15-Minute History

The modern presidency's power is beyond anything our founders could have dreamed. Its limits often seem ill-defined, as are efforts to hold elected officials accountable for their actions. So what can be done?
Join us every Monday for episodes and discussions, and check out our Thursday pop quizzes and Sketches in History episodes!

What happens when a powerful nation attacks a long-standing rival? No, we aren't talking about the United States and Iran (though that conversation is coming). What would happen if China tried to retake the island of Taiwan as it as long planned to do so. What are the historical forces in play? And how would America and the world respond to this kind of aggression?
Join us on Thursdays for pop quizzes and Sketches in History and on Mondays for episodes and discussions. Send us your thoughts in the comments below.

Americans love a scandal, especially when it involves those in power. In this episode, we take a look at three of the most scandal-ridden presidencies in American history (none of which involve living chief executives) and try to understand what each one tells us about the abuse of power and the institutions that work to both preserve and restrain it.
Join us every Monday for episodes and discussions and Thursdays for pop quizzes and Sketches in History. We love hearing from you, so leave a comment below!

Welcome back to Sketches in History! This segment, just for kids, shows that history isn't just a story; it's an adventure. Join Lottie Archer as she dives into her extraordinary notebook, where sketches from history come to life.
In this episode, Lottie travels to 1913 Washington, D.C., where thousands of women in white march down Pennsylvania Avenue demanding the right to vote. But this march is just the beginning. Lottie discovers an era when Americans rewrote their own rulebook four times in seven years. Your kids will learn what progress really means, why one amendment had to be completely undone, and how a single letter from a mother changed the course of history forever.
Listen and subscribe to the 15-Minute History podcast to hear Sketches in History every other Thursday. Got a favorite historical moment? Share it with us at [email protected], and it might just make its way into the notebook!

By popular demand, the 15-Minute History team is re-airing one of our most popular episodes. This originally aired on April 8th, 2019. New episode next Monday, March 2nd.
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The name “Enterprise” is not exclusive to fictional starships or the space shuttle; in fact, nineteen ships of the British Royal Navy and nine of the United States Navy have born the name (spelled either with an S or a Z). Undoubtedly, the most famous USS Enterprise is the World War Two-era aircraft carrier, which fought in more battles in the Pacific War than any other vessel, earned twenty battle stars, and is today the most decorated ship in American naval history. “The Big E,” (first of her many nicknames) was commissioned in May 1938 and attached to the Atlantic fleet for her first year of service. As tensions rose with Japan and the Navy Department realized the importance of aircraft carriers in the Pacific, the Enterprise was transferred to the Pacific Fleet and based first at San Diego and then at Pearl Harbor.
Join us as we teach you about the most decorated ship in the history of the US Navy, the USS Enterprise. We talk about her history, engagements, and why she was called, The Grey Ghost. When it comes to the United States Navy, names carry with them the legends of those ships which came before, and history will surely not forget the name Enterprise.