063 – After Legnano, the cool Crusade an...

Just to let you know I haven’t disappeared! 

We explore the fascinating intersection between one of the world’s most famous relics and one of its most brilliant minds: Leonardo Da Vinci and the Shroud of Turin. Was Da Vinci somehow connected to this mysterious cloth? Could he have had the knowledge, access, and motive?🕯️ W ... Show More

Early Life & EducationBorn illegitimate, Leonardo spent his youth sketching and observing nature.After moving to Florence, he entered the prestigious workshop of Andrea Verrocchio, where he learned not only painting but also the chemistry behind pigments and the mechanics of scul ... Show More

By 711 Europe and the Frankish warlords were facing a graver threat than ever before. Bands of Northern African, nominally Muslim raiders had begun a steady incursion throughout the West, loosely unified under the banner of the Umayyads. Having already taken and plundered the Chr ... Show More

In 9CE three Roman legions were walking through Germany when they were ambushed in what would become one of the most notorious defeats throughout Rome’s history. The loss of the legions were a crippling blow to Rome’s plans of expansion, and redrew the borders in the province. Gu ... Show More

The Frankish king, Charlemagne the Great, is one of the titanic figures of European history, simultaneously renowned and shadowy. His rise to supreme power is a staggering story of warring religious empires, betrayal, battle, blindings and brutal conquest. How, then, did this one ... Show More

Following the death of Eudoxia, the Praetorian Prefect Anthemius took control of the Eastern Empire and ran it wisely for the next decade. Meanwhile in the West, anti-barbarian policies will lead to the invasion of Italy by Alaric. 

An introduction to my new podcast series which will be published from September dealing with the wars of German unification and influence of Otto von Bismarck on Germany and Europe.  The first series will deal with the Revolutuion of 1848 and the First Schleswig War.  Later serie ... Show More

In 544, Belisarius returned to Italy to fight the Goths. It was his last campaign and the end of his career. But many years later, he was asked by the emperor Justinian to don his armor one more time and save the empire from a new foe!For a free ebook, maps and blogs check out my ... Show More

“And from that moment on, he was addressed as emperor and Augustus!” The coronation of Charlemagne on Christmas Day 800 AD, is one of the landmark moments in all world history. More than three centuries after the fall of the Roman Empire in the West, the emperors had returned onc ... Show More

The Age of the Condottieri - A Short History of Mediaeval Italy from 1409-1530 by Oscar Browning audiobook. Italy from 1409 to 1530 is synonymous with the Renaissance, but this was also the age of the condottieri, Italian captains of mercenary companies and multinational armies w ... Show More

The Rise of the Franks - a mighty host of warlords; forefathers of the western world and forgers of medieval civilisation, under the totemic leadership of history’s most glorious King: Charlemagne. It is a tale rich in fantasy and myth, transporting us into a distant age and the ... Show More

Sophie (age 8) and Ellie (age 6) tell the story of the siege of Vienna from 1683. This was one of the most important battles and sieges in history. ----more----The mighty Ottoman Empire had conquered the old Eastern Roman Empire and the great city of Constantinople. It ruled a ma ... Show More