History

Barbarians at the Gate: The Destruction of the Yuanmingyuan (One from the Vault)

Barbarians at the Gate: The Destruction of the Yuanmingyuan (One from the Vault)

This month marks the 160th anniversary of the destruction of the Yuanmingyuan. In this episode, David and I talk about the events leading up to the looting and razing of the gardens and the shifting meaning of "National Humiliation" in China today.

Barbarians at the Gate: The Destruction of the Yuanmingyuan

Barbarians at the Gate: The Destruction of the Yuanmingyuan

This month marks the 160th anniversary of the destruction of the Yuanmingyuan. In this episode, David and I talk about the events leading up to the looting and razing of the gardens and the shifting meaning of "National Humiliation" in China today.

Swine Fever: Celebrating Chinese History’s Most Famous Pigs

Swine Fever: Celebrating Chinese History’s Most Famous Pigs

What do Hillary Clinton, Chinese Admiral Zheng He, Amy Winehouse, and Chiang Kai-shek have in common? They are all pigs.

The “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” Guide to 40 Years of Reform and Opening

The “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” Guide to 40 Years of Reform and Opening

What can the beloved (if warped) Christmas classic “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” teach us about China’s Reform and Opening Era?

The Chinese Doctor Who Beat the Plague

The Chinese Doctor Who Beat the Plague

In October 1910, a mysterious illness appeared in the city of Manzhouli, on the Russian and Chinese border. Meet the doctor who stopped a deadly epidemic from spreading to the rest of Asia and possibly beyond.