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From Executive Mansion to the People’s House: A History of the White House
From Executive Mansion to the People’s House: A History of the White House
From Executive Mansion to the People’s House: A History of the White House
- Dates: Thursday Dec 11, 18, and Tuesday Dec 23
- Time: 10:30 pm to 12:00pm EST
- This set of three lectures explores one of the most remarkable houses in America: the White House. From the time of Abigail Adams hanging laundry in the East Room to substantial renovations during the times of Teddy Roosevelt and Harry Truman, this house has seen key moments of celebration, suffering and key episodes of tumult. We will explore historic moments such as the burning of the White House in 1814, its trashing at Andrew Jackson’s inauguration, the creation of the Oval Office in 1909, Edith Wilson’s governing for her husband in 1920, Winston Churchill’s colorful week-long stay in 1940, and recent efforts at renovation. From the President’s house to the center of global politics and trade, the building has changed and adapted as the presidency and the United States itself has changed and transformed.
Great Walls and Silk Roads: China’s First Golden Age
From Executive Mansion to the People’s House: A History of the White House
From Executive Mansion to the People’s House: A History of the White House
- Dates: Dec 4, 11, 18, 23
- Time: 1pm to 2:30pm EST
- This set of four lectures examines China’s first great imperial age beginning with the Han dynasty (206 BC-220 AD). Long considered one of the most significant in Chinese history, this era saw a dynamic new dynasty dramatically expand its territory and become an imperial and commercial giant. From the South China Sea to the steppes of Mongolia and points far to the west, the Hans built great walls and established silk roads that would place the Chinese at the apex of human civilization in the ancient period.
Kings in Crisis: Bourbon Rulers in the Age of Revolution, 1715-1830
From Executive Mansion to the People’s House: A History of the White House
Before the West Was Won: Exploration and Encounter on the Frontier, 1789-1848.
- Dates: Fridays, December 5, 12, 19 & 26
- Time: 10:30 - Noon ET
- In this set of four lectures, we will examine the political and personal lives of the final generations of the Bourbon kings of France. We will survey the grand living Louis XV to the tragedies of Louis XVI and Louis XVII whose lives ended at the hands of revolutionaries to the final, reactionary, post-revolutionary figures of Louis XVIII and Charles X. Extraordinary figures will populate this review such as Madame du Barry, Madame de Pompadour, Marie Antoinette, and Louis Philippe, Duke de Orléans aka “Philippe Égalité,”. Looking at the lives and decisions of the Bourbon kings, their families and close associates will provide unique, often personal insights into an age of revolution that rocked France and Europe and eventually the world.
Before the West Was Won: Exploration and Encounter on the Frontier, 1789-1848.
Before the West Was Won: Exploration and Encounter on the Frontier, 1789-1848.
Before the West Was Won: Exploration and Encounter on the Frontier, 1789-1848.
- Dates: Mondays, December 1, 8, 15 & 22.
- Time: 10:30-Noon ET
- This set of 4 lectures explores the first encounters between Americans in the United States and Native Americans in the western territories from 1789 to 1848. We will focus on the society and culture of native tribes in the west such as the Sioux, the Commanche and the Apache as well as notable white explorers, trappers and mountain men. These included figures such as Lewis and Clark, Daniel Boone, Davey Crockett, Zebulon Pike, and John C. Frémont. This was an era marked by social and political clashes, accommodation, acculturation, and (ultimately) tragedy.
The Art of Silence: America’s First Golden Age of Film
Before the West Was Won: Exploration and Encounter on the Frontier, 1789-1848.
The Art of Silence: America’s First Golden Age of Film
- Dates: Monday Dec 1, 8, 15, & 22 from
- Time: 1pm - 2pm ET
- In this series we’ll explore the origins of silent film and its transformation into the “studio system,” from early experiments in New York City to Hollywood’s rise. We’ll trace the wonder of the “primitives” and their first moving pictures through the emergence of shorts and feature films with notables like D.W. Griffith, Theda Bara, the Keystone Kops, and Rin Tin Tin. Together we’ll also savor the artistry of silent cinema at its 1920s peak—celebrating stars such as Charlie Chaplin, Clara Bow, and Rudolph Valentino—and discover how their films delighted audiences even as they pushed the cultural “envelope” on matters of race, ethnicity, gender, and class, something Hollywood films would do for the next 100 years and more.