S01 Episode 1
Bouvines, France in peril
A series of battles in France had an impact on modern day Europe and the fates of three countries down to our modern century. What might have happened if Richard the Lionheart had not been wounded? Or Philippe Auguste of France had fled the battlefield?
• 1152, the Middle Ages, and a young and beautiful woman, hitherto Queen of the Franks has just married the Count of Anjou.
• 1199, during the siege of a castle, a defender shoulders his crossbow and with one bolt slays a legendary king.
• 15 years later, in the midst of battle, loyal knights rush to save their King, thrown from his horse and surrounded by enemies.
These three, intimately connected events will lead to the emergence of one of the most powerful kingdoms the Western world has ever seen: the Kingdom of France.
30 mins · Sun, 2 Oct 2016
S01 Episode 2
Genghis Khan: The Empire of the Steppes
How did the events of his childhood shape the man who would become Genghis Khan? What impact did the Mongol invasions have on the history of Asia and on the psyche of Europe?
How did the events of his childhood shape the man who would become Genghis Khan? What impact did the Mongol invasions have on the history of Asia and on the psyche of Europe?
• 1174, Mongolia. A clan chieftain is poisoned by a rival tribe. He dies in front of his young son, whose name is Temujin.
• Several years later, dozens of horseman raid a nomad camp. They carry off a captive: a magnificent woman. Her name is Borte.
• 1214. Peking is taken and sacked by the Mongols. Over the course of the following years, China will lose one third of its population.
These three dramatic events are intimately connected. They are key moments in the life of a conqueror unique in the history of Humanity: Genghis Khan.
30 mins · Sun, 9 Oct 2016
S01 Episode 3
Alexander Becomes Great
What if Alexander had not died at the age of 32? What if he had listened to advisors and returned to Macedonia instead of going on his worldwide conquest? How does the legacy of ideals and leadership left from Alexander's time resonate today?
30 mins · Sun, 16 Oct 2016
S01 Episode 4
Sekigahara, the battle of the Samurai
The shape of Japan's internal politics and the country's response to external influences for centuries can be traced back to the choices of two warlords and a decisive battle. What was the Edo Period and how did it mold Japanese society?
• 1597, a Japanese general, barely 15 years old, is humiliated by a military defeat. His name is Hideaki.
• October 21 1600, in the heat of battle, General Ieyasu orders his archers to shoot upon an indecisive ally.
• 3 years later, Ieyasu becomes Shogun, the uncontested leader of the entire Japanese people.
These 3, intimately connected events will lead to a united Japan and two hundred and fifty years of civil peace.
30 mins · Sun, 23 Oct 2016
S01 Episode 5
Darwin discovering the world
Picture the last two hundred years without the publication of Darwin's "On The Origin of Species" How might the scientific conversation have developed? What were the influences in Victorian England during Darwin's youth, and how tenuous was his opportunity for sailing on the Beagle's voyage?
30 mins · Sun, 30 Oct 2016
S01 Episode 6
Chernobyl, a reactor out of control
The decisions of only a handful of individuals determined the course of the nuclear disaster at Chernobyl. What transpired over a few hours would have an impact on the local community, Russia, Europe and the globe.
• April 26 1986, at 1:03 in the morning, engineer Anatoly Diatlov gives the order to start test in the Chernobyl nuclear plant.
• 25 minutes later, firefighters are struggling to extinguish an enormous fire in the very core of the plant’s reactor number 4.
• On May 5 1986, three engineers sacrifice their lives when they dive into radioactive water to prevent the cataclysmic explosion of the plant.
These three, intimately connected events, are key moments in one of the most tragic industrial accidents in history: the Chernobyl disaster.
30 mins · Sun, 6 Nov 2016
S01 Episode 7
A bus for Martin Luther King
What would the Civil Rights movement in the USA have been like if Martin Luther King, Jr. had not been motivating change? How does the legacy of the American Civil War still affect the American democracy?
• December 1865, Tennessee: former Confederate officers meet in secret and found the Ku Klux Klan.
