Roanoke: The Lost Colony

Colonialism and utopianism, as Thomas More coined the term, have been linked since the early sixteenth century when European explorers began taking stock of newly accessible lands that would later become colonies. Colonists had the expectation of achieving a much better life by settling in "new" lands, while producing a dystopia for the original inhabitants. Optimistic colonists didn’t always find what they expected, but for centuries they continued to emigrate and settle, driven by utopian projections of what their new lives would be like. Today we talk about one of the first colonies in the New World and how it all went wrong.Connect on Facebook or at the Failed Utopia website.Links & ResourcesRoanoke Colony World History EncyclopediaThe Roanoke Colonies Encyclopedia VirginiaThe Roanoke Colonies James Horn, The First Colony FoundationHave We Found the Lost Colony of Roanoke Island?Archaeologists May Have Finally Solved the Mystery of the Disappearance of Roanoke’s Lost ColonyRoanoke’s ‘Lost Colony’ Was Never Lost, New Book SaysWritten and produced by Anna RobertsBurning palm tree artwork by Perry VasquezIntro music by Elliot MiddletonMerchandise: www.failedutopia.com/shop

Om Podcasten

This is a podcast about utopian ideas and paradise lost. We look at utopian concepts from the past, present and future, as well as utopian societies and communes, which promise the world to eager followers but inevitably fail when it all starts to unravel. Some of these utopias just fall apart, while others devolve into true horrors and even brutal cults. I’ll break down what these groups’ leaders were thinking, what attracted their devotees in the first place, and how it all went wrong.