Tag Archives: diplomacy

038 – The Nation’s Chief Diplomat



The State Department Building, c. 1865, courtesy of Wikipedia

Henry Clay takes over the State Department and finds he has big shoes to fill coming in after John Quincy Adams. As he assumes his duties, he is forced to deal with personal tragedy, poor health, and difficult diplomatic negotiations. Though scoring some wins abroad as new treaties are entered into, Clay only meets with frustration when dealing with the British and with folks back home in Kentucky. Listen in as we discuss the period of Clay’s life that one historian calls “the least congenial period of his whole official life.” Source information for this episode can be found at http://whhpodcast.blubrry.com.


025 – The Colombian Mission



The Cathedral of Bogotá in Bolívar Square, 2004 by Kenori, courtesy of Wikipedia

Harrison is sent off on a diplomatic mission to Colombia but quickly learns that navigating international politics can sometimes be problematic, particularly in the wake of both the turbulence of the Latin American wars of independence and the Jackson revolution back in the States. Join the General and myself on a journey of nearly 2,500 miles from North Bend to Bogotá, the capital of Simón Bolívar’s Gran Colombia. Sources for this episode can be found at http://whhpodcast.blubrry.com.