1 00:00:01,320 --> 00:00:04,280 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class, a production 2 00:00:04,400 --> 00:00:14,880 Speaker 1: of iHeartRadio. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. I'm Tracy V. 3 00:00:15,040 --> 00:00:18,040 Speaker 1: Wilson and I'm Holly Frye. Back when I went to 4 00:00:18,079 --> 00:00:22,520 Speaker 1: Philadelphia to see that Marie Lawrence exhibits, I spend some 5 00:00:22,560 --> 00:00:24,600 Speaker 1: time just walking around that part of the city. One 6 00:00:24,640 --> 00:00:27,960 Speaker 1: of my favorite things to do walking around exploring part 7 00:00:28,000 --> 00:00:31,840 Speaker 1: of a city. So that exhibition was at the Barnes Foundation, 8 00:00:31,960 --> 00:00:35,680 Speaker 1: which is on Benjamin Franklin Parkway. And if you've never 9 00:00:35,720 --> 00:00:39,960 Speaker 1: been to Philadelphia, the Parkway is this broad, tree lined 10 00:00:40,080 --> 00:00:42,839 Speaker 1: boulevard that runs about a mile from City Hall to 11 00:00:42,880 --> 00:00:47,120 Speaker 1: the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and it goes diagonally across 12 00:00:47,159 --> 00:00:50,680 Speaker 1: the grid like it's just its own thing. There are 13 00:00:50,720 --> 00:00:55,960 Speaker 1: all kinds of museums and educational and cultural institutions alongside 14 00:00:55,960 --> 00:00:59,480 Speaker 1: of it, and there's also just a ton of public art. 15 00:01:00,040 --> 00:01:03,240 Speaker 1: The Association of Public Art has a tour called Along 16 00:01:03,320 --> 00:01:06,640 Speaker 1: the Benjamin Franklin Parkway that includes thirty works of art 17 00:01:07,560 --> 00:01:11,520 Speaker 1: just in that one mile. Uh, and I think all 18 00:01:11,560 --> 00:01:15,000 Speaker 1: of those thirty we're not talking about art in the museums. 19 00:01:15,360 --> 00:01:20,360 Speaker 1: These are statues and things outside. One of these, which 20 00:01:20,440 --> 00:01:23,000 Speaker 1: is in front of the Franklin Institute is a statue 21 00:01:23,200 --> 00:01:27,360 Speaker 1: of Francisco de Miranda, and he looks very dashing and determined, 22 00:01:27,440 --> 00:01:30,039 Speaker 1: and the tail of his coat is kind of billowing around, 23 00:01:30,600 --> 00:01:34,280 Speaker 1: and there's a plaque that reads Caracas, Venezuela, seventeen fifty 24 00:01:34,760 --> 00:01:39,920 Speaker 1: Cadiz la Caraca Prison, eighteen sixteen, Great soldier of freedom 25 00:01:40,120 --> 00:01:44,280 Speaker 1: who participated in the three greatest political upheavals of his time, 26 00:01:45,040 --> 00:01:48,360 Speaker 1: the struggle for independence in the United States, the French Revolution, 27 00:01:48,600 --> 00:01:53,600 Speaker 1: and the emancipation of Latin America. And so I obviously 28 00:01:53,680 --> 00:01:57,280 Speaker 1: was like, who's that guy. This is not somebody I'm 29 00:01:57,320 --> 00:02:01,160 Speaker 1: familiar with U. And so he became one of several 30 00:02:01,200 --> 00:02:03,640 Speaker 1: ideas for future episodes that I jotted down on that 31 00:02:03,720 --> 00:02:07,000 Speaker 1: day that included Natalie Clifford Barney. She already became a 32 00:02:07,040 --> 00:02:11,320 Speaker 1: two part episode over Valentine's Day. This one also turned 33 00:02:11,360 --> 00:02:15,120 Speaker 1: into a two parter because it turns out some of 34 00:02:15,160 --> 00:02:18,639 Speaker 1: the things that Francisco de Miranda was connected to are 35 00:02:18,760 --> 00:02:22,079 Speaker 1: things we have not explained that much on the show before, 36 00:02:23,480 --> 00:02:29,000 Speaker 1: so two parts on him starting today. Francisco de Miranda 37 00:02:29,160 --> 00:02:32,240 Speaker 1: was born in Caracas, which is the capital of Venezuela. 38 00:02:32,320 --> 00:02:34,200 Speaker 1: And at the time was considered a part of the 39 00:02:34,320 --> 00:02:39,279 Speaker 1: Viceroyalty of New Granada. His parents were Francisca Antonio Rodriguez 40 00:02:39,280 --> 00:02:44,240 Speaker 1: de Espinoza and Sebastian de Moranda Iravello. Most sources give 41 00:02:44,280 --> 00:02:47,760 Speaker 1: Francisco's date of birth as March twenty eighth or twenty ninth, 42 00:02:47,840 --> 00:02:51,400 Speaker 1: seventeen fifty, and he was baptized on April fifth of 43 00:02:51,440 --> 00:02:55,639 Speaker 1: that year. This family was well off. Francisco's father was 44 00:02:55,680 --> 00:02:59,480 Speaker 1: a successful linen merchant who owned other businesses as well, 45 00:03:00,200 --> 00:03:03,480 Speaker 1: and Sebastian seems to have been respected by the Spanish 46 00:03:03,520 --> 00:03:07,440 Speaker 1: authorities in Caracas, but he also ran into disputes with 47 00:03:07,480 --> 00:03:12,279 Speaker 1: some of the local elite. Generally speaking, in Spain's colonies 48 00:03:12,320 --> 00:03:16,799 Speaker 1: in the Americas, people from the Iberian Peninsula or Peninsulares 49 00:03:16,840 --> 00:03:20,280 Speaker 1: had a higher social standing than creolos, or people born 50 00:03:20,480 --> 00:03:23,560 Speaker 1: in the colony, and while there were a lot of 51 00:03:23,600 --> 00:03:27,960 Speaker 1: inner marriages between people of Spanish, African and indigenous descent, 52 00:03:28,120 --> 00:03:31,080 Speaker 1: there was also a focus on the idea of blood 53 00:03:31,200 --> 00:03:36,360 Speaker 1: purity in Spanish society. In more recent years, historians have 54 00:03:36,600 --> 00:03:40,000 Speaker 1: argued that earlier descriptions of all this as a very 55 00:03:40,080 --> 00:03:43,960 Speaker 1: strict and layered caste system aren't really accurate that there 56 00:03:44,040 --> 00:03:48,000 Speaker 1: was some more fluidity, with people of different ancestries able 57 00:03:48,080 --> 00:03:53,120 Speaker 1: to have some social mobility depending on their circumstances. Regardless, 58 00:03:53,400 --> 00:03:58,800 Speaker 1: questions of race and status affected the Miranda family directly. Sebastian, 59 00:03:58,840 --> 00:04:02,320 Speaker 1: who was from Tenerife in the Canary Islands, became captain 60 00:04:02,360 --> 00:04:05,800 Speaker 1: of a militia unit, and after he retired from that position, 61 00:04:05,920 --> 00:04:10,080 Speaker 1: