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The Burning Archive

By Jeff Rich

History helps us understand the cultures and conflicts of the changing multipolar world. But there is so much to read! Where to begin? Let Jeff Rich, writer historian, and ex-government official, be your guide to some quality world history. Appreciate world literature, discuss world crises and meet intriguing historians. Free weekly newsletter at jeffrich.substack.com
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140. How to mend Australia-China relationships: a conversation with Warwick Powell

The Burning ArchiveMar 18, 2024

00:00
01:18:25
140. How to mend Australia-China relationships: a conversation with Warwick Powell

140. How to mend Australia-China relationships: a conversation with Warwick Powell

Warwick Powell and I had a wide-ranging conversation about Australia-China relationships, and how history has shaped the tensions in the relationship today. But history can also show us how Australia, Asia and America can learn to live together at peace with a multipolar world. Please enjoy this wonderful, inspiring conversation with Australia-China expert, Warwick Powell. Warwick Powell is an adjunct professor at the Queensland University of Technology, author, chairman of Smart Trade Networks, former adviser to former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, and a frequent commentator on geopolitics and Australia-Asia relationships. You can follow Warwick Powell on X (Twitter) at: https://twitter.com/baoshaoshan Warwick recommended two YouTube sites towards the end of the interview that can help you see the reality of contemporary daily life in China more clearly, and away from the often polarising rhetoric of politics. These sites are Blondie in China ( @BlondieinChina ) - https://www.youtube.com/@BlondieinChina Katherine’s journey to the East ( @kats_journey_east ) - https://www.youtube.com/@kats_journey_east You can also watch my discussion with  @TheDuran  about AUKUS, China and Australia's role in a multipolar world here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VutieNNCkDc&t=1377s Jeff Rich (the Burning Archive) writes on world history and cultural affairs, and offers courses to help you see the world more clearly, and connect with the world more compassionately, with some quality world history. ▼ ▽ SEE THE WORLD MORE CLEARLY WITH MY COURSES World History Explorers and all my courses https://courses.jeffrichwriter.com/ World History Explorers Season I, Civilizations has started. Join now, and read with me a modern masterpiece of world history, Felipe Fernández-Armesto, Civilizations - https://amzn.to/3OaNr3T ▼ ▽ JOIN THE BURNING ARCHIVE - SEE THE WORLD MORE CLEARLY Read my weekly Substack, and receive insights from world history and my reading every Saturday. ✉️ Signup is free: https://jeffrich.substack.com ✉️ Paid subscribers receive bonus content weekly: https://jeffrich.substack.com ▼ ▽ MY BOOKS Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Bureaucrat: Writing on Governing https://amzn.to/3SaI4Ty From the Burning Archive: Essays and Fragments 2015-2022 https://amzn.to/4b7cyyw Gathering Flowers of the Mind: Collected Poems 1996-2020 https://amzn.to/3u2Yh56

Mar 18, 202401:18:25
139. A conversation with Sam Roggeveen on defence, diplomacy and Australia's role in a multipolar world

139. A conversation with Sam Roggeveen on defence, diplomacy and Australia's role in a multipolar world

How can smart defence strategies and multilateral diplomacy avoid a US-China war in Asia - for example over Taiwan? Have American and Australian advocates of war with China over Taiwan really thought about the realities of a war with China? How should middle powers - like Australia, Indonesia and the ASEAN nations - adapt their defence and foreign policies to the new realities of war, Asian strengths and US power today? My conversation with Sam Roggeveen about his book The Echidna Strategy: Australia's Search for Power and Peace asked these fundamental questions that concern everyone around the world. What would a war with China really be like, and how can defence - the echidna strategy - and some creative diplomacy avoid a US-China war in Asia. Our conversation covered Australian defence and foreign policy, AUKUS and nuclear submarines, the upcoming Australia-ASEAN meeting in Melbourne (March 2024), China, Indonesia, regional order in Asia and the West Pacific, lessons of the Ukraine war, & the USA. Is the USA becoming just a normal great power, and what does that mean for other countries all around the world? A big thank you to Sam Roggeveen, who is the Director, International Security at the Lowy Institute Links to Sam's book, The Echidna Strategy: Australia's Search for Power and Peace (2023) ▼ ▽ JOIN THE BURNING ARCHIVE - SEE THE WORLD MORE CLEARLY WITH QUALITY WORLD HISTORY Join my free weekly newsletter to receive insights from world history and reflections on the intersection of culture, history and geopolitics. ✉️ Signup is free: https://jeffrich.substack.com ✉️ Paid subscribers receive bonus content weekly: ▼ ▽ SEE THE WORLD MORE CLEARLY WITH MY COURSES World History Explorers and all my courses https://courses.jeffrichwriter.com/

