HistoryExtra podcast

Merry Christmas from the HistoryExtra podcast

25 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

As a Christmas present from us, we're sharing an exclusive sneak peek into what 2024 has in store on the HistoryExtra podcast, from upcoming series de...

Druids: everything you wanted to know

24 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Were druids the wise, kindly and benevolent figures of ancient societies, or bloodthirsty, barbaric priests with a penchant for brutal human sacrifice...

Bannockburn: Robert the Bruce’s greatest victory

22 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Robert the Bruce’s landmark victory over the English at the battle of Bannockburn has secured his place as a hero in the annals of Scottish history....

Boston Tea Party | 2. The Sons of Liberty

21 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Boston Tea Party is often invoked as a symbol of non-violent protest, but how true is that picture? In episode two, we meet the Sons of Liberty –...

Amazing Grace: a story of salvation and slavery

20 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

John Newton was a slave-ship captain in the 18th century. However, he was also a devout Christian who went on to become a famous preacher and wrote th...

Life of the week: Amelia Earhart

19 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Amelia Earhart broke record after record in 20th-century aviation, being the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean – and famously attemp...

Nazi Germany: the myth of the innocent bystander

18 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In 1945, after defeat in the Second World War, many Germans claimed to have known nothing about what had happened to their fellow Jewish citizens – ...

1970s Britain: everything you wanted to know

17 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

1970s Britain has gained a reputation for being fairly bleak, filled with strikes and economic turbulence. But was it really so terrible? From the uni...

Caesar | 1. Beware the Ides of March

16 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On 15 March 44 BC, Rome’s dictator strode into the Senate House of Pompey for a meeting with the city’s political elite. Little did he know that t...

Caesar | 4. Honourable men

16 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In episode four of our new series on Julius Caesar’s rise and fall, we come face-to-face with the men who orchestrated the assassination. Professor ...

Caesar | 2. Was this ambition?

16 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

When Julius Caesar was born, few would have expected him to climb to the summit of Roman political power, but by the time of his death that was exactl...

Caesar | 5. The dogs of war

16 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The deed is done, but the battle is far from over. In episode five of our new series on Julius Caesar’s rise and fall, Rob Attar is joined by Profes...

Caesar | 6. The evil that men do

16 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the concluding part of our new series on Julius Caesar’s rise and fall, we take the story on to its dramatic coda as battles continue to rage ove...

Caesar | 3. Master of his fate

16 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The last decade of Julius Caesar’s life was dominated by civil war, his romance with Cleopatra and his quest for ultimate power. In episode three of...

Netflix's The Crown: history and storytelling

15 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Netflix's hit drama The Crown has come to a close after six seasons and 60 episodes, having dramatised the Windsor dynasty from the mid-20th century t...

Boston Tea Party: Igniting a revolution | Trailer

14 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On the evening of 16 December 1773, around a hundred men boarded three ships in Boston harbour, hoisting more than 46 tonnes of tea over the vessels’...

Boston Tea Party | 1. Tea and taxes

14 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

How did tea become such an incendiary issue in late 18th-century Boston? To understand this, we need to travel back at least a decade. Joined by exper...

Georgian grand houses: the forgotten women who built them

13 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Many might assume that Britain's grand houses were paid for, designed and built solely by men. However, as Amy Boyington reveals, this was far from th...

Life of the Week: Mansa Musa

12 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the list of the world’s all-time wealthiest people, one name regularly tops the charts: Mansa Musa. Ruling a kingdom that stretched across West A...

Introducing Life of the Week

12 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We’re making our new 'Life of the Week' series freely available for everyone to enjoy. Every Tuesday from 12 December, join us as we step back int...

Caesar: Death of a Dictator | Trailer

11 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On the Ides of March, 44 BC, the most famous Roman in history was murdered. Julius Caesar’s killers hoped to save the Republic, but in the end the...

Victoria's armpit and 'giant' bones: body parts that changed history

11 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

How did a severed ear start a war between Britain and Spain in the 18th century? And what has Queen Victoria's armpit got to do with the development o...

The American Gilded Age: everything you wanted to know

10 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

How did the Gilded Ages get its name? What caused the explosion of industry at this time? Who were the great industrialists of the age, and what can t...

Books and war: from James Bond to leaflet bombing

08 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Throughout time, both authors and their readers have gone to war. In that process, the written word has become a deadly weapon and a glimmer of peace ...