continued to wear his uniform. All of this angered the 62 00:04:10,120 --> 00:04:14,120 Speaker 1: local Bosque aristocracy. Even his retirement seems to have been 63 00:04:14,120 --> 00:04:18,120 Speaker 1: something he did to try to appease them. Someone eventually 64 00:04:18,160 --> 00:04:21,960 Speaker 1: alleged that he had African ancestry, and only people with 65 00:04:22,120 --> 00:04:26,840 Speaker 1: so called pure blood, meaning they had no African, Indigenous, 66 00:04:27,160 --> 00:04:31,160 Speaker 1: Jewish or Muslim ancestry, could do things like attain government 67 00:04:31,200 --> 00:04:36,320 Speaker 1: positions or attend university. Sebastian's efforts to document that he 68 00:04:36,480 --> 00:04:39,640 Speaker 1: was of pure blood went on for years and ultimately 69 00:04:39,720 --> 00:04:44,320 Speaker 1: involved King Carlos the Third. The King's confirmation of Sebastian's 70 00:04:44,320 --> 00:04:47,520 Speaker 1: blood purity did not resolve the hostility that he was 71 00:04:47,560 --> 00:04:52,039 Speaker 1: getting from the Basque elite. Though most likely Francisco and 72 00:04:52,080 --> 00:04:55,560 Speaker 1: at least five siblings were educated at home when they 73 00:04:55,600 --> 00:04:59,160 Speaker 1: were young, at the age of twelve, Francisco enrolled at 74 00:04:59,160 --> 00:05:02,320 Speaker 1: the Academy of Santa Rosa and then in seventeen sixty 75 00:05:02,360 --> 00:05:06,800 Speaker 1: five entered the Royal and Pontifical University of Caracas. He 76 00:05:06,880 --> 00:05:10,160 Speaker 1: was awarded a bachelor's degree three years later, although there 77 00:05:10,160 --> 00:05:13,120 Speaker 1: are some questions about whether he actually finished all of 78 00:05:13,120 --> 00:05:17,680 Speaker 1: his studies before being awarded that degree. From there, Francisco 79 00:05:17,680 --> 00:05:20,760 Speaker 1: de Miranda wanted to join the army, with something he 80 00:05:20,839 --> 00:05:24,520 Speaker 1: decided to do in Spain rather than Venezuela because of 81 00:05:24,560 --> 00:05:27,920 Speaker 1: his father's whole ordeal around that issue of blood purity 82 00:05:28,240 --> 00:05:32,080 Speaker 1: and the social issues surrounding it. Francisco left in seventeen 83 00:05:32,160 --> 00:05:35,719 Speaker 1: seventy one carrying various letters of support and money to 84 00:05:35,760 --> 00:05:39,440 Speaker 1: purchase a commission. After arriving in Spain, he became a 85 00:05:39,480 --> 00:05:43,200 Speaker 1: captain in the Princess's own infantry, and in addition to 86 00:05:43,240 --> 00:05:47,920 Speaker 1: his military service, he continued to study things like mathematics, languages, 87 00:05:47,960 --> 00:05:51,840 Speaker 1: and humanities. He started to develop a reputation for being 88 00:05:51,880 --> 00:05:55,839 Speaker 1: well educated and well read, and for curating an extensive 89 00:05:55,880 --> 00:05:59,160 Speaker 1: personal library. That's something that would continue for the rest 90 00:05:59,200 --> 00:06:03,160 Speaker 1: of his life. He did not really have a reputation 91 00:06:03,279 --> 00:06:07,680 Speaker 1: for being a good soldier or officer, though he was 92 00:06:07,720 --> 00:06:12,120 Speaker 1: originally stationed in various parts of Northern Africa and Andalusia 93 00:06:12,200 --> 00:06:15,120 Speaker 1: on the Iberian Peninsula, but he kept trying to get 94 00:06:15,120 --> 00:06:19,560 Speaker 1: a transfer because he found this boring. He also had 95 00:06:19,600 --> 00:06:24,040 Speaker 1: a pretty high opinion of himself. He was definitely intelligent. 96 00:06:24,160 --> 00:06:27,320 Speaker 1: He seems to have had a real knack for learning languages, 97 00:06:27,400 --> 00:06:29,960 Speaker 1: but beyond that, he just thought he was better than 98 00:06:30,000 --> 00:06:33,880 Speaker 1: other people and that he naturally deserved his choice of assignments. 99 00:06:35,000 --> 00:06:38,560 Speaker 1: Of course, that did not leave a favorable impression on 100 00:06:38,640 --> 00:06:43,120 Speaker 1: his commanding officers, not generally how things work in most militaries. 101 00:06:43,160 --> 00:06:45,680 Speaker 1: They wanted him to follow orders and not try to 102 00:06:45,760 --> 00:06:49,599 Speaker 1: pick and choose what he wanted to do. But things 103 00:06:49,640 --> 00:06:52,400 Speaker 1: became a little less boring for him in seventeen seventy 104 00:06:52,440 --> 00:06:56,400 Speaker 1: four when Moroccan forces backed by the British, attacked Maleia 105 00:06:56,520 --> 00:06:59,720 Speaker 1: on the North African coast. This led to a two 106 00:06:59,760 --> 00:07:04,400 Speaker 1: month siege and Miranda's first real experience in combat in 107 00:07:04,480 --> 00:07:07,680 Speaker 1: terms of his overall military service. This siege was not 108 00:07:07,800 --> 00:07:10,800 Speaker 1: that long, but as it was going on, he started 109 00:07:10,840 --> 00:07:14,080 Speaker 1: to get a sense of how Spanish colonialism was affecting 110 00:07:14,080 --> 00:07:18,000 Speaker 1: people's lives in the areas being colonized, beyond his own 111 00:07:18,080 --> 00:07:21,640 Speaker 1: experience among people of similar standing to his own family 112 00:07:21,680 --> 00:07:26,320 Speaker 1: in Venezuela. After this siege ended in a victory for Spain, 113 00:07:26,560 --> 00:07:30,280 Speaker 1: Miranda visited Gibraltar, which was under British control, and he 114 00:07:30,400 --> 00:07:34,280 Speaker 1: started meeting and forming connections with British people living there, 115 00:07:34,720 --> 00:07:38,480 Speaker 1: and also hearing about the ongoing unrest that was happening 116 00:07:38,520 --> 00:07:43,000 Speaker 1: in Britain's colonies in the Americas. His personal study also 117 00:07:43,040 --> 00:07:46,760 Speaker 1: started to include the works of Enlightenment thinkers who really 118 00:07:46,840 --> 00:07:52,920 Speaker 1: criticized various aspects of Europe's colonial empires. This included works 119 00:07:52,960 --> 00:07:57,040 Speaker 1: like Istuar Philosophique did du Zindi, which was attributed to 120 00:07:57,080 --> 00:08:00,520 Speaker 1: Abe Gillom Thomas right now and this is somebody that 121 00:08:00,560 --> 00:08:03,800 Speaker 1: Miranda later met and became friends with. This was an 122 00:08:03,800 --> 00:08:07,440 Speaker 1: early work of world history that examined the impact of 123 00:08:07,520 --> 00:08:10,240 Speaker 1: European colonization on the rest of the world, and it 124 00:08:10,320 --> 00:08:14,120 Speaker 1: included criticisms of the institution of slavery and the use 125 00:08:14,160 --> 00:08:19,120 Speaker 1: of religion to subject colonized people's and nation's own citizens. 