant or as a revolutionary founding father? Who was his lover Manuela Sáenz, and how did she save his life during a midnight attack? And did his slide into tyranny inspire the 20th century dictators of Latin America?Get the entire Simón Bolívar miniseries early and ad-free by joining the Empire Club at empirepoduk.com In the final episode of this series, Anita and William discuss Simón Bolívar’s death, the heartbreaking fate of the brilliant

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9:24

The Scandal That Shaped Partition: India’s First...

Empire: World History ·

2026/05/05

*Unlock the full episode and the complete members’ miniseries by joining the Empire Club at empirepoduk.com*How did the first Prime Minister of India start an affair with the wife of the last Viceroy? Who was Jawaharlal Nehru and how did he become part of the independence movement? Why was he furious about his first marriage? In Empire’s first members’ miniseries, Anita is joined by Alex Von Tunzelmann to tell the story of the love triangle that completely transformed the pathway to Partition

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41:27

356. Liberator of Latin America: Descent Into Tyranny...

Empire: World History ·

2026/05/04

How did a treacherous trek across the freezing Andes lead to the creation of Gran Colombia? Why did Irish, British and Bengali mercenaries travel across the world to join his fight against the Spanish? How did exile to Haiti change Simón Bolívar’s views on slavery? Get the entire Simón Bolívar miniseries early and ad-free by joining the Empire Club at empirepoduk.com In Episode 3 of our series, William and Anita discuss Simón Bolívar’s legendary military victories, the forgotten combat roles of

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29:19

Should The Koh-I-Noor Be Returned? Mamdani vs King...

Empire: World History ·

2026/05/01

Who does the Koh-I-Noor diamond truly belong to? Why is it considered cursed? And should it be returned? The Koh-I-Noor diamond has been in the headlines this week with Mayor Zohran Mamdani stating that he would tell King Charles III to return it to India. As William and Anita wrote the definitive book on the cursed jewel, they provide a round-up of its long history and how it made its way into the British crown still on display in the Tower of London. For more Goalhanger Podcasts, head to

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43:24

355. Liberator of Latin America: Napoleon & The...

Empire: World History ·

2026/04/29

Who were the cowboys and Indigenous people who made up the “Legions of Hell” and why did Bolívar fear them so deeply? How did Napoleon’s invasion of Spain speed up the collapse of its empire? What was Simón Bolívar’s secret revolutionary mission in London? Get the entire Simón Bolívar miniseries early and ad-free by joining the Empire Club at empirepoduk.com In Episode 2 of this series, Anita and William discuss the fragile nature of the Spanish Empire and the total war that broke out in South

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35:54

354. Liberator of Latin America: Simón Bolívar vs The...

Empire: World History ·

2026/04/27

Who was the man who liberated Venezuela, Colombia, Panama, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia from Spanish rule? How did a privileged upper-class teenage boy become South America’s leading revolutionary of the 19th century? How did tragedy in his youth set Simón Bolívar on the pathway to power?Get the entire Simón Bolívar miniseries early and ad-free by joining the Empire Club at empirepoduk.com In Episode 1 of this series on the life of Simón Bolívar, Anita and William explore his childhood and what it

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58:00

353. Hezbollah, Hostages, & Exploding Pagers (Part 8)

Empire: World History ·

2026/04/22

What lessons have been learned from Occupation? How did Hezbollah emerge in the wake of the Iranian Revolution and the Israeli invasion of Lebanon? How did Hezbollah evolve from 1982 to 2023?In the final episode in the series on the Arab-Israeli Conflict of 1967-1982, William is joined by Kim Ghattas, author of Black Wave: Saudi Arabia, Iran and the Rivalry That Unravelled the Middle East, to discuss the origins of Hezbollah and their role in the Middle Eastern conflict of the 21st century. Try

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51:50

352. Israel’s 1982 Invasion of Lebanon (Part 7)

Empire: World History ·

2026/04/20

Is the current invasion of Lebanon a direct ancestor of the 1982 Israeli invasion? How did broken American promises lead to the tragedies of the Sabra and Shatila massacres? Who was Ariel Sharon and why did he spearhead attacks on Beirut?Anita and William are joined by Kim Ghattas, author of Black Wave: Saudi Arabia, Iran and the Rivalry That Unravelled the Middle East, to discuss the pivotal events of the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon. Join the Empire Club: Unlock the full Empire

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54:01

351. Camp David: The Day Israel & Egypt Made Peace...

Empire: World History ·

2026/04/15

**Binge the entire series ad-free by joining the Empire Club at empirepoduk.com**In November 1977, Egyptian President Sadat shocked the entire Arab world by boarding a flight to Israel. After refusing to acknowledge its existence, Egypt was seeking to make peace with its neighbour, and was willing to be outcast by every other Arab nation in the process. When did the Israeli government transform from Labour to a conservative right-wing leadership? How did American President Carter enact “cabin

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41:48

350. 1973: The Yom Kippur War & The First Oil Crisis...

Empire: World History ·

2026/04/13

**Binge to the entire series ad-free by joining the Empire Club at empirepoduk.com**How did the oil crisis totally transform the wealth of the Gulf states and alter the power balance of the Middle East? Who was Egypt’s underrated president, Sadat? How did water cannons destroy Israel’s seemingly impenetrable defenses along the Suez Canal in 1973? In Episode 5 of our series on the Arab-Israeli Conflict of 1967-1982, William and Anita discuss the shocking events of the Yom Kippur War and the first

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12:59

What Is Life Like For Palestinians Under Occupation?

Empire: World History ·

2026/04/09

To listen to the full bonus episode, join the Empire Club at empirepoduk.com.William is joined by Raja Shehadeh, the leading Palestinian writer, lawyer and human rights activist, to discuss his experience of living under Israeli occupation in the West Bank. Raja describes how his daily life in Ramallah is shaped by segregation, travel restrictions and settler violence. He explains how segregated roads and settlements have physically reshaped the Palestinian landscape. And he discusses why he

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35:26

What Is Life Like For Palestinians Under Occupation?

Empire: World History ·

2026/04/09

William is joined by Raja Shehadeh, the leading Palestinian writer, lawyer and human rights activist, to discuss his experience of living under Israeli occupation in the West Bank. Raja describes how his daily life in Ramallah is shaped by segregation, travel restrictions and settler violence. He explains how segregated roads and settlements have physically reshaped the Palestinian landscape. And he discusses why he is hopeful that Palestinians and Israelis can co-exist peacefully in the

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47:34

349. Arab-Israeli Conflict: Occupation of The West...

Empire: World History ·

2026/04/08

What happened to the Palestinians who chose not to flee the West Bank in 1967? How did Israel use old British and Ottoman laws to seize land and control the occupied territory? And what happened in Jordan during Black September? William and Anita are joined by Eugene Rogan, Oxford Professor of Modern Middle Eastern History and author of The Arabs: A History, to discuss the human cost of the 1967 Six-Day war, and the reality of life in the occupied territories. Join the Empire Club: Unlock the

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