Bedste Medieval History-podcasts (2025)

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Anastasija Ropa, "The Medieval Horse" (Reaktion Books, 2025) 40:00

7d ago40:00

40:00

Anastasija Ropa joins Jana Byars to talk about The Medieval Horse (Reaktion, 2025), a book that explores the role of horses across the medieval world, from the Kievan Rus' and Scandinavia to Central Europe, Byzantium, the Arab world and Asia, including China and India. Covering the early medieval period to the late Middle Ages, it examines how hors…

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194: Deus Vult! 46:45

10d ago46:45

46:45

SEASON 8: The First Crusade EPISODE 194: Deus Vult! Clermont., France. November 27, 1095. Pope Urban II lit the match that set Europe ablaze. This episode dives into the conflicting accounts of that speech—where “Deus Vult” became both a prayer and a war cry. No More Paywalls! How? If you believe in what’s happening here – bringing our shared histo…

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Spooky Samhain with Dr Hannah Mac Auliffe 47:51

13d ago47:51

47:51

"Great was the darkness of that night and its horror, and demons would appear on that night always." Oíche shamhna shona daoibh go léir! Happy Hallowe'en! To accompany you on any trick or treating or early morning/late night wakenings this weekend we bring you our spooky Samhain special! Dr Hannah Mac Auliffe, Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Maynoo…

1
Elizabeth Currie, "Street Style: Art and Dress in the Time of Caravaggio" (Reaktion, 2025) 37:51

10d ago37:51

37:51

In late sixteenth-century Rome, artists found inspiration in bustling streets and taverns, depicting soldiers, Romani fortune tellers, sex workers and servants among the city’s poorest inhabitants. Street Style: Art and Dress in the Time of Caravaggio (Reaktion, 2025) by Dr. Elizabeth Currie explores these hidden lives, uncovering how the stories o…

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John Blair, "Killing the Dead: Vampire Epidemics from Mesopotamia to the New World" (Princeton UP, 2025) 51:29

13d ago51:29

51:29

Killing the Dead: Vampire Epidemics from Mesopotamia to the New World (Princeton UP, 2025) by Professor John Blair provides the first in-depth, global account of one of the world’s most widespread yet misunderstood forms of mass hysteria—the vampire epidemic. In a spellbinding narrative, Dr. Blair takes readers from ancient Mesopotamia to present-d…

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193: Eastern Rome on the Eve of Crusade 53:10

16d ago53:10

53:10

SEASON 8: The First Crusade EPISODE 193: Eastern Rome on the Eve of Crusade On this episode, we hear from Dr. Warren Treadgold -- retired professor, historian, and author -- who has spent a decades-long career studying Byzantine history. In the show's first interview, we discuss Alexios Komnenos, differences between the Christian East and the Latin…

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192: The World of the First Crusade 30:59

19d ago30:59

30:59

SEASON 8: The First Crusade EPISODE 192: The World(view) Behind the First Crusade Let’s take a moment to survey Europe by 1095. What was the world like on the Eve of the First Crusade? What were the various political and economic ideas that flooded out of Western Europe and into the Holy Land? What kinds of technology were these westerners skilled …

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191: Chapter 9: The Pecheneg Problem 44:55

23d ago44:55

44:55

Patreon Series: Book of Alexios Episode 191: The Pecheneg Problem NOTE: This is the last episode in our Patreon episodes covering the rise and early reign of Emperor Alexios I Komnenos! But his story continues well into the First Crusade...and beyond, so stay tuned, my friends! Alexios Komnenos' story is only beginning! Guiscard is dead, and the By…

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190: Chapter 8: The Wolf's Mouth 43:50

26d ago43:50

43:50

Patreon Series: Book of Alexios Episode 190: Chapter 8: The Wolf's Mouth Today, two future legends meet. Bohemond of Taranto meets the Byzantine living legend Emperor Alexios I—a moment that will ignite a complicated and world-shaping rivalry. It’s a tense encounter, but not all is war and scheming: somewhere nearby, a child is born. A girl who is …

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Medieval Medicine with Prof. Deborah Hayden 54:49

26d ago54:49

54:49

This week Prof. Deborah Hayden, our Head here in the Dept. of Early Irish, Maynooth University, explains what it was like both to go the, or become a, doctor in medieval Ireland! Taking us through a chronological development from the early medico-legal texts through the surge in scientific writing in the later Middle Ages she explains everything fr…

