Introducing Roots and Branches

In this episode, Kohei Shiozawa speaks with Professor Susan James FBA about the art of philosophy and Nicolas Poussin as a philosophical painter. Professor James visited St Andrews earlier this year when she was invited to give the Donald Winch Lectures in Intellectual History.

In this episode, Yifan Wang and Seungeun Lee speak with Professor Georgios Varouxakis (Queen Mary) about his new book The West: The History of an Idea (PUP, 2025).

In this episode, Harim and Hyein interview Lasse S. Andersen about the new edited volume entitled Political Economy from Pufendorf to Marx: Culture, Needs and Property Rights (CUP, 2026). This volume, which brings together seven hitherto unpublished papers by the late István Hont, was published by Cambridge University Press in January of 2026. The interview was conducted in the spring of 2025. Apologies for the poor audio.

In this episode, Derek van Voorst interviews Professor Ferenc Hörcher. The two discuss his new edited text “Intellectual Conservatism: From Burke to Scruton”, as well as the history and future of modern conservatism both politically and philosophically.

In this episode, Seungeun Lee interviews Professor Robert Frost, the Burnett Fletcher Chair in History at Aberdeen University. Professor Frost gave a lecture at the Institute of Intellectual History on 17 September 2025, on which day he also sat down for an in-depth interview about his ongoing, multi-volume work on the Polish-Lithuanian Union, 1385-1569.

What is the relation between philosophy’s claim to disinterested universal rational inquiry and its historical existence as an assemblage of apparently sectarian schools? This is the question that formed the topic for a conversation that Valery Vino initiated with Ian Hunter.

In this episode, Derek van Voorst speaks with Dr Edward Jones Corredera, who is senior research fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law and assistant lecturer at the Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (Madrid). The discussion focused on his recent book, Odious Debt: Bankruptcy, International Law, and the Making of Latin America (OUP, 2024), although it also covered topics such as the theoretical framework of 'odious debt', historical debt, future developments of debtor nations, and so forth.

Roots and Branches: First episode out now. Intellectual Historian Richard Whatmore (University of St Andrews) explains why the Enlightenment, 18th century republicanism and the history of free states matter for today’s global politics. Subscribe to Roots and Branches on Spotify or iTunes by visiting the Episode Website below.

Get ready for Roots and Branches, the new ideas podcast from the Institute of Intellectual History at the University of St Andrews. In this introductory episode, host Selma Sondern explains what Intellectual History is, why it matters, and what to expect when Roots and Branches launches on 1 July 2025 with Prof Richard Whatmore. Subscribe to the podcast on Spotify and iTunes by visiting the Episode Website below.

In this episode, Seungeun Lee speaks with Professor Davide Cadeddu (University of Milan) about his forthcoming book Classics of Historiography in Historical and Global Perspective (CUP), which will be published as part of the CUP ‘Elements in Critical Heritage Studies’ series.