In the mid-12th century, England was in chaos.
The king of England, Henry I, died without an heir. The country was divided between forces loyal to his daughter, Matilda, and his nephew, Stephen.
For almost two decades, armed conflicts resulted in a breakdown of law and order and central authority.
Learn more about The Anarchy, how it began, and how it ende ... Show More
Today
Rainbows And How They Work
Few things in nature are as instantly recognizable as a rainbow. For thousands of years, rainbows have inspired myths, religion, art, and science. Yet behind those bands of color is an extraordinary interaction between sunlight, water, geometry, and the physics of light itself. F ... Show More
14m 15s
Yesterday
Project Mercury: America's First Steps Into Space
In the late 1950s, the United States found itself trailing in the Space Race as the Soviet Union achieved one milestone after another. In response, NASA launched Project Mercury, an ambitious effort to put an American into space using little more than experimental rockets, crampe ... Show More
15m 26s
May 8
The Indian Ocean Trade
For thousands of years, before Europeans crossed the Atlantic or steamships crossed the seas, the Indian Ocean connected the known world. Merchants riding the monsoon winds carried spices, silk, gold, ivory, porcelain, and ideas between Africa, Arabia, India, Southeast Asia, and ... Show More
14m 13s
Mar 2024
How to Live Like a Stuart Aristocrat
<p>After the Restoration of the Monarchy, the upper classes took their cues from court life - its entertainments, costumes, food and leisure pursuits. The Stuart-era aristocracy were cultured, political, well educated, immoderate yet religious. So how did devotion and piety ... Show More
26m 34s
Sep 2025
S8 E1 | A Hole in the Head
Turns out, wearing the crown is the easy part. Henry IV thought kingship would bring control—but the treasury’s running dry, rebellions are flaring, and his grip on power is slipping fast. Then his heir takes an arrow to the face. This is the story of a king learning the hard way ... Show More
30m 53s
Sep 2025
After 1066: The Harrying of the North
Dr. Eleanor Janega unravels the blood-soaked aftermath of the Battle of Hastings and the Norman Conquest of England. Joined by Professor Levi Roach, Eleanor delves into the harrowing campaign, known as the Harrying of the North, where William the Conqueror brutally suppressed the ... Show More
51m 47s