diff --git a/packages/core/src/core/logger.test.ts b/packages/core/src/core/logger.test.ts
index dd150aec87f..e0b70a76e37 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/core/logger.test.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/core/logger.test.ts
@@ -567,6 +567,25 @@ describe('Logger', () => {
       );
     });
 
+    it.each([
+      ['null', null],
+      ['number', 123],
+    ])(
+      'should return an empty history if history is %s instead of an array (#29194)',
+      async (_label: string, badHistory: unknown) => {
+        const taggedFilePath = path.join(
+          TEST_GEMINI_DIR,
+          'checkpoint-wrong-shape.json',
+        );
+        await fs.writeFile(
+          taggedFilePath,
+          JSON.stringify({ history: badHistory }),
+        );
+        const loadedCheckpoint = await logger.loadCheckpoint('wrong-shape');
+        expect(loadedCheckpoint).toEqual({ history: [] });
+      },
+    );
+
     it('should return an empty history if logger is not initialized', async () => {
       const uninitializedLogger = new Logger(
         testSessionId,
diff --git a/packages/core/src/core/logger.ts b/packages/core/src/core/logger.ts
index 5a937b4edc8..36655d27754 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/core/logger.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/core/logger.ts
@@ -367,8 +367,13 @@ export class Logger {
         parsedContent !== null &&
         'history' in parsedContent
       ) {
-        // eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-unsafe-type-assertion
-        return parsedContent as Checkpoint;
+        const history: unknown = parsedContent.history;
+        // A valid-JSON file with a non-array history (crash mid-save, full
+        // disk, hand edit) must degrade like any other corrupt file (#29194).
+        if (Array.isArray(history)) {
+          // eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-unsafe-type-assertion
+          return parsedContent as Checkpoint;
+        }
       }
 
       debugLogger.warn(