People's History of Ideas Podcast
People's History of Ideas Podcast

People's History of Ideas Podcast

Matthew Rothwell

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Episodes

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In this podcast, Matthew Rothwell, author of Transpacific Revolutionaries: The Chinese Revolution in Latin America, explores the global history of ideas related to rebellion and revolution. The main focus of this podcast for the near future will be on the history of the Chinese Revolution, going all the way back to its roots in the initial Chinese reactions to British imperialism during the Opium War of 1839-1842, and then following the development of the revolution and many of the ideas that were products of the revolution through to their transnational diffusion in the late 20th century.

Recent Episodes

Chen Duxiu Update (or, the Devil Makes Work for Idle Hands) (1929)
DEC 11, 2025
Chen Duxiu Update (or, the Devil Makes Work for Idle Hands) (1929)
The story of how the co-founder and first General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party became a Trotskyist. Further reading: Gregor Benton, China’s Urban Revolutionaries: Explorations in the History of Chinese Trotskyism, 1921-1952 Gregor Benton, Prophets Unarmed: Chinese Trotskyists in Revolution, War, Jail, and the Return from Limbo Lee Feigon, Chen Duxiu: Founder of the Chinese Communist Party Chang Kuo-t’ao [Zhang Guotao], The Rise of the Chinese Communist Party (2 volumes) Tony Sa...
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31 MIN
Did the German Communists Really Say “After Hitler, Our Turn?” Exploring the Historical Evidence
NOV 21, 2025
Did the German Communists Really Say “After Hitler, Our Turn?” Exploring the Historical Evidence
Responding to listener queries about the evidence behind this common assertion regarding the KPD’s underestimation of the fascist threat. Further reading: Jane Degras, ed., The Communist International, 1919-1943: Documents, vol. 3: 1929-1943 International Press Correspondence Communist International journal (1933) Documents from the 13th Plenum of the ECCI Some names from this episode: Chen Duxiu, co-founder of the Communist Party of China Hermann Remmele, leading KPD Reichstag m...
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19 MIN
Revolution in the ‘20s, Go For It: The ‘Third Period’ Comes to China
OCT 31, 2025
Revolution in the ‘20s, Go For It: The ‘Third Period’ Comes to China
The 1920s that is. The Comintern lets the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Committee know how the objective conditions in China are ripening for revolution. Further reading: Nikolai Bukharin, “On the International Situation and the Tasks of the Chinese Communist Party” Nicholas Kozlov and Eric Weitz, “Reflections on the Origins of the ‘Third Period’: Bukharin, the Comintern, and the Political Economy of Weimar Germany” Robin Kelley, Hammer and Hoe: Alabama Communists during the Great Depress...
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26 MIN
The Chinese Communist Party Interventions in the 1929 Sino-Soviet War
OCT 10, 2025
The Chinese Communist Party Interventions in the 1929 Sino-Soviet War
How the Chinese Communist Party tried to turn war into revolution in Manchuria in 1929. Further reading: Bruce A. Elleman and Stephen Kotkin, eds., Manchurian Railways and the Opening of China Michael M. Walker, The 1929 Sino-Soviet War Chong-Sik Lee, Revolutionary Struggle in Manchuria: Chinese Communism and Soviet Interest, 1922-1945 “Japan Moves Town to Reach Coal Vein” Some names from this episode: Miles Lampson, British minister to China Yang Jingyu, Fushun special branch secretary of th...
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23 MIN
The 1929 Sino-Soviet War Concludes
JUN 28, 2025
The 1929 Sino-Soviet War Concludes
The final Soviet offensive, and some details on Chiang Ching-kuo’s activities as a student in Moscow. Further reading: Bruce A. Elleman and Stephen Kotkin, eds., Manchurian Railways and the Opening of China Michael M. Walker, The 1929 Sino-Soviet War Jay Taylor, The Generalissimo's Son: Chiang Ching-Kuo and the Revolutions in China and Taiwan Some names from this episode: Zhang Xueliang, Manchurian warlord Feng Yuxiang, northwestern warlord who turned on Chiang Kai-shek during Sino-Soviet war...
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21 MIN