HistoryExtra podcast
Episodes
The 1943 battle of Kursk – and its present-day echoes
08 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Recent developments in the Russia-Ukraine war have seen Kursk make headlines – provoking parallels with the Second World War battle that took place ...
Medieval torture: everything you wanted to know
07 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Why were people tortured in the Middle Ages? Was it ever legal? Did the infliction of physical pain play as large a role in medieval prosecutions as w...
Medieval documents in danger
05 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Just how far does our understanding of the medieval past rely upon written sources? And what happens when these precious fragments of knowledge are de...
Ancient Egypt | 3. culture
04 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What would an average ancient Egyptian citizen's relationship have been with the pyramids? Why did they wear gooey wax cones on their heads? And what ...
Our 10,000-year quest for equality
03 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Were hunter-gatherer societies among the most equal in history? What impact did the French and American Revolutions have on the concept of equality? A...
Michelangelo: life of the week
02 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
From his famed statue of David to the extraordinary paintings that adorn the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, Michelangelo’s work still inspires awe. ...
The Battle of Megiddo: ancient Egypt's greatest victory?
01 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The battle of Megiddo is one of the most important battles you've (probably) never heard of. When an army led by Pharaoh Thutmosis III clashed with a ...
Prehistoric stone circles: everything you want to know
31 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
If you've ever visited one of the many prehistoric stone circles that dot the landscape of Britain and Ireland, you've probably come away with lots of...
The plague that brought the Roman empire to its knees
29 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In AD 165, the Roman empire was enjoying a period of seemingly unprecedented prosperity and stability. Then, the Antonine Plague arrived, bringing wit...
Ancient Egypt | 2. everyday life
28 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Ever wondered where an ancient Egyptian did their food shop? Or how crocodile dung could cure your ailments? In this second episode of our series Anci...
False rumps & rotten teeth: 400 years of bizarre beauty practices
27 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
From false rumps and fake teeth to toxic skincare and insect-laden wigs, over the past 400 years, British women have resorted to extraordinary lengths...
Emperor Vespasian: life of the week
26 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The year AD 69 found the Roman empire in a state of chaos. Three emperors had come and gone. Civil war reigned supreme. Rome's enemies smelled blood. ...
An audacious escape from slavery
25 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On 20 December 1848, Ellen Craft placed a top hat on her head, slipped her arm into a sling, and perched dark green glasses on her nose. Once her disg...
The Abbasid caliphate: everything you wanted to know
24 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The Abbasid caliphs sat at the head of a vast Islamic empire that stretched from Tunisia to the frontiers of India, which they ruled over for several ...
Crusader criminals: how the Holy Land became a hotbed of lawlessness
22 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The medieval crusades are remembered for their sweeping military campaigns. But they also engendered a brutality that went beyond the battlefield – ...
Ancient Egypt | 1. civilisation
21 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
You’re probably familiar with the idea of godly pharaohs, menacing mummies and their deadly curses. But how much do you actually know about the fund...
Ancient Egypt: the big questions | Trailer
21 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
From the secrets of the pyramids to the mysteries of mummification, ancient Egypt has captivated the popular imagination for centuries. In HistoryExt...
Gulag doctors: saving lives in Stalin's prison camps
20 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The Soviet gulag was a place of brutality, exploitation and death. But it was also home to tens of thousands of medical personnel who had to overcome ...
The far right in Britain: history behind the headlines
19 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In the latest episode of our monthly series charting the past behind the present, Hannah Skoda and Rana Mitter are joined by historian Nigel Copsey to...
Practical magic: curses, spells & cunning folk
18 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
From love spells to enthral the object of your desires, to charms to influence the outcome of a trial, people turned to cunning folk for all kinds of ...
The history of migration: everything you wanted to know
17 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Since the dawn of humanity, people have been on the move. Our ancestors' ability to travel across vast distances and adapt to different environments h...
Eighteen-year-olds who changed history
15 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In 21st-century Britain, the age of 18 marks the legal transition from childhood to adulthood. But how has this boundary shifted over time? Alice Loxt...
Toilets through time | 4. Victorian lavatories
14 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In the final episode of Toilets Through Time, we’ve finally reached the age of avant-garde sewerage systems and shining porcelain cisterns: the Vict...
How games changed history
13 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
From Chess and Go, to Snakes and Ladders, Monopoly and the ancient Egyptian game of Senet, people have long had a fascination with games. But accordin...
