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Rogue History
Spy Balloons Have A Longer, Weirder History Than You Think
Season 2
Episode 1
Spy balloons once marked a great leap forward in the art of intelligence gathering. No longer were soldiers safe from enemy reconnaissance on the ground. They could now be watched from the air! From the French Revolution to the Civil War, balloons loomed over battlefields. Join us in a time when an oddball inventor sent President Lincoln a decisive telegraph — from 500 feet above the ground.
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Season
7:43
A network of traveling merchant-spies were essential to the expansion of the Aztec Empire.
7:37
The largest enslaved insurrection in US history was planned for 1856– and then called off.
9:56
A group of women mathematicians uncovered Soviet spies– but received none of the credit.
10:06
Ninjas are famous in popular culture, but behind the stereotypes lie a legendary history.
11:02
Chevalier d’Eon was a spy, fencer, and gender identity trailblazer who blackmailed a King.
9:27
“I wanted to start a personal war with Hitler. And I wanted to fight with my imagination.”
9:09
This musician spied on Black socialists then criticized the government for being racist.
9:50
One pirate’s tale of buried treasure led to generations of treasure hunting.
9:29
Sea Lords were as vital to medieval Japan as samurai, so why were they called “pirates?”
9:12
Though often overlooked, the Barbary pirates played a huge role in U.S. and world history.
9:22
When fresh food ran out, pirates found creative ways to survive long weeks at sea.
8:36
This is what pirate music actually sounded like.