Roundup

Anti-Semitism [1st 13min]

Dan Cohn-Sherbok is a leading authority on Judaism and a Rabbi, but he admits that his new book, The Paradox of Anti-Semitism (Continuum Books), will cause outrage in the Jewish community. This is because he is arguing that anti-Semitism has helped Jewish culture survive and without it, the ancient traditions are doomed to extinction.

Moscow 1941 [12min @12:30]

Few Westerners have heard of the greatest battle of the Second World War, fought on a scale never matched in Western Europe or Africa. In 1941 Russia beat Germany, despite almost a million casualties for Russia. The British Ambassador in Moscow during the fall of the Soviet Union, Rodric Braithwaite, talked to Muscovites about their experience for his book Moscow 1941: A City and Its People at War (Profile Books).

The Holy Blood and The Holy Grail, 1st of 3 [15min]

The first of three extracts from the controversial book recently involved in the court case about The Da Vinci Code. In this extract, authors Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh and Henry Lincoln tell the mysterious story of Bérenger Saunières, the curé of Rennes-le-Château. On Thursday 6th April, Roger Bolton leads a discussion about the ideas in the book, whose thesis, methodology and sources have been questioned. Introduced by Roger Bolton and read by Robert Powell. Abridged and Produced by

Remembering the Easter 1916 Rising [13min]

1) Listen to an excerpt from the archives of Helena Maloney of the Irish Citizens' Army, 1916 activist and fighter who was involved in the attack on Dublin Castle, about her role in the Rising. 2) Sinéad McCoole and Margaret McCurtain, historians, talk about the wider role of women in the 1916 Rising. 3) Lieutenant General Jim Sreenan, Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces, discusses this Easter's military parade in Dublin to commemorate the Rising, the first such parade since 1970.

Key Dead Sea Scroll Makes U.S. Debut [4min]

For nearly 2,000 years the Dead Sea Scrolls sat undisturbed in tall, earthen jars hidden in a honeycomb of caves in the Judean desert. For the last 50 years, these ancient texts have been preserved in Jerusalem's Israel Museum. Now one of the most important scrolls has left the Middle East and is making its first appearance in the United States, at a museum in Cleveland. The exhibit, which opens April 1 at the Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage, includes many ancient treasures, including bronze and

French Protests Hark Back to Revolutionary Times [4min]

Hugh Schofield reports from Paris on how in the current dispute between over youth job contracts, the public and the French Prime Minister, Dominique de Villepin, can be likened to the Jacobins and Napoleon Bonaparte.

25th Anniversary, President Reagan Assassination Attempt [50min]

March 30th marked the 25 anniversary of the assassination attempt by John Hinckley on President Ronald Reagan. Author Richard Reeves asks in his new book President Reagan: The Triumph of the Imagination what would have happened if the President had died after being shot? We’ll discuss the legacy of Ronald Reagan and the many what ifs surrounding the assassination attempt.

Who Was This Guy George Mason? [3min]

George Mason University has surprised sports fans by making it to the NCAA Final Four basketball tournament. But who was this George Mason character, anyway? Madeleine Brand talks to a descendent of the founding father about Mason's historical impact -- and his grouchy personality.

Peru Seeks Return of Machu Picchu Artifacts [8min]

In 1911, Yale history professor Hiram Bingham III and a small group of guides stumbled upon a lost city of the Incas: the fortress of Machu Picchu, high in Peru's Andes Mountains. For centuries, the treasures found there had been lost to the Peruvian people. Once found, they disappeared again, going off to Yale's Peabody Museum. Now Peru wants the Incan relics returned. During three trips to Machu Picchu, Bingham excavated hundreds of objects, including silver statues, jewelry, musical instrumen

New Translation of 'Persian Book of Kings' [5min]

Iranians are in the middle of a 13-day celebration of the Persian New Year, Nowruz. It's an ancient tradition that dates back before the Arab conquest of the Persian Empire in the 7th century. Just in time for the celebration, there's a new English translation of the Shahnameh, the "Persian Book of Kings." The epic was written over the course of 35 years, begun in the 10th century and finished in the 11th century by the poet Abolqasem Ferdowsi when the Persian Empire was a memory and A

U.K.'s Royal Society Buys a Piece of Science History [4min]

Britain's leading scientific academy paid $1.75 million on Tuesday for a 17th-century manuscript that details the beginning of modern science. The Royal Society bought the manuscript on the eve of a public auction. Alex Chadwick speaks with the Steven Cox, chief executive of the Royal Society, about the big purchase.

