May 18, 2025

EARLY EPISODE: The Pastry War

Come see us live in London June 22nd:

https://bigbellycomedy.club/event/lions-led-by-donkeys-podcast-live-big-fat-festival-southbank/

A conflict breaks out between a newly independent Mexico and a newly back-to-having-kings France. It culminates in a small series of armed incursions and blockades in 1838-39. Did it start because of an aggrieved French baker? Did Napoleon’s armies advance the science of military optics because their commander wanted to look at feet? In this episode (the first one where Nate has researched, written, and hosted), we get to the bottom of the semi-apocryphal Pastry War.

Sources:

Atwater, James D.; Ruiz, Ramon Eduardo. "Out from Under: Benito Juárez and the Struggle for Mexican Independence." Doubleday: Garden City, N.Y., 1969.

Muñoz, Rafael Felipe. "Santa Anna, el dictador resplandeciente." Fondo de Cultura Económica: Mexico, 1982.

Penot, Jacques. "L'expansion commerciale française au Mexique et les causes du conflit franco-mexicain de 1838-1839." Bulletin Hispanique 75-1-2, 1973. pp. 169-201

Toussaint, Éric. "Le système dette : Histoire des dettes souveraines et de leur répudiation." Les Liens qui libèrent: Paris, 2017.

Comments (35)

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Patrick Walsh · July 13, 2025

I’d wear a Mosquito shirt that says “We don’t have a navy, but we do have an Air Force” (interesting that autocorrect capitalized Air Force but not navy lol)

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Patrick Walsh · July 13, 2025

Also, “the sleepiest man” or “sleepier than Santa Ana”

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RuPaul Craig · May 23, 2025

Nate did an awesome job I’d love more of these in the future! Plus it gives Joe a mini-break which I assume he spends working

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Marjorie Zeager · May 22, 2025

Did you mean AEW, or did both WWE and AEW have a prosthetic leg plot in the last couple weeks?

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Noblese Oblahaj · May 21, 2025

Emperor Maximilian joined the Bored Grape Shot Club

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Noblese Oblahaj · May 21, 2025

Huh, so that's why that famous French military officer was called Le Feet

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Scott · May 21, 2025

The Patreon RSS feed isn’t loading new episodes. Not just for LLBD, but all my Patreon podcasts.

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Graham M Lester · May 20, 2025

Great job Nate, awesome episode!

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Dkapps · May 20, 2025

Hey ! I can't find this episode in my podcast app, is it just me ? Edit: Just checked my rss feed, this episode is not in it Edit2: It looks like it's fixed on my end. Thanks !

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TrainDoctor · May 20, 2025

Same here. It looks like QAA had to contact Patreon support to fix their RSS feed. Hopefully one of the llbd folks can do the same.

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Thomas Layton · May 20, 2025

Everyone hold on, Nate has the wheel for this one. Let's go!

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Gil the Gilded Dragon · May 19, 2025

Oh I'm from one of those Europeanized music regions & by Europeanized you mean "accordion & polka" because like Vivaldi & shit won't get you killed (except during the terror) but the catterwauling of the accordion or concertina absolutely will. What is historically amusing is that these Germans & Frenchmen went to hide into the same wastes that Sephardic Jews had gone a-hiding in the 1500s fleeing the Veracruzan Inquisition.

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Gil the Gilded Dragon · May 20, 2025

French-Mexican pastry anime with the Japanese is a WW2 drama, a Japanese-American citizen being relocated to Mexico City.

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Statistically Hunk · May 19, 2025

The LLBD family car is a Homer, decked out like a jingle truck, with big slab elbows.

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Gil the Gilded Dragon · May 19, 2025

For a moment brain skipped & went Blind Poet not D'oh & was "Sing oh muse of the wrath of Fuck That Guy"

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Eulaila · May 19, 2025

“We are going to rebuild the pastry shop and Mexico is going to pay for it”

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William Shackelford · May 19, 2025

Screw giving a 10,000 puff vape to a 1800s settler. I’m making Santa Anna shotgun Four Loko’s.

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David Schuller · May 19, 2025

Mexican Nate is definitely “Canelito”

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Guy from PA · May 22, 2025

Natanael el Canelito Beteo, Tomás el Irlandés y Jose el Turco

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nughh · May 19, 2025

Ah the legendary Nate Coup

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Tyrone Slothrust · May 19, 2025

The crossover of accordions into Norteño music is in part what you referenced; there’s a reason most northern Mexican beers (that are not made for export) are pilsners and dark beers. ¡Viva Bohemia!

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Gil the Gilded Dragon · May 20, 2025

Discúlpeme compañero pero en el norte, lo icónico no es la Pilz, pero una cerveza que se paró de producir en Europa; la Vienna Lager. Los estilos que mas dominaron México son estilos austro-húngaros

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Hey mind your business, name's not important · May 18, 2025

I can't believe there has been no mention of Cotton Hill yelling "Santy Anna's leg!" from the crew.

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Al · May 18, 2025

Beowolf hauntology.

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Grimpil Sun · May 18, 2025

With the jokes about doing bong rips with Santa Anna's leg, I'm a little sad you didn't mention the actual thing US troops did with his captured leg. Namely, using it as a bat to play baseball

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Allen · May 18, 2025

Nate-hosted episode? Nice.

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Brian J. Lancaster · May 18, 2025

Been wondering about this for so long but too lazy to research myself. Thank you kindly.

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Friendly Fire Exercise · May 18, 2025

I've been doing a little looking into the story around the Munich Olympic Hostage situation and I'm shocked I don't think you have an episode on it. There was a solid movie that came out last year called November 9th but that didn't get fully into how Worst-Possible-Outcome the actual thing went

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Major Dork Thorklestein, HonFRS · May 19, 2025

I have always found the fact that the *snipers* didn't have optics appalling. They really just sent the Mayberry PD in there to pull off a Delta Force-grade mission, didn't they?

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Sparky · May 18, 2025

I'd start an armed conflict for some snickerdoodle right now

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James Cézanne-Taipale · May 19, 2025

I am a citizen of France and went to culinary school. What day would be good for you to burn down my bakery?

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Star maker 75 · May 18, 2025

I hope you guys do more mexican history because there alot of crazy stuff going on. I mean there -the ten tragic days -mexican-american war or s Santa Anna campaign. (P.s i would to see behind the bastard do a episode on him) -some battles of mexican revolution -Battle of Puebla -i know you guys did second French-mexican war and don't do repeats, but i would like to do mini-series on the french invasion of Mexico. The whole war is just nuts

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Bossbear · May 19, 2025

Losing a entire army in 15 minutes because you took a nap and refused to move your camp to safer ground

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Steven Rutland · May 18, 2025

This is such a French situation that it honestly hurts.

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Star maker 75 · May 18, 2025

Honesty the only thing missing is some higher up mistress drama get involved