In the Shadow of the Great

Double, double, toil and trouble... Almost everyone has heard of Macbeth, in the context of Shakespeare's famous play. But Macbeth was also a real king, and Shakespeare wrote about him for a very specific reason. Support Noble Blood:—ORDER 'THE ARCANE ARTS'— Bonus episodes, stick ... Show More

Plenty of Harry Potter fans love Severus Snape. A few truly worshipped him. In the early 2000s, these fans found each other online and came to believe Harry’s least favorite professor was real. A god in an alternate universe that bled into our own. Nothing in the world could shak ... Show More

When the childless King Henry III's brother died, the heir to the throne became a cousin from the Bourbon dynasty. There was only one problem: he wasn't Catholic. Support Noble Blood:—ORDER 'THE ARCANE ARTS'— Bonus episodes, stickers, and scripts on Patreon— Order Dana's book, 'A ... Show More

<p>Peter the Great was a feared leader but also an intellectual. Learn about Peter the Great and Peter the Great's love of academia and collectibles in this podcast from HowStuffWorks.com!</p><p> </p> Learn more about your ad-choices at <a href="https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.c ... Show More

Afraid his mother, Catherine the Great, would have him assassinated, Russian Emperor Paul I built a fortress to protect himself. But after a shocking betrayal, death entered the castle… and with it, spectral soldiers, swirling fog, and a blue-eyed man with a grimace. Learn more a ... Show More

Why was the early life of Peter the Great - Tsar and autocrat of all the Russias, who endures to this day as an iconic symbol of Russian might - drenched in blood and violence? What amalgamation of court politics and family feuding saw him catapulted to the role of Tsar against a ... Show More

At the right hand of the Tsar, Grigory Rasputin turned his newfound power and prestige to vicious ends. And he wasn't the only one. Predators across the empire were howling for blood. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/liste ... Show More

Pop culture has painted Grigori Rasputin as a power-mad mystic who rose from the dead and destroyed the Russian dynasty. But the truth about Rasputin is a lot more complex. In this two-part series, we follow the story of a peasant who dreams of rising to the top of society and a ... Show More

The Tsar and his people wrestled for control of the empire. A voice whispering that control was his divine right was exactly what Nicholas wanted to hear. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. 

Not a drop of Russian blood. A woman in a world ruled by men. A loveless marriage to a man who lacked even a shred of empathy. The odds were always stacked against Catherine the Great when she arrived from Prussia. But this German Princess and child of the Enlightenment was a pol ... Show More

In part one, Catherine’s once ideal marriage to Henry VIII started to sour when she didn't provide a son to inherit the throne. And now that he has a younger girlfriend, Henry is ready to do whatever it takes to replace and erase Catherine – and make Anne his new queen. But two d ... Show More

What happens when you make a nine-year-old boy king of England? It turns out, it’s a recipe for unscrupulous advisers and a king unlike any the nation has ever known. Henry III is the opposite of his cruel father: he is compassionate and pious, but he’s also indecisive and eas ... Show More

When she traded her name for an empire, Alexandra faced a world that bewildered her—imperial Russia. Even her wedding was overshadowed by death. The darkness of those waters left her searching for a lineline. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.co ... Show More