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Thomas Smith, "Rewriting the First Crusade: Epistolary Culture in the Middle Ages" (Boydell & Brewer, 2024) 45:11

27d ago45:11

45:11

The letters stemming from the First Crusade are premier sources for understanding the launch, campaign, and aftermath of the expedition. Between 1095 and 1100, epistles sustained social relationships across the Mediterranean and within Europe, as a mixture of historical writing, literary invention, news, and theological interpretation. They served …

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189: Chapter 7: Appointments, Penance, Delegation & Threats 37:46

1M ago37:46

37:46

Patreon Series: Book of Alexios Episode 189: Chapter 7: Appointments, Penance, Delegation & Threats The purple robes are his, but the work has only begun. In his first month on the throne, Emperor Alexios I Komnenos must navigate a Byzantine Empire under siege—externally and internally. A divided capital, looming threats across the Bosporus, and gu…

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Matthias Egeler, "Elves and Fairies: A Short History of the Otherworld" (Yale UP, 2025) 42:59

1M ago42:59

42:59

Originating in Norse and Celtic mythologies, elves and fairies are a firmly established part of Western popular culture. Since the days of the Vikings and Arthurian legend, these sprites have undergone huge transformations. From J. R. R. Tolkien’s warlike elves, based on medieval legend, to little flower fairies whose charms even Sir Arthur Conan D…

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188: Chapter 6: April 4, 1081 54:20

1M ago54:20

54:20

Patreon Series: Book of Alexios Episode 188: Chapter 6: April 4, 1081 NOTE: This is a repeat of Episode 132, but in the interest of the flow of this series, I've decided to include it for continuity. The empire is on fire—figuratively and nearly literally—as Alexios Komnenos makes his bold play for the throne. With the capital in chaos, loyalties s…

1
187: Chapter 5: Cheese Week 50:30

1M ago50:30

50:30

Patreon Series: Book of Alexios Episode 187: Chapter 5: Cheese Week NOTE: This is a repeat of Episode 131, but in the interest of the flow of this series, I've decided to include it for continuity. In this episode, we explore the dangerously creamy days leading up to the rise of Alexios Komnenos—because nothing says imperial coup like dairy. Before…

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186: Chapter 4: The Writing on the Wall 1:03:05

1M ago1:03:05

1:03:05

Patreon Series: Book of Alexios Episode 186: Chapter 4: The Writing on the Wall NOTE: This is a repeat of Episode 130, but in the interest of the flow of this series, I've decided to include it for continuity. Emperor Nikephoros III watches his empire crumble like dry parchment. With rebellion brewing and a once-loyal general rising in fame, the ol…

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Poets and Poetry with Dr Elizabeth Boyle 52:30

1M ago52:30

52:30

Welcome back for season three! Hope you missed us as much as we missed recording our chats on all things medieval Ireland! Today we have Dr Elizabeth Boyle back for the first episode of the new season (as is becoming tradition) to learn about poets and poetry. We discuss everything from Poet-President Michael D. Higgins, the power of satire, constr…

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Rosemary Admiral, "Living Law: Women and Legality in Marinid Morocco" (Syracuse UP, 2025) 49:00

1M ago49:00

49:00

Dr. Rosemary Admiral provides a groundbreaking history of women’s legal engagement in Marinid Morocco between the thirteenth and fifteenth centuries that fundamentally challenges contemporary assumptions about women’s relationships to Islamic legal traditions. Drawing on a rich collection of fatwas (legal documents) from Fez and surrounding areas, …

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185: Chapter 3: Alexios & the Erymanthian Boar 31:32

1M ago31:32

31:32

Patreon Series: Book of Alexios Episode 185: Chapter 3: Alexios & the Erymanthian Boar On this episode, we employ a comparison used by Alexios Komnenos’s daughter when describing her father. There is absolutely no doubt that Anna Komnene revered her legendary father, but the comparison she makes in this episode some would say is a bit over the top.…

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Karen Stollznow, "Bitch: The Journey of a Word" (Cambridge UP, 2024) 29:46

2M ago29:46

29:46

Bitch is a bitch of a word. It used to be a straightforward insult, but today – after so many variations and efforts to reject or reclaim the word – it's not always entirely clear what it means. Bitch is a chameleon. There are good bitches and bad bitches; sexy bitches and psycho bitches; boss bitches and even perfect bitches. Bitch: The Journey of…

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184: Chapter 2: Bryennios's Rebellion 43:06