Mar 11, 202456:45
138. Civilizations of the Ocean - the Atlantic and the rise and fall of the West
Mar 04, 202439:04
137. Civilisations of the Sea - Sri Vijaya in the Indonesian 'Middle Ages'

137. Civilisations of the Sea - Sri Vijaya in the Indonesian 'Middle Ages'

There have been many civilizations of the sea - the Vikings, the Ancient Greeks, the great Polynesian navigators of the Pacific. But among the most intriguing is Sri Vijaya that thrived in what we think of as Indonesia, in the 'middle ages'.

You can explore the world history of civilizations, as discussed in this podcast, by joining me in reading in Felipe Fernández-Armesto, Civilizations. Join my World History Explorers world history book club, with Season 1 starting on March 1.

▼ ▽ SEE THE WORLD MORE CLEARLY WITH MY COURSES

World History Explorers and all my courses ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://courses.jeffrichwriter.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠

✉️ Signup for info on courses at: https:/courses.jeffrichwriter.com

▼ ▽ JOIN THE BURNING ARCHIVE - SEE THE WORLD MORE CLEARLY

Join 200+ email subscribers who receive insights from world history and fragments of my reading weekly. 

✉️ Signup is free: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://jeffrich.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠

✉️ Paid subscribers receive bonus content weekly: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://jeffrich.substack.com⁠⁠⁠⁠



Feb 26, 202420:36
136. Civilizations in highlands - from Afghanistan to the Incas

136. Civilizations in highlands - from Afghanistan to the Incas

When Americans described Afghani tribesmen as uncivilized people from the mountains they used old tropes about the culture of people from highlands.

However, we learn from Felipe Fernández-Armesto, Civilizations much more about the complex achievements of civilizations of the highlands from Scotland to New Guinea, and from Afghanistan to South America.

You can explore the world history of civilizations, as discussed in this podcast, by joining me in reading in Felipe Fernández-Armesto, Civilizations. Join my World History Explorers world history book club, with Season 1 starting on March 1.

▼ ▽ SEE THE WORLD MORE CLEARLY WITH MY COURSES

World History Explorers and all my courses ⁠⁠⁠https://courses.jeffrichwriter.com/⁠⁠⁠

✉️ Signup for info on courses at: https:/courses.jeffrichwriter.com

▼ ▽ JOIN THE BURNING ARCHIVE - SEE THE WORLD MORE CLEARLY

Join 200+ email subscribers who receive insights from world history and fragments of my reading weekly. 

✉️ Signup is free: ⁠⁠⁠https://jeffrich.substack.com⁠⁠⁠

✉️ Paid subscribers receive bonus content weekly: ⁠⁠⁠https://jeffrich.substack.com⁠⁠⁠

▼ ▽  MY BOOKS

Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Bureaucrat: Writing on Governing ⁠⁠⁠https://amzn.to/3SaI4Ty⁠⁠⁠

From the Burning Archive: Essays and Fragments 2015-2022 

⁠⁠⁠https://amzn.to/4b7cyyw⁠⁠⁠

Gathering Flowers of the Mind: Collected Poems 1996-2020

⁠⁠⁠https://amzn.to/3u2Yh56⁠⁠⁠

▼ ▽  MY RECOMMENDED BOOKS for World History Explorers

Fernández-Armesto, Civilizations - https://amzn.to/3OaNr3T

Darwin, After Tamerlane - https://amzn.to/3Ht5AGd

Frankopan, The Earth Transformed - https://amzn.to/3SqZb4B

Overy, Blood and Ruins - https://amzn.to/3Ubd8oU

Quinn, How the World Made the West - https://amzn.to/3U422St


Feb 19, 202419:34
135. Civilizations in fields of mud - how we get the story of Sumer and Babylon wrong.

