Speaker 1: Hello, and Welcome to Western Cive Episode three hundred and
Speaker 1: forty two, The German War. In six thirty five, France
Speaker 1: entered the Thirty Years War in earnest There were a
Speaker 1: few reasons for their entrance into the hostilities, given the
Speaker 1: fact that the war had been raging since effectively sixteen eighteen.
Speaker 1: The first reason is Spanish policy. France's decision to enter
Speaker 1: the war was largely driven by concerns about Spanish aggression.
Speaker 1: France continued to have animosity towards Spain since they had
Speaker 1: fought a slight war over Mantua several decades earlier. Furthermore, Spain,
Speaker 1: despite claiming to be a victim of French aggression, was
Speaker 1: actively pursuing policies hostile to French interests. For instance, Spain
Speaker 1: continued to support the Habsburg Emperor Ferdinand, who was at
Speaker 1: war with France's allies, the Dutch. This support, coupled with
Speaker 1: Spain's overall hostile stance, was a key factor in Cardinal
Speaker 1: Richelieu's decision to declare war. This was also an opportunity
Speaker 1: to weaken the Habsburg's The Thirty Years War presented France
Speaker 1: with an opportunity to weaken the Habsburg dynasty, which ruled
Speaker 1: both Spain and the Holy Roman Empire. By supporting the
Speaker 1: enemies of the Habsburgs, namely the Swedish and the Dutch,
Speaker 1: France aimed to curb their influence in Europe. There was
Speaker 1: also a desire to secure the strategically important province of Alsace.
Speaker 1: And by the way, France, the Holy Roman Empire and
Speaker 1: then later Germany are going to be fighting over Alsace
Speaker 1: Lorraine for a while now, so get used to it.
Speaker 1: The strategically important province of Alsace was particularly critical for France.
Speaker 1: Spanish military presence in Al Saints, which is directly along
Speaker 1: the Rhine, was a direct threat, prompting French intervention. The
Speaker 1: French sought to prevent the Spanish from using the province
Speaker 1: as a base from which to easily launch attacks into France.
Speaker 1: But while France entered the war with ambition and a
Speaker 1: desire to curb the influence of the Habsburgs, the fact
Speaker 1: of the matter remains that its military capabilities legged far
Speaker 1: behind its aspirations. There's a couple of factors. The thing
Speaker 1: that we can point to here. One was financial dependence
Speaker 1: and a relatively weak military. Overall, France was heavily reliant
Speaker 1: on financial subsidies from the Dutch and from Sweden to
Speaker 1: sustain its war effort. This dependence underscored the limitations of
Speaker 1: its own resources and financial systems. The French army, though
Speaker 1: ambitious and its deployments, was actually relatively small, smaller than
Speaker 1: the Swedes, for example, and experienced and poorly equipped. These
Speaker 1: factors combined to create a situation where France, despite being
Speaker 1: a territorially major power, found itself in a position of
Speaker 1: relative weakness compared to its adversaries and quite frankly, even
Speaker 1: its territorially smaller allies. It was also totally reliant on
Speaker 1: its allies and aimed at procuring limited military success. The
Speaker 1: French needed to cooperate with and rely on their allies,
Speaker 1: particularly the Swedish and the Dutch, throughout the conflict. This
Speaker 1: reliance suggests that France was not yet in a position
Speaker 1: to independently chain lenge the military might of the Habsburgs
Speaker 1: or to achieve decisive victories on its own. There was
Speaker 1: a situation where the French were often reactive to the
Speaker 1: movement of their allies and enemies. Never was France in
Speaker 1: a position to dictate the pace or the direction of
Speaker 1: the war. This is further illustrated by France's initial hesitance
Speaker 1: to commit troops to Germany, opting instead for limited financial support.
Speaker 1: The French military operations during this period were marked by
Speaker 1: a mix of setbacks and limited successes. There was a
Speaker 1: defeat in Alsace and a struggle to effectively support their
Speaker 1: allies like Saxe Vemar. But of course, another factor in
Speaker 1: France's inability to really move the needle here is just frankly,
Speaker 1: Spanish strength. Spain was a formidable adversary throughout this period.
Speaker 1: Despite facing challenges on multiple fronts, Spain remained a significant
Speaker 1: military power, capable of resisting French advances and inflicting defeat beats.