126 00:08:19,800 --> 00:08:22,320 Speaker 1: He also read and absorbed the works of writers like 127 00:08:22,400 --> 00:08:27,160 Speaker 1: Voltaire and Rousseau, writers who argued against tyranny and corruption, 128 00:08:27,480 --> 00:08:31,080 Speaker 1: and for liberty and freedom. Many of these writers were 129 00:08:31,080 --> 00:08:34,840 Speaker 1: strident critics of the Spanish Inquisition, which banned their writings, 130 00:08:35,120 --> 00:08:38,440 Speaker 1: and because of this, the Inquisition started keeping tabs on 131 00:08:38,480 --> 00:08:42,800 Speaker 1: Francisco to Miranda. Miranda spent so much time focused on 132 00:08:42,840 --> 00:08:46,439 Speaker 1: this self study that he was disciplined for reading too much, 133 00:08:47,440 --> 00:08:50,760 Speaker 1: as well as for insubordination. Some of this was probably 134 00:08:50,920 --> 00:08:55,000 Speaker 1: the product of his growing focus on these Enlightenment ideals, 135 00:08:55,640 --> 00:08:57,760 Speaker 1: but he also just seems to have been all over 136 00:08:57,800 --> 00:09:01,000 Speaker 1: the place. As a military officer, he was accused of 137 00:09:01,120 --> 00:09:05,360 Speaker 1: ignoring behavior that should have led to discipline in some cases, 138 00:09:05,920 --> 00:09:09,199 Speaker 1: but also using severe beatings as a form of discipline 139 00:09:09,200 --> 00:09:13,000 Speaker 1: in others. He also had a lot of romantic and 140 00:09:13,120 --> 00:09:17,080 Speaker 1: sexual relationships. That's something else that would continue throughout his life. 141 00:09:17,679 --> 00:09:21,880 Speaker 1: He chronicled these relationships in detail in his diaries, describing 142 00:09:21,880 --> 00:09:25,600 Speaker 1: a range of experiences with sex workers and servants, and 143 00:09:25,760 --> 00:09:29,400 Speaker 1: longer term, more intellectual relationships with women that he thought 144 00:09:29,440 --> 00:09:33,760 Speaker 1: of as educated or witty or respectable. For the most part, 145 00:09:33,800 --> 00:09:36,800 Speaker 1: his diaries tend to treat these higher status women with 146 00:09:36,840 --> 00:09:41,120 Speaker 1: more discretion and care than his more casual encounters. A 147 00:09:41,200 --> 00:09:44,680 Speaker 1: number of biographies of Miranda have characterized him as merely 148 00:09:44,760 --> 00:09:48,040 Speaker 1: a womanizer and a philanderer, but over the course of 149 00:09:48,040 --> 00:09:50,880 Speaker 1: his life, he also seemed to recognize how the treatment 150 00:09:50,920 --> 00:09:54,640 Speaker 1: of women in many societies was unjust, and he saw, 151 00:09:54,679 --> 00:09:57,760 Speaker 1: at least to some extent, the kinds of sexual double 152 00:09:57,800 --> 00:10:01,120 Speaker 1: standards that meant that he and his romantic partners were 153 00:10:01,200 --> 00:10:05,720 Speaker 1: viewed differently for having the same relationship. He advocated for 154 00:10:05,800 --> 00:10:09,000 Speaker 1: women to have legal rights and protections, and it's likely 155 00:10:09,040 --> 00:10:12,319 Speaker 1: that he was personally acquainted with Mary Wolstoncraft during the 156 00:10:12,440 --> 00:10:15,600 Speaker 1: years of the French Revolution. Yeah, it seems more like 157 00:10:15,679 --> 00:10:20,040 Speaker 1: he was a philanderer and an advocate for women, right. 158 00:10:20,240 --> 00:10:22,480 Speaker 1: He's one of those dudes that people might say today 159 00:10:22,520 --> 00:10:27,120 Speaker 1: he just loved women in a lot of ways. Also, 160 00:10:27,280 --> 00:10:29,600 Speaker 1: like a lot of the things that people characterized him 161 00:10:29,640 --> 00:10:33,320 Speaker 1: for negatively in the nineteenth century seemed to have been 162 00:10:33,520 --> 00:10:38,720 Speaker 1: viewed not as critically in the eighteenth century because of 163 00:10:39,040 --> 00:10:44,520 Speaker 1: changing mores around sex and relationships. Anyway, to move back 164 00:10:44,559 --> 00:10:48,320 Speaker 1: to the timeline, by seventeen seventy six, Miranda thought his 165 00:10:48,440 --> 00:10:51,880 Speaker 1: military career in and around Spain had kind of come 166 00:10:51,920 --> 00:10:54,720 Speaker 1: to a dead end, and he had also heard that 167 00:10:54,760 --> 00:10:58,360 Speaker 1: the unrest in Britain's colonies had evolved into a full 168 00:10:58,440 --> 00:11:02,680 Speaker 1: fledged revolution. This time he did get the transfer that 169 00:11:02,720 --> 00:11:05,120 Speaker 1: he had wanted, and we will get to that after 170 00:11:05,200 --> 00:11:18,960 Speaker 1: a sponsor break. If you're like me, you probably know 171 00:11:19,480 --> 00:11:24,360 Speaker 1: that France provided significant assistance to the Continental Army during 172 00:11:24,360 --> 00:11:30,120 Speaker 1: the Revolutionary War, including money, troops, ammunition supplies, and naval support. 