logo
episode-header-image
Aug 2024
41m 24s

The Bronze Age Collapse

History Hit
About this episode

Around 3,200 years ago, a vast, interconnected civilisation suddenly collapsed. A 'perfect storm' of climate catastrophe, famine, drought and invasion tore apart the eastern Mediterranean, plunging the survivors into decades of turmoil.


Eric Cline is the author of '1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed' and its sequel, 'After 1177 B.C.: The Survival of Civilizations'. He joins us to explain how this interconnected world was toppled, and what came after.


Produced by James Hickmann and edited by Dougal Patmore.


Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Sign up HERE for 50% off for 3 months using code ‘DANSNOW’.


We'd love to hear from you - what do you want to hear an episode on? You can email the podcast at ds.hh@historyhit.com.


You can take part in our listener survey here.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Oct 29
Medieval Ghost Stories
Ghost stories have haunted conversations since ancient times, from the Mesopotamians to the Romans to the Vikings. The medieval period was particularly awash with ghost stories - after all, it was an era of great plague, piety and corporal punishment. Ghost stories served as usef ... Show More
27m 55s
Oct 26
Charles de Gaulle: The Man Who Rebuilt France
In June 1940, France was collapsing. Paris was in enemy hands, the government had fled, and Marshal Pétain was preparing to surrender. Into that chaos stepped a lanky, rigid French general with no army, no government and almost no followers - Charles de Gaulle. From penniless exi ... Show More
1h 15m
Oct 22
The Myths vs Reality of Mummification
From the elaborate burial rituals of Ancient Egypt to Victorian mummy unwrapping parties, mummification has fascinated humanity for centuries. But what is mummification really about? Because Hollywood, supernatural folklore and popular culture have muddied our understanding of th ... Show More
44m 22s
Recommended Episodes
Jan 2024
The Bronze Age Collapse
<p>The Bronze Age Collapse was one of the most cataclysmic events in human history. Over just a few decades, civilisations across the Mediterranean from Greece and Egypt to Mesopotamia and Babylon abruptly deteriorated, bringing an end to one epoch and birthing another. But what ... Show More
51m 9s
Jan 2019
2. The Bronze Age Collapse - Mediterranean Apocalypse
Around the year 1100 BC, a wave of destruction washed over the Eastern Mediterranean. It wiped whole civilizations off the map, and left only ash and ruin in its wake. This catastrophe, known as “the Late Bronze Age Collapse”, has become one of the enduring puzzles of history. I ... Show More
1h 4m
Nov 2022
The end of civilisation: Bronze Age collapse
More than 3,000 years ago a group of powerful and intricately connected Mediterranean kingdoms collapsed over the course of just a few decades. The palaces of Mycenaean Greece were destroyed, entire cities in Hittite Turkey were abandoned, and whole empires disintegrated. Some ci ... Show More
41m 48s
Jul 2024
Birth of the Iron Age
<p>It’s the end of the 12th century BC, and a once remarkable Near eastern world lay in ruin. Drought, warfare, famine, earthquakes, plague - all had combined to brutally devastate ancient civilisations stretching from Mesopotamia to Egypt to mainland Greece.&nbsp;</p><br><p>It w ... Show More
1h 2m
Feb 2021
What Happened After Civilization Collapsed
What happens after everything falls apart? The end of the Bronze Age was a moment when an entire network of ancient civilizations collapsed, leaving behind only clues to what happened. Today, scholars have pieced together a story where everything from climate change to mass migra ... Show More
56m 37s
Sep 2021
The Aftermath of Collapse: Bronze Age Edition (2021)
What happens after everything falls apart? The end of the Bronze Age was a moment when an entire network of ancient civilizations collapsed, leaving behind only clues to what happened. Today, scholars have pieced together a story where everything from climate change to mass migra ... Show More
55m 6s
Sep 2025
The Minoan Eruption: Bronze Age Cataclysm
More than 3,500 years ago, a massive volcanic eruption devastated Thera - modern day Santorini - engulfing the Bronze Age world in ash and fire. Entire landscapes were buried, ash darkened the skies, and the shockwaves rippled across the eastern Mediterranean.In this episode of T ... Show More
55m 9s
Jul 2024
The Maya Collapse
<p>Just over 1,000 years ago, the ancient Maya world in Mesoamerica was turned upside down. Prominent cities like Tikal, Palenque, Copan and Calakmul, their great stone art and architecture left to be gradually reclaimed by the jungle. It's a time of decline known as the Maya Col ... Show More
43m 16s
Sep 2025
541 AD: The Worst Year in History
Was this the worst year in human history? Bubonic plague sweeps across the Mediterranean. The sun vanishes behind volcanic ash. Crops fail, famine bites, and the Roman empire lurches towards collapse.In this episode of The Ancients, the third in our special Great Disasters series ... Show More
1h 4m