Speaker 1: There were instances where Spanish forces successfully countered French maneuvers
Speaker 1: and thwarted their objectives, particularly in the regions of Alsace
Speaker 1: and in the Rhineland. The Habsburgs were also, quite frankly,
Speaker 1: just more persistent, more dogged in their ability to keep
Speaker 1: the war effort going, perhaps because it simply mattered more
Speaker 1: to them. The Habsburgs were persistent and their ability to
Speaker 1: secure alliances despite facing a coalition of enemies was critical
Speaker 1: in their ability to ultimately bring the war to a
Speaker 1: somewhat successful conclusion. What this suggests is that France, even
Speaker 1: in alliance with other powerful entities like Sweden and the
Speaker 1: Dutch Republic, faced a difficult challenge in overcoming what was
Speaker 1: an entrenched power of the Habsburgs, you know, going all
Speaker 1: the way back to Francis the Second, there's this sort
Speaker 1: of desire on the part of France to somehow make
Speaker 1: the French king the Holy Roman Emperor. And what we
Speaker 1: see even throughout the seventeenth century at that point is
Speaker 1: that that is becoming increasingly a relic of the past.
Speaker 1: The idea of these trans European empires that span what
Speaker 1: are going to become nation states and ethnicities just far
Speaker 1: too medieval. And it reflects, quite frankly a fact that
Speaker 1: oftentimes the aristocracy and leading military orders of the day
Speaker 1: are still thinking three four hundred years in the past,
Speaker 1: and that's going to continue to be a problem throughout
Speaker 1: the Thirty Years War. Despite an optimistic outlook on the
Speaker 1: potential of offensive operations, the reality was that French finances
Speaker 1: were strained, with the troops often going unpaid. The need
Speaker 1: to maintain a standing army and provide subsidies to allies
Speaker 1: put a considerable pressure on their treasury. France entered the
Speaker 1: Thirty Years War nonetheless in sixteen thirty five, declaring war
Speaker 1: on Spain, but the French army was ill prepared. It
Speaker 1: was small and experienced and poorly equipped. Be that as
Speaker 1: it may, France's objective remained to weaken the Habsburg dynasty,
Speaker 1: including both Spain and the Holy Roman Empire. To this end,
Speaker 1: they sought alliances with the Protestant German Princess and Sweden
Speaker 1: were also opposed to Habsburg power. But the French were
Speaker 1: initially hesitant to fully commit to the war effort in Germany,
Speaker 1: and as a result, really honestly, the only French involvement
Speaker 1: early on was sending a small force under Henri de
Speaker 1: Rohan to support the French Protestants. This force, which numbered
Speaker 1: a couple of thousand men at the most, was ultimately unsuccessful,
Speaker 1: and the French suffered a further setback when their forces
Speaker 1: sent to Alsace were decisively defeated by the Spanish. The
Speaker 1: Tie turn, however, in sixteen thirty six, when the French
Speaker 1: achieved a major victory in the town of Corbet. This
Speaker 1: victory forced the Spanish to retreat from France and allowed France,
Speaker 1: at least temporarily, to seize the offensive in the war.
Speaker 1: In the aftermath of Core, the French continued to pursue
Speaker 1: their goal of weakening the Habsburgs. They launched an invasion
Speaker 1: of the Spanish Netherlands and continued to provide support to
Speaker 1: their allies in Germany. The events of sixteen thirty five
Speaker 1: and sixteen thirty six marked a crucial turning point in
Speaker 1: France's involvement in the Thirty Years War. Despite the initial
Speaker 1: reluctance and setbacks, the Frends were ultimately able to emerge
Speaker 1: as a larger player in the conflict thanks to the
Speaker 1: victory ed Corbell and the ability to put the Habsburgs
Speaker 1: both in Spain and in Germany on the back foot,
Speaker 1: at least as we'll see temporarily. The year is now
Speaker 1: sixteen thirty five, after decades now of brutal war. Fair
Speaker 1: keep in mind we're already almost twenty years into the
Speaker 1: Thirty Years War. The Holy Roman Empire is finally starting
Speaker 1: to experience a glimmer of peace as the sides finally
Speaker 1: sign the Treaty of Prague. But the peace is fragile,
Speaker 1: and the treaty riddled with exceptions and exclusions that sow
Speaker 1: the seeds of its own demise. Now, at the heart
Speaker 1: of the instability of the Treaty of Prague, which was
Speaker 1: signed between Emperor Ferdinand and the various chairman princes opposed
Speaker 1: to him in sixteen thirty five, was this idea of amnesty.
