Thomas Midgley Jr. revolutionized the U.S. auto industry in the early 1900s. But, he may have also been responsible for a violent mid-century American crime wave and lowered IQs across the world.  https://www.patreon.com/softcorehistory for hundreds of hours of extra history content including listener history questions, history movie watch-alongs, and weekly bonus episodes. Go to https://GhostBed.com/drinkinbros and use code DRINKINBROS for 50% off EVERYTHING (Mattresses, Adjustable Base, Pillows & More) –plus a 101 Night Sleep Trial and Mattresses Made in America. Head to https://FACTORMEALS.com/softcore50 and use code softcore50 to get 50% off.  Rob Fox https://www.instagram.com/robfoxthree/ https://twitter.com/RobFoxThree https://www.tiktok.com/@robfoxthree   Dan Regester https://www.instagram.com/danregester/ https://twitter.com/dan_regester   Jake Goldman https://www.instagram.com/jakewgoldman/ https://twitter.com/JakeWGoldman

Hong Xiuquan was the leader of the Taiping Rebellion that killed over 30 million people, the self-proclaimed celestial brother of Jesus Christ, and an inspirational figure to future chairman of the Chinese Communist Party Mao Zedong. He (initally) had the backing of Karl Marx and was a massive thorn in the side of the Qing Dynasty for 14 years after a mental breakdown from failing his civil service exams.  https://www.patreon.com/softcorehistory for hundreds of hours of extra history content including listener history questions, history movie watch-alongs, and weekly bonus episodes. Go to https://GhostBed.com/drinkinbros and use code DRINKINBROS for 50% off EVERYTHING (Mattresses, Adjustable Base, Pillows & More) –plus a 101 Night Sleep Trial and Mattresses Made in America. Head to https://FACTORMEALS.com/softcore50 and use code softcore50 to get 50% off.  Rob Fox  https://www.instagram.com/robfoxthree/ https://twitter.com/RobFoxThree https://www.tiktok.com/@robfoxthree   Dan Regester https://www.instagram.com/danregester/ https://twitter.com/dan_regester Jake Goldman https://www.instagram.com/jakewgoldman/ https://twitter.com/JakeWGoldman

The Agapemonites were a Victorian religious cult that checked all the boxes. A leader who thought he was God and also immortal and needed multiple wives? Check, check, and check. A way to separate idiots from their money and possessions? Check. A creepy compound with high walls? Check. But even for a relatively early modern cult Henry Prince and his followers found some fun (see: horrible) ways to make their mark on the history of cults. https://www.patreon.com/softcorehistory for hundreds of hours of extra history content including listener history questions, history movie watch-alongs, and weekly bonus episodes. Go to https://GhostBed.com/drinkinbros and use code DRINKINBROS for 50% off EVERYTHING (Mattresses, Adjustable Base, Pillows & More) –plus a 101 Night Sleep Trial and Mattresses Made in America. Head to https://FACTORMEALS.com/softcore50 and use code softcore50 to get 50% off.  Rob Fox  https://www.instagram.com/robfoxthree/ https://twitter.com/RobFoxThree https://www.tiktok.com/@robfoxthree   Dan Regester https://www.instagram.com/danregester/ https://twitter.com/dan_regester Jake Goldman https://www.instagram.com/jakewgoldman/ https://twitter.com/JakeWGoldman

In 1565 both the French and Spanish were competing to establish a colonial presence on Florida's east coast. That competition came to a quick and violent head (you'll see what we did there) and now the site of their confrontation might be the most haunted beach in America. https://www.patreon.com/softcorehistory for hundreds of hours of extra history content including listener history questions, history movie watch-alongs, and weekly bonus episodes. Go to https://GhostBed.com/drinkinbros and use code DRINKINBROS for 50% off EVERYTHING (Mattresses, Adjustable Base, Pillows & More) –plus a 101 Night Sleep Trial and Mattresses Made in America. Head to https://FACTORMEALS.com/softcore50 and use code softcore50 to get 50% off.  Get 25% off your subscription or try the app FREE at https://Fitbod.me/SOFTCORE. Rob Fox  https://www.instagram.com/robfoxthree/ https://twitter.com/RobFoxThree https://www.tiktok.com/@robfoxthree   Dan Regester https://www.instagram.com/danregester/ https://twitter.com/dan_regester Jake Goldman https://www.instagram.com/jakewgoldman/ https://twitter.com/JakeWGoldman