2M ago43:06

43:06

Patreon Series: The Book of Alexios Episode 184: Chapter 2: Bryennios's Rebellion NOTE: This is a repeat of Episode 129, but in the interest of the flow of this series, I've decided to include it for continuity. Today, we watch Emperor Nikephoros III Botaneiates take the reins of a smoldering empire still reeling from the Bread Riots of 1078. But n…

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Katherine L. French, "Household Goods and Good Households in Late Medieval London: Consumption and Domesticity After the Plague" (U Pennsylvania Press, 2025) 52:31

2M ago52:31

52:31

The Black Death that arrived in the spring of 1348 eventually killed nearly half of England's population. In its long aftermath, wages in London rose in response to labor shortages, many survivors moved into larger quarters in the depopulated city, and people in general spent more money on food, clothing, and household furnishings than they had bef…

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183: Chapter 1: Roussel de Balliol 47:49

2M ago47:49

47:49

Patreon Series: The Book of Alexios Episode 183: Chapter 1: Roussel de Balliol Today, we watch a young Alexios Komnenos do what Alexios Komnenos does best: survive and outmaneuver. The foe? A rogue Norman warlord named Roussel de Balliol, who decided to carve out his own little empire from Byzantine soil. It's the Komnenos kid versus the Norman ups…

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182: Book of Alexios: Prologue 37:53

2M ago37:53

37:53

Patreon Series: Book of Alexios Episode 182: Prologue Today, we crack open The Book of Alexios, a new mini-series chronicling the rise of one of Byzantium’s greatest emperors. But before we launch into the heart of his reign, we need to sweep up a few imperial messes. The chessboard is rearranged: emperors fall, others rise, and somewhere far to th…

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Jack Hartnell, "Wound Man: The Many Lives of a Surgical Image" (Princeton UP, 2025) 1:04:56

2M ago1:04:56

1:04:56

The Wound Man—a medical diagram depicting a figure fantastically pierced by weapons and ravaged by injuries and diseases—was reproduced widely across the medieval and early modern globe. In Wound Man: The Many Lives of a Surgical Image (Princeton University Press, 2025), Dr. Jack Hartnell charts the emergence and endurance of this striking image, u…

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181: The Papacy of Pope Alexander II 28:33

2M ago28:33

28:33

Patreon Series: Rise of the Crusading Spirit Episode 181: The Papacy of Pope Alexander II Today, we pause our sprint through imperial chaos to turn toward Rome—because while emperors rise and fall in the East, a powerhouse is at work in the West. We revisit the reign of Pope Alexander II, a quiet juggernaut of the 11th century, whose influence reve…

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180: Poland Remains 33:40

2M ago33:40

33:40

Patreon Series: Rise of Poland Episode 180: Poland Remains While kingdoms rose and crumbled all across Europe, Poland—battered, bruised, and often overlooked—managed to hold itself together through the chaos of the 11th century. How did this patchwork realm survive where others fell apart? It's a testament to the thousand-year-old Polish spirit. No…

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Steve Tibble, "Assassins and Templars: A Battle in Myth and Blood" (Yale UP, 2025) 56:13

2M ago56:13

56:13

The Assassins and the Templars are two of history’s most legendary groups. One was a Shi’ite religious sect, the other a Christian military order created to defend the Holy Land. Violently opposed, they had vastly different reputations, followings, and ambitions. Yet they developed strikingly similar strategies—and their intertwined stories have, o…

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Cynthia Paces, "Prague: The Heart of Europe" (Oxford UP, 2025) 1:40:09

2M ago1:40:09

1:40:09

Prague: The Heart of Europe (Oxford University Press, 2025) traces Prague's origins in the ninth century through the end of the Cold War. Highlights include the golden ages of Charles IV and Rudolph II; the religious conflicts of the Hussite and Thirty Years Wars; the rich culture of Europe's largest Jewish community; the rivalry between the city's…

1
179: The Worthy Brother 26:12

2M ago26:12

26:12

Patreon Series: Rise of Poland Episode 179: The Worthy Brother Today, we dive into the wild, ruthless, and often misunderstood reign of Bolesław II—better known as Bolesław the Bold. He wasn’t just another medieval ruler jockeying for land and power. No, Bolesław was a king with ambition carved in steel and sealed in blood. He fought wars, crowned …

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178: But It's Not Too Heavy 39:34