173 00:11:30,840 --> 00:11:33,600 Speaker 1: My American history classes in school got into things like 174 00:11:33,640 --> 00:11:37,360 Speaker 1: Benjamin Franklin's mission to France to negotiate an alliance and 175 00:11:37,640 --> 00:11:40,920 Speaker 1: France's key role in the Battle of Yorktown in seventeen 176 00:11:41,000 --> 00:11:44,520 Speaker 1: eighty one. Of course, in more recent years than I 177 00:11:44,600 --> 00:11:47,440 Speaker 1: was in high school, the Marquis de Lafayette became one 178 00:11:47,480 --> 00:11:51,320 Speaker 1: of the most memorable characters in the musical Hamilton, with 179 00:11:51,440 --> 00:11:54,120 Speaker 1: the Conte de Rochambau getting a couple of name drops 180 00:11:54,160 --> 00:11:58,000 Speaker 1: in that show as well. And then Lynn Manuel Miranda 181 00:11:58,040 --> 00:12:01,160 Speaker 1: also wrote a Ben Franklin song alluding to that time 182 00:12:01,200 --> 00:12:03,880 Speaker 1: in Paris, and that was performed by the Decembrists that 183 00:12:04,000 --> 00:12:07,640 Speaker 1: came out later on a lot of stuff about France 184 00:12:07,679 --> 00:12:11,120 Speaker 1: and the Revolutionary War, I did not get a similar 185 00:12:11,320 --> 00:12:15,800 Speaker 1: story about the assistance that was provided by Spain. One 186 00:12:15,840 --> 00:12:19,000 Speaker 1: reason for Spain's support of the Revolution in North America 187 00:12:19,240 --> 00:12:22,200 Speaker 1: is that Spain was allied with France and France had 188 00:12:22,240 --> 00:12:25,960 Speaker 1: allied with the Revolution. France and Spain were each ruled 189 00:12:25,960 --> 00:12:28,440 Speaker 1: by monarchs from the House of Bourbon, and in the 190 00:12:28,480 --> 00:12:32,840 Speaker 1: eighteenth century they signed three separate but similar defensive agreements 191 00:12:33,160 --> 00:12:36,480 Speaker 1: known as the pac de Femie. The seventeen sixty one 192 00:12:36,559 --> 00:12:39,080 Speaker 1: agreement was signed during the Seven Years War, which is 193 00:12:39,200 --> 00:12:42,360 Speaker 1: of course a whole separate topic, but broadly speaking, it 194 00:12:42,360 --> 00:12:45,679 Speaker 1: didn't work out all that well for either nation. Spain's 195 00:12:45,679 --> 00:12:49,160 Speaker 1: support didn't make a huge difference to France, and Spain 196 00:12:49,200 --> 00:12:52,400 Speaker 1: lost two of its key ports, Havana and Manila, to 197 00:12:52,480 --> 00:12:55,600 Speaker 1: the British during the war. When the war ended, Spain 198 00:12:55,679 --> 00:12:58,400 Speaker 1: was able to regain this territory under the Treaty of 199 00:12:58,440 --> 00:13:01,840 Speaker 1: Paris in seventeen sixty three, but to do so it 200 00:13:01,880 --> 00:13:06,319 Speaker 1: had to seede Florida to Britain. Spain wanted Florida back, 201 00:13:06,400 --> 00:13:09,120 Speaker 1: as well as to retake Gibraltar on the southern coast 202 00:13:09,120 --> 00:13:12,640 Speaker 1: of Spain and Minorca in the Mediterranean Sea, both of 203 00:13:12,679 --> 00:13:17,920 Speaker 1: which were under British control. Spain had also gained territory 204 00:13:18,000 --> 00:13:22,440 Speaker 1: in North America that was the formerly French territory of Louisiana, 205 00:13:22,880 --> 00:13:26,840 Speaker 1: which Spain gained from France under the secretly signed Treaty 206 00:13:26,880 --> 00:13:30,839 Speaker 1: of Fontainebleau in seventeen sixty two. So Spain had an 207 00:13:30,880 --> 00:13:34,960 Speaker 1: interest in protecting this territory from British expansion and possibly 208 00:13:35,000 --> 00:13:39,120 Speaker 1: expanding it themselves. So with all that mind, on April twelfth, 209 00:13:39,160 --> 00:13:42,079 Speaker 1: seventeen seventy nine, France and Spain signed the Treaty of 210 00:13:42,200 --> 00:13:45,720 Speaker 1: arn Juez, in which Spain agreed to provide military support 211 00:13:45,760 --> 00:13:49,240 Speaker 1: to France while France agreed to support Spain's efforts to 212 00:13:49,280 --> 00:13:53,720 Speaker 1: retake Gibraltar, Minorca, and Florida. Spain declared war on Great 213 00:13:53,760 --> 00:13:58,360 Speaker 1: Britain on June twenty first, seventeen seventy nine. Spain did 214 00:13:58,400 --> 00:14:01,520 Speaker 1: not formally become an ally of the United States, though, 215 00:14:02,240 --> 00:14:05,400 Speaker 1: among other things, Spain did not want its involvement in 216 00:14:05,520 --> 00:14:10,160 Speaker 1: this revolution to encourage revolutionary activity in its own colonies 217 00:14:10,200 --> 00:14:13,440 Speaker 1: in the Americas, so a lot of Spain's involvement in 218 00:14:13,440 --> 00:14:17,280 Speaker 1: the Revolutionary War was a little bit less outwardly obvious 219 00:14:17,440 --> 00:14:22,560 Speaker 1: than something like the French involvement at the Siege of Yorktown. Instead, 220 00:14:23,160 --> 00:14:25,720 Speaker 1: Spain did things like opening all its ports to the 221 00:14:25,800 --> 00:14:30,000 Speaker 1: United States ships, and engaging the British Navy around places 222 00:14:30,040 --> 00:14:33,520 Speaker 1: like Gibraltar and Minorca, kind of tying up the Navy 223 00:14:33,600 --> 00:14:40,120 Speaker 1: somewhere other than the colonies. Spain also provided things like weapons, gunpowder, 224 00:14:40,320 --> 00:14:43,520 Speaker 1: fabric for military uniforms and boots, and a lot of 225 00:14:43,520 --> 00:14:46,240 Speaker 1: that made its way into the United States through Mexico 226 00:14:46,480 --> 00:14:51,200 Speaker 1: or Cuba. And there was also money. Spain provided financial 227 00:14:51,240 --> 00:14:54,280 Speaker 1: assistance to France for its efforts in the war, and 228 00:14:54,440 --> 00:14:57,840 Speaker 1: funneled loans to the United States through France and through 229 00:14:57,880 --> 00:15:03,360 Speaker 1: a fictitious Caribbean trading enterprise called Rodrique hortalezm Company. This 230 00:15:03,520 --> 00:15:07,400 Speaker 1: included critical financial support for the siege of Yorktown and 231 00:15:07,480 --> 00:15:10,320 Speaker 1: alone to pay soldiers in the Continental Army toward the 232 00:15:10,360 --> 00:15:13,840 Speaker 1: end of the war. According to the memoirs of Rochambeau's 233 00:15:13,880 --> 00:15:18,480 Speaker 1: treasurer Claude Blanchard, this loan involved so many silver coins 234 00:15:18,800 --> 00:15:20,880 Speaker 1: that they broke through the floor of the house where 235 00:15:20,920 --> 00:15:25,600 Speaker 1: they were being stored. Spain also fought against the British 236 00:15:25,720 --> 00:15:28,960 Speaker 1: in and around territory that it had previously lost to 237 00:15:29,000 --> 00:15:33,400 Speaker 1: Britain in North America. In seventeen eighty eighty vessels set 238 00:15:33,400 --> 00:15:36,400 Speaker 1: sail from Spain, carrying about twelve thousand men to be 239 00:15:36,480 --> 00:15:39,400 Speaker 1: part of doing this. One of those men was Francisco 240 00:15:39,440 --> 00:15:42,680 Speaker 1: de Miranda. Shortly after they arrived in Havana, he was 241 00:15:42,720 --> 00:15:45,440 Speaker 1: assigned to act as aide de camp to General Juan 242 00:15:45,520 --> 00:15:49,480 Speaker 1: Manuel de Cahigal in Montserrat, who was acting governor of Cuba. 243 00:15:50,320 --> 00:15:54,280 Speaker 1: Miranda's transfer to Cahigal's service may have been a byproduct 244 00:15:54,280 --> 00:15:58,040 Speaker 1: of his ongoing issues with military life. He really does 245 00:15:58,080 --> 00:16:01,000 Speaker 1: seem to have had clear ideas about how things should 246 00:16:01,040 --> 00:16:04,280 Speaker 1: be done and a very high opinion of his own abilities, 247 00:16:04,600 --> 00:16:07,280 Speaker 1: and his commanding officer seems to have wanted him out 248 00:16:07,320 --> 00:16:11,120 Speaker 1: of his hair. But Miranda and Cahigal worked well together. 