135. Civilizations in fields of mud - how we get the story of Sumer and Babylon wrong.

Did civilization spread from a cradle in the river valleys of Mesopotamia? Or is there a different story of the emergence of civilizations from fields of mud?

In this episode of the special Summer of Civilizations series, I tell the story of Sumerian and Akkadian civilizations that developed in the river valleys of Mesopotamia. They left a legacy - carpets, the Epic of Gilgamesh - and an early piece of fake news, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. But is their true story how they struggled against the environment, and lost?

▼ ▽ SEE THE WORLD MORE CLEARLY WITH MY COURSES

World History Explorers and all my courses ⁠⁠https://courses.jeffrichwriter.com/⁠⁠

✉️ Signup for info on courses at: https:/courses.jeffrichwriter.com

▼ ▽ JOIN THE BURNING ARCHIVE - SEE THE WORLD MORE CLEARLY

Join 200+ email subscribers who receive insights from world history and fragments of my reading weekly. 

✉️ Signup is free: ⁠⁠https://jeffrich.substack.com⁠⁠

✉️ Paid subscribers receive bonus content weekly: ⁠⁠https://jeffrich.substack.com⁠⁠

▼ ▽  MY BOOKS

Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Bureaucrat: Writing on Governing ⁠⁠https://amzn.to/3SaI4Ty⁠⁠

From the Burning Archive: Essays and Fragments 2015-2022 

⁠⁠https://amzn.to/4b7cyyw⁠⁠

Gathering Flowers of the Mind: Collected Poems 1996-2020

⁠⁠https://amzn.to/3u2Yh56⁠⁠

▼ ▽  MY RECOMMENDED BOOKS for World History Explorers

Fernandez-Armesto, Civilizations - https://amzn.to/3OaNr3T

Darwin, After Tamerlane - https://amzn.to/3Ht5AGd

Frankopan, The Earth Transformed - https://amzn.to/3SqZb4B

Overy, Blood and Ruins - https://amzn.to/3Ubd8oU

Quinn, How the World Made the West - https://amzn.to/3U422St

Feb 12, 202423:47
134. Civilizations in Tropical Lowlands - Benin, Africa and Papua New Guinea

134. Civilizations in Tropical Lowlands - Benin, Africa and Papua New Guinea

In this episode of the special Summer of Civilizations series, I share the stories of civilizations that developed in tropical islands, including the great African walled city of Benin and the island off Papua New Guinea, once named by Europeans as Frederick Hendrick Island, and known now as Pulau Kolepom or Pulau Yos Sudarso.

▼ ▽ SEE THE WORLD MORE CLEARLY WITH MY COURSES

World History Explorers and all my courses ⁠https://courses.jeffrichwriter.com/⁠

✉️ Signup for info on courses at: https:/courses.jeffrichwriter.com

▼ ▽ JOIN THE BURNING ARCHIVE - SEE THE WORLD MORE CLEARLY

Join 200+ email subscribers who receive insights from world history and fragments of my reading weekly. 

✉️ Signup is free: ⁠https://jeffrich.substack.com⁠

✉️ Paid subscribers receive bonus content weekly: ⁠https://jeffrich.substack.com⁠

▼ ▽  MY BOOKS

Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Bureaucrat: Writing on Governing https://amzn.to/3SaI4Ty

From the Burning Archive: Essays and Fragments 2015-2022 

https://amzn.to/4b7cyyw

Gathering Flowers of the Mind: Collected Poems 1996-2020

https://amzn.to/3u2Yh56

▼ ▽  MY RECOMMENDED BOOKS for World History Explorers

Fernandez-Armesto, Civilizations - https://amzn.to/3OaNr3T

Darwin, After Tamerlane - https://amzn.to/3Ht5AGd

Frankopan, The Earth Transformed - https://amzn.to/3SqZb4B

Overy, Blood and Ruins - https://amzn.to/3Ubd8oU

Quinn, How the World Made the West - https://amzn.to/3U422St

Feb 05, 202436:01
134. Civilizations in the Frozen North and the Steppe

134. Civilizations in the Frozen North and the Steppe

In this episode of the special Summer of Civilizations series, I share the stories of civilizations that developed in the ice and tundra of Northern Eurasia and the great Eurasian Steppe.

