Roundup

Teaching History

Jacquelyn Hall joins Host Bryan Le Beau to discuss the teaching of American history in the schools. Hall is Julia Cherry Spruill Professor of History at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and past president of The Organization of American Historians. For our commentary, James Sheehan offers us his thoughts on how we learn from history. Sheehan is Dickason Professor in the Humanities and Professor of Modern European History at Stanford University and President of the American Historica

Key writes a song, September 14, 1814

Today in 1814, Francis Scott Key saw the sun rise aboard a British warship. Key was an American, a lawyer by trade and a former militiaman out of necessity. He was in a dangerous place at a dangerous time, for the ship on which he was temporarily trapped was part of the flotilla that had spent the evening shelling Fort McHenry, the fort that helped protect Baltimore from a seaborne invasion. But as the sun rose, Key viewed something that he would carry with him for the rest of his life: the huge

On this day, 14 September 1982: Hollywood princess dead

Princess Grace of Monaco has died of the injuries she sustained in a car crash near Monte Carlo yesterday. The Hollywood actress Grace Kelly -- who starred in the Alfred Hitchcock hits "Dial M for Murder" and "Rear Window" -- suffered a brain haemorrhage. A statement issued by the royal palace said she died at 2130 GMT after her conditioned worsened throughout the morning and become irreversible by the afternoon. It also said the former film star's husband, Monaco's h

On this day, 13 September 1993: Rabin and Arafat shake on peace deal

The Prime Minister of Israel, Yitzhak Rabin, and the PLO leader, Yasser Arafat, have shaken hands before cheering crowds on the White House lawn in Washington. The handshake -- the first ever in public between the two former arch enemies -- marked the signing of a Declaration of Principles for peace between the Arabs and Israelis. Under the terms of the deal, Israel has agreed to withdraw its troops from Gaza Strip and West Bank by April 1994. Elections will be held in the territories to

Dante dies, September 13, 1321

Dante Alighieri was born in June 1264 and died today September 13th 1321. Dante, which translates as "the giver," towers over the middle ages as its most prominent literary figure, creating from medieval beliefs, a poetry that has claimed a captive audience ever since. Dante’s poetry has the literary sense of Homer, the epic retelling of the culture’s values restored in the vernacular that Dante seemed to legitimize with the poetic legacy he passed on to Renaissance authors and to Shak

Peter Waldo

History Professor Bob Packett, of Maple Woods Community College (Kansas City MO), tells the story of Peter Waldo, the French religious leader who founded the Waldenses and was excommunicated in 1184. Professor Bob loves to tell stories of the real people behind the often sterile descriptions found in history texts. His conversational style, filled with anecdotes, quips and humor, will bring to life the characters of history. Now, through the technology of podcasting, you can also enjoy what Prof

Battle of Marathon

The Battle of Marathon is the topic in today's "History According to Bob." History Professor Bob Packett, of Maple Woods Community College (Kansas City MO), loves to tell stories of the real people behind the often sterile descriptions found in history texts. His conversational style, filled with anecdotes, quips and humor, will bring to life the characters of history. Now, through the technology of podcasting, you can also enjoy what Professor Bob's students have been enjoying for yea

The Laconia Incident, September 12, 2005

Today in 1942, the cruise liner Laconia was sunk by the German submarine U-156 in the South Atlantic between the African coast and Ascension Island. While thousands of ships were sunk by both the Allied and Axis powers during the Second World War, this sinking would change the nature of submarine warfare in the Atlantic.

On this day, 1977: Steve Biko dies in custody

The leader of the black consciousness movement in South Africa, Steve Biko, has died in police custody. The 30-year-old's death was confirmed by the commissioner of police, General Gert Prinsloo, today. It is understood Mr Biko died in hospital in Pretoria. The government minister of Justice and Police, James Kruger, stated that Mr Biko had been transferred 740 miles (1,191 km) from Port Elizabeth to Pretoria for medical attention following a seven-day hunger strike. Mr Biko had been in c

On this day, 1943: Italy's surrender announced

Italy has signed an unconditional armistice with the Allies, General Dwight D Eisenhower has announced. The surrender was signed five days ago in secret by a representative of Marshal Pietro Badoglio, Italy's prime minister since the downfall of Benito Mussolini in July. General Eisenhower -- the commander in chief of Allied forces in the Mediterranean -- said the Italian Government had agreed to end all hostilities with the United Nations. In a broadcast on Algiers radio at 1730 local t

Katrina: Reporters gone wild

TV anchors grapple with their sources, the spin wars, and each other. A highlight reel.

On this day, 1940: London blitzed by German bombers

The German air force has unleashed a wave of heavy bombing raids on London, killing hundreds of civilians and injuring many more. The Ministry of Home Security said the scale of the attacks was the largest the Germans had yet attempted. "Our defences have actively engaged the enemy at all points," said a communiqué issued this evening. "The civil defence services are responding admirably to all calls that are being made upon them." The first raids came towards the end of the

Ethan Rarick & Calif. Gov. Pat Brown

Ethan Rarick tells the story of former California Governor Pat Brown in his book, "California Rising." Democrat Edmund G. "Pat" Brown governed the state of California from 1959 to 1967. Mr. Rarick uses Pat Brown's diary as well as love letters written to his wife to chronicle his political career and the history of California. The author discusses Governor Brown's positive reaction to the Free Speech Movement at the University of California, Berkeley, in 1964, the Watts Riots

Britain & the fall of Rome

In today's "History According to Bob," History Professor Bob Packett talks about the Romans' withdrawl from Britannia and the subsequent rise of Celtic and Germanic tribes. Professor Bob, of Maple Woods Community College (Kansas City MO), loves to tell stories of the real people behind the often sterile descriptions found in history texts. His conversational style, filled with anecdotes, quips and humor, will bring to life the characters of history. Now, through the technology of podca

Audio news from Archaeologica

(1) Even history needs to be cleaned up after Hurricane Katrina. (2) Three stones shed light on Roman history. (3) Modern science may help to preserve one of Michelangelo's masterpieces. (4) New discoveries at an ancient Ohio site.

Dinner for Dickens

Catherine Dickens is best known as the wife of the famous Victorian novelist. But in 1851 Catherine -- or Kate as she preferred to be called -- also published a book of her own, called "What Shall We Have for Dinner?" under the pseudonym Lady Maria Clutterbuck. The collection of menus was revised five times over the next nine years and is now the subject of a new book called "Dinner for Dickens: The Culinary History of Mrs Charles Dickens". Jenni Murray talks to the book's au

Around the Web: Katrina's destruction of vibrant music scene in 'City of Jazz'

A summary of New Orleans music news -- artists found, artists missing, and a cultural tragedy "too awful to contemplate."

Hurricane Katrina

NASA on Katrina [animation, season predictions, image of New Orleans], mainstream media fair-use clips, "New York Times" reports white house plan to erase political damage, Houston field correspondent Tyson Root covers the George R. Brown Convention Center.

On this day, 1997: Diana's funeral watched by millions

Britain and the world have said farewell to Diana, Princess of Wales, at the end of an unprecedented week of mourning. A four mile procession brought her coffin to Westminster Abbey, where politicians and celebrities joined the Royal Family in a subdued congregation. Over a million people lined the route of the funeral cortege to the abbey and along her final journey to the Spencer family home in Northamptonshire.

Belenko defects, September 6, 1976

Today in 1976, Soviet Air Force Lieutenant Viktor Belenko flew his MIG-25 Foxbat from the Soviet Union to Japan. He then asked for asylum in the United States. This flight marked the end of one man’s struggle with the ideology and practices of Communism.