If It Ain't Baroque...

Please welcome Dr Thomas W Smith and we’re going to talk about the epistolary culture in the middle ages and how can we relate to it today. Find Tom: https://thomaswsmith.co.uk/ https://www.instagram.com/medieval_tom/ https://linktr.ee/twsmith The Fifth Crusade : https://yalebooks.co.uk/book/9780300283952/the-fifth-crusade/ Rewriting the First Crusade : https://boydellandbrewer.com/book/rewriting-...

Who can resist a Castle, especially one in Wales? We sit down with Nathen Amin, to talk all things castles in this magnificent country. Also, why Welsh Castles and Castles in Wales are two very different things... Welcome back, Nathen! Get Tudor Wales : https://www.amberley-books.com/tudor-wales.html Get Son of Prophecy : https://www.amberley-books.com/author-community-main-page/a/nathen-amin/the-...

Today we're sitting down with Karen Bloom Gevirtz and we'll be talking about the history of medicine - and how it became a commodity. Karen's book Apothecary's Wife is published with Head of Zeus in the UK and University of California Press in USA. Karen's Book (UK): https://www.hatchards.co.uk/book/the-apothecarys-wife/karen-bloom-gevirtz/9781803287003 Karen's Book (USA): https://www.ucpress.edu/...

Today we talk all things pirate history - please welcome Richard Blakemore , the author of ENEMIES OF ALL: THE RISE AND FALL OF THE GOLDEN AGE OF PIRACY , published by The History Press in the UK, Pegasus Books in the USA and Hollands Diep in the Netherlands. Let's de-bunk those pirate myths. Did they really have to walk the plank? Why do we picture pirates always having a pet parrot? What life wa...

Let's talk Regency Scandals , and one in particular.... Caroline of Brunswick, her relationship with Thomas Ash, the so-called 'nunnery' at Frogmore and Spencer Percival, the first ever assassinated British Prime Minister. How do they all fit into this story? Let's scratch the surface... James Travers , of the National Archives fame, is back on the podcast, and we'll be talking about his book The...

Today we’re talking to Helen Carr about her new book Sceptred Isle: A New History of the Fourteenth Century. How did this 100 year period change England? Let's find out. Welcome, Helen! Get Sceptred Isle: https://www.hatchards.co.uk/book/sceptred-isle/helen-carr/9781529157345 (UK) https://www.amazon.com/Sceptred-Isle-Revolutionary-History-Fourteenth/dp/1529151651/ (USA) Get The Red Prince, John of...

Today we're talking to Jane Hayter-Hames and her wonderful book on the lesser known of the Stuart eras: the Puritan Rule under Oliver Cromwell, published by Amberley . Welcome, Jane! Get Puritan Rule Under Cromwell : https://www.amberley-books.com/puritan-rule-under-cromwell.html Find Jane: https://www.hayterhames.co.uk/ Get The Fall of Charles I: https://www.amberley-books.com/author-community-ma...

We continue our #MightyMargarets series! Today we present to you our chat with Linda Porter about her book The Thistle and The Rose published by Head of Zeus, which tells the story of Margaret Tudor, English Princess, sister of Henry VIII. Margaret went on to marry the Scottish king James IV, and thus became the grandmother to the future Mary Queen of Scots and great-grandmother to James VI &...

Dear listener, Today we present to you our chat with PETER JAMES BOWMAN, the author of The Real Persuasion: Portrait of a Real-Life Jane Austen Heroine , published with Amberley .  The book is a non-fiction account of a young woman named Catherine, whose own romance resembled that of Anne Elliot, in Jane Austen’s novel Persuasion . The peculiar thing about it all is the fact that Jane Austen...

Today we start a new series, dedicated to Blighty’s great historic locations - today we talk to the lovely Georgina who works at Hatfield House, a gorgeous historic manor found in Hertfordshire, famous for being the childhood home of Elizabeth I. Let’s find out more.   Visit Hatfield: https://hatfield-house.co.uk/ https://hatfield-house.co.uk/explore/the-old-palace/ https://www.greatbrit...

Today we sit down with illustrator, actor, playwright and producer Laura Crow to talk about her new project Vile, The Tudor Play. This delicious production looks at the story of Jane Parker, a.k.a. Jane Boleyn, from a new angle.   See Vile: https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/53two/t-nopxgad Find Vile : https://www.tudorsociety.com/vile-the-radical-redemption/ https://www.instagram.com/vile_thetud...

Good news - The New York Times Best-selling author JOHN MATTHEWS is back on the show, this time we’ll be talking about The Book of Merlin: Magic, Legend and History , published by Amberley . Who was Merlin? Did he actually exist? What has Wales got to do with him? And what is the larger context of the Merlin and Arthurian myths? Let’s dig in… Happy #MerlinMonday !   The Book of Merlin : https...