▼ ▽ SEE THE WORLD MORE CLEARLY WITH MY COURSES

World History Explorers and all my courses https://courses.jeffrichwriter.com/

✉️ Signup for info on courses at: https:/courses.jeffrichwriter.com

▼ ▽ JOIN THE BURNING ARCHIVE - SEE THE WORLD MORE CLEARLY

Join 200+ email subscribers who receive insights from world history and fragments of my reading weekly. 

✉️ Signup is free: https://jeffrich.substack.com

✉️ Paid subscribers receive bonus content weekly: https://jeffrich.substack.com

▼ ▽  MY BOOKS

Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Bureaucrat: Writing on Governing https://amzn.to/3SaI4Ty

From the Burning Archive: Essays and Fragments 2015-2022 

https://amzn.to/4b7cyyw

Gathering Flowers of the Mind: Collected Poems 1996-2020

https://amzn.to/3u2Yh56

▼ ▽  MY RECOMMENDED BOOKS for World History Explorers

Fernandez-Armesto, Civilizations - https://amzn.to/3OaNr3T

Darwin, After Tamerlane - https://amzn.to/3Ht5AGd

Frankopan, The Earth Transformed - https://amzn.to/3SqZb4B

Overy, Blood and Ruins - https://amzn.to/3Ubd8oU

Quinn, How the World Made the West - https://amzn.to/3U422St

Jan 29, 202431:20
132. Summer of Civilizations III Where were the cradles of civilisation?

132. Summer of Civilizations III Where were the cradles of civilisation?

What is a cradle of civilisation? A simple question, but quality world history gives us a more complex, but satisfying answer. There were many in different environments.

This episode will inform you about the well-known 'cradle' of civilisation in the fertile crescent of Western Asia, but also tell you about less honoured starting points for civilisation in East Asia and the Eurasian Steppe.

Join my free weekly newsletter for more quality writing on history, culture and our changing world at jeffrich.substack.com

Jan 22, 202426:29
131. Summer of Civilizations 2 -Is civilization the biggest and baddest idea in world history?
Jan 14, 202429:48
130. Summer of Civilizations 1 - Idea, History, Game
Jan 07, 202429:28
129. Year in Review and Summer of Civilisations
Dec 29, 202323:18
128. Napoleon: movies, myths and histories.
Dec 08, 202346:14
127. Kissinger is Dead. Is US diplomacy dead too?

127. Kissinger is Dead. Is US diplomacy dead too?

My reflections on the death of US diplomat and grand strategist, Henry Kissinger at 100. Does his death toll the bell for US leadership of the world?

Read more at jeffrich.substack.com

Thanks to the Twisted Nixons, the Dead Kennedies, Thomas Fazi, Nina Byzantina, Thomas Fazi, Odd Arne Westad and Richard Nixon for material used in this program.

Dec 01, 202337:33
126. How the Mongol Horde Changed the World: interview with Marie Favereau, historian
Nov 24, 202301:04:31
125. How to spot bad histories in narratives of geopolitics.
Nov 10, 202350:30
124. Beowulf. How a legend was saved from the fire.
Nov 03, 202356:48
117. History of the Nobel Prize for Literature and 2022 Winner Annie Ernaux

117. History of the Nobel Prize for Literature and 2022 Winner Annie Ernaux

It covers the history of the Nobel Prize for Literature, some of my favourite winners and losers, and some controversies. I also cover in this episode the 2022 winner, French writer, Annie Ernaux.

This episode begins a mini-series on the Nobel Prize for Literature. There will be episodes in all in the lead-up to the announcement of the prize on 5 October.

  • William Butler (W.B) Yeats 1923 100th anniversary (15 September)
  • Patrick White 1973 50th anniversary (22 September)
  • Olga Tokarczuk 2018 my favourite discovery of the alst decade (15 September)
  • 2023 Winner announced on the evening of 5 October my time (6 October)

Nov 02, 202357:33
123. In a time of war, nurture empathy with history

123. In a time of war, nurture empathy with history

The Israel-Gaza Crisis, as the United Nations describes the situation, has shocked the world, and confronted us with the difficulties of living in a time of war. How can we respond to these shocking events mindfully, given the torrents of emotion coursing around the world? How can we use history not to nurse grievance, but to nurture empathy, and so to restore peace? I address these questions through many viewpoints in this show - the debates this week at the United Nations Security Council, the reflections of historian Simon Schama, the insights of a new history of World War II, and the grief and wisdom of two great woman poets.

