Baked Battlefields

Join Alex Woody and Daddy History as they break down the Battle of Antioch. Whether you are a history buff or just curious about the past, this discussion puts the roman wars into perspective. We strip away the myths surrounding these roman clashes to reveal what actually happened. Understanding the context of these struggles helps explain the broader trajectory of the empire. Subscribe for weekly...

A historical breakdown of the Livonian Order that keeps getting hijacked by cat murder theories, confession booth horror stories, sushi‑body trauma, and the world’s worst medieval commander named Bruno. Educational? Barely. Entertaining? Absolutely.------------------------------------ 00:00 The Livonian Order and Its Historical Context 02:26 The Role of Religion and Politics in Medieval Livonia 05...

In 1298 , the Baltic Crusades became so politically tangled that the Christian city of Riga allied with the pagan Grand Duchy of Lithuania against the Christian Livonian Order . Yes. You read that correctly. In Part One of our Baked Battlefields episode on the Battle of Turaida , we break down the bitter rivalry between Riga and the Livonian Order, the struggle for control of medieval Livonia, and...

On May 25, 567 BCE , Roman tradition says Servius Tullius , the sixth king of Rome, celebrated a triumph over the Etruscans . But because this is early Roman history, the story comes wrapped in legend, propaganda, and some of the weirdest origin myths Rome ever produced. Before Rome was a republic, before it was an empire, it was a city-state trying to survive next to older, richer, scarier neighb...

In May 1096 , before the First Crusade ever reached Jerusalem, crusading mobs turned on Jewish communities in the Rhineland. In this episode of Baked Battlefields , we cover the Massacre of Worms , where around 800 Jews were killed during one of the earliest and most devastating outbreaks of anti-Jewish violence connected to the First Crusade. The Jewish community of Worms was ancient, established...

In 1436 , Swedish rebel leader Engelbrekt Engelbrektsson was assassinated near Örebro after leading one of the most important uprisings in medieval Scandinavian history. What started as anger over taxes, trade disruption, and foreign officials under the Kalmar Union exploded into a national rebellion backed by miners, peasants, nobles, and townspeople. Engelbrekt became the face of resistance agai...

In 711 , a relatively small force crossed from North Africa into Europe — and within a few years, an entire kingdom collapsed. In this episode of Baked Battlefields , we break down the Islamic conquest of Hispania, beginning with the landing at Gibraltar by Tariq ibn Ziyad and culminating in the decisive Battle of Guadalete . Facing a larger but divided Visigothic force under Roderic , Tariq’s arm...

In 1152 , the Kingdom of Jerusalem wasn’t fighting an external enemy — it was fighting itself. In this episode of Baked Battlefields , we break down how Baldwin III marched on his own capital to take full control from his mother, Melisende , after years of shared rule turned into a power struggle. The conflict ended with a tense siege inside Jerusalem itself, as Baldwin forced his way into the cit...

In 1175 , long before he became famous for fighting the Crusaders, Saladin fought one of the most important battles of his career — not against Christians, but against rival Muslim rulers who didn’t believe he should control Syria. At the Battle of the Horns of Hama , Saladin faced the forces of the Zengids , who saw his rapid rise as a threat. The battle was decisive — once the Zengid line broke,...

On April 6, 46 BC , on the North African coast, two Roman armies faced off in one of the final battles of the Roman Republic. In this episode of Baked Battlefields , we break down the Battle of Thapsus , where Julius Caesar faced the last major Republican forces led by Metellus Scipio and supported by Cato the Younger . The battle featured war elephants, veteran legions, and a turning point that w...

In 598 CE , a massive Avar–Slavic army surrounded the Byzantine stronghold of Tomis on the Black Sea coast. The city was cut off, the siege tightened, and it looked like another Byzantine frontier city was about to fall. But the battle for Tomis didn’t end with a dramatic charge or a broken wall — it ended with disease spreading through the Avar army. As plague tore through the camps, their leader...

On March 23, 625 , outside the city of Medina , a battle took place that would become one of the most important lessons in early Islamic history. In this episode of Baked Battlefields , we break down the Battle of Uhud , where the forces led by Muhammad faced the army of the Quraysh one year after the Battle of Badr. Early success turned into a difficult defeat when a key group of archers left the...