George Orwell: life of the week
12 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
From doublethink and thoughtcrime to coming face-to-face with our worst nightmares inside Room 101, few writers have had as much impact on the popular...
Lines on a map: borders that shaped world history
11 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
People have been drawing lines on maps as long as there have been maps to draw on – whether for political, geographical or sometimes completely arbi...
Tartan: everything you wanted to know
10 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We're all familiar with the checks and stripes of tartan. But, how much do you know about the colourful history of the textile famously sported by the...
Olympic History: everything you wanted to know
09 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Over the past two weeks, we've witnessed spectacular sporting achievements in Paris. And for anyone who doesn't feel quite ready for the Olympics to b...
Hidden labs, sex gardens & torture attics: secrets of British royal palaces
08 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
If walls could talk, what secrets would those of a British royal palace whisper? Murder, debauchery, treason and more, says Professor Kate Williams. S...
Toilets through time | 3. Tudor garderobes
07 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Did constipation turn Henry VIII into a tyrant? For the third episode of our mini-series Toilets Through Time, David Musgrove revisits the luxurious s...
Gulbadan Begum: princess, explorer, author
06 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Gulbadan Begum was meant to live a quiet life in a Mughal harem. Instead she set off on a daring pilgrimage to Islam's holy cities and, on her return,...
Anne Frank: life of the week
05 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Anne Frank was one of six million Jews to be murdered by the Nazis. A number of these victims' lives were lost to history. But Anne had left behind a ...
Stealing the Mona Lisa
04 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In August 1911, an Italian handyman walked out of Paris' Louvre museum with the Mona Lisa tucked under his arm. It was an audacious theft that shocked...
The Great Exhibition: everything you wanted to know
03 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In 1851, a spectacular showcase of the world's best art, design and innovation opened in London. Housed in a magnificent 'Crystal Palace' constructed ...
Dismemberment & disgrace: the grisly fate of Simon de Montfort
01 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Simon de Montfort's body was horribly mutilated and dismembered after his defeat at 1265's fateful Battle of Evesham, during the Second Barons' War. T...
Toilets through time | 2. Medieval privies
31 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Why were medieval monks so afraid of going to the loo? In the second episode of our mini-series Toilets Through Time, David Musgrove heads into the da...
Has imperial history become too politicised?
30 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Controversies surrounding the history of the British empire have become particularly intense in recent years, with academics, politicians and commenta...
Francis Drake: life of the week
29 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
As Elizabethan England's most famous sea captain, Francis Drake saw his fair share of sea-faring adventures – from scuffles with the Spanish Armada,...
Our long obsession with the end of the world
28 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
From asteroids, bacteria and comets to growing fears about artificial intelligence and climate change, human history has long been stalked by a terror...
The Grand Tour: everything you wanted to know
27 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In the 18th century, countless British travellers set off to continental Europe in search of art, architecture... and a good time. But what were the m...
Black Death: everything you wanted to know
26 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Earlier this week, new comedy drama The Decameron dropped on Netflix. Based on a set of 14th-century tales by Giovanni Boccaccio, it follows the rauco...
The Decameron: sex, plague, and a medieval Love Island
25 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What would you do if your home town was ravaged by plague? Would you lock your doors and hide? Run for the hills? Or accept that the end was nigh and ...
Toilets through time | 1. Roman latrines
24 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What was it like to do your business in a Roman communal toilet? In the first episode of our new mini-series, Toilets Through Time, David Musgrove beg...
Assassinations that shaped US history
23 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Following the attempted assassination of Donald Trump earlier in July, historian Adam Smith speak to Matt Elton about previous attempts to kill politi...
Is democracy doomed? History behind the headlines
22 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In the latest episode of our monthly series exploring the past behind the present, Hannah Skoda and Rana Mitter are joined by Professor Paul Cartledge...
Catherine of Braganza: the Merrie Monarch's forgotten queen
21 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Picture Charles II's court and you'll probably imagine a riot of excess, filled with drinking, games, and of course, mistresses. The queen by Charles'...
The Spanish Inquisition: everything you wanted to know
20 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The era of the Spanish Inquisition is most commonly remembered as a period of widespread fear and paranoia, where communities turned on each other and...
1217: the year that (almost) changed English history
18 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
1217 is not one of the most famous years in English history. But with a major French invasion looming and a brutal war that wracked both towns and the...
Deeds not words | 6. Mission accomplished?
17 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
After an escalating campaign of bombing and arson attacks, the suffragette movement was brought to a sudden halt on the outbreak of war in 1914. In th...