Shakespeare: Past Master | 4. Hamlet

07 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Farah Karim-Cooper reveals what the playwright’s famous tragedy tells us about how death and mortality were viewed in the Tudor era Written at the ...

Medieval manners: social etiquette in the Middle Ages

06 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Medieval people are often portrayed in popular culture as being grubby and smelly, with few manners to recommend them. However, in reality, such uncou...

Marshal Pétain: Vichy France in the dock

04 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Following its liberation in 1944, France began a reckoning with its years of defeat, occupation and collaboration with Nazi Germany. On trial was Mars...

1950s Britain: everything you wanted to know

03 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Was 1950s Britain a grim, grey nation, haunted by the spectre of the Second World War, or was it a vibrant, forward-thinking country that had – in t...

The dangerous road to the Bastille

01 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The French Revolution of 1789 is one of the defining events of world history – but the decades preceding the revolution were also seismic, being mar...

Shakespeare: Past Master | 3. Julius Caesar

30 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Islam Issa charts what the tragic history play tells us about the ancient world – and the insights it offers into the politics of the playwright’s...

Du Fu: China's greatest poet

29 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Writing during the celebrated Tang dynasty, Du Fu is heralded as China's greatest poet, musing on subjects from how to cook noodles to war and rebelli...

Cities that turbocharged art history

27 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From Renaissance Florence and ancient Babylon to the kingdom of Benin and Heian-era Kyoto, cities across history have served as launchpads for extraor...

Astronomy history: everything you wanted to know

26 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

When was it established that the Earth is round? Did the Catholic church help or hinder the practice of astronomy? And how transformative was the big ...

The dark side of Dickens

24 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Charles Dickens was a master of managing his personal brand. In fact, almost everything we know about him comes from one biography, written by his fri...

Shakespeare: Past Master | 2. Romeo and Juliet

23 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Sophie Duncan delves into the playwright’s world-famous tragedy to reveal what it tells us about youth in the Tudor era The doomed romance of young...

Thanksgiving: everything you wanted to know

23 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Rachel Herrmann charts the long history of America’s famous holiday – from modern parades and celebrations to the first feast From the fabled fir...

The dangers of medieval travel

22 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Why did medieval people hit the road or the high seas? Was it expensive to travel in the Middle Ages, and what were the biggest risks that a medieval ...

The Princes in the Tower: has the mystery been solved?

20 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the summer of 1483, two young princes disappeared from the Tower of London – and were never seen again. Had they been killed by their uncle, Rich...

The Pre-Raphaelites: everything you wanted to know

19 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

How did the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood become so famous? Did Elizabeth Siddal really almost die in a bathtub when she modelled for John Everett Millai...

Resistance in the Second World War

17 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Why, across Nazi-occupied Europe, did some people choose to resist the Third Reich? This is the question at the heart of Halik Kochanski's book Resist...

Shakespeare Trailer

16 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

William Shakespeare’s plays are among the celebrated works in all of English literature – but they also offer key insights into the time in which ...

Shakespeare: Past Master | 1. Henry V

16 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Jerry Brotton offers expert insights into what the playwright’s much-quoted history play tells about nationalism and nationhood at the time it was f...

George Orwell’s forgotten wife

15 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

George Orwell – the author of classics like 1984 – is a household name. But have you heard of his first wife, Eileen O’Shaughnessy, who convince...

Magic books: a global history

13 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What are the earliest forms of written magic? How do the stories of magic and religion intersect? And how will these stories’ continued presence in ...

Norse myths: everything you wanted to know

12 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What myths did the Norse believe, and what influence did they exert on daily life? Was the trickster god Loki really that bad, and was Odin really tha...

Medieval Stalingrad: The siege of Calais

10 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Dan Jones chronicles the brutal siege of Calais, an overlooked campaign in the Hundred Years’ War, and the focus of his new novel During the Hundre...

The First Crusade | 5. The end or the beginning?

09 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In episode five of our new series on the First Crusade, we rejoin the crusaders for the last time as they reach their final goal, the holy city of Jer...

The Munich Putsch: Hitler’s bungled revolution

08 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Frank McDonough explores the infamous failed coup that shaped the early history of the Nazi party On 8 November 1923, the Nazi Party launched a coup ...

Women’s history: from 1066 to Margaret Thatcher

06 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Novelist Philippa Gregory reflects on 900 years of women’s history, from the huge upheavals of the Norman invasion to successfully securing the righ...

