Chapter Nine – The Normans

When we left off, Rufus and Robert of Belleme were marching upon Maine. Specifically, Count Helias’ fortress at Danguel. This fortress made military incursions and raids into Maine insanely difficult. Which Rufus and Robert found deeply inconsiderate, so it would have to be broug ... Show More

Alright, so when we left off Edgar (the eldest living son of Malcolm Canmore) had claimed the throne of Scotland. But, in classic medieval style, the way that Edgar had gone about that was anything but simple. Edgar had taken the throne from his Uncle, King Donald III, and to pul ... Show More

For years, Normandy had been wracked with internal conflict, war, and political unrest. The Duchy had nearly been the end of Duke Robert countless times… and if there was a single defining characteristic of Normandy under Robert, it would be “chaos.” The post 479 – Be Like Water ... Show More

William of Normandy famously invaded England in 1066 – but, he didn't quite conquer it all. In fact, the duty of leading a second assault was left to his son William Rufus almost 30 years later. Speaking to David Musgrove, Sophie Ambler and Fiona Edmonds reveal how the second Nor ... Show More

In the first episode of Pax Britannica, we meet the Tudor dynasty; the kings and queens who ruled England, Wales, and Ireland from the end of the 15th century until the start of the 17th. In this first of our foundation episodes we cover the basic timeline of the Tudor era, from ... Show More

What happened in the aftermath of the Battle of Hastings? What horrors did William the Conqueror have to inflict upon his Anglo Saxon subjects in order to consolidate his new realm? And, what role did castles, the Harrowing of the North, and the Doomsday Book play in the creation ... Show More

In the early 1400s, England welcomed a new king, a new ruling family, and a new role for the English language in the administration of government. In this episode, we explore the rise of the House of Lancaster and the emergence of a standard form of written English for the first ... Show More

Ask any British school child for a significant date in history, and they’ll likely offer 1066 - the year of William the Conqueror’s Norman invasion of England. But William was just one prominent Norman figure, and 1066 was a single chapter in a much larger story. Settling in nort ... Show More

This episode includes an introduction to Series 1, the Anglo Saxons, and then a discussion of the sources we have available for the settlement period. We then spend some time on and the way that historians and others have seen and interpreted the Anglo Saxon period. Series 1 on t ... Show More

The Anglo-Saxon period, also known as the ‘Dark Ages’ stretched from the withdrawal of Roman forces in 410 AD to the conquest of England by William of Normandy in 1066. The period is remembered by the legends that emerged from it, such as the tales of Beowulf and King Arthur, but ... Show More

The first Anglo-Saxon Queens of England before the Norman conquest are shrouded in the mists of history. Their stories read like fairytales and in fact one of them inspired the evil stepmother. The Anglo-Saxon Queen Consorts were: Ælfgifu of Shaftesbury Æthelflæd of Damerham Ælfg ... Show More

Charles I has been executed, and the English Parliament establish a new, kingless, government. The reaction to the Regicide sweeps across Europe and the fledgling English empire. For this episode, I found the following publications particularly useful: Philip Baker, 'The Regicide ... Show More

The Norman Conquest of 1066, culminating in the legendary Battle of Hastings, is perhaps the greatest turning point in the history of the English nation. It was a year that changed the fate of England forever, forging empires, and settling continents. And yet, despite its infamy ... Show More