249 00:16:11,600 --> 00:16:14,440 Speaker 1: Cahigal gave him some freedom to make his own decisions 250 00:16:14,880 --> 00:16:17,640 Speaker 1: or figure out for himself how to carry out his orders, 251 00:16:17,920 --> 00:16:21,480 Speaker 1: so there was just less headbutting and accusations of insubordination. 252 00:16:22,360 --> 00:16:26,480 Speaker 1: Cahigal eventually secured a promotion from Miranda to lieutenant colonel 253 00:16:26,760 --> 00:16:30,600 Speaker 1: and later recommended him to be promoted to colonel. Cahigal 254 00:16:30,760 --> 00:16:34,760 Speaker 1: also praised Miranda's work to Bernando de Galvez, governor of 255 00:16:34,800 --> 00:16:39,200 Speaker 1: Louisiana and field marshal of Spain's forces in North America. 256 00:16:39,920 --> 00:16:44,440 Speaker 1: Galvez had started smuggling supplies to the American rebels before 257 00:16:44,600 --> 00:16:48,000 Speaker 1: Spain had declared war on England, and he planned a 258 00:16:48,040 --> 00:16:52,040 Speaker 1: military campaign that would give the Spanish control of all 259 00:16:52,200 --> 00:16:56,200 Speaker 1: the ports around the Gulf of Mexico and up into 260 00:16:56,240 --> 00:17:02,120 Speaker 1: the Mississippi River, including defending New Orleans and capturing Baton, Rouge, Natchez, 261 00:17:02,240 --> 00:17:06,639 Speaker 1: and Mobile from Britain. The culmination of this effort was 262 00:17:06,680 --> 00:17:10,000 Speaker 1: the capture of Pensacola, which was then the capital of 263 00:17:10,040 --> 00:17:14,360 Speaker 1: the British territory of West Florida. All of this forced 264 00:17:14,400 --> 00:17:17,439 Speaker 1: the British to spread out their resources to fight on 265 00:17:17,480 --> 00:17:21,600 Speaker 1: an additional southern front, and it cut off Britain's access 266 00:17:21,680 --> 00:17:24,840 Speaker 1: to support and supply lines around the Gulf of Mexico. 267 00:17:25,880 --> 00:17:28,600 Speaker 1: Many of the men who had originally sailed from Spain 268 00:17:28,840 --> 00:17:32,840 Speaker 1: had sickened or died from tropical diseases, so they reinforced 269 00:17:32,840 --> 00:17:37,040 Speaker 1: their numbers with men from Louisiana, Mexico, and Cuba, including 270 00:17:37,240 --> 00:17:41,480 Speaker 1: enslaved and freed black men. After waiting out hurricane season, 271 00:17:41,600 --> 00:17:45,040 Speaker 1: this multi racial army departed from Cuba to the mainland 272 00:17:45,119 --> 00:17:49,520 Speaker 1: in February of seventeen eighty one, joining up with Galvaz's force. 273 00:17:50,240 --> 00:17:53,520 Speaker 1: They arrived at the Barrier Islands outside Pensacola Bay on 274 00:17:53,600 --> 00:17:56,880 Speaker 1: March ninth. After one of the ships ran aground, they 275 00:17:56,920 --> 00:18:00,399 Speaker 1: regrouped and made their way into the bay on March eighteenth. 276 00:18:00,560 --> 00:18:03,560 Speaker 1: The battles to capture Pensacola went on for about eight 277 00:18:03,680 --> 00:18:08,040 Speaker 1: weeks before a Spanish shell hit the powder Magazine on 278 00:18:08,160 --> 00:18:11,960 Speaker 1: May eighth, which destroyed Fort George and forced the British 279 00:18:11,960 --> 00:18:16,440 Speaker 1: to surrender. Since Miranda was fluent in both English and Spanish, 280 00:18:16,520 --> 00:18:20,320 Speaker 1: he was one of the people who helped negotiate surrender terms. 281 00:18:20,880 --> 00:18:25,680 Speaker 1: Spain officially took control of Pensacola on May tenth. This 282 00:18:25,960 --> 00:18:28,640 Speaker 1: was about four months before the Siege of Yorktown, which 283 00:18:28,680 --> 00:18:31,720 Speaker 1: was the last major land battle of the Revolutionary War. 284 00:18:32,560 --> 00:18:35,919 Speaker 1: There were still skirmishes on land after Yorktown, though, and 285 00:18:35,960 --> 00:18:38,840 Speaker 1: the British Navy continued to fight the naval forces of 286 00:18:38,920 --> 00:18:43,479 Speaker 1: other European powers at sea, including France, the Netherlands in Spain, 287 00:18:43,960 --> 00:18:46,680 Speaker 1: but this is usually seen as something of an ending 288 00:18:46,800 --> 00:18:50,560 Speaker 1: in the war. The Revolutionary War formally ended two years 289 00:18:50,640 --> 00:18:53,320 Speaker 1: later under the Treaty of Paris in seventeen eighty three, 290 00:18:53,800 --> 00:18:56,879 Speaker 1: and Britain also signed separate peace treaties with France and 291 00:18:56,960 --> 00:19:01,120 Speaker 1: Spain known as the Treaties of Versailles. Under these treaties, 292 00:19:01,200 --> 00:19:04,960 Speaker 1: Spain regained control of East and West Florida and Minorca, 293 00:19:05,000 --> 00:19:09,639 Speaker 1: as well as Sacramento. Of course, Spain eventually returned Louisiana 294 00:19:09,680 --> 00:19:13,520 Speaker 1: to France under another secret agreement in eighteen hundred, and 295 00:19:13,560 --> 00:19:17,640 Speaker 1: the US purchased much of it in eighteen oh three. Today, 296 00:19:18,040 --> 00:19:21,280 Speaker 1: the loss of Pensacola is seen as a turning point 297 00:19:21,359 --> 00:19:24,679 Speaker 1: in the war, after which Britain thought it might not 298 00:19:24,840 --> 00:19:27,919 Speaker 1: be possible to win it. In addition to cutting off 299 00:19:28,000 --> 00:19:31,960 Speaker 1: Britain from the Gulf of Mexico, Galvez's campaign also meant 300 00:19:32,000 --> 00:19:35,520 Speaker 1: that Britain had lost a colony in this war that 301 00:19:35,760 --> 00:19:38,280 Speaker 1: was not actually one of the colonies that had rebelled 302 00:19:38,320 --> 00:19:43,240 Speaker 1: against it. Without Spain's contributions of money, funds, and supplies, 303 00:19:43,440 --> 00:19:46,920 Speaker 1: and its military efforts along the Gulf of Mexico and elsewhere, 304 00:19:47,280 --> 00:19:50,000 Speaker 1: the Revolutionary War probably would have gone on for a 305 00:19:50,080 --> 00:19:54,080 Speaker 1: whole lot longer. As a side note, Bernardo de Galvez 306 00:19:54,280 --> 00:19:57,200 Speaker 1: is the namesake of Galveston, Texas, as well as other 307 00:19:57,240 --> 00:20:00,879 Speaker 1: places in Texas and Louisiana. He was only one of 308 00:20:01,000 --> 00:20:05,000 Speaker 1: eight people in history to have been given honorary US citizenship. 