Kindness & hostility: refugees in wartime Britain
16 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Before and during the Second World War, Britain provided a safe haven for thousands of people fleeing Nazi persecution. But, as the author Paul Dowswe...
Catherine de' Medici: life of the week
15 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Catherine de' Medici has gone down in history as the sinister 'serpent queen', who had a troop of female spies in her court and may have instigated th...
The suffragettes who fell in love
14 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Evelina Haverfield and Vera Holme, known as Jack, were in love. Not only were they in love, but they also worked together – as suffragette protestor...
Servants: everything you wanted to know
13 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What was it like to be a servant in one of Britain's grand stately homes? How much were domestic staff paid? And what made maids revolt against wearin...
Anxieties of the Edwardian age
11 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The Edwardian era is sometimes regarded as an uneventful stopgap between the cultural and technological innovations of the Victorian period and the se...
Deeds not words | 5. Burning down the house
10 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Smashing windows, burning down politicians’ homes and planting bombs in public places. As the suffragette movement progressed, it turned to increasi...
How the Plantagenets forged the English state
09 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Between 1199 and 1399, English politics was packed full of high drama, as the Plantagenet monarchs reacted - and adapted - to plague, warfare, uprisin...
Justinian: life of the week
08 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Justinian stands tall among the Byzantine rulers, as the 'sleepless emperor' whose religious fervour and legislative zeal saw him rebuild the eastern ...
The woman who saved the children
07 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Eglantyne Jebb was a woman who had no real love of children – but nevertheless worked tirelessly to campaign for their rights. Clare Mulley joins us...
Victorian crime and punishment: everything you wanted to know
06 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Could children be hanged in Victorian Britain? Were the streets of Dickensian London haunted by organised gangs, or opportunistic pickpockets? What tr...
How the Dreyfus Affair tore France apart
04 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In 1894, French artillery officer Alfred Dreyfus was falsely accused of passing military secrets to Germany. These swirling accusations and the subseq...
Deeds not words | 4. Cat and mouse
03 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The suffragettes’ relationship with the British establishment was fractious to say the least. As well as experiencing police brutality on the street...
The surprising lives of ancient women
02 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Did you know that while Mark Antony was having an affair with Cleopatra, his wife, Fulvia, was fighting a battle on his behalf in Rome? Or that the fi...
Boudica: life of the week
01 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How much do we really know about the Iceni warrior leader who rose up against Rome? How close did she come to success? And can we know what she looked...
How Stalin ran rings round the west
30 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The wartime alliance between Josef Stalin, Winston Churchill and Franklin D Roosevelt was arguably the most important of the 20th century – and amon...
British general elections: everything you wanted to know
29 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
While it might seem unimaginable today, there was a time when who you voted for in a general election was a matter of public record - and if you were ...
Medieval keep fit
27 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
You might think that people in the Middle Ages did not exercise for fun. But that's not so, according to Professor Carole Rawcliffe of the University ...
Deeds not words | 3. Making a statement
26 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
From eye-catching merchandise and punchy logos to memorable colour-schemes and trouble-making stunts, the suffragettes mastered the art of making a st...
A 21st-century Holocaust trial
25 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In October 2019 Bruno Dey went on trial in Hamburg for his involvement in a horrific crime – 75 years after that crime had been committed. Dey was n...
Catherine Parr: life of the week
24 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
She was the most-married wife of England's most-married king, but there was so much more to Catherine Parr. Speaking to Kev Lochun, Tudor historian El...
Invisible ink & toad poison: tools of Elizabethan spycraft
23 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How did spies plot and plant information in Elizabethan England? How easy was it to break open a confidential sealed letter and, if necessary, forge i...
Chocolate history: everything you wanted to know
22 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
It's one of the world's most popular treats and a significant part of the global economy, but how much do you really know about the history of chocola...
Work-life balance: how our ancestors fought for free time
20 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Work-life balance might seem like a thoroughly modern concern, as many people today struggle to maintain boundaries between our jobs and out home life...
Deeds not words | 2. Pankhurst family portrait
19 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
One family – the Pankhursts – stood at the centre of the suffragette movement. They set the agenda and inspired their followers into action, but t...
Anne Boleyn: a modern woman?
18 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Anne Boleyn is one the most famous queens in history, but what do we get wrong about Henry VIII's tragic second wife? Speaking to Lauren Good, histori...
Historical apologies & female leaders: History behind the headlines
17 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In the latest episode of our monthly series charting the past behind the present, Hannah Skoda and Rana Mitter look back at historical examples of lea...
