The War Britain Started Over One Man's Ear

In 1731 a Spanish coast guard cut off a British sea captain's ear and handed it back to him with a message for his king. Eight years later Britain and Spain were at war, and the war is still named after the ear. This is the whole absurd story: the smugglers who started it, the prime minister who wanted no wars, the admiral who promised victory with six ships and got a song written about him, the one-eyed, one-legged, one-armed Spanish admiral who beat the biggest fleet Britain had ever sent, the medals London minted for a victory that never happened, and how all of it ended up naming Mount Vernon and almost naming Boaty McBoatface. Chapters: 0:00 Intro 1:06 Smugglers' Paradise 2:25 The Ear 3:07 The Politics 4:54 Old Grog 6:22 The Half-Man 7:14 Cartagena 9:28 Meanwhile... 11:28 After The Ear 12:34 Legacy