2M ago39:34

39:34

Patreon Series: Rise of Poland Episode 178: But It's Not Too Heavy Today, we trace the quiet but critical rise of Casimir the Restorer—a man who didn’t charge into history with a sword held high, but instead rebuilt a kingdom from the ground up. After Poland fell into disarray, it was Casimir who returned from exile, restored order, and stabilized …

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David Woodman, "The First King of England: Æthelstan and the Birth of a Kingdom" (Princeton UP, 2025) 39:15

2M ago39:15

39:15

The First King of England: Æthelstan and the Birth of a Kingdom (Princeton University Press, 2025) by Professor David Woodman is a foundational biography of Æthelstan (d. 939), the early medieval king whose territorial conquests and shrewd statesmanship united the peoples, languages, and cultures that would come to be known as the “kingdom of the E…

1
177: Heavy Is the Crown 27:01

2M ago27:01

27:01

Patreon Series: Rise of Poland Episode 177: Heavy Is the Crown Today, we dive into the brutal and chaotic reigns of Mieszko II Lambert and his charming brother Bezprym—if by “charming” you mean “sadistic, power-hungry nightmare.” After Bolesław the Brave left Poland strong and unified, his sons quickly reminded everyone just how fragile power can b…

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Anne Lawrence-Mathers, "Medieval Meteorology: Forecasting the Weather from Aristotle to the Almanac" (Cambridge UP, 2019) 31:23

2M ago31:23

31:23

In this episode we speak to Anne Lawrence-Mathers, Professor of History at the University of Reading about her new book Medieval Meteorology: Forecasting the Weather from Aristotle to the Almanac, out this year, 2020, with Cambridge University Press. The practice of weather forecasting underwent a crucial transformation in the Middle Ages. Explorin…

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Daisy Livingston, "Managing Paperwork in Mamluk Cairo: Archives, Waqf and Society" (Edinburgh UP, 2025) 57:49

2M ago57:49

57:49

Archives are not only sources for history but have their own histories too, which shape how historians can tell stories of the past. In Managing Paperwork in Mamluk Cairo: Archives, Waqf and Society (Edinburgh UP, 2025), Daisy Livingston explores the archival history of one of the most powerful polities of the late-medieval Middle East: the ‘Mamluk…

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176: The Many Wars of Boleslaw 40:00

3M ago40:00

40:00

Patreon Series: Rise of Poland Episode 176: The Many Wars of Boleslaw Today, we charge headlong into the bloody campaigns and calculated power plays of Bolesław I of Poland—known to some as “the Brave,” and to others as “the guy who never saw a war he didn’t like.” Whether it was the Holy Roman Empire, the Kievan Rus’, or internal rivals, Bolesław …

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175: A Foundation to Build Upon 43:37

3M ago43:37

43:37

Patreon Series: Rise of Poland Episode 175: A Foundation to Build Upon Today, we stand at the crossroads of dynastic transition in Poland. Mieszko I, the man who carved out the foundation of a Christian Polish state through diplomacy, war, and strategic marriage, breathes his last. But before the dust settles, his son—Bolesław—steps forward, eyes f…

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Michelle P. Brown, "Bede and the Theory of Everything" (Reaktion Books, 2023) 1:14:55

3M ago1:14:55

1:14:55

Bede and the Theory of Everything (Reaktion Books, 2023) investigates the life and world of Bede (c. 673–735), foremost scholar of the early Middle Ages and ‘the father of English history’. It examines his notable feats, including calculating the first tide-tables; playing a role in the creation of the Ceolfrith Bibles and the Lindisfarne Gospels; …

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174: King of the North 31:21

3M ago31:21

31:21

Patreon Series: Rise of Poland Episode 174: King of the North Today, we begin a brand-new arc: the rise of Poland. And like all good origin stories, it starts with a decision that changed everything. Mieszko I, the first ruler of Poland we can name with confidence, takes a leap into the unknown—converting to Christianity and aligning his people wit…

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173: Eadric the Wild 30:54

3M ago30:54

30:54

Patreon Series: Context of a Conquest Episode 173: Eadric the Wild This tale is one of alliance, defiance, and no small amount of grit. We’re headed to the borderlands in this episode. Eadric of Herefordshire and Shropshire teams up with Welsh princes in a last-ditch effort to push back the Norman tide. Anglo-Saxon resistance isn’t dead—not yet. An…

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Marla Segol, "Kabbalah and Sex Magic: A Mythical-Ritual Genealogy" (Pennsylvania State UP, 2022) 56:55

