logo
episode-header-image
Oct 2023
44m 5s

The First Crusade | 2. On the road

IMMEDIATE MEDIA
About this episode
The Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos had asked the pope for a small crack team of western knights to aid him with his struggles in Asia Minor – a plea for help which had set crusading wheels into motion. But, he was shocked when waves of unruly crusaders began arriving in waves outside the walls of his capital. In this second episode of our latest Histor ... Show More
Up next
Yesterday
Why Greenwich is the home of time
Why is a small observatory in south east London so important to the story of how we tell the time? Speaking to Elinor Evans, Emily Akkermans, Curator of Time at the Royal Museums Greenwich, shares the history behind Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). From 17th-century efforts to solve th ... Show More
35m 42s
Feb 3
James Gillray: life of the week
James Gillray was one of Georgian Britain’s most ruthless satirists, using his prints to mock kings, politicians and generals, turning politics into popular entertainment. From the print shops of London, he reduced figures such as Napoleon to objects of ridicule while capturing t ... Show More
32m 52s
Feb 2
Churchill and de Gaulle: a strange relationship
After France fell in 1940, it was Charles de Gaulle who led the Free French forces against Nazi Germany and Vichy France. From the moment he assumed that position, de Gaulle was locked into a relationship with British prime minister Winston Churchill. The two men are the subject ... Show More
34m 27s
Recommended Episodes
Jan 2023
Episode 259 - The Fourth Crusade (Part 1)
Pope Innocent calls for a new Crusade to retake Jerusalem. A group of French Knights decide to form an expedition to Egypt and make a deal with Venice to transport them. But when they can't pay the bill the mission goes awry and ends up at Constantinople. Hosted on Acast. See aca ... Show More
1h 3m
Dec 2022
Episode 255 - The Third Crusade (part 1)
As soon as news reached the West that Jerusalem had fallen a new Crusade was called. The German, French and English Kings all led armies East but only Frederick Barbarossa went by land. He led a large army across the Balkans towards Constantinople and Isaac Angelos had to decided ... Show More
25m 14s
Nov 2023
The Fall of Constantinople
<p>May 1453 saw Constantinople under siege - the culmination of an age long struggle between Christianity and Islam for control of the Eastern Mediterranean.&nbsp;The Ottoman leader Mehmed II had dreamed of possessing the city since he was a boy, and now the shining light of Chri ... Show More
35m 47s
Nov 2008
How the Crusades Worked
<p>The first Crusade began in 1095, and launched a struggle for control of Jerusalem in a series of arduous battles spanning more than two centuries. Learn more about the origin, escalation and consequences of the Crusades in this podcast from HowStuffWorks.</p><p> </p> Learn mor ... Show More
14 m
Sep 2023
The Origins of the Popes
<p>The popes of Rome emerged from the humblest of beginnings. The first was a fisherman, charged with spreading the word of God under the watchful eye of a pagan Roman Empire. But just a few centuries later, the papacy had flourished into one of the wealthiest, most powerful inst ... Show More
40m 23s
Mar 2023
History of Everything: The Fall of Constantinople
The fall of Constantinople, also known as the conquest of Constantinople, was the capture of the capital of the Byzantine Empire by the Ottoman Empire. The city was captured on 29 May 1453 as part of the culmination of a 53-day siege which had begun on 6 April. Help us out by fi ... Show More
1h 17m
Oct 2019
Dan Jones, "Crusaders: The Epic History of the Wars for the Holy Lands" (Viking, 2019)
Much has been written about the Crusades, the religiously-inspired wars that pockmarked the later centuries of the Middle Ages. Yet for all of the many books on the subject there has been surprisingly little focus on the men and the women who were entangled in these conflicts. In ... Show More
40m 53s
Dec 2023
105. The Last Great War of Antiquity
Eurasia is divided into two great superpowers. Khusrow II rules the Sassanian Empire. Maurice, the last of the Justinian dynasty, rules their mighty rivals, the Byzantines. When he is overthrown, Khusrow looks to capitalise upon the chaos, invades his neighbour, and begins to swe ... Show More
47m 49s
Nov 2023
The Rise of Constantinople with Bettany Hughes
<p>The city of Constantinople, founded by the Roman Emperor Constantine in 324 AD, was a glittering jewel in the eastern Mediterranean for more than a thousand years. Its dazzling cathedrals, ambitious emperors and mixing pot culture were the stuff of legend throughout Christendo ... Show More
39m 35s