Mikael Shainkman
@shainkman.bsky.social
Historian, tour guide and coffee drinker. I host a podcast about Scandinavian history with the creative name the Scandinavian History Podcast.
The results of the episode 121 poll are in! The question was: Which aspect of the Finnish realignment surprised you the most? 77.8% answered: that the Finns didn't have to serve in the Russian army. Only one (!) person was most surprised that the elites were so quick to switch loyalties.
December 7, 2025 at 5:32 PM
The results of the episode 121 poll are in! The question was: Which aspect of the Finnish realignment surprised you the most? 77.8% answered: that the Finns didn't have to serve in the Russian army. Only one (!) person was most surprised that the elites were so quick to switch loyalties.
In episode 122 of the Scandinavian History Podcast, King Gustav IV Adolf is ousted in a coup. Usually, for a coup to work, only a handful of people can know about it. But in this case, it seems like everyone--except the king--saw it coming. So a bit like the Russian invasion.
December 5, 2025 at 9:05 AM
In episode 122 of the Scandinavian History Podcast, King Gustav IV Adolf is ousted in a coup. Usually, for a coup to work, only a handful of people can know about it. But in this case, it seems like everyone--except the king--saw it coming. So a bit like the Russian invasion.
Emperor Nicholas I visited Helsinki in 1833, and the city was ordered to commemorate the visit with a monument. The locals weren't keen, but they were too smart to refuse. So what did they do? They put up the monument, but the inscription only mentions the visit of the empress, ignoring her husband.
December 2, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Emperor Nicholas I visited Helsinki in 1833, and the city was ordered to commemorate the visit with a monument. The locals weren't keen, but they were too smart to refuse. So what did they do? They put up the monument, but the inscription only mentions the visit of the empress, ignoring her husband.
November 30 is the anniversary of the death of king Karl XII. From 1853, the day was marked with a procession in Lund. With time, the participants became fewer and more right-wing. It ended in 2008. In the last few years, it was mostly attended by a handful of radical nationalists and neo-Nazis.
November 30, 2025 at 3:40 PM
November 30 is the anniversary of the death of king Karl XII. From 1853, the day was marked with a procession in Lund. With time, the participants became fewer and more right-wing. It ended in 2008. In the last few years, it was mostly attended by a handful of radical nationalists and neo-Nazis.
It's late November, so why not cheer ourselves up with a little imperial bling? This is the throne emperor Alexander I sat on when he attended the Diet of Porvoo in 1809. If you want to examine the chair more closely, you can do so the next time you visit the National Museum of Finland in Helsinki.
November 26, 2025 at 6:08 PM
It's late November, so why not cheer ourselves up with a little imperial bling? This is the throne emperor Alexander I sat on when he attended the Diet of Porvoo in 1809. If you want to examine the chair more closely, you can do so the next time you visit the National Museum of Finland in Helsinki.
The Spotify poll results from episode 120 are in! I asked for the main reason Sweden lost the war:
1) Gustav IV Adolf was incompetent
2) Cronstedt gave up the fortress Sveaborg
3) Russia was too strong
66.7% voted #3. In other words, you think the Russians would have taken Finland no matter what.
1) Gustav IV Adolf was incompetent
2) Cronstedt gave up the fortress Sveaborg
3) Russia was too strong
66.7% voted #3. In other words, you think the Russians would have taken Finland no matter what.
November 23, 2025 at 7:18 PM
The Spotify poll results from episode 120 are in! I asked for the main reason Sweden lost the war:
1) Gustav IV Adolf was incompetent
2) Cronstedt gave up the fortress Sveaborg
3) Russia was too strong
66.7% voted #3. In other words, you think the Russians would have taken Finland no matter what.
1) Gustav IV Adolf was incompetent
2) Cronstedt gave up the fortress Sveaborg
3) Russia was too strong
66.7% voted #3. In other words, you think the Russians would have taken Finland no matter what.
