This final episode discusses how the world experiences radical technological changes, especially in the way we communicate and consume information, every few years with effects that are constantly being understood bit by bit. We, as a global community, rely on both raw materials and finished products from individuals all over our planet. These technological developments … Continue reading "Episode 210 – 1900-Present: Globalization"

This episode explains how by 1991, nations throughout Europe and Asia were rebuilt along very different lines of democratic capitalism or authoritarian communism. These ideologies created material advances to varying degrees of success. However, communism has done so at the cost of countless lives and personal freedoms while capitalism has set economic growth as its … Continue reading "Episode 209 – 1945-1991: The Cold War and Decolonization"

In this episode you will learn how by 1945, European nation-states are left devastated after the First and Second World Wars, no longer able to maintain control over their far-flung empires, and relying on foreign support to help them rebuild. Political extremism has led to the approximate deaths of 75 million individuals as a result … Continue reading "Episode 208 – 1900-1945: Conflict and the Early 20th Century"

This episode will discuss how by 1900, China had been divided into Spheres of Influence after agreeing to several so-called “unequal treaties” with several European countries, the United States, and Japan. By that time, they were halfway through what they called their “century of humiliation.” India, once the leading global exporter of cotton textiles, had … Continue reading "Episode 207 – 1750-1900: Imperialism"

This episode will help you understand that by 1900, some of the most dramatic transformations in human history have taken place that still largely shape our modern world. The environment no longer places limits on societal potential the way it used to. Cities are popping up throughout the Western world and people are flocking there … Continue reading "Episode 206 – 1750-1900: Industrialization"

In this episode, we’ll come to understand that by 1900, the Americas had become almost entirely independent of European rule. The rights of individuals are now protected by states (though not necessarily for women or people of color). Absolute monarchy has largely ended and some rulers have been violently overthrown by their own people, both … Continue reading "Episode 205 – 1750-1900: Revolutions and Repercussions"

We’ll close out our study of this era by learning how an entirely new sect of Christianity, Protestantism, had emerged and was now competing with Roman Catholicism for influence in European state affairs. Meanwhile, the emerging Scientific Revolution was calling preconceived beliefs about the workings of the natural world into question. The Roman Catholic states … Continue reading "Episode 204 – 1450-1750: Cultural Expansion and Realignment"

In this episode you’ll find out how by 1750, Europeans will effectively have control over the Indian Ocean, and the newly established Atlantic, and Pacific routes of exchange that had not existed when our studies of this unit began in 1450. Their economic practices will have tremendously negative effects for people of the Americas, most … Continue reading "Episode 203 – 1450-1750: Economics of the Early Modern World"

This episode will shed light on how by about 1750, European empires spread across a large part of the Americas, the Aztec and Inca empires were no more, the Ottomans had reached and were now moving past their high point, Russia was expanding eastward, India had been unified, and China was expanding westward. Long story … Continue reading "Episode 202 – 1450-1750: Empires of the Early Modern World"

World History Class with Mr. Lutz officially returns! This episode is intended to provide a narrative of how we can understand developments in world history from about 1200 to 1450. In particular, for students of AP World History, think of this as a combined story of what happens in Unit 1 and Unit 2 of … Continue reading "Episode 201 – 1200-1450: Finding Threads, Weaving Webs"

The Setting: The year was 2019 and I had just wrapped up writing and developing a 33 episode series that summarized all that my students learned in their AP World History class readings that year, covering a total of approximately 10,000 years of history and took up over 15 hours of total listening time. The … Continue reading "Episode 200 – Introduction and Sourcing the Podcast"

Our final episode is going to focus on the end of the Cold War and the process of globalization that followed. Aside from the emergence of a globalized economy and culture we’ll also discuss the issues the world has faced since the 1990s and some of the tragedies and triumphs that have emerged from this … Continue reading "Episode 33 – Globalization"

Today we take a look at what is known as Decolonization, meaning the end of empire all throughout the world. This episode is going to jump around throughout several different nations in Asia, Africa, and Latin America but always keep a tight focus on the Key Concepts. It would be a good idea to visit … Continue reading "Episode 32 – Decolonization"

It’s hard to believe that I put these two topics together, but here we are! We’ll dive into the causes and consequences of the most horrifying conflict and human history by studying the Second World War. This devastating event bleeds right into the rumblings of the Cold War, where the US and Soviet Union began … Continue reading "Episode 31 – World War II and the Cold War"

The First World War turned much of the world upside down. This episode will look at the global fallout that lingered in the decades after the Great War. If you’re searching for an uplifting podcast episode, it might be wise to turn somewhere else! Document in Focus: Imperialism by Diego Rivera Source: @ERBeckman on Twitter https://twitter.com/ERBeckman/status/1093185293140873220 … Continue reading "Episode 30 – The Interwar Years"

The podcast to end all podcasts on the War to end all wars. Tune in to find out why both of these are a lie! Complicating the Narrative The Wilsonian Moment by Erez Manela https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-wilsonian-moment-9780195176155?cc=us&lang=en& Document in Focus Source: Lutiant van Wert, Native American female volunteer office worker, letter to a friend at an Indian school … Continue reading "Episode 29 – World War I"

This is the last episode in our unit studying 1750-1900 of World History Class with Mr. Lutz where we’ll tackle the Ottomans, Chinese, Japanese, and Russians as they adjust to the shifting trends of the modern era. Industrialization and imperialism has been the trend of the last two episodes and now we’ll have to see … Continue reading "Episode 28 – The Ottomans, China, Japan, and Russia and Confront Modern Era"

So, haven’t we seen imperialism all year long in this class and now we are calling a particular chapter of study “imperialism?” What has changed? Why is this a thing? It is because we are no longer talking purely of domination solely through a military means. Imperialism takes the military form where one country physically … Continue reading "Episode 27 – The Age of Imperialism"

In today’s episode we tackle the Industrial Revolution. So up until this point in time in our class we have seen different areas of the world that possessed a successful economy. The prerequisites for these developed economies were a significant agricultural surplus that resulted in a highly specialized, and comparatively urban society. They also had … Continue reading "Episode 26 – The Industrial Revolution"

Fight for your rights, just without the Beastie Boys (sadly), in this episode. We’ll learn about the ideas of the Enlightenment first before diving into revolutions in the United States, France, Haiti, and throughout Latin America. We’ll also see the new ideologies and nationalistic passions that emerge from this turbulent time period. Complicating the Narrative: … Continue reading "Episode 25 – The Age of Revolutions"