Even before Adolf Hitler became chancellor, it was an open secret that Germany was violating the limits on its military set by the Treaty of Versailles. After Hitler became chancellor, Germany began a massive rearmament campaign.
These developments concerned the French and the British. The French began building the Maginot Line and the British beefed up the RAF, although it was widely believed at the time that it would be virtually impossible to defend against a bomber attack.
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Playlist:
Fanfare
Opening Theme
Pomp and Circumstance No. 4
Composed in 1907 by Edward Elgar. Public domain.
Performed by The United States Army Band. Public domain recording. Source.
“Le Chant du Départ”
Composed in 1794 by Étienne M. Méhul and Marie-Joseph Chénier. Public domain.
Performed by Wikipedia user AverynNqdieve, and used pursuant to a Creative Commons CC BY-SA 4.0 License. Source.
Closing Theme
Except when otherwise indicated, the contents of this podcast are © and ℗ 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 by Mark Painter, all rights reserved. Some music and sound effects used by arrangement with Pond 5.
Would love to see an episode on what might be called the “golden age of aviation”. The birth of airlines like TWA and Pan Am. All the milestones hit in aviation in the 20s and 30s. And the story of Amelia Earhart her attempt to circumnavigate the world is really one of the last great stories of “exploration” in the style of Shackleton or Roald Amundsen. At least until you get to space exploration.
These things are on my mind, but sometimes it’s a question of how to work it into the narrative. Maybe as a lead in to the Battle of Britain…?