Episode 121 of the Scandinavian History Podcast has dropped. We look at how the Finns carved out a new political and economic life for themselves, away from Sweden but still as far from Russia as possible.
November 21, 2025 at 11:13 AM
Episode 121 of the Scandinavian History Podcast has dropped. We look at how the Finns carved out a new political and economic life for themselves, away from Sweden but still as far from Russia as possible.
Even though I don't approve, I do realize that there are some people out there whose grasp of Finnish geography may be spotty. This is a map to elevate their enjoyment of episode 120, The Finnish War.
November 11, 2025 at 11:02 AM
Even though I don't approve, I do realize that there are some people out there whose grasp of Finnish geography may be spotty. This is a map to elevate their enjoyment of episode 120, The Finnish War.
The 8yo analyzes the map of Sweden: ''Gästrikland is far too small for such a long name.''
November 10, 2025 at 2:15 PM
The 8yo analyzes the map of Sweden: ''Gästrikland is far too small for such a long name.''
In episode 120 of the Scandinavian History Podcast, we look at how the Franco-Russian alliance 1807 kept causing trouble for the Scandinavians. This time, it's Sweden's turn to feel the pressure. The Swedes, or at least king Gustav IV Adolf, underestimated the new threat.
November 7, 2025 at 10:33 AM
In episode 120 of the Scandinavian History Podcast, we look at how the Franco-Russian alliance 1807 kept causing trouble for the Scandinavians. This time, it's Sweden's turn to feel the pressure. The Swedes, or at least king Gustav IV Adolf, underestimated the new threat.
Today, November 6, but in 1632, Gustavus Adolphus fell in the Battle of Lützen. In Sweden, the day used to be a thing, but not so much anymore.
In Finland, it's still marked, but as Swedish Day, celebrating the bi-national aspect of the country.
In Finland, it's still marked, but as Swedish Day, celebrating the bi-national aspect of the country.
November 6, 2025 at 6:15 PM
Today, November 6, but in 1632, Gustavus Adolphus fell in the Battle of Lützen. In Sweden, the day used to be a thing, but not so much anymore.
In Finland, it's still marked, but as Swedish Day, celebrating the bi-national aspect of the country.
In Finland, it's still marked, but as Swedish Day, celebrating the bi-national aspect of the country.
In 1811, the Norwegian-born economist Christen Pram calculated the effect of the war against Britain. 8% of the Danes and 48% of the people in Slesvig-Holstein were worse off. But no fewer than 78% of Norwegians were worse off, implying Copenhagen had let Norway down.
November 4, 2025 at 7:31 AM
In 1811, the Norwegian-born economist Christen Pram calculated the effect of the war against Britain. 8% of the Danes and 48% of the people in Slesvig-Holstein were worse off. But no fewer than 78% of Norwegians were worse off, implying Copenhagen had let Norway down.
Arthur Wellesley had a horse named Copenhagen to celebrate his part in the terror bombing of the Danish capital. Wellesley rode it frequently, also during the Battle of Waterloo (a non-Scandinavian battle that lives on through the song by the properly Scandinavian group ABBA).
October 30, 2025 at 9:55 PM
Arthur Wellesley had a horse named Copenhagen to celebrate his part in the terror bombing of the Danish capital. Wellesley rode it frequently, also during the Battle of Waterloo (a non-Scandinavian battle that lives on through the song by the properly Scandinavian group ABBA).
During the British bombardment of Copenhagen in 1807, the work of Grímur Jónsson Thorkelin went up in smoke. He had spent 20 years preparing the first modern edition of the poem Beowulf. Luckily for him, and the field of Old English literature, he could eventually publish his book in 1815.
October 27, 2025 at 8:06 PM
During the British bombardment of Copenhagen in 1807, the work of Grímur Jónsson Thorkelin went up in smoke. He had spent 20 years preparing the first modern edition of the poem Beowulf. Luckily for him, and the field of Old English literature, he could eventually publish his book in 1815.
The stuff that passes for literture these days...