3M ago56:55

56:55

In Kabbalah and Sex Magic: A Mythical-Ritual Genealogy (Penn State University Press, 2021) a provocative book, Marla Segol explores the development of the kabbalistic cosmology underlying Western sex magic. Drawing extensively on Jewish myth and ritual, Segol tells the powerful story of the relationship between the divine and the human body in late…

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Nabil Yasien Mohamed, "Ghazālī’s Epistemology: A Critical Study of Doubt and Certainty" (Routledge, 2024) 1:20:58

3M ago1:20:58

1:20:58

Focusing on Abū Ḥāmid al-Ghazālī (d. 1111) – one of the foremost scholars and authorities in the Muslim world who is central to the Islamic intellectual tradition – this book embarks on a study of doubt (shakk) and certainty (yaqīn) in his epistemology. Ghazālī’s Epistemology: A Critical Study of Doubt and Certainty (Routledge, 2024) looks at Ghazā…

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172: Flanders In Crisis 34:24

3M ago34:24

34:24

Patreon Series: Context of a Conquest Episode 172: Flanders In Crisis Losses abound in this chapter of our story. But before we get swept away in the grief and fallout, we finally pause to give the County of Flanders its due. A key player in the game of 11th-century thrones, Flanders is about to show us just how much sway it holds over the fortunes…

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171: Was Matilda Really A Monster? 21:04

3M ago21:04

21:04

Patreon Series: Context of a Conquest Episode 171: Was Matilda Really A Monster? Today, we dive into one of the most powerful couples of the Middle Ages—William the Conqueror and Matilda of Flanders. History tells us theirs was a loyal and respectful union...but was it really? We’ll look at what the chronicles say, what they don’t say, and explore …

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170: Forsaken Son 44:03

3M ago44:03

44:03

Patreon Series: Context of a Conquest Episode 170: Forsaken Son Today, we crack open the long-simmering drama between William the Conqueror and his eldest son, Robert Curthose. Spoiler alert: Norman family dinners were not warm and fuzzy affairs. This episode dives into the rocky relationship between father and son—misunderstandings, power plays, a…

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169: Ireland After Clontarf 28:59

3M ago28:59

28:59

Patreon Series Episode 169: Ireland After Clontarf Ireland: 1014 and beyond...Let’s explore the towering legacy of Brian Boru—High King of Ireland, unifier, reformer, warrior. His rise reshaped the island’s political landscape, but his sudden, violent end at Clontarf left a power vacuum that would echo for generations. What did his brief moment of …

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David Chaffetz, "Raiders, Rulers, and Traders: The Horse and the Rise of Empires" (Norton, 2025) 47:19

3M ago47:19

47:19

No animal is so entangled in human history as the horse. The thread starts in prehistory, with a slight, shy animal, hunted for food. Domesticating the horse allowed early humans to settle the vast Eurasian steppe; later, their horses enabled new forms of warfare, encouraged long-distance trade routes, and ended up acquiring deep cultural and relig…

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Anne M. Blackburn, "Buddhist-Inflected Sovereignties Across the Indian Ocean: A Pali Arena, 1200-1550" (U Hawaii Press, 2024) 56:21

3M ago56:21

56:21

From the thirteenth to the fifteenth centuries new kingdoms emerged in Sri Lanka and mainland Southeast Asia. Sovereignty in these new kingdoms was expressed in terms we understand today as coming from ‘Theravada Buddhism’. Crucial to this tradition was the Pali language. Anne Blackburn’s new book, Buddhist-Inflected Sovereignties across the Indian…

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168: A Pisan Delegation 20:57

3M ago20:57

20:57

Patreon Series: Rise of the Crusader Spirit Episode 168: A Pisan Delegation Today, we follow Roger de Hauteville as he stands at a crossroads—offered one of the greatest opportunities any military commander could dream of. It’s a chance to etch his name into the bedrock of history… but only if he has the nerve to seize it. Will he take the leap, or…

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167: Duke Bonifacio of Canossa 53:40

4M ago53:40

53:40

Patreon Series: Rise of the Crusader Spirit Episode 167: Duke Bonifacio of Canossa Today, we begin unraveling the extraordinary story of Matilda of Canossa—one of the most powerful and complex women in medieval Europe. But before we get to the warrior-countess herself, we lay the foundation with her legendary father, Bonifacio of Canossa, a larger-…

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