Read more of my writing and join my free weekly newsletter, Fragments of the Burning Archive at jeffrich.substack.com.

Oct 20, 202339:31
122. Six Intriguing New History Books from the Wolfson History Prize. Please Discuss.

122. Six Intriguing New History Books from the Wolfson History Prize. Please Discuss.

Are you looking for a new, readable, intriguing history book to read? I introduce you to a shortlist of 6 top history books from 2023. All 6 books come from the shortlist for the 2023 Wolfson History Prize, Britain and the UK's most prestigious history book prize.

I also invite you to help me shape my idea for an online history reading club, where you can learn and read with me. Would you like to see the world more clearly with some quality world history. Please discuss.

You can follow me at jeffrich.substack.com and theburningarchive.com

Oct 13, 202351:20
121. Jon Fosse's Slow Prose. My reaction to 2023 Nobel Prize for Literature Announcement
Oct 06, 202343:47
120A. What I learned reading Olga Tokarczuk, The Books of Jacob. Exclusive.

120A. What I learned reading Olga Tokarczuk, The Books of Jacob. Exclusive.

Do you want to take a deep dive into Olga Tokarczuk, The Books of Jacob, the best novel of historical fiction in the 21st century? Then subscribe to The Burning Archive's new stream of exclusive bonus content through Spotify, and patreon.com.

Click the padlock symbol on this episode to hear the intriguing story of The Books of Jacob.

This episode goes into more depth on Olga Tokarczuk and her remarkable historical novel about Jacob Frank, heresy, crossing borders, the Enlightenment, the Imagination and the fall of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth..


Sep 29, 202341:07
120. Why read Olga Tokarczuk, 2018 Nobel Prize for Literature?
Sep 29, 202338:15
119 A. Patrick White and the stranger effect - Supporter Exclusive Premiere

119 A. Patrick White and the stranger effect - Supporter Exclusive Premiere

The Burning Archive has introduced a new stream of exclusive bonus content for supporters of the Burning Archive.

You can subscribe through Spotify, and patreon.com

This episode goes into more depth on Patrick White, the stranger effect, and what is happening in Australian culture today.

Sep 25, 202333:09
119. Why read Patrick White, 1973 Nobel Prize for Literature, the Exile at Home?
Sep 22, 202345:59
118. Why read WB Yeats, Winner of 1923 Nobel Prize for Literature?

118. Why read WB Yeats, Winner of 1923 Nobel Prize for Literature?

Why should you read W.B. Yeats, Winner of 1923 Nobel Prize for Literature? Find out in this second of my series on the Nobel Prize for Literature. It discusses the life and works of the 1923 Nobel Prize for Literature Laureate, William Butler (W.B.) Yeats, including a rare recording of Yeats in his own voice and the surprising story of his poem, The Second Coming. Find out about this intriguing poet, spiritualist and politician whose verse still speaks to us today.

Read more at www.theburningarchive.com

Sep 15, 202340:04
116. Professions vs. Managers. The rise and fall of the professions. Interview with Hannah Forsyth
Sep 01, 202301:04:52
115. Exploring World History with Leading Historian Felipe Fernández-Armesto - Part 2

115. Exploring World History with Leading Historian Felipe Fernández-Armesto - Part 2

The Burning Archive brings you the second in a special two-part interview with the esteemed world historian, Felipe Fernández-Armesto.

Is the world changing in ways not seen for 100 years? How can America's Hispanic past and present inform how it responds to this changing world of more equally distributed power? And what makes explorers like Magellan, Columbus and Captain James Cook such intriguing figures in world history?

In this second episode we discuss 1. Hispanic America in the Multipolar World - How has America's Hispanic History shaped its people and culture, and how can it be a basis to come to terms with a changing balance of power in the world 2. Exploration, Cultural Exchange and the Past - What fascinates people about the history of exploration, and how can it contribute to cross-cultural understanding and a sense of the past?