October 26, 2025 at 6:34 PM
The stuff that passes for literture these days...
At Trafalgar Square stands a column commemorating Horatio Nelson's triumph against the French at Trafalgar. The bottom has four large bronze panels depicting other important events in Nelson's life. One of the panels shows him during the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801.
October 18, 2025 at 5:45 PM
At Trafalgar Square stands a column commemorating Horatio Nelson's triumph against the French at Trafalgar. The bottom has four large bronze panels depicting other important events in Nelson's life. One of the panels shows him during the Battle of Copenhagen in 1801.
Since the SHP is a podcast about Scandinavian history, I could only give you a few hundred words on the French Revolution in the last episode. For more great content about the goings-on in France, these are my top recommendations:
@mikeduncan.bsky.social
@ageofnapoleon.bsky.social
@thesiecle.com
@mikeduncan.bsky.social
@ageofnapoleon.bsky.social
@thesiecle.com
October 16, 2025 at 7:06 AM
Since the SHP is a podcast about Scandinavian history, I could only give you a few hundred words on the French Revolution in the last episode. For more great content about the goings-on in France, these are my top recommendations:
@mikeduncan.bsky.social
@ageofnapoleon.bsky.social
@thesiecle.com
@mikeduncan.bsky.social
@ageofnapoleon.bsky.social
@thesiecle.com
Which of these blockbusters based on the latest episode of the Scandinavian History Podcast would you run to the movies to see?
October 12, 2025 at 7:22 PM
Which of these blockbusters based on the latest episode of the Scandinavian History Podcast would you run to the movies to see?
A new SHP episode has dropped! The French revolution changed the world forever, both politically and culturally. Scandinavia was no exception. That’s perhaps only fair, since a dramatic Nordic event allegedly contributed to the revolution in the first place.
October 10, 2025 at 7:36 AM
A new SHP episode has dropped! The French revolution changed the world forever, both politically and culturally. Scandinavia was no exception. That’s perhaps only fair, since a dramatic Nordic event allegedly contributed to the revolution in the first place.
At the other end of the square, Gustav's scheeming sister, Sophia Albertina, built a palace with a facade that mirrored the opera exactly. This building still stands, and today it houses the Swedish Foreign Office.
October 8, 2025 at 7:25 PM
At the other end of the square, Gustav's scheeming sister, Sophia Albertina, built a palace with a facade that mirrored the opera exactly. This building still stands, and today it houses the Swedish Foreign Office.
This is what the opera house that Gustav III built in the 1770s, and where he was shot some twenty years later, looked like. It no longer exists. It was torn down in the 1880s to make way for the current royal opera.
October 8, 2025 at 7:24 PM
This is what the opera house that Gustav III built in the 1770s, and where he was shot some twenty years later, looked like. It no longer exists. It was torn down in the 1880s to make way for the current royal opera.
This is a contemporary cartoon from the British press, showing the king and queen being informed of the murder of Gustav III. While they're on the toilet. The king, George III, suffered from poor health--including well-known stomach issues, leading to constipation.
October 5, 2025 at 5:25 PM
This is a contemporary cartoon from the British press, showing the king and queen being informed of the murder of Gustav III. While they're on the toilet. The king, George III, suffered from poor health--including well-known stomach issues, leading to constipation.
May I introduce Nils Henric Liljensparre? He was the chief of Stockholm police in 1792, when Gustav III was shot. It didn't take him long to find the assassin, Jacob Johan Anckarström. The second image is a contemporary depiction of Anckarström being whipped in public before his execution.
October 3, 2025 at 6:34 PM
May I introduce Nils Henric Liljensparre? He was the chief of Stockholm police in 1792, when Gustav III was shot. It didn't take him long to find the assassin, Jacob Johan Anckarström. The second image is a contemporary depiction of Anckarström being whipped in public before his execution.
When Wordle turns into a dietary prompt
October 1, 2025 at 5:24 AM
When Wordle turns into a dietary prompt