Has WW2 become a national religion?
16 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The way in which we commemorate D-Day, and other pivotal moments of the Second World War, has been making headlines in recent weeks. Alec Ryrie, profe...
Beowulf: everything you wanted to know
15 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Beowulf is the most famous Old English epic poem, relating the adventures of the eponymous hero as he battles beasts and dragons in a pre-Viking Scand...
Inside Bridgerton's ballrooms
13 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
With the second half of Bridgerton series three landing on Netflix yesterday, fans have been drawn back into the romantic world of Regency ballrooms. ...
Deeds not words | 1. Battlelines are drawn
12 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In the opening episode of our new series on the suffragettes, Ellie Cawthorne charts how calls of “votes for women” reached boiling point in Edwar...
Deeds not words | Trailer
12 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Introducing our series on the suffragettes where Ellie Cawthorne and expert historians chart how calls of “votes for women” reached boiling point ...
War, peace & cherry trees: finding hope after WW2
11 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
A Polish priest who was murdered in Auschwitz. A survivor of the Nagasaki atom bomb who campaigned against nuclear war. And a Japanese school teacher ...
Dwight D Eisenhower: life of the week
10 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Few men did more to shape the course of the 20th century than Dwight D Eisenhower. Not only did 'Ike' mastermind the Allied invasion of western Europe...
Forging first editions: a 1930s crime caper
09 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Thomas James Wise was well-respected among the rare book fanatics of 1930s London as a consummate collector. But when he began to uncover a surprising...
The pilgrim fathers: everything you wanted to know
08 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How bad were conditions aboard the Mayflower? How did the colonists survive that first harsh winter? And why have they attained such an iconic status ...
Beastly Victorians: preventing animal cruelty in the 19th century
06 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The first piece of legislation preventing animal cruelty was passed in Britain during the 1820s – but that's not to say the British have always live...
D-Day: was Churchill really against the operation?
05 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Today, 6 June, marks the 80th anniversary of D-Day, one of the key episodes in the Second World War. But what did Winston Churchill make of the plans ...
D-Day: Land
05 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The Allied invasion of Normandy saw troops coming ashore across five landing beaches and dropping behind enemy lines by parachute and glider. But what...
A 17th-century scandal & a writer's secret life
04 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
To poet, playwright and writer Aphra Behn, the tale of a runaway aristocrat's daughter Lady Henrietta Berkeley, her scandalous affair and equally dram...
Plato: life of the week
03 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Ancient Greece produced some of the most celebrated philosophers in history. Yet in terms of fame and enduring influence, none rival Plato. This Athen...
Breastfeeding in the Middle Ages
02 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Breastfeeding has been part of raising children since the dawn of time. However, studying its history also highlights stories of grief, community supp...
Death and mourning in Britain: everything you wanted to know
01 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Why did people start cremating bodies? When did black become the colour of mourning? And who are the 'invisible dead'? Speaking to Charlotte Hodgman, ...
Julian: the Roman emperor who (almost) changed the world
30 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
It's one of the great what-ifs of ancient history. After Constantine the Great had converted Rome to Christianity it seemed that the faith's progress ...
D-Day: Sea
29 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
During the early hours of 6 June 1944, a huge armada of Allied ships crossed the Channel, poised to deliver the largest seaborne invasion the world ha...
A Soviet road trip through 1930s America
28 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
After years of suspicion and hostility, relations between the Soviet Union and the United States had improved by the 1930s. In this episode, Lisa Kirs...
Galileo: life of the week
27 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Galileo Galilei stands as one of the most significant figures in the history of science and thought. But how did he gain this illustrious reputation? ...
What was life like as a peasant?
26 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Europe's peasants have all but disappeared since the end of the Second World War. Patrick Joyce has studied the past 200 years of the peasant experien...
The history of museums: everything you wanted to know
25 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Millions of people flock to museums each year, eager to learn about the past and be inspired by the artefacts on display. But how old is the concept o...
Forgotten women writers of the Renaissance
23 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
You've heard of Shakespeare, but have you heard of his contemporary Mary Sidney, the first person to translate the Book of Psalms into English poetry?...
D-Day: Air
22 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On 6 June 1944, the Allies began their long-awaited invasion of Nazi-occupied Europe. By the end of the day, more than 150,000 men had landed in north...
Cat crazy: the Victorian mania for moggies
21 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
At the end of the 19th century, Britain and America entered the grip of a cat craze that saw the humble moggy catapulted from urban nuisance to belove...