Please welcome historian Anna Whitelock and we’ll be talking today about her fabulous new book - The Sun Rising: James I and the Dawn of a Global Britain , published by Bloomsbury (UK) & Viking Press (USA). This is a wonderful account of James VI and I’s working life. What was his connection to the colonies? How global was Britain’s presence during his reign? And is it true that he was once in...

Have you ever heard of Russian Jews seeking new life in Galveston, Texas, after the pogroms in Imperial Russia? Now you have. Today we talk to Rachel Cockerell, whose ancestor was responsible for this movement, and whose first book on this subject, told entirely with the voice of primary sources, was voted The Times and The Sunday Times Book of the year. Let’s find out more… Get Melting Point : ht...

We continue our #MightyMargarets series! Good news! Lauren Johnson is back on the podcast, this time we’re talking about the great Tudor matriarch - Margaret Beaufort, the subject of Lauren’s upcoming book. Did Margaret know how to have fun? What part did femininity play in her life? What was it like to have her as your boss? And what do swans have to do with Margaret Beaufort? Let's find out... P...

We chat with Dr Joanne Paul about her new book - Thomas More: Life and Death in Tudor England . (published by Penguin in UK and Simon and Schuster in USA). Please pour yourself a cup of Countess Grey and start a drinking game on how many times Joanne and I are going to say ‘More’... when talking about one of the greatest figures of the Tudor age - Sir Thomas More… Please watch/ binge/ indulge...

This year we’re celebrating 250th anniversary of the birth of Jane Austen. Today we sit down with John Mullan about his book What Matters in Jane Austen? , which has just been re-released by Bloomsbury Publishing . What Matters in Jane Austen? https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/what-matters-in-jane-austen-9781526693945/ (UK) https://www.amazon.com/What-Matters-Jane-Austen-Crucial/dp/1620400421/ (USA) T...

Today is the anniversary of the First Battle of St Albans , which was fought in 1455, making it the first battle of the Wars of the Roses; and to talk about it today our guest is Jackson van Uden.  Welcome back, Jackson! Find Jackson: https://historywithjackson.co.uk/ https://www.instagram.com/historywithjackson/ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxXh8pNeS7gdE377kgrNOIw Dictators by Jackson va...

Welcome to a new episode of our #StuartSpring series.  We’l be talking to Steven Veerapen about his book on ANNA OF DENMARK, wife to James VI and I. Anna married James in 1589, thus becoming Queen Consort of Scotland, and when he inherited the English throne upon the death of Elizabeth I, she Anna became queen of England as well, thus becoming the first British Queen. Anna of Denmark: ht...

Today is the anniversary of Anne Boleyn’s execution. As we know, her French connections didn’t save her, despite strongly forged links some years previously. Today we talk to Estelle Paranque and ask her all about Anne and her daughter Elizabeth’s relationship with The French Powers-that-Be… Bienvenue, Estelle! Get Thorns, Lust and Glory : https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/451206/thorns-lust-and-glo...

Continuing on from Margaret of Anjou, today we have a new episode for the #MightyMargaret series. This one is about MARGARET OF YORK, or as she became known after marriage, Margaret of Burgundy. This of course is the sister to Edward IV, George, Duke of Clarence, and Richard III. The in/famous Duchess who helped strengthen the links between England and Burgundy during her brothers' lives, but who...

Stuart Spring continues! Please welcome historian Gareth Russell and we’lll be talking today about his latest book Queen James, published by William Collins. This is a new biography of James VI of Scotland, I of England, which makes us see James in a whole new light. Let’s find out more. Get Queen James : https://harpercollins.co.uk/products/queen-james-the-life-and-loves-of-britains-first-king-ga...

Right trusty and well beloved, we greet you well! Today we’re sitting down with historian Lauren Johnson and talking about the life and times of Margaret of Anjou, the long-suffering wife of Henry VI of England. She was called the She-Wolf of France, she was villainised by the Yorkists during the Wars of the Roses and by Shakespeare long after her death. Did she deserve this fate? Let’s talk to La...

Welcome to our Royal Romance season. We’re continuing with the #StuartSpring series, but this is the finale of the Royal Valentines season. Today we’re going to look at two Stuart couples that found love within their marriage, despite their unions being arranged. First up, we have Mark Turnbull who will tell us all about Elisabeth Stuart , daughter of James VI & I, and her husband Frederick V...

Right trusty and well beloved, we greet you well! Welcome to SEASON EIGHT of If It Ain’t Baroque…your independent history podcast! This new season we’re kicking off with a brand new mini series dedicated to the Stuarts, titled #StuartSpring .  As our guest today we have Steven Veerapen , and we’ll be chatting all things Mary Queen of Scots. I say chatting, we’ll be busting some myths.  G...