Episode 34: Polignac

In 1816, the French frigate Medusa ran aground off the coast of Africa, leading to one of the most infamous naval disasters in world history. In the process, it will shine a light on the harsh realities of Bourbon Restoration politics and France's tiny colonial empire. View thesiecle.com/episode36 for a full annotated transcript, including maps and images. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Follow the money and where does it lead? In the Bourbon Restoration, the financial lifeblood of France was the Paris Stock Exchange, where trading in government bonds made and lost fortunes, secured comfortable retirements, and shook the very ship of state. I'm joined by historian Tyson Leuchter to break down the role of debt and finance in Restoration life. Visit thesiecle.com/supplemental18 for a full transcript. Use coupon code "siecle" at intelligentspeechonline.com to get 10% off your ticket to the 2023 Intelligent Speech Conference — a one-day online conference for history fans, by history podcasters. I'll be among the presenters on Nov. 4, 2023.

France's economy in 1830 stunk. But what does that even mean for an agricultural, pre-modern economy? And how did this bad economy impact France's controversial prime minister Jules de Polignac?