History

Shalama: An Epic Story of Family, Community, and Survival in Republican-era China

Shalama: An Epic Story of Family, Community, and Survival in Republican-era China

On our latest episode, discover the incredible story of community, hope, and survival in Republican China as Jean Hoffman Lewanda discusses her new book, Shalama: My 96 Seasons in China. Listen now for one family's epic journey through tumultuous times.

Laws of the Land: Feng Shui in Chinese History

Laws of the Land: Feng Shui in Chinese History

In this episode of Barbarians at the Gate, Tristan Brown discusses his award-winning book on how feng shui in the Qing era had less to do with furniture placement and was more about power, belonging, and control of spaces in a rapidly evolving society.

Emily Hahn: China to Me

Emily Hahn: China to Me

In her memoir of 1930s and 40s China, the New Yorker correspondent brought the country to life while coming down from opium binges in Shanghai and hiding in bomb shelters in Chongqing.

What can the end of the Ming Dynasty tell us about the election of Donald Trump and what comes next

What can the end of the Ming Dynasty tell us about the election of Donald Trump and what comes next

Trump's re-election disappointed many in the U.S. and abroad. To help them process, Jeremiah and David talk with literary translator and Pennsylvania voter Brendan O’Kane about Zhang Dai, the Ming-Qing transition, and living through an age of upheaval.

Historical Battles: Rewriting China's Past to Shape the Future

Historical Battles: Rewriting China's Past to Shape the Future

Jeffrey Wasserstrom joins Barbarians at the Gate to discuss the legacy of the Hong Kong protests, Xi Jinping’s patriotic education law, and how Beijing’s control over historical narratives is reshaping academic engagement with China.

Dan Snow's History Hit: The Creation of the People's Republic of China

Dan Snow's History Hit: The Creation of the People's Republic of China

How China transitioned from imperial rule to Chinese Socialism and all about the key characters whose opposing visions for China's future created so much chaos along the way.

Philip Kuhn: Sorcery and Bureaucracy in Qing China

Philip Kuhn: Sorcery and Bureaucracy in Qing China

A supernatural crisis pits an anxious autocrat against his own functionaries when a hunt for soul-stealing sorcerers turns into a political witch-hunt among 18th-century China’s “deep state.”

Edge of Empire with author and journalist Edward Wong

Edge of Empire with author and journalist Edward Wong

In this episode of Barbarians at the Gates, Edward Wong of the New York Times joins David and me to discuss Ed's new book, At the Edge of Empire. We discuss frontiers, what the Qing Dynasty means for China, and the different generational perspectives on China's recent past.

There and Back Again: Deng Xiaoping's Southern Tour and the Legacy of Reform and Opening in China

There and Back Again: Deng Xiaoping's Southern Tour and the Legacy of Reform and Opening in China

In this episode, Jonathan Chatwin discusses his book "The Southern Tour," focusing on Deng Xiaoping's 1992 tour to revitalize market reforms in China, Deng's legacy, Xi Jinping's stance on these reforms, and the challenges of publishing about China today.

Seeking News, Making China

Seeking News, Making China

In this episode of Barbarians at the Gate, we talk to historian John Alekna about his new book "Seeking News, Making China," which examines the role of information technology in 20th-century China, from the early radio era to the Cultural Revolution.

Peter Goullart: Forgotten Kingdom

Peter Goullart: Forgotten Kingdom

20 years after “Shangri-La” was coined in the Western imagination, a Russian adventurer published a memoir from the valley of Lijiang, southwest China, that is strikingly similar yet a world apart.

Ellen La Motte: An American Nurse in Peking

Ellen La Motte: An American Nurse in Peking

In 1916, an American activist and writer traveled to China from the frontlines of World War I. What she saw in the city delighted her; what she saw in the opium trade appalled her.

History Wars: The PRC pushes back against unsanctioned views of the past

History Wars: The PRC pushes back against unsanctioned views of the past

David and I discuss what's going on with the Qing history project, a controversy about Genghis Khan in France, and how PRC continues punching back against potentially problematic pasts.

Asymmetrical warfare in the battle over China’s past

Asymmetrical warfare in the battle over China’s past

Chinese history — very distant and very near — is filled with people who did not, and do not, abide by the government's "official" version of events. Ian Johnson gives them a voice in his latest book, Sparks.