Speaker 1: It was an issue that exposed the deep divisions and
Speaker 1: mistrust lingering between Emperor Ferdinand the Second and his various adversaries.
Speaker 1: So the Treaty of Prague, which was designed to be
Speaker 1: sort of a prototype of the Treaty of Westphalia that's
Speaker 1: actually going to end the war, promised a general amnesty.
Speaker 1: The idea was to just essentially forgive everyone who had
Speaker 1: taken part in the conflict, because otherwise there was simply
Speaker 1: no way to sort out who owed who what. The
Speaker 1: promise unfortunately doesn't work because it's immediately broken by Ferdinand
Speaker 1: Ferdinand foolishly. Besides that, the amnesty provision of the Treaty
Speaker 1: of Prague will exclude many of his key opponents. It
Speaker 1: turns into selective amnesty, and the selective amnesty enrages everyone
Speaker 1: who had negotiated this treaty, especially those who had pledged
Speaker 1: a full pardon to everyone who initially laid down their
Speaker 1: arms to make the peace possible. The exclusion of figures
Speaker 1: like Bernard of Saxe Vemar and Johann Yorg of hesse Kill,
Speaker 1: both formidable military leaders, through an instant wrench into the
Speaker 1: peace process. These men felt betrayed, and with their armies
Speaker 1: still at the command, refuse to accept the treaty and
Speaker 1: continue to fight against the emperor. Again. What we have
Speaker 1: here is a patchwork attempt at a solution. That's all
Speaker 1: we've seen since the very beginning of the Thirty Years War.
Speaker 1: What the parties seem to fail to recognize at this
Speaker 1: point is that this patchwork process to peace simply isn't
Speaker 1: going to work, and their inability to recognize that only
Speaker 1: fuels the fires of war for another decade now. The
Speaker 1: impact of these exclusions reverberate throughout the Empire, reigniting old
Speaker 1: conflicts and hindering efforts to establish a lasting peace. The
Speaker 1: unity that we forged for about a month at Prague
Speaker 1: in sixteen thirty five crumbled instantaneously. In fact, there's one
Speaker 1: particular study that's relevant here, and that is the Landgrave Wilhelm,
Speaker 1: the fifth of hesse Kessel. Despite being excluded from the amnesty,
Speaker 1: Wilhelm's troops remain active, and it becomes a testament to
Speaker 1: the resentment and unresolved grievances that plague the empire. Wilhelm
Speaker 1: never stops fighting, despite the fact that there is ostensibly
Speaker 1: at least a peace treaty in place, which, as you
Speaker 1: can guess, because of the shifting alliances with people coming
Speaker 1: in and out of the conflict, the mere fact that
Speaker 1: it doesn't end, the mere fact that the smoldering embers
Speaker 1: of war are allowed to continue perpetuate the system going
Speaker 1: for it's as I discussed in the beginning, the Holy
Speaker 1: Roman Empire had so many idiosyncrasies, had so many overlapping jurisdictions,
Speaker 1: so many confusing paths to authority, that that tended to
Speaker 1: drive the conflict over and over again, even as some
Speaker 1: sides tried to get out of it. Meanwhile, in Sweden,
Speaker 1: the amnesty issue became a powerful weapon in the hands
Speaker 1: of the Chancellor. I mentioned him before Oxtersteirna, and he
Speaker 1: was leading the Swedish delegation in the peace process. He
Speaker 1: immediately and adroitly recognized the discontent brewing between the German
Speaker 1: Protestant princes. He realized that some people got amnesty and
Speaker 1: some people didn't, and all he did was skillfully exploited
Speaker 1: this division to bolster support for Sweden's continued involvement in
Speaker 1: the war. Auxygen Steirna painted the Emperor's limited amnesty as
Speaker 1: a betrayal of German liberties, actively framing the conflict as
Speaker 1: a fight for freedom and justice against a tyrannical ruler.
Speaker 1: Austin Sterness rhetoric, however, made his own difficult dilemma. He
Speaker 1: desperately wanted a favorable peace for Sweden, but at the
Speaker 1: same time, the only way he was going to get
Speaker 1: that was if he leveraged the support of his German allies.