Unit 684 was a secret group created by the South Korean Air Force in 1968 tasked with assasinating North Korean leader Kim Il Sung. After three brutal years training on a remote island and suffering multiple executions at the hands of their own trainers, the surviving members and former convicts threw a mutiny and hijacked a bus back to Seoul.  https://www.patreon.com/softcorehistory for hundreds of hours of extra history content including listener history questions, history movie watch-alongs, and weekly bonus episodes. Go to https://GhostBed.com/drinkinbros and use code DRINKINBROS for 50% off EVERYTHING (Mattresses, Adjustable Base, Pillows & More) –plus a 101 Night Sleep Trial and Mattresses Made in America. Head to https://FACTORMEALS.com/softcore50 and use code softcore50 to get 50% off.  Rob Fox  https://www.instagram.com/robfoxthree/ https://twitter.com/RobFoxThree https://www.tiktok.com/@robfoxthree   Dan Regester https://www.instagram.com/danregester/ https://twitter.com/dan_regester Jake Goldman https://www.instagram.com/jakewgoldman/ https://twitter.com/JakeWGoldman

From ancient drug enemas to World War 1 era, steampunk-esque prostate vibrators, the history of doctors trying to treat what ails a man through his butt is as long as it is weird and gross and, quite often, extremely unfortunate. (Just ask a couple of our former presidents.) https://www.patreon.com/softcorehistory for hundreds of hours of extra history content including listener history questions, history movie watch-alongs, and weekly bonus episodes. Head to https://FACTORMEALS.com/softcore50 and use code softcore50 to get 50% off.  Get 25% off your subscription or try the app FREE at https://Fitbod.me/SOFTCORE. Rob Fox https://www.instagram.com/robfoxthree/ https://twitter.com/RobFoxThree https://www.tiktok.com/@robfoxthree   Dan Regester https://www.instagram.com/danregester/ https://twitter.com/dan_regester Jake Goldman https://www.instagram.com/jakewgoldman/ https://twitter.com/JakeWGoldman

Hate landlords? You can thank Rome for them. (Just kidding, you'd be paying someone to live on their property either way you bastards, but you just might not call them "landlord.") Either way, the fall of the Western Roman Empire paved the way for Feudalism and traditional monarchy in the Middle Ages. https://www.patreon.com/softcorehistory for hundreds of hours of extra history content including listener history questions, history movie watch-alongs, and weekly bonus episodes. Head to https://FACTORMEALS.com/softcore50 and use code softcore50 to get 50% off. Go to https://GhostBed.com/drinkinbros and use code DRINKINBROS for 50% off EVERYTHING (Mattresses, Adjustable Base, Pillows & More) –plus a 101 Night Sleep Trial and Mattresses Made in America. Rob Fox https://www.instagram.com/robfoxthree/ https://twitter.com/RobFoxThree https://www.tiktok.com/@robfoxthree Dan Regester https://www.instagram.com/danregester/ https://twitter.com/dan_regester Jake Goldman https://www.instagram.com/jakewgoldman/ https://twitter.com/JakeWGoldman

The Donner-Reed Party was a group of American pioneers who migrated west to California in a wagon train and slowly tumbled into madness after months of mishaps, moronic moves, and murder. After a "shortcut" added weeks to their journey, the group ran out of food, supplies, transportation and turned to cannibalism to survive a brutal winter in the Sierra Nevadas. https://www.patreon.com/softcorehistory for hundreds of hours of extra history content including listener history questions, history movie watch-alongs, and weekly bonus episodes. Head to https://FACTORMEALS.com/softcore50 and use code softcore50 to get 50% off.

Though Spanish Conquistador Hernán Cortés is credited with conquering the Aztec Empire the conquest might actually be thanks to his native female interpreter and first baby mama, La Malinche. The Indian noblewoman, who was sold into slavery as a child before being gifted to Cortés after a battle with Mayans and rising to become his interpreter and top diplomat, is thought by many historians to be the reason the Spanish conquest was successful. Needless to say, her legacy in Mexico is... complicated. https://www.patreon.com/softcorehistory for hundreds of hours of extra history content including listener history questions, history movie watch-alongs, and weekly bonus episodes. Get 25% off your subscription or try the app FREE at https://Fitbod.me/SOFTCORE. Head to https://FACTORMEALS.com/softcore50 and use code softcore50 to get 50% off.

Did human beings domesticate wheat? Or did wheat domesticate humans? We dive into the long history of humanity's relationship with the plant and how we ultimately went from eating wild wheat to baking bread and conquering the planet. https://www.patreon.com/softcorehistory for hundreds of hours of extra history content including listener history questions, history movie watch-alongs, and weekly bonus episodes. Head to https://FACTORMEALS.com/softcore50 and use code softcore50 to get 50% off.