309 00:20:05,400 --> 00:20:08,280 Speaker 1: That happened in twenty fourteen under Public Law number one 310 00:20:08,359 --> 00:20:11,479 Speaker 1: one three DASH two two nine, which described this as 311 00:20:11,520 --> 00:20:14,919 Speaker 1: an extraordinary honor and called him quote hero of the 312 00:20:14,960 --> 00:20:18,240 Speaker 1: Revolutionary War who risked his life for the freedom of 313 00:20:18,280 --> 00:20:22,840 Speaker 1: the United States people and provided supplies, intelligence, and strong 314 00:20:22,920 --> 00:20:26,240 Speaker 1: military support to the war effort. We will get back 315 00:20:26,240 --> 00:20:40,280 Speaker 1: to Miranda after another sponsor break. After the capture of Pensacola, 316 00:20:40,440 --> 00:20:44,439 Speaker 1: Spanish forces took the opportunity to resupply, some of it 317 00:20:44,560 --> 00:20:49,119 Speaker 1: by looting and commandeering, but also by making actual purchases. 318 00:20:49,720 --> 00:20:53,159 Speaker 1: Francisco to Miranda bought at least twenty four books in 319 00:20:53,400 --> 00:20:57,440 Speaker 1: English to add to his personal library. He also purchased 320 00:20:57,480 --> 00:21:03,040 Speaker 1: at least three enslaved African peace Some historians have interpreted 321 00:21:03,040 --> 00:21:06,720 Speaker 1: this as an attempt at benevolence, basically trying to ensure 322 00:21:06,800 --> 00:21:09,320 Speaker 1: these people's safety and provide them with a better life 323 00:21:09,400 --> 00:21:12,760 Speaker 1: than they might have had otherwise. But he also later 324 00:21:12,880 --> 00:21:15,520 Speaker 1: sold these people to someone else, and at one point 325 00:21:15,560 --> 00:21:19,159 Speaker 1: also accepted an enslaved person that someone gave him as 326 00:21:19,200 --> 00:21:22,800 Speaker 1: a gift. In reality, Miranda had grown up in a 327 00:21:22,840 --> 00:21:26,399 Speaker 1: slave society, his father had enslaved at least seven people 328 00:21:26,480 --> 00:21:29,040 Speaker 1: during his youth, and he just doesn't seem to have 329 00:21:29,080 --> 00:21:31,480 Speaker 1: been thinking about the issue very deeply at this point. 330 00:21:32,040 --> 00:21:36,920 Speaker 1: Although Miranda later became connected to vocal abolitionists, the abolition 331 00:21:37,040 --> 00:21:40,520 Speaker 1: of slavery was never really a focal point in his 332 00:21:40,640 --> 00:21:44,720 Speaker 1: revolutionary ideas, and at first this was probably still a 333 00:21:44,800 --> 00:21:48,080 Speaker 1: byproduct of just not putting a lot of thought into it, 334 00:21:48,280 --> 00:21:52,760 Speaker 1: but later after the Haitian Revolution, it was also out 335 00:21:52,800 --> 00:21:58,240 Speaker 1: of fear of sparking another similar uprising among enslaved Africans 336 00:21:58,320 --> 00:22:01,400 Speaker 1: in the places that he wanted to live. He did 337 00:22:01,480 --> 00:22:04,359 Speaker 1: advocate for the rights of free black people in a 338 00:22:04,400 --> 00:22:07,080 Speaker 1: lot of contexts, but he just really does not seem 339 00:22:07,080 --> 00:22:10,919 Speaker 1: to have considered what things like freedom and liberation could 340 00:22:10,960 --> 00:22:14,600 Speaker 1: mean in the context of societies that were so deeply 341 00:22:14,680 --> 00:22:19,160 Speaker 1: connected to the enslavement of African and indigenous peoples, or 342 00:22:19,359 --> 00:22:22,520 Speaker 1: like really what it would take to achieve those ideals 343 00:22:22,600 --> 00:22:26,760 Speaker 1: in that context. In August of seventeen eighty one, General 344 00:22:26,840 --> 00:22:30,720 Speaker 1: Juan Manuel de Cahigau sent Miranda to Jamaica to negotiate 345 00:22:30,720 --> 00:22:34,600 Speaker 1: a prisoner exchange and to make discrete inquiries about whether 346 00:22:34,640 --> 00:22:37,840 Speaker 1: Spain might be able to purchase British ships and supplies. There, 347 00:22:38,560 --> 00:22:42,560 Speaker 1: Miranda successfully negotiated for the release of nine hundred prisoners 348 00:22:42,920 --> 00:22:46,520 Speaker 1: and arranged for their transport back to Cuba. Although he 349 00:22:46,600 --> 00:22:49,679 Speaker 1: had a history of rubbing his own military superiors the 350 00:22:49,720 --> 00:22:53,679 Speaker 1: wrong way, he was also described as extremely charming, and 351 00:22:53,720 --> 00:22:56,320 Speaker 1: he convinced the British governor in Jamaica to give him 352 00:22:56,320 --> 00:22:59,720 Speaker 1: free reign to go wherever he wanted. So, on top 353 00:22:59,760 --> 00:23:04,040 Speaker 1: of making those requested discrete inquiries, he also took detailed 354 00:23:04,080 --> 00:23:08,680 Speaker 1: notes about the British presence on Jamaica, including the fortifications, troops, 355 00:23:08,720 --> 00:23:12,359 Speaker 1: and ships to deliver back to the Spanish. He also 356 00:23:12,400 --> 00:23:16,119 Speaker 1: wanted to take the opportunity to continue to improve his English, 357 00:23:16,960 --> 00:23:20,960 Speaker 1: so he bought some more English language books for his library, 358 00:23:21,119 --> 00:23:25,760 Speaker 1: and he piled around with various English officials in Jamaica. 