Speaker 1: Accepting the German Emperor's limited amnesty would risk alienating these
Speaker 1: crucial allies, yet pushing for a full amnesty could very
Speaker 1: well prolong the Body conflict, which Sweden really didn't want
Speaker 1: it to. Oxygen Sterna kept up this balancing act as
Speaker 1: long as he could, but as tensions escalated that became untenable.
Speaker 1: The Swedish army, which was at this point largely composed
Speaker 1: of German soldiers, actually quickly grew disillusioned with the peace negotiations.
Speaker 1: They came to see oxten Sterna's willingness to compromise as
Speaker 1: a betrayal of the sacrifices that they had made after
Speaker 1: fighting for years, and they demanded full amnesty and critically
Speaker 1: all the back pay they had been owed. This discontent
Speaker 1: would boil into open mutiny, which was nothing less than
Speaker 1: a dramatic display of deep frustration and distrust and also
Speaker 1: an ominous sign of things to come. One of the
Speaker 1: things to keep in mind here is that none of
Speaker 1: these kingdoms has the capacity to fight a war for
Speaker 1: thirty years. None of these kingdoms have the logisticals support
Speaker 1: for their troops to be able to keep this whole
Speaker 1: machine going for three decades. The fact of the matter
Speaker 1: is it was the peasants who bore the bronze of
Speaker 1: the Thirty Years War, as I'll talk about really extensively
Speaker 1: at the end of this story arc, because that's the
Speaker 1: true devastation here. It's the loss of harvest after harvest
Speaker 1: and the subsequent famine that's caused by marauding armies of
Speaker 1: both sides, honestly roving back and forth over the countryside
Speaker 1: that's the issue with the Thirty Years War. It's not
Speaker 1: even about who wins, it's about who loses, and who
Speaker 1: loses is the people of Germany, the people of the
Speaker 1: territories that are being fought over now. Ultimately, this particular
Speaker 1: mutiny crippled Oxygen Sterna's negotiating position and led to the
Speaker 1: breakdown of talks between Sweden and the Emperor in November
Speaker 1: of sixteen thirty five. And this failure marks yet another
Speaker 1: one of these turning points in the war. It ended
Speaker 1: the hopes that maybe the Thirty Years War is only
Speaker 1: the Seventeen Years War and comes to an end in
Speaker 1: sixteen thirty five. Instead, the war continues and Central Europe
Speaker 1: is plunged back into chaos. Now, the collapse of the
Speaker 1: negotiations was not solely an amnesty issue, and it wasn't
Speaker 1: solely Oxygen Stererna's fault either. The personal ambitions and political
Speaker 1: maneuvering of several key people, particularly of course, the Emperor
Speaker 1: and Johann George, another one of those minor principality leaders,
Speaker 1: also play a crucial role. These leaders, who prioritize their
Speaker 1: own interests over the common good, became obstacles to peace,
Speaker 1: particularly the unwillingness of the Habsburg Emperor to compromise and
Speaker 1: his goal at trying to still get some sort of
Speaker 1: consolidated power over the entirety of the empire continued, the
Speaker 1: perpetuation of the conflict, and of course ultimately results in
Speaker 1: a decline of Habsburg authority. The story of the Treaty
Speaker 1: of Prague is a cautionary tale. It's a reminder that peace,
Speaker 1: even when achieved, can easily be shattered by broken promises,
Speaker 1: unaddressed grievances, and the hunger for power. And I think
Speaker 1: it's something we need to think about right now in
Speaker 1: the world, a world that's experiencing a lot of conflict,
Speaker 1: where there's hopes for peace, but we need to remember
Speaker 1: it's not about winning the war and getting the peace terms.
Speaker 1: It's about winning the peace, and that means about addressing
Speaker 1: grievances and following through with your promises. Now, this story
Speaker 1: also underscores the fragility of peace and the devastating consequence
Speaker 1: of prioritizing individual gain over collective well being. The events
Speaker 1: of sixteen thirty five and sixteen thirty six reveal a
Speaker 1: complex web of competing interests, personal ambitions, and political maneuvering
Speaker 1: that ultimately undermine the efforts to bring an end to
Speaker 1: the devastating Thirty Years War. In sixteen thirty seven, as
Speaker 1: the Thirty Years War continued to wage, finally an event
Speaker 1: happens that some might say could have ended the war
Speaker 1: in that year, and that is that the Holy Roman
Speaker 1: Emperor Ferdinand the Second, also Duke of Austria dies. The
Speaker 1: throne is then inherited by a young Emperor, Ferdinand the Third.