Ancient Egyptian pyramids: everything you wanted to know

05 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For millennia, Egypt’s mighty pyramids have acted as emblems of the vibrant ancient civilisation that once straddled the Nile Valley. From mysteries...

Scotland’s last witch

03 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Nicknamed ‘Hellish Nell’ from childhood, spiritualist medium Helen Duncan made a living from claiming to communicate with the spirits of the dead ...

The First Crusade | 4. Besieged

02 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In late AD 1097, a weary and wartorn band of crusaders arrived at the imposing walls of Antioch: a key strategic location on the long journey down the...

Fighting racism in postwar Britain

01 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Sixties Britain didn’t swing for all its citizens – with racism, anti-immigration rhetoric and the spectre of unemployment affecting many black an...

Horror films: a chilling cultural history

30 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Ever since the shadow of Count Orlok crept up the staircase in 1922’s Nosferatu, and Fay Wray emitted her iconic scream in 1933’s King Kong, horro...

The history of Jamaica: everything you wanted to know

28 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Caribbean island of Jamaica has a long and complex history, from its crucial role in the transatlantic slave trade to being the birthplace of Rast...

Killers of the Flower Moon: The real history

26 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Killers of the Flower Moon, the new historical epic from Martin Scorsese, dramatises a series of murders that was described by press at the time as th...

The First Crusade | 3. Crossing into the unknown

25 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the call to crusade that ignited the idea of holy war in the minds of the western European populace, Pope Urban II painted a picture of evil “inf...

Disease killers: the black nurses who conquered TB

24 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Tuberculosis – otherwise known as the ‘Great White Plague’ – was a scourge on society and killed countless sufferers. Rhiannon Davies spoke to...

Who moulded Winston Churchill?

22 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Winston Churchill’s remarkable career saw him interact with many of the other great figures of the age, many of whom had a profound impact on Britai...

The Second Barons’ War: everything you wanted to know

21 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Why was Henry III so unpopular with his barons? How did the future Edward I turn the tide of the war? Did leading rebel Simon de Montfort create the f...

Renaissance eugenics

19 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Whether it was creating super-fast thoroughbreds, or fashioning dogs small enough to fit in your sleeve, animal breeding was an obsession of the Renai...

The First Crusade | 2. On the road

18 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Byzantine emperor Alexios I Komnenos had asked the pope for a small crack team of western knights to aid him with his struggles in Asia Minor – ...

1960s Britain: smashing the status quo?

17 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The early 1960s saw the British establishment face a challenging new landscape. It was an era of rapid change, but also of enduring conservatism. Davi...

Life of the week Trailer

16 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Our new bonus series delves into the fascinating lives of some of history's most significant figures, from ancient pharaohs to 20th-century secret age...

Disney at 100

15 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

October 2023 marks the centenary of the Walt Disney Company, which from its early days as one of the pioneers of animated films has grown to become a ...

Weimar Germany: everything you wanted to know

14 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The decade and a half between the end of the First World War and the ascent of Nazism is one of the most debated and mythologised periods of German hi...

Slave traders: the men who built a brutal empire

12 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The trans-Atlantic slave trade expanded greatly in the 18th century, growing from a relatively small enterprise to a global business that saw millions...

The First Crusade | 1. The call to arms

11 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In episode one of our series on the First Crusade, we consider how a landmark papal bull lit a fire under the idea of crusading, triggering a military...

The First Crusade Trailer

11 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

When we talk about the crusades today the mental images that spring to mind are as clear as they are striking – valiant crusader knights emblazoned ...

Re-examining women in the Roman empire

10 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

St Augustine of Hippo is one of the most influential Christian thinkers of the past 2,000 years – and his work also offers fresh insights into the l...

History Behind the Headlines Trailer

09 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Our new monthly series explores the historical stories hitting the headlines – and the way in which the past informs today’s world. To access this...

Is black history still being overlooked?

08 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

As the UK marks Black History Month, a panel of expert historians – Hannah Cusworth, Pamela Roberts and Hakim Adi – tackle some of the biggest que...

Cat history: everything you wanted to know

07 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Cats have lived alongside us for centuries, and our relationship with them has transformed over time – from venerating them to vilifying them. What ...

The Huxleys: how one family shaped our view of nature

05 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Known as “Darwin’s bulldog”, Thomas Henry Huxley fought a tireless battle against the opponents of evolutionary theory. His grandson Julian live...

Great Reputations: Gandhi

04 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the latest in our series charting the contested reputations of key historical figures, Vikram Visana and Jad Adams debate the complex, sometimes co...