⁠Felipe Fernández-Armesto⁠'s latest book is Straits: Beyond the Myth of Magellan (Bloomsbury, 2022). He has written some of the best history books, including these discussed in the podcast:

  • Civilizations (Macmillan, 2000) or Civilizations: Culture, Ambition, and the Transformation of Nature (Free Press, 2001)
  • Food: A History (Macmillan, 2001) or Near a Thousand Tables: A History of Food (Free Press, 2002)
  • The Americas: A Hemispheric History (Modern Library, 2003) or The Americas: A History of A Hemisphere (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2003)
  • Ideas That Changed the World (Dorling Kindersley, 2003)
  • Humankind: A Brief History (Oxford University Press, 2004)
  • Pathfinders: A Global History of Exploration (W. W. Norton, 2006; Oxford University Press, 2007)
  • Amerigo: The Man Who Gave His Name to America (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2006; Random House, 2007)
  • The World: A Brief History (Pearson, 2007)
  • 1492. The Year the World Began (HarperOne, 2009; Bloomsbury, 2010)
  • Our America: A Hispanic History of the United States (W. W. Norton & Co., 2014)
  • A Foot in the River: Why Our Lives Change–and the Limits of Evolution (Oxford University Press, 2015)
  • The Oxford Illustrated History of the World (Oxford University Press, 2019)
  • Out of Our Minds: What We Think and How We Came to Think It (Oneworld, 2019)

Keywords: history, world history, best history books, best historians, civilization, Felipe Fernandez-Armesto, agricultural revolution, culture, social change, environment, climate change, mental health.

Author and Podcast Website: www.theburningarchive.com

Substack: jeffrich.substack.com X: @ArchiveBurning

YouTube: @theburningarchive

Check out my online course on Mindful History at https://multipolar-mastery.getlearnworlds.com/home Subscribe now and see the world more clearly with some quality world history!

Aug 25, 202356:45
114. Exploring World History with Leading Historian Felipe Fernández-Armesto - Part 1

114. Exploring World History with Leading Historian Felipe Fernández-Armesto - Part 1

The Burning Archive brings you a special two-part interview with the esteemed world historian, Felipe Fernández-Armesto.

Did you know the first case of animal farming was the humble snail? How does the world's leading historian of the world see the accelerating pace of change today affecting identity and mental health?

In this first episode we discuss 1. World History, Food, Environment and Civilizations - how no civilization is better than another, and all civilizations adapt the environment to human needs - sometimes disastrously 2. Ideas, Culture and Change in World History - how human imagination and ideas drive history, and why do things change so much?

Felipe Fernández-Armesto's latest book is Straits: Beyond the Myth of Magellan (Bloomsbury, 2022). He has written some of the best history books, including these discussed in the podcast:

  • Civilizations (Macmillan, 2000) or Civilizations: Culture, Ambition, and the Transformation of Nature (Free Press, 2001)
  • Food: A History (Macmillan, 2001) or Near a Thousand Tables: A History of Food (Free Press, 2002)
  • The Americas: A Hemispheric History (Modern Library, 2003) or The Americas: A History of A Hemisphere (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2003)
  • Ideas That Changed the World (Dorling Kindersley, 2003)
  • Humankind: A Brief History (Oxford University Press, 2004)
  • Pathfinders: A Global History of Exploration (W. W. Norton, 2006; Oxford University Press, 2007)
  • Amerigo: The Man Who Gave His Name to America (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2006; Random House, 2007)
  • The World: A Brief History (Pearson, 2007)
  • 1492. The Year the World Began (HarperOne, 2009; Bloomsbury, 2010)
  • Our America: A Hispanic History of the United States (W. W. Norton & Co., 2014)
  • A Foot in the River: Why Our Lives Change–and the Limits of Evolution (Oxford University Press, 2015)
  • The Oxford Illustrated History of the World (Oxford University Press, 2019)
  • Out of Our Minds: What We Think and How We Came to Think It (Oneworld, 2019)

Keywords: history, world history, best history books, best historians, civilization, Felipe Fernandez-Armesto, agricultural revolution, culture, social change, environment, climate change, mental health.

Author and Podcast Website: www.theburningarchive.com

Substack: jeffrich.substack.com X: @ArchiveBurning

YouTube: @theburningarchive

Subscribe now and see the world more clearly with some quality world history!

