Discover how drugs shaped empires, creativity, and chaos throughout history.

From ancient battlefields to Victorian medicine cabinets, this week’s episode of History Rage dives into the surprising — and often shocking — role of substance use across the ages. Host Paul Bavill is joined by historian and writer Sam Kelly (@humanhistoryondrugs) for a deep, thought-provoking journey through how drugs influenced the world’s most famous figures, ideas, and empires.

Together, they uncover how Alexander the Great, Sigmund Freud, Queen Victoria, and even Pope Leo XIII all encountered (and indulged in) mind-altering substances — often with world-changing consequences. From Freud’s cocaine-fuelled psychology to the British Empire’s opium trade, from religious visions to artistic inspiration, Sam and Paul reveal the hidden highs and devastating lows that shaped history’s greatest moments.

You’ll learn how drugs were once tools of power and creativity, but also instruments of destruction. And, as Sam reminds us, it’s never a simple story — these substances weren’t inherently good or bad, but they were always influential.

If you’ve ever wondered what connects emperors, popes, poets, and programmers — or how LSD helped inspire modern computing — this is an episode you won’t want to miss.

🎧 Episode Highlights

The Pope who publicly endorsed cocaine-infused wine 🍷
How opium funded the British Empire’s expansion into China 💰
Freud, Alexander the Great, and the deadly cost of indulgence ⚔️
The link between artistic creativity and chemical experimentation 🎨
Steve Jobs, LSD, and the psychedelic origins of the personal computer 💻
Why understanding substance use gives us a truer picture of history 🔍

📚 About the Guest – Sam Kelly

Sam Kelly is a historian, writer, and host of Human History on Drugs, where he explores the complex and often surprising intersections between humanity and its intoxicants. His work brings wit, nuance, and compassion to a subject too often oversimplified.

👉 Follow Sam on Instagram: @human_history_on_drugs

🎙️ Check out the TikTok Channel: @human_history_on_durgs

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📧 Contact Paul Bavill: historyragepod@gmail.com

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273. Great Minds, Greater Vices: How Drugs Fuelled the Past with Sam Kelly