logo
episode-header-image
Jul 2025
44m 10s

Slavery on the medieval Silk Road

IMMEDIATE MEDIA
About this episode
Slavery was a grim but omnipresent reality across the Silk Road during the Middle Ages. Speaking to Emily Briffett, Claire Taylor unpacks the complex networks of enslavement that spanned from Ireland to China, revealing how – and why – human lives were traded alongside silks and spices. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History M ... Show More
Up next
Today
The Nazis’ crimes laid bare
When the Nazi leaders went on trial in Nuremberg from November 1945, the true horrors of their regime were exposed to the world. In the second episode of our four-part series on the trials, the lawyer and author Philippe Sands chronicles the dramatic days when the likes of Herman ... Show More
46m 30s
Yesterday
What does Hitler’s DNA really tell us?
A recent documentary drawing conclusions from new analysis of Adolf Hitler’s DNA has sparked headlines around the world. But how did the programme’s researchers get hold of the key evidence? And what issues – and implications – are prompted by linking the Nazi leader with a range ... Show More
48m 17s
Nov 21
Mutilated corpses and undead mothers-in-law: vampire epidemics through history
Fears of the undead rising from their graves to cause trouble have recurred in societies around the globe throughout the centuries. But why was your mother-in-law especially likely to become a vampire? What makes Count Dracula a highly unusual bloodsucker? And how would you best ... Show More
38m 49s
Recommended Episodes
May 2024
Origins of the Silk Road
<p>The Silk Road was a pivotal ancient exchange network that connected the grassy steppes of Asia and the Middle East with the western world. The passage of goods, ideas and technologies along this bustling commercial artery was crucial to the development of the ancient East and ... Show More
43m 4s
Nov 2024
The Silk Road
For centuries, a vast and vibrant trade route connected the East and West. Its stories contain legendary names, like Marco Polo. Not only did it spread rare goods across the world, but ideas and belief systems too. It was known as "The Silk Road." Explore the history, culture, an ... Show More
51m 42s
Oct 2024
The Silk Road: Where Cultures Collided
<p>At the edge of the Gobi Desert, Dunhuang was once a bustling oasis on the famous Silk Road connecting China and the Mediterranean.&nbsp;For more than 1000 years, Dunhuang was an important pilgrimage site and a cultural melting pot where ideas, technologies and art flowed freel ... Show More
33m 10s
Apr 2023
Massacre on the Slave Ship Zong
<p><strong>Please note, this episode contains descriptions of racial violence that some listeners may find disturbing.</strong></p><br><p>In November 1781, a British slave ship carrying hundreds of enslaved Africans across the Atlantic began to run out of water. The ship was call ... Show More
19m 1s
Jun 2025
The Kingdom of Aksum
<p>How is the unique narrative of the Ark of the Covenant deeply rooted in Ethiopian culture and tradition?</p><br><p>Embark on a journey to the Kingdom of Aksum with host Tristan Hughes and archeologist Dil Singh Basanti, located in present-day northern Ethiopia and Eritrea. The ... Show More
59m 54s
Aug 2024
180. Gold & God: Connecting India & Ancient Rome
It was actually India, not China, that was the greatest trading partner of the Roman Empire. During this era, it’s clear that sea travel was the fastest, most economical and safest way to move people and goods in the pre-modern world, costing about a fifth of the price of equival ... Show More
41m 9s
Apr 2025
248. Victorian Narcos: Sex, Drugs, & The Opium Agency (Ep 2)
How did Britain create a violent monopoly on opium production in India in the 1700s? What was the Opium Agency? Why did Chinese elites use opium during sex? Anita and William discuss how the East India Company competed with other traders to sell Indian opium to China despite it b ... Show More
44m 10s
Aug 17
The White Huns
The Huns weren’t just Attila’s warriors in Europe — in Central Asia, the White Huns built the most powerful Hunnic empire, ruling for a century and dominating the ancient Silk Roads.While the European Huns fought Rome, the White Huns commanded trade routes, overthrew kingdoms, an ... Show More
53m 32s
Oct 1
295. Crusader Gaza: Saladin & Richard The Lionheart (Part 5)
Why did Crusaders travel from Western Europe to Gaza and The Levant in the 11th century? Who was Saladin and how did he conquer the Franks? How did the Mamluks defeat the Mongols in the 1200s and usher in an era of prosperity for Gaza? Anita and William are joined by Jonathan Phi ... Show More
49m 7s
Oct 17
Wife-Swapping Magician of the Tudor Court
The 16th century was a dangerous time to be talking about magic and hidden forces, so how did John Dee end up being invited into Elizabeth I's court?He was an astronomer, occultist and alchemist who dedicated his life to understanding how celestial activity influenced life on ear ... Show More
38m 54s