Aug 18, 202352:13
113. Can we cope if everything changes all at once?

113. Can we cope if everything changes all at once?

Change is part of life and central to history. But has the pace of change accelerated over the last 50 years beyond our capacity to cope? Find out with Jeff Rich on the Burning Archive, who shares insights from historian, Felipe Fernandez-Armesto.

Aug 11, 202346:38
112. Social differences, elite competition and political breakdown

112. Social differences, elite competition and political breakdown

Why can't we just all get along? Is all history class struggle, or a fight between the people and the elites? Or, as Peter Turchin suggests, do elites fight hardest against other elites? And how can Stockholm show us a better way to live together?

Quote of the show: "Identity is an invitation to dialogue, not a prison." (Vaclav Havel)

Aug 04, 202344:00
111. Four Social Changes Unsettling the Modern World

111. Four Social Changes Unsettling the Modern World

We feel that society is changing in dramatic ways. But what are the four big social changes that are driving how we make sense of society. Find out on the Burning Archive Podcast.

www.theburningarchive.com

Jul 28, 202347:00
110. Social Progress, Collapse and Fragmentation - 7 changes that define the modern world

110. Social Progress, Collapse and Fragmentation - 7 changes that define the modern world

There are mass protests in France. Tensions everywhere. Peter Turchin has published End Times- his theory of social collapse. Is it that bad? And what are Emmanuel Todd's seven top social changes that define the conflicts of modern advanced societies?

Jul 21, 202344:03
109. NATO in Vilnius - What does it mean?

109. NATO in Vilnius - What does it mean?

The NATO Summit in Vilnius disappointed Volodomyr Zelenszky and Ukraine. He might be singing, Is that all there is to an alliance? Find out what it means for NATO, for the war in Ukraine, and risks of war with China in the Indo-Pacific. Is it the beginning of the end game? Or is it the old game of the End and the Beginning?

Jul 14, 202342:40
108. Atlantic Romantics, Part II: How NATO emerged from Atlantic History

108. Atlantic Romantics, Part II: How NATO emerged from Atlantic History

Atlantic Romantics, Part II gives you a rapid fire history of the Altlantic, structured around seven key dates. These dates provide glimpses into the multipolar history of the Atlantic Ocean, and the chameleon-like character of the Atlantic idea, institutions, alliance, cultures and civilizations. This podcast will take you in less than an hour from late Bronze Age Portugal to the July 11-12 NATO Summit in Vilnius.

Jul 07, 202346:25
107. Atlantic Romantics, Part I: Will NATO’s Special Relationship break up?

107. Atlantic Romantics, Part I: Will NATO’s Special Relationship break up?

Three big regional ideas dominate the world: the Indo-Pacific, Eurasia, and the Atlantic. What is the Atlantic? Is it an ocean? An alliance? An idea? Is it Western civilization? Is it a special relationship between the USA and Britain? Could the NATO alliance be about to break up? Find out the answers and some surprising fun facts about the Atlantic on this podcast. Imagine the world differently with a little bit of history.

Find more details on world history reimagined and the Burning Archive at jeffrich.substack.com

Credit: The Models, Atlantic Romantic (1981) via YouTube

Jun 30, 202340:55
106. How do ideas of Eurasia influence world politics and history today? Eurasia Part II.

106. How do ideas of Eurasia influence world politics and history today? Eurasia Part II.

There are not two continents of Europe and Asia. There is one physical continent of Eurasia. Ideas of Europe and Asia, and their place in world history have formed two continents from one. And ideas of Eurasia in Russia and in the West threaten war between the Eurasian and Atlantic worlds. But it does not need to be so. Halford Mackinder has a lot to answer for, including Aleksander Dugin.

Join my free weekly newsletter at jeffrich.substack.com for more details on each show.

Jun 23, 202338:25
105. Why is Eurasia so important in world history and geopolitics today?

105. Why is Eurasia so important in world history and geopolitics today?

There are not two continents of Europe and Asia. There is one physical continent of Eurasia, and the countries of Eurasia are becoming more important, more wealthy and more assertive in world politics. Find out why, and how powerful new international institutions, infrastructure projects and foreign policies are strengthening this region, including its Heartland, Russia, compared to the Atlantic powers.