The Cultural Revolution: a Chinese catastrophe

03 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For the decade between 1966 and 1976, Chairman Mao’s Cultural Revolution wreaked immense havoc on China – with up to 2 million killed, and another...

The brutal WW2 battle for Italy

02 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

When Allied forces invaded Italy in September 1943, they hoped to be in Rome by Christmas. But by the end of the year, after four months of unrelentin...

David Mitchell on a new history of England’s monarchy

01 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From his turn as Shakespeare in Upstart Crow to his historical sketches with Robert Webb, comedian and actor David Mitchell’s work has often touched...

Archaeology’s golden age: everything you wanted to know

30 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The first half of the 20th century is often talked about as a golden age of archaeology – a time marked by thrilling finds such as those of Tutankha...

One day in the British empire

28 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On 29 September 1923, the British empire was at its territorial height. But even as British power stretched across the globe, were the seeds of the em...

Great Reputations: Emmeline Pankhurst

27 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the latest in our series charting the reputations of key historical figures, June Purvis and Lyndsey Jenkins discuss the life and contested legacy ...

Radio Times: a century of British broadcasting

26 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In 1923, a new periodical was launched to guide listeners through the BBC’s nascent radio offerings. Its name? The Radio Times. Across the coming de...

How to live like a Roman emperor

25 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What did Roman emperors actually do all day? Were they really as bloodthirsty as legend would suggest? And why was food so important? Speaking to Matt...

How has fear shaped history?

24 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

With the climate crisis, war in Ukraine, a recent pandemic and the rise of AI, it can feel like there is more to be fearful of today than ever before....

The Battle of Britain: everything you wanted to know

23 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Battle of Britain has gone down in history as an epic dogfight between the RAF and the Luftwaffe – one where Britain faced overwhelming odds and...

Rocket women: America’s first female astronauts

21 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the late 1970s, NASA admitted women onto their space programme for the first time. Six women were chosen as the first cohort, and would endure unpr...

Great Reputations: Napoleon

20 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the latest in our series charting the contested reputations of key historical figures, Laura O’Brien and David Andress discuss the life and after...

Chaos & violence in country houses

19 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We think of English houses as idyllic locations for an afternoon out, but as Stephanie Barczewski reveals, many have a more turbulent and violent hist...

The shoemaker who helped slaves escape the South

18 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Thomas Smallwood, a formerly enslaved shoemaker, helped hundreds of people to flee from slavery in the American South in the 1840s. Speaking to Elinor...

Scandals that shocked Georgian Britain

17 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From torrid affairs and messy duels to corrupt law-enforcers and vengeful ghosts, Georgian Britain loved a good scandal. Speaking to Ellie Cawthorne, ...

British parliament: everything you wanted to know

16 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From the gunpowder plot and Oliver Cromwell’s clash with Charles I to Winston Churchill’s speeches during the Second World War, parliament has wit...

When poison pen letters caused chaos

14 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Long before the rise of the internet troll, malicious letters written by anonymous authors were causing untold grief to those who received them, and t...

Great Reputations: Cleopatra

13 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the latest in our series charting the contested reputations of key historical figures, Joyce Tyldesley and Catharine Edwards discuss the life and c...

Secrets of the Anglo-Saxon bone chests

12 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Held in Winchester Cathedral are several ornate chests, said to contain the venerated bones of early kings of Wessex and England, dating from the seve...

Jane Austen’s passion for fashion

11 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From ribbons, bonnets and ballgowns to Mr Darcy’s see-through shirt, the works of Jane Austen have long sparked the imaginations of fashion-minded r...

The brain behind the Dambusters raid

10 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Dambusters raid of May 1943 is one of the most celebrated episodes of the Second World War. But in military terms, was it in fact a flop? And was ...

Spanish flu: everything you wanted to know

09 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Did the Spanish flu pandemic actually begin in Spain? What were the symptoms? Is it true it killed more people than the First World War, and how simil...

Women who shaped the Roman empire

07 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

How do you surface the stories of women in the Roman empire, when the majority of ancient texts were written by men, telling of military victories and...

Great Reputations: Oliver Cromwell

06 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the latest in our series charting the contested reputations of key historical figures, Ronald Hutton and Mark Stoyle debate the life and legacy of ...

The secret club for radical New York women

05 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In downtown New York, in the early 20th century, a secret club of women met regularly, to discuss ideas, politics, art and their own lives. They forge...