We set the scene – William’s background and lineage, and the Anarchy – until William himself appears strapped to a trebuchet at Newbury. As you do
The Angevins 1155-1217
Marshal 3 Hammer and Anvil - Members Only
During the Anarchy, John Marshal makes hay - and William joins our story at last
Eleanor 9 Hunted - Members Only
Escape meant avoiding the wolves that blocked the path to Aquitaine
Eleanor Omnibus 2 EPs 6-9 - Members Only
We take in the full extent of Eleanor’s time as Queen of France – through her struggle for his sister, the dramatic 2nd Crusade and her final dash for freedom
Elizabeth Chadwick and Eleanor of Aquitaine
Author Elizabeth Chadwick gives her insights into the life and times of Eleanor of Aquitaine. To find out more about Elizabeth’s three Eleanor novels, visit her website https://elizabethchadwick.com/eleanor-of-aquitaine/
Eleanor 8 Outremer - Members Only
The story of Eleanor and the Second Crusade
Marshal 2 Lineage - Members Only
Setting the scene before William - John the Marshal; and the Anarchy
Marshal 1 Reputations - Members Only
Is the Marshal we know man or myth?
Elizabeth Chadwick and William Marshal
Elizabeth Chadwick is the author of many fine historical novels, and her most recent is on William’s life in the Holy Land. Elizabeth was kind enough to share herRead More
Eleanor 7 Sisters - Members Only
Eleanor's little sister scandalises the Church
HiT The Lion in Winter
Such a classic – Katherine Hepburn and Peter O’Toole giving it large, plus the world’s most appalling article of clothing (see if you can spot which). Was it accurate? WasRead More
Eleanor 6 Queen (1) - Members Only
Elanor sticks out her elbows and creates some room for herself at court
Eleanor Omnibus 1 (Episodes 1-5) - Members Only
The omnibus edition for all those insomniacs out there!
Eleanor 5 Bride - Members Only
Marriage to a young prince of 17 - Louis of France
Eleanor 4 Heiress - Members Only
in 1137, Eleanor's father Duke William X set off for Santiago on pilgrimage
Eleanor 3 Education - Members Only
As a child growing up in the Ducal household, Eleanor would have been presented to the noble families she would know for the rest of her life Transcript I’ve blathered on aboutRead More
Eleanor 2 Land and Lineage - Members Only
The land Eleanor inhabited, and her family history
Eleanor 1 Legends - Members Only
The life of Eleanor of Aquitaine - and the legends that surround her name
Sea 2 Eustace the Monk and the Angevins - Members Only
Britain, the sea and folktales through the story of Eustace the Monk
Shedcast 21 English Placenames II - Members Only
The place names of England by theme and time
222a The Tower of London by James Holdstock
James Holdstock is a big fan of The Tower of London; he talks about a fortress which has a history as winding, bloody, mysterious and inspiring as England’s, and is a mustRead More
Shedcast 11b The Tournament: Rise and Fall - Members Only
The tournament grew in sophistication until it was focused around the individual challenge of the Joust. But the fundamentals of warfare and society changed and tournaments lost their relevance.
