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The year is 1912. The bitter arguments about Home Rule for Ireland are reaching boiling point. But with Ulster in uproar, the Tories encouraging mutiny and thousands of rifles pouring into Ireland, is...
· 1 hr 5 min 26 sec
At the start of the 19th century, the kingdoms of Britain and Ireland were officially 'united' with the Acts of Union. Historian Paul Rouse continues our sweep through the Anglo-Irish relationship, in...
· 54 min 23 sec
“In every generation the Irish people have asserted their right to national freedom and sovereignty; six times during the past three hundred years they have asserted it in arms.” The proclamation of t...
· 58 min 45 sec
A grubby, secretive cabal of devil worshippers that run the world, or a fraternity of like-minded individuals who enjoy eccentric rituals? Freemasonry, originating in the Middle Ages, played a signifi...
· 1 hr 3 min 22 sec
What did "demos" really mean to the Athenians? Why were women such a crucial part of Athenian democracy? And who was the Tom Wamsgams of Athens? Join Tom and Dominic as they explore whether Athenian d...
· 58 min 22 sec
It's 1649 and a new republic has been declared, the Commonwealth of England. It's an age of 17th century republicanism, difficult policies in Ireland, and a serious PR problem... writer and historian...
· 58 min 41 sec
In 1885, H. Rider Haggard’s brother offered him a wager: five shillings if he could write a book half as good as Robert Louis Stevenson’s “Treasure Island”.By the end of the year, Haggard had penned a...
· 1 hr 1 min 32 sec
It’s 1647, and in New England, where puritan settlers live in fear of God’s wrath and a hostile indigenous population, there are rumours coming from Boston, and up the Connecticut valley, that witches...
· 58 min 6 sec
Born on the Western edge of an empire that stretched all the way to India, Herodotus was a Greek historian of the 5th century BC. His major work The Histories, a long and detailed account of the Greco...
· 56 min 45 sec
What was the most calamitous coronation of all time? Which ceremony does Tom think is the most boring topic he's ever discussed on the podcast? How will Charles III's big day compare to that of his an...
· 56 min 23 sec
Whether it’s London descending into a riot, a bad hangover with Samuel Pepys, or a royal lacking discretion… Charles III will certainly be hoping that History does not repeat itself this weekend. In t...
· 56 min 6 sec
The roots of the coronation ritual are fabulously ancient: certain elements of the ceremony are vestiges from the later Roman Empire, others have their origins in the Old Testament and ancient Egypt....
· 52 min 41 sec
Few years in European History saw as much change and turmoil as 1848: across the continent, from Vienna to Paris to Palermo, mass protests took place, catching the old elites by surprise. The politica...
· 1 hr 2 min 2 sec
“It is 105 degrees in Saigon, and rising.” This announcement, made through U.S. Armed Forces radio on a spring morning in 1975, is the cue for all Americans remaining in Saigon to head to the US embas...
· 55 min 5 sec
It's 1975, and in the final act of the Vietnam War, the U.S. have ordered all remaining civilian and military personnel to be withdrawn from South Vietnam. The communist Viet Cong are closing in on th...
· 52 min 14 sec
Rin Tin Tin, born on the Western Front in 1918, became one of the biggest movie stars of the silent film era. Greyfriars Bobby gained his fame for guarding his masters' grave for 14 years, until the d...
· 59 min 45 sec
The German Democratic Republic was born in the ashes of the Second World War, and described itself as a socialist “workers’ and peasants’ state”. The country struggled for much of the latter half of t...
· 1 hr 9 min 42 sec
The Black Prince has gained lands in Aquitaine and Gascony through his brutal and thorough attacks. But faced with financial difficulties, sickness, and a notable family death, can he retain his terri...
· 52 min 42 sec
As the spectre of the Black Death haunts Europe, a more tangible foe terrorises the French king and his subjects: the Black Prince, Edward of Woodstock. After his great victory leading the vanguard at...
· 56 min 35 sec
State of the art military technology. Blind battle commanders. Iconic kingly lines. Tom and Dominic continue to delve into the 100 Years' War, as they patriotically explore the mighty battles of Sluys...
· 57 min 22 sec