359 00:23:25,920 --> 00:23:30,000 Speaker 1: While he had made those inquiries discreetly, he wasn't really 360 00:23:30,040 --> 00:23:32,879 Speaker 1: as discreete when it came to talking about what was 361 00:23:32,960 --> 00:23:36,119 Speaker 1: happening with Spain's forces in the Caribbean and the Gulf 362 00:23:36,119 --> 00:23:39,920 Speaker 1: of Mexico. It might seem a little weird that he 363 00:23:40,080 --> 00:23:44,720 Speaker 1: was either intentionally or by accident, revealing Spanish secrets to 364 00:23:44,760 --> 00:23:48,680 Speaker 1: the British while fighting against the British and the Revolutionary War. 365 00:23:49,520 --> 00:23:53,399 Speaker 1: At this point, Miranda was also starting to think about 366 00:23:53,440 --> 00:23:57,800 Speaker 1: bringing a revolution to Spanish America, and in that war, 367 00:23:58,160 --> 00:24:02,119 Speaker 1: Britain could be a potential ally. When Miranda returned to 368 00:24:02,119 --> 00:24:05,679 Speaker 1: Havana after either intentionally working as a double agent or 369 00:24:05,840 --> 00:24:09,080 Speaker 1: just being a little too loose lipped, he was immediately 370 00:24:09,160 --> 00:24:12,239 Speaker 1: questioned about all of those meetings with the British, as 371 00:24:12,320 --> 00:24:15,200 Speaker 1: well as other various intrigues that he had gotten into, 372 00:24:15,440 --> 00:24:19,240 Speaker 1: like trying to secure some naval vessels for Kahigal, claiming 373 00:24:19,280 --> 00:24:21,439 Speaker 1: they would be sailing under a flag of truce as 374 00:24:21,480 --> 00:24:25,080 Speaker 1: a prisoner war transport while really intending to add them 375 00:24:25,119 --> 00:24:28,040 Speaker 1: to the fleet. He also might have done a little 376 00:24:28,080 --> 00:24:31,320 Speaker 1: light smuggling. Galvez, who had never thought as highly of 377 00:24:31,359 --> 00:24:36,040 Speaker 1: Miranda as Khigal did, ordered his arrest and a formal investigation. 378 00:24:36,880 --> 00:24:39,800 Speaker 1: Kahigal got him released, and soon after, in August of 379 00:24:39,840 --> 00:24:44,280 Speaker 1: seventeen eighty two, Miranda fled from Havana. After spending some 380 00:24:44,440 --> 00:24:47,359 Speaker 1: time in hiding, he traveled to the United States aboard 381 00:24:47,359 --> 00:24:51,159 Speaker 1: an American ship called the Prudent in seventeen eighty three. 382 00:24:51,280 --> 00:24:53,919 Speaker 1: By that point, the Spanish government considered him to be 383 00:24:53,960 --> 00:24:57,840 Speaker 1: a conspirator against the crowned Kahigal was caught up in 384 00:24:58,000 --> 00:25:02,040 Speaker 1: Miranda's intrigues as well, and was eventually forced to go 385 00:25:02,119 --> 00:25:05,760 Speaker 1: to Spain to try to clear his own name. This 386 00:25:05,800 --> 00:25:08,880 Speaker 1: doesn't really seem to have tarnished his relationship with Miranda, 387 00:25:08,880 --> 00:25:11,960 Speaker 1: though much later, in April of eighteen hundred, it would 388 00:25:12,000 --> 00:25:15,080 Speaker 1: be Kahigal who wrote to Miranda to inform him that 389 00:25:15,200 --> 00:25:17,720 Speaker 1: King Carlos the Third had cleared him of all of 390 00:25:17,760 --> 00:25:22,399 Speaker 1: these charges. Miranda's ship landed in newbern, North Carolina in 391 00:25:22,520 --> 00:25:25,639 Speaker 1: June of seventeen eighty three, just a few months before 392 00:25:25,640 --> 00:25:29,480 Speaker 1: the Treaty of Paris officially ended the Revolutionary War, and 393 00:25:29,520 --> 00:25:31,720 Speaker 1: he spent the next year and a half traveling through 394 00:25:31,760 --> 00:25:36,000 Speaker 1: the newly independent United States. He kept a detailed diary 395 00:25:36,040 --> 00:25:38,600 Speaker 1: of his travels, covering everything from the names of the 396 00:25:38,640 --> 00:25:41,960 Speaker 1: notable people he meant, to the social and religious customs 397 00:25:42,000 --> 00:25:45,080 Speaker 1: of different areas, to the governments and systems people were 398 00:25:45,080 --> 00:25:48,480 Speaker 1: in the process of establishing. Some of this seemed pretty 399 00:25:48,480 --> 00:25:51,840 Speaker 1: strange to him, like in some areas that he passed through. 400 00:25:51,920 --> 00:25:55,880 Speaker 1: He was criticized for doing things like playing music on Sunday. 401 00:25:56,480 --> 00:25:59,120 Speaker 1: A lot of Protestants in North America saw the Sabbath 402 00:25:59,160 --> 00:26:02,000 Speaker 1: as a day of content templative rest, while the Sabbath 403 00:26:02,080 --> 00:26:06,879 Speaker 1: and Catholic Venezuela had been more festive in celebratory. He 404 00:26:07,000 --> 00:26:10,639 Speaker 1: was particularly fascinated by the Quaker communities that he visited 405 00:26:10,640 --> 00:26:14,639 Speaker 1: in Pennsylvania and how different their religious and cultural practices 406 00:26:14,680 --> 00:26:18,680 Speaker 1: were than anything he'd really experienced elsewhere. He was also 407 00:26:18,800 --> 00:26:23,399 Speaker 1: particularly impressed with how often he saw elected leaders and 408 00:26:23,520 --> 00:26:28,439 Speaker 1: other elites meeting, conversing, and sharing meals with more common people. 409 00:26:29,080 --> 00:26:32,040 Speaker 1: That was something that seemed more egalitarian to him than 410 00:26:32,080 --> 00:26:35,520 Speaker 1: the more hierarchical ways that things had worked in Venezuela 411 00:26:35,640 --> 00:26:40,320 Speaker 1: or Spain. During this tour, Miranda met seemingly every major 412 00:26:40,359 --> 00:26:44,119 Speaker 1: figure of the American Revolution and had lengthy conversations with 413 00:26:44,200 --> 00:26:47,320 Speaker 1: them about the revolution, the war, and the government they 414 00:26:47,320 --> 00:26:51,600 Speaker 1: were establishing. He met George Washington for dinner in Philadelphia, 415 00:26:51,680 --> 00:26:55,800 Speaker 1: and after meeting Alexander Hamilton, started a regular correspondence with 416 00:26:55,880 --> 00:26:58,880 Speaker 1: him that would last for the rest of Hamilton's life. 417 00:26:58,960 --> 00:27:02,199 Speaker 1: In Boston, he met Samuel Adams and Henry Knox, and 418 00:27:02,240 --> 00:27:06,359 Speaker 1: at some point he also met poet Phyllis Wheatley. It's 419 00:27:06,640 --> 00:27:09,840 Speaker 1: likely that Miranda had been thinking about the idea of 420 00:27:09,920 --> 00:27:14,720 Speaker 1: starting a revolution in Spanish America for some time before this, 421 00:27:15,240 --> 00:27:17,920 Speaker 1: but he wrote that in New York he quote formed 422 00:27:17,960 --> 00:27:21,240 Speaker 1: a project for the liberty and independence of the entire 423 00:27:21,359 --> 00:27:26,360 Speaker 1: Spanish American continent. In April of seventeen eighty four, Miranda 424 00:27:26,440 --> 00:27:29,000 Speaker 1: received word that he had been sentenced for deserting the 425 00:27:29,040 --> 00:27:33,440 Speaker 1: Spanish military, including being fined and stripped of his commission. 