Army Studies the History of Protracted Occupations [4min]

The U.S. Army is trying to figure out how to deal more effectively with the insurgency in Iraq. So they've pulled together a team of military intellectuals to study the history of protracted occupations. Steve Inskeep talks with the lead author of the soon-to-be-published manual on insurgencies, retired Army Col. Conrad Crane. He's the director of the U.S. Army Military History Institute at the Army War College.

Darfur Crisis Could Have Been Avoided? [23min]

Zeinab Badawi talks to Dr Mukesh Kapila, the former UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan. He thinks the crisis in Darfur could have been avoided. The conflict in Darfur has seen at least two hundred thousand people dead, and two million displaced. The attacks, killing and destruction are reportedly getting worse and have strengthened calls for the UN to take over the peace-keeping operation of the beleaguered African Union there. Dr Mukesh Kapila was head of the UN mission in Sudan when the Dar

Is America Facing Economic Disaster? [23min]

Stephen Sackur talks to America's Auditor -in-Chief, David Walker. Does the future spell economic disaster for America? The richest, most powerful nation on earth faces a fiscal "tsunami" which threatens to overwhelm Government and citizens alike. Who says so? America's auditor in chief, David Walker, whose job it is to oversee all Federal spending. He's pleading with US politicians and taxpayers to face up to the harsh economic realities that come with an ageing population and spirall

Francis Fukuyama Interview [27min]

Leading American intellectual Francis Fukuyama influenced a generation of policy makers throughout the United States with his groundbreaking thesis The End of History. His theories were taken up by the"neo-conservative" camp at the heart of President George W. Bush's government. But now Francis Fukuyama is having second thoughts. He is opposed to the war in Iraq, and he believes America is badly out of step with the world. He talks to Carrie Gracie on"The Interview" about sudden fame, fal

The Carolingian Renaissance [45min]

In AD 800 on Christmas Day in Rome, Pope Leo III proclaimed Charlemagne Emperor. According to the Frankish historian Einhard, Charlemagne would never have set foot in St Peter's that day if he had known that the Pope intended to crown him. But Charlemagne accepted his coronation with magnanimity. Regarded as the first of the Holy Roman Emperors, Charlemagne became a touchstone for legitimacy until the institution was brought to an end by Napoleon in 1806. A Frankish King who held more territory

WWI -- Tedium & Fear, Then Over the Top [30min]

R C Sherriff wrote the play Journey's End following his own experiences of the trenches in the First World War. Unflinching but deeply humane, it was a huge hit in London's West End and a global export in some 26 languages. But the man who wrote it remains something of mystery, an insurance agent who lived quietly among the rolling lawns in the Surrey town of Esher. Robert Gore-Langton tries to find out more.

Ala. Debates Posthumous Pardon for Rosa Parks [4min]

Some Alabama state legislators want to pardon civil rights icon Rosa Parks for the 1955 arrest that triggered the Montgomery bus boycott. But others in the capital of Montgomery oppose the move, saying a pardon would imply that Parks did something wrong in the first place. Steve Chiotakis of member station WBHM in Alabama reports.

Remembering Caspar Weinberger [6min]

Journalist and author Lou Cannon talks about the life of former defence secretary Caspar Weinberger. He served in the Cabinets of both Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan and was central figure in the Iran-Contra scandal and died Tuesday at age 88. Guest: Lou Cannon, author of President Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime; former newspaper reporter who covered Weinberger since the early 1950s when he was an assemblyman in California.

Reagan Advisers Weinberger and Nofziger Die [2min]

Casper Weinberger, defense secretary under Ronald Reagan during the height of the arms race with the Soviet Union, has died at age 88. Former Reagan press secretary and political adviser Lyn Nofziger has also died. He was 81.