Time Stamps

0:00-0:40 Introduction

0:40-2:45 What is Eurasia?

2:45-10:10 Eurasian Geography in History

10:10-13:30 Books on Eurasia

13:30-20:00 Eurasian Institutions

20:00-31:00 Russian and Western Foreign Policy Ideas on Eurasia

31:00-34:00 Latest Writing on World Crisis






Jun 16, 202334:00
104. Lost in the Indo-Pacific - Strategy, Oceans, History or Illusion?

104. Lost in the Indo-Pacific - Strategy, Oceans, History or Illusion?

I wrote recently that the Free and Open Indo Pacific is like the Holy Roman Empire. It is not free, not open, and not even the Indo-Pacific. Find out why on this intriguing podcast that covers

- my article on Australia, India and the Indo-Pacific, "Australia, Little Country Lost"

- some real history you can read to get a better understanding of the history of the Indian and Pacific Ocean regions, including 4 history book recommendations?

- some surprising revelations and legacies of the German author of the original Indo-Pacific strategy, Karl Haushofer.

And happy Oceans Day for June 8, everyone.

Details of all the books and texts referred to in the show are available by subscribing to my free weekly newsletter at jeffrich.substack.com.

You can also listen or watch this podcast at my YouTube channel, (please like, share and subscribe) and follow me on Twitter.

Jun 09, 202349:23
103. World Crisis, Polycrisis, or Another Day at the Office?

103. World Crisis, Polycrisis, or Another Day at the Office?

Some leaders say the world is in a crisis it has not seen in 100 years. Adam Tooze (historian) says the world is in a polycrisis, and that we all struggle to cope with the shock of the many. Some cynics might say, the more things change, the more they stay the same. Who is right? Or are they all right? How do we make sense of the cascading crises of war, diplomacy, pandemic, politics, economy, society, environment and culture that we have all experienced in recent years?

On this podcast , I cover

- what is true or false about the claims that we are seeing changes we have not seen for 100 years and are in a polycrisis?

- how does today's crisis compare to the world crisis of 1910-1920, when the world slept walk to World War One? and

- in the fragment of the Burning Archive, who is afraid of what Virginia Woolf said about how the world changed in 1910?

You can find more details in my free weekly newsletter at jeffrich.substack.com.

Jun 02, 202350:25
102. Modi in Sydney, and the Indian Way to Reform the United Nations

102. Modi in Sydney, and the Indian Way to Reform the United Nations

When Indian Prime Minister. Narendra Modi came to Sydney in 2023 he charmed the crowd so much that Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese declared him to be "The Boss". His charisma came with India's soft power, based in its millenia of cultural traditions of responsible statecraft. And it came with a punch, a strong demand that it's time to reform the United Nations Security Council.

In this episode I discuss,

- what Narendra Modi said in his key speeches in Hiroshima, Port Moresby and Sydney that show India to be the voice of the Global South, demanding changes to the UN Security Council

- what history tells us about why India does not already have permanent membership of the UN Security Council

- a book recommendation and ancient Indian text that help you understand both the American way of governing the world, and the better Indian way of governing the world.

The episode includes clips of talks by Anthony Albanese and Indian External Affairs Minister, Dr. S. Jaishankar.

You can learn more about history, culture and statecraft in the multipolar world by subscribing to my free weekly newsletter, jeffrich.substack.com


May 26, 202352:08
101. Mental Illness. Government Failure. Human Imperfection.
May 19, 202344:58
100. Special Commemorative 100th Episode and Listener Game
May 12, 202344:50
99. Fear and Loathing After Pandemic Democracy
May 05, 202349:23
98. Madness and Western Civilization, Today
Apr 28, 202343:08
97. Macron, European Sovereignty, and Reflections on a Philosopher President
Apr 21, 202349:26
96. France’s People’s Revolt on Pensions. Tricoleur Revolution?
Apr 14, 202345:37
95. The End of the US Dollar Empire?
Apr 07, 202352:58
94. Bank Collapses and Political Crises. Calm or Contagion?
Mar 31, 202343:37
93. The Health of Western Democracy Through the Eyes of China
Mar 24, 202342:48