Speaker 1: He inherits the throne at the age of only thirty nine,
Speaker 1: and finds himself confronting a series of political intrigues, military setbacks,
Speaker 1: and above all, financial turmoil. Ferdinand the Third is a
Speaker 1: man of contradictions. He is often described as more moderate
Speaker 1: than his father, Ferdinand the Second, yet he remained fiercely
Speaker 1: committed to protecting the Habsburg dynasty in its vast, vast holdings.
Speaker 1: The new emperor faced the daunting task of securing peace
Speaker 1: in a war torn empire while upholding the constitutional rights
Speaker 1: of its varied territories. However, he's also very much driven
Speaker 1: by a deep seated desire to advance his own religious goals,
Speaker 1: a legacy of his father's staunch Catholic convictions. Now. One
Speaker 1: of the most pressing challenges facing Ferdinand the Third is
Speaker 1: the legacy of the Treaty of Prague, signed two years
Speaker 1: earlier and now basically in tatters. The treaty, intended to
Speaker 1: bring an end of the bloodshed, as we know, was
Speaker 1: riddled with loopholes and exclusions, particularly regarding the amnesty question.
Speaker 1: Many of Ferdinand the Third's opponents, including powerful military leaders
Speaker 1: like Bernard of Saxey Weimar and Johann George of Hesse Kassel,
Speaker 1: were excluded from the general partner. Now, this put Ferdinand
Speaker 1: the Third in a tough position because immediately he was
Speaker 1: facing these two men and others, including of course Sweetness
Speaker 1: we've discussed, who were going to reignite the old conflict.
Speaker 1: These unresolved grievances fuel ongoing resistance and complicated any efforts
Speaker 1: that Ferdinand the Third might have made in the absence
Speaker 1: of them, to establish some sort of stability. The military
Speaker 1: situation that Ferdinand the Third was facing was also very dire.
Speaker 1: The Rhineland, a strategically vital region, became a battleground now
Speaker 1: as Imperial forces attempt to get the French out of
Speaker 1: German territory. This campaign, which was launched in early sixteen
Speaker 1: thirty seven, one of the first of Ferdinand the Third's reign,
Speaker 1: ends in total disaster for the Empire. A combination of
Speaker 1: factors contribute to this defeat. There were logistical problems that
Speaker 1: plagued the Imperial army, in adequate funding and poor coordination
Speaker 1: with their allies. They're also tactical blunders made by imperial commanders.
Speaker 1: All in all, safe to say the Empire had no chance.
Speaker 1: The setback forces Ferdinand to shift his focus to Hesse Cassel,
Speaker 1: where he hoped to secure a crucial stronghold and gain
Speaker 1: control over vital supply lines. Despite receiving assistance from the
Speaker 1: Duke of Lorraine, Ferdinand the Third's forces were unable to
Speaker 1: dislodge the French garrison from this key province. This failure
Speaker 1: underscored the growing strength of France and the challenges the
Speaker 1: Empire faced encountering their influence. The growth of France, of course,
Speaker 1: has a lot to do with the roles played by
Speaker 1: Cardinal Richelieu. Richelieu continued to be a master of diplomacy
Speaker 1: and intrigue, skillfully exploiting the Empire's weakness is to advance
Speaker 1: French interests. Throughout the period, he provided generous financial subsidies
Speaker 1: to the Swedes and the Hessians, keeping the pressure on
Speaker 1: Ferdinand the Third and hindering any efforts he might have
Speaker 1: made to consolidate his power. Richelieu also secured the allegiance
Speaker 1: of the landgrave Wilhelm the second of Hesse Kassel, a
Speaker 1: key player in the ongoing conflict. Richelieu understood that Wilhelm's
Speaker 1: strategic position and military expertise would make him a valuable
Speaker 1: ally going forward, and he was one of the first
Speaker 1: people to recognize this. He worked tirelessly to cultivate this relationship,
Speaker 1: even orchestrating a marriage between Wilhelm's granddaughter, emil Elizabeth and
Speaker 1: the Duke of Orleans, a French prince. This alliance not
Speaker 1: only strengthened French's position, but also isolated Ferdinand the Third,
Speaker 1: further diminishing his chances of achieving a lasting piece. Of course,
Speaker 1: from Prance perspective, this made sense. The longer that you
Speaker 1: could keep the Holy Roman Empire divided and weak, the