On March 16, 597 BC , the Neo-Babylonian Empire surrounded Jerusalem, forced its surrender, and changed the course of history without completely destroying the city—yet. In this episode of Baked Battlefields , we break down the First Siege of Jerusalem , when Nebuchadnezzar II captured the city and deported its king, elites, and skilled population to Babylon. Instead of total annihilation, this wa...

On March 9, 1226 , a ruler whose empire had just been shattered by the Mongols marched into the Caucasus looking for revenge, power, and a new base of control. In this episode of Baked Battlefields , we break down the Conquest of Tbilisi , when Jalal ad-Din Mingburnu , the last ruler of the Khwarazmian Empire, captured the Georgian capital during his desperate attempt to rebuild power after the Mo...

On March 2, 537, Rome — no longer the capital of an empire but still the most symbolic city on Earth — was surrounded by an Ostrogoth army determined to take it back. In this episode of Baked Battlefields, we break down the opening of the Siege of Rome, where Belisarius and a tiny Byzantine force faced the army of Vitiges. Belisarius personally rode out near the Flaminian Gate with his elite bucel...

On February 23, 303, Roman emperor Diocletian ordered the destruction of a Christian church in Nicomedia — launching what would become the most intense persecution of Christians in Roman history. In this episode of Baked Battlefields, we break down the start of the Diocletianic Persecution — a campaign built not on battlefield victories but on imperial edicts, bureaucracy, and fear of losing contr...

On February 16, 1270, heavily armored crusader knights charged across frozen ground expecting an easy victory… and learned the hard way that ice doesn’t care about your armor. In this episode of Baked Battlefields, we break down the Battle of Karuse, where the Grand Duchy of Lithuania defeated the Livonian Order during the Northern Crusades. Lithuania used terrain, patience, and winter itself as a...

On February 9, 1003, a duke got his throne back the medieval way—by calling his cousin, who showed up with an army. In this episode of Baked Battlefields, we break down the armed restoration of Boleslaus III, who reclaimed power in Bohemia with military backing from Bolesław I the Brave. There was no glorious battlefield clash—but there was an armed intervention, political violence, executions, an...

On February 2, 880, a Frankish king thought he was chasing Viking raiders. Instead, he ran straight into a professional war machine. In this episode of Baked Battlefields, we break down the Battle of Lüneburg Heath, where Louis III underestimated the Great Heathen Army—and paid for it with his life. On open heathland in Saxony, Viking infantry turned, counterattacked, shattered the Frankish army,...

The Battle of Ula (January 26, 1564) On January 26, 1564, a confident Russian army marched through the winter forests of Eastern Europe—and walked straight into one of the most devastating ambushes of the 16th century. In this episode of Baked Battlefields, we break down the Battle of Ula, where the Grand Duchy of Lithuania used patience, terrain, and discipline to absolutely dismantle a much larg...

The Conquest of Kucha (January 19, 649 CE) In 649 CE, far from China’s heartland, a desert city at the crossroads of the Silk Road made a decision that quietly reshaped Eurasian power. In this episode of Baked Battlefields, we break down the Conquest of Kucha, when Tang dynasty forces under the steppe-born general Ashina She’er laid siege to the oasis kingdom of Kucha for forty days and forced its...

The Palermo Rising (January 12, 1848) On January 12, 1848, the people of Palermo chose violence—as a birthday present. In this episode of Baked Battlefields, we break down how a popular uprising in Palermo, Sicily exploded into full-scale urban warfare against the Bourbon Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, ruled by Ferdinand II—a man so fond of shelling his own cities that history nicknamed him King Bom...

On January 5, 1477 , the fate of Burgundy—and the future shape of France—was decided in the snow outside the city of Nancy. In this episode of Baked Battlefields , we break down how Charles the Bold , one of the richest and most aggressive rulers in late medieval Europe, ignored advice, refused retreat, and bet everything on a winter siege he couldn’t win. Opposing him was René II , backed by Swis...