A YouTube Channel for History Nerds

So, I've discovered a phenomenal history-centered YouTube channel called Lindsay Holiday - the woman who runs it. Some of my favorite videos of hers involve histories of royal incest (weird, yes, but wildly interesting); Queen Victoria's children and her grandchildren; kings and queens of England—the list goes on. Her content varies greatly, especially her older videos, and I love her narrations in recent videos she's done. She speaks clearly, and it's obvious she knows her stuff by the amount of detail presented in a way that's easy to follow. I don't know if she's a teacher, a history buff, or what have you—but you'll see straight away that her content sends us history nerds into a flurry of excitement.

I'm glad to find these kinds of channels on YouTube amidst the dime-a-dozen beauty bloggers (who I still love to watch); it's refreshing to find something different, relevant, and educational. Lindsay offers an array of photos having to do with her historical topics of choice, and they're great visual aids to go along with her narration. I like these kinds of channels that verge on being a podcast, while also going along with the video-obsessed culture that we millennials are so engrossed in. It's something you can leave on in the background while you're getting ready, or watch during your lunch break if you're feeling historically-inclined.

Lindsay's content offers us a look into the relevance of history; it's not some long-begotten topic that we picture being taught in a stuffy classroom with a professor droning on (although that certainly still happens). We see how royal incest affected the health of their family members, particularly in the case of passing on hemophilia and the dreaded Hapsburg-jaw (see Charles II of Spain). Before we knew about genetics, these disorders and genetic mutations weren't fully understood, and the risks of breeding with your cousin (ew) wasn't well-known. These facts show us how far we've come in science and medicine, and the importance of genetic testing in families carrying genetic disorders.

Her videos on LGBTQ royals of the world is also poignant in our modern-day era of acceptance and growing understanding around minority groups. The LGBTQ community has existed practically since the beginning, and her discussions on the monarchs who were themselves a part of this community shows that this is an identity that exists worldwide, no matter who you are or where you're from. As someone with gay family members, it's great to see this kind of content normalizing LGBTQ identities; it shows viewers that this community has always existed, and will continue to exist so long as humanity goes on (heck, it exists in the animal kingdom, too!).

Even if you're not big into history, I highly recommend you give this channel a shot. I promise you, you'll find important lessons and facts in every video that you can apply to our daily lives here in 2019. Happy watching!