Speaker 1: longer it would be before they could challenge French hegemony,
Speaker 1: and the more territory that France would be able to
Speaker 1: consolidate to long the critical Rhine River valley. Now, meanwhile,
Speaker 1: of course, Sweden was still around, casting a long shadow
Speaker 1: over the Empire. Despite facing internal divisions and the challenges
Speaker 1: of sustaining a prolonged campaign, the Swedish Army remained a
Speaker 1: formidable force. The exiled Prince Laarl Ludwig, with Swedish backing,
Speaker 1: tried to reclaim lost territories in the Palatinate that had
Speaker 1: been lost actually all the way going back to Frederick
Speaker 1: the Fifth when this story all began. Initially, the Palatinate forces,
Speaker 1: bolstered by Scottish mercenaries and of course by Swedish help,
Speaker 1: enjoyed success, but this momentum was frankly short lived. In
Speaker 1: November sixteen thirty eight, the Palatinate forces for a crushing
Speaker 1: defeat at the hands of the Imperial Army, dashing Karl
Speaker 1: Ludwig's hope of a Protestant restoration to the key territory. Now,
Speaker 1: despite this setback, the Swedes were still all in, and
Speaker 1: under the command of Johann Banaher, they proved to be
Speaker 1: both resilient and adaptable. They weathered a difficult retreat in
Speaker 1: sixteen thirty nine. They regrouped and continued operations, demonstrating the
Speaker 1: determination to remain a major player in this conflict that
Speaker 1: seems increasingly not in their interests. Now, adding, of course,
Speaker 1: to Ferdinand the Third's military woes were the Empire's chronic
Speaker 1: financial constraints. The costs of maintaining a large standing army,
Speaker 1: coupled with the ongoing expenses of the war, continued to
Speaker 1: strain the Imperial treasury. Securing adequate funding from the imperial
Speaker 1: estates proved to be a constant challenge, hindering the Emperor's
Speaker 1: ability to effectively prosecute the war. Remember, all of these
Speaker 1: grants that were issued by the Reichstag and other different
Speaker 1: estates throughout the Empire, those were conditional, and they were
Speaker 1: normally made for a brief period of time and to
Speaker 1: critically combat an external threat like the Ottomans. It was
Speaker 1: never a system that was built or intended to fight
Speaker 1: a prolonged conflict that lasted thirty years, not to say
Speaker 1: something that was essentially a civil war. Now, it is
Speaker 1: important to back up for a second. If you think
Speaker 1: about the period from sixteen thirty seven to sixteen forty
Speaker 1: and think about the larger challenges that are facing the
Speaker 1: Holy Roman Empire. There's a complicated web of political alliances
Speaker 1: that Ferdinand the Third has to hold together during this period,
Speaker 1: and not everybody's initiatives, desires, or demands are the same.
Speaker 1: Makes it a very difficult juggling act for him to
Speaker 1: continue uously carry out. On top of it, the military
Speaker 1: campaigns for both sides were never uniform. It was never
Speaker 1: a string of uninterrupted victories for the Protestant princes, for Sweden,
Speaker 1: for France, or for the imperial forces. It was a
Speaker 1: lot of back and forth, so you had to recover
Speaker 1: from losses. And then on top of this were the
Speaker 1: financial pressures. The financial pressures were enormous for all the combatants,
Speaker 1: but mostly for the imperial forces. Now, Ferdinand is a
Speaker 1: young emperor and he's doing the best he can, grappling
Speaker 1: with a legacy of conflict. He's got an empire that
Speaker 1: appears to be crumbling, and powerful adversaries like France, Spain,
Speaker 1: and Sweden all lined up potentially with him, potentially against
Speaker 1: him at different times. This was a challenging time to
Speaker 1: be a leader. Next time, we'll delve into Ferdinand the
Speaker 1: Third's reign a little bit more and start to learn
Speaker 1: more about how he feels these challenges going forward. Now
Speaker 1: all this week I'll be releasing more episodes as I
Speaker 1: continue to try to put the pedal to the metal.
Speaker 1: As we used to say, it doesn't really make much
Speaker 1: sense anymore in the world of evs, but keeping the
Speaker 1: analogy going. If you'd like to support my efforts to
Speaker 1: bring this to a conclusion, please check out the link
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Speaker 1: same narrative style.