• December 1 1955, Rosa Parks, a 42 year-old black woman, refuses to give up her seat to a white person and is arrested.
• August 29 1963, before 250,000 people, The Reverend Martin Luther King delivers his famous “I have a dream” speech.
These three, intimately connected events are the key moments in the history of the emancipation of Afro Americans and will lead to the end of segregation. Let’s see how.
30 mins · Sun, 13 Nov 2016
S01 Episode 8
Confucius and Chinese thought
The choices that Kong Qui, known in the West as Confucius, made during his career as a civil servant and administrator influenced an entire civilization. What if Kong Qui had been as opportunistic and corrupt as other officials? How might the fate of China and its worldview be changed?
• 551 BC, Lu Region, ancient China: Confucius is born in a modest family.
• 57 years later, 80 beautiful women are offered to the Sovereign of Lu, of whom Confucius is the Minister of Justice.
• During the 3rd century, his disciples complete the writing of "The Analects". They thus immortalize his philosophy.
These three intimately connected events are the founding elements of Chinese psychology. Their effects have influenced the world for 2500 years.
30 mins · Sun, 20 Nov 2016
S01 Episode 9
Rome vs Barbarians
The untimely death of the Roman Emperor of the Western Empire and the poor decisions of the Roman Emperor of the Eastern Empire change the fortunes of the Roman Army in their battle with the Goths. And this changes the future of Europe.
• August 9 378, the battle of Adrianople: the Roman army has been annihilated.
• A few years later, stripped of its defenses, Rome is sacked. The city had remained inviolate for 800 years.
• September 4 476, the last Roman Emperor of the West is deposed. The Roman Empire no longer exists.
These three events, although occurring over a century, are intimately connected and will lead to the fall of the Western Roman Empire.
30 mins · Sun, 27 Nov 2016
S01 Episode 10
Einstein and the Manhattan Project
A famous scientist wrote to the President of the United States, and the face of war, and our world, was changed forever. How and why did humanity develop a weapon capable of almost total destruction?
• April 1939, at the dawn of the Second World War, Nazi Germany launches the secret Uranium Project.
• August 2 1939, Albert Einstein, renowned physicist, signs a letter to the President of the United States.
• August 6 1945, an American B29 bomber drops an atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima.
These three, intimately connected events, are the key moments of the Manhattan Project and will lead to the end of the Second World War.
30 mins · Sun, 4 Dec 2016
S01 Episode 11
Birth of Rock
Elvis Presley paid $4 to record two songs for his mother and the rest, as they say, is history. But without Elvis, would rock and roll have gone the same route? And how have the many iterations of rock and roll developed and changed our taste and culture since the 1950's?
• July 5 1954, Nashville, Tennessee. Elvis Presley steps through the door of the Sun Records studio.
• Ten years later, hundreds of hysterical fans are waiting excitedly: they’re at the very first Beatles’ concert.
• November 19, 1976. The Sex Pistols release Anarchy in the UK. The song is a truly anarchist manifesto.
These 3 different, but intimately connected events, are the founding elements of the History of Rock.
30 mins · Sun, 11 Dec 2016
S01 Episode 12
A little trip to the moon
What is the future of the human presence in space? How might things be different if there had not been a Cold War and a Space Race? What does humanity gain by venturing into our solar system...and beyond?
30 mins · Sun, 18 Dec 2016
S01 Episode 13
The Internet, the origins of the web
What if the source codes for the internet had remained with the US military, rather than being released to the world? How did our lives of unfettered internet access become a reality?
• October 4 1957, the Soviets launch Sputnik, the first artificial satellite in History.
• In the following years, in order to make up for their technological lag, the United States conducts an ambitious project: the ARPA.
• August 6 1991, computer scientist, Tim Berners-Lee invents the Web and puts the very first Internet site on line.
These three, intimately connected events, are key in the birth and then the spread of the Internet.
30 mins · Sun, 25 Dec 2016