426 00:27:34,119 --> 00:27:37,520 Speaker 1: He was also sentenced to exile, although at that point 427 00:27:37,640 --> 00:27:40,240 Speaker 1: he hadn't been in Spanish territory for almost a year. 428 00:27:41,119 --> 00:27:45,320 Speaker 1: That meant, though, that he couldn't legally return. On December fifteenth, 429 00:27:45,400 --> 00:27:48,480 Speaker 1: seventeen eighty four, he set sail for London, and we're 430 00:27:48,520 --> 00:27:53,040 Speaker 1: going to get into that part of the story next time. Uh, 431 00:27:53,359 --> 00:27:57,240 Speaker 1: before we move on to next time Tomorrow, the next day, 432 00:27:57,280 --> 00:28:02,119 Speaker 1: whatever day you're listening, I have listener mail. Hooray. This 433 00:28:02,359 --> 00:28:06,160 Speaker 1: listener mail is from Jennifer, who wrote, after we did 434 00:28:06,160 --> 00:28:10,760 Speaker 1: a six impossible episodes about etiquette manuals, Jennifer said, High, 435 00:28:10,760 --> 00:28:13,359 Speaker 1: Holly and Tracy, I started listening to your podcast. A 436 00:28:13,400 --> 00:28:16,080 Speaker 1: few years ago when my sister and her family were 437 00:28:16,119 --> 00:28:19,240 Speaker 1: staying here with me and my parents. My mom, my sister, 438 00:28:19,280 --> 00:28:22,119 Speaker 1: and I love to cross ditch, and we began gathering 439 00:28:22,240 --> 00:28:25,080 Speaker 1: around the living room table to work on our projects 440 00:28:25,160 --> 00:28:28,960 Speaker 1: and listen to podcasts. Recently, while listening to the Etiquette 441 00:28:28,960 --> 00:28:32,479 Speaker 1: Manual episode, my mother and I both thought of Mark Twain. 442 00:28:32,760 --> 00:28:34,719 Speaker 1: My dad is obsessed with his work, so it's been 443 00:28:34,760 --> 00:28:37,640 Speaker 1: a major part of our lives growing up. He wrote 444 00:28:37,680 --> 00:28:40,600 Speaker 1: a short piece in Letters from the Earth called from 445 00:28:40,680 --> 00:28:44,960 Speaker 1: an unfinished burlesque of Books on Etiquette, which made fun 446 00:28:45,000 --> 00:28:48,600 Speaker 1: of several poorly written etiquette manuals in common circulation at 447 00:28:48,640 --> 00:28:51,880 Speaker 1: the time. The second section at of fire is my 448 00:28:52,000 --> 00:28:55,160 Speaker 1: personal favorite. If you've never read it, we highly recommend it. 449 00:28:55,160 --> 00:28:58,640 Speaker 1: It is still hilarious all these years later. It includes 450 00:28:58,800 --> 00:29:02,520 Speaker 1: several of the elements you described in actual etiquette manuals, 451 00:29:02,560 --> 00:29:06,160 Speaker 1: such as example texts and scenarios, but all with Twain's 452 00:29:06,200 --> 00:29:12,280 Speaker 1: particular deadpan exaggeration added. As pet tax, I've included pictures 453 00:29:12,280 --> 00:29:15,160 Speaker 1: of Delilah, our five year old gray kitty. She hates 454 00:29:15,200 --> 00:29:17,680 Speaker 1: getting her picture taken, so I apologize for the if 455 00:29:17,680 --> 00:29:21,440 Speaker 1: equality and Cleo the bengal belonging to one of our 456 00:29:21,520 --> 00:29:24,000 Speaker 1: close friends who came by on a visit a few 457 00:29:24,000 --> 00:29:26,640 Speaker 1: weeks ago. Thank you so much for all of the 458 00:29:26,760 --> 00:29:29,880 Speaker 1: joy you bring to our lives. Kindest regards, Jennifer. Thank 459 00:29:29,920 --> 00:29:32,040 Speaker 1: you so much, Jennifer for this email. Number one. I 460 00:29:32,040 --> 00:29:34,640 Speaker 1: have not heard of this work by Mark Twain. I 461 00:29:34,680 --> 00:29:37,120 Speaker 1: am definitely going to look into it, but I have 462 00:29:37,240 --> 00:29:40,640 Speaker 1: not as of now. We have a picture a black 463 00:29:40,720 --> 00:29:46,120 Speaker 1: kitty cat, all four paws up in the air and 464 00:29:46,280 --> 00:29:53,480 Speaker 1: the front pause curled over, so sweet, so cute. Next picture, yes, 465 00:29:53,640 --> 00:29:58,240 Speaker 1: this bengal is very eager to It looks like jump 466 00:29:58,280 --> 00:30:03,520 Speaker 1: on top of a washing machine or a dryer, which is, 467 00:30:03,680 --> 00:30:07,640 Speaker 1: you know, super appropriate thing for cats to do, jump 468 00:30:07,680 --> 00:30:10,440 Speaker 1: up on top of things. But then also we've got 469 00:30:10,480 --> 00:30:17,320 Speaker 1: some pictures of under a piece of furniture, including the 470 00:30:17,320 --> 00:30:19,240 Speaker 1: flash from the camera or just the light for the 471 00:30:19,280 --> 00:30:22,720 Speaker 1: camera causing glowing cat eyes. I love all of these pictures. 472 00:30:23,640 --> 00:30:27,240 Speaker 1: I love learning that there was a satire by Mark 473 00:30:27,280 --> 00:30:32,280 Speaker 1: Twain about the etiquette manuals. That sounds great. So thank 474 00:30:32,320 --> 00:30:35,920 Speaker 1: you so much for sending this email. If you would 475 00:30:35,960 --> 00:30:39,160 Speaker 1: like to write to us about this or any other 476 00:30:39,200 --> 00:30:42,880 Speaker 1: podcast for History podcast at iHeartRadio dot com and we're 477 00:30:42,880 --> 00:30:46,360 Speaker 1: on social media kind of at Miston History on most 478 00:30:46,360 --> 00:30:48,680 Speaker 1: of the places, and you can subscribe to our show 479 00:30:49,400 --> 00:30:52,640 Speaker 1: on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you like to get 480 00:30:52,720 --> 00:31:00,880 Speaker 1: your podcasts. Stuff you miss in History Class is a 481 00:31:00,920 --> 00:31:05,320 Speaker 1: production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the 482 00:31:05,320 --> 00:31:08,840 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your 483 00:31:08,840 --> 00:31:09,600 Speaker 1: favorite shows.