logo
episode-header-image
Nov 11
33m 39s

King Harold Godwinson vs. William the Co...

Lindsay Holiday
About this episode
1066, a date which lives in infamy in many a school child’s history test. For in that year England saw 4 Kings, and two bitter enemies battle for the throne. The ultimate victor would change the course history. The new series King and Conqueror dramatizes this pivotal rivalry with all the guts and Glory of Game of Thrones, sans the dragons and Ice zombies, a ... Show More
Up next
Nov 18
A History of Plastic Surgery
From repairing the damage wrought by disease, injury and warfare to enhancing beauty, healers have long sought new and innovative ways to improve the looks and the lives of their patients. Let’s take a journey through the historic of plastic surgery, from it’s painful and primiti ... Show More
30m 59s
Nov 4
English & British Royals Who Lost Their Titles – Andrew Mountbattan Windsor was not the first!
On October 30th, 2025, Buckingham palace announced that King Charles III had begun a formal process to remove his brother Andrew’s style, titles, and honours. Find out what that means and learn about other royals from history who lost their titles. Join me every Tuesday when I'm ... Show More
31m 55s
Oct 28
10 Bizarre Royal Deaths from History
With so much money and power, royals were able to invent some pretty unique and creative ways to slay their enemies, or accidentally seal their own doom. From a Chinese Emperor’s deadly elixir of life to a steamy Roman romance that got a little too scalding hot. From a court jest ... Show More
31m 45s
Recommended Episodes
Apr 2025
557. 1066: The Norman Conquest (Part 4)
What happened in the aftermath of the Battle of Hastings? What horrors did William the Conqueror have to inflict upon his Anglo Saxon subjects in order to consolidate his new realm? And, what role did castles, the Harrowing of the North, and the Doomsday Book play in the creation ... Show More
1h 3m
Apr 2025
556. 1066: The Battle of Hastings (Part 3)
Following King Harold Godwinson’s climactic victory at the Battle of Stanford Bridge, and the death of Harald Hardrada, what did he do when news reached him that William of Normandy’s army had landed further south? How did the two armies finally come together for one of the most ... Show More
57m 1s
Sep 9
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
Mar 2025
548. The Road to 1066: Anglo-Saxon Apocalypse (Part 1)
The Norman Conquest of 1066, culminating in the legendary Battle of Hastings, is perhaps the greatest turning point in the history of the English nation. It was a year that changed the fate of England forever, forging empires, and settling continents. And yet, despite its infamy ... Show More
58m 5s
Sep 2024
189. Culloden: Bonnie Prince Charlie’s Last Stand
Few battles in history have been remembered as powerfully, nor been as mythologised, as Culloden on the 16th of April 1746. Under the leadership of Charles Edward Stuart - Bonnie Prince Charlie, ‘the Young Pretender’ - the Jacobites fight to the death upon Culloden Moor to place ... Show More
1 h
Mar 2025
549. The Road to 1066: Revenge of the Vikings (Part 2)
Following the bloody St Brice’s Day Massacre, of the 13th of November 1002, which saw King Æthelred brutally exterminating the Danes from England, the Vikings were hungry for revenge. None more so than the terrifying Scandinavian King, Sweyn Forkbeard. Having capitalised on his f ... Show More
1h 4m
May 2025
566. The Great Northern War: Slaughter on the Steppes (Part 3)
Why was the greatest and most climactic battle of the Great Northern War, the Battle of Poltova, one of the most important in all European history? What drove Charles XII of Sweden to invade Russia in the Summer of 1707, in the lead up to that totemic clash? Exactly what happened ... Show More
1h 1m
Apr 2025
555. 1066: Slaughter at Stamford Bridge (Part 2)
In the tumultuous climax of 1066, why was Harold’s very own brother Tostig the first of the mighty foes he had to face? How did Harald Hardrada then launch his invasion of England, and how much resistance did he initially receive? And, what unfolded at the bloody battle of Stamfo ... Show More
1h 9m
Mar 2025
551. The Road to 1066: Countdown to Conquest (Part 4)
In the triumvirate of 1066, William of Normandy, Harald Hardrada, and Harold Godwinson, the latter has above all endured as one of the great heroes of English history. But how did he become the short-lived King during that tumultuous year? The answer lies in his formidable family ... Show More
59m 33s
Sep 21
The Picts: Rulers of the North
Tristan Hughes journeys up to windswept Scotland to uncover the secrets of the Picts — fierce warriors, skilled artisans, enemies of Rome and rulers of the North.In this special episode of The Ancients - recorded on site at East Lomond hill fort and National Museums Scotland - Tr ... Show More
45m 45s