Shedcast 8b A Sense of England – Consciousness - Members Only
Could England be described by 1500 as a nation? Did the English share a story, language, and territory? Was the political community oriented around the king or nation, or theRead More
Shedcast 8a A Sense of England – Nationalism - Members Only
Concepts and interpretations of Nationalism
182 Games and Beasts
A chance to go into some byways, away from politics and talk about how medieval folk enjoyed themselves; the games they played in medieval days, from Football to Stoolball, from chess toRead More
153 The Medieval Working Woman
Only 4% of women remained unmarried in the middle ages, and therefore for both men and women working life was a matter of team work. In towns in particular, womenRead More
149 Sex, Childbirth and Children
Medieval understanding of physiology had an impact on attitudes to sex, just as much as did the teachings of the church. Though who knows how much it had an impactRead More
117 The Medieval Year
The rhythm of the year would have been far more important to most medieval people that the goings on at Westminster and the court of the king. The stream ofRead More
59 Magna Carta and the Death of a Tyrant
Bouvines wasn't the cause of the Baronial revolt, but it probably was John's last chance to avoid it. In 1215 at Runymede Magna Carta was signed. It's extremely unlikely thatRead More
58 Tyranny and Defeat
From 1213 to 1214, John seemed to have got his problems more under control, and had built an alliance that looked to be capable of taking on Philip. There wasRead More
57 The Excommunicate
John took a detailed interest in administration, and made effective changes to the way things worked. Partly his interest was motivated by the need to raise money – as inflationRead More
56 The History of Medieval Europe, Part 2
The Holy Roman Empire to the death of Barbarossa, the briefest of histories of Norway, Denmark and Spain, and the 4th Crusade. It's action packed. 56 The History of MedievalRead More
55 The History of Medieval Europe, Part I
From Charles Martel and the battle of Tours in 732, through Charlemagne and Otto the Great, the first installment concentrates on France, Germany and Italy and takes us to theRead More
54 Fighting Back – A Bit
John immediately launched attempts to get his lands back – and ran into the Barons. He does run up a pretty good Navy though. And we hear of Roland theRead More
53 Torn Apart – Loss of an Empire
After the defection of William des Roches the military situation was poor for John but not irretrievable. Unfortunately, John failed to provide the leadership needed. He distrusted his barons; heRead More
52a Eleanor of Aquitaine by Melisende
Eleanor of Aquitaine is one of the great names of the Middle Ages. Her life spanned almost all of the Angevin Empire, and her court at Poitiers became famous asRead More
52 John Softsword
As a younger man, John had been given the nickname Lackland because unlike his brothers he didn't have his own appanage. At the Treaty of Le Goulet in May 1200Read More
51 The Fouler Presence of John?
In 1199, Richard the Lion Heart died after being shot by a cook outside the castle of Chalus in the Limousin. The Empire was split between supporters of Arthur andRead More
50 Defence of the Empire
The war between Richard and Phillip went on from 1194-1198 in fits and starts ; usually there was no more than 3 months of fighting before a truce came along.Read More
48 Richard and The Third Crusade
Was the Third Crusade a success or a failure? While it failed to achieve its objective, it was the most successful after the First Crusade. It rescued Outremer from anRead More
49 Travel Chaos
Richard set off from Outremer right at the end of the sailing season – October. He knew the Duke of Austria, the Holy Roman Emperor, Count of Toulouse and KingRead More
47 The Fall of Jerusalem
For 50 or so years after the capture of Jerusalem, Outremer was a part of the political and military dance between Christian and Muslim states. Then in 1144, signs ofRead More
46 Richard and the Road to Outremer
Richard set off from Sicily probably intending to go straight to the Holy Land. But a chance storm enforced a landing at Cyprus, where the locals were not friendly. WhichRead More
45 Packing the Bags
Richard came into the lands of his father and was crowned at Westminster in 1189. For the next 6 months he was packing his bags, cleaning the fridge and gettingRead More
44 Introducing the Lion Heart
To most contemporaries, Richard I was a hero. Since then his reputation has suffered badly, until even Winston Churchill describes him as the worst of our Richards – which givenRead More
43 The Greatest of all Monarchs
In 1173-4 Henry was faced by a revolt by his wife, children and many of his leading barons. 1183 to his death in 1189 were years where Henry was increasingly besetRead More
42 English Justice and The Irish Invasion
Henry's far sighted reform of justice; and Richard Strongbow and Norman invasion of Ireland So here are two completely unconnected subjects then! Henry is responsible for reforms to the processRead More
41 Murder in the Cathedral
After Thomas recanted from his signature of the Constitutions of Clarendon, things got really nasty. Before long, Thomas was in exile, and Henry couldn't care less. But by 1167 theRead More
40 Bishop Trouble
The 1160's. A time of consolidation of the Angevin Empire, still ruled by a dynamic, young and aggressive Henry. But mainly remembered for the start of the struggle between churchRead More
39 The Ruling of the Angevin Empire
Bear in mind at all times that Henry, while being a Good King, was a tyrant. Still, he was a tyrant who ran a mean administrative system for the time.Read More